February 28, 2013

Before & after Luke's haircut.  His hair had been getting super long.  I wanted to have it trimmed before our trip, but first Isaac was sick and then Luke was sick and I just didn't get a chance to take him.  He did pretty well during the cut today.  He definitely prefers the clippers to the scissors, which is kind of funny.  He gets a big smile when he hears the buzz noise, but whenever the stylist would hold pieces of his hair and starts snipping he would jerk his head away.  Anyway, his hair turned out cute enough - though you can't really tell from the funny way she styled it in this picture.  As a side note, I've always loved this blue shirt on him (he wore it on his first birthday) but I'm surprised he can still wear it.  Isaac was always off the charts with his growth while Luke has turned out to be my small little guy.  

February 27, 2013

Isaac had a make-up karate class today because we missed two classes while he was sick and gone in Georgia.  Today was testing and Isaac was up for his orange belt.  Each belt test requires the students to learn a new portion of a kata.  This is super hard for Isaac.  It's actually kind of hard for me too.  In order for me to help him practice at home I have to learn it myself, and it's not easy for me.  Anyway, Isaac really struggles with remembering his left from right and that is a big portion of the katas.  We practiced about 20 times before coming to class today but he was still not quite test ready.  Sensei sent him in the other room with a volunteer to help him practice but it didn't go so well.  Isaac doesn't really care about the belts and is just not motivated.  He kept crying and saying it was too hard and he didn't want to do it.  It's frustrating for me to have him not care.  I want him to learn to push through the hard part and succeed.  We kept making him practice, over and over until he had it.  Unfortunately, by then he was so upset that he did not want to do the test.  I'm worried that I'm going to have a hard time keeping this kid motivated and determined to succeed in life.  He reminds me too much of a few of my own siblings.  And not in a good way.

February 26, 2013

Today I am thankful for babies that sleep on airplanes.  Finally, after 10 days, Luke did not have a fever this morning but I know he is still not quite over his sickness yet.  Whatever the reason, I was happy to have him sleep for about an hour during our first flight.  The only problem was I started getting really uncomfortable after awhile but didn't want to even so much as flinch for fear of waking him up! 

February 25, 2013

Today I took Isaac & Luke to the Georgia Aquarium.  I took Isaac here four years ago and remembered really enjoying it.  I was equally impressed this time.  There is so much to see and the exhibits are all super well done.  This tank is one of my favorites because it fills the entire wall and the natural light from the skylight above makes it really gorgeous.  

February 24, 2013

Charlie had to work today so I was on my own with the boys.  We rode the MARTA train to downtown Atlanta and spent the afternoon playing at the Centennial Olympic Park.  After Charlie finished at the convention hall he met up with us and we rode back to our hotel together.  Isaac loved watching out the window and thought it was so cool that the train went both above and under ground.  Luke was most excited about watching the train as it came into the station.  Once we were on, he wanted to get off at every stop.  

February 23, 2013

Karl & Janelle planned a trip to Georgia for the same dates our family was planning to be there.  They were there visiting Kelly's family in Warner Robbins, but today they all drove up to Atlanta to spend the day with us!  After Charlie got done with work we all went to dinner together at The Flying Biscuit.  It is always a little tricky to get a good smile from Isaac when taking photos, but he was definitely happy to see his Grandpa.  I love how Karl plays with my boys and jokes with them and makes them smile.  They are lucky to have such loving grandparents.

February 22, 2013

Today we drove from Atlanta down to Warner Robbins where Charlie's brother Kelly is stationed with the Air Force.  We haven't seen Kelly & his family in over three years so our visit was long overdue.  We were finally able to meet our two little nieces Daphne & Eve.  I was doing my best to keep grumpy tired Luke entertained and happy with some games on the iPad.  Cute Daphne came to join us in playing the Duck Duck Moose truck game.  After Luke went down for a nap she had it all to herself and was happy as could be driving vehicles around the construction site, car wash, tire shop, and doing some garbage collecting.  

February 21, 2013

This is slightly embarrassing.  During our layover in Dallas I was taking Isaac & Luke on a walk around the terminal attempting to keep them entertained, when I spotted a familiar face.  It only took me a few seconds to identify her as Kacie B. from The Bachelor.  She was in the middle of a face time call on her iphone with some boy that she was being very flirtatious with.  She was standing in an empty area right next to some parked airport vehicles (you know the type that drive handicapped passengers around the terminal) that the boys were very interested in climbing all over.  So while they were pretending to drive I was busy texting my friend Mikael to let her know all about my celebrity sighting. Mikael encouraged me to ask for a picture so that I could text it to her, reminding me that I'd never see this girl again anyway.  So once Kacie hung up with her boy, I got brave and outed myself as paparazzi.  I still feel a little silly, but it's not every day you spot a reality TV star, right?

February 20, 2013

This lovely self portrait is my only photo from today, because this is pretty much all I did today.  Oh, and also stress out and try my best to pack and clean the house in preparation for our trip tomorrow.  Luke is still quite sick and wants nothing more than to be held.  I had so much to get done but every time I turned around there was Luke with his out stretched arms and his sad pleading "Ma, ma, ma, ma!"  So what else could I do but sit and rock him?  I have been debating whether we should still go on our trip to Georgia, but figured the boys would have to be feeling better soon and decided to go ahead and go.  I'm hoping I don't regret it.

February 19, 2013

This giant egg guy is from the package that Charlie's friend in Taiwan sent us.  The boys loved this thing!  I was pretty impressed with it too.  It is from Germany so the chocolate is way better than most stuff you find in the US and the toys are cool too.  So inside this big egg there were several foil wrapped chocolate eggs.  Inside each chocolate egg was one of these yellow plastic eggs, and inside the plastic eggs were little toys.  Isaac was so excited to open all of the toys, and Luke is totally enamored with the giant egg.  It has been sitting on our kitchen table and every time Luke sits down to eat he wants the egg right next to him.  He then proceeds to point out his hat, eyes, nose, hands, mouth, shoes, etc and waits for me to name each part.  Who knew an egg would be such a hit?  

February 18, 2013

Yes, we are those "crazy dog people."  We watched the Westminster Dog Show last year and Isaac loved it.  It is several hours long, so we just had it on in the background and we were a little surprised at how interested he was in it.  This year we made sure to record the show on our DVR and today we watched it together.  Isaac still loves learning about all of the different kind of dogs but he was most excited about the bulldog.  He has been telling us for months that bulldogs are his favorite because of the bulldog from the movie Rio.  Today while watching the dog show he kept asking "is the bulldog coming yet?"  And here he is: the bulldog!

Funny story.  Isaac often talks about what he's going to be when he grows up or different things that he's going to do.  He also likes to tell me about all of the dogs he's going to have.  One day he was telling me that he was going to have the biggest dog of all.  A dog so big that he would take up the whole couch and that his name would be Peanut.  I laughed and told him that was a funny name for a big dog because a peanut is such a little thing.  He seemed to understand the irony and quickly changed his future dog's name to Cruise Ship.  That made me laugh even more.  That conversation took place a few months ago and he is still making reference to "Cruise Ship" the dog.  It makes me smile every time.

February 17, 2013

My poor sick baby.  I figured it was only a matter of time before Isaac's illness spread to little Luke.  He woke up this morning with a fever and has been miserable all day.  It has made him extra cuddly though, so at least I can enjoy that.  This is day 4 for Isaac and he still has a fever.  He's even been napping which is unheard of, so I know he is really not feeling well.  I'm hoping it doesn't hit Luke quite as hard

February 16, 2013

Luke LOVES the trash truck.  It is easily in his top 5 favorite things in the world.  The trash truck comes to our condo complex twice a week: Tuesday evening and Saturday morning.  When Luke hears the sound of the first dumpster being lifted (there are four dumpsters), it is NOT an option to stay inside and we always hurry outside to watch.  We've had the same trash man for years (at least since Isaac was this age and equally obsessed with the trash truck).  He is always friendly and smiles & waves at us.  But today there was a substitute trash man who was extra friendly!  He even invited Luke to come sit inside the trash truck.  You'd better believe this little boy was pretty darn excited about that.  

February 15, 2013

Charlie always brings little treats and surprises for the boys when he comes home from a trip.  He just returned from Boston and brought Isaac this straw building set.  Isaac has always loved straws and I think this is about the coolest one yet!  Isaac is still not feeling well but at least he is getting his fluids.

February 14, 2013

Isaac was not feeling well this morning but insisted that he wanted to go to school.  I didn't want him to have to miss his class Valentine party so I went ahead and sent him.  By the time he got home it was pretty obvious that he was sick.  Instead of running errands during Luke's therapy we opted to just sit and wait in the parking lot so that Isaac could rest.  He thought it was fun to sit up in the front seat and play on the iphone.

February 13, 2013

The boys had a good mail day!  First they received Valentine cards with money inside from their Grandma & Grandpa Wood.  Later that night they got to open a big package from Charlie's work friend in Taiwan.  She sent them both hats, backpacks, some little toys, and chocolate.  It was a fun surprise for them, especially since Luke is obsessed with hats lately.

February 12, 2013

Isaac helped pick out some little toys and treats to hand out to his class for Valentine's Day.  We filled little bags with a card, a straw, a disk shooter, M&Ms, and Reese's hearts.  Isaac was very careful to make sure that Emma (his future wife) got all pink things.  

And here's a picture of Luke just because he's cute.  

February 11. 2013

Charlie is in Boston for a few nights.  Of course I miss him when he travels, but I do kind of enjoy my evenings alone (for a few nights anyway).  After the boys are in bed I usually turn on whatever I want to watch on TV and enjoy some kind of a treat.  Tonight I finished up Season 2 of Downton Abbey and indulged myself in half a pint of Talenti.  If you haven't tried Talenti or watched Downton, you need to!  

February 10, 2013

This photo brings an instant smile to my face.  Charlie does push-ups every morning (like 100 or more) and awhile back he bought these "Perfect Push-up" things.  I don't know exactly what they do other than making the push-ups even harder.  Tonight Luke set them up in the living room and started doing his own kind of adorable push-ups.

February 9, 2013

We were out running errands today and Isaac suggested going to get a donut.  We should get donuts more often.  Luke ate his upside down and mostly just ate frosting.

I also have to add this picture because it was a funny moment.  We were at Trader Joe's and as we came around the aisle Isaac started laughing hysterically.  Seeing a lady in a cheese hat is pretty funny, but I just love how children can be so uninhibited with their laughter.

February 8, 2013

We had a rainy day today.  Since it doesn't happen all that often here, Luke is still fascinated by the rain.  He especially loves being under the umbrella and hearing the drops splashing over our heads.

February 7, 2013

Isaac and I always run errands on Thursday while Luke is in therapy.  We had some extra time today and Isaac wanted to go to "his favorite store: Sport Chalet!" He loves to ride their bikes around the back of the store.  I'm pretty sure he could ride without training wheels but he refuses to take them off of his own bike.

February 6, 2013

There is a woman that goes to my gym (I've since learned her name is Vivian) and I've noticed her for a long time because she was still coming to spin class in her third trimester of pregnancy.  (Unfortunately her baby girl suffered from trisomy and passed away just a few hours after birth.  Heartbreaking.)   Last week she approached me outside of the kids club and started asking me about Luke and how old he is, and is he talking.  Her son is just a few months older (turning 2 this week) and isn't talking at all.  At first I wasn't sure if she was just making small talk or really wanted to chat, but after a few minutes I went ahead and told her about Isaac, his autism, his speech disorder, and how we have also started Luke in therapy.  She then wanted to know everything about Regional Center, different therapies we've tried, what kind of diet we feed our kids, etc, etc.  I don't consider myself an expert by any means but I was glad to tell her what I know and help her out.  She got my number and wanted to get together to talk more so today we met them at the park.  We'd never been to this park before and the boys loved it! And Vivian has already called Regional Center and started the process of getting services for her son.  I am so glad because after meeting him I can see why she is concerned and this will definitely be a big help for them, as it has been for us.

February 5, 2013

Luke eats his first breakfast right when he wakes up in the morning - usually oatmeal and applesauce.  He eats his second breakfast (or rather, MY breakfast) after we get home from the gym.  Most mornings I eat greek yogurt mixed with a drizzle of honey and this pumpkin flax granola.  Luke loves it and can't get enough.  He always climbs up in the chair next to me and sits there with his mouth wide open waiting for bites.  I've learned to pour myself an extra big bowl because he usually eats half of it.  I guess I could just start giving him his own bowl, but I kind of like our little breakfast sharing tradition.    

February 4, 2013

Two years ago there was a little girl in Isaac's class named Alex.  Isaac has always told me that he was going to marry Alex, until just a few weeks ago when he told me "Mom, I'm not going to marry Alex anymore, I'm going to marry Emma!"  Emma is the darling girl on the back of Isaac's bike in this photo and her little sister Charlie is following behind.  Isaac normally goes to speech before school but on Mondays he has it after school instead.  Isaac & Luke both love getting to play on the playground while we wait for the teacher to open the doors.  And Isaac always offers Emma a ride on his bike.  Their teacher tells me they are always holding hands and I've witnessed it myself at class parties and birthday parties.  It is super cute.  And Emma is the one who initiates so I guess she must like him too.

February 3, 2013

I was nervous to take this photo for fear of waking Luke up with the flash (sorry it's blurry).  He is a super light sleeper!  When I went to check on him before bed it made me smile to see him with one of his "googin" blankets wrapped over his head.  He has carried these blankets around since he was a tiny baby.  When he was still crawling he used to throw them on top of his head so he could carrying them with him.  Whenever he sees them he gets a huge smile on his face and snuggles them to his face.  When he's just relaxing in the car or with us on the couch he will sit and wrap his fingers in the folds and rub the fabric.  There are usually at least two of them in his bed every night.  I can't imagine how he'd ever go to sleep without them.  And his pacifier of course.  

February 2, 2013

Isaac's friend Jack from school invited him to his birthday party.  It was a super hero party at the bike park.  None of the kids knew about the super heros who were going to be there.  The kids spent the first part of the party riding bikes and then the Iron Man and Spiderman snuck in to surprise the birthday boy.  Isaac is not that much into super heros, but these guys were pretty cool looking.  

February 1, 2013

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this yet on this blog.  Charlie decided to go one month without eating sugar and somehow convinced me to do it with him.  He had his own reasons for doing it, but my reason was simply living up to the challenge.  It was torture!  I have a major sweet tooth and usually eat a little something sweet everyday, if not twice a day.  But I stuck with it for all of January.  Today is February 1st so I baked a homemade chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and we ate it for dinner.  With gelato.  I think the boys are still a little too young to understand the novelty of cake & ice cream for dinner, but they ate it right up.  Yum.