Monday, December 3, 2012

366.307, 308, 309, 310, 311

366.307 (nov 2)  Abraca DAbra!
IMG_5090
(this photo and the next two courtesy of Grammy, who hosted the boys for a couple days without me)

Monday, November 19, 2012

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Thursday, November 8, 2012

366.289, 290, 291, 293, 294

366.289 (oct 15)  Which game are you playing now, bro?
IMG_0100-2

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - using the potty, getting marshmallows and chocolate for using the potty, preschool, speaking in complete sentences, telling stories starring pieces of his dinner (pasta came home from preschool and saw another pasta and fell into the mashed potatoes and played with his friend...), lentils, "chicken and rice and beans", PLAYDOH in a big way, making soup in his play dishes (thanks P & M!)
N - using the Mommy-multitool (and the Daddy-multitool, and the Grammy-multitool, and the Granddaddy-multitool...), lentils, peeling his own banana, bread, bread, more bread, playing with other (gasp!) people (gasp!), putting away play dishes, playing in water in the sink, taking socks and shoes off in the car (and managing to COMPLETELY lose them somehow), coming up with new ways to pronounce APPLE so that it means five different things
Mommy - having conversations with Z, figuring out the new words that N is trying to manage, big hugs, explaining the new house progression to Z (and N, but he doesn't seem to grasp things just yet), the delightful games that N comes up with, seeing N lean in to give Z a kiss at bedtime

Dislikes:
Z - using the potty, having accidents, giving goodbye hugs and kisses when he leaves (or they leave, whichever), wearing clothing
N - not getting his way, being told he needs to sit in his OWN chair and let Mommy eat her dinner, his "baby" high chair, getting an APPLE when he clearly said APPLE (but meant banana)
Mommy - getting a little frazzled trying to keep up with everything that's going on, dealing with temper tantrums, having to un-spoil N



(sorry it's been a little dead over here, we've had a lot going on!  read about the house we're building over here:  romeinginrichmond.blogspot.com/  and I'm trying to catch up on pictures as quick as I can!)

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

366. 284, 285, 286, 287, 288

366.284 (oct 10)  N: This book is AWESOME!!!  Z: Yeah, the FIRST five times...
IMG_9968

Friday, October 19, 2012

366.279, 280, 281, 282, 283

366.279 (oct 5)  You're in a box, and I have a sock, doopty doopty doo!
IMG_9819

Friday, October 12, 2012

366.278 State Fair of Virginia

366.278 (oct 4) Trip to the State Fair of Virginia!

N communed with some of his distant kin in the petting arena.
20121004-2733

Thursday, October 4, 2012

366.272, 273, 275, 276, 277

366.272 (sept 28)  Ma, we gotta take off my sandals before we can put my boots on!
20120928-2419

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - going to the pool (hooray for poop on the potty!), pushing his brother, the "ladder" game,  doing things himself (except for when he wants "Mommy do it"), splashing in "cudders" in his rain boots, being at preschool (just not arriving or leaving), making towers out of cat food cans, Sweet Frog
N - more Mommy time while Z's at preschool, drinking out of the straw cup sans straw, trying to drink from big boy cups (and pouring it all over himself half the time), waking up TOOOOO EARLYYYYY, screaming  bloody murder to get out of his crib rather than playing with toys till someone gets him, venturing away from the Mommy charging station faster when we go places, sitting at the table without the tray, Sweet Frog (but only the fruit.  none of that yogurt nonsense.)
Mommy - more N time while Z's at preschool, abolishing the baby bottles cold turkey, fewer poopy underpant issues, going to the pool with the boy (one at a time, please, or I'll go crazy trying to keep them both from drowning!), not having to carry N quite so much, really really good hugs from both of them, Sweet Frog

Dislikes:
Z - having accidents (which are getting more infrequent, yay!), not getting to go to the pool (the aforementioned accidents) the iPod (or iPad) dying, games not going his way, not being picked up from preschool EXACTLY how he expected it (apparently not bringing N is a no-no...),
N - too much time spent in the car to/from preschool, being left in the crib for 5 seconds longer than he's okay with, learning new words (BALL has been replaced by UP as the word of choice)
Mommy - tantrums, the frazzledment of trying to entertain two very active boys

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

366.260, 261, 262, 264, 266

366.260 (sep 16)  You're right, daddy, the refs are doing their best...
IMG_9317

Monday, September 24, 2012

Saturday, September 22, 2012

366.253

366.253 (sep 9)  They were very photogenic...

Friday, September 21, 2012

366.250, 251

366.250 (sep 6)  This is fascinating stuff, Granddaddy!  Even Owl and Penguin think so!
IMG_4646
(photo courtesy of Grammy, who was actually awake at 7:06 am)

Thursday, September 20, 2012

366.246, 247, 249

366.246 (sept 2)  That book is boring, let's find something better...
IMG_8921

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Monday, September 17, 2012

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

366.234 Trip to the Zoo

366.234 (aug 21)

We took a trip to the local zoo with my good friend and her daughter R (and her mom, Grams!).  It's a pretty small zoo and has only been around for about 20 years or so, but they have some really nice exhibits.  This is the third time this year that we've gone, and we'll probably go a couple more times to get the most out of our membership before we move clear across town.  From where we live now it's already a good 25 minutes away...from the new house it will be more like 45!

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - watching videos by Rhett & Link, toast, dumping water on the floor so he can wash his feet, spitting, using toothpaste, going to playdates, earning marshmallows and stickers by peeing on the potty (YAYYYYYYY!!!), choosing whether to wear pajamas to bed, Sweet Frog
N - UP? and HELLO! in addition to BALL! (there are other words in use: balloon, bubble, byebye, water, but those three are in heavy rotation), screaming, trying to figure out how to use the potty like everyone else (HILARIOUS), mixed fruit cups with cherries, watermelon (that's my boy!), tomatoes, interspersing head-butts with actual kisses, knocking Mommy over, closing doors, meowing, KITTIES ARE HOME!!!!
Mommy - seeing that N actually understands what is said and acts upon it, weather starting to cool off so we can go outside without melting, not having to buy size 6 diapers or pullups, not having to fight Z on every potty trip

Dislikes:
Z - being told he can't watch videos anymore, bumping his head on the floor when he slips in the water he dumped, going to the potty when it wasn't his idea, pooping on the potty
N - not being able to open the doors he closed (especially when he locks himself in), being taken away from kitty when kitty's tail is being pulled, allowing a book to be read to him (I can do that myself, thankyouverymuch)
Mommy - changing poopy underpants (especially away from home!), cleaning up kitty litter tracked all over the house, children screaming for the fun of it

Monday, August 27, 2012

Monday, August 20, 2012

366.223, 224, 225, 226, 227

366.223 (aug 10)  Hey big brudder, watcha doin up there?
IMG_8293

Saturday, August 18, 2012

366.222 (aug 9)

We've had a breakthrough in bathtime mechanics!

366.222 (aug 9) Why didn't anyone tell me about SPLASHING???
IMG_8258

Friday, August 17, 2012

366.216, 218, 219, 220, 221

366.216 (aug 3) Hey, let me up there! You gotta see my shoes!!
IMG_8086

Thursday, August 16, 2012

366.211, 212, 213, 214, 215

366.210 (jul 28) I got nothin'.

366.211 (jul 29)  So THAT's what Mommy does on Tuesdays...
IMG_7980

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - running around in other people's homes, playing with pencils at the model house, toast, jigsaw puzzles, stacking things, reinforcing N's bad habits, being given choices, helping with chores, playing with the iPad
N - running around in other people's homes, playing with pencils at the model house, stacking things, screaming, throwing food on the floor (and looking to see what Mommy thinks of that), balloons, finding balloons in EVERY BOOK WE OWN and pointing at them over and over and over (OH MY GOD), running around the yard, saying more "words" that sound like the real thing but aren't quite, signing "milk", talking to Siri on Mommy's iPhone
Mommy - not having to carry N all the time, chasing the boys up and down the hall going WEEEEEEEEEEE

Dislikes:
Z - potty training, the choices he's given, not getting choices, following through on the choice he made (i'm sensing a pattern here), being at home, leaving home, going places, going home (another pattern!)
N - time outs (what?? no Mommy for a whole minute??  MY WORLD IS ENDING!!!!), not getting what he's asking for immediately, not being the center of Mommy's attention, not getting every single balloon he sees (and people, there are a LOT of balloons out there in the world!)
Mommy - chasing kids around in other people's homes, backaches (hey, 35 and 25 is NOT LIGHT), being sick but still having to keep up with two active kids

Thursday, August 9, 2012

The mind of a child...

We've been sick this week, and right now I'm the one hit the hardest.  So in an effort to get the healthier and therefore active-er set off my lap, I raided the closets for some distractions and found the dominoes.  This is a set of double-fifteens and hadn't been opened, so between opening the packages and playing with the actual dominoes I got a good 15 minutes of solitude.  Loud solitude, but beggars can't be choosers.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Friday, July 27, 2012

366.204 has a story

366.204 (jul 22)
This was bath night.  For some reason N was not at all interested in being in the bath, and we've been trying to ease him back into liking bath time, so Daddy let him get out of the tub even though he hadn't really been washed.  The boys share bath time now, so it was probably a case of Z not sharing the bath toys!

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

366.199 N's first haircut!

366.199 (jul 17)

We took both the boys to get their hairs cut, because Z's was ridiculously long and I was tired of having to take a comb with conditioner to N's hair to get the snarls out. That boy sees food as more of a beauty treatment than a life-sustaining necessity.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Monday, July 23, 2012

366.186, 187, 189, 190, 191

366.186 (jul 4)  Grandma, you make some funny faces!!
IMG_7164

Sunday, July 8, 2012

366.179, 181, 183, 184, 185

366.179 (jun 27)  Whatcha wearin' all them clothes for, N?  It's WATER TIME!!!!
20120627-9871

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - sprinklers (thanks Granddaddy!), getting out of the house almost every day, running up and down the hall wearing nothing but a hooded towel (having just gotten out of the bath, of course), getting to play the iPod again in quiet time (because mommy NEEDS the quiet time...), mangos, balloons, playing in the kitchen sink, helping mommy with chores, deliberately letting N into the kitchen BEFORE closing the gate
N - jibber jabbering, point-grunt-AH!ing to get what he wants (usually food related), running up and down the hall wearing nothing but a hooded towel (having just gotten out of the bath, of course), balloons, running around in the yard after getting out of the car, climbing stairs, milk (bottles are NOT for water, mommy!), straws, eating rocks from the driveway, giving kisses via direct cranial impact, hug fights with Z, sitting on Z's potty and using toilet paper (correctly!)
Mommy - quiet time (ahhhhhh....), snuggle time with my snuggle bear (Z) and snuggle bug (N), getting back to the gym some now that N doesn't have to have appointments (woo-hoo!)

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

366.171, 174, 175, 177, 178

366.171 (jun 19)  Hey, I want to play with THAT toy...
IMG_6628

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Saturday, June 23, 2012

366.164, 165, 167, 168

366.164 (jun 12)  Where's Z?  I know he's around here SOMEWHERE...
IMG_6261

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Security!

There's this fun little game that I accidentally created called Mommy Slide.  This consists of a child sitting on my lap then "sliding" down my legs onto the floor.  Works great for N!  Not so well for Z...he only slides about 2 inches before his feet hit the ground.  That never stops him, though, so it's a popular game.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Friday, June 8, 2012

366.150, 152, 153, 154, 155

366.149 (may 28)  I got nuthin'.

366.150 (may 29)  But I want to do the puzzle toooooooooooooo
IMG_5876

Monday, June 4, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - temper tantrums, jigsaw puzzles, anthropomorphizing (spoony is hungry, forky wants to go to bed), origami (thanks Grammy!), putting "band aids" on the Three Amigos, making snoozies for Mommy, psinning (also known as "spinning", in Daddy's swivel chair), balloons, playing in the sink, grazing rather than eating at mealtime, "helping" cook dinner, saying Thank You, having Daddy home a lot lately in between assignments
N - walking walking walking!, trying new things, eating rocks from the driveway, having conversations with Mommy even though the vocabulary hasn't increased, painting with the milk bottle (and the water bottle, and the sippy cups, and the straw cups...), having Daddy home a lot lately in between assignments
Mommy - all the GIGGLES!!!, having more of a clue how to get through to the Z-man, being able to set both boys down to walk when we're out, having Daddy home a lot lately in between assignments

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

366.132, 133, 134, 136, 138

366.132 (may 11)  So...what exactly is supposed to be happening here?
IMG_5154-2

Monday, May 28, 2012

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Saturday, May 26, 2012

366.118 bonus!

Apparently when I was searching for pictures I flagged two for April 26th and two for April 27th, and then wasn't paying attention when I posted 118.  So the 118 on the previous post was in fact a bonus 117.  To make up for such a grievous error, here are two actual 118s for you.  Enjoy!

Friday, May 25, 2012

366.114, 115, 116, 117, 118

366.114 (apr 23)  I think this should go right here.  Right here.  RIGHT HERE!  Why isn't anyone listening...
IMG_4573

Thursday, May 24, 2012

366.108, 109, 110, 112, 113

366.108 (apr 17)  Hey, Mr Penguin wasn't done eating!
IMG_4319

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Dead Space

We're still here...I have a huge backlog of photos to post, but my photo database got corrupted and I'm having to go back and start over.  So it might be awhile before I find the pics I had flagged for this blog, but I'm going as fast as I can!!

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - more of the same: saying No to everything, going outside, playing where he's not supposed to play, "chasing" N down the hall, pinwheels, cheese, ice cream (thanks Granddaddy!  :P  ), breakfast bars, gluten-free pretzels & crackers, this weird game involving taking a drink of milk and then letting it dribble out of his mouth (and this is NOT okay with Mommy!), balloons, screaming, anything with wheels
N - walking! finally! both solo and holding someone's hand, pointing at things, saying Ball! to everything (including, but not limited to, balls), BALLOONS in a big way, getting Z to "chase" him, doing everything that Big Brother is doing (right down to wanting to eat the same things, but only at the same time...when Z moves to a new food, so does N!), communicating very well despite only having "uh-oh" and "ball" as a working vocabulary, going outside (we're coming to terms with grass, slowly), ice cream (thanks Granddaddy!  :P  )
Mommy - reliving the joy and excitement of a child learning to walk (god but I love their expressions and giggles when they're doing it!), seeing that Z empathizes with his brother (even if he doesn't always want him around) and tries to help him, having a house that's the cleanest it's ever been since we moved in, having GRASS in the backyard!!!

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Z's pictures

Here are some of the pictures that Z took that day with his camera.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

366.94, 95, 96, 99, 100

366.94 (apr 3)  Bubbles!  Bubbles bubbles bubbles BUBBLES!!!!!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Thursday, April 12, 2012

More Z-isms

Raid-lo-lo = Radio
Chock-it = Chocolate
Snoozy = Smoothie
Choc-o-lit Snoozy = Tropical Smoothie (and yet chocolate is still chock-it...baffling)
Bat-er-ly = Battery
pun-key-yown = provolone
meh-sid-uhr tape  = measuring tape
scoof driver = screwdriver

and a long list of things that are supposed to be sn or sp but instead are st: stoon (spoon), stack (snack), stow (snow), stinach (spinach), stake (snake), stail (snail), stade (spade), I'm sure there are more

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Train 'em young

Grammy was here today for a visit, which always opens up a few more possibilities for entertaining the young ones.  That extra pair of hands makes all the difference!

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - bubbles bubbles BUBBLES!, "helping" Mommy put up painter's tape, the new ball popper toy we got at the thrift store, going outside without an adult, letting Earl out of the house, climbing on ladders (stepstool, really), all things fruit, making his own words to go into the songs he already knows (that's my boy!!!), leaning on Mommy's shoulder while Mommy is trying to take pictures of things down at his level (makes for blurry pictures...), orange cheddar
N - food (especially fruit, but apparently spinach-mushroom-chicken enchiladas are also acceptable), the new ball popper toy we got at the thrift store, walking with Mommy (FINALLY!!!!!), walking his turtle walker down the hallway with Z walking his shopping cart next to/behind him, all things spherical, plugging into the Mommy (or Grammy!) charging station then scampering off to play again, pointing and grunting to make it understood what he wants
Mommy - motor derby [walker] time (they're occupied!!) especially when Z helps N turn his walker around, getting full nights of sleep again, N taking one 3-4 hour nap a day

Friday, March 30, 2012

For Grammy

The bedtime routine for N usually involves a bottle of milk, given to him in his room with the lights out, with the hope that it will help him settle down to sleep.  Lately he's been having a fairly large amount of milk as part of a fairly late dinner, so last night and tonight I put him to bed without the milk, just some snuggles with Mommy in the rocker before being laid in the crib.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Silver lining

Yesterday morning was a bit of a struggle for me.  I had gotten to bed later than usual and slept rather poorly.  N, having a sixth sense for when Mommy really needs the extra sleep, got up at 6. Just for context, he rarely gets up before 7:30.

Busted

The other day, I was cleaning up the kitchen and came across a couple of toys.  Both of the boys seem to have this irresistible urge to transport small objects from the living room to the kitchen, likely to aid the cats in trying to kill me.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Friday, March 23, 2012

Growing like weeds

Yesterday I took the boys in to see the doctor.  N needed his 1 year checkup (complete with 3 shots and a blood draw, poor thing!), and Z needed to have blood drawn to check for celiac antibodies since there has got to be SOMETHING going on with that child.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Early bird

The boys and I have lately been participating in a weekly "Girls' Night" with my best friend and her family (Mom, daughter R, sister, & sister's best friend).  Yes, I'm aware that my sons are not girls. Under 5 doesn't count.  Most of the time I only bring one of them with me...it's a little easier on me to only have one, and it turns into quality one-on-one time with Daddy for the one that doesn't come. Win-win situation all around.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

T-O

Now that Z is plenty old enough to get into mischief, we've had to begin disciplinary actions.  

Z-isms

rectinkle - rectangle
aminals crackers
stoon - spoon
Purry - Perry
Oil - Earl (it has a twang to it that I just can't figure out how to spell...oy-yuhl?)
stack - snack
stowflake - snowflake
disonaur - dinosaur
monsterella - mozzerella
llellow - yellow
firzday - Thursday

Friday, March 2, 2012

Patience, grasshopper

I know there has been a dearth of content here in the month of February, but it was a pretty grueling month for me.  Just as soon as I get a chance there will be a couple long posts with all the daily pics you've become addicted to...sorry about the withdrawal pains!

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Z - gluten-free "cheerios" and crackers, dried cranberries (of all things!), peeing on the big potty if there's a potty book involved, taking baths, running away from Mommy and then waiting until I'm about to say 3 before running back, getting N up from naptime (mostly so he can then play in his crib), being picked up and thrown about, opening the front door without permission
N - food he can pick up with his own fingers and put in his own mouth (and nothing else, thank you very much!) but especially berries (blue-, rasp-, or straw-), picking up a piece of food to give to you and then take back after you've held it (because it tastes SOOO much better now), being bounced on Z's bed by Z jumping all around him, trying to read books like big brother, holding the bottle for himself, drinking water from a sippy-straw cup, baths (no transition period needed anymore), opening and closing (mostly) doors over and over and over
Mommy - a little more breathing space since N is becoming more self-sufficient, drive-by huggings and kissings, introducing the boys to my favorite foods and activities

Wednesday, February 1, 2012