Could it be??

My house has stayed remarkably clean this last week. Wes is away in California working as an EFY counselor... coincidence?? I think not! Comical to most- I'm sure, but I seriously smile inside every time I walk past the boys' bathroom, which Uncle Wes has been using and see that it remains sparkling clean! Rob had actually considered calling a maid service to clean up Wesley's room and bathroom when he left, but I took care of it. I've literally kept those doors closed for the last few months while he's lived here for fear that the filth would somehow trickle out into the rest of the home! He's not even that messy, but Rob has programmed me in such a way that any mess is a big mess and must be remedied! Now the doors are both wide open and there is once again light at the end of the hall... literally. Needless to say... we all miss Wes terribly and the boys are already counting down the days 'til he comes home (in August.)

Canny Can- you started swim lessons last week! I'm not sure why, but you did NOT love the water and we thought the only way to fix this travesty was to enroll you in one on one lessons. Uncle Wes and I took you to the pool the Saturday before you started lessons and you screamed like a banshee when I tried to get you into the water. I was so nervous about your first day of lessons- I thought for sure you'd freak out like you did for me, which was quite surprising considering how much you LOVE anything outdoors and everything sports related. Lindsay is your instructor and boy do you LOVE her! You ask about her every day. You even brought her a granola bar last week for snack:) How relieved was I when you stepped right in and followed every single one of Lindsay's directions... all except the going under water one;) I actually found myself fighting back tears as you blew bubbles and put your little ears under water. We've started our second week of lessons and while I had had these visions of you dog paddling around the pool by this point... you won't even put your head under water completely, let alone attempt a single swim stroke with out both your little feet planted firmly on the bottom of the pool. Two days ago you asked to go down the water slide- Lindsay agreed, but when we got you to the top you panicked! You refused to go and your bully of a mommy scooped you up and pushed you right down that slide into the open arms of Lindsay. You cried for about 11 seconds and then realized that it was fun! I was so proud of you! Last week Lindsay tried to get you to jump to her from the diving board, but when you got there you would have NOTHING to do with it! Today however... you asked to try it again and you walked right out on that board and jumped! Can- it was awesome!!! You did it twice you liked it so much!! You also started summer camp at your preschool this week. The theme was "Pirate Camp" and today you ran out to the car with your little pirate hat and pirate hook shouting "I'm the terror of the seven seas!" Adorable!! You never cease to entertain me!! You do this thing lately where you hold your little hand out to shake and say "Friends?" Mommy always responds by shaking your hand and saying "Best friends forever," which you repeat right back- I love it!! You and Daddy also have your own special handshake- it's pretty simple- you touch thumbs and shout "Boo-ya!" That's it! Daddy LOVES it! We took you fishing this last weekend and you are incredible with a fishing pole! Daddy put that thing in your hand and you reeled that hook in as fast as daddy could cast it!

Crue-ser. You're officially a two year old! Tantrums! That's it- one word says it all! You have turned into quite the feisty little thing! If you want/need something you don't ask... you demand! And heaven forbid mommy gets mad at you for anything. You tossed your lunch on the floor this week because I didn't give you the right colored plate and mommy said "No! No!" Oh my word- meltdown of massive proportions! You cannot handle being disciplined. It's really quite cute, but it's definitely not okay. Aside from those occasional times when you're yelling or trying to smack me:) you're the sweetest thing ever! You run to my rescue every time mommy utters the word "owie." You're always the first to say sorry when I stub my toe or trip over a toy and you're always the first in line to kiss whatever part of me hurts. You've actually been doing quite a lot of kissing lately. If you want something at home and I won't give it to you- you'll reply "need kiss it" and once I let you kiss whatever "it" is you go right on your merry way. You love your baby doll... a little too much for daddy's taste;) You tuck everything in bed with you. Whatever you've brought up for that evening MUST be tucked in right next to you! Lately it's some gigantic book and we have to sneak in to retrieve it once you've dozed off. Occasionally you wake up while I'm trying to slide it out from under you and demand I put it back- pretty funny. You get these terrible growing pains at night. Once or twice a month you'll cry out in the night and we have to climb in bed with you and massage your feet/legs until you're able to get back to sleep. Usually I have to give you Tylenol and stay with you for 30+ minutes until it kicks in- it's heartbreaking! You're still pretty bowlegged... but not near as bad as you used to be! Your left leg used to be so turned in that you would trip yourself with it if you started moving too quickly. Don't worry- it's getting better:) Supposedly it forces you to have better balance in the long-run and makes you more coordinated when it comes to sports... I'm keeping my fingers crossed! I just hope your growing pains go away!! I would love to start potty training with you, but don't know if I have the patience for it just yet... we'll see. Maybe by the next post we will have made some progress!