He loves me, he loves me not

 This picture says it all-Bennett is in love with his big brother. Sweetness.

 He follows with wide eyes his every move, and is very attentive in the school of block building(taught by Evan truly).

 

 Oh, he loves me!

 

Or....not?

 

(no babies were harmed in the production of these pictures)

Brought to you by the number "6"

Bennett is 6 months old, can it be? Time is going by way too fast, I can't believe our "B bear" is half a year already. To celebrate, we all went to the Wilson Cake Shop when Chris got home from work and "cheers-ed" a cupcake in his honor. No buttercream for Bennett just yet, but we did enjoy our share of sugar while talking about our sweet little love.

Just for fun, here are a 6 "sprinkles" about Bennett.

1. He has the best, most content disposition and hardly cries or complains except for when he's tired or hungry. I could not have asked for a sweeter spirit.

2. He already admires his big brother so much. Evan can make him laugh and giggle with little effort, and every move he makes is carefully observed by those tiny blue eyes.

3. Blowing raspberries is his favorite new trick lately. And when he's not occupied with his paci, you better believe he's making all kinds of crazy noises-that is, in a good, mostly happy, sometimes smelly type of way.

4. "On the move" barely describes this one's mobility these days-he is so so active. Of course, he's not crawling yet, but he is certainly on a roll-literally! Not only is he a proficient roller, but he's also mastered the "scooch," and I'm praying that crawling stays far behind. I.am.not.ready!

5. Having started solids a little over a month ago, Bennett is following brother Evan's suit as a garbage disposal of food. He loves to eat! Pass the squash please. :-)

6. He is on the edge of sitting up. Every day shows leaps of new strength. Sooner than soon, I know he'll master this new milestone. He much prefers being on his stomach or being sat up to laying on his back-he's growing up so fast, too fast!

 

Words can't describe how much we love you Bennett Shepherd!

Insta-Friday

Brought to you by instagram, and my favorite pair of Iphone eyes. :-)

Oh Fridays, how I love thee...let me count the ways!

Let's start with Open Gym at Artistic Gymnastics in Raleigh. A forty five minute drive, five dollars and every bit worth it! Plus, we sweetened the trip with some good friends. Thanks Mandi and Kylie for icing up our Friday morning!

Since we happened to be in the neighborhood, we made a stop downtown to the Natural Science Museum. Kylie had never sat in the big dinasour footprint, so it was a must. We were also lucky enough to catch a "meet the animals" show and learned about some seaside creatures. Evan even pet a turtle...and a beetle...and a snake.

Unfortunately the butterfly conservatory was closed for repair, but never fear-enter the snake. It did not disappoint these two tots! I'm not quite sure how I feel about all this reptile petting, but somehow I feel this is but a small foreshadowing of my life with two boys.

Before heading home, we dined outside of the "Planet Cafe" under perfectly cool, grey clouds. It was a whirlwind of a fun packed morning for these three kiddos, and Mandi and I were pretty proud of ourselves for successfully survivng the trip. Reader, it is no small matter to have three small kiddos packed and carseat ready by 8:15am. I'm still patting myself on the back...

*Side note-Don't loose your parking ticket in downtown Raleigh, because it will cost you $16. Thankfully, mine was just "almost lost" and found with slight but minimal traffic backup. End note.*

After long naps and a squash making soiree, we hit up super doubles at Harris Teeter. I heart coupons.

Boy oh boy, squash never did look so good.

To wrap of the evening, we enjoyed a spaghetti dinner and some DVR'd Top Chef. Goodnight Friday, until we meet again... 

On the last day of July...

(Or, as it were, the first day of August)
What's July made of? Sunscreen, summer fun, playdates galore and oh, did I mention birthday cake?

Let's start our tour de July with Amanda's rockin' rad 80's party. No need to adjust your screen, that really is neon pink!

Next, we beat the heat with creative, inside playdates. Here are some out takes from our trip to the Rocky Mount science museum. Boy was it hot that day! I thank God daily for the modern miracle that is air conditioning.

And because I can't lug by camera alongside by diaper bag 24/7, here's what the IPhone caught...

 

Kid's summer movies, sandboxes and water tables

 

Porch and pool play, Piper's first cut a la mommy, and a little boys first watergun

The highlight of July was most definitely our weekend getaway to the beach to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary.

We stayed at a gorgeous hotel on the beach. While Evan was a sand shark, he preferred the pool water over the waves of the beach. He is a fish and surprised us both with his love of and boldness in the pool. I spy him in the left corner of this picture below, he was a big fan of jumping off the side!

A trip to Ripley's aquarium at Broadway on the Beach.

 

No doubt Bennett has a laid back beachy personality himself and was a trooper over our whirlwirnd weekend.

And last but not least, we closed out July with a visit from Grandma and lots of heaven sent vanilla buttercream...

but more on that later. :-)