Last week I watched the four-month-old of a friend for half a day. I wondered how the Boy would do with this in hopes for some sign as to how he'll take to his new baby sister.
He was very sweet to him and so soft. He told him all sorts of things about growing up. I was very encouraged until the end of the day came and the Boy resolutely stated: "I want baby to go home now." Oh dear.
I turned thirty-one this week. To celebrate The Man took the day off of work. He took us to breakfast first, where I told him that I have never felt so old in my life. After that we went shopping! With my birthday fund, he got me a badly needed down coat, about ten new shirts, and these skirts:
This will be great for nursing once little girl arrives this summer. He also did all of the dishes AND laundry. Seriously. He did that. Ain't he great?The Man and I actually went out and joined some friends for Valentine's. I put on my big girl dress and heels, curled my hair, hired a sitter, and off we went. (The Man looked mighty dashing, don't you think?) We had a lovely dinner catered by Wegmans in a rented room that used to be a restaurant owned by Wegmans.
The people that arranged it also had music going for the dancing type. The Man was a very good sport and took the floor with me a few times, only one of which was a slow dance to the infamous "The Lady in Red".
It was all very well and good until I pinched a nerve in my back dancing to Jay Sean. I'm old and pregnant...what can I say?
How long does the "Hey, Mom! Watch this!" phase last?
It sometimes reminds me of Stewart from Mad TV, "Look what I can do!", not to mention the constant insisting, "Let me do it" and walking around in his underwear (not in this clip).
The Boy turned three yesterday. Bring on the pictures!
I made this cute birthday banner at the last second (shout out to Amy for sewing the ribbon on for me). I got the idea from my friend, Kelly. I would have bought one, but by the time I thought of it, it was too late to have it shipped on time. So I copied this one; I took the easy way out and went with the stick-on, pre-cut felt letters, though.
The Boy woke up to birthday balloons and a crown. He's happy to show everyone now that he is three.
I made him a pancake breakfast, which was met with less welcome than I thought, but that's okay. I'm thinking French toast next year.
The Boy came home to have his favorite dinner of spaghetti, and holy cow can that kid eat.
That was followed by opening presents. One of the things we got him was a reversible Superman/Batman cape, which he only takes off at my request now. He also got an etch-a-sketch that he loves, some much needed puzzles, a Leapster that is hard for him to put down, and an addition to his race track that makes it way more fun.
Finally, we ended with Mint Chocolate Chip and Brownie ice cream cake - his request and I wasn't about to complain.Why don't you ever visit me here?
A cute story out of a big headache.
We had to call a plumber to snake our toilet, which has been partially clogged since Christmas. He called me to let me know he was on his way. Once he got here, I was in the bathroom with him describing the problem when his cell phone rang. I stepped out of the room to let him take the call. The Boy was in the living room watching T.V. so I decided to check on him.
The Boy has taken to complimenting things. Last week after The Man got home from work, he went to re-tuck him into bed. The Boy half woke up, turned to look at The Man and said, "Nice tie."
This one may be too much information, but here goes. After using the bathroom a few days ago, I was helping The Boy clean his bum up. He bent over to touch the floor and declared to me, "Those are some nice shoes".
I was dropping him off at school last week when he noticed my friend, K1 pull in ahead of us. The Boy knows K1 just had a baby. He said to me, "I want to say hi to K1". I told him to go ahead. So he said, "Hi, K1", which was quickly followed by, "Nice baby".
The Boy was invited to have lunch at the fire station today. It was an interesting experience. We started lunch late because the firemen were out on a "call", and I was given notice that they may have to leave at any moment during lunch. Luckily, the latter did not happen.
The Boy enjoyed the grilled cheese sandwich, chicken noodle soup, chocolate chip cookies, and watching firefighter Jason slide down the pole. Does it get any cooler for a 3 year old boy?
I had a fairly rough week. Luckily I have a wonderful group of friends who would do anything they can to help, including taking my three-year-old for an entire day. I appreciated so much all the calls and offers. I love you all.
We had a very nice Christmas. The Man's brother, wife, and their three girls came up and stayed a couple of days with us. It was so nice to have Tamara here - she did the dishes the entire time and helped me cook. *sighs* They left too soon.
We had our Christmas Eve dinner on the floor and spent the rest of the evening with our friends the Shelton's. Christmas morning was, of course, gift time. The Boy got tons of books and puzzles as well as a race track, some magnetic blocks, and this lovely little number that took The Man many hours to assemble the night before.
This sucker is made of solid steel and is a danger to my walls, but the Boy loves it. Can't beat that.
We went to a Christmas Tree Farm for preschool on Friday. It was absolutely freezing, but the sun was out. The Boy was surprisingly brave to go down this slide by himself. Or maybe not. While it looks like it could be fast, he had to propel himself forward. He enjoyed petting the goat and playing on the hay pyramid.
Unfortunately, at some point after, he picked up a bad cold. Now since he's such a happy sick kid, he was still up to his no-good chasing of the dog last night. Unfortunately, he wasn't watching where he was going and the dining room table is right at eye level. Poor boy.
I got a slight chemical burn today. It's on my umm...backside. How do you get a chemical burn on those cheeks, you wonder? You sit in undiluted Drano. I know what you are going to ask next, too. Why did I sit in undiluted Drano? Well...The Man poured some down the tub and forgot to flush it with water. I, not knowing he had done this, went to take a bath a small while later. I decided today to sit in the tub and THEN start the water, rather than letting it fill up first. I didn't notice my backside burning until after I got out of the bath. The Man read the back of the product on what to do for skin contact. It says "wash with water". I think I took care of that.
So there you have it. My "pants" are seriously on fire. I am seated while I write this, but I'm sitting on my heels.
We had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving at home this year. The weather was cooperative enough that we went to the park that morning.
The Man had his hands full with the Boy and Roxy.
We ate lunch around 2:00. Where's the turkey? We didn't have one. We had filet mignon instead, and it....was....good! And easy. They took 10 minutes to broil - no problem.
The Boy helped make this cute hat in his preschool class. He loved it! This is a conversation the Boy and I had this morning while I put clothes away:
Him: Hey mommy, you know what?
Me: What?
Him: You're a sweet, sweet girl.
Me: Aw, thank you. You are a really wonderful little boy.
Him: Oh, thank you. You know what?
Me: What?
Him: You are delightful.
Well I just melted. I'm not sure where he got the word "delightful", but seeing as how I've been anything but lately, I was so happy to hear him say it.
The Boy was a lot more interested in Halloween this year. He could not wait to get into his costume. The idea started out as hobo, but ended up as Huck Finn. It was surprisingly difficult to find a child size straw hat. This panama hat was the closest I could do. 
I know it's huge, but it was so cute I couldn't bring myself to cut it down.
We crashed the other Ward's party on Wednesday...
...and then went trick-or-treating over at the Pulley's on Saturday. Thanks Anabel for coming with us. Unfortunately, it was so windy that night, the hat kept blowing off. Oh well...after five houses, he was done anyway. I love this sequence of pictures I got at the Apple Farm a few weeks ago with the Boy and his friend from preschool, Lena. It makes me think they were coming up with some sort of mischievous plan...
Clear right.
Clear left.
Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
I found some "official" race photos of Amy and myself as we made our way through Battery Park.
The Boy loves spaghetti. He can put it down with the best of them. He starts off with a fork, but inevitably the hands rule. Can you hear me plead with him not to make a mess?
Yesterday I was sitting on the couch when through the window behind the television I noticed something fly through the air and land in the little tree next to my house. I go to the window and see this (the picture is cloudy because I took it through the window):
Ahhhhhhh! What's with the snakes this year? I think he must have been on my roof and flung himself down into the tree. Ugh. Creepy. I hate snakes.
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