18 mnths

The little M.R.S. is 1.5 years old. To mark this mini milestone she has embarked on a couple of new behaviors: 1. bossing Brady around 2. visiting the land of time out 3. hawking my engagement ring and wedding band (seriously!). They are both missing and either our sweet angel or little boy are to blame. They have a nac of "relocating" things and a lack of verbal ability to tell anyone where they went. In the last photo the kids are practicing their surrender pose, something that will come in handy when I turn their thieving asses in!

Encore

I thought I was done with this blog, but I have found myself "mentally" blogging for quite sometime. I really do enjoy it and its a great way to document life as it is wizzing by. Also, Brady loves being able to reflect back on all his awesome days. We all know he is his own biggest fan and a blog that is 51% (he argued that since he is the first born he is the majority stakeholder) dedicated to him is proof of his awesomeness.

Mallory and Brady are an interesting team. Mallory calls Brady "Day" and Brady calls her "dee." They are 2 pees in a pod. When we are out most people assume they are twins and are totally shocked when I tell them they are 2 years apart. They look at me like "are your sure?" AHHH YEAH! Pretty sure. Yes.

Mallory is coming into her own. She is the funniest little girl on the planet. She will do anything to make you laugh. Her M.O: Dance. This girl can back it up, shake her groove thang, drop it like it's hot and hot fox trot like no other. She is giving Brady aka the stank leg Shannon a run for his money. Along with humor and dance fever, Mallory must look more like a girl now because she hasn't been called little fell'ar in quite sometime. Nor has anyone asked how old my BOYS are! What?? I could have dunked her in pink paint and people would still call her sir.

Brady is still Brady with a dash of stinker. We are working on the potty training bit and it's going okay. He is easily motivated because nude is his preferred state of being. Our challenges are holding it and telling us before he has to go. We've tried the naked thing and Brady just took the liberty of using his new found "hose" to water most everything in the house. I took the liberty to wait until summer when Brady can water whatever he wants outside!

B-Man

It's been a rough couple of weeks! Mr. B got croup that turned into pneumonia, which landed us in the ER twice in one week. He had a fever that lasted 10 days. Ugh! He just finished three days of steroids and boy did our boy go crazy. Usually Brady responds to the roids by turning into a rage machine. This time he turned into a puddle of emotional goo. The only thing he wanted besides a 24 hour showing of Shrek was to be held. If these 2 demands weren't met, we all heard about it for hours in the form of tears, whailing and a big giant welcome to the pity party. My son was replaced by a PMS'n teenager who just got dumped. I am looking forward to the return of Prince Charming.

So all this sickness is a direct result of attending preschool. His bubble like existence is being challenged in the form of viruses and bacteria. Out little man's system is being tested. Schools only been in session for 3 months and our squirt has had roseola, croup and pneumonia. I guess his immune system is learning a thing or two!

Our little mama bird has been so sweet to Brady. She brought him his sippy cup and has been trying to heal him with hugs and giggles. The girl is funny. I'm not sure if the tubes opened up her personality in addition to her ears, but I like it. I have never seen a little girl with a bigger heart. I am so thankful for her.

A Bug and a Burger

This was the best Halloween. We actually went trick or treating this year and our neighborhood did it up! They went all out. It felt like a movie set. There were kids galore in creative costumes running from door to door. Brady was pretty timid about the whole event, but Mallory has got this candy thing down! She had 2 suckers in one hand, a snickers in the other and a milky way in her mouth. I may have to incorporate a "monkey backpack leash" into her costume next year just to slow her down a bit.

Things have been crazy around here. Mr. B has been sick for the last 9 days. NINE days! It started with Croup and a visit to the ER and then it morphed into pneumonia. He got two shots yesterday and we are hoping that makes him feel better. The poor guy has hardly eaten in a week. I told him this was no way to compensate for those extra Holiday pounds. :)

Mallory got tubes yesterday! Everything went great. She was a trooper. Fortunately, she has remained pretty healthy through Brady's ordeal. She doesn't like all the extra attention he is getting, but she is dealing.

The Buddy Walk

Brady's Tidal Wave commenced for our 4th Buddy Walk. It was a beautiful day. The weather was perfect. This was the first Buddy Walk that Brady actually WALKED....more like ran. He was a man on a mission. He wasn't too impressed with the Major's speech so he thought there is no time like the present to begin his campaign for office. Brady's qualifications???: a firm hand shake, killer smile and hardy laugh. He promises to eliminate the restaurant tax, create more jobs (specifically around his house i.e. raking leafs, laundry and making his bed) and his loftiest goal is to somehow increase the female population (ages 3-5) obviously to increase his dating pool.

Thank you to all that supported Brady's Tidal Wave. We are grateful for your friendship and love.

Fall Sip

Put this weather in a mug and drink it up. We are loving the toasty warm temperatures and crispy leaves that brighten up the best fall ever! The minute Brady and Mallory wake up, they are begging to soak up the outdoors. In his whirlwind dash to the front door I have to remind Brady to stop and put some clothes on. A process he would rather skip, claiming that "Brady all a natural" is appropriate for all things nature. Hmmmm, solid argument, but in order to avoid a nasty leaf pile burn we better stick with some coverage.

There are two versions of Mallory; indoor Mallory and outdoor Mallory. Indoor Mallory is grouchy and temperamental. Outdoor Mallory is an angel topped off with a touch of heaven. If I could control her rock consumption we would move her outdoors permanently.

Fall

Brady has been busy slamming pumpkin spice lattes, de-fuzz'n his favorite brown turtle neck, raking leaves and perfecting his chili recipe. Therefore a post is the last thing on his mind. This is his favorite time of the year, not including spring break when he can fashion a speedo and swoon the ladies. Fall has it's perks: school, candy corn and peanut mixtures can suffice as a meal and most importantly trick or treating.

Mallory is a maniac. She is all over the place and chatting up a storm. Everything and anything can be used as a phone. She is giving Brady a run for his money. No longer does she stand idly by as he steals a toy from her. NO NO! She throws him a left hook that lands him on his tush. He's a gentleman and doesn't hit back (mostly because he is so stunned). He has vowed to give her a lesson in civility, but due to her lack of receptiveness, he's pretty sure she speaks Spanish.