Happy 2nd Birthday, Jordan!

When did this happen? At what point did you decide to grow up? I must have had my back turned because I swear you should still be a baby. You are so independent, and so very two! There's no other way to describe it. You want to do absolutely everything by "mineself" and are learning to stand up to CJ when he picks on you. Oh, sweet sibling rivalry! You have the sweetest personality and are the most adorable little boy with your piggy and blanky (which by the way you stole from your brother!). Your laugh is so contagious, and let me tell you...those big blue eyes of yours are what make you such a heartbreaker! You talk like you are a five-year-old, which is amazing. You can have full on conversations and whatever I can't understand, CJ does. He's my little translator. I love you so much, Jo! You have completed our family, and I can't wait to watch you grow and become the man that God has created you to be.

Happy birthday! Did I mention you have CrAzY morning hair?!

Your pancake color choice? Green. :)

Such a little gentleman, using your fork. :)

I love you, munchkin. I hope you enjoy today and have fun at your birthday party this weekend!

Wordless Wednesday: Late Night Drive

Wordless Wednesday: A Boring Week in Pictures

The Madera "Ferris"

CJ kept getting the "ferris wheel" and the "fair" mixed up. It was so cute when he told people we were going to the "Madera Ferris"! We went with Nikki, her boyfriend, Corey, my Mom, grandparents, and my Great Aunt June. Not long after we arrived, the boys decided that they were too cool to be seen with their Mom and took off with Nikki and Corey. Rejection, anyone? At first I was kinda upset that I wouldn't be spending the night with them, but then quickly changed my mind and accepted my night as some time to relax.

This is the only picture I was able to take of them the whole night. :)

This is his favorite every year.

NiNi and CJ. 

P.S. My children are very impatient and don't enjoy waiting for anything! Moreso, when they're grumpy and impatient, they won't smile for a picture.

Apparently,  I'm not too much of a nerd for him to have me help him out with games. Yeah, I know it's because he'll be getting a prize if he wins. I'll take it.

He popped four balloons by himself!

I'm thankful that the boys had a good time with them, but wasn't thrilled to fill my trunk with all of those stuffed animals! Lol! The toy box is once again over flowing.

Birthday 5k!

(Five points to me for rhyming.)

Disclaimer: This is a post-run picture!

Megan, Me, Nikki, Caitlin, and Cindy

We did it! We ran a 5k on Saturday to celebrate the beginning of my healthy 25th year of life. I was not at all prepared for how hard this run would be, I'll be honest. There were hills throughout the whole run that I just knew were there for the sole purpose of torturing me, but I showed them who was boss with a finish time of 33:29! I would like to take this opportunity, however, to thank Caitlin and Cindy for being so patient with me and slowing down your paces just to listen to me complain about my inability to breathe. I had a blast and have already started planning my 10k run for my 26th birthday. So start training people!

What's Black and White and Read All Over?

There's this cute little bookstore in Fresno called Petunia's Place that offers story-time twice a week. And for those of you thinking that I always have these good ideas to keep my kids occupied, join me in thanking Cindy! I don't know how the girl does it, but she always knows where to find fun activities for our little kiddos.

You didn't expect the boys to sit patiently and wait for story-time to start did you? Luckily, the bookstore didn't either.

Such happy little men

I love that smile!

And that one too :)

Park time!

When the slides are 120 degrees and the ground is unbearably scorching, what do you do? Take their shoes off and let them play in the water. Wet carseats are a small price to pay for happy kids that aren't overheated.

Look at that daredevil :)

CoCo and JoJo

Recipe for Exhausted Kiddos

Cindy and I were very brave mommies yesterday and I'm proud to say that our courage paid off in a big way. Sleepy children anyone? We started off by taking the boys to a gymnastics class. I am so happy that the boys enjoyed it as much as they did...and that it was boy-friendly. We tried a mommy and me gym class with CJ about a year ago and let me tell you, he was not at all interested in the feather boas or the fairy wings they were offering everyone. I also don't think he was very fond of the idea of being the only boy in the entire class. Needless to say, we never returned to that class. The class we took the boys to yesterday though, was perfect!

Rules? What rules? Sliding on your tummy is much more fun than doing somersaults. 

That's Jo's grumpy face for those of you not familiar with it. :)

Look at that little monkey!

Of course if CJ did it, Jo wasn't going to let any amount of (justified) fear stop him.

The first Wednesday of every month, kids get into the Chaffee Zoo for free. What's better than that?! Well, maybe if they offered some cheaper food, but we had a solution for that, too.

Enjoying our picnic

See the hand? One of Jordan's new favorite sayings is, "Stop!" Apparently he couldn't be bothered to take a picture while he was eating.

You really have no idea how hard it was for me to let him be that close to the cousin of the nasty, disgusting, are-you-kidding-me?-fast! ostrich. Don't judge, it's a legitimate fear.

He wasn't at all interested in the reptiles. Unless Mommy carried him, of course.

Such handsome little men

Those little Ring-Tailed Lemurs were the cutest little guys

Apparently the boys called each other in the morning to make sure they would be coordinating. :)

I thought it was quite appropriate to take a picture with my little monkeys in the monkey exhibit.

Cindy and her monkey, Logan

Ok, see this cute little guy? He decided to make an appearance for us in hopes of getting a little chasing action in with the boys.

Instead, they froze in complete fear! CJ's not in the picture because he headed for the hill the second he saw the lizard. 

P.S. Yes, I'm a terrible mom for taking a picture of my screaming child instead of consoling him. But, who could resist this picture opportunity?

Our husbands would be so proud.

I wasn't sure how he'd react. Why does it surprise me that when it comes to animals, he's as fearless as his brother? Well, except when it comes to scaled ones.

Whatever was below us was much more interesting than Cindy with a camera.

CJ had a hat to keep the sun out of his eyes, but he kept taking it off.

Not pictured: Jordan, who was convinced that the boys were standing next to a real-life gorilla.

He was, however, very eager to take a (very cute!) picture with the hippo.

Obviously in a sugar-induced coma.

They're just so peaceful when they're sleeping. :)