You Are My Sunshine...: June 2011

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Sam oh Sam...

What are we going to do with you little man? You have ZERO fear! I'm unsure how this feeling of no fear came about, could it be because of your three year old sister and her attempts at helping you learn your place in the family or perhaps it's the fact that you're always falling down and you've just gotten used to it?

From Summer 2011

Instead of being a "normal" 14 month old, you've decided to scare your mother half to death, each and every day. I swear that you think of something new daily.

Most recently you've decided to start climbing the ladder to the swing set and go down the slide by yourself. You choose to do this usually when there isn't anyone around to catch you if you fall. Thank God that you haven't fallen yet, but you have given Mama a few gray hairs to add to the already abundant collection.

From Summer 2011

The train table in Adri's room is not for climbing and dancing on. I'm not sure where the idea for that one came from or how you're getting up there, but please stop. Each time I walk in there and see you doing a tap dance on the table, my heart skips a beat. Even the cute little smile you give when you know you've been caught in the act doesn't help the situation.

While I don't mind you climbing on Adri's toybox to get on her bed, I do mind that you have begun jumping on her bed, often missing the bed and toppling or rolling off the side. What I don't understand is that after this experience, you go back for more! Doesn't it hurt when you fall down? Why don't you just give up and find something else to do? You don't have to conquer everything!

Your new trick of getting up onto the recliner and then having Adri push it around in circles as you scream in glee is fine. What is not safe is that you then decide to stand up while the recliner is in motion. Do you have any idea what could happen if you fell off of there at the warp speed Adri's pushing you? It's a good thing you have a Mama standing close who's pretty quick at grabbing you when you're about to fall.

You've also mastered climbing up onto your window seat in your bedroom via the toy box. I found you there today after I heard a rustling in your room that turned out to be you behind the very expensive window shades, crinkling them. Thank goodness Daddy wasn't here to see that.

From Summer 2011

Every time I hear a thump in your room during nap time I have to run in there because I fear that you've finally figured out how to get out of your crib. I'm hoping that's at least a few months down the road still, but with the way you're going, I don't think we'll have much time.

Please, please, please slow down! Remember, you're only 14 months! You have lots of time to explore. How about if we go back to those cuddling days when you didn't want Mama to ever put you down? I loved those days and I'm pretty sure they didn't cause gray hairs. :)

You're attempt to swing by your neck here didn't earn you any innocence points little man.

From Summer 2011

Oh yes, and one final thought. When I tell you to come back that doesn't mean that you need to run away until I have to chase you. I appreciate your attempt at helping your Mama get exercise, but sometimes it's just exhausting!!!

Sunday, June 26, 2011

As promised...

Here are the videos that make me wonder if checking into a mental hospital might be a vacation from a normal day at home. :)

These are the memories that I will remember forever with fondness, even if they are also the events that made me the crazy Mama I am today...

It's perfectly normal to go out in the rain to play...Add screaming to playtime and it gets even better!

Beautiful singing and siblings sharing...What more could you ask for???

This is how you have fun on a rainy day...

What do four three and under year olds do at a sleep over? Dance and be silly, of course!

Go ahead, scream along. You know you want to!!!

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Today is...

"Be nice to brother day!" Adri explained early this morning, as she gave Sam kisses and hugs.

This change in his sister's behavior clearly made Sammy one happy little man.

By the afternoon though, it was a different story. Neither of the kids had had naps since we went to Grand Haven and spent the day walking around.

At first they were ok...

But then it all changed without a moment's notice.

"He won't quit touching me!!! He's looking at me!!!" Adri screamed in her whiny voice as we were walking down the boardwalk.

"Waaaahhh!!!! Aggghhhh!!! Agghh Agghh Agghh!!!" Sam joined in as Adri sat on him, repeatedly.

The return car ride was much of the same, with both kids crying and/or whining the entire way home.

And on another note or shall we say, warning, for those family members that remember the squeaky shoes from last summer...They're back!!! Only this time they're back with a vengeance; x2! Adri and Sammy both got a pair today. I was in need of something for Sammy and his wandering, but couldn't get them just for him, so Adri also got a pair. She was the one who actually wanted them in the first place. The good news is that these are the last pair she'll be able to get since her size is as large as they make them.

Adri had to wear them out of the store, after she and Sammy danced a little jig inside when they first tried them on. I suppose you have to try out the music making capabilities of the shoes. Sammy didn't want his off either, and actually began screaming when I did take them off to try on a different pair. He was in love with the sound his feet could make!

As we walked through Grand Haven, Matt made us walk a distance away, embarrassed that his daughter's feet were squeaking. He offered to pay me not to get them, even. The enjoyment Adri got walking/dancing around with them was worth all of his (and my) embarrassment though. I say, let her enjoy them and be carefree, she only gets to be three once and she absolutely loves them.

One lady was so excited about the shoes she called her daughter to find out what size her grandchild wore so she could pick up a pair. She wanted her daughter to hear the shoes squeaking, so she chased Adri in a circle around us, making the shoes squeak at high speed. Adri had no idea what was going on and tried to hide behind me to get away from the woman and I was wishing I had our video camera to youtube the entire thing. Seriously, it was THAT funny.

Another woman was completely baffled that Adri's feet were squeaking. "Holy Sh*t! Why would you ever do that to yourself?" were her exact words to me. I replied with "you've never had two children ages one and three have you? Now I'll be able to hear them wherever they are." She glared at me as she kept walking. I had half the mind to take Adri's hand and make her walk fast right behind the lady, just so she could hear the shoes squeaking non stop, but felt like the effort would probably have been wasted on her since she didn't even get the purpose or the humor of the shoes in the first place.

Others in town thought the shoes were adorable and made comments about how cute they were and how they loved the squeaker. The shoes definitely elicited a response from people, whether it was a rude one (like the one lady) or others who loved them so much they were going to go to Aberdeen's to buy a pair. No matter what people thought about the squeak, they had to notice the happy little girl dancing to her own tune in the shoes, in love with the sound they made.

***For the record...I tried to get Adri to take the squeaker out of the shoes. She refused, responding with "Some kids like to squeak Mommy and some kids don't. I like squeaky shoes." And, that was that.

Stay tuned for the video footage from tonight's dinner. You won't be disappointed!

Question of the day...

What purpose does sticking your tongue out have in the completion of everyday activities? I'm not sure, but apparently it works for Sam Man since he's always walking around with his tongue out. :)

The following photos were all taken today. Apparently Sam can concentrate better when he sticks his tongue out to his chin...Either that or he likes the way the air feels on his tongue.

Sammy had his second haircut today. I took Matt's advice and brought him to Empire Beauty School. I just want to preface what comes next with-it was ALL Matt's idea to bring him there. :)

The girl who cut his hair was so afraid of Sammy that she begged the teacher to cut his hair. In all fairness, he was a squirmy little booger and wouldn't calm down the way he had for his first haircut. I can honestly say that this is the worst haircut I've ever seen though. There are long pieces by his ears and collar that they didn't cut. I'd love to cut it myself but that would defeat the purpose of all of those embarrassing pictures I plan to take of his haircut to show him the results of his squirmy-ness in the future. I'm thinking yearbook graduation ad, sitting down with future girlfriends to show them pictures, baby photos for his wedding, etc. And yes, I would most definitely do this to him (and to Adri). :) I just want them to know how much I love them and that I took the time to document all of their milestones and special moments. Yeah, that's why I do it. :)

I digress...So, his haircut ended up being free because it was his first time there (and his last). I tipped the student who didn't actually cut his hair and we were out of there. I now swear to only bring both of the kids to Sharon over at Snip It's. Seriously, Snip It's is the only place that I've found where I get a consistently great haircut and they can deal with the kid's crazy unpredictable behavior. They aren't scared of them and have no problem holding them down (which we actually had to do with Adri her first few haircuts) to get the job done. I've only gone to Sharon (because we love her and she tamed the wild beast out of Adri when she gets a haircut), and will only be going to Sharon in the future for the kids haircuts. (Sam's first haircut was with my cousin and she did the most WONDERFUL job. So I would definitely go back to her again for Sammy's haircut. It's just easier to get both kids in at the same time and get it over with though.)

Adri spent the entire time throughout the haircut telling the stylist and the teacher exactly what Sam likes and dislikes and why they were making him mad. She is quite the Mama Hen when it comes to Sammy and I often have to remind her that I'm the Mama, not her.

What's that you say? I should do some modeling? I've had the same thoughts...

Whew! Look at my adorable little man reflection in the mirror. I am GOOD looking!

Mom! Look what I can do!

I'm going to climb to the top! (Then you'll just barely catch me as I fall down...almost breaking your camera in the process. Great catch though Mom!)

Trouble's leader...Doing something that Sammy probably won't copy for a change...

And, Sammy found a sewer. He proceeded to throw sticks in it for the better part of a half hour.

I was going to follow Adri...But there's something over here that looks more interesting. She'll never notice I'm not right behind her.

A picture just because I love that adorable little smile that lights up his entire face.

Adri pauses for one second for a picture. That's all the time she had to give before heading off to help Sam find trouble.

Oh my gosh! This is amazing!

Shhh! This is the quiet forest Mommy! You have to be quiet so you can see animals!

If Adri got any cheesier...

Adri and her best friend...

Ooooh! Fireworks! And a 3 year old!!! What could possibly go wrong here?

A 3 year old, in monster pajamas, sans shoes and socks, with fireworks against the tree...potential problems? I think not.

My favorite thing said today had to be when Sam decided to walk away from us to say hi to anyone that was near and Adri became upset and worried because he wasn't walking near us. "Mommy, I need Sammy! Please don't let him go! He's my best friend!"

These are the exact moments I live for and those that reward all of our hard parenting; knowing that we are creating a bond between the two of them that will hopefully never be broken.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Bubble!!!

"Bubble!" Sam pointed and screamed as he walked up to the bathtub that had just been emptied of Adri's bath but still had bubbles that had yet to go down the drain.

The excitement in his voice and the anticipation in his eyes as he waited for my response was priceless.

"Yay, Sammy! That's right! Bubble!!!" I excitedly said back to him, clapping.

His eyes lit up and a humongous, joyous grin stretched across his face. He repeated bubble again and again, getting Adri to join in the fun too. This was the first real word he had used with zero guidance, the first real word that meant something to both he and I, one that had a real world connection and wasn't just a babble.

His vocabulary is growing daily, although I think most of the words are only ones that Matt, Adri, and I can understand. He has now added light, more, hi, and bye. (I'm sure there are also more that just aren't coming to me at the moment.) My point is, this child is a talking machine!!! I didn't think this would be possible given that he is with Adri and I all day long and who can get a word in edgewise with the two of us? :) He has managed to learn and use these words instead of always letting his sister speak for him (which is one of her very favorite things to do.)

One of Sam's new "cute" tricks is to walk up to people (or say it while he's in the cart and we pass) and say "Ayyyye", which means hi and then walk away and go on to the next person. He also loves to say "buh", meaning bye as he waves at people walking away (sometimes even chasing them so that Mommy has to catch him). He just loves attention and is quite the comedian when he sees that people will laugh at him. (Like Father's Day when he decided to take a drink out of the hose, got a mouth full of water, felt like he couldn't breathe, and ended up scaring himself. He saw us all laughing so he continued this activity over and over until the novelty wore off.

Yesterday was our monthly sleepover. Our friends came to our house this month and we had lots of activities planned to tire out the children. We started out at Meijer Gardens, but unfortunately the water table is STILL closed and no one seems to know when it will finally be opened again. Since it was over 90 degrees, muggy, and we could barely breath outdoors, we decided to head to the mall to play. This went over very well with the kids, who were red faced and sweating when we left due to running up and down the large hill by the horse. (I did say we were trying to tire them out.) :)

When we got home we played outside for awhile longer. We were going to eat outdoors, but the storm was beginning to roll in at that time. Unfortunately the storm also made us cancel our plans of attending a park concert. Fortunately for us, we have genius children who decided to entertain themselves and spent a couple of hours jumping, running, and acting crazy while listening to "Yo Gabba Gabba". Their greatest fun included jumping on the air mattress that occupied our living room and acting crazy until they finally laid down, tired out.

We were really sad to see them leave today and can't wait for our July sleepover...Sleepovers with four children under 4 (3 of them under 3) is ALWAYS an adventure. One that we can't ever plan nor anticipate completely.

I'm on a mission...Think Mom will notice if I leave, Adri?

Doo, Doo, Doo...Just takin a walk. Never mind that it's in the middle of the street...

Oooh! Look! Flowers in the neighbors yard!

Adri, you know I watch EVERYTHING you do, right? (And then usually copy it)

Ok, I'm in charge today, I'll call all the shots. You go that way and I'll go this way.

Did you hear me? I said I was in charge!!! You go THAT way!

How about if I share my balloon with you Sam? Will that make you feel better? You do know that you'll never be in charge right? I'm the boss around these parts of the woods...

The look of trouble. Sam checks to make sure I'm watching before he runs back into the street...I have a feeling we're going to have our hands full with this little man. :)

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Happy Father's Day!!!

Happy Father's Day to our Dads, Grandpa's, and Great-Grandpas! You have all influenced us and we are grateful to have each of you in our lives!

Happy Father's Day Everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful day!