July 4th, 2009...

To celebrate the 4th of July, Tom, the boys, and I headed up to our friend Eli's parents camp on Little Sebago. It is a beautiful spot with lots to do and our friends Eli and Katie have two boys who are a bit older than Will and Alex who make for wonderful playmates.

We arrived in the late morning and happily the weather was pretty great. There were a few quick showers but nothing like some of the rain we have been experiencing. The boys LOVED swimming and playing in the water and would even jump off the shallow part of the dock...so cute.

The really big deal for them came when Tom took them out for their very first ride on a jet ski. I was a little nervous but the boys were not a bit! They hopped right on and away they went. I am glad my "wimpiness" is not rubbing off on them!
I took the boys for a drive in the late afternoon so they could catch a little shut eye. After about an hour nap they were good to go. They did a lot more playing with their buddies and then we had a delicious barbecue dinner. Then came the fireworks. Will and Alex had never seen them before so we were anxious to see how they would react. We had front row seats for a spectacular show.

The boys were so excited and kept asking when the fireworks were going to begin. Once they got started, the boys watched in awe. Will would clap after each burst and say "more fireworks". I think they are fans! When it was building up toward the finale, the booms were getting a bit loud. Alex turned to me and said "Mama, this is a little loud for me" so we headed in the house where we could still see perfectly. No matter how many "firsts" Tom and I get to experience as parents, every moment is still so special and Alex and Will's first fireworks display was no exception.

We finally packed it up at 10 pm and headed home. I could not believe how well the boys had done considering their bedtime is typically 7:30. Of course they fell right asleep in the car but it was no trouble at all to transport them from car seat to bed. It was such a great day and all four of us had such a good time. The boys are still talking about their jet ski ride and the fireworks! We can hardly wait for next year.

Conversations About Baby...

A lot of people ask how Alex and Will are feeling and reacting about the upcoming new edition. Well, the boys are very, very excited about their new brother or sister to be. Each of the boys really enjoys resting their heads upon my belly and will give the baby a kiss or a raspberry at least 5 times per day. It really is sweet. They have recently been able to feel Baby's kicks on the outside which I think they really get a kick (bad joke I know!) out of.

The other day in the car I was telling the boys that Baby was now the size of a banana. They thought this was just hysterical. Now they regularly ask me whether our baby is bigger or smaller than any fruit or vegetable they can think of. I can only imagine what they are picturing in my belly.

The boys also really like to talk about what will happen when the baby gets here. They want to hold the baby and feed the baby. They are quick to point out that babies sleep in cribs and only have milk because they are not big boys. I think they are very anxious to be my little helpers. Because they have been so excited to be big boys lately I think they will really relish in the big brother role.

I think it has been awhile since I have included a belly shot. So, here it is, me and "Baby" at 23 weeks...

Strawberry Picking...

June has been a challenging month for we Mainers weather wise. We received over 8.5 inches of rain which resulted in 21 rainy days in the month making it the 5th rainiest in recorded weather history. Blech! I like to think I have some pretty good ideas up my sleeve for keeping Alex and Will busy on rainy days but I was definitely coming up short after so many wet weather days. When July finally arrived I figured we would kick it off with something really summery...strawberry picking.

July started off pretty dismal and drizzly but I did not let that deter me. Our Summers here are short and it was time to do some of those once a year, summery things. So the boys and I headed out to Maxwell's Farm in Cape Elizabeth to do some strawberry picking. When we arrived it was just a little drizzly and the three of us were just so glad to be outdoors that we barely even noticed. We grabbed a picking container and chose a wide row to begin our picking.

I was a little nervous that Will and Alex would not really understand the whole concept but after being told a couple of times to only pick the red berries they did great. The three of us hunted down the ripest, reddest strawberries we could find. It was so much fun to be outdoors, in a garden, picking (and eating!) delicious fruit. Before I knew it our container was full...really full. So, the boys and I hauled the container up to the farm stand to be weighed. We picked 9.6 pound of strawberries!! This is on top of the probably additional 5 pounds we ate as we picked! I guess we were having a good time!

Since we went picking we have done a lot of snacking on strawberries, have made a strawberry cake, strawberry muffins and have frozen 10 cups of sliced strawberries. We still have some left! I would say here in the Jordan house we are definitely hitting our 5-9 fruit and veggie servings per day...with strawberries!

A Fashion Show...

The other day I decided to start bringing up totes from the basement that housed all Alex and Will's old baby clothes. It was a rainy day (again!) and I thought the boys would get a kick out of digging through all their old, tiny things. In my mind I imagined that I had about 5 totes of clothes from newborn through 18 months....I have one. Yes, one! Because I had given away/sold/donated the boys clothes in bits and spurts I did not realize I had given almost everything away!

What I have left (mostly) are the things Alex and Will wore when they were very small...I just could not part with those things! So, I did not have much to sort through but it sure was fun to traipse down memory lane with the boys. I found their coming home outfits, first Halloween costumes and clothes so small that it is hard to believe these things were swimming on Will and Alex when they first wore them. The boys tried on bibs and tried to squeeze old onesies over their heads. It gave us some great comic relief for an otherwise dreary day. My absolute favorite part was when the boys discovered their pumpkin hats.

When I first discovered I was pregnant with the boys I began knitting them some little pumpkin hats. I figured with my due date of October 30th I would surely have my guys here in time for Halloween. Before babies I was an avid knitter and I really relished knitting something (finally!) for my own babies. Right before Halloween I set the boys up in a chair, put on the hats and proudly got ready to give them a little photo session showing off my creations (both babies and hats!). Here is a little taste of how that idea played out...

Hmmm...I don't think they were such big fans of the pumpkin hats! This time around Alex and Will thought the pumpkin hats were just hysterical and could not wait to stretch them over their heads. Here is how the second attempt at a pumpkin hat photo shoot went...

As you can see this time around it was a little more successful! I finished off the day with 4 small piles of clothes. One for if Baby is a boy. One gender neutral pile if Baby is a girl. I also have a "Will" and an "Alex" pile. Because I am a sentimental soul, I am going to take my absolute favorite of each of their little outfits and have them made into baby quilts that I can give to their children. That way I am not saying "good-bye" to all their baby things. I am simply passing them along as memories of my boys as babies. Now if I could just learn how to sew...

As for Baby...I have lots of blanks to fill in for his or her wardrobe but I certainly don't mind doing that! I am now in full nesting mode so I am looking forward to purchasing a few tiny things for Baby to have on hand for when he/she comes home from the hospital. I can then overwhelm Baby with pink or blue appropriately!

2 Years & 9 Months...

This past month has been a very exciting one for Alex and Will. Despite having one of the rainiest Junes on record the boys have managed to do so many fun things. They have gone to a parade, a festival, two amusement parks as well as moving to the big boy table and into big boy beds. It has been a month of adventure and change. With all this activity the boys have proven they are ready to take on more excitement as well as more challenges. Here is a rundown of Alex and Will's favorites from the past month...

Alexander

Loves: Having his back rubbed, rides, being tickled, collecting things (any "thing" will do), playing ball, hunting for worms/slugs, playing in the water, "doing cool tricks", making mud pies, string cheese and all vegetables.

William

Loves: Garbage trucks, hearing stories, rides, playing "Wipe Out", doing "cool tricks", playing parade, berries, singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star", playing Lego's, building train tracks and snuggling.

Story Land...

This past Thursday, Tom, Will, Alex and I made our second annual trip to Story Land in New Hampshire. We had such a great time last year and had really been looking forward to going again. I was impressed that at 2 years old, the boys remembered going and remembered the things they had done there. They were so excited for the return trip and eagerly put on the Story Land t-shirts we had purchased last year.

After our 1 1/2 hour car ride, we arrived at Story Land at a little before 10 am. We headed right in and said hello to Humpty Dumpty...

The boys were SO excited about Humpty. They pushed the button to make him talk and even gave him a big hug as we were leaving the area...it was so cute. Next it was time to hit up the rides. This year Alex and Will were tall enough to ride everything in the park and, trust me, they wanted to ride everything in the park! There were spinning tea cups, a pirate ship, a train, and tractors to ride just to name a few of the tamer rides. The boys really loved these more "low-key" rides but their favorites were really the wilder rides.

Some of the more daring rides my boys rode at Story Land? Their very first roller coaster (which I was too nervous riding to take pictures on!), a river rapids ride, a spinning and rising barn, and, of course, their favorite from last year, the Bamboo Shoots. Will and Alex LOVE this log flume ride and we rode not once but 4 times! We were completely drenched but all four of us had so much fun. Tom and I both agree that some of our favorite moments of the day were watching the boys really get into the rides. The attendants would shout out "Are you ready" and Will and Alex would yell out "YES" and squeal and giggle during the rides. It was priceless.

Story Land not only has tons of rides but also many areas to entertain the kids in other ways. We picked a nice, sunny day to go so the boys especially liked the misting tents and the water park area to cool off in. There was also a room just filled with soft, foam balls to shoot into the air and to feed through air tubes...they thought that was the coolest thing ever.

When we were getting ready to leave at a little past four and were nearly at the parks exit, the boys sweetly asked to take one more ride. Do you think Tom and I could refuse? Do you have a guess on which ride they would choose as their last of the trip? So, yes, Tom, Will, Alex and I rode the Bamboo Shoots one last time before we left Story Land and we loved every drop of it!

Here are some of the shots we took on our annual trip to Alex and Will's favorite place to visit...Story Land!

Before and After the River Rapids ride...

Alex Getting "Misted"...

Will on the Carousel...

The Crazy Barn Ride (yes, the boys and Tom are in there!)...

Fun in the Ball Zone...

Before and After the Bamboo Shoots...

I will sign off with a photo of my boys, more than 6 1/2 hours after arriving at the park. This was taken about 2 miles from the exit...

We left Story Land exactly as we did last year...dreaming of our next trip!

High Chair Graduation...

Will and Alex are really growing up over here. In addition to their new, big boy beds there has been another "big boy" moment. A high chair graduation!

As you know from my past posts, we have gone from standard high chairs, to counter top boosters and then on to regular, chair boosters. Recently, the boys have been really wanting to eat at the dining room table and to not be restricted in a seat...who can blame them? So, Tom and I decided it was time to make the switch to the regular dining room chairs. The boys have done very, very, well with the switch and I know all four of us really enjoy a sit down meal as a family. There are definite times of craziness like when the boys decide they would rather crawl on the floor pretending to be dogs than eat but overall they sit right down to eat. Something I did decide to do (for now) was to switch out our cloth table cloths for vinyl ones. Not exactly the look I wanted for our dining room but it certainly makes more sense right now!

One of my favorites of this transition has been how the boys bring their plates to the kitchen and into the sink when the are done. I think it is so cute to see them carefully carry their plates and then, on tiptoe, dump it into the sink. Sure, lots of food makes it onto the floor but Zara loves it!

As a tribute to Alex and Will graduating to the dining room table I put a little timeline in pictures together...

Standard High Chairs-March 2007

Countertop Boosters-January 2008

Chair Boosters-September 2008

Big Boy Table-June 2009