Cole: 10 months

... Is a baby on the move!  Our little guy is definitely keeping us busy these days.  And let me just say that capturing his 10 month photos this month was quite the challenge.  I was lucky to get him in a clean onesie and have him sit still for a few moments...

Here we are.  Cole, now 10 months old.  I have to say I am a little in shock and it is a little bittersweet for me.  My baby is growing up, which is fun and exciting for our little family... but also a little sad, as we are so very quickly leaving the baby stage.  I returned the breast pump I had rented from the hospital over the weekend (also a bittersweet moment) and couldn't help but wish for those first few days with our little again.  

And I'm not sure if you noticed, but our little is not so little these days.  While we did not take Cole for a well-child visit this month, I am almost positive he is still in the 100% for almost every thing.  Just call him moose. 

Here are a few other fun little facts about our little:

• First tooth sighting!  While he still has yet to officially have his first tooth, we are seeing a dot of white through his translucent gums... and it is not one of the two middle bottom teeth.  Randomly, it is his right bottom canine tooth.  Ahoy, baby pirate Cole?
• Cole can now wave hello... when he wants to. 
• He is a cruising-machine.  Like I said before, Cole is on the move... but he would much rather be cruising than crawling.  And he is getting pretty confident with it.
• He is also an eating-machine.  As I type this list, he made his way over to the hubs and they are sharing some goldfish crackers.  And an apple.  Pretty cute.
• Cole's hair is coming in pretty thick... and the hubs thinks it almost looks mullet-like.  I'm pondering his first haircut before he is one... we'll see.
• He is quite the little wrestler and is not picky on his opponent.  Daddy, brother, momma... or even our cat Jack.  
• And he enjoys a good thrill.  Whether it be a fun game of peek-a-boo or bouncing on momma's lap and dipping backwards sporadically.  
• One of Cole's favorite things is to crawl into our kitchen and pull all of the plastic baggies out of the bottom drawer.  Or find his baby wipes and pull all of them out of the container.  
• Dressing Cole is an absolute challenge these days.  And so is diapering. 
• He just figured out how to shake his head no and thinks it is pretty fun.

Want to see Cole's post from last month?  Click HERE. 

Adventures In Toddler-Sitting

Today we went on an adventure.  This momma went for a walk through our neighborhood with 3 toddlers and a baby in tow.  To keep us in line, we made sure to watch for butterflies, birds, airplanes, dogs... and the elusive garbage truck.  They had a blast.  I got a work out.  Fun was had by all.  

But before the adventure, we snapped a few photos.  The poses?  A way to keep the wiggly kiddos still.  We'll try for a "normal" photo next time. 

The shirt says it all.

I pulled out more of Kingston's hand-me-down clothes for Cole a few days ago and found this fun shirt.  It kinda works more for Cole, since he is his daddy's little twin (compared to the hubs's baby photos).  So you know I had to take a few photos of them together...   

An Early Birthday Party.

Last Saturday we celebrated my mom's birthday.  We had a great family celebration - complete with dinner, cupcakes, flowers, balloons, and gifts.  I'm pretty sure my mom was perfectly spoiled that day. 

Tomorrow is my mom's actual birthday (4/25).  Many, many wishes for a wonderful, happy, and blessed birthday Mom! xoxo

Impromptu Balloon Banner

Super fast and super easy - this was one of the three balloon banners I hung up throughout our home for my mom's birthday celebration over the weekend.  Such a fun look - I will definitely be using it again in the near future (only a little over two months to plan my little's FIRST birthday - what?!).  

Wanna make one?  You'll need:

• Balloons (amount and color your choice)
• Thread
• Needle
• Tape 

Simply blow up the balloons to your desired size.  Tie them off and thread a needle through the end (non-air filled side, people).  String as many balloons together as you need to achieve the look you want.  Like I said, super easy.  Super fast.  You should really give it a whirl. 

Peace Jammies: Then & Now

With two boys, I am lucky to get to reuse most of Kingston's baby clothes with Cole.  These peace sign jammies are one of my favorites and I am thrilled they are fitting not-so-little baby Cole these days.  And maybe I'm still a little shocked with how big Cole has gotten in the past few months.  Kingston was walking in these jammies; Cole is crawling.  And both are more than a little handsome in them in my book.  

Sickly Sweet.

Okay, isn't it Spring?  Shouldn't nicer weather be coming our way... and maybe, just maybe, fewer-to-no more colds?  It seems like my family was just on the mend, then BAM.  Here we are in sick-town again, myself included.  So, if you've been wondering where I've been and why my blog has been pretty stagnate the past few days week or so... you now know why.

In other news - have you tried chocolate chip cookies with sprinkles on top?  Thanks for the suggestion, Kingston.

Captain Cowboy, a True Adventurer

Knights, pirates, cowboys... and Curious George?  Kingston's imagination is definitely raring to go these days.

Of course, he wanted me to participate in his pirate-play today, rewarding him with pirate gold for completing pirate missions.

And wouldn't you know that one of those pirate missions was to pose for a pirate picture; the biggest mission there was, rewarded with 10 pieces of pirate gold.  This boy sure earned his keep.  

Coach Hubs and His Baseball Team.

Last Tuesday I left work a little early so I could watch the hubs coach the high school JV baseball game.  His one request: bring my camera and take a few pictures.  And take a few pictures I did.  I had a great time watching the game (BIG win) and seeing the hubs as a coach.  It made for fun thoughts of how it will be when our boys are old enough to play ball.

Easter Egg Hunting

So, we probably should have prepared Kingston for Easter egg hunting... because when we went to the  community Easter egg hunt on Saturday, he only picked up a handful of eggs.

Which, to be truthful, didn't really bother me - in fact, it was pretty sweet how he wanted to stop and open each one that he picked up.  My parents joined us and loved helping Kingston sift through his "treasure" - so even more sweet memories were made.

We also did a little Easter egg hunting at my parents home on Sunday.

It was more of a challenge at my parents home, as my dad actually hid the eggs rather than just placed them all over the grass.  Kingston had fun hunting and we played a little "hot, cold" to help him find the last few eggs.  

While Cole did not get to hunt this year, he had fun watching his brother go through the eggs and even helped out by holding onto a few of the plastic eggs for his brother (show me a baby who is not amazed by those plastic eggs!).  We'll get 'em next year, Cole.

Easter Family Photo

With two squirmy boys, this was the best that we got on Easter Sunday.  Kingston likes to make all sorts of silly faces or just not want to sit still for the camera... and Cole was ready for a nap.  Also, because I waited until after church to take our photos, I forgot to take a photo of the boys together with their cute little outfits.  I'm thinking we will attempt a family photo before we got to church next year, not after.

Easter Goodies for Good Boys

This year I had fun collecting little goodies and treats for my two sweet little boys.  I tried to not overdo it by finding little things that they needed, paired with a couple of wants.

Because we had plans to head to my parents' home for Easter, we didn't do any plastic eggs/Easter egg hunts at our home.  And there weren't any in their baskets either.  But Kingston still managed to get two chocolaty treats in his basket.  

For the big boy, I got two main fun things Kingston wanted/needed... then threw in a few extra treats.

1. Pinwheel (this ended up being the desired toy for both boys)
2. Wreck It Ralph (His "want" for sure)
3. Ironman Headphones (His "need," as daddy's headphones are broken and he needs a pair to listen to ABC Mouse.  And when I found a pair that had his favorite superhero designed on the earpieces, I knew I just had to grab them for my boy) 
4. Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bunny (he snuck this cookie behind our couch and started eating it... before church... without us knowing... and then got a baby wipe bath before we had to leave)
5. Easter-themed M&M Fan (Because I knew the boy would have a blast pushing the button and making it spin)

For our little, only two things.  He didn't need much and will share the DVD and books with his brother.

1. Chick Stuffed Animal (something soft and cuddly for him to play with)
2. Jack & Lily Soft Sole Slip-On Shoes (a little big, but the boy needed a new pair... a pair of his own that were not previously worn by his big brother)

I am a sucker for books and could not pass up on the good deals I got on these four books.  They weren't going to be part of their Easter goodies, but with the holiday coming and these new books in my hand, I decided to just place them with their baskets for the boys to find on Sunday morning.

Kingston couldn't wait to flip through the superhero book... and Cole thought "The Happy Egg" was a good book to use for a teether... so, score?

I will be sifting through my Easter weekend photos throughout the week and will share them with you - we had a wonderful, relaxing weekend and hope you all did too.  And for those of you in Western Washington: can you believe the weather we had?  The best.