Tis' the Season for Hot Chocolate!

Last weekend I got my camera back! I wish I could say that I have a bunch of new and exciting pictures, but I can't. Things have been pretty 'quiet' around here. That doesn't refer to the actual noise or energy level of the house- it just means no big news. Wyatt is still a little parrot. He has too many words to list. He is also developing his animal sounds. Goat and cat are my personal favorites. Wish this was a blog with sound. His noises and ramblings are hilarious and almost nonstop. Today he is pretty sick. He is running a super high temperature. Other than to take naps and a 20 minute trot around the living room (during which he managed to partially unwrap a couple presents, tear up some mail and terrorize Noah) he has been laying in my lap all day with his bottle in one hand and his quilt in the other. It is so sad. A super high fever for a day or two seems to be the way his body fights even the most minor bug. I am not medicating him and letting his body burn out whatever it is so he will be feeling better for the upcoming festivities. If you look back at my blogs from this time last year I'm sure there are some entries about a fever or two. This time I know that is how he gets sick and I am not going to put him through any traumatic doctor's appointments.
Last weekend Greg's parents watched the boys and Greg and I visited Waco. We attended Uncle Blair and Aunt Regina's church's Christmas presentation and then stayed the night and part of the next day with my cousins, Dan and Amanda. We had a great time visiting with family and it was incredibly relaxing. I wish the boys had been with us to play with their cousins and feed chickens. But of course they had a blast with their grandparents and didn't even pause when they saw us come in the door. I think Noah only got in the car with us because we told him that we were going to be back in a week for Christmas.
This weekend we are going to have some quality family time, just the four of us, before setting out for the grandparents'. This may be the last update for awhile, but I will return with Christmas pics. I am determined to get more and better pictures than I did last year.
My pictures do not match my text very well. Sorry. The first one is me enjoying my hot chocolate the same way every mom with toddlers enjoys everything! The next one is Noah sliding down the new firepole Greg added to the swingset. As you can see, Noah has it mastered. Most kids that come over are too scared to try it. It is ten feet high. The last picture is our lettuce. Our summer garden was somewhat prodcutive but always looked on the verge of death. However, our winter garden this year is beautiful. I wish I had planted more. Right now we have lettuce and spinach and the peas and carrots are coming along. Much to Greg's delight, and my bewilderment, we have cilantro popping up everywhere. I think Wyatt may have spilled some seeds. This has been perfect winter weather for fast, robust veggies. I even have tomatoes ripening on my widowsill that I got off my last tomato plant just before it melted in the last frost. Homegrown tomatoes in December! Gotta love Texas.

Ho Ho- Ahhhhhhh!

The past couple of weeks have been filled with lots of friends, family and Christmas shopping. Last Friday the boys and I visited Christie and Ben way up in Cedar Park. We took the boys to go see Santa. Noah almost got sucked into an elevator (mostly my fault), we had to wait in a really long lign for Santa and then Noah peed in Santa's lap (only because we were next in line when Noah told me he had to go and I didn't want to lose our place and made him 'hold' it). Luckily, it was a frontal accident and I don't think Santa even noticed. Ben and Wyatt were both terrified of Santa. He managed to soothe Wyatt with a book long enough to get a picture. Christie and I were not going to pay $20 for a 5x7 from a guy with a digital camera and a printer, so we took pictures for each other. Our screaming baby Santa pictures are just as good as his were! After the mall we went back to Christie's house and the babies napped, played and ran amok. I managed to leave my sunglasses and my camera at Christie's house. So that explains why there are no pictures from this weekend. Christie, who loves to show off pictures of her kid as much as I do, emailed me the pictures we had taken so I could have something to blog about. But I still haven't gotten all the pictures off my email so hop on over to Christie's blog to see more from that day.

Brothers

Fuzzy Wuzzy....

Before I get a bunch of nasty comments and phone calls, let me explain. I really thought Wyatt needed a haircut! It was in his eyes and getting tiny, but impossible, tangles in the back. If I just kept cutting it along his eyebrows and next then pretty soon he'd have a goofy, poofy bowl cut. Plus, I did it after a day of tangles and pulling food out of it. Good thing I don't have a girl because when I am in a moment of frustration with the boys' hair I just pull out my trimmers. I did use the longest guard I have on Wyatt. I couldn't beleive how much he had- I cut off about 4" on the top! I miss his hair and regret cutting it. In my opinion, he now looks like the class bully. Not in this picture, of course. I wouldn't post anything too unflattering unless it was just too funny not to. Noah took this picture and several more really good ones of Wyatt smiling. Wyatt is more willing to smile for Noah than for me.
Other than giving and receiving bad haricuts, this week we have spent a good majority of our time on the playground. Here is Wyatt riding his new swing for the first time. I had to plead for Greg to put in a swing for Wyatt, but it turns out that we should have put in two or three. I spend most of my days now pushing the boys on the swing, breaking up fights over the swing and laying out a swing ride schedule for them and our neighbor's kids. The swing is a big hit. Noah and Wyatt want to be on the playground all the time now. I'm glad it got chilly out so at least when I drag them in kicking and screaming they settle down a little easier when I wipe their runny noses and they realize they can feel their fingers again. I'm very proud of Wyatt's vocabulary, but I am beginning to hate the words 'outside' and 'swing'.
Wyatt is totally focused on talking right now. He tries repeating just about everything and is very particular about his pronounciation. He does tend to put a 'y' at the end of somethings. Like 'hugy' instead of 'hug'. He says 'brrrr' when he goes out in the cold and waves his arms and tries to say 'peee-ewwww' when I change his diaper. I recently discovered that 'mommy' means he wants something to drink. An urgent, loud 'MAW-MEEEEE' means he wants a bottle (which I'm trying to wean him from so my doctor won't give me that 'tsk, tsk, bad mom' look the next time I take him in). Of course he lovingly calls Greg 'dad', usually over and over again when he is playing with him. I guess he doesn't feel the need to give me a title. Isn't the whole reason we have names is to get each other's attention? He obviously feels like he already has all of mine, and most of the time I feel the same way. He is working on saying 'Noah', but right now it sounds like 'No-nah' which is still pretty cute. He just woke up from his nap so I better go!