So, guess what? I forgot to tell you that we broke the news to T1 over Easter weekend that the Easter bunny isn't real. He was really concerned that the Easter bunny wasn't going to find him at our camp site and then he caught me making his Easter basket. After he mulled it over a few minutes, he asked the inevitable.... is Santa real? I tried to keep a straight face and avoid the question, but the charade didn't last long before he realized Santa wasn't real. He spent the next several minutes thinking about all the falsehoods of Santa:
"So, you eat the cookies and drink the milk I leave out every year?"
"The Santa tracker that Marcus showed me is fake?"
"You stuff my stocking and buy my Santa gifts?"
"You wrote the note that Santa gave me?"
"Dad was the one who set up the ladder to the rooftop when we didn't have a chimney?"
And so on... It was sad. While he was digesting this information, he inquired about the tooth fairy. Once again, we were honest. He really seemed sad. We went for a walk by ourselves later that day and I asked him how he felt. He replied that he was a little sad, but said he prefers knowing the truth. Later that same night, he was playing with a couple of 5th graders from the camp site adjacent to ours and the subject of the Easter bunny came up. One of the boys said he still believed in the Easter bunny and T1 and the other boy swapped knowing glances but didn't reveal anything to the contrary. If you have children that T1 plays with, don't worry, he's promised not to reveal the truth to anyone.
There are sentimental moments when it occurs to me just how fast my baby is growing up and this was definitely one of those times. (It also hits me is when he forgets to wear deodorant!) :)
Monday, March 31, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Weekend Warriors
We went camping this weekend and had a good time. While it was really weird to be away from family and church on Easter, it was nice for us to get away and spend some time together.
The weather was awesome on Saturday - it was warm enough that Matt and T1 went swimming in the lake while T2 and I waded in the water by the banks. We wanted to rent a boat, but the idea was nixed when we discovered how adamantly opposed T2 was to wearing a life jacket. T1 and I ended up going on a walk along the lake by ourselves. It was real nice because we don't usually get to spend time together alone. He later played with the 5th grade boys at the campsite next to ours. They played soccer and talked about everything from college to the Statue of Liberty to ferry boats to Lord of the Rings. Matt and I had a good ol' time eavesdropping on their conversation. :)
Unfortunately, Saturday night after dinner T2 tripped and landed on the hot grate of the grill. He was burned on his knee and the palm of his hand. Matt had to drive into town to buy Tylenol and a topical treatment to numb the pain of the burn. T2 cried and cried. The only thing that made him stop crying was running his hand under cold water. It was so sad. I don't know how, but he woke up Sunday morning as if nothing happened. He was happy overall and he didn't favor his hand or knee at all. Kids are incredibly resilient, aren't they?
We went for a hike on Sunday morning and had a good time. We hiked the area of the park where the river feeds the lake. It was tough in some areas, but I was surprised that we hung in there and climbed the area with all three kids. We all enjoyed it immensely!
What's next for us? Well, I'm trekking it to VA for work for a couple of days, then we're going to the panhandle for my grandmother's 80th birthday, Matt and T1 are going fishing with my dad, I'd like to visit friends in Dallas and Houston, and I'd like to spend time in Waco with the other Parker crew. I'd also like to squeeze in a trip to the coast and we're hoping to meet some friends of ours from MD for a co-family camping trip. Hmmm... I wonder what we'll do in our spare time????
The weather was awesome on Saturday - it was warm enough that Matt and T1 went swimming in the lake while T2 and I waded in the water by the banks. We wanted to rent a boat, but the idea was nixed when we discovered how adamantly opposed T2 was to wearing a life jacket. T1 and I ended up going on a walk along the lake by ourselves. It was real nice because we don't usually get to spend time together alone. He later played with the 5th grade boys at the campsite next to ours. They played soccer and talked about everything from college to the Statue of Liberty to ferry boats to Lord of the Rings. Matt and I had a good ol' time eavesdropping on their conversation. :)
Unfortunately, Saturday night after dinner T2 tripped and landed on the hot grate of the grill. He was burned on his knee and the palm of his hand. Matt had to drive into town to buy Tylenol and a topical treatment to numb the pain of the burn. T2 cried and cried. The only thing that made him stop crying was running his hand under cold water. It was so sad. I don't know how, but he woke up Sunday morning as if nothing happened. He was happy overall and he didn't favor his hand or knee at all. Kids are incredibly resilient, aren't they?
We went for a hike on Sunday morning and had a good time. We hiked the area of the park where the river feeds the lake. It was tough in some areas, but I was surprised that we hung in there and climbed the area with all three kids. We all enjoyed it immensely!
What's next for us? Well, I'm trekking it to VA for work for a couple of days, then we're going to the panhandle for my grandmother's 80th birthday, Matt and T1 are going fishing with my dad, I'd like to visit friends in Dallas and Houston, and I'd like to spend time in Waco with the other Parker crew. I'd also like to squeeze in a trip to the coast and we're hoping to meet some friends of ours from MD for a co-family camping trip. Hmmm... I wonder what we'll do in our spare time????
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Long Time, No Blog
It's been almost two weeks since my last posting. I'm sorry for being gone so long, but it's been a tough couple of weeks at work and I've usually been exhausted by the time I finally get home and get settled in. You understand, right?
In any case, it's T1's spring break this week. I feel bad because we haven't done much to make it a fun and special time. He had a soccer game at 2:00 last Saturday and his team got killed. The score was something like 1,000,000 to zip. Ok, so I'm exaggerating, but his team is really bad. When we were done with the soccer game, we spent the rest of the afternoon painting our fence. In completing this chore, I realized just how much fence we had despite not having much yard. It sucked, but the finished product looks awesome. Of course, it wasn't T1's idea of fun. Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday were all pretty boring as well, but Wednesday was pretty fun. He and Matt took the canoe to a river north of the lake and went fishing for several hours. Later that day he got to hang out with a friend of his and stay the night at the friend's house. He went bowling with his friend today and had a blast. (Thanks, Amy, for letting T1 hang out with your crew!) Tonight he's staying the night at his Aunt Lisa's house. They're going to play video games, ping pong, and have a good ol' time. It looks like his spring break may be on the upswing!
The weirdest thing happened with T2 last night. I woke up to go to the restroom around 2:00 AM and decided to check things out around the house. (In accordance with my semi-obsessive compulsive nature, I had to make sure all doors were locked, the fish tank light was off, candles weren't burning, the garage door was shut, T1's lava lamp was off, the alarm was set, etc). Anyways, back to the story... When I walked into the boys' room to make sure they were both still breathing (another OC trait), I was startled to see T2 standing in the middle of his room looking at the wall. I scooped him up and he laid his head on my shoulder. After holding him for a few minutes, I put him back in his bed and he was asleep instantly. It made me wonder, though, could T2 be sleep walking? How would I know? Should I be concerned? T1 had night terrors for years. Could it be that my children have weird night habits? I know they have weird day habits, but weird night habits too? Hmm...
T3 had an ear infection in both ears last week. He had intermittent fever for several days, he was throwing up, not sleeping, not eating, and was very fussy. It was a tough week. I was so glad when my mom offered to watch T2 and T3 all day Wednesday so Matt could take a break from the little guys and accompany T1's class on a field trip. T3 is better now, thank God. He's been spending time perfecting his army crawl. I swear that little man is fast! One minute he's in the living room and if you turn your back for a second (usually to stop a T2 destructive streak) then he's all of a sudden at the refrigerator in the kitchen. I love his mobility, but it also scares me.
Guess what? T3 has finally graduated to the big boy crib in the bedroom he's going to share with T2. Matt and I finally have our bedroom to ourselves again! Hip! Hip! Hooray! (Mom, don't worry, I won't get pregnant again.)
Well, I guess that's it for now. I'll try not to let too much time pass before my next blog. Take care everyone.
In any case, it's T1's spring break this week. I feel bad because we haven't done much to make it a fun and special time. He had a soccer game at 2:00 last Saturday and his team got killed. The score was something like 1,000,000 to zip. Ok, so I'm exaggerating, but his team is really bad. When we were done with the soccer game, we spent the rest of the afternoon painting our fence. In completing this chore, I realized just how much fence we had despite not having much yard. It sucked, but the finished product looks awesome. Of course, it wasn't T1's idea of fun. Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday were all pretty boring as well, but Wednesday was pretty fun. He and Matt took the canoe to a river north of the lake and went fishing for several hours. Later that day he got to hang out with a friend of his and stay the night at the friend's house. He went bowling with his friend today and had a blast. (Thanks, Amy, for letting T1 hang out with your crew!) Tonight he's staying the night at his Aunt Lisa's house. They're going to play video games, ping pong, and have a good ol' time. It looks like his spring break may be on the upswing!
The weirdest thing happened with T2 last night. I woke up to go to the restroom around 2:00 AM and decided to check things out around the house. (In accordance with my semi-obsessive compulsive nature, I had to make sure all doors were locked, the fish tank light was off, candles weren't burning, the garage door was shut, T1's lava lamp was off, the alarm was set, etc). Anyways, back to the story... When I walked into the boys' room to make sure they were both still breathing (another OC trait), I was startled to see T2 standing in the middle of his room looking at the wall. I scooped him up and he laid his head on my shoulder. After holding him for a few minutes, I put him back in his bed and he was asleep instantly. It made me wonder, though, could T2 be sleep walking? How would I know? Should I be concerned? T1 had night terrors for years. Could it be that my children have weird night habits? I know they have weird day habits, but weird night habits too? Hmm...
T3 had an ear infection in both ears last week. He had intermittent fever for several days, he was throwing up, not sleeping, not eating, and was very fussy. It was a tough week. I was so glad when my mom offered to watch T2 and T3 all day Wednesday so Matt could take a break from the little guys and accompany T1's class on a field trip. T3 is better now, thank God. He's been spending time perfecting his army crawl. I swear that little man is fast! One minute he's in the living room and if you turn your back for a second (usually to stop a T2 destructive streak) then he's all of a sudden at the refrigerator in the kitchen. I love his mobility, but it also scares me.
Guess what? T3 has finally graduated to the big boy crib in the bedroom he's going to share with T2. Matt and I finally have our bedroom to ourselves again! Hip! Hip! Hooray! (Mom, don't worry, I won't get pregnant again.)
Well, I guess that's it for now. I'll try not to let too much time pass before my next blog. Take care everyone.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Who Needs Self Esteem?
So, tonight after dinner T1 says to Matt "Dad, if you had to choose between mom and the hottest girl in the world, who would you choose?". Thinking he knows the right answer to this question, Matt smiles at me and responds to T1 saying "Mom, of course." Wrong answer, dude! The correct would be "Mom is the hottest girl in the world!" The conversation then digressed to who T1 thinks is the hottest girl in the world is and (drum roll please....) he thinks Rene is the hottest girl in the world. (Amy, if you are reading this, he thinks you are the second hottest girl in the world.) Funny, huh?
Last night T2 went to sleep wearing his cowboy boots and hugging a rolling pin. How cute!
T3's been under the weather; he had a fever and was throwing up, but I think he's on the mend.
Last night T2 went to sleep wearing his cowboy boots and hugging a rolling pin. How cute!
T3's been under the weather; he had a fever and was throwing up, but I think he's on the mend.
Friday, March 7, 2008
A Plain Week, A Plain Blog
Well, this week was pretty normal. T1 went to school every day. He had the TAKS test on Wednesday and I joined him for the 'Pastries for Parents' breakfast in the gym on Thursday morning. I think the only reason he wanted me to go to breakfast was so he could skip hall monitor duty, but oh well, I'll take whatever time he'll give me. Unfortunately, he got in trouble in class again this week. Here are some excerpts of the email I received from his teacher:
- "I have noticed an improvement in (T1s) attitude, but not much improvement in the socializing."
- "He got in trouble this morning for talking after I specifically said to stop."
- "I am trying to work with him on listening to what others have to say...not talking over them so he can be heard. "
I know it's not funny, but when I read her email I laughed out loud because at the exact same time I was reading her concerns Matt was getting frustrated because T1 was talking over him. We really need to work on this more; apparently our attempts to correct this behavior aren't working. On the bright side, his teacher also said that T1 is a very confident, assertive person and that she really enjoys having him in class. She said he always brightens her day. I'm hoping these "social traits" eventually translate to a very confident, outgoing adult. We'll see...
T1 has started talking about girls a lot more lately. One day this week he told me that he liked Bianca, Shelby, and Elaine and that whoever claimed him first could have him. Funny, none of them have "claimed" him yet. He also told me that he wants to change his hall monitor assignment from the gym hallway to the cafeteria door so he could spy on all the girls. I think he also has a crush on my friend Rene. Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm picking up on little signs. Check out the picture of the two of them on a river boat (together with her fabulous fiance, Troy). Aren't they cute?
T2 and T3 kept Matt busy this week. He took them to the YMCA several times and, thank goodness, T2 didn't bite anyone. He just got off probation and he may be expelled from the gym if he bites again. One little boy even recognizes T2 as the boy with strong teeth. Not good, I know. Matt bought T2 new cowboy boots and the boot store was close to my work so he brought the boys by my office for an hour of adoration by a bunch of women. T2 was definitely in his element, but T3 didn't really know what to think about all the cooing.
T3 is crawling everywhere and his bottom two teeth are coming in big time. His smile is so cute! He's started babbling a lot, and when he gets going then T2 chimes in. I think T2 thinks it's a game. They end up trying to babble over each other (surprise, surprise - recall the comment above about T1 talking over others) and it can really get loud, but I love it. Matt also took T2 and T3 to MamMa's this week, but she started talking about sex and vasectomies so I think he's going to take a break from the whole MamMa scene for a while. There are just some things that should never be discussed with your 86-year old grandmother-in-law, ya know? :)
T2 continues to climb out of his crib all the time. This morning when we woke up he was in the living room watching TV. Isn't that awful? Remember, he's not even two-years old yet. Given the ease with which he climbs out of the crib, there's really no reason to keep him in there, so we're going to try and transition him to the toddler bed. Matt was successful in getting him to nap in the toddler bed this afternoon and he's asleep in it again tonight. He seems too little to be in a bed regardless of how small it is, but we'll see how this works. We definitely need to put the baby gate up so he's locked in his room and can't wander around the house freely while we sleep. Boy, he sure does keep us on our toes both day and night. When does it get easier?
Well, I'm tired and blogger.com keeps triggering errors, so I'm logging off for now. Good night!
Monday, March 3, 2008
T2's Terrible Twos
I'm sorry for not posting last week. I went out of town for a few days and we've been playing catch-up ever since.
So, it seems that T2 might be on the brink of the infamous "terrible twos". He's being very brazen in his defiance of our instruction lately and he's flat out turned into a little turd. I was resting on the couch the other day and he walked up and hit me in the face. Unscathed, I scolded him. He looked at me, gave pause, and then growled at me. Roarrrr! It took everything I had not to laugh, but I managed to keep my composure. About 2 minutes later I could sense T2 walking up to me again. I knew what was coming next; yes, he hit me again! Again, I scolded him and again he looked at me and growled (louder this time). I don't understand why he was growling. Is it because he only communicates in animal noises? Is it because he thinks I'm growling at him when I'm scolding him so he growls back? Is it because he knows it's going to make me laugh and, therefore, keep me from getting real mad? Regardless of the reason why, he's crazy! Aside from that illustration of his craziness, T2 has been crying much more than normal and he's been more violent and defiant than normal. I sense fun times ahead. Anyone up for babysitting? (smile...)
T2 has also started climbing out of his crib. Matt and I had just put the babies down for a nap this Saturday and we were getting ready to enjoy some alone time when we heard the pitter patter of little feet coming down the hall. T2 emerged with a big shit-eating grin on his face. You know the kind of grin I'm talking about. I immediately interrupted T1's Hannah Montana/Jonas Brothers jam session to see if he had gotten T2 out of his crib. He hadn't. So, we knew T2 had escaped on his own, but we weren't quite sure how. Later that day we were playing in the boys' room and had T2 in his crib. Within minutes we witnessed him lifting his right leg to the top of the crib (yes, he's a bendy baby) and using it to hoist his little body up and over the side of the crib. He was so darned proud of himself. We were not. He's crawled out of the crib several times since then. For example, he's been put in bed three times already tonight, yet just a few minutes ago we caught him jumping on the toddler bed that's in his room. Yes, he was wearing that same shit-eating grin. We would be mad if it wasn't so darned cute.
T1 is long past the terrible twos, but he's not necessarily more mature than T2. T2 is really into mimicking what we say right now, but he can pretty much only manage to repeat one syllable at a time. Rock, dog, duck, cat, and up are all frequently used words. However, T1 sees this as an opportunity to make T2 say stupid things. Here's a sampling of T1'a antics: "(T2) say this: I. am. not. so. phis. ti. ca. ted." Yes, T1 had T2 repeat "I am not sophisticated." Why? I'm not sure. Shortly after that, T1 had T2 say this: "I. am. not. a. boo. ger. pi. cker." Yep. "I am not a booger picker." T1 thought this was hilarious. I think it's ridiculous. Oh well, I have to pick my battles so I let this one go.
Did I tell you that T3 got his first tooth? It was painful for all of us, but we now have one down, 25 more to go (I think...). He's also crawling all over the place. His favorite destination: any electrical outlet. He's like a dog after a bone when he wants to unplug something and you better watch out if you get in his way because he screams like no child I've ever heard when he's ticked. It tests your patience. I'll leave it at that.
So, it seems that T2 might be on the brink of the infamous "terrible twos". He's being very brazen in his defiance of our instruction lately and he's flat out turned into a little turd. I was resting on the couch the other day and he walked up and hit me in the face. Unscathed, I scolded him. He looked at me, gave pause, and then growled at me. Roarrrr! It took everything I had not to laugh, but I managed to keep my composure. About 2 minutes later I could sense T2 walking up to me again. I knew what was coming next; yes, he hit me again! Again, I scolded him and again he looked at me and growled (louder this time). I don't understand why he was growling. Is it because he only communicates in animal noises? Is it because he thinks I'm growling at him when I'm scolding him so he growls back? Is it because he knows it's going to make me laugh and, therefore, keep me from getting real mad? Regardless of the reason why, he's crazy! Aside from that illustration of his craziness, T2 has been crying much more than normal and he's been more violent and defiant than normal. I sense fun times ahead. Anyone up for babysitting? (smile...)
T2 has also started climbing out of his crib. Matt and I had just put the babies down for a nap this Saturday and we were getting ready to enjoy some alone time when we heard the pitter patter of little feet coming down the hall. T2 emerged with a big shit-eating grin on his face. You know the kind of grin I'm talking about. I immediately interrupted T1's Hannah Montana/Jonas Brothers jam session to see if he had gotten T2 out of his crib. He hadn't. So, we knew T2 had escaped on his own, but we weren't quite sure how. Later that day we were playing in the boys' room and had T2 in his crib. Within minutes we witnessed him lifting his right leg to the top of the crib (yes, he's a bendy baby) and using it to hoist his little body up and over the side of the crib. He was so darned proud of himself. We were not. He's crawled out of the crib several times since then. For example, he's been put in bed three times already tonight, yet just a few minutes ago we caught him jumping on the toddler bed that's in his room. Yes, he was wearing that same shit-eating grin. We would be mad if it wasn't so darned cute.
T1 is long past the terrible twos, but he's not necessarily more mature than T2. T2 is really into mimicking what we say right now, but he can pretty much only manage to repeat one syllable at a time. Rock, dog, duck, cat, and up are all frequently used words. However, T1 sees this as an opportunity to make T2 say stupid things. Here's a sampling of T1'a antics: "(T2) say this: I. am. not. so. phis. ti. ca. ted." Yes, T1 had T2 repeat "I am not sophisticated." Why? I'm not sure. Shortly after that, T1 had T2 say this: "I. am. not. a. boo. ger. pi. cker." Yep. "I am not a booger picker." T1 thought this was hilarious. I think it's ridiculous. Oh well, I have to pick my battles so I let this one go.
Did I tell you that T3 got his first tooth? It was painful for all of us, but we now have one down, 25 more to go (I think...). He's also crawling all over the place. His favorite destination: any electrical outlet. He's like a dog after a bone when he wants to unplug something and you better watch out if you get in his way because he screams like no child I've ever heard when he's ticked. It tests your patience. I'll leave it at that.
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