Another Morning Adventure

Here are some pictures from another morning trip to the park with Daddy. I love when they get their boy time (and not only because then I get alone time!). They have such fun adventures hiking and throwing sticks in the lake and looking for deer.

Isn't it amazing the difference one year can make? Looking at this picture and the one in the post below from last summer, he looks like so grown up!

Crocs

If you've been around Mr. Mister in the summer, you know his trademark green Crocs. They still fit this year, so he just started wearing them again now that it's warmer.

Today we were outside and our neighbor came out to say hi. Here was Mr. Mister's conversation with her:

Mr: You have flip flops just like my mommy!

Sue: I do. I'm a flip flop kind of girl!

Mr: I'm a Croc boy!

Not only was it funny, but I thought that was a pretty impressive connection to make!

Sporting the Crocs last summer at the beach.

A Happy Morning

Well, that Nancy who left a comment on my last post must be a wise woman who has raised a couple (or four) kids herself. This morning Mr. Mister did exactly what she thought...surprised me with a very happy morning with lots of smiles and hugs and kisses. Once again, he pushes me to the point where I really think I can't do the whole mom thing anymore and then he reminds me why I do it. And why I'm adding a second baby to what can already seem chaotic at times.

Two steps forward...

....three steps back. That's how life with Mr. Mister feels right now.

Maybe it's his response to us leaving him for a weekend, but the last few days have been really hard. Random aggression, lots of huge tantrums, and a hard time going to sleep. Tonight, he is sleeping in his crib again after 2 weeks in the big boy bed.

He kept getting out of bed and out of his room. So we tried "room time," a technique from our favorite parenting book. We told him he didn't have to stay in bed, but he had to stay in his room with the door closed. At first we heard him playing, which was fine, and we figured he'd go to bed soon. But, he came out several times after that so we finally gave him the choice: stay in his room or sleep in the crib. We were really hoping he'd stay in his room because we knew it would be hard for everyone to put him back in the crib - he'd scream and cry himself to sleep and we'd sit downstairs feeling sorry that he was so sad but knowing we had to stick to the consequence.

After we gave him that choice, out of his room he came so in the crib he went. He must have been super tired because he didn't cry very long. But it still is a bummer that he's back in his crib. Hopefully, this will help him make a good choice tomorrow night!

A Weekend Away

Last year, after going to a Weekend To Remember marriage conference, we decided that we wanted to spend one weekend a year really investing in our marriage. It is the foundation of our family and unless we are intentional in building into that foundation, life tends to distract us and cause us to become complacent. We value our marriage so much and really believe that a strong marriage is one of the greatest gifts we can give our kids!

So anyway, this weekend was our marriage weekend. Our weekend away. Without the little man. And it was wonderful. It doubled as our babymoon - a little time by ourselves before we re-enter the crazy world of newborn things and little sleep.

We spent the weekend downtown while Mr. Mister stayed with Grandma and Nonno. We were a little sad to say goodbye to him, but we knew he'd have fun with his grandparents. They did a lot of playing outside, read books, did crafts, went to McDonald's for lunch and out for ice cream. And watched a little college basketball :)

Daddy and I had such a fun time just being together. It was a great combination of rest, fun, and good conversations. Our hotel was at the base of a big park and Saturday was beautiful, so we spent a lot of time outside. It was really freeing to not be tied to nap and bedtime schedules. We even got dressed up and went out to dinner at 8:00. Because we could. Imagine that...life outside the house after 8pm.

We definitely felt restored by our time away. It's amazing how just a short time away from life and toddler can be so refreshing! But, of course, it was good to see Mr. Mister again and to be back together at home.

A HUGE thank you to Grandma and Nonno for enjoying the little man for a weekend and making this happen. We're already looking forward to Marriage Weekend 2011!

Sick

Mr. Mister woke up with croup Tuesday night. Not fun. He had it a couple times last winter. The first time was so bad we had to take him to the ER in the middle of the night. The next few times were not as bad and taking him out into the cold air helped a lot. Tuesday was the first time this year he's had it and the outside air wasn't cold enough to do anything. We ended up at the doctor the next day, where they gave him a steroid medicine to help the swelling in his throat go down. It helped but he's not 100% yet, which means a lot of waking up at night, a lot of whining, and a lot of crazy tantrums.

But, I can't complain because I am SO THANKFUL for such easy access to doctors and medicine. That is one thing I will never forget from our time working in the garbage dumps and rural villages of Mexico City. Mothers were desperate for our doctors to see their children and inevitably we had to turn people away because there was always more need than time to treat it.

As I drove Mr. Mister to the doctor, listening to his wheezy breathing and getting a little more anxious as time passed, I felt so much relief knowing we were heading somewhere where they would help him breathe and feel better. Do you know how many people in this world don't have that luxury? Babies die from things far more common than croup, too. Fevers, diarrhea...things so easily treated here. It breaks my heart. I can't imagine those mothers' desperation.

This isn't a guilt trip. Or even a call to action in any way. Just a reminder to be so thankful, even for what seems so normal.

Daddy Time

Have I mentioned before what an amazing dad my husband is? I know I have, but I just can't say how thankful I am for him and the way he loves our son. Watching them play together is one of my favorite things in the world because they are both so happy in the midst of their time together.

Here are pictures from two of their recent trips to our favorite park. The first is when they met Daddy's friend and his sons there one evening to see animals in a wildlife refuge. Notice Mr. Mister's very own, little man sized headlamp. The second picture is at the same park early on a Friday morning. They went there at 7:30am before Daddy had to start work for the day.

Here's a quick story from when they went to the wildlife refuge. A deer came walking through the field and everyone else got real quiet so they wouldn't scare it away. Just as a man said, shhh, Mr. Mister yelled very loudly, "Holy Tamoley!" Thankfully, everyone laughed. I guess that's a 2 year old in the woods for you!

Big Boy Bed!

This was a big weekend for Mr. Mister - he moved to his big boy bed!

Cousin Beybeth had passed down this IKEA extendable bed several months ago when she finally grew out of it, so we just needed to get the mattress and bedding. I had been putting it off because I really liked the crib and the security it provided (mostly for me!). But this weekend was the perfect time to transition, as Grandma and Papa were in town for a visit. They took us to get the rest of what we needed and Papa and Daddy set up the bed while an eager Mr. Mister looked on.

We let him choose the comforter. He was pretty insistent on this red one. My first thought was that it didn't match the light green walls we painted in his room, but I held back and let this be a great opportunity to give him the freedom to express his opinions!

It all turned out to be really cute, especially the fact that this bed looks so tiny but he fits perfectly in it. I still can't believe what a big boy he is. He has had no problem transitioning to sleeping in the bed and he's excited to let the baby use the crib soon!



Trying it out.

Tucking Duckie into bed.

First Dance and Haircuts

On Sunday night, Mr. Mister asked a girl to dance for the first time.

We've been going to a church plant once a month on Sunday nights. We were there this past Sunday, hanging out and eating dinner before it started. He wanted to dance on the stage and 5 year old Danielle has always caught his eye. So he walked right up to her and said, "Do you want to dance?" She accepted and they walked up on the little stage where Mr. Mister did his signature elbows-out-rocking-back-and-forth move. It was so fun to watch. I don't think he had any idea how cute the whole thing was!

That same night at church, the kids heard the story about Peter cutting off the ear of one of the Roman guards in the Garden of Gethsemane. So today when I was giving Mr. Mister a haircut, he said, "Mommy, don't cut off my ear!"

Life

Here are some bits and pieces of our life in the last week...

- Today it really felt like spring! It was in the high 60's and I finally got to pull my beloved flip flops out of the closet for the afternoon. Our piles of snow in the backyard are almost gone and my daffodils that started appearing in November (way off schedule) look to have endured the weight of the snow. Oh spring, it is so good to see you!

- About a week and a half ago, Mr. Mister decided he didn't need to sleep that much anymore. He went from consistently sleeping until 8 or a little before that to waking up anywhere from 5:45 to 6:30. Um, what happened? It is not light at that time and the time hasn't changed yet, so I have no explanation. One night he even woke up at 2am wanting us to rock him. It was like having a newborn again, except that this time instead of crying loudly, he just yelled, "Daddy, can you help me with something?" At 2am. Then wanted Daddy to sing and tell him stories.

- On a more positive note, he has been consistently pooping in the potty. I haven't changed a poopy diaper in a couple weeks! So we're making progress in the whole potty training thing...amazing what some cookies (animal crackers) can do to motivate :)

- On a frustrating note, he has bit two kids in the last week and he scratched my face hard enough to leave a potentially life long scar (okay, maybe not life long, but right now it feels like that). It is really frustrating because I thought we were making progress past all of this. He won't be 10 and still biting his friends, will he??

- On a pregnancy note, I am 32 weeks today. And starting this week for the next 8 weeks, I have to go to the hospital 2 extra times (in addition to my appointments) for a "non-stress test" where they monitor the baby's heart rate for 20 minutes. They say I have to go because of my hypothyroid diagnosis. I say I don't need to go because my thyroid levels have been normal for a long time now, I didn't have to do this with Mr. Mister, there is no other reason that I should be high risk, and I know the exact reason I'm hypothyroid: I don't have a thyroid. And, do they realize how hard it is to schedule 3 appointments a week for 8 weeks when I have to find a babysitter and drive across town? I guess not. That's why I find it ironic that the "non-stress test" has actually been the source of much stress.

When I was there on Monday, the lady told me, "Your baby sounds perfect!" Yep, that's because I DO NOT NEED TO BE HERE! But they win. I will go. For the baby. And the perk is that for the 20 minutes I get to lay in quiet by myself so I'll just enjoy a little nap time.

- One more fun thing...I had a second ultrasound on Monday and everything looked great. I'm measuring about 2 days before my May 4 due date. I was so in love with this little baby as I watched him/her on the screen. The little hands were folded over the face and it was just the cutest thing ever. Besides having a list of projects to get done before he/she arrives (most of which won't get done), I am ready for this little one to arrive!

Blue Days

Mr. Mister has been having a hard time letting Daddy work in the basement without wanting to go play with him. It's understandable - it's hard at that age to comprehend weekdays vs. weekends. They're all the same to him!

So I made him a calendar and colored the weekends blue. And I made a little star that we move onto each day's square so we can see what color the day is. If it's blue, it means Daddy can play all day. If not, we have to let him work in his office.

Mr. Mister caught on quickly to the whole concept of it. But, he really loves blue days, so on Monday when he woke up, he said, "It's a blue day!" Sadly, it wasn't, so I took him to the calendar to show him where we had to put the star that day. But after I moved it, he moved it right back to the blue square and said, "No, it goes here!"

Then, after his nap (still on Monday), he woke up and said, "Is it a blue day?"

It's really sweet....he just loves his daddy so much! I don't blame him...I wish Daddy could just hang out with us all day, too.