In The Wings

Soccer Boy

2012-02-15T21:45:00.002-06:00

D's soccer class is all over - and I wish I would have signed him up for the 2nd session. He loved it! He was SO good in the class - and was so into it. He talked about going to "soccer ball" all the time.
It was a "break away" class - where I just was to leave him at the door, but as we were running late to the first class I sat in because I didn't know that - and I snuck in some secret video.

He loves it - and I can't wait to sign him up for either soccer, basketball or baseball in the Spring!

We're going...

2012-01-31T21:39:00.002-06:00

to DISNEYWORLD!

Yippee!

The anti-traditional hippy in me feels slightly like a cookie-cutter right now - same as I did when we got a house in the suburbs and a Golden Retriever. But alas, it's all in the name of growing up and having a family. Plus it's SUPER FUN ;)

So we're going the week of February 20th and will have a ball I'm sure. Staying off-property solely for cost-effectiveness and to have a 2-room suite with free breakfast every morning and a free shuttle to the parks!

D knows we're going. He doesn't really understand the wait though - but he's going about it okay. I put a Mickey head on his bedroom calendar on the day we're going so he can watch the days pass.

In the meanwhile we rented the 1990 classic - Disney Sing Along Songs, Disneyland Fun from the library, and we've been watching it a minimum of once a day. This has been good because it is getting him in the excited mode to go (mostly for the Star Wars rides he sees on the movie). However it's bad because when the super-awesome clothes and bad hair of 1990 came on the screen for the songs, so did Roger Rabbit, who was a hit at the time. D had no idea who he was when he came on - however after the hundreds of viewings, he now fully expects to see Roger Rabbit at Disney World when we go. This is not good. We'll have to tell him Roger's on vacation (ha, that worked with his late fish, Robin, RIP).

I'm excited - I haven't been since I was in early high school. Things are going to be a lot different than they were then!

So prepare to see some cute pics when we get back.

You May Notice...

2012-01-25T22:07:00.000-06:00

I'm doing the March for Babies again! I added my "gadget" to your right - that links to my fundraising page.
The walk is April 29th - but any donations are always appreciated early!

Let me know if you want to walk with us!

Snow Boy

2012-01-21T23:33:00.004-06:00

Here's our little snow boy. He LOVES being out in the snow - had his first trips in the sleds we got for Christmas from Grandma Denise, made his first snow angels, and of course engaged us in many snowball fights.

These are all from day 1 in the snow - finished up with these of the hot chocolate finale!

Many more pics to come soon from today's jaunt in the snow with cousin Haven.

Bonjour

2012-01-19T22:11:00.004-06:00

Are you sick of book reviews? TOO BAD! Ha!

We've got another SUPER cute library book at home that I don't want to forget about. Dain actually picked it out on a day he took D to the library and he's not letting me live this one down.

Everybody Bonjours - by Leslie Kimmelmana

This book is based on my husband's favorite city in the world, and one of my top favorite destinations of all time - PARIS!
The book is perfect for a cutie little one - who might be interested in French or whose parents are forcing it on him (HA) - and yes we have bi-lingual English/French books in our home!
This book focuses on how everyone says "hello" in Paris - BONJOUR! It's adorably rhymed, "They bonjour while sweeping floors, doing chores...eating petit fours. Everybody Bonjours!"
Illustrated by a family of four clearly on vacation in the city of light, they visit the Mona Lisa, Eiffel Tower, the Metropolitan subway, etc. Everywhere people are bonjouring to eachother. The graphics are almost like a watercolor painting - though a bit more vivid. They are beautiful and perfectly capture that Parisian spirit, while keeping the cartoonish flair that keeps a child glued to the page. In addition, the author and illustrator added a mouse "hidden" on each page that the little reader can try to locate. D LOVES finding the mouse!
The cute story gives Paris the benefit of the doubt - when a lot of people think that the French people as a rule are not the friendliest culture to tourists. I did not experience that at all, and I was happy to see a book that totally blew up that theory. The family bonjours all over Paris - but at the end, when they get back home "everybody HELLO's"!

Love this book. It's a quick, cute, perfectly Parisian story. And it makes me dream even more about taking our family to Paris someday. I would love to take D to that beautiful place, and let him BONJOUR all over the place! Someday my friends, someday.

Christmas Done

2012-01-10T23:07:00.004-06:00

Well it only took me to the 10th of January (in 2012 who can believe it?!?) to share my holidays with you - but here it is.

We were so excited that D was so excited about the holidays this year. He had figured out that he was going to get presents so he was UBER excited about Santa and the idea of Christmas. He loved decorating the tree. He loved singing the songs - his favorite seemed to be "Deck The Halls" for some reason (mostly because of the "fa la la la las"), though a close second was of course "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells..." (but to be fair that's an annual favorite).

If you asked D what he wanted from Santa early on he would say "a present". We asked what kind and he said "a red stripe, and a black stripe, and a blue stripe, and a green stripe" - we figured out he was trying to describe the wrapping paper. Once we asked what he wanted inside - he wanted a trooper (from Star Wars) and a "car wash" (the game "Rush Hour" which he saw at my babysitter's house - it's too old for him, but oh well).

Here's some shots of his Christmas morning...complete with the gifts under the tree first - and his stocking (guess what that gift is?)...

It was a great Christmas - of course filled with family and fun.
And of course - today D told me something he "wants for Christmas"...it may be a long year...

12 Books of Christmas - day 12!!

2011-12-24T23:17:00.004-06:00

The Final Day!
And what else could it be?!?! However this is a special one!

The Night Before Christmas - by Clement C. Moore

Of course this is my final entry in this series! It's a classic. You know this story. You love it. You've probably seen it illustrated 100 different ways, and they're never bad. I've seen a million versions and love them all!

This one is special though - as our version of this book is the one you see pictured - and is read by Grandma Susie :) This was a gift last year - and D will sit and "read" it over and over. It's perfect. I love it - and I know he'll love it for years and years to come.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS to ALL!!
And to all a good night.

12 Books of Christmas - day 11

2011-12-22T22:24:00.004-06:00

To be honest - this is one I don't remember very well...

Noel - by Romeo Muller

This book seems to have printed in 1993. I have vague recollections of it from my babysitting days. I remember I bought a coloring book of this story for my babysitting bag and it was my favorite to bust out for the kids.

This is the story of a loving Christmas ornament that comes to life. I know that Noel is filled with the spirit of the season and loves Christmas, even though some of his other ornament friends do not.

Noel has a special power of happiness to bring it to the families he's with, to which he graces their tree. I know that Noel befriends many families in this story and somehow ends up broken. MAN I need to locate this one again.

I love this book and added it because it brought back a memory for me. I hadn't even thought of this book and found it in a random search. I also LOVE the concept and the illustrations of the beloved little ornament with the power of Christmas. The illustrations are amazing, and the story must have been at least somewhat intriguing to the masses because it was made into an animated movie - with a voiceover by Charleton Heston!!

So I'm wanting to remember this - if nothing else. This is my selfish post - as a reminder to find this book and read it to my little bookworm. And it's a reminder to keep the spirit of Christmas in your heart even amongst others who may not be as cheerful as they should be. That's an excellent message for 2 days away from Christmas if nothing else.

Ahhh - I love nostalgia.

12 Books of Christmas - day 10

2011-12-21T22:31:00.003-06:00

Whew - made it to day 10!

Day 10 I'm going with a D favorite - reminiscent of the day of the Bear books that we know and love...D loves another "little critter" just as much...

Merry Christmas Mom and Dad - by Mercer Mayer

We've come to embrace Little Critter in our house. I remembered those books from when I was little, and introduced a few to D who immediately took to the little guy. Since then it's become a tradition - we get a different (or repeat) Little Critter book at the library every week.

This week we OF COURSE hit the holiday section and hit the jackpot with the a Little Critter book. I didn't remember this one - but Dain thought that he had this book as a kid - which is great!

Mercer Mayer is a great author. The little critter books are always endearing, and the focus is the little guy who is always trying to do the right thing and explaining away the things he can't do correctly. This book is no exception to the cuteness of the other stories. Little Critter wants to help mom and dad by baking cookies (but tasting too many), trying to go to sleep right away Christmas Eve (he was too excited - - D thinks he's scared!), and trying not to wake his parents up too early Christmas morning (he brought his new toys up to their room at 6 am).

This story is a heartwarming way of showing that kids aren't always trying to be difficult - they have the best intentions at heart. Little Critter loves his parents and wanted to have a Merry Christmas. That's always a great message!

12 Books of Christmas - day 9

2011-12-20T21:53:00.002-06:00

Here's day 9. Maybe it's because I've been dreaming of vacation lately...

Mrs. Claus Takes a Vacation - by Linas Alsenas

This cute book grabbed my attention at the library the way most do...the cover. Shame on me for judging books by their covers, eh? But that's how I've found so many good ones out there!!

Anyway - Mrs. Claus Takes a Vacation is a cute story from beginning to end - and the illustrations that make the cover so eye-catching are even more appealing on the pages inside.

This book starts at the North Pole - with Mrs. Claus expressing frustration that Santa gets to see the world every year and she has never really been out and about. So she kisses her husband goodbye and hitches up a reindeer and hits the road to see the world.

She travels around the world - sitting on beaches, eating sushi in Japan, dancing with locals somewhere in England, visiting beautiful temples somewhere in India. Santa sits home convinced she's not going to last in the sun at the beach (she's fine there), that she's not making any friends (she does), and that she's missing the food/cookies at their North Pole home (which she sorta does in a cute/funny sushi picture).
Mrs. Claus seems to be having a fabulous time - but starts to wish she was sharing the experiences with her husband - so she heads home - of course in time for Christmas Eve.
SPOILER ALERT! Santa hitches up the sleigh to make the rounds for Christmas - and asks her to go with him. He says he'd like to take her on one more trip around the world and couldn't imagine wanting to share it with anyone else.

This book is great. It is not too short/not too long - and the pictures keep it interesting the whole way through. Who doesn't want to see Santa in his loungewear at home waiting for his wife on his off days? :) The images of Mrs. Santa on her trip are well done and make you want to be in all those scenarios.

As I mentioned - perhaps I just need a vacation and that's why I pulled this off the shelf. However D likes this book too. He likes to see Mrs. Claus. To be honest it's nice to see her as the focus of a story! And it's got a great moral...that you can go anywhere and do anything - but it's the company you keep that makes wherever you go the most special.

12 Books of Christmas - day 8

2011-12-19T22:52:00.003-06:00

Ick. This day had to come.
Yep - the 8th book of Christmas is not one that's a favorite of mine. Definitely not a favorite of Dain's. But D loves it so here we go...

What Dogs Want for Christmas - by Kandy Radzinski

OKAY it's a cute idea. And OKAY the dogs are illustrated beautifully. So maybe it's a good one :)

This book was a gift - I believe from Grandma Denise again. And D loves it. He loved it last year too. I know he loves dogs - and there's a cute rhyming pattern to what the dogs are asking Santa for. There's a Golden Retriever who wants cookies, a Bassett that wants a hat to hold his ears up, a Chihuahua who wants a sweater to stay warm, etc.
D mostly loves the dogs' names. Baxter, Goldie (the Golden Retriever cleverly enough), Rufus, Daisy, Miss Maddie, etc. They are as I had said, beautifully drawn and come off as cute and cuddly and warm. They are no doubt irresistible to a 2 or 3 or 4 year old kid. It's a cute, quick, feel-good holiday story that makes you see that everyone has a heart's desire or perfect gift that would make their holiday perfect for them.
The last dog just wants a warm home, lap to lay on, and family to call their own. It's that what we all want after all?

12 Books of Christmas - day 7

2011-12-17T23:12:00.003-06:00

Same day as 6...but you get the idea.

No list would be complete without THE GRINCH!!

How the Grinch Stole Christmas - by Dr. Seuss

To be completely honest - I haven't read this one since my youth and I'm SICK over it. However - I watch the movie every year and listen to the music every year as well. It's amazing and a classic that can't be avoided on this list.

While I may not have the book - which is a TRAVESTY on the part of my child-rearing - I love the story and the message.

If you've lived under a rock and don't know the premise - it's about the Who's - a group of citizens in the town of Whoville. They are the cute-illustrated people created by Dr. Seuss.
The grinch lives in a mountain outside of Whoville and is ANTI-Christmas. He trys to STEAL Christmas and all the festiveness from Whoville - especially a little girl named Cindy-Lou Who - the main character besides the Grinch.
What we learn in this moral - is that the citizens of Whoville don't need gifts or decorations or even food/parties - they just need love in their hearts for their friends/family to make their Christmas special. And the Grinch's heart grew that day. And forever more.

I love that this book reinforces the spirit of Christmas.
"Maybe Christmas.. he thought...doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more."

12 Books of Christmas - day 6

2011-12-17T08:37:00.002-06:00

Ick I missed a day so I'll be doing 2 today it seems!

Day 6 is another book from Grandma Denise, she gave to D a couple years ago and it's adorable - he loves it and I've noticed it growing in popularity:

Snowmen at Christmas - by Caralyn Buehner

This book is a classic in the works - it's destined to be one that's discussed for generations. I didn't know it - but there are 2 or 3 other "snowmen" books by this author. Guess what we'll be looking for at the library? :)

Snowmen at Christmas tells the story of what the snowmen do on Christmas Eve once everyone is asleep. They sneak off the lawns where they reside and all head to the center of town. They enjoy the lights, and the spirit of the holidays. They see their friends, have treats, dance, and decorate a giant tree with snow. Even snowman St Nick arrives! Then as dawn approaches - they all head home to be back on your lawn by Christmas morning.

I love that this book inspires this kind of creative thinking. That it allows kids to think that their snowmen gets to spend the holiday with their friends and can magically come alive. That's the kind of thinking I had as a kid and I miss in adulthood.

The illustrations in this book really make the story. Illustrated by Mark Buehner (who I THINK is the author's husband) the pictures are the perfect compliment. He somehow accomplished evening drawings with the perfect amount of "light" coming from the snow, and city lights. These pictures are appreciated by adults and children in my mind.

This book is a no-brainer for your library list, or your holiday lists. It's an adorable story - with creative thinking inspired...which made it (in my opinion) a GREAT book.

12 Books of Christmas - day 5

2011-12-15T23:06:00.002-06:00

I've painted myself in a corner and now HAVE to knock one of these out every day!

But, never fear...I'm ready!

Tonight's day 5 book is by one of my FAVORITE children's books authors:

If You Take A Mouse To The Movies - by Laura Numeroff

Laura Numeroff has written some of my favorite children's books - including "Dogs Don't Wear Sneakers", but we are BIG fans of the "If you..." series that she's created.

This story is the Christmas version - and definitely keeps with the cute style of the string-of-events storytelling that these books are famous for. If you aren't familiar with the other books in this series GET FAMILIAR, they are adorable. (My personal fav is "If You Give a Cat a Cupcake").

The book follows a little boy and a mouse - and "if you take a mouse to the movies, he's going to want some popcorn". The popcorn leads him to stringing it up, then wanting to get a Christmas tree, then wanting to make ornaments, etc etc etc. The journey goes from the movies, to the woods, to the backyard, to the house, and then winds up back at where you started. He wants to go back to the movies.

Laura Numeroff's stories in this series always follow a chain of events that lead the character and the animal back to where they started. But there's no shortage of cuteness and laughter along the way.

The book is illustrated by Felicia Bond, who illustrates all the books in this series. Her drawings are so cute and perfect for the story. There's a simplicity to them, but a reality that makes the sparkles, popcorn, lights, snow all come alive on the page. I've always loved how "friendly" the artistry is in these books.

This story is a cute way to stay in the Christmas spirit. It doesn't have a moral, but it's holiday fun at it's finest. Check it out of the library at the least. And while you're in the N section - get some of the others!

OOH - I heard that the latest in this series is "If You Give a Dog a Donut" and I'm just waiting for our turn with that one from the library!

12 Books of Christmas - day 4

2011-12-14T21:21:00.003-06:00

On the 4th book of Christmas...we bring in Santa!!

Santa Claus the World's Number One Toy Expert - by Marla Frazee

This book is perfect for day 4, and for all those kids who are figuring out their wish lists for Santa...or more likely for those who aren't quite sure.

We got this book from the library last year and it quickly made it onto our Amazon wish list. Marla Frazee wrote this adorable story for kids of any age, and adults who still want to believe in the magic.

The illustrations on the cover are what initially drew me to this book. Adorable drawings of Santa and toys - with a vintage feel that seems to be a hallmark of children's books that I love. The pictures of Santa are so warm and friendly, and sometimes funny. I love how this book is drawn!

The story is about Santa, obviously, and how he's the "number one toy expert". He spends his time picking out the perfect gift to match with each child's likes and talents. It shows Santa doing research - and testing all the toys to make sure they are fun to play with. The story shows Santa trying out the fun of all the toys (mostly timeless classics like hula hoops and dolls, etc). He makes sure that each gift matches each child so that Christmas morning is successful and happy for each one.
This gives the idea that Santa is busy all year round with his studies. I love that. And it says that "gives the exact right toy to the exact right kid, 99.9% of the time . . . no one is perfect. Not even Santa Claus" which I think is good - because there's bound to be those few kids out there who aren't thrilled with what they've gotten, but even the kid pictured in the story (from my recollection) realizes that the toy he got is amazing. (This is only one small page in this adorable book).

I like that the other side of this story is that Santa is a number one KID expert too - referencing that he talks to LOTS of kids all year - brave and shy. This is especially poignant to me this year as D is scared of Santa in the flesh. But that's good...because he's been changing his mind on toys. However maybe I should get this book - so he realizes that Santa is working on getting him the perfect toy...because Santa knows every kid, and what toy will be best for them. I think D will be happy with what Santa brings him this year - because he's been watching and listening very closely and boy oh boy does Santa love to do his research. ;)

12 Books of Christmas - day 3

2011-12-12T22:34:00.003-06:00

Look at me! I'm staying on top of it!

So here's the book for #3 - a bear that has worked his way into our hearts...

Bear Stays Up for Christmas - by Karma Wilson & illustrations by Jane Chapman

This super-cute rhyming book is just one of the MANY "Bear..." books that D has grown to love. Karma Wilson has written an entire series, including Bears Wants More, Bear's New Friend, Bear Feels Scared and our VERY favorite Bear Snores On. In fact, Bear Snores On I have memorized, and it's the story I whisper-tell to D on nights that he's having trouble going to sleep and still wants to rock.

Bear Stays Up for Christmas is another success for Karma Wilson in my "book". It's written (and illustrated by Jane Chapman) in the same rhyming style - with the same adorable characters that are in each of her other stories.
In this story - the bear's friends interrupt his hibernation so he doesn't sleep through Christmas - and miss all the fun. They keep him busy getting a tree and decorating it, singing carols, etc. Eventually just the bear is awake all night baking and wrapping for his friends - and when the rest wake up they exchange gifts and see that Santa has come. His friends let him go back to sleep, and they all sneak off out of the cave after a wonderful holiday.

The illustrations in these books are perfect as usual. The bear is so warm and cozy, and the rest of his crew just completes it. Throughout the series you see that they are true friends and eachother's family. It's such a wonderful thing to see them together celebrating the holiday, and with such an adorable story. They want to spend their time together - which is a great message.

The story is the perfect length for bedtime - or anytime in D's case. It's familiar and warm and a favorite that we will read for years...or until D no longer will let me cram him on my lap.

12 Books of Christmas - day 2

2011-12-11T14:43:00.003-06:00

So I'm following up! Here's book #2 - and it's probably good that I gave myself more than 12 days to do this so I can actually accomplish all 12...

Baby's Christmas - written and illustrated by Eloise Wilkin

This is a Little Golden Book from 1959. For some reason we had it when I was a little girl and I always remember it as one of my favorite books of all time, not just of the season. In fact, this was one of those books that I sought out on eBay while I was pregnant because I knew I wanted my baby to have this book in their library.

This book is very simply written, and illustrated. But like others by Eloise Wilkin (there were many), the illustrations are beautifully done, detailed and lifelike, while retaining the image of the era.

The book is about a baby coming down for Christmas to see what Santa left. It's very gender neutral - to this day I'm not sure if the baby is a boy or girl, however there's a stocking on the mantle in one image that says "John" so maybe it's a boy. Growing up I just assumed it was a girl because I lived in a house full of girls, and the baby gets a few pink toys. Ha.

I typically skip pages 2-3 because it doesn't "fit" the rest of the story in it's writing style. But the rest is written so the sentences flow very well.
The baby gets a little ball, a rocking horse, a music box, a train, and many MANY more toys. (Written like "Santa left a music box that plays a little tune. He left a string of wooden beads, pink and white and blue."). The one problem I have as an adult is that this baby gets a TON from Santa...which maybe doesn't teach the best expectations - but you immediately overlook that once you get in to the story.
The pages typically have one toy per page - some with the baby using them, some just on their own. The toys are all reminiscent of the era - simple, wooden, colorful. The kind of toys I preferred best for D at that age. I was always obsessed with the milk truck that the baby gets. I wished I had that toy through my entire youth. I still wish D could have had one.
At the end - baby gets a toy box as well - to put all the toys away in.

This book is better than I remembered it. It's adorable - and simple. D loved it as an infant...and still loves it as a very active toddler. I still love it as a 31 year old adult. It will always be one of my favorites. I leave it in our rotation year round - it does not get put away with the other Christmas books, needless to say ;)

12 Books of Christmas - day 1

2011-12-09T23:07:00.007-06:00

I've decided maybe I'll do the 12 Books of Christmas...of course with children's books. We'll see if I bite off more than I can chew, because I've not been the best at keeping up with posts!

However - here we go with Day 1:

The Longest Christmas List Ever - by Gregg Spiradellis and Evan Spiradellis

This book is new to us this year - a gift from Grandma Denise. Regardless of this - it has quickly made it in to the VERY regular rotation.
This book is about a little boy named Trevor, who wakes up Christmas morning to a plethora of toys that he loves but keeps tossing aside for the next and the next. In the midst he realizes he forgot to ask Santa for a puppy - so he starts the next year's list right there and then so he's sure not to forget a single item that his heart desires.
He writes day and night for close to a year - filling boxes of lists that stretch through his town. When he goes to mail the list it's too pricey - so he has to try to narrow it to one page and misses the post office cut-off for Santa. So he's terrified of missing presents.
SPOILER ALERT - he wakes up to the perfect present...and realizes that mom and dad must have written Santa and that Christmas is about love and not presents. I won't tell you what that gift is though. HA!

This book is adorably written. It's not too short, not too long - and rhymes in the clever and mild fashion that makes a book fun to travel through.
The illustrations are perfect. The little boy is drawn well, just enough exaggeration with his features to make him an adorable main character with perfect expressions.

I also love the message of this book. It's almost like a fable, with a moral at the end. Trevor learns that love can make a holiday special. He learns that the one perfect gift and the love of your family can override boxes full of material things that won't fill your heart.

In short, it's a keeper.

Stay tuned for - hopefully - 11 more books of Christmas.

Fell in a Hole

2011-12-06T19:28:00.001-06:00

Did I fall in hole? No.
But that would be the best excuse as to why I haven't been posting on the blog. I haven't even uploaded a picture to my computer since Halloween. I have been out of it. Just busy with holidays/work/etc that take up everyone's time. But I've had so many posts I've thought about in my head but just haven't put on the web. I've even saved multiple books from the library because I've been obsessed and not wanting to forget them for a future post.

I'll get back at it soon. Stay tuned.

FLASH back

2011-11-21T22:11:00.003-06:00

I'm "flash"ing back to Halloween because I'm so behind the times on my blogging.

D had a great time turning three - but I think he loved being The Flash for Halloween even more. And he's been obsessed with all things Halloween ever since.

Here's some photos of the little superhero. We oddly had a large resistance from him to get the costume on - but once he got started Trick or Treating - he was a machine!

Here he is with cousin Haven, hitting the streets with Dad, checking out decorations with his great-grandpa, and just looking cool. Hope everyone's Halloween was as happy as D's was!

Something great.

2011-11-08T21:48:00.002-06:00

Another book - another blog. This one is hilarious and adorable, as are most that make it on the blog.

Sally And The Something by George O'Connor.

This book appealed to me from the library racks because of the cute illustration on the front cover that implied a monster. It was close to Halloween when we checked it out, and D has been into monsters because of his new-found love of the movie Monsters, Inc. The graphics looked vintage - which always draw me in.

Sally is a little girl that is bored and so she goes to the pond to go fishing. After waiting a creepy green monster slithers its way on the dock and the little girl, instead of running away screaming, says "COOL!" and is excited the "something" is not boring.
They try to play Sally's favorite games like tea party and the something's favorite games like snail races...but neither are interested in the other's pastimes. So they compromise and do some things they both might enjoy - like a burping contest and leapfrog.
When Sally realizes he's tired she takes him home to his dad - and she returns home to rave about her new friend, who's "really something".

It's just a cute read from the get-go. Yes it's written about a little girl, but it's a perfect book for little boys. It teaches, in my opinion, the idea of not being afraid or judging something on appearance. This 'something' is Sally's new favorite friend - and it shows that so many people could be dear friends if they looked past the surface and tried to compromise. Plus a weird monster always makes for a funny literary journey.

Loved it. D loved it. It went on our wishlist too.
Man - how many books can Santa buy without it being weird? I have no clue when we'll get around to purchasing all these books.

D's Happy Day

2011-11-05T13:37:00.005-05:00

Well, we're 3 now. Can't believe that happened.
D had a great birthday week - upset only by a cold that caused mass-hysteria one night with a restricted breathing episode that caused him to have to go to the doctor and get a breathing treatment. But we're good now.

On his actual day, Grandma Susie came up and we had a good day. We took him to the petstore to look at the fish (stay tuned) and then to get a happy meal, since that's a huge treat for him. After a refusal to nap, we hit up Sonny Acres. And for the second time this season he loved it. He was happy to stand by the "how tall this fall" sign again, rode a pony, sat on a tractor, repeatedly went down a slide, and went down the big slide with grandma. (You can click the pictures to make them bigger).

After that we came home and had some dinner with daddy and a cake. (Which Dain would want me to point out that I did NOT make - I bought at Target because it was cute and decorated like a monster).

We presented D with his gifts. A Batman & Robin from A-Z book from the 1960s - which is amazing. And a FISHTANK! with Batman (the black fish), Robin (the yellow fish) and Alfred (the gray snail). *Note since the b-day we've gotten a different tank, and Robin is no longer with us...but we're coping.

I think he had a good day. At the time I was stressed with work and felt bad about it, but I think his superhero party on Sunday more than made up for it.
I'm too lazy to blog that now. So stay tuned.

Hi, my name is Marie...

2011-10-20T23:15:00.003-05:00

...and I'm a superhero enabler.

Yes. I have no one to blame but myself.

Allow me to back up. D has been in full time pull-ups since he started potty training. A few weeks in we discovered that the Meijer brand pull-ups had the DC Superfriends on them! (For those of you non-nerdy superhero followers - that's the Batman/Robin/Flash/Green Lantern group of friends).

Needless to say D has been requesting them ever since. He does not like others. (Which was pseudo-upsetting to me for a brief moment since this is not the eco-brand I normally would choose). But I roll with it. It's actually pretty stinking cute when I go to get a new one for him - and D is SUPER excited to see "who's on there" (as they vary).

A few days ago D and I made a trek to our area Meijer for pull-ups. A NATIONAL TRAGEDY was underway. We discovered that Meijer has discontinued the Superfriends design in favor of trucks for boys and something girly for girls. WHAT?!?!? So we found some on clearance on the end rack and scooped them up. One lousy pack.

I was looking at our reserves tonight and decided to go online to see if MAYBE Meijer had their brand on-line for sale.
Yes. They. Do.
AND on clearance - SUPER cheap. So I immediately ordered 6 large packs and am having them shipped to the house.

Is this an enabler move? Maybe. But I could've ordered 20 packs - or whatever - but I didn't. I'm simply making a money-saving decision that just so happens to make my cutie pie nearly-3-year-old giddy with delight.

So, enable I will.

(Yeah it's a sickness, my next post just proves that I may need a group session). :)

A Very Flash Halloween

2011-10-20T22:23:00.004-05:00

The Flash has taken over Halloween. I think D honestly thinks that by deciding that he's going to dress up as The Flash for Halloween, he has to make Halloween all about The Flash.

Any time we mention Halloween it comes up...and a few nights ago we carved The Flash into our pumpkin (though it was my fault as I suggested it - but once I did - there was no going back). It's a Flash-O-Lantern!
(this crappy photo is soon to be replaced with the good one from my camera).

Happy Flashoween to All!

Sonny Acres - take 3!

2011-10-14T19:21:00.005-05:00

It's become an annual tradition...a trip to Sonny Acres Farm in West Chicago with Evan and Marcy. And, we LOVE it.

This year was a bit more exciting - since D is older and more IN to the whole idea of rides and attractions and Halloween in general. He was excited to look at/ride on/touch & feel EVERYTHING.

We started with some of the farm animals - feeding them from the $0.25 corn vending machine. D loved this - he loves animals and gets such a charge out of letting them eat from his hand. Here's a super short video clip of the laughter that ensued every time his new-best-friend the goat came near him.

After that it was off to the rides. It did cost a lot more this year since D had strong opinions about riding the rides - but it was a one-time excursion so we played along.
He rode a motorcycle in circles

The BIG slide with Aunt Marcy (2 years running)

A flying dragon, a train, and a dragon rollercoaster with me - which was SUPER unsteady and felt like we were going to fall out every time. Ten minutes after we got off - the ride was shut down. Uh...okay? But D loved it of course.

He and Uncle Evan then made their way to the petting zoo. Feeding more animals, making friends with goats, llamas, a pot-bellied pig, a calf, and some chickens. He pet a baby lamb, bunnies and a sheep as well. I don't know who liked this part of the trip more, D or Uncle Evan.

We made the mistake of telling D he could get a little pumpkin - then taking him to the painted pumpkins. When we found the BATMAN painted pumpkin all bets were off. $10.00! But it looks super cute in D's room.
And - we visited Spiderman.

All that and a trip to the sign "How Tall This Fall" - which has become an annual tradition. And in the spirit of tradition - I will post all three years of pics from this sign. I think the sign was not all the way in the ground this year - as D is MUCH taller than last year - but appears to be hitting the same point on the chart. Oh well.

Another year of memories. LOVE.

The Best Book Recently

2011-10-09T21:57:00.003-05:00

The Best Pet of All is one of the best children's books we've had in a LONG time from the library. Yes, I say this a lot though...

David LaRochelle wrote the cutest book. And the illustrations by Hanako Wakiyama are perfect. They make the story to me. This author/illustrator combo seems to be a match made in heaven.

Let me start off by saying this book caught my attention because the cover art looks like a book from the 1950s/1960s - which I typically love. Some of my favorites, which we own are the Little Golden Books from that era, The Daddy Book, the Dorrie books, etc - where the illustrations are clean, innocent and reflect the period in the environments of the book (toys, hairdos, clothing, buildings, etc). You can imagine my surprise seeing it was penned in 2009. I love that the little boy in the book has very vintage looking toys, the mom is wearing 60s style clothes, and the house they live in is decorated like something I might love to live in. I believe it's got to be set in that era.

The story however, is the best part. A little boy asks his mother over multiple days if he can have a dog, which she refuses - so he asks for a dragon. She says if he can find one, he can keep it. And of course he does - at a drugstore. Who he gets to come home because "dragons love toys".
The dragon is a terrible houseguest and pet. He doesn't pick up, dances all night (to records no less), eats in the tub, etc.

The little boy tells his mother it's too bad they don't have a dog because dragons are scared of dogs...so the mother caves. They put a sign in there window for a dog wanted. My favorite two pages state "A few minutes later there was a knock at the door" and then "It was a dog". The sentences and illustrations in these few pages are adorable and hilarious, so simple and perfect in the story. The dragon leaves and the mother is happy. The boy is happy because "a dog is the best pet of all". And you see the boy and the dragon giving each other a sly thumbs-up when the mother is warming up to the dog on one of the last pages.

This book is perfect. It's well-written. It's got short, simple sentence pages making it ideal for my little boy to sit and listen to. And it's a feel-good book for all.

As much as I get flustered with my boy and his dog...I realize that there's a bond there. They have a love for each other that I'm not sure any dragon would ever replace. And this book WILL join our library at home.

Mostly because it's that darn cute.

The Sing-Off - take 2

2011-10-04T18:46:00.003-05:00

I posted a clip of a group on NBC's "The Sing Off" last season - because I loved it so much - and I feel just as strongly about this performance from last night. This group called Vocal Point (another all-male group that I love, shocking I know) did what appeared to be an effortlessly smooth/cool/amazing performance of The Way You Look Tonight by Frank Sinatra - for 60's night. (Helps that I love everything Frank Sinatra, AND 60's).

This show is everything I love about music - and amazing and inspirational. Makes me wish I was a good singer. Makes me want to get back on stage...ASAP. :)

Moving Forward...

2011-09-26T22:53:00.003-05:00

I guess part of me hasn't wanted to blog since my last post. I didn't want to move the post about my grandma any further down the run. Like if I do - it's a metaphor for me having to accept it and move on. And...I am not ready for that reality.

I find myself just checking the "My Chummie" post or looking at the beautiful cards and two roses on my windowsill to remember that it's even a reality that my grandma has even passed.

Like it or not though, life is moving on. No one reminds me of that more everyday than D. He doesn't stop moving for anyone or anything. And he's always kept me on point that way. My natural tendencies to wallow or get depressed are squashed with the little light that I have by my side.

This post doesn't really have a point. I think it's just ripping off the band-aid. Moving me forward. And there's so much I have coming up that I love:

D's THIRD birthday (I refuse to accept this reality as well) is coming up. We're starting party plans and birthday present purchases.
Halloween is immediately after that, and my FAVORITE holiday. And D's costume - SPOILER ALERT - The Flash, is on the way.
After that - my anniversary, Thanksgiving and the holiday season will be around the corner. Shopping for my family/friends presents is one of my favorite yearly activities.

So I'm bravely clicking the "Publish Post" button, and putting this post into cyberspace. Moving forward - but never forgetting.

My Chummie

2011-09-18T19:38:00.006-05:00

My grandma, Genevieve "Chum" Vivian Boian, passed away last week at the age of 93. I still don't believe it.

My grandma was like a 2nd mom to me growing up. She and my grandpa lived in the house across the street from mine - so you can imagine the amount of time we spent together. The fact that she's not going to be around anymore is almost too much to comprehend.

"Chummie", as I called her (her nickname was Chum), was maybe the best woman in the world. Together with my grandpa they were like the dynamic duo of amazing. I wrote a previous post about my grandpa Bill when my nephew Will was born (though not a full tribute, as he's been gone 8.5 years and I didn't have this blog that long ago) - and it only seems appropriate to honor Chummie in the same way.

For her funeral this weekend, my family's priest asked my sisters and I to write a few memories down of Chummie, and the way we'd like to remember her. It was too hard to think of just one - so we all wrote a few. Writing "how we will remember her" was harder, because it will be a compilation of the 31 years of memories that I have.

Chummie was a kind, gentle, beautiful soul. She'd do anything for you, and give you anything you asked for. Everyone loved her, regardless of knowing her 10 minutes or a lifetime. She was a Kindergarten teacher by trade - and implemented teaching structures for the state of Illinois. She taught hundreds and hundreds of students throughout her career and remembered every one. She had a long and amazing life as a farmer's wife, mother and teacher - but to me she must have been born to be a grandmother.

I want to remember so many things about her. I want to remember her bathroom sink and the smells of dusting powder, Eternity perfume and Listerine mixed together. I want to remember her beautiful clothes and even more beautiful jewelry. (One of the things I wrote about for her funeral was going through all her jewelry boxes and getting to hear the stories that went with every piece). I want to remember her noodles that she made in the crock pot, and her tomato soup that looked bizarre but tasted amazing (and no one can recreate). I want to remember their guest room, with the bookshelves, all the Dick & Jane reading books, red table and chairs, and antique sewing machine. I want to remember the built-in giant shelving unit that separated their living room/kitchen and how it was covered in bells (she collected them her whole life) - and the cabinets below that held board games like Hog Tied, Care Bears, Shirt Tails and Sorry that she'd play for hours. I want to remember playing cards with her and my grandpa at their little card table in the kitchen, even though there was only three of us and we could have played anywhere. I want to remember her walk-in closet and the hall cabinets full of purses. I want to remember her canning tomatoes in the kitchen with my mom, and storing everything in their crawl space basement. I want to remember the click-clack of knitting needles whenever she was sitting still for more than a minute. She may have been the fastest knitter on the planet, and had drawers and drawers full of colored yarns. I want to remember their orange chairs, green sofa and stone fireplace that was built by my grandpa. I want to remember her weekly handwritten (on beautiful stationary) letters to me at college. I want to remember her love of flowers, and the pansies that I loved so much. I want to remember her stop-and-start driving style and how she mostly had my grandpa drive - including on rides to see my aunt Patsy at her care center in Streator. I want to remember that their TV and radio/record player were wooden pieces of furniture, and that I got to pick what we watched or listened to, most of the time from the big orange pillow on the floor. I want to remember her ruby ring, and angel pin, and wedding band that was so thin from years of wear. I want to remember her singing next to me in church, her voice on the other end of the phone, or her humming in the kitchen. I want to remember her running across the street in her nightgown the night my dad had to be rushed to the hospital. I want to remember that her favorite treats were guava juice and burnt cookies. I want to remember her teaching me to read, cross-stitch and play card games. I want to remember her love for her family - her husband, her children and her grandchildren. I want to remember EVERYTHING she did and said on every occasion - that made her the best grandmother ever created.

Don't be alarmed if you check back and I've edited this blog. I have a feeling I'll never be done recording the memories. She meant the world to me. I never want to forget a moment.

(Me [pregnant with D at the time!] and Chummie at her 90th birthday party).

Walk for Hope - take 3

2011-09-12T22:59:00.004-05:00

On October 1st - Dain, D and I will be participating, for the 3rd year, in the Walk for Hope to benefit Mutual Ground - a shelter that provides free services to victims of domestic and sexual abuse.

Both Dain's family and my family have been affected by domestic abuse. We are walking once again with "Team Andrea" a group formed in memory and honor of Dain's cousin who lost her life as a victim of domestic abuse.

Please see the site below where I'm managing my fundraising efforts (you may have to cut and paste), which also includes further information on Mutual Ground. Any donations are tax deductible and can be made on the website - or I can accept cash/check donations as well.

http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/marie-meyer/walkforhope

Please do not feel obligated to donate - I, once again, just wanted to spread the word about this great place that could possibly be a safe haven to someone you may know that may also be affected.

Day Out with Thomas

2011-08-30T14:03:00.004-05:00

We did the DAY OUT WITH THOMAS at the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, IL this past Saturday. It was mostly to celebrate my nephew Will's 2nd birthday. Will has recently gotten in to Thomas the Train, much like D did around that age. D still has his Thomas trains - but they've made their way to the end of the toy selection process since Batman and the Batcave moved in. Still, I knew D would enjoy himself, and he's never been on a train - so I was excited to take him.

We had a great time. It was hot, yes. And crowded, yes. But the kids had fun. Well, D and Will had fun - but my niece and nephew who are 6 and 8 were a bit bored with the situation. They powered through though, mostly I believe because my mother was in FULL grandma mode buying snow cones and ice creams to keep everyone in sugar.

Here's some pics from our day out.

Oh here they are - costumes!!

2011-08-24T22:18:00.004-05:00

I told you! I am giving D the choice this year on his costume...but I'll let you all vote too!
Here are the superhero options out there. Did you know there's a whole website of JUST superhero costumes?? Anywho - here they are, and YES, D knows who each and every one of them is...

Oh it's coming!

2011-08-22T22:30:00.001-05:00

Just wait...it's coming! I'm posting costume possibilities within the next few days. I'm that obsessed.

While I fear my opinion means ZERO this year to D - I will at least be presenting him his options. I just am so excited. I love Halloween!!!

And in the spirit of full disclosure - just so you know what's coming - they will all be superheroes.

Shop for Babies??

2011-08-20T08:00:00.005-05:00

Ha! I've MARCHED for Babies - but now there's an opportunity to SHOP for Babies! Another great way to help out one of my favorite causes, March of Dimes.

That's right! On August 27th - you can shop at Macy's and get 25% off EVERYTHING - including sale items...but only with the March of Dimes pass.

For $5.00 you can purchase a pass at the March of Dimes website (click on those words for a link). The money raised goes to March of Dimes - and you save wayyyy more than that anyway! So why not support March of Dimes? And have an excuse to go shopping?

Unfortunately I'll be out of town most of that day - but I'm hoping some of you can take advantage! And support March of Dimes and premature birth awareness everywhere!

BU Grad Wins!

2011-08-15T22:45:00.003-05:00

I love cooking shows - which is odd because I don't really cook at home. I mostly LOVE cooking competition shows. I love Masterchef. I love Top Chef. My favorite is Next Food Network Star.
On Sunday night - a new Food Network Star was crowned. A BU grad!! YES!
The winner, Jeff Mauro (to be known as The Sandwich King on his upcoming show) was at BU apparently when I was...he's 32. I remember watching the first episode this season and thinking he looked vaguely familiar. But probably because I've heard that he was involved in the drama department, and I was a theater minor for a bit.
Either way - you can see his bio/new show info here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/jeff-mauro-bio/bio/index.html

He was the best by far on this season, and before I even knew of the Bradley connection I was rooting for him. So congrats to Jeff - and Go BU!

Potty Update!

2011-08-08T22:35:00.002-05:00

So D's doing GREAT on the potty! He's still not quite to telling us when he's ready - but he's been only going through a couple pull-ups a day and has been consistently going on the potty when we stick him on there! He's even pooped on there a few times! (If you're thinking this is too much information for you, get over it!).

We've been trying to come up with ways to entice D to tell us when he has to go. Tonight we started the idea of a "potty chart" - where D gets stickers for each time he successfully uses the potty. We had originally told D he could get a fish when he started using the potty well - but he's changed his mind tonight.
Because tonight was his first real success at a poop on the potty - he got to "Watch Batman on TV!!" (I can't even come close to getting D's enthusiasm across via blog). He watches the old Batman TV show starring Adam West, which we DVR for him. Yes, this is a weird reality. The episode he watched featured The Riddler. And now, D's determined he wants The Riddler. (They make one for his Batcave set). So that's what he's "working" for.

Here's a tastefully modest shot I got of D after his 1st poop on the potty. Yes I'm that proud. Dain wouldn't let me take a toilet shot so don't worry - that's not coming. But since this is the closest thing to a baby book/album for D that we have, I'm including the pic I did get!

Go D, Go! Ha!

Gotta Have Heart

2011-08-04T21:52:00.003-05:00

Another super-cute library book has crossed our path. This time, not so much for the cute verbiage/storyline, but for the extremely creative artwork on the pages.

"My Heart Is Like a Zoo" by Michael Hall.

Yes, this seems like a WEIRD title. My normal library-scan of the books is just seeing if the pages have enough or too many words and if it looks "cute" right off the bat. I didn't have time to really look too far into it this week - but I lucked out. The image on the front cover caught D's eye and mine and it proved to be a great choice.

The image on the front is a lion pop-art style graphic made up of only heart-shapes (save for the dot eyes). Upon opening the book, I happily discovered that every page was a different animal composed of only geometric hearts. It's amazing!
The book is started with "my heart is like a zoo..." and the following pages are animals with a reason that is a typical description of that animal. "Thoughtful as an owl", "angry as a bear", "eager as a beaver", "steady as a yak", etc, etc. What the author/artist did with the hearts to create the images was amazing!

There's a cute rhyming pattern that flows throughout the book, and the end is ultimately a "zookeeper" that is a little child going to bed with all his heart-shaped stuffed animals around him.

D loves the book. It's so brightly-colored and fun, and the length is perfect. He loves the animals - and I understand how some could praise this book for helping their child understand emotions. I think that's a great thought. I also LOVE the idea of using this book as inspiration for Valentines! (Ha - act surprised next February, family...unless Batman overrides that decision as well!).

It's worth a read. It's definitely going to be D's Valentine's present this February from us. We're always looking for a "love" book - but I think this one is perfect!

Potty Time?

2011-07-29T07:34:00.002-05:00

The last TWO days at my babysitter's house - D has gone potty on the potty chair! WHAT?!??

Yes - she's just going with the law of dry diaper theory - and if he woke up from nap dry or she went to change him and he was dry she just popped him on the potty. 2 of 2 times were successful - and he was rewarded with M&M's, high-fives and dancing with all the kids! (No wonder he performed - shoot, I like everyone praising me and dancing around in MY honor!).

We've stuck him on his potty chair at home twice as a result - but no dice here. Oh well. I'm not going to push it, as the bed thing is new and going well. I want to stick with one grown-up thing at a time. I don't think I can handle him growing up much faster than he is. I was in tears over taking apart his crib, and over painting over the nursery walls!

Anyways - my blog is because I wanted to see people's thoughts on potties. If you have kids - please vote to your right on how you potty trained. My babysitter doesn't use a seat or a potty-chair - - she puts them on the toilet facing backwards so they have to hold on - and for boys, so there isn't a spray-factor. I guess it works well - and there's no free hands to unwind toilet paper by the roll like there is at my house! I just thought it was interesting. Another idea I never would have thought up on my own!

Wish D luck! Potty training has begun!

Batman's Moving In!

2011-07-21T23:08:00.003-05:00

Yes he is. And he's about to take over D's room!

We've known for awhile that D is just too big for his crib...but he's so happy in there, that it's hard to think about moving him out. He's never once tried to climb out, and when we used to ask him if he wanted a big boy bed, he would just respond with "no, my crib" - so we left well enough alone.

Lately we've realized it's getting to be time - and even though previous efforts of promising him superhero or whatever kind of bedding was in sight for his big boy bed fell flat - we realized we hadn't hit him with the big guns....Batman.

If you don't know, D is borderline obsessed with Batman. And he's 2.5 years old. It seems a little young but he's obsessed. He sleeps with a Batman and Flash action figure every night, spends HOURS a day with the Batcave (hence my previous post), and watches the old Adam West episodes of the Batman TV show that we DVR for him. So we offered him a Batman room - and he bit...BIG time.

It's gotten to the point that now he whines for his Batman bed or his Batman paint. So we're full steam ahead. We went and bought light blue paint tonight - and starting Sunday we'll be covering up the green stripes that have donned his room since before he even arrived. This makes Dain and I a little sad. We worked HARD on getting that room to look like it does. Three different colors of green - and my vision of a room of greens came alive. He had a nursery that looked like no one else's ever would. Here's a picture - back from when we first finished the paint job.

But I suppose all good things must come to an end at some point. Our realtor, when we first listed our house on the market, had suggested we paint over it then to a more neutral shade - but D was still under a year old, and we just weren't ready to say goodbye to the fun, whimsical room that we poured our hearts into. But now, in order to get him into a big boy bed, and to give him the room of his DREAMS, we will let it go.

Here's a preview of what's moving in. The bedding and the giant bat signal wall decal.

Some things will be moving OUT of his room - along with the paint. The changing table, that my dad poured his heart into - and the green toy box that houses the stuffed animals. But it's necessary. We're still trying to figure out how we can squeeze the rocker/glider still in the room - because quite frankly I don't know how he'll live without it. But that's that. We'll add some more superhero artwork, change out the green lamp, and call it a day. I'm so excited/anxious to see what D thinks when this all comes to pass. I'm sure he'll be too excited to sleep.

Greaaaaaat.

D's getting bigger!

2011-07-16T21:50:00.007-05:00

We're pretty sure he's going through ANOTHER growth spurt - and he already looks like he's 4. He's now in a size 10 shoe, been sleeping a ton and eating ALL of his food. So I decided I need to get some photos up, before he's bigger than me!

Enjoying some time at the lake...

"Hiking" at the Forest Preserve.

Painting and loving it! I'm hoping he'll be an artist!

Being a "burro". He loves them, as does Scott on Imagination Movers!

Riding the fast-turn cars at Swedish Days. Thought he might have whiplash but loved it.

Meeting a favorite hero/nemesis, The Joker, at Superheroes night at Kane County Cougars.

Hitting the hedges at Morton Arboretum.

Loving the splash park...

I can't handle how big he's getting. It's so much fun - but makes me shocked.
Stay tuned as we're going to be starting the big boy bed transition soon!

Batcave

2011-07-11T22:13:00.003-05:00

I may have posted that the Easter Bunny brought D the Batcave. I don't honestly remember.

I must tell you though - I knew he'd love it. I didn't know, however, that it would be SO loved and he would be SO addicted to it. He seriously plays with it every day - multiple hours a day. He's without a doubt addicted to everything Batman.

The Batcave came with a Robin, which was KEY as we did not have one going in. D loves everything about Batman and has expanded his knowledge to know that they are the "Dynamic Duo". You may or may not know that D takes some of his "guys" (action figures) everywhere he goes...the babysitter's, stores, dinner, bed, you name it. This included bringing Batman, Robin and Joker (who are all friends in D's world by the way) to the fireworks on the 4th of July.
We walked to Dain's grandparent's house to watch the fireworks which was a good distance away. On the way home, D fell asleep in the stroller, and TRAGEDY STRUCK when we got to the car and I realized D had dropped Robin somewhere along the dark, long walk. It was too late and too dark and too busy to go back and look for him. I had to distract D for a few days while we waited for the gods at Amazon.com to deliver a new Robin. The good news was, Robin came with his own batcycle (or bicycle as D calls them). The bad news is - D still refers to him as New Robin. ;) But he's back to thrilled that the guys are back together again.

So another day, another few hours with the Batcave. Seriously the Fisher Price Imaginext people had no idea that a 2 year old in Illinois would be so obsessed with their product when they created it. I just love it.

Ringin Around

2011-06-29T22:29:00.003-05:00

D has gotten into "Ring Around the Rosie" lately. I think they do this at my babysitters - and every once in a while he requests that we join hands with him and do this over and over...and over in our living room.

If you're like me, you have vague recollection of hearing someone tell you that this nursery rhyme is actually a horrifying fable about what happened during the Great Plague.

Here's the description I've found online (from Wikipedia):
Many have associated the poem with the Great Plague which happened in England in 1665, or with earlier outbreaks of the Black Death in England. Interpreters of the rhyme before World War II make no mention of this;[12] by 1951, however, it seems to have become well established as an explanation for the form of the rhyme that had become standard in the United Kingdom. Peter and Iona Opie remark: "The invariable sneezing and falling down in modern English versions have given would-be origin finders the opportunity to say that the rhyme dates back to the Great Plague. A rosy rash, they allege, was a symptom of the plague, posies of herbs were carried as protection and to ward off the smell of the disease. Sneezing or coughing was a final fatal symptom, and 'all fall down' was exactly what happened."[13][14] The line Ashes, Ashes in alternative versions of the rhyme is claimed to refer variously to cremation of the bodies, the burning of victims' houses, or blackening of their skin, and the theory has been adapted to be applied to other versions of the rhyme.[15] In its various forms, the interpretation has entered into popular culture and has been used elsewhere to make oblique reference to the plague.[16]

However - according to the internet rumor-squasher, Snopes.com this is absolutely not true...you can read about it here.

I don't know what I believe. I'm sure there's something to the rumors. However on Snopes you'll see they'll say that they say that this nursery rhyme would've had to carry over 5 centuries without anyone writing it down if this were true. So, I'm a skeptic. Maybe it's because my husband is a huge conspiracy theorist. I wish people would just leave well-enough alone with children's play. But I DO know the translation of the children's French song "Alouette" - which roughly is:
Little skylark, lovely little skylark
Little lark, I'll pluck your feathers off
I’ll pluck the feathers off your head
I’ll pluck the feathers off your head
Off your head - off your head
Little lark, little lark
O-o-o-o-oh

So - I'm a little disturbed already. But I'll keep dancing in circles with D as long as he wants me to. :)

Special Care, Reunited!

2011-06-19T22:37:00.004-05:00

It's been 2.5 years since D was born at 34 weeks and spent a week in the Special Care Nursery at Delnor Hospital.
It seems like yesterday somedays, and others it feels like a hazy far away memory. It doesn't stop me from tearing up thinking about it...and missing that tiny baby that now is a walking, talking (occasionally talking-back) toddler.

Every summer, the Delnor Special Care Nursery has a reunion - a big festive event in the grounds out front of the hospital. The first year (when D was only about 7 months old) we forgot about it and missed it :(. But for the past two years we've attended and were so impressed with the day.

This year was the 17th Annual Reunion - and was a hit immediately with D as there was a PIRATE theme! He's so in to pirates these days that it seemed to be a perfect fit.
They go all out - moon bounces, inflatable obstacle courses, pony rides, crafts, games and ice cream from Coldstone Creamery.

Here's a few shots of D at this year's reunion...enjoying every minute.
Pony Ride!

Inflatable Obstacle Course

D behind the camera - helping me take a picture of his sand art.

Hitting the ice cream - hard.

Walking out with his gear!

I so appreciate this event every year. While we haven't run into my two favorite nurses that helped D become the strong boy he is...there's something so amazing about having a celebration outside the window of my hospital room where D came into the world 2.5 years ago.

Clinton Gregory

2011-06-14T21:10:00.003-05:00

Another cute book I have to share with all of you! I was going to spare the blogosphere my latest favorite find, but being in the library today coming across so many "duds" before finding a few to check out, I figured sometimes it's nice to have one to search for.

And so you get CLINTON GREGORY. Or more formally, Clinton Gregory's Secret by Bruce Whatley.

This book starts out in a little boy's (Clinton Gregory's) room. Mentioning that he has a secret, or more likely at least 7 secrets from last week alone. His room is very bright and colorful and there are lots of toys and figures in the illustration that you'll go back to see!
The first "secret" is that on Monday night, Clinton Gregory wrestled a dragon. But the dragon was actually a friend of his. Each night of the week it's something different, from dining with giants to playing catch with a magic seahorse. If you simply go back to that first page - you'll notice that Clinton Gregory sleeps with a stuffed dragon, has a book on giants, and a bedspread with seahorses, etc.

I love this book. I love the imagination that it took to create. I love that it feels like each night I'm glimpsing into Clinton Gregory's life via my two year old who lays awake singing songs with his "guys" that he's brought to bed. Tonight they were pirates - other nights they are performers - and sometimes they're simply the superheroes that they are. Either way - D has his own adventures with them. Though he's still too young really to be imagining scenarios as vividly as he does, he's doing it. He's going on an adventure every night in his mind - and like our new friend Clinton Gregory, it's all sparked by the things that are around him.

This is a great book. Boy or girl, this deserves to be on your to-find list on your next trip to the library.

Cousins

2011-06-11T07:31:00.003-05:00

D's so lucky to have a few cousins very close to him in age. I liked having cousins my age when I was younger - and I think he will too.
Here's some recent pictures of him and his close-in-age cousins (withing about a year of him) - having fun. It's already been a fun start to the summer, I can't wait to see what else is in store!

Boot Camp?

2011-06-04T21:27:00.004-05:00

I'm considering it for D! But it's not what you think...

As you may or may not know - D still has no interest in potty training. This is fine but we know he's ready to start getting serious as he's been waking up dry from naps and overnight - and tells me when he's pooped and needs a diaper change. These are signs. I love that diapers keep him a bit of a baby in my eyes - but I would also love to save the money on diapers and have him take the next steps in growing up.

I've heard of Potty Boot Camp before. I've heard about friends/acquaintances/strangers who've used it and it gets a lot of good reviews from people. I hadn't thought about it in awhile because D was so stubborn and I'm intent on letting him do things on his own time. But I think in this case he might need a little push to get started. Then at a play date a week or so ago TWO moms said it worked like magic on their 2 year old daughters - and it sparked my interest again.

This book was written by a mom (and doctor?) who had tried multiple methods of potty training with no success - but combined several and found it to be amazing and show results the first day - and full results for some people within 2-3 days! It's sold tons of copies and I might be willing to give it a shot. I like the idea that the majority is done in a hard-working day or two, as I have to make sure I get my point across on my days I have D at home, as my babysitter doesn't have a ton of time to mess around with running him to the toilet every 45 minutes.

Anywho - here's the website www.thepottybootcamp.com so see what you think...

It would be later in the summer before I did it - so I'm deciding if it's worth a shot...

Swinging Revisited

2011-05-31T23:01:00.005-05:00

So we've been taking D to some of the same parks, obviously, since he was born. One of which is Wheeler Park in Geneva - a big, beautiful park with a huge playground, great walking trails and of course, swings.
Just thought you might want to see D's progression in the swings from Spring to Spring...at ages about 7 months, 18 months, and now 2.5!

They aren't my favorite pictures of all time - but you can see how big my baby is getting, he's a little boy now...I can't believe it!

Another Classic

2011-05-18T21:32:00.006-05:00

It's NOT rare that I love a children's book. However it IS rare that I find a book that I love so much that I wish I'd known it when I was a kid.
Since this book was published in 2008...it's too bad for the 4 year old me.

Mary Had a Little Lamp

You read it right...LAMP.

Yes - this ADORABLE book by Jack Lechner, and illustrated by one of my favorite children's book artists Bob Staake, is a hoot from the word go. It's rhyming and follows the rhyming pattern and ideas of the nursery rhyme we all know and love.

The first page:
Mary had a little lamp,
the bendy, gooseneck kind.
And every where that Mary went
she dragged the lamp behind.

Another children's book blogger I've recently discovered had this to say - which I think is incredibly fitting:
How fun are these couplets going to be to read aloud with kids? They strike just the right note of rhythm and humor. This is a book that, as soon as I had finished it, I wanted to read it again. I can totally picture kids walking around quoting from it, in sing-song voices.

Mary drags this desk lamp with her everywhere - she even "took the lamp to school one day" as the original Mary did with her wooly friend. She takes it all kinds of places, but then eventually leaves it home from summer camp - - but you won't be disappointed in how Mary grows up and moves on at the end.

This is a NO DUH addition to our HUGE Amazon.com wish list - I highly suggest you add it to yours. D loves it - he loves the rhymes and even thinks it's laugh out loud funny. But I can see this as a hit with older kids too - especially with a back of the book that continues the "cute" theme with reviews from other nursery rhyme celebrities.

Love. I wonder how many times you can renew something from my library...

Reach High, Think Big, Work Hard, Have Fun

2011-05-13T22:27:00.002-05:00

Well - just when you think D couldn't love anything more than "guys" - he has a new and probably more passionate obsession.

D loves TV - - there's no mistake about that. He will sit and watch cartoons as long as we'll let him. This can be a blessing and a curse simultaneously. But he's developed a LOVE for one show in particular, IMAGINATION MOVERS on Disney Channel.

I actually don't mind them. It's a group of 4 guys from New Orleans who sing, dance and solve problems...or should I say "idea emergencies". For some reason D can't get enough. We didn't go to the live concert when they were in Chicago because it was so expensive - but this was probably the biggest mistake of our lives. We DVR'd the Disney Channel's airing of a 30 minute segment of the concert - and we watch it on repeat. Literally. D also understands that we have episodes on our DVR and OnDemand - so we cannot tell him it's not on. He literally has had multiple times outs for temper tantrums when he had to be cut off from watching too many episodes in a sitting.

I like these guys though - I like their story. You can read about them or watch videos on YouTube of them being interviewed. They're family men, all but 1 has kids - and old friends that did this as a group idea. And the kicker is, they're extremely talented musicians. Dain has even said if you changed the words to the songs - they'd probably be a popular/respected group.

Here's the part of each show where they start solving the problem of the day. It's their "brainstorming" song. We listen to in on my iPod, sing it in the tub, and dance along when it's on screen. The best part is the end - Reach High, Think Big, Work Hard, Have Fun. D can do the motions - and even says it over and over like a mantra sometimes when trying to fall asleep.

As much as I like them and I like that D likes them - I can't justify letting him watch episodes all day every day...which is what he'd love to do.

Thank you Easter Bunny, bawk bawk

2011-05-04T21:25:00.005-05:00

We survived Easter. D loved it even more than last year - which I expected - but there are some things that he will understand more I think next year.
1. He wouldn't sit on an Easter Bunny's lap. Or really get near them.
2. He wanted to DRINK the egg dye instead of put eggs in it.
3. He liked picking up one egg at an egg hunt - but was pretty much done with it after one or two.
4. He didn't really understand the Easter Bunny bringing presents still - but that didn't stop us from getting him a gift :)

Here's some photos of the Easter weekend festivities:

One of our coloring activities

Coloring eggs

Getting ready for an egg hunt

Looking at what might be inside

One of my favorite pictures of all time - I don't know why I love it but I do - exhaustion before the hunt even started

Easter morning - THE BATCAVE! - the best present ever!

Finding an egg at Grandma Denise's on Easter

With cousin Haven on Easter - looking cute!

MarchED for Babies

2011-04-29T21:17:00.006-05:00

A HUGE thank you to everyone who supported my March for Babies this year. I raised a whopping $410 dollars (now that my change collection bins have been turned in).
I SO appreciate the support and generosity. It's such an honor to have been a part of the March of Dimes March for Babies this year.
It was a COLD and WINDY day - but we had a great time anyway!
Here's some photos from this year's walk. Looks like we're dressed for December - but it really was April :)

There was huge turnout and it was fun. I'm gearing up for March for Babies 2012!

Time Yet?

2011-04-20T21:13:00.003-05:00

Is it time yet?
Time to potty train? D shows no interest!
Time to move to a big boy bed? D has been up in the night the past several nights regularly - I don't know that I want him wandering the halls.

So - it's not time for either - but maybe I should get on the move. D is 2 1/2 now. I feel like some of these things should be happening - but he appears to be in no hurry, so I guess neither am I.

Book Series - Colors!

2011-04-12T21:16:00.005-05:00

I'm a sucker for a good children's book - as we all know. So when I run across a good SERIES of children's books...well just look out world!

Christianne C. Jones authored a series of books called "Know Your Colors". Each of the color books has a different color theme - as well as a cute theme for the book. We ran across these books at the library - started with Blue last week and ended up with Blue, Red, Yellow, Purple and Green today!

These are very cute books - as you can see - all organized a central theme for that color. Splish Splash and Blue was a huge hit with D. It's quick sentences - rhyming - and in the blue instance, all focused on a trip to the water park and everything that's blue there.

What I like even more is the add-ons in the book that you don't really realize until you have more than a few moments to get started that the books give a full page of information on colors/that particular color before the story starts.
ALSO - there's a seek-and-find on EVERY page - as there's a crayon in the title color hidden somewhere on each page. I find myself looking for it while we're reading the books, even though D isn't quite interested in that aspect yet. It will give the books another use/job for the child reading it - most likely getting them to spend more time with the story, even solo, which is a huge goal for parents and I would imagine authors as well.

I love these books. A few are available in paperback - the rest are kind-of expensive hardcover. However - if you have a local library like mine - these are a great way to introduce colors. I had planned to do one a week - but D loved them so much we'll just dive right in!

Just another positive review from the book lover!

Photo Update

2011-04-07T21:17:00.006-05:00

Hello Spring!

Time to update you on some old photos that I just haven't been good at keeping up with!

D's first taste of Taco Bell - he ate the whole taco in about 3 seconds

Family Photos

D's Other "Family Photos" - I've said before that Evan and Marcy may be able to steal him and no one would question it. But maybe Kohl and Katy could too!

Bubbles with cousin Haven

Soccer star in the making - he's seriously good at dribbling. It's almost frightening.

HUGE hands...

Baseball is another favorite - here's his "stance" while resting of course

Outdoor exploration

I can't believe how time flies...

Marching Soon!

2011-04-02T07:48:00.003-05:00

Just two weeks left before my MARCH FOR BABIES!!

Want to walk with me?
Want to donate?

Info on the right on this screen - click on the March of Dimes purple box showing D's picture and my fundraising graph!

Don't Forget

2011-03-23T21:58:00.004-05:00

There's so many things about D right now that I NEVER want to forget. I've said it before...this is the closest thing to a baby book I have, so I'm going to record it here! Read it and weep (and I might, literally).

D talks in full sentences these days. It's so cute. But it's making me realize he's growing out of that baby phase. Words are clear, sentences are gramatically correct (Dain's so proud), and he knows more than I ever thought he would by this age.

There have been some words that he says wrong - and I ENCOURAGE it. Because it's so. stinking. cute. However I have noticed that some of them are converting to the correct pronunciation and I have to write this stuff down or someday I won't remember the sheer adoreableness of the everyday.
For instance - he has my old California Raisin figures. Yes, he may be the only 2 year old out there who knows who these things are...and knows they sing "I heard it through the grapevine." But he has always called them 'nain-rays' (the common dyslexic version of raisin). I have just referred to them that way as well...but then yesterday - he just starting saying raisins. Nain-rays out the window and as much as I try to get him to revert back, he's not doing it!

Here's the other super-cute terms that we've come to know and love with D:

'Terra-goat' = telescope (this is mostly with a toilet paper tube!)
'Pillupit' = pillow pet (yes, he has one from Grandma Susie)
'Terra-tops' = Triceratops
'Pommas' = Thomas (the tank engine)
'Cheesis' = Cheeze-its
'Marica' = Captain America'
'Piderman' = Spiderman
'Dart Daver' = Darth Vader
'Green Globin' = Green Goblin (notice a theme with the "guys"?)
'Brocky' = broccoli (perhaps his favorite food)
'What Doing?' = What are you doing? (usually this is full volume)
'Way-yo' = yellow
'Tanny' = Stanley (Evan & Marcy's dog)
'Bayball' & 'Backetball' = baseball & basketball
'I gom mum' = I got him!

And a few of my favorite sayings of his...
"I have idea...I make chicken"
"Hmmmm....I KNOW!"
"No thank you mommy. No thank you."
"You okay? Yeah, I okay."
"Cold out dere"
"P is a mystery" (we have no idea where this came from)
"SUPERHEROES!!"
"Oh NO! A scary monster!"
"What's that sound? Let's go find it"
"Hide in the bush!"
"Mommy take you" (referring to when he'd like me to carry him somewhere)
"That a great song/book/movie mommy"

I am sure I'm forgetting a ton of my favorites. Stay tuned for additions!! And Dain may add some in - as may you!!

A few more weeks...

2011-03-15T22:37:00.002-05:00

A few more weeks have passed since a real post. But I have a few weeks left before some things I get REALLY excited about:

1 - my sister-in-law/best friend is moving back to Chicagoland!!! After several years of living in Seattle she and her little fam are relocating back to our area to be near family. She and I became very close while Dain and I were still dating/nearly engaged - and that's when they moved. Since then we've always fantasized about living near eachother - and near eachother's kids - and now it's about to be a reality!

2 - I'M GOING PART TIME AT WORK!! After years of thinking it was a pipe dream...starting on April 1st I will be going to 3 days a week and I am beyond thrilled. It will be a stretch. Financial stretch - big time. And work stretch - waiting to see how my work load adjusts and my co-workers adjust to my decreased production amounts. We shall see. But either way - I get to be home with my little dude 4 days a week and work 3. That's the dream I've always had, and for someone who's worked 45+ hours a week since her son was 9 weeks old, it's amazing.

Stay tuned!

Dreamy

2011-03-05T22:02:00.005-06:00

What a dreamy weekend it was last weekend. We had planned to go to Indianapolis for a fun-filled weekend. Stay in a nice hotel, which I got a great deal on through Priceline, have D in a full-sized provided crib, and hit up the best things to do for families in the city. It was all great on paper, then D got a fever the night before we left.
But we went anyways - and we had a great time - even though they didn't give us a crib (claimed they were out), D fought a fever and fatigue, and we came back Saturday night instead of Sunday morning. We still visited the world's largest (literally) Children's Museum, drove through the campus of Butler University and ate some great food at Old Spaghetti Factory downtown. Here's some pics of little sicky at the sites - he went in waves of being completely fine to completely miserable.

I loved the quick stop to a Northern city area we made to visit an independent children's bookstore that I had somehow found online. And, I LOVED IT. D loved it too, but mostly for the standard Thomas the Tank Engine table that was in the middle of the store
This adorable store, named Kids Ink, is basically my dream realized. Except someone else is living it. I don't need to mention that I love children's books. One of my absolute dream careers is to own a children's bookstore...of course. The Shop Around the Corner in You've Got Mail is an unbelievable fairy-tale version of what I would love, but Kids Ink in Indianapolis was more realistic. It's a very cute store - with all kinds of unique toys. But their book organization was amazing. They had picture books separated from science books, readers separated from language books, everything was beautifully shelved and easy to see.
Here's a link to the pictures on their Facebook page - which the only real site they have.
We left the store with an English/French book for D. As Dain knows French, and I took 4 semesters in college (though still couldn't put anything on paper, at least I know enough that I could order at restaurants when I was in Paris). It reads in English and in French and is a cute book for a little boy that loves bears
What I love is - I've never seen a book like this in Barnes & Noble or Borders. While those stores are a threat to the independent booksellers of the world, I like to hope that someday, somewhere, there's room for my shop around the corner. For those children's books I love. For those that are hard to find and out of print. For kids and parents that appreciate books themselves. But, who knows if that will ever happen. Until then I will remain dreamy. :)

32 Candles

2011-02-21T21:28:00.003-06:00

For DAIN that is. Today is his official birthday - and I created the 3rd piece of his set of birthday artwork since D's arrival. (Look in February 2010 and February 2009 posts for pics of the previous art pieces).
Here it is - I think I like this one the best...

And here's D and Dain at his birthday dinner on Saturday night. I have this picture on each of the 3 years since D's arrival as well.

Blizz

2011-02-21T21:19:00.003-06:00

We had a blizzard - - in case you've been living under a rock and didn't hear about it. There was an ungodly amount of snow - so of course we couldn't resist taking D out in it - even though he has no snowpants and no boots. We just wanted to get some pictures with him and the drifts and piles.
We ended up with some cute pics. Of course, Batman and Flash made the pictures as well...

Wherever D is...

2011-02-18T22:01:00.005-06:00

"I wanted you more than you'll ever know...so I sent love to follow wherever you go"

This is the opening line to the tear-jerking, adorable book that we bought for D for Valentine's Day.
I try to find him books with the theme of the holiday there, yet not strong enough that they have to be put away with decorations because they are clearly a Valentine's/Easter/Thanksgiving book. This year's Valentine's gift was no exception. And this book is perfect...except it makes me cry when I read it.

Check it out. It's an amazing book by the same author/illustrator that wrote "On the Night You Were Born" and "It's Time to Sleep My Love". Nancy Tillman uses animal images, almost like watercolors in most of her books - and the illustrations with the children in this particular book are so lifelike and beautiful they seem to jump off the page. The writing itself, of course, is amazing as well.

With lines like "And if someday you're lonely, or someday you're sad, or you strike out at baseball, or think you've been bad...just lift up your face, feel the wind in your hair. That's me, my sweet baby, my love is right there", I bet you're crying too.

Happy Valentine's Day to my sweetheart baby, D.

March of Dimes - March for Babies

2011-02-10T21:59:00.002-06:00

You may have noticed the little icon that I added on your right...that's because the March of Dimes March for Babies is coming up in April - and once again I'll be participating.

D was a preemie - born at 34 weeks. We were lucky - he was relatively fine. He spent a week in the Special Care/NICU getting bigger and healthier. It was the hardest week of my life. It brings tears to my eyes remembering him in his isolette, and seeing him having a Bradying episode the day before he was to be released. I still to this day can't imagine what it must be like to be handed your baby after you deliver, and get to keep them in the room with you. I hope to someday know. But for now - I realize how much I learned from D's birth - and how much I learned about myself during those first two months of hauling an apnea monitor with me and my newborn everywhere we went.

I love the idea of the March for Babies - raising money for the prevention and awareness regarding premature births. I loved participating last year. Dain, D and I completed the more than 6 mile trek and had a great time. This year it's only 3.2 miles I believe - and we would love to have you join us to walk, or would appreciate any/all donations (though please do not feel obligated). I simply am happy to share the news about this amazing organization and this great event.

Support it!

2011-02-03T21:35:00.005-06:00

Did you ever realize that you can go online find out if you have a sex offender in your neighborhood? Many people do this before they buy a house or just randomly to find out what's going on in their area. However - there's no public registry to know if there's a convicted murderer next door to you.

As of 12/31/10 Illinois had 3166 inmates in custody for first degree murder with a sentence date prior to 6/19/98 and as of 12/31/10 we had 528 inmates on parole/MSR for first degree murder with a sentence date prior to 6/19/98. These inmates are or will be eligible for early release because they were sentenced before the truth-in-sentencing laws.
‘Andrea’s Law’ (House Bill 263) - named honor of Dain's cousin who was killed by her ex-boyfriend, a man who was released from prison after only serving 12 years of his sentence - would require these perpetrators to be registered on a murderer’s registry list for 10 years following their release.

Please take a moment if you are an IL resident - click the link below and find out your local IL State Representative. If you then Google them you can probably find an e-mail address. Take a moment to send a quick e-mail or drop a letter in the mail to encourage them to support "Andrea's Law" (HB263).

CLICK HERE TO FIND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE

I'm also pasting in a sample letter, provided by one of the thousands of members of the facebook online group to support Andrea's memory, that you can use make it easier!

Date

Dear Representative_________,

I am writing you in hopes that you will support "Andrea's Law," House Bill 263. When hearing about this proposed legislation on Tuesday, January 25, 2011, I was surprised to find out that the State of Illinois did not have a murderer registry list. I am aware of the sexual offender/ child murderer registry list in Illinois, and as a concerned member of your district, I would like to extend my support of the legislation that was filed by Dennis Robelletti (R-Elmhurst).

Andrea's Law was proposed due to the national media coverage surrounding Andrea Faye Will's murder, February 3, 1998, and the release of her murderer, Justin Boulay, last November 16, 2010. Justin Boulay, her ex-boyfriend strangled her with a telephone cord. Boulay was charged with First Degree Murder and sentenced to 24 years in prison. Because he murdered Andrea before the Truth in Sentencing Act was passed in June, 1998, Boulay only had to serve half of his 24 year sentence (for time off for good behavior).

As of 12/31/10, Illinois had 3166 inmates in custody for first degree murder with a sentence date prior to 6/19/98 and as of 12/31/10, we had 528 inmates on parole/MSR for first degree murder with a sentence date prior to 6/19/98. These inmates are or will be eligible for early release. ‘Andrea’s Law’ – House Bill 263 would require these perpetrators to be registered on a murderer’s registry list for 10 years following their release.

As a concerned and law-abiding citizen of Illinois, I urge you to support this legislation. When armed with this information, citizens and local police officials will be armed with the information needed to keep their communities safe.

Sincerely,

We all have a right to know who's living in our neighborhood...

Photo Update

2011-01-28T21:44:00.006-06:00

I've REALLY slacked in the photo department. SERIOUSLY. I feel like I don't even take pictures anymore.
It's not that D isn't doing anything cute - - trust me, his cuteness just keeps expanding exponentially with the words, expressions and songs that are constantly flowing out of him. I guess I just "forget" to take the camera - or to bust it out for a capture of the moment.

Anywho - so that leaves you with about 2 photos since Christmas - but since I didn't share more than the one holiday picture - I'm getting you up to date.

You're welcome :)

Painting with friend Ruby at Jr. Monkey Bizness

Enjoying the shade.

Blank stares with cousin Haven.

Aunt Stephanie, Haven, me and D hanging out.

New Haircut! And playing at the play area in the mall.

Multi-tasking at dinner.

New Show Coming Soon

2011-01-23T21:39:00.003-06:00

The theater has a new show opening in March - none other than GODSPELL! It's our first official musical in the new space. So - here's the poster.

I'm too exhausted to post anything else...let's just say we decided to do a quick, cheap "remodel" of the bathroom this weekend. Ended up with a flooded bathroom, another white toilet even though we have an off-white sink and shower, and still have some tiles to put down. But, I think it's going to look great nonetheless. I will have some photos, MAYBE, once we paint and get everything set.

Good Nights

2011-01-12T22:39:00.003-06:00

We all know D was not a good sleeper - for about 18 months. But since then he's been great. I think it just took him a while to get the hang of it! Haha - he must get that from me, I've never needed much sleep to function.

Anywho - throughout his bedtime routine - honed since about age 4 months - we've taken a bath, got on jammies and then read 4-5 books. The last book is always the same one...or started that way. We've filtered through 4 good night books since the beginning.

The first was a cute "Going to Bed Book", after several months and after D started refusing to listen to that one anymore, we switched to the popular "Goodnight Moon". That book didn't last as long - D didn't really like it and was going through a phase where he wasn't wanting to go to bed, so he started refusing that book after not too long. The 3rd was the adorable "I'll See You in the Morning", which I previously blogged about. That one lasted forever - but recently D was clearly ready to make a change.
About a month or two ago - we introduced our current good night book - "Good Night Mr. Night" by one of my favorite children's book authors, Dan Yaccarino.

This book is one of my new favorites of all time. It's about a night man who wakes when the sun goes down and walks the earth calming things down, and helping the boy go to sleep. When the sun comes up, Mr. Night lays down, and the boy says "good night Mr. Night". It's a simple book - very few words - very colorful illustrations. I love it, and D does too.

For Christmas, Santa Grandma Susie got D a Mr. Night bedtime pal.

This plush toy is amazing. SO soft, feels like velvet - and the stars glow in the dark. It's the perfect size for D to clutch while going to sleep (along with the Batman figurine AND the Flash figurine). When I pull out the book D says "Night! There he is!!" Love.

Guys

2011-01-02T21:58:00.002-06:00

D is realllllly into "guys" right now. Mostly superheroes. The $5 Batman action figure that we got him for Christmas is the most played-with toy that he received from anyone. Yep. A whole crap-ton of new toys doing all sorts of great stuff, and the little action figure is the hit.

His superhero obsession is actually quite cute. He knows them all. Favorites are Spiderman, Batman, Hulk, The Flash, The Thing, Wolverine, Ironman, Thor and Captain America. So basically all of them. And yes, he can name them all.

He also loves watching YouTube videos on my iPod. On a hunch we decided to show him the 60's Batman TV show theme. And now that's ALL he wants to watch. ALL THE TIME. We've also delved in to some of the others - and he can't stop watching them. It doesn't help that they're only :30 seconds or so...

Someone loved Christmas...

2010-12-27T22:16:00.002-06:00

Not just Dain. D did too.

He got some great gifts - including a talking Spiderman, piano floor mat that plays (ala the movie Big), a HotWheels bathtub ramp, bucket of army men, Thomas laptop, Batmobile, tent, etc. etc. etc....

It was so fun to watch him enjoy the holiday. We may need a bigger house for all the new stuff...but it was totally worth it!

Getting Ready for Santa, etc.

2010-12-21T22:07:00.003-06:00

What has happened? No I haven't fallen in a hole in the earth...I've just been busy getting ready for Christmas, working and doing theatre business.

I don't really have a bunch of pictures to post (still on the camera) or theatre posters to share (next event is NYE @ GUP - no poster needed - but if you are looking for a fun New Year's activity - it's available!).

I did want to share that I'm becoming what I NEVER wanted to become - a crazy toy-shopping mom!! I just can't handle all the cute stuff that I know D would love. But on the other hand - we realize this is probably the last Christmas D isn't going to have specific requests (besides "car for Christmas") so we've capped the amount of gifts we get him. But I tell ya, I could've bought out the internet! I just kept finding more and more ideas that I know D would love. So, I'm adding things to my mental Easter list for him...

I don't want to reveal what we decided on - I'll have pictures later in the week I'm sure. I'm just so excited to see D's face on Christmas. He's SOOOO excited by so much these days. Christmas is going to blow his mind.

In the meanwhile we'll continue to sing Jingle Bells, Batman Smells - and wait for Santa.

Pom-mas

2010-12-11T23:11:00.002-06:00

We can't stop singing the Thomas and his Friends song. D was even singing it to himself while he was bored waiting for me to find him shoes in the store last week. He'd watch this video over and over and over.

And if you sing it up to the part with the introductions - D will yell out their names and wait for you to do the description - although he knows those too! He can pretty much sing the whole thing.

Sing It

2010-12-07T21:57:00.005-06:00

I love The Sing Off.
Seriously - love.

Last season was good. But last night's opener for season two was phenomenal. And the group "The Whiffenpoofs" (acappella group from Yale) was my FAVORITE by a landslide (though I did love several others).

They immediately took me back to watching "The Other Guys" - a similar type group that is at U of I that I saw while my sister was a student there - and my parents have since become huge fans of - even owning CD's. I expected something like what I'd seen in the past. I did not, however, expect to hear one of my favorite songs done in such an amazing way.

Granted, if you were not familiar with the song "Grace Kelly" by Mika - you may have been a bit confused or thrown off by the performance. I was stunned and thrilled simultaneously. I LOVED what they did with it. I've watched the video a ton of times, saved my DVR'd episode mostly for this performance, and have shared my love for this on Facebook.

I can't help but share the full performance here as well. Maybe it's my theatrical background. Maybe it's my love of offbeat music. Maybe it's my appreciation of music and arts. Maybe it's my love of Mika. Any way you slice it - it's love. I LOVE this performance.

Photo Update

2010-12-02T21:52:00.003-06:00

Yes it's been since D's birthday since I gave you some cute pics to look at...I'm the worst. So - here's a few to make it up to you!

Here's some pics from our birthday trip to Legoland:

Halloween - with his buddy Ruby, and just being a gorilla:

Playing outdoors:

Out of Town Cousins in town for Thanksgiving:

Where Am I?

2010-11-28T22:57:00.002-06:00

I'm crazy apparently - no time to upload new pics, no time to write about the Every Little Bottom program, no time to update you on the theater or D or life in general.

However - new pictures and updates are coming soon. We've been busy - but I still want to keep this thing from falling through the cracks.

CHRISTMAS?!?

2010-11-17T23:14:00.002-06:00

Really? No - I'm just updating you on the next show coming to the theater - a children's performance. It will be amazing - and tickets are selling fast!

Let me know if you want to come!

Cover Boy

2010-11-09T21:31:00.001-06:00

Get over to www.GoWestYoungMom.com (click the logo/link on the side of my blog) and see who the new cover kid is!!

Also - just check out what an amazing site this is!

But seriously - D is super cute.

Mattie

2010-11-05T21:37:00.004-05:00

How is it that in my short-lived (in the grand scheme of things) blog, I have written three tributes to three different dogs? Today is no different.

Mattie Meyer - my in-law's family dog - passed away today at age 15 (yes, a 15 year old Golden Retriever).

It's odd for me to think that Mattie won't be at the Meyer house, wagging her tail and following Dain Sr. around the house the next time we go there. Mattie has been in that house every time I've gone there since Dain and I started dating. I remember so much about her...

I remember the early days of hanging out at their house and Mattie nosing her way in between Dain and I on the couch - and setting her paw on Dain's leg - as if to tell me to "back off". :) Dain claims that Mattie was wild and crazy until age 4 - mostly when I'm complaining about the hyper state of our 5 year old Golden - however I don't remember her being out of control or jumping up on anyone. I remember being impressed that she knew her limits and didn't go past her "line" into the formal living room or upstairs. I remember always seeing her wag nearly her whole body around my father-in-law, husband or brother-in-laws. I remember her having her "one toy" Nylabone that she would get once or twice a year and carry around to show you, but would never share it. I remember her rolling on her back on the carpet. I remember her "dinosaur bone" that she had in the backyard. I remember when we brought 8 week old Penny over on her first day with us, and them running through the backyard, Penny thinking Mattie could feed her, Mattie running away, and Penny tiring out after just a few steps. I remember Mattie being so good when we brought baby D over to their house hauling his monitor and car seat, stretching him out on the carpet or passing him around and Mattie not even batting an eye or trying to get involved. I remember one of my favorite pictures of D, laying grinning on the floor at about 9 months old next to a grinning Mattie. I remember D getting bigger and giving Mattie treats with "boo-pa", and checking on Mattie outside to see if she needed to come in. I remember seeing how the "man's best friend" idea of a dog was truly personified between my father-in-law and Mattie.

She was truly a wonderful dog. And she will be missed.

Gorilla

2010-11-02T21:37:00.002-05:00

What a hoot. CUTEST. GORILLA. EVER.
(seriously these pictures don't even do it justice)

Hope everyone had as happy of a Halloween as D did!

Wow Wow

2010-10-28T22:17:00.008-05:00

We had a Wow Wow Wubbzy family birthday party last weekend for D's big second b-day and it was great. I wasn't sure about the theme as Wow Wow Wubbzy isn't as well-known and there's not anything at your local party store as far as "stuff" goes - but I love creating something from nothing. It got my creative juices going - and since it was going to be mostly adults - it didn't matter anyway!

Here's some pics:

The cake I made...

The food table - and the only officially licensed Wow Wow Wubbzy item - a tablecloth found on Amazon.com

My homemade banner and balloons converted to Wubbzy faces :)

The activity table - and some decorations...

D in his walking-decoration shirt I made him

D and his cousins - Adam and Amelia - enjoying the food!

Will - the only one who would wear the Wubbzy tails I made for all the kids!

Him loving the cake...but confused why everyone was singing to him!!

It was a great party - D got some wonderful gifts and had a great time with family. Happy #2 again to D!!

WHO'S TWO?

2010-10-25T21:37:00.003-05:00

I can't believe my little baby is two. Dain claims I can no longer call him a baby, but that part of me that's still clutching my newly-released-from-the-incubator-newborn-on-a-monitor will call him my baby probably until he's 40.

He's an amazing two year old. He knows his letters. He can say just about everything you can, only with a cute accent. He counts along with numbers, chimes in on the ABC's and sings TV theme songs. He's got an attention span longer than my 31 year old husband - sitting to read books or play with his cars and trains for an hour with not even the blink of an eye. He is a true sweetheart, giving hugs to anyone who will take them. He's quiet in a crowd, loud at home and plays wonderfully with other kids. I'm lucky just to know him, but the fact that he's mine is the best feeling in the whole world.

I will post later about his Wow Wow Wubbzy birthday party, trip to Legoland, and pics of him with his gifts that he loves. But for now, I just want to say Happy Birthday to D. It's been the best 2 years of my life and I'm excited for what this third year has in store.

This Fall...

2010-10-25T21:29:00.004-05:00

We went back to Sunny Acres a few weeks ago with Uncle Evan and Aunt Marcy. We had a great time. I just wanted to post a few comparison shots...

Here's D circa 2009:

And 2010:

He's getting so big!

Walked for Hope

2010-10-19T21:21:00.004-05:00

Sorry for the delay in posts...don't know what the problem is. Life is busy. Planning D's 2nd birthday party, getting his Halloween set up (spoiler alert, he's going to be a gorilla!), and work, etc.

Also we had the Walk for Hope this past Saturday. It was amazing. There was a HUGE turnout and the Team Andrea group seemed to have grown quite a bit as well!

I'm so proud to report that Dain & I raised $347.00! We beat our last year total! All in all the Team Andrea group raised more than $2400 for Mutual Ground. What an amazing effort. I'm still waiting to hear the final tally for all the teams. But I will keep you all posted.

In the spirit of awareness for domestic violence, I wanted to post a link to this amazing lead article to a series of features on domestic violence awareness through the Aurora Beacon. In this article, Dain's aunt Patty was interviewed, and she left us all with some very powerful words.
Click here - Domestic violence: Their words, our awareness - Courier News

Bull-ony

2010-10-09T07:45:00.005-05:00

Maybe it's because he got the book "Ferdinand" from my mother-in-law recently, which we read daily. Maybe it's because he loves basketball slam dunks in the living room. Probably it's because Dain gets him pumped up for this.
I've watched this video with D seven times already this morning. On repeat. He loves "buhl-buhl".

It's adorable - at the beginning he holds his hands out and says "where da buhl-buhl?". Then cheers for them later. It's pretty stinkin cute. Looks like we'll add a Bulls jersey to the b-day list...

Morton Arboretum

2010-10-08T22:40:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago we got the amazing free passes from the library Museum Adventure Pass Program to go to Morton Arboretum.

I am sad to admit that it was my first trip (who can believe this from a huge tree hugger like me?!?) to the arboretum. It did not disappoint. What an amazing place - and I was totally impressed with the Children's Garden. Wowza - I want to move there. D loved every minute.

In the little tiny play house that my giant had to duck to get in and out of...Crawling through the tubesHamming it up on the way up to the tree top viewsWalking across the tree top bridges made for older kids...that didn't stop D!Enjoying a picnic lunch...

Navigating the toddler hedge maze - mostly just chasing me in circles...
I can't wait to go back!!

Thanks

2010-10-06T21:24:00.002-05:00

Thanks to all who have donated to the Walk for Hope. Just over a week left to donate. See my next post for the link to my fundraising site.

And a side note of thanks to whomever taught D to stick his finger up his nose and say "pick".

Walk (Again) for Hope

2010-09-29T21:24:00.003-05:00

On October 16th Dain, D and I will be participating, for the 2nd year, in the Walk for Hope to benefit Mutual Ground - a shelter that provides free services to victims of domestic and sexual abuse.

Both Dain's family and my family have been affected by domestic abuse. We are walking once again with "Team Andrea" a group formed in memory and honor of Dain's cousin who lost her life as a victim of domestic abuse.

Please see the site below where I'm managing my fundraising efforts, which also includes further information on Mutual Ground. Any donations are tax deductible and can be made on the website - or I can accept cash/check donations as well.

http://www.firstgiving.com/mariemeyer

Please do not feel obligated to donate - I also just wanted to spread the word about this great place that could possibly be a safe haven to someone you may know that may also be affected.

Photo Update

2010-09-27T21:56:00.006-05:00

I don't have time/energy for a full-blown post. But I will throw some much overdo photos from the past month or so on here...

Enjoying the last sprinkler/backyard pool day of summer...

Having fun with Spiderman (he calls him "pie" which I think is adorable/hilarious)

At the breastfeeding group's BBQ to celebrate the babies turning 2 (they're all within about 6 weeks or so of eachother - so some turned 2 already)Smiling at Rainforest Cafe - probably realizing how much that place was going to cost us!Modeling Dain's hat - he wears it around the house about every night...and showing off the black eye that his best friend Thomas the Train gave him...and all his teeth

Playing with the fold-up Hotwheels ramp I got for $2 at the Western Ave School sale...and laying down on the job

And my new favorite photo of all
Coming soon...a post about our trip to Morton Arboretum...and maybe even a video if I can get the stupid YouTube account to work...

The Latest Fave

2010-09-21T21:28:00.004-05:00

Here's D's latest favorite commercial.

We've seriously noticed that he L-O-V-E-S piano music. He will stop dead in his tracks for anything with a piano music bed in the background. Hello Rhapsody, I will be updating my iPod tonight...

Oh Man...another option!

2010-09-21T21:20:00.003-05:00

I can't help myself...this is tooooo cute - and he loves gorillas!

I'd say it's down to this, Mickey Mouse, or the Hulk. However I realllllly like this. Thoughts?

(PS - looks like R2D2, the Hulk and the dinosaur were a three way tie for first in the other poll).

Nope - Not Done

2010-09-14T21:42:00.007-05:00

Here's round #2...a few more costumes to consider.

People have asked me what D would like to be - which would 100% be Spiderman. However, as my mom pointed out - we have YEARS of Spiderman in our future. That being said - Dain mentioned that it's important that D look in the mirror and get excited about who he appears to be!

That being said - - here are the costume decisions (and a new poll to the side) with D in mind. Vote at your leisure.

(Results of previous poll - Ewok won, followed by the Boxer and Woodstock - D would recognize exactly zero of these, although he likes bears, and he'd probably think the Ewok was a bear!)

That's Just Good Advice...

2010-09-12T21:26:00.004-05:00

If you haven't ever caught on...I'm a bit nostalgic. I'm big into things that remind me of something in the past, whether it's photos, toys, books, journals, movies, you name it!

Most of the time this is reflected in my BLOG through books I reference. I started a collection of my favorite childhood books before I even had thought about getting pregnant with D. True, I added some new ones that have caught my eye, but most of the list was classics from my youth. I thought I had them ALL on my Amazon.com list - however - I WAS WRONG.

Yesterday - at the Batavia Public Library (which I L.O.V.E. by the way) I randomly came across a book that I remember from my childhood which I had totally forgotten about.

Yes - "Never Tease a Weasel" - I believe the copyright is 1964.

Dain saw the cover and said "that's just good advice". Great. So, we checked it out. And this book has been a wonderful trip down memory lane for me. With words like "jaunty" and "gay" and "cravat", it's been fun to read to D too.

And guess what? Like most books he sees...D loves it.

Vote for Halloween #1

2010-09-06T21:29:00.003-05:00

Yep - it's time to start seriously considering our Halloween costume options. Since, yet again, I don't think I'll have the time to make a costume, we're going the order route. And while I'm POSITIVE that D would choose to be Spiderman if given options - I want to take full advantage of what I'm guessing will be the last Halloween where he will not have full decision-making say on the costume.

I'm now opening the polls for the first costume vote of the season. I say FIRST, because you and I both know there will be more...

These are in reverse alphabetical order for now. I won't tell you those I'm leaning towards, but I'll allow guesses! Vote on the RIGHT...more to come!

Singing To D

2010-09-06T09:56:00.002-05:00

I vowed to sing more...this is one I sing to him regularly - - even Dain joins in sometimes.

Sorry folks...

2010-08-30T21:56:00.003-05:00

I have the cutest kid in the world.

July, August, October

2010-08-29T21:15:00.002-05:00

When most people enter the end of August - they start thinking about September. Labor Day, getting out fall clothes, etc. Not me! My mind skips September and goes straight to October...which is why I'm ALREADY thinking about D's birthday and Halloween costume.

You probably knew this about me already - or at least were clued in after last year's multi-post costume voting. I think I started that mid-August.

I've controlled myself this year, and am just now allowing myself to start thinking about it. When my 7 year old niece asked me what D was going to be for Halloween when I saw her on Saturday, I figured that was all the reason I needed to start the planning. So - YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. There will probably be a costume vote on here sooner rather than later.

However, I have to control it. D's 2nd birthday (who can believe this?) is before Halloween and I have to get on the ball with that too. No big bashes this year, probably just immediate family, but I still want to get the creative juices flowing. I will have some practice for that in a few weeks at the breastfeeding group's two year celebration.

Even though there's close to two months for the actual day, I've been thinking about gifts I want to get him since about Easter. I just keep adding things to my mental list. It's hard because we have limited space here - so there's no giant toys to be had. But, I've planned for months and months to get him some kind of car ramp/garage/racetrack for all his matchbox cars, etc. After witnessing the full hour that he sat having a BALL by himself with my nephew's toy racetrack - I realized that this is the gift we have to get him. I'll just find a way to get the other stuff for Christmas or something. I've already been scouting toy parking garages with ramps, which I think is the best idea as a result of our space-restraints. We'll see how it goes! Yep, you may get to vote on that one as well! :)

A is for Alphabet Books

2010-08-24T21:50:00.003-05:00

We love books here. This is no secret. And we really love alphabet books lately.

There's an entire section at the Geneva Public Library dedicated to "Alphabet Books" and with D recognizing more and more letters everyday - I figured we should try to get a new alphabet book every time we go.

We've looked at a lot of them - and checked out a few. There are some REALLY cute books out there - going over the alphabet in completely creative ways - making it fun and visually stimulating all at the same time.
Here are a few favorites - several have made it to the Amazon.com wish list :)

I've decided my life calling is to be a children's book editor - or reviewer - now who wants to pay me?

I'm Melting

2010-08-16T22:06:00.004-05:00

Not because of the heat...because tonight...D finally said "I love you"!! (Well, his cutesy version which came out as "ahhhve uuu").

Seriously? There's nothing that beats this!

This just adds to his constantly growing vocabulary - which now includes things we had no idea he knew including animals like "hippo", and phrases like "that way". But none of them come anywhere close to that phrase that I've been DYING to hear for nearly 23 months and been saying to him about 300 times a day. I love you truly is the best thing in the world to hear...

Thirty is Perty

2010-08-08T21:40:00.005-05:00

This past Friday I turned 30, and my super cute sister-in-law wrote the title of this blog entry in my card - which I thought was catchy and fun.

My older sister was, I think, a little disappointed that I wasn't feeling sad or depressed about turning 30, but to me, my birthdays are just days and I don't really get all shook up.
I DO think it's weird that I'm 30. I don't FEEL 30. But, here it is.

Anyway, it was a good weekend all around. I worked all day on my actual birthday. I did have a nice surprise from Dain and D...

The rest of the weekend was nice. We went to a BBQ at my brother-in-law's house on Friday night. We laid low on Saturday, which was wonderful. My parents came up today to take us to lunch at my favorite restaurant and hang around for a bit. It was a perfect, low-key weekend, which is exactly what I wanted.

One highlight: Saturday afternoon we took D over to the splash park in St. Charles that's a step up from the little one in our neighborhood...with 3 splash areas and 1 large sand play area. He had a BALL and I took one of my favorite pictures of him EVER. Doesn't he look HUGE and grown up??? I can't believe he's going to be 2 soon. This makes me feel old. HA - so I guess I do feel old, Theresa. Oh well - thirty is perty!

Little Known Fact

2010-08-05T21:29:00.002-05:00

Who knew that my library was so well-connected?

A friend of mine seems to know all the bargain ways of enjoying fun outings with your kiddo. She recently told me that, through a grant from Macy's, we can check out passes from our library for all kinds of museums in the area! Including Brookfield Zoo! WHAT? That's amazing!

This pass, or set of passes gets a family in free or at a 50% rate, or gets you free parking at otherwise free locations. It's amazing. I encourage you all to read about it - and see if your local library is a participant of anything similar.

Check it out by clicking on the pass below:

Sing...if you can

2010-07-30T21:59:00.002-05:00

I've been singing more with D.
I'm hoping he starts catching on to more lyrics - he doesn't really sing much - but he will say "row row row" if you sing Row Row Row Your Boat to him. But mostly these days he likes to listen.

Okay - maybe it was a result of a meeting with the infamous breastfeeding group of girls last weekend. One of the little girls who's about 6-8 weeks older than D can sing the entire ABC song flawlessly and clearly (along with many others!). Her mom politely "suggested" that she sing a different song after about the 5th time through the ABC's and they started singing You Are My Sunshine.

So I spent the car ride home singing to D, and most of the rest of last weekend. Mostly it was just a good reminder to do that. We don't sing with him a lot (occasional Wheels on the Bus or previously mentioned Row Row Row Your Boat), or do the cutesy nursery rhymes like we should. We read with him...a LOT...cause he loves it. But the idea that he's such a good reader and that's probably enough hasn't stopped me from hittin' him with the tunes.

I sang the ABC's on repeat around the block the other night on a walk. (Mostly because everytime I finished D turned around and said, in the cute voice, "ahh-gin" after every encore). I encourage Row Row Row Your Boat at tub time, and I even tried You Are My Sunshine.

Note: tried.

I can't get through that song without tears. Welling in the eyes, voice cracking, full-blown emotional tears.

I keep trying (tried again tonight in the car!) but that song pulls some serious heartstrings for me with D and I can't make it through.
Here's why: I sang it to him in the hospital when he was all hooked up to who-knows-what and being fed through an NG tube. I sang it, well attempted, everytime I could with him in the NICU nursery and in the following weeks at home when he was on the monitor. I cried then too. I was so so so so scared what was going on with him and seeing him all hooked up to monitors. I had no idea what any day would bring. Those last few lines are what I can't get through; not then, not now, and maybe not ever.

"You'll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don't take my sunshine away."

Here come the waterworks again. Maybe we'll stick to ABC's...

Pasta Night

2010-07-23T22:00:00.003-05:00

D loves pasta. He's a fan of most food in general, although lately he's started becoming picky. He no longer just goes along with what's put in front of him. He's started exerting some choosiness.
One thing that always works is pasta. He loves all pasta and especially pasta with marinara sauce. And leftovers are just as good for him.
The other night I sat him on the counter with me while I was trying to get some leftovers heated for him - he apparently couldn't wait for the microwave, or to make it to his high chair. He dove right in...

Glad I had the camera handy. :)