Cars Party- 3rd Birthday Weekend!

This weekend was the big party! The King/Vankemseke clan rolled into town early Saturday morning, bringing not only presents for Thomas but much needed supplies for Baby Whip. I haven't spent a lot of time shopping for the little guy, as work and preschool have kept me on the go and exhausted. I have looked around several times at the stash they brought over and have had a sense of relief that they brought the essentials that we really needed. By afternoon the party was in full swing with the Vankemsekes, Hutchisons, Pohlmans, Lawrences, Wesleys, Stephen and Barb, and finally Mark and the Whipple boys coming in to celebrate. With the early morning weather threatening to create an indoor circus, we prayed desparately for some decent weather, and instead of the rain and cold it turned out to be a beautiful, sunny afternoon. We were so thankful. The presents for Tommy were over the top and I could barely keep my focus with all the bodies clamboring around, wrapping paper flying and toys coming from all directions. I still remember when the wrapping paper was the best part of the whole event. Now, Tommy's entire morning was consumed with "Are my friends here?" "Will they bring presents?" "Is it my birthday yet?" "Are my friends here?" "Are my friends here?" over and over! I was very grateful for all the help from my sister and mom, for Lil's hosting the party upstairs and food supplies, for John and Stephen manning the cameras and video, for Barb's help in the kitchen and for Billy's pinata skills. It would never have gone off without everyone's help.

Play in March

Thomas is really big into pretending these days. Some of his favorite times are pretending to be Lighting McQueen and running around with Mater, hiding from the tractor Frank, playing pirate ship and Daddy Bird. He likes to assign roles from the Save Um's. Daddy is Noodle, I'm PB Jammies, he's Jazzy. He's back to taking tubby time outside even though yesterday it was snowing.

Sayings- "Grandpa, settle down" when Grandpa was trying to talk to him and asking him questions.
Thomas is big on rivers, streams, waterfalls and fountains. Tonight in the bathtub, he says, "Mommy, I'm making a pee-pee fountain."

He's learning to put things together (matching) and likes to point out things that match, are the same color or are the same shape. He's identifying all the major shapes and likes to point out the big T and little t for tommy wherever we go or in whatever we're reading. He's starting to figure out knock-knock jokes but after "who's there?" he just laughs at whatever you say. He's still eating and writing with his left hand, but throws things around with his right hand, so it's undetermined if he's a leftie or a rightie at this point. He changes it up too much to know right now.

He enjoys singing Old MacDonald, London Bridges, the Save Ums, Tractor Tom, Jingle Bells and learned the ABC's in two tubbie times singing with daddy.

He's starting to call John "Dad" instead of Daddy now, and says, "Where's my dad?" in such a cute little voice.

He'll go pottie when he's running around naked, but demands a diaper on to go hide to do his business. He's still refusing to use any other potty in the house, and continues to insist on flushing our toilet.

He enjoys cracking the eggs, pouring the milk, dumping in the cinnamon and stirring up the mixings for French toast, and makes the morning coffee with help, although more often than not the grounds are the dirt piles and he's the excavator or e-ment crusher. He helps pour the pancake mix and stirs the water, and has just figured out that dad makes cool shapes to cut up.

"There is a lot of stuff in here" as he's trying to get out of the Pilot. It just happened to have a lot of stuff in it, including bags of clothes, various fast food sacks, items of clothing, coats, left over Valentines strewn all over the floor, bags of work stuff, etc. I couldn't help but laugh and then John remarked, "Yeah, Thomas, Mommy laughs when you say it, but if I said it she would give me a dirty look. I'd get the dirty look." To which I replied, "Yes, you sure would."

As John was getting out of the Pilot after watching Thomas while I was at the doctor's, Thomas said, "Have a good one, Daddy."

Listening to a Rascal Flatts song, Thomas asks John, "what they singing bout, Daddy?" "Love," John replies.

Our 8th Anniversary, 2007

Today is our 8th anniversary! It is so hard to believe that we've been married for 8 years and together for 9! I think it is harder to believe because I have such clear memories of our early days together, from our first "meeting" on the steps of the Martin Center, our first date after a wild and raining bike ride on Ski to Sea, jet skiing on Lake Whatcom, our trips and our days playing out at the Stanley house and other memories that seem like yesterday. John brought home 2 dozen roses as a surprise and Bruce and Lil treated us to an evening out. We took them up on the offer and headed out to Everson to have steak at Black Forest. Thomas crashed on the couch before we left and was still sleeping when we got home, so he had no clue we left him, which makes it easy.

Nasty Weather, Beautiful Pictures

Although the day was nasty for the majority of the time, John was able to capture these beautiful pictures right as night fell. Wish the sun would have come out earlier to play, but the scene was spectacular, even as the rain continued to fall.

Tommy's 3rd Birthday

Today we woke up to singing birthday songs and talking Tommy's day up for celebration. It's amazing to think that he's been a part of our lives for three years now. How time flies! We got a kick out of our clear memories of Tommy's first birthday, themed Wags the Dog. This morning I took cupcakes to preschool, although I wasn't sure they would be allowed as there is a no cupcake policy during snack time. I had seen another mom bring them in for a birthday and another mom bring in cookies, another no-no for preschool snack, so I figured that I'd take them for the special occasion with a back up snack just in case. This being my first snack day, I was apprehensive as it was but it was exacerbated by my worry about the cupcakes. When we got there, though, Teacher Dana quickly approved and went about eagerly mentioning his birthday throughout the morning. At snack time all the kids thanked us for bringing in the special treat and wished him a happy birthday. I think the cupcakes, frozen go-gurts and Goldfish were good choices, as I saw most of the kids inhaling them all up.

Tommy had a great preschool morning, too. Within minutes I told Tommy I had to go out and get snack and stop by the office, and he only gave the briefest pauses before going back to his playdough project. The other mother helper quickly engaged him in conversation about their creations, so I slipped out. When I returned, I peeked in, and finding him still going strong, I kept quiet watch in the hallway. Teacher Dana advised me to sit in the other room and kick my feet up, just to pass the time and see how long we could get out of him today, as he was doing so well. He made it at least 45 minutes, only asking for me twice and both times being consoled by Teacher Dana and going back to his work. At transistion to circle time I quickly came in and checked in, then encouraged him to go to circle time while I set up snack in the other room. He went without a hint of tears and I didn't hear from him again until hand washing time, which meant he went to Chapel without me, too. Teacher Dana reported that he asked for me when they were lining up, but she reminded him that I was setting up snack, and he quickly got in line and went on his own. It was a great morning and I was very proud of him.

This afternoon we took a nap to refresh ourselves after playing with the Lawrences and then hurried out to Haggen to pick up his birthday cake and get to Red Robin to see Daddy. I had sent John out to find additional presents on his breaks from work, and he was able to find the last minute front end loader for Thomas that we thought he'd like. Red Robin dinner was fun and afterwards we gathered at home to open presents and eat cake and ice cream. It was a lot of fun watching him enjoy his new wooden bike and front end loader, as well as the candles and cake. A nice way to end a full day of birthday fun!

Kicked Out!

Yes, that is right! Kicked out! As in his room! By a not yet three year old! "Don't come in here," is what I heard, as I made my way into Thomas' room to visit. Obviously, he and daddy were engaged in some serious playtime, busy constructing machines and such with his MegaBlocks. I guess it didn't matter that I'd spent all day entertaining the little guy, first to the park, then to donuts, then out on errands together, where we spent an extended time checking out each and every cheap wind up toy Haggen has in stock. Had he forgotten the stop at Starbucks after he asked for "kids cocoa and chino" for mommy? Did he forget the post-parktime sprinkled donut (not the cake kind!) at Lafeen's?
Daddy quickly got involved, gently but firmly reminding Thomas yet again that it makes Mommy (or anybody) sad when he talks that way, that that isn't nice, that it will hurt feelings, and on an on. Thomas choked out an apology, but you could tell in his face he was still clearly distressed that I was invading, and he let me know by jumping in his crib and burrowing in his pillow. With Mommy in the room, playtime was over! Realizing it wasn't worth it, and maybe I should take advantage of some couch time, I walked out, only to hear Thomas quickly jump out of his crib and back to the construction site. As I walked away from the door, it shut on me, and I could hear Thomas reply, "Good, she's gone."
You've got to be kidding me! Pregnancy hormones raging, I walked to the shower, knowing my tears were not the result of my son's desire to have alone time with his dad. But still, I would not help but feel a sense of sadness, knowing that this was the first of many times that I will be reminded that although I may have given birth to him, may be willing to die for him, he will still break my heart, again and again. I can only think that this is but a small little crack in preparation for the day ahead when he will choose his friends over me, his girl over me, and eventually leave the home we have shared together for so long!

(And yes, there was a knock on the door, followed by a very sad little "I saw-whee, Mommy" from the other side shortly thereafter.)

Latest Activities

Thomas has been sick the last week and missed both days of playgroup this week. With what we don't know, but after a day of complaining that his underarm hurt, Bruce checked him out only to find grape size nodes under his arms and a fever. We'd already spent 4 nights up and down with him during the night due to his bad cold and unrelenting cough, leading me to believe we might as well have this baby now as we're sleepless anyway. With the new development we knew he was a sick little boy and it's taken most of the week to get him back on his feet, although his nose is still running like a faucet. Bruce and Lil have left for their abbreviated cruise (it had a cleaning after an outbreak of Norwalk Virus on it) and John and I have juggled our schedules to be at home to watch Thomas. At the same time, I started having a lot of cramping and back ache, which was uncomfortable and borderline painful for several straight days, only adding to the stress of interrupted sleep at night. With Thomas getting up and coming into our room at night, me trying to sleep either in the boat bed or on the floor in our room, the baby being awake for long chunks of time during the middle of the night, and now all the cramping, I'm really starting to feel the strain. I'm trying to keep positive about it all, but I've shed some tears through it all. John is shouldering the majority of the playtime with Thomas, and in itself that is a fulltime job. He loves to pretend, play upstairs, go up the park, build GeoTrax, play outside and take long tubbies outside-all with the constant interaction of mom or dad. You're either his best friend or you're not, and on any given night he'll decide who he favors and tell the other one to leave. He's had several little conversations about that and how that makes us feel, as well as more than one time where he's had to apologize. I can't believe I've been kicked out of the bedroom of my not-yet three year old, but it's happened! The saying, "I gave birth to you...." has entered my mind more than once with his newfound quest for independence.

1st Sharing Bag-Preschool PlayGroup Catch the Son

On Monday Thomas was given his job for the today's playgroup and it was "sharing bag". Thomas doesn't seem to get the whole idea of the sharing bag, but during circle time he's usually eager to see each item that is pulled out and talked about. On Monday night, John and Thomas talked about what he wanted to fill it with, and they went about putting in train track pieces, random Thomas the Train attachments and other items not really special enough to take with him, but I enjoyed watching the two of them work at it together. Last night, nervous that I would somehow forget the sharing bag altogether, I asked Thomas to figure out what his top three toys would be to take with him to show his friends at school. He didn't seem too interested, so I picked them out for them, then just to be on the safe side tucked the bag by the front door so we wouldn't forget them on our way out. I'm usually pretty anxious leaving the house in the morning, as no matter how early I get up, it's usually interesting to see how fast I can get Thomas ready to go. I can't even imagine what it will be like when there is a baby to get ready too.

The morning passed by quickly enough, and Thomas seemed to do better in class, even allowing me to "visit the office" and escape to the restroom without him. It took a lot of coaxing from the teacher's helper to get him to stay, though, and for that I was grateful. I hid out for a while in the hall, taking my time and trying to see how long he could go without mom right there in sight. He did a lot better, but when the activity ended he realized mom hadn't come back yet, and the crying began. I figure it's all about the baby steps, and I had to be thankful for even a little break. When it was time to go to gym, an activity Thomas loves, he called to me, "You coming Mommy? You coming with me?" in his sweet little voice. I could tell he was itching to go, and lined up with the other kids, but he kept a close watch on me to see what I would decide, and the look on his face was both anticipation of the fun ahead and a hint of tears in his eyes, just in case I wasn't coming with him. Of course I was going to go, not wanting to watch a meltdown right before Sharing Time. Shortly before it was time to go back to class he got nailed in the nose by another body flying by, but managed to pull it together by the time we walked into class and sat down by teacher to open his sharing bag. Very eager to share his toys with the others, he one by one pulled out his Chevron towtruck, his monster truck, his Cookie Monster talking toy and finally his chainsaw. I could tell with each toy he was eager to see the reaction each one brought from the other kids. And of course, his toys were a big hit, as it took the Teacher Dana several warnings to the other kids scrambling to get to him that they had to wait until class was over to talk to Thomas about playing with his toys. It was quite endearing to see the other kids clamoring around him wanting to check each one out, and Thomas handled it well, although he wasn't too sure they weren't going to take his stuff home with him, and kept looking to me for support. It was one of those "firsts" that I won't soon forget.

Back to PreSchool Playgroup after Winter Break

Today we went back to preschool after Winter Break and it wasn't easy getting Thomas to go this morning. He was perfectly content to hang out, lounge on his couch and watch his morning Tractor Tom while I got breakfast going. It's hard because he didn't sleep well last night, and I ended up sleeping in a few segments with him on the floor of our room just to get through the night. I don't know what was up, but at 1 am he decided he was done sleeping. I put him back to bed at 2 am after a round of Tractor Tom and Tubbie Toast on the couch, but he was up again at 3 am. This time I put him in our bed, only to find that he was keeping John awake crawling all over him, asking about the fire alarm light and playing with his face. I decided the only humane thing to do with John was to pull him onto the floor with me and try to ignore the fact that Thomas was going to cuddle and snore in my face for what was left of the night.

So, I was less than excited about rushing off for playgroup this morning, but figured with the break last week, we needed to get Tommy back into the swing of things. Especially since I have yet to be able to leave him alone in the room, much less the church building at this point.

Although Thomas did better at playing the whole time, and without his Dubbie this time around per Teacher Dana's request, Thomas cried on the way out that he didn't want to go swimming with Justin. That was fine with me, as I was exhausted after covering the teacher's helper shift for the entire time, as opposed to just hanging out with Thomas. Exhausted and really just wanting to go home and curl up on the couch instead of watching a swim lesson with an exhausted little boy. So, we took the easy route and headed home. Thomas was out cold within minutes of his lunch and I quickly followed. Nap time is such a wonderful thing!

Showing Love for the Boat Bed

Thomas has enjoyed jumping on his boat bed, wrestling on his boat bed, watching movies on his boat bed, dancing on this boat bed engine, and climbing from his boat bed into his crib, but so far has resisted actually SLEEPING in his boat bed. Tonight that all changed. At bedtime, while getting ready, he told John that he wanted to sleep in his boat bed. John did not hesistate, and went about fortifying the bed with extra pillows and the bean bag to support him while he slept. It's pretty amazing that just last night he was continuing his love affair with his crib. Tonight it all changes and he's quite the big boy in his big boy boat bed!

Valentines Day 2007

Thomas should have woke up to his Valentine Gift this morning, but unfortunately the part he didn't find last night, the bag of Hershey kisses-I ate. Yep, that's right. I ate it all up, as Tommy would say. Yes, pretty much a whole bag of Hershey kisses gone...in about two days. So much for filling his bag up with his favorite treat. He did find some of his present last night, the race car tin that had race car chocolates (that I also ate) in it, but I was going to fill it up with what he really likes....Hershey kisses. Poor guy! Having to deal with a pregnant and very chocolate-hungry mother to deal with on Valentine's Day.

John brought home roses at lunch time, and Thomas enjoyed sharing with grandma his "rosens" with her. Thomas' wish for Valentine's was a dump truck and the movie Polar Express. While we were out and about this morning, he told me again that he wanted a dump truck and Polar Express. When John got home from work tonight, Thomas was able to open Polar Express. Today our double jog stroller also came, which is a sobering reminder that this big event is definitely taking shape, no matter how much I try to deny it. Soon, instead of eating chocolate, I'll be pushing two little boys around! I don't think I truly understand how this is going to change it all for us!

Sayings for February 2007

Thomas has become very literal in the last week. One moment he may be pretending he is a fish, and then when you ask him something like a fish, he'll respond with, "No, I'm a boy!" Or, he commented the other day as we drove in the car, "Look, Mommy, a storm." I responded, "Oh, no, we might get all wet." To which he replied, "No, Mommy, the rain will get the windshield all wet."

"Daddy, focus, focus," when getting him ready for a bath.

"Ooohhh, that's amazing!"

"I'm a goober-diber" as he dives into the tub.

"I want my bi-per off"

"Think, Mommy" after he asks me to be Farmer Fee and he's Tractor Tom.

"What you say?" when he wants you to repeat something.

"The ship pulled up at the boobie (buoy) at the -eena (marina)"

Spring Days ahead!

This last week and weekend have been absolutely fabulous and Thomas has enjoyed a lot of his time outdoors. We've enjoyed time out at the parks and down on the beach, enjoying a break in the cold weather. Thomas didn't dig the cold much, and wouldn't go out in it, but now he's figured out that when the sun is out he should go out and see if it's warm enough for him. The last few days he's been asking more and more to go out, which is great because he can run and run, pretending to be monster trucks and big machines until he's exhausted.

Swim lessons Attempt #2

Today, due to the confusion with preschool times and swim lessons over lapping, I decided to give it another shot and see if he could make it through a private one on one lesson without needing a time out (how crazy is that!) We had to race from the parking lot at Catch the Son to the Y, stuffing some peanut butter and jelly down for energy, and it was a wild dash. He did fantastic, and it was clear that although he doesn't have the attention span to wait it out with his hand on the wall in a full class, he certainly can handle the lesson itself. It was great to see his instructor, Justin, teaching him to swim with his arm out and head in the water, and they spent a lot of time trying this out. This is new for Thomas and I was eager to see if he could progress from singing on the wall like at Bayside. He did a great job and was able to work with Justin "swimming" for the toy cars Justin allowed him to use and floating with assistance on his back, which was a great struggle for him at Bayside. After jumping time after time into the pool, which he loved, it was time to finish it up. No complaints from Thomas, and no time out warnings necessary. Justin was happy with how it went. On our way out, with an exhausted Thomas tugging at my hand, he looked up at me and said, "Mommy, that was awesome!" with a big, toothy grin on his face. That was all I needed to hear.

Visit to Play Group at Catch the Son preschool

Today we went to try out the Play Group for 2 1/2 year olds- 3 year olds at Catch the Son preschool up at the Lutheran church near our neighborhood. Thomas has been on this wait list since last spring, so almost a year now, and despite having signed up for swim lessons shortly before getting the call that we'd been entered, it is our priority to get him going now so that he can go there for preschool come fall. I was excited about Thomas having the opportunity to interact with other kids his age and begin to learn all the fun new things a set up like this can provide, but more apprehensive than I thought I would be. I was anxious about how he would handle the new environment, how he would do without mom as his number one fan and coach, and the new expectations he would need to learn. Having been warned twice in Monday's swim lesson that he would get a time out, I suddenly questioned whether I had adequately prepared him for what was ahead, although how can you "adequately" practice standing in line for your turn, going to chapel, sitting at a big table for snack and sharing with a bunch of other kids until you're actually in that spot. Although I was there, I tried to keep my distance and let him join in with the other kids, and it was quick to see that although he did spend a fair amount of time solo, he did engage with the other kids at the right times. When I left the room for a minute, he did notice, although it was a while before he came looking for me, and I quickly sent him on his way. When walking in a line to chapel time, I did walk near him, encouraging him to stay in the train line like a good train car. Teacher Dana was the engine and he seemed to like the idea. In chapel, he joined the others in singing a new song and then dipping their fingers in a bowl of water to symbolize baptims (the pastor gave a 2 minute-ish talk on the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He did okay during circle time, although I had to remind him a couple times to get back on his letter and sit and listen to the lesson on shapes. When the ball was rolled to him signaling his turn to share who he loves the most, he said, "My mommy and daddy" in a very clear voice. I thought I was going to cry right there, hiding behind the doorway. And it was particularly adorable to watch him eating his snack with the other kids. I was pretty impressed with my little guy, and thought about all the times mothers feel their hearts swell with pride for their little ones. I'm not sure how I will feel leaving him alone on his first day come this Monday, but I have several more days to sweat it out, dwell on it, stress out and contemplate my decision. Who knows? He may just surprise me yet again! After all, I suspect it's all my issues and not his, right?!!!

Swimming at the Y- Try #1

After several less than fun outings to the aquatic center, I decided it was time to give another pool a try. Today was the first day of lessons and I was hoping it would be an outing for Thomas and I to enjoy on our days together but one that I would not have to actively participate in. I'm in no mood to put on a swim suit and get in a kiddie pool at this stage of my pregnancy! Although Thomas did well for his age (not quite three!) he did not do well enough with the older kids to keep him from being warned numerous times, followed by two warnings towards a time out. Now, I'm all for structure and order, safety and the like, but I wasn't too thrilled with my son being warned with timeouts for infractions that included not staying on the wall as directed, not keeping his hand on the wall and staying on the step while waiting for 4 other kids to take their turn. Watching it, I realized he is just not ready and up there with the 4 and 5 year olds in this class, nor should he be. He wasn't doing it deliberately, he just couldn't follow the directions like the others could and he couldn't stand still long enough while waiting. I saved his little buns from time out more than once, and by the time the lesson was over I was exhausted from trying to keep a reign on Thomas and not fall into the pool myself. Although Thomas said he had fun, it really wasn't the experience I want for him at 2 1/2. It should be about fun, splashing, learning some skills and learning to listen to some extent. It should not be about timeouts and warnings, as I feel he is still too young to be restrictive to this degree.

Lucky for us, the instructor and I agreed that the money I forked over for lessons could be applied to private instruction, where he can work and play with Thomas one on one in the pool. This worked out quickly, as when we got to the car the message on my phone was that Thomas was finally offered a spot off the wait list at Catch the Son preschool, at exactly the same time as the lessons that I'd just paid for at the Y. Justin was willing to work with Thomas at 11:30- 15 minutes after Thomas finishes Play Group. And I thought our Mondays and Fridays were going to be quiet!

Beautiful Day!

I'm so thankful that Thomas is transitioning to no nap now that I'm feeling better, and although today wasn't one of my stronger days, we had a full and fun day together. With the sun shining, we headed out to get a treat at Starbucks and then off to Fairhaven Park. Thomas remembers that this is the "fountain" park, and we talked about how great it will be when the weather changes to summer and the fountains come on again. It was 38 degrees as we walked to the playground. Very chilly for any extended time out, but enough to run around, do some climbing, get some swing time in and play a little Diego and baby Jaguar together. From there we dropped off paperwork at the doctor's office and headed out to find Drew a birthday present at Mt. Baker Moto Sports. It was so fun to see all their new quad bikes and Thomas enjoyed climbing up and testing them out, as I enjoyed watching him get to much out of sitting on them, turning all the switches, playing with the levers and testing me on my knowledge of engines. "This is cool," he said, bouncing on one seat and reaching for the clutch, or something that resembled one anyway. When did my baby start saying "cool"? I could only chuckle and agree with him, wishing and taking an extra glance at the smaller kid-size version on the floor of the showroom. How I'd love to get him one! It was a good thing that it didn't take me long to find the BMX shirt that I wanted to get Drew, because on the way to the clothes we spied a mini snowmobile, just waiting to be checked out. Thomas wanted nothing to do with clothes at that point. Having our fill of the snowmobile, the mini quad bikes and the big quads, we filled our hands with candy from the machine and headed out. I get such joy out of hanging out with him and I'm so proud of him at times like this. He didn't whine and fuss about leaving. He didn't throw a fit to stay longer. We simply said goodbye to the bikes and headed out. No big deal. It makes it such a treat to take him out and about. Somewhere in the back of my mind is the toddler in Walmart that we've all seen, working up a big fit in the busy aisle.

In saying that, there are times when he will press me. When I say no, he's apt to respond with, "Ah, man!" and "I can't?" in this unbelieving voice. There are also times when he'll go to the other parent, saying, "Mommy says no," with big tears filling his eyes. Or he'll say, "you want to play" or "you want to" do this or that, what ever it is he's trying to do at the time. Who can deny that? I may be in the middle of something, but when I hear the words, "Mommy, you want to play with me" followed by "come on" I'm a puddle of mush.

As we drove away I heard the call for O'Donell's from the backseat and we quickly stopped in for a fry. When we got home we made a quick lunch for the beach and headed down, delighted by the actual warmth in the sun. It was great to sit down by the beach and enjoy our time down there once again, leading me to believe it's actually not that far off until we can truly be back down on the beach spending out time outside instead of cooped up figuring out which Tractor Tom we have yet to watch today.

Jenny and the kids came down to play at the beach, but by the time they got here a freezing wind was blowing across the lake so we stayed inside as well. By 4:45 it was time to head out to soccer, although I wondered if Thomas would manage to stay awake for the short car ride. I literally had to drag him off the couch and into the car, his eyes drooping the whole way. John met us there, and although he made it for about 40 minutes, it wasn't his most attentive soccer day ever. He did a lot of running around and laying on the ball today.

Funny Comments for January 07

Just last night, when I was trying to wrestle, Thomas squirms away and says, "No mommy, daddy wrestles." I snuggled up to him again, tickling and smooching on him, only for him to yell, "No, no mommy, daddy wrestles me." I asked, "Well, then, what do mommies do?" Without missing a beat, he replied, "You cook." After a moment digesting this, I burst out laughing. How funny that he should think me, of all mothers, cooks! Has he not noticed that I HATE to cook? Has he not noticed that John and I eat the same meal again and again and struggle to make sure we're feeding him lots of different stuff, however much it wouldn't be our choice? My feelings were a bit hurt, considering I think I spend a fair amount of time playing, taking him on outtings, trying new activities with him and even wrestled him before the belly got too big for it to be safe. John mentioned that he should feel hurt, considering he does a lot of the cooking around this place, including many breakfasts, coffee breaks and dinners for all of us. I just had to think about the professional mothers everywhere who would be aghast at his innocent comments. Maybe in the 50's but certainly not NOW!!!

"Take my Bi-per off, please!" when he's got to go potty or he thinks it's wet. "My Bi-per is wet, by bi-per is wet," he'll cry out, still refusing to wear his underwear or pullups. The other day, when John told him he could he could go poo in his toilet just like he goes potty, he says, "No, put on my bi-per. I go hide in my room." He likes to hide behind things, like his door, in the closet, behind the plant or in another room when he does his business. We've made progress, though. Just today he came out of his room with his diaper on and told me he needed to go to his bathroom. That's the first time he's told me he wants to go even with his diaper on. Still refuses to wear the pullups or underwear, but at least we're making small baby steps.

"You okay, mommy. You not sad."

"Mommy, look at the boats racing" while watching swimmers in the pool doing laps in their lanes. When a rather large woman came into the pool area and started for the stairs to the pool, Thomas says to me, "Mommy, look. Super, super, super big ship coming."

"Mommy, I want to cuddle you."

Sleeping in the boat bed for the 1st time-Nap

Today, despite a meltdown about having to take a nap (which re-enforced the need for a nap!) Thomas was able to take a nap in his new bed. Now, this might be the one and only time it happens, as he is letting us know he certainly has no plans to give up his crib, but at least it was entertaining to John and I. It was also a sobering moment of realization. By sleeping in a big bed instead of a crib, he truly takes that "next step" from the baby we have had. Seeing in his bed, I realized that I am in no hurry at all to rush this process along. If I have to buy a second crib for the new baby, so be it. Thomas can stay in his crib as long as he wants.

Upstairs Bathtime