Family Pics

My sister-in-law took our family pictues a few weeks ago. I think they turned out fantastic. Thank you, Lucy! Here are some of our faves...

note ben's crusty look...

my handsome mr. snaggle tooth

this suitcase was not a prop, but his case of "stuff". he would only take pictures with the case.

they were done

i love our creepy junior prom pose. lucy almost threw up when she took it.

this is the story of blake's life. we say look right. he looks left.

i love this about him. sometimes.

i love this picture of my little griff man sneaking up to get us.

all of my boys.

this should be every mom's picture

1+8

The time has come. The time when my baby has somehow morphed into toddlerhood. Where he is no longer a baby at all. Griffin is officially 18 months old (as of Thursday). He went to nursery for the first time and I was told that he was the sweetest, best 18 month-old they had ever had in there - as if there was any doubt. Griffin is most likely my last baby, which makes him my forever baby. I will forever kiss his cheeks and sqeeze him super tight. I will coddle and love and overprotect to the best of my ability. He will sit on my lap well beyond the point of being bigger than me. He will never go to school or drive or date or want to leave my side, right? I dare you to spend 10 minutes with him and not fall in love (unless it is the 10 minutes when his blanket is in the washer, that does not count).

I even love him after yesterday. Oh, yesterday. When during his nap he discovered poopy diapers are too restricting and he chose to takes his off and finger paint with feces for a long time, before I went in to find what I can only describe as the poopy room from hell. The smell, oh, the smell. This only proves that he truly is a toddler.

Ah, my forever baby. I couldn't have asked for a better one.

This picture makes me cry. I feel like this with him 99% of the time. He is wonderful.

Cute pants. Or not.

The other day I put Griffin's pants on him after he took a nap. Cute, right?



I thought they looked a little weird. So I checked again and realized they were actually Blake's SHORTS. The shorts he had been wearing earlier in the day (three changes of clothes earlier). That's right. My 16 month-old is wearing size 4T shorts and they are most definitley not too big in the tummy area. They were cinched pretty tight to accomodate Blakey's little body, but come on.

Apparantly my four year-old and one year-old can share pants already. Ridiculous, I tell you.

Watch out preschool . . . here comes Blake

Blakey started preschool last week. I am fairly certain that I am going to be debating and negotiating every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from now until May. He loves school, but does not love getting dressed for school. I had to approve all school clothes with him before I bought them. He has a handful of shirts in his closet that still have tags on them from last year. He refuses to wear them. Ever. He is four years-old. I also learned this week that he does not like pants. They are too LONG. He only wants shorts. He always knows what he wants. Secretly I love this about him. Ben and I joke that Blakey will never be a follower. He won't be pressured by his peers. He will make his own decisions and everyone else's for them.

I really miss my little B-boy when he is at school. Griff and I wander the aisles of Target and Smith's Marketplace aimlessly waiting for the big boys to come home. And when they do get home, I love listening to them talk about their day with each other. "Hey Blake, how was school today?" "Good. What did you do in your class, Eli?" If I didn't send them to school then I would miss out on their joyous after-school reunion every day.

these two have become best buds the last few weeks.

Griffin thinks Blakey is the best. He copies everything his big brother does.

with his teacher Mrs. Hansen.

nostalgia

I figured that if I was going to be depressed about my kids getting older, than you should all join me.



Here are pictures of Eli from the last 4 school years.

1st year of Preschool

2nd year of Preschool

Kindergarten

1st Grade

I cannot believe how big he is getting. It's bittersweet for me to look back at these pictures. I love remembering him little, but it's sad how fast it goes by. Either way he s growing-up and becoming quite the little man.

1st Grade already? GAH!

My biggest boy went to 1st grade on Wednesday. He was so excited he could not stop talking the entire morning while getting ready. It's been hard for me to have him gone all day, but he is loving school - especially having two recesses and eating lunch with his friends. We are so proud of him. He is an amazingly happy and helpful boy.

plus look at how handsome he is.

After school he came home to his favorite "grasshopper" cupcake from this place. Just like last year.

As for this kid -

We have been having fun building forts, making up stories and taking pretend trips on airplanes. He asks me at least 10 times a day if we can please go get Eli. He is not loving his older brother being gone all day. Luckily, he starts preschool in a couple of weeks. Blakey wears the "older brother hat" extremely well while Eli is away. He loves to help me around the house and is insanely good at playing with Griffin.

this is what 15 months old looks like at our house

1.5 bottles of DAWN on my kitchen rug. Awesome.
(do not ask me how he was able to unscrew the lid on the green bottle)


This is the only safe place to keep him contained.

but look at that face. he gets away with murder around here.