Baby Love

 Mia decided to dress Hank like he was going to a wedding.  Wouldn't he be a good ring bearer?  Both of my boys have infectious smiles!

 Jackson has been busy as a beaver.  He is so very active that I don't feel like I can keep him entertained and stimulated, so we have decided to send him to preschool 3 days a week from 9:30-1:30 to play with other kids his age. He will be in the young two year old class.  He really needs some wholesome two year old activities.  Mommy's coloring books and funsy stuff is just not cutting the mustard. 

 Doesn't understand why the baby can get on the table, but he can't. 

 Fell asleep on accident.  Trust me--it was not on purpose.  And it didn't last long.

 Loves all things daddy.  Puts on daddy's hat, daddy's shoes, etc.  Roll Tide.

 Ran around with the water hose and played in his blow up pool on father's day.  Daddy has a busted back and foot but still managed to play.  Daddy may need to stop the WWF restling with Jackson--or at least tone it down-- and stop throwing him over his head---Jackson's a little too heavy to be throwing him in the air and catching him. 

 This little guy decided to wake up multiple times a night.  And i thought he was my good sleeper. 

No Naps for Babies

 Our babies have recently informed us that they do not need to nap AT ALL during the day.  Jackson wrote us a cease and desist letter recently telling me that it is useless to try to make him take a nap even though he is less than two years old.  He simply will  not do it so we are putting him to bed at 6:00.  I hope I will live to tell his girlfriends and wives about it. 

 Hank has joined team Jackson and has also decided that his days should require no naps at all either.  He will sleep for 20-30 minutes three times a day IF he is being held.  This is a complete 360 from what he was doing the first three months of his life.  We are at a loss for why he has turned on us.  We love him anyway and don't feel comfortable letting him cry in the crib.  Is anyone surprised?  Just look at that smile!

 Jackson is a very sweet brother and kisses Hank (and no one else) all day.  He immediately runs to comfort him when he starts to cry.  He also likes to mess with everything Hank has, including his paci, swing, socks, and chair.  Sometimes Hank gets annoyed.  Can you tell?

 Jackson is going to be a mountain climber.  This is not what we had pictured for him until recently.  He is on top of all of the furniture all day long.  He can also reach like 6 inches over a countertop that is twice his height.  Can you do that?  I think not.

The boys are taking baths together already. Yes, I am brave.  Jackson knows to be easy around the baby and helps me hold the baby bath still.  He helps me wash the baby and shows him all of the tub toys.  Adorable.  I feel like I have worked out for 30 minutes when it is all over.  Am I really that old?

And the Beat Goes On

Lordy be. Lordy be.  Life is moving at quite a clip here in the Eversole household.  Jackson is now hovering at 21 months old and Hank is working toward 3 months.  I feel like I need to be taking more pictures and shooting more video.  Jackson is so cute and animated with everything he says.  He is naming every adult he knows before going to bed, to which I respond, "_____ is going night night at his/her house".  We go through that same dialogue every night.  I guess he's got to know what's going on while he's in the bed.  Through a spell of several weeks, he teased us into thinking he had increased his daytime nap periods to 1.5 hours or better, but now he's back to the usual 50 minute sprint.  He will go to the fridge and ask for milk, cheese, or juice and will take me to the pantry to ask for a cracker or cookie.  Oh, and he can name every single food he is interested in which includes the above in addition to cake, cottage cheese, beans, peas, apple sauce, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and a few others.  He is still extremely picky and will spit out things he relished just a day ago.  Jackson's favorite word right now seems to be "no".  I've had to quit phrasing things as questions because he will shake his head and in no uncertain terms, exclaim "no" to things like, "Are you ready to go with mommy?" and "Are you ready to eat your lunch?".  He has tantruming down pat as well, throwing a good one at least 2 times per day.  I have devised a timeout location (the pack n play in the corner of the downstairs kitchen) in an attempt to detour hitting.  He's a pistol I tell you.  This little boy is smart and extremely active---and very opinionated.  And, he is absolutely the cutest thing you have ever seen.  He is saying "a hug" and wanting to be held by daddy, me and Mia.  He's a lover and fighter and he's mine. 

Hank is letting his little self be heard by all.  When he talks, his facial expressions look like he's belting his enthusiasm from the middle of his gut.  It's precious to watch and he just smiles the sweetest grins I have ever seen.  He has decided that he is not the biggest fan of riding in the car--but dont get me wrong--it's not like he wails like Jackson did.  He's got to be 15 pounds and feels every bit of it.  Though he is the happiest baby alive, he can get quite mad for a few minutes when he is tired.  He will scream like he's being stabbed or something for just a few minutes and then will just drop into a deep sleep.  I wish I could do that.  Overall, he sleeps well, and only wakes up twice at night to eat.  He has such a relaxed attitude and seems to be so light hearted.  We are having a playset put in the backyard so that I can hold Hank while Jackson plays outside.  I really have to keep things moving with these two boys!

Easter Weekend Success

 Instead of dwelling on my many shortcomings like my disorganized house, papers and life, I decided that I would search for small accomplishments to pat myself on the back for.  #1  I figured out how to bathe both babies at the same time.  While Jackson "washes" his toys under the faucet, I quickly sponge Hank off in the bathroom sink.  No one drowns or even cries and both babies are cleaned, lotioned, diapered and dressed with only one mess to clean up.  Why didn't I think of this earlier?

 #2 I scored a once in a lifetime photo op.  J passed out in a deep sleep on
daddys chest and Hank thought it was funny so we got some pics.  All three of these boys were still and made a pleasant face for the camera.  J never woke up!

 #3  We got dressed and made it to the neighborhood easter egg hunt on time.  The women's club in our neighborhood did a benefit this year for a little boy with Duchene Muscular Distrophy and organized an awesome hunt.  The field was divided into age groups so that the babies could get eggs instead of the area being scoured by all of the older kids leaving nothing behind.  There must have been 10 million eggs and Jackson got like 50 of them.  He wanted to stop and open all of them prior to moving on.  I taught him how to hunt eggs earlier in the week by putting a gold fish in eggs and hiding them under our furniture in the living room.  He knew there was a prize in each egg and couldn't resist opening them right away.  He saw the easter bunny and also a dog---and charged straight ahead toward them without even looking to see if mommy and daddy were behind him.  Hank slept through the whole thing. 

Double Double Toil & Trouble

There is definitely a learning curve to figuring out how to take care of two babies at one time --with minimal crying.  I feel like we are playing musical babies all day.  Hank is sleeping great at night still but wants to be held most of the day. Jackson is sleeping through the night most nights of the week but is putting up quite a fight when it comes to napping.  He still desperately needs a nap during the day, so I'm having a Mexican stand off with him about it.  He is such a sweet and cute little boy though and hugs his brother often.  He says "awe baby" when he hugs and he talks to Hank.  I really need to catch it on video.  Jackson is a finiky eater now and decides he loves something one minute and hates it the next so I'm constantly in need of various types of produce and whatnots from the grocery store--I cant seem to get it together.  Im about to get really good at freezing some things for him.  Jackson is catching on to the fact that Hank is here to stay and will get a little agressive toward him in the afternoon when he is tired and wants mommy all to himself.  With years of training in child psych behind me, you would think I would know just what to do.  When it comes to your own kids, oh my, you lose the perspective you have with other people's kids.  I remember before we had children, Steven and I would see a toddler pitching a fit in public or making a mess in a resturaunt and would wonder why the parents didn't "get a grip" on the situation.  Just look at us now!

Official Newborn Pics

Words cant say enough about how happy I am with these pictures.  Sooo sweet.  Jackson was an excellent big brother!

Mommy and Jack

I'm so glad i decided to get a pic of Jackson and i before Hank was born.  No one really likes to have pictures made when they are tired and super pregnant but i made myself do it.  J is adjusting well to the baby and is usually very loving.  We are working on "being easy" around the baby.  His hugs can be a little rough.