We keep getting letters in the mail from the homeowners association about various things we need to fix or else we will get a fine. First, they sent us a few letters concerning our trash can being in plain view.

Give me a break. You can hardly see it. (I originally took this picture to show our giant dead tree which we have since removed.)

They're still sending those, but in addition to that, now they're on our case about our weeds. We know we've got weeds, it's just that Dan's been really busy w/ work stuff, I have a newborn to watch, and we're waiting until the weather gets cooler before we plant things/weed our garden. Back off, people! I wonder if one of our neighbors is complaining about us or if someone drives around slowly finding issues with each house...

Sunday Afton turned 2 months old. She gave us a present of sleeping from 9pm until 6:45 that morning. Usually she's been waking up around 5, but we think it's because she wakes up when Dan turns on the shower. Since it was Sunday, that didn't happen! Since she's been doing so well, we moved her out of our closet and into a room of her own. She woke up this morning at 6:10, ate, and is still sleeping at 9:22. Very exciting! She's started smiling more, but we haven't captured one of her big smiles yet.

But she usually looks like this:

Sam and me reading a book.

And a preview of Sam's halloween costume. He got to wear it to a party this weekend. He loves it. Sometimes he puts it on just because. He wanted me to take pictures of him in it while he ran around.

Bye for now!

Have you ever ridden a camel?

I have. My dismount left something to be desired. I think I pulled a muscle. Not only that, but apparently several people from church saw me trying to get off that thing...

In the order the pictures were taken.

First, I wanted to learn how to applique so I started by practicing on a onesie. Here's Afton modeling the finished product.

(She has a hemangioma on the top of her head. Hopefully hair will cover it!)

Sam saw me taking pictures of Afton so he wanted to show off his pumpkin.

 Mom and Dad Cheney flew out on Friday to spend the weekend with us. (Afton's blessing was on Sunday.) We went to the park and hung out, and went out to dinner on Friday. They spent Saturday w/ my brother and Sunday with us again until my dad left for a business trip. Mom left on Monday.

 Dan's parents and Dan's brother's family came late Friday. Saturday we went to the Houston Zoo. Here's Sam and Audrey.

 Looking at monkeys.

 Sam, Cecilia, Zev, and Carmen.

 Sam, Grandma and Grandpa Durst, Afton, Cecilia and Carmen before church.

 As I mentioned, Afton was blessed in church on Sunday. It was a beautiful blessing. We took pictures before church but the lighting was really bad. I didn't think it was that bad while we were taking the pictures...

Cheney family.

Durst family.

Mom and her grandbabies before she flew home.

 Mom D snuggling with Afton. After this she gave Afton a bum massage. Afton was loving it. Seriously.

 Mom and Dad Durst bought Afton a playmat. Sam got in on the action.

Sam:

His latest favorite lunch is a "peanut butter and jam sandwich." He has, on occasion, eaten 3 during one meal. (It's just one slice, folded over.)

For breakfast, he typically has Lucky Charms. He eats most of it, but leaves the last little bit when he sees that there aren't any more marshmallows left.

He likes to sleep with two stuffed animals (he calls them "fox" and "blue bear") during his naps and at night.

We've been trying to teach him to be soft with Afton. Now whenever he does something that we don't like and tell him "no" he looks at us and says, "Softly." Thinking that if he does it softly, we'll tell him it's okay. Yesterday he told us he wanted to ride his motorcycle down our flight of stairs "softly." Not gonna happen, kid.

He likes to go on walks to feed the ducks. He also really likes going to friends' houses and having friends over to play.

He watches portions of either Toy Story 2 or Cars practically every day except Sunday.

Sam likes to pick out Afton's clothes. The other day he picked this ensemble. It reminds me of my favorite Starburst flavors.

He talks nonstop and is so much fun! I love the stage he's in.

Every time we take a picture of Afton, he wants us to take one of him, too. That's how we got these:

I think he's got the prettiest blue eyes ever!

Afton:

Afton is either asleep or crying. I thought things were getting better, but she's been crying for the past 2 hours, so I guess I was wrong.

She is also quiet when she gets her diaper changed and (usually) when she takes a bath.

She likes her bath water hot, just like I do.

She likes to snuggle with Dan.

She's done a few 7-hour stretches at night, but she's usually up at 1 and 5 in the morning.

This Saturday we went to the temple. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to recreate a photo we took of Sam when he was just a few weeks old as well. Sam is the one at the DC temple, obviously.

Sam likes to play with/on/in baby toys that he has outgrown. Especially since he sees Afton using them now.

This bouncy chair bends all the way to the ground when he's in it. I keep thinking the wires are going to snap and I'm going to get stabbed in the eye or something.

And just so you can marvel at how big Sam's gotten, here's a shot from now and when he was a few weeks old.

They grow up too fast!

What a difference a day makes!

Today is going much better than yesterday. I am no longer downtrodden. Putting Afton in the closet was a huge success. We could still hear her, just not as loudly. AND... she only woke up twice! That was majorly exciting. (Although she didn't actually fall asleep the first time until 11:20.) Dan and I both feel much less sleep-deprived. At least for today.

Today I'm also trying to do a better job of not keeping her up for more than 2 hours. I was really good about that with Sam when he was little but it's harder when you've got one to entertain. So far she's taken two naps not in my arms. I am just so happy!

Also, after lunch, Sam had his very first popsicle. I know, I know. He's over two and never had a popsicle! That has since changed. He got that bruise and cut by his right eye yesterday at Chick-fil-a but once he had some chocolate shake and a kiss from mom, he declared himself "All better."

I don't think I've mentioned that Afton has a herniated belly button. It looks like a skin ball the size of a marble. The doctor said it should go away on its own by the time she's 5. Let's hope so! I remember seeing a little girl at a waterpark whose belly button looked like a miniature elephant trunk. I thought it was so weird. Now I know what it was.

Other random pictures.

Afton's first bath, which turned into a Sammy photoshoot.

Just hanging out

Well, things here are quiet. Mostly because I'm lazy and tired. Afton likes to grunt ALL NIGHT LONG and it takes its toll on me and Dan. We're going to move her to the closet. But don't worry. We have a large closet. We'll still be able to hear her, just not as loudly. That way hopefully we can get some sleep!

Sam is still really sweet to his baby sister. He loves to kiss her. Lately he thinks it's funny when he makes a loud noise or something and she flails her hands in the air. I'm trying to get him to stop that.

I read The Hunger Games. It was really good. I read the sequel, Catching Fire, in 2 days. I haven't started the third one yet, but I'm planning on it once I finish this post. Or maybe I should try to take a nap instead. Pictures to come! Sorry this is so lame. That's all I've got for now.

P.S. Do any of you have majorly grunty babies? And if so, what did you do about it?

Fancy Photos

When Afton was 10 days old, we took her and Sam to get some professional photos taken. We never took any with Sam and we felt bad about it. We got to choose 5 to get on a CD and here they are! After Sam saw how easy it was to pose for the camera, he got in on the action, too. Hopefully that means that next time he'll do okay and not shy away like he's done in the past.

And here's a more recent picture of Afton at 3 weeks.

Well, if I can survive the next 90 minutes (that's how long until Dan gets home), I will have survived my first week alone - albeit a short week (thank you, Labor Day) - with two children. How the heck do people have lots of kids? It is hard. One is poopy, the other is crying. One wants to eat, the other is crying. I want to sleep, one is crying!

Afton is having a hard time figuring out that night means bedtime. Sam is having a hard time understanding that we're taking things easy while "Mama's hurt tummy" heals. He's usually really sweet to me and asks to kiss my stomach. The other day he accidentally pushed really hard on my stomach. I started crying and then he started crying, too. Then he asked to give me a hug and a kiss and then said, "Mama all done sad!"

Today I took the kids to play at a big playground inside a mega Baptist church. It went well despite the fact that Afton barfed on me and herself 5 times and kids kept trying to touch her. Sam had fun, though.

Here are pictures from our lazy days this week.

And here's a video of Sam doing "somersaults".