Sleepy Boys

Last night I was furiously trying to catch up on my photo editing when I happened to turn around and see this:

So obviously I grabbed my camera and immediately started taking pictures of such a sweet moment. Let me also say that this moment is especially adorable because the blanket they are both laying on (the Mario Bros one), was made by Clayton's mom for him when he was a baby. So sweet that you can hardly stand it, huh?

Well I was in the mood to further procrastinate my photo editing catch up, so I immediately uploaded these photos, edited the best one and posted it to Facebook.

Then I thought "I haven't heard from Caleb in a while..." Last I had seen him, he was lying on the couch watching tv and he usually doesn't sit still and quiet for so long. Call it mother's intuition but I grabbed my camera and headed in to see what he was up to. On the couch, I found this:

We had a great day and it made for a very sleepy evening. :)

My Husband and Relationships

From what I hear and from my experience, having children can sometimes be pretty rough on a marriage. Not necessarily because things are bad, but just because you are so busy and consumed with caring for your children that your relationship often gets put to the side for a while. You're just trying to survive the sleep deprivation and you have little time or patience for things that aren't demanding your attention.

For me, this was definitely hardest with my first child. I was so excited for that baby to get here and to proudly wear my new title as "Mommy." This was something I had dreamed about my whole life. I have always wanted children and I couldn't wait for it to be my turn. Then when it finally happened, I was exhausted, scared to death, and completely consumed by taking care of this beautiful little baby. While I did have a new appreciation and love for my husband because he was now the father and co-creator of my new pride and joy, Mommy had become my new identity. To be honest, that identity took over for a while and it was really hard to turn it off and just be "Lindsey" or "Clayton's wife." I've talked to a lot of women who have had a similar experience.

This was an important lesson for me and I really tried to take it to heart. When we had Owen, I was determined not to make that mistake again. And I must confess, it's been so amazing. I feel like Clayton and I have rediscovered why we fell in love in the first place. Don't misunderstand me, being a mother is absolutely one of the greatest gifts God has given me. However, I firmly believe that one of the most important things I can do for my children, is to make our marriage a priority. Making a marriage work is tough. It takes two people who are willing to work at it constantly. I know we will always have struggles and our life together will be filled with peaks and valleys. But when you are both working at it and making it a priority, the peaks are that much sweeter. <3

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.  ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook, 1966
I love you, Clayton Smith. You just keep getting better. :)

May... Pt 2

May 18:

He sat in his chair and fed Baby Rex until he fell asleep. :)

Also, Owen is now sleeping in his crib and sharing a room with Caleb. Caleb's thoughts on his new roommate:

Clayton: What do you think of baby Owen sleeping in your room with you?
Caleb: He cries a lot.

I guess he's got a point there... :)

May 21:

We've been really, really busy lately, so since we had a little downtime and it wasn't raining for once, we decided to take the boys to the park today for some family time. It was a beautiful day!!

May 23:

We tried to teach Caleb to wink tonight. After several unsuccessful tries (where he would shut both eyes), he started to put one finger over the eye he wants to close so he can hold the other open. Then he says out loud "WINK" every time he does it. We laughed... a lot. :)

May 25:

Owen is 4 months old today! :) He had to go for a wellness checkup and it went really well. He weighed 18.12 lbs (90th percentile). I don't remember his length and head numbers but he was 60th percentile for length and 75th for head. Doctor said he looks wonderful and we can start him on cereal. We tried the cereal after dinner tonight and most of it got drooled back out but he'll get it. Clayton and I joked that if there is one thing our boys are gifted at, it's definitely eating. ;) I'll try to take some pictures of the cereal eating progress and post them soon. Also, Caleb was convinced the cereal was ice cream and demanded to know why Baby Owen got to eat ice cream for dinner. Luckily for him, he was quickly distracted or I might have let him try it. Ick.

May 26:

Caleb told me he needed to take his shirt off because "it was making him serious." (pretty much everything makes him serious these days). I walked out of the room and came back, and he was sitting there watching tv like this:

Also, I was taking some pics of him this afternoon and I said "Wait, I want to take one more!" and he said "You're done." Completely shut down by a 3 year old. Sigh.

May 27:

I've noticed that Caleb is starting to talk both Owen and the dogs a lot. He told me yesterday that Bella is his best friend. I guess he's getting to the age where he really likes playing with other kids and since he's here with me most of the time.... he's pretending to have conversations with whoever is around (even if they can't talk back). It cracks me up when he asks them questions. Like yesterday, he said "Bella, do you know where Posey is?" and when she didn't answer, he asked Owen. :)

This morning Owen was in his swing jabbering away and I heard Caleb say "I'm tired too, Baby Owen. I'm tired too."

I can relate, boys. :)

It's catch up time... May Pt. 1

I had a few posts in progress that I never got around to finishing and publishing... sigh. I'm starting to think I'm never going to be awesome at this blogging thing. Anyway, this should get you up to speed:
May 1:

My mother-in-law and I took Caleb and my nephew, Austin to see Sesame Street Live last night. The boys absolutely loved it. They clapped, cheered and danced their little hearts out. At the end of the show, they each picked out a souvenir. Austin got a stuffed Elmo and Caleb got a stuffed Big Bird. When we got back home, Caleb started telling a new joke:

Caleb: Knock Knock
Me: Who's there?
Caleb: Elmo & Big Bird
Me: Elmo & Big Bird, Who?
Caleb: They're best friends.

<3 He's so sweet.

May 2:

FAITH is different from proof; the latter is human, the former is a Gift from God.
- Blaise Pascal

Whenever I fold baby clothes fresh out of the dryer, I can't help but feel incredibly blessed. These tiny little clothes are for my precious, healthy baby. Washing his clothes reminds me that he's mine and I get to see his face every single day and care for him and be his mom. My boys are two of God's greatest gifts to me.

Caleb: Mom, baby Owen is talking!
Me: He is? What's he saying?
Caleb: Ummm... 'scooby scooby doo!'
Me: You're silly.
Caleb: You're silly too!

Later in the day...

Owen: gooo gaaa oooh
Caleb: Mom, baby Owen is silly!
Me: He is, isn't he. What's he saying now?
Caleb: Johnny Cash.

And just when I thought my heart was about to burst with all of his silly sweetness...

His handle came off his sand bucket and I told him bring it to me and I would fix it. He said "No, Daddy have to fix it." And then he went back into his room and yelled at me "It's too hard for you! Daddy have to fix it!" Ha! Gee thanks, son. I'll remember that...

May 12:

Clayton got a haircut tonight. He sat on the couch and Caleb looked at him and said "You look beautiful!"

 

Clayton was putting the clean dishes away out of the dishwasher. Caleb was watching him and said "Thank you for cleaning that!" Aside from it being cute that our 3 year old appreciates clean dishes, I love this because it shows me that he sees and takes note of Clayton and I telling each other thank you for doing things around the house. We try not to take each other or the things we contribute for granted (even if they are as mundane and necessary as unloading the dishwasher) and that is one thing I hope my children learn: Always contribute and always be thankful and appreciative for what others contribute.