Boys.

Tonight's dinner will surely be a night that will live in infamy for years to come. Not because of the cuisine, which was fare at best. Frozen buffalo burgers from Trader Joe's - not the delicousness we expected. Not because of the grand conversation, which was fine. But, tonight's dinner will live on in our family history because tonight was the night Lennon officially initiated himself into manhood, or, well, from being a baby to a boy who loves all things "potty humor." As we were all finishing up our dinner Lennon stood up in his seat, leaned over - staring with intensity -and belched. Without so much as a pause, he muttered "spicy!" ???? Where he learned that I have no idea. I definitely don't ever say spicy when I burp - which is not infrequent I must admit. The only person I think I am sure I've heard say that is Jim Carrey in the movie The Mask, which Lennon has certainly not seen. But wait - there's more! A little while later he again leaned over, this time his head hanging low and holding onto the edge of the table. This time he tooted and then said "Oh yeah!" Follow that up by a short groan and you pretty much have exactly what his father does when he toots. Nice. Thanks for that little legacy Shelbs! It probably didn't help matters that the whole group of us was hysterical laughing. Yes, I know, we are just filled with class. I just could not believe that my tiny little guy was being such a gross boy. I didn't think that kind of stuff started until 10 or so. 2 1/2? Really? Mia's not any better either. Last night she and Shelby were moved almost to tears when they each passed gas within seconds of each other while we were tucking her into bed. I'll admit that gas can be funny, but they were almost hyperventilating. Really? Is it that funny? They are a bunch of nerds and I love them dearly.

If We Were Wild Animals, I Would Have Eaten You Long Ago.

Claire, Mateus and Biance got back from Brazil today. Only about a week later than they had planned, but still, they made it home. We saw them briefly in the early afternoon and everything went well. We should have left well enough alone. Amy, wanting to see Claire after more than a month of her being abroad, came over to my house for a pizza dinner which we all shared. By 5:30, the pizza was here along with 6 very hyper, very excited to see each other children. I think it had just been so long that I forgot how poorly Lennon does with big crowds. The whole night was completely miserably for both of us. He was either crying hysterically or screaming or demanding something of me that was completely out of the realms of something I could even do for him if I wanted to. For example, he wanted me to let him watch a movie which we did not have. He hit Michael at one point and it seemed at least as if he was trying to defend Miranda, but then later, he hit Bianca and his reason was "She was standing there." He was totally horrible and the pizza was freakin' expensive, I know, I'm cheap. But, I paid like $35 for two stupid pizzas and I think that's ridiculous. Sure, it fed me, Claire, Walderi, Amy and all our kids, but it was money I didn't plan to spend. Anyway, by the time I was finally able to get everyone out of my house, Lennon was a wreck, I was a wreck and poor little Mia was just confused as to why I was being such a monster. I need to remember not to host ANYTHING at my house with small children. Lennon can handle being with other kids at their houses, but when there are too many kids at our house and the energy is too high, he just breaks down.

The most horrible and stressful night I can remember having in a long time. Lennon has been such a joy lately, and after just one evening of him being horrible I feel like I need a vacation. Thank God he is not miserable all the time anymore. Ahhhhhgh, I think I'll go to bed.

Stupid Photo of The Month is Always Too Small

Lennon fully decked out in his cooking atire. He is constantly helping out in the real kitchen and has been spending a fair amount of time "cooking" in his pretend kitchen ever since we moved it downstairs. I think he looks an awful lot like his Aunt Hillary in this shot. If anyone has a good shot of her at 2 that you can upload and email me I'll post them side by side.

The Grover undies are a nice touch, don't you think?

Oh, come on. Don't be jealous of my super tidy living room.

Me: Lennon, please don't ever grow up.

Lennon: Ah, I will.

Me: Why?

Lennon: Because, I have to, because I want to be a guinea pig.

?????????

Finally got back out to the zoo this morning after several weeks of missing it. The weather was "nice" for January. A mild 43 degrees. I will say when I saw Peyton and Reagan's pictures outside with the dinosaurs in short sleeve shirts I was pretty jealous. Not quite there yet, but we'll take 42 for now. It's a far cry better than 24.

Lennon's First Cookie

Lennon enjoying his very first cookie. It's not your average cookie. Whole Wheat flour, sucanut as sweetener, they do have some chocolate chips in them, which he protested and requested that I make some cookies with raisins instead of chocolate, as he "not ike cocate."

On a totally different note, we were just taking Mia to her dance class and here is a little snip it of our conversation in the car.

Lennon: I need to potty at Mia's dance class.

Me: Okay.

Lennon: Do they have flusher there?

Me: Yes.

Lennon: Do they have potty door there?

Me: Yes.

Lennon: Do they have toilet paper there?

Me: Yes.

Lennon: I need to potty there.

Potty Time!!

He's very happy with his Mickey Mouse underwear.

Lennon has been wearing underwear with no accidents for the past two days. He's only worn diapers/pull ups when he has slept. At just under 2 1/2 I could not be more excited to be so close to being completely done with babies in diapers FOREVER!!!!!

*Of course, I'm sure I'll be changing some Baron diapers and some baby Kelsey/Bethany diapers whenever that day comes, but as for my own, regularly scheduled diaper changes, I'm going to call myself done!

Mia: "I think bleeding on the inside is way grosser than bleeding on the outside. Cause, yuck! Blood, inside your body!"

Girl Scout Sew In

Wow, we had a busy weekend! Mia and I went to a two night, Girl Scout - sew in. Just a few minutes north of us in a town called Reading, there is a Girl Scout lodge. It's really less of a lodge and more of a cafeteria with a lobby, kitchen and bathrooms. We had 16 girls there between the ages of 5 and 11. The goal was ambitious for a group of moms who are extremely well meaning, but who make me look really organized and focused. Each of these girls was supposed to complete their own aprons, make a bag to be filled as a relief bag for Haiti and then if time permitted, make pajama pants. All this with only there sewing machines and three adults who knew how to use them. Almost none of the girls had ever held an iron and only three of them had ever sewn anything with a machine. In the end, each girl went home with an apron and many of them made extra little random things for their dolls. The aprons are actually really cool. They ironed the fabric, but the fabric out with a pattern, pinned them and sewed them, then attached straps. They had a plain brown side for crafting and a cheerful patterned side for cooking. I even made one for myself. Mia made a sleeping bag for her American Girl doll and a summer outfit for the doll that included a sort of headband thing. She now wants a sewing machine and I actually am typing on top of one right now. I don't know, however, if it works, much less how to thread the bobbin and get started sewing anything.

At times, this weekend, with so many kids and so few adults, I wanted to climb up on a table, pull all my hair out and burn the lodge down - but most of it was really fun. I built a fire in a snowy fire pit in the outdoor camping area. It took a long time to get it started considering my lack of experience and the snow in the pit, but eventually, I and another mom who had also never built a fire succeeded. We told the troop leader we wanted a badge. :)

Shelby stayed with Lennon all weekend while Mia and I camped and we weren't sure how that would go. He sometimes gets extremely upset when he wakes up and I'm not home. From everything they've told me - it could not have gone better. On top of Lennon having a blast and him reporting to me that "I not cried whole time!" - He used the potty all weekend. He did all his #2 in the potty and mostly peed in it too except when they were out. Just this afternoon when I was home, he ran back there twice by himself to go potty. He finally seems excited about it. I think we're getting close! I can't wait to be done with diapers forever! Or at least until either Shelby or I start wearing them in old age.

All in all, really great weekend for everyone. Mia is really enjoying Girl Scouts and sadly, she won't be able to go anymore this semester because Shelby was assigned to a class he doesn't even want to take that takes place right during her troops meeting time. She's not going to be very happy about it, but maybe we can find another troop to join.

Oh, did I mention I accidentally melted a whole bunch of plastic plates and bowls in the oven? Someone had used the oven as a drying rack and I didn't look inside before preheating it for dinner and this is what I created. It actually looked pretty cool. Not so much fun to clean up though.

Mia sewing diligently. She did a really good job.

Suzanne, Naomi's mom, hosted a proper British Tea Party for the girls at camp yesterday afternoon. Complete with a little lesson on all the little tea gadgets and a little bit of history too. She even made scones from scratch and brought strawberry jam, which is apparently the only proper jam to have with tea and cream for the scones. Mia had this really beautiful, delicious tea with a flower that blossoms as it steeps.

The table set with as much red and blue plates as we could find among all the girls plates they brought from home. We were trying to stick with the British theme.

Apparently herbal "tea" is not really tea at all. It should actually be referred to as Tisane. Real tea only comes from one specific plant. I'm still gonna call it tea when I drink it though, so take that Britain!

The Rest of Jax's Visit

Prepare for way, way, way, way, way too many pictures, but there were just too many cute ones. I had to post these. There is one super cute video to come, but I don't know if I'll get to that quite yet.

Lennon never really drank out of a bottle, but the whole time Jackson was here they both had their bottles in front of a little Mickey Mouse before bed each night. They were so sweet about getting each others bottles too.

Mia was sad that she had to be in school for most of the time Jackson was here, so we really made the most of all the time she was with us.

A little linear ring around the rosie action

Aunt Hillary helping Lennon and Jackson play one of the games at Chuck E Cheese while Anderson looks on

Jackson loved this horsey

Our little dudes having a little tea party. Lennon likes to knock back his tea as fast as possible and get lots of refills.

Lennon learned to love Jackson's tackles of love by the end of the visit.

A sweet cousinly kiss

Showing off their Elmo hoodies Gaga got them

I LOVE this shot!

Rolling down the hill in our back yard. It makes me miss being outdoors. I'm done with winter and it's only just begun...yuck!

Taking care of their baby bunnies from last Easter

Mia and Mateus oogling all the goodies we had for our "slumber party"

Catching a little Mickey Mouse before bed

"Shaving" Mia's face with Jackson's shaving kit we got him for Christmas

We got lucky and saw the Chick Fil A cow at the mall. Lennon was in Heaven, Jackson - was terrified!

Fun With Trucks and Cousins

Lennon got this awesome black pick up truck from Gaga for his birthday back in July and he and Jackson had loads of fun with it when Hill and Jax visited us back in November. I can't believe how fast time goes by. I kept meaning to post pics from their trip, but from the time they left until this week it's just been a whirlwind of activity. We miss them so much and can't wait to see them again as soon as possible. Hopefully someone will win the lottery or start turning trash into gold or something and then we can fly home whenever we want.

They look like they're trying to look tough here.

Would you look at those dimples?

I think they thought of every possibly way they could get in and out of that truck.

Such silly little boys

Here I Am, But Where Am I?

Mia: And then, we can plant it.

Lennon: We already on the planet Mia.

Mia: No, I said plant it, not planet.

Lennon: We already on this planet.

Me: What planet are we on Lennon.

Lennon: We on the Earth planet, called Earth. That's what planet we on.

Double Tongue

Mia: I wish I had two tongues.

Me: Why?

Mia: I don't know. I just wish.

Me: What would you do with two tongues.

Mia: The same thing I do with this tongue. Taste things.

The Name Game

Lennon got an awesome Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for Christmas from Granmommy and Grandaddy. He also got several characters including Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and a kitty that I didn't recognize. He has just named that kitty - Gagio. ?? Not as long as Shushalaya, but just as unique for sure.

Gaga's Christmas Visit

Despite not going home for Christmas this year, we definitely didn't have to miss out on seeing most of our family. I am waaaay behind on posting pictures and stories, but I'll start with Gaga and work my way back. Gaga came from December 28-January 3, but got to stay one extra night due to snow delays. We mostly relaxed and hung out at home playing with all the kids new stuff, but still managed to get in our fair share of fun! We went to the Rainforest Cafe which is a rare treat. We often go up to the mall to see the crocodile there with Lennon, but never eat there, so the kids were super excited as you can tell from their glowing faces in all the pictures. We decorated a gingerbread village and went to Zoo Lights on New Years Eve before playing games with Mia and popping LOTS of poppers with both kids. Gaga cooked us a months worth of food in a matter of days and we will be going into hibernation when she leaves to let all the delicious food digest. Lennon really warmed up to her while she was here and decided he actually wanted to just go home with her today.

Both kids were crying as we left her at the airport. When we got home we set up their new Star Wars tent, turned on an American Girl movie for them after snuggling them into their sleeping bags with drinks and snacks and I was going to clean house. Gaga called because her flight was cancelled and she was going to get to stay an extra day, so without telling the kids, I left them here with Shelby and picked her up from the store. When I got home, I just called them to the door and said, "Look what I found!" They were so shocked and surprised. I think they almost didn't believe she was here. We're looking forward to enjoying our "bonus" day with her tomorrow.

Is that her mother or grandmother?

Lennon impersonating the apes

Watching in amazement at the flashing lights during the "thunder storm"

Happy family leaving The Rainforest Cafe, after which Lennon announced to us at 8 o'clock at night that it could not be his bedtime because the sun was still up. He said we couldn't see it because it was hiding behind the clouds.

Making Dippin' Dots with the new Dippin' Dots Maker Gaga got Mia for Christmas. Lennon had orange juice for his because "I not ike sugar, and I not ike cocoate."

Posing with her playdoh caterpillar

Helping Lennon with his first gingerbread house.

Mia always gets the most amazing shots of him. This was taken in the bathroom. Nice.

They were so excited to have all the fun stuff Gaga got them to celebrate New Year's Eve.

Lennon thought they were better as glasses.

Enjoying their Dippin' Dots. Not to worry, the paint is No VOC, so there are no fumes and it's very environmentally friendly :)

Shelby and the kids on the carousel at Zoo Lights, New Year's Eve. I can't ride those round and round rides or I throw up.

Notice Lennon's Harley Davidson beanie

There aren't too many 7 year olds that could hang out on New Year's Eve with the adults and have a good time. Mia hung with us and Jessica and Nathan until about 9 30 playing a game and laughing and talking. I'm not sure why this text is blue and I'm too tired to even try to fix it.

Me and Shelbs just after midnight. One of the best New Year's Eve's ever.

Thanks for all the fun Gaga! Can't wait to see you again. Merry Christmas everyone and Happy New Year.

I promise, I will get Papa and Nana's visit, Hillary and Jackson's visit and whatever else I've forgotten in the next little bit. We've had somewhat of a revolving door for the past 6 weeks so I'm behind on everything I could possibly be behind on I think. More pics and info to come.

I'm Ready To Go

Lennon wanted to go home with Gaga today. While discussing it, he said...

"Okay, I need to get ready. I just need some pants." Looks down and notices he is, in fact, wearing pants. "I'm ready."