City Mouse, Country Mouse

So, this past weekend Uncle Brent ventured out of his life in the fast lane in NYC to brave the wilds of suburbia.  Ella even got to take a night time ride in her jammies to pick him up from the train station.  As she told Nana the next day, she got to go for a ride in the "darkening."  Very exciting!

Uncle Brent tried out very exciting activities like cooking breakfast.  Apparently in NYC you don't cook.

We did what only inexperienced and naive tourists do -- headed to the Natural History Museum on a weekend in July.  I don't think I can claim to be a true Washingtonian after making this rookie mistake.

Luckily the new butterfly exhibit provided some relief from the crowds -- and entertainment for the kids.

 We ended the weekend with some pool time.  Well, most of us did.  Cooper and I may have skipped the pool for some much needed naps.

Thanks for visiting Uncle B!

And...for any of you who have ever seen someone try to wake me up -- or Uncle Brent for that matter -- you will know that it is not a pretty picture.  Ella definitely gets this from us.  You are taking your life in your own hands to go in and wake her up.  We usually bring peace offerings to try to appease the angry gods.

But Cooper was brave and wanted to wake his sister up (he naps less than her).  She fussed at first, but then even she couldn't resist the Cooper charm :)

A cousin!

And, the most exciting news to be posted on this blog in a long time is that sweet, sweet Sutton Charles Jaskot has arrived!

The kids have a cousin!

I'm an Aunt!  Brian's an Uncle! 

Farrell and David now get to join the ranks of perpetually sleep-deprived parents!

I seriously almost packed this cutie up and took him home with me.  Although I would have set off many hospital alarms, so I decided against it.

It was tempting though.  Very, very tempting.

The Little Things

It really is the little things in life.  It has to be.  Because that's what 99% of life is, right?

I wish, when I was in junior high school someone could have shown me pictures of my life now.  When everything was so full of drama and my current life seemed impossible.

Like it was only a fairy tale.

But to me, it still kind of is.

There are times I drive home from work, turn the corner - and WHAM! there in front of me are two of the most adorable children playing in a yard, blond hair gleaming in the sun, laughing and running.  Whose adorable children are those?  There is no way this is my life, my children.  Is this for real?

And when it hits me that yes, they are really mine, I can hardly breathe.  I'm giddy like it's Christmas morning.

So here are some of our everyday moments.  Nothing special, just us.  Exactly as we are.  Exactly as it should be.

 

Dancing with friends on a playdate.

Building mega-cool flying buses.

Pajama time in the neighborhood.

Buckles.  All the time.  All day long.

Seriously.  We just empty out Emma's drawer, and he goes to town.  Buckling everything.  Now, if only we could teach him to unbuckle.

Up on her tippy-toes for just "one more bite."

Train rides with Mimi.

Ella no longer needs the training potty.  But Cooper has claimed it.  Every time Ella goes in there, he is right there behind her.  With a magazine, of course.

Play Ball

So, we bought tickets to this game weeks ago.  And when the day came, it was a bazillion degrees, but I figured I don't really like baseball to begin with, why not make it extra miserable and go on a 100+ degree day?

My favorite part was dressing the kids. I was looking forward to eating some really-yummy-but-very-bad-for-me ball park food, but it was even too hot to eat.

Although I must admit, following these cuties around did make it worthwhile.

I offered all sorts of cold treats -- ice cream, lemonade, dippin' dots.  But no, they only wanted popcorn.  They are popcorn obsessed.  Cooper continuously did the "more" sign and said "pop pop!  pop pop!"

Okay, so the best part was watching these two.  The serious study of the game.  Cooper was enthralled.  He clapped and cheered and didn't want to take his eyes off the field.

Ella and I spent most of the time looking for shade.  I heart her.

And yes, I heart him too.  My little, sweaty, frat-haired boy.

Ella and I convinced the boys to go on a shopping expedition and trade in the froggy hat for more proper attire.

And, we're out of here. 

Hot Tamales

Yes, it's about a bazillion degrees here.  Ella likes to exclaim "hot tamales!" whenever she goes outside.  The nanny thought it was so funny and asked where she got that expression.  Ummm, from her mama of course.  Who else would say something so ridiculous!

We've been braving the heat the best we can.  Matching outfits on July 4th always help, right?

Cooper's face is awesome here.  I need to write a post soon about this kid.  He is an absolute nut.  He outsmarts me all the time and thinks it is HYSTERICAL.

Handsome boy...

 Nana wrestles the beast.

We haven't had too much luck with fireworks in the past.  Ella is NOT a fan.  So this year we decided to play it cool and have lunch at Nana and Baba's and hang out at the pool.

SUCH a typical Ella face, like c'mon mom.  She even half closes her eyes sometimes and gives me a snarky little look.  I will capture it on camera!

 A little better.

 Aww, there's her smile!

 Playing at the pool with her buddy Anna.

This picture is solely to scare Mimi and Nana.  My mom probably has a zillion stats ready to go about the dangers of fireworks.  Do I hear my phone ringing?

Mimi helping us brave the heat.

Trying to beat the heat at the library.  Cooper does not believe in the quiet rule at the library.

Helping to check out.

 And on a totally unrelated note...let's talk about this kid's eyelashes!  Ella has some serious eyelashes, but Cooper's take it to a whole new level.  This kid already runs my life (you should hear how many times a day he yells "Mama, Mama!"  No matter where I am or who is with him, he pats the floor next to him and yells "Mama! Mama!" implying that I am supposed to come sit with him, to read, eat, play legos, whatever).  How am I supposed to resist?