Sowing the Seeds...

Of lots of goodies! Andy and I started planting seeds in the basement in April and our hard work is finally paying off. We have a ton of veggies growing in our backyard right now. We have tomatoes, beans, broccoli, zucchini, yellow squash, corn, sunflowers, pumpkins, cucumbers, mint, and many more veggies and goodies. I wanted to share these pictures while the garden was so beautiful. It is Andy's passion and we are having a ton of fun growing everything...and then eating it!

It looks like a jungle in there.

These sunflowers must be at least 12 feet tall. Andy planted them right outside the kitchen window. They are beautiful to look at from inside.

These are our pumpkins. They are still in the yellow stage not yet turning to orange. They have a lot of growing to do still. Home grown Halloween pumpkins...the best kind!

Here are some sweet peas. We have so many on this plant. Fresh beans tonight!

This is the coolest! The broccoli plant has turned out awesome. We have a couple growing and some cauliflower, too. We didn't know what to expect with this one, but it a pleasant surprise!

Lafflam Family Update

Well, here I am, back to blogging! Sorry it has been so long since my last post. I feel like I have been so busy this August. We have had so much going on and there really has been no time to blog lately. I just wanted to send out an update on a few things.

First of all, Blake turned 2 months old on August 4. He weighed in at 12 lbs 12 oz (75th percentile) and was 23 inches long (50th percentile) at his 2 month appointment. At the appointment we found out he has a hemangioma. This is on the right side of his face and the doctor says it will go away or at least be less visible by the time he is 2 years old. He continues to be such a good baby. He sleeps through the night and has been since about 3 weeks old. His smiles and coos just melt our heart. Compared to Tyler at this age, he is a hoss. He eats 4 1/2 oz of formula every 3 hours during the day. We couldn't have asked for a better baby.


Tyler continues to love Blake. He kisses him, reads to him, wants to hold him, and holds the bottle during feedings. Just today he asked if he could burp Blake and then he continued, "Good burp, Blake." They are just too cute together. There have been those few times when he has asked me to put Blake back in his car seat so he can have my full attention. That was pretty funny!

Just 2 weeks ago, we decided that we were going to move. We found a lot in Timnath Ranch just by a new CORE Knowledge School, Bethke. We decided that it would be a great time for us to move since we were running out of space in our current house. We are going to have a 4 bedroom house with a loft, on a cul-de-sac, with a huge yard, and a 3 car garage! We are thrilled! This is our lot (see the fence way back there?). It also comes with a great view of the Rocky Mountains. It's beautiful.

Here is the model of our house. It will look a little different because we have a different elevation with a porch out front and shutters on the windows. We love it!

Something else to add to our exciting month was my hit and run car accident. I was at Edora Park with my friend Amy and my car was hit. The good news is the lady was caught and a witness saw the whole thing. It all happened on the last day of my summer break, so now I have to find the time to get it fixed since I am back to work.

Here is my cutie pie, Tyler. He is getting so big and so darn cute! He has been getting really good at practicing making funny faces lately. He still loves reading his books and playing with cars of all types (especially those from the movie Cars). Monsters are on his mind and scaring him daily. (Does anyone have ideas on how to make him feel better about monsters?) The funniest thing about him and monsters is that he imitates what he thinks the monsters look like by making funny monster faces and growls. He continues to bring a smile to our faces when he is not acting out and showing us what the terrible 2's really mean. We just love him!

One more thing to make the month a little more busy is I have returned back to work. I am now teaching first grade again and I moved classrooms. All of this has left us really busy, but really thankful for what we have. Life is good in the Lafflam house!

Mommy's Classroom...

I have really enjoyed my summer off with the boys, but realize I have a ton of work to do in my new classroom. I am moving to the first floor and changing grade levels. So, I have brought the boys with me while I work (I don't suggest this). Blake was great and slept through the day(s) for the most part. Tyler, on the other hand, was well...a handful. Everything I organized he managed to undo, color on, or put in another place. However, I really enjoyed having him there and seeing his enthusiasm for "school" and "mommy's classroom." His favorite parts, if I were to guess, were coloring on the white board with Sharpie, coloring on the computer tower and monitor with pen, taking out all of the playground balls, and learning how to climb on tables when Mommy wasn't looking. It was AWESOME (do you hear the sarcasm?)...

Coloring on the white board (with dry erase pen this time)...

Helping to organize my book boxes.

Yellowstone Fun...

We headed up to West Yellowstone to see Andy's parents and for a relaxing vacation. Andy managed to go fishing every day in some of the most beautiful parts of our country, not to mention the best fly fishing rivers there are. While we were there we both celebrated our 32nd birthdays with some great company. Andy took me horseback riding through the mountains for my birthday. It was a blast. We took Tyler and Blake to the Grizzly Bear and Wolf Center as well as toured through Yellowstone National Park. We saw a bunch of wildlife in the park, but nothing beats the four grizzly bears and a moose on our drive home. I love our annual trips to Yellowstone.

Tyler and his first fish...Nemo! He was so thrilled.

I know what you are thinking (crazy mom dressing up her kid) but look how cute he is.

A s'mores first timer...lovin' every minute.

These campfire marshmallows were the size of a softball...no joke!

They make for GREAT s'mores.

This is Sam from the Grizzly Center. He weighs about 800 pounds.

Celebrating by birthday with my boys and my wonderful family.

Horseback riding with my honey.

Tyler and Bepa time...too stinkin' cute.

Buffalo in the park.

Picnic followed by playtime with daddy in Yellowstone.

Old Faithful geyser...

Family photo at Old Faithful...

Elk crossing the river...

Mama bear and her two cubs. Amazing to watch. We must have sat there for 15 minutes just watching them explore.

We also saw a moose. So beautiful.

Bepa was fitting in Tyler's first fly fishing lesson.

Having a little fun!

Tyler in Grand Teton National Park. What a poser!

On the Fritz...

Grammie, aka my mom, came into town to visit us. While she was here we went to Lee Martinez Farm to walk around and see the animals. After we toured the farm, we took Tyler on a pony ride. He was allowed to choose his very own pony to ride, and he choose "Fritz" the pony. As soon as we put him on the pony, I knew it would be hard to get him off. What fun he had while we walked around. He held on to tight to the saddle and was not afraid one bit! I think we have a cowboy on our hands. When we got home, he told Daddy that he wanted a pony.

That is Fritz' name tag on his saddle.

Getting ready to ride...helmet and all.

Giddy up!

Tyler and Mommy walking Fritz.

I had Grammie take over after Fritz tried to bite me. Ouch!

Tyler and I looking at the cows.

Checking out the horses.

Hi horse...

T and Grammie...

Mooo...

Blake was not as excited about the trip as the rest of us. This is what he did the whole time!

"Fire Tuck"...

We were running errands last weekend when we saw that all 3 fire trucks were pulled out in front of the local fire station. We decided to drive by and take a peek at them. When we got there, the firemen were working in the garage and told us that Tyler could sit in the driver's seat! Tyler was ecstatic to say the least (and his Daddy was pretty excited too). By the end of our visit to the Fire Station, Daddy and Tyler had made friends with Derek the fireman. He fell in love with Tyler and told us we could come back whenever we wanted to! They even gave Tyler a fireman's hat and bag of goodies...Wow!

Hanging out in the driver's seat...

See...he was ecstatic!

Hanging out the window of the truck...

Tyler's new best friends (Derek is on the left).

Big Boy Blake...

Blake is getting bigger and is now just about three and a half weeks old. He is sleeping like a champ and wakes about every 3 hours for milk. He does give us a little bit longer of a window at night and for that Mommy and Daddy are very appreciative. During the day he is starting to be a little bit more awake. Tyler just absolutely loves him and is "gentle" for the most part. I cannot get over how fast he is growing. We are slowly moving from newborn to 0-3 month clothes as he is filling out his own skin. He is really a chow hound, eating about 4 to 4 1/2 ounces at each feeding. Blake's head and legs are very strong. He can lift his head for a few seconds and looks around. When we burp him, he tries to crawl up our bodies. He currently weighs 9 pounds! I forgot how many changes take place in this stage of life for little ones, and we are enjoying every moment of it!