Dresel's Back in Town!

Dresel came back into town to do the Rock and Roll Half Marathon and also to visit us! We were so excited to hang out with her this weekend and for her to also meet Talia. Love her visits!

Love these looks on Talia. Maybe not her best photogenic moments, but adorable nonetheless :)

Love these girls :)

Happy 2nd birthday, Tristan!!

Wow, cannot believe my first baby is two years old today! What an amazing two years it has been! He has really grown up in the past month. His vocabulary has improved leaps and bounds - it's amazing!

* He can repeat almost any word you say and then use it in a simple phrase. His understanding of what you tell him is also amazing. We are working on counting, colors, numbers, letters and shapes.
* He is also able to communicate what he remembers. I'm not sure how long he has had the capability to remember things that have happened, but he now has the communication tools to convey it to us. It is quite remarkable to hear him tell us that we need to put our hands up when going through a tunnel, or how we saw those animals at the zoo, or how we found Easter eggs at the park and went on the swing with Papa, how he played a ball game with "Uncle B" at his house, and even played a game with "Cincoln" outside at his house. It is amazing to see how his mind is working!
* He also likes to sing the songs "Ring Around the Rosies" and the "ABCs".
* Probably his favorite thing to do is be outside. Rain, sun, snow, hurricane, it doesn't matter. That boy is an outdoor guy.
* When talked into being inside, he loves to play with anything car or truck related.
* He also loves to "fix" things with any kind of "tool" he can find.
* He also loves to push around anything with wheels - Cozy Coupe, stroller, he doesn't discriminate.
* Throwing, kicking or rolling balls are still a favorite as well.
* And he absolutely LOVES music. He especially likes playing on his guitar, keyboards and xylophone. He also loves listening to Jack, Dave, Jimmy, John and David - much like Mom and Dad. Even though I created a toddler Pandora station for him, he still prefers the Jack Johnson station any day.
* He also loves his cousin Lincoln who he just recently was able to say - "Cincoln"! And he also loves, "Poppy" (especially looking at pictures of him) and loves playing pirates with Grandma. He also likes to go to "Uncle B's house" (Uncle T - Travis). Not sure why he calls him Uncle B since that's really Brian's nickname, but it makes me laugh each time :)
* And he LOVES his little sissy. He especially loves giving her kisses and holding her. He also likes to try and make her smile or laugh at him. It is SO sweet!
* He still likes to terrorize Bella. He thinks Bella was put here for him to jump on top of, "ride", push things into, etc. Poor Bella girl :) What a very patient dog.
* He still likes the iPad and could watch Jake & the Never Land Pirate Band, Hot Dog Dance, anything kitty related or look at pictures/videos of himself on there.
*He still could care less about what he's wearing, which is fine by me since I still love to dress him :)

We love our T and are so proud of the boy he is becoming!

Helping Mom make 4 dozen cupcakes and 3 dozen cookies for his weekend bday party

Testing out his new big boy bike

Instead of napping in his toddler bed, he decided to crash on the couch instead. Fine by me since this is only one of two naps he's actually taken since we've been solo since Talia's birth!

Talia and I before heading out for Tristan's birthday dinner

We LOVE you so much, Tristan!!! You are such a special and amazing little boy! We are so very lucky and blessed!!

Rock Star

And what is Tristan doing while Mom & Talia are playing dress up? Starting his own rock band, of course! Lately, while Talia sleeps, Tristan pulls out his "broken" play guitar (broken=batteries mysteriously missing from it :), gives me two pens to use as drumsticks and we rock out to nursery rhymes. Sometimes we play air guitar as well. We're still figuring out a band name...stay tuned.

Coincidentally, the day we started our own band, T was sporting a rock star shirt.

This boy's got skills

Watch out, (insert rock star's name here - crazy, but couldn't think of a good one...classic product of the pop/rap '90s I suppose :)

Happy Mother's Day!!

What a wonderful Mother's Day we had! It started with a mocha in bed from my two favorite boys - the best way to start a day :) Since it was going to be another beautiful day, we decided that we would go to the zoo (along with the rest of Portland). We hurriedly got ready so that we could beat the huge crowds at the zoo and got there just as it was opening - so glad we decided on that plan! Next we had mom's favorite treat - frozen yogurt! (Yes, I still crave it, even post-pregnancy.) And finished off the best Mother's Day ever by having dinner with Trav, Bridg & Lincoln. What a great day!!

T LOVED this bear at the store entrance

The black bears put on a show for us

Brother & sissy - what makes this day so meaningful!!

Dress-up

This week we have had the most amazing weather - 80 degrees and blue skies! One of the reasons I have been so excited by this is the fact that I can finally put away the newborn sleepers and pull out the newborn two-piece outfits! Any excuse I can find to dress her up and go somewhere this week, I do it! Since she is now growing so fast, I know she may only get 1-2 wears out of these precious outfits!

Pretty in pink to visit my class for the first time

Of course we needed to dress up to go to the neighbors for a BBQ!

First solo outing

Today marks a huge milestone for the three of us...we successfully went on our first solo outing! We have gone out and about quite a few times since Talia was born, but we always had someone else to help prepare and accompany us on these outings. Today, however, I had a wild hair to go and visit my school for the first time and cheer on my class as they participated in the Jog-A-Thon. I knew it would take awhile, so I started the getting-ready process three hours before we needed to leave. Even with that time, we still ended up being an hour late. We got there five minutes before the kids left for the end of the day - yikes!! But, I am so proud that we made it and were able to see them for a little while. It made me feel like I am connecting to the real world again and also gave me confidence that I can do this again!

My students could not stop giving her love :)

T loves visiting my school - it was nearly impossible to tear him away from the playground!

Happy 1 month, sweet Talia!

Wow, I cannot believe how fast time is going by...our sweet little Talia is already 1 month old!! She is making so many changes each day, it's so amazing to see how much she is growing. This is especially exciting considering how much weight she lost in her first two weeks. It was heartbreaking to know she wasn't gaining how she should. But ever since we learned of the issue, she's been steadily putting on the "o z's" ever since! Although at one month old, she still isn't quite up to Tristan's birth weight of 7lbs 5oz. Which is why people often comment on how tiny she is!!

Trying to show how small she is by comparing her to this dolly. At her smallest, she was barely longer than this baby doll!

These outfits are a few of only five newborn "sleepers" that she can fit into. 0-3 month clothes are still a little too big.

Happy 1 month, little miss T. We love you sooooo much!!