Photos of Life Lately - June 2017 & 4th of July

More snapshots from recent adventures!

Perhaps one of the coolest things in our neighborhood ever!

Family dinner outing at Shake Shack! I LOVE their buns, and the beer is good, too.

Here's my (candid) reaction to the buzzer telling us our food is ready. 

Marshall is finding ways to bond with his brother.

We really love watching them together. It's funny to see when Marshall chooses to play with Dec and when he prefers to do his own thing.

 

Marshall's patience surprises me sometimes!

Other times, he's less patient, and we're all learning how to navigate those moments.

Over last weekend, Declan moved out of our room and into "Marshall's" (now "the boys'") room. We'll all adjust eventually, but it was tough for M. He can be sensitive to change, to put it mildly, so we're helping him through the transition. Declan seems comfortable there, but he also got sick over the weekend, so he still spent plenty of time with us overnight.

Concentration.

"I'm proud!"

Some new clothes, thanks to Gammie and Grandpa.

Marshall often spends solid chunks of time just lounging on the couch. No book, no TV, just chilling there. We got ourselves a very mellow kid, indeed. 

He's getting big, but he's still so little. 

Sometimes you pick up your toddler from daycare and realize he's wearing his little brother's pants. 

Santa Monica

Part of Daddy's Father's Day gift - photos of the boys in Terry's favorite teams' jerseys. True to form, I have yet to actually print the photos...

We hung out with Marshall's best friend's family recently, and they busted out superhero capes. You've never seen anything quite so cute as two three-year-olds running around in matching Flash costumes. 

They came out to tell us they were "sneaking snacks," and when we checked on the little thieves they had stolen....apples! I am so charmed by their innocence at this age.

 Playing at home is such a blast these days!

More Duplo fun

Looking for some lost toy 

Vacuuming after corn-husking

And some adventures out of the house, too!

Swim lessons! Declan joins, too, now, so it's a whole family outing.

Park play!

Gardening

Our morning routines are still a challenge for me, but we're finding moments of fun. The boys wake up at different times--and no two days are ever the same. Sometimes Declan is up at 5 am, sometimes Marshall sleeps past 7. Sometimes they're both up right around 6. I have to just roll with whatever happens. I pack lunches the night before while Terry does dishes, and Terry brings the boys' lunches and school bags down to the car when he leaves for work in the morning, all of which eases the burden on me.

There are some elements to our mornings that are always the same: fresh diapers and school clothes right away when the boys wake up (sometimes breakfast is extra messy and requires a change but at least we're mostly there), breakfast (smoothies, eggs, toast with peanut butter and fruit, etc.), teeth brushing for M, and as much playing and reading as we can squeeze. Plus I have to get myself ready, nurse Declan (he eats solid food at breakfast, too), and pack up anything else I haven't already prepared. We often have to sprinkle in a tantrum or two, and Declan is often starting to feel ready for a nap (if he woke up at 5 or so especially!) right around the time we're trying to get out the door.

It's usually chaos. I'm working on it. But the best mornings are always the ones when Daddy is home. <3

Quick recap of Fourth of July weekend:

We ended up with four days off together. After an unfortunate start with a car accident for Terry (he is okay and the kids weren't in the care!), we were glad that the weekend didn't have a ton on the agenda. 

On the holiday, we walked to a local park for a parade and picnic, which was actually really fun! It turned out to be a pretty big community event with lots of vendors, sponsored food, music, and activities for the (slightly older) kids. 

Who needs to look at a camera?

 Then we headed out to our friends' house for a BBQ, and Marshall snoozed on the way, which is rare nowadays! (Naps in general are super hit-or-miss around here; we're just aiming for 3 or 4 per week at this point, and early bedtime when the nap doesn't happen.)

Backyard fun!

S'mores!

Whew! Talk about a whirwind catch-up. That brings us up to speed, with lots of undocumented little moments in between. These little boys and that awesome guy I married (not to mention family and friends sprinkled in the mix) make my life so full and happy!