Poo-casa!

Kade and I have always been so proud of how well Ethan sleeps. He usually goes to bed by about 8:30 most nights and sleeps in until 8 or so every morning. Even if he does wake up a little earlier in the morning, he usually just plays contently in his crib until one of us rolls out of bed to get him up. Some mornings, since he seems to be so content, I'll just let him hang out for a little longer in his crib while I get dressed, check my email and get breakfast ready. Well, sadly, I regret that those days may be gone. Here's why. It was a calm Wednesday morning, I woke up first to get ready for work and a few minutes later Kellin came down and asked for some chocolate milk and a show, as is his normal morning routine. After I left for work Kade finished getting Kellin ready for school and then headed upstairs to get Ethan up. I'm at work ready to welcome my students when my cell phone rings. Before I can get the word hello out of my mouth I hear a usually calm but now very irritated voice on the other end, "DID YOU FORGET TO GET WIPES LAST NIGHT??" I timidly reply, "Oh crap, yes, sorry babe, I totally forgot to stop by the store on my way home from the gym." Through obviously gritted teeth I hear Kade describe the mess he came upon as he entered Ethan's room that morning. Poop everywhere! On the walls, all over Ethan, the crib, the sheets, the stuffed animals, everywhere. All I could say was, "Sorry, um, I think there are some paper towels downstairs." Kade muttered "I gotta go" and hung up.
Later, able to have more of a sense of humor about things, Kade decided Ethan's new name should be Picasa, in honor of his new found talent for artwork. Now, if we could just get him using washable paint rather than poop, I think we all might be a little happier! Needless to say, we don't let him hang out in his crib for too long in the mornings anymore for fear of another Poo-casa discovery!

No More Training Wheels!

Last Christmas we bought Kellin his first bike (yes, we were seriously behind on that one!). We tried a few times to get him to try it without training wheels but he refused so we decided to leave it alone and let him do it on his own. Kade was outside with him one day and he just looked at Kade and said, "Dad, I can do it without training wheels". So, off they came and sure enough, he took off like a pro! Now he is a bike riding maniac, I think he loves the independence of being able to go much farther away much faster! He loves to ride his bike around the neighborhood and over to his friends' house. We even went on a long bike ride last weekend and he rode the whole way! We're talking like 10 miles or so, along the trail near our house all the way to Harmon's for snow cones and back! He did awesome! Here are a few pics from his first ride without training wheels:

Laundry Day

Ethan thought we needed to do some laundry - good thing I stopped him before he added the soap!

Hiking with Mom

A few weekends ago Kade went to Las Vegas with his sisters for a siblings weekend leaving me at home with the boys. I was actually really excited to have a couple days with them without school, work, or any travel plans. I took advantage of the early morning cool weather and took the boys up for a little hike. There was supposed to be a nice river and water to play in at the end of the hike but since it was so late in the summer, all that we found was a stinking pool of murky water. No swimming but Kellin did find a cute little frog that we brought home in a water bottle and still have as a pet. Here are some cute photos from our mom & sons hike:

Ethan Turns Two!

I took advantage of probably the last birthday I have with Ethan in which I can get away without doing much in the way of a party. I'm sure by the time he is three, he will have the intellectual processing skills to understand that turning three means presents, cake, ice cream, friends and some sort of expensive activity. Until then, I relished the idea that I could still get away with a simple gathering at home with a few friends and family. We did do a fun cake, and since he is into all things Monster these days, it was a brightly colored greenish, bluish, yellowish concotion! Here are a few pics from the party:

Ethan is definately his own little person. Over the past few weeks I have really come to understand him and finally, I think I get him. He wants to be a big boy, just like his older brother. So he wants to do everything himself. And I have found that by allowing him this independence, he is responding to things so much better than before. For example, we've had problems with him getting into the fridge and grabbing things out. Before, we would pick him up and drag him out of the fridge while telling him, "no fridge" and he would throw a fit and scream and cry. Out of frustration, he would hit us in the face and then try to bite. Then, he would end up in his crib on a time out. This was happening all the time, over all the things that little boys want to do that they simply can't do. Now, that I understand it's all about independence, instead of dragging him out of the fridge kicking and screaming, I simply ask, "Ethan, are you thirsty? Do you want something?? Can you get the juice yourself??" This makes him feel like such a big boy and he is so excited to find the juice himself and get it out, and use his big muscles to carry it to the counter. Now, I do this on everything. Whenever he's trying to get into something that is a no-no, I try to find out what's he looking for and re-direct him to something that is ok. He is so much happier and I am so much less frazzled! Sometimes it feels like I'm letting him be in control of things, which I struggle with, but I think this is just one of those phases that toddlers go through, the "I'm independent and I can get into whatever I want" phase to test those limits and boundaries. Once he understands that I'm not trying to control him and I'm really just here to help, I think this will all be for the best! Oh the toddler years - they are so adorable and such a handful all at the same time.

Another special note about Ethan is his ability to verbalize himself. He is so verbal sometimes it is disarming. When I go into the bathroom to get ready, he follows me in and literally has a conversation with me about what I'm doing. He memorizes songs, quotes movies, does pretend play, and even knows how to talk back. For example, the other day Kellin came down stairs and said that Ethan threw popcorn all over the play room. I could hear Ethan coming down the stairs saying, "No my didn't" even though he really did. Or, after watching The Land Before Time, Ethan comes downstairs and says to me, "Mama, what's a loooong neck?" which is directly from the movie. He is so full of personality, sometimes I feel like he is three or four, not two. He loves to play with Kellin, usually pretending to be a monster or ghost or chasing Kellin around the house. I love our little Ethan moster, and am so glad that eventhough I wished for a little girl, I got him!

Big Boy, Big Day!

So we hit a big milestone this month with Kellin starting kindergarten. I was very anxious the weeks leading up to him starting, and had a bit of a hard time putting him on the bus the first day but for the most part things went really well. It was a busy week, with Kellin starting school, me starting with my new preschool class, and a trip to Laughlin that weekend. Kellin did great, he got right onto the bus, totally confident, and once at school, went right into class and dove right in. That night we had his back to school night and his teacher seems ok, just ok. Time will tell. He has the greatest bus driver on the way home. The kindergarteners get out early here, so he rides home on a seperate bus just for kindeergarteners. His bus driver is Mr. Phil and since the bus number is 00, they call it the "uh-oh" bus, so cute! He has made friends with two boys on his bus, and has already had a playdate with each of them. He is so good at making new friends, he is so loveable and friendly, and I am so proud of him for that. Here are some pictures from the first day of school:

August Rush!

This past month has been crazy, crazy, fun! We have been on two boating trips, canyoneering, hiking, had my brother stay with us for three weeks, Kellin started school, I started my new job, Ethan turned two and I think we hit just about every casino town in Nevada. Let's start at the beginning. In an effort to keep my adorable little brother out of "trouble" (haha, ya like he'd get into any) for the summer, my parents asked if he could spend a few weeks with us. So at the beginning of the month he came to stay with us for three weeks. It was so great to have him here. The boys enjoyed playing with him, Kade loved hanging with him checking out funny You Tube videos and playing guitar, and I loved cooking with him and having his help with the kids! I don't know what I'm going to do without him now - I was spoiled for three weeks! I wish I had a teenage child that loved to babysit, never had a bad attitude, and was as polite as Zach! Thanks, bro, for being so great and putting up with our crazy lives!
We also had a chance, which we would never pass up, to go boating with some friends at Sand Hollow. We had a great time, especially Kellin. Our friend took Kel out on the Wake Surfer and I swear Kel was in heaven. He loved it. We got some great pics on our friends camera, I'll post them when I get them.
The next weekend I had the chance, which, again, I would never pass up, to go Canyoneering with some awesome friends. Kade, poor guy, had to work so he couldn't come. It was a great experience, I had a blast and can't wait to do it again. Our last repel was 110 ft straight drop down - awesome adrenaline rush!! Here are some pics:

Me & Aimee on the way up the mountain - ready to go!

Our awesome friends, Jared & Cheryl, our guides for the trip!

That's me, repeling down one of the canyons into freezing, stinky, gross water! We had to unclip from the repel line while floating in the water and then swim through the water to the other side. I think the gross water freaked me out more than the repeling.

Me & Aimee freezing our butts off! We all thought it would be hot (hello, it is Saint George) but in the shaded canyon it was so cold my fingers & toes went tingly & numb! We kept running ahead trying to find sunlight!

Swimming through the gross, stinky water!

The final 110 ft. repel - awesome!

The next weekend we went to Laughlin, NV with some of my Amato brothers & sisters. We had never been to Laughlin before, and as far as a city, there's really not much to get excited about. It's kind of like Mesquite, NV with lots of old Casinos & not much else. But, as far as a lake goes, I would rate Lake Mojave as one of my favorite lakes! The water was so cool, clean & refreshing and the shore of the lake was sandy, just like a beach. We had a blast hanging with friends & family on the shore while the kids played in the sand & water. We had a couple boats & sea doos out there and had a great time wake boarding, boating & sea dooing. I didn't snap many pictures so here are the few that I took:

Kellin loved hanging out on the boat - he would swim out to it and jump off the front with his cousin Becky! They were our little fish the whole weekend!

Ethan really wanted to ride the sea doo - maybe next year bud!