A Fun New Word!

Mr. Mister learned how to say his name today! We've been working on it for a while but he would always say mama instead. I was so excited when he finally said it. He leaves off the s at the end, but it is adorable. I wish you could all hear him say it!

21st Century Playdates

Here are some pictures of Mr. Mister playing with his buddy Pey Pey. I guess this is what kids these days play with. Do you think they're texting each other?

Overnight

Mr. Mister had his first overnight without mommy and daddy this weekend. He stayed with Nonno and Grandma Saturday night while we enjoyed a fun date to the Charter Day Ball, a dance held every three years at my college alma mater. We went my senior year (already 6 years ago!) before we were even engaged, so it was fun to go again. MU is celebrating its bicentenial this year, so it was extra special (and extra crowded...over 5,000 people in Millett Hall was a little much.) But we had a nice dinner and a fun night out and then slept in until 9:00 on Sunday...what a treat!

Mr. Mister did a great job at his grandparents' house. Cousin Ney Ney came over to play too and they shared toys, played together, and got along the whole time. It went so smoothly that my parents are excited to take him overnight again. Woohoo! We missed him but it sure was a nice little break.

Here are some pictures from the weekend...

Bags packed and ready to go.

He walked to my parents' door with a bouquet of flowers for my mom - she was nominated as Teacher of the Year for her building. We are so proud of her...she deserves the honor!!

Giving Grandma her flowers.

All dressed up.

The Poet

Since some people have asked...I did write the Ode to Spring poem that I posted a couple days ago. My creative side doesn't surface often, but a warm day in February brought it out in me!

Add it to the list...

Another thing I love about Mr. Mister: How he wants me to kiss his finger or head any time he gets hurt. One quick smooch and he's ready to play again. I think it's one of the sweetest little kid things to do.

If you missed my original list, click here.

Haircut and Shoes

Mr. Mister got another much needed haircut Monday night. Here are some pictures. There are also pictures of his new favorite activity - putting our shoes on. He steps into them all by himself and then proudly says, "shoes!" with a big smile.

Teeth Are Not for Biting

That is the name of the book we got from the library today. Mr. Mister has been known to bite every now and then, although it's much less frequent these days. So I found this book and envisioned the transformation that would occur as a result of reading it.

We read it. But, he was not so much transformed. Here's what happened:

A couple pages into it, he began biting the book. Then, when it asked, "What if someone bites you? Do you bite back?" He said, "yes."

Well at least we know we got the right book! We'll just keep on reading it....I'm sure he'll catch on soon.

Colds...

It's the season for being sick. Lots of things are going around and the cold bug that Daddy and Mr. Mister had last week finally caught up to me despite my greatest efforts at staying healthy. My mommy immunity carried me through last week while they were both sick but this week is my turn. Somehow, Mr. Mister didn't get the memo that I'm not feeling well. Already this morning I've given him several rides on my back and pushed him around on his car.

But he's keeping me laughing - whenever I cough, he covers his mouth and makes a fake coughing sound. When I blow my nose, he asks for a Kleenex and pretends to blow his. And Daddy is taking care of me too. Yesterday as I unsuccessfully tried to consume a Halls cough drop (they say they're cherry, but that is a stretch), I wished out loud for Ludens...you know, the ones that taste like candy. I remember when I was little I would try to fake a cough to get to have one. Anyway, Daddy just came home and surprised me with a bag of them. Who knows how effective they are, but they sure taste good!

forever and ever, amen.

One of the things I love most about my husband working from home is the spontaneous times we get to spend together as a family throughout the week. The highlight of my day today was when the three of us danced to Forever and Ever, Amen by Randy Travis. It was a spur of the moment dance party in the kitchen and such a fun five minutes of enjoying life together.

Lunch?

Yesterday, Daddy brought Mr. Mister to my parent's house to take a nap after church while I stayed to volunteer in the nursery during the second service (because my parents live much closer to church than we do). After I arrived there a little later, Mr. Mister woke up, we played a little bit and then gathered all our belongings and drove home.

Later that evening, as I was getting dinner ready, I wondered what Mr. Mister had eaten for lunch when I wasn't there. So I asked my husband. A long pause followed as he thought about it. Then he answered, "I never fed him lunch!"

Mr. Mister slept through lunch and never even showed signs of needing to eat. He did have some crackers as a snack that afternoon, but didn't seem to be bothered by the fact that he never ate lunch. For someone who loves to eat, I was shocked that he let us get away with it!

Mano, Part 2

Remember the story about Mr. Mister trying to say cucumber? (click here to read that post). Here's the story of me teaching him to say banana.

Background information: Mr. Mister would eat 10 bananas a day if I let him. He eats one every morning for breakfast and as I go to get it he starts saying, "mano, mano, mano" (his word for banana) over and over with a big smile on his face. To say he likes bananas is an understatement.

Me: Can you say ba?
Him: ba.
Me: Can you say nana?
Him: nana.
Me: Can you say banana?
Him: mano.

It was so funny. I just love this little man!

motherhood

Being a mom is the hardest job in the world. It is also the best, which makes sense because the best things in life usually don't come easily.

ahhhh.

My windows are open. There is a nice breeze blowing through the house. It smells like spring. My daffodils are starting to poke through the ground. I am happy.

Ode to Spring

In honor of playing outside on this spring like day...

An Ode to Spring
Oh warmth, how we’ve missed you with all this cold weather,
Sledding is fun, but sunshine is better
For running and playing and staying outside
For swinging and sliding and nice long wagon rides.

Hot cocoa, we like how you’ve warmed up our tummies
But we have to admit, lemonade sure sounds yummy.
We’ve kept warm by eating chili and stew,
But grilled chicken and burgers, how we miss you!

Oh winter, we know that you’re not all that bad.
You’re the source of much of the fun that we’ve had.
But spring, what you offer sounds wonderfully great
Flip flops and flowers and sunshine til late.

Still, we know that spring’s not perfectly fun.
Outside means dirt and more wash to be done.
More stain stick and baths and scratches on knees,
Sunscreen and bug bites and pulling up weeds.

And spring, while we eagerly wish you would come,
We know that winter isn’t quite done.
So we’ll enjoy today, whatever may be
Being happy together, Mr. Mister and me.

Tag

My sister tagged me on her blog so I have to share 7 random facts about me (see rules to the left).

1. When I was little, I wanted to be an author. One of my stories, "Nikki's Broken Leg" was actually published in a Young Writer's magazine.

2. I know Canada's national anthem. When I was in Brownies in elementary school, we did a project about Canada and had to learn it. I still remember it.

3. I don't really like fireworks. I don't mind going to watch them, but I just get bored.

4. I don't have a thyroid. I had it radioactively killed off. It took two times to totally kill it so I was radioactive twice (no, I never glowed).

5. When I was a Young Life leader in college, I dressed up in a gorilla suit and played the part of the Sasquatch in a Celebrity Jeopardy skit. Another time on a leader weekend retreat, I wore that same gorilla suit and walked into a movie theater and asked if Planet of the Apes was showing. It's all easier with a mask on.

6. The other day, I took my toe ring off. That probably doesn't sound very interesting until you know that I've had it on since I bought it in Italy in the summer of 2000. Yep, 8 1/2 years on my toe. It was in my wedding pictures and everything.

7. I don't watch much TV besides sports, but I do love Extreme Makeover Home Edition. I rarely make it through an episode without crying.


Now I'm supposed to tag some people. So I tag:

Elizabeth
Stinky Pete
Elissa
Dee
Megan

Toddler Friendships

I once read an article that said that toddlers really value their friendships with other kids even though they often fight over toys and hit each other. I'm seeing that to be more and more accurate as we navigate through Mr. Mister's developing social interactions. Here is a classic example.

Yesterday, cousin Ney Ney (that's what Mr. Mister calls him) came over to play. When Mr. Mister saw him, he almost jumped out of my arms in excitement. What followed was a chaotic hour of playing, as my sister and I spent most of the time mediating between them. They are just so opposite. As my mom put it: Ney Ney is more reserved while Mr. Mister is like a bull in a China shop. Mr. Mister gets so excited to play with his cousin that he almost can't handle it, which manifests itself in somewhat aggressive behavior. He also abides by the toddler motto: "what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine." Ney Ney, on the other hand, needs time to warm up, so he spent most of the time hiding behind his mama. The hour they "played together" was like a whirlwind and not much actual playing occurred.

BUT...as soon as they left, Mr. Mister got so sad and started saying, "Ney Ney? Ney Ney?" while looking out the window. My sister said that Ney Ney was in the car saying Mr. Mister's name over and over too. So there you have it. Toddler friendships at their best.