Independance Day in Galveston!

We intended to spend July 4th in Blanding, UT with the Larson family, but when that didn't happen we were delighted to make some very last minute plans with some good friends. We rented a condo on the beach in Galveston and it was the perfect spur-of-the-moment, long weekend get-away.

Our view was incredible,

the company was lovely,

the weather was perfect,

. . . and even the sand was delicious.

We ate a lot of good food, spent a lot of time working on our sunburns, and did a lot of this:

It has been less than a year since the third most costly hurricane hit the island, so we weren't really sure what to expect. Here and there we found signs of Hurricane Ike that lingered (including one vacation rental owner who burst into tears when I called about her rental home only to discover it had washed away in the storm surge) But most of the island was up and running in a beautiful fashion.

In fact, most things seemed to be much like when we visited before the storm a year and a half ago, including our babies sleeping in closets and other tight quarters.

It was great to spend time away as a family and we hope to go back soon!

Hope you had a great Independence Day too!

Brothers

About once a day I catch the boys interacting in a pleasant manner. It is always brief, and usually isn't more than Joseph laughing as Ian repeating in a high-pitched voice something that I frequently say, like"Joseph, did you have a good nap, little buddy? Yeah? Yeah?"

It may not be much, but this little glimpse at friendship is enough to give me hope that someday soon they will be best buds!

Here they are "playing trains". I am sure that seconds after I snapped this picture, Ian swung his hips at Joseph to take him down, wrecking ball style. Ian can't handle that Joseph now stands up like a real human. The nerve.

This doesn't look like much, but it melted my heart. Ian had a pile of Cheerios and when Joseph popped up next to him, he slid a Cheerio over to him as he said in his high-pitched mommy voice, "Do you want to share, Joseph? Do you want to share?" Joseph was delighted but not nearly as much as I was.

Ian has discovered that he can wrestle Joseph to get a good laugh out of him. This usually involves laying on or sitting on Joseph. Surprisingly, Joseph loves it. Last week I spilled an entire canister of quick oats on the floor. Joseph was on those little morsels so quick, and found so much enjoyment in devouring fistfuls of the oats. I just love the concentration on his face as his pudgy hands try to collect the oats.

Ian is all about lining up cars so they can "go to work" or some other destination. On this particular occasion, Ian explained to me that they were going to Enrichment, a church activity for women.

Joseph is nearly 9 months old. What?!

He is close to standing unassisted and cut two bottom teeth a few weeks ago!

Father's Day Photo Shoot

Today the stars aligned -- the boys wore unstained, matching clothes, they were simultaneously in a good mood, and we had a few minutes before we needed to be eating/going somewhere/taking a nap. So we seized the opportunity and took some family pictures!

While not all of them turned out well...

...and some turned out strangely...

and sometimes we didn't all make it in the picture before the automatic timer went off...

we did manage to get a couple of pictures that I am very happy with!

Happy Father's Day!

Memorial Day

Over Memorial Day weekend we road a ferry and a trolley at Waterway Square. Ian had seen a trolley in a book and when I told him we were going to ride one that day he couldn't contain his excitement. He has never retrieved his 'sandal shoes' so quickly and his smile didn't fade all day. On the way over there, he kept saying "Joseph excited! And Ian excited!"

We rode the boat first and though Ian loved it (see how he was pointing at and dragging me toward the boat?) he didn't forget that a trolley had also been promised.


We got off the boat to eat a picnic by the fountains. It was a gorgeous, dry, breezy day.
When we finished eating, there were no trolleys passing by. So we began walking the trolley route on our way back to the car, hoping we could ride one the rest of the way back. When we finally saw one we were less than a block from our car. But since Ian was so excited to ride it, we crossed a street and backtracked to get on it, then rode it all around town before it dropped us back at our car. And it was totally worth it. We sat in the back and Ian waved and blew kisses to all the cars behind us!

It was such a fun family day!

This picture was taken a week ago. I put Joseph down for a nap and a few minutes later I noticed Ian had also disappeared. I found him in Joseph's room -- evidently Joseph had been fussing so Ian took Joseph a car to play with. Joseph also thought his was a great idea.
Recently Ian climbed over the side of the pack n play and fell to the floor. Joseph laughed really hard, even though Ian landed on top of him. Now Ian always says he wants to wake up Joseph and "get in his bed and laugh". When Ian tried to recreate it, he landed on his face and got a bloody nose.

The boys are becoming better friends. Though Ian doesn't like it when "Joseph looking at you!" and doesn't enjoy sharing his toys, my heart melts when I see the boys playing along side each other and occasionally interacting for a fleeting moment before Ian remembers his role as Chief Tormentor. I love being the mother of these boys!