Howie Quote

In the middle of a small temper tantrum yesterday morning:

Daddy: Howie, you have to wear a coat. It's cold outside.
Howie: Go back to sleep, Daddy.

Rebellious, yet wickedly funny.

A Quick Word To Let You Know We're Not Dead

Friends, we are still alive here in St Louis but very much bogged down in the whole becoming-parents-of-2 thing. I have so many pictures to post but our computer is not recognizing our camera for some reason, so as soon as I get that ironed out they will be here!!

We're all doing fine- here is a general update.
1. JUSTICE- feeling good, figuring out life outside the womb. Sleeping pretty well during the day, pretty horrible at night. Does fairly well until about 4 or 5 am, when he decides to fake us out and pretend that he'll sleep, only to wake up 5 minutes later and scream. Repeat until around 7. Growing like a weed, developing the fat folds on legs that are the cutest thing ever. Trying to figure out how to smile. Squeaks all the time. Completely precious and kissable.
2. HOWIE- feeling great, loving being a big brother, trying to hug and kiss Justice at almost every moment, playing hard as ever, giving Mama and Daddy a run for their parenting money as he moves fully into the role of a 2 year old. Leaves Mama and Daddy praying for wisdom at the end of the day, but is a joy in every way. Talking like crazy. Hilarious.
3. JOSH- generally swamped with school and completely exhausted. Ends most nights falling asleep on the couch prematurely as a precursor to "doing more homework." Loving being the dad of two most of the time and relearning all of his baby-soothing skills.
4. BETS- feeling kind of like poo most of the time, staring down 10 loads of laundry waiting to be folded, looking at the same pot that has been waiting to be washed for 4 days every time I go into the kitchen, staring at the empty refrigerator which hasn't been refilled from a trip to the grocery store and wondering what to feed everyone if someone isn't bringing us dinner, accruing a gargantuan library fine because I can't find the time to take my books back, running interference to keep Howie from smothering Justice with love, playing solitaire on Josh's phone in a middle of the night feeding session to ward off the creeping depression at being awake, showering very infrequently, wearing mostly the same clothes... but on the brighter side, loving 2 little boys more than I knew I could, learning patience in new ways, kissing baby cheeks as much as possible, cherishing baby and toddler moments because they pass so quickly, embracing the messiness of my house because there are more important things than a clean kitchen and folded laundry in this season of life... in short, I'm doing well.

Pics to come ASAP!

Here HE Is... Justice Emmanuel Desch

(although not obvious in this picture, Howie is crazy about Justice)

Well, it's official... the Desch family is now a family of 4!! Josh and I now have TWO BOYS! Justice Emmanuel finally arrived Wednesday 09/09/09- pretty much the coolest birthday ever. He is sweet as can be and looks a lot like infant Howie to me. Many more pics to come!

Howie Gets a Nativity Set in August

The other day we took Howie to pick out a new toy since he's going to be a big brother hopefully quite soon, and we came home with a nativity set complete with Mary, Joseph, some wise men, a shepherd, assorted animals, and of course, baby Jesus. Howie is completely obsessed with them. He has wanted to play with little else since these little people came into the house. One of his favorite things to do is to put little baby Jesus down for a nap in his manger and then say, "Get up, baby Jeje!!" (Howie's not really big on naps right now in his life.) The nativity scene has also hosted some people and animals that you wouldn't necessarily place there just from reading the biblical account, such as a fireman, policeman, 2 historical Vikings, and a dalmation. I guess the broader principle to be had is that Christ came for all, across every time and age.

Howie working on getting Mary's hat to stay on

Look closely for the dalmation, Vikings, and public service members

Howie rousing baby Jesus from his rest

Happy Bday, Noah and Nathan!

This past Sunday we had a wonderful time celebrating Nathan and Noah's birthdays at Stacy Park! It was probably the most beautiful day in the history of the world, and all of the kids ate lots of junk food as is fitting for a birthday party and had a great time. (Just as a side note, I think this is what Howie ate on Sunday: peanut butter cereal for breakfast and lunch, cheetos, pretzels, chips, cake, and a cookie at the party, Sun Chips and part of a Twizzler after evening church, and maybe one random apple thrown in for a pathetic nod to good nutrition. Yes, I am a good mom.) Anyway, it was so fun to be with friends on such a gorgeous afternoon and celebrate birthday #3 for Noah and Nathan!

Nathan and Noah, the birthday boys

Sharon and Abe

Me and Caroline Ruth- did you know it was possible for a little person to be this cute??

Rach, me, and Caroline... I think Caroline was hoping for some of Howie's junk food

Summer in Review

I can't believe this summer is coming to a close... Josh starts Year #2 bright and early tomorrow morning. While I'm happy for him that he gets to go off to school each day and take great classes, Howie and I will really miss him. The last however many weeks since Hebrew ended have been amazing... Howie has been ecstatic to have Daddy home for so much playing. So have I. The most common thing we hear every day is "Daddy COO COO TAIN!!" (read it out loud... that says choo choo train), or "Daddy TRACTOR!!" or "Daddy PAY PAY PAY!!" (PLAY NOW, DAD!) I'm sure we'll get used to having Josh around just a wee bit less once class gets underway, but we'll both miss him a lot. I was thinking about it today and then it hit me that we'll also have a new baby at home to adjust to while Josh is in class!! Oh yeah! Forgot about that one, even though we are wishing labor to begin itself at almost every moment.

I am also slightly envious that Josh gets to have the first-day-of-school experience tomorrow. I kind of miss that- the excitement of a new year, looking at a syllabus and saying "holy cow, I'm most definitely going to fail this class," seeing people you haven't seen all summer, etc. I guess Josh won't go to school with a new lunchbox or saddle shoes, but that was also a fun part of back to school back in the day. I'm glad that I don't have to put the work into all of the classes, but in some way I do miss the school routine.

Here are some pics for your viewing enjoyment from this summer that I missed posting for some reason...

That horse is so cool... Howie admires Louis astride his horse in Forest Park

Howie vs. spaghetti, round 500... spaghetti wins every time

Clean-up takes a while when you've had such an intense battle

Howie discovers the beaches of Lake Michigan on vacation with my family in July


Little better than beating the heat in the pool!!

Pouring fun with Mom and Aunt Jennie

Dude, that beach seriously did me in

My BFF Kelly visited us in July... college roommate, amazing friend... we had an awesome visit

Howie entertains Aunt Kelly at dinner at Panera... I think he kept drowning some chips and bread in Josh's soup. Mushy, soup-laden items give me the creeps.

Quick way to Howie's heart... read him a book

38 Weeks And Counting... Howie's Waiting For A Roommate