Phin's Birthday party!

A mexican fiesta was Ethan's birthday. Fajitas are the official family party food...
I was surprised that he did such a good job eating "different" foods. In reality, he only at the refried beans and cheese - but that was still something "new" for him.




Then it was time for CAKE! We don't keep a lot of sweets in the house so it was certainly a special occasion for Phin. Daddy helped Phin keep his fingers out of the fire as he blows out his candle. Then, we start with a little taste and then go for the whole cake!

Ethan's quote of the day...

While eating breakfast in his high chair, he said:
"The dog is drinking water from bowl."
(she was drinking water from her bowl).

Ethan is 1 year, 11 months, 3 weeks and 1 day old.

It's also in use

in his favorite juice, and the JELLY he puts on his toast. (quote from one of Phin's favorite books. I thought it was appropriate for this early morning.)

No, really - he's there

You just have to look close, to my left at about the height of the chair beside me. Do you see his little blond head behind the umbrella pole? Well, he's there, I promise! This was a big date for Phin. He was out with four other women (besides mom) AND during his naptime. Lots of fun stuff happened. See below!


Lunch for Phin was pretty uneventful. He ate "creamy mushroom soup" (I thought I had ordered broccoli soup which he LOVES. Mushrooms aren't his most favorite thing ever...) and listened to chatter between women. There was a lot of talk about shoes and purses. :) Later, a cookie cake came to the table and Phin was IN BUSINESS! Since he was sitting by me, I was not really watching his cookie love until the women across the table gave me the heads up. At that point, I couldn't help but get a picture or two!



After the group picture OUTside, Phin found the flowers on the side of the wall. This picture is significant for a couple of reasons. The first is because of Phin's dad. When Dan and I were still just dating, I went on a treck with him to see his family in Iowa. At his grandmother's house, Dan's mom pointed out a picture of a small child smelling a red geranium. I asked who the little girl was - to find out it was my Dan...
The other reason is that Phin loves to "smell the flowers." Earlier in the spring, all of my peonies bloomed along our driveway. As every year, they were dark and light pink. The difference was that this year, there was a little boy who noticed. Every single time we were outside, he would want to touch the flowers and smell the flowers. One day, we even crossed the street to one of the neighbors houses (they were at work) to "smell" the tiger lillies. Even now in July - with the flowers long gone, Phin still grabs the left-over stems and smells... where the flower used to be? Every single morning.
He tries in the back yard with the marigolds too - though, they usually get plucked from their containers.
So, on this day, Phin got to stop and smell his flowers and I got to grab up the boyhood picture.




As always, he was not ready to leave but was still asleep just one mile from the restaurant.
Naptime came late, but his sleep was HARD.

Daddy goes swimming.

I know that Dan can't come along and do every single thing that I do with Phin. He has to work, right? But, I have to say I was OVER JOYED when Dan was able to come along with Phin and me to the pool today. That way, Dan has a reference when I tell him stories - and being just 6.5 weeks away from Isaac joining us, I am a little slow - if Phin tries to make a break for it and run over to the big people pool. So, off we went to the pool and Ethan started asking for his friend "KATE?" as soon as we made our way to the parking lot. Dan joined Phin on the big toys while I stayed back in the shade, being kicked around by Isaac. It was a great hour of swimming and while Phin doesn't believe his grown enough to make it up all of the steps to go down the big slide (which we are completely okay with) he did make a run for the grown up pool a few times. Each time, his daddy caught up to him before he got too far away.




It was also GREAT to have someone around to help me get a picture with my little man!!!

He thinks he's all grown...

So, it's no secret that Phin loves books. He loves to have them read to him and sometimes he likes to try his hand at reading his own. However, this one floored me. He sat down with a lovely novel (with no pictures) and tried to go to town. Read Phin read!

Instant message between mommy and daddy:

So, there was a distressful cry in the bedrooma nd I went to check on Phin. When I opened the door, I found that the room was trashed - even the leaf was laying in the middle of the room. Phin was trying to climb up where his stepstool used to be (a bed drawer was pulled out but wasn't working so well - so I put the step back.
While cleaning up the room, I turned around to find EP sitting IN his toybox, trying to put his jungle animal puzzle together.
funny, huh

Phin's room...

It took a family village to put this room together. Auntie MaryAnn and Grandma Susie picked up a lot of the decor in Dallas for me and brought it back to Missouri. Dan did all of the painting (which is not one of his strong areas) and furniture assembly. Dan even put the window in along with the trim. I picked the theme, wall colors, decor and room setup. Certainly, everyone played their part and I thank you all!

So the bed is finished, but the dresser is still in the furniture ER. I wish you could see how big the leaf really is. It hangs over half of the bed... We will post more views in the future when we finish fixing the dresser. I would offer, never buy furniture online - you don't really know what you are getting and from this experience, they can make pretty flimsy stuff look good in a picture. Hey, look, I did it right here! :)



Note the frog clothes hamper in the corner of the room. Sometimes, Phin drops stuff inside the frog and then works to get said stuff out. When they happens, it looks like the frog is eating him. If you scroll down, you can see an example of that. He also has his own book stand and chair to read in his bedroom. The little blanket in the chair, he throws it out of the chair every single chance he gets. I am unsure why - so I keep putting it back. It's a little game we play.



Ultimately, it didn't take more than one week to transition him from his crib to his bed. We offered him the choice between the two for each night and nap and after a few days, he realized that he falls asleep in the bed instead of on the floor. He still carries TONS of toys into the bed each night to play before he actually falls asleep, but I am okay with that.

So, now I have to get to work on Isaac's room! Wish me luck as I am running out of time... :)

Last year, he got the ocean...

This year, he gets the Kiddie Pool.
I didn't know how he would feel about the water, but he "warmed up" to it quickly.
It was an hour swim, and he cried when it was time to go. I actually had to carry him - as he refused to walk away.







But, it was nap-time, so we had to go home.
Post Pool After Party

Ethan is 23 months old -

as of the 7th actually.

Since turning 23 months old, he has banged his head - at a high speed into the frame of his swing outside. He has gone running at the OB office and fallen - not to fully catch his head on the way down and instead he got a forehead full of carpeted concrete. The good news is that it was the opposite side of his forehead from the original goose egg. The bad news is that the carpet caused skin abrasions - so he just looks beat up.

Some of his "positive" type behaviors have been - saying "w.a. wal-mart" yesterday when we pulled up to the store.
Today, it was "e.t. ethan (sounds like ethan of ethanol)." I have got to admit. It's been freaking me out just a little bit.
We also have some video to upload of him interacting with his kids "computer" - ( that we got him - just so he would hopefully leave OUR computers alone.) The computer asks "find the uppercase 'L'" and he pushes the button, etc.

He waffles between wanting to be called "Phin" "Ethan" and "Bubba." Often I am corrected for the appropriate name in each situation. He knows that the baby in mama's belly says "waaa, waaa, waaa." According to him, Daddy says "okay" and Mama says "oh my!" Phin does not have an answer for "what does Phin say?"
He has his own tiny boy baby doll to get him used to the idea of a new addition to the family. He calls that baby "Boy". Yesterday, he tried to feed "Boy" his (Phin's) waffle (a piece of wheat bread.) I thought it was very nice that he was sharing so kindly with "Boy". :)

Phin has started a slow transition out of the nursery to his big boy bedroom. While the room is not completely finished yet, we are getting there. The decor is mostly FROGS (Phin's favorite). He has a twin bed with a huge leaf over it - in his new room along with his old crib from the nursery. Each day, we ask him "do you want to sleep in your bed or crib?" While he usually says "crib" - he has started climbing the steps to his bed and hunkering down there with his blankets. It's really quite cute. Often, we have to go back and pick him up off of the floor where he had gotten down and fallen asleep playing.

The other thing that really cracks me up lately is that Phin likes to order Maggie (the boxer) around like he's the boss. If she whines from the kitchen, he says "Maggie, hush!" If he wants her to lick him, he says "Maggie, KISSES!" He also tells her to do things like "Maggie, SIT!." I have a feeling he'll be quite the little dog trainer in his future! Since Maggie mostly ignores Phin, I have started giving Phin treats to give to Maggie - knowing that will give him clout in her doggie head. It's going okay, except that I say to Phin "say Maggie sit." and while Phin says it, he too sits down on his bottom on the floor. Certainly, Maggie is still happily taking the treats, but I don't think Phin is showing her who is boss - as he is sitting lower on the floor than her. All in time, right? :)

There were three

Dan and I discussed our need for one more family picture of the "three" of us. Phin looks at the family pictures we have in the house each day. He counts off "Dada, Mama, Bubba." Since we will be soon adding a new "bubba" to the pictures, we thought - what a better time - to get that last picture of the three of us - than out the farm this weekend.

The Day After

a party, it's always a good idea to look at your camera and see how much fun you had the night before.
This was Phin's first "party." He stayed up waaaay past his usual bedtime (between 6-7pm) until after 10p.
P-A-R-T-Y A-N-I-M-A-L-!!!
Check out some of his new moves and the ladies he met!

What an incredible lucky Mommy I am!

It seems that Phin is a "creative problem solver" - just like me.
Here is yesterday's example: First let me say that it's a good thing I don't get super attached to some of my stuff. Since I have some serious dental hygiene, it's no big deal for me to change out my toothbrush often. It's good because yesterday Phin was able to find my toothbrush - that is stowed out of his sight. (I am sure he's seen me get it out and put it up at teeth brushing time.)
He proceeded to find a very creative place - as a new "holder" for my toothbrush. I am sure he was thinking it would be even easier for me to remember to brush - if I hit the actual toothbrush as I entered and exited the bathroom...


He even took the time to show me "alternate holding patterns" for the brush in the exact same place. What a SMART BOY!


Once I had the whole introduction to door-frame toothbrush, he then decided to go over "proper brushing technique" once again. JUST to MAKE SURE I had it down. :)


In other news, while his room is still not quite finished, it is coming along almost daily. Phin has been enjoying practicing climbing up


and down the steps to his bed. Sometimes he climbs down and sometimes he slides. Either way, he knows that a) feet first and b) careful, careful!


I REALLY AM A REALLY LUCKY MOM. Seriously.

Today

my waist measures at 44 inches.
grow baby grow!

Also, please scroll down in the next few days. I am trying to fill in some of the gaps over the last month or so. It's hard with a 22 month old who believes that the laptop is HIS toy to play with. It keeps the thing closed all day while he's awake. SO, that is why the updating has been slow - to say the least.

My baby loves hats!

Even if they are crazy colored and belong to mama. I have a feeling he may be quite unhappy with me one day for this picture.

We are all growing.

Phin was a bit tired this morning - as he climbed into the dining room chair.


As you can see, I am still growing, in my new pair of shorts. (the first pair of shorts since at least junior high.)

OUTside

It's where Phin wants to be. OUTside. SO, each morning, after our breakfast, we put on shoes and go OUTside to play. We swing in the swing. We push the ball around. We pet the dog and the cat and play fetch with the dog also. Phin now says all of the commands for fetching to a dog. "Maggie come. Drop it. Sit." While Maggie doesn't feel obligated to listen to one word Phin says, he knows all of the steps...
Lately, it's been rainy - which sometimes keeps us inside - and sometimes gets us outside in a bit of a muddy environment.
Those of you who know me well KNOW that I am not a fan of "dirty" - so it's been quite a challenge for me - lately - to let Phin just be a boy and taste dirt and walk around in mud and do all of the things a little boy does.
I worked hard today to just breathe and stay calm and let him explore. That's what he's supposed to do, right? And really, everything is washable - right?
So, here were are at Phin's messy morning.
I hope you enjoy the pictures as much Phin enjoyed the mud.

Froggie

He looks innocent enough, huh.

But, it seems he eats 22month olds.


This is a preview of Phin's new room. It is not yet finished, so this is all you get today.

dimity duck

The line in the book is "Frumity frog watches, he splashes in the pond. He waves a foot at Dimity, of whom he's very fond." Since forever, Phin has "waved his foot" at Dimity as well. Often, the foot wave is bigger. It's super cute when he's standing and he still waves his foot. BUT, this is the time we got on video. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

I wanna ROCK!

Mother's Day

The first Mother's Day I remember was when I was very young. I remember being at "Big Grandma's" house and Grandma asking me what I had for mother's day. I know I was younger than 9 y/o at the time. My short answer was nothing. Surprised and reasonably offended, I was asked if I had made anything at school. The short answer was - no. Grandma rustled around in her bedroom drawer until she came across a brand new, blue nightgown. She told me to give this to my mom. I gave it to my mom - but have always felt ashamed that I didn't have something for her on my own. Which, at 33 y/o sounds crazy because I am fully aware of how I was unable to drive down to the store and pick up something pretty...

Mother's Day - or really the idea of having a mother took on a whole new meaning this last fall. Dan and I had made the decision to be open to the possibility of adding a new child to our family. No sooner had we started that process - did my mom have a medical scare. It turned out to be - no big deal - but at the time it looked like she was having some issue with her heart. I sat patiently at the heart clinic while she was having test after test run to try to figure out what was going on with her. It was great because the heart clinic was able to run all of the tests they needed in one day - but also mentally and emotionally grueling - as I sat there hour after hour with no answers and often alone in a very cold waiting room. While I sat there, I thought of a lot of things and even watched some TED talks on my laptop. The thing is, that whole day and the weeks to follow, my head was full of a screaming thought of --- what would I DO or how could I possibly have another baby if MY MOM wasn't around to see that baby and stay with me for the first week after the baby was born? I know, right? How selfish that I was thinking of myself. I guess that is exactly what kids do though. :)

In telling this story, I am not trying to sound selfish or childish. Instead, I am trying to express how much we need our mothers - and specifically how much I NEED MY mom. Not just for the baby and not just for the week after he's born. But, kinda forever. (did you read that mom, FOREVER!)

So, here I sit at 5:30AM on Mother's Day with one little boy bouncing around in my belly - making his presence known. The other one just squawked from his crib and I have got to say that I feel truly blessed to be the mother of these children - to be a sister to a great mother - and to be the daughter to a truly great woman. There is quite literally - not one more thing that I could ask for - for my life to be complete.

Mom's new washer and dryer.

She had told me about them and how cool they were. What I didn't know is who BIG they would be. When I opened the door, I GASP to see they were almost as tall as me! I bet they could take on the linen load of a full sized hotel!

Growing on

Baby number two keeps growing

and so does Phin.

getting the hang of it...

Phin finally saw what the chair looked like - put together and now is my "chair buddy" for things like reading books.

enough is ENOUGH!

The days of my back killing me due to sciatica due to pregnancy are finally over. This last weekend, grandma Barb came to town and we (the whole family) went recliner shopping. Between the pneumonia and the sciatica, I can not sleep in a bed anymore! We did finally find a chair and I told the salesman that we would TAKE IT if we could walk out with it TODAY. Since it happened to be one of the models on sale, he said we would have to wait a couple days for a brand new one for us to come in. Today was that day. Dan met Phin and me at the furniture store and loaded it into the van. He then brought it home and put it together. Finally I have the chance to wake up in the morning - pain free! Who could ask for more?

Phin likes the chair too... just in a "different" way.

Grandma Allen comes to visit!!!

Phin loves to read, and so we KNEW Grandmother Allen would be a hit with one of Phin's favorite books in her hands.



After some good reading time, we went out to the backyard to swing. Phin calls it "weeee." Daddy pushed and Grandma Allen had some fun too!




WATCH FOR A VIDEO TO COME SOON - where we tried to sing "old macdonald had a farm." Phin was waaay more into it when the video camera was OFF. :)