Gig 'em Aggies!

People often ask us what we miss most about living in the US and here are our top 3:
1. family and friends, of course
2. real tex-mex (we get some Mexican food here but nothing like what you find in Texas)
3. college football

The rest of my list includes a lot more food (like Sonic, Chick-fila, Taco Bell, Luby's, and Mel's) and Target and Wal-mart, so overall we're not missing out on a whole lot here. But the first weekend of NCAA football is bittersweet now that we don't get to watch it! We don't even get US Sportscenter to see any highlights, so all we can do is keep up with scores on the internet, which isn't quite the same. Even so, I want the boys to grow up knowing which team is their favorite!

A little practice for Ben...we'll work on the Aggie War Hymn next.

Ben loves to look at pictures on my camera but this was the first time he took one himself. Think he might need a little practice...

Look at our big boy! He's already 11lbs and still growing.

We were all playing together on the "big boy bed" and I had to capture this moment. I'm hoping that by talking up the big bed Ben will be excited to sleep on it this weekend.

Since they were hanging out so well I thought I'd try to get another picture of Ben holding Alex and Ben did really well.
But when Alex started crying Ben had no idea what to do! He looked at me like "help!" but to Ben's credit Alex was probably getting hungry and had just run out of patience for pictures.

One more look at the little guy. He's really starting to focus well on things but gets those eyes crossed sometimes, like it's just too much work. Alex has given both Matt and I big sweet smiles now so we're looking forward to seeing more!

Busy Boy

Ben has a lot going on these days. He's been very creative about finding interesting things to do at home, thank goodness since it's been raining a lot lately.

He has been giving the duck rides in the car...


He's been exploring new uses for ziploc bags...(and now I understand why they put all the warnings on plastic bags because I would have had a heart attack if he'd tried this unattended)


He's busy working on his art, but sometimes it interferes with his desire to clean up around the house....

Ben does make me laugh a lot because he's already a little perfectionist. He always uses a coaster for his cups, he asks to say a blessing before we eat, and he washes his hands several times a day whether they need it or not.

Now that we don't have any guests planning to come for the remainder of the year, we're moving Ben into the guest room and Alex into Ben's room. I introduced Ben to the big boy bed today and he loved it. Now the big question is - will he sleep on it? He's always enjoyed playing on bigger beds but hasn't even slept in one, so I'm hoping he'll make the transition easily. I'm going to move some of his things into his new room this week and probably try to have him sleep in there on Friday night. Alex has been sleeping until about 4am for several nights now so I think it's a good time to move him out of our room and into a real crib as well. We'll all get more sleep that way because he's a noisy little sleeper.

Tons of Pictures (Part I)

I'm playing catch-up for a week's worth of pictures and we took a lot while the grandparents were here! I split the post into two because I had so many to share.

We visited the butterfly world on Sentosa Island last week and really enjoyed the tropical setting and all the beautiful butterflies.
Ben learned to say "buttafly" and pointed out some of the most colorful ones. I think he was more interested in running down the trails than enjoying the sights like we did.

Some of the species were just gorgeous!

Afterward, we let him cool down in a little fountain and I took his shorts off so he would hopefully not get too wet....

...but of course, being Ben, he was soaked! He had a great time, so I just let him get wet and go home wearing only his diaper.

There's just no way to keep this kid dry when he wants to wash his face everywhere.

We went back to the zoo one afternoon for a quick visit and Ben insisted on bringing his shopping cart. It was definitely one of those days to pick your battles and it just wasn't worth the argument. Ben did get a lot of stares!

Here's Alex at 6 weeks. I think he already has more fat on him than Ben has at 2 years! He's growing so well and it's so much fun to have a chubby baby this time around. I just love the rolls he's developing on his little legs.

Ben had a favorite book he insisted that Grumpy read to him every day. I think this picture was just before naptime because Ben was slowing down a bit. He was in high gear every day with so much attention and he'd just poop out at naptime and bedtime.

Finally after two years, Ben got his first haircut! It was definitely not a professional job, just some kitchen scissors and a comb, but it was a big improvement over the shag he was developing. I didn't even cut off enough to sweep off the floor because his hair is so fine.


Ben did the final styling on his own.

Alex spent plenty of quality time on Grammy's chest while he could. This little guy loves nothing more than a warm body and a good nap and I think his smile speaks for itself!

One rainy afternoon we took Ben to an indoor playground to let him burn off some energy. He loved diving into the ball pit.


Grumpy taught him how to hang from the handle of this slide toy and Ben went back and forth over and over.

When the rain cleared up we hit the botanic garden again and Ben tried out the new buggy board that connects to the stroller. I think it will be a huge help for the places that a double stroller won't fit and a lot more fun for Ben because he thinks it's an exciting ride.

Before I could get his clothes off Ben had run into the fountain. Once again, we had to take a little naked guy home in just a diaper!

Alex didn't get caught up in Ben's excitement, to say the least. It barely interrupted his nap.

Keep on reading...more pictures below!

Tons of Pictures (Part II)

I took my parents to downtown Singapore for a little more sightseeing and we couldn't pass up the opportunity for some pictures with the merlion, Singapore's mascot of sorts.
We enjoyed a nice lunch on the riverfront after touring a museum and little Alex napped through it all. He's a portable little guy. After Ben came home from the hospital he didn't go to any public places except the doctor's office for about 6 months, so it's been nice to have the freedom of carrying a baby along on our outside activities.

We couldn't walk past the ice cream sandwich vendor with getting one. It's a true sandwich here with a slice of ice cream on folded sweet bread and one of my favorite local treats.

Ben's newest hobby has been playing with the sliding porch doors. All 4 move independently so it is quite an exciting game for him, probably not so much for Grammy who would sit patiently with him to make sure he didn't explore the porch railing!

Another fun game is sitting in the baby's chair. He always has to lean over and turn on the vibrations and get a nice massage while he's relaxing.

Ben is helpful to find a pacifier when the baby starts crying, but sometimes it doesn't make it straight into Alex's mouth. Ben quit using his around 3-4 months so it's a pretty interesting toy now.

Another first - the two boys together and neither one is crying! Matt figured out the trick...put a sleeping Alex in Ben's lap while Elmo is on TV.

Ben watched him for a minute, gave Alex a kiss, then went back to watching Elmo. Not the sweetest moment in the world, but definitely a step in the right direction!

Another little smile from Alex just before bathtime. He smiles all the time when he's falling asleep but we still haven't gotten a real one face to face.

I set Alex on the bed for a minute to grab more diapers and he was asleep when I turned back around. It amazes me at how easily he sleeps, I guess because Ben has never been one to fall asleep just anywhere. Ben has always taken some work to get to sleep, especially during the day. I'm especially proud of little Alex today because he slept for 6 hours straight last night and I'm a different person! Hopefully he'll continue to sleep a little longer at night.

We very reluctantly said goodbye to Grumpy and Grammy. Their flight left at 2:30am (ouch!) so Ben was in bed well before they had to leave. Alex said his goodbyes a little later before he went to sleep.

We all hated to say goodbye, especially knowing that Alex will be a different baby entirely by the time we head back to Houston for Christmas. We had a wonderful two weeks with my parents and already miss them so much. I got an email that they made it home safely and their kitties were very happy to see them, so we're glad to know they survived the long flight once again...it's not an easy trip! We all appreciated them going through it to come visit us.

Ben spent a lot of time yesterday wandering into the guest room and asking from "Gammy" and "Gumpy". He had a great time getting some much-needed attention while I tended to Alex and we adults had a wonderful time visiting and catching up with one another. Now we're looking for new types of entertainment and Ben is finding it with all the baby's toys right now. I think he enjoyed this old toy a lot more than Alex!

I'm still working on getting Alex settled into a routine so that he and Ben aren't hungry and sleepy at the same time every day, but so far I haven't had much success. Some days I can get them both to take a nap at the same time (like right now, the only reason I have time to sit at the computer!) but usually I want a nap, too. Hopefully in a few more weeks we'll get a nice schedule for everyone so I'm not juggling kids at naptime and dinnertime...and maybe I could answer an email or two! I got spoiled very quickly to having some grandparents around who enjoyed helping out with the kiddos.

Pictures!

We are having a great time with Grammy and Grumpy! Plus, whenever people come visit, it's like Christmas because they bring all kinds of things from the US for us. Ben is in love with this barking puppy that Aunt Stacey sent for him.

Alex is enjoying his new wardrobe as well. I had to laugh at this "automatic sprinkler" onesie because in about 12 hours he showered me, had a diaper blowout, and pooped in his bathtub. We definitely have to carry extra clothes for this kid.

Ben had his first mechanical breakdown of his beloved cart, but he immediately turned it over and tried to fix the wheel himself. He's such a little engineer already.

My parents have done so well with the jetlag but they still get a little worn out by the end of the day! It could also have something to do with the heat here and possibly a 2-year old with limitless energy. Ben has been in high gear since the minute his grandparents arrived!

Alex has had no trouble finding someone to nap on. He loves to sleep on someone in the evenings and we've all enjoyed relaxing on the couch and watching the olympics at night so it's worked out well.

Ben and Grumpy have been having a great time in the pool together.

Sweet baby taking a nap on the couch....he's growing so fast! We did find out that it was a staph infection on his neck. No idea what may have caused it but it's cleared up now and healed well.

We tried out the new double stroller at the botanic garden. It's nice because Alex can stay in his carseat on one side while Ben sits on the other. I'm not sure Ben was too crazy about it but he stayed strapped in long enough for us to walk a bit.

We all enjoyed the beautiful orchids in the National Orchid Garden.

Ben insisted on walking the entire time in the orchid garden, hills and all, but he did take a few breaks.

A beautiful photo op with the grandparents.

Back at home Ben has new games he likes to play with both Grammy and Grumpy and he's very specific about who's allowed to play! I'm not included in most of these but I love seeing how much fun he's having.

We picked up food from the hawker stand one evening and Ben showed off his love for noodles...both wearing and eating them.

We all went to the zoo and Ben had a terrific time feeding the kangaroos. Last time he called them dogs but this time they were all kitties. Go figure...


This picture really made me laugh - Matt was telling Ben to look at the giraffes but Ben was busy checking out something on the ground. He's still a bit young for the zoo but he's enjoying it more each time we go.

Alex sleeping...again....he's been such a good boy while we're dragging him all over Singapore. As you can probably tell, this boy hasn't missed a meal! He's filling out so fast.

We went on the Singapore Flyer so my parents could get a bird's eye view of the city and we were lucky enough to get our own car on the huge ferris wheel. Ben got a little activity pack so he was pretty busy the whole time.

A nice shot looking towards downtown and the grandstands for the upcoming Formula 1 race.

And yes, Alex does wake up! Here's the little guy in his sling, although he's about to outgrow it. It's been really handy for carrying him around anywhere that's not very stroller friendly.