Big Changes!

There have been 2 major changes in the past 2 weeks around here - one of them will wait for the next post when hopefully I will have some updated pics to go along with it (the attic is now a livable space!), and the other involves the passing of the paci.  It's the end of an era folks!

We noticed over the past month or so that Owen was developing these red marks on his upper lip which I thought might be related to his incessant nighttime paci practice...but he just seemed so reliant on it that with all the other changes about to rain down on him (moving to a real bed, the imminent arrival of a baby brother) I was loathe to take away what he seemingly relied upon to sleep.  We have friends and family both who got rid of the pacis by telling their kids various stories along the lines of giving them  up to the "paci fairy" or giving them to Santa for the baby reindeer, or some such similar.  So we thought we could plant the seeds of O choosing to give his paci up to somebody and came up with a story about the "Chupon Pirates" (chupon = paci in spanish, and O has been super into pirates lately) and how they needed chupons for their boats and they leave behind treasure when they collect their chupon booty.  He didn't buy into it.  Anytime pirates came up over the next couple days (in books, at the park, etc) he would exclaim "no chupon pirate!"  We figured he just wasn't ready to give up the chupon.  Until a week later when we found out that his chupon had been cut out at daycare for nap times for the past several months and he was doing just fine with his naps. He kept insisting on them at home...the little stinker!  So, two Saturdays ago we cut out the paci cold turkey.  He asked for them at bedtime that night, but hasn't asked for them since.  It takes him a little longer to fall asleep than it used to...understandable.  Plus I think we managed to coincide all of this with him cutting his second molars...yay us.  I discovered he has one of them in on the top just this morning...I imagine the other 3 are not all that far behind.

I don't have many pictures from the past couple weeks.  I've been trying to get more video, which is hard seeing as he runs over to watch as soon as he realizes he is being taped...it makes for very short video clips.
But here is a rather longish one of him hanging out playing at the kitchen counter as I made dinner earlier this week.  This is pretty typical for pre dinner time around here!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone!  We've had a busy week here with a trip to the library last weekend, Good Friday spent baking muffins and painting, a big Easter egg hunt this morning and then a walk over to Lake Calhoun with a stop at the park and then Tin Fish for lunch...yum!  And some other things thrown in there too...

this boy will sit and read a book anywhere!

Builder Goose is a library book
favourite - we've had to check it out twice now!

Baking muffins with a two year old is not the cleanest task ever...he insisted on doing ALL of the stirring which meant a lot of batter randomly splattered around the kitchen!

"Owen mix!"

"I paint un arbol"  or at least his modern art version of a tree...

 Owen is big into wearing his glasses. I think because Dave and I both wear them...little does he know he's destined to have to wear them soon enough!  He insisted that Panda Bear and Puppy both have glasses, so I made a pair of paper ones for puppy and Panda Bear got to wear mine for the photo op.

"I'm an airplane!"

this was the best pic I could get at the park...he just wouldn't stay still long enough!

Owen's imagination play has really grown in the last month or so.  He makes up all sorts of little games and attributes random emotions to inanimate objects.  For example:

Owen: (eating peas at dinner) he's shy

Me: your pea is shy?

Owen: yah...and this one is scared.

Me: your pea is scared?  

Owen: yah

Also at dinner:

Owen: (with spoon in mouth) I'm a crocodile!

Me: oh, because you are biting your spoon?

O: yah, snap! snap!  (still biting the spoon) Now I'm a tiger!  Roar!

Me: whoa! you're a scary tiger!

O: (spoon held up to poke out the top of his head) Now I"m a parrot! 

Me: (no idea why a horn made of a spoon indicates a parrot, but understanding he is being all the animals from his peekaboo jungle book and blocks set we were playing with before dinner) Are you going to be an elephant next?

O: yah!  I'm an elephant! (spoon held against his nose like a trunk)

And a little story from 2 weekends ago when Dave was out of town:

 I swear 75% of the time Dave is out of town I have to deal with some sort of animal (usually a bat) in the house.  And it never happens when he is home.  O and I got up to have breakfast Sun morning, and O was sitting at the dining room table eating a pancake, I was in the kitchen making toast with my back to him, and he calls out "bird!"  I thought he was looking out the window and said something over my shoulder to him like "oh, that's nice, do you see a bird outside?"  and he just kept repeating "bird" and then kind of started to whimper.  I finally turned around and looked at him and said "is the bird outside or inside?"

  "bird" 

 "right, is it outside or inside?"  

"inside"

"where?" (it was in the living room and I couldn't see it from the kitchen, and it wasn't a bird, it was a bat)  then it came flying around doing some laps of the dining room and kitchen - dive bombed me once (or so it seemed...it probably wasn't actually that close, but man those things are fast!) so I ducked down behind the island and swatted at it with my cell phone (which happened to be the nearest thing to my hand as I ducked...I'm sure I was quite the sight), Owen was still in his booster seat kind of whimpering and scared, poor little guy...the thing had been flying around him I think while I was in the kitchen making toast!  I went over and grabbed him and we went outside and left the back door open...after about a minute the bat found its way outside and was gone.  Meanwhile Flax got out (which is fine) but ran into a neighborhood male cat and got in a hissing fight, and then the tom cat kept tormenting Flax and Dribble once they were back inside - he would walk up to the front porch windows and stair at them while they went ballistic hissing and clawing through the windows at him.  I had to chase him off 3 times before he finally left...it was like wild kingdom here that morning!  And poor Owen was a bit traumatized by the whole bat thing I think.  He wouldn't leave my side all morning when we were in the house, and the first thing he said to me when he woke up from his afternoon nap was "I scared bat".  Poor thing.  He seemed to be over it by the next day...until the next time Dave is out of town and we get another one!

Last of the snow

Some pictures from this past week, which I had hoped would be the last of the snow, but I was clearly wrong as it is snowing again today!  Oh Sunday, how you teased me with your 60sF/teensC temps!  By the end of Sunday, what had been 1.5 feet of snow coverage in the backyard had melted away in all but the shadiest areas.

stick - best outdoor toy around!

Snow: arguably Owen's favourite snack. He'll take it clean, or with extra dirt flavouring.

his middle name is actually Shackleton

Saturday, while Dave nursed his bout of food poisoning, O and I headed for a little walk "around" the block (in actuality I think we made it about 8 houses away and back...which still took us half an hour).

stopping for a quick photo op on the neighbour's stairs

requisite stick in hand

if you can't beat winter, join it!
Snow castle smashing is equally as fun as sand castle smashing!

Family Friday

Dave is on spring break this week, and I don't teach Friday's this semester, so we had a little "Family Friday" today.  Starting off, of course, with some quality book time in Owen's favourite chair!

On a side note, so you understand O's love of books, he has taken to sleeping with a small assortment of books in his crib.  After our pre bed story time, he insists on bringing some books into bed with him (the selection changes every week or so) so he can "read" on his own before he falls asleep.  I think in some ways he views the books as toys, similar to having his stuffed animals in the crib with him.  It's pretty cute, and I love that we are fostering a love of reading in him!

Our day continued with a little trip to Home Depot to get some trim and new stair treads, plus a new table saw for the attic refinishing project (which, by the way, I got completely painted over my spring break last week...it's looking awesome, and I can't wait to move our bedroom up there!!  Pics to follow once completion is, well, complete!)

Our little helper!  O got a lot of smiles from other customers as he "helped" Daddy push the cart of wood around!

Our day was topped off by a little post dinner play with the Woodsey family - part of our 30+ year old toy collection!

Note the blanket and pillow fort in the background.
The Woodsey family were moved there to "sleep" for the night.

And while these last pics are not part of our day, they deserve to be included, simply because they are hilarious, and who doesn't need a good laugh?!?  What started out as O just sitting nicely in his favourite chair, turned into this when he realized I was taking his picture...a little toddler boudoir...what a ham!

Lazy Sunday

Wake up in the late afternoon...well, actually Dave and I did get to sleep in until a whopping 8am this morning!  It was awesome!!!  We celebrated our 7 year anniversary last night and our friends Brian and Tiffany graciously offered to watch Owen overnight at their house so we could go out to a fancy dinner and then sleep in and go out for breakfast.  It was the first time Owen had spent the night away from both of us, and he did amazing!  He apparently headed to their stairs  to go up to the pack'n'play as soon as he heard the words "time for bed", then slept through until 6:45 or so and got up to have a nice pancake breakfast - all without a fuss!  Apparently he didn't miss us at all  ;)

Anyway, here are some pics from the past several lazy Sundays

O's new thing is laying down on the couch pillows
 (either on the couch or the floor) and pretending to sleep

and here's the fake shut eye!  I love that little cheek dimple of his!

can't even bother to sit up...epitome of lazy Sunday!

yup, I live in a household of sweet-ass bed head

Lazy Sunday post Saturday library trip

"whoa!"

weekend up north

Last weekend we headed up north to a VRBO cabin near Grand Rapids for a little winter getaway with some friends. It was great!  Full of winter fun - some snow angels, ice fishing, and of course the start of the Olympics!

one day he'll figure out how to get his thumbs in the
 thumb holes, then mittens won't look
so catty-wampus on him!

a little chilly out, but it's sunny, so no complaints!

headed out to check on Ben's fishing progress

the pint sized shovel was a favourite toy of the weekend

"Hi Mama!"

Owen insisted on wearing MJ's headband - very pretty

taking a break with Greta in front of the fire

the water is stiff

Two weekends ago we strolled over to the community rink to try out Owen's new helmet and skates!  And just in time too, before the deep freeze descended on us again - school's have been closed twice in the last week due to the temperatures!  Owen loved skating, and insisted on heading to see the "hockey" (there were 3 guys passing around a puck) on the rink with the boards.

skates on, helmet snapped...

let's go!

I got it Mom!

cruising with Dad

pretty good for the first time out!