Dear Wade

Wade,

We found out today that you will be having your very first surgery...and, although Daddy tells me not to be worried, I cannot help it...I am your Mama for crying out loud! You will be having tubes put into both of your ears and your adenoids removed...who needs them anyway?? We have been listening you closely over the past couple of months, watching your little mouth struggle to get the right sound out, when forming a word. We know that you understand everything going on and that you are a super intelligent little guy...but the way that you articulate your words, has just not been sitting right with me. It is almost as though you are speaking muffled...like you are hearing muffled. So, I of course go directly into worried Mama mode and start thinking that you are having hearing issues. I study the way your mouth moves, hoping that maybe, you are just not able to pronounce words correctly. I even start peeking around corners, whispering your name, testing your hearing, hoping and praying that your ears are as perfect as the rest of you. And you pass with flying colors, but I continue to explore your language, asking Ms. Sara and Ms. Mandy and Ms. Kim, hoping that they will reassure me that you are right on track...but they have been keeping an eye on your language skills as well...

I decided to call Dr. Boole/Dr. Skinner's office...local Audiologist and ENT, to do a hearing test and to check out your adenoids and make sure everything is working correctly. Well, we found out today that you have lots of fluid behind both of your ears, causing you to hear as though you are under water. I almost broke down in tears during the hearing test, as I could not imagine you having anything wrong with your perfect little self. Well, nothing is majorly wrong, but they did find that you will have to have a "Bilateral Myringotomy Tubes" surgery, which means tubes put in your ears to drain the fluid, and that you will need to have your HUGE adenoids removed on July 15th. (Daddy, Uncle Scott and Uncle Dave have all had tubes, so it must be a right of passage in our family!) Both Doctor's are confidant that as soon as you wake up from the surgery, you will be a different kiddo in the language department. I am excited to see what the future holds for you sweet boy. Hopefully this will be an easy bump in the road for you (and on me and Daddy), in the journey we call life. I love you more than you will ever know!!

Love, Mama

Oh please, time slow down. I am relishing in every minute with you two monkeys. You both are so innocent and eager and full of smiles. Every minute, you both are drinking in the joys of life, letting all of the new information spill out, with your eyes smiling and your hands a clappin'. I love every inch of you both and I never thought it was possible to love so much. Thank you for being mine. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

While the Daddy was in Omaha for the CWS, we missed him dearly, but still had a fantastic time! The boys actually understood the concept that Daddy was gone, but that he would be back. Every morning and every night we would go over where Daddy was and when he was coming home. I told them that he was in Omaha to watch baseball...they would say, "Daddy watch babseball. In Ommaaaahawww." then, after a couple of days, when I would ask them where Daddy was, Brody would reply, "At work!". They were on their best behavior...making our nighttime routine relaxed and our mornings filled with snuggles. I cherish my alone time with the boys, but I sure do realize how much Todd and I operate as a team!!

Grammie and Pop's decided to come and spend the night on Friday...they missed their little peanuts! While they were here, we danced:


and played puzzles (notice it is only Wade in this pic? That is because he decided he was not going to take a nap!! He fought it so hard, and finally gave into sleep, in the car, on the way to the airport) :
and made Daddy a cake to welcome him home!


I am definitely NOT a pastry chef, or claim to be one...this is what happens when the icing tube you buy to write with, does not come with piping attachments!
After Grammie and Pop's said their goodbyes, we loaded up and headed to the airport to pick up Daddy! They were so excited to see him...


They loved trying on Daddy's new hat and loved the presents he brought them!


Don't they look SO big? This is, by far, my FAVORITE age.




Last night, the boys shucked their first ears of corn. It was probably 100 degrees outside, with 100% humidity...so, once again, the lens would not stay un-fogged. (ahhhh.... the joys of a FL summer...) The redneck pool was even too warm to enjoy!!

Aunt Lowie flew up on Saturday and will be visiting thru July 6th for Nana and Gator's wedding this Saturday! We are so excited for the festivities this weekend and I will post pics of our visit from this morning as soon as Nana sends them to me!

Artwork and Potty Time!!!

B and W's artwork.....We have obviously obtained bath crayons!

Mommy's artwork.....this is that poem that I said I was going to paint on a canvas!

Well, we have made a breakthrough. We have turned a corner! I was using the bathroom last night when Brody comes into the bathroom and says, "Mama. Whatcha doin'?". I said, "Going potty". He immediately started taking off ALL of his clothes, removed his diaper and sat on his potty, right next to me in just his socks, and exclaimed, "I potty too!" And he did! He went pee pee in the potty!!!!! Then, less than 10 seconds later, Wade comes strolling in, notices what we are all doing (and by this point I was already scrambling to find my cell so I could take a pic of this momentous time) and says, "Mama. Off." and starts taking off his clothes, down to just his socks, sits down on the potty and pees!!! I was in total shock! Both boys just peed on the potty for the first time! This went on for about 10 minutes, with lots of giggles and praises and hugs, and a little pee on the wall, but hey, we made progress and had a blast doing it! Here are is 1 pic that I took with my cell...horrible quality, but you get the point!
They are not high fiving here...actually Wade is on the left and Brody on the right...Wade is trying to shut the door and Brody is trying to keep it open. Even fighting on the toilet!


Happy Friday friends!

This and That

I feel like I have so much to catch up on!

Since the last post, we have gone to the beach with Nana and explored our beautiful emerald waters and white sandy beaches. We dumped water into big sand holes and used our shovels and diggers. We tasted salt water, felt the sand between our toes and begged to stay when it was time to leave.
Nana and her sweet boys:


Nana and I decided on a whim, imagine that, to take the monkeys to play in the water spouts at Destin Commons! The "water spouts" are an outdoor, interactive pop-up fountain that "dances" on command. It is built into the ground and offers kids a refreshing way to cool off during hot summer months. We ended up eating hotdogs at Dave's Dogs and staying up way past our bed time! Sometimes the spur of the moment ideas turn out to be the best ones.

Wade literally ran around the entire time, shreiking with delight. The kid seriously ran for an hour straight! He took a little bit of time to warm up to the water spouts, but as soon as he did, he had a blast! He really enjoys people watching and took to playing with the other children quite nicely!

The B-man was incredibly excited. He was showing off the amazing ability of his lungs, screaming and giggling and letting everybody know, within ear shot, just how happy he was to be playing in the water! He found it hilariously funny to press his face right up to the base of the spout and, in turn, get his mouth and nose full of water!




We learned how to truly be redneck, by swimming in our new above ground pool...This is the best $150 we have ever spent. It has already provided us with hours of fun and nothing seems to heal a cranky babe like the water:



Grammie popped over for a short visit, which included a trip to Target, yummy Icee's and many episode's of Dora and Diego:

We watched movies in Mommy and Daddy's bed. (Brody's hair looks crazy from the sunscreen applied earlier in the day and Wade is making the funniest face!)

We played at Campbell and Cailey's house and took a yellow bath! (That is not pee...it is yellow from the bath color tabs! haha)

And, the best part of our past couple of weeks was celebrating Father's Day! We had a blast making Daddy something to hang in his office:

and had an even better time surprising Daddy with our artwork!!!



Daddy gives the best snuggles:

After sipping on coffee, digging into our homemade breakfast casserole and waiting for the boy's to wake up from their nap, we headed back to the beach! Although we didn't see any oil, Todd ended up with a tar ball on his shin. Needless to say, we decided it was time to head home :( The oil is here and I am absolutely heart broken at the horrific devastation it is causing all along our coastline.


I am so thankful that Todd is not only my husband, but Brody and Wade's Father. They could not have lucked out anymore!!! He is caring and genuine, but firm and a good disciplinarian. He shows them respect, takes time to see things at their level and loves to watch them learn and grow. He is patient, strong and encourages their silliness and has created a home filled with laughter and love.
Happy Daddy's Day Todd!!! We all LOVE you so much and hope that you have an awesome time with your buddies in Omaha, keeping our fingers crossed that you will be watching the Noles bring home the College World Series trophy!

Here are a few pics from our mini photo shoot, trying to get the perfect picture for Todd's Father's Day present! (Pardon the quality of some of the pics, as they were taken with a foggy lens...the minute we ventured outside, the humidity took over my camera lens and would not un-fog...darn humidity!!)



and this is what happens when Mommy spends too much time taking pics. Clearly, they are over it.

Finally, a couple of sayings/happenings/events that are going on in the boys 22nd month of life, that I know will not mean much to most reading this blog, but I hope by "jotting" them down, it will help conjure up memories for me in the years to come:

Brody at 22 months: Talks ALL of the time. Never stops...especially in the car. Wakes up asking for milk, snaaaackk and Dora. Always asking, "Mama? What doing?" and "Mama, Wattcchhhhh!" and "Mama, WHY?". Every time he happens to be awake before Wade and hears Wade start to stir on the monitor, his face lights up, he jumps up, starts grinning and says in a low whisper, "It's WADE!" Grammie asked him to share his lollipop with her the other day...he said, "Yes...NO!"..then pointed over at his brother, saying "Wade", meaning for Grammie to share with Wade instead. He is not graceful and is clumsy at times, but can throw a ball hard and fast! Loves the water and has the most surprised and joyful expression after every time he goes under. Is still the messiest eater on the planet. Still sings himself to sleep most nights. Calls out for "Mommy...Daddy...Wade...." over and over until he falls asleep. He has jumped so hard in his crib that he stripped one of the screws on the front railing, and now tells us every single morning and evening, "Mama. Daddy. My crib is broke". Also says Wade's name over and over each morning, hoping to wake him up. Wakes up in the best moods. Still quite the observer, taking it all in and studying everybody's emotions, reacting to them accordingly. He is understanding right from wrong and testing those theories on Mommy and Daddy on a consistent basis. Loves to wear ball caps and can do the Dora mambo dance pretty well! B-man's nicknames are B, B-man, Punky, Brodster, B-road and known to Mama as BB.


Wade at 22 months: Is the fastest and most coordinated little squirt I have ever seen. An adult happened to be walking right next to him on the boardwalk at the beach the other day, and challenged Wade to race him to the end of the boardwalk. Wade looked him up and down, and then took off marching and then broke out into a full on sprint. It was the funniest thing...the guy was dying laughing! He is kind, loves to cuddle and loves to share. He is reckless and carefree, but is still gentle and has the sweetest soul. He is REALLY into kissing these days...sometimes kissing Mommy and Daddy over and over and over...(if he wasn't a toddler, we would have a problem :) Maybe this is a sign of his future with the ladies? He will be on tight leash if that's the case!!) Is very adventurous and seems to have no fear, but is cautious around the water. Has decided that doing somersaults off of the couch is a brilliant idea, as well as jumping from the couch to whatever other piece of furniture or person is around. Found him standing on the kitchen table the other morning, like it was the most normal thing in the world. Would prefer to do most things on his own and is turning into such a big helper. He hates to be woken up and is grumpy most mornings. His fine motor skills are through the roof and the talking is becoming more understandable...finally figuring out how to pronounce most words! Loves ketchup and juice and still dislikes all fruits and sweets. Wade goes by Wade. Ha! His name isn't one that has a natural nickname to it...he is known to Mama as sweet monkey or sweet peanut.


They are both infatuated with the frozen yogurt sticks, called GoGurts. Can use their utensils like pros, but still enjoy throwing their food on the floor and feeding Miller and Buckley. They are both kind to animals, can climb upstairs without a hand or railing and love to dance and march and sing songs. They slept in a big boy bed for the 1st time, unassisted(with bed rails), last weekend while staying with Nana and Gator! (They don't really fit in the pack-n-plays anymore..hehehe.) We are constantly working on sharing and taking turns, undoubtedly spending lots of time in "time-out" when not being kind and reinforcing the ultimate importance of love. Both can help get undressed and take off their shoes/socks and think it's the greatest thing on earth to be naked. They enjoying story time, bathtime and love to eat snacks. They enjoy kicking, rolling and throwing balls. Dora and Diego have recently replaced The Backyardigan's as their #1 favorite show. This age is so much fun...they really are like little sponges and soak up millions of bits of info each and everyday!!

Boy, that was fun!

Our trip to the beach last week did not end as we had hoped...Whitney captured all of the "meltdowns and struggles" on camera...

Mommy and her boys taking it all in. One last peaceful moment...


Brody and Wade are normally bathed, have had dinner and are ready for bed by 7pm. The following pictures capture what happens when little toddlers get cranky...

Refusing to walk to the playground. We ended up carrying them...we should have known at this point it was time to pack up and head home, but I insisted on spending the evening at the beach, much to Todd's insistence upon leaving...


Finally made it to the playground, and boy were they busy. The playground is probably built for 3yrs and older, but B and W made do, even if they were pushed around a bit and thought it was fun to throw sand at people :( Todd ended up chasing them around for 20 minutes and was not happy when the crankiness REALLY set in, because remember, he wanted to leave in the first place...

They were already soaked from the ocean, so a sandy beach playground + wet clothes = VERY sandy little boys. Enter the freezing cold boardwalk showers:

Boy, that was fun. (Enter the sarcasm anywhere in that previous sentence.) Even better when Wade bolted away from me, down the boardwalk, naked as a jay bird.

By this point, it was after 7pm, and the boys were in full force meltdown. Did not want to leave the beach. At all. Tired, sandy and hugry too. All of the restaurants that line the beach are wide open, so all of the people enjoying their seafood fare witnessed the whole ordeal. Boy, that was fun. And these meltdowns were the kind, where they melted out of our hands and would sit down wherever they were at that very moment, and cry.

Here we are, almost to the car, meltdown #89 for the evening.

At one point, Brody was sitting on the pavement in the parking lot, crying, and Wade was acting OK. Wade looked over, decided he should sit on the pavement too, and started to pretend to cry. We died laughing and Whitney busted out the camera!! Life with toddler's is always interesting. We try to remind ourselves that even though some excursions may be hard on us, the kids will get to experience life long memories... See? Everything ended up just fine.............hehe


Todd and I are part of the Krewe of Bowlegs, so this weekend, starting Thursday night, was a whirlwind of parties, parades, boating, storming the landing, taking over the city and playing in the rain. Todd was in charge of the whole boat schedule, boarding, set-up, take down and de-boarding of the boats, so he was a VERY busy guy on Friday and Saturday! While Mommy and Daddy played pirate dress up:

...the boys started off their pirate week with a party at school! Todd, along with Larry and Mark, came dressed as pirates and handed out lollipops and acted "pirate like" with all of the kiddos!










One of the 2 year old teachers happens to also be a professional photographer and captured some AMAZING pics of B-man before the party. Check out those eyes and his beutiful lips...


Her name is Ali Bloxson and her website is http://www.plumbphotography.com/ She has a very fresh and unique style of photography and I feel so lucky that she will be able to capture images of my little men, while at school!!

A very special thank to Grammie and Pop's who came over for our Bowleg's weekend and took care of the munchkins. I obviously have no pictures, as I was gone all weekend, but I do know that they had a blast together and cannot wait to do it again! Thank you so much!!!!!