IMG_2353 on Flickr.

Mike and Chris had a spectacular time at the Strawberry Festival in Oxnard. We’ve lived in the area for the past five years, yet we’d never gone, so we decided now that the boys were both mobile, we’d take them. We didn’t bring a stroller so they would both walk, so I spent a lot of time holding on to Chris, who just wanted to run wild. Most of the good photos are from Trinity. But, mission accomplished — before we even got on to the shuttle back to our car, Chris was passed out on my shoulder.

Here’s a link to the entire set.

This is what happens when boys wake up too early. From this picture, I can tell that Chris woke up first, threw everything out of his crib then climbed out. Then he threw more toys around, shook the floor lamp, played with the window shade and took the stick securing the window. At some point, Mike climbed into his crib. Then Chris, with the window stick, climbed onto his dresser, knocked over the changing pad and somehow got stuck.

It’s that time of the month, so of course I am trying mightily to fight off a full-blown migraine. When I went in to wake up the boys and get them ready for daycare, Chris starts heaving while standing in his crib and throws up, so I have to strip the sheets to get the smell out of the room, at the very least. (This is the morning after Mike overflowed his pull-up, leaking onto his pajamas, his sheets and his pillow — which he still insisted on sleeping on last night.)

In spite of all this, they are still such a joy. I love their smiles, I love making them giggle, and their discoveries and new skills amaze me. Maybe one day they will really annoy me, but that day is not today.