LSU-v-A&M

Last weekend Jason and I were fortunate enough to get tickets to the LSU-v-A&M game in College Station.  We also were so grateful for family who volunteered to watch Reid (thanks, Papa, Mamere, and Aunt Kristen!).  I can't imagine taking our busy two year old, but someday it will sure be fun to teach him all about our alma maters.  One of our friends hosted a tailgate party, and we visited a few more before the big game.  Gameday, for our divided family:

Our tickets were right at the zero yardline, but we could see really well.  Jason was very easy to find, being the only purple and gold in a crowd of maroon...or was it the shorts?  Or the Cousin Eddie shoes?  Or the golfer hat?  The comments were priceless!

Ahhh...Aggieland!  I have missed you!

In true me fashion, I forgot to take pictures for the first two days of the trip (except for those three on my phone).  I saw Laura get hers out and it reminded me I'd taken none!  After sitting in on Dad's Sunday school lesson, we went to my parents' house to celebrate Mom's birthday.  Reid chased his cousin Alex all around, then they settled in at the piano for a little duet.

We tried our best to get a good picture of the three boys.  Ben and Alex very sweetly cooperated and attempted to get Reid to sit with them, but Reid was just too busy.  (Or should I say TWO busy?  Terrible twos!)

Instead, he wanted to keep throwing acorns in Grumpy's fountain.  Fascinating!

I'm so thankful that all of the grandparents are in good health.  We are blessed!  Each birthday that goes by is a reminder of just that.  I couldn't resist taking a picture of Mom with her new card.

The boys were quite excited about their cupcakes.  Reid, of course, didn't want to get his hands dirty, so he ate his with a fork.  He was very excited to sit at the kids' table with his own chair.

Then, it was back to the piano.  Ben investigated where the sound came out, Reid played a jingle, and Alex looked on.

We attempted to take a few family pictures, at Laura's request.  She's always been good about preserving memories while I attempt to stay out of all pictures ;)  Reid apparently takes after me and didn't want to sit for any of them. 

Laura, Matt, Alex, and Ben

The Thinker

Despite the humidity (how did we ever live in Houston??), Reid ran and played a ton.  His hair was plastered to his head, but he wanted to ride the trike.  Or maybe I should say, he wanted to be pushed on the trike, "Fast, fast!"

The Kirkhams played with the "flying turtles" Laura and I enjoyed as kids.  Still a unique toy...and they sure made things better back then.

Then it was off to the pond to feed the ducks and play on the playground.  

Alex drove Ben around for awhile...

And Reid wanted to swing...on every. single. swing.  

Our sweaty, surprise-filled, sweet, not-so-little guy :)

Toddlerhood

Pretty sure I've said it before, but the toddler "era" is always the one that has scared me the most about raising a kid.  Toddlers are like little cavemen.  They scream.  They don't use words.  The have big reactions.  They eat a limited diet.  ("Candies?  Cookies!  Cake!!" if given the choice.  Thank goodness I didn't offer sugar for the first year and a half or he might never eat ANYthing!)  But thankfully, there's also a blissfully happy side that makes me reminisce about my own childhood... that time where the most important thing you had to do was play.  Or when you were soooo happy just to be reunited with your favorite toy.  Or when Daddy would play "I'm gonna get you!" for the fiftieth time that day, and be genuinely happy about it.  Or where Mom cooked your favorite...again! 

Reid is discovering those neat little things in life right now that most of us don't bother to slow down for.  We went on a walk the other day and found a grasshopper.  You would've thought we won the lottery.  Reid has labeled every insect as "Bug! Bug!" so we are now attempting to actually give them a more descriptive name.  He can't really get "grasshopper," so it's a "hopper" for now...even cuter. So now, every time we go for a walk, he watches for hoppers and pumpkins, which he carefully counts each and every time. 

 We had a garage sale today.  Very unlike myself, I did not have anything labeled until this morning.  Aren't you proud?  I had laid out things for a few weeks, which made the guest room unavailable...it was glorious to "re-open" it today and actually see sunshine coming from that room again!  Reid enjoyed opening and slamming all the doors upstairs to match.  Jason was kind enough to hold down the fort here so we could do some cool weather shopping for Reid.  My sister has been so gracious in giving us her boys' clothes and toys as they've outgrown them...it's so fun to look on her blog and see her boys in Singapore or Australia wearing the outfits Reid enjoys now.  Thank you, Aunt Lala!!  The one and only area we seem to be short on is 2T long sleeve/pants so Reid and I went garage saleing today.  He was not a fan.  I still think he and Daddy have a deal going where he gets antsy so Mommy won't shop, lol ;)  We found an ever-important Chuck E. Cheese basketball and a little yellow Hummer, which was all he cared about, but I was more excited about the cute clothes.  Back at the homestead, he kept Daddy entertained in the backyard.  

 Unfortunately, picking flowers and leaves is a new favorite.  Thankfully, aside from our river birch, the plants don't seem to mind...but we do.  Not sure how to teach a two year old that it will kill the plant if he keeps it up, but I'm pretty sure I remember my Dad lecturing Laura and me about the same thing.  Payback!

 And as all boys do, he has grown a fondness for sticks.  Today, he discovered the joy of poking sticks through holes in the fence.  Oh, joy!!  Then, he had to see if pieces of stick did the same thing (no, they do not stay stuck in the fence when you let go), see if you could grab the stick from another hole (yes, but it won't bend), and step on virtually every plant we'd planted in the flowerbeds.  But it was cute!

Our neighborhood had a Fall Festival today.  Thought it was kind of early (and kind of odd, since the neighborhood-wide garage sale was today, too), but we figured it's about time for Reid to experience one of these events.  Or maybe I should rephrase...  After a nap, Jason and I decided we were rested enough to chase after him at one of these events.  Sadly, the choo choo train broke down and we only got to sit on it, but Reid loved the bouncy houses, inflatable slides, and generally running around in a big, open field with lots of people.  There was a petting zoo that we figured he'd love.  He was very interested in the pony, but screamed, "Noooo!" just as it was his turn to get on.  So we went into the caged petting zoo area.  I thought it'd be cute to video it, but Jason was sidetracked talking football with a friend, and I realized I'd be missing out on real life just to video.  Kinda short, but cute.  Plus, the goats started head-butting the bunnies and I didn't want Reid to be next...   Reid was totally enthralled with the duck and chased him around for awhile.  He also loved the furry bunnies, but isn't so good at being gentle.  We are still practicing with Dixie at home...

Reid (finally!) loves animal noises.  Maybe it's because I tried teaching him from six months on....or maybe it's just because he decided he liked them.  Yep, most definitely the latter.  Everything these days is about choices.  So most of the time, it's total "Love and Logic" around here:  Would you like to brush your teeth now, or later?  Which outfit would you like to wear?  Do you want to park your cars here, or there?  I'm all about giving choices, but hopefully not turning things into a power struggle.  But I digress... The animal noises are pretty darn funny.  I was a little disappointed that you couldn't hear all of them here, but lately he's come up with an interesting sound for a tiger. 

So of course, we've been working on "Gig 'em, Aggies!"  Guess it's too many syllables most of the time, so I usually settle for "Go, Aggies!"  I'll take what I can get.  In the meantime, between power struggles, I sometimes feel like a normal person! 

Jason and I went out to dinner with Randy and Reema (middle, below) at Mi Piaci...arguably the best Italian in Dallas.  We had a fabulous table overlooking the water for birthdays--mine was Saturday and Randy's was Sunday.  One of Jason and Randy's co-workers took good care of us with the table.

I wish I'd have taken pictures of each course because they were gorgeous and delectable.  Here was my heirloom tomato salad, drizzled with balsamic and served in a parmesan basket.  The picture really does not do it justice, but you can get a general idea.

 But the dessert tray (compliments of that work buddy) and complimentary champagne stole the show.  It was beautiful and delicious!

 Later, we joined the party Reema had arranged for Randy.  Fun times, karaoke, dancing with astronauts...what else could you ask for?

I am also quite thankful for my MNOs (Mom's Night Out) with my playgroup girls.  It was a small group the last time we had dinner, but very fun.  There is definitely something to be said for time with other elementary teachers, who have a kid(s) your own kid's age, where we can gab all we want.  Love this group!

And then it's back to the craziness, luke when your two year old decides a plastic bag is his new favorite toy.  Um, no.  At least he thought it was hilarious!

Dixie has become a permanent fixture on the couch lately, especially when Reid is in bed.  But she'll stick it out on occasion.  We often have the entire family on the couch (until Mommy wants a picture!).  I was finally brave enough to let Reid have popcorn...the kernels and choking hazard part have always scared me.  But he loves it, and so do we.  Enjoying a little football with Daddy...

This kiddo reeeeally needs a haircut, but I do NOT have the strength yet to even think about attempting another one after how horrid the last one was!!  He looked awfully cute on Sunday after church...after the, "No jacket! No socks!!" battle. 

"T" (teddy lovey) has become a must-have once again.  I was much happier to say goodbye to T in the mornings and not see him until bedtime since the germs on him freak me out.  Ick!  But some battles just aren't worth fighting, especially in the mornings...  Many mornings, I am totally wiped out before I even get us in the car to go to work.  I've gotten up earlier, gotten him up earlier/later, laid out clothes and diaper the night before, etc. etc. etc.  Nothing seems to help.  We always end up running later than anticipated for a different reason each day.  But how can you resist this face?

One of my absolute favorite things, though, is watching him sleep.  There is just something so sweet and innocent about a sleeping child...no matter how crazy the day!  We found him an adorable pair of firetruck pj's at Sam's recently.  Not sure if we actually got them for him, or for us...to hear the cute siren noise and see the excitement on his face when we pull them out!  Our video monitor died two weeks ago and it has been torture trying to imagine what's going on.  But we survived a night with him falling out of bed, a week of coughing, and even a night where the dinosaur audio monitor popped out of the plug unbeknownst to us.  We ordered a "cheapie" video monitor to tide us over--it has been a pain to figure out and definitely does not have the bells and whistles the last one had, but it'll do for now.  Wish I could steal a shot like this every night (or two nights ago, like when he was halfway in the bed and halfway out), but I'll take what I can get.  We are so blessed :)

Cans and Cannots

Reid is full of surprises.  He amazes us each day with more and more things he can do and say.  He now knows all of his upper and lower case letters, plus his numbers to 10.  He loves playing with the fridge phonics toy, so I'm guessing sounds aren't too far behind.  What a kindergarten teacher's dream ;)  I sure hope his love of reading books continues, too!

The terrorizing Dixie phase has mostly passed, thankfully.  She still keeps an eye (or two!) on him and gave him a swat the other day when he got too close and ignored her growls and hisses.  She's declawed, so of course it didn't hurt him, but the shock factor was hysterical.  Here's a mischievous little grin as he plots his next move...a Dixie hug that she wasn't too fond of.

 Reid is totally obsessed with stickers right now.  He normally HATES them.  Starting in June or so, we'd go to Kroger and they'd always have the cute "I've been Krogering" stickers and the nice checkers would ask if he'd like one.  I tried to put one on him and he flipped out, so we've passed ever since.  But I discovered some sparkly Cars stickers at school  two weeks ago, and he's been bonkers about them.  He likes them SO much that last night (and Saturday at nap time), he just had to go to sleep with his sticker masterpieces.  The crumpliness made quite a racket, but when I went in to take them away, he cried.  Naturally, we had to take a picture.  By the time Jason got the camera, he was giggling.

He still cannot make great food choices.  I have discovered that if I allow him to pick part of his meal, he seems to be more willing to eat it.  But then there are days like this where it backfires! 

It's kind of infuriating because he'll eat a lot more things when he's at Holli's, like strawberries, banana, canned pears and peaches, etc.  So I never really know what to pack him for lunch, nor do I know how much since he eats like a bird at home, yet chows down over there.

Something else he cannot do is blow bubbles.  It's kind of funny, yet kind of sad at the same time.  I keep thinking if I can get him to blow bubbles, maybe I can get him to blow his nose one of these days...  Other kids (girls!) in the nursery at church could do it, and in the midst of allergy season it sure would be helpful!

This weekend was Henry's fifth birthday party.  I was too busy chasing Reid around the rock climbing place to take any pictures, but Aimee posted this cute one on Facebook. When Reid woke up from his nap, I told him we were going to Henry's birthday party.  Immediately, he said, "Cake?" (guess he's made the connection from books we've read?) so I told him we would have a cupcake.  Then entire car ride was then filled with, "Cupcake! Cupcake!"

It's always fun to see what he will come up with next.  It may be the terrible twos, but it's also the terrific twos, and we are so thankful for our little gift from God.

Photo Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Photo Book Tip: Create an adventurous travel photo album at Shutterfly.com.

Ugh.

Oh, where to begin...  The first two weeks of school were insane, of course.  But I could feel all the prayers (thank you!!), especially on that first day!  On top of that, a furry member of our family said goodbye to this world and went on to Kitty Heaven.  It was a horrible decision to make and the vet made me feel awful ("Don't you want to do x-rays? We have medicine that can fix that..." etc.  Yeah...because I want to extend his misery longer than 12 yrs!), but I truly think it was the right thing to do for Samson and for our family.  He was pretty pitiful on his last day, so it was honestly a relief.  It felt like I was at the vet for an eternity--at least three hours--but when I came back to reality with an empty carrier, I looked at the clock in my car and somehow I'd only been inside for 45 minutes.  Talk about emotionally draining!  And then the first thing Reid said when I came home was, "Mommy home!  Samson home!"  Sorry, kiddo, it's the end of an era.

 Since then, Dixie has received the full brunt of Reid's "attention."  We have had a little trouble getting Reid to walk (rather than run full force) toward the cats, to use a quiet voice (he insists on screaming this annoying high-pitched shriek), and to be gentle.  So understandably, Dixie is not Reid's biggest fan.  Samson put up with it pretty well until the last two weeks...  Other than that, Dixie has been extra friendly and demands a lap to sit on anytime Reid is not in sight.

School is finally settling into a groove this week.  It is nice to not have morning duty, lunch duty, recess duty, AND after school duty every. single. day.  And we finally started work stations, so our day is more "normal".  I am overall impressed so far...I have some great kiddos, nice group of parents who volunteer and donate needed items, and have been pleasantly surprised with things that are usually awful...like our first trip to the computer lab on Friday--normally a complete nightmare (think logging kindergarteners in with a six digit username and 'redfish' as the password--twice--just to get to Istation!!) but I was so proud of them!  And my little friend this year with no arms, just born with a "nubbie" (1/3 of her upper arm), has amazed me.  She can write and color with her feet/toes.  I have a feeling we will all learn as much from her as she learns from me :)  I haven't been able to help her nearly enough with 17 other little bodies to help, but I'm hoping for more help one of these days, especially since we've now totally delved into academic stuff and even have progress reports coming out already next week!

On top of all of this, Reid is sick.  Not sure if it's a cold, virus, croup, beginnings of something else...Holli had to call me at school to let me know his temperature was headed up and the coughing was awful.  I have survived on an average of 2-3 hours of sleep for the past 3 nights, so part of me is kind of relieved that we will both be home tomorrow.  Getting sub plans ready so fast was not relieving, though, and I have no idea who my sub will be--always a scary thought in kindergarten.  That's one of the worst parts about teaching.  When you have to be out, it takes waaaay more planning than if you're actually there :(

On Sunday, I wanted to make a cute, special picture to send all the grandparents via email or Facebook, but SOMEone didn't feel like obliging.  This was the best we could do after two hours, and yes...not exactly anywhere near what I had in mind. 

 Reid was awful that afternoon and totally wore us out.  So it's more of a happy belated Grandparent's Day, but I hope you at least enjoy some of the pics.  We love you, Grandma Penny, Papa, Mamere, Grammy, and Grumpy!  Reid prayed for each one of you that night and we are thankful for your love!!

Most of the attempted pictures were blurry from being unintentional action shots, but this one was pretty darn cute.  He kept at that speed for a full two hours.  Jason and I realized that we are very out of shape!

 A rare moment where he actually stood still...

 And then it was off to other fun things like stripping leaves off of the trees...

Or inspecting crab apples...

And Daddy finally convinced him to hold hands while we hiked back to find the stroller.

Is this really our two year old??  I know he was in the 97th percentile in height at his two year checkup, but he looks more like most three year olds!  Growing way too fast, but we are very thankful.

 But a happy note in the past couple of weeks would be our first family visit to Marble Slab.  Reid was soooo excited about the "candies" (he loves M&M's) that he didn't mind the ice cream too much.  And he even enjoyed pieces of my waffle bowl (dipped in chocolate, of course!).  We all had a yummy treat and loved watching Reid run around and look at all the cakes, ice cream, and mix-ins.  Next time, we'll have to try gelato ;)