Snow day 2010

We know what the boys did today. The snow started falling overnight.



And, while mommy was at work, the boys were at play.

You know Joshua couldn't leave the house without his peacoat.

The Jersey Shore meets....Russia

One day this baby will want to know why he looks so crazy is some of his baby pictures.

So, we love hand-me-downs. This little outfit was a gift for Jason many years ago. All the children have enjoyed some time in it. But, with the popularity of that reality show, "The Jersey Shore," I thought this photo had some added meaning.



He looks happy in his track suit, doesn't he?

Joshua may be my easygoing baby, but just like the others, he has his quirks. One of them is his coat. This peacoat was meant for Jason as well. But Joshua is the only one who will wear it. It's the only one he will put on.



This is where the Jersey Shore meets Russia.



It's probably a good thing he doesn't realize where these pictures go.

The entertainer, the daredevil

Aah, there are so many sides to Joshua.

Who knew he may be our musical one?

Several years ago, the boys received a little piano from Auntie Abbi. They have all loved it and the little toy has been through so much. The microphone is missing, the microphone holder points in the wrong direction. But there is nothing wrong with the music that comes from it.

And boy, Joshua sure does enjoy belting out some tunes.



Joshua's favorite by far is a song entitled, "Doooooooodaaaaaaah."
Here he is performing the "dooooooo" part.



Here he is putting feeling into the "daaaaaaahhhhhhh" part.
I'm not sure about his ability to carry a tune. I can say he does have quite a bit of endurance. He can "dooohdaaaaah" it for several minutes if he is in the right mood.



From music to the monkey bars, here's another one of my boys who can't stay away from these high metal rods.



The last few days have been very wet, but there was a break in the clouds yesterday afternoon, so we went to the park. The slides were a little damp, but Joshua didn't care.



Michael didn't, either. Jason was a little under the weather, so we left him at home.



Look at what he missed!
Until next time... :)

Thank goodness for warmer weather

This is what happens in our house when it is too cold to go outside.



The boys must do something to entertain themselves. And sometimes, mean mommy that I am, I tell them the entertainment cannot include anything electronic.

We notice that 20-month old Joshua seems to think he is much older than he really is. He marches into situations his big brothers do. He has no fear.



I just hope he is aware of the importance of personal space.
We had new neighbors over for dinner the other night and there's a little girl in the family.
Can you tell Joshua was fascinated by her? At one point, I saw him pat her on the arm.



We fear the child is a little advanced, and not in a good way.
I think he's hit his terrible 2s.

I've noticed that each child also gets progressively louder.
This one is off the charts.

The good news is while his downs are pretty loud, his ups are also pretty great.



As you know, we just started a new morning show.
One of the segments encourages viewers to take a picture of themselves with a favorite mug.



This is the baby drinking the hot chocolate that Michael didn't want, then reaching into the cup to fish out the marshmallow. See? He doesn't think he's not yet 2!



Speaking of the new show, I made the boys watch the program the other day. They couldn't help but notice the brand new kitchen on the set.

For dinner last night, I made a pretty decent spaghetti sauce from scratch. I asked them if they thought I could make this meal in our new kitchen on the set.

Jason, with no pause, says, "Mommy, I think you're going to have to get a little better first."

Nice.

Winter blues

If you're ever concerned about what goes on at our house, just know that we are eagerly awaiting warmer weather.

This is what happens when we have to spend too much indoor time together.

I swear, I looked away for just a minute. How many times have you heard me say that?



Joshua is obviously our artistic one. He giggles, actually giggles when we place writing utensils in front of him. But not just any writing implements. No crayons, pencils, not even pens. They must be markers. I've learned to take any markers with permanent ink away from his view. That would be trouble. Thankfully, this masterpiece washed off in just minutes. Thank you, Crayola!



In the meantime, our older two are also trying to entertain themselves indoors as best they can.

Here the boys were trying to make each other laugh. In my opinion, Michael wins hands down. Eyebrows, anyone?

Baby talk

At Joshua's 18-month old checkup, the doctor told me to keep track of Baby J.'s verbal skills. Just in case some early intervention was needed. I'm still watching, listening, waiting. But I think he is starting to catch up.



Joshua loves to sing. Certain songs make him stand up and belt it out. "Jump" by Van Halen is a big one. He's apparently tone deaf like I am, though. But that doesn't matter to him. Doesn't matter to me, either. A good song won't keep him down. He'll sing his heart out. And you can't understand a word he says.

For a while we thought he was just babbling to babble. Then, the other day, we heard actual words come out of his mouth. We have heard him say the usual stuff: Mommy, Daddy, bruh (brother), night night, what sounds like baby (but he's referring to his blanket). His phrases are more difficult to decipher. What sounds like "wha wha wha?" is actually, "What is that?" And tonight I could have sworn he said, "It fell" and "Let's read a book."

He's getting there. In the meantime, he's so earnest about everything and will blow a kiss to anyone who will look him in the eye. The politest baby on the block, for sure. Every gesture gets a "tink you" from our #3.

Joshua is also learning the art of yoga from our Wii. Time for Downward Dog.



Michael is teaching him.



Calm now?

School starts on Monday. We can't wait! :)

So THIS is what boys are for

Happy New Year to all, with wishes for a prosperous 2010!



We treated ourselves to a new dining room table today. We transported the wooden set in the minivan, but then, the boys had to put it together! Good thing they were up to the challenge.




While Grandma and Grandpa were here, we took a trip to a local bounce house. And we are glad we made the effort. The boys wore themselves out! At first, the baby would have nothing to do with the colorful slides and the bouncing areas. It only took some encouragement from his big brothers and Joshua willingly went down big slides. He ended up having a great time!

Hope you had a great time ringing in a new year! Happy 2010!!!