Swimming Lessons and Other People's Kids...

Of course I have no pictures of the event, but Eli passed his "Eel" swim class and will be moving on to becoming a "Ray".  I was really impressed with how much he learned in his class.  He's going underwater all the time and did a good job of getting to the side when he jumped in the 4 ft. I still don't think he's quite ready to be left unattended at a swimming pool, but maybe by next summer.  (That is a joke of course, but I feel like I have to tell you it's a joke so you don't report me to CPS.)  At the end of the class today one of the mom's had a meltdown because her son wandered toward the 4 ft. (it's a zero entry pool).  She jerked him out of the water and said "you're not in trouble, they are not keeping you safe!".  What?  There were 4 lifeguards there and they repeatedly said, "don't go past this line".  Give me a break lady.  They weren't going to let him drown, and it probably wouldn't have hurt for him to lose his footing for a moment so he'd realize he needs to pay attention.  

A friend of mine also had a run in with "other people's kids" at a photo session a couple of weeks ago.  Her six month old's head got clawed (with bloody claw marks to prove it) by a 1 year old.  And no apology or even a scolding by the mother.  Good thing the pictures were already done because he's a baldy.  :)  I realize that 1 year olds don't always know that they might hurt the baby, but the fact that the mom acted like it was no big deal is ridiculous to me. It might have been nice if she'd even just said, "now honey, don't claw it until it bleeds, just scratch light enough that he doesn't scream."  I'm so glad my kids are perfect.  ;)  

Pool Time

Two Months Old

Parker Evelyn is two months old today! She went yesterday for her doctor visit and she's a little smaller than her brother was at this age, but not much. Here are her measurements to date.

Height: 22.75 inches (69th %ile) Eli was at the 80th %ile at two months

Weight: 12 lbs 7.5 oz. (89th %ile) Eli weighed a whopping 15 lbs at this point--97th %ile

Head Circumference: 41 (94th %ile) Eli was at the 95%ile--we're a big headed family I guess

She's getting so big!

Parker is a Baby Doll

I've been getting up bright and early to take Eli to swimming lessons this week. He's doing great, but I'm having a heck of a time dragging the baby carrier (Parker is clearly gaining weight) and trying to keep track of Eli. We've managed though. Marshall went back to work this week so we're back on our own. Eli is disappointed of course. Nothing like having your 4 year old burst into tears in the morning at the thought of spending the day with you rather than daddy. Thankfully I'm fairly cold hearted and it doesn't phase me. Well, dad was able to attend a couple of swim lessons this week and was holding Parker sitting on the bench with me. During Eli's swimming lesson there is a water aerobics class also taking place. The instructor came over when they were done and mentioned that they thought Marshall was actually holding a doll and not a real baby! Of course we think Parker is pretty darn cute, but it was fun having the ladies ooo and ahh over her. Pictures to follow at some point. I hate my camera.

Video Clips and Bad Pictures

I need to invest in a camcorder, but my crappy 2.0 megapixel digital camera will have to do for now. It's impossible to keep up with technology. I thought my camera was pretty sweet for about 5 minutes and then everyone had 10.0 megapixel cameras in no time. I didn't even own a camera until we bought the digital when I was pregnant with Eli. I actually let my belly get photographed when I was pregnant with Eli because we'd just bought the camera and had nothing to take pictures of but each other! Photography is something I would love to be better at. I see pictures that other people have taken of my kids and they really "capture" them. Me...not so much. I'm lucky if they look human in the pictures. In fact, to prove my point here, I've included some lovely shots of the kiddies courtesy of yours truly. I like to pretend it's my cheap crappy camera... I mean look at these for goodness sake. Anyway, back to the point. I've attached some video clips that are pretty cool, but very poor quality and no sound because of my outdated camera.

Texas Trip

We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa for about a week over the 4th of July. We flew for the first time with two kiddos and it actually went really well. Parker slept quite a bit and Eli was very good. We flew out of KC so we went down the day before and stayed at a hotel in St. Joeseph, MO. It actually worked out really well because there was a little waterpark in the hotel and it was a Monday so it wasn't busy at all. Eli had a blast and I think Marshall was equally entertained.There are many activities to be had when we visit the ranch in Texas. Eli loves to ride four wheelers and go on "adventures". Marshall spends most of his time fishing. Eli will go fishing, but doesn't usually last too long. He also got to ride horses with Grandma so that was probably the best part! We had a great time. The next time we fly I'm sure Parker will not sleep through it....

How could something so sweet be so stinky?

Sleepy. Stinky.

Growing, growing, growing

Parker is growing like a weed these days. She weighs 12 lbs. now and doesn't show any signs of slowing down. I got bored and painted her toes while she was sleeping the other day. The color is OPI "It's All Greek To Me" in case anyone was wondering...a great color.

Parker's Superhero

Eli is obsessed with all things superhero so Parker has taken on the role of "damsel in distress" to rescue at a moment's notice.

Daddy's Boy

Eli loves to play Guitar Hero with Marshall. Now he just likes to play air guitar without even playing the game. It's pretty comical.
At Target not too long ago Eli begged to get some flip flops like his Dad's. He can't walk in them at all, but he was right, they do look similar.