Lately Z will walk around, spouting nonsense words like, "La-la". When I ask him, "What are you talking about?", he responds, "Talking 'bout La-la", matter-of-factly. :)
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This morning, I had a rather FAILing attempt at rearranging stuff in the freezer to make some room for a box of Texas Toast, during which I dropped nearly everything on the floor, and then the stupid box had the nerve to fall out yet again. Before I could even sigh in frustration or stomp my foot, Z exclaimed, "What Mommy dwop NOW?" and it made me laugh so hard I couldn't even be frustrated. :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here is a snippet from a conversation Z and I had at 4:00 am today: (my words in italics)
"Hi, honey - what are you doing up, playing with your toys? It's the middle of the night."
"I need a kiss."
"Okay, well, Mommy will come give you a kiss, and then you need to get back into your bed and go back to sleep."
"I pinch a finger. I need a kiss."
So I gave kisses and hugs, and we sang and prayed together, and then I put him in his bed and instructed him to stay there and go to sleep. And then the begging begins.
"I need a dwink of miwk." (no, you have a drink of water right there)
"I need more hugs." (Mommy gave you lots of hugs, honey)
"I need my shawk toy." (here is the shark toy)
"I need sit on couch and wead a book." (no, you don't. Now lay down and go to sleep. Mommy loves you, and I will see you in the morning.)
Thankfully, I was able to convince him that he really just needed to stay in bed and a few minutes later we were both asleep again. :)
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ALSO - do you SEE the ticker on the sidebar of my blog???? NINE days until this little girl is due!!!! NINE - that is a single digit, people!!! Yikes!!! And also, YAY!!! :) I really can't believe how close it is! :) That is all. :) We had a holiday party canceled this morning, so we are enjoying an unexpectedly relaxing day at home - getting the house cleaned up, and just hanging out. :)
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
Tot School - Birthday Edition!
We had an exciting week this week! Zachary said his first Bible verse : "obey your parents". I have a video to post (it's up on Facebook, if you're my friend on there), but I can't get to it right now to put it up. It is so precious, he says his verse in the sweetest little voice. :)
I thought I would include a couple of our favorite learning toys in this week's Tot School Edition: first of all, these stuffed letters (just stuffed fabric) are the way that Z learned all of his uppercase letters before he was 22 months old. They are soft, and fun, and so adorable. I can't even tell you who makes them, because I got them from a garage sale (sorry!).
Here is Z demonstrating a Q. He likes to throw them around, and we sing a little song, "Q says qua, Q says Qua, every letter has a sound, and Q says qua" (which I apparently picked up from a LeapFrog toy at some point, it is sung to the tune of "Farmer in the Dell"). Z can tell you now which sounds some letters say, but not too many. He's got "J says juh" down, so that's fun. :) Lately we've been discussing what words start with the letter, too, he thinks it's hilarious, we'll have a whole conversation that goes, "Juh Juh Juh, Jelly....Juh Juh Juh Juice" etc. ad nauseum. :)
And this is how the letters usually end up before too long:
Here he is playing with his Mega Blocks, making a tall tower.
Some presents for Z & baby sister came in a BIG box this week, and the box was FILLED with a million packing peanuts:
So before we threw them out, we decided to have some fun with them. :)
Z played with his sand toys in the peanuts for a couple minutes...
Dump!
But his favorite part was throwing them in the air and yelling, "It's 'Nowing! It's 'Nowing!"
As I was working on his birthday cake one day, I kept hearing him having this little conversation about pizza with himself, and then I heard him say, "I need a can opener. I need a can opener." and he went and got it out of the drawer, and when I looked down, there he was - 'opening' a can of olives for his imaginary pizza. :)
Here is some music time with Daddy - each playing their guitars:
The most exciting part of our week was Saturday, when Z celebrated his 2nd birthday! (I can't believe it!!!) He got many presents, and we had a pizza party with friends, and a tractor cake! Here's a picture of him opening his Chuck the Talking Truck...can you tell how excited he is? I'll be sharing more about his (and my) favorite presents next week!
And here is the tractor cake, which I just have to share because I made it myself, and it was a lot of work, but I was really happy with the results. The little wheels are stacks of 3 Oreos, covered in chocolate. There are still 1 1/2 wheels in my fridge (and 3 hay bales, too, actually), waiting for the next time I need a snack. :)
For Z's birthday present from us, I made him an I Spy Jar (similar idea can be found here). You start by getting your materials ready - you'll need rice, a container (recycled or new), a hot glue gun & glue stick, and some stuff to spy. :)
Then you layer rice with the spying stuff in the jar.
Another layer...
until it's almost full. Mine was too full. I ended up taking out 3 of the 4 monster trucks that I had put in, and a bunch of the rice, too.
Also, if you do this on your bed for some unknown reason, your bed sheets will look like this:
Here is the finished product:
I didn't take a picture of this part, but you're going to want to use the hot glue gun to glue the lid on VERY tight, so you don't have rice all over your house. Z may have to grow into this activity, he hasn't been overly thrilled with it so far...but also between the rest of his birthday presents, which he IS totally occupied by, he's been rather busy. :)
And, to begin his birthday celebration, Z decided to find a jar of Vaseline in his room, spread it on everything, and put at least a fourth of the jar in his hair. So it looked like he had gel in it all day. :) It was actually pretty cute. :)
Looking forward to getting into the Christmas spirit for Tot School this week...after we get through the busy beginning of the week (lots of dr. appt's today & tomorrow!)
Check out more Tot School activities over at 1+1+1=1!
I thought I would include a couple of our favorite learning toys in this week's Tot School Edition: first of all, these stuffed letters (just stuffed fabric) are the way that Z learned all of his uppercase letters before he was 22 months old. They are soft, and fun, and so adorable. I can't even tell you who makes them, because I got them from a garage sale (sorry!).
Here is Z demonstrating a Q. He likes to throw them around, and we sing a little song, "Q says qua, Q says Qua, every letter has a sound, and Q says qua" (which I apparently picked up from a LeapFrog toy at some point, it is sung to the tune of "Farmer in the Dell"). Z can tell you now which sounds some letters say, but not too many. He's got "J says juh" down, so that's fun. :) Lately we've been discussing what words start with the letter, too, he thinks it's hilarious, we'll have a whole conversation that goes, "Juh Juh Juh, Jelly....Juh Juh Juh Juice" etc. ad nauseum. :)
And this is how the letters usually end up before too long:
Here he is playing with his Mega Blocks, making a tall tower.
Some presents for Z & baby sister came in a BIG box this week, and the box was FILLED with a million packing peanuts:
So before we threw them out, we decided to have some fun with them. :)
Z played with his sand toys in the peanuts for a couple minutes...
Dump!
But his favorite part was throwing them in the air and yelling, "It's 'Nowing! It's 'Nowing!"
As I was working on his birthday cake one day, I kept hearing him having this little conversation about pizza with himself, and then I heard him say, "I need a can opener. I need a can opener." and he went and got it out of the drawer, and when I looked down, there he was - 'opening' a can of olives for his imaginary pizza. :)
Here is some music time with Daddy - each playing their guitars:
The most exciting part of our week was Saturday, when Z celebrated his 2nd birthday! (I can't believe it!!!) He got many presents, and we had a pizza party with friends, and a tractor cake! Here's a picture of him opening his Chuck the Talking Truck...can you tell how excited he is? I'll be sharing more about his (and my) favorite presents next week!
And here is the tractor cake, which I just have to share because I made it myself, and it was a lot of work, but I was really happy with the results. The little wheels are stacks of 3 Oreos, covered in chocolate. There are still 1 1/2 wheels in my fridge (and 3 hay bales, too, actually), waiting for the next time I need a snack. :)
For Z's birthday present from us, I made him an I Spy Jar (similar idea can be found here). You start by getting your materials ready - you'll need rice, a container (recycled or new), a hot glue gun & glue stick, and some stuff to spy. :)
Then you layer rice with the spying stuff in the jar.
Another layer...
until it's almost full. Mine was too full. I ended up taking out 3 of the 4 monster trucks that I had put in, and a bunch of the rice, too.
Also, if you do this on your bed for some unknown reason, your bed sheets will look like this:
Here is the finished product:
I didn't take a picture of this part, but you're going to want to use the hot glue gun to glue the lid on VERY tight, so you don't have rice all over your house. Z may have to grow into this activity, he hasn't been overly thrilled with it so far...but also between the rest of his birthday presents, which he IS totally occupied by, he's been rather busy. :)And, to begin his birthday celebration, Z decided to find a jar of Vaseline in his room, spread it on everything, and put at least a fourth of the jar in his hair. So it looked like he had gel in it all day. :) It was actually pretty cute. :)
Looking forward to getting into the Christmas spirit for Tot School this week...after we get through the busy beginning of the week (lots of dr. appt's today & tomorrow!)
Check out more Tot School activities over at 1+1+1=1!
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Two Years Ago Today
Two years ago today I felt unimaginable pain and immense joy.
Two years ago today my ‘mother bear’ instinct was activated, and has been on alert ever since.
Two years ago today, I worked the hardest I have ever physically worked at something for two hours.
Two years ago today, I met you, my unbelievably tiny son, and I thought you were beautiful and perfect even when you were bloody, wrinkled, cone-headed, purple, and screaming.
Two years ago today, I held you in my arms for the very first time, and could not believe that I was finally meeting you.
Two years ago today, I thought the need for 24M and 2T clothes seemed light years away.
Two years ago today, I named you, and then proceeded to call you by nicknames instead. I learned in the hospital that my favorite nickname for you was ‘precious’ and I still often call you that, two years later.
Two years ago today, I was surprised by the shock of blond hair you were born with. Today I was surprised to find half a jar of Vaseline smeared in that same hair.
Two years ago today, I had no way of imagining how much joy you would bring to my life. I had no way of knowing that these first two years would fly by and just putting up the Christmas tree would bring back floods of sweet newborn memories that seem to have happened only last month.
Two years ago today, my personal understanding of love deepened incomprehensibly.
I love you so much, my little Z. Happy 2nd birthday!!! It was so much fun to celebrate with you!
Two years ago today my ‘mother bear’ instinct was activated, and has been on alert ever since.
Two years ago today, I worked the hardest I have ever physically worked at something for two hours.
Two years ago today, I met you, my unbelievably tiny son, and I thought you were beautiful and perfect even when you were bloody, wrinkled, cone-headed, purple, and screaming.
Two years ago today, I held you in my arms for the very first time, and could not believe that I was finally meeting you.
Two years ago today, I thought the need for 24M and 2T clothes seemed light years away.
Two years ago today, I named you, and then proceeded to call you by nicknames instead. I learned in the hospital that my favorite nickname for you was ‘precious’ and I still often call you that, two years later.
Two years ago today, I was surprised by the shock of blond hair you were born with. Today I was surprised to find half a jar of Vaseline smeared in that same hair.
Two years ago today, I had no way of imagining how much joy you would bring to my life. I had no way of knowing that these first two years would fly by and just putting up the Christmas tree would bring back floods of sweet newborn memories that seem to have happened only last month.
Two years ago today, my personal understanding of love deepened incomprehensibly.
I love you so much, my little Z. Happy 2nd birthday!!! It was so much fun to celebrate with you!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Tot School- Thanskgiving Edition
We actually had a lot of time to do Tot School activities this last week, with Thanksgiving break, we didn't have much else going on, and we were able to fit a lot of fun and learning in! :)
One afternoon, we did some free painting with finger paint and several different brushes.
Here Z is experimenting with painting his body:
I got him some navy beans (the dry kind), and he has REALLY enjoyed scooping them into ice cube trays and muffin tins with different spoons:
and with his hands:
and of course pouring them out of the bowl:
We did this activity once on the floor and a couple times in his highchair, and I would have to say that the highchair was actually messier, because he kept knocking the beans down into his seat. I think a big tablecloth or sheet on the floor would be the way to go (for future reference).
We also made a turkey this week. Here is Z trying to use scissors for the first time, to cut some of the scraps: (not going so well) :)
But he was pretty excited about the finished product. We traced one foot and two hands of his for the body & wings of the turkey, then I cut out some feathers in different colors & we glued those on the back. We added eyes & a waddle & beak and some feet at the last minute for cuteness. :) He doesn't get into craft projects very much while we're doing them, but for the following week, he looks at what we made and says, "We made a turkey! (or pumpkin, or whatever)" so that makes it worthwhile even if I do the whole craft myself. :)
The day before Thanksgiving, we made a pumpkin pie together! Z helped with the spices as you can see, actually he dumped in all the ingredients as I measured them.
He also helped stir the pie filling:
Here is our finished product. There should be three hearts on the top, but Z was possibly a little TOO helpful in pushing the hearts into the pie filling before it was baked. :)
It snowed one day this week, so Z was excited to put his boots on and go outside and 'walk in the 'now'. Here he is enjoying it. :)
Next week, my tot school post will probably include some pictures of Z's birthday party, because he turns TWO YEARS OLD on Saturday - I can't believe it!!! These two years have FLOWN by!!! :)
For more great Tot School ideas, head over to 1+1+1=1!
One afternoon, we did some free painting with finger paint and several different brushes.
Here Z is experimenting with painting his body:
I got him some navy beans (the dry kind), and he has REALLY enjoyed scooping them into ice cube trays and muffin tins with different spoons:
and with his hands:
and of course pouring them out of the bowl:
We did this activity once on the floor and a couple times in his highchair, and I would have to say that the highchair was actually messier, because he kept knocking the beans down into his seat. I think a big tablecloth or sheet on the floor would be the way to go (for future reference).
We also made a turkey this week. Here is Z trying to use scissors for the first time, to cut some of the scraps: (not going so well) :)
But he was pretty excited about the finished product. We traced one foot and two hands of his for the body & wings of the turkey, then I cut out some feathers in different colors & we glued those on the back. We added eyes & a waddle & beak and some feet at the last minute for cuteness. :) He doesn't get into craft projects very much while we're doing them, but for the following week, he looks at what we made and says, "We made a turkey! (or pumpkin, or whatever)" so that makes it worthwhile even if I do the whole craft myself. :) 
The day before Thanksgiving, we made a pumpkin pie together! Z helped with the spices as you can see, actually he dumped in all the ingredients as I measured them.
He also helped stir the pie filling:
Here is our finished product. There should be three hearts on the top, but Z was possibly a little TOO helpful in pushing the hearts into the pie filling before it was baked. :)
It snowed one day this week, so Z was excited to put his boots on and go outside and 'walk in the 'now'. Here he is enjoying it. :)
Next week, my tot school post will probably include some pictures of Z's birthday party, because he turns TWO YEARS OLD on Saturday - I can't believe it!!! These two years have FLOWN by!!! :)For more great Tot School ideas, head over to 1+1+1=1!
Monday, November 30, 2009
The Toast Condiment Song
As Frequently Sung by Z.
Copyright 2009.
"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa a Boat,
Jelly, Jelly Tweam,
Mewwily, Mewwily, Mewwily, Mewwily,
Life a Butter Dweam"
(sung to the popular tune 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat')
Copyright 2009.
"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa a Boat,
Jelly, Jelly Tweam,
Mewwily, Mewwily, Mewwily, Mewwily,
Life a Butter Dweam"
(sung to the popular tune 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat')
Saturday, November 28, 2009
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...
Whew. The house is decorated for Christmas, including the tree, up and decorated. Could use another strand of lights... My hospital bag is mostly packed, including a tiny adorable girly outfit complete with tights and booties. Pump parts and bottles have been located and washed, just in case. Pink flowers are stamped around the border of my daughter's room. The infant car seat pad is washed and mended (stupid mice), and the straps are at the littlest setting possible, ready for my (hopefully) tiny girl. My birth plan is printed & in my purse, ready to be discussed at my Tuesday appt. I still have a mile-long to-do list, my house is still a mess (and my mother is coming when the baby is born, so it'd be nice if it was a little cleaner when the baby decides to come). But I feel a lot better just having those 'important' things done and ready.
And sitting under these homey Christmas lights, with the tree glowing on the side of the room, providing plenty of light even without the lamp on, I feel relaxed. These lights remind me of the weeks when Z was tiny. Many hours sitting on the couch together, nursing, rocking, holding, wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into, and whether my life would ever be the same again. (In case you don't have kids yet, or your first is still tiny and you're wondering this yourself, the answer to that question is: No, it won't. But it won't always be as hard as those first weeks, either. It will be even better than before, in many ways, I promise.) Anyway,now that the lights are up, it feels so much more real - like, okay, she can really come now, because the Christmas tree and lights are up. :)
And sitting under these homey Christmas lights, with the tree glowing on the side of the room, providing plenty of light even without the lamp on, I feel relaxed. These lights remind me of the weeks when Z was tiny. Many hours sitting on the couch together, nursing, rocking, holding, wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into, and whether my life would ever be the same again. (In case you don't have kids yet, or your first is still tiny and you're wondering this yourself, the answer to that question is: No, it won't. But it won't always be as hard as those first weeks, either. It will be even better than before, in many ways, I promise.) Anyway,now that the lights are up, it feels so much more real - like, okay, she can really come now, because the Christmas tree and lights are up. :)
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving!
This Thanksgiving, I am so thankful that my hubby is HOME! The guys have been working extra hours this week, to try to finish up a certain part of staff-house-building, and they were able to finish it yesterday morning. And it is so nice to have my hubby home for an entire day off. We have spent our day lounging around in our pajamas, watching TV, playing with Z, napping, and, of course, eating.
But we did not have a traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner- we'll be eating one of those with friends on Sunday. Instead, we had a brunch of biscuits & sausage gravy and egg casserole, and then a traditional Broncos game dinner of enchiladas and cheese dip. Mmmm...we hadn't had enchiladas for a while, and they turned out well, I'm proud to say. Maybe I'll share my non-recipe at some point. :) There is a pumpkin pie in the fridge, along with plenty of Cool Whip, so we may be partaking of that shortly. Right now we're watching the Broncos, who are presently beating the Giants, thankfully. :)
I feel a little overwhelmed about how much I still have to do to prepare our house for the baby coming - 3 weeks from tomorrow is her due date! I'd like to decorate the house for Christmas tomorrow, and I really need to pack my hospital bag, just in case - I think that will help me feel better about being ready for her, in case she would come early (Z was right on time, I went into labor on his due date & he came the next day, but I know this little girl could be very different).
Speaking of timing, God's timing is always impeccable, isn't it? And why can I never keep that in mind?
On Tuesday, I had an OB appointment, which is always a treat to take my little guy to...since we end up waiting a long time in the waiting room, and then again in the exam room...and you know how patiently 23-month-olds wait... :) And then I had a HUGE shopping list to do while waddling around on my swollen ankles at Wal-Mart and keeping my antsy toddler happy... I was literally feeling physically sick about the whole trip, and how much I was dreading it, and to top it all off, I would have to wake Z up early from his nap (though I put him down early to try to avoid that unpleasant act), and he & I both had a rather terrible, grouchy morning. One of us is getting two molars, and the other has no excuse. Not going to elaborate on those details.
Anyhow, on Tuesday, Hubby was supposed to work until 5, and Z & I were supposed to leave at 2:15 for the dr. appt.. At 2:10, Z was still sleeping, so I called the dr.'s office to see if they happened to be running behind. And they were (surprise!). :) So I avoided waking Z up prematurely, he woke up on his own at 2:25, and we read a book & I called the office back at 2:40 as they suggested. They said there were still several people waiting, but that we should start in (we have a half-hour drive). So as we were getting ready to put our shoes on, Hubby stopped in & said that the guys had run out of the materials they needed to finish their job that day, so they were going to finish on Wednesday morning instead, after they stocked up on supplies. So would I want him to bring his computer home & do office work from home, and go to my OB appt. and do my shopping by myself?
Had to think about it for, um, .2 seconds... YES!!!! :) Isn't it amazing how God worked out all the timing there perfectly - my dr. being behind, the guys running out of supplies, us not leaving until Hubby came by... And by the time I was done with all of my shopping (got home after 6:15 as it was), I was utterly exhausted. I think I would've given up if I had had Z with me - I'm so thankful God worked it all out so that we didn't have to make an extra trip!
Also, physically, I feel like I've finally hit the wall these past couple days. Up until this point, I've been uncomfortable & such, but these last few days, I've really had to take extra breaks and I've had the swollen ankles & hands pretty badly at the end of the day, and through the night, especially. Finally starting to REALLY look forward to being physically DONE with this pregnancy! (yes, I'm one of those weird people who LOVE being pregnant).
So, I'm praying that God will continue to give me physical strength through these next three weeks (if she waits that long to come), and that I will remember that His timing is ALWAYS perfect. :)
But we did not have a traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner- we'll be eating one of those with friends on Sunday. Instead, we had a brunch of biscuits & sausage gravy and egg casserole, and then a traditional Broncos game dinner of enchiladas and cheese dip. Mmmm...we hadn't had enchiladas for a while, and they turned out well, I'm proud to say. Maybe I'll share my non-recipe at some point. :) There is a pumpkin pie in the fridge, along with plenty of Cool Whip, so we may be partaking of that shortly. Right now we're watching the Broncos, who are presently beating the Giants, thankfully. :)
I feel a little overwhelmed about how much I still have to do to prepare our house for the baby coming - 3 weeks from tomorrow is her due date! I'd like to decorate the house for Christmas tomorrow, and I really need to pack my hospital bag, just in case - I think that will help me feel better about being ready for her, in case she would come early (Z was right on time, I went into labor on his due date & he came the next day, but I know this little girl could be very different).
Speaking of timing, God's timing is always impeccable, isn't it? And why can I never keep that in mind?
On Tuesday, I had an OB appointment, which is always a treat to take my little guy to...since we end up waiting a long time in the waiting room, and then again in the exam room...and you know how patiently 23-month-olds wait... :) And then I had a HUGE shopping list to do while waddling around on my swollen ankles at Wal-Mart and keeping my antsy toddler happy... I was literally feeling physically sick about the whole trip, and how much I was dreading it, and to top it all off, I would have to wake Z up early from his nap (though I put him down early to try to avoid that unpleasant act), and he & I both had a rather terrible, grouchy morning. One of us is getting two molars, and the other has no excuse. Not going to elaborate on those details.
Anyhow, on Tuesday, Hubby was supposed to work until 5, and Z & I were supposed to leave at 2:15 for the dr. appt.. At 2:10, Z was still sleeping, so I called the dr.'s office to see if they happened to be running behind. And they were (surprise!). :) So I avoided waking Z up prematurely, he woke up on his own at 2:25, and we read a book & I called the office back at 2:40 as they suggested. They said there were still several people waiting, but that we should start in (we have a half-hour drive). So as we were getting ready to put our shoes on, Hubby stopped in & said that the guys had run out of the materials they needed to finish their job that day, so they were going to finish on Wednesday morning instead, after they stocked up on supplies. So would I want him to bring his computer home & do office work from home, and go to my OB appt. and do my shopping by myself?
Had to think about it for, um, .2 seconds... YES!!!! :) Isn't it amazing how God worked out all the timing there perfectly - my dr. being behind, the guys running out of supplies, us not leaving until Hubby came by... And by the time I was done with all of my shopping (got home after 6:15 as it was), I was utterly exhausted. I think I would've given up if I had had Z with me - I'm so thankful God worked it all out so that we didn't have to make an extra trip!
Also, physically, I feel like I've finally hit the wall these past couple days. Up until this point, I've been uncomfortable & such, but these last few days, I've really had to take extra breaks and I've had the swollen ankles & hands pretty badly at the end of the day, and through the night, especially. Finally starting to REALLY look forward to being physically DONE with this pregnancy! (yes, I'm one of those weird people who LOVE being pregnant).
So, I'm praying that God will continue to give me physical strength through these next three weeks (if she waits that long to come), and that I will remember that His timing is ALWAYS perfect. :)
Monday, November 23, 2009
Tot School
This was a busy week, and we didn't do too many formal Tot School activities. We did spend time doing some of our favorite puzzles (such as this one, which he can now do all by himself), playing with our letter blocks, and spending some time outside. In house-building class this week, we learned more about laying block, and Z got to spend a few minutes playing that he was driving the camp's tractor. He learned to use the tractor's turn signals, too, which is always an important lesson. :)
One night, Hubby & I were able to get out on a date together, which was nice, and Z spent nearly the entire evening with his babysitter coloring! Somewhere along the way, he even got a hold of a pen, and she let him color in his coloring books with a pen. And he didn't forget how to use it, either! The next day, we were walking around the house with our brooms, I was making sure there were no cobwebs in the corners, and he was whacking stuff. I heard him repeatedly whacking the wall in the hallway, so I stuck my head out to ask him to be gentle and not hit the wall, and he was actually writing on the wall with a black pen! He was very proud of himself, and didn't realize he had done anything wrong. So we had a little lesson - we tried to use a rag to wipe the pen off, but it didn't come clean. And we discussed writing on paper with a pen, not on the wall. He ended up realizing that it was wrong, and when Daddy came home, and we had to tell him what happened, his little eyes looked down, and I could tell he knew not to do it again. Sometimes now when we're in the hall, he will point to the pen marks and say something like, "I use a pen. No write on wall. Write on paper." It has been neat to see him absorb this little lesson, and it has taught me not to jump too quickly to discipline, but to make sure he understands the reasoning behind the rules whenever possible.
We did bake together this week, which was a fun time for both of us.
Here is Z in the kitchen, all ready to mix up our pumpkin muffins.
He helped me pack down the brown sugar.
He dumped each of the ingredients into the mixing bowl after I measured them out.
He helped stir the batter.
And, of course, his favorite part, watching the mixer mix the batter up!
He wasn't really able to help with the scooping of the muffin batter into the tin, though, just because of his height and the awkwardness of the counter level....maybe another time I would think to spread something out on the floor & have him help me down there. I didn't get a picture of the finished product, but we made two dozen pumpkin muffins...I think we have about 8 or 10 left... :) Yummy!
Hope you all are having a great week, and have a great Thanksgiving holiday! We hope to do some kind of turkey project later this week, and to relax as a family on Thanksgiving, and then decorate for Christmas this weekend - so those are my goals for the week! :)
Check out more Tot School over at Carisa's!
One night, Hubby & I were able to get out on a date together, which was nice, and Z spent nearly the entire evening with his babysitter coloring! Somewhere along the way, he even got a hold of a pen, and she let him color in his coloring books with a pen. And he didn't forget how to use it, either! The next day, we were walking around the house with our brooms, I was making sure there were no cobwebs in the corners, and he was whacking stuff. I heard him repeatedly whacking the wall in the hallway, so I stuck my head out to ask him to be gentle and not hit the wall, and he was actually writing on the wall with a black pen! He was very proud of himself, and didn't realize he had done anything wrong. So we had a little lesson - we tried to use a rag to wipe the pen off, but it didn't come clean. And we discussed writing on paper with a pen, not on the wall. He ended up realizing that it was wrong, and when Daddy came home, and we had to tell him what happened, his little eyes looked down, and I could tell he knew not to do it again. Sometimes now when we're in the hall, he will point to the pen marks and say something like, "I use a pen. No write on wall. Write on paper." It has been neat to see him absorb this little lesson, and it has taught me not to jump too quickly to discipline, but to make sure he understands the reasoning behind the rules whenever possible.
We did bake together this week, which was a fun time for both of us.
Here is Z in the kitchen, all ready to mix up our pumpkin muffins.
He helped me pack down the brown sugar.
He dumped each of the ingredients into the mixing bowl after I measured them out.
He helped stir the batter.
And, of course, his favorite part, watching the mixer mix the batter up!
He wasn't really able to help with the scooping of the muffin batter into the tin, though, just because of his height and the awkwardness of the counter level....maybe another time I would think to spread something out on the floor & have him help me down there. I didn't get a picture of the finished product, but we made two dozen pumpkin muffins...I think we have about 8 or 10 left... :) Yummy!
Hope you all are having a great week, and have a great Thanksgiving holiday! We hope to do some kind of turkey project later this week, and to relax as a family on Thanksgiving, and then decorate for Christmas this weekend - so those are my goals for the week! :) Check out more Tot School over at Carisa's!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Selfishness
Do you ever just want to scream at someone, "Why can't you ever think of anyone but yourself???"
I was suffering through a terrible mood yesterday. I was rather impatient with my little man. I blamed it on his constant disobedience (which is always made worse by my impatient frustration - it's like my muttering and huffing and puffing egg him on somehow). I blamed it on my 9-month-pregnant-enormous-belly, my uncomfortable hugeness, my sore back and hips, several nights of poor sleep, my LONG list of housework and baby-readying tasks.
And I had some thoughts like the one above. And I realized that what I was really thinking was, "Why can't everyone just think of ME instead of themselves?"
And I realized that, while thinking this, I was thinking, of course, only of myself.
When I focus on myself, and how others SHOULD be serving me or thinking of me, I'm miserable.
But when I focus on others instead of myself, and how to serve and please them, this leads to happiness.
For my whole family.
Because it is SO true that 'when Momma ain't happy, ain't NObody happy'.
Here's to happiness through selflessness. :)
Radical concept, right? You'd think maybe somebody would've written about this thousands of years ago or something...
I was suffering through a terrible mood yesterday. I was rather impatient with my little man. I blamed it on his constant disobedience (which is always made worse by my impatient frustration - it's like my muttering and huffing and puffing egg him on somehow). I blamed it on my 9-month-pregnant-enormous-belly, my uncomfortable hugeness, my sore back and hips, several nights of poor sleep, my LONG list of housework and baby-readying tasks.
And I had some thoughts like the one above. And I realized that what I was really thinking was, "Why can't everyone just think of ME instead of themselves?"
And I realized that, while thinking this, I was thinking, of course, only of myself.
When I focus on myself, and how others SHOULD be serving me or thinking of me, I'm miserable.
But when I focus on others instead of myself, and how to serve and please them, this leads to happiness.
For my whole family.
Because it is SO true that 'when Momma ain't happy, ain't NObody happy'.
Here's to happiness through selflessness. :)
Radical concept, right? You'd think maybe somebody would've written about this thousands of years ago or something...
Whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.
For the first shall be last, and the last first.
-Mt. 20:27 & 20:16.
For the first shall be last, and the last first.
-Mt. 20:27 & 20:16.
Friday, November 20, 2009
An Amazing Morning
If you're NOT the mother of a little boy, you probably don't even notice when the garbage truck comes. Or maybe your thoughts are along the lines of, "Okay, I put the garbage out, good." or something equally un-exciting.
If you ARE the mother of a little boy (or a big boy who used to be a little boy), you know that this can be one of the most exciting times of the week.
I'm thankful that the camp's dumpster is near our house, so that Z can watch the garbage truck each week. :)
I apologize for the quality of the photographs, due to my height, my window, and my lack of photography skills.
On another, slightly more exciting note (unless you're a little boy, of course)...
Wednesday night, Hubby surprised me by telling me that he lined up one of Z's favorite babysitters to come watch him yesterday afternoon, and we were going on a date! We went and saw the movie The Box. If anyone has seen it, and understands what just happened, please fill us in. :) I don't regret seeing the movie, and we had a great time, just one of those things you have to think about for a while afterwards. Like the show LOST or something along those lines.
Anywhoo, on the way home from our date, Hubby & I were discussing the fact that our little girl will be arriving soon (FOUR WEEKS from today, people - I am FULL-TERM TODAY!!!). And, also, we don't have a double stroller. I had been wanting one that had big tires that you can put air in, like a jogging or terrain stroller, but a double jogging/terrain stroller is typically very expensive. And I wanted it for around camp, on the gravel. But, now that Z is so big, he likes to walk around camp, and I don't really remember the last time I used the stroller for him on camp, anyway. So, I was saying that maybe we should just get a regular double stroller, and that way we could use it at the zoo, mall, etc. and just use the old single stroller around camp for the baby while Zachary walks.
This morning, I opened my email, and found a message titled, "Congratulations! Winner of Kolcraft Contours Options Tandem Stroller Giveaway!" Um, really? I was just thinking the other day that I hadn't won anything online for a while... And, REALLY! I won a double stroller - the last 'big' thing that we need for the baby!!! I am so excited!!! You can see the giveaway (and the stroller) here!
The icing on the cake is that, based on what Hubby and I talked about last night, if I had shopped for a stroller & money wasn't an option (because, truly I would've been shopping at the thrift store in real life), this is EXACTLY what I would've picked!!! :) It's just like God to provide what we need and SO much more, right on time. I'm SO glad we didn't 'get on the ball' and buy a double stroller months ago!!!
To close, just to give you an idea of the cuteness I have to deal with around here on a regular basis, here is Zachary sleeping last night:
It's just too much. I don't know how I ever get anything done around here. :)
If you ARE the mother of a little boy (or a big boy who used to be a little boy), you know that this can be one of the most exciting times of the week.
I'm thankful that the camp's dumpster is near our house, so that Z can watch the garbage truck each week. :)
I apologize for the quality of the photographs, due to my height, my window, and my lack of photography skills.On another, slightly more exciting note (unless you're a little boy, of course)...
Wednesday night, Hubby surprised me by telling me that he lined up one of Z's favorite babysitters to come watch him yesterday afternoon, and we were going on a date! We went and saw the movie The Box. If anyone has seen it, and understands what just happened, please fill us in. :) I don't regret seeing the movie, and we had a great time, just one of those things you have to think about for a while afterwards. Like the show LOST or something along those lines.
Anywhoo, on the way home from our date, Hubby & I were discussing the fact that our little girl will be arriving soon (FOUR WEEKS from today, people - I am FULL-TERM TODAY!!!). And, also, we don't have a double stroller. I had been wanting one that had big tires that you can put air in, like a jogging or terrain stroller, but a double jogging/terrain stroller is typically very expensive. And I wanted it for around camp, on the gravel. But, now that Z is so big, he likes to walk around camp, and I don't really remember the last time I used the stroller for him on camp, anyway. So, I was saying that maybe we should just get a regular double stroller, and that way we could use it at the zoo, mall, etc. and just use the old single stroller around camp for the baby while Zachary walks.
This morning, I opened my email, and found a message titled, "Congratulations! Winner of Kolcraft Contours Options Tandem Stroller Giveaway!" Um, really? I was just thinking the other day that I hadn't won anything online for a while... And, REALLY! I won a double stroller - the last 'big' thing that we need for the baby!!! I am so excited!!! You can see the giveaway (and the stroller) here!
The icing on the cake is that, based on what Hubby and I talked about last night, if I had shopped for a stroller & money wasn't an option (because, truly I would've been shopping at the thrift store in real life), this is EXACTLY what I would've picked!!! :) It's just like God to provide what we need and SO much more, right on time. I'm SO glad we didn't 'get on the ball' and buy a double stroller months ago!!!
To close, just to give you an idea of the cuteness I have to deal with around here on a regular basis, here is Zachary sleeping last night:
It's just too much. I don't know how I ever get anything done around here. :)
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