pics

after mikes graduation we went to galveston for a mini-vacay. the boys got to do some fishing and we hit up moody gardens. it was a good time, except for mike getting sick and us coming home early...

here are my monkeys after getting their summer buzz cuts. it has been so nice to not brush hair the last 3 months (not that i did that a whole lot any way...)

cousin mariam

my sister becky and my gloriously-wonderful-ab-fab niece came for a visit this summer. it was so awesome getting to see both of them. oh bertie...how much i love you and how grateful i am that you are my sistah and friend (move back here already). her daughter is super sweet....laid back and smart. she really went with the flow and had fun with her crazy-wild boy cousins. we went to the zoo, did some naked-booty swimming (the children that is) and just hund out.

i do realize that i don't have any pictures with mason here.....

summertime....

i have a love/hate relationship with summer. things i love: lazy mornings and staying in pj's until 10:00, having the boys with me all day, no schedule, the spray park, the pool. things i don't love so much: the heat, no school, me straining to entertain my children on a daily basis (the day pretty much starts out with "what are we doing today mommy?"), the boys fighting...a lot!

as summer comes to an end i feel.....sad. mason starts kindergarden monday. and although he was in daycare his first 3 years and then in preschool for the last 2, i am nervous about this. he is like me, he doesn't like change. he is sensitive and actually pretty shy. i know he will be ok, but i am already worrying about what it's going to be like. what if kids are mean to him? what if he's mean to other kids? what if his teacher is a nasty old hag? what if he has trouble? i just can't believe we are already here. so this is where it starts, the letting go (i know he's 5....maybe i'm being a tad dramatic?) and trusting that my babies will be taken care of even when i'm not around.

stephen is a complete ham-hock. he is definitley 2 years old....but so much different than what mason was like. he gets mad and has "tantrums" but nothing like it was with mason. i wonder often how much of that is their nature and how much is my perspective and attitude. he just doesn't take things as seriously. he is doing good in his big boy undies and has finally started trying to go number two in the potty! woo-hoo!

nicholas....nicky...nick-nick....is AwEsOmE! what a cool little man. he is super layed back and fun. he loves to watch his brothers run around and is definitely ready to get in on the action. he will be 7 months old tomorrow. he has started crawling, working on sitting up by himself, and has started eating pureed food. he is also experimenting with consanants, so far m's and b's. he is super sweet and snuggly. how has my baby gotten so big already?