Our little Sawyer is one year old. This time last year we were still with him in the hospital which was one of the most wonderful, quickly turned to one of the hardest weeks of our lives. Some of you may remember that story, if not, I won't get into all the details because the important thing is that we had this beautiful, healthy, perfect little boy to bring home to Ben. These two. They kill me.
To say that Ben adores his little brother is the understatement of the century. I can't convey in pictures or words what these two have going on. It's the best thing ever. I am so proud of Ben for being so sweet and loving towards Sawyer. My sweet boys. The best little people ever.
Just like his big brother, he has silly perma-bedhead. He's funny and sweet and loves to snuggle. He's moving everywhere, and he's furiously trying to walk. I am so excited to see these two running around together this summer.
Tomorrow we will have a small get together to celebrate this guy. We are so happy he's one of us :)
Hello! So I've been alluding here and there to a project that I've been working on for ever (and ever) and it's all finally out in the open. This has been a labour of love to say the least...what an adventure. I'm so SO happy it's all launched!
So, a little back-story. Years ago I had been painting and had created some characters for Ben's room. People started asking for them and things began to snowball. I had this crazy idea that it would be so wonderful to create something really cool with these drawings of mine.
Countless sketchbooks and notebooks and months (years) later, this is where I'm starting. And seriously, starting is the key word. For now, we are offering baby clothes, kids clothes and accessories. There are so many more things I will be adding. Stay tuned! But for now, check out what we have!!
This is just a little peek, you can see more on our website here and our Etsy shop here. Also, you can follow along with us:
✚ INSTAGRAM /// @thewildkidsapparel
✚ FACEBOOK /// facebook.com/thewildkidsapparel
✚ TWITTER /// @thewildkidsapp
✚ PINTEREST /// pinterest.com/thewildkids/
We plan on adding more products, different characters, running some fun contests....eee I can't wait!!
This project was not done alone. I could NOT have done any of this without Billy, who has been my sounding board, my constant support, my photographer, my complete partner. I want to do this for him and for our kids. I want Ben and Sawyer to see that Mommy works hard too, and if all goes well I too can be contributing to our family. Taking these years to be home with the boys has been a DREAM and I feel so completely lucky to have been able to do it. It's all because of Billy. But it's time to really seriously integrate work into my life, and balance that with my mom duties. This balance is something I've been really needing and I'm happier than ever when I have work to do. Ask anyone. I'm strange.
My Mom and Dad. Those two. I can't begin to describe how much they help and support me, encourage me, motivate me. It's because of them that I applied to school again, to this amazing semi-secret program that has helped me make this all happen. They are the hardest working people, both small business owners, and they push me to do things that I normally wouldn't think were possible. You guys. Thank you times a billion.
Ben and Sawyer! My handsome little muses. This is ALL because you exist. Not even lying, before you I wasn't sure that I liked kids all that much. Now, I'm sold. Kids rule. You two most of all.
Don, Norine, Cass, Kurt, the family that I married into who are the best ever. You guys are always there for us every step of the way and I don't know what we would do without you. Cass, I'm totally going to need you at my upcoming markets girl.
To everyone, my family, my friends, everyone who is sick of hearing about this, ALL OF YOU, I'm so very grateful. Not only for being my cheerleaders, for sharing and liking things all over social media. But just for being in my life and for being AWESOME. I never could have imagined I would have the best set of people in the universe surrounding me. It's the best.
Anyway, I love you guys. Straight up for real. You get it.
xo
Month seven is rather interesting for this little man. We are in the thick of teething, and some days/nights are really really tough. But, he's such a trooper about it. There's a lot of snuggles and hours upon hours of nursing but I'm happy to oblige. Poor thing!
Sawyer has really discovered his voice lately and is doing this sort of cooing/singing bit a lot. It's very loud and adorable. Ben thinks it's the funniest thing in the world.
Also, solid foods! Oh we are discovering new veggies and fruits and he's loving it. Except for carrots. And peaches. But peas are a real hit.
Half a year already! This little man is growing so quickly and he just keeps getting more awesome.
This smile that you see is so indicative of how he is. All. The. Time. He is happy and smiling every second of the day, just about. He's moving around so much lately, he's rushing to crawl that's for sure. I guess it's easy to do when you see Ben running around all day.
He giggles a lot and watches Ben all day long with big wide eyes. I can see so clearly how close they will be. Ugh, it's just the best thing ever to see.
Oh Sawyer. You're the sweetest little ginger baby in the world. So teething has begun around here, and this little guy is such a trooper! He has some fussy days but overall he's a tough little thing. Still sleeping great, still being adorable. We just love him!!!
He also couldn't be any chubbier. Seriously, the thigh rolls are ridic.
This little guy is four months old and he's a DREAM. He sleeps so well, he's laughing and trying so hard to roll over. He's SUCH a good sport about his brother showering him with (often way too much) love. We love this little guy beyond words. Sweet baby Sawyer, you are wonderful.
Three months! Could Sawyer be any more chubby? It's SO CUTE. His little thighs are ridiculous. Cutest chubby thing I've ever seen.
Sawyer continues to sleep like a dream, I'm just WAITING for the other shoe to drop on that one. He's a bit grumpy, I must admit. Much less passive than Ben was, needs lots of cuddles, but we don't mind! He's a great little baby, we just love him so much :)
Over the next few days, Sawyer will be three months old, and Ben will be three years old. YEARS. How on earth we got through three years so quickly I'll never know. Is it weird that I still feel like a new mom? Where's all my mom wisdom? When do I get really good at this?
Being a Mom has been the best thing that ever happened to me, but if I'm being honest, it's been really, really hard for me too. I always wanted to be that mom sitting on the floor singing songs with her babies in a cute dress looking great and wearing lipstick. Ya, no. We sing a lot in this house, but the rest isn't quite so cute. Not on most days anyway. I wear leggings (aka the new track pants) 24/7 and there is always, always baby spit up on my shoulder. And there is lipstick in this house somewhere, but Ben's hidden it on me. I miss you Ruby Woo.
I feel like it will always be a learning process. Every day something new to figure out. Having two is especially tricky. I mean, how on earth do moms get their babies to sleep with crazy three year olds running around playing with their super loud fire truck toy? And why does Ben always always want to play with his musical instruments when Sawyer is finally starting to settle? ALWAYSSSS.
Obstacles aside, having these two boys is such a special thing. I want so badly to be a good mom to them, and many days I fail miserably. But I'm trying, so maybe that's enough? Is that all any parent is ever doing?
One of the biggest things that I've learned is that our expectations of parenthood are so completely different than the reality, and you can never prepare yourself for it. You just have to throw yourself in and see what happens. And never ever ever get yourself into the mindset that being a parent will look like it does in magazines or on blogs or on tv. So much of what we see doesn't represent the real day to day life with little ones. I wish it did! I wish I had time to wash and blowdry my hair on ALL THE DAYS. I wish Billy and I could take off to Toronto and see concerts and drink beer until the wee hours like we used to. But there will be a time for that again. I wish that life looked like the videos on Love Taza. Man those people are doing is ALL right. (Or so it seems, of course). At least she has lipstick on!
Billy and I actually had a really good long talk about this earlier and it was such a good reminder of the fact that we still have time for so much! There are stages to life and not every can happen in every stage. Right now our time is focused on getting these little boys through their first few years. But things will change, and we will have our independence again, and we will miss this time terribly.
And so. For now, we focus on our little family, trying to keep everyone healthy and happy and connected. Trying to soak up these quick years with the two kindest little souls we've ever known. And trying to be the best parents we can be.
Anyway, I'm getting all weepy thinking about how old Ben is and how I'll never rock him to sleep again and how soon he will stop letting me kiss him 563284 times a day. Birthdays are weird when it's your own kid! So I guess I better put the laptop away and get back to stuffing loot bags for the kids who are coming to celebrate with him. I'm hoping loot bags haven't changed so much that they're expecting iPhones or something. Sorry kids, you're getting the same dollar store crap that I got and loved as a child. ;)
After a rather crazy day with the boys yesterday (tantrums, oh so many tantrums) we had a perfect morning today at Dyment's farm. They have a pancake breakfast and egg hunt every year, and this was our first visit. We go in the fall for the pumpkin picking/wagon ride stuff, but I think we will have to make this egg hunt business an annual event too!
Ya, I take pictures of random farms. I mean, who doesn't love a good farm picture?
Benjamin has a tiny mini freakout when the egg hunt started (so many screaming kids) but he soon lightened up and was pretty excited about the nine eggs he collected. And let me tell you, when he realized he could actually EAT those eggs, and that they were made of CHOCOLATE, well that was another thing all together. Day, made.
And despite all the greyness, it was actually really great weather. Overcast and mild, so nice after the longest winter in all of eternity (right?) so I'm not complaining one bit. No winter coats!! YES!!
Sawyer was cozy in his little fuzzy suit and slept almost the entire time. (What is my hair doing in this picture??) It was such a great morning. I wish there were little kid events like this every weekend...I might like them even more than the kids do...
