Fair Fun!

October isn't complete without a trip to the NC State Fair. We absolutely love the fair and made an afternoon of it. After the boys got up from their naps we headed out to the fairgrounds and got there about 3 p.m. Our first stop was the pony rides. Chandler had been saying for weeks that is what he wanted to do. Both boys rode a pony. Chandler rode "Indiana Jones" and Brighton rode "Elmo". After that we got lemonades and headed to the ferris wheel. After a 30 minute wait that was more trying on Dad's patience than anybody else's we finally got our turn.

Brighton wasn't able to ride all the rides because he's not quite the minimum 36", but he did get to ride some of them. He absolutely loved the swings and was grinning ear to ear the entire time. Sometimes when Chandler would get to ride something and Brighton couldn't I would have to distract Brighton with either food or a game. He especially liked the fishing one.

We all enjoyed the fair food and had corn dogs for dinner. Mommy enjoyed a fried snickers and ate and extra one for the baby too. Yummy!

Is this Safe?

At least he's wearing his helmet!

Chandler really enjoyed biking around the pool. He is really getting good on that thing!

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Favorite Thing Friday - Brighton Edition

My children both have lovies, and Brighton's is a giraffe. Chandler had this same type of lovey only his was a monkey. Shortly after Brighton was born we bought his giraffe, or giraffey as he is lovingly known. I can't even remember when Brighton first really attached to him, but he certainly did. Quickly scanning through pictures I was able to find this picture when Brighton was 16 months old. There he is, chewing on the nose of Giraffey. The nose was a favorite chew spot, as were the knots on the other ends of the blanket. As you can see in the picture the giraffe is a soft yellow color.

Fast forward to now and Brighton is almost two. Giraffey is a bedtime necessity. He is sometimes an everywhere necessity. It was easier when he was little because it could just stay in the crib, but now giraffey is mobile and goes for car rides, plays outside and sometimes gets left in the bathroom at preschool when mom doesn't realize that you have taken him inside while dropping your brother off and subsequently left him in the bathroom when you needed to go potty.

I guess I should mention we have two giraffes, but don't tell Brighton, or Chandler for that matter. The two are never seen together and one can suddenly appear when it's bedtime and only God knows where that thing is.

The problem herein lies in that giraffey is constantly chewed on and therefore constantly wet. I think it's becoming a health hazard. You are so lucky that you can't smell the loveliness through the computer. It's enough to knock you over.

He gets washed with every load, but by the time he is dry, the replacement already needs washing. I have tried EVERYTHING to get the stink out including, but not limited to white vinegar, oxyclean, baking soda, tide, and I'm sure there were some others. Straight out of the wash that thing STINKS!!

His poor little nose is suffering holes from the wear and tear that chewing brings. I try telling Brighton to just give him hugs and kisses, but that never lasts.

I decided that Giraffey needed a replacement so when the store I bought it from no longer carried it I did the next best thing and went E-bay shopping. The only problem is that all the giraffes I was finding were yellow. Mine was just natural cotton colored. Perhaps this was a new model or style I wondered. Then it dawned on me, the poor thing had been washed so much that all the yellow color was long gone! I ordered two and all was left was to make the swap.

I carefully took Giraffey out of Brighton's crib (where he still naps) and replaced it with the new one just waiting for Brighton to discover the new one. Chandler actually found it and brought it to me asking, "Mommy, why is Brighton's giraffe yellow?" I quickly thought of something and said, "why sweetie, mommy washed it and got all the dirt off and so now it's yellow". Chandler bought it, but would Brighton notice? By now he had entered the kitchen and Chandler handed him the replacement. He looked at me and said, "Giraffey?" (looking like is this really my giraffe?) I said, "yes, he's all clean now" and luckily, Brighton gave him a big hug and then started chewing on his nose.

So now we are on giraffe #3 and #4. Sadly, I had to throw #1 and #2 away. The smell was just too much and would have made all the "keepsakes" I'm saving just horrible. It was sad, but I hope #3 and #4 survive this stage and we don't end up with #5 and #6

Chandler-isms

Chandler: Can we buy this necklace?

Mommy: No sweetie, mommy doesn't have extra money for that.

Chandler: Well just go see the cash-man.

Mommy: (thinking, I wish I knew who he was)

Daddy: (to Chandler) If I see you take Brighton's giraffe you will sit in time out.

Chandler: Well don't look.

Indoor Playground fun!

Although these pictures are from the summer, we still enjoy visiting the indoor playground. During the summer when mom was totally wiped out from gestating this little baby the boys would get up from their naps and we'd head to the indoor playground at Greystone shopping center. That way the boys could burn off some energy and mom could rest peacefully on the bench. Both boys are really good at making friends wherever we go. They love to play "chase"

The only time mom would have to get up was when Brighton would climb up the rock and then want to "jump" off. Luckily this pattern didn't last long and Brighton could be easily distracted onto the next activity. What a fun place! We love coming here and it's a great place to come when it's hot/cold/raining. Maybe we'll see you there soon!

Preschool!

Chandler's first day of preschool was September 8th. What a busy first day! Brighton helped see big brother off to school that morning, but was lost without him the rest of the day.

As you can see from the pictures, Chandler went straight to the dress up clothes. One of his teachers, Miss Vonda, helped him put on a princess dress! Luckily for Dad's sake he quickly wanted it off and moved onto the fireman's hat.

Chandler is going to preschool on M,W,F. His favorite part is when he gets to be the line leader. That is very important! He has several friends from last year in his class (all girls): Katelyn, Lainey, and Ellary. There are 12 kids in his class evenly split between boys and girls.

On the same day that Chandler started preschool he also started a program called AWANA at Providence Baptist Church. He is really loving that too. They learn Bible verses each week and also play games. He has earned his vest and his first patch. He is so proud of himself. Chandler easily learns the verses and loves to read his AWANA book.

Hopefully Chandler and Brighton will be able to go to preschool together next year. Brighton can't wait to be a big boy too!

Busy is an understatement...

One could gather from the above picture and the ticker on the side of the blog that we have some news to share...

One could then think...no, really? They have two young boys already that are a handful and fill up every ounce of energy we have, and then some.

The truth, no matter how tired or how much we may complain, we absolutely love and cherish our roles as parents to our two boys. It is the most challenging, yet the most rewarding aspect of life you can experience. We would not change it for the world...well...actually, we are changing it, but we are adding to the family even more joy!

In Chandler's words, when asked what he is getting for his birthday next year, "I'm getting a new baby!!!"

April 6th is the guesstimate. Three days after Chandler's birthday.

Besides the uncertainties that popped up early in the pregnancy (not sure what God was trying to tell us), we couldn't be more ecstatic that our family continues to grow.

So, on to why we have not blogged much at all lately...


- starting mid-summer, we have re-done our 3rd bedroom completely...renovated the closet, painted the room, designed it with a fish theme, and moved the boys into this new room from the nursery. At the time we started the project, we didn't know we'd be filling the nursery again so soon! :)

- I got extremely motivated after seeing the work we did on the boy's new room, and decided to redo our master bedroom! This involved scraping the popcorn ceiling off, repainting the whole room, staining and putting up crown molding, picking out a new king sized bed and mattress to go along with it, and sleeping in our great room for about a week! One classy looking master bedroom now!



- a quick trip up to the mountains to see family. Took the boys to Tweetsie RailRoad, where they absolutely had a blast. That place is just perfectly targeted to Chandler's age group!

- Chandler has started back to preschool, going Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays. He has also started a program called Awana that meets at a different local church once a week in the evening. It's all about learning the Bible! He absolutely loves it!

- Brighton continues to be the no-fear individual that he always has been. His vocabulary has skyrocketed in the last month and you can now pick on mini sentences. Chandler loves to egg him on, I mean teach him what to say and do!

Anyways...that's all for now...will try to be more diligent about the blog updates!