Happy Valentine's Day!

Such Dear Friends

We are lucky to have so many dear friends.  This year, we have been lucky to spend lots of time with Mollie and Aubrey.  They are wonderful.  They love us.  They love our kids.  They love God.  It all shows instantly when you meet them and we're blessed to have them in our home often!

Today Mollie made dinner for us!  They came over, finished cooking and spent the whole evening with us.  Dinner was amazing!  Mollie is an awesome cook (she could teach me a lot!).  She even made cute heart-shaped pizzas for the boys!  We talked about conspiracies, life, and we laughed.  A lot.  We love doing life with M & A and look forward to much more time together!

Thanks for the fab dinner and the fab friendship and fellowship, friends.  :)

 

Boys Before Bed

I caught these photos of the boys before bedtime last week and just had to share:

Logan is "fixing stuff".  Nothing like a little drilling to get a kid ready for bed.

Bennett just watched Logan and made it quite clear that he was ready for bed!

A tired boy amidst the toys.

Weekend Visitors

We had a nice quiet weekend at home!  It feels rare for us to have a weekend at home without too much going on.  Besides a couple short commitments, we were free to enjoy the weekend!  The boys played outside, I had my first small group study with the YL girls, and we even had friends over!

Adorable Miss Avery came over and brought her parents, too!  We had a lovely dinner, a great time catching up on all that has been happening in life, and the kids loved playing!

Avery loved reading books on the little Potterybarn chair (I'm sure she'll have her own soon!) and she kept trying to steal hugs from Bennett.  Here he is on an escape route from the affectionate hugger.

Thanks, dear friends, for the lovely visit (and yummy dessert!).

Bennett - 20 months

Can you believe Bennett is 20 months?!  He is still our "baby", but he sure is getting BIG!  We enjoy learning more and more about Bennett as he grows.  He is quite different than his big brother - just making sure we know he is his own person, I guess.

Bennett runs everywhere.  And not your typical run, but a sort of "trot", we like to call it!  This boy runs with style and it often results in a good tumble.  He is constantly keeping up with Logan, so he has to be fast!  Bennett also has some crazy dance moves that I will attribute to Logan.  They love to dance, shake, and shimmy.  It always gives us a good smile!

Recently, Bennett has started saying many more words and phrases!  Thank goodness!  He is not as verbal as Logan was and its been hard at times to communicate with Bennett.  He throws a good tantrum when he doesn't get what he wants, but his verbal skills seem to be helping with that.  I've also noticed that routine is extremely important for Bennett.  Logan was more adaptable, but Bennett needs the routine (as most kids do) to feel secure, happy, and safe.

Some of my favorite phrases from Bennett right now are:
"Help please" - he says this for everything: trying to reach something, needing a new diaper, wanting his socks off, dropping something...you name it.  Its so cute to hear his little voice say "help please...."
"Uh-oh, spill" - he likes to tell us when he spills something.  Logan also likes to tell us when Bennett spills (can you say, "tattle tale"?!)
"Wuv-ooo" - Bennett loves to give big hugs, wet kisses and say, "I love you".
"I want it!" - I hear this MANY times a day...often when I refuse something to B.
"NO" - Bennett says NO to everything.  Even when the answer is "yes", he will first say, "No".
"-mon" - "Come on"
"show you" - I'll show you.

Another big milestone is Bennett sleeping in his big boy bed!  He started tucking himself in with Logan in his big bed after bedtime stories, so we knew he was interested.  We realized we had put Logan in his big boy bed at 18 months and we decided to try to same for Bennett.  We weren't sure how Bennett would do, but he actually sleeps better than in his crib.  We still have the crib up, but mostly use it for "time-outs" now.  It makes his big boy bed and even bigger privilege.  So far, so good with the bed.

Bennett loves to play whatever Logan plays.  They play trains and cars together.  Bennett also loves to play ball.  He throws and kicks really well and can keep himself busy for a loooong time with a ball!  He doesn't really love the snow yet, but I'm sure that will come.

Bennett is a special boy - getting so big and strong!  We love you, B!

Mexico Vacation!

Its about time I posted some photos from our wonderful Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico vacation!  It was the perfect winter getaway: sun and warmth everyday, no clouds, total relaxation, and great company.  We enjoyed time with my parents and siblings.  Its not often we are all together, so it was extra special!  Very special thanks to my parents for a beautiful week in the sun (and so much more!).  Logan was so excited to be at the "Grand Mayan" again.  He remembered all the FUN he had in October when we went to San Jose del Cabo with my parents and Amy for a week.  AND, he was extra excited because this time, we "didn't forget Daddy!".

Logan enjoying a mango smoothie by the pool.

Logan is quite a fish.  He loved swimming with his water wings, life jacket, and learning to float.  Its fun to see him love the water so much!  Bennett loves the water, too...its a little freaky.  He just will walk right off the edge: no fear!

Bennett and Mommy ready for a ride on the lazy river.

Vacation is hard work.  Bennett napped in the stroller almost everyday.  He would ask for a "ride" or "-troller" and then fall right asleep.  We parked him in the shade and he slept while we got a couple minutes of quiet (sometimes).

Sometimes I got to read my new kindle that John gave me for Christmas.  I loved traveling with the kindle!  So perfect for reading in the sun!

We just went off the resort with the kids one night.  Fajita Republic is one of our favorites.  The outdoor atmosphere is really neat.

We were really lucky to sleep in most days while my parents got up with the early risers.  Here's Bennett one morning while I got up with him early.  We watched a little cartoon and tried to stay quiet.  We shared a condo with my parents while Amy, Andrew, Kyle, and Ali all shared their own kid-free condo.

Andrew and Logan showing off their matching shades!

The grounds at the Mayan Resort have changed so much since we last visited 3 years ago.  They have built ponds, lakes, paths, jungle and many more buildings.  It was hard to get our bearings right away.  We took a walk to see the grounds and saw lots of interesting things!  The boys loved having "adventure" walks through the jungle!

If you watched the series "LOST", this might give you an eerie feeling.  We thought this was crazy similar to the "docks" on Lost!  

The boys went looking for lizards everyday...and usually found several!  This is just one we saw on a morning adventure one day.  Logan enjoyed finding the differences and learning about lizards, iguanas, and geckos.

John and Bennett walking through the pools.

The boys loved playing in the fountains.

The water coming out of the fountains was usually pretty warm, so that was a draw for the kids.

Logan loved to run around inside the fountains, then jump off the edge.  As you can see, it was a popular spot for little kids!

Logan swimming on his own!

Jumping in!

Bennett liked playing in the water on the edge of the pool.  It was a little like deja-vu because we traveled to the Riviera Maya with Logan when he was Bennett's same age.  I was pretty pregnant by then, but Bennett enjoyed the very same things Logan did at that age.

I love this photo of Logan!  He loved the beach and the ocean.

Bennett also really liked the beach...sometimes!

Playing in the sand is so much fun!  There is a neat pool that has its own beach and very shallow water.  It was the perfect spot for us to hang out with the kids.

We had some fun writing our names in the sand one morning.

John and Logan flew a kite on the beach.  It took a lot of running up and down the beach to catch the wind, but neither John nor Logan seemed to mind.

Up, up, and away!

We had a really great vacation and a really great time with everyone!  We really needed the break and it was perfect!

Dalmatian Day

Today was "Dalmatian Day" at Logan's school!  We made this spotted shirt for him to wear.  He liked sponge painting with the dots while Bennett was napping yesterday.

Logan didn't want a photo, so this is the best I have.  After school, they all came out wearing puppy ears and acting like dogs.  It was pretty cute!