Butterfly Festival

On Saturday we went to a festival held in honor of the butterfly migration. Here are some cute pics of my boys.
Hanging out in the trunk while we got the stroller set up (the only way to keep Peter from wandering off).

Peter was quite taken with the butterflies.

We enjoyed a nice walk around the wildlife refuge. Eddie and Peter loved the boardwalk. Peter walked the whole time!



Eddie and Peter got firefighter hats. We ended up eating at Firehouse Subs afterward, where they each got a second hat! (Eddie has always worn firefighter hats backwards. On this day he asked me if he was wearing it the right way. I was sad to tell him no; I thought I would never see him wearing a firefighter hat backwards again. He wore it the right way for a while, but he decided he likes them better backwards! I do, too!)

"Numnin" Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch with playgroup this week. Peter was excited to see all those "numnin"s, a word he had learned just the day before because we hung up Halloween decorations. Eddie and Peter loved listening to the stories.

What a handsome young man! Love that smile!

Both Eddie and Peter loved measuring pumpkins with string. Eddie told me later that this was his favorite part.


Eddie learned that he could use his string to knock pumpkins into the holes between the boards. He's pretty impressed with his little game.

Of course they loved picking out pumpkins. Peter's was selected for him by another mom because of its perfect size. It has proved to double as a ball.

Eddie kept changing his selection. Each pumpkin was smaller than the last. He came home with a pumpkin even smaller than Peter's!


I attempted to get a lot of posed pictures, which of course didn't work. It's practically impossible to get two little ones to look at you at the same time.
I love this one. I had told Eddie to put his hand on Peter's shoulder, not realizing it would be the wrong hand.

The best I got of E and P!
Peter didn't fight getting his face painted, though Eddie wouldn't even go near the table. Eddie enjoyed playing games. Peter joined in with the parachute.


We ended at the playground and with a picnic lunch. It was a fun day!

Introducing Professor Peter

Maybe he's thinking about modeling...
...or becoming a mobster that packs a water gun.
Peter looks so charming and attractive in his new sports jacket.

Yay! It's cold outside!

The temperature dropped dramatically from our usual mid-90s to mid-60s, sometimes even in the 50s. Initially I had to convince Eddie that it would be okay to put on a jacket. Once he got it on, he fell in love with himself in it (the helicopter on it helps). We opened the door to venture outside. Eddie said, "My hands need something!". Gloves, Eddie. They are called gloves. We got the glove/hat box down, so, of course, Eddie needed a hat, too. We attempted to go outside again and Eddie said, "I need something for my face!". It's 60 degrees outside, and this kid wants a mask! We don't have one, so we had to do without. We took some cute pictures of Eddie and Peter having fun outside in not-hot weather. What a cutie! Pretending to make a mad face-not too convincing.
Yikes! I am scared of this mad face!
Peter hears a bird. Every time he hears or sees a bird, he stretches his arms up and flaps his hands around. He is started to say "bir'" while he flaps, but this is a recent addition to the cute ritual.
Look at that tongue!
Most of the pictures I took of Eddie have his tongue hanging out!

I am pleased to say that Eddie even agreed to wear pants (pants have been an item he has refused to wear for months now, even to church he wears shorts).

Yay for not-hot weather!

What Eddie Said

Eddie, while running his finger under the print in his Book of Mormon, "read": "And it come to pass that Enos saw the tree with the fruit all lit up and Heavenly Father told him not to eat the fruit, but he ate it. He didn't listen and obey, and Heavenly Father said he couldn't eat any fruit any of the days, but he ate the fruit all of the days. He didn't listen and obey. Then Enos thought, "Oohh" (said in a sad voice), and he listened and obeyed."

Eddie read this last night at scripture time. We were shocked he knew the scripture phrase "and it came to pass". He is using Enos's name (we are reading in Enos for family scripture time) and telling Adam's story, but including the detail of the white fruit from Lehi's dream! And of course he is very focused on choices and consequences, which is what we spend a lot of our time talking about these days. I am so pleased that our efforts to read the scriptures daily and to tell Eddie scriptures stories are paying off. We honestly had no idea he was even listening! This gives me a lot of happiness and encouragement, and it makes me very hopeful and sure that Eddie will grow up to be happy and capable. I am so thankful for the scriptures, for the anchor they are for me and my family.

Hat Boy

Peter loves to wear "'at"s! This boy seriously needs a whole hat collection. He puts a hat on and stands there just waiting for you to tell him he looks great. Then he rushes off to the mirror or the oven door, to admire himself. He smiles and points at himself. If he is in front of the oven, he sits down on the ground so he can just watch his reflection in comfort for an extended length of time. I love my little hat boy!

Happy 31st, Benj!

Ben's 31st birthday was on October 7. I made him a hummingbird cake, a delectable banana bread-ish cake we discovered recently) that looked like Ms. PacMan. Eddie and Peter were delighted by the cake, as was Ben.Peter was interested in the candles being blown out.
Eddie had to have a turn blowing out the candles, too.
Eddie was so eager to help Daddy open presents. He did a great job keeping the presents a "secret surprise".

Happy birthday, Ben! We love you!

What Eddie Said

I have been enjoying "The Fixer", a song from Pearl Jam's latest album. I've taught Eddie all the lyrics and some dance moves. Eddie has also made up some of his own lyrics. The other night he would throw his tortilla on the floor and say, "When something falls, I want to put a little spit on it.". Then he would spit on the tortilla. I wasn't impressed with the behavior, but I like him thinking about music.

Vacuum

Peter loves to vacuum! And he is so cute doing it!

Sweet Brothers

Each night before bed I lay Peter on Eddie so they can say goodnight to each other. They hug, sometimes kiss, and always giggle.

They hug and kiss during the day sometimes, too. I took these pictures yesterday afternoon. We'd been sitting on the couch reading books. It's great to have two sweet boys that love each other (and their Mom) very much.

Headphones

Peter and Eddie love listening to music on Daddy's new headphones. They look so adorable!

Kicking a Ball

Peter is learning to kick a ball. He always falls, and he usually misses the ball entirely. It's amazing how they come up with the idea of kicking a ball on their own.

I can't hear you!

Peter is into putting his fingers in his ears. He keeps them in there until I say, "I can't hear you!". Then he takes them out, laughs, and does it again.