Smooth Dude

Today was one of those days when I came out of the bathroom from getting ready for work feeling pretty darn good. Make up was good. Hair was cooperating. Had on a cute new dress. Yep, feeling good. Right about then, Duane and Wesley came downstairs.

Mommy: So, how do I look?

Daddy: Sundressy.

Mommy: Ummm....okay.

Wesley: You look so pretty Mommy!

Good boy! He's learning how to give those complements without missing a beat! And he has learned it from his Daddy. Duane just wasn't super awake yet.

End of Vacay

What a wonderful way to end my vacation! Today was nearly perfect - except for my doctor's appointment this morning. I had to have my glucose test and an RH shot in the tushie. YUCK!!!

But this afternoon Grandma H. and I took Wesley to get his hair cut. We also stopped by the toy store and got Wesley the play ice cream set I have been wanting to get him. It's slightly magnetic so you can stack the scoops. He LOVES it and played ice cream store the whole time Duane grilled dinner.

After dinner we went to the park to see the doggies, feed the fish and play (in that order). Wesley had a great time looking at the dogs, but he didn't want to pet any of them, even though several very nice owners brought their dogs over to Wesley and offered to let him pet them. Once we had our fill of watching the dogs, we headed over to the pond to feed the fish. I think I should have taken more crackers because these fish were crazy for them! Wesley would throw a whole cracker in the water and you could hear the fish taking bites of it!

Wesley didn't play too long at the playground. He hung out on the swings for a little bit, but then he wanted to play hide and seek with Daddy. I think it was the cutest thing I have ever seen. Duane would count to 10 and Wesley would go "hide" behind a tree. Duane would search high and low pretending not to see Wesley, and ignoring the giggles that could be heard half way across the park. It was one of those moments that made my heart swell with love for my husband. He's just so wonderful!!

After the park, we headed to a rather expensive and totally worth it ice cream store to indulge one of my cravings. If you have never experienced Jeni's, I highly recommend it. The ice cream is to die for. I was craving her pistachio honey ice cream - which isn't green and actually tastes like pistachio! Duane had butterscotch with cocoa nibs (yum!) and Wesley put the beat down on a cup of strawberry buttermilk. I have to give him credit though, he tried Mommy's pistachio ice cream too.

Now it's bedtime for Wesley, soon to be followed by bedtime for Mommy. What a wonderful end to my vacation!

Picture Perfect Day

Now this was the kind of day vacations are made for. Except for the child pulling on my arm while I'm trying to type, this has been a wonderful day. It started by me sleeping in until 8:30 and Wesley sleeping in until nearly 9:30! HEAVEN! We lounged around for little bit, but got our act together in time to meet Aunt Cathy and Kei at the park at noon.

It was perfect park weather today! Cathy and I found a nice shady spot to sit where we could watch the boys run around and behave, well, like boys on a playground!

The swings are always Wesley's favorite!

Up the stairs.......

...and down the slide!

Of course Wesley's absolute best thing to do today was to chase Kei around the playground and tackle him. Kei takes it pretty well since he has a big brother that already pushes him around sometimes, and Cathy has told the boys they have to be gentle with Wesley because he is smaller than them. But between you and me, I was rooting for Kei to give Wesley a taste of his own medicine! We made a quick detour to the fish pond before heading off for lunch.

Lunch was kids meals at Wendy's. Once again I learned the power of a little peer pressure. Wesley was fairly determined not to eat anything but his french fries, but when he saw Kei plowing through a container of oranges, he decided to give them a chance too.

After lunch we headed down the street so I could introduce Cathy to Cover to Cover - the world's greatest children's bookstore. I told Wesley he could pick out one book to buy. Even though he told me he wanted a red book, he picked out the classic "Dear Zoo." It was the first book he saw and he immediately fell in love with it. Kei had a similar reaction to the fish book he picked out.

I think this is my favorite picture of the day. Maybe it's the librarian in me, but is there anything cuter than kids sharing books together? I love it!

I took the long way home when we left the bookstore in hopes that Wesley would fall asleep in the car. It worked like a charm and he ended up sleeping for 2 hours. I even sneaked in a half hour nap for me! Once Wesley woke up, we went outside while Daddy mowed the lawn and we read "Dear Zoo" at least a dozen times. Even Stinky Bear joined in. What a great vacation day!

Vacationing

Things are moving right along here in vacation land. Wesley and I are spending a lot of time together, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. See, my friend Cheryl used to tell me that the "terrible twos" weren't really that bad - it was three you needed to watch out for. Cheryl, if I ever laughed at you for saying that, I take it all back. Wesley is fast approaching three and was so awful yesterday that I wasn't sure he'd make it to his birthday in August.

Today has been much much better for the most part. We both slept in and when I asked Wesley what he wanted to do today, he replied that he wanted to stay home. Hey, fine with me! We spent most of the morning working in the nursery, which has become our dump room since Wesley moved out. I did some cleaning and began sorting toys. Wesley helped me decide which were baby toys for his brother and which were big boy toys for Wesley. Then we moved some of the big boy toys to Wesley's dinosaur room. Not too bad.I tried to convince him to go to the park after lunch, but he didn't want to go. So we watched some tv and cuddled in the big red bed.

The only not so pretty moment came late this afternoon while Wesley was coloring. I caught him putting his crayons in his mouth. When I asked him what he was doing, he said he was "warming them up." Uh-huh. I told him that if I saw him put the crayons in his mouth again I would take them away. Sure enough, a few minutes later a blue crayon headed for someones mouth. I was true to my word and picked all the crayons up and put them where he couldn't get them. WOW! You would not believe the fit that followed. Tears, screaming, foot stomping, the whole bit! When he finally calmed down I gave the crayons back, explaining that if they went in his mouth again, he'd lose them for the rest of the night, not just a few minutes. Seemed to work.

When Daddy got home, we went to visit Grandma and Grandpa P. this evening. They gave us their old grill and since we were going to pick it up, we decided to get some good BBQ for all of us to enjoy for dinner. We had such a nice evening. Wesley was in a good mood and was entertaining, and everyone seemed to be doing well.

The terrible side made a just a minor appearance on the way home.

Wesley: Where's Daddy?

Mommy: He's in the truck behind us.

Wesley: I want to ride in the truck too!

Mommy: Sorry, you can't. There isn't a car seat in the truck.

Wesley: But I want to!

Mommy: It's not going to happen.

Wesley: Well, I want to go to the park.

Mommy: I'm sorry Wesley, but it's 8:00. It will be bedtime soon. It's too late to go to the park.

Wesley: It's not 8:00! It's 5:00! It's early! I don't want to go home! I want to go someplace else! I want to go to the park!

Mommy: We're not going to the park tonight.

Wesley (after 5 minutes of silence): Mommy, can we please go to the park?

Mommy: Wesley, I already told you. We are not going to the park tonight.

Wesley: But MOMMMEEEEEE!!!!!

Still, it's an improvement over yesterday. And trust me, I will make sure we go to the park tomorrow.

Happy Memorial Day

It was another very full day for the W. family. I don't feel nearly as beat as I did yesterday, but I have had it up to here with Wesley. He's a really good kid most of the time, but today he managed to push all my buttons forcing me into the role of Mean Mommy. ARGH! I guess we'll just try to focus on the positive with this post.

We got up early today and headed to the suburb I work in to watch the Memorial Day parade. Wesley has been really into the "Neighborhood Parade" clip on Noggin these days, so I figured it would be right up his alley. We kicked off the morning by making a donut stop on the way. When Kirk and I were kids, our family would go to a Fourth of July parade every year and we'd always stop and get donuts on the way and eat them while waiting for the parade to start. What can I say? I'm a sucker for tradition! Wesley picked out the donut he wanted and as you can see, he enjoyed it immensely!

Wesley enjoyed parts of the parade too. He liked the marching bands, and the Shriner little cars. There was a martial arts group that marched and would stop every few yards to perform a maneuver. When they were in front of us, a boy who wouldn't have been more than 12 broke a board with his foot - prompting Wesley to say "Mommy! I want to do that!"

After the parade we headed back to Grandma and Grandpa H.'s for a cookout with Uncle Kirk, Aunt Susan, Aunt Cathy, Sho and Kei. Thank goodness the rain held off long enough for the boys to play outside. I think we spent a good two hours with bikes and scooters and sidewalk chalk and the bubble mower and bats and balls and kids gardening tools. Wesley and Sho kept busy digging in the dirt for a long time and even showed me the worm they dug up. Of course, my favorite part was when Wesley called Duane "Uncle Duane" like his cousins do, instead of Daddy!After we ate, the boys played on the computer and colored.

Really, it was a nice day. And I'm off work for the rest of the week, which makes it even nicer!

Wild Boys

I always thought there was something a little wild about these three.....

Exhaustion Festival

We took advantage of the beautiful weather out today and went to the Asian Festival with Aunt Cathy, Sho, Kei and Aunt Susan. I think half of the city had the same idea because the place was PACKED! The most crowded I have ever seen it in all the years I've been attending.

We had to park quite a ways from the festival, which meant a serious work out for me! I did OK as long as I waddled - I mean walked - slowly. Wesley rode in the wagon, lucky kid!

Of course, being pregnant, the very first thing I wanted to do was eat. Oh we feasted! And I managed to sate the intense craving I got for Indian food earlier today. Wesley ate strawberries, cheese and crackers, but he did try a Okinawan donut. Of course, the big hit with all three boys were the snowcones that Aunt Susan bought them.

After lunch, we wandered around the festival looking at stands, listening to music and watching a few sports. The boys were obsessed with the balloons several stands were giving out. Each of them lost a balloon, so we go replacements and got smart - we tied them to the wagon. Duane bought be a big floppy straw hat which I love. Wesley didn't like me in the hat though. He kept asking me to take it off.

After wandering around the festival for a few hours, we headed back to the car. I was sorely tempted to boot Wesley from the wagon and climb in myself, but could you have been the person to disturb this?

When we got home, all I could do was collapse on the couch. I had absolutely zero energy left. Wesley, on the other hand, had TONS of energy. Of course he did - he rode in the wagon! He watched a DVD, played with his toys, and fed Mommy and Daddy a picnic. At 7:00 I finally dragged myself off the couch to take a relaxing bath. The problem was, Wesley wanted to go with me. So I climbed in the tub and he "helped" me take a bath. He took a piece of plastic "wood" from his tool set and washed my arms and back and hair. Then he would dip his hands in the water and flick droplets at me so I could "cool off." After a few minutes he decided that I was plenty cool and started to worry about me being cold, so he tried to hand me multiple towels. Even though it wasn't the relaxing bath I was craving, it was very sweet that he really wanted to take of me.

Here's hoping I recover enough from today for a parade and cookout tomorrow. I think it's a good thing I'm on vacation this week!

Chef's Special

Wesley's new favorite game to play is "picnic." He takes all his animals out and takes them on a picnic where he fees them all his play food. Tonight he took Daddy for a picnic.

Wesley: What can I get you?

Daddy: How about an ice cream sandwich? (Wesley has a couple plastic Dairy Queen ice cream sandwiches.)

Wesley: Here you go! (as he hands Daddy a piece of bread with an ice cream cone on it!)

Short Stories

Wesley had a splinter in his finger yesterday, which meant a minor surgical procedure in our house last night. We stretched Wesley out in our bed and I held his uninjured hand and tried to distract him, while Duane worked to get the splinter out. Wesley was amazingly good through the whole thing and only whined a little bit. Once the splinter was out, Daddy went downstairs to get a bandaid. While he was gone, Wesley informed me that MY finger was hurt. I held out my index finger and asked him to kiss it. He did and I told him it felt much better. "No it doesn't Mommy. Daddy has to fix it!"

On the way to Aunt Melissa’s this morning,I stopped in the McDonald’s drive through (drat that craving for a Sausage McMuffin with Egg). Anyhow, I asked Wesley if he wanted some hash browns. Somehow he heard “hash browns” but started thinking about brownies - just like Mommy has been doing for the last week. As we waited in line I heard Wesley gasp, “Oh my gosh! The lions are eating all the brownies!” Lions? Brownies? Mommy was very confused, but it was cute!

We went out to dinner with Grandma and Grandpa H. tonight. I wanted Wesley to sit on the potty before we left, but he was very busy playing with a shoe string. I finally herded him into the bathroom and was trying to get his pants off when he started jumping up and down faster than a Mexican jumping bean!
"Wesley. I want you to sit on the potty."
"I can't Mommy. I have to practice my jumping rope!"

Baking Buddies

I decided to make some chocolate chip cookies tonight. Wesley came into the kitchen and asked if he could help me just as I was finishing the batter. He got the honored job of stirring the chocolate chips into the batter. Not a single chip was wasted. He even helped me scoop some of the dough out and plop it on the baking sheet. I have a feeling these will be the best cookies ever!

Go Diego Go!

Grandma H. and I took Wesley to see Go Diego Go Live today. Except for a bit of a fit on the way there, Wesley was SOOO good! He sat in his seat the whole time and really watched the show and asked for it again when it ended. The ushers gave out Baby Jaguar masks when we first went in. Wesley lost his during intermission, and didn't even throw a fit! Grandma and I found a couple on the floor after the show and he was content with those. He calls them Mommy and Daddy Jaguar and plays with them with his official Go Diego Go Live stuffed Baby Jaguar. Baby Jaguar is Bear's new best friend too. They have spent the whole day together. Aww, stuffed animal friendship. How cute.

Happy Birthday Sho and Kei

We celebrated Sho and Kei's birthdays tonight. I wish I had pictures to share, but my camera batteries died. Bummer! Hopefully Aunt Susan will share some of hers so I can post them here.

Aunt Cathy had the family over and prepared an AMAZING authentic Taiwanese dinner for us. Oh my goodness, I have never had such wonder food! We had eggplant with meat sauce (my new favorite), three cups chicken (to die for), meatball soup, some kind of fish and choy dish, sweet and sour pork (NOTHING like you get at the restaurants - so much better), and some kind of shrimp dish with lots of fresh ginger and gingko nuts. Plus steamed rice. I only wish I was able to eat more right now. Oh, it was so good!

The boys spent most of the evening playing outside. Wesley would turn super cranky at the drop of a hat because he only had a 15 minute nap all day, but for the most part he did well. They all raced up and down the hill, played with sidewalk chalk and balloons. Wesley tried Kei's three-wheeled scooter and really liked it. The biggest meltdown came when Sho and Kei opened their new basketball hoop. Wesley wanted to play with it NOW and he didn't want to share and it was late so he cried and cried and cried. Not a pretty way to end the evening. Good thing his "cousins" try to take such good care of him. They don't like to see him upset and will do anything they can to calm him.

On the up side, Wesley told us TWICE at Cathy's that he needed to use the potty and he actually went both times! This is huge for us. YAY Wesley!!

Dino Dreams

Aunt Susan finished painting the dinosaur on Wesley's wall this week. Big Blue Dinosaur is about 8 feet tall and so cool!!! Check him out!

Isn't he the coolest!? Aunt Susan is incredible!

Wesley to the Rescue

I have had a lot of back pain with this pregnancy. Last night I was in bed when I had a back spasm and I cried out "Ow! Ow! Ow!" Wesley's door was open (with a gate in the doorway) and he wasn't asleep yet, so he heard me.

Wesley (yelling down the hall): What's wrong Mommy?

Mommy: My back hurts, but I'm OK. OW!(another back spasm)

Wesley: Come on Bear! We need to knock this gate down and see what's wrong with Mommy!

Hey Ice Cream Man

All the stars aligned tonight and Wesley had his first visit to the ice cream truck. He had just finished his dinner, it's a beautiful evening and we weren't in the middle of anything major when we heard the music from the ice cream truck. Wesley chose a Dora the Explorer ice cream pop. Now he's standing in front of the TV, watching a Dora episode, while licking the ice cream Dora. Is it just me, or is there something slightly demented about that?

And yes, he has terrible red-eye in the picture, but it was the only one that came out!

Be Nice to the Pregnant Lady - Or Else!

As I enter my third trimester, the time has come for me to remind people how to treat a pregnant woman. I don't remember being so annoyed with folks when I was pregnant with Wesley, but things are getting out of control! Allow me to offer these helpful hints.

1) Do NOT comment on my weight or the size of my belly. The following statements are not appreciated:
Wow! You're huge!
Your due date must be coming up quick!
You look so much bigger this time!
How much weight have you put on?
Not that it is any one's business, but as of May 2nd, I had only put on 10 pounds with this pregnancy. I am measuring 1 week further along than I am. If I look extra large to you, it's because a) DUH! I'm 28 weeks pregnant! b) this is my second child c) I'm only 5 feet 3 inches folks, it's not like this kid has any place to go but out! How about saying something like "That's a great color on you," or "You look great" if you must comment on my appearance. Even better - if you wouldn't say it to a non-pregnant person, don't say it to a pregnant one.

2) Do NOT comment on what I am or am not eating or drinking - that it completely between me and my doctor and no one else. Yes, I have a weird desire to crunch ice or chew gum for almost every waking hour, but if my doctor isn't worried about it you shouldn't be either. And once again, not that it any one's business, but that Starbucks cup you see me carrying around? It's a decaf skinny vanilla latte, I'm not "cheating." And even if I was, if you aren't my doctor, don't say a word.

3) Do NOT assume I want you touching my belly. Only two other people have unlimited access to the belly - my doctor and my husband. If you have an overwhelming urge to touch my belly please ask me. If you are uncomfortable asking if it's okay, chances are good you have no right touching the belly. Oh! And if you ask and I say "no," please be respectful of that! I'm about to buy a shirt I saw online that says "Ever been smacked by a pregnant lady? Touch the belly and live the experience." I wouldn't come up and touch your belly (pregnant or not), so please return the favor.

Sorry for the rant, but I am so sick of being made to feel like a big fat blob who is public property. Please be nice to the pregnant lady!

Potty Panic

I hoisted Wesley out of bed this morning and into the bathroom to sit on the potty. Wesley sat there bleary eyed for a few minutes, then told me he was done. There was nothing in the potty, but he tried and I was happy with that. I started to stand up when I noticed a panicked look on Wesley's face. He was bent over a little bit and said in a worried voice, "I need to put more pee-pee in the potty!" I helped him back on and - ta da! - success!

Update

It's only Friday, but I feel like I have really neglected the blog this week. Everything is OK with us, but we've been busy!

Wednesday was our wedding anniversary, otherwise known as one of the happiest days of my life (Wesley being born is the other). I cannot tell you how much I love my husband. He is amazing, wonderful and he means the world to me. I know God blessed me many times over when he put Duane into my life.

Every year around our anniversary I start to crave a trip back to where we took our honeymoon - Mohonk Mountain House. Promise you will go there someday if you ever get the chance. It's in New York, about an hour and a half away from NYC, but it's a whole other world. You are surrounded by nature and many ways to enjoy it. There are no tvs, no radios, heck, no air conditioning - but it sits on a glacier lake surrounded by mountains and trees. According to the staff it never gets really hot, so open windows and fans do the trick. There's horseback riding and hiking and boating and fishing and fitness classes - they've even opened a spa since we were there. It's just past a little college town with great shops and close to the Culinary Institute of America. There are rocking chairs and terrific views everywhere and the whole point is to relax. And the food! Oh my goodness, it's like something out of a dream!

OK, enough gushing and on to last night. Last night we went out to dinner with one of Duane's friends from work and his wife and little girl (who is just a few weeks older than Wesley). I learned several things during our outing. First of all, I learned the joy of the casual buffet with a two year old. Why have we not done this before!? Wesley picked out what he wanted to eat, there was enough commotion around us to keep him entertained and no one expected him to stay in his seat, even though he did most of the time. Second, I learned that a buffet is perfect for a pregnant woman who has very definite likes and dislikes right now and I could control the portion size. Last, I learned the joy of peer pressure.

Caitlyn (the little girl) is recently potty trained. She LOVES to go to the bathroom when they are out - mostly to check out the place - and asked to go to the potty three times while we were eating. Wesley picked up on this and told us he needed to go potty too. Duane and I both knew there was no way Wesley was actually going to go potty, but you don't pass up an opportunity like that. Duane took him, nothing happened, but I'm just thrilled he asked!

After dinner we went back to Caitlyn's house to play for a little bit. She has this great little trampoline that Wesley loved in small doses. He mostly played with the kitchen set (which is just like his) while Caitlyn tried in vain to get him to play dress up with her. They played really well together and when we got in the car, all Wesley could talk about was "that girl." I see more playdates in our future.

Stalling

Now that Wesley has moved to his big boy room, he's begun the ever popular stalling techniques at bedtime. Not right away, but when Mommy tries to leave his room. Let's see, we've had the "I'm hungry" bit two nights in a row. Last night it was "I'm so thirsty." After he had a drink he told me he needed his toenails cut and fingernails trimmed. I burst that balloon by reminding him that we just trimmed his toenails and fingernails a couple days ago. We've also played the "I'm too hot" game. What fun! We never had these issues before. Wesley says he loves his new bed and new room, but I think he's still a little apprehensive about the whole thing. Oh well, he'll get used to it, right?

First Night Report

Well, I'm happy to report that the first night in the new room and big boy bed went incredibly well! Wesley slept all night and didn't so much as stir until 8:00 this morning. In fact, after a stop at the potty, he jumped right back in bed, pulled the covers up and pretended to sleep. He didn't reemerge for another 15 minutes. I can't wait until the room is completely done so I can post pictures!

The rest of the day went by in a flash. After church we did some errands and had lunch at Dairy Queen. What's great about Dairy Queen is that the kids meals come with ice cream! I learned that times passes really really REALLY slowly when you are waiting for a 2 year old to finish an ice cream cone. At least there were two up sides to it. First, he thanked me about three times for his ice cream and second, he's so funny to watch!

After lunch we went to Sam's Club. There's not a lot to report from there except for the fact that Wesley picked out an outfit for his little brother. I was looking at pajamas when Wesley saw a baby overalls outfit with an elephant on it and told me that he wanted it for his baby brother. Tell me, could you have said no to that? Neither could I!

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at Grandma and Grandpa H.'s. My aunt and uncle were visiting from Florida and I wanted to make sure we said hello. I think the highlight of the afternoon for Wesley was playing soccer in the backyard with everyone. Poor Daddy. Wesley is infatuated with the idea of soccer and it's Duane's least favorite sport (kind of like baseball is for me). Maybe Wesley will keep that butterfly stance up and we'll make a hockey player of him yet! For course, he's awfully cute when he's kicking a ball around!

We're winding down with some Oswald before returning to the dinosaur room for night two. Not a bad weekend at all.

Big Boy Room

Wesley is going to spend his first night in his big boy room tonight. We just finished hanging the curtains and Wesley told us his room was "perfect." There's still work to be done. Aunt Susan is going to finish the dinosaur on the wall next week and she's painting a picture for us too. We have to hang his initials, set up a bookshelf, hang a framed poster, and I'd like to set up some of his dinosaurs, but we have a great start! I'm not going to post pictures until it's all done though.

Wesley has been all over his new room today. He jumped up and down on his bed as soon as the mattresses were delivered. I wish I would have shot some video because while he was bouncing, he was watching himself in the mirror and singing "I Love Rocky Road," (Mommy and Daddy are both Weird Al fans and had one of his CDs on while we were working.) Wesley has also called his room "cool" and "awesome." He's been in his bed playing for the past 1/2 hour!

I hope the transition to actually sleeping in his new room goes smoothly. I'm going to lay down with him in his room until he (or to be honest, WE) fall asleep. We're going to leave his door cracked so he can wander into our room if he needs to. Wish us luck!

What's for Dinner?

What happened to the little baby I had that would eat anything. Wesley has turned into quite a picky eater and I hate it. He did surprise me last night by taking a few bites of broccoli (several times). Tonight he asked for mac and cheese and oranges and corn. I'm not fond of monochromatic meals, but if he was going to eat, I was going to make it. Turns out he took one look at his plate and announced "This looks yucky. I'm done eating."

About 20 minutes later Duane and I had our dinner. I asked Wesley if he wanted a bite of manicotti. "Bannacoitti!?" he asked. "I LOVE bannacotti!" He ate a couple of bites and a couple bites of garlic bread and that's it. Then he had the nerve to ask for fruit snacks, which we only give him as dessert or a bribe. No dinner. No fruit snacks. Surprisingly, no tears. I wonder what he'll decide he's hungry for at 10:00 - which has happened to us before.