The Life and Times of the Arning Bros.: January 2012

We've had a fairly low key January, so there hasn't been too much going on. I've snapped a few pictures here and there, which means I do have a couple I can share with you now.

I've also been trying to take more videos of the boys on the advice of a friend of mine who said pictures are great, but years from now, I'll wish I had more videos of the boys. Yikes! I better get on it! Anyway, I'll try and share some fun videos with you in the weeks to come.

In the meantime, here are a few moments from our January.

This is from New Year's Eve. I had an elaborate plan to celebrate to ring in the New Year early with the boys.
Apparently, they had a different plan - one that included no celebrating.
They were less than thrilled with my impromptu New Year's Eve party. Sigh.

At least Charlie liked the noise makers.

This is a classic Chase / part Charlie moment. Classic Chase because he's surrounded by no less than three stuffed animals. Classic Charlie because he's sans pants.

Brothers at bath time. Lots of fun and very wet.

Cutie pie Charlie!

Another classic Chase - in his crib literally surrounded by stuffed animals. I don't see how the boy sleeps in there.
I tried to get a picture of Chase and all of the animals, but my camera lens wasn't big enough to capture everything.

This is the best I could do and it doesn't quite capture the essence of the boys with his animals.
There isn't an inch of free space in the crib. It's amazing!

Chase and Shelby... bonding.

There's no room left on the couch. You guessed it. Too many stuffed animals.

Charlie was reading to Chase in this picture. No lie! It was the sweetest thing.

This blog entry is going to be very straight forward and to the point. Our amazingly talented family photographer, Heather Knowles of Sprouts by Heather, put together a blog entry with her favorite photos from 2011 (which by the way our family was in, a couple of times). I thought it was a great idea and I knew I had several favorites that I love to go back and look at all the time.

So, here goes. A recap of 2011... in pictures!

P.S. These photos are in no particular order... Sorry!

Beautiful sunset, happy Mama and Dada. What's not to love?

Could this be any cuter? Little Miss Shelby getting some lovin'.

I love the way this photo is framed, plus I think Chase has such a sweet face.

And speaking of sweet faces... Holy Moley! Is this not THE CUTEST picture?
Might be one of my all-time favorites!

This photo makes my heart flutter. I love the lighting. Look at how his hair is glowing.
It's just such a sweet photo.

Again, the lighting. LOVE! And, I love how this photo is framed, too.

The boys love to laugh. They laugh together all the time!
I'm so thrilled that I was able to capture at least one of those moments.

I love this photo for two reasons... Chase's expression. It just captures Chase so perfectly.
And, I love it because of how Charlie is looking at his brother... like he's so proud of his little bro.

Oh, man. This is another one of my all-time favorites.
This photo IS Chase. He laughs like this all the time!
He truly has one of the best laughs ever!

This is a great photo because this is actually what happens when the boys see a firetruck....
...everything comes to a standstill. They just stop and stare.

This is another favorite because Mike just looks so happy and relaxed.
You don't see this Mike very often.

I love, love this photo because these are truly my best buds. Aren't they beautiful?
What a great picture!

This is a fabulous photo. Pure joy. That's about all I can say about it.
In fact, this is the photo we submitted to Cannon School because we thought it would make Charlie stand out.
Happy go-lucky, fun and all boy!

I mean, just look at that smile! Love!

This is another favorite because it captures another moment in time.
The boys spent half of the summer standing on these benches, watching the construction trucks.

Another fun moment in time!
Seriously, who gets to eat breakfast outside on their big wheels?
Little boys, that's who!

Do I really need to explain why I love, love, love this photo?

I have several photos from my beach trip that are among my favorites.
This is great because it's a genuine smile. Charlie LOVES the beach!

See what I mean?

Another classic Chase expression.
(And I like the way the picture is framed.)

What a smile!

This photo is just plain FABULOUS! I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.
There'll never be another photo like this one!

Pure, absolute and total J O Y!

This photo is one of my favorites mainly because the boys are sitting together, smiling. That's rare!
Besides, I think they look alike in this photo. Cool!