Red Hat

My boys discovered a fun little game today.  Jax shares his precious red hat with Miles and then proceeds to chase Miles around the house yelling "I want my red hat back!"  Miles loved this game and it provided lots of entertain for them and for my mom and me as we watched it.  Miles hardly ever keeps hats on his head, but you could tell he loved having his big brother's hat on.  I love watching the bond they are starting to really form. 

I mean seriously, this kid is pretty darn cute.

Owsley Christmas

Today all the Owsleys came over to celebrate Christmas.  This is our first Christmas without Gey which was hard.  She would have loved this gathering though and that made it very special.  I hosted for the first time and loved having everyone here, so did the boys.

We played, ate some great food (that I can't take credit for at all) and then let the little ones open presents before heading to bed.

I love dressing the boys in matching outfits. 

Apparently I get that trait from Gey as she did the same thing to my Uncles Larry and Pat when they were little.

Miles isn't feeling well and was so so tired.  He still had fun, but by this point it was pretty obvious he was ready for bed.

This was the first time most of us got to meet the newest Owsley, David.  Since his dad's name is David as well I think most of us started calling him Little Dave.  Hope the parents don't mind.

Jax was all about helping the baby open his presents.

When it was time for the boys to head to bed I got them all changed into their pjs and then let them say goodnight.  Jax went around and gave everyone a hug.

It might not be up there with the exit of the Von Trapp kids, but it sure was precious.

Gatherings like these are why I love the holidays, just taking time to slow down and visit with family.

It was great.

Dear God

Since I have been doing Jax's bedtime routine we have started doing a prayer.  I love that Jax already folds his hands when I tell him it is time to say our prayers.  Every night we thank God for Mommy, Daddy, Jax and Miles and usually grandparents as well.  Then I ask Jax what he is thankful for.  He sitll doesn't give answers to this question much, but tonight I got my first answer from him.  His response, "feet!" 

Alright kid, thank you God for our feet. Such a practical little guy.

KaLightoscope Christmas

Today's Christmas activity was to head to the Galt House hotel for their KaLightoscope Christmas exhibit.  It is am amazing lighted area with all these great decorations for the holidays.  The area with lighted displays was by far the coolest part.

 

After you walk (or run in our case) through all the lighted areas you get to go ride on Santa's sleigh, write a letter to Santa with you Christmas list, see a giant gingerbread house (that Jax tried to eat a piece of) and ride on a train (that Jax sat on, but then wanted off before they could start). This was us in front of the green screen.

 Link to see the sleigh ride.

The boys absolutely loved it and my mom might have liked it even more, especially because she got to see displays from the old Stewart's Department store that my Grandmother took her to at Christmas each year when she was a kid.

 

 We finished the outing off with some gingerbread cookies and that is what I call a good day.

Christmas Cookies

Day 11 of the Christmas Advent and we are baking Christmas cookies with YaYa and Aunt Kelsey!  My mom had some big ambitions for these cookies and I am pretty sure we slowed down the whole process substantially, but it was a lot of fun.  The boys helped a little and then ran around the rest of the time.  :)

Jax didn't quite get the concept of "stir in slowly" and opted to just dump the entire bag of coconut all at once. 

Miles just wanted to grab and handful and try it out for himself.

We left to come home for bedtime before all the cookies were done, but I expect a big box full of them to be over here tomorrow!

Spreading Christmas Cheer

Today's Christmas Advent activity was mailing Christmas cards!  Jax loved putting all the mail in the mailbox.  I think we might need to start sending letter more often, there is just something special about it.

Thankful

At the end of this month I can't help but think of all the things I am so incredibly thankful for.  I am thankful for my parents who are always there to support me and prove daily that you are never too old to need your parents love, help and support.  I am thankful for my brother for being there for me and being a great uncle to my boys, and mostly for picking the right girl and finally getting me the sister I have always wanted.  :)  I am thankful for the most amazing group of friends that live both close and hours away (some across the country) that are here to support me and always available for anything I need, including a good laugh.  Finally, and most importantly, I am thankful for my boys who are the absolute light of my life and give me more joy than I ever imagined was possible.

Eleven Months Old

Dear Miles,
Almost a year and you are taking off.  This month brought your first steps!  You have been working so hard on those precious steps and are so so proud of yourself, we are too.  Crawling is still by far your faster mode of transportation, but that doesn't stop you for practicing your steps all the time.  You are "talking" so much these days and I feel like those first real words are going to be coming any day now.  This is such a fun time with you as we watch you grow and explore everything around you.  You seem so grown up now and that is a little bittersweet as we know that our baby will soon become a toddler.  This month you have discovered a love of books.  Even when you are tired and fussy (which isn't that often for you) you will instantly calm down if we get out a book to read.  You will sit on our lap and stare at the book for as long as it is open.  One of your favorite books seems to be "Eight Silly Monkeys."  This seems perfect as we call you our little monkey very often.  You really are hard to keep still these days, you squirm at the sight of a new diaper and we enjoy watching you before gymnastics to keep anyone from changing your clothes.  You think this is a fantastic game to play.

You eat, and eat, and eat, so much food these days.  Right now you love fruits (especially watermelon), pizza, mashed sweet potatoes and meatballs the most, but there are many other foods you will happily try.  This appetite is still waking you up overnight, but we are assuming that you are just a growing boy and that will stop sooner, as least we are hopeful.  :)  We love you so much sweet Miles and can't believe you will be one in one month.  Time sure does fly when you are having fun.

Love, Mom and Dad

  

Ten Months Old

Dear Miles,
We have hit the double digits!  I cannot believe you are so close to turning one year old.  Then again, you have looked that old for awhile so I should be ready for it!  You are such a sweet sweet soul and that is the one thing that isn't really changing.  You are such a busy boy these days.  You constantly chase after your brother and still want to be doing whatever your big brother is doing.  You are also still pretty attached to your mommy as well though and she certainly doesn't mind.  Your father refers to you as "Mommy's baby" and you certainly are that.  We think even if we have another kid someday you will remain the baby.  Just our sweet little one that wants to cuddle and be held tight.

Speaking of cuddling, you have developed a new routine.  As you were before going to sleep on your own, you have suddenly started getting up a few minutes after being put down and fussing for us to come in.  When we come in you stop fussing immediately and just want to be held.  It is some of the sweetest times we have all day.  We rock you in your chair, sing lullaby's to you, and just look at your sweet face and you stare up at us.  Then after a few songs you are happy and ready to go back to bed.  We both love this special time with you and are so glad you seem to love it too. 

You are still standing on your own and while you can keep your balance for a few seconds on your own, you much prefer to hold on to one of us or some furniture.  You do love to use the wagon walker though and you love to push the little chairs around the room.  It seems like it will be so soon that you are taking off.  No matter how fast you start moving though, you will always be out little baby.

We love you,
Mommy and Daddy

Ready for School

So Jax starts preschool next week.  It is so hard to believe he is old enough for preschool, but I know he is more than ready.  He did so great with summer camp this summer and this will be the perfect environment for him.  The kid already can count to 20, sing the ABC's (he might mumble through a couple of letters though), knows his colors and his shapes.  He is ready ... well, almost.  First we had to get him a big boy haircut and a new pair of tennis shoes!

He has been doing so well at getting his haircut.  Today when we walked into the salon he ran up to Julie and gave her a big hug before sitting down.  A little Curious George on the iphone also helps him sit still. :)

Miles is taking notes for when it is his turn in the big chair.  At the rate his hair is growing, it won't be long before we are getting his first haircut.

 

Jax was pretty excited to get a sucker after he was done this time.  First time I have let him have one after and he kept saying "Mmmm, green sucker GOOD!"  I think he liked it.

After naps we headed out to the mall to get some new shoes.  Jax's current shoes still fit, but are getting a little snug.  Plus, it just seems like a tradition that you need new shoes before school starts, right? He insisted on both his red hat and green glasses when we left.  The kid is too cool for his own good.

Really important people keep their shades on inside the store.

Of course, no trip to the mall is complete without a stop for pretzel bites.  My kids can crush a full cup of these.  I am pretty sure Miles ate as many as Jax.

It is hard to believe that school is right around the corner, but we are ready.  At the end of the week we meet Jax's preschool teachers and then next week he starts!

Nana's Birthday

We got to celebrate Nana's birthday today and the whole family got together. Being the only children in the family right now, the boys get lots and lots of attention. 

Miles got to spend some fun time with his Uncle Tyler.

Tyler seemed to be loving it.

As much as the boys like everyone else in the family, 

sometimes they just want their dad ... at the same time. 

Jax is finally starting to figure out this whole gift thing.  Not only is there something in the bag, but you get to pull all the tissue paper out first!  Armed with this information he decided Nana obviously needed some help opening her presents.

Only grandkids can get away with giving pictures of themselves as presents.

After the presents were opened it was time for cake.  Jax seemed pretty excited that he is old enough to have some of the cake now.  I mean, it was chocolate.

Happy Birthday Nana!

The First Rule of Little Brothers

Soooo, we have hit a little hurdle in our house.  Miles is up and EVERYWHERE.  There is no containing this kid and this includes keeping him from his brother and his brother's toys.  If I had a nickle for every time I hear "No Miles, NOOOOO" I would be loaded.  The problem is I don't really know the best way to deal with this situation.  I want Jax to learn sharing and realize that everything isn't his.  On the other hand, I really empathize with him when he is playing with something and Miles comes over grabbing at everything. I feel like he should have the right to have some things that are off limits to his baby brother, but Jax wants everything off limits and, well, that can't happen.  

Funny enough, one of the two books Jax wants to read every night before bed is his "brother book."

It pretty accurately describes this phase.  "The one day he began to move!  Creeping and crawling closer and closer; coming toward me.  First he touched, next he grabbed -- all my stuff!

 A big problem is, Miles is stronger than the average 9 month old.  He easily pulls some toys out of Jax's hands.  Of course he just wants to play with Jax and still acts like a 9 month old.  To Jax though, he seems much more like a Bro-zilla than a baby brother. 

So I don't know the right answer here.  There are a couple of Jax's favorite toys that I try to make sure Miles doesn't get a hold of.  Other things have to be shared.  However, Miles can't really play with some of the toys the way that Jax wants to play (as in Miles just wants to try to eat many toys) so if Miles would just mess up Jax's way of playing, like say building a block tower, I try to redirect Miles to something else.  It is a learning process for us all and it is times like these that I really wish kids came with instruction manuals.