Making up for my complete lack of posting. :)

Yesterday, Aiden was eating lunch, but was clearly tired. He kept dozing off, and I couldn't help but laugh at the things he was doing....

Signs Away!

I just had to share this too. :) <3>

He's getting so big!!!

I'm gonna get the pooey stuff out of the way before ending on a few positive notes.

This was another hard week for us. We learned that four of Ben's former co-workers and friends all perished in a helicopter crash in Colorado. :( They were performing a training exercise when something undetermined (as of now) went wrong. It pains me so deeply to think about what their wives, children, parents, and loved ones are going through right now. They were an amazing group of well-trained soldiers doing the things they loved and there's just no words that could do them justice. Chief Warrant Officer Terrance Geer, Chief Warrant Officer Robert Johnson, Staff Sgt. Paul Jackson and Staff Sgt. Chad Tucker, may you all rest in peace. <3

I don't really know if there's really a way to transition between these two topics sensibly...so...moving on....

Daily, I'm getting slapped in the face with how big my little guy is becoming. I'm beyond amazed that I will have a two year old next week. TWO! How does the time go so fast??? :( Don't get me wrong, Aiden is SO much fun now. I love watching him and his little imagination go wild, making his toys talk, letting Monkey go potty, feeding his baby [monkey], etc. But it all just seemed to happen overnight!

Over the past month or so we've been slowly introducing the potty. He now asks to go at every diaper change and works so hard to squeeze whatever drops he can out! It's awesome! And even if it's just the smallest bit, he gets so excited. :) Tonight, I opted to let him run "free" for a little bit. And I set his little froggy potty in the living room. TWICE he completely stopped what he was doing to use his potty. How awesome is that?!?!? Go, Aiden, Go!!! (Literally)

I've also decided it's just time to start weaning him of his paci. I tried it at naptime, and while it took a LOT longer than normal for him to go to sleep...he didn't ask for his paci. Bedtime was then a breeze and I am just amazed that he fell asleep so easily without much of a fuss. Either he was really tired from a short nap earlier, or he's just growing up before my eyes. I prefer the short nap theory. :)

Lame poster!

I'm trying to think of what I've been doing that's prevented me from posting for 2 months...this has been a long and weird summer....but we're just taking it day by day! 2009 has certainly shared it's bouts of difficult times for us between both sides of our family. I'm told death usually occurs in threes. I guess I'm now a believer of that after losing three loved ones in just 4 months. In April, we lost a good friend from Ft. Campbell very unexpectedly. In May, Ben's Grandmother passed after several long illnesses and the things that get harder to fight as we age. And most recently, we lost my dear Aunt Kathy far too early after her own difficult health battles. All three are deeply missed and for two, I have yet to understand why they had to go so soon in life. :(

Several other things have popped up over the past few months that, while extremely frustrating, I guess things could always "be worse". I heard a song on the TV this morning that kind of put my bitterness aside. It's a conversation between two people that revolves around a man complaining about all the things that go wrong, how he's stressed out, can't deal and "falls off the wagon". The one man basically tells him to suck it up because it just sounds a lot like "life" to him. I guess we wouldn't learn to appreciate joy and happiness without some tough times thrown in the mix, eh?

Onto what you're really reading this for: Aiden. It's hard to believe that in just TWO weeks, my little baby boy is going to be 2!!! Ok...so he's not a baby any more (and he won't hesitate to let you know it!), but he'll always be my baby. :) We are, for the most part, having a blast watching him grow. He has his days, where he wakes up with piss and vinegar in his veins, but he's changing each and every day. People tell you all the time to enjoy these moments because they fly by, and they weren't kidding. When he was itty bitty and I'd hear that...I'd kind of laugh thinking it really can't go that fast...but it most certainly does!!!

He's talking non-stop. He's slowly stringing some words together to make "sentences" and has learned the art of sarcasm and teasing (a must if you're going to survive in this family). He's obsessed with cars, trains, trucks, planes, boats and any other form of transportation. He is 100% little boy! He loves watching bugs, fish, playing in dirt & rocks and all of the other icky things boys do. I love it...I really, really do!

We recently attended the Gloucester County Fair where, like a big boy, he handed the carnie his own tickets and rode his very first carnival ride. A small little train that rode around in circles at about .5 miles an hour!!! Each and every time he came around Ben and I would clap & say "yaaaay!!", but not once did this child crack a smile. NOT ONCE. But you could tell he was truly enjoying it none-the-less!! He stepped off the train, smiling and pleased with himself. Can we say "big boy"????

Tuesdays are the "big day" around here for the summer. We head to the Library for story time. Aiden doesn't always make it through the story without finding it more fun to dart around the library with me chasing him...but he does like the songs they sing and the hokey pokey we dance at the end. :p Afterward we head up to a large cooperative playgroup held at a church right by our house. It's neat for both of us because we're each making our own friends. YAY!!! It's a lot of fun and helps us to branch out and no sit at home staring at each other all day, every day. :)

The only downside is that more kids = more germs. Right now we have a bug going through our house. Aiden totally started it, too. :p Aiden and I have the more mild version, while Ben seems to have been hit pretty hard. He's stuffed up from head to toe, poor guy. :( But...we'll live!!!

I guess that is all for now. Sorry I don't have more to report...but we've just been keeping busy! Stay tuned for some pictures!!! :)