Overdue Pumpkin Patch Pics

When Chris was out of town at the beginning of October, my sister-in-law Linda came down from Detroit to stay with us. I had so much fun having her here. When the kiddos were down for the evening it was nice to just have hang out/girl time and eat ice cream and watch politics! It's always great to be on the same political side and get to blab about that with someone who "gets it" ha ha!! ;P

The Sunday that she was here, we took Noah and Kyle to the pumpkin patch. It was fun for Noah to look at all the pumpkins--and he even had one picked out. What stunk was that he had to put it back because the lines to pay for the dang things were SO long that there's no way we could've waited.

When Chris got back, we went to another patch, so I'll be uploading pics soon off the camera to share. It's been way too long since I updated!!

I told him to "smile" and this is what I got (???):

Super muscles!

Brothers

All for one and one for all

My brother and my friend

What fun we have

The time we share

Brothers 'til the end.

~Author Unknown

All Things Potty

I have been waiting for the right time to really get serious about potty training with Noah. When Kyle was first born, I knew I didn't have the time to devote to Noah and the potty, and that wouldn't be good. I wanted him to be able to be successful when we tried it, and that would require Mommy to be able to make a real potty commitment.

The last week or so, he's shown a real distaste for a soiled diaper. He wanted to be changed right away, and would even get a disgusted look on his face when I'd change him. We had bought some big boy underwear and tried it out a few times, but he was never consistent in his interest, so I'd give him the choice of diaper or underwear.

Two days ago, he decided that he wanted underwear. So the first day he had no accidents except for one, and that was my own fault. I was talking to a mommy friend that was over visiting with her kids, and he kept saying, "Mommy! Mommy!" which is not unusual! I kept saying, "just a minute honey..." Next thing I knew there was a puddle on the floor. Poor Noah!

The night before that, he told me he needed to go potty. I was busy drawing his bath, so I had my back turned. He then calls out, "Mommy, LOOK!" I look, and lo and behold there is a little something in the toilet. I couldn't believe it!! He went #2 without even telling me! Then last night, he sat right up there and pooped again in the toilet! Amazing!!

Today he wasn't feeling very well. He had a runny nose and was very slowed down. He had one accident of each, but still did very well. He even went on an hour walk with Dad and came back dry and then used the potty! I was positive that he would be back with wet pants, but he waited. I couldn't believe it. This kid is literally training himself. It's awesome!!

So, I think we've been at it 3 days now, so who knows how it will continue, but so far this is so much better than what I was expecting!!I think you'll thank me that I have no pics to go with this story.

I do have pics to show off, but my camera battery is dead and I can't find the charger. ARGH! That will be one of my weekend projects!

Halloween Sneak Preview!

Noah has decided to be a bat (the Old Navy version) for Halloween. We looked online at a bunch of costumes, and he saw the skunk at ON and wanted it, but when we got to the store, they were out of it. He spotted this and liked it immediately and wanted to try it on. I honestly didn't think it was that cute til we put it on him, and then OMG! Sooooooo cute! =)

He's been wanting to zoom all around the house in it and flap his wings. I'm so excited that we got one more year of him wearing a cute (are bats cute??), furry little animal costume!

It's Been a While!

Since I last posted, we've had a lot going on! My mom came to visit us from California last week. She had never met Kyle, so it was definitely time! She got to see first hand what a sweet and smiley baby Kyle is. Noah was happy to have someone else in the house to be able to talk to--since that *is* his favorite thing to do!

We also had our first annual Fall Kickoff Party. We decided to try to get all of our friends and their kiddos together on one date! We had a great turnout and had a lot of fun, so we've decided to make it an annual event. When you've got small kids, it's so hard to try to get together with people as often as you'd like, so it was really nice to see so many of our friends that day! Some time with other adults was sooooo welcome! We had lots of yummy food--we did it potluck style and we had some really tasty things to eat (thank you everyone!!). I didn't take as many pictures as I wanted to. I guess I was too busy enjoying myself which is a good thing! We had neighbors, friends from the area, and Cranmommies and their families come. I think one of the highlights of the day (at least for the kids) was when Ken, Addie's husband, was out on the grass with a tribe of kids running after him. It was HILARIOUS! Ken is definitely meant to have his own kids--they all loved him, it was so funny.

We were all cracking up that the kids thought they were hidden by fence posts! LOL!


Andrea, a good Cranmommy friend holding Kyle. Did Kyle give Andrea a case of baby fever??

Addie and Ken's son Nate. He seemed to really like hiding under this table! LOL!

Andrea and Kurt's oldest daughter, Leah

Their youngest daughter Mallory, who by the way is so grown up already!!! She was so cute. If you pointed the camera at her, she gave you this little face:

Ken with a tribe of kiddos chasing after him

Zach and Sam, some of Noah's little friends that we met at the library over a year ago

I sure wish I had taken a lot more pictures! We had such a fun day with everyone.

Adventures With Boys

I've got a story for ya. I have a feeling this will be the first of many of its kind.

So over the weekend, Chris was behind our couch dealing with a broken lamp. Our couch is one of those curved sectional thingies, so it's pulled out from the wall a good foot and a half. He was back there a few minutes when I hear, "hon! you've GOT to see this!"

So I go back there and Chris points out what is known as

a BOOGER WALL.

Apparently, our little sweetheart likes to go back there and dig for gold. And then save it. On the wall. There were probably 4 good ones smeared on this particular wall. Nice.

After I looked at it, we looked at each other and laughed so hard we couldn't talk.

I have a feeling raising boys is going to be, um, interesting.

Getting Caught Up...Kyle, Yogurt, and a Reds Game

Here's a fresh Kyle after a bath. He always smells so good after a bath! Funny thing about Kyle is, he has the best hairline and such a nice shaped head (must have been the quick delivery!), and after a bath, he always looks so handsome! He still has Fred Mertz hair in the back though--it's all fuzzy and sticks out all over just like a little old bald man!




Here I'm trying to conquer my inner control freak. Noah is eating yogurt in his new booster with a spoon. He got very IN to what he was doing, shall I say!??


Stinker!! I don't know who said it recently--maybe one of the wonderful ladies from my Mommy Board, but I remember she said, "you can either get mad or get the camera!" I decided to take a new approach. I wouldn't usually get *mad* per se, but I would definitely be fighting the urge to stop the mess ASAP. What's the harm in finger painting with yogurt?? You're only a kid once, right!?



Going in for the kill on the second container of Diego yogurt.


My little sweetie pie, who by the way, is sick today. I felt so bad because yesterday he was in RARE form, and I was not very patient. Today it was obvious he felt awful. We watched lots of Max & Ruby and played Memory together and had a better day together just cuddling a lot. He hardly ate a thing today and was pretty hot at bedtime, so we gave him Tylenol. Poor Noah.

Wonder Noah!!!
Yes, that is his favorite blankie tied around his neck.

Our friends Jared and Mindy at a Cincinnati Reds game Saturday night. We got free tickets through Chris' work and the four of us went together. They played the San Francisco Giants and won! It felt a little weird rooting against a California team!

I'm wearing my glasses cause my contacts are so dirty you can SEE the dirt on them. I couldn't get an eye doctor appt. until September 12!

The Great American Ball Park





Before the game, we had passes to the Riverfront Club which is some froo froo restaurant inside the ballpark. It was fun though--we had seats overlooking the ballpark, but it was too spendy to make it worth it. Next time we all agreed we'd stick with a hotdog and a beer. =)

Today is Chris' birthday--Happy Birthday, hon!!

Noah's First Day of School!

This is Noah saying, "today is the first day of school!"

So here's how it went--this a.m. we got all ready to go and got his backpack and shoes on and headed out. He was still pretty happy to go I think. We got there and all the little kids were heading in for their first day of school with little backpacks on. Which, BTW, I could only find Noah this huge backpack that's practically bigger than he is--all these other kids had ones that fit right. I could NOT find one suitable for his size!! Something else to research I guess...

Anyway, so we go in, and the nice man (director of ECE) is standing at the door welcoming people. We walked to his class and he was still okay. He saw his name on a bulletin board outside the door and said, "that's my name!!!" We go in, and two kids are already crying. He wouldn't take his backpack off. I finally got him to take it off and find the teacher so I could sort of hand him off and this lady comes in with her kid and starts asking Mrs. H where to pick up and what time. UM, HELLO!?!?!? A. If you'd gone to the orientation, you'd know that already, and B. it's in the fricking handbook. I was pretty annoyed, because I knew Noah was getting antsier by the second and he needed to be turned over to the teacher.

So anyway! I finally did--I hugged him and when I did, he clung to me. I said, "I love you! Have fun! You're okay! I'll come back for you at lunch time!" and then Mrs. H scooped him up (crying!!) and I left. UGH UGH UGH. I walked out of the classroom and started crying. This other mom was coming out of her own kid's class and she saw me and said, "I know! I did it last year! You feel like the meanest mommy in the whole world!" Then she hugged me and I swear I hugged her like I'd known her my whole life! Then she gave me a Hershey's kiss. Bless her heart! Oh, BTW, Mimi had Kyle for this a.m.!

So then I went to the parking lot and waited like 45 minutes. I think I thought they were going to call me. I kept looking at my cell phone to make sure it was working. They didn't call. So then Chris pulled up cause he hadn't left for work yet and he brought my wallet (I was such a frazzled mess this a.m. that I couldn't find my wallet!). So then I went to Costco and then came back. When I got back, I saw him walking with his little class wearing his ginormous backpack and carrying a little paper. They go in this little room and get picked up from there. When he saw me, he started crying and saying, "NO!! NO!!" and clung to Mrs. F (the aide that is a super duper loving grandma type). He wouldn't let Mrs. F go!! I said to Mrs. H, "is that for my benefit?" and she said, "yep!" I said, "have you ever seen that reaction before??" she said, "ooohhh yeah!!" We kind of laughed. THey told me he'd been really good and that he calmed down pretty quick, but burst into tears a few times (so sad). He didn't eat his snack and it was in his backpack for him. We finally pried him off of Mrs. F and got him in the car and he said, "today was a great day at preschool!" I was like, WTF??! Sounds good to me!
When we got home though, we had some challenging behavior today--a lot like the kind we had when Kyle first came home. All in all it was good though. He said good things about his day, and told me about a kid named Logan. He told me they'd red a book with "one two buckle my shoe" in it. But then he said, "can I stay??" I said, "stay where?" he said, "with you??" I said, "some days you'll stay with me, and some days are preschool days." He seemed sort of okay with that.

Hhe had a bit of a hard time at bedtime and wanted to "rock with you, mommy?!" So finally he goes to sleep, I lay him in his bed, and...the fricking power goes out. His fan turned off, and he popped open his eyes! By then it was seriously probably 85 degrees in his room and I was so ticked. I got him back up and rocked with him some more, but then said it was time for bed. I laid him in bed with some books and said ta ta and he was SO MAD. GREAT day for that to happen, KWIM?? But luckily he quieted down within minutes, the power came back on, and I could see him in his crib just laying there kicking his leg up and down. So he's more resilient than I thought I guess!

Oh, P.S. The little paper he was carrying was a white paper with a red die-cut shape of a school/church on it with the name of the church written on it, and then his little handprint, and his picture! It said, "My first day of school." Noah, September 2008. You should see the pic of him, it is SO pathetic. I felt so sick when I saw it! He looks positively miserable. But, he did SO much better than I thought he would, so back again we'll go next week.

I Have Mommy Nerves!!!!

No pictures tonight, folks, but I had to get on anyway. I am a bundle of nerves! Tomorrow is Noah's first day of "preschool." Actually it's a once a week Mom's Day Out program, but he thinks it's preschool, and it might as well be. Anyway, I feel like we've prepped him as much as is humanly possible without overtalking it and making him completely anxious. He *has* been waking up during the night lately and calling for me, and he *did* have a tinge of anxiety it seemed at bedtime tonight. Still, I'm hoping for the best. We had a "meet the teacher" day last week and I honestly couldn't ask for better ladies to be his teachers.

For those of you who don't know, Noah has a pretty strong case of separation anxiety. I'm not wanting to push him, yet I'm thinking this could be really good for him. He really does need to know that he is OKAY and SAFE even when he's not stuck to me like glue. Like Chris likes to say, if I opened my mouth reeeeally wide, you'd see Noah's face. So mean! LOL! But really, I think this could open up a whole new (FUN) world for him. I really want that for him. And me. I won't lie, part of this is selfish. I need a break. 2 1/2 hours a week isn't *that* much to ask for is it?? And also, he is such an extremely bright and active boy, that I really think he could use an outlet for some of that energy.

My point for this post you ask? To please keep Noah in your thoughts, prayers, whatever it is you do. We would really appreciate it. Think of us on Tuesday a.m. at around 9 eastern time!

Thanks All.

I'll update tomorrow night and I'll even post some pics, which BTW--can anyone please tell me how to post more than 5 pics at a time?!

"I Rhymed Duck!!"

The other morning when I went in Noah's room to get him out of his crib, he enthusiastically informed me that he'd "rhymed duck!" Then he proceeded to show me..."duck! f*ck! luck! tuck!" He enunciated each word so clearly too--it was hysterical!

Here's Noah with a newspaper hat that Mimi made him. He LOVES hats.


Did I mention he loves hats?!

Kyle, looking biggier and biggier all the time!

If it's possible for a 7 week old baby to laugh, Kyle was just about there in this picture. Chris had his hands under him and would kind of bounce Kyle with his hands while he made beat box noises. Kyle thought it was great!

BROTHERS!! Okay, I guess I should mention that we took about four pics of these guys together. Each time we told Noah to go lay by his brother, he acted like he was being asked to go lay by a stinky diaper or something. So we finally bribed him with an M&M. Finally in this last picture, I think he was getting in to the fun of taking pics with Kyle.

Cutie Kyle and Sprinkler Lovin' Noah

This blogger site is trying my patience. I'm wondering why it's only letting me upload 5 pics at a time?? When I go to upload 5 more, it doesn't let me. Anyone else have this problem with blogger?
Anyway, here are some new Kyle pics. He's really starting to look more like an alert baby and less like a newborn. It's really fun to see! His personality is starting to show and he's smiling a lot. He loves to just lay on the couch and look at the window treatments--LOL! He also loves it when you sit and talk with him and will "talk" back! He's becoming very vocal now and reminds me a lot of Noah at that age. Noah was so verbal/vocal from Day 1. I wonder if we're going to have another talker on our hands!?? Well, I guess he's in the right family!





Noah and I spontaneously turned on the sprinkler the other day. He had an absolute blast running through the water. I haven't seen him this happy in such a long time, that I felt bad I hadn't done it before now. Bless his heart, it's been a pretty uneventful summer for him, except for the fact that he has a new brother!

Little Ohio fun fact--we're getting a really nice summer storm tonight! I love thunderstorms! Noah has never been bothered by them, and still isn't. He knows we think they're exciting! I do have to complain though about one of his favorite shows, "Little Bear"--they had an episode where there was a thunderstorm, and Little Bear kept referring to the thunder as a "scary monster." So tonight Noah kept saying, "scary monster!" Thanks Little Bear. Reeeeeeal nice. Good thing is Noah seemed to still think this was cool, and not *really* scary. Nothing like a cartoon to put ideas into a toddler's head. Ugh.

I think I'll try the pics again, but I'll have to create a new post. I may do that tomorrow, so check back soon for more!

Dan and Margo

My nephew Daniel and his wife, Margo.

We never got a chance to meet Margo, but we know how much she meant to you, and you to her.

We're thinking of you today.

Minda

About a year ago, while we were still living in our old house, we got a new computer desk. There is a section that has cupboards and drawers and Noah likes to open them up and put stuff in them from time to time. Noah would always go to this particular cupboard, stick his head in, and say, "Hi Minda!" He would talk about how "Minda" was in the cupboard and kind of talk to Minda.

After a while, he seemed to forget about Minda. Since we've lived in our new house, I don't think he's mentioned "Minda." Just now, while checking my email, he opened up that same cupboard, and said, "Hi Minda!" again. I asked him, "who is Minda?" and he answered me, "a creature!" I got the total heebie jeebies! How in the world would he even remember this name when he hasn't even mentioned it for months, and now here Minda is resurfacing again???

**Sing Twilight Zone music after reading this post!!**

Some Random Pics

I don't have a lot to say tonight because I am exhausted as usual. But, I did want to update with some cute pics. Kyle is changing by the day, and I didn't want some of these to become outdated!

A lot of the time, Kyle likes to be swaddled tight, but when he doesn't, you can usually find him like this:




Our dear friends Shawntai and Lark visited us right before they ditched us to move to Montana. Grrr! Shawntai and I met one day in our old neighborhood when we were both out walking our kiddos. We were both new to Ohio and had both just moved here from Oregon (another West Coaster like me!). We were also both born in California, and we are both the same age. Anyway, she quickly became a great friend. We'll miss you guys! We may just have to go beat your door down in Montana when we need a break from the Midwest!


Noah and Lark coloring.
Our silly boy and his "Kyle Smile." =)


He is so cute and expressive! He's really starting to smile a lot. This pic was taken probably almost two weeks ago. I need to get some new ones--he's really perfecting the art of smiling.

That's all for now, folks!

Sponge Bob, A.K.A. "Cheese"

Here is the Cheese that Noah saw. He didn't seem the least bit curious as to why there would be a big cheese with arms and legs walking around the park. I guess a walking sponge isn't something you see everyday either.