If it hadn't been so long...

...I wouldn't feel pressured to make this a fabulous post. But it has. And this will be brief. And sooo not fabulous. Because clearly I gave up Blogging long ago... And apparently I now write in fragments. ;)

For some reason, though, in this very moment, I feel like writing an update. 

I love being mama to Two. 

Here are some details about J and R at their current stages...

J: 

*is in his last year of Preschool. Next year we will be sending him off into the great big world of Kindergarten. I can't even talk about that right now because for some reason it feels like he'll be moving out or something. It feels that big. 

*is the BEST big brother on the planet. He has amazed me with his sweet spirit toward Reese. I have been a mama long enough to know you don't go bragging about these things because they will surely change the very next day...or hour. But--looks like I'm doing it anyway. I'm proud of my boy. I thought the adjustment would be much harder since he was the only one for 3.5 years, but he loves that girl more than anything (and she ADORES him back). 

*is so inquisitive. Will ask a million questions about any given topic and then will want to repeat the whole conversation. He often asks me a question, which I answer, and then he says, "OK, Mom, now let's talk about it." That boy can doooo some talking. 

*makes people smile. My heart is actually so full it could explode right this very second just thinking about it. J has such a sweet and compassionate spirit toward people, and he is so sensitive to people's feelings. I love that quality in him. I always tell him he will go far in life. I know he will. 

*loves watching The Octonauts, America's Funniest Videos, All About John Deere, Twenty Trucks, & a random documentary I DVR'd a while back on the Titanic. (update: Since I started writing this post, this has already changed. He has dropped Octonauts and picked up Caillou. Caillou is incredibly boring to me, but I like the things they talk about. It always sparks conversations like "What is pressure?" etc. He looooves talking about the Titanic and asks me to explain with my hands how the ship hit the iceberg and sunk. 

*loves doing "projects". Painting, cutting, drawing, you name it. You can pretty much entice him to do any random task by calling it a "project" or a "mission", but his favorite projects involve art supplies. In fact, he totes art supplies all over the house all day long when he's home. I'd be lying if I didn't say it drives me bonkers when this stuff is all over the place all the time, but I usually keep my cool about it. I love that he has interest in being creative. 

*loves to be sung to at night. His favorite song that I sing to him is "My Favorite Things" from Sound of Music. He also frequently requests "the sunshine song" aka "This Little Light of Mine". Another new thing we have started here recently is reading a chapter book! Our very first one is Charlotte's Web. I got the big Read Aloud version, and we read one chapter a night. We should finish in 2.5 weeks, and I'm going to let him skip nap time one day and we will watch the movie together while Reese naps. :) He loves it and listens intently the whole time. 

*is still very attached to Old Bear. He also carries around a stuffed orange fish named "Goldie". He has mannnnny stuffed animals that hang out on his bed in his room. They all have names and are very special, but no one holds a candle to Old Bear.

*loves his teacher and his school. He is super social and has to tell each and every friend "goodbye" after class. It cracks me up, but I love seeing him having so much fun. I can definitely tell he will be ready for a full week of school by next fall. But, again...can't go there right now. ;)

*diligently practices drawing people and writing letters. He is very interested in reading and is always asking what something says or how to spell various words.
*is VERY germ-conscious and is always checking to make sure I've washed my hands, etc. Yes, for real. 

*calls Reese "Sis", "Sissy Boo", or "Sissy". He also calls her "Reesie Girl" from time-to-time. He knows the song to sing to make her happy if she is upset (Reeeeeeeese Caroline to the tune of "Sweet Caroline), and he is so good at calming her down. He will often try to chime in with "She's probably just hungry, Mom" or other such reasons for her being upset. 

*likes swinging outside, jumping on the trampoline, and practicing baseball with Daddy. He is so proud of himself for being able to hit the ball so well without the T! 

*is very passionate about swimming. He learned to "survival swim" last year and was really swimming super well by the middle of the summer (more doggie paddle style), but this year we continued with lessons, and he has greatly improved. He loved it so much this summer and asked if he could keep taking lessons this fall. We decided to go ahead with it since he's not participating in any other sport and seems to enjoy it a lot. He really enjoyed watching the Summer Olympics, and after watching Michael Phelp's last swim, he said, "I want to do that!" :) His swim teacher's name is Oliver, and he loves him. 

(That has actually changed since I started writing this post. When the pool got cooler (it's an indoor at a local high school), he started boycotting swim lessons. We tried a wet suit to no avail. When they start heating the pool, we might give it another try.)

I could write soooo much more, but I'd never post this. So, that's it for now on J.

Miss R:
*I may or may not have called her a "terror" this week. I didn't mean it. Not entirely. I would say she's "active"...
*Little miss is walking! Actually, she even tries to run. I have a feeling she will be our dare devil. Jacks is our cautious one.
*She meddles in places Jacks never did, so she keeps us on our toes since we never baby proofed our house much the first time around. She pulls open a drawer and starts flinging things out of it. Fast. It makes me laugh. Her personality is so fun! We have kids that have BIG personalities... Completely different types but both BIG. Let's just say things are never boring at our house. And we like it.
*She LOVES books. She loves to carry them around, and when we read together, she loves to feel to see if the book has texture. Those are of course her favorite kind.
*She loves playing in all of Bubby's toys, especially his cars and trucks. She seems to know what she's doing when she messes with his stuff. Haha.
*LOOOOVES her "Da-Da". In fact, Da-Da is pretty much the only "word" she says right now. She does the baby signs for "more" and "all done". She's definitely not talking as much as Jacks was this age, but she seems to be focusing on her motor skills. Haha.
*She does not like having bows in her hair. She really doesn't even seem to like having hair on her head. lol. She's always swatting at it.
*Loves outside. If a door opens, she gets to it as fast as she can. We swing a lot, and she likes to crawl around on the trampoline, too.
*Loves to eat! Anything! She even loves jambalaya and Mexican food. My kinda girl.
*Has the sweetest voice. It's kind of deep and raspy. Love it.
*Loves her "Lambie"--a little blanket with a lamb head on it. She sleeps with him at naps and night time, and as soon as she touches him she puts her thumb in her mouth. She's not a full-blown thumb sucker, but she likes to suck her thumb to fall asleep.
*Has made life so much fun around here. We have loved seeing the love between her and Jacks grow. They are the best of friends, and it's so special.
*I feel like I'm kind of short-changing Reese, but this post has gotten way too long. I've been working on her one year scrapbook some, so I'll make up for it there. :)

Anyway, thanks for reading. Of course there are really challenging moments with both kids, but these are the highlights. :)

More to come, hopefully!