kissing cousins

We had the pleasure of spending Memorial Day with some very special people.  Little drooling O showed Channy that teething is no big thang.  Channing has her first tooth poking through & she is not a happy camper.  She is pretty good during the day because we are able to keep her doped up on acetaminophen & baby orajel.  Nights aren't so pleasant.  All I can say is we sure have gotten our money's worth with that swing.  Unfortunately sometimes even the swing doesn't work.  These are some fun nights, let me tell you.

Look at O's beautiful blue eyes. 

Nana B. got the kids some new chairs for the deck.  They were just trying them out. 

We also spent the afternoon with Great Nana & Papa Y. 

so i'm including this little video from today. now if watching babies stare at each other isn't your thing, you probably won't enjoy this much.  But this is for my sis-in-law Rach who had to work today & missed out on the cousin love.  Enjoy.  (please disregard the background noise i.e. me cackling & my MIL talking on the phone)

Few words, lots of pictures

The tormenting has already begun.

We've been so busy the past few weeks & I haven't had a free second to blog.  I've got a lot of pictures, and only a few minutes to type.  Check out what we've been up to these past few weeks.

Nana & Papa B. took Griff to see Sesame Street.  Griff loved every minute of it.  As long as the big furry characters stayed at a distance, Griff thought they were great (the Easter Bunny really screwed him up)

Last Sunday Griff, Channing & I visited my parents while Hubs played in a golf tournament. 

We love to see Nana & Papa E.  We wish they lived closer!

Aunt Krista couldn't pass up a visit with the kiddos.

For Mother's Day we gave both grandmas a stepping stone. 

I love their little hand prints.  I was just looking at Griff's hands this weekend & it is amazing how big they are getting. 

This little diva is such a smiley girl.  She's sitting up pretty well.  We usually leave the boppy behind her because occasionally she gets so excited & throws herself backwards.  She rolls back & forth & she's pretty much sleeping through the night (now that i'm blogging about this, she'll probably wake up tonight).  We stopped the Prevacid for a week---BAD IDEA.  The girl NEEDS her Prevacid.  Channing loves to eat.  She's into vegetables, but dislikes fruits.  We had a rough start with her, but she's become a fun & cuddly little baby.

This big guy is our little comedian.  He is constantly cracking us up.  He has never ending energy, he asks millions of questions, and he doesn't forget a thing.  We gave real underwear a try this past weekend.  He's not quite ready, but he looked cute posing for the picture. Future Calvin Klein model?

Golf is a big part of our life in the summer.  Griff has caught golf fever too.  He loves to be out on the course with Dad. 

Keith & Rach watched Channing while we went out golfing on Sunday, and we returned the favor & watched Owen while they golfed.  O & C already love playing together.

We did some planting over the weekend.

(The wind was ridiculous.)

(the "W" is for Williamsburg...for those of you confused because our last name starts with a "B")

& the deck got stained (thanks to my MIL & FIL)

That's all I have time for---hopefully it won't be over 2 weeks before I blog again.  So much happens in our house in 2 weeks & I don't want to leave anything out.  Oh yeah, Hubs & I also celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary.  Best dang 8 years of my life, that's for sure. 

Good to be a Mom

Sleepless nights, poopy pants, never ending drool, stomach flu, swine flu, ear infection, teething, eczema, the "no" phase, splinters, terrible 2's,

acid reflux, urinating in your face, 5 AM wake up calls, a permanent reeking of sour milk, tantrums, snotty noses, grass stains, carpet stains, stained bedding, no window in the house without fingerprints, the biting phase, the repeating of profanity your mother let slip phase, the constant worrying....

(Griff 2 years 8 months, Channing 5 months)

....and it's all totally worth it.  Although being a mom certainly has its ups & downs, I wouldn't trade a minute of it.  The unconditional love, the infinite amount of kisses & hugs, the comedy that can be found in any situation, the single best job in the world:

  MoThErHoOd. 

Happy Mother's Day

Chicago

(channing lovin' sweet potatoes)

Thursday we took off for Chicago.  We left the sweet pea behind with Nana & Papa B.  Initially we thought she was going to be coming with us, but Nana & Papa so graciously offered to keep her.  Although we missed her terribly, we were glad we only had to keep one kid entertained and happy. 

Griff couldn't wait to go to Chicago. 

Poor kid didn't realize that it would take about 4 hours to reach our destination.  About 10 miles from home he asked "are we there yet?"   

After stopping for breakfast, stopping to purchase a new cell phone (jason's broke the night before), listening to numerous Barney videos, and telling Griff we'd be there "soon" about a million times.....we finally arrived at Navy Pier!

We quickly learned why they call Chicago "The Windy City".  Poor Griff could barely stand up straight, the wind was blowing so hard. 

There really wasn't much to do at Navy Pier. The ferris wheel wasn't working (not that we were going up in that anyway).  The Children's museum & the IMAX were a little advanced for him...and we were too cheap to fork over the cash to only spend probably10 minutes at either spot.  The Pirate ship looked enticing, but with that wind & those waves, being stuck on a boat ride with a screaming 2 year old & a sea sick husband didn't sound very appealing.

So, we just walked. 

And walked.

And walked some more.

Thankfully Griff loved looking at the birds & the boats.

Cheap & easy entertainment.

A little ice cream gave us enough energy to trek down Michigan Ave.  So many stores, so little money!  Of course we had to venture into the Disney Store.  Hubs spotted Tiffany & Co. and asked if I wanted to take a look---then he just laughed at me & said "yeah right".  That didn't hurt nearly as bad as when he shook his head when we were walking by Crate & Barrel and Room & Board.  It was torture being so close to the stores & not being able to go browse. 

But we were able to do something I very much enjoy.  We ate....and ate...and ate.  Very, very bad for the waist line. 

We ate at Rainforest Cafe Thursday night...fun atmosphere, mediocre food, but lots of noise so your kid can be super loud & no one cares.  People did turn our direction when Griff decided he needed to do his business under the table next to us.  He kept saying "leave me alone, i'm pooping!"  The waiter didn't even flinch.  Apparently he's seen that kind of behavior before.

Friday while I was at my conference for work, Hubs took Griff swimming, they watched airplanes, &  they rode the train around the hotel/airport over & over. 

I met up with them later in the afternoon & we headed back downtown for some delicious Chicago style pizza.  Yummy!

Chicago is such a pretty city. 

Especially at night.

Griff loved watching the people & checking out the sounds of the city.  He loved pointing at homeless men with long white beards & yelling out "it's Santa Claus!"

Saturday we went to Shedd Aquarium.  Griff's favorite things were the turtles, sting rays, and sea lions.  We had to hear all about them the entire 4 hour drive back home.  

We saw "Happy Feet" in 4D.  Griff got a little frightened when the little girl sitting next to us started screaming, but overall I think he enjoyed the experience.

We saw the "Fantasea" show...a little slow & really didn't keep his attention (or mine for that matter).  Apparently dolphins, beluga whales, & penguins aren't that interesting....

...but those turtles sure are. (yawn)

We had a great time in Chicago, but we were so excited to get back home to see Channing.

Although I do believe Griffin was happy to see Channing, I'm pretty certain he wasn't happy to have to share the attention once again.

Thanks Nana & Papa for taking such good care of our little pea while we were away.