Playing Outside

Alden loves to play outside all the time!  He doesn't care if it is raining or sunny, he wants to be outside.  He doesn't get to play as much in the rain right now because it is too cold to take Anders outside but anytime it is sunny we are outside letting Alden run around and burn off tons of energy.  It is a lot of fun playing with him and it is fun seeing him develop different skills and improve at catching, throwing and kicking balls.  Here are some pictures from one of our outdoor play days.

Alden loves playing football with me.  He is getting a lot better at throwing and catching the football.

Alden loves throwing the football and then running to get it.

Alden often sticks his tongue out to the side when he is working hard or really focused on something.  You can see that it is out here if you look closely.  

We then went down to visit the sheep again because Alden loves them so much.

Alden enjoys feeding the sheep grass through the fence to keep them close by.  Here is a little video of Alden with the sheep but unfortunately it doesn't show him feeding the sheep very well.  The pictures show that better.

Alden was so excited that this little baby came right up to the fence to say hi.  He really enjoyed getting to feed him some grass.

Alden and his Duplos

Alden loves playing with his Duplos and helping Mommy build with them.   It is so fun watching him create more and more on his own but it is fun that he wants to play with me.  We had such a fun time getting all of his duplos out and making lots of different things.

 Alden loves his train track!  He was scared of the train when he first got it at Christmas, but not anymore. Now he loves it and just loves making the train go around over and over again.

 We had fun building his train track with a train station, putting together a zoo, putting together his number train and so much more!

Alden loved getting to build lots of different things and play with all his vehicles and animals.

 Alden was obsessed with all of the Duplo flowers.  He loved collecting them and hiding the, so that he could put them together how he wanted at the end.  He wanted to stack all the flowers up on the little towers.

Visiting the Sheep

At the end of our court there is a field area that backs up to a farm.  The farm has sheep which Alden absolutely loves!  Alden loves visiting the sheep, especially right now because there are a few babies.  Alden always wants to walk down and see the sheep on days when the weather is nice.  Here are some pictures from one of the times we visited the sheep.

Alden even got the sheep to lick his hand through the fence.  Alden thought that was so neat!

It was so nice being out in the sunshine, even if it was still a little chilly.

Alden started picking grass on our side of the fence and then feeding it to the sheep through the fence to keep them close by.  I love how much my son loves animals!

Anders is 3 weeks old!

It has only been a few weeks since Anders came into this world and I already feel like he has been here forever.  He has become such an important part of my life in such a short amount of time, the same way Alden did.  I have so much fun everyday getting to hold him and watch him change and grow, even if I am rather sleep deprived.  =)

Adjusting to two kids at home, especially without having Drew here, has not always been easy but I find that whenever I get frustrated or worn down I simply have to look at my boys and I am reminded how lucky I am.  Alden is always willing to give me a hug if I need it and Anders loves to snuggle and cuddle which always improves my mood.  I love being a mom and facing the challenges that come with it.  I am lucky that neither of my boys are very difficult so far, but there are moments of meltdown, just like with any kid, and sometimes I feel myself feeling overwhelmed and like nothing I do is right.  In those moments I have to remember to take a deep breath and remind myself that I am doing my best and that as long as I keep Heavenly Father as a central part of my life, he will help to guide me and support me as I raise our children.  I love my boys so much and can't wait for them to have their Daddy home soon!  Here is a video that I think shows a piece of how sweet my boys are.

Anders seems to love baths, which makes me super happy!  Alden still does not like baths and he is almost 3 so I am hoping that Anders continues to always enjoy bath time!  Here is a short video of how calm Anders was for his first bath.

I just had to take a bunch of pictures of Anders because I think he is so adorable and he is already changing and growing so quickly and I want to document this time.

He loves to stretch out his arms when he is awake.

Anders loves being on his tummy and he really enjoys sucking on his hands.  Here is a video of Anders on his tummy, trying to get his hand in his mouth even though it is covered.

Such cute faces!

It has been a fun and exciting two weeks.  I am so excited to continue watching how Anders grows and changes.  He is so sweet and brings so much joy and happiness to our family!