16 Month Pictures

In June we had Annie take the boys' again. They were about 16 1/2 months old at the time the pictures were taken. I can't believe how much they have changed in just a month and a half. They look less and less like babies every day. Which might be because their mullets get longer and fuller by the minute!

We met Annie in Northeast Minneapolis for some very cool shots. The scenery was perfect; however, the boys were not! It was one of those days where the boys weren't interested in doing anything they didn't want to do! (Those days are common!) I was surprised that we got any good pictures, actually. In many of the pictures you can tell that the smile that was captured was either follwed by or preceded by some tears!

I found these awesome cloth letters on clearance at Anthropologie and they hang above their cribs. I thought you all might appreciate the "help"!


Prior in his "airplane" polo. Airplane is actually the boys' new favorite word. There are many planes that fly over our house on a daily basis and they don't miss any of them.

Mason in his baseball gear. Baseball shirt from uncle Jake, baseball tie, baseball glove, and of course - a baseball.

This is sooooo Mason. Everyone asks how I tell the boys apart and I just respond by saying that it is hard to describe, but easy to tell. This is a classic example!

Prior Benjamin

These SUPER fun shirts are from my friend Julie. Prior's shirt says "Mason did it". And Mason's shirt says "Prior did it". How cute is that?! I will say that it adds a level of confusion - you have to think twice when you see one boy but the other boy's name! Ha! The shirts are still a little big so we will definitely be wearing them for future pics!

I love this picture!

Another shot that is very much Mason!

Prior

Bye for now! The next set of professional pictures will be later this fall for Christmas. BIG sigh!!

Supermarket Sweep

Mason/Prior

Can I just tell you how excited I was when I realized that the huge oversized shopping carts at Costco are made for two little ones?!

The boys have recently decided that they despise their stroller. And despise = temper tantrum (times two). And just like everything else these two little boys do, it's at the exact same time.

They do, however, like their wagon. I think they just like feeling a little more free. And they like to be able to see what's going on around them (i.e. they like to look for trouble). Another reason might be the ridiculous 5 point harness in the stroller seats. The wagon only has one. I guess I can't blame them. The problem is that the wagon just doesn't fold up quite as easily (or at all) for trips to the grocery store. Despite the size of our SUV, after we bring home half of Costco, there just isn't much room for a gigantic wagon. 

I should probably clarify that although the boys liked the shopping cart much better than their stroller, their preference would have actually been to run wild in Costco. So they weren't exactly good. Therefore we made our way through the store "supermarket sweep" style - FAST!

So shopping cart it is! Both of Ben's sisters had broken collar bones growing up - and I think one was related to a shopping cart incident. So we were extra careful!

Zucchini Coins

Finding healthy food the boys like is not easy. I feel fortunate that they are not picky eaters, but it is still a challenge. I recently found a recipe for baked zucchini coins that they just devour. I'll admit they're not overly quick to make, but if you make a big batch they are easy to pull out of the fridge and throw on a plate. And - they are really really good! (serious - even Ben likes them!)

Fresh zucchini

The assembly line: flour, egg, and the panko mixture

Ta-Da!

Here's the recipe (I found this on Weelicious).

Baked Zucchini Coins (Serves 4)

1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Panko or Bread Crumbs

1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder

1 Large Egg

1/4 Cup Flour

2 Medium Zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch coins

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees and coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Mix the first 4 ingredients in a bowl.

3. Whisk the egg in a separate bowl.

4. Place the flour in another bowl.

5. Make an assembly line with the bowls, and first dip the zucchini coins into the

flour, then the egg and finally into the bread crumb mixture, coating evenly and repeating with all the zucchini coins.

6. Place all of the coins on the baking sheet/rack. Arrange so they’re not touching, spray with oil and bake for 20 minutes or until the

bread crumbs are golden.

7. Serve.

(Mason)

Zucchini makes your hair grow! Did you know that?!

(I may have made that up!)

The Park

Mason

Mason

Prior

Mason

Prior

There's a really nice park near our house...and it is the perfect size for the boys right now. Noi takes them almost every day. Today Ben and I took them and they were so funny. Why go down the slide the right way when you could climb up it? 

Boys: important clarification on your "Future Iowa Hawkeye" shirts. While Mommy and Daddy very much support the Hawkeyes, out of state college tuition is very expensive! Maybe instead of swings and slides we should be spending our time throwing balls to work on some possible scholarships!

4th of July Weekend

What a weekend! While none of it included any traditional "lake" or "cabin" time, we had a blast! And the boys were so much fun! Here are the highlights:

• We had two showings at the house this weekend (which made for 4 for the week - that's almost as many as we've had in months!). Curious what we'll do if it sells...?! So are we!

• On Saturday we went swimming at a friend's house. And to my surprise it was actually relaxing (those of you with young kids know that not many things are!). The boys were so stinkin' good! I am still amazed! The pool water was 91 degrees so that helped!

Mason

• On Saturday night Grandpa Don came to town and we grilled out. Yum!

• On Sunday, despite my better judgment (or maybe just the lack of a sitter), we took the boys to the Twins game. 

No toy in the diaper bag can compete with a fork and a pepper shaker!

The game involved a lot of walking around!

We were lucky enough to find the Twins mascot, TC the Bear for a quick picture. TC's friend kind of cut Daddy out of the picture. And the look on Mason's face like - "dude - what the hell is that thing!?" is priceless!

It was SO hot! Their favorite "toy" during the game was water bottles. They actually resorted to dumping water on their heads. It was so funny! It resulted in an entire bottle of water at one point being dumped on Mom's lap (so I looked like I had peed my pants) but it was one of those "worth it" moments. I was totally fine walking around looking like I had wet my pants for a few minutes of peace!

• It was so warm outside we decided to get out the baby pool the boys got for their birthday from the Macke's and the Steinkamp's. We filled it up in the morning around 9:00 with very cold water from the hose thinking it would warm up by the afternoon. The boys didn't care if it was cold - they wanted to dive in (they literally went in head first). There wasn't even time to change into our trunks.
  

• We posed for a few smiley pics after our extra-long nap. 

• We played with our new toy - the bubble mower. Or should I call it Mason's bubble mower. Notice both pictures are of Mason. He claimed it as his own and was not interested in sharing with his brother. (The fighting over whatever the other one has is in full swing!)

• And no weekend is complete without a bit of mischief! The boys love the dog's dishes. 

Time out?! I don't even know what that means, Mom!

(P)

Pleeeeease!?!?!

The boys know some sign language basics, and thanks to Noi's help they are quite good. I am very glad we pushed sign language because it is so unbelievably helpful to communicate and understand what they need and want. They know the basic signs for:

• more
• all done
• please
• drink
• thank you
• love you

P&M are starting to attempt to say lots of words, too. Rarely do the words sound like anything other than the first syllable, but you have to start somewhere, right?!

The boys are also combining signs with words. And when Prior really really really wants something, he resorts to a desperate "PEEEE" (please) and an over exaggerated "sign" for please. The sign for please is below:

And here's PRIOR's version, which includes both hands and rubbing his entire front side:

PEEEEEEASE! from K Schultes on Vimeo.

And it is very effective! It's hard to say no to that!