A Day in the Life of a 2 Year Old...

 

 

 

 

So the weather has turned and I forgot how hard it was to entertain a busy little boy INSIDE all day! Jalen is not one to sit and play with toys...we have baskets full of cars, tools, books, and blocks but he would much rather be outside on his quad, on his bike or with a ball, bat or club in his hand! I know most parents would be grateful that their kid doesn't watch TV, but there are times when I beg him to just sit on the couch and cuddle with me...I'll even watch one of his silly little cartoons...just let me SIT!! So I have got him a tiny bit interested in Handy Manny...he'll even say "Mama, watch Hanny Manny, couch, me". Translates, come sit with me on the couch and watch Handy Manny. So he will watch (kind of...off and on) but the sitting doesn't last long. He has to get up and go get his matching toolbox with the tools and play along. Which is fine because at least I get to stay sitting! So between cartoons, playing chase, hide and seek and shooting hoops on the indoor plastic hoop we try to stay busy. You can see the rain on this day...it was pouring so hard our gutter clogged up and my planter bed became a pool of muddy water. I did finally let Jalen go outside after he stood at the window saying "mama...see?" He pulled his pants up and walked out onto the porch, looked in the planter bed/pool and said "mama, fish?" I cracked up as I told him there were no fish in the planter bed. So what seemed like a very long morning it was finally nap time. Even though he has been crawling out if his crib for months now he is usually pretty good about going to sleep at nap time. So we changed (he insists on wearing pajamas at nap time too), sang our songs, got the blankie and truck book and gave kisses. I took a deep breath and went to do some work on the computer. It was a good 20 minutes of silence which I very much enjoyed when I heard "Mama!"...in a very loud yell. I thought no way...he can't be done after 20 minutes. So I open the door to find he was never asleep! His room looked like a tornado hit it! Every toy was out, every book, his pillows and blankets thrown out onto the floor, the diapers thrown out of the drawer and he was standing on TOP of the changing table with no pants on dancing around like it was his own personal stage! He had smeared lotion all over himself and the mirror, gotten into the vaseline so he had a nice shine to him and knocked a wooden sign off the wall. He didn't even have a guilty look either...like it was no big deal. He said "mama...change me". Thank goodness I walked in when I did because I have a feeling the changing part he was about to do himself and that would not have been pretty! I got him changed and back in his pajamas and layed him down for a second time. This time I stood by the door for a few minutes to make sure he stayed in his crib and went to sleep. I love him...he has completed our family, he cracks us up and every night when I lay my head down I know I will get a good nights sleep because that kid wears me out!

Cousins

 

 

 

 

Cousins

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Patch

We surprised the kids last night and took them to the pumpkin patch (well...we tried to surprise them...once we got to the ferry they knew where we were going...why else would you ever go on a ferry right?!)It was a beautiful day for it...COLD...but clear blue skies! When we got out of the car there was a family walking to their car holding 3 pumpkins and Jalen shouted out with excitement "mama, big orange!" Jamie and I cracked up as we told him they were pumpkins to which he responded "oh yeah"...like he already knew that. The kids all had fun riding in the wheelbarrow, climbing the haystack, and finding their way through the hay maze. Okay so I'm a little embarrassed to admit this since we have been going to this pumpkin patch for 9 years but I have never gone through the hay maze until this year! I know bad mom...sending my kids into the darkness on their own! The thing is they are not scared...never have been but I HATED it! I had my camera and I had to keep taking pictures just so I could use the light of the flash for a split second to slow my heart. Not a fan! We all picked our own pumpkin like we always do...Jalen's was green...if I remember right he did that last year too. He walked over the wheelbarrow saying "blue one"...everything is blue right now, his favorite color, even if it's not...but hey green is close enough! So as usual I had the camera and spent most of the time snapping away until Jamie told me my picture taking was "bugging him"...he said all he can hear are the snaps of the shutter. I said fine...here...you take the pictures. This rarely happens...for example out entire trip to Bend there was not one picture of me...it's like I wasn't even there! My kids are going to look back on these wonderful scrapbooks I make them and wonder where I was...the long lost mommy. Anyway, you all know Jamie well enough to know that of course he was going to go a little overboard just to prove him point. So he walked around taking pictures of anything and everything. And not just one...but three of the same thing...just click, click, click. Right in my face, would not leave me alone, like we were on some kind of professional photo shoot of mom. So I'm holding in my annoyance by laughing and thinking well at least there will be some pictures of me for once. Wishful thinking. I get home, plug in my camera and look through the pictures with great anticipation. Nothing. Well...everything, but nothing worth wanting to put in a scrapbook! And the few ones that may have been good, were taken directly into the sun so they were all hazy. I even put it on automatic mode for him! Oh well...I guess the proof that I am there is in all the pictures of them!

No School? Didn't we just start?

So not even a month into school and the girls had their first "inservice" days. And then on top of that Ellie got sick last weekend with a fever, and sore throat which in turn led Lily to say she was sick (with no symptoms of course). Just to be safe I took them both to the doctor and while Ellie had tonsilitis Lily did have an ear infection (funny...she NEVER mentioned her ear hurting!) The doctor said not to send Ellie to school for a couple days so what turned into Wednesday, Thursday, Friday off became a whole week off from school! So with our asymtematic kids we decided to get away and go to Bend for a couple nights. This time of year over there is always really slow which I don't get because fall in Bend is beautiful! But we had the place to ourselves...went swimming in the outdoor heated pools, drove to Sunriver and took a hike around the trails, saw the horses at the Sunriver Stables, and relaxed with some movies. Jalen had a rough trip as he dove head first into the kiddie pool that was no more than a foot deep. I think he was trying to do a sommersault into the pool but it did not go as he envisioned! Then at Red Robin that night he fell off the chair to one of the video games and got the biggest fat lip I've ever seen...it looked like there was a bouncy ball in his lip! The girls were great, I don't know if it's just the change in scenery or what but there was not much fighting going on which is a regular occurence here at home! They did so awesome on the trail hike too...we must have walked for two hours and while Jalen got to ride in the stroller, they were able to keep up and didn't even complain! Of course we had to stop at Goody's afterward for a treat! We got back home on Thursday and Friday morning Lily woke up saying she didn't feel good. I thought super...another weekend with a sick kid! This is the funny part though...I asked he what didn't feel good and she said "well, I'm not so hot" (as she's feeling her forehead), "but I just kinda feel not so smart". I started laughing and asked her what that meant to which she couldn't answer. As it turned out Lily was just fine!