There's cute, and then there's cute squared

I'll let you decide whether this kid crosses the "cute squared" threshold.

(Unbiased hint: The answer begins with a "Y"...) :)

I miss my Feliss

(She is out West while I am kickin' it on the East side.) I love you, baby!

I *heart* summer trips and family

Thanks for coming to stay with us, Abby! I obviously enjoyed your visit or I wouldn't have posed like a giddy schoolgirl...

Rain

Yesterday William and I decided to make the most of this rainy weather and go out and play in it.

First Steps

Our sweet Cameron has had a big week! Yesterday was his 9 month birthday. He cut his first tooth yesterday too! I can't believe that in 3 short months he'll be 1-year-old. Time goes so fast.
Last week Nathaniel and I were chatting when my sister said "oh! look at Cameron!" We turned around to see big boy on his THIRD step! Can you please tell me when he got so big?! This kid is all over the place. He'll tackle any obstacle-- mom's legs, big brother (who constantly flattens him), toys, the arm of the sofa-- he'll take it all on to get to whatever he's eyeing. Such a determined boy!

So proud of himself!

He's a hard working baby.

We went and visited a friend last week while new carpet was going in my house. To try to contain Cameron, we stuck him in an empty baby pool. It was a mere speed bump for this stunt-man. He kept getting out!

My baby stunt-man's mentor. Not a great picture, but I love his expression! Such a silly boy. Also, you can see Cinderella on TV. It is now one of William's favorite movies! This momma is happy. I'd much rather watch Cinderella over and over again instead of more Thomas movies.

Cameron after dinner. Laughter and tears in about 30 seconds!

Want to buy our house? ;)

http://hingstondowns.blogspot.com/

In the summertime, when the weather is hot...

We have been LOVING the warm weather! And now we're having monsoon weather, but we like that too (to help our new grass grow).
Things have been good around here! Cameron started on some medicine for reflux, which seems to have helped his sleeping....a little bit. He's crawling like a pro and even though he just started he seems to be ready for the next hurdle and keeps trying to walk, though his motor skills for that are quite a ways away. He just wants to be able to keep up with the big boys! William is so fun, but such a handful too. I think that people at church (judging by a few of their looks) must think that I do nothing but manhandle that kid (to them I say 'you think I WANT to be doing this?' 1pm church is hard on this family- naptime is a cherished time). I maintain that William must be a clone of his father at that age, just a ball of energy that never stops until that bottle hits his mouth for nap/bedtime. I'm just not ready to part with that sacred bottle!
Nathaniel and I have been flirting with the idea of selling our house. It's all been very exciting and yesterday was spent packing up closets to make the house look spic n' span only to find out today about what the numbers for everything would be...... *sigh* This stupid market! Terrific for buying a house and junk for selling. What to do, oh, what to do? I think I'll just enjoy a tidy house for a little bit in any case!

Here are some pictures of our warm weather fun!

Our dear neighbor Jenni brought over colossal donuts one morning. So tasty!

One of William's favorite things to do when it's warm (and sometimes when it's not) is to play with the hose in the backyard. Cameron and I were out supervising William's yard work when Cameron decided to go for a little swim. William brought him every single ball in the yard to keep him company. What a nice brother!


I think he's trying to move that ball with his mind. I swear, this kid is psychic. He wakes up almost every time I'm eating something that his tummy won't like (or maybe he wakes up because I already ate something he didn't like....).

Angel baby!

Uh-oh!

Our sweet little Cameron has really taken off with his mobility ambitions. Often when I'm holding him, he'll start scaling up my belly to try to climb to something on the other side of my shoulder! This evening, Daddy was holding him, when something caught dear Cameron's eye. He anxiously wiggled over to check it out:

So...the fascination starts at birth, huh?

Like father, like son.

weekend fun

Last weekend we met up with some friends at Lake Elkhorn. Here are some pictures of our outing!

We just bought Cameron this irresistible frog shirt... I LOVE it!

"Driving" continues to be one of William's favorite things to do at the playground.

Nathaniel was anxious to get behind the camera this trip. This is his favorite shot that he took of me. He keeps saying "You look so Roxy!"... Whatever that means... ;)

This might be the first picture of me and Cameron since his birth!

My beautiful bossy boy.

Today, to my great dismay, William developed a new 'cry'.

~~AND, last, but never least, the video that my mom has been requesting for days:

*I kept laughing because as I was laying down to shoot this, William decided to hop up and down on my back. Add that to the roles of a mother: spring horse.*

Old Friends

On Saturday afternoon we had the chance to get together with a couple of the original "young married couples" from our first ward here in Maryland. It's amazing how we went from being 6 adults total to having 6 children total! The kids all got along okay, after poor Charlotte got over her fear of being mauled by my William Monster (we're struggling with a serious bullying phase... that's a whole post on it's own...). It was so fun to spend an afternoon with good old friends and to meet new babies!

William, Cameron, Toby, Charlotte, Josh, & Sophia!

A rare moment of cooperative play.

The 3 babies! They were all born within about 7 weeks of each other.

I LOVE Charlotte's happy face in this picture. I think kids seem to be happiest when they're screaming as loud as they can with their friends.

here and there

Ocean City

For Easter weekend we went to the Eastern shore of Maryland. We had a wonderful (if completely sleepless) weekend! Nathaniel ran a 1/2 marathon there and did awesome. He ran it in 1:51. What a man! I certainly wouldn't want to run for nearly 2 hours, especially in cold rain! But hey, whatever make the man happy.

what a stud

The little boys are doing pretty good. William is driving us crazy with his teething (only two more 2-yr molars to go!), and I suspect that Cameron's teeth will soon be arriving. They boys are starting to play better together.. in that William likes to sit on Cameron and Cameron doesn't protest too much. I've got to admit that one day I teared up a bit when William was crying then he looked at Cameron who gave him the biggest smile! Then the two started smiling and laughing at each other. I'm so grateful for those moments to make all the madness seem to be worth it.

William is sleeping great these days, as long as he is in bed on time. And Cameron... bless his heart, is a work in progress. He's doing a bit better at night though. It's just hard for his naps during the day because he's such a light sleeper, he really only sleeps well when his loud brother is sleeping too.

Lately, Cameron has aggressively started trying to crawl! See below:

He'll get in the right position, and then instead of moving forward, his little bum will go right up into the air. :) Silly baby!

This video really is too long. Sorry. Just watch a bit, and you'll catch the gist of it! He's such a sweet happy boy!

Oh, what a beautiful baby! I wiped the drool in between every shot, but it always managed to be there anyway.

William has a little friend down the street named Savannah. He loves to play with her! It's so nice to have friends for the boys so close.

Lately William has become increasingly opinionated on what he will wear. If it doesn't have a pirate flag, truck, or soccer ball on it-- forget it! Today I let him dig around and pick out what to wear. This is what he picked:

Some cars underwear (over his diaper-- he has zero interest in 'papa' training) and his new nike's. That's it. I was laughing so hard! The 'outfit' lasted about 5 minutes until he found his soccer shirt and ditched the underoos. What am I going to do with this kid?

Again, this video is too long (or maybe just about the right length for some adoring grandparents). I just love Cameron's squeal in the middle. He LOVES watching William and big kids play. Just wait, William, until Cameron can crawl... oh the chaos that will reign my home.

out for a walk

A few days ago we took the boys out for a walk. William RAN the entire way! Nathaniel thinks that this kid could give some adults a run for the money in a race. I'm sure he's not wrong!
We're loving the warmer weather! William can't wait to be done with his coat forever. Even when he looks at these pictures, he points to his coat and says "OFF".

click on the above picture for the full effect. I love my handsome boy!

Happy Birthday, Nathaniel!

Happy Birthday, to my dearest Nathaniel!

William was due on Nathaniel's birthday, and even though he arrived 3 days early, he very much steals the spotlight from his daddy. Maybe next year we'll have a pirate party for Nathaniel, and go to McDonald's for William's bday (opposite of what we've done this year). Here are some photo highlights of Nathaniel's adventures. Some, I've posted before, but they're still classics worth looking at again! What a sweet baby!

Take note friends: this might be the only time we see Nathaniel with a 'belly'.

This is exactly how I picture Nathaniel as a kid. A total monkey, just like his son.

You see. He's always had his sense of style. Look at that nice shirt tucked in!
Whenever William runs, he looks JUST like this. Big eyes and a very focused mouth.
Back in the days when Nathaniel had little muscles... not too long before he had THESE muscles:

Nathaniel, my honey. I love you so much! Happy birthday! Thanks for letting ME sleep in on YOUR birthday. What a good man. I'm grateful that we're sealed forever! KOTM.

Pirate Party

Today we celebrated William's birthday with all of his little friends! Having a houseful of 2-year-olds made me happier than ever that I'm not the octomom! ;) One at a time is plenty for this Momma. Thanks to all the friends who came to share the day with us!

The Pirate Captain, himself.

Party Invitation. I think I spent more work on this invitation than on the party itself. What can I say? I'm crafty, but not a party planner... then again, they're 2. As far as they're concerned, it was a hit!


Again, I'm crafty, but a poor time manager. I opted to put on mascara rather than give this pirate cake a face. Amber brilliantly suggested that I use confetti! At least the cake was tasty, if faceless.


At long last! A picture of me on the blog.

Friends: Beautiful Addy

Friends: William's fellow train-loving buddy Erich

Birthday boy! With ice cream on his face.

Cameron! What a big boy sitting up. His 2nd cousin Ramsey was at the party too. I didn't get a picture of her today- but here is a picture of her from October. They could pass as siblings with their matching eyes!

I'm bummed that I didn't get more pictures of all the little ones at the party, but that's just how it goes, I guess. Next year, right? ;)