BAM!!! Watch out Emeril....

It happens every day at around the same time. Dinner time. Those who know me know that I am NOT A FAN of cooking. I just do not enjoy cooking. I know how to follow recipes and I've been told that I'm a 'good cook' when I actually do cook. I know as a mom and a wife that is very important for my family to have home cooked meals. I know it's true, but I don't have to like it! :) Shea has really been in to helping me lately. Each evening as I am getting ready to cook, he says to me "I can help you fix it!". Last week he helped me make mashed potatoes. He really enjoyed using the mixer but had to be reminded a few times to KEEP THE MIXER IN THE BOWL WHILE IT'S ON!!!!!!!!!!

Tonight, I made my speciality, Hamburger Helper!! Don't laugh, that stuff is good and y'all know it! Shea, of course, wanted to help so I told him he could help me after I browned the meat. He is so proud of himself!
I love his concentration while stirring, this is serious business. Having a helper does make cooking take a bit longer but he is so happy to help and so proud to be 'big enough' to cook that it makes it worth it.I love this sweet helper. Just wait till he gets to be the big helper when we CLEAN UP dinner! :)

The Great Pumpkin!

We finally got around to taking Shea and Zoe Cate to this little pumpkin patch down the road from our house. In reality, it's just the front lawn of a church with tons of pumpkins. They had some cute props set up that made for great photo ops......if only the kiddies would participate!!

I told Shea to hold on to Zoe Cate and he actually did a good job keeping her upright. By this final picture, she had had enough!!!


We were able to snap a few more pictures but it pretty much went downhill from there!! We did get a decent one of the me and the babes, please excuse Zoe Cate's tum, she likes to air it out!!

Shea did not want to leave and made us promise we'd go back. We assured him we would...in a year!

Changes

A whole 14 months have past since I've updated my blog. My life is completely different, too. I no longer have one sweet toddling little boy but a son who has changed so much in a year and a precious baby girl on the verge of toddling herself. These past 14 months have been full of changes for our little family. In 14 months, Shea has switched to a 'real!' bed, been potty trained and his vocabulary has EXPLODED. No longer do I have to decipher his baby speech, he has his OWN voice and he uses it!! He is a sharp little guy who doesn't forget anything. It's fabulous but has it's draw backs! I spend a lot of time trying to plan routes AROUND McDonald's, Chick-fil-a and now thanks to Nana and Pawpaw, Bojangles. Shea and I went to Target the other night and he saw Bojangles. All of a sudden I hear from the backseat "Mom!! [I'm Mom now, so sad, it's too soon!] You need to take me to Bojangles and get me a biscuit!" Nice. There goes that short cut!! HA!!

Our little Zoe Cate is now A WHOLE YEAR OLD!!!!!!! Where did that year go??? She is firecracker and I am loving her spunky personality, though I am sure it will cause a few headaches down the road!! :) Shea is an awesome big brother and Zoe Cate just adores him. It's been an interesting year adjusting to having 2 under 2. Overall, it's been great. We were very blessed to be able to have our children close together. While it's been work, we are already seeing the fruits of our labors. Shea is growing [too quickly] in to a young boy who adores animals, trucks and singing Old MacDonald at the top of his lungs. Zoe Cate is blossoming in to her own, also. She did have to get tubes but they have done a world of good for her. The afternoon of her procedure she started cruising. While I am no MD [obviously!], it's pretty coincidental that she started cruising the day she got her tubes. I know it helped her equilibrium and balance. She is now cruising down the hall with only the aid of her hand on the wall. Zoe Cate makes us laugh every day with her fiery nature and sweetness. She is taking on the role of little sis just perfectly!!

So, in summary, I love my babies, I love my sweet husband and this beautiful life we've created!! Here's to hoping I can be better at posting!

To update or not to update....

I am so terribly slack. Terribly slack. I am thinking maybe I will try to be more regular about posting for my one reader. HAHAH!!! We'll see!! I do need to put pics of my sweet girl on here. For now, I will post the best picture we've taken yet as a family of 4!!