We are in a sweet spot  – after summer super fun and before school starts. Finally time for a decent update about the boys.

Fred is fearless and hilarious. He is saying a lot of random words and phrases, but a few of the most frequent/favorite are:

• “I GUCK!” Guck = stuck, used when he crawls into tight spaces
• “knock knock helllllooooo!!!!” His favorite game when shutting doors.
• “RISSSSSSSEEEEE!” His favorite game when opening doors.
• “AREYOUUUUUUU??!!! BRUBBER!?!!???” Looking for Ben. Ben loves that Fred calls him “Brubber”. I do to. I kinda hope he calls him that forever.
• “AWT DAWG” Must be lunch or the end of Mickey Mouse Club House…
• “El-phant” Followed by a trumpeting sound.
• “ELP! ELP! ELP!” Help. Usually yelled at the top of his lungs when I’m carrying him away from an activity he doesn’t want to stop but I find somewhat dangerous. Sigh…
• “Owie” The kid is a tank, but he knows when things hurt.
• “DADADADADADADADADADA!” He gets pumped when Jesse comes home.
• “aaaAH-Kay…” Probably my favorite phrase. I never realized how many questions I end with “okay?” until Fredy started repeating “awe-kay”. Then whenever he falls, he pops up with an “AH-KAY!”

Fred is definitely pushing boundaries, testing what he can do, and being adorable while doing it. He loves any form of Mickey cartoon and still loves Blankie (DEEEE!). It’s going to be fun to have a lot of Fred/Mommy time while Ben is at school this year.

Ben continues to be one of the most interesting people I know. He is thoughtful and sensitive but also has a very spunky side. He has created an alter-ego “Lightning McBen” that challenges people to races and announces, “I RUN SO FAST THAT SPIT COMES OUT OF MY MOUTH!” Unfortunately, Lightning McBen needs to practice his track and field races, and we are learning how to be a good sport during losses.

Ben’s love of Trackmaster trains has become more of a lifestyle. The kid’s engineer brain is really quite amazing and can spend a lot of time redesigning track and telling stories. For better or worse, he’s been hooked on YouTube videos of Trackmaster toys during Brother’s nap time. It’s been really adding to his own imaginary play and giving him ideas, but it also fuels the desire to have more and more train sets. Good job, marketing YouTube geniuses! He has developed a pretty track-heavy birthday wishlist.

Ben’s most common phrases are “But why?” and “What happened?”

One of the best things happening in our lives is that the boys are really playing together – not just near each other. Ben can be a really sweet big brother. He can also be super annoyed by his brother. But most of the time, they are wrestling and sharing trains. I caught Ben teaching Fred about a Jack in the Box the other day (“I showed him the popper!!”). Sometimes, Ben announces that Fred is his best friend, and I hope they continue to be great friends throughout their lives!

We are still lucky to have GREAT luck with bedtime. The boys crash pretty hard around 7:30. No matter when we put them to bed, though, Fred is ready to party by 6-6:30. Today it was 5:50….yesterday was 5:00. Oh, buddy. I’m trying to desire being a morning person, but the urge just isn’t hitting me yet….

Next updates will be birthdays and school and the end of summer. Oh my!