Starburst

Kate got a pack of Starburst today. She was so nice to share with everybody and even put one aside to share with Jeff when he got home. It sat on the counter all night. I didn't know it was for him and asked if I could have it, but Kate told me, "No, that's for Daddy."

We went on a little walk, came home and Kate picked up that last Starburst and started unwrapping it. I asked her if it was for Daddy. Kate said, "I don't think he wants it anymore." I love that little Kate

We have been loving walks, the whole family. The boys love getting out, and Kate is becoming a little master on her bike. We went two miles tonight and would have gone more if it wasn't dark. It is so nice! She has really come a long way this summer.

Emma and Jane Eyre

I love getting obsessed with a book. My favorite is to read the book, then watch all (or a lot of) the movies to the book. I've been doing this lately with Jane Eyre and Emma. Here are my thoughts:

Emma (the book)

I actually read this a while ago, but oh I love this book. I am such a Jane Austen fan anyway, but this one really shows Jane Austen's sense of humor. There are so many parts I just laugh out loud. I love getting all the details the movie leaves out. Emma is a great character and I love her story.

Emma (the one with Gwyneth)

This one to me is such a classic. I think Gwyneth really gets Emma's character. This movie really has fun with the humor in the book. The chemistry between Emma and Mr. Knightley are great too, I just love this Mr. Knightley. This is one movie I own (which is saying a lot considering we have 15-20 movies total--including kid's movies) I can watch it again and again. It is only 2 hours along (give or take) so it does skip stuff in the book, but it stays pretty true for the length.
Emma (the one with Kate Beckinsale)

I read reviews on this, I had never seen it until recently and they were great reviews. I wasn't that impressed though. I thought Kate did a good job acting Emma's part, but the Mr. Knightley was very unimpressive to me. There didn't seem to be much interaction between Emma and Mr. Knightley to me. The movie seemed to focus too much on small details and not enough on interactions and character development. Overall, I wasn't that impressed and definitely won't buy this one.
Emma 2009

Oh I love this one so much. My little sister and I discovered it this year on Valentines Day. (fitting :) ) I love the characters, I love all 5 hours (give or take) of it. I love the Emma, I love the Mr. Knightley and their chemistry. I am fully satisfied on interaction time, character development, and especially the MUSIC! Oh, I am in love with the music. I bought this soundtrack and the whole family loves it, it is just good music. Here is a little clip from the movie, it is short (3 minutes) and is arguably my favorite clip of the movie. My only complaint of this movie is that I think sometimes Romola (Emma) is a little too silly and not sophisticated enough for Emma. Overall, I am so impressed with it and will buy this one.

If you don't want to want to watch the whole thing, start at 45 seconds for the music (although I don't know how you could miss any of it).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loafWiajfy0
Jane Eyre (the book)

I have been so intimidated by this book, but after my friend, Jamie, read it a while ago and said it was a good one, I decided to give it a try. It took me 8 weeks to start it (thank goodness for online renewals from the library) and I finally tackled it. The first part was hard for me to understand and I wasn't giving it a huge chance. At some point, I was so drawn in, and I couldn't put it down after that. I loved the story so much. I love the Jane Eyre character so much. I am not a huge Wuthering Heights fan (Charlotte Bronte's sister Emily wrote it) so I had my doubts, but Jane Eyre is much lighter and happier than Wuthering Heights. Definitely worth it and I think I will buy this book.

Jane Eyre (1983)

I tried to decide which one to get, there are so many out. This one had good reviews, so I thought I would try it. Overall, it is well made and sticks VERY close to the book, lots of quotes from the book. I didn't feel a lot of chemistry between Mr. Rochester and Jane (Maybe it was because he is 18 inches taller!) Also it is an older movie that was redone on DVD and you can tell. It has kind of that old style of filming in some parts. While I shouldn't judge on that part, it kind of bugged me. It was pretty good, but I definitely won't buy it.
Jane Eyre (2006)

I really enjoyed this movie. I loved the Mr. Rochester in this movie, I thought he did an awesome job. I also loved the Jane. It really came to life for me (as cheesy as that sounds) . There aren't very many movies that do that for me (another that comes to mind is Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth). I thought they stuck to the story pretty well. They ventured in some parts, but it didn't take away from the story. I haven't decided if I need this one, but I think so. It's one I would be happy to watch again tomorrow.

There you have it. I probably shouldn't admit my obsession with these older stories, but I just love them. I need to take a break from these for now though. I could justify them before because I was finishing a little quilt for Scott and a picnic quilt(pictures to come), but I guess I better get some other stuff done. If you made it to the end of this, congratulations!!

Scott and Austin 18 months

They both love sitting on little chairs.

These are little suits Jeff's mom bought for them.

My boys are now 18 months. I absolutely LOVE this age, they are so fun and their personalities are really getting funny. Both are now full time walkers (Scott has been for a couple of weeks now). It's so funny how they just decide one day to walk all the time.

Scott

22 lbs 3 oz 8th percentile

31.5 in 30th percentile

Head....95th percentile!!!

Austin

21 lbs 10 oz 5th percentile

31.5 in 30th percentile

Head... 60th percentile

Scott

• Has started turning his head when he doesn't want to look at someone (or the camera). The way he does it is so funny, it says, "I refuse to look at you."
• LOVES any container, box, cup, anything that will hold things. Then, he loves to put things in and take them out. Whenever I am looking for something, I always look under the seat of their walk and ride cars. I find a lot of stuff there.
• Still loves his bubba (binky) We're going to work on that one
• Doesn't drink bottles anymore!!! We stopped cold turkey one day and he is doing great!
• Likes looking at books, especially the big ones I read. Whenever I am reading one, I can find him on the couch flipping through (and sometimes ripping out pages)
• Comes to me for hugs and kisses, oh I love it
• Is the MESSIEST eater. I don't know how he manages
• Likes "talking on the phone"
• Loves waving and saying hi and bye
• Loves saying "uh oh" and thinks it is so funny
• Still loves peek a boo
• Is starting to try and talk
• Does this cute thing sometimes, leans his head back all the way and smiles, I love it, it's so Scott.
• Loves getting a blanket out of his crib and bringing it out in the main area and cuddling with it--Scott has a preferred blanket and will cry for it if it isn't in his crib--this one my mom actually made for Kate, but it is baby blue and pretty big and soft. He loves it so much.
• Watches out for his brother--he'll get a binky for himself and if there is another one, Scott will walk it over to Austin and put it in his mouth. He will also do this with sippy cups
• If there is only one binky though, it's war--they will keep stealing the binky back and forth
• LOVES to go outside! They'll cry when anyone goes outside and they have to stay inside
• Has 16 teeth
• Says "yeah" a lot, but I don't think he knows what it means

First Haircut: Before

After. The back looks sharp--not the best after picture :)

Scott's precious blanket

Austin

• Stopped doing his glare at people, he only brings it out for special occasions
• Doesn't drink bottles anymore!!! We stopped cold turkey one day and he is doing great!
• Is getting to be a really quick walker. The way he walks, he looks like he is falling and just gets his feet there just in time, but man, he is fast!
• Babbles all the time and sometimes says words. The other day, he was saying, "Here you go" to me all day while handing me stuff. He hasn't done that since
• Loves greeting all the members of his family with "Hi Da" and "Hi Kate" "Hi Scott." Kate and Scott sound like he's trying to say their names, but not perfect, but "Hi Da" is really clear!
• Loves waving and saying Hi and Bye
• Also loves containers, not as much as Scott, but I find stuff in the funniest places. Almost every time I get my Bosch mixer out, I find little trinkets in there!
• Loves the idea of the bath tub, but when we get in there, he is ready to get out pretty fast
• Overall is a pretty happy, cheerful kid
• When we say it's time to go outside, Austin will go get shoes and bring them to me, he's getting pretty good at bringing me my shoes instead of Jeff's
• Comes over for a cuddle, oh so sweet!
• Watches out for his brother--he'll get a binky for himself and if there is another one, Austin will walk it over to Scott and put it in his mouth. Austin also does this with sippy cups
• If there is only one binky though, it's war--they will keep stealing the binky back and forth
• Loves getting a blanket out of his crib and bringing it out in the main area and cuddling with it (along with that, he is loving little cuddle toys and puts them up to his face). He has a couple favorites, but isn't super picky yet.
• LOVES to go outside, he is pretty upset if anyone goes out without him!
• Has 16 teeth

Austin loves riding the tricycle and this is how he does it, it was pretty funny to watch!

Austin's first haircut: Before

After

These two boys sure are precious, we just love them to pieces and are so grateful we get them in our family.

Another Kate story...

(thanks char for telling me about the typo--didn't even notice!)

I had just finished reading Kate Cinderella. There were pictures of the characters at the end and there was one picture of Drizella and Anastasia.

Kate said, "Those are bad girls."

I said, "Yep."

Then, Kate said, "And they say bad words," then with a lowered voice, "like dammit."

I hugged her then so she couldn't see me laughing. I guess it is really engrained in her that that word is a bad word, I just wish she would forget it.

My little Darlin'

Today, Kate and I were watching a movie--something about Pooh's Heffalump Adventure. One of the characters, Lumpy, couldn't find his mom and was sad. Kate was very concerned and I looked at her and could tell she was about to cry. Then, she did start crying and told me that she needed a tissue. I'm not talking a little crying, this was full blown, upset crying. Kate then went to stop the movie because it was too much for her, but I convinced her to see it through. We fast-forwarded to the end when Lumpy and his mom were reunited and all was well again. I thought it was the sweetest thing. It also makes me look forward to a lifetime of watching movies and not being the only one crying!

Cute Kate

Kate:
-After I say good night and Jeff is putting her to bed, she runs out and says c-ya one more time.
-When she wakes up either from a nap or in the morning, she runs down the hall to jump into your arms for a hug.

Since May...

I haven't put any pictures up since May, and really before then. I hadn't realized how much the kids had changed, and I loved looking through the pictures (there were 500, oh my goodness!) Here are a few things we have done:

Kate came up to me holding her doll, "My baby wants to go downstairs and sleep, but I don't want her to, I want her to sleep with me." She is kind of turning into a drama queen, she loves pretending, silly goose.

These cars are such a hot comodity at our house right now (along with the shopping cart). All 3 love to push the cars and stroller around and ride on the cars. (Scott, Austin)

They love pushing each other too. (Austin)

I especially love when the boys push each other, Hilarious! (Austin, Scott)

The kids LOVE playing outside so much. If I go outside without them for a second, they cry and knock on the door. They love splashing and just playing together.
As I looked through my pictures, I came upon this picture (Jeff took it not me). He informed me that the kids (including Austin on the bottom) were all having fun until the last moment. Let's just say the kids are learning how to rough house with each other.

(A, S)

Kate playing dress up with Aunt Rachel. I love her as a cowgirl, I wanted to be a cowgirl when I grew up.
We've loved spending time with family this summer and letting the kids get to know their cousins!
This is on Grandma's birthday, the boys were done by this point of the night. (A, S)

Austin on Emma's lap, Scott on Kate's.

A visit with Grandma Packer, the kids just adore her. (S, A)

Austin and Kate

At the beginning of the summer, we spent a lot of time on the yard, the kids all love helping Jeff with their tools.
What a beautiful day this was--when the boys would finally hold their bottles themselves (S, A)

We have been to the zoo A LOT! We got season passes this year and have gone with friends and with 3 different family members and their families when they were in town. The kids love the zoo and especially the train. Oh the boys love it--although I worry they are going to dive off. And yes, I did sit with them! (Austin left, Scott right)

A, S

This is the boys' favorite drawer (well, the only drawer I let them play in). They love to pull all the grocery bags out, throw them on the floor and climb in. I usually don't let them, but they looked so cute, I had to take a picture. (Scott left, Austin right)
Kate loves to feed the boys these days. She feeds them yogurt and makes a good 65% into their mouths. Scott above, Austin below
We went to the aquarium one last time before our membership ran out. The kids really enjoyed it. Actually, I don't think Kate enjoyed it when she thought I had left her and took off running to look for me. I was actually 3 feet away--she was at the glass and didn't see me, so I'm taking off after her holding both boys, I'm sure it was entertaining!
I've been loving this summer with my three little munchkins. Their little personalities are so fun. I'm glad we're only halfway through!!