They don't call 'em terrible for nothing!

Landon,
You have entered the terrible twos. Any behavior before today that we "thought" was the terrible twos pales in comparison to your behavior over the weekend

You. Are. Rotten.

Totally rotten dude. You were horrible at church. Horrible enough that I missed communion to take you outside. We had two birthday parties for your sweet friends Audrey and Madeline on Sunday and at Audrey's party you almost pushed poor Harrison down playing with balloons, you slammed their door twice and you rang their doorbell during present opening time. We left early. At home you were just about as bad and we sent you to your room by yourself 3 times. That seemed to do the trick for a little while anyway. You hated it and one time after you came out you told me "I was freamin" (screaming) "I was cwyin" as if you wondered why I didn't hear you or come rescue you.

We are praying this is just a phase and we started reading a book that Dr. Wendel recommended called "The New Parent Power!" We know that this too shall pass and one day we will look back and laugh but right now you're wearing us out little guy. So, to quote you, "Top it" (stop it)!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy Battreal

PS. You weren't horrible all weekend...on Saturday we took you to the World Cheesedip Championship. Your dada was in Hog Heaven...you know, he kinda loves cheese dip. A lot. You acted pretty nice there and you were even kind of nice when we went to watch the game at your friend Jeanette's house. Let's not have a repeat of Sunday ever again, okay?




You and Kate had fun playing with the black thingies in the turf!


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"I'm gonna run around and fall down and hurt myself!"

This is what we heard all day when we told Landon we were going to a birthday party at the field where the Razorbacks played the weekend before.  He had apparently watched football with dada and caught on to the "falling down" aka tackling and decided that he would do just that when he got to play on the field!  He had so much fun!  When we first got to the party he found a football and threw it and then he'd fall down and roll around like he had been tackled.  Then he ran for 80 yards non-stop!  The kid has some energy and I wish he'd share...sharing is not his strong suit these days.

Here are a few fun pictures from our friend Will's fun party!

Down - Set - Hut!

Hey Samantha, what's that thing?

Fun with my dada.

CHEESE from the locker room!

We totally plan on getting a picture just like this when Landon pays for the Razorbacks!  :)

Go Deep Guys!

Tackled myself!

Funny for your Monday!

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Smartypants #2 and Razorbacks

Jim has been teaching Landon the difference between left and right for a while and Landon caught on pretty fast. This morning as I was getting him dressed I told him to put "this" leg in and he said "that's my right leg" and then pointed to his other leg and said "that's my weft". Such a smarty!

In addition to the smartiness he is also full of orneryness. Yesterday the neighbor kids came over and Landon was apparently not up for sharing his toys and according to his dada he acted very ugly. Not a proud parent moment. Landon was not impressed to come inside when it was time and threw a giant fit. When we walked in the door he ran to his room and slammed the door!! Nice! Glad he didn't see me laugh!

In other news Landon had so much fun tailgating last Saturday! We had a smaller than usual crowd while he and I were there so he had fun running around and playing "beanbags". The kid can beat me at Baggo! He's pretty good! Apparently the crowd picked up after Landon and I left. I'm just glad I was there to eat one of Jim's famous peppers and to visit with a few friends. Go Hogs!





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Smartypants and sassy toddlers.

"Nannon Battrul" is quite the smarty pants lately and has just been cracking us up on a daily basis.

Saturday he was acting up so I said in my sternest voice, "Landon Battreal I'm going to count to 3! Do you know what happens after 3?". He said very matter of factly, "4?" Nice. I had to give him credit though and it threw me off so badly that all I could do was say, "well, yes, you're right". Luckily that was enough distraction to change his behavior...briefly anyway.

Last week Landon's Pocky was here and on Tuesday he and I went in to wake Landon up. Well, I guess he had had a long night because when I said, "Good morning! Time to get up!". He fired back in his perfect I'm going to be a teenager someday voice, "LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!". The way he said it made me laugh so hard I almost had to leave the room!

Tonight I asked him if he was ready for supper and he said, "Yes Mommy Battreal".

He has learned how to say his abc's! We have been working on them for a while and he finally got it! Last Thursday night he just spouted them out in his favorite growl voice! I got him on video but could only get him to go through S on video because he was too interested in watching it after I recorded it. He can say them all the way through Z though!

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33 weeks and 2 days...

I missed the 32 week belly - I tried to get one every 4 weeks for comparison but it just didn't happen this time.  So, here is the 33 week 2 day belly...it's huge and she's way up in my ribs.  They're her monkey bars and she's practicing her swinging to make all the other kids on the playground jealous.

We've made progress on the nursery this week and I can't wait to get a few more things so I can post some pictures.  It's turning out so cute!

MK's Birthday is set!

Miss Maddie Kate's birthday is set for October 25th...unless she decides to come early on her own! We can't wait to meet our baby girl. Her favorite pastime these days is having dance parties in my belly. She is soooo active! I love it and it annoys me at the same time. Isn't that awful? Sometimes I think all her dancing is going to make me seasick. Still, it's reassuring that she's doing okay in there. I will post a picture of the 32/33 week belly tonight. Fair warning. I'm huge. I mean really ginormous. She's surely going to be a 20 pounder. Haha! Okay, not really but my belly is definitely bigger than what I remember it being at this stage with Landon. I will also be posting a few pictures of MK's nursery soon! Pocky has been here painting this week and we love how it turned out! He is helping Jim and Landon pick up her chair and chest of drawers right now! I can't wait to see them when I get home!

In other news...Landon had his first sonic "nelkshake" last weekend and he was a big fan!


His tear in this picture must be a tear of joy because he loved it! Ha! Actually, his eye waters almost all the time. Poor kid. We've had it checked out and there just isn't any major reason that it waters unless it's an allergy.

Happy Friday!


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Lazy Sunday!

This is what our day looks like. The Wonder Pets and pajamas.




We have also watched Thomas, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Diego. Lazy, lazy, 32 weeks pregnant LAZY mommy!

Daddy went hunting this weekend and will be home today. I have a sneaking suspicion he will also be in a lazy dazy mood too so poor Landon is going to get his fill of the ol tv today. Maybe we will go outside or go buy some new paints this afternoon so his brain isn't totally fried by the end of the day! At least he's having grapes and a yogurt smoothie drink for a snack, right? No reason for lazy day to be unhealthy snack day! However, mommy sure would like some french fries! Ha!

Happy lazy day!


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Fishing with my boys.

A couple of weekends ago Jim took us for a boat ride and let Landon do a little fishing. Landon was SO excited! He loves the boat and LOVES to fish. We didn't catch any fish that day and it was HOT but we had a fun time and Landon enjoyed driving the boat. After Landon was done fishing and driving he and I came home to fix supper and Jim stayed out and fished a little longer. Landon had been asking where his daddy was. Right before he went to sleep Jim came in and Landon went to see him at the door and asked him to rock him. Dada said he was too dirty so Landon got Jim's ever-present towel, wiped his dada's arms and said, "you clean now dada"? It was so sweet. Landon is quite the daddy's boy lately. Even tonight as I was rocking him he said "I notchu boy, I daddy's boy". Made me sad and happy all at the same time! Ha!











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Testing. Testing. 123.

Im testing a feature that will email my posts when they're published since a certain dada's office has blocked blog sites. Boo for blog blocking!!

To make sure pictures go through here is one of Landon reading the "funny papers" while enjoying his favorite grape Popsicle.



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First Day of Pre-School and Potty-Time!

Landon started school today and he moved up to the 2 year old class!  He's growing up so fast!  His dada and I took him to the open house last Friday to meet his teachers and to see his new classroom.  His teachers this year are Ms. Sandy, Ms. Sarah Jane and Ms. Karin.  We sure will miss Ms. Sally and Ms. Sonja from last year but we are looking forward to another fun year of school and we know his new teachers will be great!  His buddies Luke, Liam and Murphy are in his class again...and he said Reagan is also in his class!  Whew, glad the girlfriend made it into the same class!  I need to meet this girl.  Nana said he did great this morning!  He went right in and found Liam and started playing.  When I picked him up from Nana and Papa's this evening he said he had fun at school!

The last few weeks I've been a lazy momma in the mornings!  I haven't have to get his lunch ready, pack his bag with labeled diapers, remember his rest mat or have him to Nana and Papa's earlier than usual...so, this morning was an adjustment for me too!  A good one though...I like routine and since I tend to be deadline driven I like to "have" to be someplace at a certain time...AND we would have made it on time today had Landon not "hid" under the kitchen table to fill his diaper instead of going on the potty.

Speaking of the potty - aside from the "hiding" this morning Landon is making excellent progress potty training!  We introduced him to the potty weeks ago and Nana has helped a lot!  He started out getting M&Ms as a reward and now he gets Hershey Drops at Nana's!  She's way cooler than us - we sometimes forget the candy prize!  A couple of Sunday's ago he just decided he was ready and told us 6 times that he "had to go potty" and each time his diaper was dry when he got there!  He's even gotten up on the potty by himself without our help a few times since and he went on the potty at school today!  I took him to Target a week or so ago and we looked at big boy underwear!  I told him that when he started going on the potty more consistently that we'd get him some and he picked out the Thomas ones!  For now we're sticking with diapers and pull-ups.  Yay for potty training progress!  The goal:  to have Landon completely potty trained before Maddie Kate gets here - momma is too cheap to buy two sizes of diapers!  No pressure Landon - but you may only have around 9 weeks left.  Keep up the good work!

We tried to get some "first day of school" pictures this morning...but Landon takes after his dada and isn't too fond of being on that side of the camera - he would much rather see every picture right after you take it and can't really be bothered to give me a good smile!  Here are a couple of our attempts!

His backpack had two packs of wipes in it and was pretty heavy...he was not impressed that I made him put it on.

Since this morning's attempt wasn't great I thought I'd try to get some more pictures tonight...

He's ornery...

Just a little...

After his ornery photo session though, he had a bath and then he and I listened to and sang along with some fun nursery rhymes on the computer.  Before that I sang a song to him that I've been singing to him since he was a baby called "A Bushel and a Peck" by Doris Day...I first heard it on the movie Julie and Julia and it just sort of stuck in my head and I've been singing it to him ever since...and tonight...after I sang it to him and he said "do dat again momma" a couple of times HE SANG IT TO ME complete with his arms around my neck and I wanted to cry from the sweetness...

And now, back to the orneriness...

Edited to test a new email feature for Landon's favorite dada.  :)

Maddie Kate: 28 weeks!

We had our 28 week appointment today and the bribery brownies I made worked - we got to see our girl again!  It's a good thing too because I had forgotten to make them and remembered AFTER I was already in bed - yes, I got out of bed at 10pm to bake!!  Totally worth it for another sneak peek!

Maddie Kate didn't want to cooperate for pictures but we got a few good ones.  She's changed positions and is now in what they call the "frank" breech position...meaning she's in a U shape with her head on my right side by my ribs and her feet up by my left ribs.  Landon was also in this position I think!  I know he was breech but I can't remember exactly which position he was in.  MK's still a mover and a shaker in there and here's what Baby Center say's she's up to these days (aside from building a jungle gym in the womb):

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Here is our girl!  We got a couple of 4D shots - but again, she didn't want to cooperate and she had her hands and feet up by her face the entire time and no amount of prodding her would make her move!  Stubborn little thing...Mimi and Aunt Alison think that MK already looks like her big brother!  According to the ultrasound tech who measured her she's already weighing in at 3 pounds 2 ounces and is measuring over 29 weeks - which is consistent with what my belly is measuring.  My fluid looks great too which is super great news and the reason I took bribery brownies - I want to make sure she's floating around okay in there!  

Here is the 28 week belly!  I'm feeling a bit large and in charge - and although this is one of my favorite preggo outfits I'm wondering after seeing this picture if it's the most flattering!?  Cardigans are sometimes perfect and sometimes they're not...who cares - I still love it.  

Happy 4th Anniversary!

On June 23rd Jim and I celebrated our 4th anniversary and I want to share a little bit about why I think he's pretty great.

Happy anniversary to my husband who...

keeps the lawn looking spectacular and enjoys doing it,





leaves me surprise Starbucks cash in my car,



leaves me sweet notes,




is the best daddy a kid could ask for,




humors me and agrees to stop 37 times on the way home from vacation for random produce and treasures,




buys cheese dip and blames it on the cat,




is "kinda" patient when I ask him a gazillion times if he likes the fabric and paint I've picked out for our daughter's room,




helps me clean up all sorts of messes (and does dishes AND his own laundry)




takes Landon to do the grocery shopping and is a pretty darn good cook,




went to every single RCIA class with me when i decided to become Catholic and takes us to church every week,



...

and is the best husband, friend and teammate I could have ever hoped for!! Happy 4 years sweetie and here's to many more!!! I love you!



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Dance party to beat the heat!

So, as you know it's HOT outside. We are very blessed to have air conditioning in our house and cars and also to work indoors. I really feel bad for those who have to be out in this and for those without air.

At our house we have decided that staying in the house is our best bet (and we are thankful for levelized electricity billing!). Okay, well Landon and I, the 7 months pregnant momma, have decided to stay indoors. Jim's outside laying sod in the backyard and planting a new pencil holly in our front yard because the one we got last year didn't make it. Silly boy!




To stay entertained (and to burn a few pregnant momma chocolate calories) Landon and I had a dance party in the living room! Check out this kid's moves.

Bless his heart, he may have gotten his rhythm from his daddy. Haha!!!

Also to stay cool we brought Landon's trike inside for him to ride. The cat is so not impressed with this idea. Landon keeps chasing her yelling "out out eber yuuu arr come at yu wike a pider munky". Yes, his daddy was channel surfing one day and landed on Talledega Nights and taught our first born to say "I'm going to come at you like a spider monkey". You're impressed. You know you are.

I will die of he says it at school! I will die. Parents of the year, right here folks! Hey, at least we put a pillow on the corner of the side table in case he hit it! That counts for something, right?



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Swimming with Luke and Ella!

Tonight Luke and his sister Ella came to swim with Landon! Luke and Landon are buddies from school and will be in the same class again next year. His mommy and I have become friends and we enjoyed hanging out with their family tonight! We can't wait to do it again soon! Here are some pictures from our fun evening!
















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Ready or not...I "twoahalf"!

During bath one night this week Landon and I worked on counting. Apparently playing hide and seek with Nana has taught him well! I helped him a little to get to 10 and was surprised with what he said after!

Landon,
I can't believe that today you are two and a half! Seems like you've been two and a half for a while because for several weeks now when we ask you how old you are you say "I twoahalf!". You're such a cute little stinker and we love you so much!!! We have enjoyed watching you grow and learn and we can't wait to see how you transition from an only child to a big brother. We know you will be great! I hope that you always know how much we love you and how proud we are of you. You're at a challenging age for sure and you're teaching us both a lot about patience and understanding and we would have it no other way. One of your latest "funnies" is that when someone says something to you that makes you think they're calling you by a different name you say "No, I Nannon Battrul". It so funny! You are just talking up a storm and you are so smart! Your little imagination is really starting to take shape and you surprise us every day with the things you comprehend.

Happy "twoahalf" birthday big guy!!!!!




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