Oh, How Things Change

That was then...

This is now...

Newest Obsessions: finding electrical cords to pull on, pulling books off the shelf to thumb through and occasionally rip pages out (including Mama's Bible... oops), pulling down the floor lamp in the living room, eating random items on the floor (yuck), laughing hilariously at big brother, standing up and shrieking like a maniac

What?

Josh: Howie, what's your favorite animal in the zoo?

Howie: The poo.

On The Move

It's official... this guy is mobile! He's crawling and doing headstands and trying to figure out how to stand up. It's so funny to me how different he is from Howie at that age! Justice is already creating the need for way more babyproofing than Howie ever has in his whole life. I'm so curious to see how he continues to develop and what kinds of things he'll enjoy. So far his favorite things are taking whatever Howie is playing with (much to Howie's frustration, usually) and exploring dusty corners of the house. Makes for LOTS of sharing/kindness conversations and I've also developed a new zeal for cleaning!! Yay!!

A Sweater For Howie

The Goal:

The Progress:

We've got a back and a left front... working on the right front, still have to knit sleeves and the collar and then sew it all together! Knitting this sweater has been such a fun project this summer. Thankfully it's still infernally hot so I've got some time to finish before cool weather sets in. Once it's done Howie's other shirts and sweaters are going to mysteriously disappear so he has to wear this every day. You only think I'm kidding.

Sometimes I Feel Like a Vampire (Warning: this is gross.)

OK, not to go back to Twilight, but sometimes I really do feel like a vampire. Does anyone remember the part when Edward has to bite Bella and suck her blood or else she's going to die? He knows he's going to love it so much he doesn't know if he can quit and then she'll definitely die? Anybody with me? (If you haven't seen Twilight, don't bother... you can still follow what I'm saying.) Here is my point: having eczema is a lot like being a vampire.

This outbreak was several weeks ago now and I'm much better, but there is nothing that feels better than scratching the heck out of this skin. It's like you don't even know how bad it itches until you start scratching, and then it just feels so good you get shivers and you have to keep scratching until it's just bad- everything is oozy and raw and cracked and bleeding and swollen and then you're sorry that you started because it's going to be days before you can touch water and bend your fingers without wincing. If you don't want to get to that point you have to just leave it alone and never touch it, because if you start, that's most definitely how it's going to end unless you have some serious self-control. That's why I feel like Edward: if I start (scratching mind you, not sucking blood), I have to keep going. Stopping before my victim, my own skin, is dead is next to impossible.

We're Still Alive

This summer has been just craaaazy!! Technically we're in St Louis this summer but actually we've been in Branson, Peoria, Lynchburg (Virginia!), Peachtree City, Augusta, etc. You get the point... we've been traveling! It's been lots and lots of fun! But my blog has definitely suffered as a result of the craziness. This pic is just to whet your appetite for the jillions more that I have to post. Howie just celebrated his big old 3rd birthday a couple weeks ago!! Right now I need to go to bed because kids are merciless in the morning... they don't care when you went to bed. That's why coffee is sooooooo my BFF. Anyway, all that to say, more pics are soon to appear. For now, take a peek at some oldies but goodies below.

Strawberry Picking, and Eating (Obviously)

Back at the end of May we went to pick strawberries at Eckert's, and it was a blast. We ended up picking 17 pounds (most of which went into the freezer for later)!! Howie loved running around and pulling the strawberries off the plants, and Justice was truly in paradise... strawberries are one of his favorites and there he was, completely surrounded on all sides. Believe me, he enjoyed himself. The pics say it all. You will be shocked to know that his clothes actually came clean. That's the power of Shout gel, people. (How funny is his shirt? One of our dear friends from Augusta sent that to him. HA!)