Cute Giveaway on a New Favorite Blog I Have Found!

I have found this new blog that I am loving right now. She has two adorable girls, sews great stuff for them and posts regularly. You can check her out at Grosgrain and here at The Tumtum Tree. Don't the names just envision greatness!?

Also, she is doing her first giveaway this week. Go check out the adorableness, especially if you have a little princess to adorn!!!! It would go into my "someday-if-I-have-a-girl" stash, although I think Drew would actually love wearing it! Grosgrain: Strawberry Quart Caplet with Simple Sailing Frock FIRST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Their Very Own Person.al.ity

***added notation: this picture completely and perfectly captivates the nature and personalities of our boys:

DREW: the word that best describes our first born is INQUISITIVE. Someone called him that at just a year old and again just last week a man at a tag sale used the same word to describe Drew within one minute of talking with him. Drew knows no stranger and can carry on a conversation with anyone at anytime about practically anything. He was such a good-natured baby and smiled at every camera on cue and flirted with all the "grandmas" and pretty girls out there. He also played so well independently figuring out every little detail of every toy. He knows random terms like filtrum, uvula and esophagus and uses them as if it is as normal as talking about your eyes or nose. He has an engineer mind and creativity which normally wears me out by the end of the day. :) He has a fantastic memory and recently shocked me when he recalled a story of when he burned his fingers on the bottom of the oven, by the pull-out drawer. He was 8 months old when it happened and I had not retold the story to him. One of these days I am going to do a post on the randomness and completely intriguing ingenuity of Drew Neiner, complete with pictures of all the things that I find at the end of his days work. He is, proudly, a momma's boy and I have no shame in admitting that! :) And I am in no rush to grow him out of that stage either! He is very affectionate and very, very sensitive and in tune with how others feel. He plays best with daddy, who is the king of storytelling and the most creative player in the family. Oh, and Drew's favorite color is very much yellow.

JACK: oh, my sweet jack! He is a complete boy and puts his heart into everything he does, especially eating!!! He is such a good eater and eats as much as his older brother does and in half the time! He loves ALL things BALLS and already has a good arm and can kick a soccer ball. He wasn't a talker for awhile (probably due to the chatterbox sibling of his) but I could tell he knew exactly what was going on. He knows lots of sign language and even comes up with his own signs with added sound effects. He loves being outside and LOVES the water. He is very shy with new people and will instantly put his head on my shoulder if he feels uncomfortable. His favorite animal is an owl (complete with "whoo-whoo") but his favorite lovey toy is the green plush elephant that drew gave to him at the hospital when he was born. Jack is a good sleeper, but sleeps best in his crib and when he's up, he's up! Drew is definitely his hero, when he's not grabbing something from him to try to "show him how it works" and makes him laugh the hardest and most often. Though Jack has a very layed-back, easy-going personality, he has got a t.e.m.p.e.r. This, I now know, he gets from his momma. At least, from when his momma was a little girl. My mom brought me my baby book and this, I quote, was one of her journal pages: "Erin had a better day. She is not hitting herself in the head as much when I tell her no." As you can imagine the abrupt hilarity over this one. Although, I can honestly say, that both my kids have done this action when angry. Funny...or not. So, back to Jack, he is either going to be a basketball coach (much like my dad was) or an opera singer because when he uses it, he has got a set of lungs on him!!!!! He does not care one bit about getting muddy, wet or dirty in the name of playing. Like I said, he is all boy!

I am so thankful that God's sovereign hand perfectly hand-picked these boys for us and placed them together for each other. They have enhanced our lives sooooo much and we feel so blessed to have the wonderful and challenging job of parenting and nurturing them. They are better together and make quite the pair. We are having a blast. Sometimes a bit worn out by the time the lights are out and doors are closed for bedtime, but a blast! We HIGHLY recommend it!!!

Through the Woods

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John had a looong meeting after church and out of pure desperation, I decided to take the boys on a stroll through the neighboring woods. It was a perfect evening and we visited "our" apple tree, ran in the open field, neighed at the fenced in horse, scared away a fox, gathered some redwood pinecones, met the neighbors black lab, and crossed over the brook (thanks to the tiny, rustic bridge and 2 very intruiging boys there are no photos of that). I could tell the boys just loved being out exploring in NATURE and it was great to just let them roam while getting some fresh air in the cool evening.

The sweetest thing: I am sooo glad I videoed this. Especially since Jack hardly holds my hand long enough to cross the street these days. But his big brother, well, that's another story.

The Greatest Guys Around

happy fathers day to our favorites:

A Slice of Real Life

It is 11:55pm.

I should be fast asleep.

But I am determined that I am going to have that hot cup of tea that just finished reheating and the apple turnover that I couldn't resist at the store today.

So why am I blogging, you may ask.

Because this is a moment I want to remember. This is real life. Not that the other moments aren't, they are just the happy-my-life-is-like-this moments that you want to share with the whole blogworld. And this, here, is an unedited, what-you-see-is-what-you-get-moment. (i am sparing you a photo) There's nothing real "finer" about this neiner right now!

I just had to give Drew a tepid bath-which did not go over so well-as his spiked fever awoke him.

John is gone till tomorrow and I am in the middle of decluttering what feels like my whole house, seeing that there is only a small corner on my dining-room table for my elbow right now. I am hosting the ladies Bible fellowship at our house this Thursday. Oh. And I've been potty training Jack. One pee in the potty (YAY), one on the floor, one in the Indian Ocean (he was sitting on his toy earth) and many, many in the whitey tidey's.

So life as you like it, good and bad, ups and downs, is still filled with people that you love, decisions that will make an impact, and ordinary days that are molding our little ones into the one he or she will become. I am so thankful that I am not in this alone. That "His faithfulness is new every morning." That I can know that "His grace is sufficient" and I can always move forward. Many have been my failings and much has been His grace. And even though sickness changes the normalcy of life, it always brings with it extra tenderness and sweetness. Something I always welcome. I think Drew summed it up well tonight as the washcloth cooled his forehead: "Mommy, I don't EVER want to give you away!!!"

Whew! Some days, I wonder!

And, if I might add, I really want my husband back. There is just something missing around here in his departure. I am so SO thankful he is part of my team. Oh, and honey, the kitchen sink is backing up reeeally bad. I almost called a plumber.

OK. Enough gabbing. I'm going to enjoy my cuppa english breakfast (after I re-reheat it) and that phylo apple turnover that's calling my name.