The Story of Us

Bradley Wayne Ellis at OneTrueMedia.com

2011-04-15T14:18:00.001-05:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

They just never stop

2011-03-24T09:19:00.003-05:00

With my last blog update taking about a day to fully complete, after posting it I found a few post-it notes around my desk with some one-liners. Here we go....

-The Spouse was trying to talk The Boy into going to the Boat, Sport & Travel Show. I rank this one WORSE than the fair. I mean there are aspects to The Fair that I like, a bit of junk food here or there, maybe a ride or two... but The Boat, Sport & Travel Show is one of my biggest enemies. I used to suck it up and go with him every year, and finally, after birthing two boys, feel I can retire. I mean how many times can you visit Tackle Town? Look through RV's that you not only cannot afford, but do not want? No. I put my foot down this year and said, take these boys. So The Spouse was trying to talk The Boy into it and The Boy knew better. The Spouse says, come on... remember we went last year... they have all that fishing stuff.... As a last resort, and trying to let him down gently, The Boy says, "Dad? I'm not really the fishing type."

-He was wrestling around with his aunt and she said, Man! You're brutal! He came back at her with "I'm a brutal kind of guy."

-He got a huge Nerf gun for Christmas (just what our house needed...) and pelted me with it a zillion times and then said, "I think I've made my point."

-(This one might have already been posted)... His Brother said something and I said, did you hear what your brother just said? He goes, "Yeah.... I got that memo."

-When my sister and her family were here over Christmas, he and Sophie were messing with Papa's ipod. They found something and he says, "I'm SO gonna make that my ringtone."

-His Brother was playing with an astronaut toy that had his hand up in the air. His Brother taps his hand to the toy and goes, "high five!"

-His Brother also dances along with the Wii and knows the words to "Funk Soul Brother" and "Tik Tok." As he was being evaluated for therapy, I had to answer a ton of questions about what he is capable of doing. They asked if, for example, I started singing Twinkle Twinkle, would he sing along? Um.... yes... but he prefers Funk Soul Brother....and a few hits by Ke$ha...

-The Boy was putting his shoes on and struggling. He looks at me and says "LORDY this is hard!!"

And as I was going through old pics, I found this little gem:

And I'm seeing a lot of this lately:

Pray for me.

An update

2011-02-21T13:35:00.005-06:00

So my last post was in November, and it's February. Ooops. March.

I'm sorry. Lots has happened.

We had Thanksgiving in two different places, early with the Bartletts and on Thanksgiving Day with my group, where Big Papa attempted to play Pictionary, and we all got good laughs at his attempts. See below:

Somehow, The Spouse brought home a dog. The conversation went like this. “So N. is here in the office, and she has her dog with her, and she needs to find a new home for him. He’s six years old, well trained, really, a good dog.”

Me: “He’s still a DOG. We can’t change his genetic make up.”

Him: “So I told her we could bring him home, try him out for a few days.”

Me: “So basically, you’re telling me you’re brining home a dog, and we’ll own him.”

Him: “Yes.”

(Insert expletives here). (Expletives continue every time The Dawg gets into the trash, eats something he shouldn’t or jumps on my bed or the couch. It’s a cycle).

And of course The Boy loves The Dawg. He’s a Husky, so he likes to run and dig. And he’s a bazillion pounds and too big of a dog for us to own, but The Boy loves him. He’s run away (The Dawg, not The Boy) more times than I can count, and The Boy of course was heartbroken. But since I’ve learned not to leave doors open, The Spouse learned to buy The Dawg a collar, and The Boy learned to grab that collar every time the door is open, that problem has begun to correct itself.

The Dawg and I are merely roommates. I leave him alone, and he’s constantly in my face or trying to eat my dinner or wanting to go outside. And of course he’s a MALE dog. Just what I needed in our house. Another MALE who NEEDS something from me. It’s kinda like living in a fraternity house, minus a keg of beer and those red drink cups all over the place. But the dirty undies on the floor, messes that need cleaned up, and men everywhere... yeah. It’s the same.

The Boy turned six. He rocked it out at a bowling party with his cousins and friends, and did sweet dance moves every time a pin went down. He’s decided next year that he wants a dance party, with a dance floor and a disco ball. Son, this is a fantastic idea. I’m thinking we make it big, combine it with his brother’s birthday and charge $2 to get in. We’ll make it like a wedding, but no one has to get married.

My Sister and her family came in December, and it was so good to see them! We saw the Titanic Exhibit at the Indiana State Museum, looked through old pictures and played in the snow. We took five kids with us and Aunt Patt, and had an awesome time. Big Papa and Mimi somehow got separated, so we left Mimi in a parking garage, tossed her a few granola bars and a bottle of water and said, Godspeed. We gotta get these brats home. Luckily they were reunited later and were able to argue in the car on the ride home in peace, without grandchildren in earshot.

Olivia had never seen snow before, so it was so fun to see her outside, trying to catch snowflakes on her tongue. She’s a Florida baby, having moved there when she was nine months old, so the whole snow/winter coat/gloves deal is foreign to her. As I was leaving, I told someone to go get Liv - it had started snowing. Our Florida Baby comes out in jammies and bare feet, but did remember her coat. She’s learning what it’s like here in the Midwest.

We had an early Christmas at Matt’s house and Santa came. As a small gesture of our appreciation for Santa coming, we bought him a bottle of good vodka. As Matt went to wrap it, it crashed on the garage floor. A quick run to CVS (actually, two, as I got there first and realized I didn’t have my purse) and the crisis was averted. Teamwork, Matty... Teamwork.

Christmas came and went. Santa brought too much stuff and was up too late wrapping, but the boys were happy and Santa went broke. The usual. But then....

The Boy left for an entire week to go snow boarding with his grandparents. One week of me at home with only one child, him gone to Colorado, shredding the rockies. He had a blast, wants me to build a half pipe in the backyard and is already making plans for next year. After googling halfpipe, I kindly axed his idea. But he had a great time and I missed him and his one-liners to pieces.

On to January - New Years was uneventful and then His Brother turned TWO. HOW can I have a two year old already?! He’s a walking and talking fool and is starting to become familiar with “being in a corner.” He has spent his share of time there for hitting me, telling me or The Spouse no and arguing with his brother. He’s getting the idea. It’s hard for me to remember what its like to have a two year old in the house. It’s SLOWLY coming back to me. Good times.

February... oh how I’m glad you are in my past. We’ve had our share of snow and ice this winter and were forced to spend a few days in the house - cabin fever set in big time for all of us. I really thought by the third day, if I had to play one more game of Wii I might hang myself with the controller cord. But we survived. By Thursday of “Snowpacylpse 2011" I decided I was coming to work no matter what. So what if I had to take a hair dryer to my car doors and drive 12 miles per hour to get there? With The Boy in tow? It was worth it.

And now March. Spring is in the air and we’re slowly getting outside and dragging out bikes and skateboards and nerf guns.

And a blog update wouldn’t be an update without a few one-liners from not only The Boy, but His Brother.

-His Brother has started to recognize certain places and loves to go to Applebee’s. I asked him if he wanted more applesauce, and he said, “more Applebee’s sauce?” He also points out the window to “Shake and Shake.”

-The boys spent the night with Mimi and Papa and The Boy was playing video games with Papa. Papa said, you know, sometimes I have a really hard time with this level. The Boy says, “Welcome to my world.”

-Also while playing video games, he grabbed the controller from Papa and said, “Here. Watch the professional.”

-His Brother is very good with manners. I handed him part of a bagel and he said, “Fank you Momma.” I said, you’re welcome Buddy... he looks at the bagel and said, “Fank you, bagel.”

-The Boy was driving His Brother crazy by chasing him with a remote control car. His Brother hollers at the car and says, “NO! SIT! STAY!”

I’ll try to be better about updating the blog.... but his workin’ momma has her hands full!

Fall and Halloween 2010

2010-11-03T08:33:00.002-05:00

I've got blogger's block. Somehow, I'm not coming up with words very easily, so I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Here's Halloween:

Here's some more fun at Holiday Park:

More to come. As soon as I find some words.

Big Papa's Day Care

2010-11-03T08:32:00.001-05:00

My cousin Katie runs a daycare out of my Aunt Patty’s house. His Brother is a student there.

God love that girl. How she takes 5 kids (ranging in age from 4 months to 3 ½ roughly) and entertains them all day without pulling her hair out is a mystery to me, but she does, and she’s good at it. The kids just adore her. Actually, her sister got married recently and Katie was Matron of Honor. We were in the second row at a beautiful outdoor wedding, and as His Brother saw Katie and could NOT stop hollering, “HI KAY-EE! HI PADDDEEE! KAY-EE? KAY-EE!!!” so much to the point that we had to remove ourselves from our perfect seats and enjoy the rest of the wedding standing in the back, trying to prevent His Brother from running up the aisle and jumping in Katie’s arms, as she’s trying to straighten her sister’s bridal gown.

Anyway, poor Katie was down for the count. In the hospital with viral meningitis, and her kids are missing her. So as we prayed for a speedy recovery, we all made other day care arrangements.

Big Papa was on duty for two days this week. As he says, he’s “cockpit qualified” to watch an almost 2-year-old for a few hours. After five younger siblings, three kids of his own and with His Brother being the sixth grandchild, Big Papa knows the deal.

I think the two enjoyed the two days together. And Big Papa even sent me this picture to my phone.

Don’t worry though, Katie... Papa’s not getting his day care license anytime soon. Luckily she’s on the mend, so Papa can get back to doing his crossword puzzles and taking walks around the block. It’s tough to be retired...

Making good memories

2010-09-21T10:44:00.001-05:00

Took the kids to Holiday Park on Kyle’s day off this week. Nothing like pushing a 20 pound kid in a stroller through rough terrain. The Boy had a blast and was so worn out! MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

Of course I’m not in the picture.

There was a shallow rocky area where people were wading in the water and letting their dogs play in it. The Boy wanted to partake.

His Brother did this, as he usually does.

The best part? We were sitting down taking a breather and we asked The Boy if he had fun.

And his response?

“We made good memories, kids.”

Yeah. We did.

In other news, His Brother is a walking FOOL. Still doing therapy to strengthen him up, but he walks constantly and is into The Boy’s things, as we predicted. We love watching them argue!! The other day The Boy took something from him, and His Brother slammed the door in retaliation. Great. Let the fun begin. And, looks like His Brother will be pulling out the one-liners just like The Boy.

Just today, we’re in the car and I hear this:

“Urp (fake burp). Suze me.”

Pray for me.

This and That....

2010-08-27T12:44:00.003-05:00

More one-liners from our favorite five year old:

-while doing something, told Kyle, "Don't worry dad, I got this."

-Kyle was playing a DS game and couldn't get past one part. The Boy grabs the game and says, "Here. Watch me. Watch the master."

-We were talking about how God makes all kinds of people - some might wear glasses, some have a different skin color than we do, someone might use a wheelchair. He mentioned that his buddy M at school had darker skin and I said, that is because M is Indian. Not like feathers and a teepee, but a different kind of Indian. He got quiet and goes, "Mom, if M is Indian, I'm gonna FREAK."

-Told my cousin Jennifer: "Petsmart is going to start selling tarantulas and scorpions. Everyone is FREAKING out."

-His Brother only recently started walking on his own. The Boy's best pal, Big G, has a sister younger than His Brother who is already walking. Big G asked The Boy why His Brother wasn't walking. The Boy says, "Because he has to get therapy with First Steps, OKAY?"

-If he's not sure of something, will tell me "to Google it."

-On the way to school, we'd always notice telephone lines with birds all lined up on them. We make up stories about how they are having meetings where they talk about bird stuff. Once there weren't a lot of birds and I said, maybe he went to get more coffee and donuts for the meeting. The Boy says, "yeah... coffee, regular and decaf..."

-I sent them to their grandparents for an overnight. Kyle was working so I'd have time to myself (AHHHHH.......) He said, "What are you going to do tonight? You clockin' out?"

-I said, "NATHAN. Come here. NOW." His Brother repeats "NOW." The Boy responds with "SHUT UP DYLAN!"

-I mentioned something to him and he goes, "Yeah... you owe me one."

-We were stuck in traffic on the way to school... under my breath, I said, "this is freaking ridiculous." The Boy say, "I'll tell you what's freaking ridiculous... YOU'RE freaking ridiculous..."

On another note...I've been into reading blogs lately. Hopping around, finding people who have things in common with me and blogs that are much richer in content than simply an online scrapbook of their lives. By doing so, I've realized that it might be very easy to look at this blog and think, "oh look... the Bartlett family went to the Children's Museum... how nice...."

Its not all sunshine and rainbows over here.

And if you know us at all, you know this to be true. We've had our share of ups and downs. And some really bad downs. And we're not the freaking Cleavers. I'm not wearing an apron and baking cookies. We're not all reading scripture at night and singing kumbaya together.

I guess I don't blog about the downers because, well, who wants to read them? Do you want to read about how our Easter eggs caught on fire? How, my third day at my new job in Chicago, I broke my foot? Just by walking? How I ran over something with my car and punctured the gas tank, causing $1,400 in repairs? Hell no you don't. I don't want to relive it, that's for sure.

But I need to start keeping it real.

So please don't read this and think that our lives are just happy and full of sunshine and oh aren't their kids cute and well would you look at that... The Boy started kindergarten...It can be misleading. So this blog, it might start becoming a little more honest. I don't want to use it as a facade to what is really going on in our lives.

And this is MY blog. I created it. It's my little piece of the internet. And how many times do I have to tell you, you're not the boss of me.

I want to remember it all, and I want to read older posts and remember it as it really was.

And here's a picture, just for the hell of it.

State Fair 2010

2010-08-17T13:18:00.006-05:00

The Fair.

Sigh.

Its an Indiana thing. You gotta go to the Fair. In August. And its going to be hot. You will eat junk food, walk through animal barns, spend some money, and leave with an overstuffed and overpriced toy that you didn’t really want, but your kid did, and everyone will then go home and take showers and talk about how much fun the fair was.

And yes, The Spouse looked at quilts. This year, I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking...

Look at The Boy. God love him. He’s trying. He’s trying to like the quilts, dad.

Yep. That’s right. Two pictures with the state’s largest stalk of corn. Because one is not enough.

And the pictures below... they make me laugh. It’s the same building the quilts are in, but I have no idea what this display is, only that it was boring and stupid and Kyle liked it. So here he is, with The Boy, looking at something dumb.

And then this guy, he was GOING to look at the stupid display, then realized it was stupid, and reconsidered:

Now, the animals:

That is a hissing cockroach. I’m sorry, but I have a problem with these two words alone, and then putting them together gives me the heebie jeebies. First, it is a cockroach. Creepy. Not only is it a cockroach, it hisses at you. No thanks. Right now I am doing that noise that Clark Griswold did when they realized Aunt Edna was dead and they had been driving to Wally World with a dead body in the car.

Now, the food...

Kyle was SO mad that the lamb burger tent was no longer. So he went to the place where it is usually located and goes, “where’s the lamb tent?” The guy goes, “Hell if I know, I’m from Florida.” He settled for another lamb entree after shedding a few tears.

This was The Boy’s absolute favorite thing about the fair. A huge ship made out of legos...

His Brother spent most of his time doing this:

I do have to say, The Boy and I enjoyed learning about bees. We found the queen and he asked the guy all kinds of questions. Honey ice cream was had by all.

Ball State University class of 2022 and 2026

And we did spend money and The Boy won a stuffed Spongebob guy wearing a swimsuit and flip flops. He has slept with him ever since, so it was money well spent.

Lastly, SOMEHOW, I was talked into going on this ride. The sign said “no single riders” and Kyle really wanted to go. It was either ride with a stranger or...Yeah. So, we ~~left the kids with a shady looking carnie~~ met a friend there who kindly watched the boys so I could almost die. The best part is that, while we’re sitting there waiting for them to get everyone in, a carnie has a screwdriver in his hand and is trying to fix something. AND WE STILL WENT ON THIS RIDE. It went in a circle, back and forth, then all the way upside down. I went back and forth between thinking I would die, thinking it was the best time of my life, and then thinking, perhaps I need to expand my social horizons if I think that a ride called “Firestorm” is this fun.

So that’s it. The Indiana State Fair once again. Of course, he’s trying to talk me into going AGAIN. I’m sure the quilts have changed since last week, right?

Kindergarten.

2010-08-17T08:22:00.005-05:00

Look who started Kindergarten.

As I dropped him off, I surprised myself by getting choked up as I walked down the hall and back to my car. KINDERGARTEN. This is big time. And I was flooded with memories of his babyhood, of the milestones he's conquered and how maybe, just maybe, Kyle and I were a small part of his successes so far.

I couldn't wait to hear about his day, what all he did and how it all went.

"It was fine," he said. "I played with Reed. The work was easy and we had fish sticks for lunch."

That was all I got. That's how it is with boys. Any of my five nieces would have given me every detail, who wore what, what everyone's first and last names were and what kind of pencil box they had. The Boy? "We had fish sticks for lunch."

That's okay. I'll take it. I'm glad he's comfortable and likes school.

Hope it stays that way.

And a little look back on his growing up:

Fun in the snow - 2007

First Birthday... look at us. So clueless on this parenthood thing.

A few months old.

Us in 2005.

First day of school, fall, 2006.

Helping Hand makes Headlines... Again!

2010-07-27T07:50:00.004-05:00

AWESOME.

Sorry for the fine print... LINK coming soon!!

Summah Tahm.....

2010-07-20T09:55:00.004-05:00

I know. I KNOW. The blog is behind. What else is new. But its summer, and my time behind a computer is limited. We're outside, we're in the pool, we're not hunkered down and hibernating like we do in the winter. See?

And here is His Brother, peeking out the window for The Boy. He doesn't like to be separated from him.

SO until I get my computer back from the kind folks at Net Xcellence (I get 30% off my bill for letting them advertise here....) here are a few one-liners. More to come, I promise, including July Fourth, a weekend getaway to the big city, and a walk in the rain. Exciting stuff, I know.

-He was cold. Asked me to warm up the car. I said I would, and got, “Okay. Go warm that baby up.”

-I said something about His Brother. He goes, “You mean Fatty McGee?”

-I told him I had to take His Brother to the doctor. He goes, “Because he’s such a pig?” No, son. That’s not an official diagnosis.

-On the Fourth of July, fireworks were still going off around 11 p.m. The Boy says, “That has GOT to STOP. Don’t they know we’ve got a BABY trying to sleep?”

-Grandpa was playing legos with him. The Boy says, “Grandpa, JUST SO YOU KNOW, not all of these are legos. Just so you know.”

-He is always curious about the weather. They talk about it at school and have someone is the weather watcher every day. He came in my room to tell me, “Mom, tomorrow its gonna be 94 in Terre Hope.”

-I mentioned something to him and he responded with “Yeah? Good luck with that.”

-And if this one isn’t proof that he’s my son, I don’t know what could prove it. Grandma and I were playing ping pong. He hollers: “Now.... from the east.... over here.... GRANDMAAAAAW BARTLETT!!!!” (Then, pointing to me) “AAAAAND.... over here... from the west....we’ve got.... MOMMMAAAA BARTLETT!!!!”

-He’s been reading to His Brother at night, which is a cool thing to watch. It gives him the time to practice his reading, and His Brother will listen to anything The Boy says. He reads these little books he gets at school and he’s supposed to color each page of the story. One page wasn’t colored and I asked why it wasn’t colored. He goes, “Meh... I don’t know... I was probably jacking around.”

-He’s just getting over strep throat and informed me that he puked. I thought it was current, turns out, he had puked the night before. So I said, wait... you just got up and puked in the night and didn’t tell anyone? He goes, “I got up, puked, and moved on with my life.”

-And this one... yes, this will earn me Mother of the Year: He was telling me about how, when some kids lose their teeth, they have to ask their Dad to help pull them. “But I didn’t have to do that, Mom. I did it myself. I kinda screwed Daddy on that.” Son, don’t say screwed. Just kind of overall... not a nice word to use. Sigh.

News on His Brother - approaching 18 months and still not walking. Through the beauty of First Steps, he’s been evaluated for therapy and will start soon. In the meantime, we’re working with him and he’s made a lot of progress! Really, we’re forcing him to walk and he’s getting much stronger.

So, I’m sure it won’t take much time at all for him to be getting into The Boy’s things. When that happens, I’m expecting this brotherly love I currently see between the two of them to perhaps go south. We’ll see.

Cast AWAY

2010-06-04T11:41:00.001-05:00

Two weeks in a fiberglass cast was enough for me.

Well, make that one week. One week for the first cast. See, turns out you’re NOT supposed to stick things down there in the event it itches. The Doc kind of frowns on that. So let’s say your leg is itching and you stick, I don’t know, a mixing spoon down there. Now you got yourself a problem because all of the gauze is bunched up and pulled away from the casting, and then the ortho nurse and cast tech laugh when they take off your cast and see what you have done, creating indentations into your skin and effecting your circulation. So that first cast came off, and a new one went on.

And another week on crutches with the new one, and this week I sweet talked the doctor into putting me back in my walking boot. Really, just out of convenience. It’s too hard for me to take a bath, be with the kids on crutches and generally just live my life. So the boot is back, and I have to say, I am thankful.

Four weeks in this plastic thing and I’m planning to be back to my old self, and auditioning for Dancing with the Stars.

And in the time I’ve been down, I’ve learned to SLOW DOWN. I move to fast and to be incapacitated forces you to take a break, not accomplish 42 things in one minute and ask for help when you need it. But what can I say? I’m a wife/mom/daughter/sister/friend/neighbor et al. That’s how I roll. Too many things to do, and there is no time for broken bones.

So one surgery with one plate, five screws, two casts and one walking boot later, on June 30 I will be doing cartwheels in my front yard, celebrating my good health.

And hopefully, I won’t slip.

Memorial Day 2010

2010-06-04T11:06:00.005-05:00

It was hot. We listened to the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, grilled out, swam at the pool (well, I sat by the pool) and took a boat ride.

The Boy had his own private pool and nearby cabana. (Note: the sign says, “no girls allowed.”)

Then later, he made an exception.

("My mom is the only one" complete with a photo of me)
Mimi made snowcones.

His brother experienced the heat of summer with his head full of curls, and I couldn’t help but try out pigtails on my beautiful baby boy.

And he’ll kill me for this one day, but I’m okay with that.

Motherhood

2010-05-13T15:11:00.004-05:00

This year's mother's day started out nice. I was invited by the Boy to attend Muffins with Mom at school. Now last year, I was downright giddy for this event. Got all dressed up, had the camera ready to go, let my office know I'd be late coming in because I had an event at school. With my SON. For MOTHER'S DAY. I was about to be honored and this event could not be missed.

So last year we got there and I went to get some juice, and he looked around, saw his buddies playing and said six little words.

"You can go to work now," he announced.

Sigh. So I took a muffin with me, shoved it in my purse next to my camera, which went untouched.

So this year I didn't think much of Muffins with Mom, because obviously The Boy was too cool for me. I'd drop him off and move on with my day. But his teacher, knowing my heartbreak last year, talked it up, and we enjoyed a nice breakfast together and even caught a picture (photo courtesy of Miss Katie, who knew my feelings were at stake here).
Mother's Day, 2010. The Boy, age 5, Momma, age unknown.

So we were off to a good start. We celebrated Mother's Day on Saturday because Kyle had to work on Sunday. We had a chilly baseball game where I saw The Boy make several good hits, a few good catches and run like the wind. (Never mind that at one point, I was watching him at bat, and my mother-in-law says, "OH MY GOD! DYLAN IS ON THE FIELD!" He had escaped to the third baseline. I grabbed him and said, "NOW WHERE IS HIS MOTHER?" and lurked back to my lawn chair). I received two very sweet cards from three very special men in my life, and we decided for Mother's Day I'd go pick out some flowers to plant, but with the weather being chilly, we tabled it for another weekend.

So on Sunday, I was on my own with the two boys. The weather was beautiful and I had a list of things to accomplish, which was fine with me, because putting lines through items on a to do list brings me great happiness. And one of those items is mowing the lawn. The Boy was busy with sidewalk chalk and bubbles, while His Brother sat in his exersaucer in the driveway and played.

Two strips of the lawn mowed.... ah.... immediate gratification.

And then I slipped. Let go of the mower, heard something snap,and fell on my keester.

My dear friends Suzanne and Drew were on their way over anyway and pulled up to me laying in my front yard. It was decided that Drew and I would go to the ER while Suzanne and Max stayed with my boys.

The Boy and Max played while Suzanne put His Brother down and waited on news from us.

Three hours and three x-rays later, a broken ankle, walking boot, grass stains up my back and behind, clipped grass on the hospital bed and in Suzanne's car, and now, after an ortho visit, surgery scheduled for next week.

All in the name of marking things off my to do list.

And while we were at the ER, Drew and I were passing the time. He has a trivia app. on his phone.

Wouldn't you know it.

Shopping

2010-05-13T13:05:00.004-05:00

Ahhh... The Boy.

Usually when we shop and I have both monkeys with me, I get one of those enormous carts with the two seats in it, so everyone is strapped in and there is no funny business. I want to get in and out and its hard enough with His Brother seeing all this food and The Boy asking if we can buy this and that...

The thing is like driving a semi through my one car detached garage. Anyway.

So recently we went and they were out of the big carts which meant I had to use a regular one. The Boy complains about not wanting to sit in the "big part" and wants to sit in the little part. No dice... where will I put your brother? "You can just hold him!" Sigh... so finally I said, you're 85 years old, you can walk. I have to put your brother in the small part because he can't walk.

This of course resulted in whining, PA-LEEZE can I ride in the cart... FINALLY I said, no, but do you want to take pictures on my phone?

He went for it. So, I present to you, a trip to the grocery through The Boy's eyes.

A nice shot of my rear.

His Brother in the coveted part of the cart. Note me inspecting something to the right.

How about some bagels?

The aisle.

The parking lot.

Let me know if you'd like an 8x10.

2010-05-12T12:01:00.001-05:00

More from The Boy

2010-04-30T14:45:00.004-05:00

I have a post-it that is running out of room with The Boy's one liners, so I need to get them up here before it gets lost or tossed out. Plus I'm cleaning up my desk and marking things off my to-do list, and "update blog" is just begging to get a red line through it...

-Out of nowhere: "Mom, are you lactose intolerant?" What? No, son... I'm not. Do you know what that means? "I am, every time I drink milk my tummy gets upset." Apparently, he's a doctor now.

-Again out of nowhere: "Mom I won't be home until late tonight. I have a secret spy club meeting." Me: (and I always go along with stuff like this....) "Oh... okay... what time? Do you need me to take you?" The Boy: "No, I'll just take my jet pack."

-I was singing the SpongeBob song in the car. The Boy: "Momma, you're going to Hollywood."

-list of words I don't want him to ever correct: heartbeep, police oppa-sirs, pree-sun (capri-sun), swim soup.

-Every now and then, we have a slight problem with, well, his hand in his drawers. I called him Al Bundy and said, Al get your hand out of there. The Boy: "So a fat lady walks into the shoe store..." Trust me, his father paid dearly for that one.

-Playing his DS.... hollers "HOW DO YA LIKE ME NOW...." after beating some guy.

-I was cleaning Lenny's tank and he hopped out. I said Nathan come here! Lenny got out! He saw him on the floor and goes, "What the hell do we do?!"

-We were late to school and I apologized to his teacher. The Boy tells her, "Traffic on 465."

-Easter 2010 (more on that in a later post....) I showed him what The Bunny got His Brother - a few new sippy cups and a new toy since, well, he's a baby. The Boy studies it and goes, "That looks lame."

-I was sitting on the floor and he was hanging around my shoulders. Starts rubbing them and says "You seem tense."

-He was telling me how you can hook your Nintendo DS up with a friend and he goes, "Then you are neck-ted..." (connected)

-He was brushing his teeth and I walked into the bathroom and he turns around and says, "Do you mind?"

-He was home with His Father. I said, can I talk to Dad? He goes, he's not here... and I heard Kyle say something. The Boy says, "That wasn't him. That was Lenny. I taught him how to talk."

-AND... figured out how to rent movies from On Demand. Hit the remote, went to "on demand," then kids/family category, Alvin and thte Chipmunks, "Do you want to rent for $5?" hits OKAY.... this went on for at least a week. A code has now been put on the remote!

-(my favorite) I've been trying to be better at reading to Dylan at night and now The Boy wants to read to him. Perfect practice for him and Dylan loves it. So he opens up one of his books, reads it and then holds up the picture, does a semi circle around the room so we can all see the pictures. Love that kid.

Here's to you, men in blue...

2010-04-30T14:42:00.003-05:00

Baseball has started up again. And when the coach said, "Is it okay if he plays on the Cubs team?" I thought The Boy might cry he was so excited. And The Boy's father is excited too. Hats and t-shirts for all. His Brother and I sat on the (insert appropriate word here...sidelines? what do you say about baseball? grass? outfield?) and watched them get back into the game. And afterward...

That's one tired player, right there.

Walkin?

2010-04-29T13:09:00.003-05:00

Nope. Not yet. Part of me worries that he isn't, and part of me is thankful that he's not into The Boy's stuff. Yet, at least...

Holden's Christening

2010-03-23T09:24:00.005-05:00

Guess what? I'm behind. As usual. But our ONE and ONLY nephew, Holden James, was christened in February and yours truly was honored to be his godmother. FINALLY a post with my picture in it! Here he is with his parents and godparents.

Chris and I holding Holden James Costlow

Holden, Jerry, me, Heather, Chris (back) Mark

Holden with his godparents

Holden James, welcome to your spiritual journey. I am honored to guide you on your way. You are a blessing to his family! Love, Emmy xoxo

Gordon

2010-03-10T11:48:00.002-06:00

This poor guy is in a daycare full of girls. He doesn't mind it though, aside from the occassional hair clip in his hair or boa around his shoulders. His nickname is "Heffner" or "Heff," since he's the only male around the joint for the day.

So, he sees the little girls play with the kitchen and play baby dolls, and that is his favorite. Meet Gordon, His Brother's new friend.

Poor Baby Brother

2010-03-09T10:54:00.003-06:00

This guy, like his big brother, has suffered from chronic ear infections since he was about 6 months old. So after 10 or 12, or however many we had or however many nights we were up with a screaming child, he got tubes put in a few weeks ago. We're happy to report that so far they are working! He was a little nervous about the procedure...

But after we got home, got something on his stomach and had a nice nap, he was back to his old self...

New Family Members

2010-03-09T10:52:00.001-06:00

So with the unfortunate passing of James, I had the whole death speech prepared. I figured I’d get lots of questions about death and what happens when pets die. So I had it all ironed out, ready to explain about God’s big ocean in the sky, where James was enjoying eternal life up there and meeting new friends, and a speech about Heaven and how nice it is. Instead it went like this:

Me: Boy, I have some news for you.
Boy: Mom, James died.
Me: I know. I’m sorry he died... (prepping for speech)
Boy: Can Dad get me a new fish tomorrow at Petsmart? I want a frog too.
Me: Um... sure. (abort death speech)

So, although James will live forever in our hearts, his tank has new occupants now. Two fish, one frog, and four shrimp that are so hard to see I’m afraid to clean the tank for fear of pouring them down the drain. Of course The Boy was all over names. One morning I was brushing my teeth and we were talking about the new gang before Dad brought them home.

Boy: I gotta think of names before Dad comes home with my fish.
Me: I know! Any ideas?
Boy: I don’t know... I have to think. (Leaves the room)
(Three seconds later)
Boy: Edward and Ted.
Me: Sounds good.

Then with the addition of the frog, he realized he was short one name. So Dad brought them all home and we watched them in the tank. The Boy realized he didn’t have a name for the frog. In two seconds, he goes, “Lenny.”

So, please meed Edward, Ted and Lenny. Special precautions have been taken to avoid another brutal attack on them like James had to experience.

James Bartlett 2009-2010

2010-03-08T13:42:00.003-06:00

James Bartlett, age 6 months, Avon, went home to Glory on February 22, 2010.

James is survived by his primary caretaker ~~the writer of this blog~~ Nathan Bartlett, and two sisters, Lola and Georgia Bartlett.

James was adopted from the Petsmart in Avon and adjusted quickly to his new tank, surviving a brutal attack from his sisters and rallying back around. His strength was admired by all.

Services were held in the Bartlett Family bathroom.

Momma's Getaway

2010-03-02T15:23:00.004-06:00

We took a little trip up north to get away for a bit. Yes, it was a lot of work, and yes, we drove hours in blowing snow to get there, damn near hit two deer on the way, had a scare from Suzanne's mom calling as we hit Kokomo, but we MADE IT, kids, we made it. And when we arrived, the moose out front DIDN'T tell us the park was closed for two weeks. It was nice to get away, spend some time somewhere different and lay around in our pajamas for two days! And no spouses were invited! YAY! While we were there, Max loved pulling His Brother around in his wagon, even saying, "I'm going to ask Dylan if he wants a ride." A recap of the weekend's events will follow later, but wanted to get this video up in the meantime....

Look what ELSE I can do.

2010-03-02T15:13:00.005-06:00

We took a little mom's getaway (kids included) to a lake house (shout out to Suzanne, Andrew, Nancy, Papa Joe...Grams, Jack, the whole northern gang) for a change of scenery. More to post on that in a bit, but while we were there, look what His Brother figured out how to do. And then when he got to the top, he was mad there weren't any more! And he says "AHP!" (up!)

*no children were harmed during the making of this video. Suzanne is one step behind him to catch him if necessary!

Look what I can do!

2010-03-02T15:10:00.002-06:00

In a day care full of girls, we figure he's been working on this one for awhile. Also, his other new word is "Don't."

Guess who is ONE?!

2010-01-28T15:00:00.003-06:00

Hard to believe it's been ONE year. This guy is the best. Such a good boy (a momma's boy... and I'm okay with that) and a real angel to our family. Happy Birthday to our Dylan Timothy Bartlett!

Two of his biggest fans!!

I'm wondering about a first haircut. Part of me is ready, the other part of me isn't ready to say goodbye to his baby-ness. These curls, included.

Children's Museum

2010-01-28T14:51:00.006-06:00

We got a pass for Christmas and it has already paid for itself. The Boy runs up and down the ramps (wearing himself out... WOOO HOOOO) and I push His Brother in the stroller. And to top it off? A Star Wars exhibit. I mean, its one step away from Heaven.

The Boy wanted me to take a picture of him with every Star Wars guy. They were all the same to me.

Notice I am not in any of these pictures. Does anyone ever say, here Momma, let me get a picture of you and the boys.... no. I'm the one making memories. They'll thank me some day, but if I ever die, there will be no pictures to post at my funeral!!
I have no idea who this guy is. I called him Chewbacca and was reprimanded by everyone.

And being the mother of boys, I am asked to take photographs like this one. Who wants an 8x10? Wallets?

This is all this guy does. He loves it.

No one wanted to go to the Barbie exhibit with me. Well guess what? He's too young to say no. He's my favorite...

One of his favorites. He probably spent an hour doing this.

More trips to the CM to come. Maybe, I'll get a photograph of myself there. Just maybe.

Update

2010-01-28T14:41:00.002-06:00

Sorry for the delay. Actually, I'm not. Who am I apologizing to? The four readers I have? It's my blog. You're not the boss of me.

We had a whirlwind of Thanksgiving, Christmas, The Boy's Fifth Birthday, His Brother's First Birthday, and some stuff in between. Here are a few one liners to keep you entertained until I get pictures downloaded.

-The Boy handed me something and said, "Can you hold this? Like, sometime today?"

-We were watching American Idol. The Boy looks at me and goes, "He’s not going to Hollywood."

-His Brother is a crawling fool and I have to tell The boy 42 times a day to pick up his stuff. His Brother crawled over to me and handed me a lego man. I said, Natey, look what Dylan has. The Boy looks up and says, "eh...he can have it, I don’t care about that guy."

-He loves his new Nintendo DS from Santa. He was telling me all about it and goes, "That’s a bad guy, he’s got to stand in front of the judge."

-Whenever we see traffic, he points at people sitting in line and goes, "SUCKAS!!!"

-He was telling Kyle about how he's watching alot of TV at school. Kyle started asking questions because considering what we pay that joint every month, he shouldn't really be sitting around, watching Montel. He confessed that he's sneaking out of class to watch his shows, because he doesn't want to miss any of them. "Dad, there is this room with TV's that the teachers use and I watch my shows in there. But don’t tell anyone, I haven’t gotten caught yet.” We don't know which is more concerning - that he's sneaking out of Pre-K, that he's sneaking out to watch TV, or that he knows he might get caught, and he's okay with any repercussions.

-At Christmastime, he made reindeer food. We sprinkled it outside on Christmas Eve and he goes, "Mom, put the reindeer food in the street, I don’t want any reindeer poop in our front yard." (and hypothetically, let's say that happened. As if I'd say, "BOY! Get out here and clean up that reindeer poop!")

-While we were sprinkling the reindeer food (in the street), the wind blew. The boy hollers, "that’s santa’s magic! I gotta get to bed!"

-We took a trip to the CHildren's Musuem (pics to come). I wanted to see the Barbie exhibit. I said, who is coming with me? He looks back at me and gives me a thumbs down. Keeps walking.

-This came out of nowhere: “Who wants a knuckle sandwich? Because I'm ABOUT to deliver.”

-to Kyle:“Dad? What’s with you eating on the bed?”

And by the way, he has decided he wants to be called Bucky. Not sure why, but we're going with it. For today at least...

I have an idea...

2010-01-28T14:39:00.001-06:00

How about we update the blog?

Nah, I gotta read the paper.

The Sickies

2009-12-31T09:43:00.005-06:00

We've had sickness flying around our house at one point or another. If its not an ear infection, someone's puking or running a fever.

The Boy wasn't feeling well a few weeks ago and hollered "MOM! I've got a real problem here!" and I ran into the living room and he puked on the floor. Poor guy. He's on the road to better health now though.

And last night I dealt with this from His Brother:

He's fighting double ear infections, on his second antibiotic for that and also fighting something called Roseola. Apparently its an extremely high fever for serveral days followed by a rash. But he's holding his own and we're pushing fluids and doing the Tylenol/Motrin combo. He got a new sippy cup from Santa - and it's helping.

Pray for good health in 2010. This group needs it!

New toys

2009-12-31T09:34:00.003-06:00

Spent four zillion dollars on Christmas and he's playing with a paper bag. Happy Holidays, Son.

Pray for us.

2009-12-04T13:44:00.002-06:00

Funny Stuff.

2009-12-04T13:24:00.001-06:00

Sorry this is sideways... but its the sound that counts :)

Jumpin...

2009-12-04T13:20:00.001-06:00

Sorry for the Silence

2009-12-01T11:10:00.003-06:00

I thought we'd be busy after having a second child. I thought the busy days would be when we were going without sleep and making bottles and managing a four year old.

I was wrong. The busy days are now.

So I'm sorry for the silence, and I have about 327 blog posts to put up, and I will get to it. Until I can get pictures downloaded, here is a list of the most recent one-liners from The Boy:

-We were shopping at Walmart and he was trying to pick out a toy. Kyle was taking him up and down the toy aisles to pick something out, saying “Well here’s a spider man thing, what about a Hot Wheels? Here’s a monster truck...” The Boy mentioned that it was a hard decision. Kyle said I know Buddy, but we have to pick out something... finally The Boy says, “Screw it. I’ll just get Hot Wheels.”

-I stopped at a market and got fresh strawberries and was telling him that a farmer in Indiana grew them. I asked him what he thought. He chewed for a second and said, “They just taste ordinary.”

-He was telling me they were learning about Johnny Appleseed. I said, that sounds cool, what did he do? The Boy says, “He grew apples. What do you THINK he did?”

-After giving His Brother solid food, he snacks on Cheerios every now and then. The Boy asked what they were and if he could have one. I said sure and he said, “Dad, you can have one too. Don’t worry, you won’t turn into a baby if you eat them.”

-When leaving the house in the mornings I make sure all of the lights are off before we leave the door and he goes, “Don’t worry, I’ve turned on my night vision.”

-I asked him what he had for lunch and he said, “Meatloaf, Beatloaf.” (From Christmas Story)

-We arrived somewhere, pulled in and he goes, “We’re here, kids.”

-He’s struggling with sitting still through church, which is easily understood when you’re almost five. I had His Brother in his seat and once church was over, The Boy turns to me and points to His Brother and says, “Church is over, can I irritate him now?”

-One morning we were running very late. I mean, we’re hustling to get out the door, I’m hollering at him to find his shoes, I’m digging around for car keys. Finally I said, okay let’s go, and he backs up, holds his hand out to the front door and says, “Ladies FIRST.”

-We took a trip to Brown County and went to the state park. I had His Brother in the stroller and he dropped his toy. I brushed it off and handed it back to him and The Boy says, “Aren’t you going to rinse that off?”

-They have a project at school where if they read five books, they get a free kids meal. He said, “If I read five books, I get a kids meal at Raviolis.” (Fazolis)

-Every now and then I bring him a prize from work. A piece of candy or something from the vending machine. I forgot one day and he goes, “I am so APPOINTED at you.”

-He was darting through the house without any clothes on and Kyle said, “I see your booty!” he goes, “Don’t any body be getting any funny ideas!!!”

-He’s a real bear to get up in the mornings. Finally I got him up and he’s moseying into the bathroom, eyes barely open, eyebrows furrowed. He looks at me and goes, “Why you gotta be so bossy at me?!?”

-His Brother is at that age where he rolls all over and is hard to change and dress. I keep telling him no, no no Dylan, Dylan no no... and The Boy says, “Dylan, Santa’s watching you.”

Update on us:

The Boy: Lost FOUR teeth, getting ready to turn five, excited for Christmas, loves things that make noise like Star Wars and cars that crash.

His Brother: Has six teeth, hollers Momma, Da Da, Uh Oh, and if you say, “How does a clock go?” he clicks his mouth. Crawling and trying to lift his knees to get around faster.

So that’s the latest. More “older” postings to come.

Our first nephew!

2009-09-28T12:32:00.003-05:00

Catey Noel Costlow is a big sister! Meet:

Holden James Costlow
born September 26, 2009
7 pounds, 14 ounces, 20 inches

Our first nephew and The Boy and His Brother's only BOY Cousin! Congrats to Heather, Mark and Catey. Holden is a cutie and we are so glad everyone is doing well. Holden, we have lots of Thomas Trains and hot wheel cars to play with at our house!

*note: to our knowledge, Holden was not named after James Bartlett, our fish.

*note: total time from water breaking to birth was four hours. As a result, I will no longer be speaking to Heather Costlow, as my births take about four days. Heather, it was nice knowing you.

And to compare, here's Catey's newborn picture.

A Note from His Brother

2009-09-22T10:49:00.004-05:00

To our blog readers:

Normally I don’t get a chance to write on the blog. My mom hogs it and is always at the computer. Between her and The Boy wanting to get on that thing, I very rarely get a chance to get my thoughts down. Well, that and I can’t type. Or spell.

Or speak, really, but still.

Let me just say, I am sorry to report that my first posting on this blog will be that of disappointment in you, my readers.

You’ve read on this blog the trials and tribulations of this family... their time in Chicago, my impending arrival and my first smile. You’ve heard the funny things The Boy has said and what it is like to live in our home. As such, I would expect you all to, well... I guess the word is “like” us, as you come to the blog voluntarily, so you must care enough about me and The Boy to see what we are up to.

How is it, then, that you could hold out on me? Hold out valuable information that would change my life? My world? But, as good as this information is, I will let my disappointment fade, as I enjoy this newfound bliss.

I am speaking of food.

REAL food.

Not made by Gerber or those folks at Similac. I’m talking the real deal. The same stuff The Boy eats. And I KNOW it’s the same stuff The Boy eats. I’ve seen him and wondered for months what he was doing.

This, my friends, is a little piece of heaven. I was first introduced to it on Friday, and since then, I express my joy with kicks of my feet and waving my arms frantically in the air, as...well, I don’t know how to do anything else.

But this, this REAL food, is where its at. Down with peas and carrots and that “dinner” they call “Turkey and Rice.” Are you kidding me? This is the STUFF.

I’m a bit concerned because the first time I was exposed to it, I inadvertently made a real mess. I was hoping the adult units would cut me some slack because it was (a) my first time, and (b) I am still working on my small motor skills. So I tried to deny the situation. In the end, I accepted it, and luckily, I have been forgiven, as I was also introduced to toast this morning. So it appears I have redeemed myself. See the attached video.

And you, our readers... if there is anything else out there that I should know about, please let me know, okay? Or, maybe I should ask The Boy. He seems to have it all figured out.

James update

2009-09-08T10:43:00.004-05:00

James has been transferred to a rehabilitation unit for occupational therapy. He appears to be doing well. Thanks for all of the candelight vigils and red ribbons posted all around the neighborhood in hopes of good health for him. Looks like he's going to pull through.

Crime Scene

2009-08-31T13:43:00.002-05:00

At approximately 1800 on Friday, August 28, Witness #1 discovered the following crime scene:

The victim has been identified as James Bartlett, 2 weeks, Avon.

One suspect has been identified:

Officers responded to a break-in in progress later to discover an attempted break-in and homicide. Paw prints on the counter and floor confirmed the suspects. Upon arrival of the emergency medical team, the victim was originally to be transported into a plastic baggie, where he was going to be returned to Petsmart for our refund of $2.99. Emergency Medical crew were surprised when, upon the attempt of scooping the victim up with a plastic cup, the victim exhibited signs of life by squirming and scaring the crap out the response crew, The Boy and His Brother. The victim has been transported and placed in ICU with a critical prognosis.

These suspects are considered to be armed and dangerous and should not be apprehended.

State Fair 2009

2009-08-21T10:25:00.008-05:00

I have been dreading posting this because it just bores me to tears. I mean I love the fair, I really do... but the spouse has an agenda of stuff I really could care less about. But, that's okay, it's all about compromises. I keep thinking to myself, I gotta get that state fair post up on the blog. Now really, if I don’t post it, what difference will it make? Someone will call me and go, what about the fair? Did you go? We haven't seen it on the blog. No, I only have four readers and no one is going to question the blog. And as I said, it's my blog and you're not the boss of me. I put too much pressure on myself sometimes. Anyway, yes, of course we went to the fair. I’m sure you can check the archives for the State Fair post of 2008 where I looked at 42 quilts and a tractor parade and the guy who was desperately trying to sell fried veggies. Well, we did it again this year, and yes, we did win a Spiderman before it was all said and done.

As we’re going into the building he says, “OK Em... FINE... we can go look at the quilts if you want to...” all with a giddy grin on his face. It’s like watching paint dry, folks. One quilt, 87 quilts, they all look the same to me. He’s trying to get The Boy into it. He’s not buying it. There were games to be played and rides to be ridden and junk food to be had. The Boy knows this.

Then I realize I need pictures for the blog and I said, "Now stand next to Aunt Edna's quilt so I can get a picture for her..."

His Brother did this. I was jealous. Looking at quilts does that to you.

BSU Class of 2024 - another year closer!

$20 got us this, and saved us all from a massive argument:

THEN he had to tell His Brother he won a Spiderman.

Until next year. I can’t wait to see the quilts.

A new family member.

2009-08-21T10:23:00.001-05:00

Meet James. The Boy won him at the fair. Instead of taking home a fish in a baggie, I sweet-talked the Carnie into just refilling the basket of ping pong balls in exchange for not taking a fish. I know a guy who can get us one pretty cheap, I said, with a slight point to my significant other.

His Brother gets baptized

2009-08-21T09:32:00.004-05:00

We had His Brother baptized on August 9. My sister and her kids came into town because she is Dylan’s godmother, and we had so many family and friends to help us celebrate. I even had two friends from Chicago and friends from Kokomo come! We are truly blessed in a lot of ways.

His Brother was great - smiled at the priest and didn’t cry at all! It was like he knew what was going on and that he had to be a good boy. It was awesome to watch my second child begin his spiritual journey with so many people there to help guide and support him throughout his lifetime.

With my sister being here, that meant all six grandchildren were reunited. Total chaos. They had a blast though and we started referring to them in birth order as numbers. Numbers #4 and #5 (Nathan and Olivia) were best friends and worst enemies, but mostly best friends. #6 (His Brother) held his own and was, most times, best of show. It was fun to have them around and we miss them!

He crashed in the car seat within about four seconds of us getting in the car. Poor guy!

Someone get Guinness on the phone.

2009-08-21T08:58:00.004-05:00

Remember my post about two loose teeth? Guess what?

We're in the van yesterday driving home and I was on the phone. As soon as I hung up The Boy says "Mom, I lost a tooth." I look in the rearview mirror and he's got his hand stretched out to me - I said are you serious? He says YEP and has a tiny tooth in his hand with blood dripping out of his mouth! WHILE I'm DRIVING! I couldn't believe it! Kyle says, well is it bleeding badly? Can you see the other one coming in? I said I don't know, I'm driving! Ask Dylan, he's back there with him! The one next to it was loose too, and about two hours later we had this:

My dear friend Suzanne said it best: "This has gone from cute to uncomfortable." Exactly! With the first tooth it was aw... how cute... he lost his first tooth... and with the second one, I was slightly creeped out.

He's 4 1/2 years old. Two lost teeth. So not only is he a big boy...he's growing up faster than he should, which I don't think is really fair. So of course this morning at school was a big deal - he had to announce it to everyone and he's the first member of Miss Katie's "Lost Tooth Club." Big stuff going on.

He talks with a little lisp now which is cute! Another reminder that he's still a little boy, but he's getting bigger. Quick. And while we're on the topic, a few more one liners:

-We have a birthday party this weekend and bought a gift. It was still in the bag and The Boy says, "Mom, you need to make that gift look like a present" (meaning, you need to wrap it). He constantly does this to me - reminds me of things I need to do or how to handle things, like I don't have enough people on my keester doing that. So I said, I know, I will when we get home. He goes, "You could probably use that red bag we have in the basement. I think it will fit in there." And we do, we have a pile of gift bags in the basement. Thanks... I'll get right on that.

-Yesterday it was pouring down rain on my way to work and I couldn't find my raincoat so I put on a ballcap just to keep my hair dry. I ran His Brother into the sitter and got back in the car. The Boy says, "Mom, you need to take that hat off. You look crazy." I said, I just had it on since it was raining. The Boy: "Well, it's not raining in the car."

-His Brother learned to make noises with his mouth. He also shakes his head side to side in the "no" motion. So he was doing both of these at the same time and I asked The Boy if it was him making the noises.
me: Boy, is that you?
The Boy: No it's not, it's Dylan.
(Dylan is shaking his head back and forth)
me: Boy, he is saying no, it isn't him.
The Boy: MOM! It IS him! He's lying!

-Sally came to visit His Brother before she takes a trip for a week. The two boys stayed with her while I ran to the store. The Boy was eating Cheeze Its and Sally asked if she could have one.
Sally: Those look good, can I have one?
The Boy: Sure.
Sally: Thank you for sharing. Can I have another one?
The Boy: Okay. But make that your last one.

It just never ends at our house.

His Brother loves Ice Cream

2009-08-19T10:36:00.002-05:00

My first attempt at posting a video. We gave His Brother some ice cream at the state fair... he didn't want to give the spoon back!

Pictures for Mom and Dad

2009-08-11T11:38:00.002-05:00

Brusha brusha brusha...

2009-08-07T07:54:00.001-05:00

The Boy doesn’t stop.

I took him to the dentist last night. He loves going and loves talking about teeth and toothbrushes and toothpaste. Turns out the has THREE loose teeth! Dr. Tom said that’s almost unheard of, especially in a boy, and asked me if he’d ever taken a serious blow to the face. Not that I recall... nothing so serious that I would expect teeth to be loose! I mean he’s a boy... he’s constantly running and falling and hurting himself. So after a series of x-rays he found the culprits - two teeth on the bottom trying to shove their way through, making those baby ones loose. The top one, well, he did chip that one when he was not quite two, so we’ll see who falls out first. Let’s just say he’s beyond excited, and I’m trying to explain that the Tooth Fairy *might* not come to our house, because these are tough economic times and after last night’s visit, she has to save up for braces now.

-We were in the car today talking about seeing his cousins Sophie and Olivia tonight. He goes, “Mom, I haven’t seen Sophie in WEEKS.”

-He was asking me why they live in Florida. I said, well, her dad, Uncle B, got a job there. Remember when we moved to Chicago? That’s because Daddy got a job there. He goes, “Oh yeah... that was when we lived outta town.”

-After our trip to the dentist, I told him we had to run to Target to get formula for Dylan. He goes, “well how many ounces did he last eat?”

-I told him I went to the grocery and he was asking what all I got. I told him I got stuff to make tacos and he goes, “Daddy’s gonna be GIDDY.”

More to come. His Brother gets baptized this weekend and I can only imagine what will be next out of his mouth. With or without the teeth

Disregard

2009-08-05T12:07:00.003-05:00

Okay. Wow. I had no idea THAT many people read my blog, but apparently you lurkers are out there. So, after receiving a jillion emails about people wanting access to it, I decided not to go private. Just don’t try to steal my kids, okay? I mean you can try to find me and come beat me up, but I can probably hold my own and take you on. Now my kids, please just don’t try to steal them. They’re good kids for me but probably wouldn’t be that good for you. So it wouldn’t really be worth it.

So disregard the previous post and keep enjoying the Bartlett Blog. It’s nice to know we have a faithful following. We’re working on getting our own reality TV show. Hollywood’s been calling and the script obviously writes itself.

While we’re speaking of “disregarding” the previous post, I’ve got more from The Boy:

-I’m not sure if I posted this earlier, but he’s got a good line for when he doesn’t want me to tell someone something. Another reason I keep this blog - he’s not always wanting me to tell everyone and their brother the funny things he says. So if it’s between the two of us, he’ll say, “Mom, don’t forget, mum’s the word.” Now this also works if he says something he’s not supposed to say. For example, there is a word that is referenced to a part of the male anatomy which also references a piece of sporting equipment used in that game where you run around a diamond, also used in the game of soccer, it rhymes with “falls.” He likes to use that word on occasion. This is part of having boys; as I’ve now found out, things like that word are funny. All the time. So every now and then he’ll say the word and then go, “Mum’s the word,” as if that excuses him from saying it.

-And instead of saying “never mind...” he’ll go, “OH... okay mom... disregard.”

-We were trying to pick out a movie last night and I mentioned Home Alone because he likes Christmas movies. He goes, “Nah... that movie gives me the creeps.”

-He wanted me to fix a Lego piece and I was feeding His Brother. I said, I can fix it if you hold his bottle, so he handed me the piece and then held the bottle. He goes, “Dylan, now would be a REALLY good time for you to start holding your own bottle.”

-We were watching some show where they were talking about the New York subway system. He asked about the Subway in “Imbly-app-olis.” I told him we don’t have a subway here, but we had a train in Chicago, and the subway is like a train but it goes underground. It went like this.

Me: We don’t have subways here.
The Boy: Yes, we do.
Me: No, we don’t, we had a train in Chicago but not a subway.
The Boy: Yes, we do. There’s one right by my school, it has a yellow roof.
Remember Mom? When I went to Peter Rabbit? (He meant Subway, the
sandwich shop)

And there you have it.

For the children's sake...

2009-07-27T07:58:00.003-05:00

The blog is going private. I don't feel comfortable having pictures and my life story posted out for the entire world to see.

If you want to continue to tune into the happenings, email me.

Another good one-liner

2009-07-23T07:44:00.003-05:00

The kid doesn't stop. I gotta write these down while they are fresh in my mind.

We were driving to school today and The Boy said, "Daddy doesn't go to work this way." I said no, he takes the highway. His response?

"Yeah... he takes the highway. We don't. We take the low way."

Our 100th Post!

2009-07-22T07:51:00.005-05:00

One hundred posts.

Hard to believe I had something important to say, and then 99 more things to say after that one.

I started this blog when we moved to Chicago to keep our family and friends updated on what we were up to. It's turned into much more than that - a place for me to write what I want and not care what people say or not say... because it's my blog, and you're not the boss of me. It's also an "online scrapbook" of sorts, to remember what we were up to, see how our lives have changed, and to record the one-liners of The Boy. I hope blogspot never goes away, because I have two years of memories on this thing.

So happy 100th post to The Bartlett Family 3 (although we are Bartlett Family FOUR now... which I never envisioned when writing our first post!) and here are some one-liners from our favorite four-year-old:

-Last night The Boy asked me to get something for him and I was feeding Baby Brother. I said, sure, I can get it, can you hold his bottle? And be careful how you hold it, because he starts jacking around. The Boys says, "Dylan, now would be a good time for you to NOT jack around since I'm trying to give you your bottle."

-Last night Kyle and The Boy were talking about going to the Children's Museum today because it's raining. Kyle mentioned the idea and said, I think they have something about Legos going on right now, and The Boy says, "Sure. We can go see that Lego Convention."

-(This one will make me mother of the year) As you can read in our previous post, the boys camped in the backyard. I slept inside and on Sunday morning, Nathan kept coming in and out of the house trying to get me to come outside. I tried to procrastinate as long as I could, because getting out my cozy bed to go lay in a tent just wasn't appealing to me. He finally tries one more time and hollars into the back door: "MOMMA! Get yer A double S out here!" At least he didn't say the word, but we realized we need to stop spelling so much in front of him. Duly noted.

-After more than a week home with Kyle, he told him yesterday, "Dad, you're the best dad ever." Thanks, Buddy... we try. It helps to have a kid like you :)

Summer Camping

2009-07-21T14:23:00.006-05:00

The Boy has been talking about wanting to go camping. He wants to make a fire, do smores, sleep in a tent, etc. So before venturing out into the wilderness, we borrowed a tent and a fire pit and tossed it all together in our backyard. He loved it! I personally loved that I was able to go inside and sleep in my own bed. The weather here has been colder than normal, so it was perfect for camping.

Gotta get yer gun and ammo if you're going to be camping (in Broad Ripple, where wild animals are everywhere...)

These two strapped their sleeping bags on their backs, walked the ~~streets~~ terrain of Broad Ripple to find the perfect campsite.

Big Brother helps out

2009-07-21T14:19:00.002-05:00

This is awesome. I taught The Boy how to feed his brother. This now frees me up to do something in the ten seconds it takes him to get tired of it, and for Baby Brother to start bellyaching that he's not shoveling it in fast enough.

Photo Shoot

2009-06-22T08:26:00.002-05:00

Miserable experiences were had by all at Portrait Innovations in Westfield as I attempted to get a good picture of both my boys. They were running behind, kids everywhere, it was at least 90 degrees and my oldest didn't want to smile. Happy Father's Day Kyle - here's an overpriced picture of our ~~brats~~ beautiful children... :)

Fun at the pool

2009-06-15T08:13:00.001-05:00

Buddies

2009-06-15T08:09:00.000-05:00

Brothers?

2009-06-04T15:26:00.002-05:00

Do you think they look alike?

The Month of May

2009-06-04T15:23:00.003-05:00

I took a trip down south to see my sister and her family and my niece, Sophie, made her first communion!

We took her to get her ears pierced before the big day... hard to believe she's the same baby I rocked and fed, and now she's feeding mine :)

It was a beautiful event and so good for this Momma to get away for a bit. I took Baby Brother with me, since he hadn't met our southern kin, and left The Boy and Dad. Nice to get away, but I did miss them and they secretly hoped I would actually come back...

This...

2009-06-02T07:23:00.003-05:00

is awesome. Copy/paste this link to read about my dad and his Helping Hand ministry.

http://www.currentinwestfield.com/upload/Archives/CiW_0519_web.pdf

also featured in the Indy Star:

http://www.indystar.com/article/20090530/LOCAL0103/905300352/1015/LOCAL01/Helping+Hand+fills+variety+of+need+for+about+50+around+Westfield

We're still here...

2009-06-01T09:55:00.003-05:00

Got some grief over the weekend from ~~Steve Bartlett~~ my loyal readers that the blog is neglected lately. I know.. just realized we skipped the entire month of May! Here are some new photos and I'll post an update ~~as soon as I get this attorney out of my hair~~ when I get some free time...

Look who is four months old! Loves: baby food, making noise, trying to suck his thumb. Hates: rice cereal, being put down, pacifiers.

The Boy, status update: Loves: anything to do with dad, tee-ball (some days) running super fast, saying funny things (such as, when asked about how fast he runs, "Yeah.. I'm incredible") Hates: bedtime, taking baths (typical four year old stuff...)

More soon.

Playin' right field...

2009-04-30T08:11:00.005-05:00

The Boy has started Tee Ball. He loves it and is the fastest runner. I mentioned the other day how he was running so fast. "Yeah..." he said... "I'm incredible."

Dad is assistant coach and the two are having so much fun out there together. It's awesome to see how all of this has come together because Kyle has talked about coaching baseball since before we even had kids, and now that we have two boys, looks like the day has finally come. He even dusted off his old mit (glove? what's the difference? I'm still learning here) and is out there playing ball just like his high school days.

Now I'm not much of the athletic type, but I did notice that The Boy was standing on first and let the ball roll between his legs, not paying attention to the batter. "Natey!" I hollered. "Gotta keep your eye on the ball!" He goes, "MOM! Don't you think I KNOW to watch the ball?!" Excuse me... I didn't realize at the age of four that you had the game figured out.

It is so much fun watching these four year olds get the idea of baseball. They've practiced running the bases and hitting, throwing and catching. One kid hit, and skipped first and ran right to second. The coach said, you gotta tag first! And the kid goes, "I couldn't! There was another kid on it!!" (meaning the first baseman).

For the first two practices they practiced running the bases and then focused on running and stopping at first. At the end of the practice, the coach was leading the group around the bases and said, okay, we're gonna run all the bases now... he hit first, looked behind him and realized there was a train wreck of kids on first base...for an hour, all they had talked about was STOPPING AT FIRST! So they didn't quite get the idea that at some point, they'd run ALL the bases! :)

The mighty Giants have their first game this Saturday and I hate to miss it, but I'll be flying South with Baby Brother for some family time in Florida. More updates to follow...

Big Boy...

2009-04-30T08:09:00.001-05:00

Baby Brother is three months old!

2009-04-28T07:33:00.001-05:00

(photos courtesy of Patty's Playcare xoxo)

Huh?

2009-04-16T08:24:00.001-05:00

I'm big.

2009-04-07T14:56:00.002-05:00

Much to celebrate...

2009-04-03T08:31:00.002-05:00

I turned 31. Some days, I feel a hundred.

Not sure what it was about having this second baby, but instantly I sprouted new patches of grey hair and feel as if I'm on the fast track to gerrie-hood. It won't be long before I'm saying things like, "Has anyone seen my glasses?" and making friends with the waitress, as we dine at the early bird special.

Natey and Kyle made me a cake and the only candle we could find was the "4" from Natey's last birthday. SO cute though to watch him and Kyle in the kitchen together, making a cake for Mom. (By the way, Natey's new name for me is "Darlin." Natey can you get that for me? "Sure Darlin...")

Maybe I feel so old and tired from all we've been through in the last year. When I hit thirty, I was about 8 weeks from finding out I was pregnant, living in a different state, at a different job, pondering what to do, and so there's much to celebrate this year, including our homecoming and a new baby which made it all possible. Hard to believe what a difference a year makes!

Guess who is two months old?

2009-04-03T08:01:00.002-05:00

Just the two of us...

2009-03-19T08:05:00.002-05:00

For the five people who read my blog (three of which I'm related to I think...) you'll be seeing a lot of pictures like this. Dylan and Ava - TOO CUTE!

I can smile!

2009-03-18T07:57:00.001-05:00

Out of his mouth...

2009-03-13T15:12:00.001-05:00

BACK to the blog with a few one-liners from The Boy:

-we were headed to get lunch and to the park on a nice day last weekend. We were going to McDonalds until Kyle mentioned Wendys. The Boy pipes up from the back seat and says, “I don’t want to go to Wendys! Their toys are bunk!”

-He’s very protective of his Baby Brother. He was screaming in the car; it was feeding time and we weren’t home yet. The boy says, “Momma, I think Dylan’s crying because you’re driving too fast.”

-I had mentioned that I was going back to work and needed him to help me get Dylan ready in the mornings from now on, he was going to Gigis. He got very concerned and said, “You mean we’re not going to be his family anymore?”

-His teacher’s birthday is coming up and I asked him what she likes and what we should get her. He said before she likes cotton candy jelly beans and I said we could get her cotton candy. He goes, “Momma, there’s no WAY we can get her cotton candy…we’d have to go to the FAIR…”

-After our park visit, we walked around for a bit and finally made it back to the car. He kept complaining that his feet were tired, and when we made it back to the car he goes, “PHEW… that was a WORK OUT.”

Sharing Motherhood

2009-03-03T12:25:00.002-06:00

We shared a pregnancy and are now venturing into motherhood together... this is my dear friend Nicole with her baby girl, Ava Elaine, and me with Dylan. They are 3 1/2 weeks apart although Dylan looks to be three months old...hearty appetite, that boy. Miss Ava is doing well and is such a doll. We can't wait to watch these two grow up together!

We're doing fine!

2009-03-03T12:16:00.002-06:00

But I have neglected the blog... I'm sorry. Too much to do and the day flies by. I'm heading back to work on Monday, 3/9 and will hopefully have more time to blog then. I know, I have time at work but not at home. I'm wonderfully overpaid for my job. :)

Mr. D. went for his one month check-up and broke the ten-pound mark at 10 pounds, 5 ounces. All he does is EAT. This baby will take 5 ounces at a time! I'm hoping ANY DAY we'll get a full nights rest. We're almost there. He's a sweetie and Natey just adores him. He's so helpful too, if Dylan makes the slightest noise Nathan is right there, and always wants to see him first thing when he gets up and last thing before bed. Brotherhood is an amazing thing to watch.

Here's an updated pic of our Chunky Monkey:

More later from the Bartletts. Gotta wash bottles and try to get a shower before picking up Natey... life with two kids is busy :)

Brothers...

2009-02-15T11:12:00.003-06:00

So we've been busy...

2009-02-10T13:58:00.003-06:00

Hard to believe Dylan is two weeks old already and I've yet to update the blog! Jumping back into the "newborn" regime has been a bit rough, but it's come back to me. He's a good baby and so much like Nathan - sleeping and eating well. It's funny the second time around...I don't feel as anxious as the first time. Not that we are experts of any kind, but we've at least danced this dance before and feel like we can hold him without breaking him.

Natey has taken to big brother hood like he was born to do it! He loves Dylan and the things that have come out of his mouth are coming out so fast we can hardly write them down. More on that in another post - wanted to post some pictures before my blog readers get any more angry at me...

No word on Coco and Baby Thor... COME ON THOR! That girl has GOT to have that baby... I know she's up and over it! Coco we are thinking of you and patiently waiting

Meantime, here's some pics of the whole show. Long story short, I developed a fever during labor and Dylan's heartbeat was elevated. He also was turned toward my right hip (should be face up or down during childbirth) and would not move, and stuck at 9 cm. These all prompted a c-section around ten p.m. Not quite the way I wanted to go, but it was safest for both of us. We were treated with IV antibiotics after his arrival and were sent home five days after he was born, both of us healthy. Couldn't ask for more.

Now Introducing...

2009-01-27T19:41:00.003-06:00

Dylan Timothy Bartlett
Born January 26, 2009
8 pounds, 7 oz, 21 1/4" long
Looks JUST like his brother!

more pics tomorrow... trying to catch up on sleep while I can...

Hey Kevin...

2009-01-25T18:18:00.002-06:00

Can you watch Eli for a second?

Some new and old ones

2009-01-20T08:34:00.005-06:00

Remember Eli Allen? He can sit up! I got to meet him over Christmas and this little guy is a doll. He's a very happy baby! Here he is showing of his big-boy skills and sitting up!!

Skeeter was going through old pics and found this one of Natey. He looks so little!

No baby yet. I'm curious what happens when the baby counter on my blog reaches zero... does it go into negative numbers? Does the baby in the bubble on the screen start knocking on my monitor? Hollering GET ME OUTTA HERE?

Finally!!

2009-01-18T18:58:00.003-06:00

Took me about a week, but I finally got the blog layout done and managed to keep my graphics. Apparently those are called "widgets." Luckily, it's all there and I can breathe easier.

No baby. EVERY time I call someone... "YOU HAVIN' THE BABY?!" No... just wanted to say hello...one of these days, I'll be making those calls. Hopefully, it's before spring. Due date is actually 1/28, but it's not like the baby has a calendar in there and on 1/28, begins to pack his bags and make an exit.

The Boy is full of his one-liners and I have to get them on the blog before I forget, and before this baby comes and I am sleep deprived and smelling like Similac... Sometimes I wish I had a USB cord that went from my head to my blog, then all of my posts would update as they developed...

-The Bartletts came over yesterday. Natey has been sick and they brought him some ice cream. After they left, he shut the door and said, "Well, that was nice of them to come over."

-He's inherited my "short" gene and his dad's short legs, so his pants are always too long. I'm constantly rolling them up. Now, he'll come to me and say, "Mom, will you roll up my pant sleeves?"

-Mimi was making him put his coat on and he really didn't want to. Finally she talked him into it, and he looked at her and said, "Mimi, this coat looks RIDICULOUS."

-As we were on our way out the door one morning, I accidentally got him apple juice when he wanted milk. He goes, "That's okay, Momma... you just made a mistake."

-The poor child has been waiting on a significant amount of snow and has a sled waiting in the garage. We had it outside for a bit, leaning against the garage, just waiting on the snow. Finally we put it back in the garage. It started snowing and he looked out the window. "My sled is gone," he said, looking back and forth... "we'll have to talk to Dana and Bill about that." (our next door neighbors, as if they stole the sled)

-When we're doing our morning commute to school/work, I'm constantly handing him his juice, then he hands it back. One morning we did this about 4 times in a row and he said, "Mom, I'm making you crazy."

-Loves to call me sweetie. The other day he stayed home with dad and I was leaving for work. He said, "Goodbye, my sweetie," and sometimes says, "Good night, my sweet Momma."

-Spent the day cleaning the house with Dad and called me at work. "MOMMA," he announced, "I helped Daddy clean and I made your bed, so when you come home you can get all cozy."

-Took one look at my hair earlier and goes, "Momma, your hair is ALL jacked up."

-At church last week he came up with me to get communion.

Natey: Momma, what's in that drink?

me: Wine

Natey: Why are you drinking wine?

me: It's a long story. Can we get into it later?

Natey: sure.

-Most mornings, he's a bit tough to get out of bed. So I toss him his clothes and tell him we'll "race" to see who gets dressed first. Usually I come back in and he's gotten to work with it, putting on his t-shirt and taking off his jammies. One day I tossed his clothes to him and said, "let's race... I'm going to win!" he goes, "That's okay Momma... you can win today." He pulled the covers back over his shoulder.

Photos to come, I promise. Nothing recent on this computer, but here's a few oldies, reminiscent of his baby days. Hard to believe we'll have another baby in the house....

New Year, New Look

2009-01-15T07:07:00.002-06:00

And no, I haven't had the baby yet.

New look for the Bartlett Blog. Thought we could use something different as we embark on a new year, and wait the next two weeks out for this baby to arrive. In messing with the blog I lost my "baby counter" which was to the left of the layout, and also my picture of "The King..." but hopefully once I get this attorney out of here and on the next plane to Florida, I can get things bakc to where they were.

I'm 38 weeks as of yesterday and feel like I'm playing a game of Beat the Clock, but am never sure when the clock will run out. What if I leave something undone at work and don't show up the next day because the baby came? Then there are days I get it all done and sit and wait some more. Babies come on God's watch, not mine, which tests my patience...but, after wrapping up 2008 and thinking about all I learned from that year, patience is now much easier than ever for me. So we'll keep waiting. The Boy told someone on the phone last week, "My brother is not here yet..." seems as if the papparazzi were asking.

T minus three hours until we depart for the airport, and I'm attorney free for the next ten days to follow. More of a post then, I promise... with pictures.

This picture...

2008-12-29T07:31:00.003-06:00

says it all.

I'm FOUR, dammit... and NOTHING is going to get in the way of that.

Not much to report...

2008-12-22T11:36:00.004-06:00

Nothing much is new in the Bartlett household. Still no baby. About five weeks to go, and I'm not so much nervous about giving birth again, but moreso about balancing two kids and keeping Nathan's life as normal as possible. With a husband who works a lot and works screwy hours to boot, I'm more anxious about the changes ahead, but know (more like PRAY) that it will just take some time to get details ironed out. If this baby is half as good as Natey was, I'll get it together.

Natey had a blast at his party and reminds me every day that he's FOUR now. The day after his actual birthday I woke him up for school and he immediately said, "Mom, I'm STILL FOUR." Just wanting to make sure we were still clear on that and nothing changed overnight. He's thrilled about Christmas and it's been so much fun this year, watching him get excited. Not to mention, we play the "We'll call SANTA!" card if necessary. Been using that since Halloween I think....

We went to see Santa in Noblesville over the weekend. As we were driving there I said, Natey, aren't you excited? We're going to see Santa! He said yes and was quiet for a minute, then said, "Mom... are we going all the way to the North Pole?"

More pics to come soon...

Nathan turns FOUR!

2008-12-04T08:20:00.001-06:00

Hard to believe our little guy will be FOUR next week...time absolutely slips away when you're raising kids. Here's the invite to his birthday party, taking a look back to 2004...

Nathan's Fourth Birthday!

Help Feed Indy!

2008-12-04T08:12:00.003-06:00

Remember my post about Lucious? Tim and a team of volunteers are carrying on Lucious' mission of serving and touching the poor on the northside of Indy. Right now the need is coats, sock, shoes - trying to make sure everyone is warm this winter. Check out: http://www.feedindy.net for more info, to volunteer your time or make donations, or to see what is needed.

Lucious

School days...

2008-11-10T14:08:00.001-06:00

School pictures!

2008-11-10T13:48:00.003-06:00

Nathan fell at school three days prior to school picture day and roughed up his face. Of course he didn't skin a knee, which could be hidden, but scraped his cheek and eye. Throught the beauty of Photoshop, and my dear friend Skeeter, you'd never know! Here are his latest school pictures...

Do you recognize this gentleman?

2008-11-04T10:14:00.002-06:00

Last seen at my house, begging for a piece of Halloween candy.

The Costlow Family

2008-11-04T08:42:00.001-06:00

Best. Halloween Costume. EVER.

2008-11-04T08:25:00.003-06:00

My brother Matt came up with this one - he's riding "The Racer" roller coaster. My sister-in-law said all night he had his arms up in the air like this... it says "The Racer" on the side and his shirt says "magic kingdom." Actually, I'm proud to say I'm related to him.

This time.

Halloween 2008!

2008-11-03T08:13:00.003-06:00

The Boy was VERY excited about Halloweeen this year... he's had his costume for about a month and probably wore it once a week prior to Halloween. He had a parade at school and was one of three Spideys to appear! He got home and told us about it and goes, "I was Spider man and so were Millan and Leyton... but I didn't tell anyone I was the REAL Spiderman." Of course. The others were simply imposters.

Halloweens of Yesteryear...

2008-11-03T08:09:00.001-06:00

Jacksonville's Soccer Star

2008-10-29T09:05:00.002-05:00

HOW can she be EIGHT years old already?

Little Eli... getting so big!

2008-10-29T08:21:00.004-05:00

Remember Eli Allen Brown? His picture is on my blog somewhere (I can't figure out how to link to an older post) of when he was first on the planet about five seconds and he was screaming his head off... almost three months old now. Such a sweet baby and has finally learned to smile for Skeeter!

This one is my favorite! He has a night job, driving a cab.

Skeeter and Eli, about 6-8 weeks?

Even down south in Atlanta, he cheers on his colts...

Eli with his game face on.

Tammy, Eli and Kevin

Can't wait to meet Eli in person! They are coming to Indy in December and I can't wait to see my friends and meet their newest family member!

Had to post before I forgot...

2008-10-14T13:57:00.002-05:00

Update on my nieces

2008-10-08T14:17:00.005-05:00

When I don't get this thing updated, I hear it from you people!!! A few have asked about my girls, my nieces (all five of them). Catey's pops set up a blog but never updated it again... so I don't have much to report except that she's a cutie and is getting christened next weekend. Natey loves to help with her and hold her and feed her and she's a pretty good sport about it!

The twins, Carly and Grace, just turned FIVE and had a party with "Alligator Aaron" who brought animals over to visit. They, of course, were full of their usual one liners. Aaron pulled out a creepy looking worm thing, and Grace goes, "Um... I'm not touching THAT guy."

(Carly has shorter hair than Grace now. Carly in pink, Grace in green)

They also have a small modeling gig they are working on. I think they are on the Toys R Us website. More info on that coming soon. I think Matt is just glad that they got a paying job.

Here are some pics of Sophie and Olivia. Sophie plays soccer and is EIGHT years old already...Liv is almost three and likes to wear her hair in "bades."Sophie looks about 15 to me. She's FOUR feet tall! That's only 12 inches shorter than I am!

Love how Liv is clutching Sophie's arm in this pic. She goes to school one morning a week and wants to be big like Sophie. Such a sweet picture.

Another job!

2008-10-08T14:14:00.003-05:00

Kyle received an offer from Toys R Us! What's that you say? He's already working at UPS? Yes... he is... he's going to try to keep both for awhile. UPS has excellent benefits but you have to put your time in to get them, and it is part-time. Toys R Us is retail (retail hours, schedule...) and benefits start sooner. It goes without saying that Nathan is beyond excited that Dad will work "at the toy store."

When it rains, it pours. We prayed so long for patience and guidance, and now look... two jobs, both better than we hoped. Now, if we could just get Baby B here safe and sound, things might be turning around for the Bartletts.

Also, if you're not familiar with the Trainspotting blog, check it out to the left of this post...more, better pictures to be updated soon.

Future Bassmaster

2008-10-08T14:11:00.003-05:00

Look who caught a fish! He was so excited! (Nathan was excited too....)
(Note: I did mean to dress Nathan in the same outfit as Grandpa. Pure coincidence.)

Fall is here! (2006)

2008-09-30T13:37:00.003-05:00

Nathan and Kyle, 2008
Nathan and Kyle, 2006

Fall is here!

2008-09-30T13:25:00.007-05:00

Even though it was nearly 80 degrees out and the fall weather hadn't really gotten here yet, we went to Stoney Creek and picked out a pumpkin for Natey. It was only $5 to get in! He thought it was fun and we went there two years ago and he was at the perfect age this time. I asked if he wanted to right the kiddie train or do the Haunted House, and all he wanted to do was the swings. Great... that's in our price range...

I have these same pictures of him in 2006 - will post in the next post! Hard to believe how much things have changed since then. And we were talking on the way home, this time next year, we'll be a family of FOUR!

Our pets, in Nathan's eyes

2008-09-30T13:24:00.003-05:00

The assignment was to paint a picture of your pets. I believe this says it all...

Two black cats, obviously...