Growing...

The boys are growing, our toy supply is growing, and... my belly is growing. So much so that Parker is certain the baby is bound to come any day. 

Yup, we're having baby #3 in July. We're very excited. 

I was holding a baby a few months ago after I had just found out I was pregnant and Austin said, "When is our baby coming?" That was before we had told the boys. Baby names... Parker wants Constantine if it's a boy and Eden if it's a girl. He also like John. I asked if he thinks it's a boy or a girl and he just says, "TWINS!" Nope... that has been confirmed. 

Needless to say, this baby will be well loved by their big brothers. 

We were supposed to find out the gender today, but due to "inclement weather", the doctor's office is closed. So lame! It's going to be a pain to reschedule all these appts that were missed. Anyway, as my dad said, "Nothing's going to change between now and the appt." True true.

Here I am at 16 weeks:)

I am now almost 20 weeks. I'm still wearing many of my pant which is shocking, but I can already see my face puffing up. Oh boy. 

Happy Birthday to Calvin

In traditional birthday fashion, we sent a b'day video to cousin Calvin on his 12th birthday. His mom said he thought it was "so cute." 

Usually we'd be celebrating with the cousins, but now we are spread across the country. Boo. What a difference a year makes.

Must try recipe and some pics

I love Pinterest for recipes. But sometimes they work better than others. Well, I am living proof that this one skillet tortellini dish is AMAZING! It came together super fast (under 20 min) and tasted like something from a restaurant. Make sure to use fresh tortellini from the fridge section, so you don't have to pre-boil it in another pan. 

 Another successful recipe I just made were these sweet potato not fries. Pete does not like sweet potatoes but he loved these. I have never had a sweet potato without butter and brown sugar, but this was delicious. Just diced sweet potatoes and a LOT of seasonings. It was also a pleasure to make because I just transitioned all our spices from our dark, cavernous pantry to an easy-to-view drawer.  I was just mad I didn't make more. No pictures, just trust me. The blogger is a friend from Provo and she's pretty impressive, especially since she's always loved cooking, but recently went gluten and dairy free due to some new dietary restrictions for her child. Make these.

How come whenever I think a Happy Meal toy is super lame, those are always the boys' favorites? Like these heinous teeth!

 My chocolate milk-aholic...

 Parker was invited to a b'day party at Chuck E. Cheese a few weeks ago, and they were also nice enough to include Austin.

 The boys had a great time managing their tokens, playing games and running around. I'm thinking this will be the format of Parker's party this year.

 Austin could have rode that dinky "carousel" for hours. So content and he didn't even choose one of the horses that went up and down. He happily sat in the stationary sleigh.

 I got Parker to hop on, since it was more bang for your "token"!

Parker was awesome at this basketball game. I love that it was his height!

Happy Valentine's Day

We love Valentine's Day around here. The boys are totally confused about the holiday, because all they can think about are their upcoming birthdays. Austin is just sure that the cookie decorating party we went to was in HIS honor. 

My friend Bree was so sweet to host a few little ones and let them go hog wild with frosting and sprinkles. At first, Austin just wanted to play with the marble run game, but eventually I lured him over. 

 Bree and Lyla.

 Austin is so photogenic these days.

 Cheryl and Blake, Austin's new BFF.

 Anna and her little ones.

 It was very fun. Then on the 13th, Parker had a class party.
Austin loves being included in the snack aspect of it.

 Opening his Valentines with pride. He thanked each child by name. So sweet. He gave out Angry Birds ones that had a pencil attached.

 Me and my sweet boy.

 Listening to a story... brothers on the rug together.

 Decorating a cookie.

They do some pretty cute crafts at school. This was his response to "If you give a moose a muffin..." Clearly he's been loving cantaloupe lately. He claims it's the only fruit he likes.

And then on Friday night we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner. So good. Love my loves. 

Cuties

When we go on long car rides, Parker is likely to fall asleep... but not Austin. He strictly sleeps in his bed. It baffles me when I see kids falling asleep random places. After church on Sunday, apparently Austin was desperate for some zzzz's. We were calling his name and when he didn't respond, we went searching and found this in the living room: 

 These brothers are just so cute.

 Parker had his first playdate without me. It was awesome. It's a friend from school, who also goes to our church, and last week we had him over to play. The boys get along very well and the mom was eager to have Park over. She picked him up from school and everything. It was awesome.

Here are Parker and Bradley, with Bradley's little sister Sandra.

 Austin likes to try and get a reaction out of Parker by doing things like laying in his bed.

 Who is this kid?

 We went to the Nauticus museum again. It was such a gorgeous day at the waterfront and as I was driving, I could have sworn we were at the coast in San Diego. Then I rolled down my window and let in some of the frigid air. Nope... we're not in San Diego anymore. Snow is falling as I type this.

 Still going to yoga on Tuesdays. It's a fun thing to break up the week and I must say, I never dreamed I would be going to a gym with an aircraft carrier in the background.

 Story time: When my brother was little, he wished he could change his name to Jamal. I think we watched a show that had a character with that name when we were little. Anyway, my white brother Jeff could never understand why we all found that to be such a funny name choice for him.

Then we were at the mall the other night and a dad was yelling for his son in the play area, "Jamal, Jamal!" I texted this picture to Jeff... "Now this is what a Jamal looks like." 

Richmond visit

Last weekend we ventured out to Richmond. We driven by it on our way to Charlottesville and DC, but this was our first time exploring. We had a great time. I got some recommendations before our trip, so we were in the know when it came to where to get donuts. Apparently the Sugar Shack is the place to be. I got a glazed, Parker got strawberry frosting with sprinkles, and Austin got strawberry frosting with m&ms. Apparently they change their flavors every 15 min and you never know what they'll have. When Scott and Abbey arrived a bit after us, they scoped out a Samoa donut. Pete eats pretty mindfully these days, but had he known about that one, he probably would have indulged. 

 Austin loved his donut.

 Then I took the boys to the Science Museum of Virginia, since our Nauticus passes got us in for free. Whoop whoop! Pete went with Scott, Abbey and Lance to the shooting range, so that he could brush up on his skills for his marksman test, to add a ribbon to his uniform. The practice paid off because he ended up getting Expert level.

The Science museum was fun and virtually empty, though it would definitely be more appealing to older kids. They had a cool tight rope walking exhibit.

 Austin is so hilarious when he runs... so much effort for so little output. He has worn the same size pants for about 1 1/2 years.

 Playing with scarves.  

But the highlight of the trip was lunch at Cafe Rio. It had just opened the previous week, and this is the closest one to us. The boys loved watching the tortillas being made. Parker watched intently and then subtly stated, "Mom, I know what I want to do when I'm bigger." Then he pointed to the tortilla makers. So cute. 

 Love every chance we have for this group to be together. Until next time...

Settling in

I feel like we've finally reached the point where we are calling Virginia home. It's taken a while and a lot of effort to make new friends and figure out the community, but we are almost there. I am so thankful to have some ladies around me that I can now call on in a moment of need or for a playdate. I also have a group I watch the Bachelor with, so that's really saying something! I'm thankful for all the wonderful families we've been able to meet through the military, as we have dinners every other Sunday night for JAGs and other military members. The boys are solidifying their relationships with friends. Austin goes to nursery at church eagerly, and feels a bond with both the workers and the kids there. Parker has a few classmates he has really clicked with a new friend in another class who we've been playing with. It's been quite cold here and we're really looking forward to warmer days that will lead us outside, but in the meantime, the boys have been playing so well together at home and I've been able to keep up with my application job. The boys are at such great ages and Austin is marginally less grumpy on a daily basis, so that helps things. I love how they play imaginatively together and how patient Parker is with his often-impatient little brother. We have a good thing going.

Some funny things...

Austin said, "Mama, I'm so glad you make red smoothies and dad makes brown smoothies." (fruit smoothie vs protein shake).

Parker said, "Mom, come wipe my bum." Me: "Wipe your own bum. You are old enough." P: "Uggghhh. Wiping your bum is the worst!" Me: "No... wiping SOMEONE ELSE's bum is the WORST! We are all in charge of our own bums!" (Man, the things that you never expect to come out of your mouth!)

Austin says every time we go pick Parker up at school, "Next year this is going to be MY school!" Can't believe Parker will be in Kindergarten next year. At least it's only half-day here. I'm going to miss him (and his ability to entertain Austin).

Parker's entire birthday invite list includes friends from San Diego. Had to break it to him that plane tickets were not in the party budget!