Memorial Day 2008

We had a very fun/exciting Memorial Day weekend. Our plan was to leave for the Adirondacks at 7am- but Brandon was still in bed at that hour, so we finally got on the road about 9. Brandon's grandmother gave him a camp (what they call it up here- I thought he was inheriting a summer camp!) Really, its a cabinish like building in the woods that is about a 5 minute walk from a lake that his grandfather built. There are a lot of families that hang out there in the summer time and B has very fond memories of being there as a kid with his grandparents. Unfortunately, no one has been there in about 20 years, so the place is a little run down. Brandon wanted to do some work, but all he had was a rake, a pregnant wife and a two-year-old, so we made a list instead! It was fun to look around and make plans, it'll be fun place to take the kiddos and have friends when its up and running again!

After the camp, we went to our friends Sean and Amy's who were having a little gathering. Anywhere with chips and dips is a great place to be, so after a snack, we left Dad and Caleb and I went to Jill and Brian's to hang out. Sunday, we attended the La Rose's annual cookout, where Caleb made a new friend- Jill's 11 year old niece Taylor. With Taylor around he didn't want anything to do with mom and dad. She's pretty cute, so I don't really blame him.

That evening, we got a call that Brandon's grandmother was in the hospital again, and wasn't doing too well. We packed up sleeping baby and headed to the hospital. She was fine, thankfully, just dehydrated and 95 years old! We went back on Monday to visit her, and got the bonus on seeing Nate, Steph and Mimi. So it wasn't too boring for him. Esther is still in the hospital, and we are hoping that she will be sent home soon!


On a happier note, Caleb said his entire alphabet in the car on Saturday!

Help

Heather has been kind enough to offer some advice on this, but I just can't make it work. I am trying to add a friends list. You can see my results- not so good. Anyone who can help me out, that would be great.

Hooray for the Sun!

After a yucko day yesterday, we were blessed with a day of sunshine. I put away the painting project we had planned and we headed for the playground and beach. Two in a stroller and one walking makes for quite an adventure. This particular locale usually takes about 15 minutes with one kiddo in a jogstroller- we got there in about 45. oh well! It was fun.

I get tons of magazines, and typically retain about 1% of the info, the new Parents had tips on taking great pics of your kids. I tried to apply what I had learned. Here are the results!

Here's what I took away:

1. let kids be kids and take a lot of pictures

2. never say look this way

3. crop creatively

4. photograph the in-between moments

5. zoom in

6. catch your child when he's ignoring the camera

7. convert to black and white

(the little one was asleep a lot of the trip, so I didn't get as many shots of her!)

Another thing I am excited about investigating is something called milkscreen- it tests breast milk for dangerous levels of alcohol if you're nursing. I love wine, so I'll be ordering them at UpSpringBaby.com..

new arrivals

So here is the newest addition to our flock of birds. The robin's eggs hatched and there are three little birdies in the nest. They are really gross looking and I wonder if birds think that human babies are yucky, too? Anyway, they survived the chaos of the yard, and I hope they move out soon.

In the meantime, we had to stop feeding them corn chips. In addition to the crazy birds, the wiley squirrels have returned. (Some of you may recall the trials we had with our Halloween pumpkins being eaten) They rummaged through our garbage yesterday until it looked like a birthday party exploded on our lawn, and this morning there was soil all over our deck, where they had gotten into my flower pots. arrggghh!

Caleb's Birthday Bash

We had a great birthday party on Saturday. Caleb and I spent all of Friday afternoon baking 45 cupcakes for the party. Nana Cheryl flew in on Friday night, yippee! Saturday morning was a blur, Caleb and Brandon went to swim class, home depot and two trips to BJ's!

(I had too much to do, so Caleb had to help out!)

The rain suit from Caleb's dress up box-he's been wearing it for three days!



After much stress over the weather forecast, we had a beautiful day-sunny and breezy! And we were able to get it all together just as our guests were arriving. We had 16 toddlers, 3 babies, all of their moms and dads, 2 grandmas, and 1 cousin. It was full house! Everyone had a great time playing and eating with one exception. Poor Nicholas fell off the see saw and broke his arm. Ouch!








No one told me I was flashing the camera, so here's some creative editing.




I got some great pictures, but I spent a lot of the time eating all of the delish food we had, so I don't have shots of all of the kids. (Anyone who has
more shots, please forward them to me!)



















I wasn't sure if Caleb knew it was his birthday, but we have a great video of him singing "Happy Birthday to me" into his cupcake, so I'm pretty sure he got it! Presents were great, but the kiddos got into them before I could stop them and I'm not sure who gave us what- so if you get a thank you with the wrong gift. So so sorry!





















On Sunday, I broke the stove so we had to walk to Marnick's for breakfast. As long as Caleb got his pancakes, everything was ok! and we finally gave him our present- a sand and water table that he loves! It will be hours of fun.








Happy Birthday Caleb!

So much excitement

Well there's nothing like a crane and a mulcher to keep four toddlers entertained! After having snacktime at the beach Caleb, Taylor, Sydney and our neighbor Shauna came home to the tree guys removing our front tree (a yucky black walnut that dropped walnuts in our yard that hurt our feet) and don't worry we'll plant something to replace it! and trimming the trees in our side and back yards. It was pretty cool to watch them climb up and the limbs fall, but the kids liked the mulcher the best.

We have an annoying herron problem in the trees in our side yard. They lay eggs and poop all over everything. Well they came back this year and were building nests like crazy. The tree guys trimmed the trees and removed the nests. Thank goodness! I just knew that one day one of those crazy birds was going to peck out my baby's eyes. Anyway, I thought we were in the clear when wouldn't you know it, those pesky birds were back up there nesting away. Do you think anyone would notice a pregnant woman on the roof with a paintball gun?

Just to prove I'm not totally heartless, we've also been feeding a mommy Robin who laid eggs in a bush in front of our house. Even though the crazy bird flies out at me every time we walk through the front yard, I resist the urge to knock the nest out so it won't make me almost pee my pants when I am watering the lawn.

He's not a baby anymore!

Caleb turned 2 on Monday! What an exciting day, we ate blue pancakes with M&M's for breakfast. Then we went to Jungle Jim's for a playdate and had sprinkle cupcakes, then he took a four hour nap after crashing from the sugar high!



Thank goodness Auntie Aly sent a box of presents, because mom and dad didn't have their act together, and Caleb wouldn't have anything to open. (we're telling ourselves we wanted to wait for the big party on Sat. but really we're just neglectful parents!)

For dinner, we all went to Chuck E. Cheese's which is the classiest joint in town. There were panhandler children and a child brazen enough to actually steal tokens from our cup. Its moments like those that make me feel like a superior mother : ) then I remember he had no gifts, oh well nobody's perfect!

Caleb isn't acting any older, but he has adopted the delightful habit of throwing himself on the floor and screaming for no apparent reason. Hooray for 2!

day three is the toughest

I am babysitting this summer for our friends Taylor and Sydney who are 3 and 19 months old. They will be with us 3 1/2 days a week until September when spots open up at their daycare. We had a lot of fun the first two days because it was beautiful outside, so we played, went for walks, hung out at the beach... The kids were so tired, that after lunch they basicly slept until their mom came to pick them up.

Caleb is handling it pretty well, he likes to lay on them so we're exploring the lesson of personal space right now. But, taking turns and sharing hasn't been as big an issue as I had expected.

Well, that was days one and two....Now its day three and its raining, something I wasn't fully prepared for. Its 11:30 and so far we have taken every single toy out of its been (OmG I Hate sorting toys!) made mother's day cards from construction paper and glue, had two snacks and made blue play-dough. Right now they are parked in front of Elmo. I hate to stick them in front of the tv, but I needed a break : ) The playdough was an experience, but lots of fun! Its interesting to watch how differently they react to it, I don't know if its girls vs. boy or just our households, but the girls were a little stressed that their hands were dirty and while I was reassuring them that it was ok to get a little messy, I look over and Caleb is not only covered he has a big glob in his mouth! It has over a cup of salt in it, so he is sure going to be thirsty later! I wish my camera had been charged because it sure was funny!

If anyone has any rainy day activities please let me know because we are getting more of this tomorrow!

Baby Picasso

Caleb got an easel for Christmas, but I just got around to buying any paints for him. Caleb and Brandon were painting the other night while was making dinner, it went well at first and then Brandon started explaining about color balance and abstract images.

That's when Caleb decided to go have a tea party. : )

(I don't know if you can tell, but according to my designer husband, those blobs represent Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Oscar- and he's in the process of working on Elmo)

Maybe Brandon needs an easel!

What a busy weekend

We had a very exciting weekend. After swim class, Caleb and I headed to Brooklyn for his first sleepover with cousin Nate. I was meeting Brandon in the city for dinner and fun. I got a chance to see some friends from Bloomies and then we ate way too much Italian food. I had to call in a night at around 12, but they were all up for more fun!

The next morning we had breakfast with Stephanie's family and then Caleb and I rode the subway (or the choo choo train if you're 2!) to meet Dad. It was beautiful and we had a nice walk through Battery park. (You can see the Statue of Liberty in the pic if you look closely!)

We we back to Brooklyn for burritos on the sidewalk- yummo! and today we are getting ready for Sydney and Taylor to come over tomorrow.

guppy class

Caleb takes a swim class on Saturday mornings. We signed up thinking Brandon would take him, but he is away with work this weekend so it was mom and baby. We hit a milestone today ( all that swimming in Mexico paid off!) Caleb used the bubble- a stack of foam float with a belt (Caleb likes it because he calls it a seatbelt) to swim all on his own and jump from the wall. He was so excited and I was so proud of him. Next week I'll take pictures : )

a little nervous

So some of you know that we are having a second baby in Oct. And the second time a round is a lot different. First of all, I am getting bigger much quicker- I have only gained five pounds but its making a huge difference. I am trying really hard not to hit the 60+ mark like last time. we'll see.

With Caleb I didn't have a clue what was going on, so I just worried about everything. This time around I know what to expect, but my main concern is balancing a new baby and a little boy who is with me 24/7- he's a little clingy. Hopefully, starting preschool in September will ease the transition. cross your fingers....

I am off to search for ab exercises that are safe for baby bellies!

pictures from the beach

Here are a few pics from Mexcio, coaxing the boy into the pool the first day- making a sand castle. Happy family at the wedding (I didn't eat too many burritos- we're having baby #2 in Oct.) and Brandon and Caleb at the Mayan ruins- but you can't see the ruins in this shot!

one day back

This is my first attempt at blogging. It seems that everyone is doing it, and I have four suitcases of sand filled laundry to wash, but I would like to avoid. So here I blog. I just let Caleb who will be two in 11 days! wind down for a nap- I knew it was time because he first threw a shoe box at me and then bit my arm. He really is a sweet kid, but we're going through a phase right now. Maybe I'll look into moving up nap time! We just spent seven amazing days in Tulum, Mexico to attend the wedding of our dear friends Jen and Austin. We had a great time and Caleb is a little fish ( who only eats French fries- any moms who have advice on getting your kids to eat anything besides carbs and dairy?) and I can't wait to plan the next vacation.