Day 200 | Yep, 200

To continue the tradition, I'll dedicate today's celebratory post to providing an update on the team.

Name: Sara
Favorites: baby snuggles from my boys, hearing my toddler say, "momma, you're beautiful" without prompting, getting into the holiday spirit (I just love everything about this time of year), and end-of-the-day, post-baby-bedtime chatting/relaxing with the husband
Biggest hurdle to overcome: checking all the holiday gift craft projects off my list (and there's a lot).
Dreams for the future: trying to live more in the present with my sweet boys at these sweet ages and not get caught up in the day to day frustrations.

Name: Chris
Favorites: being able to cheer on the Badgers in both football and basketball in the same week, wearing wool socks again, and seeing the look of excitement and pure joy on the faces of his boys when he peers through the door as he unlocks the door after work.
Biggest hurdle to overcome: deciding on the perfect holiday cocktails for a little shindig we're throwing.
Dreams for the future: enjoying a huge, can't-possibly-have-enough-food Thanksgiving dinner (it's his favorite holiday)

Name: Chase
Favorites: singing at the top of his lungs (Down by the Bay and I've Been Working on the Railroad are the two current go-tos), learning the names of states (off his mealtime placemat, obviously), playing anything with his daddy when he gets home from work (he saves special giggles for this specific time)
Biggest hurdle to overcome: dealing with the fact he can't go to tree park when it's cold/dark outside. Sorry, big guy.
Dreams for the future: spending two weeks with his absolute-favorite-people-in-the-whole-world (that's you, family!) at Christmas.

Name: Robbe
Favorites: brother tackles, I mean, hugs, shoes (chewing on, not wearing), Miga sightings (she's an elusive one), honing all his new skills (think: standing, climbing stairs, eating with his hands, big stuff)
Biggest hurdle to overcome: sleeping through the night. We're getting close, people. I can feel it. Chase pulled it off at 9.5 months so maybe we're on a similar trajectory.
Dreams for the future: eating just one piece of cat food. It's not too much to ask, mom, is it?

Day 199 | 'Tis the Season...

For crafting! And I'm ready and feeling inspired. So far, I've got six different crafts in the hopper. Most are pictured here to some extent but not all (some need to be kept under wraps, obviously).

I'll have lots of reveals to show off after the holidays and maybe, just maybe, one or two beforehand. 

Woohoo!

Day 198 | Looking Good

I bought a new hair clipper a few weeks ago and Chase's hair was finally long enough to give it a try today. It's a bit short, but his hair grows so fast that short is necessary so I don't have to cut it every other week. I hope you approve.

He looks so grown up with a new hair cut, right?

Side note: Chase is still working on his thumbs up pose. :)

Day 197 | Oh Yeah, This is DC

Seemed like a pretty easy plan for the day: a trip down to the Mall to meet our friends John and Caia and play at the Museum of the American Indian.

Then one of my least favorite parts about this city got in the way: the traffic. We've had such good luck in that department lately that I almost forgot how much I despise sitting, without moving, in the car. With two babies.

We did make it to the museum after some tense moments, several songs, and a Marshall and Thomas (the train) story. This museum is, unexpectedly, lots of fun for the kiddos. There's a great children's area with a skateboard (pictured above), a kayak (modeled next to Robbe), a teepee, an igloo, and too many additional exhibits to mention. We wish we could have been there for longer, but we'll take what we can get.

In case you think that was the only traffic congestion we got stuck in today, you'd be wrong. The trip to Caia and John's house for lunch took twice as long as it should have and the trip back home was no piece of cake, either.

Thanks for the reminder, DC.

Day 196 | A New Craft

My mom picked up a fun stamping book when she was visiting and now I've been bitten by the carve-your-own stamp bug.

I started by carving bird stamps (one of my favorite subjects at the moment) and I'm really enjoying the new challenge. It's a fairly mindless, inexpensive activity that I can do in small chunks of time (a must with my current lifestyle). 

I'll be posting future designs as I hone this new craft. You might have to wait until after the holidays, though, because I see some great gifts on the horizon. 

Day 195 | Picnic, Please

A picnic in mid-November? Yes, please! The boys and I took full advantage of this amazingly sunny and mild fall day to play a bit longer at Tree Park and eat lunch in the great outdoors (which happens very infrequently now that we have a baby eating "solids" to contend with). The challenge was worth it today, however. And I fully enjoyed the extra time in the sun.

Day 194 | Jump, Jump, Jump

Chris has been dreaming about having a Tuesday or Thursday off since we went to the trampoline park for the first time (the only days toddler time is offered). Today is Veterans Day (thank you, veterans!), so his dream finally came true. Off to Skyzone we went. We were even lucky enough to have Dr. Sean make the trip with us.

The jumping didn't disappoint, yet again. And Chris decided the wait was definitely worth it.