Oh the joy.

I think it is written somewhere that every mom has to have some sort of "poop experience" that might be funny to look back on at some later point in time. Don't ask where this mysterious book of rules and regulations might be, I just know that it has to be out there somewhere. Well, this last Thursday I added (or Brady did for me) another chapter in my things-my kid-has-done-that-will-be-funny-later book. Brady had been happily playing in the entryway and I was working on something on the computer. I had checked on him several times and he was doing fine, no signs of the impending disaster presenting themself. I heard him go upstairs (which is a normal occurance- he goes to his room often to get toys) and I thought nothing of it. A little while later I thought "he's been too quiet for too long". (another rule- long lapses of silence are generally bad, which seems a bit backwards to me) As I walk out into the living room, I'm met with the scene of Brady with no pants. And no diaper. And poop smeared on his legs and hands and caked in his nail beds. Sweet. I look around and find his diaper on the floor. (not poopie side down- thank goodness!) I head upstairs and find poopie wipes in the diaper pail, poop smears on the chair and put all the information together to figure out he has removed his diaper and tried to clean himself off. At least he didn't just play in it. At least he was trying to do something right. This is what I'm telling myself as I scrub him down in the shower (which he didn't even need! I'd just given him a shower the night before!). All I can say is yuck, eww, nasty, gross. I felt like I was smelling poop the rest of the day. And that is how I spent a good part of my Wednesday afternoon.

A random assortment of information

It seems like both boys are growing so much each and every day. It's exciting and kinda sad at the same time. Brady is talking SO much. He is constantly trying out new words and copying everything Alex and I say. It is very entertaining to witness him exploring language but can be very frustrating when I don't know what he's saying because it could be anything now, not just one of the handful of words he was using. He also has been much more interested in coloring as of late. He use to just scribble a few lines on each page of his coloring book and be done in like two minutes. Now though, he can spend a good chunk of time coloring and he even tries to color specific parts of a picture. He does really well when he concentrates. Any sort of headlights or eyes in his Thomas or Cars coloring books are his favorite thing to color.
He is also a great big brother. He loves to say "bless you baby" when Kellen sneezes (or coughs or makes any sort of noise that could be mistaken for a sneeze) and "baby crying" whenever he hears Kellen and we haven't done anything about it yet. He is very gentle and gives his brother lots of hugs and kisses everyday. Kellen loves when Brady comes and talks to him. Brady has even got him smiling and doing his little laughing thing. I tried to get it on video, but of course by the time I got the camera, Brady was much too interested in something else to be bothered. He also really enjoys "holding" Kellen. Kellen pretty much just lays there across his lap but Brady is always sad when I move him. I'm very excited to see how their relationship grows as they each get older.
Kellen is really starting to fill out. We don't have another appt. until the middle of February, so I don't really know what he weighs but he's starting to get the fat rolls on his thighs and arms. I love it! He is trying to figure out his hands too. He likes to suck/gnaw on his fists and he is starting to get much better at getting his fist to his mouth to do so. It's pretty fun to watch. We'll probably also be putting Kellen in his own room soon. He's ready and he can be so loud when he's sleeping! He makes these grunting noises and he sounds like a little gremlin. Either that or my mom's old dog, Mini. Alex says we should record his noises and sell them to Hollywood for special effects.
I leave you with a video clip of Alex and Brady trying out the new basketball hoop. I love how Brady is trying to figure out how to dribble the ball when it's bouncing away from him. Yeah, I think my kid is pretty stinkin' cute. :)

Happy moments...

This morning has been full of spit up, Brady getting into things he's not supposed to and strange animal noises coming from upstairs. (Luckily I have discovered it is just birds on the outside of the house. whew.) In the midst of all that though there are moments like this one.

All by myself....

Today is officially the first day that I am on my own for the whole day with the boys. I've been given the okay by the midwife to work my way back into lifting and all the other things a mom of a toddler does that I haven't been able to do since the c-section. Of course, this is also the day Alex plays basketball after work, so it's an exceptionally long day. I'm certain I will make it through okay, but I don't want to just make it through. I want to find creative ways to keep Brady entertained and happy, make yummy, healthy food, get some chores around the house done and maybe find some time to relax. Is that asking too much? ha ha I know I have lofty goals and they probably won't be accomplished today but I hope to be able to figure it out. I guess it's a good thing I have God's help, hmm? I know it's by His strength alone that I might be able to be the kind of parent and wife that I'm talking about.
Wow, that was a tangent. Where's the sock? (Hannah, I'm sure you'll be the only one who gets that) Anywho, for my first day on the job (he he), it has been a pretty great day so far. Brady slept until 8 and Kellen didn't wake up to eat until 9. Sweet. And Kellen is starting to really be smiley after he eats in the morning. (oh,no! could he be a morning person? yikes!) And he's even starting to have this little laughing noise that he does that is just about the cutest thing ever. I tried to get it on video but realized I was out of tape! Bummer. Overall, I am feeling like I just might be able to do this. Let's hope the feeling isn't too fleeting. :)

Taking it back to the old school...

We have a lot of video footage from Brady's first 2 years of life that I haven't done anything with, so I thought I'd start off my video uploading adventures with a clip from Brady's second birthday. I'm sure it will be a winner!

Joy, in a fun, foamy package

So, I've decided to start a blog and I ended up spending way too much time trying to come up with a good name for it. I ended up being inspired for the title by the foaming handsoap I just bought at Bath and Body Works. I cannot explain why, but foaming handsoap makes me immensely happy. I love it. And it just made me realize that life is made up of the little things that make us laugh or bring us joy and that's what this blog is going to be about. The funny thing that Brady said that day. Or the fact that Kellen peed on one of us when we were changing his diaper. Not exactly a thrill a minute kind of blog, but I know our families, and maybe some friends, will love it. Especially if I can figure out how to download clips from the video camera and load them on here. And just in case you were wondering....the soap scent is coconut lime verbena. So good.