Fall is Here!

We are having lots of fun this fall. I am still learning how to go out with two mobile children. It really is true: One goes in one direction and the other goes in the opposite direction. I'm getting better, but I spend a lot of time turning in circles. Isaac never goes too far and Grace is adjusting to taking turns and slowing down a bit for little brother to catch up. And then there are the people who ask how old my little toddler is- he stands tall, walks tall, but still looks small. He amazes all- This past weekend we headed to a fall festival at a local church. Isaac fell and scratched up his nose and Grace wanted to ride the ponies three times- I stress the word WANT as every time it was her turn she changed her mind. :-)
She did decide to get her face painted. Much safer than riding those dangerous, 3 feet tall, harnessed, 45 year-old ponies.
Isaac loves walking around with a cup in his hand. Usually the cup carries markers, but on occasion we get daring and carry a matchbox car or train.
No wonder Sid's back hurts.
So this mess occurred by emptying every single container in the playroom. This mess was cleaned up with lots of patience by mommy and lots of procrastinating by Grace.

Finally, our master bath is finished!

After 10 1/2 weeks we are relieved to announce that we now have our bathroom back and in working order. I am still not emotionally able to explain the shenanigans that put us almost 6 weeks behind schedule, but we are just grateful to be finished...and Isaac is glad to be back in his adorable nursery. Please refer to the July 29th blog if you would like to see some before photos. The most wonderful thing about this bathroom is that it is easy to clean b/c there is NO tile anywhere. Seriously, we broke new grounds in bathroom renovation, but there is not a drop of tile to scrub with moldy/mildewy grout. Ahhhh- the little things in life! This is our new tub and doorless shower. The shower is HUGE!
New potty area and vanity.
New vanity. So nice to have tall "things" when one is tall!
My new walk in closet. It is huge, but kind of hard to see in this photo. For the first time, I have a bigger closet than Sid! (He still has more clothes than I do, though.)

Isaac: Power Janitor

No matter what my children decide to do with their future, I want them to do it well. Isaac has a future in cleaning, and with this outfit he looks like he is ready to take on the local elementary school. Yesterday was beautiful so Nana and I took the kids to the park to meet up with their best friends Evan and Hayden. It may look like Grace is strangling Hayden but there was no foul play involved. They are actually having fun.By far the highlight of the playdate was watching poor Evan desperately attempt to get a nibble of Isaac's graham cracker. He's never had one, but somehow knew he was missing out.
Evan: Hey man, can I have a bite of that cracker?
Isaac: Uh-no- because that would mean less for me.

Evan: Just give me the damn thing. Isaac: I am not sharing this with you.

Evan: Uh-oh! Sorry, Miss Tory! Did you hear me say damn?

Isaac: Yes, she heard you, now back away from my cracker.

Evan: Sucker!

Isaac: What the heck just happened?

Isaac: Geez! Just take it already!

Evan: Thanks man- I'll get you back.

Isaac is Walking!

Well, it's official. Isaac is a walker now. He became full throttle just a day before his 10 month birthday. We are all a little shocked, but proud of our young toddler. It was only about 3 weeks ago that he was braving out to take two or three steps and now he is almost professional. I love watching him b/c he walks with his hands out to keep his balance. He doesn't fall all that much, he really is pretty steady. It has been SO HARD to get a picture of him walking b/c the minute I pull out the camera he charges it! As seen in this photo- but this time I was far enough away and that bought me some time.
Here he is again...but I think he was about to fall in his excitement of the tent.
Daddy and Grace reading books in the tent.
Ultimate fighting ain't got nothin' on these two.
In a year Isaac will be bigger than sister- and then we will have to worry.

Fun in the Tub

No big news stories to report. We are STILL working on the bathroom. There was a snag in the drywall work- it looks terrible- so a professional team is being hired to come in and repair pretty much every wall in the bathroom. Also, the granite cracked upon installation so that has to be replaced as well. The bathroom hasn't been worked on in two weeks; but the drywall crew is supposed to start tomorrow to get us back on track...I'll keep you posted. Other than that we are making good use of our DVR in order to miss out on most of the political propaganda and just enjoying our children.
These two camera hams love their tub time. Some shampoo mohawks only incentivize the silliness.
Lauren and Grace play extreme dress-up while Isaac watches with envy.
Isaac's two teeth are totally in! He has a top one that just broke through- but it is not the front top, it is one of the side teeth. Crazy kid.

Tap, Ballet and Gymnastics

Grace started her first official extra-curricular mommy-free class last week. She loved it! She has four friends in the class: RyRy, Addie, Andie, and Mikayla. The girls have a blast together and it is fun for us moms to have someone to chat with while we watch. Isaac even has a friend or two to play with. I brag, but she is really quite good...of course she gets that from her mother. Grace, RyRy, Addie, Mikayla...Andie doesn't like having her picture taken.

A handstand-
Hopping...look at that cute little behind.

On the parallel bars doing 'who knows what!'
On the uneven bars- Let's just go ahead and have this conversation. I realize that my daughter is going to be too tall to be a ballerina or a gymnast- Her teachers will one day have the conversation with me that my teachers had with my mother when they said I was just too big to go on to the next level. She will be tall, but she will have grace and coordination! It is so fun to see her follow in my footsteps. There is nothing better than being a parent!

RyRy and Grace at the head of the class.
RyRy and Grace being silly.
Grace doing her toe-taps.
Fun with scarves- Are they really that fun?
On the balance beam-

Labor Day at Sunset Beach

Our wonderful friends, Betsy and Paul, let us use their condo at Sunset Beach last weekend over Labor Day. We left on Friday, had two full days and returned on Monday. We all had a wonderful time on our much needed time away. The weather was beautiful and the kids played on the beach for hours in a row. Here is my princess on the dock outside of the condo.
Little man is getting close to being a full-time walker- and boy did he love this shovel.

The shovel played an important role in his afternoon.

Daddy and Grace spent some serious time on Uncle Ben's boogy board.
My rugrats after dinner on Sunday night.

Daddy and Grace chillin' on the patio- Grace eating a popsicle and making a huge mess.
Gracie on the docks.
Me and my kids- I am so blessed.
Little man stuck in his stroller.
Grace sporting the proper sun-protection beach wear.
What can I say? I have pale kids.