His New Favorite Thing

why is this SO FUN??honestly! gah! ;)

Crafty Tuesday.... um, Wednesday?

so, yeah. it has been a while, hasn't it?

and it totally isn't tuesday anymore either. but i just couldn't pass up the opportunity to share the halloween costume i made for bean. she saw a jellyfish costume in a magazine and wanted it. it was made with a sombrero.... needless to say i had no sombrero. and the only one i found at the store was $13. no thank you! so i improvised. i used cardboard, plastic grocery bags and bubble wrap and covered the whole thing in fabric. honestly, the costume came out much better than i imagined- probably better than it would have if it were made from a sombrero. and bean LOVED it.
here she is having a practice run in it. (had to make sure she could keep it on her head during the school costume parade!!)

isn't she just the sweetest little jellyfish you've ever seen???

and it worked out great in the school parade. and she got tons of compliments from parents and teachers who thought it was just SO cool! you could tell she was very proud of that costume.

and it worked great for trick or treat too! she was told by at least five people that she had the best costume of the night. and a another mom who was out with her kids declared "there is the jellyfish costume i wanted to make but none of my kids would wear it!" bean just smiled happily it was a really great night. :)
sprout wore the pumpkin costume that i bought for bean two years ago. i had to wrestle him into it but he did keep it on and grew to like it once he realized it was a ticket to CANDY. (i think his sweet tooth is even bigger than his sister's if that is possible!)

so that is my crafty for this week. i'm working on another item- a gift for mommee and her baby girl (due in january). once i finish that (and i have given it to her) i will post pictures! :)

Eleven Years Already??

the husband and i have now been married for 11 years. it hardly seems possible. we can't be that old, can we?!? ha ha ha!!

Happy Anniversary Honey!! i love you! :)

18 Months

yep, the sprout is 18 months old today. a year and a half, headed toward 2 at light speed it seems. i mean, wasn't he just born yesterday?? ha ha!

he is now 25.8 pounds and 32 inches tall. in the 50th percentile for both- little mr. average. well, except for his head. at 50.4 cm he is "greater than 97th percentile". what can i say, i grow big headed (and brained) children! ;)
he didn't want to get weighed again so i had to get on the scale with him. i really shouldn't have to get on the scale at pediatrician's office son! really. we need to work on this. i also had to hold him down to get his length measurement. SO much fun. the measurements are harder than the shots, i swear!!
he got a flu shot and one vaccine. he cried. i asked him if he wanted a sticker. he stopped crying and nodded yes. total amount of crying- about 1 minute. he turned it off pretty quick when he heard about the stickers. :)

he can run, jump, and climb everything in sight. he is currently trying to climb over the baby gates but has yet to succeed. he almost jumped off the top of the slide in our backyard... i caught him just before his feet left the ground. he goes out to our swing set and climbs onto the two person swing all by himself. he throws amazingly well.

he recently decided that he is going to be picky about vegetables. he only eats broccoli and cauliflower now. really. all other veggies get thrown around the dinning room. the doctor thinks that it is funny that he picked those veggies to eat. she claims that i'm lucky but her dog isn't getting fat eating all those discarded veggies! ;) he loves meat still- unless it has breading on it. no chicken nuggets for this kid. he prefers chicken to be sauteed. oh and he still hates macaroni and cheese. what kind of kid hates mac and cheese?!?!

he still really doesn't talk. he says "mommy" and "daddy" and "ball" (bawh!) and that is about it. some days you get a random word like "bubble" (buh-boh) but then you never hear it again. sometimes i think he has said something but i just can't understand him. he understands everything i say though. i can say, "(sprout) can you pick up your shirt and put it in your hamper?" and he will pick his shirt up off the floor and put it in his hamper. the doctor said that is great and that in general boys tend to go through a language "explosion" between 18 and 24 months. so maybe in the next few months he will start saying more....

he just got his 15th tooth and is working on that 16th one as we speak... i will be so glad when he stops trying to chew everything!

he drives me crazy. he even makes me mad sometimes. but he gives the best hugs and when he blows kisses (slaps his palm against his mouth) good night it is awesome.
happy 18 months, budders! :)

Ya know what's cute?

cute is when you sing a song to your 18 month old son and he tries his best to do the motions along with you as he bounces up and down smiling... AND then when you are done, he signs "more" to you.
he likes his mama's singing! awwwwwww! :)

Boys...

christina asked about the difference between boys and girls. specifically are boys more physical... well, at least my perception of it. ;)

sprout IS more physical. he has been from the beginning. he rolled from back to front at about 2 1/2 months- bean was 6 months before she did that. sprout achieved every physical milestone before his sister. he also does a lot of things that she never did- bite and hit to name a couple of my favorites. sigh.

BUT is it because he is a boy?? i'm not 100% sold on that. i'm sure it may have something to do with it but not everything. i mean, he is the second child. think about it, he is watching another kid do all these things and they look fun, right? of course he wants to walk- he wants to be like his sister. bean had no one to watch except "big people" and who wants to be like a big person? i'm not sure i want to be like a big person! ;)

and i'm sure that personality is involved too. bean was a cautious child. i she had the ability to walk much earlier than she actually did. i mean, she mastered walking in a week. really. she was just a little unsure of herself and it held her back. sprout on the other hand is not a cautious child. he dives head first (sometimes literally) into everything. he doesn't hold back and doesn't seem to care if he fails on his first try.

bean is a very verbal child. she spoke in complete sentences by 18 months. she communicates her needs and wants well and always has. sprout barely says a word- mostly just "mommy" and "ball". why? because he is a boy? the second child? because he is a little socially shy? is it because i had a lot more time to just talk to bean? oh, probably a little of all four.

i guess what it boils down to is that they are just very different kids and there is no way to know what they would be like if their gender or birth order was reversed. i think we just have to say that yes, my boy is more physical but i'm not entirely certain as to why.

i also have to say that the sprout is different enough from bean to make it difficult for me to know how to parent him. we've come up with so many situations that we never dealt with bean. i've been questioning myself a lot lately. sigh. parenting is just a never ending learning experience, isn't it?

but he IS just too cute...

(i totally think i need to buy him a pair of adidas now! he he he!)

Pickin' Apples

saturday we took our annual trip to the apple orchard. bean loves going to pick apples with her friends. especially when daddy helps her reach the apples at the top of the tree!

this is the 4th year that we have ventured out the the apple orchard with mommee and her boys. first there was just bean and adam. the next year we added matthew, the next sprout. this year was the first time we had 4 kids walking. next year we will add a fifth kid (thanks to mommee)- and finally another girl! ;)
of course we couldn't get a picture of all 4 kids together. one of them always refused to be involved. so here is a cute one of bean with her bestest buds.

sprout finally got the hang of the apple picking.... at first he was picking the apples up off the ground and trying to put them back on the trees. or throwing them... or whatever.

he also discovered that eating apples like a big boy can be fun and yummy! (and he looks simply adorable doing it too!!!!)

bean wasn't satisfied with just one apple. she needed one for each hand.

it was another fabulous day with fabulous friends! now off to make applesauce, apple pie, apple crisp, apple muffins, apple pancakes, apple cake, apple waffles.... yeah, we picked a lot of apples! YUM!! :)

He thinks he's SO big

"if sister can do it, why can't i? watch me mommy! i do it too!"

and he sure does try. :)

Making mountains out of molehills...

so, sprout chewed a hole in his binki. his last binki. the binki that he LOVES.... i think you can guess where this is going, right?

my husband looks slightly panicked. i worry about sprout keeping his sister awake on a school night. BUT i can't very well give it back to him. AND i swore i would never buy another one of those things. so there we were. sprout was going to give up his bedtime binki- cold turkey style.

he fussed for about 5-10 minutes. not screaming and crying- just mild fussing that i normally let him work himself through. then i hear him playing with his glow worm. and then.... nothing. that is right- NOTHING. he fell asleep without it and DIDN'T EVEN CARE!!

so once again this parent has made a big riotous deal about NOTHING. (i totally should have taken the damn thing away from him months ago.... sheesh!)


***edited to add***
naptime is NOT going as well. he is one angry little man right now. he keeps pointing to his mouth when i go in and check on him. sorry little dude, i know you can sleep without it. now do it!! gah!

What a difference a year makes!

first day of school 2008:

first day of school 2009:
no baby left here. she is a girl now.
how the heck did that happen??
(i swear i was watching and i never saw it happen. really!)

First Day Again...

last week school started up again. bean wasn't too sure she wanted to go. then she got a letter in the mail from her teacher. it said that the classroom was going to be decorated like a zoo and they were going to learn about zoo animals and shapes and the seasons this month. it included a ticket that she needed to bring with her on meet the teacher day- you have to have a ticket to get into the zoo, you see. ;) suddenly bean could NOT wait to get to school!!

meet the teacher day came and went without an issue. bean loved her teacher. she loved her classroom. she loved all the toys and books. she was more than ready to go back the next day.

here she is all ready to go... :)

sprout trying to get some attention. he's such a little turkey!

getting a little upset with mommy for taking SO many pictures. can't we just go to school already?!?!

walking up to the building. she's such a big girl now! :)

hanging up her backpack. all ready to start the day.

as per usual she said good bye gave me a kiss and sat down to play with her new friends. sprout and i go on our merry way... i wasn't sure what to do, it had been a while since it was just the two of us hanging out! (don't worry we did just fine.) ;)

bean had a great day and was in a great mood when i came to pick her up. we went to mc donald's for lunch and talked all about school and the kids in her class while she ate chicken nuggets, a few fries and most of her brother's apples. she is very excited that she gets to go on field trips this year- the first one is a visit to the pumpkin patch! she had pretzels and cranberries for snack, but she only ate the cranberries because she doesn't care for pretzels. she saw some of her friends from last year outside on the playground- hooray!

all in all it was a great day. i mean, she LOVES school. it makes her happy. and that makes me VERY happy. :)

Umm, Yeah...

alright, alright!! i am going to try this again. i fully intend to try to post regularly again. really. i mean it.
hey, don't look at me that way!!

anyways, here is something to ponder while i sweep the cobwebs out of my brain....

how did he get so big already?!?!sigh.
:)

Where were we?? Part IV

where did we go next???

june 29th:
CEDAR POINT! you know, america's roller coast!
no? not familiar? well, if you like amusement parks this is the place for you! and who likes amusement parks?? ...we were HOPING bean did!

bean's aunt gave her a ticket for her birthday. here they are heading into the park.

weee! flying with the red baron!!

here comes the train!!! :)

posing with the snoopy in front of planet snoopy!

the little train is fun!!

look ma! no hands!! :)
(she held her hands up and almost EVERY ride. including the ferris wheel. ha ha!)

sprout, however, believes in holding on TIGHT!
(one hand on the pole and one clutching grandma!)

what an awesome day this was. bean LOVES rides and rode just about everything that she was tall enough for. she has asked when we can go back. sprout did amazingly well and seemed to enjoy the few rides he got on... once they started moving.

and there is more to come.... stay tuned!! :)

Where were we?? Part III

so where was i in our run down of things that we have done this summer?? hmmmm, lets see....

june 27th:
fancy nancy party at the bookstore. all the girls came in their fancy dresses with lots of accessories. :) there were stories read. there was cookies with sprinkles. there was coloring sheets, stickers, and fans. it was a GOOD time!

here is my fancy girl reading a fancy nancy book while we wait for the party to start.

june 28th:
bean's first birthday celebration. yes, i said first. she ended up having FOUR. this one was with her grandma, grandpa, aunt, and mommy, daddy and sprout. she helped make and decorate her own cake for this one. :)

make a wish!! :)

sprout thinks bean bakes good cakes! ;)

opening a gift from mommy and daddy....

hmmm, do you think she likes it?? she can be so hard to read sometimes.... ha ha ha!

oh yes, there is more to come! silly string wars, fireworks, family reunions, etc, etc, etc! you are going to be so sick of us by the end of next week! ha ha ha!!!!

Where were we?? Part II

so, what have we been up too???

june 18th-21st:
we went to my parents house. the kids were fairly good considering daddy wasn't around (he was in vegas, remember), but of course nana and papa were there to spoil them with attention so i'm sure that helped. we didn't really do anything while we were there but some times it is nice to just sit still. :)

sprout wasn't thrilled about sharing papa's chair with his sister though! ;)

June 23:
we went to the splash park with my sister and her girls. ellie loved the splash park last yer and i hoped chase would too. he was... undecided about his feelings at first but he eventually got into it so a good time was had by all. :)

sprout splashing in the fountains!

bean likes the waterfalls this year!!! :)

june 24th:
ellie was invited to a dinosaur dig at one of her best girl friend's house. there were dino bones in the sandbox the girls had to dig up. we also went swimming, hunted for dinosaur eggs and played with water balloons. it was a FANTASTIC time!!

i think she may have found something!

using the magnifying glass to look for the small fossils! ;)

ok, there is still more to come! a fancy nancy party at the bookstore, several birthday parties (all of them for bean!), a trip to cedar point, feeding exotic animals, etc, etc, etc. stay tuned for all the exciting details!! ha ha!:)

Where were we?? Part I

ah yes, where have we been?!?! well i'll tell you! ;)

june 11th:
went to the butterfly exhibit at the conservatory. it wasn't the best day to go... it was very cloudy and the butterflies (even though they are inside) were not at all active. :( but we still had a nice time.

holy cow! look! a picture with ME in it!!! ha ha ha!

here's a shot of bean looking through some glasses that let you see like a bug. you know, compound eyes and all that. she thought it was pretty neat!

then we stopped by the butterfly "hatchery" to see some "fresh" butterflies. ;) it was pretty cool to see. these butterflies here look pretty drab on the outside but are iridescent blue on the inside! :)

*insert 2 playdates and a trip to the library here*

june 15th: bean's aunt and uncle came up from texas just to see her!! they took her and sprout to the zoo and left mommy and daddy at home. for a while mommy had NO idea what to do with herself!

aunt and uncle spoil bean and let her get her face painted like a kitty! :)

later that night, after sprout headed off to bed, we made smores. mmmmmm smores! (i think she had 3!)

then we let her play with sparklers!!!! OMG!!!!!

OMG! OMG! OMG!!!
it was like the greatest thing she had ever experienced. we went through about 25 sparklers in just a matter of minutes! :)

then daddy left for las vegas. he played in a world series of poker event. he finished in about 700th place out of 2700 people. not too bad but it doesn't win you any money. :(
while daddy was gone we went and visited my family.... but let's save that for another day, shall we? :)

Ummmm, yeah...

so... i'm not even going to pretend that i haven't updated this blog in over a month. our world has been very busy, i've been tired, and... fine, i'll admit it- i've been too lazy to do anything about it. i'm going to try to change that. really. that is until we head out on our next adventure... ;)

what is up with us? hmmm.

sprout:
*he is just shy of 25 pounds. he is 31 inches tall. he has 14 teeth.
*he says a few understandable things and a lot of mumbo jumbo that we have NO idea what it is (but it sounds really important!). he says "ah dah" (all done), "mah-mee" (mommy), "dada", "bah-bo" (bubble), "wha-da?" (we believe he is asking "what's that"), and today i swear he said raisin but i can't be sure. he barks when he sees dogs ("ba-ba-ba!"). he makes vrooming noises when he plays cars. he nods his head yes and shakes it no in response to questions. he signs "more" when he wants more to eat. (he ALWAYS seems to want more to eat)
*he is attempting to jump. the other day he only had ONE toe on the ground!!!!! and oh my goodness does he dance! he is always shaking his shoulders, swinging his arms, marching and just plain wiggling to the beat. it is AWESOME!!! i will totally try to get a video to post. it simply must be seen. :) he also climbs everything is sight. EVERY damn thing. he will be the death of me...
*he is done with the bottle-yippee! now if we could just talk him into giving up his binki... sigh.
*he is starting to color a little bit with sidewalk chalk and crayons. the instances where he eats said artistic tools are getting fewer and farther between, thank goodness. although he did try to eat a green marker the other day......
*he LOVES to be in the pool. he STRONGLY prefers the big pool to the baby pool. he actually tried to swim the other day- arms paddling and legs kicking! he wants to be just like his sister.
*he LOVES balls and balloons with a passion that i just can't really put into words. :)

bean:
*she is 37 pounds. she is 40 inches. she went to the dentist for the first time and was complimented on her beautiful teeth. :) and she's FOUR! as in years old! AKKKK!
*she is no longer afraid to go underwater. she jumps in off the side. she puts her face in and tries to "swim" underwater. she is turning into quite the little fish.
*she is majorly into coloring right now. she never was all that interested but now... she colors 6 or more pages in a sitting. and she is getting SO much better at it. i'm actually impressed.
*her new FAVORITE thing is tinkerbell and fairies in general. we got her the tinkerbell movie for her birthday and that is all we've heard about since. "are fairies real?" "will i get to see a fairy sometime?" "can i be a fairy?" the questions NEVER end.
*she is sassy and just flat out disobedient. and i'm just not sure what to do about that. she is sucking the life out of me....

if there is anything you want to know about the bean or the sprout just let me know! i'm happy to answer. and if you have any solutions on how to deal with little miss sassy pants and be more than happy to hear that as well. ;)

my family also got some surprising news recently. my sister (who believed herself to be done having children) is "surprise" pregnant. that turned into an even bigger surprise when it was discovered that she was carrying twins!! so we have two babies on the way, they should be here around the first week of december... ya know, when her youngest is 13 months old. eeek! 5 children and the oldest will be 6- it is going to be a busy household!! :)

and me... well, i'm here. running here and there. to playdates. to storytimes. to splash parks. to the zoo. we've got something going all the time it seems. i think i'm actually looking forward to school starting back up.
and i'm turning 35 next week.

i'm sure you will want to see some of the great things we've been up to so over the next few days i'm going to post a bunch of pictures. y'all like pictures, right? ;)

Weekend Observation

how is it that my sweet little sprout's chubby, yummy toes have become sweaty, stinky boy feet?? seriously this boy is sweaty! and his feet are smelly!!
i guess he isn't a baby anymore...

;)

Attention!

we have a biter in the house. i repeat, there is a biter in the house!!

sprout has taken to biting. mostly he just bites bean. sometimes she deserves it. and all the time she laughs about it until it hurts- then she screams. i try to tell her that her laughter is encouraging sprout to bite her more. she has yet to listen.

bean never once bit anyone so this is all new to me. i'm hoping that it is related to the teething and that when that is over he will be done biting. until then...

be careful! the wee one bites!!
;)

Sprout's Pool

so, way back when, we got sprout a swimming pool for his birthday. today we finally sat down and inflated it. (good thing daddy is full of hot air! he he!) bean was super excited about it! swimming! woo hoo! sprout, well, i'm not sure what he thought...

"you want me to get in there??"

he kinda lost his little mind when his toes hit the cold water. he ran to his mommy crying!

"oh for the love of pete mommy! that is cold!!! too cold!!!!!!

so daddy grabbed the cooler (it was the biggest thing he could find) and filled it with hot water and added it to the pool. things seemed much better then...

"maybe this isn't so bad after all. i like to splash!"

he splashed and played with his sister for quite a while. they were having a great time! he did make it clear that he wasn't at all interested in trying the slide out. so bean slid down head first over and over, always managing to stop right next to him.

"watch it sis, i'm trying to splash here!"

so what started out as a catastrophe ended up a splashing success! ;)

"oh yeah! splash-ity, splash, splash, splash!!!!"

happy really late birthday buddy! mommy is so glad that you like your present!! :)