I finally got my camera out...

We went for a little walk today and I actually took my camera with me. We didn't last long because it was rather chilly, but at least we enjoyed the fresh air. I keep intending to try to take some pictures of the boys together, but haven't gotten around to it. Maybe before too long. Until then, here are a few from our day:

For those who spoke up...

Any other takers? Get em free before I do something crazy like start an ETSY shop! Really, though. Definitely a fun hobby.







P.S. I really do intend to start blogging about the boys again. I'm just on a bit of a creative kick, in case you couldn't tell.

Name Cards...

I made these name cards for the boys' rooms today. I haven't printed Owen's yet, but I did frame Silas' and put it up in his room, and it added some much needed character, in my opinion. Can you tell I love Photoshop? It's such a fun creative outlet that doesn't make a big mess of the house. Anybody want one?

Leap Frog Tag Reader...

If you are a mother of preschool aged children, I am going to venture to say that you need to get this. It's a Leap Frog Tag Reader, and it is AWESOME. My brother got one for my niece and I was amazed when I saw what it can do. So, I got one for Owen. It is, in my opinion, one of the best tools I've ever seen for teaching children to read. The child can touch any word on the page and it will read it or sound it out. There are lots of tools out there that read a story to a child, but this one the child actually has to touch the pen to the word...which means they are seeing each word that is being read, rather than just hearing a story. There are also games that can be played with it that involve letters and letter sounds and you can also touch any character on the page and they will say something. Plus, there are a WHOLE bunch of books you can buy with it. We took it in the car with us to Seattle and Owen used it the entire way there. It kept him entertained for a 3 hour car ride and he was learning in the process. What could be better than that? If you have little kids, I think you should get one. They are a bit pricey, but well worth it if you ask me. So, people....run on out and by a Tag Reader. You won't regret it.

P.S. Leap Frog should pay me for the advertising!

Burlap Bulletin Board...

I saw this bulletin board the other day in the Ballard Design catalog and loved it. I thought it would be a fun addition to our kitchen and a good solution to my on going dilemma of where to put cute cards when they come in the mail. I decided, however, that I could probably make it for way cheaper than the $60 they were asking.




So $15 and an hour's worth of elbow grease later, this is what I came up with today:

Lincoln City...

We are at the beach and are thoroughly enjoying ourselves, even if the weather is a bit crummy. I guess being completely lazy watching cable TV, playing with cousins, shopping, and swimming is making up for the wind and rain. Besides, the boys couldn't care less about the weather. See for yourself:

Ten on Ten (kinda)...

When I contemplated doing Ten on Ten, I thought it would be a fun way to document our every day life. And to do so most effectively, I told myself that I would deliberately not do anything out of the ordinary, stage any pictures, or even ask the boys to pose for the pictures. And guess what? I didn't. This is truly just our life today (ok, we did happen to have some visitors, but it wasn't for the sake of this post). That being said, it was absolutely impossible to narrow the pictures down to 10. After all, this depicts life today and leaving any out wouldn't do the day justice. So, it might be more accurate to call this post "Twenty on Ten." Maybe in February I'll be able to post just ten. So without further ado...

Twenty on Ten:









































The End.

Bored or Creative?

If you check this blog with any regularity, you'll notice that I have changed the blog header about every 5 seconds recently. I've been having fun playing in Photoshop. I think this is a sign that I need to take more pictures soon. My creative itch is getting the better of me and I need do something a bit more productive than making blog headers.

So, I was thinking. There's this thing that I have seen other bloggers do called "10 on 10." Basically, they take 10 pictures throughout the day on the 10th day of every month and then post them on their blog. I kinda want to try it (if I can remember). Stay tuned...

Brothers...

Today I made a fort for the boys...you know, the kind where you tie some sheets to any object available. Well, as they were having a hay day playing in it I, at one point, suggested we fix part of it because it was getting pretty droopy. Owen responded, "But Mom, we want it like this."

Ok, so that may not sound that exciting to you, but to me it was one of the sweetest things he's said to date. Know why? Because he said "we." And it was true. Silas was having just as much fun playing in the fort as Owen was. And they were actually interacting. They were chasing each other, covering each other in blankets and then pulling them off, gently wrestling together, and laughing together the whole time. That, folks, will melt a mother's heart for sure. It truly brings the hugest smile to my face to see my boys playing together. For some reason, this last week Silas has just sprouted. He seems like a kid now....a kid who obviously adores his big brother and suddenly wants to play and interact with his big brother all the time. And the best part of all, I know this is just the beginning.

As I was putting Owen to bed tonight, he said to me, "I love Silas the most." When I asked why, he replied, "because he plays with me." That, there, is what life is all about.

Tear.