Bringing Work Home

When all I've done for the last 10 years is work with others' children, it's hard not to sometimes feel like I should be stepping it up and bring a little of that work creativity home to the boys. Now that I'm home with them full time, we have time to explore some of that. This summer's heat encouraged some indoor creativity!

The boys have really gotten into legos and are beginning to do more fine motor play with me. Matt is still a bit resistant to crafts and coloring, so legos will do for now!

Somehow, there's always a forklift involved!

So, enough with fine motor and pretend play, let's get to the rough stuff! Time for some crashing!!!

We got all of the spare pillows in the house and piled them up along with Matt's "friends" (all his stuffed animals) and built a mountain for some good crashing.

The boys were rolling around and crashing for what seemed like hours. Matt is a big blur in this picture!

Going in for the big crash at the top!

It was a big job for me to make sure I monitored closely to make sure no heads bonked!

Messy time with some shaving cream!!!

While Jonathan tries to eat the shaving cream, Matt points out how to draw with his finger.

What? I'm not supposed to eat the shaving cream?

Jonathan is still trying to convince me that eating it is a good idea. Matt is now covered on his right arm, but going to town to draw with his left.

Jonathan begins to draw.

Matt starts drawing with his elbows!

Oh no, not the feet!

When we were done there was quite a mess on Nick's closet doors, but it was a well earned bath time for all! The mirrors took a bit to return to normal, but it was worth all of it!

Snorkel Time

I came home with a snorkel for Matt a few weeks ago and finally gave it to him as we were heading out to swim the other day. He modeled it for me! Oh, and he's holding the life preserver we had just bought at the "pool store". It was hard to get out of the store with only that, but we made it!

Smiling and holding the life preserver up for the camera!

We make a lot of fashion statements around our house. They aren't always good ones, but they are memorable!

The Old Hood

We live about 3/4 of a mile from our old house. I decided to take the boys over to the old neighborhood to play at the playground. It had been about a year and a half since we'd been over there to play. My last memory of Matt playing there was the day before Jonathan was born when my mom and I took a walk with him trying to encourage Jonathan to come meet us!

Matt was right at home on the space shuttle.

Jonathan played peek-a-boo between trips up the stairs and down the slide.

We took a detour to another park that Matt had not visited since we last lived here.

Matt loves big tunnel slides now, and Jonathan often stands at the bottom looking up to see if Matt's coming down. No accidents yet!

An airplane was flying overhead while Jonathan rode the truck.

Matt was trying to muscle his way onto the truck, but Jonathan was staying put.

After playing so hard at the park, we stopped for some grub. The boys and I shared a bit of ice cream after lunch, and all were happy!

Challenger Park with Daddy!

Typically when we do something during the week on our own, Matt tells me we have to "bring Daddy" another day. This was no different. We hopped in the car and brought Nick to Challenger Park. It wasn't quite as overcast as our first visit, so it was a bit hot! We made it through and managed to have fun.

We brought some toys this time and the boys did some digging.

Matt started exploring new things and enjoyed bouncing!

Jonathan enjoyed his independence on the smaller playground again.

After the park, we stopped for lunch at an Asian restaurant nearby. The boys were cracking us up! Jonathan enjoyed his lo mien and even had a noodle in his mouth while laughing for the camera!

He couldn't shove the noodles in fast enough.

Flaring nostrils anyone?

Matt, the pirate!

Space Center Houston

We finally took the boys to Space Center Houston a few weeks ago. It's right down the street and we drive by it at least 3 times a week if not more. Matt points out the jets out front every time. We had just never been. One morning we headed over there early and were some of the first people there.

The boys sat down at the simulator to land the shuttle. They look alike even from the back!

Jonathan tried to join in with me & Matt, but his shoe proved more interesting.

Matt was in one of his moods shortly after we got there. I think he was a bit overwhelmed by everything.

Nick and Matt sneaked away and up into a shuttle mock up to see one from the inside.

We went on the tram and were rounding the corner to Rocket Park. Jonathan was distracted by the construction going on around us.

Matt tried to give it his best smile, but was entertained by everything around us.

Inside the training center, all of us were amazed at what we saw.

After that, the tram stopped by Rocket Park.

Matt ran around the base looking around at all he could see.

Inside the building we found an actual rocket. It was amazing to see in person, laying down right in front of us. Incredible!

We had a great visit, and Matt turned it around and was so excited once we got on the tram. I was amazed at how well the boys did. Hopefully next time we can skip the mood and partake in many more activities. More space shuttle related pictures to come.

Challenger Playground

We finally went to a playground that many have recommended, but we had yet to try. It's at Challenger Park and has several separate playgrounds, all with roofs. That's a bonus with the sun and the heat around here! Luckily we picked an early morning with overcast skies to try it out. The boys had a blast!

Jonathan loved the independence he had on the little playground.

Matt joined in and tried out his monkeying skills!

Matt ran off to explore another playground and Jonathan chased after him as if saying, "Hey, where are you going?"

This picture doesn't do it justice, that tunnel slide is really tall. Matt was loving it!

My sweaty big boy

I don't really understand this contraption. It was like a slide with no incline. The boys loved it though. Jonathan kept going back to it and Matt would throw rocks on it in between Jonathan's turns "sliding". They were both cracking up.

Hey!

We've been back one more time, but I think we're going to wait for a while until the weather cools down a bit. Even with the roofs, it's still stinking hot outside!

Musical Playtime

Music fills our lives in many ways. We listen to a variety in the car and attempt to during playtime around the house, when the other noises are not too overwhelming (battery operated toys, the boys, etc.) This is just a variety of pictures and videos (click on the hyperlinks within the post for the videos) of some of our recent playtime upstairs before bath time. We have so much fun in the evenings. The boys are always entertaining us!

The boys have become quite excited with the concept of "surprise" and every time we come upstairs to play one of them sneaks off to surprise the other one. It's great to see them playing together, although the volume can get quite loud when they get going!

Jonathan was getting ready for a surprise in this picture. I just thought it was funny because most of Matt's "friends" are on his bed, and this is how he likes it. He sleeps with stuffed animals all around him in his toddler bed. I wonder what he'll do when we upgrade him to a big bed.

I thought Matt was taking a picture of Jonathan, but it ended up only being his feet. I guess he was taking a picture of his SC pillow and the Angels' rug and Jonathan's feet just got in the way!

Matt has mastered this drum and was showing off his new skills for the camera (see video below)

The boys go through phases where they love to play musical instruments. This night, they went wild! Then they decided to change it up a bit and incorporate Matt's big stuffed gorilla Julio! Jonathan left the scene, but Matt wasn't phased by his partner's departure.

Jonathan is trying to discover how to jump, feet off the ground and all. For a while now, he's been dancing to the music of a Valentine's toy that Nana sent for Matt about 2 years ago. The funny thing is that now he's starting to sing to the music! He's very close to getting off the ground, and his dancing is so entertaining!

The boys have been taking gymnastic this summer and have started practicing a lot of things at home. Nick gets very nervous when they start practicing their forward rolls. They are learning a "seat drop" on the trampoline and Jonathan has now made a game out of it. They go into Matt's room, close the bathroom door and Jonathan stands at the door, Matt at the wall next to him, and they crash on their bottoms! Crack each other up every time!