August 13, 2012 ~ The Random Toddler Tantrum

I have proof that a toddler can have a tantrum over just about anything.

Daddy decided to give Billy chocolate milk with dinner instead of plain milk.

"I don't want it!" he screamed.

We tried to convince him that he would like it but the more we tried to convince him the more he screamed. Eventually, we just tried to calm him down so he would eat rather than scream. He had epic meltdown over the milk.

But then, randomly, he tried it.

Wait! What's this? Chocolate milk tastes... wait for it... good??? Why didn't someone tell me this tasted good? Can I have more?

Yes, it's true. Chocolate milk does taste good. Oh, and Billy likes it now. Yep. When I gave him regular milk he handed it back, "Mommy, yucky. Chocolate?"

Proof that toddlers will throw a tantrum over even the good stuff.

August 12, 2012 ~ Sleeping With the Fishes

Daddy took Billy to the National Aquarium to look at the fish. I was out of town, so I didn't get  to go, but I heard all about it. There were shacks, towdulls and lots of fishes. (sharks, turtles and fish).

(If you haven't been, you should check out the National Aquarium. They have a fabulous collection of fish, sting rays, sharks, dolphins, jellyfish and a whole host of other sea creatures. They even include a trip to the rainforest and another down under. It's my favorite non-art museum in town. Check it out.)

I got home right at the beginning of nap time, but Billy and Daddy weren't home yet. Then, it was wake up time, and still Daddy and Billy weren't home yet. But finally, they came home raving about the fishes.

Daddy had bought Billy a collection of sharks and a sea turtle with a diver- it was a "diving" set. He's working on learning the different kinds of sharks. The set came with 3- a hammerhead, a whale shark and a generic shark that I am telling him is a lemon shark- close enough. He calls them "hamhah shack, whale shack and lemon shack." The whale shack is boo and white. The hamhah and lemon shacks are gay. That's what he tells me, anyway.

"Mommy, shack is a fish."  He learned ALL about them.

Well, after lots of big hugs it was clear that Lil Man was waaaaaay beyond tired. So, I sent him off to take a nap. But, he refused to go unless the sharks and turtle could join him, because, the sharks needed to take a nap too. So, the sharks went off to bed. He snuggled up with his sharp little plastic sharks and the turtle and fell sound asleep.

He was sleeping with the fishes.

The Sunday Post ~ City Squirtees Review

We love these. It is a set of four bath toys, all squirtees, and each one shaped like a BeepBeep. (Car, motorcycle, airplane and helicopter). Our lil guy plays with them in the tub and out. They are colorful and fun and so far, with constant use for year, yet to develop mold on the inside, a major issue with squirtees. Some of his other bath toys of the same vintage are already discolored, but these, even with water sometimes left in them seem to resist the mold.

This bath toy set is definitely a winner.

Unfortunately, since this toy was a gift, I don't know where to find it, but if you see it, it's a win win.

August 10, 2012 ~ Winter Coat in August

Every morning Billy helps me get him dressed. Sometimes he picks out his outfit for me. Well, it was raining this morning. Usually, he takes either his rain hat or his raincoat with him to school on rainy mornings.

Is that what he wanted?

"Nooooo!"

What did he want?

He found a flannel pullover that we used as a coat in the winter. It was too big last winter and he rarely wore it. But, today, in the middle of August he decided to wear his winter coat.

Now, the trip out the door and down the street to daycare might be one thing. But he insisted on wearing it from the moment of dressing, all through breakfast and me getting ready and all the way to daycare. Only after he had been at daycare for awhile did he decide that flannel might be too hot for a summer day.

So, one piece of advice for my lil man: flannel is too hot for August.

August 9, 2012 ~ Candy

I've tried. I keep him away from sugary foods (minus fruit loops and awfuls, okay and cookies.) I limit his sugar intake.

But there we are in the grocery store going down the aisle and he spots "THE CANDY". I'm not talking the packs of gum at the register. I'm talking about the baking aisle/Willy Wonka Factory. Yes. "THE CANDY."

"Mommy, candy! I want!"

Of course, he wants it. It's candy. He's a kid. So, I relent and buy one piece of candy. Total. Epic. Meltdown.

"No, you may not have any candy until we get home and if you don't behave I won't give you any."

Harsh? Maybe. But he was the perfect little angel the whole way through the store and check out and getting in the car.

Did he forget by the time we got home? No.

"Mommy, I want candy!"

Just for kicks I ask, "What kind of candy is it?"

"Choc-il".

Damn. He already knows different kinds of candy.

So, I gave him one little square of the Hershey bar and let him eat it before dinner. He gobbled it all up and then gave me a big hug.

"Thank you, Mommy."

Aw, he's so sweet. Then...

"More candy?"

Drawn In Thursdays: Boy's Best Friend #3

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All Drawn In Thursdays are based on true events.

August 7, 2012 ~ War of the Rose (Garden)

I'm a Mom. I don't have time to garden. I try to get Billy to help, but he just likes to weed- by pulling ALL of the plants out. But, I do it anyway because I love flowers. And I'm only getting started. I created three new flower beds at our house and am adding several more come fall planting season. But, I am waging a war.

3 invasive vines. Yes, not 1, but 3! Ivy. The dreaded ivy. It looks so pretty- on someone else's house. But I turn my back and it starts climbing the walls. It's so maddening that... it makes me want to climb the walls!

Then, there's the periwinkle. So pretty. But will it leave the other plants alone? No! It wants to choke the living daylights out of the ornamental grasses and ground cover. It thinks the grass in the yard is there to be taken over. At least it doesn't grow up the walls and try to tear the house down brick by brick.

Wild strawberry... well, at least when the apocalypse doesn't happen we'll have some fruit to eat. It gets into everything, behind the shutters, between the slats on the porch, trying to pry my house apart and choke all of the other plants too. It's enough to want to launch a nuclear war at all of these terrible weeds...

But, that wouldn't stop the most dreaded and awful enemy of my garden... the lowly slug. I have a city of them. No. Scratch that. An entire metropolis of slugs. They have already killed 4 of my begonias- flowers that I have lovingly watered, pruned and nurtured all summer long. And for what? A few juicy noms on the stem and the whole plant dies. I'd rather have deer and rabbits. At least I would get to look at the cute and cuddly deer and rabbits. No one would ever say that about a slug.

I'm with Ron Weasley on this. Damn those slugs.

(okay, I've finished venting. Carry on, carry on...)

August 6, 2012 ~ Big Pool Little Pool

I decided to torture myself take Billy to the pool after school today. We immediately came home and had epic meltdown put our swimsuits on and headed over to the pool.

First we hopped in the baby pool. He's not a baby, so I call it the "Little Pool". He reminds me that he's a "big boy" so we refrain from calling him "baby". So, we went to the Little Pool. He was terrified. Remember that fearless swimmer at the river? Billy doesn't. The mild current of the Little Pool had him clinging to me like white on rice. He wouldn't let go of my hand.

Well, I got tired of standing ankle-deep in the Little Pool, so I picked him up and took him over to the Big Pool. Now, the Big Pool starts at 3 feet deep, so he can only stand on the steps despite being a beanpole 3 feet tall.

He was nervous at first, but when he saw all of the other kids splashing around he decided that he belonged in the Big Pool. He was kicking and splashing, jumping from the steps into my arms, sticking his face in the water and coming up laughing.

"Do you want to go back to the Little Pool?"

"No, Big Pool."

Big boys swim in the Big Pool. It's true, so long as Mommy is holding on to him.

Explain to me how the Little Pool is terrifying and the Big Pool is awesome? Makes no sense to me. I was with him both times. Go figure.

Well, we had to go back to the Little Pool to get our stuff so we could go home for dinner. But, Billy didn't want to go home for dinner. He wanted back in the Little Pool. I calmly explained while he had another epic meltdown that it was time to go.

So, after a stressful lovely time at the pool, we headed home for dinner.

August 5, 2012 ~ The Cleaning Hat and Sulky Sailor

Saturday ~

We took Billy for a little boat ride. We were trying to teach him how to pronounce the name of the boat "Solstice". It came out "sulky". He wasn't terribly thrilled with the idea of going out on the boat if he didn't get to drive, so he really was the sulky sailor.

Sunday ~

Boy did the house need to be cleaned. So after playing outside for an hour in the morning, I brought him inside to the air conditioning after it started to get really hot outside. Then, I suggested that we put our cleaning hats on and get to business.

So, Billy thought that we actually needed to wear hats to clean. Yep. So there I am in a beach hat scrubbing away and Billy in his frog hat supervising. Well, whatever gets him to help, right?

I brought out the Evil Dreaded Vacuum too. Did you know that it's gay? According to Billy it's gay. And purple. But if you ask him what color it is, he'll say it's gay.

Billy hates EDV. "No on, Mommy. No on!" I was only allowed to vacuum if Billy was up in my arms so that EDV couldn't eat his toes off. Even when I moved it when it was off he started shrieking and ran into the other room for safety. (And this is why I don't vacuum when he's awake). It's not easy to vacuum with a toddler in your arms. I had to use my feet in a series of awkward dances to move the cord around.

But, the house got cleaned and we got to take our hats off. I had hoped to reward him with a trip to the pool, but Mother Nature stepped in. So, he got fruit loops instead.

The Sunday Post ~ Circo Peg Puzzle Review

I can't find an online link, but Circo's wooden peg puzzles are available at Target. We have the pet edition. (Peg puzzles are the flat shapes with peg attached to the top and fit into a board with matching shapes).

It's rare to hear me say this, but I absolutely hate this toy. I am convinced it is possessed by the devil. No really, it's possessed.

Our son loves peg puzzles and seems to like this one too. But, it makes sounds when you lift the pieces up and is light sensitive. The sounds are the cheapest, worst animal sounds you can imagine, barely sounding like the animal it is supposed to represent. And it goes off randomly. Once something sets it off it can go off for hours. It's truly possessed.

While I love learning toys, this is not the one to buy. Stick to battery-free puzzles, or take out the battery in this one!

August 4, 2012 ~ Down the Stairs

Yesterday evening I was bringing some groceries in the front door. I have a usual routine of bringing them up to the porch from the car, then from the porch to the foyer, then from the foyer up the stairs to the kitchen. It's the staging process that works best with my toddler. I'm not sure why I was doing my staging process, though, since Billy was in the living room with Daddy, so there was no real reason other than habit.

Well, I had Buddy with me too. And I couldn't get Buddy out of the car. I was whining and crying and refusing to get out. Long story short... apparently we have an electric fence in the front yard too. Who knew? Buddy did! It was shocking him because the car was too close to the line. Poor guy.

Well, all of the hubbub got Daddy interested in the fiasco at the front door. He came downstairs to investigate (and thus determine that we really do have a fence in the front yard too- again, who knew?)

But wait! What about Billy?

We're doing stairs training. So, he knows to wait at the top of the stairs, even if the gate is open. It's a work in progress, but he waits patiently at the top of the steps while I carry things in the house- usually. And, he was waiting at the top of the steps with me at the bottom with groceries and Daddy outside with Buddy.

Yeah, that was while Buddy was outside.

But in the mayhem of Buddy and Daddy walking in the door and closing it, Billy decided to join the party in the foyer. Normally, not a problem. He can do stairs. I make him do the steps every single day and he's fairly proficient at going up and down. In shoes. Or bare feet.

Problem.

Billy wasn't in shoes. He didn't have bare feet. Socks. Socks! The dreaded socks! (I think you know where I'm going with this.) I don't let him run around in socks because a.) it's summer and b.) it's a fall hazard for a toddler.

A fall hazard? Really?

And whoop! His feet went out from under him on the very top step. Crash! Bang! I saw it all happen in slow motion. And my reaction seemed to be in slow motion too, although I am sure I was quick to react. By the third step I had my baby stopped and scooped up. But that was still three steps downhill at breakneck speed.

Luckily, he didn't break his neck. Or anything else. Not even a big bump. He screamed and cried. And I don't blame him one bit. It's scary. I know.

Allow me to tell you a quick story:

I think I was four, but I was young regardless. I was at a party with my parents at one of their friends' houses. I was all dressed up for the party, with black party shoes on and cute little party dress. I think it was holiday time, but you'd have to ask my parents- I just remember it being cold out. Grandpop was talking with friends by the stairs and I was with him. Those stairs were so inviting, all covered in carpet. I went up them. Then I fell down them in a whoosh of feet over head over feet over head. I'm still nervous about going up stairs in party shoes. That stuff stays with you.

So yes, I know the dangers of stairs. But, at the same time, he's got to learn to safely go up and down those friggin stairs. It's not like I can carry him up and down for the rest of his life. Me at 50 carrying my college student up and down steps? Um, no.

I just hope for no more falls.

August 2, 2012 ~ Potty Hijinks

So, there we are after dinner and Billy says that he wants to use the potty. This, of course, is a big break- him wanting to use the potty. It probably has more to do with him wanting the treat that comes after.

So, I sit him on the potty. This time, unlike last month, he insists on a bare bottom. No more practice runs- we're on to the real deal.

So, he sits. And he sits. He scrunches up his face hoping that will do something. Gives the boy parts a tug to try to get something out. Nope. Nothing.

"Cookie?"

Nope. He only gets a cookie if he does something in the toilet. That's the rule. Farts count. False alarms don't count. And I remind him of this.

He thinks about it some more. Scrunches up his face. Still nothing.

There we are with him sitting on the potty and me holding him up, Billy all deflated by his lack of production. Then he puts his head down (I think he's taking a good look at the boy parts) and suddenly spits into the toilet.

He looks up at me, excited. "Cookie?"

"It has to come out of your bum."

He points at the spit floating in that lovely pool of toilet water, "Cookie?"

To reward him or not to reward him? Is ingenuity worth a reward? "Okay, go get a cookie. But no more spit." Put a win in the toddler column.

Drawn In Thursdays: Potty Time #2

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Without Internet

Yes, we've been without internet, hence the lack of posting.

Meanwhile, Billy has gotten to check out the Olympics, which he generally finds fascinating. We've been to the pool, the river and the bay. He's seen waves for the first time since last summer and got to play in real sand, not the muck we have at the river. He's been on a boat. He can tell the difference now between types of boats. And types of water birds.

I'm at work so I'll post more when I have internet back up and can get some pictures inserted too. Expect normal posting to return by Friday.

The Sunday Post ~ Evenflo Jungle Exersaucer Review

Buy the Evenflo Jungle Exersaucer

We tried our little one in multiple exersaucers, but this was by far the best. It was a gift to us from and came recommended to us by a grandmother of 8, with pre-existing knowledge of how awesome this particular product is.

At the crawling stage, the better the baby-containment device (BCD), the happier the parents will be. This particular item excelled as a BCD. It could keep him happy and playing for up to an hour, giving me a much needed break to eat, clean, sit down. Just remember to never leave them alone in the exersaucer.

I found the perfect spot in my house between the kitchen and den where I could see him from both rooms at all times and with a clear view from the bathroom. This gave me the flexibility to keep him happy while I moved between the three rooms. He could always see me too, so I could provide encouragement and support.

It sings a variety of songs, none of which I got too bored with. However, the singing chameleon is too sensitive, and goes off with the slightest vibration, even from a passing truck outside, so we often kept that piece of it turned off.

I also found that, while nice that it converts for a small baby with a mat and to a toddler with a play table, that my child wasn't a fan of either the mat or table. He loved it in saucer form, and will still play in it at times as a saucer, but wasn't a huge fan of the other set-ups.

All in all, I would definitely recommend this over other saucers.

July 26, 2012 ~ Wipeout!

Grandma was watching TV and decided to pick Wipeout! as the show to watch. (If you don't know it, the show is about people of varying athletic ability and intelligence running extreme obstacle courses). I have to admit that I enjoy watching people faceplant, and in the void of TV options in the summer, my mindless entertainment is often this show.

So, Daddy and I sat down with Grandma to watch with her. Billy, of course, wandered in to find some toys to play with after dinner and on his way to bed.

Then, some guy wiped out on the big balls and we all laughed. Billy looked at the TV. And then, as if frozen by a sci-fi tractor beam, he stood there entranced for over ten minutes. When the commercial came up he pulled up a stool to the front of the TV and sat down, riveted, waiting for the next idiot contestant to wipe out.

He didn't move a muscle. He didn't make a sound except to laugh. It held his attention better than a Disney movie, any cartoon and any activity he has so far participated in. So, it's official. Wipeout! appeals to the mentality of a one-year-old.

I'll still watch it.

Drawn In Thursdays: Things Kids Do #9

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July 25, 2012 ~ Sorry BudBud

Billy finally got it. No, he really got it. That growling sound means stop. Who knew? He suddenly realized that when Buddy growls after Billy sits down on top of Buddy, that Buddy really doesn't like it. Not one bit.

And this time I didn't have to break out the band-aids. He's still wearing one from last week. He got it and left Buddy alone and then went to apologize to Buddy with gentle pats.

Hopefully, this is the end of warning nips.

July 23, 2012 ~ Pillow Thief!

On his way to bed Billy wanted to cuddle in our big bed first. Okay, I figure. I don't mind. We did storytime but he wanted cuddles. Billy never wants to cuddle, so this is a bonus for me. Woohoo!

So we cuddle and he insists on using the pillow I have designated as "his". It's not his. It's mine. But it's the flattest pillow on the bed, pretty much flattened to a pulp, and so best suited for a tiny person to use. I always put it in a bright green pillow case, which doesn't remotely match our sheets, but it identifies the ancient squished pillow from the nicer ones.

 Well, when he was done cuddling, he wanted "his" pillow to go to bed with him. He insisted. He refused to sleep without. He went into tantrum mode. Okay, okay... you can have the pillow.

So, I went in to check on him an hour after he went to bed (to steal the pillow back) and he was sound asleep on the pillow. I checked back in later. Still using the pillow. There was no hope.

This morning my pillow was still hanging out in the crib.

~

On another note, Billy would like to wish his favorite Godparents a very happy anniversary.

Billy, 2011, on his way to his Godparents wedding.

July 22, 2012 ~ Pictures and Scary Swings

I had to write a short note on the computer and Billy joined me in the office to help. Normally, Daddy is on the computer and has his desktop open. But my desktop has rotating pictures of little Billy on it. Not Billy now. Little Billy.

"Look, Mommy. Girl!" He says girl like "gah-urrrrrl."

"Nope. That's you. That's baby Billy."

He didn't believe me. So I pointed out some of his toys in the background. Oh wait, now it's sinking in.

"More?"

So I flipped through pictures of last year, pointing out pictures with the people he knows best and his favorite fuzzy friend. This was a real big thrill. "Mommy!" "Daddy!" "Budbud!" "Poppop!" "Gmama!"

Then I showed him a picture from way back when, tiny little thing all swaddled and sleeping with a binky in his mouth.

"Hey! My meme!"

Then he looked up at me and said, "more meme?"

So we flipped through the photos looking for pictures of binkies. Yep. Of all of the photos, the ones he really wanted to see were the ones with the memes. (pronounced me-me. his name, not mine).

~

After pictures we went outside to play. He decided he wanted to try out his swing again. I've been trying to get him in that swing since May. But it's either "dirty" or "spider" and he refuses to get in, thinking it's either really dirty or full of spiders. Today, though, he didn't care about the dirt on the seat and wanted in. Okay, here we go!

I gave him a few pushes. "More?" he asked.

So, I pulled the swing up way high and released it. He got this sudden look of terror on his face as the swing swung away from me.

"Is it scary?" I asked, concerned.

He nodded. Then he said, "More? More scary?" (he pronounces 'scary' as 'gary').

So he got another big push. He started laughing.

"Scary, Mommy! More!"

That's right. It was scary. It was fun. He wanted more. He swung until I was too tired to push the swing any more. (About an hour).

"Scary, Mommy. Again!"

The Sunday Post ~ Tommee Tippee Review

Better late than never to review my favorite bottle system.

Tommee Tippee

We tried out a number of bottle systems and this was the one we liked the best. At first I was against it. But my hubster was insistent that he had read good reviews about the product and wanted to try them out. So, we purchased a number of their Closer To Nature products.

The newborn bottles we purchased were the Sensitive Tummies bottles. They worked fine and Little Man had no trouble transitioning from breast to bottle (due to breast issues). My biggest complaint were all of the internal pieces that made cleaning difficult. Even running them through the dishwasher, often clumps of formula would cling to the small internal pieces of the bottles. (It has a tube with a wheel on the bottom that must be inserted into the bottle.) I tried to use the bottles sans the internal components, but the tops will not lock in place without the internal pieces. Which was a real shame for my time, since I don't think that my son required anti-colic.

When Little Man got older we moved up to the larger bottles. We were big fans of these. They still required handwashing to get the formula out of the ergonomic bottle- the dishwasher didn't always get it, but it wasn't a major issue.

One of the best things we loved about Tommee Tippee were the to-go containers for formula. I can't find the specific item but they sell it at Babies'R'Us. It's in the picture this link takes you to:

http://www.target.com/p/tommee-tippee-closer-to-nature-newborn-starter-set-clear/-/A-13930438

We used the to-go containers for more than just to-go. Every morning I filled up our collection of to-gos with the correct amount of formula per bottle and filled the bottles with water. And then I sealed them and sat them on the counter. That way, when it was bottle time, the formula was already pre-measured and all I had to do was add it to a bottle with water in it and I was ready to go.

These containers also made traveling super easy, especially on airplanes and camping trips. The to-gos drop right into the bottle so you can take formula and a bottle of water anywhere you go and mix when you get there.

We're also huge fans of their bibs.

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12410345

These didn't work out so well for tiny eater, but after about 8 months old these were our definite favorite amongst our huge collection of bibs. They are dishwasher safe. And the open pocket catches really messy food, like applesauce, better than traditional pocket bibs. We've found that two is all we need, since that is what will fit on the top rack in the dishwasher. Otherwise, we rinse them off between meals.

And finally, the binkies.

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11005545

Having tried multiple types of binkies, our Little Man prefers the Tommee Tippee brand. He will always pick these over other brands. Now, as far as weaning him off of binkies, maybe that's not a good thing...

The fact is that we have been very happy with our Tommee Tippee products and would recommend them to everyone.

July 20, 2012 ~ Our Big July Camping Adventure!

Last weekend we packed up Billy and headed down into the Virginian mountains for another camping trip. This is a different camping group than the one we went with in June. Here's what happened on our adventure:

Here's Billy enjoying breakfast at the campsite, including donuts (thanks Jim!). It was chilly in the morning, so Billy was in PJs and a sweater for breakfast.

After we ate we packed up most of the kids and headed down to the lake for some swimming. Billy and Daddy decided to hike to the lake. I drove with all of our beach stuff.

Here's Daddy getting Billy ready for a swim. He loved the lake. He could walk in up to chin level with no fear. And he wanted to swim out with the big kids too. I helped with that! The sand was a big hit, much better than the muddy stuff by the river. No, this was real sand and I brought sand toys to play with. He had a blast. Mommy had a blast too. I swam out to the island in the middle of the lake. No problem. And the trout in the lake thought I was the person with the food. They swarmed around me hoping for some nibbles. I didn't have any, of course. And they scattered any time the kids were around splashing, so Billy didn't get to see many.

After the lake we headed back to the camp for food and sleeping.

Billy wasn't a fan of the sleeping. But he was a fan of bubbles, the big ball and playing tag with the older kids. Who can blame him?

After lunch we heard that storms were moving through and that there was a flash flood warning for our campsite. Some of the other groups near us packed up and headed out at that. We were the fearless ones, staring down the storms as they rumbled over the mountains. All we got were a few drizzles and some rain showers late in the evening. It was not a big deal.

What was a big deal was the forest fire. Yep. We had one of those too. Just on the other side of the ridge from our camp. The campground has two lakes, but the one closer to our camp was closed so they could use it to fight the fire. All day long a helicopter used a giant bucket to carry water from the lake over the ridge to the fire. Billy thought it was one of the coolest things he's ever seen and was quick to point out the helicopter every time it passed over. Actually, I've got a lot of years on him and it was one of the coolest things to witness in my life.

And the funniest part of the trip? The buses!

Well, they weren't really buses. They were the campers that the camp hosts lived in and were parked next to our campsite. But Billy thought they were buses and they were certainly the size of buses.

So, what do you do when you see a bus? I bet you're going to say "keep on walking" or "give it the right-of-way."

Wrong!

Sing to it!

Yes. Several times we had to go over to the buses to sing to them. And what do you sing to a bus? "The wheels on the bus go round and round..." over and over. Don't forget the hand motions. Yep. This singing comes with dancing too.

And so, our camping adventure was a big success and Billy enjoyed himself immensely. Who wouldn't love spending a weekend outside, especially when outside is your favorite place to be?

July 19, 2012 ~ Sickuns

Sorry for the late post, but well, I've caught the Daycare Plague again. Billy had it first and is still getting over it. Daddy and I both have it. I'm in a fog and can't string together any cohesive thoughts, so let's leave it at that.

The hardest part of being sick is not the sickness, it's the stuff that needs doing that simply can't be done while sick. I have no energy to do anything. So when I am better, all of the chores will have compounded to make a misery of housework to be done.

And when you're a parent there's no such thing as sleeping in, so there is no way to truly rest. All you can do is push through and pray for sunnier days.

Here's to that.

Drawn In Thursdays: Potty Time #1

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July 17, 2012 ~ The Potty

Forgive me for keeping this short, but I'm working on 3 hours sleep...

Yesterday Billy came up to me and he said, "Mommy, poop! No Elmo!" and pulled at his diaper. Elmo might be a cute and cuddly monster, but because his face is all over Billy's diapers, Elmo also means diaper.

"Do you need a new diaper?" I ask. I'm going to get him one anyway, but I like confirmation from him. At this point I'm expecting a smelly present.

"No, potty!" and does the "pee dance" for me.

Okay, let's head off to the potty. We've been practicing the whole potty ritual. He thinks it's fascinating- for other people to use the potty. He'll hold it until I stick a diaper on his bum. So, I take him into his little potty chair in the bathroom and strip him from the waist down.

He commences sitting on the potty chair and scrunches up his face, turning red. Is he going to do it? Is he?

And then he lets out a loud FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRT!

He got so excited that he popped up to check out the damage in the little plastic duck potty. But it was empty. So he hopped back on and scrunched up his face again. Nothing. Hopped up to check. Yep, nothing. Maybe it's the chair, he decides.

"Big potty?" He points and wants to sit on the real toilet.

"Okay."

Scrunched face. No results. It's not the potty.

But he still got two M&Ms as a reward. Listen, a fart counts. It came out the back end. It counts. So, I am officially calling this the first potty success.

July 16, 2012 ~ Eating Aunt Sally

Today Mommy gave me Aunt Sally for dinner. Mommy said she ate most of Aunt Sally for lunch, but saved the best for me to have for dinner. Boy was it yummy. I had two forks going trying to each as much of Aunt Sally as I could. But I got full, so Mommy saved the rest of Aunt Sally for me to have for lunch tomorrow. Yum! I can't wait.

Or...

Today I gave Billy tikki masala for dinner. I ate most of it for lunch, but saved some for Billy to have for dinner. He loves it- it's one of his favorites. He was shoveling it into his mouth so fast that he needed two forks. He couldn't eat it all though, so he'll be enjoying tikki masala for lunch tomorrow too.

Yes, that's right. Billy's attempt to pronounce tikki masala came out "Aunt Sally". So, according to Billy, he ate Aunt Sally for dinner. Add that to the "things kids say" list.

July 15, 2012 ~ Thunder and Ah-la-las

Yesterday we were not home and were out with a party cooking outdoors (more on that tomorrow). Big old thunder clouds were rolling around, threatening our dinner fun. But with each low, distant rumble Billy would look up at me expectantly, "dunder more?"

Eventually, we ran out of passing storms and there was no more "dunder". But we did get some rain showers. So, Billy got to eat part of his dinner under an umbrella. He thought that was extra cool. It was just the one I carry in my car, nothing special, although it does have designs on it. He was super impressed with the umbrella and wanted to hold it, but alas, it's bigger than him.

So today at the pool he started pointing. "Mommy, ah-la-las!" What the heck was he talking about? So I started looking around and trying to figure out what he could possibly be pointing to. Oh. Ah-la-la. Umbrella. He was pointing to an awning, but there were other umbrellas around of the same color. The awning just happened to be the closest. Now he wants his own ah-la-la.

And, of course, hanging out at the pool under the ah-la-las I saw storm clouds rolling across the sky. Still aways off, but we headed home anyway. It wasn't too long before the wind kicked up and I knew we were in for it.

What to do?

Pull up a comfy spot on the couch on our deck and watch of course! Billy huddled right next to me, fearlessly asking for more dunder. "Boom?" Then it started raining heavily. And the dunder got really loud.

"Mommy, inshide." He was scared. Really scared.

It was just a lil old thunderstorm but I took him in anyway and we looked out the window. Just then the power flickered and went out. He was SPOOKED. With each loud boom he clung to me tighter. Poor guy. Couldn't even go to bed until it was over because he was so scared. Fearless Billy, cowed by rain and dunder.

Better stay under that ah-la-la.

The Sunday Post ~ Fridge Farm Review

This little toy is a winner in our house. It's a magnetic barn that allows your child to mix and match barnyard animals. Pressing on the animals plays their noises, tell you facts about them and sings silly songs about the animals. Another button plays a variety of classic American folk songs.

This toy is great for just playing with magnets, but also is a great learning tool. All of the pieces are magnetic, so you can play right on your fridge door with the different animal parts, mixing and matching. Each animal is a different bright color and the talking portion of the toy tells you the color of each animal.

"Purple cow, orange horse, yellow duck..."

You don't need a fridge to play with the farm. The magnetic pieces stick to the inside of the barn and it has a handy handle for carrying it around. However, it doesn't have a carrying case and since it has so many pieces, it's not the easiest to move from place to place. But it's great right on the fridge, so there's no need to carry it around.

The pieces are difficult for very young children to stick in the barn, but they are shaped specifically for kids to learn how to properly insert them so that the pieces will talk and sing.

Personally, I love this toy. It keeps my kid entertained while I'm cooking dinner. If he gets bored, I just press the music button and we sing along to the old folk songs. He loves it too. Every time we walk in the kitchen he goes straight for it and dances along to the music and calls out the colors.

It's the perfect combination of play and learn. And since the pieces all stick to the fridge, there's never any clean up!

Check out the product.

How To Camp With A Baby/Toddler

I have done it and you can too! With a little planning and an adventurous spirit, you favorite bundle can go anywhere you go.

Plan Ahead! Where will he sleep? What will he eat? How will he play? How will he bathe?

Sleeping:
~ I can't say enough good stuff about the Go Crib. It's lightweight. It's compact. And it's a breeze to set up (aka inflate). Whatever you choose, make sure to bring a portable crib or pack'n'play with you.
~ Pack more blankets and sheets than you need. You never know when little one may have an accident or the weather may turn cold. I always pack a few extra.
~ Bring a selection of favorite luvies. Just because you're in the woods doesn't mean he can't have his favorite teddy. It will make him feel more at home.
~ Bring battery powered fans and nightlight. REI sells a combo fan and light. We have two. For hot afternoons the tent might be broiling. We sit the two hanging fans on the floor of the tent next to the Go Crib to keep our lil guy cool. Then we hang them from the ceiling for the nightlight when it gets dark.

Lessons I've learned:
~ Tents are bright and hot. Vent your tent well. And expect some trouble getting to bed on time unless little one is used to sleeping in bright light.
~ Cold weather woes. Bring flannels and lots of blankets if it's going to be cold. Let him sleep in his jacket if you have to. I even put my little guy in the sleeping bag with me one night when it got below freezing.
~ Hot weather woes. I always bring shade with me and I check the weather before I go. It's never a good idea to take your little one out into excessive heat. Just be smart.
~ Always be prepared for weather changes. It might be hot hot hot in the afternoon and chilly at night. Pack for both, regardless of the forecast. Better to be prepared than to have a fussy baby.


Eating:
~ Have a way for your little one to sit at a "table" to eat. As a baby I brought a stroller that had an eating tray. It worked great for meals. As a toddler he can sit with relative ease at the picnic table for meals.
~ Buy individual milks and freeze them before you go. This will keep them fresh and cold as the cooler starts to warm up on your trip. Or, if you're using formula, portion out each bottle and bring it with you with bottled water ready to go. Remember to always bring extra in case one spills or you end up out longer than expected. TommeeTippee makes a great bottle system with formula containers that drop into the bottle for on-the-go carrying.
~ Pack lots of non-perishable snacks to bring with you, including fruit.
~ Make sandwiches to take and keep cool so you can eat lunch in a hurry without having to prep the fire and make all of the food. Lunch comes up fast when you're camping.
~ Bring cereal for breakfast. Keep it simple and avoid having to cook for the breakfast meal.


Lessons I've learned:
~ Having lots of healthy snacks on hand is the best way to go. Your little one is going to get off schedule quick, so having food you can give him immediately will keep him happy and you relaxed.
~ Disposable is always better. Having cleaned formula bottles at a campsite, avoid having to do this if possible. Same goes for plates and spoons. And that way you can ensure the item is clean and ready to use.




Playing:
~ Pack a blanket and a bag of toys. Have a variety of toys. The blanket is to lay on the grass so your little one has somewhere to play. This works from sitter to toddler. It keeps them clean and gives the older kids a home base to play.
~ Bring the Go Crib out of the tent and put it in the shade so your little one can play outside but contained.
~ Bring your own shade. Some campgrounds have very little shade. Bring a shade tent, giant tarp, or beach umbrella so little one has shade to play in during the day. We don't want sunburned babies!
~ Make sure to include activities that involve the campground or surrounding sites. You both will love getting out and away from the tent.


Lessons I've learned:
~ Plastic is best. Pick toys that are easy to rinse and clean.
~ Pack a few favorite luvies, but leave the rest at home. And make sure they stay in the crib and don't wander around the campground. You'll both be very unhappy if his favorite luvie gets lost.
~ Don't bring toys with lots of small pieces. They are easy to lose and then the set is no longer complete. Instead, bring variety but keep it simple.
~ Avoid battery-operated. The other campers are out to enjoy nature, not hear "Oh, Susanna!" 500 times. It's a good break for you too from the singing/blinking toys.



Getting there:
~ Pack lots of food and toys for the car.
~ Take breaks to get out, but if you're going 5 hours or less I recommend only 1 break ~ the kid won't want to get back in the car so don't let that become an issue. Just don't stop.



Lessons I've learned:
~ French fries cure lots of car ride ills. It's vacation, splurge a little and let him have some fries to keep him happy.
~ Mountains plus a 6 month old are a bad mix. If your ears pop more than once going up and down the mountain, you're sure to hear lots of screaming the whole way. Pick a campground that doesn't require driving over the mountains.




Most of all, have fun!


Questions?
We camp a lot with our lil guy. If you have a question about camping with small people, feel free to email me or comment here.

July 12, 2012 ~ Goodnight Ship

Grandpop has never seen Billy bedtime ritual (du jour), so I let him follow Billy around the house for the "goodnights".

"Goodnight ship!" "Goodnight girl!" "Goodnight ship!" (a different ship). Goodnight girl! (a different girl). "Goodnight clock!" "Goodnight boat!"

He walks around to every painting and wall hanging, like the wall clock, and says goodnight to each one before bed. He made up this routine and he likes it. This all comes out of his boat obsession. He feels the need to personally say goodnight to every ship/boat painting in the house. There are 5- six if you count a picture with a small boat in the back, and seven if you count the ship model in the living room that he wishes goodnight as well.

I always thought Goodnight Moon was silly. But the book has it right as far as a toddler is concerned.

"Goodnight stars. Goodnight air. Goodnight noises everywhere."

July 11, 2012 ~ Big Bonk

After dinner we were playing outside and I suggested that we go for a walk to burn off some energy before bed. Billy loves walks. This is a winning plan in his mind. So, we sent our guest inside to collect her shoes.

While we were waiting Billy decided to clean up his toys. We have a bunch of pool/tub toys outside that we keep in a yaffa block. You remember those from dorm rooms, right? That's where this one is from- my college dorm room. He was walking around picking up all of his toys and putting them in the box. Without prompting. Woohoo!

He got to the last toy and went to put it in the box and... tripped and fell head first into the box.

Bang! Bonk!

Immediate screaming, and definitely deserved. He has a big old bruise over one eyebrow where he smashed into the plastic corner. Lucky for him, he only fell about a foot and landed on plastic and not something harder. He's definitely going to have quite a shiner, but it could have been a lot worse. No blood even.

But it was definitely a big bonk.

July 10, 2012 ~ First Taco

There comes a time in a man's life when he has to try a taco. Today was that day.

Imagine a bowl full of foody mess. Okay, okay... it was a taco salad. What do you want from a one-year-old? He was presented with his bowl of taco salad and was inquisitive but unsure. I can't blame him. Taco salads are sloppy and messy and oh-so-yummy.

I gave him a fork and a spoon so he could choose his method of attack. He opted to double fist, using one to scrape food onto the other. Didn't matter which.

Immediately he ruled out the lettuce. I didn't think he would eat it, but Daddy insisted. Billy was not a fan. That's ok, he's got plenty of years to eat rabbit food. Onions and tomatoes were iffy too. He'd only eat them concealed under cheesy sour cream goo.

But let's get to the good stuff. He shoveled the meat with cheese and sour cream. His verdict? Yum. His word, not mine.

And so, presented with his challenge, he met that taco face first and came away with a taco-y face to prove it.

July 9, 2012 ~ Boats, Boats & More Boats!

Billy was very lucky that Grandma invited him over this weekend to see all of the boats. And he was even luckier to be treated to his first ever motor boat ride, and the fastest boat ride he's ever been on. (thanks to g. aunt and g. uncle for the ride!)

So, he's got boats on the brain.

After school we went outside. Always outside.

"Mommy, walk?"

"No walk." I'm pooped. It's too hot even with a break in the weather for walking around outside (read pushing him on his trike and then carrying him up a hill).

So, he came over and grabbed my hand.

"Mommy, walk?"

"Where do you want to go?" I asked. He obviously had something in mind.

"Mommy, walk...boats?"

I laughed. There are no boats in our neighborhood. I haven't even seen a boat on a trailer. No boats to look at, besides the multitude of boat pictures decorating our walks.

"No, Billy. There are no boats."

"Mommy, walk...boats?"

"Billy, we left all of the boats at the water. There aren't any."

The thought seriously about this for a minute.

"Mommy, walk...ship?"

July 8, 2012 ~ Cookie, Please?

This morning when I got up Daddy was giving Billy his breakfast. Daddy had just given Billy a cookie for breakfast. Not just any cookie... a Berger's cookie.

(These are Daddy's kryptonite. He can't resist them. It's his weakness. Ok, they are super yummy and summer isn't the same without them. And if you don't know what they are, heaven in cookie form is good description. A shortbread cookie with 2 tablespoons of fudge on top? YUM!)

So, Billy ate his cookie and then said, with his best puppy-dog face:

"More cakey puh-leeeease!"

He calls cookies "cakeys". Surprisingly, not that far off the mark...

Well, it was so cute Daddy couldn't resist and split a cookie with Billy. Billy gobbled it up and repeated:

"More cakey puh-leeeease!"

Well, cuteness doesn't mean ruining your breakfast. Mommy had to step in and say no more cookies. Billy was confused.

"All gone? Where go?"

So Daddy told him that Buddy ate all of the cookies. (Which is not true and never feed chocolate to a dog. Even if I did have a dog long ago that ate an entire box of these cookies by herself and the ran up the wall to the ceiling and bounced for two days.)

Billy was sad for a second and then nommed on his cheerios and melon. But by the end of his actual breakfast he was really hankering for another piece of cookie.

"Cakey? Please?"

"No more cookies," we both chimed in.

Then Billy pointed an incriminating finger at Buddy. "All gone," he accused. "Buddy, no, no. All gone." He wagged his finger and gave Buddy his best serious face.

Poor Buddy, guilty of being innocent.

Product Review ~ Little Tikes 3-1 Trike

This trike may have been one of the best investments we've made so far in the toy department.

We bought it for our son's first birthday. At first, we used it with the solid harness with the seat belt and sun shade. But we found that to be a bit clunky. So we removed it soon after and have been using it with the handle.

He loves to go for bike rides, which consist of me walking and pushing the bike around.ut he feels like he's in the drivers seat and gets to hold on to the handle bars and put his feet on the pedals.

We call it the Green Piece of Awesome because it really is.

The model here has lights and sounds, but ours does not come with that feature.

http://compare.ebay.com/like/271010284224?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&_lwgsi=y&cbt=y

Here's this year's model in blue:
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12288910


My only complaints are that the handle is loose from wear and cannot be fixed at this point. But we've used it a lot and wear and tear will do that to any toy. We have also had a problem with our son dislodging the bucket in the back. He pushes down on it and it pops off, resulting in bumps and bruises. The bucket snaps on, so enough force will cause it to snap off. It's only a hazard with an industrious child.

All in all this is the only toy that our son will consistently ask to play with day in and day out. Whether I'm pushing him around, or he's pushing Pooh Bear around, it's definitely a favorite.

And it's a lot more fun than a simple stroller!

July 6, 2012 ~ Spider On Your Nose!

We sat to watch the storms... nature's fireworks... and Billy invented a new game.

Spider On Your Nose!

He pinched his fingers together and wiggled them and came after my nose singsonging "Pie-duh! Pie-duh! Pie-duh!" I did it back to him and he giggled.

The whole storm he "Spider On Your Nosed" between lightning strikes.

He even joked with me about "No Mommy, no pie-duh." and then would stick his hand back on my nose and say, "yes pie-duh!"

This is the first game that I know of where he pretended like this and named it. I'm going to Mommy-tout and be proud of this developmental leap, minor as it is.

Better watch out... there's a Spider On Your Nose!

July 4, 2012 ~ Happy Birthday, USA!

I apologize for having to post a day late on this, but I wanted to include photos.

Billy had a big day on the 4th. His friend Cub came to visit. They started the day off with an early morning canoe ride.

And when I say early, I mean early. They went on a nature canoe. Cub and Billy got to see all kinds of wildlife. Fish, birds, bugs. And let's not forget the boats. Lots of boars.

After breakfast we headed out for a morning swim. Sorry, no pics. My camera isn't waterproof. Well, anyways, Billy decided to break out No Fear Billy. He was sitting on the second step in the pool, bouncing up and down so that his head was popping in and out of the water. He had no problem holding his breath doing this, and giggled every time he popped out. And when he got water in his mouth? No problem, just spit that yucky pool water out. Cub even showed him how to kick and Billy started acting like a pro-swimmer in the making. Not quite ready for the Olympics. Maybe the baby Olympics.

After lunch and a quick nap it was off to the parade. I helped decorate the cousins' float, but Billy is still a little small for riding in the parade, so we opted to watch instead. Here come the cousins!

Billy loved the parade. Especially the old fire truck. It's red. And a truck. And it's a red truck. There were old cars and Godzilla and the royal wedding showed up too. But mostly there was a red fire truck. With it's sirens on.

After the parade and the post-parade festivities, we headed back for some quiet time. Read: all of the adults except for myself ended up falling asleep, so I popped on some cartoons and plunked the boys down in front of some good, ole PBS broadcasting. Besides, it was hotter than Hades outside, so some time in the air conditioning was awesome.

And at this point it was time to cook dinner and force Billy into a second nap. He didn't want to go, but since he only got a half-nap before the parade, and needed to stay up late for the main event, he was going to sleep come hell or high water. We had quite a discussion for over an hour about sleeping, but finally he relented and went to bed. Finally.

That gets us to a lovely dinner that the dads cooked up for us on the grill. It was tasty, yummy and all of those adjectives.

But really, it's about the main event. The FIREWORKS!!!

Ok, now I realize that small people and loud explosives aren't usually a good mix. But last year we went with Cub to a concert with fireworks. We ended up next to the cannons. So when the 1812 Overture started...BOOM! He was a little freaked, but never cried.

Commence this year:

Well, we headed down at dusk. We had to park and ride the bus to get to the fireworks. Only, the bus was having issues because of all of the traffic. Golf cart traffic. No really. So, Bill, the golf course attendant, kindly picked us up in his golf course lawn truck. I can't describe it right- smaller than a pick-up, larger than a golf cart, designed with no windshield and green. Well, Billy got to ride in the back with us and a few other people, while Cub rode with his Mommy up in the windy front seat. Zoom! Away we went through the maze of golf carts down the rode and to the fireworks.

It was just getting dark when we laid our blanket out on a nice patch of sand. The dads went to fetch some beverages while we Mommies took the boys down to the water's edge. There were fireworks going off all up and down the bay. Billy and Cub took their shoes off and stuck their toes in the water. They were thrilled.

And then I turned around and we were in Tangled. There on the beach some people were lighting a fire balloon, just like in the movie. We turned the boys around just in time to watch it gently glide into the air and float out over the bay. I have never seen one in real life. It was super cool.

So, by then it was extra dark. We pulled up spots on the blankets and prepared, the boys on their respective Mommy's laps.

"Americans like to celebrate their country by blowing up a small piece of it."

Yep. Suddenly a firework burst overhead. Ooh. Aah.

Billy clapped at them. "Whoa!" he said with the good ones. And he alternately called out the colors, "Blue! Yellow! Blue! Yellow!" It didn't matter what color they actually were. They were alternately blue or yellow.

Then he realized that Cub was scared. Now, Cub is older and much bigger. But Billy is brave and he was not afraid. Cub's Mommy was covering his ears to protect him from the noise. So, Billy got out of my lap and went to sit beside Cub to comfort him. He also placed his hands over Cub's ears to make him feel better.

After awhile when Cub seemed to be okay, Billy wandered back over to me. He then became truly distressed that so many people were sleeping. I mean really, who sleeps through awesomeness??? Well, it was really just people laying down on the beach to look up at the fireworks, but Billy didn't recognize the difference and he was very upset at people missing all of the hubbub.

Of course, in true toddler style he actually got bored with the fireworks. Enough already. Blue, yellow, blue, yellow... I got it. I had to cajole him into sitting still. Then, a giant pregnant pause. Okay adults, you know what that means.

KABOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!



And then it was over. Cub asked me why we shot off fireworks.

"Because today is America's birthday and we're celebrating. That's how we wish our country 'Happy Birthday.'"

So ends the tale of the Fourth.

Drawn In Thursdays: Billy and Cub #1

Click to Enlarge

Posting Postponed!

I'd like to include photos in the post about the 4th, so I'm going to hold off posting about it until tonight when I am able to get the pictures uploaded.

Check back today for Drawn In and check in tonight for the post about the 4th.

Thanks!

Programming Note

Drawn In Thursdays will appear on Friday again this week, since Wednesday night is the 4th of July and I'll be posting about that instead of the webcomic. Please look for Drawn In on Friday.

Happy 4th of July!

July 3, 2012 ~ How To Eat Chicken ~ The Billy Method

Well, today at daycare he cried because I didn't send any yogurt. I'm not exactly sure why the tears today. I haven't sent yogurt in close to a month. Mostly because I forgot to buy new yogurt when I was at the store, not because I'm changing his diet.

So, after school we ran to the store to buy yogurt and I picked up dinner while I was there.

We got home and Billy was starving. Par for the course with him and the grocery store. It's kind of like "water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink" for him. I ALWAYS bring snacks with me to the store for him. We won't survive otherwise.

So, I sat him down to a nice plate of chicken with peas, a cup of blueberry yogurt and a big boy cup of milk. This, by the way, was the first time he ever had milk from a big boy cup. You know what? He didn't spill it! Put a win in the Mommy column!

Well, the yogurt being the thing he was craving today was, of course, the first thing he went for. I always give him two spoons with yogurt. Otherwise he ends up with yogurt from head to toe. He double-fists his yogurt, so it's two spoons or the hands are going in the cup too. But, eventually he gave up on the spoons and shoved his hands into the cup anyway. Then he realized that there were these blue things in the yogurt. Uh oh.

"Melon?"

"No, honey. Those are blueberries."

"No melon?"

I didn't have any melon. Oops. So, he plucked out each and every blueberry from the yogurt and handed each and every blueberry to me for disposal. You know, they weren't melon. They had to go.

Then it was on to the drumstick. Clearly, the way to eat a drumstick is bone end first. We had a minor argument about the fact that you can't eat the bone. Maybe I should have picked the chicken for him. But where's the fun in that? Drumsticks were my favorite as a kid and I am bound and determined to make him eat them.

He took one bite. Chewed it awhile. Spit it out. Yucky.

Me? I would just not eat the chicken if I didn't want it. What did Billy do? Well, if it doesn't taste good as chicken then eat it another way!

Billy opted to dip his chicken into the blueberry yogurt. Then he covered the yogurty end in cheerios and peas and nommed away. Eating chicken ~ the Billy Method.

He offered me some, but you know, I just had to pass. Saving it all for him.

July 2, 2012 ~ Water, Water Everywhere!

Ok, so a month ago when Billy tried out the pool for the first time this year he hated it. No really. I mean, he loves to be down by the pool, just not in the pool. I could live with this. A healthy dose of fear of the water? Yeah, I can definitely deal.

Scratch that.

Billy is in love with water. Maybe because it's outside? I don't know.

We took Billy down to the river for the first time this year. Buddy joined in for the watery fun. That's Buddy's green Wubba in the background, which Billy thought was most excellent for throwing to Buddy. Who doesn't love to see dogs swimming? Especially Buddy. He waddles when he swims. I don't know how he manages this but it's a definite waddle. And combined with the poofy hair that seems to become a balloon around him...well, it's humorous. Billy thinks so.

Billy couldn't get enough of the river. He had to go in several times. And Mommy had to get in. Every time. But he had a blast and now has no fear of the water.

We even went to the pool.

And that would be No Fear Billy jumping into the water from the top step. Yup. He thinks he's a fish. He thinks he's Nemo. Well, he does have Nemo on his swim diapers... He actually tried to breathe water while sitting on the step. That didn't work out so well, you know, not being a fish and all. But he didn't care. Jumping into the water was super fun.

I think this new love of the water has to be related to the river. Wait! I'll prove it:

This picture is from a year ago. The river was his favorite place to be last summer. I can't blame him.

July 1, 2012 ~ Outside???

First, I would like to apologize for a late post. Couldn't get internet connection last night... ah the trials and tribulations of technology...

Billy is a broken record. Outside? Outside, Mommy? Outside? Well, who wants to be inside when you can live outside in a tent? We didn't go camping this weekend, but since he now knows that you can live outside, why would you want to do otherwise?

He is also now hopelessly obsessed with boats. Mommy, big boat. Outside? AKA let's go outside and look at the boats.

Anything to go outside. Doesn't matter if it's raining, windy, dark, hot or any other inclement weather. Let's go outside.

Billy, do you want to eat dinner?
Outside?
No, at the table.
Uh...no. Outside? Outside, Mommy. Outside!

The SUnday Post ~ Ten Years

It's hard to believe but I am on my way to my ten year reunion...from college. My how things change in a course of a decade.

Ten years ago I was a starry-eyed artist hoping to make my way into the advertising industry and planning to move to Philly or NYC to do it. Since then I have lost important people in my life and gained new ones. I got married, started a family and found a Buddy. We bought a house and now I have years of advertising experience under my belt.

Ten years ago 9/11 was still fresh in our minds and not even a year past. The world was changing but full of possibilities for me.

I wonder what another ten years will bring. In ten years Billy will be 11. What will his world be like?

June 29, 2012 ~ Who's the Boss?

Move over Tony Danza... there's a new boss in town. (Does anyone even remember the reference?)

Daddy: Billy, who's the boss?
Billy: Daddy!

Yep. I tried to convince Daddy who the real boss is (me!) but he's convinced that Daddy is the boss. Daddy didn't een teach him that and Billy doesn't know what it means, but he's sure Daddy is it. Ok, we'll let Daddy get away with it... this time!


Sorry for the late post. Between a bottle of wine and a raging storm I never made it to the computer.

Drawn In Thursdays: On Friday??? What the Fudge?

Click to Enlarge

Sorry to be a day late and a dollar short, but a sick kiddo takes precedent over a webcomic.

June 27, 2012 ~ First Jump

Leave it to Billy to prevent a yucky sickness from keeping him down-literally.

He loves to run around singing "up and down, up and down" while skip-hopping. He keeps trying to jump, but it ends up being a weird flailing of happy limbs without ever leaving the ground. But those days of super silly flailing Billy are over. He can jump.

And just to prove it to you, he did it twice for me this morning and again this afternoon for Daddy. Yep, he's my lil hopper. On  the mend and on the up and up. Pun intended.

June 26, 2012 ~ Pie-Duh Phobia

I'm sorry lil man, but it seems I have imparted my fear of spiders on you.

His spider woes begin way back on Friday.

After bathing I put his towel around him and mine around me. He has hooded towels, the kind that are popular for kids right now. Well, he freaked out and tossed the towel from his head as if it were on fire. When it landed on the floor a giant black spider crawled out from the hood. That would be a spider recently trapped bewteen the towel and my lil man's head. Pie-duh! Pie-duh!

Yeah, ok. That spider had to go. No one jumps on my lil man's head and freaks him out without paying for it. Down the drain. Byebye.

Then, there we are camping. Out in the woods, surrounded by nature. Billy noticed a spider hanging out outside of the tent but inside the fly (tent rain cover). It was right above his crib. He freaked out. FREAKED. It was a small spider. I tried to allay his fears and tell him it was just dirt. He wasn't buying it. There wasn't much I could do. I tried to ang the spider off of the tent from the inside, but it was happy taking a nap right where it was. He was NOT a fan.

Bring on Monday morning, T-minus 2 hours getting HFMD. (Hand Foot and Mouth Disease). We go to shower and I remove his lil bathtub and out scurries another big, black spider. Same size as before, larger than a quarter when you include the legs. He was not happy and screamed in the shower, afraid the spider was hiding somewhere, even though a handy shoe dispatched the little sucker.

Nope. Not a fan.

I'm pretty sure that spiders are the most vile creatures on Earth. Prove me wrong, but really, they are other-worldly with their eight-legged freakishness. I hate them. If they are inside, then they must die. Outside, we'll think about it.

Well, today we were outside- the only place he seemed happy, so there we stayed. On the window ledge he noticed a Daddy Long Legs. I thought it was dead. It had been there since the day before and hadn't moved. Well, he wanted me to poke it with a stick and move it away from the sofa. Not a problem. It was dead. Not that I'm afraid of DLL, since they rarely bite and don't mind being held. (Think they don't bite? Ask the Mythbusters on that urban legend!) So, I poked it and it skittered away.

I suppose Moses could have appeared witha burning bush in front of him  and scared him less. I chased that poor unhappy DLL to the other end of the porch and tried to convince Billy that it is the only friendly spider out there. o, he tried to feed it a cracker.

Yes, my lil man tried to feed the spider a cracker. I got him to leave it alone since it was napping, but he really wanted to welcome it with a Ritz. No joke. When I explined that it only ate bugs, he cried. No really, tears. I told you spiders are scary. THEY EAT BUGS!!!

If that's not enough, we watched Tangled today (again). I explained that the bad lady was a meanie- a term I use for bugs and other living things he shouldn't go near. "Meanie? Like a pie-duh?" he asked. Yes, a meanie, like a spider. "Oh. She bites," he declared. Because meanie bugs bite.

Pie-duh phobia. Because they bite- those big meanies.

June 25, 2012 It's the Big "I'm Back" Blog Post

Well, after a nutty week at work and a crazy week in the rest of my life I am back at this blogging thing. Here goes:

This weekend we drove Billy out to the mountains to try out camping for the first time in 2012. We went with some very awesome people and had a wonderful time. The weather was nice. We had some hijinks, had to mount a 2am search party and there may have been a manpile, but everybody made it home safe and sound.

Billy's only problem with camping is sleeping. Why wold you want to sleep when you are surrounded by super cool adventures at every turn. I mean, really... a nap? Seriously? When there's a mountain to be climbed?

You can go ahead and caption this picture anyway you like. Daddy decided to get his native on, since he has at least one drop of Native American blood in him. Mind you, not from a tribe in West Virginia, but apparently being up in the mountains just brings it out. Behind my boys is Seneca Rocks.

Billy also made some canine friends on our trip, specifically the two living in camp with us. I think his favorite was Leo, who Billy called Lay-low. I'm pretty sure he thought the dog's name was "yellow" since he pronounced the name close to how he calls the color. Either way, Leo was a perfect Billy size and they are definitely friends now.

And that brings us to poor Buddy who didn't get to go. We had epic meltdown when Buddy went on his own adventure to Grandma's. Billy was sure BudBud was gone. No amount of convincing could get him to stop screaming for his favorite dog. Of course, once he got into the whole camping thing I asked him if he wanted to go home and see BudBud and he responded..."no."

Highlights from our trip:
Billy putting his sunglasses on, taking a dramatic pause... "Cool."

"Billy, what are mountains made of?"
"Big rocks."

And let's not forget his first melon:

Yum! Yum!

_________
And now on to today...

Every day is an adventure. Who needs to drive to the highest point in West Virginia to find one? Not me.

We got to daycare and there were only two kids in his class there and the teachers had out thermometers. Uh oh. They told me the school was having an outbreak of Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. Um, ok... slowly back out towards the door. I had just bathed Billy and he was perfectly spotless. Uninfected. The first kid to show symptoms got sick on Friday and Billy wasn't in school on Friday. Bullet dodged. Phew!

So, I decided not to leave him there and expose him to the disease. Nope. I drove home and packed up everything I needed to take Billy to work with me for the day. I had non-noisy toys and books, food, and since we had just been camping, I grabbed that super awesome Go Crib and his naptime necessaries and packed him into the car. I suspected I wasn't going to get much work done, but it was worth a shot, right?

Well, I had him all strapped in to the carseat and decided to take one last look at him while he was strapped down. Hands? Clean. Mouth? Clean. Feet? Removing shoes, then socks and... damn. That dodged bullet sung right back around and hit the target right in the bulls eye. Crap.

So, I unpack the car and hoof him back inside and call out of work. At least he wasn't sick up on a mountain. Thank God for that. And he wasn't acting sick this morning. But, I knew it was coming.

By this afternoon he was one very unhappy former camper (insert rim shot for extremely lame joke).

Poor lil man. He's so unhappy and the rash is all over his body- more like chicken pox than HFMD. But, it's HFMD and he's suffering through the best he can.

June 24, 2012

Checking out the world from on high- well, at the top of the slide, anyway.

June 23, 2012

Forget Joe Cool. This is Billy Cool.

June 22, 2012

Perfecting the pout. This one is about waiting for Grandpop to arrive.

June 21, 2012

Billy eating dinner at the table like a big boy.

June 20, 2012

Sailabration highlights:

Crying: Mommy, I wanna ship!

"Just remember, stay straight on Gay Street."

After the Blue Angels finished: "More???"

Yelling at the ducks to get out of the water because it was a "no swimming" weekend.

Everybody Needs a Vacation

Everyone needs a vacation, including me. Well, I'm not actually going on vacation, but I am going to be so freakin' busy with work that I need to minimize my daily requirements on my time so that I can hope to get some decent sleep.

For that reason, Becoming Billy will be going on vacation until June 24th. If something really cute happens, I'll be sure to post. No worries, there will be a daily Billy picture post to check in on. Then, check back in on the 24th for regular posting to resume.

Stay sane!

Sailabrate Good Times, C'Mon!

Billy woke up Sunday morning. "Mommy, Nee-yowm!" (Nee-yowms are airplanes). He demonstrated the flying by maneuver and repeated "Nee-yowm!" Boy, was he excited about getting to see the Blue Angels the day before. He was jumping up and down in his crib way earlier than his normal wake up time. Blue Angels are Awesome. That's with a capital A.

So, we decided to take him down to see them again. Only this time, we went to Locust Point to see the Angels. They were so much louder and so much closer than in Fells Point the day before.

Well, we decided to see everything. So we walked from the Kojima to Fort McHenry and back- several miles in all. Then we drove over to downtown and walked from the Power Plant to the Rusty Scupper (aka the entire harbor loop) and back again.

Billy waved at every boat on the water and tried to say hi to all of the people, but there were a lot of people. Too many people to get on the boats- the wait was just too long. So we walked around and looked at them. Billy saw the people out in the dragon boats (paddle boats, not Chinese sailing vessels). "No! No!" he shouted at them. We had had some discussions about not going in the water. Apparently, they were too low in the water and he thought they were swimming, which was a big nono. No swimming in the harbor- ever.

We stopped to eat some festival food. Funnel cakes and fried oreos. Yum! Billy got to try both for the first time. Funnel cakes were yummy, but move over for the oreos. He tried it and you know what he thought? He grabbed mine out of my hand and shoved it in his face. Yep. That good. No worries. I got another one.

We had a fabulous time Sailabrating and look forward to 2014, sure to be an even bigger hit. We're sorry to see the ships go, and I miss the Blue Angels practicing over my office already, but wow was it fun while it lasted!

Posting Postponed!

Yesterday was Father's Day and Daddy wanted to play his computer game, so I couldn't very well kick him off of the computer to blog on his day. Full posting about the weekend will commence tonight. Pictures and all! Check back later!

Sorry for the delay.