Last night we took Brody and Logan shopping. On a Sunday evening. At the outlets. We knew we were in trouble when we pulled up and there were cars parked in the grass around the back of the shops. Luckily it wasn't as packed as we expected although there were a lot of people there. I had the sit and stand stroller and Logan sat happily in the front while Brody sat, stood, ran around in circles, and "fell", which means he slowly laid himself down on the ground and said "Oh no, I fell down". He climbed through clothing displays and hit mannequins, then laughed hysterically. I'm sure we were the family that others gawked at, wondering what we were thinking to bring two kids and a gigantic stroller to the outlets on a Sunday evening. Oh well, I guess that's our life now. We were surprisingly successful in our shopping and I think Brody had a good time.

Happy times

We have a good thing going right now. Logan laughs at Brody's antics and Brody loves to make Logan laugh, so the two of them have some crazy moments. Brody's imitation of random noises will trigger Logan's giggles, which just makes Brody do it more. Logan loves Brody's attention, so he laughs harder, which makes Brody perform more. For now I can say that the lovefest continues in the Weaver household.

Brody's Caterpillar

Brody and I were out walking Foster one morning when he came upon something on the sidewalk. He said "Look Mama, a caterpillar!" I checked it out and honestly couldn't tell if the shriveled up black thing was a very dead worm or bird poop. I said, "Are you sure that's not a worm?" to which he confidently replied, "No Mama, it's a caterpillar." I said ok and kept walking. Brody waited two beats and announced "It's DEAD."

Rough nights

Logan is at the end of his first cold and struggling with a cough that wakes him up at night. And when he wakes up... so do we. This week has been brutal. Last night he was up three separate times for at least half an hour each instance. This morning Jacob and I were zombies, but Logan was happy as can be- alert and smiling.

Finally, a family vacation!

It's been over a year since we last took a family vacation. We decided to skip the Plummer family beach trips this spring and summer because travelling with Logan would be tough while he's so young. Jacob and I were itching for a beach trip and in August we finally decided to make plans for a weekend getaway to Ocean City. Brody was as excited as we were, telling everyone that we were going to the beach even though our trip was still a month away. He knew that at the beach he was going to play in the sand, eat pizza and ice cream, and ride rides. He also knew that he would get to wear sunglasses.

This past weekend was our long-awaited trip. The car ride was a surprise. Logan was a dream. Even with a cough and cold he slept or sat quietly in his car seat for almost the entire trip there and back. Brody was... talkative. He wasn't cranky, although he missed his nap both travel days. He was just very, very chatty and rather demanding. He wanted certain toys that he couldn't reach or he wanted me to hold onto some of his toys when his hands were too full. Every time he heard the crinkle of paper, he'd quickly say "Mama, what are you eating?" He caught me every time I tried to sneak some candy or road trip munchies and asked for some of his own. Brody's mile-a-minute talking caused the car ride to be tiring but it could have been much, much worse.

Once there, both kids had a great time. Logan was happy to be pushed around the boardwalk, carnival, and arcade in his stroller. Brody was everywhere and did everything. He played in the sand. He ran from the waves. He walked the boardwalk like a champ, checking out the sights. He rode a ton of rides at the carnival. He ate pizza, boardwalk fries, chocolate covered oreos, and caramel popcorn. He tried to win tickets at the arcade then watched as Mamie and Jacob cashed in dollar after dollar for more quarters in their attempts to win him tickets that he could turn in for prizes. He had a blast and we had a blast watching him.

This weekend was also Brody's first time sleeping in a big boy bed. We took a twin mattress off the frame and laid it on the floor next to our bed. The first night he seemed a little confused but didn't consider wandering downstairs to find the rest of us. By the time we came to bed, he'd passed out and slept soundly through the night. Nap time was interesting as he didn't immediately fall asleep and was left to wander the room. We listened to him talking to himself through the monitor then he eventually fell asleep on the floor next to his mattress. We're starting to look into getting him a big boy bed at home and this weekend showed us that he's ready for it.

Do all kids stutter?

Brody has talked in circles as long as he's been able to string together words. A typical sentence will be "Brody go to pool and Dada go to pool and Brody." As he's nearing two and a half his sentences are becoming more concise but we're starting to notice a new trend- a stutter. He often repeats the first word when he's excited and struggling to get the rest of the sentence out, but that's not what I mean by a stutter. Over the last week he's developed a true stutter where just the first sound is repeated. I wonder if this is common and if all kids stutter a bit while they're learning to talk. I'm interested to see how this changes as he becomes more comfortable with his words and his ability to communicate. For now, we'll just keep watching and listening.

My little motivator

Last night was my first bike ride with Brody in tow. In hindsight, I probably should have reacquainted myself with the bicycle before I hooked my child to the back, but we survived. Jacob said I came close to hitting a tree at one point and I definitely had a couple of wobbles as I tried to check on Brody behind me while continuing to pedal.

Brody was quiet for most of the ride. I wasn't sure if he was enjoying himself or if he was bored or even scared. At one point the bicycle started making a funny noise so I slowed down to check it out. As I came close to stopping I heard a quiet voice behind me say "Go mama, GO!" I turned around to check on him and he was dazed but looked comfortable. I asked if he was ok and he said "GO!" So I sped off again ignoring the noise of the bike, which eventually went away.

A little further into our ride I hit an uphill that slowed me down quite a bit. Again, a little motivating voice came from behind me "Fast mama, GO FAST!" I did my best, but I don't think I could hit a speed that satisfied him at that point. My legs were rubber. If I were all alone I may have stopped at that point but with Brody behind me I knew that wasn't an option. My little motivator, aka drill sergeant was back there to keep me moving all the way home.