From BabyCenter...your child (or children)

The 16 month old toddler:
You've seen your child testing his independence during the last few weeks and months, but experts say that once a child can talk he knows, finally, that he is his own person. Your 16-month-old may be able to say as many as seven words — or even more — clearly. But he will still rely mostly on nonverbal communication, pointing and gesturing to tell you what he wants or what he wants you to see.
The 3 3/4 year old Preschooler:
What sounds like nonsense coming from your preschooler's lips is actually a sophisticated kind of language experimentation. He might call his little brother a "pootie" or say, "Look at that prettyful flower." He may call a fountain a "crash water," an invented term that's really pretty clear. These creative concoctions crop up more often as he develops better language skills.

Haircuts-----FINALLY!

Today I stayed home with both boys. Lincoln just wasn't 100% today. He is feeling better tonight! After Nate left work, we picked him up and took the boys to get their haircut. It's been seven weeks since the boys had their cut last. I did some research on Barbershops after Nate's debacle at Bubbles Hair Salon. We went to a place called Best Barber Shop. With a name like that it has to be great. This place was wonderful. Sam, cut all three boy's hair. They look amazing!!! After Ethan was done, she put gel in his hair and spiked it up. Once he got home he said, "I don't like my hair spicy!"
On a side note, Martha Stewart said that their are 112.4 million blogs! CRAZY

Spoiled!

Yesterday, a guy at Nate's work asked how long he was at Wright Patt. Nate told him six years and he smiled and said, "Wow...your wife was spoiled." I know that he had multiple meanings...one being that he wasn't deployed, but the other was the hours Nate was able to work. I knew at the time how spoiled I was, but everyday we are here I come to realize it more and more. Don't get me wrong...I am still SPOILED! I have a husband that really tries as hard as he can to get home as soon as he can. Today, daycare called and Linky was sick. Nate immediately said he would come and pick him up. Here's where the pain of living here comes into play. Each morning we rush out the door at 6:55 as a family. We drop Nate off at the bus stop where he takes his 40 minute bus ride to work. I drop the kids off at Daycare and drive my 40 minutes to work. (this morning it was 55 minutes---it's so unpredictable). When daycare called I knew it would take 40-60 minutes for Nate to get home and get him. SO---I had to go to his work, pick him up, drive him home, and then he was able to pick them up. Nothing is easy here!!! We are adjusting everyday. It is getting better. I actually started seeing kids this week. Nate is slowing starting to do real work. Ethan and Lincoln are much happier at school. Even Hunter has stopped peeing on the floor! (he's still in the crate during the day) :)

Sunday Morning Photos

Most Sunday's I try to take a photo of the boys or the family. It usually causes lots of tension. We usually have two or three minutes to take a quick photo and run out the door. This Sunday was no exception. I put the camera on the grill and set the timer. This morning you can see that we had to redo the first one. Both boys are watching Hunter pee on the balcony right in front of us. The second one turned out great, but we had to rush inside to get the pee cleaned off the deck!
We found a church about 20 minutes away that we really liked. This was our fourth Sunday there. The first Sunday we went we researched the church on the web. It said to arrive 15 minutes early to get parking. It also said that Sunday School was on break for the summer, but would be starting up September 7th. Well, the first Sunday we arrived 15 minutes early to an EMPTY parking lot. We thought we were at the wrong church. The next two Sundays were the same. So, today we didn't rush. We got there right on time and the place was PACKED. We actually parked in the grass. Apparently, Sunday school is not the only thing that takes a summer break.....the entire congregation does, too! Ethan loved his class today. I guess we found our church!

Experimenting

It seems we are all experimenting today. While we were getting ready to drive to IKEA during Tropical Storm Hanna, Lincoln decided to experiment with my make-up. Ethan has decided to experiment with calling us "MOM and DAD." It sounds so weird. I told him I was still Mommy to him! I am experimenting with the movie option on my camera. I wanted everyone to see Lincoln walking.

Instant Connection

For those of you who don't know, Justin and Jennifer are Ethan's Godparents. The thing is that they have never lived in the same town as Ethan. They came out for his baptism when he was 6 months old but have not seen him since. Justin came into town Wednesday night and was able to stay again tonight. Before he got here, Ethan had his entire night planned out. Sure enough, when he got here, Ethan ran down to greet him and had him playing trains and watching Mrs. Spider with him two minutes later. You really would think that they have know each other forever. When he found out that he was able to stay again tonight, Ethan ran upstairs and didn't stop talking to him. Lincoln has also taken to him really well. We definitely made the right choice for Godparents!!

August comes to an end!

This weekend we decided to take it EASY! I read TWO books. I saw Stephanie Meyers talking on a talk show while Marilyn was here and she told me that some of her friends read her Twilight series and loved them. I started them last weekend and they have CONSUMED my life! I am dreaming about them. I hesitate to recommend them because I am sure they will do the same to you. I am on the last one and I noticed that I have been reading it a lot slower. I think it's because I don't want them to end.
We went to Old Town Alexandria's Farmer's Market on Saturday. This was the MACK DADDY of Farmer's markets. We bought eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, corn, and GORGEOUS flowers. The eggplant was heavenly (eggplant parmesan).

That night we took Ethan to the train mall. He has been asking about it for two weeks now. Notice only three of the family went on the train. It cost EIGHT dollars for the three of them to ride the thing. We could of all rode round trip on the metro into DC cheaper than that! BUT----Ethan loved it.
Afterwards, Nate stopped in Bubbles Salon :) There was a HUGE open area right outside the salon and I thought, "Heck, how long could this take? I'll let the kids run around while he gets his hair cut." Apparently the lady cut each hair individually. It took forever and it one of the worst haircuts he has had. (poor thing) Anyway, while we were waiting, this OLD lady came up to me and said, "Hey, are those your kids running around loose?" I answered, "Why yes they are." (I didn't think they needed to be on a leash) She tells me that I better get them because somebody may want them. I had to take a picture of this to show you that no one was gonna take my kids because they may want them.



Besides doesn't she know that my boys are Policemen!!