Moving Fun

We had this mirror sitting on the floor in our closet for a few days while we were getting things put together after moving, and Talmage loved going up to his reflection and either giving it kisses or trying to eat it...I'm not quite sure which. Either way, it was so cute to see!

Playing with bristle blocks while I unpack

And just plain bein' cute!

Oldies, but Goodies

These are some old pictures from back before we moved. I never got around to posting them before, so I thought I would now even though they're about a month old.

Talmage LOVES emptying things. He does it as quickly as possible and then moves on to find something else to empty! Because of this, doing laundry with Mommy is a favorite job.

Early one morning he dumped a cup of water all over himself (a fairly common occurrence) and then thought it was hysterical when Sam balanced a cup on his head.

I'm pretty sure he was figuring out Einstein's theory of relativity here.

Just being silly

He loves this little rocking dog some people in our ward gave us!

Quickie

We're mostly settled in...but there is still a bit of work to do before I'll really feel like things are completely in order. I'm always amazed at how much of an ordeal it is to move! We don't even have that much stuff! Anyway, blogging has kind of taken a backseat for a while, and it will probably continue to for a bit longer. But family--never fear! The camera is still working a full-time job capturing our little guy in action. I'll get caught up eventually. In the meantime, here are a few quick snapshots for you to enjoy.

Talmage loves the tall windows we are blessed to have all over the place! I love them too! I never knew how much I am affected by having a lot of natural light in my living area until I was in an apartment all day, every day.

Waving

We love living here. Everything about this place is miraculous--from the circumstances that led us to it, to the $300/month discount the landlord gave us in rent since we signed a 3 year lease, to the amazing realtor who made sure we got it amidst the countless people scrambling for it, to the little details we love. Moving here truly was like coming home. It has been SUCH a blessing in our lives!

Just Alike

One of the things I was saddest about when we were moving to Texas was the fact that my sister and my brother's wife were both having baby boys as well, and they were all going to be born within two months of each other. It has been so fun to see them interact when we have visited Utah!

Well, last night I got an e-mail from my sister with a bunch of pictures of her baby, Peter, attached. He is 2 1/2 weeks older than Talmage, and I was amazed to see that several of the pictures matched up with ones I had taken of Talmage this past week! It's fun to see how they can still be alike even though they're two thousand miles apart. And I guess it shows my sister and I think alike as well, since we apparently take pictures of the same situations!

By the way, Corban and Laura, I'm sure I would be finding the same thing to be the case with Maxton if I had just gotten pictures of him. I hope you don't feel like I'm playing favorites or something... :)

Talmage asleep in his high chair, Peter asleep in his jumper

Both boys looking out the window

Talmage messing up the kitchen, the kitchen after Peter messed it up

(We decided Talmage's facial expression clearly says, "Um, Mom, someone threw these all over the floor and, um, I was just cleaning them up.)

Settling In

Well, we're here! We moved last Saturday, the 14th, and we have LOVED being here. It is perfect! We just got our internet up and going after experiencing some difficulties (resulting in more than an hour and a half on the phone with our Internet Service Provider...), so I have been kind of missing in action lately. But I have lots of pictures and stories to post, so I'll try to get caught up!

Super Saturday

Life is just extremely busy right now. Well, that's not entirely true. Life is extremely busy for one member of our family right now...Sam. Since we only have one car and Sam has to take it each day to work (a 1 to 1 1/2 hour commute one way), Talmage and I just sit at home enjoying ourselves with almost nothing pressing we have to do. Meanwhile, Sam leaves early in the morning, works at a mad dash all day, gets home late, shovels down a few bites of food, runs to some Church obligation or another, and comes home to fall exhausted into bed. That's how it seems these days, anyway! The other day he didn't get home until after 3:00 in the morning! I wish I could take some of his burden for him, but most of the time the most I can do (outwardly, anyway) is just make sure his clothes are clean, food is available, and the house is tidy.

I certainly don't mean to complain. I just illustrate this fact to emphasize my point that any time we get to be together, as a family or as a couple, is absolutely treasured. Last Saturday we woke up bright and early, got ready, and went to IHOP for breakfast! Here is Talmage concentrating extremely hard on waving. :) I love his mouth.

Then at about 8:30 am, Sam dropped us off at the Stake Center, where the Relief Society was having a Humanitarian Aid activity. He then went to help a family in our ward move, and about 6 hours later came to pick us up. I didn't realize we would be there that long, and I wasn't as prepared as I should have been, so poor Talmage didn't even get a blanket on the gym floor to sleep on--I shoved his extra outfit under his head as a pillow! The looks the other women there gave me clearly showed they thought I should get the mother-of-the-year award. :)

The rest of the day was every bit as crazy...we were home for a few minutes, and then Sam left for his lab, stopping at the grocery store to pick up a few essentials, getting out at 11:57 pm, and arriving home after midnight. Given the opportunity, I'm sure he could crash every bit as hard as Talmage did, even on a wooden gym floor!

Books, Glorious Books!

Talmage LOVES books. He likes them WAY more than any of his toys. In fact, most of his toys will hold his attention for approximately 30 seconds, but he will play with his books all day long. He loves emptying the bottom shelf of his bookshelf and sitting in the pile of books reading.

He has a definite preference for which books are his favorite, too. If he doesn't like a book, he will pick it up, toss it aside, and pick up another one until he comes to one he likes. Then he will meticulously turn the pages one at a time, cooing and talking as he reads himself the book. When he finishes, he tosses the book aside and repeats the process...over and over and over again! He has a basket of books next to the rocking chair as well, and he loves to stand by the rocking chair, leaning down to select his books, and then lay the ones he likes out on his toybox. It is such an entertaining process!

This boy is just too fun to play with!

P.S. Only a week and a half until moving day!!! We bought a refrigerator today for our new place...can't wait to get away from the roaches! :)