Work it.

When Marla was in town a month ago, she got the biggest kick out of Benson's spastic movements. There's really not anything too special about it, but Marla would just laugh and laugh.

The other day, we were video chatting, and she asked me to hold Benson's legs up in the air so she could see him move his legs again. Well, it was so darn cute, she had to take a picture. But she couldn't figure it out. So I held his legs in front of the computer monitor for 5 minutes while she tried to take a picture of it.

SO Marla, this is for you:

The Big House

I'm not talking about college football. Get your head out of the gutter! The first Michigan game is  still 6 days away. I'm talking about the new, man-built, playground in our backyard. Dan and his dad have been working countless hours to get this piece of work built! To Tracy and Dan, thanks for making my day a lot easier to entertain the kids. It was a big undertaking, but you rocked it.

Voila! The finished product. Minus the wood chips for the ground.
The first tower is "The Big House" and the second, "The M Den."

Forced Smile. But oh so cute.

Rope ladder. It's a must!

Monkey Bars? Why of course!

She has separation anxiety from everything, including the pink blanky.

Benson can swing for hours.

Cousins!

Coming inside after a long play at the "park."

Did I mention . . .

that we've moved 56.24 miles away? Au revoir West Jordan. Bievenidos a Hooper. We moved last week. Since we lived where we worked, this would also imply that we've left our place of employment. We've worked there since we got married. Drove back from the good ol' honeymoon to get to work on time.

It has been a good change for us. We're not used to having our evenings free. Prime time television feels like watching foreign films without subtitles.

The kids are doing great. Eva has been adjusting quite well. She loves all the extra time to play. She does not like bedtime, however. I fear my life will continue to be these waves of sleep, or nonsleep. I take for granted those rare occasions that she does sleep. As of lately, she has refused to sleep in her crib. She's sleeping on a full bed, but getting her to stay in it is aggravating. Perhaps she thinks that because she turned two, she's too good for a chewed up, prison bar crib.

Here are some random pictures from Eva's birthday. Enjoy!

I {heart} my boys

Every time I would sign a birthday card/father's day card/christmas card with a heart, my dad would read aloud what we wrote, and then say "heart, comma, Emily." I've gotten in the habit of writing out love, for the most part.

Lately, I can't stop thinking how handsome they both are. Dan has his summer tan groove on, and Benson has his melt-my-heart smile. Seriously, how did I get so lucky?

My dear sweet (sassy) Eva

She loves listening to music. Especially when she can use the headphones.

Bath time is fun. Never boring. She drinks soapy water. (Don't judge me.) And gets pretty crazy.

Remember those days

you could lounge in the pool for hours?

be happy in a spot of shade?

not feel silly for wearing your sunglasses upside down?

or be safe in the arms of your daddy?

Yesterday, we were all kids. Six hours in the pool can really do that to you.

The 2 Month Smiler

Benson went to the doctor yesterday for his 2 month well check. The only things we could come up with to talk about was his uncanny ability to roll over since he was 2 1/2 weeks, being chubby, and not sleeping all that great. I really can't complain.

Weight: 13 lbs. (73rd percentile)
Height: 23.5 inches (77th percentile)
Head Circumference: 14 inches (82nd percentile)

He's quite the handsome guy. Smiles all the time. Just like Eva did. I remember my dad saying multiple times that Eva would have wrinkles by the time she was in primary because she smiled so much. Well Benson, you're on your way too.