First (REAL) Trip to the Dentist

Jack had a "practice" appointment at the dentist about 6 months ago....this was a for REAL visit with getting his teeth polished, water squirted, etc. He did really well. I had absolutely no idea how he would do...and he did great!

Wesley was feeling left out while we were waiting for the dentist to come over for the final check.

is it just me, or is Wesley texting while he is waiting?

even if the boys are totally different in almost every way, I still think it's cute that baby brother wants what big brother has...even the dentist chair

they had little sunglasses for the kids to wear while the light is being shined (shone?) in their eyes. Seeing him have to scrunch his legs up and basically have to squat in the chair, while laying back, made me really appreciate the cute little dentist chairs they had at my pediatric dentist growing up. Stuff you take for granted.

he may be big, but being all scrunched up in that big chair.

He didnt really like the water and air being squirted but the hygeinist did a great job working around that and I was very impressed with how he did with having them polished. The worst part of the whole visit was that they were apparently busy and we had to wait for a long while for the dentist to come over....Jack was pretty content to wait, but Wesley wasn't so excited. That was tough. Thankfully this is a family friendly practice and I just took him out in to the waiting room to play with the toys. I cant believe Jack is old enough for this!

Easter Morning

This Easter was a fun one! We got up and Jack helped me to make "Resurrection Rolls" which we enjoyed for breakfast along with Fruit Smoothies. Then we headed to church (if my memory serves, this is the first time we have made it to church AND sunday school at our own local church since Jack was born! YAY!)

I was a little concerned when we got to church and saw a sign saying there was no children's church and that there were coloring sheets for kids 3 and over to do during the service. We've never had to keep Jack with us before....but he did GREAT! He enjoyed the music and colored and did a word search (who knew he could do word searches MOSTLY by himself) I was really proud of him. With all the rushing around in the morning, we didnt have time to do Easter Baskets (we made sure to assure Jack that he would get one when we got home, just in case kids at church were talking about it...I didnt want him to feel left out)

Before we we got baskets, we had Bertie take a few Easter pictures...you can probably guess from these pictures that it was getting close to Wesley's naptime. :)

You know what they say....to get a few good pictures, you have to take several crazy ones...Easter morning was no exception!

believe it or not...this was the first one!

#2....Mommie was the delinquent in this one....

Would have been a good one if Jack hadnt suddenly decided to mess with my skirt...who can blame him...it's the first skirt I've worn on almost a year...I barely knew what to do with it either!

silly boys looking all around!

I think we are losing them!

yep, this is not working!

because this is what they REALLY wanted to do!

yep...chasing Daddy is WAAAAY more fun than sitting still for pictures

we tried to get them back for a few Bertie pictures. I caught Wesley mid wiggle...but I think it's a pretty decent picture...they sure loved having their Bertie this weekend!

Wesley wriggled away, but Jack agreed to sit still for one more cuddle picture.

then we went inside for Easter Baskets...Jack's was soccer themed!

Wesley's was his new favorite character...ELMO!

I was able to use our new camera to edit and crop some of the pictures...using only the software on the camera....so smart!

still trying to decide which one I like the best!

Happy Easter Everyone!

First Soccer Practice

So Jack finally had his FIRST soccer practice after 2 were rained out. It was really fun to watch!

Jack chatting with Coach Jacob.

Practicing their ball handling (and listening) skills.

elbow on the ball

head on the ball

they played lots of fun little games under the guise of practice...or is it the other way around...

sleeping bear

chicken and egg

simon says,

but my favorite to watch was bumble bee...not because the game was any cuter than the rest but because when Coach was introducing the game he asks "Can anyone tell me what a BEE is?" and the other 4 kids exclaimed "A BUG!" and my little guy yells "A LETTER!"...oh my proud heart....then when Coach asks "What does a BEE say?" the other 4 say "BUZZZBUZZZZ!" but my little sweetie says "Buh! Buh!"....well...he was RIGHT! oh goodness!

oops!

So...Daddy made a little booboo....he left a travel mug of coffee out on the kitchen table....within what is now Wesley's reach (I say that because I also remember with Jack that when a little kid grows taller....their arms are also growing longer...so it's like their reach increases exponentially...suddenly that which was out of their reach is all of a sudden easily swiped...sigh)...and I made a booboo in that I was on the phone when it happened....

spilled coffee in the living room...you know...what is supposed to be the NICEST room in the house....but never fear!!!

As soon as Wesley heard my gasp of despair, he ran into the kitchen and grabbed some towels an started mopping it up (one of his favorite things to do in the kitchen)...and together it looks like we got it all up....

my hero! He's so smart!

FIRST....

CORNDOG!

I know, I know, this isnt something I should brag about...I'm sure I REALLY dont want to know how unhealthy these things are...but I guess it just seems like a rite of passage almost.

I love looking back in our blog to see what Jack was doing around the same age as Wesley....it gives me an excuse to look back and remember, and the boys love looking at the pictures and videos. A few weeks ago I was looking back and came across this post and this picture

and realized that Jack was a month YOUNGER than Wesley when he had has his first corndog, so it was time for me to stop worrying that Wesley was too little, and let him take this step away from baby-hood towards being a big boy (sob!).
As you can tell, they both enjoyed it! Wesley loved chewing on it, waving it around and flirting with the carhops that walked past.  I wonder if he will be willing to have any more grilled cheese sandwiches anymore?
A note on looking back and comparing....I know that some people will probably caution me against this...but at this point, I feel like I am doing it 1) to enjoy memories, 2)to keep me "on track" (meaning, to remind me that Wesley IS growing up...I tend to look at him as "my baby" and forget that there are new things he can be trying and that I can expect of him) and 3)I never look at it as one is "good" and one is "bad" as far as their development is concerned....it just solidifies for me how vastly different these 2 boys are, not in a good or bad way, just very different...and 4)maybe just enough to make me feel guilty that I cant do as much one on one stuff with Wesley as I did with Jack. That part isnt as much fun. :( but at least it reminds me to try a little harder to get at least a little bit of one on one time with each kid sometime during the day.

Just because he's cute when he's proud of himself..

During quiet play time the other day, Jack built a giraffe with his mega blocks. He just looks at the picture on the box and does it. The kid has got some serious spatial skills. He was very proud of himself...and I was too....not just because he built a giraffe....he's done that several times before, but because he made it DIFFERENT from the picture. He loves building and making things, but is still discovering the meaning of the word "creativity"....he thinks the ONLY way to make something is EXACTLY like the picture...I fear he got that from me...not because I am like that...because I'm not...but because of my lack of spatial skills, I tend to make things just like the picture just so I know how to do it....so I think that has led him to think it is the ONLY way to do it....heaven help us when we cant find the right color block....until now! He was quick to point out to us that he added the black blocks at the top of the giraffe's head because he couldnt find 2 green ones. So this was a big step for him! :) Funny boy!