The Tell-Tale Picture Wall

A few months ago, I put up a picture wall of the boys in the upstairs hallway. The top row is John's and the bottom row is Sam's.

 

As you can see, Sam's row has been just a little bit neglected! And it's not just because John has over four years on him. I attribute it to what I call "second-child syndrome." John was the first child and so I was really good about getting his pictures done every few months when he was a baby and then once or twice a year as he got older. Sam is my second child and I love him and cherish him every bit as much as I did John, but I haven't been as good about getting his pictures done regularly and displaying them promptly because I'm more busy with two kids than I was with one, and for me the second time around has felt a little like "been there, done that!"

I haven't been totally neglectful of Sam and his photos, however. He had some nice newborn pictures taken, along with a photo shoot when he was about three months old, eight months old, and one year, although I haven't yet taken the time to order the prints, frame them, and hang them up (as you can see above...they're not there!). But I've resolved to catch up on that, at the very least so that Sam doesn't grow up with an inferiority complex. And last week I took him to a photo studio and got his pictures done, which I meant to do three months ago when he turned 18 months. Better late than never! I think the photos turned out really cute, despite the bug bite on his forehead and the lock of hair in the back that wouldn't stay down. Eventually, in the hopefully not-too-distant future, some of these will make it up onto the wall!

At the beach! (The photo studio beach, that is!)

Our First Spring in Iowa

Seeing as the first day of summer is this week, I better get my springtime pictures up before they become totally irrelevant. As many of you know, this was our first spring living in Iowa and in the Midwest. It was very pretty--everything gets really green and blooms like back East. And living in a new house is cool because it's neat to see what blossoms up in your own yard...

This is our "popcorn popping" tree!

It was good that I took pictures of this pretty flower bush/tree when I did because the next day almost all of the petals were gone from a big storm we got...

This beautiful flowering tree is in the field next to our house. I wish it looked like this all summer!

Dainty little lavender flowers...

This is part of the backyard and was taken in later spring when the trees had finally gotten all green and full again. Green is my favorite color!

It's been a lovely time of year, and now I'm looking forward to the beauties of summer, which is my favorite season. The fireflies have already started flickering at night. Life is so good in the summertime!

The Last Day of Kindergarten

I know everyone says it about their kids, but it really does seem like John's first day of kindergarten wasn't that long ago. In reality, it's been almost ten months, but it flew by fast. His last day of school was two weeks ago on June 2nd, so his time in that hallowed year of kindergarten has officially come to a close. (I'm so glad I have another child who has yet to enter kindergarten, otherwise I'd be beyond sentimental about this!)

And the end-of-year report is this: John had a great year! He adjusted nicely to being in school for a full day and also to living in a new state and going to a new school with nobody that he knew. He made many friends, had lots of fun, and learned many new things. His final progress report that he brought home on the last day of school states that he has been "promoted to next grade level." The first promotion of many in his life, I hope!

Just to mark his growth, this was John back in August on the first day of school before leaving for the bus stop:

And here he is (in the same shirt!) on the last day of school before leaving to catch the bus. He's really grown up this year! And is becoming quite a handsome guy, if I do say so myself. :-)

So long to my kindergartener and hello to my 1st grader!

Toddler's Best Friend(s)

Last fall, we adopted Yogi and Boo Boo from an animal shelter, and they've turned out to be very good with the kids. See how good they are at keeping Sam company when John isn't around?

 

I'm sure it has nothing to do with the snack cup in his hands, aren't you?

Yeah right! A snacking Sam = instant best friends for Sam. Lucky Sam! (And lucky dogs--Sam likes to share!)

An Epiphany...

 

I wonder what it was about? Apparently it didn't involve the realization that he could make his parents happy by no longer saying "butt," "poop," and "idiot" a hundred times a day because that hasn't happened and I took this picture in April. Oh well. Hopefully it was about something on the peaceful and profound side!

How to Coordinate Your Home Accents with Your Children's Clothing!

I've been looking for some good toss pillows for the family room couch for months. I finally found some that I liked, and I liked them even more when it became apparent how well the colors of Sam's outfit coordinated with them.

Now he just needs to wear the same outfit every day so that he can continue to be color-coordinated with the pillows. Truly ingenious home decorating at its cutest and most practical!

I Told You I'd Be Back!

So I uploaded the April/May photos from my camera onto the computer last week and it made me want to do some blog posts, so I'm back sooner than I said I would be! Didn't your day just get a lot better?!

Plus I didn't want Arnold Schwarzenegger to be the first thing people read about if they happened to visit my blog this summer. Now it can be something cute about my kids or some random aspect of my life instead.

I'll still be gone in July and probably for most of August, but not for June anymore. Yippee!