Love the Long Weekend

We had a great 4-day weekend. It started with a trip to the park for Mom, Dad, and C to enjoy some swings, slides, and warmer weather. Then we had a visit with Ba Ba, who brought an Ernie doll Valentine's present. C had Ba Ba read lots of books over and over again...BC Football, Goodnight Moon, and Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes. Everyone laughs when C wiggles his fingers in anticipation for "Ten Little Fingers". Today Mom and C went to the toy store and picked out a Valentine's toy from Mimi: a Sesame pop-up toy that sings 4 different songs. This is the first time ever that C insisted on holding a toy through the checkout line and in the car on the way home!

Other fun things that we have enjoyed recently:

• His friend at daycare who greets him in the morning calling him "Kiss Fur"
• C making sound effects when he plays with his trucks
• His figuring out how to get all sorts of puzzle pieces in, especially the "oval" shape
• His looking for the "MOOnnn" out the window every night
• Nodding Yes Yes Yes
• Lots of new words: Cookie, "I Want That", Car, Cup/(sometimes comes out "bup"
  

Snowed In and Silly

With the bazillion inches of snow that we got last week, it is all a shoveling and stuck-in-the-house blur. Since C had a little fever while fighting off a cold, he was home from Wednesday through this morning. Luckily he is feeling much better and he has been a totally silly goose. Whether is it playing with dad's crutches, having a coffee date with mom, or making a food sculpture on top of this cup, he has been a big joker. There are the occasional times where he will say "uh oh" like he knows he shouldn't be doing what he's doing...but he does it anyway! One of his favorite things to do at night is to look outside for the "moooon". I gave C a hard time the other say because he got up so early that we got to look at the "moon" then. He is also a lot more into Sesame Street and Elmo (as evidenced by the remote control hiding in my sweatshirt pocket!

Nurse Megan

It has been a tough couple of days at our house. Late Saturday night, after our friends left from having dinner at our house, we realized that our heat wasn't kicking on. Which is a problem considering it was the night before the coldest day of the year. M called the oil company and got instructions of how to fix it, which involved taking really large buckets of water outside to dump. Well, on his first trip outside, he slipped on some ice and badly sprained his ankle. Our amazing friend took M to the ER during the wee hours of the morning so I could stay home with C. These photos show C and I the next morning at the pharmacy picking up M's medications and then playing with the big boot yesterday. I particularly like these photos because it was really hard to get his boots through the cart. Also, the photo that looks like he is looking through the Valentine candy thinking "What should I get my mom?" Not really. There were some humongous teddy bears on top that he was saying "hi" to. He was such a good sport.

Further complicating things is that C is fighting a cold and was sent home from daycare with a fever. So now we are all home today.

We are so grateful that M isn't more seriously hurt...no broken bones or landing on his head. And it is a good reminder at how much he does for us...day care pick up and drop offs, shoveling snow, staying home with C on Wednesdays, and taking care of C each day. I've been a little crazed trying to do all these things. Too bad Mother Nature isn't cooperating and plans to send a foot of snow tomorrow!

Beauty and the Beast

C has been both absolutely wild and incredible cuddly. Throwing food, sneaking into the closet and playing with clothes...he knows exactly what he shouldn't be doing, gives us a sly look and then with a sudden burst of energy, does exactly that!

On the other hand, he has been giving lots of "big hugs"- the kind that are really tight and clingy. Sometimes he will do big hug tackles, running his full speed at us and then just hugs. He likes to pull my hair on each side and do "pretty" (which of course, ironically, makes me look very unpretty.) He has also figured out how to blow kisses, which is very cute.

File this under "how does this happen?" I am on the train coming home from work when I get a text from M saying that he has picked up C from daycare but he has no coat. "What?!?" is my text back? Keep in mind that we are expecting 8 inches of snow tomorrow morning. Clearly a parent grabbed C's jacket by accident, because there was one jacket left when M got to day care, and it is the same color. But that is what makes this even crazier...its not like looking for black suit case at the airport...its bright orange! Oh well, thank goodness that Grandpa got C a pea coat for Christmas.

10 Favorite Things About Holidays in Connecticut

1. Dancing to fire doggie's song "Ring of Fire".

2. Saying "Elmo" all on my own and surprising everyone.

3. Playing football with Uncle Bren (I didn't even have to get out of the lazy boy chair, he would throw it right to me!)

4. Playing in the snow with Ma Ma and Ba Ba.

5. Throwing my new blocks.

6. Playing at the library (but NOT leaving).

7. Building towers with old blocks.

8. Reading the Elmo hokey pokey book with Aunt Kate.

9. Having a special dinner with Great Great Aunt Rita (I dressed up for the occasion).

10. Playing with the special bean bag manger set that my mom used to play with when she was little!

10 Favorite Things About Holidays in New Orleans

1. Giving my dad his birthday present...the book that I made him...and a card with doggies on it. I hugged my dad, and the card.

2. Playing with Uncle Mark's dog.

3. Eating shrimp at Mimi's house.

4. "Rock" "rock" in the little rocking chair.

5. Riding the boat with Uncle Michael.

6. Dancing to "Low Rider" with my cousins.

7. Having my first beignets with Aunt Malou, Uncle Jimmy, and Mimi.

8. Going "outside-y" and sitting in the red dunebuggy.

9. Seeing Christmas decorations at the fancy hotel.

10. Watching Sesame Street in the big chair with Mimi.

Big Boy Feelin Better

The top two pictures is C trying to feed himself with a spoon (he needs help getting the food on the spoon, but he can get it in his mouth). The second photo is C playing "race car" in a storage box. Last night we went to a pot luck dinner at his school. Mike the Music Man was there playing the guitar. As soon as we got there, C "volunteered" to sit on his lap during a song. He had his Santa look on his face...very serious and a little dazed. We were surprised that he wasn't into the live music. As we've mentioned recently, C is obsessed with our radio at home. Well, he spotted a radio in the back of the pot luck room. So while the music man was playing, C reached up for the radio and make his "please turn it on" noises. His old teachers thought it was so cute that they turned it on. We tried to explain to C that the music man was PLAYING music like a radio, but that was a no go. The music man did become a hit when he took out a huge teddy bear. C ran up and hugged it three times, and turned around will such an excited look on his face. He must have had a good time, because he lost his mind in the hallway when we put on his coat to leave!

Today he and I went Christmas shopping. He was such a trooper that we went out to Friendlys for lunch, where he enjoyed a grilled cheese and apple sauce. We also got a little ball...doesn't he look like a little dodge ball player?

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