happy birthday to my hottie of a hubby!

28 years ago today (gasp, he's an 80s baby -- if you didn't gasp, don't tell me, i don't want to feel old) this adorable creature was born:



brian edward mitchell -- isn't he cute?

check him out a year later. he's already got awesome fashion sense, doesn't he?



being such a manly man, he had to learn to shave that wicked beard at just 2 years old:



at just 3 years of age, we could see where much of his life focus would be -- lookin good for the ladies!



somehow, even at a mere 6 years old, he knew that he would one day get to repair things in kitchens:



time does fly when you are having fun, and soon brian was turning 11. does everyone remember hypercolor? yes, that is a 100% authentic hypercolor t-shirt brian's brother is pressing his face into. ah, arpits and crotches that turn different colors from body heat. what a brilliant idea!



the teenage years are interesting ones for all of us. brian was 1 part nerd and 2 parts jock. he got to travel all over the country (and also to england) for soccer camps and such. doesn't he look like a friendly kid, though?



at 14 he moved to spain & came back in the summers to visit his family. check out his uber-stylish bowl cut here:



now, i know you all are wondering how to snag such a looker for yourselves. but just hold on, things did start looking better after puberty and all its bizarre effects wore off.

this is what brian looked like when i met him in barcelona. if i may say so, i certainly got myself my own mc steamy -- who needs grey's anatomy?



and he's still just as handsome 6 years later!





happy birthday, sweetie, and thanks for making me one lucky woman!

Nolan's new addiction

who needs a wii when you have one of these?



a monitor? you ask. granted, a monitor can provide hours of fun listening to your child cry and can even stimulate your mind as you calculate how many minutes have elapsed since the last time you checked on him and how long you can permit the tantrum to go on, but how could a monitor possibly top a gaming system which, when used properly, actually simulates real physical activity?

well, when the brilliant mind of a 7-month-old is engaged, a monitor can become a gaming system of its own. it's tireless fun. just ask nolan.



he is seen here engaging in the fun.

here's how to play. make sure your monitor has the ability to light up when noise is detected. sit, stand, or lie down somewhere in the room where the monitor is in full view. next, scream, grunt, gurgle, or make any other manner of noise which appeals to you at the moment. the object of the game is to get as many of the little red lights to light up as possible as the receiver (located in another area of the house, of course -- the game is too easy if it is in the same room) picks up your noises. the great thing is, there's no real "winner" or "loser" because if you make it work with a scream, move on to the next noise and see how many lights you can get with that one!

wes doesn't play. but as you can see here, he is exited by the possibilities.



he's sure that if they can just get the word out, this will be bigger than guitar hero.

how can i be upset? a story of bedtime rebellion

over the past couple of days, i have noticed that it is taking the boys a bit longer to put themselves to sleep in the evenings. our normal routine of dinner, about 1/2 hour of playtime in the crib, 10 minutes of crying, and out for the night, has lengthened into an hour of playtime and 20 minutes of crying.

and then 30 minutes of crying.

and then there is tonight.

dinner was around 5.30. a change of diapers, a change of clothes, and into the crib by 6.15.

playtime was abbreviated & the crying started after only about 15 minutes.

and went on

and on.

i checked to make sure no one was on top of the other one a few times & things seemed to be fine.

and still, the crying continued.

at 8.00, i decided that something HAD to be done, so into their room i went. both boys were wailing uncontrollably, but nothing seemed to be physically wrong with them.

as soon as they saw me, everything changed.

the chorus of wails became a giggle fest. both of them. just staring at me and laughing harder than i think they have laughed all day. i think it just would have continued had i not decided that -- since they were clearly in no physical or emotional pain -- i could leave again (and blog about the situation).

what in the world is going on?

is an hour and a half of screaming all just some elaborate game that i just lost? i think they forgot to hand me the rule book for this one. i need to know how to play, because it certainly seems like a lot of fun.

if you win, that is.

simple pleasures

It always amazes me how much pleasure my little guys get from the simple things in life. Things that make them smile, squeal with delight, or wiggle uncontrollably. If only all of us could find joy so easily.

Some things that entertain them right now:

mirrors
the sound of their own voices
squeaky noises
the cat
peek-a-boo
each other's laughter

It's so sweet.

But yesterday afternoon they took it to a whole new level.

Naptime was just about finished and I could hear little sounds of delight coming to me live from the monitor which is unnecessary in our dinky house. I decided to investigate the source of their fun. I crept up the stairs and into their room. There were no giant squeals, just small happy sounds.

What could possibly have them so entertained?

I popped my head over the crib rail and it didn't take me long to discover it.

I don't know who was ultimately responsible (though my money's on Wes), but I do know that they were both deriving much pleasure from it.

"It" was a pile of regurgitated beef and peas from lunch. Both boys were running their hands through it, enjoying the new texture they had discovered.

Ah -- if only we could all take such joy in the simple things of life!

now what?

8th grade graduation was last Thursday.

Yearbook signing, locker cleanout, book returning, and a few end-of-the-schoolyear games were on Friday.

By noon the hallways were empty -- not a single middle schooler could be found.

A long weekend.

On Tuesday, there was boxing up of my personal belongings, an exit interview, & hugs all around.

Wednesday morning my parents headed back to Illinois.

I'm officially on my own and a stay-at-home mom.

What do I do now?