lately

Just a random assortment of what we've been up to lately...

Titus is perfecting standing - he loves to pull up on EVERYTHING! The last few weeks he has even tested out letting go a few times...crazy to think we may have a "walker" soon!

 Boden had "Character Day" at school - where you dress up like a character from one of our favorite books and then bring the book to school to share with the class.  He dressed up in his baseball uniform (t-ball t-shirt under his Cardinals jersey- had to wear them both) and took the book "Froggy Plays T-Ball." He had a lot of fun with it - he was so excited that he got to take his glove to school!

Boden is such an artist - he amazes me every single day with the elaborate drawings he comes up with - he will sit and draw for an hour sometimes - I asked him one day what he was doing and he said

 "oh,  I'm just using my imagination" - I love that kid!

this pretty much sums up Claire....sitting on the counter, crazy hair, hollering about something, with a dumped box of crayons...yep, that's pretty accurate.

Titus got ahold of a chocolate chip pancake I left unattended for about 10 seconds - lucky duck...

Boden read his first book! He is having fun learning to read and it is such a joy to see him grown and learn.  I love getting to see the lightbulbs pop on when he figures out a new word or concept.

It's been a pretty mild winter here - we had snow one day for about 20 minutes.  We've had a lot of days to play outside which the kids love and so does mama.

Boden's artwork was featured on the entrance wall at school - I just happened to take him to school one day that week so I got to see it and snap a picture.  He LOVES art!

in addition to standing Titus is constantly exploring the stairs.  I knew the day would come that I would dislike that double staircase...it's here! He makes a dash for the stairs every time I put him down (as long as the dishwasher is not open.  If the dishwasher is open he prefers to try to crawl in it instead). :)

Tea party with my favorites.  There is no photographic proof...but I was dressed up too! 

So that's a bit of what we've been up to - in between my kids catching every single virus and cold that comes near them. I'm so ready for spring and warmer weather to come!

a whole month already?

*warning: prepare yourself for photo overload!*

I can't believe it, a whole month has already passed since Titus was born.  It's been a busy 6 weeks with lots of family and visitors and learning and adjusting to being a family of 5.

Titus is a sweet baby and is so loved by his big sister and big brother.  They always want to be near him, kissing him, talking to him and holding him. He loves to smile at them, and we love to see his toothless grin.  Every one of those smiles is gold to me...a sharp contrast from the screaming.  He has been a bit colicky, so evenings are a little rough around here and there isn't much sleep happening at night.  But, hopefully that won't last too long and we'll all begin getting a little more rest soon.

He is definitely growing well...at 6 weeks he weighed 13lb 7oz and was 23.5 in long! He has gained 5 pounds since birth!

Bubbe & Zeyde (Michael's mom and stepdad) stayed for about a week after Titus was born.  They were a huge help with the kids and with meals while I was resting and recovering.  Then Grandpa and Grandma (Michael's dad and his wife) came for a few days.  The kids loved having them here.  They also made it possible for me to make it to church just one week after Titus was born....there was no way I could have made it out of the house with all 3 kids and have been dressed and presentable in public so soon!

Claire, Titus and Bubbe

The 4 Brueseke boys

Claire and Grandpa

Then a few days later, Nana and Poppa (my parents) arrived.  Poppa helped us out with some projects around the house - a new garbage disposal (yay!), some painting, a new bathroom vanity/sink, and started some grass growing in the back yard.  And Nana helped out with the kids and the LAUNDRY...which I had been completely neglecting.   We did have a little fun too - we took Titus on his first trip to the beach.  Although, he didn't quite enjoy it like we had hoped...he pretty much cried the whole time. :(  

After about a week, Poppa had to leave for a business trip, while Nana stayed another week and a half to help me adjust to life with 3 kiddos.  I loved getting to spend this time with my mom and she was a huge help to me.  I think she might have enjoyed spending time with her grandkids too :)  Poppa then came back for a few more days before they made the long roadtrip back to to Nebraska.

It was so great having family here to help us through the first month.  I was able to rest a lot, the kids got the extra attention they needed, and the house didn't fall apart....we are incredibly blessed and so, so thankful.

Nana and Titus

Claire helping Nana play Sudoku

Poppa meeting his newest Grandson

Here's a few more pictures of what we've been up to for the past 6 weeks:

Brothers

swimming

lovin' on babies

multi-tasking

Mama and her boys

hard to believe Claire and Boden were once as little as Titus

my parents brought my old guitar for Boden to play - he LOVES it!

playing at the park

this is how moms lose the baby weight...we don't get to eat! 

Daddy and his babies

Frozen Yogurt Bar

Bathtime

apparently Claire is more interested in texting than in the story book

a little chutes and ladders

Bubbles!

It's still so wild to me that we have 3 kids!  They are such an amazing blessing.  Thank you Lord!

Our friend Caleb came over to play the other day...it was a beautiful day, so we just spent the whole morning outside...

snacking

loading

hauling

swinging

digging

"cooking"

flying

sun-bathing (actually, I think he said he was making a "dirt angel")

more snacking

running

and just hanging out with friends

Hope you are enjoying spring too!!!

"on the fly"

Boden absolutely loves doing crafts....he asks everyday, probably 2-3 times a day if we can make a craft.  If I were wise, I would have ideas ready to go, maybe do some research in the evening, or buy a book with ideas, but alas...I haven't.  That leaves me with coming up with ideas "on the fly."

For some reason, Claire prefers pencils to crayons...she still thinks crayons are snacks.

and the toilet paper roll was much much more interesting to her than the butterflies

Boden, however, made a whole flock of butterflies  (do butterflies fly in flocks??)