Week by Week 24

(December 6-12). Brian got back from China on Tuesday. I got a lot of looks like these from Johnny-Lu while he was gone. I think he secretly thinks I'm cRazY! Luckily, I also get lots of these looks too! So I suppose that I am at least a crazy mom who is loved. We call this J-L's creamsicle outfit. James also gave me a few looks while daddy was gone. Luckily he also gave me a few of these looks too. In addition to going crazy without daddy, we worked on Johnny's beautiful physique. I love babies with a few rolls! They just look well-fed (he is). We did a bit of acrobatics. James loves to perform (anyone who is around him for a few seconds knows this). He is so darn cute when he says, "Mommy, watch 'dis" and then when he accomplishes something he says (very triumphantly), "did it!!" or "ta dump!" Good thing we got this couch used and only need it for another 18 months! It is constantly being abused. James also loves it when the baby wakes up. He loves climbing into his crib and laying next to him. He gets a real kick out of it. He loves Johnny so much that he even named his own baby (a boy doll he got for his birthday) Johnny-Lu! More acrobatics and the biggest reason that our children do not share a room yet. He can also climb easily in and out of the J-L's crib. We did a lot of chillin' while we waited for Daddy to return. James still is a great eater (most of the time) but he will tell you if he doesn't like something. He insists with sleeping at least one toy for every nap/bedtime. Sometimes he collects some more before he falls asleep. This is a classic example of James' bed. (He has also been pretty insistent about wearing only shorts around the house. He does not like getting dressed. Wonder who he gets that from?)
Johnny-Lu's beautiful smile! When Brian finally returned from Hong Kong we made him a cake to celebrate. And when I say a cake I mean a real cake. Not the classic "healthy" carrot cake that I make for James' birthday. We even made chocolate frosting. James loves to cook and now he is constantly asking for "recipe chocolate." He remembers. Can you tell he is a good cook? Here is our finished result! I'm pretty proud of myself for making a cake entirely from scratch. No cake mixes here. No frosting from the store. Just homemade goodness. James waiting for Daddy to come back from work so we could celebrate. Both kids really wanted to touch that cake! I had to move it far away from James and use mild threats to keep him away from it. Brian made it home and we celebrated!
Don't you wish your birthday cake was this cool? This is what 31 looks like! James was amazed.
High five when they all got blown out! James helped and, of course, he wanted to do it all over again!
I made Brian take a bunch of the leftover cake to the church to give to the missionaries (he had meetings that night). Good thing too cuz wow! It was rich! The best thing this week was Brian coming back. We aren't the same without him!