pre-xmas lancaster trip

Two weekends before xmas, we headed out to lancaster to visit gmom J and Aunt B.  We had a weekend of fun planned  though we got off to a rocky start on friday.  We left later than we wanted to and got stuck in a ton of traffic. plus big guy was sick and not pleased with being stuck in the car.  We all pretty much had a meltdown during the drive.

We finally made it to our hotel, a new place that looks like a steamboat from the outside.  Our normal place closed down.  Check-in was very easy and we went to the fabulous gift shop.  the hotel has a cool thing that a goldfish can stay in your room with you.  They give you a little goldfish bowl and some food.  And if you want they will let you take it home.  We named ours "baby fish."  big guy liked feeding it, but other than that, he wasn't overly excited about it, hence we didn't take it home.

Our night was pretty quiet, eating some dinner, snacks, nebulizer, bath, and bed.  But oh boy, we had an awesome day on saturday planned!  big guy was kind of a wild one upon waking up and our trip to the starbucks was the beginning of the next round of meltdowns.  Luckily grandma J and Aunt B arrived and brightened up all of our moods.  We headed out to the strasburg train station to catch the santa train.  And big guy was the angel child for the next two hours.  The train ride was awesome.  We were in first class and got the best seats on the train.  right up front for the return journey when the engine couples right in front of us.

We ate cookies and hot chocolate, listened to carolers, horn players, and saw santa himself.  big guy really loves santa, but only from a distance.  he loves talking about him, his hat, saying ho, ho, ho.  But when santa came too close, big guy hid under a chair.  He peeked a hand out to get his trinket, but otherwise was not interested in getting any closer!  hilarious! We did the hand crank train and visited the gift shop before heading back to the hotel to nap.  After naptime, we ate dinner in the bar area (this is where we had eaten on a previous visit) and went to Elizabeth farms to drive slowly through the thousand lights.  big guy loved it so much!  the tunnel of lights was super cool!  we went to santa's workshop to say hi to santa (again, big guy was not interested in actually saying hi.  And next to santa was a model train set up.  Heaven!

Sunday morning we packed up and headed to gmom J's house.  We had a pre-xmas- including big guy's big present, a new big wheels type bike!  he loved it and tore through the house leaning on the handle bars and not bothering with the pedals.  Hubs and I opened our gifts, as well.  but big guy was loving life!  we spent a few hours and ate breakfast before hitting the road.  A great lancaster trip yet again!

good manners

big guy has really good manners.  He says please and thank you so well and even to strangers, which of course they think is totally fabulous.  who am I kidding, everyone thinks it's fabulous.  Including me, since I am a real stickler for manners.  Big guy says thank you without prompting and sometimes at times taht you wouldn't think he would say it.  Like if you fix a train on his tracks or fast forward through the scene that he thinks is scary during a movie.  So precious.  Please he will say when prompted.  But he also says hi and bye so nicely to everyone.  Almost like he's a politician.  We are still working on you're welcome.  which is kind of a mouthful, but we'll get there!

the potty train

One of the gifts that big guy got from gmom dino was a book called The Potty Train.  Combing big guy's love of trains with my desire to keep this whole potty thing rolling!  Today big guy really had to go, but was being his difficult self.  So, I busted out the new book and we read it several times.  Big guy was very serious during the reading.  After we would finish we would discuss.  He knew everything that was going on.  He would pat his diaper and say "push on potty."  So, I thought we were doing good.  I asked if he just wanted to go sit, not push.  NO.

Ok, I went off to make dinner.  Hubs was in charge momentarily and big guy wanted to read the potty train again.  this time hubs asked me to grab the tickets to get on the potty train!  I gave a quizzical look and he stage whispered to me- toilet paper.  Ah-ha!  Genius hubs!  I grabbed two squares of toilet paper and gave them each their tickets.  big guy loved it, he kept yelling, "potty ticket!"  big guy still couldn't be convinced to just sit on the potty, but his spirits seemed better in regards to the potty.  especially after he and hubs put their tickets into the potty so that they could get onto the toilet.

At dinner, big guy was pulling a major crank fest!  he refused to eat, was whining, and didn't want to sit up straight.  All signs that a poop is brewing.  WE went to get our ticket and headed upstairs.  big guy prefers the upstairs potty.  He fought me for about 40 seconds, but then was able to go.  Whew!!!  He was pretty upset and didn't want to flush or put in his ticket, but we eventually calmed down.  And the night was a thousand times better since big guy was in a way better mood!!

breakfast of champions?

Hubs took this pic the other day of big guy deciding what he wanted for breakfast- it's a little blurry because he was running with joy- but that is a bag of marshmallows and a bag of m&m's in his hands! Needless to say, big guy did not eat this for breakfast, but he gets an A+ for trying!

pants!

This evening big guy (with my supervision) took off his pants and properly put on a pair of pajama bottoms.  that's right.  my baby put on a pair of pants.  it was really adorable to watch him pulling and figuring out how to do it.  next putting on a shirt.

quirks

It's funny what bothers kids.  I've read and been told by several people that some of the things that bother other kids don't bother big guy.  For example, big guy really enjoyed having his nose aspirated before he learned how to blow his nose.  I think he realized that it made him feel better.  And that it felt really cool when I would do it- I was an expert!  Another funny thing is getting nails cut.  Big guy loves when I cut his finger and toe nails.  he actually will request that I do it every week.  He'll point to his finger nail and say, "cut."  and he likes to have the index fingernails cut first. And after I do fingernails, we move onto toenails.  I mean there are still plenty of things that he freaks out about, but at least he has learned to blow his nose and enjoy getting his nails cut!

on the first night of Hannukah

big guy used the potty again and went poop!  lots of happy screaming, clapping, jumping ensued.  we flushed.  we yelled for daddy.  daddy did all of the above.  we flushed.  we talked about poop and pushing.  then we got fish stickers, which is the reward.  I'm thinking about making a chart....hmmm, I'll have to see how motivated I feel!

pretend play

big guy has started to play pretend with his stuffed animals. I noticed this the other day when we returned from the elmwood park zoo with our newly purchased stuffed animal snake- green, almost three feet long, with a fun pink tongue sticking out.  It also hisses a lot!  At cats, trains, and especially other stuffed animals.  In fact, the snake brought to my attention the pretend playing.

The snake was playing with the red bear with white spots.  and I hear big guy yelling, "Not nice!"he says nice like "ni-ch" which is extra cute.  I see the snake being put down onto a pillow to calm down and take a nap.  I asked big guy what happened and he said, "snake, not nice.  sleeping." and then started making snoring noises.  So. Freaking. Cute.

Often the play animals are learning about being nice and then learning to play together nicely.  Must be something they work on a lot at school!!  anyway, it seems to me a leap in playing in that he is making up stories for the stuffed animals.  and it's really cute to boot.

Happy bday hubs!

The hubs turned 33 today! What an old man! Big guy have been planning for days. Card and present were opened this morning, especially since big guy decided to get up at 4:30 this morning. Clearly trying to make the day feel as long as possible. Big guy and I went to the supermarket after school to pick up hubs favorite cake- a carvel ice cream cake with those yummy crunchies. Big guy kept saying "bir day cake" as we were buying it.

Hubs was already home and he got a sneak peek of the cake. We were chatting while big guy played with some blocks. Hubs announced he wanted dinner and I got to start making their favorite dinner- pasta with meat sauce. Only to realize, I had forgotten to buy the meat. Oops. After an unsuccessful trip to the supermarket down the street to procure the meat, we ordered the next best thing- bertucci's to go! Hubs got chicken pram, me pizza, and big guy ravioli in butter. I top big guys ravioli with sprinkle cheese and put some steamed broccoli on the side.

I actually had to flag big guy on ravioli- he ate ten of them and half a head of broccoli, then topped it off with half a bag of chocolate covered pretzels. We relieved, played and watched some curious George the rest of the night. We finished with a bath which was the nights topper.

As previously mentioned, big guy has been a challenging one to get to poop. But the past few times he's gone during bath time. And the past two times, when he's started to push, I plop him on the toilet to finish. And afterwards he gets stickers! So tonight he was starting the hysterical crying but pointed to the potty. So, I said, do you want to sit on the potty? He nodded yes. I plopped him on and said, ok, push. He pushes and ta-da! Then I asked if he needed to push more. Affirmative nod again. And ta-da again! Big smile. I start screaming happily. Big guy starts jumping and screaming. We both yell for hubs. Cue clapping. Cue flushing the poop. Cue talking about the poop and subsequent stickers up until bedtime. What an awesome bday!

cute kid alert

Big guy has finally started liking having his picture taken again!

here he is yesterday collecting "baby pine cones"

thanksgiving photo fun

Here we all are with Aunt H the morning after thanksgiving!

central park zoo

Following a really good night sleep in our fancy hotel, we headed back to Aunt H's apartment for a truly NY breakfast- bagels, lox, and cream cheese! With plenty of coffee to wash it down with!  Yum!  I had asked Aunt H if we could have bagels the next morning and she certainly delivered.  Toasted to perfection but still chewy on the inside.  You can only get a great bagel in NY.

Following a few pictures, hubs, big guy, and I took a cab (shhhh, don't tell Aunt H who wanted us to hop on the 8th street bus) to the Central Park Zoo.  The cab got us their very quickly and big guy loved that he was in a car but not in a car seat.  He had this grin on his face the whole time, like, we are really getting away with it!  He was also eating some of H's pretzels, which they bonded over the night before.

Upon getting to the zoo, we went first to the shortened but 4D version of the Polar Express movie.  4D you ask?  Why, it's 3D, but with actual effects, like snow falling, wind blowing your hair, and bubbles flying.  Big guy wasn't too into the glasses, in fact neither hubs nor I were allowed to wear them either. but he loved the snow and bubbles!

Following the movie, we went to the children's zoo, which had some really cool ducks and a place to feed the animals.  All was going well until some heathen of a child stomped on big guy's hand on a play area and big guy lost it.  And the mother didn't even say anything, like, sorry or make her kid apologized.  so, I said nicely how horrible it was that she nor the kid had manners.  hehe, then she walked away from us quickly.  The only thing that calmed big guy was having hubs feed the sheep and an alpaca named Richie.

Following the hand stomp, it was downhill.  big guy wanted to run crazily through the zoo.  which at our local zoo isn't an issue because it's big and I know where everything is.  But this zoo is small and I didn't know my way around.  cue hysterical crying and melting on the ground.  We decided to call it quits and upon leaving stopped to get some popcorn.  Which instantly turned big guy into a normal human being momentarily.  He happily munched popcorn and yogurt while hubs and I had some hamburger and french fries.  After eating, we hopped on another cab down 5th avenue back to our car.

We made really good time on the way home, big guy slept the whole way, waking up periodically, but then falling back asleep.  He woke up for good as we reached our last toll.  We decided to do some black friday shopping before ending our NY adventure!

thanksgiving!

This thanksgiving we traveled to Manhattan (Greenwich Village) to visit my great aunt H.  She is big guy's great great aunt!  What a treat!  We met up with my mom gmom Dino and grumpy grampy and their two dogs on thursday afternoon around 2:30.  And then we had four generations present!

Big guy loved aunt H so much- she is really cool for being 93!  And he of course loved seeing gmom dino and the dogs.  Though he wasn't interested in eating thanksgiving dinner.  I did manage to shove a yogurt in before he realized the parade was on tv and was pretty good just chilling out watching it and periodically coming to sit with us at the table to socialize.  The food was delicious and I take no credit for it, having only made the broccoli.  but we all ate a ton and laughed even more!  Dessert quickly followed, including pie, cookies, chocolate turkeys, and "baby duck!"

Ok, the baby duck wasn't actually a duck, but it was an ice cream cake shaped and decorated to look like a cooked turkey.  Including little drumsticks made out of ice cream cones with little white fluffy tops!!!  so cute.  Anyway, we were at the baskin robbins on wednesday night getting some pre-thanksgiving ice cream.  And a couple came in to look at it, apparently people were supposed to pre-order and pick up by tuesday.  anyway, they didn't like the flavor ( who doesn't like chocolate chip ice cream?) so they left. but big guy caught a glimpse of it and screamed in such a concerned, sweet voice, "ooooh, baby duck!"  It was so cute.  he was so concerned for the well-being of the baby duck, and kept talking about it that we just had to buy it.  When I tried to get the tirade on tape, he refused to say it, but when we brought it out for the car ride up and to the table to eat, he started saying it again.  so precious!

We ended the evening at our really swanky hotel a couple of blocks away.  Big guy was his charming self, so we got an upgrade to a king sized bed on the 10th floor!  such a flirt, but this time it actually paid off!  And we all enjoyed our beautiful view of the Hudson river and watching cars and people go by on the street below.  Overall, an awesome thanksgiving!

phone answer

last night I had to be at work late, so hubs and big guy were on their own for the afternoon, dinner, and early evening. I called/texted periodically through the night.  At one point I called and I heard big guy talking.  here is how it went:
Me- Hi buddy, It's mommy!
Big Guy (BG)- Hi mommy!
Me- how are you?
BG- train movie!
Me- oh, you are watching your train movie?
BG- uh-huh
Hubs- Big guy! what are you doing on the phone?  Hello, hello?
Me- hey hunny!
Hubs- what are you doing on the phone?
Me- I just called, why?
Hubs- I think big guy answered the phone and just was talking to you.
Me- Oh!  You didn't answer and just hand it to him?
Hubs-No.
Me- our son is a genius!

light on train

the polar express movie has taken on epic status in terms of movies.  we watch it at least three times a day.  big guy is obsessed!  but his talking has definitely taken off!  and the cuteness is at a maximum when he watches it.  

the other day, big guy and hubs were watching the movie at the part where the light on the train needs replacing.  big guy sits up and yells, "light!"big guy runs upstairs to the bathroom.  hubs runs after him asking him where he was going.  big guy grabs the flashlight (why it was in the bathroom is still not certain) and runs back down to the couch.  Hubs asks him what is going on.  big guy proceeds to tell him, "light, light.  train needs light."  then big guy turned on the flashlight for the train.  Too precious!

pre-thanksgiving

every year Grandpop J, Grandma C, and Uncle I have a pre-thanksgiving feast on the sunday before thanksgiving.  I was in charge of the mashed potatoes.  I made them while big guy and hubs were passed out during naptime.  Since sunday was the day after the NJ visit, we mostly relaxed, though we did go to the best buy to buy the polar express.  We got to their house exactly at 3pm.  just in time for dinner.

big guy and I mostly played by ourselves with the train tracks.  big guy ate a drinkable yogurt and then some almonds.  the kid loves almonds!  Following playing, big guy found C and was dragging her all around the house.  which she of course loved.  We finally ventured to join uncle I with the other little boys in the family as they played Wii downstairs.  Chocolate milk and dessert rounded out our evening before heading home to hubs!

family time

yesterday we went to NJ for visit Uncle E, Aunt K, and cousin C.  C has become a soccer star recently, so we went to his championship game.  luckily, the game was at this huge park near their house that has five playgrounds, duck pond, three court san volleyball pit, and lots of open space to run!  which are all things that big guy loves to do!

we headed to the game.  and after about five solid minutes of a full on freak out- sobbing, kicking, trying to rip his coat off, we finally made it to the playground.  we ran around on the playground until we saw the huge sand pit!  big guy ripped his shoes off and had a blast.  hubs finally got a glimpse of how much big guy loves the beach.  he ran dug holes, filled holes with leaves, then jumped in the holes!  it was hilarious.  finally, he had gotten out whatever running energy he needed to and we walked over to the field.  big guy really enjoyed watching soccer.  nothing is better than a soccer ball and lots of running.

We headed back to their house and had a quick lunch.  then we played with C's geotrax train tracks  and trains.  like for the next seven hours!  it was awesome.  And instead of taking a nap, we watched "the Polar Express" an xmas movie with a giant train as one of the main components of the movie.  it was essentially big guy's dream movie!  train action for over an hour.  Big guy's eyes were wide open the whole time.  and when it was over, he demanded another viewing!  so precious.

big guy refused to eat dinner, but he did have some pretzels following a bath and getting into PJ's.  big guy was very sad to leave.  and after a sad bye bye to the trains, he passed out mere moments later in the car.  And had a great night's sleep once I plopped him in bed.  Yay for family time!

voting

Election day came.  I am proud to say that big guy has been to every election since he's been born.  we went with hubs this time, who was actually voting- hey, it was a presidential one!  Funnily enough, the old people at the polls remember big guy and remarked about how big he is.  Just like they do every six months when we come to vote.  big guy thinks it is so fabulous to be in the booth with me.  And now that he's big enough, I let him hit the CAST button when I'm all done!  so, our civic duty is done!
Oh, and our guy's all won :)

Sentence

Big guy's talking has really been impressive lately.  New words and new combinations of words are just coming every day.  the other day, following daylight savings time, we were up early.  like 5am early, b/c big felt like it was 6am.  which technically it was.  but it was still painfully early. hubs was passed out all grumpily on the couch.  I was trying to not grumpily pass out on the couch.  I asked big guy if he wanted to read a book.  "uh-huh."  OK, I said, "Luke choose a book."  He looked at me and said, "Mommy choose book."  WOW!!!  a real sentence!  even hubs sat up and remarked about it!  Now, if we could just get these full sentences all the time!!!

freckle

I noticed the other day that big guy had gotten his first freckle.  It's on his right thumb, the part facing his hand.  Just an adorable little brown freckle.  I just love it.  and what a fantastic place to have one! I wonder if he will develop any more.  I mean, what is the timeline for the development of freckles?  I wonder if there is one...

Halloween 2.0

We got another chance at halloween on saturday.  my dear friend J lives a few towns over and they were really hit hard by the hurricane, so their halloween was postponed.  every year J throws a pizza party to begin halloween night for all the kids in the neighborhood and their parents.  we are always invited, but it's usually weird timing.  However, since it was saturday and hubs had a paper to write, we went over.  boy, I'm glad we did!!

J's kids love big guy!  in fact, when she told them we were coming, they were screaming and jumping up and down.  they were very excited to see big guy.  And big guy loves their house.  Not only are the kids there, but they have a really big dog and a chinchilla, that big guy is obsessed with.  every time we go, he runs over and talks all about his water bottle, food dish, his potty, where he sleeps.  then we get to feed it hay and an almond.  obsessed.

so, we played with the chinchilla and the kids before the onslaught of about 20 kids ranging in age from 2-13 and their parents all showed up.  pizza, drinks, veggies all ensued in mass quantities.  big guy had a slice of white, some chips, and apple juice.  we also got to feed the dog a giant bone.  big guy kept telling the dog to be quiet, "shhhh" with his finger to his lips when the dog would bark. so cute.

following dinner, everyone got suited/bundled up and all 20 kids and a few parents started the walk around the neighborhood.  J lives in a really nice neighborhood, but the houses are spaced pretty far apart, so it's a lot of walking.  but big guy LOVED every second of it!  he loved being with all the kids.  he loved getting the candy.  he did a wonderful job of saying thank you after taking a handful.  our bucket really filled up fast.  in fact, if we were a little behind the other kids, big guy would tell us to go faster and catch up b/c he wanted to be with the crowd.

after an hour of trick or treating we ended up at the last house where there were desserts, drinks, and games.  we ate and laughed and talked all about the various candy we had gotten.  then J, big guy and I left to go back to J's house to take a bath and get changed for bed.  big guy was so sad to leave.  he kept making the hand motion for "come on," as in he wanted everyone to come back to take a bath.  He kept saying, "back, back."  so precious.  but he was fine once we got to the bathtub and he realized the dog was allowed to sit in the bathroom with him.  we got into our pj's and headed home.  About ten minutes from home, he passed out and I plopped him in bed.  then hubs and I ate all of the good candy!

halloween

I love halloween.  It starts the fun of the holiday season.  This year I decided that big guy should get to pick out his costume, assuming he had an opinion about it.  we went over to the halloween adventure store near us.  I was really nervous when we walked in because it is really scary.  like werewolves eating babies, vampires ripping people's limbs off, witches boiling monsters.  scary.  big guy didn't think it was scary at all, he thought it was pretty interesting.  now, picking out a costume was another matter.  big guy chose to be buzz lightyear from Toy Story.  After I bought it I texted hubs and said, "likelihood he will actually wear it- 30 %"

In preparation for halloween, everyday I would ask big guy if he wanted to try on his outfit.  I always got a serious face and then a "no."  Hmmm, my percentage was falling fast!  Halloween night was rough.  It was right after four days with mom and dad due to the hurricane.  so, it was everyone's first day back to the real world.  big guy did not handle it well.  when I picked him up, he was grouchy and irritable.  uh-oh!

we ended up eating dinner with curious george on (which I do not allow tv during dinner unless you are really grouchy or as a reward).  after dinner, I again tried to coax big guy into his costume.  no luck. hubs came home and we tried to make it seem really fun.  yay!  Outside time after dinner!  It's dark! There's candy!  no go.  when I tried to put the cat ears on he wore last year, thrown to the floor.  when I put them on, thrown to the floor!  We ambled outside, but when we got to the first house, he saw other trick or treaters and freaked!  crying, screaming, he ran home.

We had our candy bowl out.  big guy really enjoyed putting the candy from our bowl into his bucket.  so, I let him do this a few times, then hid our bowl in the closet when he wasn't looking.  He came back over and says to me, "Where did candy go?"  I told him the neighbor's had it!  "In fact, we have to go outside and knock on their doors to go get the candy back!" I said.  hehe.  lying to the child.  terrible, but effective.  He agreed to go outside with me.  We did about four houses.  he wasn't too sure of the whole door knocking, but he did appreciate the candy!

we were doing good until we saw a whole crowd of kids going up our driveway and big guy wanted to be at home.  so, we came in.  turned curious george back on and munched on some hershey kisses!

global warming

Anyone who believes global warming isn't happening must have not been paying attention for the past 2 and 1/2 years.  Since big guy was born in february of 2010, he has slept through two hurricanes and an earthquake!  And he was born in between two enormous blizzards!

The most recent hurricane wasn't as bad as Irene, which our basement flooded horribly during.  This one we took lots of precautions to avoid excess water.  blocking windows, a little bit of grading.  big guy and I also helped our neighbor rake up leaves from our street all the way down to the drain.  big guy was very helpful directing me which piles of leaves to pick up!

We did get lots of rain and it was windy, but we were lucky.  we didn't lose power.  Mostly we ate a ton of food (we had bought a ton of non-perishables in preparation) and watched the weather channel.  hubs and I both had off on monday and tuesday, so the three of us really enjoyed the extra relaxation time together.  there was a lot of book reading, train playing, and general fun to pass the time stuck inside.  A good time was had by all!

resurrection

hubs is getting this shout-out post for fixing my vacuum.  I bought the "shark" vacuum a few months ago, much to the chagrin of hubs who wanted a dyson.  but dyson's are expensive!  anyway, I think it works really way.  big guy loves vacuuming, he helps pick up and then will hop in front of it before sprinting away.  he also likes to use the accessories to pretend to vacuum the house!  so adorable.  anyway, big guy and I love the vacuum, except the other day, it stopped having suction.  I was so stressed!  hubs finally (after I asked like ten times) took it apart and found that their were clogged tubes.  the kittens like to sharpen their claws on the rugs, which makes a lot of carpeting I vacuum up, which was blocking up my tubes!  After it was fixed it was totally fabulous again!  so, thank you hubs for fixing my vacuum!

school update

well, it's been a while since I've posted.  a lot of stuff has been going on with big guy.  Most notably is that we have switched schools!  I know.  shocking.  I'm still scared about it and he's been at the new school for about a week.  but I can already see that big guy is in a better place.  when I pick him up from school he smiles, isn't ready to leave, and chatters to me about what he's done during the day.

I really like one of his new teachers (she's the main teacher) ms. T.  and she really likes big guy.  She is very cuddly with him and doesn't mind that he follows her all day and is her little helper.  The other two teachers are kind of throw aways, but as long as big guy is doing well, then that's all that matters.

Big guy of course got his first cold!  but it wasn't even that bad of one.  Inevitably, he then immediately started wheezing.  so, we've been nebulizing.  And because the albuterol isn't really cutting it by itself, we've immediately had to start using the inhaled steroid.  which is fine with me because it really works well!  and the overall days that we have to use the nebulizer is very short.

I'm getting used to the new school and how it runs differently than the old school.  So, we will see about the future.  But I am slowly feeling better about the decision.

easel

Another totally fabulous part of gmom dino's visit is that she and big guy bonded over their mutual love of the art easel she got him for xmas.  He would do a few strokes, and then dino would finish the picture.  drawing mostly trains, which were very good.  reminding me why I always got good grades on projects as a kid, since dino did the art work.  she is very crafty.  but the best part was seeing them work together.  having conversations about what they were drawing, what colors to use.  He would constantly want to sit on her lap and I'm sure she loved it as much as he did.  below are some classic shots of them working:

working together with crayon

I love how big guy is so shocked about a train appearing in this picture. 

working in chalk.

Deep in discussion about their next piece!

Gmom Dino visits!

gmom dino came to visit last weekend and we loved every second of it.  I'm proud to say that big guy remembered her, called her gramma, and gave her all the love he could to make her feel extra guilty about moving so far away.  Kidding, but he was very snuggly and loving the whole weekend.  Proving that he really missed her as much as we did.

Friday was a chill afternoon, followed by a disastrous dinner at panera, in which big guy refused to eat or sit still.  But this all made sense (if you read "trip to ER" post) since he was really not feeling well.  But following our trip to the ER, we spent all of saturday just relaxing and getting back to normal.  big guy refused to nap, of course, but I did get one in the afternoon.  Only to be awoken by hubs and big guy to change a poopy diaper.  Gmom Dino had gone to lunch with a friend, but was back when I got up.  so, we took big guy in the stroller for a walk.  We were going to go to the duck pond, but got sidetracked by the bookstore (where we got a new curious george book) and the toy store (where we got a little fire truck with extendable ladder).  because in our house, when you are sick you get something to make you feel better.

We made it back home around 4:30 and were preparing to order some food for pick up when big guy climbed into dino's lap.  He lifted up his shirt for some belly rubs, which dino obligingly gave and he was out within minutes.  We spent the evening with a kid asleep on our laps (eating dinner, watching food network, and talking.)  I have to say, it was heavenly!  I nebbed the little man around 8:00, then we took him upstairs around 9:00 and all passed out until 6am!  we definitely all needed the sleep.

Sunday we were in better spirits, so we headed down to Linvilla orchards to get some pumpkins.  We stayed for about two hours.  The worst part of the trip was getting trapped in a maze.  It was extra pathetic because it was in the kid's playground zone and we were almost in tears about how to get out. but the best part was all the fun we had on the train and picking pumpkins!  big guy loves pumpkins, he says, "puh-kins" And he really only likes the little pumpkins, gourds, and acorn squashes.  Which he was thrilled to be able to call them acorns, since we pick them up on our walks.

After coming home and napping, we carved pumpkins outside before dinner.  big guy and I made a traditional face.  His managerial stylings came in handy when scooping out the insides.  gmom dino made a thomas the train.  which looks totally fabulous.  and is recognizable enough that he yells "choo choo" when we visit it every afternoon.  Overall, a great weekend!!  we miss you :)

shoe adventures

my quest for a new pair of sneakers for the fall has taken us to two different shoe stores.  Three trips have been made, the successful one was today.  The first two trips were to the Olly shoes, which is where I got the summer shoes.  they were ok, but he quickly outgrew them.  And the staff wasn't so helpful.  At the end of summer, we went back to Olly.  full on meltdown- I kid you not, he wouldn't even go into the store.  The second trip was two weeks ago.  Not only was there a full on meltdown, but the woman who was helping us, I swear was high on something.  She seemed utterly baffled by helping us find shoes.  Like we were somehow supposed to know more about the shoes than she was! At one point, big guy knocked a giant (like the size of me) stuffed bear off of a shelf.  She came over and said in this weird dreamy/high voice, "OH, what happened to the bear?"  Um, it's sitting on the floor in front of you.  And even more confusingly, she started asking us what happened to it and then was even more confused about how she would get it back on the shelf!  Hubs put it back up and then cue the meltdown!

I think we are done with the Olly shoes, at least for a while.  Today we went back to the Stride Rite, which is where we've gotten big guy's other sneakers.  I think we were only spared a meltdown because they have a gumball machine and that was the deal we made with big guy.  Try on shoes=gumball.  which of course I ate because he's too little to have gum.  anyway, we got a really cool pair of yellow sneakers.  Big guy definitely has to get back into the habit of wearing real sneakers, since he's been in croc loafers all summer!  And he of course hates them and wants to rip them off whenever we put them on.  Like he is being oppressed by them or something.  but seeing how he feels oppressed by all footwear (socks included), we just have to keep putting them on and battling.  eventually he'll be fine. 

lancaster trip

Finally!  Our trip to lancaster was AWESOME!!  following our arrival on friday, we started saturday bright and early with a stroll around the duck pond.  we played on the jungle gym for a while and then hopped on rocks across the little stream.  We ate a delicious smorgasboard breakfast and headed out to the apple orchard!  we spent three hours at the orchard!!  big guy ate five apples during this time. But it was entirely fun.  Only one minor meltdown b/c big guy had to poop, but he eventually did it in the middle of the pumpkin patch.  But he immediately felt better and then continued on his way.  We picked 58 lbs of jonagold apples (which are my #2 favorite apple next to Honeycrisp).

Following bringing the apples back to pay for them, big guy ran around the hay bale maze.  Then we were feeling inspired so we hopped on the hayride to the pumpkin patch.  And picked a giant pumpkin!  We had already bought two smaller pumpkins, but this was a good one for carving.  then we took the hayride back.  Following this, we stopped by a local dairy farm to get fresh (pastuerized) yogurt and chocolate milk.  Oh, and hubs got licked by a two day old cow.  so cute!  Naps followed for all three of us.  Upon waking, we swam for an hour in the indoor pools- big guy loved it!  Might need to join a Y this winter.  We would had stayed longer but we needed to change and eat some dinner. 

Since it was Grandma J's 60th birthday, she got to pick.  But her first two choices were a two hour wait.  so, we ended up at her third choice, but it might very well be the greatest place on earth.  it's a hotel that is made to look like a cruise ship!  it was awesome.  since we didn't have a reservation, we had to eat in the bar area, but the whole place is so fabulously decorated, it was great.  and the food was delicious!!  An old juke box in the corner kept big guy entertained as we munched on mac and cheese (fancy, homemade stuff) and chicken quesadillas.  Following dinner we went to the gift shop and got a brochure, holy hell, I want to live there.  I think we might stay there the next time, as our favorite place is closing down :(

 on the train

 picking pumpkins

 hay ride

Sunday began early again with a walk around the duck pond.  we decided to try a different restaurant for breakfast at the adjoining hotel, but it was an epic fail.  for some reason breakfast with grandma J always end badly.  big guy refused to eat, ran away screaming.  I was so frustrated, I actually yelled at hubs in public. Not the first time, but it was bad.  Only a walk in the frosty air cooled me off.  We decided to go to the strasburg rail station and hoped we could get tickets.  We were in luck! we were able to score first class tickets, but had to wait in the cold rain for about 20 mins to get a good seat.  However, once on the train, the rain let up and we had a fantastic time.  big guy loved it, as usual.  it really is a magical experience for him.  Since the weather was good when the ride was over, we rode the cagney train (little steam engine) and the hand crank train twice.  I picked up a new thomas the train bathmat, but all big guy wanted from the gift shop was a mini john deer tractor.  Go figure!

Enough already

this week was stressful and busy, both at home and at work.  we are all tired this weekend.  In fact, as I relay yesterday's horror, big guy is asleep on the couch next to me.  Yesterday, I got a call from big guy's school that someone had bit his face.  yep.  you heard me.  he was sitting next to his a classmate and he bent over to see his puzzle and the kid bit him on the cheek.  I was pretty upset, because he seems to get bit all the time and it had broken the skin.  I called the dr's office and was awaiting a call back when his teacher from last year who I'm still close with texted me to see if they had called me.

I said they had and then casually asked how she was doing, since I've been talking to no one recently. When she said she actually wanted to talk to me, because things hadn't been going well, I thought she was talking about herself.  but I never expected what she texted me next.  She let me know that for the past few weeks, big guy hasn't been in his room all day.  like, they've been moving him around to other people's rooms.  yeah and not telling me.  I was so upset.  I'm texting her furiously, like what the hell!  one day he was moved to her room - with the one year olds!!!  but mostly he gets moved to the room next door, with the 3 and 4 year olds. 

so, I asked her why?  She spoke to the teacher next door and she said his teacher looks frustrated with him!  It all made sense.  I get the sense that his teacher doesn't get him.  hard to explain I guess, except that it's a gut feeling.  like how she's always so upset about his talking or not wanting to use the potty.  Um, things that he has to do at his own pace and that I have very little control over!  anyway, I was pissed and then started to relay this to my dearest friend (who I conveniently work with) and start sobbing.  I called hubs, who was of course pissed beyond belief, but was soothed by walking through the walmart for a half hour. 

By the time I went to get big guy, I had already called two of the three schools we were on the waiting list for.  One we are next in line for and the other was going to call me back. I walked in, got my baby and asked for a parent/teacher conference with his teacher.  really, I can't rat out my teacher friend, but clearly this isn't working!  To blow off some more steam, big guy and I went to the duck pond and while walking got a call from the other school who said he could start next week!!  joy and elation.  I've had enough of this school.  Time to try something new.  Of course I"m stressed about a new place, but one of his friends who we swam with this summer goes there, in fact they'd be in the same room, so I'm feeling better about that.  And his mom is awesome and loves it there.  So, just trying to stay calm and get this paperwork filled out.  We are coming by monday to drop it off and check out the room. I'm excited and cautiously optimistic!

mommy

big guy has changed all of a sudden from calling me mama to calling me mommy.  and I love it!!  I guess b/c I still call gmom dino mommy, as in the same way when she still speaks about her mother.  and he never says mommy once, it's always a string of a few mommies.  so fantastic!

trip to the ER

Friday morning at 3am, big guy woke up coughing.  Hmmm, he was getting sick.  Great... just in time for gmom Dino to visit.  By 4:30pm that afternoon there was snot and wheezing.  Upon another nebulizer treatment at 7:30 and bed, I was sure we were in for a rough night.  Big guy got up around 11pm coughing.  another round of neb and his diaphragm was bouncing up and down like a basketball.  I had him lying down next to me in bed and I could feel the bed moving.  Not good.  He passed out for a solid two hours, but them was up wheezing.  another neb around 2:45 and he was struggling big time.  We called the after hours nurse and she said to take him to the ER if his normal rescue medicine wasn't working.

So, at 4am we quietly went downstairs to where gmom dino was sleeping at let her know we were going to the ER.  If we were back in two hours, everything was fine.  If we were gone for six hours, it was really serious.  We got there and it was us and all the other parents with toddlers who were sick.  A very nice dr and some very nice nurses took care of us.  after waking up everyone in the ER when we were shoving medicine down big guy's throat- I kid you not, we have four nurses holding him down- he then puked it up.  And instead hubs made the executive decision to give him a shot of steroids.  ah, it might have woke him up, but we got home exactly at the two hour mark.

Big guy was awake all day continuing his neb of albuterol and steroids.  And he was munching happily on snacks and watching a good amount of tv.  Then around 5pm we were getting ready for dinner and big guy laid on gmom dino's lap and she started rubbing his belly.  within one minute, he was out!!  he slept on us until about 9pm and I nebbed him again and brought him to bed with us.  big guy was OUT until 6am the next morning, as were we!!  very impressive and he was in excellent spirits.  I'm happy to report that he is doing great!!!

daily constitutional

big guy has been a tough cookie about pooping for almost a whole year.  and subsequently I have become crazy person about getting him to poop.  My newest weapon that works about 70% of the time is our daily constitutional.  In which we don't walk with the stroller, but instead big guy is walking holding my hand.  Negatives include less exercise for me b/c we go for less distance and less cup holders.  but on the positive, I can say to big guy, we aren't going home until you have pooped. which seems really cruel, but he makes it so dramatic!  It allows us to explore the neighborhood, pick up leaves, crunch curly leaves, and talk about everything that we see outside.  I really enjoy it and when he does eventually poop- it's a bonus to our nice time outside!  And since big guy already does a lot of old man stuff (love of raisins and granola) I figure this is right in line!

leaving for lancaster

friday afternoon, we were heading up to lancaster to visit grandma J- she was turning 60 on saturday! We were staying at our favorite hotel, Willow Valley Inn, which is sadly going out of business.  Anyway, we were supposed to leave right at 3pm, so we could get there early evening.  I left work early and got home around 1:30.  since I had some time, I tidied up.  Nothing better than coming home to a clean home.  I unloaded then reloaded the dishwasher.  wiped down the counters.  cleaned off the kitchen table.  emptied the trash.  cleaned the downstairs sink.  ran a load of laundry.  finished packing. and loaded the car.  whew!  I am very productive when I have the house to myself.  hubs left work a bit late, so my plan of grabbing big guy and just driving from school was destroyed.  Instead I picked up big guy and got his diaper changed. shoved a granola bar in his hand and then by this point hubs was home and we hit the road.  We didn't hit any traffic, but managed to get to lancaster by 5.  We ate a quick dinner at subway and then hit up the dollar store for some run around/leg stretching time and to buy some junk.  and surprise bday balloons for grandma J.  We hung out with grandma J and aunt B for about an hour and then headed to the hotel.  but saturday is when the vacation really began!!

icy pops

You know those flavored ice pops that you buy and they are in clear tubes and then you freeze them?  Big guy has been watching hubs eat them all summer.  But whenever we offered them, he would shake his head no.  I knew at some point he would be intrigued enough to try it- that's what happened with ice cream.  Well, it has happened. 

Over the past week, big guy has been grabbing them for hubs.  He loves going to the freezer, opening the door, and choosing which ones hubs will eat.  Big guy opens the drawer with the scissors, we then cut the tops off, and he brings them to hubs.  As usual hubs offered him one and this weekend, big guy accepted.  He started off only taking a few bites, but is now officially obsessed!  He loves the green and blue flavors the most.  And he can't eat just one, instead it's like a three ice pop event.  Which includes a lot of drool and melted ice pop all over the place.  He hasn't quite gotten a hang of pushing the pop up.  But we are working on it. 

art easel

For big guy's second birthday, Gmom Dino purchased him this awesome Melissa & Doug art easel with the really cool accessory pack (containing paints, paint cups, paint brushes, dry erase marker, eraser, and paper roll.)  this easel is the bomb!  it was easy to put together, super cute, two different trays, chalkboard, dry erase board, and then the paper roll that you can clip (yes, clips included) the paper down.  Anyway, big guy's birthday was in February.  Hubs built it this past wednesday. 

Big guy is obsessed with it.  So fun to watch him use his chalk.  We haven't busted out the paints yet, but I did roll down the paper and we've been coloring with crayons.  He thinks it's so fun to be able to just draw whenever he's feeling the urge.  Such an artist!  I'm excited for paints, but need to wait until we are in need of a good activity and that big guy is in a good mood.  it could go horribly wrong, like I end up wasting a bunch of paint.  But I'm excited that he likes it so much.  We clearly made a good choice for his birthday presents.  I'm getting a little nervous b/c the holidays are coming up and now I have to think of more big ticket items for three grandmom's to buy.  Ahhhhh!

yard sale!

on saturday there was a block yard sale a couple of streets away from us.  Since hubs had some school work to do, big guy and I went scouting for more crap to fill our house with than we actually need.  Big guy and I started at the top of the block (I got attacked by mosquitos) and worked our way down.  We weren't too successful.  Everything was a big too big for our home.  I probably would have gone buck wild without big guy, but he was tired and in a foul mood.  So, we were mostly out for the walking.  The last house we hit was a mom and her two kids.  So, we managed to score some good kids items which are listed below:
1- 2 train books (flap book about counting and thomas book that all buttons still made noise)
2- book about animals that move where the pictures look like they are moving.  very cool.
3- a fake snake
4- a bag of assorted plastic dinosaurs
5- a bag of assorted plastic zoo animals
6- a bunch of messenger bags (someone hubs works with send totes and other free bags to India for school children to use as book bags- I think this woman should start a non-profit!)
7- 2 children's CD's

Grand total- $2.50!  Though I'm pretty sure this mom was going to throw out whatever wasn't sold.

Anyway, everything turned out to be in good condition once I wiped it down or washed with soap and water. The only great disappointment was one of the CD's, which was titled "Train Songs."  Perfect fit, no?  But upon popping into the car, it was one of the creepiest things I've ever heard.  Like some pervy-weirdo was singing and talking to us about making train noises.  Creepy.  I wanted to throw it out the window and run over it with the car. And then back up again for good measure.  And I am adamantly against littering.  Really, I just don't understand people who litter.  This CD was so creepy though, it deserved to be litter!  Overall, a successful adventure and it definitely tired big guy and I out. We took a two hour nap in the afternoon!

more

I think "more" might be big guy's favorite word.  At least he says it more than any other word.  I think the best way he says it is when he is requesting more food.  If it's a handheld food, he'll say "more" and point to his hand.  But if it's something he's actively eating, he'll say "more" and point to his mouth.  How can I resist that?

eat

the past few days big guy has been tanking the afternoon snacks.  today we had pretzels, marsh mellows, and puffs.  yesterday was puffs, raisins, and dried pears.  and he wants to eat at the table all officially.  of course when it comes to dinner he doesn't want to sit or eat.  I clearly can't win.  Yesterday we were eating and deciding what to do after snack time, vacillating between going to the duckpond or the bookstore.  We had decided on walking to the duckpond.  I said, "Eat the rest of your snack and we can go."  To which big guy replied, "EAT!"  And when we had dinner, shoved food at me and said, "EAT!"  Wonderfully, he is still saying it today.  And he has a little song, "eat, eat, eat, eat, eat." Talking is the best!

mama dada

Very funnily, big guy has called hubs mama for many months.  so much so that hubs took great offense and blamed me (of course) for not calling hubs dada enough.  starting this summer, I made a concerted effort to call hubs dada.  almost obsessively!  And sure enough two weeks ago, big guy looks at me and says "where's dada?"  finally!  all my hard work paid off.  Now that big guy is talking so much, saying dada was right around the corner.  admittedly, I thought it was hilarious that he called him mama.  I mean, I'm mama!  it's a term of endearment!!! 

help

One of the favorite words that big guy has recently learned is "help."  Only he says it really nasally and the "p" is almost silent.  it's hysterical.  I'm so glad I taught it to him because he says help constantly.  most often when he's playing with something and it's not working out for him.  But sometimes he really does need help.  The cool thing for me is seeing him make connections though, which I've noticed with the word help.

Ever since big guy has started noticing fire truck sirens- so since he's been a baby, I've explained that when we hear sirens that it means someone is getting help.  I say this automatically when we hear sirens or see car/trucks with sirens.  So, here's the connection.  at night we read "curious george takes a train."  which really should be titled curious george goes to the train station- since there is no train riding.  I digress.  anyway, big guy loves this book.  And in this book george helps a little boy from falling onto the tracks.  And after reading it for the umpteenth time, I start the line about george helping and big guy starts making "woo-ooh-woo-ooh" noises like a siren.  And I look over and he says, help!  That's it, he made the connection with different kinds of help.  genius child!

And then he slept

I'm getting my little man back. He's feeling so much better. Besides a wicked cough when he wakes up from sleeping, he's really low on snot production and is eating again. Saturday was the big turn around day. He played all morning with us outside in his mud hole. Which we've nicknamed him the overbearing foreman of. Since big guy makes us dig in this mud hole. Mostly hubs has to do the back breaking hunched over mud dispersing tasks. Big guy screams at us in a funny way tout more water in, "more water." and then drags the hose over. It's hysterical. He's also not big into letting us have breaks. We really need a union for the amount of time hubs and I spend at this mud hole. Which we've nicknamed the glory hole.

Anyway, after hours there on Saturday morning. Big guy and I went over to the local toy store to buy a present for one of his friends who was having a bday party in the afternoon. The store has great selection and an awesome train table. Everything, we go, big guy is reinvigorated in his love for trains. We stayed for about a half hour before heading to go get hubs some lunch. Then upon returning home, we were back at the glory hole for another hour. After gulping down some yogurt by the train table, big guy and I went up for a nap. It was glorious- two hours!

We woke up and big guy was grouchy! But after a bit of boob tube while I wrapped the presents, we walked over to our friends house for the party. It was really fun! Big guy had a great time! He played with all the awesome toys inside and outside. And much to our joy, ate of his own free will. Mostly potato chips, cookies and some cheese quesadilla. He did awesome. Two hours later we walked home somehow with more stuff then we came with! We watched some puss and boots while munching on Hershey kisses!

Then it was bed time and I plopped the big man in and he slept until six thirty is morning! Tis is the first time he has done that since aunt M came to visit in July. It was glorious and probably explained why we had a great day today!

School and snot

The first week of school went well. Big guy was deciding whether or not he was going to like this new year. But over labor day break, the school rearranged all the classes, so upon return, big guy was moved to a bigger class with more running room and new toys. Score!  Second week was only four days, but of course big guy got sick. I just knew he would get it. We were standing next to some girl the first day back who,was all snotty and she sneezed. I looked and big guys teacher and was like, we will have that tomorrow. 

I was wrong, we had it by Thursday afternoon, but you get the point. He was snotty. Then like a good son he gave the cold to me by Saturday night. So, besides the saturday afternoon trip to the target, where big guy dumped every known snack item in our cart, we were pretty pathetic all weekend. By Sunday we had started coughing, then puking because we were coughing so much. Which led to waking up around eleven to clean up puke, loads of laundry and our good friend albuterol in the nebulizer. 

So, thinking is cant get worse. Oh oh! Apparently it could. I get a call on Tuesday at noon saying that big guy had gotten into a scuffle over a toy and the other kid pushed him. Of course they were in the one area on the playground with concrete and big guy took a sliding nosedive into the ground. He looks majorly beat up. He has a scrape on his forehead, nose, upper lip to nose region and chin. Like he was in a boxing match. So, we were really in bad spirits that night. 

However, yesterday the snot had lessened.  Today it was dramatically down. And big guy was feeling good enough to actually eat dinner, let me take him for a walk, go to the local kids bookstore, play outside with me for an hour. Ah, so nice to have my bub back. And when I just out him down for bed, he actually fell asleep while I was reading his nighttime book, "curious George takes the train." which I've never seen him do. It was both adorable and pathetic.

big boy bed

on sunday, hubs finally built big boy's bed!  super cute- white toddler bed from ikea with two cut out sheep on the headboard.  big guy was fascinated with the building process.  as well as all the little parts- screws, nuts, bolts.  After building, big guy snuggled up and laid down.  a good start!  we used his crib mattress and I added one of our sheets for a blanket, as his room is on the warm side.  the first night he only did a few hours, but fell asleep well.  the second night came with knowing he was going to sleep there.  And big guy and I had gone to the bed bath and beyond to get him his own pillows.  I think this made a huge difference.  last night he fell asleep early, something about the bad night sleep the night before got to him.  but he stayed in his bed all night, waking twice to get a reassuring hug from me before returning to sleep.  I'm so impressed with him.  it's such a big boy move!!!

pre-school

Big guy has officially been in pre-school for three days.  His teacher, Ms. K is very nice, but definitely isn't huggy/kissy teachers of daycare.  In fact, she's on a mission.  When I picked big guy up on Wednesday and asked about his day... She was like, "big guy likes to run.  He really likes to run."  To which I replied, "Yes.  Have you gotten him on an open soccer field yet?  Then you can see how much he likes to run." As we walked into class, she started peppering me with questions about talking and potty training.  whoa!!!  She mentioned how he was grunting and pointing at things he wanted, but was sure that he was talking a lot when I was with him.  I explained that he definitely talks a lot with me, even more so then he does when it's he and hubs.  I just said to ask him to use his words.  She was like, "OK, I'll prompt him more."  Then she went right into potty training questions.  Which honestly, I kind of made up an answer.  I was so going to do it this summer, but that didn't work out.  I mean, big guy will sit on the potty and he thinks it's fun, but he's not interested in doing anything on it.  But when he gets into the tub, he will pee if you tell him to.  and he knows what pee and poop are.  He's very interested in seeing his poop.  We have deep discussions about poop in the diaper.  Anyway, I told her this and she was like, "OK, I'll keep offering him the potty."  and then I thought, Oh, crap, I better start that too!!!  hehe.

let's chat

Talking has been taking off recently.  Big guy talks all the time.  And I love it!  I thought that when he learned to walk, it was really fun- arms out like frankenstein, stiff legs, falling over.  But talking is so much better.  He says new words every day.  And they can come out of nowhere.  He's just figuring things out all the time, it's so amazing watching him.  And really cool development happened this weekend where he has started to repeat back phrases that he hears, not just words.  Which of course means I now have to be careful about what I say since I curse a lot. It's bad, like truck driver bad!  But I think I can curtail it as this whole talking thing gets better and better.  Just like how big guy keeps getting better and better.

I'm an adult

this morning, big guy and I were enjoying a free day together- as we have off for labor day weekend- five day break until we both return to school.  Big guy was watching curious george while eating a bowl of cereal.  I was tidying the kitchen and hubs was frying up some bacon.  The kittens were running around like crazy.  And our old cat was looking at me desperately to let her out the screen door.  I slid the door open and bam!  it hit me- I am an adult!

Not like I haven't been an adult for a while.  But something about letting the cat out made it seem real.  really real.  And I had some perspective.  I'm an adult with an awesome life.  Job. House. Cars. 3 cats. Wonderful hubs.  Fantastic son. It was a pretty amazing moment.  Then one of the cats started climbing up the screen door and I had to yell to get down.  Back to the day to day.  But it was nice to have that moment.

first day of school

Today was big guy's first day back at school.  Hubs said drop off was awful- the guilt got to him.  Big guy apparently gave him the, "wait, aren't you staying with me like mommy did the other day," look!  And then he said, "me not bad!"  As if he was being left there as punishment.  hubs was pretty upset, but I called around 10:30 and the director was super nice and said he was doing great by the time she dropped her daughter off.  When I came to pick him up, he was still awake- but his teacher said he sat quietly during nap time and practiced taking his shoes on and off.

When I walked in, he gave me a big hug and proceeded to eat all the food in his lunch bag, though he had eaten a good lunch.  he had a great day back at school.  played outside, played with a fire truck, rode a bike, planted a lima bean- overall, a really good day.  Upon leaving, we headed to the whole foods to get some fixings for dinner.  Big guy managed to eat in the hour we were shopping- a bag of pirate's booty, bag of baby carrots, 20 pretzel chips, a fruit and yogurt bag, half a granola bar, and drink a chocolate milk drink box!!!  Then he promptly fell asleep from 4-5:30.  Upon waking he was super grouchy, but we watched puss in boots the movie and ate a yogurt.  A successful first day of school!

Kisses

big guy has been on a kissing frenzy.  So sweet.  He'll just run over to me and give me a big kiss on the lips,  Then grab my cheeks and turn my head to one side to kiss a cheek.  Just love that he is a kissy boy.  He gives the kittens kisses which include a lot of drool.  And whenever we leave somewhere, he says bye bye and then makes kissy noises with his lips to all around him.  love bug.

end of summer

tomorrow starts the school year again.  and, I'm in a foul mood and have been all weekend.  Which is of course unfair to big guy and hubs.  Snippy-ness, short fuse, it's all bad.  the truth is, I'm sad that I have to go back to the real world.  Sad that big guy doesn't get to be with me every second of the day.  I'll miss him desperately!  WE've had so much fun this summer.  And this week was really fun, as we tried to squeeze in every ounce of summer we could.

Monday we visited his new teacher at school- excuse me- pre-school!  Ack!  She seems nice.  there is a new director whose daughter will be in big guy's class- bonus!  So, I'm feeling better about his school situation.  Tuesday we went to the zoo- so fun!  We hit up the carousel, tree house, train ride, and big guy's favorite gift shop before we even stopped to see the monkey house.  We visited the birds for the first time in a while.  It was really enjoyable, just me and the little man strolling through the zoo, going at our own pace.  WEdnesday, we went into work, where big guy again was on awesome behavior.  He sat and watched all of Toy Story 3!  Impressive, and then I sobbed at the end.  Thursday we got big guy's haircut!  Such a big boy cut- he looks more and more like a little boy, which I suppose he is, but it's just so bizarre.  For goodness sakes- he'll be three years old in six months.  Following the haircut, we went to the pool and didn't nap!!!  But friday we made up for it and slept most of the day away.  So relaxing just playing and sleeping all day.  We watched the Lorax at night and continued to have fun. Saturday is mostly the same as friday.  But today we went to the Morris Arboretum, where they have a model train exhibit- which was just awesome for big guy.  He only tried to break into the train tracks twice!  And after a great nap- which took me an hour to wake him up from, we had an "end of summer" dinner out at Ruby's- where I downed an entire peanut butter cup milkshake, mmmmm.

and yea, I know I will be fine.  and big guy will be fine.  But i'm still sad that my real world isn't the time in the summer.

Taking it to the beach- day three and four

Wednesday morning started much the same way tuesday morning had- big guy was up and read to say hi to the "fishies!" Which meant saying hi to the Koi pond filled with fish!  He was obsessed with them.  In fact, I'll admit that I wielded the power of saying hi to the fishies when he was getting a little punchy.  We said hello to our fish, talked about the rocks, water, and broken tree ( it was a log really) and then went for an early morning walk on the boardwalk.  big guy loved seeing all the people on bikes and the wildness of the boardwalk while there weren't as many people around.  And the hermit crabs.  loved to say hi to them.  If he had said hermitcrab, I probably would have gotten him one.  maybe next year!

The Fishies!

We returned to have another breakfast in the kid's dining room.  The other two families from yesterday were back.  so the kids all recognized each other and ran around while eating.  very fun.  We went to our spot under the wooden pier again.  Back to running in the sand which someone had run over with a go-kart- thus making- duh!  Choo Choo tracks- which big guy kept yelling as we followed them all along the beach.  Eventually, gmom and gpop made it to the beach and we dug holes, filled them with water, and then big guy started jumping into them butt first.  hilarious!  it was so much fun and we definitely stayed longer before heading to the boardwalk to get caramel corn and then to wash off- which I think might compete for funness to the ocean.  Big guy loved using the faucets to wash off the sand.  In fact, he was such a big boy that he washed off all the sand from his legs and arms!  then lunch and nap.

Big guy making his choo choo tracks in the sand

Big guy hosing off!  It's the cutest picture I've taken of him in a while!

Upon waking, we chilled out and ate a snack.  Then we got out the stroller and walked the boardwalk to the very end to the other set of rides.  Which were definitely more rickety and scary!  but we enjoyed the carousel, train, and fire trucks.  Unfortunately, big guy also begged me to take him on a baby coaster- MISTAKE!  he kept trying to escape and I had to wrestle him into his seat.  He was so upset.  But when we got off, he was all smiles for grandma C to hold him!!

After our rides, we stopped on the boardwalk for some Italian food- which was super yummy!  big guy did awesome again- eating six huge raviolis for dinner.  Then stopped to get some pour your own frozen yogurt and toppings, which big guy held and ate while we strolled in the stroller back to our room.

We woke up on our last day and walked the boardwalk before having breakfast with the family.  We decided to skip the beach b/c we were leaving.  But the pool proved to be challenging.  It was cloudy and breezy.  which no one enjoyed except for big guy, who doesn't care about weather, as long as he gets to swim!  WE decided to walk the boardwalk to find hubs some caramel corn, fudge, and a junky ocean city hat.  All of which we accomplished before saying goodbye to the fishies and drove home.  where big guy promptly passed out in the car!!  An awesome vacation and I think I've convinced hubs to go with us next year, hopefully for a week!

Taking it to the beach- day one and two

At the end of july, big guy and I packed up, ditched hubs, and went down the shore.  Grandma C and
Grandpa J invited us down from monday to thursday to a really nice hotel- Port O Call in Ocean City.  Which was a really nice hotel and we had a great time!  really, it was probably the best four days of the summer.  Big guy was on excellent behavior and his talking took a definite leap while we were there.  We arrived early monday afternoon and after checking into our room, we went right to the beach!  it was hot and sunny and we played for a couple of hours before hitting the board walk.

big guy loved the board walk, every time we were on it. Following a dinner where big guy didn't eat very well, we watched the go karts for a while, which big guy thought were fascinating.  Then we hit the rides!  At first, big guy would only ride with me.  We did an awesome train ride that went around the whole area twice!  then we did a mini log flume which was super fun and we got splashed a little.  And then big guy was ready to do a ride without me!  I know!  I was proud- these rides were making me wiggly.  But also, how sad that he didn't want me to ride with him anymore.  Instead, he rode with Uncle I and when the ride was over, he threw a huge fit, so much so that we had to give more tickets so he could stay on again!

 Big guy saying cheese to me in the sand!  OMG- he was covered from head to toe with sand!

 Big guy on a ride with Uncle I- without me!!

The next day brought a fun breakfast in the "kid's dining room."  Which was cute- lots of tv's playing disney channel, video games, a lego table, and giant blown up toys.  Following breakfast, we headed straight to the beach!  We got there pretty early- around 9ish, so we scored an awesome seat under the wooden pier- which provided some much needed shade, but then quick access to sand, beach, and of course lifeguards.  Big guy was much like he was last year on the beach.  He loved it.  playing in the sand was endlessly fun.  going in the water and being knocked over by waves was even more fun. 


But big guy's biggest thrill was clearly flirting with the bikini-clad  young women on the beach.  He had his cute smile, flirtatious talking, and giving his beach toys away to them.  They were giggling and talking back.  It further solidified big guy's position as a woman magnet!  I'm clearly in trouble if he stays this cute! 

Following lunch in our room and a quick nap- big guy passed out!  no joke, one minute we were wating, the next he was out!  We headed to the pool!!!  of course!  swam for a few hours, got rained on, ate a snack, swam some more, and then got changed for dinner.  We actually drove out of ocean city to a seafood restaurant called Obidiah's.  It is a huge seafood restaurant.  big guy did awesome when we were there.  reading books, playing with trains, and eventually, because I had ordered his dinner before everyone else, he got to watch some Thomas the Train movie on my phone.  Big guy's pizza was delicious, my salad less so.  But we had fun.  

Following the rain storm- snacking on some pretzels before heading back in the pool

After dinner we ran around a local park, took a huge poop, and then went back to the hotel, where we bathed and passed out for a great night's sleep.  And to think we were only halfway done our vacation!

The Franklin Institute

Aunt M came to visit for the weekend before big guy and I headed down the shore. So, we decided to try the Franklin Institute, which as a family, we've never been to before. Big guy's first time, too! We picked up Aunt M from the train in the morning and went over, just in time for the IMAX movie, which was a showing of the history of the Railway that goes through the Canadian Rockies! that's right, an hour long movie on a giant screen about a choo choo train. Greatest. Movie. Ever. big guy did awesome. We sat near the top, where the exit is and where the IMAX isn't as nauseating. We munched on goldfish and juice. Big guy jabbered throughout the movie talking about train, tracks, trees, things that were broken (spoiler alert- it was a treacherous journey building this railway- lots of people died). Following tbe movie, we went to the kids zone where there is a real steam train that you can "ride" for about ten feet and incredibly slow. But big guy got to make the steam come out and was totally enamored with standing and looking at it. We also ventured into the Heart, but big guy wasn't too impressed. He liked the kid zone where he got to splash in some water and play with boats. And we almost saw two women get into a fist fight. Classic. A definite success, capped off by a trip to the gift shop where there is a huge train section and big guy dozing in the back seat!

Big guy and hubs in the heart.

 Big guy with Aunt M going through every train in the gift shop

Newest members of our family

And introducing the newest members of our family... Kingsley and Zelda a.k.a. the kittens! Kingsley is the gray kitten. A total giant and wild man. What is it with me producing wild, giant boys?? But he's also a total love bug, but only when he's ready. At his four month appointment, he was already 7 pounds! and totally didn't even notice a needle jabbing into his back. Unlike my little lady, Zelda who totally noticed the needle, as well as the thermometer up her butt! She's a tuxedo cat (my personal favorite) and a complete snuggle kitty. She loves being loved. And she is dainty (only 5 pounds). But she plays really well by herself except when she wants to play fetch with the milk ring. that's right, fetch. But the nice thing is that they love each other very much. they wrestle and run around like crazy people making a mess and lots of noise. And big guy LOVES them. "Kitties!" is what he yells most of the day at them. We've been practicing being gentle which sometimes big guy is totally. giving pets, playing with cat toys, slobbery kisses, and giving "treats," lots of treats. Then there are times where he picks them up by their tails or tries to smother them. So, it is a work in progress. But the kittens have brought the realization that it might be chaos, but full of love and lots of fun!!

Snapshot

Its about noon on Monday. One of my last two Mondays of summer vacation. I have scarfed down my lunch and I am casually reading at the table while trying to entice big guy to the table. And I look around and see a snapshot of this moment in my life. Big guy is on the couch doing acrobatics. Throwing pillows around, jumping and playing with a car that lights up when you hit it in the floor. The girl cat is playing wildly by herself with a baby sock she found. The boy car is of course eating a broken pretzel big guy left on the floor. My old white cat is sitting in the kitchen chair next to me. Clearly she's excited about eating lunch with me. Such a nice snapshot of my life.

It's August already!

I can't believe it- it's August! Time has been flying this summer. And the onset of august means that it's almost the end of August which means its back to work for me and back to school for big guy. Pre-school, because he's old enough now to be in Pre-school. Crazy! Anyway, we've been busy. And while I wait for hubs to fulfill my request to put the pictures from my phone onto the computer so that I can thoroughly show what we've been up to- I'll give a brief overview. We got two new members of the family- don't get too excited- they are kittens. We went down the shore and had a blast! we started our music class. We bought big guy a big guy bed( still to be built... Notice a trend with hubs). Hubs finished his second masters. We had a disastrous first couple/kid date at a local diner. We've visited two local zoos. We've frequented every park around us. We've been swimming at the pool a lot. Big guy and I have been to work and it's actually been a pleasant experience. So, as you can see, we have a lot of catching up to do. Oh, and did I mention the child said his first sentence? Promises to catch up. :)

The queen

big guy has this habit of saying hi and bye to everyone and everything, with a big wave and a smile. it's hilarious- just like the queen! In fact, that's what we've nicknamed him when he starts his hellos and goodbyes.

The return of the Olympics

I say the return of the Olympics because big guy was born during the winter Olympics. Though this Olympics is much better namely because I don't have a newborn and am awake at appropriate times! Anyway, as we've been watching with big guy he definitely has some favorites! Equestrian events have brought about a lot of talk about farm animals. And soccer is of course a huge draw- mostly because we watch it a lot during the year. And we enjoy kicking. And playing with balls in every size and shape. By far our favorite event has been synchronized diving! surprising, I know. We recently bought a new papasan cushion, but we've put it on the floor for fun. big guy will watch diving and then jump off the couch. hubs and I give a score and then clap after each dive. most dives consist of falling face first into the cushion, but big guy thinks it is hilarious and fun, so who am I to stop the fun?

baby pool

yesterday, after big guy decided he was NOT taking a afternoon nap, we headed to the pool a bit early. on our way there, big guy was drifting to sleep, so I was tickling him and singing loudly in a ploy to keep him awake. so mean, but I wasn't going to let him sleep in the car at 3 in the afternoon and ruin our schedule more than it already was ruined. cruel, aren't I? anyway, we got to the pool, and it was nice and hot/sunny. big guy was awesome! he was swimming, splashing, talking. we found a dump truck that he filled with leaves- leaf being one of his new words- and drove them around the pool. so sweet when it would tip over, he would scramble to rescue them! after about an hour, big guy started talking about how dirty the pool was- lots of leaves and dirt due to a bad storm we had the night before. I looked at one of the other moms and said, better dirt than poop. then I checked big guy's diaper, as he had been pretty poop-y recently- due to an excess consumption of carmel corn from down the shore (more on that later!) I checked, oh yeah- BIG poop! I grabbed big guy and plopped him on the towel- poop exploded everywhere, which means I also threw out the towel. I wiped him down with about thirty wipes. it got on his swim trunks, swimmy shirt, and I didn't have extra. I looked at big guy and asked if it was ok to just go get a soft pretzel instead of swimming, and I got a positive head nod with an "uh-huh!"So, we ended the trip very nicely and didn't shut down the baby pool! phew!

The poop pendulum

I feel like we are on the poop pendulum for the past few weeks. Aunt M came to visit for July 4th weekend and big guy went like eight times a day for the four days she was here. His poor little booty was so red and irritated. I felt so bad. But as soon as she left- he was refusing to go. For three days at a time. I started our miralax regimen. Half a cap every morning. But he was still loading it. And waking up at night sobbing in pain and gassy. I was finally exhausted and worried enough to call the drs office. The lovely nurse laughed at my explanation of big guy stretching his toddler wings in terms of holding the poop and then very slyly told me to give him a full cap full every other day bc he wouldn't be able to hold that. Which has been working! I need to start this whole potty training thing. I mean thre is still a month left in summer, right? I have time.

Brooc-ka

A few weeks ago, our broom broke. Truthfully, it was the broom that the woman who owned the house before us had, so it was old. An had a wooden handle that chafed. Anyway, big guy loved this broom, for obviously unknown reasons- baby's first broom? Anyway one day we were sweeping up the grass clippings and it broke. Big guy was devastated. He kept yelling, " broom broke!" in fact he still yells it when we are in the front yard. I don't have the heart to throw it out. We have since bought a new broom, of which big guy has no interest in. However, big guy is obsessed so telling us how everything is broken. Only he says, "brooc-ka!" and let me tell you that anything can be brooc-ka. Pretzels, the bush outside that hubs cut down, stickers that he crazily ripped in half, the list is endless. And I love hearing him say how things are broken. It's very serious. He'll repeat it like ten times. Which is what he does so most words and phrases he says right now. So precious. Love talking!