BATHROOM ENTERTAINMENT

The boys' playroom is finally painted {thanks to my dad who ended up doing most of it} and we are slowly getting it all fixed up.  I like to call their whole bedroom-bathroom-playroom area their "suite" since it's all connected.  It is so awesome to have more room to spread out...the toys were literally taking over their room and it was driving me crazy.  Ethan and Evan love it and are having a ball going back and forth between rooms.  More pics to come of the playroom when it is all finished, but you can see the paint color in some of these pictures...Sawdust by Sherwin Williams.  It's sort of a sage/olive green color and I LOVE it!

A bonus to having the playroom on it's way to being done is that I now keep all of the doors open between the rooms...this of course means playtime in the bathroom.  I don't quite get the fascination but this is where we spent most of our time today.

It's not a normal day without Ethan stealing a few toys from Evan...haven't I done a few posts with pictures like this already?!?

In Ethan's defense, he did try to give Evan back the toy but Evan was more content to pout and cry.

So pitiful just looking at him watching Ethan. 

Evan did eventually get his toy back but not too long after decided the cabinets and drawers were more fun...not kid proofed yet but there is not a whole lot in the drawers to mess with {LOVE his little fish face}.

More silly faces by Evan...most people see his serious side when we are out and about, but at home his goofy personality and silly faces come out to play.

Ethan's favorite part about the bathroom...bouncing the balls on the tile.  Much more fun than the carpet in their bedroom.

And {totally unrelated to this post} here is my favorite picture from today...my sweet little one "talking" on his rattle phone.  Could he be any cuter!?!

DADDY'S RUBBER BAND GUN AND FUN WITH A POWER CORD

I have been getting our extra bedroom ready and all cleaned up to paint so I can make it into a fun playroom for the boys.  A lot of Jeff's childhood toys have been sitting in this room in boxes and tubs.  Ethan and Evan have been more than happy to "help" me clean up and have discovered a few of Jeff's toys...including his rubber band gun.

I guess I was totally in the dark on this one.  I had not a clue what a rubber band gun was until Jeff explained it to me last night.  I grew up with a brother and boy cousins but none of them ever had a rubber band gun {at least that I know of}.  I really thought the clothespin on top was put there by Jeff for the fun of it.

I'm not too sure I love this toy but Ethan definitely thinks it is cool!

For now they are content to just carry it around...daddy will not be teaching them how to use it for a VERY LONG time...I can already see them flinging rubber bands around the house at things/dogs/each other...oh a life with boys!

Evan really loved it too...

...but not as much as the TV power cord.

Dragging it around...really, do we need to buy them any toys!?!

Fun times playing with all of our non-toys!

BAYLOR CHEER DAY

This past Saturday was cheer day at Baylor.  Allie and Emmie participated during half time and we went to watch them {plus it was also fun getting to watch our #1 Lady Bears!}.  We started off the day with lunch at Chick-Fil-A...in my opinion the only place to eat lunch on a Saturday.

Mama just might have filled the cups with a little lemonade...heavenly!

Ethan just adores his Emmie...

...except when she is cleaning boogies from his nose.

Evan was eyeing Allie's drink...forget about pictures when there is the possibility of lemonade, Dr. Pepper, or sweet tea.

Waiting to perform...

Allie and Emmie did such a good job and were super cute out on the court.  I'm so glad I get to be a part of their lives...this boy mama loves getting to do some girly things with them!

ETHAN AND EVAN AT 15 MONTHS

Ethan and Evan were 15 months old last week.  They are growing and getting so big...I feel like I have really noticed a change from 14 to 15 months.  Definitely "little boys" is what I should be calling them but I often still refer to them as the "babies."  I think even at 18 I will still want to call them my babies...even at 50 they will still be my babies!  :)

Here are a few things about MY BABIES at 15 months...
{super long post...but I wanted to get everything in that I could remember}

Ethan has really gotten into making animal sounds...lion and snake are his favorites.

Both have started shaking their head "no."  Evan will do it when he doesn't want what you are feeding him...he will shake his head and put his hand in front of his face.  Ethan does it more when he knows he isn't supposed to be doing something which completely amazes me...they pick up and understand so much at a very young age.  He will shake his head when he gets in front of the gate to the bedroom and he knows he isn't supposed to take it down...the other day he had a small piece of a toy in his hand and shook his head no to me while putting it close to his mouth.  When I realized what he was doing and came walking to him, he handed it to me while still shaking his head...this not to say that I still don't find him with dog food, pieces of paper or many random things in his mouth on a regular basis.

Both LOVE turning lights on and off.

Evan, who could have cared less about his paci when he was a baby, totally loves it now.  Sometimes I think he is worse then Ethan.  He also adores his blankie and loves to carry it around with his bear...totally new development over the last month.

They understand that pacis are just for the crib now and will hand them to me before I get them out of their cribs in the morning.  I usually don't even have to say anything because they pull them out and have them in their hands when I come walking their way {Evan is sometimes a little more resistant}.

Body Parts they know...nose, eyes, hands, feet, belly button, and sometimes ears.

Both like to try to put on their shoes and socks.

I have started being better about signing with them {have always wanted to do this with my kids since taking sign language as my language requirement at Baylor} and our big ones right now are "more" and "finished."  They pretty much understand them and will sign "more" but we are not consistent.  Sometimes it's just way easier to point and scream or bang on the highchair when you want something.

Mama and Dada are still their main two words.  Evan also says uh-oh and Ethan says car and cracker.  Ethan is definitely becoming the more verbal of the two, he tries to repeat things that we say, but most of it still makes no sense to me.  Evan is quieter {especially around other people} but jibber-jabbers non-stop at home...still have not a clue what he is saying.

Favorite snacks - goldfish crackers of any kind...regular, cinnamon graham, vanilla graham, pretzel, s'mores.  They also like sweet potato puffs, honey nut cheerios, and golden grahams.

Evan has decided to become a much more finicky eater this month...sometimes he likes yogurt and other times he sticks his tongue out, sometimes he eats applesauce and other times he can't stand it and cries if I try to give it to him.

Both have 12 teeth.

Both love to sit on things...Jeff's dad got them their Pottery Barn chairs when we went to Houston a few weeks ago.  The covers are being monogrammed right now and I can't wait to get them back this week so the boys have actual chairs to sit in.

Both think it is really fun to feed each other, me, the dogs, etc.  It's really fun when Ethan takes a cracker out of his mouth and tries to put it in mine...yummy!

Both give kisses if you ask them...gross, open-mouthed, slobbery kisses that only a mama could love!

Evan still hates the bath and we're really not sure why...he doesn't like water in his eyes which we try to avoid but it's hard when he is doing everything to try and climb out.  His eczema {which used to sting} is better now so it may just be the memory of it all.  Our bath routine is to put Ethan in and get him all clean {with Evan usually going in and out to throw toys in the water} and then we put Evan in for literally 1 minute and clean him at lightening speed.  Meanwhile Ethan, who has a good 10-15 minutes of playtime, would stay in the water all night if we let him.

Favorite songs - Jesus Loves Me, If You're Happy and You Know It, The Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Ethan LOVES to sit in your lap and read stories...over and over and over.  He brings them to me all day long.  Some of his favorites are Dr. Seuss's ABC's, Ten Apples Up On Top, and Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree {which he will go get if you ask him to "read monkeys"}.

Evan's favorite toy by far is still our stacking cups...I love watching him figure out different ways to stack them.  He also likes to line things up, especially on our window sill...books, cars, etc.

Favorite Breakfast Foods - Mini Pancakes, Blueberry Waffles, Toast with Grape Jelly, Bananas.

We are in between one and two naps a day.  Some days they are good with one nap and other days they just can't make it.  Usually they are good until about 10:30 which is when I decide if I think they can make it or need a short little nap before lunch.  They wake up between 7:45 and 8:00.  We usually start getting ready for bed around 7:30 and I'm usually leaving their room by 8:00.

Both still have a love of ALL fruit but don't feel the same about veggies...surprise, surprise!  As long as I have veggies mixed in things we are good to go.  They both still love baby peas but it makes for not so fun diaper changes.  :)

They have become great little walkers, or I should say runners.  It is crazy trying to keep up with them.

Ethan loves to follow Evan around and take whatever he is playing with...this does not go over too well. They are definitely in a "me" stage which brings with it many tantrums, biting and tackling, but they also do love playing together.  The best laughs I get from both come when they are playing and entertaining each other.

They are both still wearing 12-18 month clothes, some 18-24 month shirts {depends on the maker}, and size 4 diapers.

Both will raise their hands in the air {like in the pics above and below} when you say "praise God" {cutest thing ever}.

Favorite Lunch/Dinner Foods - Grilled Cheese, Baked Beans...really any bean...refried, pinto, black, Chick-Fil-A nuggets and French Fries washed down with a little of their Lemonade {I don't think they could be Burchfields and not love Chick-Fil-A}.

We are not great at eating with utensils, which is mainly my fault {the mess of it all just seems no fun}.  We are working on it though and getting better with the spoon.


Reasons I know they watch every little thing we do...Evan knows to put my lens cap back on my camera when he sees it on the ground and he also knows that my card reader gets plugged into the side of my lap top...found him trying to plug it in one day.  Crazy how you don't even realize they are paying attention to the little things you do.


We have their 15 month well check this Friday, so I will post weights and heights at the end of the week.
Happy 15 Months to my beautiful babies!

RED BEANS AND RICE

This is another super easy {and super yummy} crock pot recipe.  I have been making this forever...I can't even remember if I got it from somewhere or if I just threw a bunch of stuff together myself.  We like spicy foods in our house and this one definitely has some kick.  If you don't want it as spicy you can use mild rotel and less of the seasoning.

Red Beans and Rice

1 {1 lb.} bag of red beans

2 packages of beef smoked sausage

2 cans rotel

1 1/2 Tbsp Tony Chachere's seasoning

Instant rice

Soak your beans over night.  Rinse and place beans in the crock pot.  Slice the sausage into pieces {I also cut the slices in half...sort of half circles.  You can see in the pic above} and add to the crock pot along with the rotel and seasoning.  Stir to mix everything together and cook on low for about 6 hours.

Spoon over some white rice and enjoy!

LEARNING TO SHARE AND TAKE TURNS

Ethan and Evan love their little music table.  We bought it with some birthday money from their great-grandparents {my grandparents} and it has brought countless hours of fun and laughter...lots of bouncing and dancing.

They usually have it right side up...

...but every once in a while it gets turned over bringing with it even more fun.

{some pics are a little blurry...dark room, fast kids...but thought they were too cute not to include}

For a while we play nicely together...sharing and taking turns...

But within minutes there are tears when brother doesn't want to share.

Ethan eventually gets back on making it Evan's turn to cry.

But then he realizes how to tip it over...

And push Ethan off.

But is still the one in tears after Ethan bites him on the hand.

We are definitely working on sharing in the Burchfield house...something I think we will be doing for many years to come...good times!