more of the funny-ness ...

what you are about to read truly happened, word for word.

1.) henry got some new kicks. some cute little gray tennis shoes.
henry says to his teachers on the way to music time: "I'm really having trouble walking in my tennis shoes."

yes, they fit. this was on day three of wearing them. not a big fan of wearing shoes, prefers to be barefoot. wonder he gets this from? :)

2.) henry is sitting on our bed. he says, "mommy, I'm laying on your pillow. actually mommy, I'm laying on daddy's pillow." actually? ha! this isn't the first time he's used that word, and used it appropriately.

3.) last week our weekly Bible verse was Exodus 20:12, "Honor your father and mother." we read over these verses during breakfast and try to talk about them. I asked Henry what he thought it meant to honor your father and mother. He replied, "to love mommy and daddy and make them smile." (sniff sniff) then he said, "I obey you and honor you." (sniff, sniff again). 10 minutes later I asked him to put on his shoes and told him it was time to go to school. at this point, he said, "no ma'm mommy. I don't want to honor my mother!" (it was all I could do to hide my chuckle. at least he was polite?! ha!)

4.) owen was napping, henry and I were doing some yard work. we come in and henry asks, "where's owen?" I reply that he's napping. henry runs to owen's room, throws open the door and says "owen! wake up little brother. its time to play cars with me!"

5.) henry and I were reading a book on the couch. after the first page, henry says "wait just a minute mommy. I have to get my glasses so I can read." he hops off the couch, goes over to the kitchen, comes back and says "mommy, I went upstairs (we have a ranch style house) and got my glass off the table. I can read this book now."

6.) in the car, we pass by Brusters ice cream shop. henry asks, "mommy, what is the name of that place?" I tell him its brusters the ice cream place. He says, "mommy, please turn your car around and let's go to that ice cream place and get some yummy ice cream. sound okay?" sound okay?!?! I about fell out of my seat.

oh there are so many more ... I've got to start writing them down and keeping a journal as I can not seem to remember them all! so fun.

First Day of Preschool - Part Two

Owen had his big first day of preschool today at Parkway.

He did just fine, much better than his mommy did.

Cute, cute, cute!

Today was quite difficult ... I've never left him anywhere but with my sister or our parents or at church on Sunday. I will spare the details, but I sure hope leaving him gets better. The good part is that he wasn't sad and had fun. So that's consolation, isn't it?!?!

First Day of Preschool

It is official - school has started! Henry is attending Grace Preschool for the second year. He is in the "2's" class this year. He goes to school three mornings per week from 8-11:30am. I just love this school ... it is so sweet, so creative, so loving. While it is STILL hard to leave him anywhere other than my sister's (does this ever get easier?!?!), I know he is in marvelous hands/care.

He had a great first day and no tears!

Here is a photo from last year's first day of school ...

And below is the first day this year - what a difference a year makes. he is holding a sign that describes the eventful day - first day of school, his teachers, and the date (thanks for the idea kimberly!).

Also, was going to have him all dressed up for the big first day, ha ha. however, I wasn't sure how he would do on the potty training bit and so, in effort to help the teachers, I decided to save the cute little smocked shortall for another day and dress him in some shorts that would be easier on everyone. he did just fine, no accidents, but better to be safe ... the teachers had enough on their hands today.
and some cuteness - the robe brothers lounging in the french chair post bath time tonight.

and little brother looking up to big brother. the first of many times, no doubt.

Here's to the new routine/fall schedule!

While I'm at work (three days p/wk), Henry will be at preschool in the mornings. Owen will be at my sister's two mornings and at Parkway Preschool one morning. (I have to drop off Owen first at my sister's and have been dreading seeing Henry's reaction to Owen getting to stay at Auntie's, otherwise known as Queen of the Universe - Henry thinks she hung the moon and he is absolutely right about that. Anyway, I thought he was REALLY going to be upset, but he was a champ and was focused on the excitement of school-what a relief! phew! let's hope that continues.) I treasure the bond that Henry shares with his Auntie and could never in a million years adequately express how grateful I am for her love for our children. I am positively thrilled that Owen will be able to build a special bond with his Auntie as well. She is one of a kind!

Next year I hope to have both boys at the same school-there is no babies class at Grace which is why Owen isn't there this year. Both boys will be home in the afternoons with our sitters (we have two this semester-so happy to have Sally Anne back and we have not run off Katy Mac yet! :) She's been with us since the first of the year. They are both wonderful young ladies.) The scheduling/drop offs/lunch time pick ups/etc., are a little crazy, but we are comfortable with the craziness since it allows for them to have a good combination of care outside the home in addition to being at home with one on one attention.

Owen has his first day of preschool tomorrow ... more pictures to follow, wouldn't you know it. :)

4 visitors, 2 new foods, 1 haircut and many giggles.

two new visitors arrived on Saturday ... owen's first two teeth! yep, here we are close to seven months and his bottom two teeth have decided to make an appearance.

sharp little puppy teeth they are.

look at those dimples - they evoke so many smiles and kisses. since he was sick the last week or so, we put off trying any new foods. over the weekend as he was feeling better, he tried sweet potatoes. L-O-V-E-D them. today we tried applesauce. hmmnnn ... love would not be the accurate word for this introduction. the tartness didn't go over well on the first go round. next on the list is peas. maybe I will finally have someone in this house to enjoy peas with me, as gary and henry do NOT like peas. :)henry getting a much needed haircut. henry really likes getting his haircut (good thing because it grows fast and we like to keep it fairly short). he is so darn cute sitting up in the chair with his cape. he talks about how it "tickles" and that the lady is making his hair "nice." he does so well and sits very still. it cracks me up to watch him sit there like a little man, so I had to take a photo or two today.

our other two visitors were ya ya and daddy jim who came to have lunch with us over the weekend. we had a lovely visit!

and last but not least ... here is a short video of owen giggling with a short cameo by henry, eating his post haircut lollipop. funny!

preschool starts tomorrow ... we are excited to be back on a normal routine, even though henry and owen will be in two different places. henry is looking forward to seeing his classmates and will be in the "Twos" class. here's to the first day of school!

from one to two.

hands down the most popular question posed to us these last six months:
"how is it going from one to two children? tell me the truth."

thought about this post for a long time. answer(s) have changed throughout the course of the last six months as some days have been divine and some days ... well not so much. to follow is our answer(s). our meaning this includes gary's perspective. a summary more so than a simple answer. here goes ...

remarkable ... your heart swells with more love than you ever dreamed possible. it IS just that simple.

different, or as gary says "complex" ... life in all aspects is different than with just one little one. it changes your perspective, changes your previous routine, changes your relationship with your spouse, changes your roles as parents and husband/wife. you name it. these are not bad changes by any stretch of the imagination, but definite changes.

touching ... seeing two God given blessings interact with each other, even in the smallest of ways is completely heart stopping at times. seeing each spouse lovingly interact with multiple children is also touching.

exhausting ... not every day or night is exhausting, but it is a new "tired." again, not necessarily a negative. requires double the energy, double the smiles, double (and sometimes triple) the patience, double the concern of "are we doing everything God wants us to do to be the most loving and diligent parents to our children?" double the planning, quadruple for some reason, the laundry, double the you name it. but with all of that comes far more than double the joy they bring to our lives. no question.

less time ... less time to spend one on one with henry, with owen, with each other, with our dogs. even with dedicated planning, there are simply more things to fill up the day than there were. but the good part about this is that it forces us to make the time we are together count. to make it special. that doesn't mean we fill up the day with 100 things to see and do. some days that means enjoying the smallest of things. some days that means planning a fun outing or play date with friends. some days that means we make it a point to have date night rather than putting it off like we used to do. it demands that we try to make each day meaningful and we don't lose sight of what is truly important ... loving your neighbor as yourself, always being grateful, being thoughtful, being content, being prayerful, being disciplined, being healthy, serving others and serving our Lord.

easy ... what you say? easy?! that doesn't follow everything I've read so far ...
allow me to explain. there is a lot to be said for first hand experience. having some idea of what to expect with a baby the second time around makes that whole process easier. practice makes a difference. I will also make the disclosure that owen did not have colic, he is a happy baby, he has been very good to us thus far. BUT, even IF those statements weren't true. I still think having been down this road once better equips you for the transition. you are more relaxed. you don't sweat the small stuff.

hard, or as gary says, "trying" ... summer/gary, are you making any sense? you just described it as easy?!?
for us, the transition from one to two was harder, more challenging, than the transition from zero to one. who knows if that's true for everyone. but the constant juggling act, playing man on man so to speak, it is just plain harder. I don't even remember what we expected the transition to be like, but anything in life that is truthfully worthwhile comes with tests and demands patience and perseverance. it is not meant to be easy.

thankfulness, undeserving ... children ... one, two, three or however many, are God's greatest gifts. you bet we express our thanks each and every day. good days, so so days and bad days. and we surely don't deserve such two phenomenal little boys.

fast ... we thought time passed quickly with one bambino. quadruple that with two. I really can't imagine how much faster it would pass with three or more.

reflective ... it is so amusing to re-live these "firsts" with owen. first smile, first laugh, first foods, first movements, and many more to come. with toddlers it seems you are always in the now of whatever stage they may be in. you forget how fascinating it is that a baby learns to use a spoon so easily, or learns how to purposefully grab an object. what a miracle this whole experience is.

an adventure ... every single day is an adventure! some days the adventure entails lots of laughs. some days lots of tears. some days lots of surprises. a game of suspense (even with regular routines/schedules there is much, much truth in this).

so there you have it friends. our thoughts surrounding the first six months of having two children. we should revisit this subject down the road and see what new insights exist. there is indeed more to learn, more to experience, and always more love to be shared.

new tricks.

1.) owen's favorite trick - eating tags.

or really anything he can gets his hands on, but tags are his favorite.

2.) sitting up - this doesn't last long, don't be fooled. but he is slowly getting the gist of it. he doesn't fall forward anymore, just to the side.

3.) keeping his chin hydrated, heh heh. I could wipe his mouth all day long and still massive amounts of slobber will appear less than seconds later.

4.) creating the most squeezable cheeks and precious dimples. love it!

5.) winning the award for most adorable heiny. I know, I know, but isn't it cute?!

and a sad trick ... 6.) sharing germs with brother. owen came down with a fever/cough/congestion fri night/saturday that has just gotten better as of today and sure enough passed to henry, who came down with the same thing Monday night. henry's fever was higher and he was in worse spirits than owen was, but started to feel much better this afternoon. hooray!

never a dull moment

last fri/sat we travelled to bham for a number of reasons ... helped host a baby shower for a sweet friend at my old firm (the boys went with me and had a good time seeing everyone), a family cookout, a visit with gary's mom and jon, and for adorable dorothy's, I mean madeline's, third birthday. it was a busy (but great) trip and we weren't able to visit everyone we wanted to (sorry we missed you Granny; Heather & Georgia; and others!), but there's always next time.

happy birthday madeline!

the party was at pump it up, a bouncy/inflatable place. everyone had a blast, parents included! this big slide was fantastic.

funny.

word for word, from a conversation with henry, who was having trouble falling asleep for his nap:

me: "henry, it seems that your buddies (stuffed animals) are keeping you from sleeping. I will take them with me so they perhaps you can rest a little better." (I gather his buddies)
henry: "no mommy, I need my buddies!"
me: "henry, do you know why mommy took away your buddies?"
henry: " no ma'm. I don't know anything about that."

later in the conversation, as he was laying on his pillow repeatedly saying "mommy, hold me" (which is always hard to hear when of course you want to hold your child but in this instance you know it is not necessarily being said with pure intentions; rather a means to delay taking a nap):

henry: "mommy hold me please."
me: "henry, you are a smart boy and can get to sleep on your own. mommy won't hold you right now."
henry: "mommy, hold me. mommy hold me ..."
me: "henry, that's enough sunshine. please don't say anything and close your eyes baby."
henry (in a soft and ever so sweet voice): "I want to say enough things mommy. I want to say a lot of things."

of course he does! :)

scrumptious six.

this little turkey is six months and is he scrumptious. weighs in at 18.4lbs and is 27 3/8 tall (75th percentile for both). loves people. is not stranger shy at this point. sweet and smiley. he doesn't make you work for smiles, but does makes you work for laughs. when you do get them they are deep and oh so chuckle-like. has tried oatmeal, which he did not like at first but now does, and zucchini, which he loved. likes water in the sippy cup, a recent introduction. is rolling around like crazy and scooting in a circle on his tummy. loves to play on tummy. loves to do this weird arch thing, who knows. loves to stand in your lap if you are holding him. I think he might be one of those who isn't really interested in crawling but more so in walking. everything is, of course, straight to the mouth. no teeth at this point, but drrrrooooooooolllllingg like a crazy man. working on sitting up ... has a little ways to go yet.

a fun, fun age six months is. personality is blossoming, schedule matches up nicely with big brother's (wake up time is 6:15-6:45; morning nap for 1.5-2 hrs; afternoon nap same time as henry's for 1.5-2 hrs, short cat nap around 5ish, bedtime at 7-7:30), not yet mobile, easy to entertain, exciting to introduce new foods to, you name it ... just fun. enjoying each day of this precious time together.

here's to the next six!

a beautiful baby boy if I do say so myself. :)

zucchini ... not a great picture overall but a good one of his big, gorgeous brown eyes.

happy days

a few random photos from the lake the other weekend ...

last thursday - sunday we had the best time visiting the bernsteins. gary found out a couple of weeks ago that he would have to work in Baltimore all this week, so we decided to go up the weekend before his business trip for a visit. gary, owen and I went and henry stayed home with my sister and my parents. our flight was supposed to leave at 9:34pm EST thursday night ... we didn't actually leave until 12:30am, then were delayed on the tarmac when we arrived, and didn't end up arriving at gary's sister's house until about 4am. it was a long trip but what can you do?!? I forgot the stroller, which is key in an airport, but it all worked out. owen was awesome, didn't make a peep and slept soundly, for which we are eternally grateful. owen and i flew home sunday afternoon and gary stayed in baltimore. so it has just been me and the little boys all week. we have survived just fine (no poop in the tub this go round!), but have all missed gary. gary's flight home was severely delayed - he arrived about 12:30am this morning and is wiped. he is working today and takes the GMAT tomorrow morning. poor guy! you know gary, he is in good spirits, but I feel so badly for him.

here are some photos of the cousins ... lots of cuteness here!

owen - 6 months ; elizabeth - 5 months and sweet, sweet, sweet.
the above cracks me up - owen is sinking into the couch and his cousin seems to be saying, "sit up kid and smile for the camera!"

happy babies!

we had such a great visit! deirdre and joe were excellent hosts and gourmet cooks. thanks again guys! we look forward to returning the hospitality this football season.

in the airport on the way home (in auntie d's stroller she kindly let us borrow!). flight home (for me and big O) went well and we were glad to get back to A-U-B-U-R-N. REALLY, really missed henry and don't have any plans on being away from him for 3 nights again for quite some time. were so glad to see little elizabeth though as she will be totally different the next time we see her. those first 18 months of a baby's life are ever changing ... until next time ... lots of love bernsteins!

two and a half & a whole lot of laughs

henry has reached the two and half mark.

what's two and a half like so far? comical. sometimes downright hilarious. sometimes downright crazy. sometimes the sweetest time yet. sometimes the not so sweetest times yet.

but always interesting!

we FINALLY had some rain ... so me and the boys sat in the carport and watched it pour. got our feet wet. read about noah and the flood, which prompted henry to ask, "mommy, is the water going to go up over your car? up over our house?"
here's another funny moment ... henry's cousins were eating oreos one day. now we like oreos but don't buy them and henry had never had them or seen them. so, he then told his cousins, "I need some of those black crackers please."

here's another one from the beach ... sue, kevin and adam are all eating lunch. henry sits down to eat his lunch and asks each person at the table "how was your day?"
here's another one ... he told our babysitter, "I like jesus. he's nice." too bad he does not like jesus when I try to explain that jesus wants children to obey their parents for this is right. he then says, "I don't want to make jesus happy by obeying." nice!

I need to start writing down daily the funny things he says because I lose track.

at two and half henry is still on the same old schedule - gets up around 6:45-7:15am, naps from 1ish to 3ish (and some days decides and nap is not needed, in which he has "room/rest time"), goes to bed between 7-7:30pm (except on days he doesn't nap, he goes down earlier). he is a good sleeper in that once he gets to sleep he is out; however, some days it takes him a long time to fall asleep. you will hear him singing every song he knows, reciting the ABCs over and over, playing with his stuffed animals in his bed until he finally drifts off to dreamland ...

and, now it seems he never wants to go to sleep - he does it but isn't always happy about it.

he still has a sweet heart and spirit, even on those days when the so called terrible twos or what have you might creep in ... he is a loving child. he still LOVES to read. he has memorized so many parts of so many books. it is wild how much he absorbs (or toddlers in general absorb). his vocabulary is excellent (in my humble opinion). he still is fascinated by cars. he likes balls, but will play with a car over a ball any day. he likes all the usual things a toddler would like: puzzles, blocks, you name it. his imagination has taken off and it also quite entertaining. potty training ... he has weeks where he does wonderfully, no accidents. then he has a day or two where he has a few accidents back to back. don't know why this is. still doing well with little brother. loves to help me/gary/anyone do anything. he has gotten really good at helping me feed the dogs each day, which is cute. still a complete joy and is teaching us so much!

we love you little hinkle.