I so totally love this song.

You just have to feel happy when you hear it.

Evan in Montana, part 2

We have never ever bought fireworks. Ever. This is because we normally spend the 4th camping, and fireworks are thought of as a "no-no" while in the woods.

My brother introduced Evan to the wonders of fireworks... and the fun packages they can come in. While they may not explode into the air with loud "BOOOM"s, fireworks in the shapes of military vehicles are a HIT with 6 year olds.

The tank he's holding in the picture above did NOT implode on itself or catch fire after being lit, and therefore, when Evan came home 2 weeks later, it came with him. And I was given a detailed (at least 30 mins) demonstrations of how it worked and what it looked like. This demonstration only took so long because Evan had to pause many times to wipe the spittle from his face (making blowing up sounds does entail some spitting) and because there were times when he was laughing so hard about something I couldn't understand him. I still don't really... but the name "James" came up several times, so I'm assuming my brother did something really stupid, or something a 6 year old finds really hilarious.

Brothers

As mentioned before, I love watching the Tour de France. This morning, Ryan was awake early enough to watch the live coverage.... And Evan wandered in with about 30 mins left in the race.

He, of course, is on Team Armstrong, and was a little pissed off at a certain rider wearing white who "KEPT GETTING IN FRONT OF LANCE!!!!"

Well, that rider attacked.... and Contador and Armstrong matched.... but "That White Guy" kept looking over his shoulder.... and Evan asked why. I explained that Andy was looking for his brother... he wanted to make sure his brother was keeping up because he wanted his brother to win too.

Evan was amazed at this. And a little torn. "Are they USAs?" No, they're from Luxembourg. "Are they on Lance's team?" Nope. "Well, I still want them to win. That's so nice of his brother to want him to win, because then they can share it and it will be their special thing together. "

So this morning... as the sun was coming up, we were sitting in our pjs halfway around the world cheering for Frank and Andy Schleck to win. Sorry Lance, but brothers gotta stick together.

** Picture from Team Saxo Bank gallery, http://www2.team-saxobank.com/gallery_start.asp (c) Tim De Waele

Ewwwww!

Evan: Ryan! Give me a high five!

Ryan: Gurgle Coooo

(Evan takes Ryan's hand, holds it up, and slaps.)

Evan: EEEEEEEWWWWWWWW! That was a SPIT HIGH FIVE!!!

Lesson Learned: Do not high five your brother while he's cutting teeth.

Evan and Montana, Part 1

Evan spent the last few weeks in Montana with my parents.

The adventure started on the 4th of July when Sara drove him up... They left early... and stopped at "Bear World" on the way through Idaho.

I got a call around 2 with a VERY excited 6 year old tell me all about the bears... one that hid in the grass... and OH SO CUTE baby bears. I sent my old camera up with him, and he took these pictures...

Pretty dang good for a 6 year old from a moving car!

Anyway, during the call, he kept telling me about the FURNITURE he bought at Bear World. I couldn't imagine what sort of furniture my sister would have 1. Let him buy, and 2. Would fit in her itty bitty car. But he was SOOO excited about his very own furniture!

When he got home, he showed me a small carved black bear.... It's furniture, he explained, because it's made of WOOD!

More Montana stories to come. Ryan is demanding I pay attention to him.

Hello

I'm 4 months old.

I still keep mom up during the night, but I'm so darn cute, she hasn't broken down and given me away... yet.

I LOVE upbeat songs... forget that silly lullaby stuff, give me fun, bouncy music.

I am NOT a fan of green beans.

I suck on my hand so hard I give myself hickies... and don't even THINK about giving me a pacifier. I'm NOT even kidding, those things are terrible.

I do enjoy chewing on a nice burp rag... esp when mom gets it damp and puts it in the freezer... oooooohhhhhh my aching teeth!

And if you didn't notice, I'm flirting with the concept of sitting upright. I'm only considering this because my mom and dad refuse to HOLD me in the upright position at all times, which as everyone should know, is my favorite position.

I love my husband... and he loves ice cream.

My cutie of a husband had to work LATE last night. Ryan and I went to bed, and fell asleep. When Mark came home, I remember opening my eyes and talking to him for just a minute... then falling back asleep.

The next thing I remember... Mark came into the bedroom, and asked if I wanted ice cream.

All I remember is sitting half way up in bed and saying, "No, I have a headache, I'd rather sleep." I have no idea what time it was, but I know it was late!

Little Known Fact

I freaking love the Tour de France.

I don't know how long ago the love developed... it was before highschool.

I can watch it for hours. In fact... the summer after Evan was born, I did. I would watch the live feeds early in the morning... then keep the TV tuned to the edited afternoon replays while I did whatever during the day... and then got Mark addicted to the pieced together commentary of the US Prime Time coverage. (Bob Roll cracks me up!)

Other than during the Olympics, it's the only time I crack the sports section of the newspaper open.

Maybe one day, I'll make it to the side of the mountain and waive a little flag and ring my cow bell as my favorite riders go by.

I love July.

Why didn't I buy chips??... and other nonsense.

I went grocery shopping today. I actually bought food that will make actual dinners. I ate a sandwich tonight... and I'm bummed that I bought so much squash and no chips. I could really go for some processed cheese powder covered crunch... and zucchini is really just too natural tasting to satisfy that craving.



Speaking of grocery shopping... I was forced to walk around the store today singing "Rockin Robin". Ryan loves that song (I randomly pulled it out of thin air a few weeks ago after singing "The Wheels on the Bus" for the millionth time. I was quite impressed with myself for knowing the words... well, I got most them right, lol)

It's the miracle song. It stops any and all crying fits in an instant... and it's pretty funny as he's starting to "coo" along. I'm sure the people at the grocery store thought it was a toss up.. Me singing, or baby screaming.

Evan had two lullabies... Edelweiss and You Are My Sunshine. Ryan's two lullabies were suppose to be TooRa LooRa LooRa and Amazing Grace. While I still sing them, they do NOT stop a crying fit, and I do believe that while Evan still requests Edelweiss when he's hurt or really tired, Ryan, at the age of 6 will demand his mother sing Rockin Robin.

Ryan is eating. I know, I know. I'm horrible for introducing solids before 4 months... but honestly, the kid has doubled his birth weight (which means he's JUST shy of 20 lbs), he can hold his head up, and even remain in a sitting position without support for a little bit. He totally sits steady with just minimal support. He also was eating between 30-40 oz of milk/formula in a day. The kid needed something a little more substantial.

So we started rice cereal at the beginning of July... after a week, we introduced carrots, and tonight he tried green beans. Carrots: Good, Green Beans: Bad! You should see his face! It's pure TORTURE to be fed strained green beans... I think maybe they should replace waterboarding with the pureed mush. He screamed bloody murder with the second spoonful. Tonight, I think I'll try one more time... and mix it with extra rice to see if I can slip it past him.

Unless he's asleep...

This is what our day is full of....

Not complaining... just saying.

Awwwww!!!