Tuesday, May 25, 2010

No Barking

Whenever Elias sees a dog, he tells it, "No Barking." It doesn't matter if the dog is barking or not. I halfway expect him to tell his cousins, "No hitting" and "No throwing" when he first sees them this weekend.

It's a U

Elias now has a potty seat, so he can go on the big boy potty. He seems to be liking it and doing fairly well. The other day he looked down after doing his business and said, "It's a U." So proud.

Birds

I think Alfred Hitchcock had The Birds movie all wrong. I dont' think birds attacking is the problem. I think birds chirping at 4:30 every morning and waking you up is what could really drive a person crazy. Trust me.

Bye Bye Play

For whatever reason, I started getting Elias to say goodbye to the playground when it was time to leave. It seems to work pretty well. If it is time to head home, or if we are passing by and can't stop, I always tell Elias, "Bye bye play. See you another time." which he then repeats. This has carried over into anything and everything. Now when a squirrel runs away, Elias says, "Bye bye squirrel. See you another time." Sometimes it goes a little far. A few days ago a salesperson came to the door. I sure hope they don't take Elias' advice and come back another time.

WHAT A saturDAY!


This last weekend we were BUSY. In the morning, Elias and I made up a music class with teacher Melissa. After nap time we all went to a free swing dance for an hour and a half. Then, Matt and I headed out to a night on the town. We ate dinner with great friends and saw Fiddler on the Roof. Shari, Brad and Mika watched Elias while we had a much needed date. Thank you! Elias made his very own garden while we were gone (see picture). I think he had as much fun as we did.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Movin' On Up


Next week, Elias will move from Toddlers to Minis at school. He has been visiting his new classroom for a few weeks now to help him transition. I think he is excited about it. I got "the list" last week for what he needed for the new classroom. I've heard people complain about all the stuff they have to buy for kids when they start school, but at least (in most cases) those are public schools with limited funding. I pay the tuition bill for the school, and it doesn't seem to me like they should have any money issues. I probably spent over $50 on paper, glue, crayons, pencils, kleenex, etc. That doesn't include the stuff just for Elias: toothbrush, comb, brush, underwear, etc. This kid better be a potty trained budding artist by the time he moves on to the next class.

Mother's Day

We had a nice Mother's Day. I got breakfast in bed (a requirement), and we took the bike trailer out to the park. We hadn't done that since last year. Pretty laid back...just the way I like it.

Bike


Elias was very excited when we got out his bike from the basement. We got it as a hand-me-down from some great friends. He isn't quite tall enough for it yet, so he really didn't like using the pedals. He mainly just wanted to push it around. As long as he learns to ride before the 4th grade, he'll be doing better than me.

A Little Sand


Emma just turned two, so we went to our first real birthday party. ALL of the kids loved the sandbox that I believe was completed just moments before everyone arrived. There may have been 12 kids in there at one time. Who needs t.v. for an instant babysitter. All you need is a little sand.

Better Left Undone


For Mother's Day, Elias' daycare held an afternoon tea (Elias is at the head of the table in the striped shirt). All of the Toddler Moms were invited to school at 3:30 for iced tea and snacks. Usually they have events at lunch, and it is just too hard for Matt or myself to make it. Most people live in the burbs and work downtown. Matt and I do the opposite, so middle of the day events just don't work. This one was on a Friday (Elias' and my day off), so it was easy to head to the daycare for the event (plus it was in the afternoon). The moms sat around on the floor while the kids had their snack. We mostly talked about how hard it is to get off work and about how it will now be impossible to go back to work (the kids would go nuts if the moms left without them), so taking the rest of the day off was a must. Plus, it ran over half an hour so it cost me $4 for parking. I think most mom's would have rather they not done it at all. If they wanted to offer a few hours of nighttime daycare, now your talking.

Mine

Elias' new word is "mine." Be careful what you show him because it will quickly become Elias'. A perfect example, Matt's tattoos. Elias saw them today and claimed they were, "mine." Now I just need him to start working on people's wallets.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Elias' Career

These days when Elias is eating, he often points in his mouth and says, "Going down there." We always tell him, "Yep. Your food is going down there." Clearly I think this means he is destined to be a nutritionist, a chef or the hot dog eating champion of the world.

Maybe Elias won't be 15

before he learns to sleep in his bed instead of on the floor.

As many of you know, ever since we took down Elias' crib and put his mattress on the floor, Elias has been sleeping on the hardwood floor right in front of his bedroom door. I think the heat going on and off waked him up some, and his room is right at the top of the stairs, so he looks under the door and can see us try to sneak by.

A few nights ago, as Elias was getting in bed, I asked him where his bed was and asked if he could stay there all night. He said he would. It worked! It has happened one other time since, so let's hope this is a trend.

I'm thinking of asking Elias if he can start eating vegetables. Do you think it will work?

The Good Old Days


Mike and Lisa were here in Denver! It was a quick stop off on their way to what sounded like a heavenly week long vacation (at least for Lisa) as they left the kids at home with the Grandparents. Let me state that again. The kids were at home all week with the GRANDPARENTS (hint, hint) while Mike and Lisa were living it up in California. Or at least having a moment to read a book or hang out at the pool any time they felt like it.

We had a great time catching up and reminiscing about good times. Why does it seem like most good friends we have end up leaving Colorado? Are all the mountain, biking, skiing and climbing activites just too much to handle? I guess then Wisconsin is a step "up".

We had a bunch of people over Friday night for dinner and good conversation. Just to touch on some of the stories: The boys vs. girls party, the turn signal and the Dalai Lama, many people crammed into one hot tub, asking for Er, accidentally showering in the women's locker room. If the list leaves you confused, you had to have been here.

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Sock Hands!

Voodoo Doll

I have now lost my voice. It started Friday afternoon, and is still pretty much gone today. If you are the one with the voodoo doll of me, I'm really sorry for whatever it is I did to you. Could you please stop torturing me? You have won, fair and square, and I swear to never, ever do it again. Whatever it was. Really. Promise.