{bath baby}

I am so glad to have my camera back! Even though I haven't taken too many pictures, it is so nice not to have unexplained focus issues frustrating me!

I took these the very day I got the camera back...they aren't tack sharp because we have almost no light in the kid's bathroom (and I have really shaky hands), but I love'em!

ISO 1600, f 1.8, 1/60

ISO 1600, f1.8, 1/80

ISO 1600, f 1.8, 1/60

ISO 1600, f1.8, 1/80

{feeling a bit random}

I'm starting to wonder if I will ever in my life say the words "not much is going on around here". I'm constantly amazed at how life manages to get busier and busier, yet somehow I still make it through the days...

So, since this particular day has left me feeling quite disjointed, here are some random things going on with us:

• We're feeling very blessed by Brandon's new job...excellent company + excellent benefits + excellent management = Happy Husband!

• Jericho is doing a lot better...his glucose is almost down to the normal range and most all of his symptoms have disappeared! He LOVES going to the vet every week and the staff there cannot get enough of him...so, he gets the royal treatment on every visit!

• My aunt & sister both came to TX for a visit earlier this month. We had tons of fun as usual, both here and in San Antonio...my camera was at Nikon during their entire time here...soooo depressing!!!

• Speaking of the camera, it is back and working so much better! My 50mm lens and the camera body were both in need of repair and the whole thing was done under warranty! So, the wait was worth it in the end because my warranty expired this month!

• Cole is both crawling AND pulling up! He started crawling on the anniversary of his due date (6/2) and picked up speed very quickly. Now he flies around the house like a wild man...If he is missing for one second, I always know where to find him though - the laundry room dumping out the dog's water! He pulled up for the first time about a week ago and now pulls up on anything he can find! Here he is in the kitchen window (please ignore the filthy window and floor - I can't keep either clean!)

• It is so amazing to me how mobility brings out the toddler personality! Cole has become Dr. Demando (as Brandon would say)...he really wants to walk and get's super frustrated when he can't or thinks he's stuck somewhere...and, oh how he will let you know! He takes the cutest steps too (with help) he looks like he's trying to climb stairs! Oh, and yes, he can do that already by crawling - the two into our media room from the upstairs gameroom at least...watch out world!

• We've been to our neighborhood pool a few times so far...it is awesome! Our neighborhood is relatively small, so it isn't busy at all and there's a nice, big toddler pool. I brought my camera one day thinking I would be able to get some pictures and quickly realized that was not a smart move - it literally takes every ounce of my attention to keep up with the two of them constantly moving in two different directions! I am so glad every day that we do not have a pool at home anymore !

• I love, love, love our house....My absolute favorite thing about this house is my office! I haven't had an office of my own since we lived in Houston pre-kids. Here is a picture from my iPhone of my space after I finally finished getting it unpacked...

• 

• Caden's language skills have dramatically improved in the past month or so. When we were at my parent's house in May, they couldn't understand much of what he was saying, but just 4 weeks later, they were able to understand most of what he was saying!

• This improved language ability has also led to greater awareness of being left alone, etc. A few weeks ago he decided being in his room for naps or bed was terrifying. At first we thought it was a manipulative thing, but we figured out that he was actually scared and had to change our tactics a bit. The thing that finally worked was putting the dog in his room! Poor Jericho isn't too sure of this change since he's been sleeping in our room since he was a puppy, but he's taking the task seriously at least...we found him like this the other night after Caden had fallen asleep! (I shot this wide open (f1.4) at ISO 1600 and still had to underexpose to be able to handhold the camera - so, I embraced the noise, it's the moment that matters!)

• With Cole's newfound mobility, Caden has decided he's much more interesting and the two have started bonding and even rough housing! It is the CUTEST most precious thing in the whole world to see my boys playing together! Here is a picture of them playing together in the waiting room at Gymboree...

(I promise, there are lots of smiles too - this was after our open gym time, so they we're really tired!)

Well, that is all of the randomness I can muster for now - back to watching Old School with Brandon....love that movie!

{let the training begin}

I'm all singed up & ready to start training for the San Antonio Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon in November! I've got a few partners in crime to go through the misery with me....My friend Dawn, my sister-n-law Lisa and her husband Ron, and even my mom will be doing it with me! This will be the longest I've run...and will definitely be the longest I will EVER run - no WAY will I ever put my body through a full marathon!

Brandon will be getting up with the kids in the morning so I can run before he starts work - of course, he's out of town right now, so I will have to wait until he gets back...but, I'm VERY ready to get back into a routine with running! Can't wait for November!

{potty tales}

Well, I have no photos for this post, for which, I promise, you will be grateful...But, I had to write this down...

So we had Caden very interested in the potty back before we moved. He would go almost any time we put him on the potty, but never tell me that he needed to go. And, then as many of my good friends told me would happen, he regressed and refused to use the potty. I decided not to make a battle out of it and knew I couldn't keep up with it anyway during the move. But, then after the move when I attempted it, same thing...total refusal to even sit on the potty! So, I just backed off and kept trying every couple of weeks to see if he changed his mind.

Lately, he's been showing a LOT of signs of being ready, so I set the potty out in our breakfast room (there's a pillar in there that perfectly hides it from view!) and have let him go around without a diaper several days to give him the opportunity...He will now often sit on the potty for several minutes, but had yet to use it even once...

Well, this morning just Caden and I were up when he asked me to take his diaper off...so I decided it would be a good time to try the naked thing. Then he asked me to open the back door so he could hang out in the backyard. Our little backyard has very little to get into and we can view the entire thing from the main living area, so we often let Caden play out there with no shoes in just a diaper, so I figured - ok, no big deal. Plus, it is reasonably cool this morning, so we could leave the back door open and he could go in and out when he wanted.

Soooo....I stopped off at the computer in my office around the corner for minute to check e-mail and suddenly Caden came running in all excited "stin'kin", "stin'kin"...It took me a second, but then I realized what he was saying and I thought - Oh, good! He needs to go and he's telling me he needs to use the potty!!! - Well, as I got up from my desk and followed him, he proceded to pass the empty potty and stopped at the window and pointed saying "stin'kin" "stin'kin"....and there I saw it....his little creation in the dirt...I busted out loud laughing because I quickly realized he did this because that is what the doggie does!!!

Oh no, Caden, you are not a doggie, you are a kid and kids go "stin'kin" on the potty! To try to get this point accross, I picked up the little creation and showed him where it was supposed to go and he said "stin'kin potty" - that's right, kid, keep sayin' it - you are sooo close! when we emptied it into the big potty and flushed it away, he said "bye-bye stin'kin" "bye-bye"! I am still laughing....

{zoo pics}

A couple of weeks ago, Brandon decided to take a day off and we headed out to the Fort Worth Zoo for the afternoon - it was a GREAT day to go, apparently, because there was almost no one there!

It was the last time I had my camera before I sent it in to Nikon for assessment/repair...I've been super frustrated with my focus lately and finally decided it was more that operator error after looking back at my old photos and seeing much better focus! Anyway, Nikon has had my camera for almost a week and I have yet to hear from them....very frustrating! I think I will be on their case tomorrow as they originally told me I'd hear from them "early in the week"!

Anyway, we went back to the zoo again today with Christina & Nadia! We had a blast, but OH MY, what a difference two weeks makes! When we went 2 weeks ago, the weather was perfect - high of 80, I think...Today, well, I don't know what the high was, but it. was. HOT & HUMID! And, the zoo was the busiest I've ever seen it too! I think every school, daycare and summer camp had their kids there today! But, despite all of that, we had a lot of fun and enjoyed it so much we didn't' even realize how late it was when we looked at a clock for the first time...4 hours had passed so quickly!

So, here are the pics from the FIRST trip to the zoo...

These big gorillas AMAZE me! I always feel so bad for them though...I think they know they are there for show and they always look so depressed...something just seems wrong about people oooggling over them day in and day out...



Caden just loved them...at first...



Until this guy JUMPED up and growled? at him...it happened SO fast and Caden freaked out....I just happened to be pressing the shutter at the perfect moment to catch this...then Caden jumped backward - fortunately, Brandon was right there to catch him!



Caden now walks around saying "I scared" anytime we make a gorilla noise or ask him about the gorillas...poor guy was traumatized. He was a little interested in them today, but did NOT want me to put him down or go near the glass...But, it did not stop him from being a little monkey himself...



And then we went to see the penguins...Oh my, I've NEVER seen Caden get so excited in my life over something! I LOVE this entire series...even though they are noisy as can be and almost none of them are in focus! I think a trip to the Aquarium is most certainly going to be on our summer adgenda - this kid loves water animals!

{our poor hairy son}

Jericho has been a little off lately....especially the last few weeks. We originally thought he'd injured his back legs because he was having severe trouble getting up and his legs even completely gave out a few times...Well, after $600 in vet bills over the past few weeks, we finally figured it out...Poor Jericho has diabetes! I actually figured it out on my own before we took him to our new vet by researching his symptoms online, so I was prepared when they confirmed it today.

He's in pretty bad shape - the vet ordered immediate insulin injections twice daily. He wanted to start today, but decided it would be ok to start tomorrow after he got the type of insulin he wanted to use. I was so glad I decided to take him in - even though I did it with both kids by myself...NOT a fun experience....Brandon was out of town training for his new job - he recently accepted a great job offer & we are so excited to be employed again - we've decided self-employment is not for us - too unpredictable!

So, tomorrow begins a whole new world of caring for our sick puppy for the rest of his life - which, we hope, will be many more years! He will get insulin shots twice a day, a special ($130/month!!!) kind of dog food twice daily, and many, many vet visits to monitor his glucose levels. It is going to cost us a fortune and be a lot of work - the shots & food have to be given on a fairly strict time schedule - but, we'd do pretty much anything for our first baby...

Here are some pictures I took of him a few weeks ago...he just turned 9 on May 3rd. I can still vividly remember driving with Brandon & his mom to Amarillo to pick him up from the breeder when he was 6 weeks old...

{one year}

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