Day 31 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion likes to hold his brother as often as we'll let him, but he only does well with it when they're in the chair.  I know he doesn't look amused in this picture, but this was taken near the end of our impromptu photo session and Orion was ready to get down and play. He doesn't even look like he's really holding him, but more or less, Apollo was laying on Orion.

Day 30 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

We're still staying with my parents for another day before we move back into our place and finish the mold cleanup.  Alex did the disinfecting today and the mold is gone as far as we can tell.  We vacuumed up all the excess water and sprayed peroxide on everything to kill the mold.  And Orion is refusing to nap or sleep in the pack and play, so Alex put him down for his nap on the couch, where he passed out and stayed for a while before we moved him into the pack and play.

 

Apollo was chilling out in the man chair with Ellie.  He is looking more and more red lately and the chair just make him look even moreso.  I love the little grin on his face in this picture and there several to choose from, but this one was my favorite.

Habits to Hobbits

  Well, we discovered a possible cause for my incessant migraines - we have black mold in our master bedroom.  Thankfully, it wasn't a full-fledged infestation and we caught in the early stages - as soon as I smelled something musty, I knew we had a problem.  See, it has been raining for four days here in lovely "sunny" Florida.  It's been primarily on and off, but the breaks have been fewer than fifteen minutes at a time and then it rains for hours on end.  So when I smelled the musty smell (with no hubby socks in sight), I knew we had mold.  Our window has been lightly leaking for the last 3 days, at least noticeably, but it's been raining so we weren't able to really get the space dried out.  So the visible mold has been removed.  It is "supposed" to stop raining tomorrow and if it does, Alex and I are gonna tackle disinfecting the whole window area.  Alex and my dad got the window unit A/C re-secured with a better seal this time.  And we're going to HAVE to get a rain-guard up on our master bedroom window, since it and one of the kitchen windows are the only ones where they are missing.  And guess what... those are the two windows we've had problems with.

  So because we potentially stirred up the mold this afternoon, we're staying with my parents tonight to give it a chance to settle out of the air.  So, because my parents aren't necessarily equipped for children, we're winging it.  We've got Apollo in the small pack and play and Orion is supposed to be sleeping in the medium sized one. (We have a total of 3, we kept the largest at our house to keep using as a playpen)  I say supposed to be because he is currently laying on the couch beside me, refusing to sleep.  I was just checking out my blogs and freebie sites when I heard him crying in the other room, so I went and got him.  He was sitting in the pack and play whimpering, so I figured he'd had a bad dream.  I picked him up and cuddled him and brought him to the living room to sleep beside me on the couch, but he's fighting it.  I think he had a bad dream and is afraid to go back to sleep.  But having him bundled up here beside me makes me reminiscent.  He's a toddler now and only needs his mommy when he A) gets hurt B) wants something or C) temporarily reverts back to being my little baby before he remembers he's a big boy now and only needs mommy if he gets hurt or wants something.  It makes me remember when he so tiny and fragile.  How hard we strove to put on him is a story all in its own.

   To make a really long story short - Orion was born at 9 pounds 3 ounces and our attempt at breastfeeding was a failure and he quickly lost weight.  By the time he was 2 months old, he had gone from 95% on the percentile scale to 40%, a pretty drastic drop at a time when babies are supposed to be gaining ounces a day - not losing them.  By 4 months, he was at 20%.  He was borderline failure to thrive, but he was smart.  He rolled over at a week and did it consistently at a month and half.  He said his first real word at 6 months old.  But he was a tiny little thing - he wore some 0-3 month clothes until he was a year old and 3-6 month clothes in most brands at a year.  He was healthy, just small.  Not anymore.  We started Orion on baby food at 4 months and table food at 7 months, which is when he really started to gain weight. Now, Orion is my little linebacker.  This child has lapped all his cousins who are older than him.  He weighs 34 pounds and is nearly 33 inches tall.  He is sturdy too.  He has fallen out of his pack and play, dove off the couch superhero style, fallen backwards off the couch, tripped into the corner of a table, scraped up his knee on a nail, whacked his head into a cedar chest... and he's still as happy and spunky as ever.  And he's going to be a climber - thank the Heavens he's sturdy.  That's going to be me with 911 on speed dial...

  But to the point of this post and the reason for the title.  Orion was the reason I quit.  Until I found out about him, I had made promises to quit.  I told my friends and family I would quit someday.  When it was convenient. When I found someone. Always something else in the future. I made excuses to not quit - "Oh, I'll quit when it gets too expensive."  Or "I'll quit when they ban it." Both of which happened and didn't slow me down.  Then the unthinkable happened - a pregnancy test I took to prove to my mom that there was no way in hell I was pregnant... came back positive.  I knew it would be a hard road...and certainly not something high on my list of viable fun - but it topped my to-do list.  I had to quit.  It wasn't an option... it was no longer my choice.  Quitting was an absolute must... and I admit I stalled.  I hem-hawed around the subject for a week before I finally had the guts to do it.

  I quit smoking cold turkey on March 17, 2008 after smoking for 5 1/2 years.  And it worked.  My boyfriend (now husband) Alex bought candy cigarettes as a cruel joke, but it was a lifesaver.  It gave me something to do with my hands as I went through withdrawal. And he bought me a pack of cigarettes.  Silly thing to give a smoker trying to quit, I know... but it was a crutch.  Something to fall back on if it just got to be too bad to handle.  Oh and I almost went there.  I was a moderate smoker, a pack to a pack and a half a day.  So almost hourly, that irritable feeling came over me, that nagging in the back of my mind, that NEED... but every hour it came and I considered opening that pack to smoke "just one," I thought about all the hours beforehand and how hard it had been to make it through those hours... and I went outside and smoked a candy cigarette and moved on with it.  After about 12 hours, it got nasty. I was bitchy, shaking, crying, clammy... in full nicotine withdrawal, but I was in withdrawal, which meant that I was quitting.

   And succeeding.  It was minutes before the shakiness and irritability went away when a craving hit. It was hours before that unbearable feeling became tolerable.  It was days before I woke up in a good mood because I didn't have my bedtime cigarette or my wake-up cigarette. It was weeks before I could eat without thinking of that after-dinner cigarette or make love with craving that finishing touch.  It was months before I could drive somewhere, especially long trips, without feeling the need to roll the window down and light up.  It was a remarkable journey that I never thought I could make. It will be years before my body fully recovers from the addiction, yet there are still times I crave that old crutch, that old friend that was always there for me dollar after dollar and pack after pack. But now that 'backup crutch' pack still sits unopened and the most important number is this:  It's 2:38 AM where I am and it has been 2 years, 5 months, 2 weeks, 2 hours and 38 minutes since "I quit for you, Baby!".

Day 29 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apollo was helping Daddy play his game.  I'm not sure which game it was - something on Steam.  It was probably Star Wars something... Alex is always playing something like that. And Apollo is just like Daddy... he can't get enough of computer time.

  

Today was my dad's 51st birthday so to celebrate Pops' birthday, we got a small cake and birthday cake ice cream.  Even Orion got some and got it everywhere.  He wasn't even this messy with his own first birthday cake.  I think  he was afraid of his cake at his party, but not tonight!  I think he may have gotten more on him than in him and he had 3 small pieces of cake all to himself.

Day 28 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion is so silly.  We were all hanging out in the bedroom and he was chilling in the pack and play, eating Goldfish and drinking juice...and acting like a dog!  He was holding the snack container in his mouth by the handle and shaking his head and growling like a dog.  Something tells me he's been around Ellie (my parents' dog) too much...

 

And Apollo is starting to look a little red methinks.  I think he's gonna have auburn hair and brownish eyes.  But he looks so darn light here, it's funny because he's got a darker skin tone, but he's pale because we never go outside.  The Florida sun would turn the boy 10 shades in 2 minutes... But anyway, here's my little sensitive sweetheart chillaxing on the bed with mommy and daddy.

Day 27 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

  It has been raining nonstop for a while now and Orion is going stir-crazy.  Between the heat and the rain, poor thing rarely gets to play outside.  So I decided to just let him go for it.  We put on a swim diaper and his swim shoes and went outside in the rain and I let him splash around through the puddles outside.  He had fun for a bit, but when the mud started getting swirled up, he started going "Ew, ew, ew..."  All in all, I think it was a fun time for him.

  Apollo laid in bed with us for almost two hours, cooing and laughing, a little fussing, but his eyes lit up when we brought out THIS.  This ball was Orion's favorite when he was little, maybe a little older than Apollo.  We put it away when O was about 9 months old because I could no longer stand to hear it go off because the ball has ADD and stops in the middle of a song and starts a new one.  We'll see how long until it frustrates me right out the door this time. Here's the ball, and the kid, in action:

Yo Help Me, Help Me!

   So I am starting to plan Orion's 2nd birthday party.  Yes, I know it's like 100 years in advances, but I like to be prepared.  The last thing I want is a repeat of last year's last minute, up-all-night preparing.  At least this year I'm not pregnant, not trying to play referee between Alex's families, not planning a wedding and not totally losing my mind.  On the downside, we're a heck of a lot more broke this year, but it's okay.  I was raised frugal and to this day, I am not going to go to Party City and pay $250 to get supplies for my kid's birthday. 

   This year's theme is going to be Yo Gabba Gabba because he adores it, and Brobee and Muno are his favorites.  Because the show is Nickelodeon, there ARE official party supplies if I should choose to splurge here or there on a thing or two.  But the show is all bright colors, so I can hit up the Dollar Tree and get solid brights for tableware, flatware,  tablecloth, balloons, etc.  They even have a balloon theme at the Dollar Tree, which is actually pretty perfect because the balloons are actually pretty integral characters in a couple episodes.  So that will be cute and cheap for the basis of the party.

   And seeing as I'm an artist, I am going to buy a bunch of poster board and create the Gabba Lands, plus a "lifesize" cutout of each character, plus get some brightly colored balloons and crepe paper to make it festive.  Like this:

Some of the decorations will be used for games:
Super Music Friends Show TV - Photo Op
Muno - Pin the Eye on Muno
Brobeee - Part in My Tummy Bean Bag Toss
Plex - Ring Toss
I don't think I'm going to do anything specifically with the female characters Foofa and Toodee because, well, Orion is a boy and favors the boy characters.  I am considering doing something with their lands though.
Foofa's Spring Meadow - Lollipop Pull with the suckers stuck in the middle of the flowers.
Toodee's Winter Ice Land - Ice Fishing for the kids to get their treat bags...
 
...which leads me to...

   Goodie Bags - undoubtedly one of the MOST expensive parts of a party if providing treat bags/favors.  So I am going to buy simple brown paper bags, decorate them like the characters and fill them as follows:
Krazy Straws - 6 for $1 at Dollar Tree
Crayons - 10 cents a pack at Staples
Activity Pads - 8 for $1 at Wal-Mart
Bubbles - 12 for $1 at Dollar Tree
Play-Dough - 8 for $1 at Dollar Tree

   I won't be putting any candy in the treat bags because there will be lollipops from the Lollipop Pull and we're doing a pinata.  Again, something I am going to be making out of papier mache in the shape of the boombox.  I'm going to fill it with Smarties, Tootsie Rolls and other small candies as well as confetti to simulate the beginning of the show. 

 

   We'll probably do this first once we get going with the activities, followed by Toodee's Ice Fishing for the kids can get their bags to stow their treats in and then Foofa's Lollipop Pull.  Once the kids have their goodie bags, we'll probably do the cake and ice cream.  Which leads me to...

   Food!  The other most expensive part of the party!  I'm making the cake myself, plus cupcakes.  Orion's personal cake is going to be orange and made with the Yo Gabba Gabba show theme on top.  Then I'm going to make Strawberry, Chocolate and Vanilla cupcakes and frost them in the colors of the main characters: Yellow, Blue, Pink, Red and Green.  Then we'll serve those little individual serving size of the Birthday Cake ice cream - that stuff is amazing. I've planned the party in the late afternoon, so the only food I'll be serving will be snack type foods - Chips, Cheese/Crackers, Cocktail Weenies and Cookies (Caramel Apple Tarts and Pumpkin Smores), plus sodas.

   Then we'll probably do the games to let the kids' food settle and let Orion open his presents last.  Since it's gonna be at the park, the kiddies can play on the playground when everything wraps up, but before they go, we're going to have Dancey Dance Time and do a couple of the dances from the show.  Should be fun as me and Alex are gonna be the teachers.. or embarrassing.

   Ha!  Anything for my baby though... we're even dressing up!  Orion is gonna be DJ Lance Rock, Apollo is gonna be Brobee, I'm gonna be Foofa, Alex is gonna be Plex and they don't know it yet, but my parents are gonna be Toodee and Muno.  It won't be out there "costumes" though.  O is gonna wear a DJ Lance Rock shirt I'm making and a hat.  It's pretty much - gonna be jeans and the decorated colored t-shirts, with O, Apollo, me and Alex wearing hats, hence the reasom I gave Toodee and Muno to my parents... they're more likey to go along with it if they don't have to look too silly.  Ha ha... something like this:

 

And for the birthday boy! - Orion's 2nd Birthday Wish List

Day 26 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Excuse all the laundry in the background.  I got a bit behind and have been working to catch up on laundry, so it's all over the living room.  Orion loves to play Guitar Hero, so we let him jam on the guitar for a little while and he was SO cute, I just had to get a picture.  He is a real ham and a squirmer, so the flash created streaks, making it look like he has a mohawk...

 

And not to be outdone, Apollo got in on the action with his little mini guitar.  Look at him, already going for the orange button - he's gonna be my little expert.  Apollo wasn't actually playing the game, we just sat the guitar on him.  Orion was "playing" as you can see below...

Day 25 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion is the definition of a toddler in his terrible twos.  Don't get me wrong - he has good days and bad.  The good days are a relief and the bad days are really getting bad.  Especially when he doesn't nap, which he hardly did today for some reason.  He finally fell asleep over 2 hours after I put him down for a nap and got up an hour later, so short nap = bad Orion.  He was running around hitting everyone with his foam sword, tossing DVDs off the shelf, running into the kitchen and doing just about anything we told him NOT to do and not doing what we told him to do.  So I took away his sword and he rag-dolled into the floor, right in front of the camera, so his temper-tantrum is preserved for future use against him when he brings his girlfriends home.

 

Meanwhile, Apollo is getting so big!  He is even holding his bottle almost all by himself.  He had a little help here with holding it, via the side of the glider, but he otherwise chugged down the whole 8 ounces with very little assistance. Not to mention he's 14.5 pounds according to my grandmother's scale so he's getting on up there and it really shows in his tummy.  He's got chunk on his legs and to an extent, his arms, but he's really got a pudgy belly.

Day 24 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion is always trying to be so helpful with his baby brother.  He takes wet diapers to the trash (he's not allowed to have the dirty ones in case he forgets to throw it away), he puts dirty bottles in the sink, he tries to rock Apollo when he's in his car seat and he is forever trying to stick Apollo's binky back in his mouth.  That's what he's trying to do here. He's so attentive that it's just plain cute - even if Apollo doesn't always want his help. And of course, Apollo is pretty fond of his brother too.  There are times when Orion's the only one who can make him smile.  He definitely knows that Orion is special to him.

Day 23 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apollo asleep in the pack and play in the living room.  I love that nifty little night vision feature on my camera because it was pitch black dark in the living room when I took this picture.  I didn't want to disturb him, but he looked so sweet with his fist shoved in his mouth.

 

Orion has a "playhouse" set up in our living room in the corner where his pack and play is located.  This little house front is one of his most favorite toys right now, even though he has to duck down to climb through and it's missing a few pieces.  Those pieces were missing when we got it from Mike from Savannah Jack, but he loves it anyway.  It still works and sings and talks to him when he opens the door, the mailbox and other activities.  Plus, we discovered that the balls from the Playskool Ball Popper work for the rain spout and will make it count.  Cutest thing ever to see him crawl halfway through the door and turn halfway around, wave,  say "bye bye" and shut the door.

Day 22 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apollo is my little bugger, so this onesie is appropriate. It was actually Orion's and is a 0-3 size, but because it's Garanimals, it's pretty big.  It's really just now starting to fit Apollo... and it fit Orion until he was 9 months old!  He didn't even start wearing it until he was 5 months old... but he was scrawny and Apollo is robust.  But I can't imagine how big the baby was that Garanimals used for sizing because any 1 month old who could wear that thing would be ginormous... 

 

We went into Mobile today and Orion fell asleep on the drive there.  It's about an hour drive, so it was pretty much expected that Orion would fall asleep before we got there.  He usually does - especially when it's close to naptime. What was unexpected was his naptime buddy.  At home, he naps with Scout at Mimi and Pops' and Brobee at home.  So for him to snuggle up with The Hulk is funny.  I think he fell asleep while in the middle of playing with it.

Day 21 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion has always loved to play in boxes.  I guess he got that from me, because I would dump the toys out of the toy box and play with the box and ignore the toys.  Anytime we get a shipment of any type, he HAS to have the box - big or small.  He puts thing in the little ones and HE gets in the big ones.  This one is at the end of its life because he stood on it and the tape didn't hold, so this was its last hurrah.

 

Apollo's only getting older and before we know it, all of his meals will be served in a high chair.  So I decided to test him out in Orion's chair to see how he fared - as you can see, he wasn't having it.  He screamed the whole time.  It's kinda funny because that is one place Orion NEVER screams because he associates it with food, but Apollo doesn't even know what food is yet.  I suspect there will be a followup picture to this sometime in the near future with a grinning Apollo.

Day 20 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

It was a day of Pops' love.  Apollo started fussing before we headed out to buy our weekly groceries, so Pops got down on the floor and started playing with him.  They're playing footsie here and Apollo LOVED it.

 

Not to be outdone, Orion had to get himself some Pops loving.  Orion has been having a lot of trouble at naptime whenever he's at Mimi and Pops' because he has really outgrown the pack and play they have there for him.  So we try to lay him down on the couch or in Mimi's bed if one of us can get away long enough to lay with him until he falls asleep.  So he decided to nap with Pops this time.

Neighbors from Hell

   Just when you think that the trailer trash stereotype is outdated and secluded to the little blink-and-you-miss it towns in the backwoods of modern America... you move in next door to the epitome of trailer trash.  We've been here for almost 7 months and it has gotten progressively worse.  When we moved in, they had 3 dogs - a bulldog, a pit/boxer mix and a full blooded pit bull.  Now, I am not one to assume stereotypes on dogs based on their breed alone, but this damn dog barked at Orion aggressively in April.  At the time, I was 8 months pregnant with Apollo and I couldn't have defended us if something had happened.  What really pisses me off about the situation is that Orion and I were standing on OUR back porch and that damn dog was left tied out on a chain that reaches over halfway to my back porch.  If that dog has snapped that chain, I MIGHT have had time to get myself and Orion back inside.  I shouldn't have to live with those types of worries and fears.  What makes it even worse is that this dog has had a hard knock life.  I don't blame the dog - it's obviously been a fighter at some point because it has significant scarring on its hindquarters and ears.  I blame the owners for being idiotic enough to ruin this dog and then leave it outside to inflict its damages onto some unsuspecting kid.  Our community is loaded with kids.  Nevermind that community guidelines state you can only have 1 dog under 20 pounds that is never allowed to be out of your direct control and must wear a license at all times for verification of vaccination.  They have 6 dogs now, 3 of which are over 20 pounds that leaves out on a dog run for hours at a time or stick in a kennel that is 10 steps from my back porch.  The kennel doesn't even have a proper gate - they hold it closed with a LOG.  I have complained to 3 different proprety managers (sad how fast we go through them, huh?) more than once about the dogs, plus a multitude of other issues.  
   The sorry excuse for a man next door has consistently mowed OUR grass since we first complained.  He's not doing it to be nice either - he's doing to try to claim all the land between our homes as his since there are no definitive property lines.  I have been bugging the property manager to define the property lines for months now.  In the process of his mowing OUR grass, he has damaged the skirting around the bottom of our home and broken our drain clean out.  The drain clean out is a pipe that is connected to the sewer and is used to clean out the sewer if a backup occurs.  Now, normally said clean out is a sealed pipe with a plastic cap that prevents rainwater and debris from getting into the sewer system.  The idiot ran over it with a riding lawnmower and busted the cap off.  He was supposed to fix it 3 months ago and still hasn't.  I know how much a plumber costs and I don't have that kind of money, plus I didn't break it so I am not paying for it.  A month ago, he ran over it again and busted the pipe itself.  I highly suspect there is raw sewage leaking into the ground and the property manager is being a lazy ass and not forcing neighbor-guy to fix it, even though neighbor-guy admitted fault.
   I just needed to vent here for a minute and there are so many other problems I could discuss but those are the main two and the two that make my blood boil.  They are willingly endangering my kids and that isn't kosher with me.  My babies are my life.  Ugh, now I'm just mad about it and I need to let it go, breathe, relax... that 10 page letter I'm writing to corporate WILL get things rectified.  I have a way with words, especially when I'm including all the Escambia County Ordinances and Florida Statutes that corporate will be violating if they don't fix it...

Day 19 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion is really starting to get good at playing video games with Daddy. He is definitely Daddy's Boy.  They were playing Smash Brothers Brawl and Orion was actually doing well.  He also wins sometimes when they play Modern Warfare - or whatever shoot em up it is that Alex plays with his dad and brothers.

 

This is one of my favorite pictures I have captured of Apollo.  He's a very fast mover, so if he strikes a cute pose, by the time I get the camera, he's changed positions.  So I was stoked when he pulled this while I had the camera in my hand.  He's getting to be so much fun already and he's got such a personality.

Day 18 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Me, Orion and Apollo were chilling in the living room after dinner while Daddy was cleaning up the kitchen.  I took my eyes off of Orion for 10 seconds and when I looked back at him, he had snatched my camera, turned it on and aimed it on himself.  With me watching, he pushed the snap button and took this picture of himself.  He was so proud of himself I just had to use it for today.

 

The camera was sitting on the couch from me taking pictures of Apollo and that's how Orion got a hold of it.  The little book he's holding is really Orion's, but it highly amuses him.  He loves the sounds it makes and I am convinced I'm gonna have to get him one for Christmas.  Maybe I can have a chat with Mr Claus...

Day 17 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion was just running around being a little terror and he wore himself out, so he needed to take a breather on the floor.

 

Apollo was just chilling with Daddy on the couch.  I love this picture because Apollo looks really good in green, plus you can see how his hair is really starting to thicken up.

Day 16 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion hated bathtime as an infant, but once he was shown you could play in the bath, it became one of his favorite times of time.  Especially since it's his special time with daddy.  due to my long shifts when I was working at T-Mobile, Alex just became the primary bath giver.  Notice he has a bubble mohawk and a bubble goatee here... and I'm not sure who gets wetter during Orion's baths - O or Daddy...

 

Apollo got all dressed up to go to the library to get Orion some books.  Those little shoes are actually 6-9 month size, but he has big feet and can't wear even 3-6 month shoes already.  He absolutely HATES tight shoes too, so I figured 6-9  was the right size.

Bumps, Bruises and Band-Aids

I truly think my son is trying to make me have an aneurysm! Last night, he absolutely would not behave.  Nothing new, he always gets like that in the evenings - especially if he gets a short nap or, heaven forbid, misses his nap.  While I was in the kitchen cooking dinner, Alex was in the living room with the boys.  Apollo was quietly swinging in his swing and Orion was running around, screaming like a Banshee.  Alex tells him to quit running around and to quiet down because it was getting late and what does Orion do?  He jumps up on the couch and dives face first into the bookshelf.  Boo boo number 1.  He cut his temple on the corner of the bookshelf.  He cried, it bled and daddy patched him up with a band-aid, which Orion later ate.  Then it was time for dinner.  We decided to eat in the living room, so Orion sat in the floor with me to eat.  He did OK for a bit, then he walked through his plate... twice, spilling the contents all over the newly vacuumed rug.  After taking away his food, he climbs on the couch AGAIN.  After telling him to get down several times, he throws a pillow on the floor and jumps off the couch, (THANKFULLY) landing on the pillow.  That was enough - we put him in the pack and play so we could finish eating. Remembering I still needed a picture of O for my 365 day photo challenge, I scooped O out of the pack and play and set him on the couch beside me to get a picture of his band-aid.  Again, he starts standing on the couch.  And sure enough, he slipped and tumbled backwards over the arm of the couch, landing flat on his back and knocking the base of his skull against the vacuum cleaner. I felt so totally helpless... it was like slow motion and I couldn't move to catch him in time.  He SCREAMED and I had him in my arms in no time flat, comforting him. Never mind my poor camera which was tossed into the floor.  I went and laid down with him in our bed with ice on his back and soothed him until an hour had passed and he was allowed to go to bed.  So today he has a nick on his temple and a big knot on the base of his skull. We've gotta stop giving him Superhero band-aids and underwear - now he thinks he's invincible! I am counting the days until I have to visit the ER with Orion - hopefully he turns 2 first!

Day 15 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apollo loves his Mimi.  He likes to be passed around during the day on a 20 minute basis.  He was making faces at me while I sat beside Mimi.

 

Pops took Orion outside and let him play for a while since it wasn't TOO hot for once.  It was only about 90 degrees out, but he was a little sweat bucket by the end of it.  Pops brought him up on the back deck and he climbed into the chair and snagged Pops' Sweet Tea.

Day 14 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Here is a picture of Orion with his boo-boo and his Bakugan band-aid to make it all better.  He jumped into a bookcase while standing on the couch and cut his temple. This is actually his second band-aid because he ate the first one. And he fell backwards off the couch shortly after this picture was taken.  He's my rough and tumble toddler...

 

Apollo thankfully loves his swing most of the time.  He won't always tolerate it, but when he does, it's a blessing in disguise because it will entertain him for up to 20 minutes which is long enough to start a load of laundry and pick up Orion's toys.  This expression was unexpected though so that's why I chose it as his daily picture. I am so glad Mike gave us this swing 2 years ago for Orion.  I never could have afforded a swing on my own and it helped significantly with Orion during our first move with him and up to him being 8 months old and now Apollo is loving it too...

Day 13 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apollo is starting to sit really well now with assistance, which he does have in this picture.  I used styrofoam to help support him.  We joke and say that whenever the kids are bad, we just pack em up and ship em off to Nonni in Tennessee. 

 

Now Orion has really started to be a bad boy at times.  He was supposed to be napping in the pack and play (and yes, I know it's pink, but it's the extra one at Mimi's and it was free, so yes, it is pink and no, it isn't hurting him.) and I went in there to check on him and he had half-wriggled out of his shirt and was shaking the pack and play back and forth.  It got kinda scary there for a bit because he almost knocked it over, which would have sent him tumbling into the floor.  It kinda looks like he's pleading to be let out if he promises to be good, which he wasn't being...

And here is my video proof that he is just plain bad...

Day 12 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Apparently, Orion is still a little attached to the IntelliTainer because now that we're putting Apollo in it, he suddenly wants back in it. We told him he could play with the toys, but he couldn't get in it.  Lo and behold, I found him stuck in it.  If you notice, both legs are stuck through one hole.  He did this a couple more times today, but I told him I wasn't going to help him out of it anymore and he got VERY upset when he got back in it and got stuck.  I left him there for a good 15 minutes while he cried.  He hasn't gotten back in it again. 

My camera has an interesting little feature called "Night vision".  This picture of Apollo is the result of that feature.  It's not my favorite coloring, obviously, but it really does work.  It allows me to capture pictures in otherwise impossible lighting situations.  I guess I could always turn the pictures black and white...

Day 11 of 365 Photo Challenge

 

Orion is a big fan of yogurt and when we were back in Tennessee, Nonni always gave him Go-gurts at her house.  But at the time, he was super messy with them and I didn't allow them at home because it was just a guaranteed mess and extra clean-up time.  However, he's a good deal older now and can do the Go-gurts pretty well on his own now.  That doesn't mean he never makes a mess, but it's less severe now and he loves his cotton candy yogurt.

 

Here's Apollo with his Sleep Sheep, which Grandmama gave him a couple weeks ago.  He LOVES this thing and most nights, he won't fall asleep without it. It has four sounds, but his favorite nighttime sound is the heartbeat and his favorite daytime sound is the ocean - or maybe that's mine because he gets quiet and plays on his tummy when it's going.  Regardless, this thing is going to be a lovvie I think.  Orion has a sheep lovvie too - Airy, which he got his first Easter, so sheep are kinda a tradition for us.  :-)

Day 10 of 365 Photo Challenge

Today, we loaded up the boys and headed to Toys R Us to pick up some overnight diapers for Orion.  We ended up getting a pack for him and a pack of 3's for Apollo for when he grows into them, which wont be long I assure you.  The 2's are beginning to get a little tight, so we're looking at going into 3's within the month. Anyway, while we were there, I decided to go ahead and set up a wish list for both boys for Christmas.  I hate the inevitable questions, "What does so and so want for Christmas?"  They're 21 months ad 2 months right now.. I have no idea and I freeze up with a blank stare on my face.  And it won't get any easier as the season gets closer.   Sure, Orion will be talking better and Apollo will be crawling by Christmas, but I will probably still be clueless, so I scanned a bunch of stuff I think they'll want while I'm not stressed by the season.  And I can update it online if they get it between now and then, such as Orion for his birthday.  This list is gonna be good for that too.
Apollo's - 30378997 at ToysRUs.com
Orion's - 30379008 at ToysRUs.com