Comparison Pics

Pic on the top is Asher at 18 months.  Pic on the bottom is Jacob at about 15 months.  Crazy huh?!?

Asher's First Day of School

This post is a little overdue as Asher has been in "school" for about 3 weeks now.  Asher attends Mother's Day Out at the local Baptist Church on Fridays.  Fortunately, He has the same teachers as he had last year because Miss Sheryl and Miss Sue are absolutely wonderful!  He's such a little wild man and didn't want to stand still long enough for me to snap his picture.  So, these are action shots!  

TGIF

We have a lot of changes and transitions that we have been working through this past week:  Jacob's new pre-school, Mommy's new work schedule, a new nanny at our house on Wednesdays, an almost-4-year-old who is testing the waters and asserting his independence (constantly), a 1 year old who is transitioning to a new napping schedule....and now that its finally Friday, I am exhausted!!  Jacob has not been handling drop off at pre-school very well and today I was able to speak with his teacher.  She said that he stops crying usually a few seconds after I leave.  She said that he plays really well with his friends in the class and participates in all of the projects.  She also said that he's very smart....well, I could have told her that! :)  I'm hoping that given a little more time, we will all adjust to these new changes and that Jacob will be happy to go to school in the mornings!  I'm putting these pictures on this post because they make me smile, and after the week we've had, I need something to smile about! 

Aviation Museum

The boys and I went to the Aviation Museum yesterday.  It was great!  Lots of interactive things to do, even for the little ones.  And the best part is that they had a real plane that the kids could "fly!"  

First Day of Pre-School

Today was Jacob's first day of Pre-school.  Jacob He was very excited to get to school and see his teachers, Mrs. Bell and Mrs. Gladstone.  Daddy went with us to drop off Jacob and he was also excited about showing Daddy his classroom.  Jacob did well, until Mommy and Daddy were ready to leave and he had a small meltdown. (And so did Mommy, in the parking lot)... But, Mrs. Bell said that he calmed down almost immediately after we left and that Jacob was her buddy for the day.  She reported that he was very cooperative and a very good "sharer" of toys with the other children in the class.  He said that one of his favorite parts of today was getting to wear an astronaut 'dress.'  

I am so excited to see how Jacob grows and blossoms this year, making new friends, being in a new environment, new schedule, etc.  I pray that his teachers are able to realize his gifts and appreciate the sweet boy that he is.  And also that they will be patient with him and take the time to work with him on areas in which he needs some guidance.  

Its been an exciting but an exhausting day and one that we will always remember!

A Super Huge Swimming Lesson

Jacob's new thing is to do 'swimming lessons' in the bathtub.  He's really proud of his new found ability to go 'all the way' under the water.  We do have quite a bit of work ahead of us (translation: Jacob won't be swimming for the Washingtonian Waves any time soon), but this is a marked improvement over the days of refusing to bathe!  

OBX, again...

We went back to the beach again a couple of weeks ago.  We couldn't stand it, so we just made a burner trip down for a weekend.  (plus, we wanted to look at a lot that we're interested in).  The boys had a great time playing in the sand and seeing the horses, up close and personal.  

Today was a really hard day.  Today two of my friends said goodbye to their precious babies.  Sarah and Jen were friends of mine from high school.  In fact we were all on our school's pom pon squad together.  During those years we shared many early morning practices, late night football and basketball games, laughs and tears.  I haven't seen Sarah or Jen in years, but it doesn't change the fact that today they were both heavy on my mind and heart.  Their stories are heart breaking.  I just pray that with each passing day it gets a little easier for them.  And I pray that they do not let themselves get bogged down in guilt or self-blame -- something that we as mothers know as a constant.   

www.sarahbusseyphotography.com/journal/

www.therumleys.com

  

99 Balloons

I don't know the Mooney's personally.  But many of my friends from Arkansas do.  I've watched this video several times, and every time that I do, I cry.  Hard.  It reminds me that in the midst of all of the diaper changes, screaming, time outs and testing, that my children are precious.  Precious.   And it encourages me to try harder.  I hope you'll watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th6Njr-qkq0

Really Bad Blogger Mom

So, I know, I've been really bad at blogging lately.  For whatever reason, I've totally slacked off.  Maybe it might have something to do with Facebook???  So, here's my attempt to update everyone on what's been going on in our lives.  

Corolla Spanish Horses

The 4x4 area of the Outer Banks is home to wild horses which are direct descendants of the Spanish horses that came over in the 1600s.  When we were there a new colt had just been born. 

OBX 2009

We went to the beach and stayed in the 4x4 area of the Outer Banks again this year.  And man, do we have the bug again!  Can't wait until we have a house of our own there so we can go whenever we want!!  This was Asher's first real trip to the beach.  Last year he was only 4 months old and didn't get out in the sun much at all.  He absolutely loved the beach.  He wasn't afraid of the water and kept trying to just go in the ocean!  Jacob's swimming has dramatically improved.  He swam in the pool all by himself from one end to the other with only his floaties on.  He's getting so big and independent, I can't believe how much things change in a year.

Inaugural Emergency Room visit

One Friday afternoon, about 3 weeks ago, we decided to head to the park before Ryan got home.  I was pushing Asher in the stroller and had Cooper on the leash.  Jacob had been riding his scooter but decided to forego the scooter and just run ahead of us.  He fell in the cross walk just before we got to the park and cut his forehead.  It turned out that the cut wasn't really that bad but you wouldn't know that judging by the crazy amount of blood that came from his head.  It was everywhere -- his once white shirt turned almost completely red.  I ran home as fast as I could, put the boys in the car and drove (sped) to the ER.  They ended up gluing the laceration instead of using stitches.  Jacob was such a good patient.  He was so cooperative, let the hospital staff do everything they needed to do and didn't cry once.  I on the other hand was a complete mess!  This picture is from the day after his fall.  Jacob's head is healing quickly and looks so much better even after just 3 weeks.  

Preakness 2009

It was another successful Preakness for the Cowell party.  Drew came up from SC and Ben & Jen came in town from Fayetteville.  We had a great time!

Asher's First Haircut

Asher got his first haircut shortly after his 1st birthday.  We needed to get Jacob a haircut and Asher's hair was getting a little long on the sides, so I decided to have his cut as well.  He did really well and looked so handsome after!

Brothers

Jacob and Asher are finally to a point where they really play well together.  And, most importantly, Jacob is really loving having a little brother.  Yesterday we ate dinner at California Tortilla and Jacob requested that he sit next to Asher's high chair.  And tonight after Asher went to bed, Jacob said, "Asher sure is nice.  He sure is a nice brother."  Its hard to get them in a photo together, but these are some pics of some good brotherly moments...

Asher Turns 1

We had Asher's 1st birthday party at the Cabin John Train park.  We rented a picnic shelter and had pizza and cake and then everyone went for a ride on the train.  It was a really fun day, but really hot.  However, it had been raining for weeks prior, so we were happy for the heat and even happier that the party didn't get rained out.  I decided that I needed to make the cake for Asher's 1st bday and so I stayed up really, really late the night before making Asher's special monkey cake with 'dream whip' old school frosting.  Even though my mom was there to supervise, I did the entire cake all by myself and I was very proud!  The bad part is that I somehow deleted all the pictures off the camera and so I don't have any evidence of my fabulous cake making/decorating skills.  boo...

Ducky Bath

Asher loves his bathtime -- which is a welcome change from his brother who doesn't really enjoy bathing all that much!!