Look Who's Crawling

I love watching each of the boys reach new milestones.  Gavin's latest feat: crawling!  The journey began when Gavin learned to roll.  He could roll over when he was a tiny baby, but he really began rolling when he was about 5 months old.  He would roll around the room, sometimes running right into walls and corners.  Ouch.  After he discovered that it was fun to be mobile, Gavin would roll onto his stomach and push himself up-- just like this.

Then, as he grew stronger, he began to pull himself up onto all fours, like this.  

Then, he began rocking back and forth on all fours, with the occasional grunt as if to say "Move legs, move!"  No luck.  He simply could not figure out how to get those knees to move forward.  His solution?  I call it the "inchworm".  Gavin pulls himself up onto all fours, then slinks forward onto his belly, pulls himself back up to all fours, and then back again to the belly.  The result: Gavin's own version of crawling!  He has gotten quite efficient at it and can "inch" around the room now.  Lookout Brayden and Landon--  Gavin's catching up quickly!  

Now That's Entertainment!

The other day I was trying to get the boys ready and out the door quickly.  I put Gavin in the highchair and gave him a toy to entertain himself with while I got the older two ready.  Gavin started to fuss because he dropped his toy, so I asked Landon to pick it up and put it back on Gavin's tray.  When I checked Gavin's tray to make sure that Landon had obeyed my request, here is what I found.   Landon had piled the tray full of every baby toy we had in the house!  Good job, Landon!  Way to look out for your brother!  Gavin looks a tad bit overwhelmed, but hey, it's the thought that counts, right?  

Splash Park

There is a splash park at the Streamwood Park District that we like to visit.  We will probably be heading there again this week!  These are pictures from last week's visit.  It's a great place to play because the boys can run around in the water and I don't have to worry about them falling in or drowning.  Both boys are such water babies-- they love getting wet.  Unfortunately, we walked out of the door without shoes for Landon, and he ran barefoot right through a huge field of flowers.  You guessed it, he got stung by a bee!  Right on the toe.  Ouch!  Oh, and Gavin WAS there... I just didn't take any pictures of him.  I feel like all of the pictures of Gavin are the same.  He needs to start getting up and running around!  Makes for much more interesting photography moments!  

Laundry Mess

This is pretty much what our laundry area always looks like--- although boy headfirst in basket is completely optional.  

Roomie Cookout

Back row:  Maddie, Lilly holding Calvin, Landon, Brayden, Hannah

Front row:  Gavin, Ashton, Jadyn

Calvin kissing Gavin

Hannah (Melissa's daughter)

Maddie (Melissa's daughter)

Lilly (Gretchen's daughter)

Calvin (Gretchen's son)

Jadyn  (Laura's daughter)

Ashton (Laura's son)

On Saturday, we got all of the roomies and families together for a cookout.  It was so nice to see everyone and spend time catching up/laughing/eating/playing with kids.  I have never really had the chance to spend an extended amount of time with any of my roommates kids before, and they were just all so sweet, cute, and well-behaved.  The kids loved bouncing in the moonbounce, and the guys enjoyed playing bags and another game that I don't know the name of.  We even attempted a picture of all of the kids, which was difficult as always, but it will be fun to look back on as the kids grow older, and the families keep expanding!  I also tried to take a close-up of every kid, but some turned out better than others.  

Far From Perfect

So in the spirit of my far-from-perfect life (see previous post), I've decided to capture these imperfections on camera.  The first photos are of Landon, who for dinner last night ate only rice and ice cream.  Yup, that's it.  Rice and ice cream.  And I gave him the ice cream to bribe him to actually eat the rice.   See, he's going through a non-eating stage right now, where he will literally skip breakfast, lunch, and dinner and drink only milk and juice to get him through the day.  I'm worried that he's not getting enough nutrition, so I am trying to force him to eat.  Well, as the pictures prove, he really played with more than he ate, but oh well.  At least it's something in that cute tummy of his.

Then the second picture was taken today at nap time.  After coming home from a 2 hour trip to the grocery store (yup, that's how empty our fridge was!), the boys enjoyed splashing in the puddles in our driveway.  They were soaking wet, and I didn't want them to track the mud water all over the house.  So I had them take off their clothes and sent them upstairs to change.  After getting Landon dressed and down for a nap, I walked in to Brayden's room to find him in this interesting position.  He didn't know I snapped a photo, and will probably hate me for taking it later in life, but what are mothers for??  To be honest, I shut the door and left him in there naked, so I have no idea if he ever ended up getting dressed.  We'll see what he's wearing when he wakes up from his nap!

It's All About Jesus

Brayden recently spent a week doing VBS through our church, where the theme was "It's all about Jesus".  That theme has been ringing in my head the past few weeks, and I'm feeling very reflective right now.  I want to confess my pursuit of perfection, something I've dealt with my whole life.  Many times I strive for perfection.... having the perfect home, perfect kids, perfect personality, perfect life... and I put Christ on the backburner.  How is it possible to have a perfect life?  It's not.  Yet, I keep striving, keep working toward perfection, when I am missing out on the true reason for living.  "It's all about Jesus".  Such a simple message that we spent a week teaching the preschoolers at VBS.  Yet here I am, a grown woman, and I haven't even grasped the concept.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my head be pleasing to you.  May I slow down each day, forsake my pride, and focus on you.  May I truly enjoy these passing moments with my kids... the messes, the bruises, the shouts, and the imperfections... and treasure them for who you created them to be.  May I never push them to be something they are not.  Lord, I pray that I may be a reflection of you and you alone.   May it be through your strength and your spirit that I live each day.  May I always remember "It's all about you Jesus".  

4th of July

We had a very fun 4th of July.  We started out the morning with the parade in Arlington Heights. We were joined by all of the cousins on the Follett side.  It was so cute to watch Brayden and Landon during the parade.  They LOVED the motorcycles, Corvettes, fire trucks, and military vehicles.  

After the parade, we headed to Dave and Martine's house for a cookout.  Unfortunately, Ronnie came down with a fever and was unable to go.  But, we did snap a shot of Landon and Samantha holding hands.  (future love....)   =)

Finally, we caught the fireworks display in Crystal Lake on Sunday night.  It was so buggy outside that it was hard to sit and enjoy them.  Landon and Brayden didn't seem to mind the bugs.  They really seemed to enjoy the 'booms'.  Happy 4th!

Taste of Chicago

On Friday, Ronnie and I went down to the Taste of Chicago with our friends Dave and Martine.  After finding a ridiculously good deal on a parking spot, we headed to the Taste.  It was SO crowded.  We could barely move as we walked through the crowds.  It was nuts!  After the Taste, Ronnie and Dave took some really nice photos of the city while Martine and I stopped at Starbucks for some drinks.  It was great to spend time with Dave and Martine!