Freddie's Graduation Picture

It's hard not to love Freddie's preschool graduation picture.

I take that back.

It's IMPOSSIBLE not to love Freddie's preschool graduation picture.

HCA Spring Pictures

I'm a sucker for school pictures. The backgrounds may be ridiculous and the prices outrageous, but there is just something about your babies sitting on a treasure chest in front of a fallscape or, in the case of this year's HCA Spring Pictures, on a hay bale beside a picnic basket in a field of .. what, poppies? Tulips?

Regardless.

Though the last thing I need is more pictures of my boys, you know I snatched these bad boys up before that Strawbridge Studios itinerant photographer could say, "CHEEEEEESSEEEE!"

Freddie's shows are the price I paid for leaving
to get to Furman before the boys left for school.
I'd laid out their clothes; I assumed Jeremy would
know to put Freddie in his Sperry's, just like
Jones was in his. I didn't know until we got the pictures
back that Freddie had, instead, picked out his own
footwear. What can you do?

Spring School Pictures

I don't know who it is that takes the school pictures for Clyde First Baptist Preschool, but he (or she) is an absolute MAGICIAN.

LOOK AT MY BABIES!

2014: a Family Annual

The 9th Annual "Family Annual" is officially in the books!

I'm very excited to have it finished, but I'm gonna have to rework my M.O. for the 10th edition. With two boys to capture, I'm not sure we'll have space in just 110 pages per year, so whether that means there's now a Jones edition and a Freddie, or I chronicle the year in the Annual and put my favorite pictures in a whole 'nother book remains to be seen. For now, though, it's enough to have officially put 2014 to bed.

Here's to 2015!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly photo books are the new way to preserve your memories. Create your own today.

Pictures a'Plenty

Here are a few favorite photos from the last couple of days. 

I don't have much earth-shattering to say about them, except that Freddie has started parroting absolutely everything Jones does, which is adorable, except when "what Jones is doing" is chewing on the shower curtain liner on intentionally face-planting into the tub, so he can suck up some bathwater. Then, I remember that I'm simultaneously raising two toddlers and feeling very unsure about whether or not I'm up to the challenge!

Awesome.

Oh, and Freddie loves playing "Peek-a-Boo." The glitch is that, instead of covering his eyes when he plays, he puts his hands on the sides of his head.

Adorable (if misguided).

Some of the pictures were taken in the new playroom, which is about 90% complete. Unfortunately, the boys aren't as excited by it as I thought they'd be. Where I'd LOVE "a room of one's own," they'd still prefer to be in whatever room I'm in ... well, JONES would rather be with me, and Freddie could really care less, though, if pressed, he'd probably pick to be in whatever room Jones is in, so ...

I'm hoping they get the hang of the playroom very soon, because, I'll be honest with you, I just love it and am just amazed by the way God provided this awesome new space for less than $50 worth of paint supplies.

I love it and think it makes our house feel about 6,000 square feet bigger. Very grateful for it.

Pics a Plenty

We don't have wifi (Leslie: "weefee") at home. Being at Mom and Daddy's - with the boys in bed and Jeremy in Canton - I feel like a kid in the candy store, who has both the time and the wherewithal to do THREE blogposts in one nite!

Here's my fourth: this one is just a mega-download of pictures, mostly taken on my iPhone. 

I'll tell why I love them in the captions.

because long-sleeved t-shirts are the
greatest things, since khaki shorts 

Caption this.

Jones and Freddie have a fan club at church.
Marleigh might just be the president.

that face

THAT face

THAT face

self-explanatory 

the Pirate King

I thought it was just me whose hand
Jones likes to hold in the backseat.
Turns out, any hand will do.

again, with the long-sleeved t-shirts 

Look at how long and skinny Jones's fingers are -
just like his daddy's.

Thanks to my very wonderful father-in-law,
we pulled into our driveway one day to find this
red tractor. Jones saw it from his window and
immediately started saying, "GAC! GAC!"
For a few days, it was nearly impossible to get him
off of "GAC."

quality control 

I walked in to Freddie's room one day and
found this. 

in Lexington; I walked in from the kitchen
and found this.

watching Daddy and Pop Pressley get ready for
Men's Bible Study to come over

both boys with their "drugs" of choice

glee

handsome boys

Sometimes, when I say, "Jones, let's go ..."
He'll stand up and pick up whatever he's playing
with and follow me. That was the case at the
Pressleys' one day, as he was playing with this firetruck.

Since Pop always mows our yard, Jones decided
to mow Pop's while he was on vacation.

I hate this shopping cart.
Jones loves it.

Freddie's shoulder is hiding my double chin! 

brotherly love

took these next few during a visit to Lake Junaluska;
since I couldn't pick a favorite, I'm posting all of them.

Howdy

The only person sweeter than my boys
is my husband.

one sock on, one sock off; just like Jones used to do

Jones found the Gac we got him for his birthday.
They're now best buddies.

Jones and his "sh-assssss" ("Hats"); looked in
the backseat to see a scalliwag today.