Thankful 30 - Days 6 & 7

 Day 6 - I am thankful for our stinky cats.

Although more often than not, they drive me absolutely crazy, it's still nice to have them around.  Having a furry little creature snuggle up to you and purr is pretty nice and they always know when you're feeling down.  Plus, aren't they two of the prettiest cats you've ever seen?

Day 7 - I am thankful for our families.  We currently live in the same town we met in in high school, and our parents are still here too.  It's so nice that the boys get to see both sets of grandparents about once/week or more.  In fact, Everett is very excited that tomorrow he will get to see both Grandma and Grandpa AND Nana and Papa.  Plus, my siblings are still very young and excellent playmates and babysitters for the boys.  And it's the gathering place for Brian's sisters to come home too.  Pretty sweet deal.   :)

Thankful 30 - Days 4 & 5

Day 4 - I am thankful for our house.

The housing market crash happened at the right time for us and we were able to get our beautiful house at a nice price with a great interest rate (even better after refinancing) in the perfect neighborhood.  Sure it has things that annoy me, like the icky kitchen floor tiles, somewhat scary basement, creaky floor in the middle of the night, etc. (blue tub and toilet are now gone), but I still love our house.  And our neighbors.  :)

Day 5 - I am thankful that I get to stay home with my boys every day.  Yes, they drive me completely up the wall crazy, but I love being able to be home with them.  There are definitely days that I wish I didn't do daycare and think, why can't I just go to work and be around adults???? but being able to be with my boys and watch them grow and learn is so worth it.  They're both very confident, independent little boys who don't mind babysitters one bit and still run to hug us when we get home.  Awesomesauce.

Edible Playdough

I found this ridiculously sweet recipe that molds and plays just like playdough on pinterest:
1 c peanut butter
1/2 c honey
2 c powdered sugar (yes, you read that right)

Everett loved playing with it and made a variety of structures:

Callum?  I put a chunk in front of him.  He looked at it for a second or two, picked it up, and went NOM!

Then Everett decided to taste it too

 Callum continued eating it.  What to do you expect from the living garbage disposal?

 Then they needed some milk

Thankful 30 - Day 3

I bet you can't guess my third thing to be thankful for.  Of course, it's my third boy!  Oh Callum.  My Cally boy.

My mini me in attitude, fine hair, eyes, and goofiness.  Before we even got to know the personality of this awesome little guy, he remedied my so-so first birth experience with his awesome birth.  I got to start from the beginning with him some things it took me a while to learn with Everett: cloth diapers, babywearing, a good breastfeeding relationship, and generally more natural, attached parenting.  I also had a better camera.  ;)
Callum is a sweet snuggler but he also has a temper.  He won't take any pushing around from Everett and fights back if he wants something.    He still strokes my hair when he's tired or upset, and pulls on his own hair while humming to himself when tired.  He's my sweet little bug and I am so thankful for him.

Thankful 30 - Days 1 & 2

Since I'm in a blogging rut anyway, I decided to take part in the Thankful 30 this month.  Because who ever said thankfulness was for November anyway?  :)
Since I'm already a day behind (this doesn't bode well for the rest of the month, does it?), I have two to do today.
Day 1 - I am thankful for my husband.

Because really, I wouldn't have a lot of my other favorite things to be thankful for without him.  :)  There aren't that many people who have married their high school sweethearts, stayed married for (almost!) five years now, had two beautiful little boys, and are very very happy with their life.  Brian works his bum off on a daily basis to provide for our family and he is excellent at his job.  I mean, honors in undergrad, honors in grad school where he got a master's degree with research, a PE license in less than 3 years after graduation, and now managing projects?  Smart guy.  He is always encouraging our family to be healthy, whether that is regular exercise, playing outside, or complimenting my healthy cooking so much that I can't ever really slack off and cook junk.  He's a pretty fantastic husband and daddy and we'll keep him.

Day 2 - I am thankful for my first baby, Everett.

He brought more joy into my life than I could have imagined.  He makes me laugh hourly with silly things he says and and the way he plays with his brother.  He also makes me swoon with the way he snuggles, hugs and kisses, and dotes on his baby brother.  He was a natural big brother from the moment he met Callum and he takes such good care of him.  He's a great helper but also very independent.  He loves to pick out clothes for his brother and himself, help cook and clean, and just generally do what I ask.  He is my sweet little crazy muffin and I am so glad I get to spend every day with him, watching him grow and learn.  I love how he loves books (he definitely got that from me) and snuggles (and that one's from his daddy).  I love his infectious laugh and beautiful eyes.  I could go on and on because, duh, I'm his mama.  But we'll just say, I am grateful for my boy.