Snow!!

Snow Day!

What a looker!

Preview of what Somerset, the girl will look like

A moment of sunshine means a trike ride must take place!

Still BFFs

Fashionista!

We had a few days of snow last week and the kids were able to get outside for a few minutes before it all melted away. Of course, they both had a blast...Leo made snow angels and tried to catch snowflakes on his tongue. Now the rain is back and simply will not stop. Oh, how I dream of Spring.

Somerset has been taking a music class with me through Parks and Rec and she loves it. She feels very comfortable in class and is not timid. She has a ton of fun interacting with the teacher, other kids (although mostly just curious about them), and the parents. She is much more engaged in classes than Leo was at this age. He would always be the kid exploring all areas of the class that were off limits or else would have his own ideas for what he wanted to do. Somerset is content with going with the flow, which is easier to handle as a mom.

Somerset has been climbing chairs and standing on things. This is dangerous and scary for me!!! She also likes to help herself to Leo's food.

She is much more into "girly" things than Leo ever was. She enjoys watching me put on make-up and wants me to apply it to her (I pretend). She loves her dolls too, however, she loves choo-choos and cars as well, but anything with wheels is a choo-choo to her. She also shows an interest in what I dress her in and likes her shirt with the kitty on it. She has been loving her sunglasses and walks around the house wearing them with pride and a big smile on her face.

Leo continues to amaze us with his "hugantic" personality. He tells the funniest stories and loves jokes, although his jokes don't make sense and are only funny to himself (we love to hear them regardless). He also continues to excel with games.

His favorite tv show is Phineas and Ferb, which I know is for much older children, but it is funny and cute, so we allow him to watch it.

Leo has been the sweetest little love bug recently. He still naps and this is our time to cuddle together. He always tells me how much he loves me and how I am the best mommy in the world and that he will always protect me. I soak all of this up. I LOVE these times with Leo. Even though he can be a stinker, he is the sweetest, most loving person I know. He speaks from his heart and loves his family so much. I hope he is always so demonstrative of his feelings.

I have been feeling really blessed with my children and husband. How did I get so lucky? They are so healthy, smart, fun and amazing (cute too)! We have such a wonderful family and sometimes I just have to take a moment to appreciate this moment in time. Is it difficult? Heck yeah! Is there a lot of money? Nope. Are we sleep deprived? Of course. But this is the happiest I have ever been and I don't take any of it for granted.

Happy New Year!

Leo cuddles all his pals at bedtime!

I love watching these guys play together

Sitting Pretty

Joe's new glasses and super reflective shoes (oh, and Summy too).

The year has started out with lots of fun. I have really been enjoyed the time with the family now that crazy holiday hours have ceased. I have been spending a lot of nights watching movies with Leo and Joe. The kids and Joe also seem happier when I am around (at least I'd like to think so).

Poor Somerset has been teething like crazy. Our whole weekend was consumed with caring for a very grumpy baby girl. Sunday night, she woke up every 2 hours at night and her temperature reached 104.6 degrees. This made us realize that she probably was fighting something other than just the teething. Luckily, she seems completely back to normal.

Somerset now nods yes and no, and in a very exaggerated manner. It is soooo cute. This also makes us realize how much she now understands.

She also loves sitting in chairs. She is exerting her independence and wants to be more of a little girl (sniff, sniff).

Leo is playing fantastically with his sister. He can make her giggle like no one else and of course she idolizes him. He can tend to be a little rough with her, but it is just because he is a boy, plus, I appreciate that she will be able to hang with the big boys when she is older.....it's all this training she is getting now.

Leo is FANTASTIC at games. He plays a lot of games on Joe's i-Phone and tends to score higher than most adults. I don't play these games, so I have a difficult time seeing the value, but Joe explains that there is a lot of problem solving and logic to be learned. The fact that he is so advanced at such a young age is no surprise to me though.

He continues to be obsessed with numbers. Since he learned to count to 100 (and beyond) and can recite the ABCs, we are now working on addition. We let him determine in what he is interested in and then focus on teaching him that, so numbers it is! He is also a big fan of Phineas and Ferb, the Blazers (He loves to follow the scores of games) and the game Chutes and Ladders.

Joe still loves brewing beer and is getting quite good with his Amber and IPA. He also has commanded a pretty spectacular sneaker collection. He updated his look with new glasses and sunglasses. I will have to try to get some cool photos of him.

I continue to run. I am getting faster and stronger, so I am now challenging myself to run at 6.5 as opposed to 6 miles an hour. Kicking it up that much is actually quite an adjustment. Really though, my life is all about the family. That is my job and my hobby and although it can be exhausting at times, it is the best feeling in the world to have a family hug.

We are all excited for the new year and all the wonderful things to come in 2012!!!