Bodie is the most rough and tumble kid I've ever met. I thought my other boys liked to play rough with me, this baby actually flings himself at me like a projectile from a slingshot!  When I'm wrestling around with Gavin and Garrett, Bodie plows into the melee headlong like a bowling ball. In football, it's called spearing, and he'd get so many 15 yard penalties his team wouldn't even be in the stadium. If I'm not ready to catch him, I pay the price of 2 bruised faces - mine and his! He has no fear whatsoever (except for the vacuum, and I believe he's just copying his brothers when he runs screaming from it to scramble up onto the couch). Bodie is supposed to be our in-house model for these baby onesies, instead he's the in-house stuntman. His aunt and uncle bought him this helmet for Christmas, only 49% as a joke. They are seriously concerned about their nephew and his hazardous tendencies!

This baby is a complete do-it-your-selfer too. We can't turn our backs on him for one minute, or he'll be somewhere in the house taking an unnecessary risk. His latest thing is to pull a kitchen chair over to the counter top and get his hands on whatever he can. Here he is caught in the act - looting the valentine candy.

We try to keep everything back from the edge of the counter so he can't see it from the floor, but that doesn't make a difference. He knows there are things on the counter, and he will stop at nothing to get at them!

He doesn't wear this helmet all the time, just when he's really feeling dangerous. He sometimes brings it to me to put it on him, and I'm thinking to myself "What is this kid about to attempt now?" I'm sure someday soon he'll be stuck up in the top of a tree or on our roof. (knock on wood)

We thought babies were supposed to get easier, this one is a real challenge. In this picture he's enjoying the fruits of his labor, sporting his soaked and marker stained turtle neck.

That's the other thing he does - he can turn the water on in the sink and play in it. He covers the faucet with his hand, spraying everything within a six foot radius. Unbelievable! Too young to put on the "Naughty Bench" , we just verbally reprimand him and redirect. I don't think most of his exploits are actually acts of naughtiness, I just think he's exploring his own capabilities. He's an Indiana Jones and Crash Test Dummy all in one 28 lb package!

Now that the boys are in a bunk bed, bedtime is a little easier. It is a lot more fun now. For some reason they both get pretty wound up right before bed, but reading a book with them can usually get them to settle down. While the top bunk officially started out as Gavin's, they take turns being up there. I still end up falling asleep with a book on my face on the bottom bunk with Garrett most nights.

Every now and then Gavin will have a nightmare and walk through the house looking for me, and if I'm in the bunk already, he just crawls in. He's been having more nightmares lately, and I think it could be just stress from school. He doesn't have the ability to tell me about his dreams in great detail, but I can make a few intuitive assumptions. It isn't "Where the Wild Things Are". Thank God he's over that one. He has a lot of stress in his Kindergarten life, being a child with autism in a class of 26 "neuro-typical" (normal) kids.

They are both great at sleeping. I would bet a large sum that they could sleep through a category 5 hurricane! Unlike the baby, Bodie. He wakes up at the slightest squeaky door hinge or cat meow. When he is taking a nap, the house has to be in deep silence mode - ringers off, t.v. muted, etc. When he is awake, nothing gets accomplished around here. All productivity occurs at naptime and very early morning!

I took this picture the other morning when I woke the boys up for school. I thought it was so sweet. Apparently Gavin had one of his nightmares and just crawled into the bottom bunk with his little brother during the night. Garrett doesn't realize it yet, but he'll probably be his big brother's protector throughout their lives. Gavin is lucky Garrett was born with a compassionate soul, a comforting aura, and an optimistic attitude. 

Brett makes these rolls, they are his specialty. They are absolutely delicious and really not very time consuming at all. Flaky on the outside and soft on the inside with a wonderful buttery flavor. You've got to try them!

Crescent Dinner Rolls

Yield: 8 pieces

Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm water, (110ºF)
1/2 cup warm milk
1 egg
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 oz. packet active dry yeast
1/4 cup butter, softened

Directions:
Place the water, milk, egg, 1/3 cup butter, sugar, salt, flour and yeast in the pan of a bread machine in that order (or order recommended by the manufacturer). Select the dough/Knead and First Rise Cycle (may be all in one). Press start.

When the cycle finishes, turn the dough out onto a very lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a 12" circle. Spread the 1/4 cup of softened butter over each round. Cut each circle into 8 wedges with a pizza cutter or knife. Roll the wedges - starting at the wide end; rolling gently but tightly. Place the crescents point-side down on an ungreased cookie sheet. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and put in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.

Bake at 400℉ for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden.