If Jamie was a shoe....

He'd be a red Chuck Taylor!  I don't know if it the classic little boy style or the bold playfulness of the bright red,but as soon as he put them on, I thought, "They are just so James!"

James has always been like the color yellow.  He is bright and warm, and he has a way for just lighting up a room.  But, this past year, there has been a silly quirkiness that has emerged, and he has turned into quite the character.  We never know what is going to come out of his mouth!  Just the other night he shouted from the bathroom, "Just to let you know, pooping is fun to do!"  What can I say, he is ALL boy!  Two has been a lot of fun with this "Little Peanut!"  And as much as this Mommy would love him not to grow up quite so fast, I am excited to watch this boy grow!

Here are several James' moments that highlight that his silly, cleaver, and sometimes manipulative nature...

Arthur leaves for work early...way too early.  And the sound of his diesel engine often wakes James up, giving me an early morning visitor.  I usually welcome his morning snuggles...except on the days he refused to go back to sleep.  On these mornings, I have resorted to handing over my phone so he can watch an episode or two of Caillou or Wild Kratts...anything really to get a little more sleep.  Well, I guess he caught on to my main objective because the other night when he was asked to quiet down, he asked, "Will you put on Caillou so I will be quiet?"

James loves breakfast!  But I didn't realize quite how much until he climbed into my bed at about 4:30 in the morning and quietly whispered his order in my ear complete with "pamcakes," bacon, strawberries, and hot chocolate.  When I told him it was too early and that he needed to wait until the sun came up, he said, very seriously, "You are not a sweet Mama."

As soon as the Thanksgiving leftovers are in the fridge, the boys and I start listening to Christmas carols.  And now that Jake has 5 Christmases under his belt, he knows quite a few of the songs and gets excited to sing along with his favorites.  

On one afternoon drive, James was playing the "little brother" roll with extra enthusiasm.  Each time Jake would begin to sing, James would do his best to drowned out both Jake and the radio with wordless sing/yelling.  As you can imagine, Jake was less than amused.  And, of course, Jake's frustration only fueled Jamie's fire.

I, trying to contructively defuse this Christmas crisis, suggested, "James, why don't you try singing the Christmas song on the radio?"

"I can't!" he exclaimed.  "I don't have the words!  I only have this..."and he begins to sing, "A, B, C, D, E, F, G!" at the top of his lungs.

We can't imagine a day without you, James David!  Your goofiness makes us laugh, your hugs warm our heart, and your smile brightens our world.  We love you so much and we are so blessed you are ours!!

Cell Phone "Snaps"

This year, December doesn't just mark the end of the year, but for our family, it also marks the end of it being just the four of us.  Of course, we are all eager (probably no one more than me) to meet this new little person and we can't wait to welcome her into our lives.  But I want to make sure that I am treasuring this precious time with my little boys.  Several weeks ago (while I was wishing away the discomforts of pregnancy), it hit me, that I need to slow down a little.  Especially during this holiday season that almost forces you to speed up, I need to slow down, take a breath, and just enjoy this beautiful life that I have been blessed with.  And if you haven't figured out, that mostly means enjoying the little boys I get to spend my days with and the bigger one I am lucky enough to share this life with.

So here are some cell phone "snaps" I have taken over the past several weeks.  Just moments in my life that I couldn't resist documenting.  And while I have a beautiful camera with an awesome lens, the cell phone just comes in way more handy when you just want to freeze time.

Naps like this almost never happen anymore.

Breakfast is one of our favorite times of the day, and it is extra special when Daddy and the boys take over.

Jamie asked for this breakfast specifically (I think before my eyes were open).
"Pamcakes, strawberries, bacon, and hot chocolate!"  You try saying "no" to that face. :-)

When I look at this....

I can't help but see this.

Dinner with some of our favorite friends, the Hinds...I just love how many bodies can fit around this table!

Date night a few weeks ago (32 weeks pregnant) -Photo credit goes to Jake

Out on the town with the boys...

They are chocolate loves like their Mama!

A beautiful fall day, calls for a trip the zoo.  The boys didn't want to leave the  petting zoo....

Unless it was for a trip through the terrarium

And this is how you know it was a great day of learning and fun!

Arthur and Jake, on Jake's first duck hunting trip!  Jake was so excited to go, and I know it is a day he will never forget. 

But with the other boys away hunting, it meant some special Mommy and James time.

So we had a sushi date!

My hope for the rest of this month is to worry a little less about the laundry and math, and spend a little more time just "playing."  So hopefully there will be lots of crafts, baking, board games, snuggling, and of course, blogging!

James' "perfect" Birthday!

It is hard to believe that my baby...my tiny little "Peanut" turned three on Friday.  It is crazy how the time just keeps flying by with no regard for my (not always silent) wishes for it to slow down...even just a little.

This special day has been a favorite topic of conversation for Jake and James.  They loved asking how many more weeks and days until James would finally be three.  Then on Thursday night, minutes before bed, I sat on the floor snuggling with my baby boy.  Maybe James could sense me trying to soak up those last few moments of his twoness because he looked up and announced that the next day he would be three!  I don't remember the exact words that came out of my mouth, but I know I didn't do a very good job of hiding my bitter sweet emotions.

It is funny how excited I am to see them learn, and grow, and change...and yet there is nothing that breaks my heart or make me cry faster (and yes, I am bawling while typing this at 35 weeks pregnant) than thinking about how quickly it happens.

I felt terrible when he laid his head on my chest and said, "Mommy, I don't ever want to turn three."

"Oh, Honey, why not!?" Even though I knew it was totally my fault, and immediately felt guilty that I had likely contributed to a life long Peter Pan complex (that he would no doubt have to seek therapy for later in life)...but, then again, I never claimed perfection at this whole mommy thing.

"Because I want to be your baby forever!"  I squeezed him tightly and quickly tried to undo the permanent damage, I had just caused.

The good news for him is he doesn't really get a choice on that one.  None of them do.  And as I explained to him that night, and as I have told Jacob countless times before, they will ALWAYS be my babies.  And after that little life lesson, James went to bed happy and once again excited for his day!

I was slightly (okay, VERY) unprepared for James birthday.  I had planned up until Thanksgiving, and that was as far as I got.  But the flip side to his birthday falling the day after Thanksgiving, this year, meant that Arthur was home, and a day with Daddy was just what our little boy wanted.

After a big birthday breakfast, Daddy and James went on a special shopping trip.  I consider this a selfless act of love, since I know how much Daddy tries to avoid large crowds.  But there is little this Daddy won't do for his boys, so I shouldn't have been surprised that he braved Black Friday so the Birthday Boy could pick out a couple new toys.  Once they got home, it was a James day.  Jake did a great job letting James take the lead, and even understood that James might not want to share his new loot right away...and while those are presents that cannot be wrapped, my heart smiled watching Jake giving his little brother such sincere gifts from his 5 year old heart.

So here is a "perfect" day according to James

1) Playing  Hot Wheels with Jake

2) Building Lego's with Daddy (and Jake)

3) A little crafting

4) Dinner at Chick-f-la (complete with time in the fun area)

5) Family Movie night with Hot Chocolate and "Poporn"

While I hope to squeeze in a little birthday party before Little Sister arrives, I know that James had a great day!  And it brings me happiness that so many of his "favorites" are regular parts of his childhood.  I also love that the day had so little to do with things, but instead was filled with quality time together creating beautiful memories as a family.  And the best part about this birthday was that Daddy was here for the whole thing!

We love you Jamie Boy!  As one of your favorite bedtime stories says, "You're a gift sent from God up above.  Perfectly, delightfully created in love!"

Halloween Wrap Up!

Jake's costume is just one example of how much cooler Dad is than Mom!  Jake never would have come home with Power Ranger Mega Force costume if he had gone shopping with me, but he loved it!  And even though he could hardly see a thing with that mask on, he stayed committed to his "character," and never took it off.  He just marched [blindly] down the street, often getting way ahead of the group, intensely focused on getting his next "treat."

A glimpse of his sweet face :-)

James, on the other hand, was a little less committed to his "look."  We weren't even to the first house before I was wearing his cowboy hat.  His little legs kept up pretty well, especially with all the stairs leading up to each door, but in the end James was the one who ended up calling our night.  

"I want to go lay down in my own bed," he told his Daddy as he laid his head down on Arthur's shoulder.

Last time I saw a cowboy this tired, it was my Jacob Williamest when I was pregnant with James.  Crazy how time flies!)

And that is just what he did. :-)

Halloween Morning Homeschool Style

I, like probably every other homeschool mom, get lots of questions about "socialization" opportunities for our boys.  While this is not something that I have ever lost sleep about, I know that these questions are generally coming from an honest place of love and concern.  So I thought this Halloween breakfast is a great example of some homeschool "socialization" and fun!

I cannot take credit for this fun bash.  We are lucky enough to be in a ward with many other families who have also decided to homeschool this year.  And one of the other moms planned this fun Halloween pumpkin pancake breakfast, complete with chocolate chips and whip cream.

And I can't forget the banana ghosts and the pumpkin mandarins another mom contributed!  I love all the cute and creative ideas other moms come up with!

So we mixed some themed food with lots of good friends...

And some spooky crafts for a fabulous start to our Halloween Holiday!

(we are still waiting for James glue to dry)

Jake was so busy playing that he never got downstairs for crafts.

I guess this could be considered a homeschool version of a class party. 

The Boys' Pumpkin!

Just before bedtime last night, Arthur made the alarming observations that we had not carved our pumpkin!  I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but somehow we made it to the night before Halloween without carving our pumpkin.
I, of course felt terrible, and went to bed stressing about how we were going to fit it in today.  Between a Halloween breakfast with friends (pictures to follow) and violin practice filling our afternoon, I was feeling a little nervous.  But I was determined that we would have our beautiful pumpkin transformed into a jack-o-lantern before Halloween night.

And so we did!  And I am happy to report that it was a real "we" experience this year (minus Daddy, who was at work), with all little hands on deck...or should I say, in the pumpkin?

No one was shy about pumpkin guts this year!

Jake and James miraculously agreed on a pattern...

Then Jake and I took care of the pattern transfer (while James diligently painted his little pumpkin)...

When it came to handing little pumpkin carving knives to my boys, I did get a little nervous that someone (more than likely, me) would need to get stitches before we had completed carving our creation.  But they were both carefully committed to the task at hand.  So other than a few squabbles over who's turn it was and a fall from the bench, things went very smoothly.

I think we may even graduate to each boy carving his own pumpkin next year.  :-)

PS Due to weather, Trick-or Treating has been postponed until tomorrow evening.  So costume and jack-o-lantern photos have been too.