Connor's Carousel

Connor doesn't really like to ride anything that doesn't have wheels. He refuses to ride those little mechanical toys in the mall or grocery store (Meijer has one for a penny!), he had no interest in the ponies at Liam's birthday party and he doesn't even like to ride on Brian's shoulders! We took our old neighbors, Holly and Paetyn to the Van Andel Public Museum to see the Big Bugs! exhibit and treated the kids to a ride on the carosel. Connor started out in a bench seat with me, but after about a minute, I put him on a non-mobile horse/donkey/ram....whatever it was, and he seemed cool. I loved how he held on so tight to the golden column!

Of course I went into photographer mode, but my telephoto lens made capturing the moment a little tough as we were spinning around. I was happy with a couple that I managed to get and I now truly understand why photographers ask people to say "cheese". It worked like a charm! Look at the little guy totally "cheesin" it up!

Butterflies are Blooming!

Yesterday afternoon, Brian and I took Connor to the Meijer Garden's and Sculpture Park for their featured "Butterflies are Blooming" exhibit. I wasn't sure what to expect from Connor. He loves watching birds and planes in the sky and is fascinated with most things having to do with nature. I was NOT expecting him to be afraid. That seriously never even occurred to me, so of course he was terrified.
He wouldn't let go of Brian's leg for the first minute we were in there. We left the stroller in the little waiting area, but went back to retrieve in hopes it would provide a little security. The volunteers said his fear was very common and after I thought about it, I totally get it....foreign objects flying at your head?!
Brian and I couldn't help but laugh as he clung to us and grabbed his face out of pure terror. Thankfully, after holding him for a while and some time in the stroller, he got more comfortable after about 15 minutes and then there was no holding him back. He still wasn't thrilled to be dive-bombed by the occasional butterfly, but it didn't stop him from running around and climbing on all the rocks. :)

We didn't get a family picture, but here are some cute ones of Connor. I'll add a good video as soon as I get them off our new Flip UltraHD camera...so cool. :)

Mr. Independent.

So, I am extremely behind on blog posts. A lot has happened in the last (almost) month. Oh well.

I am currently awake at 5:09 in the morning and have been awake since 1:56 am when Connor started crying. He went back to sleep after 17 minutes, but I was up for good....I hate that! I dread what this is going to do to me for the rest of the day.

The past week has been quite challenging. Connor made numerous, consecutive escapes from his crib on Tuesday during his nap. I thought I'd outsmarted him by flipping his crib around so the high side was facing the middle of his room. I was very proud. It held him for 3 days. The sides of his crib curve down and it didn't take him long to figure it out.

I'm very thankful that he's never attempted to escape at night. He is actually a very easy baby to put to sleep at night....it is just the stinkin' naps that are killer. Yesterday I was already very tired and a bit irritable when he just would not stay in his bed for his nap. I can't even keep him in his room because no door knob locks fit on our oval-shaped knobs and believe it or not, he bulldozed the baby gate down that I had in his door several days ago. (where did he even learn that?!) He is NOT ready for the responsibility of a big-boy bed. I can't even imagine what his room would look like....that is assuming I figured out a way to keep him in there. The child would never sleep.

Anyway, yesterday he lost the privilege of having a spring in is crib. His mattress is now on the floor and the crib is assembled around it. This bought me another 6-8 inches and if he somehow figures out how to escape, I'm going to rename him Spider Man. When I put him to bed last night (reach in as far as I can...then drop...) he layed down and then stood up to give me a kiss on the mouth, then layed back down again and said "nah naht" (night night). Oh I wish he would do that during his naps too. Sometimes he naps so easily....just not this week.

In addition to the crib escapes, I've struggled with finding appropriate discipline that works. I feel like he knowingly pushes me to my limits and although I've informed him that Mommy always wins, he likes to push anyway. I swear he has hit the "terrible twos" about 5 months early. They just better end early too. I'm anxious for him to understand things like "we are going inside in 5 minutes". Hey, I'd even like him to understand a good bribe! He is still too little to "get" these kinds of concepts and yet his mobility is very advanced for his age. He even goes up and down stairs standing and like a champ. This week he even brought up his lawnmower from the basement without a struggle or asking for assistance.

I guess a good name for him would be "Mr. Independent". He climbs into his high chair unassisted. He prefers to eat apples whole (but he does spit out the skin). He climbs up on a stool to brush his teeth himself....he gets out his toothbrush, and tooth paste, turns on the water, wets the brush, puts the paste on, brushes with a smile, spits and repeats. Then he puts the twist cap back on the toothpaste, turns off the water and puts everything back in his drawer. Am I even needed anymore?! He can put on his own shoes (sans laces) and brings me his coat when he is ready to go "side, peas" (outside, please) regardless if it is 75º out.

He really is a good boy, but this week has just been trying. I'm sure my lack of sleep (because of nights like tonight) doesn't help my patience with the little guy and I hate that. Although we'd love to have another baby sometime soon, weeks like these make me thank God I'm not pregnant. :) I find strange comfort in knowing that each day that goes by means that Connor will grow up just a little more and be just a little more mature before it is time for baby #2. Heck, I'll even grow up and mature a little more! Poor little Connor has a rookie mom. I guess we'll just learn from each other.

I'll try to post a bunch of pictures soon. He got his sheepdog hair cut and looks like quite the little man. He was an angel during the cut. Too bad he doesn't really understand rewards yet either. I'll just be thankful that praise from me and a big hug are all the "reward" he needs.....at this point. :)

Retro Georgia Post

Flash back to March 17–26, 2010.
Connor and I flew to Georgia while Brian was at a sales meeting in Dallas. It was great to be back "home" for a bit and enjoy Macon in the early spring before the whole town was coated in a lovely yellow coat of pollen. :)

Ready for the Rain

The snow is finally gone and we have been spending more and more time outside. It became quite clear last week that Connor was going to need some rain boots. I never really saw the point previously, but I know now that they are a must unless I want to spend hours scrubbing and washing shoes. Of course it doesn't help that there is an empty lot next door that is constantly calling Connor's name. There is tons of dirt, mud, puddles and brush for him to play in.....in appropriate shoes.

Anyway, I was at Target yesterday and I found some of the tiniest rain boots I'd ever seen. They are XS, and fit Connor great! They are yellow with a little Paul Frank sock monkey on them. When I saw a matching bathing suit in size 2T (still a little big, but it works), I had to get it too.

This morning was pretty chilly and rainy, so we put all his gear on and headed out to play. Of course it is too cold for a bathing suit, so he just wore it over his footie jammies with his rain boots. :) He started out with a little rain coat my mom got for him last year, but he needed a little more warmth so we got out the big snow coat.

Anyway, we had fun. Here are some pictures.

checking the mail....sorta. At least he isn't in the street!
looking rough...but hey, it is Saturday morning...it is allowed. :)

We noticed the swans on the partially frozen lake while we played outside, but missed them flying away. Soon after we came inside, they came back! And this time they were really close to our house. To our delight, they stopped right behind our house near our little beach area! Connor was eating lunch, but when he finished up, he got to look at the swans too. He can't say swan yet, but threw out all the other water fowl words he knew trying to describe what he saw (duck, geese and "ga-ga" (water)).

He was SO EXCITED to see the swans!
I am really hoping they decide to lay their eggs on our lake this year.

bullets

Brian frequently tells me just to give him the "bullets" instead of the long, drawn out story with lots of details. Blog readers usually get all those details, but today, I'm going for bullets and will try to think of what has been going on around here.

• Connor found a hidden stash of chocolate chips in the pantry and helped himself. He came to me with chocolate around his mouth and a mouth full of chocolately goodness saying, "mum, yum". (they were zipped into the Pyrex Portables container in the bottom of the pantry)

• Connor's new words for the week.
—bath (bast)
—bear (bear minus the "r")
—apple (ah-puh)
—home (hahm)
—baby (beh-bee)
—Nana (for my mom...she was so thrilled!!)

His other favorites: mom, duck, geese, teeth, da da, car, ball, up, and there are others I'm forgetting. ****clock, hot, eye, ear, hi, and bye....and yuck (sounds like duck with a funny face...usually while I'm changing his diaper)****
It is still a very limited selection, but we are getting about 1 word a day now!!

He still signs "please" and "more" very frequently, but does not say either. And for the word water, he says "ga ga". This is the only thing he says that doesn't sound anything like the real word...well, that and the rest of the Connorese that we don't understand. :)

• Connor brought in his umbrella stroller to push in the house. I put a teddy bear in it and after about 3 minutes, he took the bear out and replaced it with his Lightning McQueen truck. I guess that is his "baby".

• Lightning McQueen suffered some water damage when Connor threw it in the bathtub two nights ago. He has dried out and the batteries have been replaced, but now he is possessed and we get random "ka-chow"s when no one is near the thing.

• Connor's parting words to me before bed last night, "Ka-chow". (then he blew me a kiss)

• Keeping Connor out of the street is our new struggle. I bought red and yellow duct tape yesterday and as soon as the driveway dries up from all the rain I'm going to make a warning line and a punishment line for him....otherwise I'll be chasing after him all summer. I hope it works!

• We put most of C's upstairs toys in our big, leather ottoman, coffee table. He is now great at opening it up, selecting a toy and then closing it.

• I think he loves shoes as much as his Mommy. I bought him some sandals at Once Upon a Child yesterday for $1.50 and he wore them around last night and then wanted to wear them again this morning. He was making quite the fashion statement with grey socks and sandals...

• When we aren't watching closely, he climbs up to "work" on Brian's computer or he climbs on the kitchen table to play with the fresh flowers or transfer the rocks in the bottom of the vases from the little vases to the big one. He knows he is not supposed to do this...

• He really likes the 1937 version of Snow White.

Ok, he is awake...update over. :)

Torture

I know I need to add new pictures. I just thought I'd write really quickly while Brian is giving Connor his bath.

Today we inadvertently traumatized Connor by taking him through the car wash. I thought he would think it was fun....I was wrong. From the second the guy sprayed down the car until the final bursts of air to dry the car off, he was pretty much petrified and screaming.

On a better note, his face is priceless when he absolutely lights up when he hears an airplane, he stops, points up and looks until he can find it. Tonight, there landing pattern to the Gerald Ford Airport was directly over our house and it is very clear out, so he got excited each time a new plane would come!! So stinkin' cute.

Ok, bathtime is over...time for books and bed.

Tschüss.

It takes special people....

...to purchase a pedal/paddle boat in the middle of winter...while it is snowing....and our lake is frozen solid!

We are the excited new owners of a 2010 Pelican pedal boat! On Friday, my new across-the-street neighbor, Pam took me to Costco in her big truck so we could get our new toys. I am so thankful Brian came home a little early and stayed home to wait for Connor to wake up from his nap. This outing could have been much more difficult with a munchkin in tow. Anyway, we got SO MANY crazy comments as we wheeled the purchases out of the store (with help). I think my favorite was that one lady basically ran up to me and said she liked my positive thinking...maybe the snow would be gone by the time I got home?! Countless other people said that if winter never ends, it could make a pretty cool sled. :)

However, we got almost as many comments on the other purchase made at the same time. Forgive the crazy cheesy name, but get ready for the "Relaxation Station"!!This thing is HUGE. I have no idea where we are going to store it when it is inflated during the summer. As the picture states...it is 10' x 10'. It has a ladder, cupholders and a "mesh floor for cooling feet"! I am so excited about this stinkin' float! Of course Connor will have a lifejacket on, but I think it will be so fun for him to be able to play out in the middle of the water on the "mesh floor" and he won't be able to get too far away!!!

Was it really necessary to buy this now?? Couldn't it wait until the snow was at least gone? Well, I've learned that at Costco, you gotta buy it when you see it (or very shortly after) or you risk missing out entirely. We only saw 4 of the boats when we were there on Wednesday, so I didn't want to drag our feet....there are LOTS of lakes around here (even more than Minnesota....they just marketed it well). And after looking on Craigslist for a pedal/paddle boat last year for a used one, I knew this was a great deal. And the price I just found while looking for an internet image confirms we got a GREAT deal on both the toys we purchased!)

So, we are officially ready....bring on the warmer weather! (as I look out at a blanket of white)

We have really enjoyed our mild winter, and have had a bunch of fun playing in the snow....a big snow tunnel and a snowman yesterday...pictures to come. But today is the first day of March. I can't wait for the snow to melt, and to see little buds and blossoms start to appear. I planted a bunch of tulip bulbs last year for the first time, and I am so anxious to see if they actually come up! I don't know why they wouldn't but the fact that you can just put something in the ground and it will grow still amazes me at age 29. Since we didn't have landscaping at this point last year, we will see our flowering trees (3 Purple Prince Crabapples, 1 northern Magnolia) bloom and blossom for the first time this spring. I have also never been more excited for all the nurseries and greenhouses (we have a TON up here) open up and sell plants and flowers. I know I want to get some "Rhodies" this year...not sure how many. We still have some space along the sides of the house and a really big bed that is just calling for a tree and some shrubs in a weird cutout.

Oh, and don't get me started on wanting to go to a farmer's market or to pick fruit again! I'm not going to miss out on picking blueberries this year....that will be in July. :)