Our Dreamsicle

Woke up birthday morning to discover my bike downstairs.... along with a trailer!!! I was, and still am, ecstatic! I used to ride my bike ALL the time, but I stopped riding the second I found out I was pregnant with E (might have been a bit too cautious with the first). That being said, it means so much to me to be able to enjoy what I used to and bring the little one along with me (hopefully, he'll enjoy biking as much one day)!

This trailer comes after I had to pass up a great deal on a used trailer I really liked since I couldn't get it to connect to my bike because of the additional rotors/gears. I had even thought about selling my awesome bike so that I could buy a basic bike to attach the trailer (ha, don't tell B). I initially thought that I wanted an infant bike seat so that he would be close to me, and that it would give me more options for off-roading, but now am thrilled that he, and an additional kid, can sit comfortably, play with toys, and have munchies all while enjoying the views.
The Dreamsicle easily converts into a walking stroller. Not sure how often I'll use this feature since that's what we have the Foray for, but it certainly would be ideal for excursions to a farmers market or local fair that we'd want to ride to but still have use of a stroller. One of my favorite features is that it folds completely flat for storage and loading into the trunk.
The little guys seems to enjoy it as well.
We put 10+miles on it to break it in.
And, we are going to pimp it out, too- we'll be sporting the Cubbie flag :)

Some randomness:

"Would you like some of my graham cracker? Here, have some. It tastes really good with spaghetti!"
I love my boy, just don't care to share everything with him ;) Is it mean of me if I sometimes pretend to eat what he offers me with his slimy hands and then secretly dispose of it down the good ol' garbage disposal?!?

Lil' dudes hanging out in the pool. (E and EP)
E is a magnet to water these days, especially when it comes to wading.

Had to pull this pic up- it is amazing to see how much these two little guys have grown in the last year, and they are only two days apart! (EP and E (and L to the right))
Ok, EP & L's moms, we need to take a year-photo of the boys!

E loves the library. Ours has a wonderful children's section/program, and it makes for the perfect place to go on warm/rainy/cold days.
He likes to play with all the toys, puppets, and sit at the preschool table to work diligently on puzzles which I think is oh-so-cute!

No, it is not the camera jiggling- it's E pulling out the moves to his new favorite toy, Wheelies.

He just loves the jingle on the FP Little People Wheelies homepage DVD! He is mesmerized by it.

I have never felt the urge to buy him a toy, and I've always wondered why I see parents relentlessly giving ino their children's desires, until now, and it is so hard not to just go buy it for him, and I really don't want to get into the parental bad-habit of, 'You've been such a good, sweet boy. Santa can't wait till Christmas'. Ha.

One of THOSE mornings

How do I begin?
1. Popped my head outside to see if the grass had magically turned green over night from all the rain we DESPERATELY needed. Oh, there's water leaking between the storm door and front door. Not much, just enough to irk me.
2. Went upstairs to get diapers for the little one to discover that the toilet is backed up. Not my turn to deal with that one.
3. Took E downstairs to play. He currently loves walking on cushions (mattresses, sectional, playmats) so I made him a mosh pit in the middle of the playroom which he loves! It ended when he got a slight carpet-burn on his forehead (it wasn't his last bump on the forehead today).
4. While he was playing I noticed that the familyroom curtain was 'wet'. hmmm. Wait, why is my foot wet, too?! Well, our basement had a bit of a leak last night from all the rain. And, essentially, there went my relaxing morning I had planned on. I hurried around for the next hour cleaning up, throwing away ruined 'stuff', ripping carpet, turning on fans, all while listening to E whine hysterically for attention in the background. One corner of our basement carpet (closest to his toys) is completely soaked, and pretty much needs to/should be replaced. We later ran to HD for a $200 dehumidifier and room deodorizers. What a mess!

But, I was determined not to let it ruin the rest of our day and the fun activity I had planned on for a couple weeks. Carpet can always be replaced, a good day cannot.

The nearby executive airport hosted an open house, and seeing how much E is into planes right now I just had to take him (though we missed Daddy not being able to go with us!).

They had WWII aircraft which I was really into. Families could pay money to tour them, and I would have loved to, but E is just too young.

E loves watching all the private/ luxury jets that fly overhead.

He got to touch an actual one today! He was thrilled.
Maybe the next Maverick- Ha ;)
He even got to see the airport firetrucks and ambulances and kept saying, 'Neh-nay, neh-nay!'.

While I would love for this morning to not have happened...

... I just take one look at this deep-sleeping cutie and smile...

...adore the look on his face as I shake my head close to his, and know that everything is fixable, and it won't be the last home repairs we have to deal with (certainly isn't our first).

My Park View

"I'll race you to the park!

To the stairs...

...up the stairs & across the wobbly bridge...

...down the bumpy slide. Weeee...

...thru the rock tunnel...

...found a cool twig...

...someone forgot their bag. I'll go throw it away...

...toss the pinecones up the slide and watch them come speeding back down (Mommy taught me this)...

...Scoop...
...Pour...
...Empty. Repeat...

...all while Mommy keeps a close eye on me."

My park view- how sweet it was!!!
It was just a gorgeous evening to go to the park and I couldn't help but snap up every second of E enjoying the playground like he does each day.

Packing up I found these little shoe prints all over the sand.

I couldn't help but get teary-eyed looking at them and think that my little one is starting to explore the world all on his own. I used to stroll around the park when he was a newborn watching the toddlers play and scamper about and wonder when he would be able to do the same, what he would look like when he got to be their age, and how relaxing it must for be for the parents to just 'sit back and watch their kids do their own thing'. Now I know. It is exciting and a joy, but at the same time that little precious bundle that used to lay swaddled in the stroller doesn't need/want me to hold onto it every fleeting moment.

Clean-up, clean-up....

Prelude:

Anyone who has been to our house knows that we are 'particular' about where things go. Take for instance my SIL who humored herself during one visit years ago by randomly moving little things around the house. Well, she just got a kick out of watching us naturally 'put things back in their place' the second we noticed something had been moved. All this said, there's a reason E's toyshelf has baskets, a reason he has a cubby shelf for books, puzzles, and wood toys, and a huge closet to put toys in. At least, while E is still too young, he can throw his toys randomly into the baskets, put books back with the other books, and put the bigger toys in designated area, and instantly the playroom returns to Mom & Dad's pre-kid family room. I truly believe it is never too early to begin teaching kids how to clean-up, organize, and the responsibility of taking care of their toys- the expectations simply need to be modified to age and ability. I just hope I never have to use the story about the Toy Fairy coming and taking aways toys when he gets older ;)

Intro:

Ever since E was a wee newborn I have been singing the 'Clean-up' song as our pre-bedtime routine: 'Clean-up, clean-up, everybody do your share...' (of course at two months old this meant him laying on the ground while I picked up all his toys as he cooed in awe; 5months old, sitting and watching me clean-up; 7months old, walking his pushcart into the playroom closet; 12months, putting golf clubs, books, and blocks away). Every single night. For as much as some (read: most) nights I really just didn't/don't want to put away a single ---- toy, I did because I truly believe in setting this example for him. And, yes, I still use the silly sing-song that I learned as a babysitter to designate and motivate 'clean-up time' (no worries, my husband thinks it is just as ridiculous!).

Getting to the Point:

All my effort has begun to pay off!!!!

Tonight after our 45min park playtime, I flew E down to the playroom and told him it was clean-up time! (with as much excitement as I could muster), and ... before I could even begin my awful singing of 'clean-up time', lo-and-behold, the little guy just started picking up his shape sorter if on cue. Oh, and to top it off, after he picked up each of the blocks and put them into the cube, he picked up his golf clubs and marched right on over to his golf bag and put the clubs in. I was so speechless I couldn't sing the ---- song!!! Ha

Conclusion:

OMG-I couldn't be any prouder!

Pics from the other day at the mall:

Water Baby

The freeze-frame of the drool is priceless

E's neighbor 'aunt' took some of the cutest pool pics of him the other day.

We just love these pictures. She managed to capture so many expressions of his that we only wish we could with our camera. These are all scans since she used actual film.
Since he only likes to stand, he's not really using the float for its intended use- ha!
He just bumper boats around the kiddie pool at full speed.
He pulled out the octopus that's suppose to fit in the hole, threw it to the side, and instead uses the hole for 'fishing'.

"Where did the puffer-fish go??"

"Oh, hahaha, I put it thru the hole."
He thinks it is the funniest thing to fish for his toys thru the hole.
Mommy side joke: oh, little E, you are the puffer-fish! ahahaha

He loooves to push and pull the buoys like footballs across the water.
Little does he realize that I've also made it abacus-time while we have fun counting each one.

He does a little kicking and splashing, pushing off from the wall backwards, and floating, too!!

We just started blowing bubbles- never hurts to get a face full of water :)
When is it time to have him fetch the brick from the bottom of 12'??

Between Daddy being a former lifeguard and Mommy taking years of swimming lessons, we'll make a Phelps out of him in no time.

Thanks, Miss L., for taking these adorable pics of our little water baby!!!

Last couple days

Here's what we've been up to, besides swimming and the park just about everyday:

Another one of his friends' parties. It was for his baby sister and to celebrate his successful surgery.
The little cutie. I've had oh so much fun shopping for little girl things.

E and his good friend O. playing with their trucks.

Yesterday we went to one of my favorite nearby towns, The Glens, for a little shopping and strolling, while B golfed with the guys at Abbey Springs in Lake Geneva.

It used to be home to a Naval Air Station, and has since been renovated into a beautiful, European-feel community. I love that they left the old tower!

E enjoying the fountain square.

Our Annual July 4th Celebration

We joined in with all the annual festivities back in our hometown: E was too mesmerized by the parade to eat his lunch picnic.

He was anticipating all the "neh-nay, neh-nay" this year... ...as opposed to sleeping thru all the sirens last year.
But, still in the khakis and navy polo- ha.
It was a scorcher!

One of our favorite parts of the parade.

Sweet Cousin J.

E's little red-headed Cousin M munchin' on all the candy he could get his little hands on.

Daddy was even able to join us for all the festivities this year!

"I'll trade you my water bottle for your sippy cup that looks just like mine."
The wagon ride home with Cousin M.

Grandmom R. always throws a fantastic 4th of July bash with friends and family- tons of food, grilling, kid amusements, and floats filling the little swimming pool!

Our little American Baby was one exhausted little boy!

I can't wait till he's able to stay up to watch the fireworks!

(it will be his only late-night of the year ;) )

Happy 4th!!!