Ryan...

Undisputably, one of the best candid kid pics ever taken, which means I must tell the story of Ryan and Lucas.



Andrew is very 'type a,' and Grace is one step bossier and more outgoing than that....



But Ryan and Lucas are a very different story. When Lu was born, Andrew wanted another girl and since he didn't get his way, he pouted. Grace was too young to care and I think was just happy that her diva status wasn't interfered with. Ryan wanted a little brother... soooooo bad. When he came out, he looked just like Ryan and that was all it took.. Ryan was in love. Ryan was 4 years old when Lu was born. He followed us around the house, was constantly fussing over him, watching him sleep, giving him his blanket, offering to get me diapers.... you get the point. I sometimes found Ryan asleep with a pillow and blanket on the floor next to Lucas's crib. It was precious.

Lucas must remember this, becuase anytime he needs anything (and 2 yr olds have needs... a lot of them) he goes to Ryan. When he gets hurt, he seeks out Ryan to kiss it. When he needs help getting his undies back on, he asks Ryan. I even remember once, when Ryan got a splat on the hand for something and was sent to his room, he called for Lucas to come kiss it. Ryan never leaves Lu out of anything, even offering for Lu to be on his 'team' when the kids play football, baseball or even Clue.

These are the brothers you read about in stories.... I can't wait to see them as adults. I so want to call one of my children, only to have them tell me they will have to call me back because they are on the other line with one of their siblings. I love watching the brotherhood between Lucas and Ryan... it makes me proud as a mother.

Lu and the sharpie

Lucas is my beloved 2 1/2 year old son. He is the 4th and last child, therefore he is a little strange. He has an unbelieveably large vocabulary and can articulate his ideas and opinions very clearly. That being said, he, on occasion, reminds us that he is in fact just a 2 year old. He chose to do this today by waking up before anyone else, sneaking in to the junk drawer and finding a bright blue sharpie marker. He then... wait for it....

drew all over

1. himself

2. the wood floor

3. the (fake) oriental rug in the living room

4. the couch

5. the loveseat

6. the outside of my new PINK laptop

7. his father (who fell asleep watching Sports Center the night before... and I left him there)

Well, I like to be a 'glass half full' type of gal, so I decided to pass along my newfound wisdom to my readers (or reader, as I am sure my mother is the only one reading this), so here it is:

1. Contrary to most websites I found on the subject, hairspray does not remove sharpie... from ANYTHING!

2. neither does fingernail polish remover

3. B&BW exfoliating scrub can fade sharpie off of a child, but he still looks like he has an abnormal number of blue veins on his legs, arms, stomach, back and tushie

4. my junk drawer needs to be cleaned out

So, that is how I started my Sunday.

Next post:

Charly's Christmas List

1. New living room furniture and rug :(