bliss!

This morning, no one came into the room to get me, no one patiently disassembled his own baby gate and climbed into bed with a sunny "Hi Mommy let's play toys" or demanded chocolate milk. I could hear Dennis telling David all those things in another part of the house, but they let me sleep blessedly late. When I got up, I discovered that David had locked the door so that Dennis couldn't come and wake me up before I was ready. How sweet was that? I enjoy my morning visits from Dennis, sure, but it was certainly wonderful to have some time to myself, some time to get as much sleep as I wanted to get. Major Daddy points were earned, for sure.

water works

Dennis has figured out how to operate the ice and water dispensers on the refrigerator at the lake house and kept getting water in his little mug to pour into his other little mug in his play kitchen. He missed often and dumped a load of water on the floor, so I set him up on a chair at the sink and taught him to turn on the cold water and play dump-the-cup in the sink instead of on the floor. He happily played at this game for a long long time before his Daddy got unnerved and made him get down. We distracted him with a gumbo supper (where he insisted on eating ALL of the sausage out of ALL of our bowls) and then we played with the Thomas Train setup for the remaining time before bed. I brushed his teeth tonight with actual fluoride toothpaste tonight and attempted to teach him to spit it out, and we found ourselves covered in water and giggling, him and I, until I turned off the sink and dried us off. Gosh he's growing up so fast. He cried for awhile after I put him to bed and his Daddy went in to see why the first time (he wanted the pacifier) and I went in the second time because he specifically called "Mommy come in here now please please". I asked him what was wrong and he said "It dark in here--it's scary I want flashlight". I was shocked at his very grown-up manner and request, and I brought him a nightlight and he said "thank you for helping me Mommy" just as plainly and clearly as could be.

pretty smart conclusion

After hearing the question a hundred times today "Where's Gran?", I told him she was with Gigi and Pop in Florida. He thought about it for a minute and said "Gran go to Gigi's house and to the beach?" (which is what we did last weekend). I don't know how to explain to him that she's in Orlando rather than Destin, so I just agreed. I know that he's two years old and it's too soon in his young life to attempt a trip to Disney World, but somewhere in my heart it hurts a tiny bit that his grandparents went there without him. Rationally, I know I shouldn't feel that way, but I do. I want Dennis to experience the best of everything as soon and as often as possible.

We had a nice evening with Steve and Ju-Ju tonight at the lake house--he loves them so much! It's been so great to see them as often as we have this summer. Tonight on the way home from the lake, I asked Dennis if he wanted to go to Wal-Mart, and he said "No, not go Wal-Mart, we go home go night night Mommy". That's his Daddy's son!

he got me!

This morning as I stumbled bleary-eyed into the kitchen, I checked my watch and discovered that the "Hey Mommy, good morning, need some chocolate milk" call had come much earlier than usual. I don't love getting up at 6:25, but I did it. He followed me into the kitchen, cute in his pajamas, little bare feet actually pitter-pattering on the hard floors. I heard a suppressed giggle and then I felt a large spray of cold water on my back. I squealed and turned around to find him holding the spray bottle of water than I use on my hair, and he was spraying me mightily with it, laughing maniacally while he did it. Though it was startling and cold (and a cruel thing to do to the not-awake person fixing his breakfast at the time), I had to stop and laugh with him. He got me good!

cranky kid

After a morning of Dennis-directed play, I loaded him up in the car to go and rescue David from work (he'd locked his keys in his car). As soon as we left the driveway he fell asleep! He spent the morning watching me bake pear cakes and chocolate oatmeal cookies to send with Gran and Pop on their trip, and he was TIRED after all that complaining about the stand mixer. I don't think he's afraid of it anymore, though, and that's progress. We all went to Gran's and Pop's place to help them get ready for the trip, and Dennis took a long nap there. When he woke two hours later, he wanted to run and play and give Gran lots of hugs and kisses, none of which was possible. Gran's and Pop's place has a load of Uncle Denny's electronic stuff spread all around, not suitable for toddler play, and Gran has a cold and is herself not suitable for hugs and kisses at the moment. Dennis was miserable, so we took him home where he complained and tried our patience for the hours until bedtime. Sometimes it's a good thing he's so cute. As irritated as I might be, one little hug and a "Hey, Mommy" in his sweet toddler voice accompanied by a big smile changes my mood instantly to a happy one. He's a little darling, for sure.

the diaper rash blues

We're having another one of those weeks where we have to chase Dennis down to change his diaper. He screams "there's a rash down there" and it hurts him when we wipe him down, so he eludes us and acts sneaky about a full diaper (like it isn't obvious to several of our senses when his diaper is loaded). It's particularly bad this week, and day two after returning from our vacation, we have been through all his bedding up to and including the quilt, pillow, and mattress pad. To put it delicately, he's having some digestive issues, the kind that run down his leg. David and I are in a perpetually grossed out state, but we're sure it'll most likely pass by tomorrow (no pun intended there).

home again home again

Despite my hopes that he'd sleep late this morning, he popped awake before 7. We certainly had a good time on our vacation. And tonight we learned one of those important tenets of child-rearing. A funeral is no place for a toddler, and since we knew this, we thought we'd go to the viewing instead. David's uncle's mother passed away (she was not actually related to him, but we went to show support for Uncle Steve) and the viewing was tonight up in Sumiton, Alabama. Dennis nearly went bonkers having to endure another long car ride after riding all the way back from the beach yesterday, and he enjoyed a rather incredible supper at the barbecue joint up there, but when we got to the funeral home it was like we'd released a Tasmanian devil. He was everywhere in seconds, greeting his relatives, giving Uncle Steve a big hug, and running running running. He and I spent a good chunk of our time up there closeted in the funeral home's snack room, watching episodes of Thomas the Train and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on my laptop. Periodically, someone would ask to see him and we'd make the walk back to the chapel, where he'd greet and hug and run and giggle, and pretty soon we'd be back in isolation. I suppose he was as good as he could be--no big huge tantrums or anything--but it was a relief to him when we loaded back up in the car to head home. Thanks to his Grandma for driving us and treating us to dinner and for being ever so patient with his two-year-old antics!

best day at the beach

The weather was perfect, sunny and breezy and not very hot, and we were very glad because this is the day we had planned to go to the beach. We didn't get there as early as we planned because the Mitchell family needed an after breakfast nap this morning. The youngest Mitchell has been getting up extremely early in the mornings and we ALL needed more sleep! But when we got up after our naps, we loaded up, sunscreened up, and headed to Henderson State Park. This park has a beautiful beach and very nice pavilions for changing clothes (good restrooms, too). Since school started here today, we had the beach almost to ourselves!

I have never had a more perfect day at the beach than I did today. I have always been too hot or too sunburned or been bothered by crowds, sand, seaweed, jellyfish, or some other kind of bother. Not today, though--no big waves, no seaweed, perfectly clear water with no jellyfish! Dennis helped his Daddy fly his new Elmo kite and then we all went for a float/swim in the ocean. Dennis had fun hopping from float to float and later actually waded into the water on his own and took off by himself to float and paddle around (which I let him do for approximately 10 seconds while I watched in amazement as my child actually and voluntarily swam on his own before I scooped him up and held onto him). Dennis and David built a super sand castle, or sand garage rather (since Dennis used it to house his dump trucks). We stayed two hours and could have stayed longer even, and this surprised me because Dennis has such a limited timespan in which to stay new places these days. We left to go eat, and the only way we were able to convince Dennis to leave was to promise a hamburger!

We lunched at Cheeseburger in Paradise where we all enjoyed hamburgers. Dennis ate his way through two bowls of mandarin oranges and ate two mini burgers. Much to my delight, this place offered Chocolate Nachos, possibly one of the most perfect desserts I've ever had the pleasure of eating. We stuffed ourselves, did some brief outlet shopping, stopped at a winery, and then headed back to Gigi's to pack the car for the trip home. On the drive to her place, we passed a fire station where the firemen were outside with the truck, so we stopped and she asked if Dennis could see the fire truck. They happily showed him around and set him up in the driver's seat, and he could not have been happier! He cried big tears when we made him get back in the car but got happy again when we stopped to search for a geocache near Gigi's place. He loved opening the 'treasure box' and chose a small plastic Goofy as his prize. What a wonderful vacation it has been! We had so much fun, as Dennis sleepily announced when we got home. Thanks Gigi for such a great time.

swimming at Turkey Creek

If we had handed Dennis a vacation catalog and asked him to pick out what to do, he could not have chosen better than what Gigi had planned for us today! First we went to Turkey Creek, a park with a very very long fenced-on-both-sides boardwalk where Dennis got to run and run as much as he wanted to ("we go FAST Mommy"). There are numerous swimming platforms along the boardwalk, but we chose to walk all the way to the end and swim there. The water was refreshingly cold, which was wonderful since we had worked up some heat with the long walk. I thought Dennis might fuss at the cold, but he seemed to like it. The current unnerved him a bit--we'd tow him upstream a little and release him for someone standing a little ways away in the water to snag him as he came rocketing by. He tried to paddle around and go where he wanted to, but the water is fast-moving and he learned to swim along with it. He didn't swim for too long before he said "want to go on the dock now" and we all got out and dried off and walked the long walk back. We stopped at a little preserve to see a deer family with a newborn fawn and then we headed back to Gigi's place for a delicious lunch and a long nap.

Next we were off to the Best. Playground. Ever. It's called Children's Park, and there are MANY play structures scattered around a very big area with decks and picnic tables overlooking them, and best of all, a large area of big structures that sprayed water all over happy children! When Dennis got in the gate, he took off running, trying to see and do everything as fast as he possibly could. He pushed a button on a big tower and a big flood of bubbles came flying out of the top, and he pushed up on another metal structure and heard a train whistle (and he had to repeat both actions many times). He climbed and ran and played in water for over an hour before he began to tire and stumble around, and we dragged him screaming away from the park. When we got in the car he said "I had so much FUN!". Back to Gigi's we went, for a very incredible steak and crab and salad and sweet potato dinner, and pretty soon Dennis was off to bed, dreaming about the perfect toddler vacation day.

on the road again!

Tonight we're in Niceville, Florida visiting Gigi. It's so nice to be on vacation together. Dennis got a bit bored on the drive down, but he was happy enough to watch a couple of movies on his portable DVD player. He talked to us about going to the park and going to the beach, and he was very excited to see Gigi when we got here. We ate a lovely seafood casserole supper and he played with a special new toy from Gigi--a Mr. Potato Head Clone Tuber (like a Star Wars storm trooper--very cute). He went right to sleep after supper and I'm certain we won't be far behind.

welcome little ones

Dear Hadden and Katelyn,

Happy Birthday! Welcome to life outside the womb! You certainly surprised us all with your early arrival, and so many people who already love you are praying that you will both continue to thrive and grow. You have been two eagerly anticipated babies and I know that Dennis can't wait until you get big enough for him to play with you both. He probably won't be having any siblings and we hope that he'll be close to you guys. Little guys, you have two incredible parents and I know that you will enjoy growing up under their care, at least until you are teenagers. I am excited to get to meet you even sooner than planned. I have known your mommy for many many years and think that she is one incredible woman, and when I met your daddy a few years back, I was instantly a huge fan. He is the funniest person I have ever met, and I laugh more in his presence than with anyone else. They are certainly going to need that sense of humor with you two running around, and I can only imagine the fun and good times that your family will have together in the coming years. We are looking forward to spending lots of time with you and seeing how your personalities develop, and Dennis is ecstatic to have two brand new friends. He'll meet you as soon as you are able! Grow in love, little guys, and know that SO many people love you and are pulling for you. Gain weight, grow bigger, stay healthy, and come home from the hospital as soon as you can. There's a great big world out there, and it's all yours for the discovery.

Much much love from our family to yours,
"Aunt" Christi (or whatever title you deem me worthy to hold)

swan dive

I absolutely can't turn my head, EVER! He was performing acrobatics on the footboard of our new log bed as I was running to stop him. He flipped over the end and did a very beautiful unplanned dive straight onto our concrete floor. It SCARED ME TO PIECES. And he cried and cried and has a very gnarly couple of bruises on his forehead. We called the doctor and learned what to watch for, which we didn't see, and we put him to bed tonight hoping all was well. After I laid here for an hour in my bed, I kept imagining his brain swelling and terrible things happening, so I went in to get him and bring him to our bed. He climbed on us for two hours, flinging himself onto us violently while he was trying to sleep, and then he woke up and said "I want to go to Dennis' bed and go night night". We complied. He's apparently fine, thank God.

happy birthday to Laine

Today we went to visit Dennis' cousin Laine and party at her 6th birthday party. Those lucky kids got to play on a big inflatable water slide and also got to eat lunch with Barbie. Dennis and Chloe had a big time partying with the older kids, and Mommy and Ellen enjoyed getting to meet the newest cousin Jeff, who is a six month old cutie pie! The party went great and Dennis and Chloe napped hard on the way back to the lake house, but much mayhem ensued for the rest of the afternoon. There were two very worn out, very fried mommies after the afternoon we had with the two of them. Tomorrow will be a rest day for sure!

the last swim class

Dennis had his very last Water Babies class tonight, and we and the teacher are relieved that it's over! He had a good time, and he learned a good bit, but if I'd heard him scream "NOOOO!" one more time, I don't know what I would have done. I feel a bit safer in the water with him now, and I have watched him swim himself up to the surface without anyone holding him, reach up, grab the side of the pool, and climb out all by himself. Not too bad for a two year old. Thanks, Miss Donna, ever so much for your patience.

i met the mayor!

Curves had its open house today, and I went and helped out (I'm kind of the star member these days, and I showed pictures of myself last summer when I was 75 pounds heavier--we were trying to get some new members to join!). I also, for the first time ever, donated blood today. It wasn't so bad. After finding out with Dennis' birth that my blood is O positive, David made me feel pretty guilty for not ever giving blood before! After I donated blood and helped set up the luncheon at Curves, David and Dennis showed up. David went to give blood, and Dennis came in to Curves and had some cake, chips, and grapes. He was delighted, and he 'worked out' on all the machines there. He ran around, climbing up and down everything like a little monkey. The mayor and the chamber of commerce folks were at Curves for the ribbon cutting (grand reopening today for the new owner), and Dennis went up to everyone and said "hi how you doing?". He was very social and had the best time. I wish we had one of those baby gyms around here so that I could take him to 'work out' on stuff designed for him. We've asked Santa to bring a baby treadmill (check the Toys 'R Us website--SO cute) for him. And we checked a video out of the library called Elmocize since he showed interest in my workout videos (something I do several times a week, much to his entertainment). He did dance around a bit, but I think he felt a bit self conscious about it. I'm hoping to set a good example for him.

so bossy

After we left church this morning, he announced to me "want to go to lake house and go swimming." I told him that we were going home because Daddy wanted to go home (and Daddy had to go back to work after lunch). He said "no, we go lake house" and I argued back with him that we were in fact going home. He said "Daddy go lake house--I TELL Daddy". But we didn't go to the lake house after all. He didn't seem too very disappointed, as he spent lots of time playing with his toys.

too much information

Allison spent the night with David, Dennis, and me at the lake last night, and we had a fun evening together. This morning we got up and went to swim class and Allison went with us again. When it was over, we stopped and got barbecue sandwiches and Dennis' favorite beverage (Bug Juice) to take back down for lunch. We sat down at the table with Gran and she asked Dennis how his swim class went. He thought for a minute and then said "I went swimming. My penis was cold." What do you say to that? We all stared at each other, secretly wondering if he really said what it sounded like he said, but we all heard the same thing.

a better swim experience

Water Babies class was much easier tonight--Dennis only screeched "NOOOOO!" half as many times as he did last week. He was happy to chase the rubber duck around the pool, swimming very well with his arms and legs (held up by Mommy, of course). He climbed out all by himself a few times, and he nearly jumped in. I don't know why I expected him to jump into the pool since he still can't jump up and down. Instead, he kind of leaned over into the pool into my waiting arms. Allison went with us tonight and I'm sure the teacher was relieved that he was in a better mood this week. We didn't tell him we were going to swim class until just before we got there, and he'd had a nap and a snack just before. I used every Mommy trick in the book to try and encourage a happy experience. I think he likes the class, I just think he wants to make the decisions himself rather than being told what to do. When the teacher asked him if he wanted to go under water, he stopped yelling and said "okay" and looked at her and waited for her to dunk him. He did great!

Tonight we were making fruit baskets for a picnic/memorial service that we're going to tomorrow and Dennis sampled watermelon and strawberries and grapes. He probably would have kept eating and eating if bedtime hadn't arrived! He kept saying "want more watermelon!". The way he says watermelon cracks me up--it sounds like "wah-mewwon".

afraid of the dark

We sat out on the screened porch in the dark tonight, and Dennis said "is it scary?" many times before we figured out what he was saying. He said "it's dark out here" and we said yes, and he asked again "is it scary? dark is scary", and we told him that yes, it was dark, and no, it wasn't scary. We talked about how nice the nighttime is with the moon and the stars and the sounds of the crickets. He said "oh, okay". He had a late night since we came home near 11 and he stayed awake in the car and talked to me the whole way home. We had a dance party in the car as I often listen to dance music late at night, and he said "you dance, Mommy" and I complied as well as I could while still endeavoring to drive safely. He belly-laughed and then danced a little in his car seat. He's such a fun little guy.

taste of summer

We spent a day at the lake again, not really for fun, but to get some work done at Uncle Denny's place. David worked a marathon day trying to get everything wired in before the sheetrock is installed, which should begin tomorrow. It's near midnight and he's still going. Big day! Dennis got to take a walk to the marina store to buy ice cream and M&M's--the picture shows him enjoying a Bomb Pop. He did a very good job with it, though halfway through it I had to wrap a paper towel around the stick to prevent blue drips everywhere. Later on, he picked up a fork, wrapped a paper towel around the end and announced "here's a popsicle, Mommy, eat it, it's delicious!". I pretended to eat, of course.

Tonight he said "Daddy work up there build Uncle Denny's house, right Mommy?" and I told him yes, that was correct. He contemplated this for a minute and said "where's Uncle Michael?". I suppose he remembers when we were all working on the place, including Uncle Michael.

abominable fear

Dennis wanted to watch Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer today (we're still having a little leftover Christmas in July, I guess). He found the video and asked to watch it, so I put it in and we snuggled together on the couch. He excitedly pointed out "there's SANTA, Mommy" and "look at deer". I was thinking how much fun it was to watch something with him from my own childhood. All of a sudden, we were watching Rudolph and Kirby and Yukon Cornelius travel through the snow when they encountered the Abominable Snowman. The Abominable Snowman scared Dennis to pieces. He immediately started crying and got down and hid behind the couch until he went off screen. I was flabbergasted, having never seen Dennis get afraid of anything like this before. I didn't even make the connection to what he was crying about right away. The creature came back on-screen and Dennis ran again and said "come on, Mommy, we get out of here" and urged me repeatedly to leave the room. I tried to tell him that it was just a movie and that the snowman actually became friendly, but he wailed and wailed and covered his face with his hands. In hindsight, why in the world did I not just turn off the movie? I wanted him to see Abominable helping the elves decorate the tree at Santa's place, so I urged him to come back to the couch. He was happy watching Santa and the elves and the reindeer, but when Yukon and Abominable ("Bumble", Yukon calls him) showed back up, Dennis was out of the room in a flash. Dennis had to take a nap after this (much eye rubbing and yawning ensued), and I didn't want him to have nightmares, so I settled him in bed with Mickey Mouse playing on his portable DVD player and left the light on. He was sleeping peacefully when I checked on him a little later. This is one movie we'll be putting away for a few years, I suppose.

Today while I was waiting for Curves to open back up after lunch, I went to the flea market next door and was delighted to see a Little Tikes gas pump. I hoped against hope it would be $5 or less (the amount of money I had with me at the time) and could not believe my luck when I saw $1 on the tag!! It's kind of beat up and the stickers are mostly gone and torn, but the gas nozzle and hose are just fine. Dennis was beside himself when he saw it (I brought it to the lake house with me when I went to pick him up, and where we are right now) and asked "where's the car? I put gas in it". So now I can't wait til we get it home and he gets to try it out with the Little Tikes car, which actually has a gas cap and place where the gas nozzle will fit. Maybe I can teach him early not to drive off accidentally with the gas hose still in the tank (as I did one horrible and embarrassing time).

just when you think they aren't watching

Dennis caught me in a feminine beauty ritual today. I was tweezing the single gnarly black hair that occasionally grows under my chin (YUCK, I know, I hate the thing and usually tweeze it when it's a millimeter long!). I did not know Dennis was watching me until I actually got the thing to come free and I said aloud "aha!" as I usually do. Dennis said "you got it! Does that feel better Mommy?". How humiliating...

mommy's migraine

We went to church this morning and all was fine, and we went afterward to enjoy some Mexican food for lunch. Listening to Dennis say "chicken quesadilla" is a highlight, of course--it's fairly correct the way he says it, but very very cute just the same. He and I both took naps when we got home and I began to feel progressively worse as the day passed. After he woke up, he spent quality time with his Daddy, playing, reading, and watching movies. I missed them and went in to visit a time or two, and each time Dennis said "come and play, Mommy, sit here, play fire truck and trains". Each time I felt too bad to do it and hated to disappoint him. Later, much later, I went in to his room and watched him sleep. I lifted him off his bed and into my lap for a snuggle (he never woke up) and I whispered to him how much I loved him and how we'd play tomorrow. Often when I'm with him, I long for a break, but then, when I get a break, I wonder if I missed out on time with him that I'll never have again. He is growing up so fast, and I want to savor every minute. This is not actually possible, of course, but I am doing my best.

a baby shower!

We started the morning listening to Dennis singing that "Miss Donna had a farm, E-I-E-I-O", so I presumed he would be excited about going to swim class and seeing Miss Donna again. And as soon as we got to the gym, he began dancing about and saying "We go swimming, Mommy, we go swimming!!". We got inside and he pointed to the pool and saying "look at the water, Mommy, LOOK! We go swimming!". And sat by the side of the pool and then he said "NO!" when we asked him if he was ready to get in. Sad. He was very protesting about everything today, but he did go underwater today and had no trouble with it at all. He even learned how to safely jump off the side (not that he did) and swim back to the wall and climb out. He could have jumped in under his own power today, but he didn't seem to want to.

After swim class, he protested his way through the grocery store and then endured a drive to the lake house. We actually had some nice conversations about animal sounds and counted together. I left him at the lake when he was down for a nap, with Dave there to watch him and Chloe. Ellen and I went off to enjoy Jennifer's baby shower with me thinking the whole time that Dennis was getting such a nice nap. I found later that this was not actually the case, that he got up pretty much immediately and ended up playing with Chloe the whole time we were gone. We enjoyed the shower very very much and I love thinking that Jennifer and Hadden will get to experience all the joys of parenthood soon! They have a double dose coming, actually, and we all had so much fun shopping for boy AND girl clothes for the new little ones. I liked seeing all the cute baby things (I can barely remember using those tiny tiny things) and watching cute pregnant Jen open everything and show it off. I heard the words "awwwwww" and "cute" and "sweet" dozens of times. I liked Hadden's running gift commentary as well, and I must admit that I really liked the cake. It's been awhile since I had cake and I really had to restrain myself from going back for seconds and thirds--thank goodness I don't weigh and measure again at the gym for 4 weeks. Baby showers are so exciting, the precursor to the most important event in a parent's life. They are going to be such good parents! They are ahead of the game already in that they are both blessed with the gift of humor, because there will be many times when they will need to laugh and many times when they will enjoy the laughter.

Dennis and Chloe played and played and played with the Thomas trains this afternoon, and we finally got them down for naps for the first time after supper. I am afraid Dennis' nap has turned into one of the all night variety and we will be awakened mighty early!