Steamroller

If Nick could be equated with a type of heavy construction machinery, it would be the steamroller. The kid is rolling everywhere to get from point A to point B. Crawling? Huh, what's that? No way, rolling is the way to go.

Terrible Twos

The terrible twos really do exist. I've come to realize this the past week or so. Right after Paige turned two, I thought this isn't so bad. What's all the fuss? Sure, she'd throw a tantrum here and there, but it was pretty easy to get her back on track. Now, time out is being used on a daily basis and lately more than once a day. She's becoming more opinionated on what she wants to wear, eat, play, watch on tv, read, and do, do, do all day long. I'm exasaperated and exhausted to the point of watching the seconds tick until naptime and then bedtime. I truly love her to pieces and there are glimpses of the sweet Paige I know under that growing independence. But, now the twos are enveloping and engulfing her to which she seems to have no control. And in those moments of irrationality, I repeat over and over, "it's just a phase, it's just a phase."

Wagon Ride of Another Kind

I thought I'd finally put Nick in the "big kid" wagon with Paige over the weekend. He wasn't quite sure what to think of it at first, but he started to take Paige's lead. The two of them had fun riding around the neighborhood. His favorite thing to do was to hang his head over the side and watch the wheels go round and round. I think Paige got into having a little buddy with her. Normally, a stuffed animal sat in Nick's seat...now she has the real thing.

Bedtime Battles

Well, the bedtime battles have really truly begun. Paige will do anything and everything to get out of going to bed. "One more story Daddy". "Water please". "Gotta go pee pee". "Mommy hug and kiss". "Daddy hug and kiss". The list goes on and on. After it feels like an eternity and we finally plop ourselves into bed, we'll still occasionally hear her in there singing or talking to her stuffed animals and we're in amazement that she could possibly still be awake. Shouldn't a two year old be tired already?

A Sorting of Sorts

During my shower this morning, Paige was singing the one verse she knows from the song Baby Beluga. I only wished I had a tape recorder with me. What I didn't know was that she was doing a sort and sing. Brian has asked me in the past, "What could one girl possibly do with all of these hair things?" Well, let's see...you can make a hair accessory train sorted by type and color.




Now if I could only get her to pick up after herself without asking, I don't know, a zillion times!

Tooka Dots Acquired

We went to the mall yesterday to search for some polka dot clothes. The first store we stopped at was a bust. Feeling a little deflated, we headed to the second store, the one that I will only buy at when there's a sale going on. And sure enough, there was. And sure enough, it was filled with polka dots. And cherries. Oh yeah, Paige has a thing for cherries too.

Polka dot pajamas and a nightdress (her 1st one) to boot.

She did not want to take it off this morning.

Yellow polka dot shirt with sunflowers.

So, our trip to the mall was a success. However, I think I'll be returning to online shopping for I was exhausted afterwards.

-Jen

The Yellow Balloon

The nice grocery clerk at Henry's gave Paige a yellow balloon yesterday. She was so happy to play with it and Nick loved it too. After several hours of play with this thing, she ventured outside with it. I kept telling her in my best mommy voice, "make sure you hold on tight because if you let it go, it'll be gone forever." She nodded as if she understood. Well, after a couple runs on the slide with balloon in hand, there it went up into the big blue sky. We waved goodbye and told it to have fun. She was handling it all pretty well. A few minutes later, we went back in the house.

She says to me, "Mommy, I want wings."

"Why do you want wings?" I asked. I wasn't clueing in.

"I catch the balloon."

"Oh, well, we don't have wings."

"I go to store." Awww...sweet little thing thinks there's a store that sells wings.

Again, "Mommy, I want wings."

Now repeat above conversation at least 10 times.

Tooka Dots

Paige is starting to remember things I say. But first, let me go back a bit. Paige loves tooka dots, I mean polka dots. Any clothing of hers with polka dots is what she wants to be wearing. However, she doesn't really have any clothes with polka dots, only pajamas. And I won't allow her to go out and about with pajamas, so I told her over this past weekend that we would go to the store and find some shirts with polka dots. This morning, I told Paige that we would be heading to the store. So she says, "yeah, to get tooka dots." To which I replied, "No honey, to get food...but we'll go to the mall to get polka dots soon." And to which I was thinking, "Oh crap, she's starting to call me on stuff."

Other Unit News:
Nick is eight months old today. Uh, where is the time going? He loves to show off his new skill: clapping. And, he discovered the simple joy of playing with a balloon.

Kris and Michelle are coming to town later this week. We are so excited to hang out with them!

I got to spend time with some friends from high school this past Saturday night. I had so much fun reminiscing with them and hearing about what they're up to. I swear, time can pass us by, but we still somehow remain the same. We even oohed and aahed over our highschool crushes like giddy teenagers.

Book Review

Last night, I finished Marley & Me. I don't think I've cried that much reading a book since Where the Red Fern Grows (which is also about dogs I might add) in sixth grade. It didn't help that there were so many similarities between Marley and Nemo. They are both labrador retrievers, they both get into mischief as a career, and they are both fiercely loyal. I give it two thumbs up and highly recommend it even if you're not a dog owner. And it's going to be a movie starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. I always like to read the book before the movie comes out. And maybe after reading it, you'll not be so annoyed with Nemo when you come to our house.
-Jen

Paige, the Gangsta

We're not sure where she got this, but Paige likes to end some of her sentences with the word "yo". Some examples:
"Want a snack yo."
"Finding Nemo movie yo."
"No bedtime yo."
As I physically type this, I'm having a revelation. What if she's using it in the spanish form for "I". She does hear Spanish from her tita and from me and let's not forget Dora.
Hmm.....

Ma-ma

This morning when I was changing Nick's diaper, he yelled out "MA-MA". It was totally distinct and clear. I know he didn't mean me, but I was still utterly excited! And then I remembered this Baby Blues from a few weeks ago and I just shook my head and giggled because I know the real thing is coming sooner or later.

Nemo, Our Birthday Dog

Nemo turns six years old today. Calculate that in human years, he's 42. I can't believe he's middle aged. You would never know it though. He still acts like a puppy. His energy is never ending. He eats like we never feed him. And in all reality, he's the biggest baby in the house. However, I have noticed that he's getting a little more gray on his chin, but really, that's the only thing about him that seems different. Happy birthday big guy, we love you!

Viva Las Vegas

Brian was asked to make a presentation for a company he's been doing business with at UNLV. We jumped at the chance to turn it into a short getaway for the both of us. At first, we were only going to go for two nights, but with Brian having to work a half day, it made much more sense to go for three nights so he could actually enjoy it too. My mom was already on board to watch the kids while Nemo was all set to stay with Cathy. Granted, as much as I was excited to go, I was also nervous about leaving the kids. But, my desire to have a few days to myself in 85 degree weather next to a pool with a book in hand outweighed any hesitation. On Wednesday afternoon, we dropped the kids off and drove 4 1/2 hours to the Mandalay Bay. Some highlights included:

sitting at the pool two days in row & enjoying the lazy river

checking out Shark Reef Aquarium at the hotel

a once in a lifetime dinner at Le Cirque at The Bellagio

watching Spamalot at the Wynn Hotel

eating and drinking til our hearts' content

Our bathroom had a tv!

Our pretty bedWe were impressed by the flat screen.Hangin' poolside.The Bellagio is always beautiful.

Saturday afternoon we returned to my mom's to pick up Paige and Nick. They were both happy to see us, but when I asked Paige if she was ready to go home, she said, "No go home". So, I guess she loved her little getaway just as much as we did.

Wagon Ride

Paige is starting to realize that she can actually play with her little brother. We put him in the little push wagon today and she revved him all around the kitchen and family room. Nick was loving it. I think what he loved most though was having attention from his sister.

It's Just a Picture

My mom has been hassling me about getting a picture of Paige and Nick together. (Love you Mom). In essence, I feel like that's asking me to reverse the effects of global warming or to guide Britney Spears on the ways of better parenting. Despite that, I decided to give it a whirl today. And, trust me, I've done this many, many times and each time the pictures come out pretty terrible. At least I got one semi-good one. I know, Paige is smiling, but Nick looks worried, the background's not so great, and they are not wearing "matching" outfits, but it was the best I could do under pressure.

Cue the Sparkles

I gave up cutting Paige's hair myself awhile ago. For one, she just doesn't sit still long enough and two, I was never able to do a good enough job. I finally gave in and have been taking her in to get it done "professionally". The salon is very close to the house and the young lady that cuts it is super sweet and good with her. The first time, Paige was mute. The second time, Paige was mute. This time, she actually said thank you. It was barely audible but it was there. She really got into choosing the color ribbons she wanted (she actually answered that her favorite color is red, to my surprise) and if she wanted piggy tails or topsy tails. When the stylist asked me if I wanted, "g-l-i-t-t-e-r", she had to spell it again because I was like, "huh?" Of course I said yes. Who doesn't want sparkles???

Oh, bummer, hard to see the sparkles.

Very pleased with her haircut.

A Day for Facing Fears

Last week Nicole called and asked if I would be available to watch Pete for a couple of hours today. Without hesitation, I said yes. After I hung up, a small fear crept up inside my head. Would I be able to watch (and by watch I mean entertain, feed, clean, and keep safe) three kids under three for a couple of hours? I wasn't so confident. But, I was definitely looking forward to finding out and spending time with Pete. At 9:00 this morning, Terry dropped Pete off. Lucky for me, Nick was napping and Nemo was busy outside. Pete, being the easy going toddler that he is, immediately gravitated towards the toys and didn't even fret when Daddy left. After a good half hour of playing, we headed outside to check out the sandbox and other fun things out there. Paige was very helpful in pointing stuff out to Pete. She actually played nicely with him, phew! Nick finally woke up and joined us for snacktime and again more playtime. Shortly before Terry arrived, we ate lunch. It went better than I had planned, yay! I had to take some photos as proof that my fear was unwarranted.

"Cheese!"
Pete checks out the sandbox.
The spinning umbrella is fun to watch too.
Just the two of us.
The gang's all here.
Threw this one in because you can see his bottom teeth!

Before afternoon naps, Paige, Nick, and I took a walk around the block. Recently a neighbor down the street planted a row of those "tall, wispy plants" near the sidewalk. As we approached, Paige stood frozen. Her fear of feathers crept up again. I told her that I would walk in between her and the plants. She was relieved by this idea. There were no tears or screams this time, but rather a calm brisk walk. So, although her fear was not conquered today, it was definitely chipped away at, even if it was only just a little.

-Jen