Lesson learned

Don't tell a 4 year old that Santa left a big present under the tree because we were at grandma's house. A nap on the 4.5 hour car ride is out of the question.

Holiday lights

I just got an iPhone. Pictures and post all came from it. So cool.

Little Smartie

Daycare is closed for 12 days, so I'm home with the kids today. I apparently must be tons of fun because nap time is always a struggle for me- although both kids will sleep nicely with Josh.

Today I gave the kids a 10 minute warning before nap. Adam flew into the room and yelled, "No mama, 2 minutes." I agreed with him, only to hear Elizabeth say, "No twelve minutes." The two of them started going back and forth, and finally Elizabeth said, "Adam, 12 is more than 2, so you have to ask for 12 more minutes."

Gotta like that thinking!

(And right now only one kid is sleeping. It just isn't my day!)

Hell on Wheels

Adam is definitely full swing into the terrible twos, and his big sister is catching the brunt of it. He is constantly pinching, pulling hair, biting, and overall just causing chaos.

Yesterday I picked him up at daycare, and Jackie reported that he was "hell on wheels."

I had to laugh at the very accurate description. So should I be pleased that he isn't just naughty for me or upset that he acts in such a way?

Unfortunately, I was happy that it wasn't just for me...

Crazy Kids

We are almost a month into the wrestling season, and oh my is it so much easier with a 2 and 4 year old. We have been having a blast playing, snuggling, and being messy in Josh's absence.

Some funny things:
- My children love goggles, although they never really use them for their proper purpose. It's hard to be mad at the fact that my bathroom floor is soaked when I'm greeted with these faces.

- Adam's favorite book right now is "Pinkalicious." Not your standard book of choice for a little boy, but I love that we are progressing to books with more than 5 words on a page.

- Adam will cry for me from his bed in the middle of the night. I ask him what's wrong, and he says, "I need you too much." Gotta love that sap!

- Elizabeth is always decked out in some random dress-up outfit...usually a dress that shows off her big belly. She still can't understand why most people don't want to have a big belly.

Overall we are having so much fun and can't wait for Christmas!

Over the River and Through the Woods

... On a hike around Oxbow Park we shall go!


With the new snow on the ground from yesterday, we went for a hike with the Gupta family Sunday morning. Here are some pictures:

Elizabeth enjoyed body flopping into the snow in addition to tasting as much as she could.

Adam was a true hiker, hitching a ride as often as possible.

After our hike, we went through the zoo and saw, among other things: snakes, wolves, coyotes, a mountain lion, lynx, and more.

Happy 30th Birthday Sam!

So Sam is now officially not a 20-something. But that doesn't mean that you don't get presents or cake! Friday night we had a pizza party before presents, and tonight the kids and I made a chocolate cake that Elizabeth and Adam picked at the store. And though you can't tell with the frosting on, that cake is in the shape of a bona fide Thomas the Tank train engine. That is one invaluable cake pan for one invaluable and newly minted 30 year old mother!

Happy 30th Samantha!

Spiderman Adam

Another awesome cake from Jackie. Adam had a great time at his daycare party with all of his friends.

Happy 2nd Birthday!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving. I had to post these pictures because it was so beautiful here- over 50 degrees! Elizabeth and Adam were able to run around outside and look for the skunk in the tunnel in Grandma Donna's front yard. Elizabeth was rocking it in a super cute dress that we forgot all about.

It was a calm holiday, but we ate yummy food and spent time with family. Then Coach Grant was off for more wrestling fun this morning.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Coolest Cake

Jackie made Elizabeth the coolest cake ever for her birthday. When she saw it, she was speechless, which is a feat with my children!

Happy 4th Birthday Elizabeth!

Happy Halloween!

Belle and Spiderman

Apple Orchard

We had a trip to the orchard to pick apples a couple of weeks ago. The kids love going with their cousins Kylie and Cael. Our favorite orchard was closed that day, so this Friday we took a trip. Feeding the goats was a major highlight. Adam kept saying, "Hi goats, hi goats." We also ran around the pumpkins, got our annual picture by the apple growth chart, and ate doughnuts. The best is always picking out mini pumpkins. All weekend they "decorated" the house with their 5 pumpkins and also the squash that we bought. They lined my headboard with them, so each night I had to take them off to avoid being knocked out by an acorn squash.

This trip is our big indicator of fall. Happy fall!

Time for a Vote!

Time for a vote. We are fairly certain that we will be in our 2 bedroom house for at least 6 months-2 years. Elizabeth is still in a toddler bed and will need to transition out of it in the next year, and Adam will move out of his crib. Because they share a room, we've been talking about options that don't require their whole room to be beds (especially since we don't have a play room.)

So...I found this loft bed that could fit a mattress underneath on the floor and become a bunk bed. It stands under 4 feet tall and although my kids have tumbled off beds, tables, and couches, I'm somewhat nervous about the bunk. So, what are your thoughts- will they be catapulting off this? (Leave your response in the comments or send me an e-mail).

22 Months!

Yesterday Adam turned 22 months old! I look at this picture of him, which hangs in my office, and I'm totally the most biased mother on the planet because he is so cute! His cuteness gets him very far in life. The tantrums and insistence to do everything himself is easily forgotten when he flashes that smile.

Some of my favorite things this month include: his love for Spiderman, his need to put his shoes on himself, his love for washing his hands all by himself after eating, saying, "I cold" which means I have a cold, and his need for snuggling even though he's a big boy!

Happy 22 months little man!

Wedding Critic

We have been a stretch of weddings- Will & Steph, Erin & Alan. This weekend Elizabeth attended her third wedding in a row. She wasn't in this one, so it only required showing up for the ceremony and reception. Josh took her home after eating, and once they got in the car she remarked, "Well, this one was short!"

Congratulations Will and Steph!

Finally...on 9-10-11 Will and Steph were married. Benjamin and Elizabeth were the cutest ones in the wedding (well besides Steph, of course!) The whole affair was so much fun, and the kids had a blast getting dressed up and dancing the night away.

Congrats!

Some of My Favorites

My Cheeky Monkey Studio, mycheekymonkeystudio.com

Sneak Peek

We just got our images back from a photo shoot taken by Cheeky Monkey Studio, www.mycheekymonkeystudio.com

Here's a sneak peek of the fabulous photos. More to come...

Back to School

Sending your kids to daycare is always filled with mixed emotions. Unfortunately we don't have the choice, so we worked hard to find an A++ daycare provider.

This morning the kids went back to daycare for the school year. As soon as Jackie opened her front door, Adam squealed with delight. It was so adorable. He was SO excited to be back!

Talk about making me feel like I made the right decision!

Loved This

21 Months

Today Adam is 21 months old. He is nearing the two year mark, and his behavior proves it: He is either absolutely adorable or a complete terror. Thankfully he doesn't stay angry too long.

At 21 months, Adam:

• Loves "driving" the car more than anything else. He would probably play in one of our cars for over an hour if we let him. (Consequently he screams every time that we put him in the car seat because he wants to play in the car.)
• Is really progressing in his language skills. He is putting sentences together, and you can see the wheels turning as he tries to express himself.
  
• Can almost get his pants on by himself. He fights putting on his pjs by himself, which ends up extending bedtime by 10 minutes.
• Uses the potty whenever sister is hanging out in the bathroom. He is nowhere near being ready for training. I'm sure he'll wait until the wrestling season!
  
• Runs everywhere, and is constantly trying to keep up with his big sister. They are pretty close in size, so he can carry his own weight in a fight now!
• Is a loveable, huggable little boy. Those blue eyes melt my heart!
  

Funny Photos to End the Summer

Here are some funny pictures from the week long stay at Grandma's house. Every Grandma has a ball pit in her living room- right?



Adam thought riding on the big mining trucks was awesome. I love these photos because Adam is happy as can be, and Elizabeth is in anguish in the background. (Usually it's the other way around.) The passenger seat was much closer to all the buttons, so there were big fights about who got that seat.

Random

Adam's thing in the last month or so is to ask "why?" about everything. It's pretty cute and funny.

Example: Mom- Adam, don't climb on the chair. Adam- why?
Adam- Mommy's home. Why?
Mom- We have to get ready for bed. Adam- why?

He also is exploring the Grant spitfire personality. I had both of the kids in the pool the other day. Adam insisted on climbing on the slide (the lifeguards think it's a big no, no. I just want to let him fall hard once so he can be done with it.) After minutes of screaming and crying, I passed him a pretend "naughty ticket." He willingly grabbed it, shoved it in his mouth, and said, "I ate it. All gone." Guess he showed me!

Kid Free

For the past three days, Josh and I have been without our kids. Adam and Elizabeth are staying at Grandma's house for four days and are having a blast. So what did we do without children? Paint the ceilings and clean the house. (How's that for fun?!) We debated between taking a trip and getting something done and decided that working without our two little helpers was the best choice.

We squeaked some fun in too. We went out to dinner, slept in late, and peed with the door closed. Now it's time for a House marathon...

A funny story from the weekend- Adam was pretty sad to go to sleep without his mom and cried into Kate's shoulder. The next morning, he woke up and said from his pack-n-play, "Momma?...Momma?...Josh?

20 Months Old

Yesterday Adam turned 20 months old. Here is a picture of him in his element. Adam is a total motorhead and loves anything with wheels. He got to go to the fair this week and most of his time was spent checking out the tractors.

A couple of weeks ago, Adam was having a total meltdown in our driveway. In the midst of his stomping fit, he heard a motorcycle passing and stopped, said "cycle", and then proceeded to finish his fit.

Happy 20 months old!

Most Words Together

Tonight Adam put four words together in a sentence. We were excited even though they were...

"I didn't hit sister."

(And for the record, he did hit sister.)

Land of No

First Cycle

Today Josh picked up a hot find on Craigslist. Adam thinks his new cycle is awesome!

The anguish of having to share. Being the first born means that Elizabeth is usually the one having the cool coveted items. She didn't care for it when the tables were turned.
Note that this picture is fuzzy because it's so humid right now. I hate being outside in this weather.

Still Rocking

It's 9 o'clock at the Grant household, and I'm starting to think that either: a) my children hate me or b) my children think I am the most entertaining person alive. Why do you ask? Because as all the good little boys and girls around the world are sleeping at this hour, BOTH of my children are rolling around in their beds talking to each other. I just did another scan, and Elizabeth was sitting up in bed. (Belle, you can't sleep sitting up. Don't even ask about the new name.) Adam is kicking his legs and throwing out one and two word phrases in his loudest voice possible. At least his head is on the mattress, so I let him be.

Sleeping is awesome. If someone told me that I could go to bed at 9, I'd be snuggled up dreaming away. Why me?!

Fun in the Sun

We finally dug the trike out of the box in the basement. A Christmas gift that never got opened. Our new cement is awesome for riding. I tried to talk Elizabeth into buying a bigger bicycle and after many attempts she finally said to me, "Mom, we'll talk about it when I'm in kindergarten." Guess she told me!

New sunglasses. Adam looks like Ray when he wears them because his head is always tilted back.

The kids are having a blast at home with Josh this summer. It's been lots of playing outside, sleeping in, and doing whatever they want. I think Josh is starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel because a 1.5 and 3.5 year old are so much easier than having babies!

The biggest update is that Elizabeth finally got to ride in the canoe with Josh. She was so excited and said that the best part was, "Having my own paddle." Check out the pictures to see how cute my wilderness girl is!

19 months old

Today, Adam is 19 months old. He has made a huge leap in his vocabulary and enunciation this past month! It's been fun to listen to him echo our words, and to hear him catch on and use them correctly later on. He's nearing the end of teething, with only his 4 molars left. He had his 18 month check-up recently, and he's still relatively tall for his age (don't worry, it won't last) and average for weight. He's becoming a lot of fun, and the tantrums are occurring less frequently. Tonight we had a nice hike at Chesterwoods, and Elizabeth and Adam had a great time picking flowers along the trail. When Adam is outside, he is in his element.

Below is a list of what we think are our favorite words that we like to hear him say. As Sam and I compiled the list, we now think we need to get these on video and share them with you. Stay tuned.

Cycle
Sister
Train
Adam John
Mouse
Digger
No No
Hot
I did it
Ruby
Share
Stop it
Elmo