Ready for rest

Driving his car....... a better description would be smashing it into things and laughing.

Playing on the hill with Moe.

It is as if Jason has went into super learning mode. Suddenly in the last few days he has started to say many more words and is really puting them into phrases. One thing that he really loves to do is sing and interact with cartoons. When Diego comes on he sings the song and loves to say "Click... take a pic"..... It is adorable. When he sees anything to do with the Backyardagains, he sings their song and dances like they do. I didn't teach him their dance, he picked that up on his own. You may be thinking...... Does he just watch cartoons all day? He doesn't, just while I take a shower, in the mornings when he gets up so that I can make breakfast and Colin can get his stuff done, then when I am cooking dinner I put them on. We have a really cool preschool channel that has age appropriate cartoons and learning shows on all of the time which is a god send when I have to do a lot of prep to make dinner. The words he has been saying are much clearer as well. Jason can say things in a way that we can get the point under most circumstances...... those times that he is just grunting and whining... he doesn't get anything and we tell him to talk if he wants something. Also he says "Please" all of the time....... We are working on thanks. Here is an example of one of our conversations to give you an idea of what kinds of things he tells me. I always let him help me on the computer..... it makes everything much more difficult and nearly impossible to read something and type, but it is fun and good for him. One day I was trying to post when he reached to type on the keyboard. Even though he has his own keyboard (an old one dad gave him), he wanted to use the same one I was using. I told him no and he started to throw one of his monumental temper tantrums. I asked him if it was really that bad....... he said "No"....... so I asked "Then why are you throwing such a big fit?" he replied......"Cause I bad boy." Then his fit was over and I couldn't stop laughing. I don't know where he gets these things from, but he always has an answer to a question and most of the time it makes sense.

Bucket head...... he likes to walk around with it on his head and uses his arms to guide the way.

Jason is also coming out of his shell around other people. Yesterday we had to go to the mall in search of winter clothing. Before the snow hits Jason needed snow boots, a hat that fits his growing head, mittens to fit his huge hands (bigger than most 3 year olds), and snow pants. He also needed some long sleeve shirts, which are difficult to find in his size (2T to 3T). I think that that must be a popular size. We also needed to walk a lot. Both him and I can use all of the exercise we can get. It was too cold and windy (the wind knocks Jason over) outside and the mall provides the perfect place for us to get the needed exercise anyway. I didn't think there would be any problem finding the needed supplies, but I was oh so wrong. We went into every store that had sales and couldn't even find long sleeve shirts in Jason's size, so snow boots and snow pants were definitely out of the question. After walking around for almost 2.5 hours...... Jason walked and ran the entire time I was ready to give up. On the coming out of the shell thing....... Jason had to say "Hi there... How you?" to every person we saw then said "Bye there" and waved as we walked away. It was super cute at first, but it got old by the time we were done. This constant greeting takes a lot of time and makes it difficult to pull the little man away to continue walking. The moment he would begin to walk, he would do it again. He is just so friendly. I think I got most of my exercise from wrangling him and not from walking. I also realized that Jason picks up on almost everything I do. When I shop I always look at the tags and compare prices. I am addicted to sales and good deals. It crushes me to buy something that isn't on sale. He has seen me look at so many tags that he has started to do the same. He grabs things off of the shelf or rack and then looks at the tag before puting it back. I couldn't believe my eyes, but it is true....... I have created a sale shopper. So, after 2.5 hours of searching I was ready to be done so we stopped at the last place on the list and the closest to the car........ Target. To my surprise... everything that we had been looking for was there. We did all of our shopping in 10 minutes. I couldn't have been more thankful. It was a perfect way to end the day. As we left, Jason did his exit wave and we were on our way home. Now we are ready for the snow. We can't wait to see Jason's reaction. It should be a blast.

Visiting with the neighbor's dog.... Monkey.

Now we are ready for the weekend. We just need to rest and it is much easier when there are two of us to chase wild man. I want to wish all of you a wonderful weekend. Have a great time, be safe and enjoy...............

Photo op.

Update

I will start out with yesterdays excitement..... We got new tires!!!!!! Colin and I knew that our tires were weather checked and that we did need to replace them, but it turns out it was more necessary than we thought. One of the tires had a slow leak and the other three weren't much better. But we are now driving safely with 4 brand spankin new tires. It took them 2 hours to get us in and Jason was an angel. He talked to the other people waiting, read books, and pretty much spent his time showing off to anyone that would pay attention. It was a good time for both of us.

Then today I went to another doctors appointment. I am currently 14 1/2 weeks and am healthy. We heared the babies heartbeat for the first time, which was very exciting. When Jason heared it he was so excited and even said "WOW!!!" There was only one hitch in the trip to the doc. Colin was running behind so Jason had to come in with my while I went pee in a cup (never fun, but a fact of life). We went into the bathroom, I closed and locked the door behind us, and then proceeded to do the deed. Just as I was in the middle of filling the cup, Jason unlocked the door and someone opened it, revealing me (in a very embarrassing situation) to about 15 people. It was oh so much fun...... and I have to say, I was a little mad a Colin for being late at that point. But, once we got past that task things went smoothly..... too bad there is always a long wait. So now it is time to start speculating.... Boy or Girl? The heart rate was 155 beets per minute if that is any help to you. But, we will know for sure in 4 weeks. Yes, we are going to find out. As I said before, the mystery is overrated in our minds. So, as long as the little bugger cooperates, we will know on the 15th of November.

I hope all of you have a great day. Take care and I will have many more stories to share very soon....................

Missed it

Looking at the fog this morning over the edge of our deck.

So, yesterday I posted my normal babble about all that is happening in our little world (sorry Maggie)................ mostly due to the fact that I had pre-written it. Then I realized that Blog Action Day had come......... after reading Maggie's blog, GSI. After reading...... my day flew by and I didn't get time to sit back at the computer. So today I will talk a little about our environment.



As children, most of us have had the opportunity to grow up in areas where we could enjoy the outdoors and see what nature could offer us. This is what helps me to be more conscientious of what I do to the environment. Colin is the same. If it is trying to pick up as much garbage as possible when you are on a walk (we have a big problem with that here................ even out of town no where near a landfill) or being sure that you don't drive off road and tear up the land. We want everything that we have enjoyed to be there for future generations. It is discouraging to see people just toss garbage out their car windows (I saw someone do this right in front of our house yesterday). Even if a person just throws a cigarette butt our the window.............. they add up. As for people just driving off of the road and tearing up the land................... it makes Colin so angry that he can't stand it. First of all why can't people just walk a few yards..............pure laziness. Then for those that like the "4 X 4ing", do it in areas set aside for that........... It is uncalled for. They cause damage to landscape that formed over millions of years. I don't think I need to dive into this topic any deeper.............. So....... my point is that we need to take care of what we have because we only have on earth and most damage can't be repaired. We will continue to minimize our energy use in this house and to be environmentally conscientious.

Now speaking of our environment and enjoying what we have......... there is snow in our forecast. There were snow showers in our area last night (not at our house) and they are in the forecast off and on through the week now. I can't wait to bring Jason sledding. It will be so much fun to see him play in the snow.

On another note, we are getting new tires on our Envoy today!!!!! WOOOOOO!!!!!HOOOOOOO!!!!! We need them so bad and now we will have them before we make any long trips. It will ensure safe travel for us and when we are on icy roads, there isn't much else you can ask for.

Also............. WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!HOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!! Rockies!!!!!! We knew they could do it. Now for some time to rest before the World Series. They are going to take it all.

Catching a fly ball.

I hope all of you have a great day and enjoy.

Cutting up a banana.

GO FALL!!!!!

First I must apologize for not posting any pictures........... I kept on getting an error message when I tried, so I will post some tomorrow.

Now for an update on our wild weekend of fun. It kind of sounds like a theme park, and well...... it could be; maybe comedy club would be a better fit. Anyway...... on to our big weekend of fall fun. It all began with the always fun, trip to the vet. On Friday afternoon Jason and I brought the dogs in for some of their shots. I have to say, it is easier said and imagined than done. There were signs of trouble from the beginning. The moment I got Jason and the dogs out the door, Jason ran toward the street to chase a cat, the dogs did the same. I ran as fast as I could, making Jason the priority (kid + street= bad problem). When I caught him I shoved him under my arm and proceeded to chase the dogs. Thank goodness for long leashes. I was able to stomp Moe's leash first. She hit the end of the line like there was a brick wall in front of her and I wasn't going to let her go. Once Moe was caught, Mae followed............. a relief since I only have two arms. Finally both dogs and Jason were loaded. After the big run away mess, we were running late. So, we raced through town....... through all of the school zones and finally arrived at the vets office. It was time to wrangle all three of them and make my way into the building. Again, easier said than done. I think it would have went more smooth if it weren't for other animals. But, when a little puppy walked in front of us............. Jason took off running screaming puppy puppy Woof Woof!!!! I tried to chase him and keep the dogs away from the frightened little dog, with some success. I am pleased to say that we made our way into the vets office without the dogs eating any other creature. The rest of our visit followed the general pattern set by the two previous events, but one thing I didn't anticipate was Jason's reaction to the vet. When he saw the white coat, he dropped to the ground screaming. With help from the vet I got him and the dogs into the exam room. The problem was that Jason thought that he was going to get shots. He continued to scream until Moe got her two shots. Once he came to the realization that the dogs were getting the "pokies", he thought it was funny. In fact when Mae got her shots, he pointed and laughed. What a nice kid. I am just happy we all made it home after that event.

Of course there were a lot of games to watch. Friday night left us with two very happy baseball wins, but Saturday there was the disappointing UW game and the Red Sox left another sad note. Thank goodness for the Rockies, holding strong and topping the weekend off with a good note. I have to add that watching a game in a house with a toddler is an interactive experience. If there is baseball on tv, Jason runs to get the glove and ball, if it is football, then he grabs his football. He feels like we have to play catch when a game is on. Jason has a great arm and equally impressive aim. Most of the time he wants to play with Colin so, they do just that. It is very funny to watch, since about every 3rd toss Colin is distracted by the game on tv. This leaves him wide open for something painful. Jason keep up his pace and throws a hard ball right at Colin's head. Since Jason doesn't stand a long distance from his target, there is no time to react and Colin usually ends up holding his head in pain. The funniest part of this is that if you watch long enough, you will see this happen over and over again............................... Being the loving wife I am, I laugh.......... a lot.

The rest of our weekend was much more calm and relaxed. We did our standard walking routine, and the weather was amazing. Fall is truly here. Those freakish 80 degree days are behind us and now we have highs in the low 60's and our nights get cold. Last night the weather channel forecast a low of 33 degrees, we were pleased to wake up to 23. It was our first hard frost........ I mean hard. My roses are suspended. It almost looked like they would shatter if I hit them. We just love it.

With the beautiful fall weather, it meant warm food. One of my favorites as I have said before is homemade soups. When you come in from a cold walk, there is nothing that can warm you up like a warm cup of tea or hot chocolate and some soup. That runny canned soup doesn't cut it. So, over the weekend we had homemade potato. It is creamy, thick, and hearty.............. perfect to warm us up. So, we all worked together to prepare the potatoes........ I had a great pic of Jason lending a hand, but as I said before, I keep getting an error. Anyway, while Colin peeled the potatoes, I chopped them up and Jason wanted to help. He always wants to do what we are doing. I have found that if I get a banana out, peal it and put it on a plate in front of him, he can chop it with a kids knife while I do my knife work. The only difference was that Jason eats his as he cuts it up and I put mine in a pot. I think he has a better deal. The soup was everything we had hoped and some. Thank goodness for leftovers (soups are always better the second day).

I know I said that we were going to carve pumpkins, but we saved that for one evening this week. Keep on looking and we will have pictures when that happens. Hopefully I can get them to post. For now, I hope all of you had a great weekend as well. Enjoy another weeks beginning......................

What a peach

Eating the 3rd peach of the day!!

After the big scare we decided that we needed to take it easy for a day or two and we did just that. Wednesday we pretty much played with Legos, went for a walk, colored with crayons, played a little chase and hide and go seek, then topped it off with a lot of eating. Jason seems to enjoy fruit as much as I do at this point. If you put and orange, peach, apple or banana in front of him, it will be gone. So for every piece of fruit I eat, he eats one. I don't know how it all fits. Then he will go on to eat chicken nuggets (only Tyson dino nuggets though........ they growl), an egg, sausage, lunch meat, and dinner with us. It blows my mind that a little guy can eat so much when he wants to.

Yesterday we cleaned up the house. Jason showed his skills by dusting. He even dusts the walls. When it comes to the television stand he is sure to get into every nook and cranny. He is the best helper to have around when he wants to help and not just get in the way. There are those times when he is out to make a job more difficult...... that is the most common around here.

He left me with a moment to remember yesterday too. I have been locked out of the house by him a few times and am getting in the habit of making sure there is an alternate entrance that is unlocked. Thank goodness that was the case yesterday. I went outside to bring a stinky diaper to the garbage when I here a loud giggle through the open window. I should have began to question things at that point, but I didn't. When I got back to the door Jason was at the other side. I tried to turn the handle to find it was locked. He laughed again and then proceeded to knock on the door, laughing the whole time. I didn't think I could get in at first because the garage door was closed and the back gate was locked. So, I went to find a way in. After inspection, it was obvious that my only way in was to climb the privacy fence and then go in through the back door. Climbing a privacy fence isn't as easy as you would think, especially when your stomach muscles are beyond sore from stretching. So, I sucked up the pain and made my way into the house. Jason was laughing for hours about that one. Every little bit, he would walk over to the front door, look at me, then turn and knock on it say "knock knock"....... What a brat.

I am hoping today is a calm day. We do have to bring the dogs in for shots this afternoon, but that is the only big thing on our list. I think we will do a lot of playing today. That is our favorite. And today I will be sure to leave the garage door open when I take a stinky diaper out.

A quick note........ Go Rockies!!! We believe you can take it all. We can't forget our other teams............Go Pokes!!!!! and for the other baseball game tonight.... Go Red Sox!!! It should be an interesting weekend in the sports world.

Have a great weekend everyone. Have fun and we will have more at the beginning of the week.............

I will leave you with a link to Jason's favorite song......................... Down in the Valley by Dan Zanes