While dada's away...

the monkeys will play!

R  has been gone all week in California for work and while we've been staying busy, I'm ready for my other half to be home!

G was up to his usual shenanigans at the table...

His new "thing" is to grab for my phone whenever I try to take his picture while he is eating.

He played in dada's desk (shhhhhh!)...

And had fun "helping" me outside in the yard...

We had a blast playing at Poppa/Gigi's...

and around the house in just our diaper (mama opted to stay fully clothed though)...

I sure do love my sweet, busy boy and am so thankful for this time at home with him.

Oh!  And side note: G has not woken up once since I put the pillow in his bed and has even been sleeping from 7:30ish until 9:00!!!  Maybe it's just a crazy growth spurt, but I'm definitely keeping that pillow where it's at!

Hope you have a great weekend!

Product of the Week: Jason Aloe Vera

I'm back for another POTW link up!



Okay, you will hopefully not need to use my amazing recommended product if you are smarter than me and apply sunscreen.

Now that it's getting warm outside, those pesky UV rays are muy peligroso ... especially to fair skinned peeps like myself.  The other day I was outside in a cross-back dress for maybe two hours tops and neglected to put on any sunscreen (shame on me!).  I could already feel my the warmth radiating from my back when I got home that evening, and sho 'nuff, I had myself a nice little sunburn.  Not bad enough to be in agony, but it was definitely uncomfortable in the hot shower.

The following day G and I hit up the grocery store, and I perused the personal hygiene aisles looking for an aloe moisturizer that wasn't chock full of chemicals but would still serve its intended purpose.

Friends, meet

This stuff did the trick!  It is sticky while drying (just like 100% aloe), but unless you are squeezing the goods directly from the plant, I would make sure you have a bottle of this on hand ... you know, just in case.  

Note to self: always wear sunscreen!

Tuesday Tidbits

I have a major case of mom brain today.  Mamas, you know what I mean (at least I hope you can relate)!  The first hint of mom brain came when I was thinking of a word but could not for the life of me remember what it was ... doh!  Then I decided to buy a cute monogrammed pillow case for G and couldn't remember my credit card number -- I had that thing memorized a long time ago (online shopping much?  hehe), but for some reason the only numbers that came to my mind were my bank account and social security number.

Therefore, I decided to do a bulleted list for today's post to cope with my less than stellar mental capacity.  ;)

• We now have two monkeys residing in our house.  Remember this pirate monkey that G was scared of but is now obsessed with?  Well he (the monkey) decided that he needed a lady companion and she was on mega clearance at Target, so I couldn't resist.  Or maybe I'm considering having a sock monkey themed birthday party for G (I know his birthday isn't until August, but I like to plan ahead - no judgies please!) ... either way, she came home with us and now I get to listen to two monkeys simultaneously.  The pirate plays G's all time favorite song, "Club Can't Handle Me" by Flo Rida, and the girl plays, "Only Girl (in the World)" by Rhianna.  OMG... the noise!  What was I thinking?!? 

• I can't remember (Mom brain at its finest) if I already talked about this previously or not, but G's teachers at school asked me to be one of the room moms!  Ummm hello, yes please!  Haha!  Is it sad that I was honored by their request and simultaneously giddy about the prospect of all of the crafty things I would get to do?!?  Wow, I am such a SAHM, first time mom dork!  The only thing R wanted to know if it was a paying gig - ha!  My duties up until now had been sending group emails and reminders, but I just got tasked the job of putting together our class donations into gift baskets for the annual silent auction fundraiser.  What do you think???

• This past weekend we ventured out to look at five different houses, none of which are close to our current part of town.  We love our neighborhood, schools and location, but it would be nice to have more space and an office for R.  We keep toying around the idea of adding on vs. selling, but we have definitely decided to put our house on the market and see what kind of offers we get before making the ultimate decision.   Of the five houses we looked at, we really liked one in particular and are going to look at five others this coming weekend.  It's so hard to figure out what to do - I keep going back and forth!

• Speaking of which, our house goes on the market this Friday!  Ahhhh!  Tomorrow we are getting new windows installed, the photographer will take pictures for the listing, and we will have the open house this weekend!  Is it wrong that I shudder at the idea of strangers traipsing through our house, yet I love being nosy and looking at other people's homes? 

• G has been really good about not messing up the stager's work!  I thought for sure I would constantly be chasing him away from certain areas of the house and re-doing her work, but he has largely ignored the new changes and has been fine with having the majority of his toys packed away!  I am so thankful for having such a laid back little boy.

• Was anyone else sad about picnik closing?  All of my picture collages and any of the pictures you see on here with text were edited with picnik via picassa, but now that picnik has shut down I have heard about some good alternatives.  Check out this blog for more info and let me know if you have tried anything else out!

• Like I admitted recently, we have been bad about caving and bringing G into bed with us if he put up a huge fuss.  If he cried out in the middle of the night, I would attempt to rock him and he would immediately point to the door, scamper off my lap, and pitter patter down the hall to our room.  Spoiled.  All three of us in this smaller bed, though, is not fun at all.  One night recently, I had had enough of G's giant head and kicking feet.  I took him back to his crib but left him with one of our pillows, and he has stayed in his own bed since then!  Maybe it is just a coincidence, but I'm giving myself a little pat on the back for that one.  While his crib has always had bumpers and quite the assortment of lovies, he has never slept with a pillow until now because of the whole SIDS thing.  I think we are in the clear now as far as SIDS is concerned (right?!?), so the pillow shall stay... which is why I was trying to get a cute pillow case earlier today.  You know, since you care so much about those important details of my life.  ;)

• I keep reading good book reviews on various blogs for the "Fifty Shades of Grey" trilogy.  Has anyone else read them???  I'm thinking about downloading them to my kindle once I finish my current book.

• I had a serviceman come out this morning and I didn't even bother getting out of my pajamas or fixing my crazy morning hair ... winning! I did cringe when he made a lot of racket while G was napping, but he probably cringed at my lovely appearance.

Still not sure why he didn't ask me out ... hehe.

• The new store that I am now sick of going to repeatedly is Lowe's.  Don't get me wrong, I don't have any complaints about their products or service, I'm just tired of going there non-stop.  And I usually am clueless about what in fact I should be getting or where things are located within the store, so luckily there is someone around every corner willing to help a mama out.  

My big "helper" during one of our many trips to Lowe's!  

• Now that the NBA regular season is coming to a close and play-offs are upon us, I will finally start watching some games and cheer on my Spurs.  Go, Spurs, Go!  Just call me MWP (Mama World Peace).

Okay, enough rambling from me.  Gold stars to any of you who actually read through this post in its entirety.  :)  The end!

First trip to the zoo!

The weather this weekend has been absolutely gorgeous!  We took full advantage of it and went to the local zoo yesterday afternoon.  It was perfect - not too hot, late enough for most of the crowds to have already gone home, and we scored a sweet parking spot up close!  This mama was happy.  :)

G has really taken an interest in animals and I knew our window of opportunity to enjoy the zoo before it gets miserably hot was closing quickly.  I think the next time we venture out there again will probably be in the fall.  Most of the bigger animals were hiding and couldn't be seen at all, but it was still worth it to watch G take it all in and experience the zoo for the first time.

The "petting" zoo area was a big hit!  He didn't quite understand how to feed them at first, and when I asked him if he wanted to try, he quickly put the animal food in his mouth!  Haha!  After the animals slobbered on his hands, he would then put the slobbered hand in his mouth... totally grossed me out, but I guess there are worse germs, right?

This baby deer was soooo sweet! 

Checking out the snaggletoothed llama.

I am admittedly not a huge fan of zoos - I hate to see the animals caged... it makes me so sad.  The only thing that comforts me is that ours is a non-profit rescue zoo.  

I think he needs a pet goat!

All in all, a perfect little Saturday!

Product of the Week: Step2 Water Table

I'm linking up with Aly and Tiffanie again for POTW (Product of the Week)!

G loves him some water.  Like serious love.  He loves baths, showers, baths in the sink, the splash pad, swimming pool... you get the idea.  So I knew that this year I had to get him a water table to help give us something to do once during these 100º summer days that will soon be here.

Since it is already in the 80's, I thought, "Why wait?"  Especially when I saw it at Wal-Mart for $29.97!  Cheaper than Amazon, which doesn't happen too often, my friends!

I really really wanted to get the Little Tikes pirate ship water table because of its cuteness factor, but too many negative reviews steered me away and it was much pricier than the simple, yet highly touted Step2 table.

And as any good mama would (should) tell you, always go with what the other mamas like.  This bad boy took me less than five minutes to assemble, and I hate assembling things.  G loves it.  Like serious love.  So, of course, I do too!  Sometimes cute doesn't always pay off -- one thing that I've learned first hand being a mom.

A back view of G's big head, in all of its glory.  :)

Side note: The boats that come with the table are worthless, but we have plenty of stacking cups that G uses to keep him entertained.

**I am not, in any way, being endorsed or reimbursed for promoting this item.  Any opinion I post is strictly my own doing because I love to share fabulous products with other mamas!

Tuesday Tidbits

I took G to a different pediatric opthamologist today and she recommended nasolacrimal intubation.  Basically, that means that silicone tubes will be surgically inserted into each tear duct to allow the passage to open.  The procedure itself is only thirty minutes long and he will keep the tubes in for two months before having them removed.

Naso-what-o?  The silicone tube will go down the nasolacrimal duct.

His surgery is scheduled for early June, and I am looking forward to putting this all behind us and not having to wipe his eye all day long.  Mostly, I want him to have goop free eyes for his own sake.  It doesn't even phase him anymore when he wakes up with one completely crusted shut.  My poor little cyclops.

We had the stager come back over today and she spent four hours staging our house to get it ready to be listed!  Most of what she used belongs to us, so it was pretty cool to see how she moved things around and gave our house a different look.  After de-cluttering and having this done, our house looks really good.  She has an impressive track record with homes that she has staged selling fast, so we are keeping our fingers crossed!

The market is hot right now - most of the homes that I have bookmarked are already pending, so we are also keeping our fingers crossed that the timing works out and we find something that we like in the same time frame that we sell.  I do not want to have to move twice or have to impose on my parents again if we were to be in limbo.

Now comes the fun part of living in a staged home and having a toddler.  Is it possible???  Stay tuned to find out!

All I know is that he is capable of getting into things as soon as I turn my back on him...

Caught red handed!  He pulled these from a shelf in the pantry and helped himself to a snack... little stinker!

Nineteen Months!

Oh.my.goodness!  I figured it was time to do G's nineteen month post since he is actually just turned twenty months.  Hold the phone - when did my main little squeeze turn into a full-on toddler?!?

It seems impossible that in a few short months I'll actually be saying that I have a two year old ... gasp!  On one hand, I can't believe it ... on the other, let the party planning begin!  Hehe.

This past month has been an exciting whirlwind of new words and fascinations.  The top phrases that I hear the most often from him are:

1. "No!"  He says this one so sweetly in his little voice and usually shakes his head too.  Sometimes he really purses his lips, which makes both R and me crack up.  I'll admit that I will ask him things just to hear him say this, but I know one of these days I'll be wishing that he didn't know this word.  I'm glad it's still cute now.
2. "Wow!"  or "Whoa!"
3. "Uh oh!"

Although he can say "no" clear as day,  he is not saying "yes."  Instead, he does this body bob thing to indicate "yes" to us.  He is still mostly jibber jabber all day long - I am so curious what he is saying to us because he has a lot to talk about!

He is still a good sleeper, but admittedly, we have been getting bad about bringing him in bed with us if he cries out in the middle of the night.  We always regret it in the morning after a night of sleep with G ping ponging his way between the two of us ... especially now that we've staged our house to sell it and stored our king sized bed.  Once you become used to sleeping in a big bed, a queen feels so tiny with all three of us!  I know, first world problems.  If you don't get his big head being catapulted towards you, his big feet are on the other end kicking you.  I usually turn my back on him and hope for the best - ha!

When he does wake up next to you in bed, though, it's hard not to love it.  He sits up and smiles really big and throws his arms around me with the best hugs.  I love my sweet little boy's tender heart.

Just so that I remember these things, he usually sleeps from 7:30-7:30 and his naps vary from one to three hours.  One day this past week he napped for five (!!!) hours.  R started to worry about him, but I think he must be going through a growth spurt.  

Still a great eater although he's not big on drinking milk, so I make sure he eats a yogurt every morning for breakfast and we drink smoothies frequently.  He loves going to the grocery store with me and spinning the wheel at the end for a little sticker.  I think I may be cultivating a gambling habit, but whatever works, right?  ;)

Our grocery store chain gives out "buddy bucks" to the kids at check out and they get to use these at this machine.  You put in your buddy buck and spin the wheel to see how many points you get.  You're supposed to put your sticker with the point number in a little booklet and accumulate them for store branded prizes, but we just like spinning the wheel for the fun of it.  He can care about points when he is older.  :)

His favorite foods include: cheese pizza, salmon sticks, grilled chicken, pb&j sandwiches (we make ours with almond butter), watermelon, waffles, pancakes, fruit squeezes, yogurt, corn, steamed carrots, and avocado.  Of course he also has a sweet tooth for things like cookies and ice cream but rarely gets those.  :)

He loves picking out his snack from the pantry now and has started demanding to pick them out himself or he will refuse whatever we select.  Joy.  

Checking out what's in the fridge.

He is getting better and better at using a spoon and fork even though some days I'm wondering how he manages to get more on himself or the tray than in his mouth.

Typical breakfast sighting.  He has started dipping his waffles into his yogurt cup.

It is hard to keep a bib on him these days, as he usually yanks them off midway through the meal... even the kind that go over his head without a snap!  I'm thinking of resorting to what they do at school and getting some shirts from Goodwill that are a couple of sizes too big for him to wear at mealtimes.  

This boy does not miss anything and will always come running to see what you are doing.  So, this means that you cannot eat something without him wanting to check it out and usually (99.9% of the time) demand a bite, even if he has just eaten his own meal.  This mama is just glad that he goes after dada's food at dinnertime and leaves me in peace for once.  :)

His current obsessions are: mama's jewelry drawer (loves trying on all of my bracelets and my rings), batteries (he saw dada change out the batteries of one of his toys), playing in water of any kind with his cups, and going outside and collecting rocks.  He still loves reading, puzzles, and playing play doh or cars.

We haven't nixed the paci quite yet but have plans to do so before he turns two... that gives me a few more months.  :)  

This past month we had to do the dreaded nebulizer treatments and he had his first blisters on his fingers.  We went out to eat with some friends and he touched an outside light that was really hot.  The next morning his little fingers had blisters on them.  

He is usually sweet and happy most of the time, but watch out for those toddler tantrums!  He knows how to turn them on and off like that!

Dear Sweet Lovey,

You are turning into such the little ham these days!  You love to laugh and to make us laugh.  I especially love the way you throw your arms around someone and really give a good hug.  Some days I want to fast forward through your tantrums or dirty diapers, etc., but mostly I wish time could stand still just for a few more minutes so I could treasure these little moments a little longer.  You are my greatest joy and I love you to the moon and back.

Love,

Mama

Weekend Recap

Happy Easter, friends!  We had a very busy but fun-filled weekend.  G and I both had Friday off from school and work respectively, so it was more like a three day weekend for us (technically four day since I had yesterday off too - woohoo!).

We made the most of it and met one of my besties for lunch at a popular local restaurant.  I wondered if it was going to be crowded being Good Friday and all, and sure 'nuff, we had to park and walk a good five minutes.  It was a nice excuse to get some exercise (not just from the walking but from carrying my 26 pound little dude) and well worth it to meet up with a good friend.

In fact, she was the first lunch date G and I had after he was born.  Now that my work schedule is much more flexible, we try and meet for lunch once or twice a month to catch up on life.  It beats texting and FBing any day.

No, G was not nursing in the picture on the left!!!  ;)

What can I say? -- He's always had a thing for hot blondes!  I've known sweet H since middle school even though we weren't friends (or enemies) until college, crazy enough.  She is down to earth, isn't a girly girl like me, and has a big heart.  I love her so and am grateful she is patient and understanding with all of my mom texts like, "He's still sleeping... can we meet an hour later than we had planned?"  I can't wait until they start their own family and we can turn our lunch dates into play dates!

After lunch, G and I hit up the grocery store where he likes to "drive" the race car shopping cart and point at every free sample station and demand some food.  He got many admiring looks and compliments on his ridiculously adorable hat.

Now all he needs are his golf clubs!

Yes, he is wearing the same thing from the pictures in my last post because these were from the same day.  I put him in hats often because I myself love hats and also because I think babies and little kids look cute in them.

We also ventured out to get hair cuts -- for G and for dada.  G is still not a big fan but was amazed that dada also got his done.

R took one for the team and held the squirmy, crying toddler.

Mama's job was to try and pacify him with youtube videos of Flo Rida songs... after the mandatory crying pics, of course!

Saturday we started our first gym class at a new facility.  He is still in gymnastics (check out his forward roll skills down below - ha!), but we dropped G*ymboree and decided to try out another place.  I have nothing negative to say about G*ymboree at all.  G still likes going there, but after one year, mama was ready for a change.

Yay - gymnastics class is finally paying off!  Haha

He sat in his new teacher's lap immediately and loved every minute of it!  I like that it's early enough on a Saturday morning not to interfere with his nap time and it allows R to come with us.

Then we went to a good friend's one year birthday party (sorry, no pics were taken - fail!), came home, worked on the house for a bit and called it a day.

Life is hard!

Yesterday the Easter bunny came and left G two new books.  One of them he bought last year on sale after Easter - that smart little bunny!  ;)  I didn't do Easter bunny pics this year (or last year) and didn't do an Easter basket full of goodies.  I know there will be plenty of that in the years to come, as well as dyeing eggs, etc.  But for now, those things can wait and I am just fine with that.

G's Easter loot with his beloved sheepie peeking out... he's obviously not new!

He did have three different egg hunts in the span of this past week, and since then, he has enjoyed playing "egg hunt" at home.  I put a few little crackers or cookies in an egg, and "hide" it while he is fast on my heels.  Then he holds up his hands like he doesn't know where the egg is and snatches it from its "hiding" spot three seconds later to devour the goods inside.  Fun times!

We had a really nice Easter lunch (pot luck style) with my family.  I so love getting all the cousins together - can't wait until more are added to the bunch!

It's hard to get a good one of all 4 of them -- G wasn't helping any either :).

Sweet boys!

I hope your weekend was as good as ours and got to spend it with those you love.