Absolutely Amazing

You have never ceased to amaze me thus far and I hope you never do! Words are flying out of you now like I can't believe. Bulldozer...water...bus... tractor...Tasha. Simply amazing - you hear it once and you repeat it often. It's like the switch to the left side of your brain went on the minute you turned two!

The.most.amazing.of.it.all.though: last Sunday when you and I were grocery shopping and I bought four jugs of laundry detergent. I was putting all the groceries on the conveyor belt, and, out of the corner of my eye, I thought you were watching the "buy me now" balloons they use as kid bait at the end of the check out. As I got to the jugs o'laundry detergent and began plopping them on the conveyor belt, I heard this little voice - yours - say, "one...too...free...fo' ". I was stunned! You were actually watching me and you did this without prompting, completely by yourself. I was so proud of you and for you at that moment. The fact that you've learned to relate words (the numbers) to the abstract concepts of counting and quantity has floored me.

Like I said, you are absolutely amazing. Someday soon I hope to be able to spend lots more time with you and fully enjoy all these moments.

I love you little man,
Mommy

To My Favorite Two Year Old!

A very big Happy Birthday was in order for you last Friday! You turned two years old! Thanks to your Grammy and Poppy, who taught you to hold up two fingers and say "TWO!", you've been able to tell everyone that you're now two!

What a great time you had Friday night out to dinner at the Otter. You were such a good boy, you played with your pen, writing on all the napkins. You showed your pen to all the waitresses that walked by, and got a big Happy Birthday kiss from our favorite waitress, AnnaLisa! You ate your grilled cheese and some fries, and, because it was your birthday, you got to eat your entire ice cream sandwich!

On Saturday we went to my office and played at the company picnic. You got two pictures taken of you sitting and driving the forklift (what a big boy!), and you got to sit in the electric buggy that they use for emergencies on site. You were so intrigued by those electric cars parked all over the place!

Then we had your birthday party at the house. Your friend Theo was there, as were your cousins Brady and Chloe, Theo's cousin Solomon, all of your grandparents, your Aunt Stacey and Uncle Jeff, and Theo's mommy and daddy - Maggie and JM. Because you love Chugga-Chugga (Thomas the Train), we got you a huge Thomas balloon, lots of Thomas decorations, and a Thomas cake.

Thankfully, Uncle Jeff watched you much of the time - you ran and ran around the yard with your cousins and Theo. You climbed your "weeee" (Little Tykes slide) over and over and slid down the other side over and over again. When it got too cold, we all went inside and had cake and ice cream (!), and you got to open your presents. You got lots of books and clothes and chugga-chuggas - a whole round house for Thomas and his friends, and a whole bunch of new chugga-chuggas. Your favorite, so far, is Spencer, which is odd, because Spencer has only been in one or two episodes fo the hundreds or so that we've seen.

I think you had a great time. Daddy and I got you into your jammies around 9 that night and I think you fell asleep almost immediately, hugging your new Spencer engine and your new Gordon engine too. You are the cutest and smartest little boy I've ever met!

I love you little man!
Mama

Billo-Billo and the Wild Turkeys

OK...slacker mommy is back at it again! May 31st??? I haven't posted since May 31st?? Holy cow! I have so much to write to you and for you and it's been two-and-a-half months since I've written? Silly mommy!

Well, Poppy's in the hospital again, this time, hopefully, they'll fix him up as good as new (or as good as they can). Because of this, you've spent the much of this week at Abuela and Abuelo's. Yesterday, it seems, a whole flock of wild turkeys decided that Abuelo's backyard was THE place to be. When Abuela showed you this, so I'm told, you immediately ran into the other room, grabbed Billo-Billo, and took him to the window to share the wonderful prancing turkeys with him. This is the kind of little boy that you are. You are the sweetest!

I'll try to write to you more regularly. Have many things to write about, including last week's vacation at Echo Lake.

I love you little man,
Mommy

And Baby Makes 4!

Wow! I can't believe it's been three weeks since I last wrote! Talk about Mommy being a slacker!

Well, I have some reasons...I've been really busy at work (and that's where I usually post from), and you're going to have a baby brother or sister! Mommy's been surfing the net to check out pregnancy websites whenever she had free time, so I wasn't able to write to you as I had been.

We're still waiting to hear you talk little man! You offer a lot of chitter-chatter, but not much in the way of words, except for "more". You've definitely learned how to ask for more of something!

You love being outside when you're at both of your grandparents' houses. You love blowing bubbles at Gramma and Poppy's house, and you love running through the hose and getting wet at Abuela and Abuelo's house!

You had another sleepover at your grandparent's houses last weekend when Daddy and I went to the Berkshires for the weekend. We went there to celebrate when I was carrying you in my belly, so it's only fitting that we go there to celebrate when your little brother or sister is in my belly too! All your grandparents had a great time with you and you were such a good boy for them!

I'll try to write some more tomorrow.

I love you little man!

We're Going to the Park

Sunday, Daddy and I took you on what we hope will be the first of many trips to Hasbrouck Playground. Apparently you prefer to push the swings from the ground rather than sit in the seat and swing. We tried to put you in the seat and you cried, so we put you back on terra firma and you took off running.

You tried to crash the picnic that somebody was having, you wanted to steal the basketball from the kids playing at the basketball court, and you picked up every little piece of paper garbage and presented it to me as a gift. While I love your sentiment, and was grateful for the gifts, I must say...yech!

It was a busy weekend for you. I took you to the hospital to see Poppy twice - Saturday and Sunday. You were such a good boy both days! Poppy's roommate had been discharged on Friday, so he had the big double room to himself. With a barrier set up at the door, you had free reign of the bed controls, the TV controls, the empty bed's nightstand, the window shades - pretty much everything you could get your hands on, you played with.

Also on Saturday, I took you to get your second haircut. Well, almost a haricut. Dianna was able to cut the front of your hair and the two sides around your ears, but we were all afraid that someone was going to call Child Protective services so we stopped there. An outsider would have thought I was beating you instead of holding you on my lap to have your hair cut! Goodness gracious! So I'll have to cut the back of your hair at some point soon because mullets aren't allowed in our family at this time and you've got the beginnings of a mullet going on!

We're still working on that hitting. You stopped it for a while and now it's slowly creeping back into your repertoire of actions. Swiper, not hitting!

Chasing Butterflies

I asked you yesterday morning if you had fun at Abuella's house chasing the butterflies all over the yard. You nodded without prompting and with such gusto that I knew you understood what I was asking. You have such an understanding of the spoken language. I'm waiting for that day when you just burst out speaking paragraphs! I think you'll skip the words and sentences and head straight to paragraphs and short stories!

This weekend your Poppy went into the hospital to get his breathing fixed. We went to visit him on Saturday and Sunday. Unfortunately it involves an elevator and they give you such an uneasy feeling. At first I thought it was claustrophobia from the closing doors, but your nervousness doesn't seem to kick in until the elevator moves, so I think you're afraid of the feeling that the floor is moving. Hopefully you'll grow out of that scared feeling or you'll never be able to fly - and we all know how much you LOVE airplanes! Zoom, zoom!

You were so sweet last night when daddy was putting you to bed. You laid on the bed with your big Duckie and Mr. Rabbit and, of course, Billo-Billo. You would sit up and give me a kiss and lay back down and then sit up again and give daddy a kiss. It was so sweet!

Today you'll go to Grandma's house even though Poppy is still in the hospital. She can't wait to see you and it will give her a chance to stay home for a while before she goes to visit Poppy tonight. You and I will probably go with her. Poppy really misses you!

This weekend is supposed to be a nice weekend so I'm hoping we can spend a lot of time outside and you can run and run and run all around!

I love you little man...

Run Around Tony

Yesterday we went to daddy's friend's daughter's communion and afterparty. You and I had never met Jennie, and you've only met her daddy once. I knew it was hard for you to sit in your stroller in the vestibule of the church while so many little kids ran around you.

So daddy and I took you outside and let you run in the field behind the church school. You chased butterflies and picked buttercup flowers and ran up the little hill and down the little hill. Over and over again. We thought that would tucker you out. Little did we know what would happen when we got to the party!

The reception hall where the party was held was brand new. It had beautiful wood flooring, a nicely tiled kitchen, and an echo that would give a deaf person a headache! Couple that with a dozen or so kids under the age of 8 and you have a madhouse. Unless of course you're Tony. Then you have nirvana!

Daddy and I loved watching you run around and around and around with all those kids! We laughed as you would find an older boy and follow him as you tried to emulate him. We chuckled as you approached the little girls and charmed them with your smile. One even hugged you. You were the teacher to the little 14-month old who was learning to play with the windows.

You ran around for almost the whole three hours we were there. No wonder you slept very soundly last night!

You're growing up and we're so grateful that we have the front row seats to the show that is your life. I can't wait for you to interact with more children and I'm so glad you're not shy.

I love you little man...

Swiper No Hitting!

You've entered a new phase that I hope you grow out of quickly: hitting. You've started lashing out when you're told "no" or when we pick you up to remove you from a situation (such as picking up and humming the cat's food across the room).

I know it's part of your growing up, but I hope you whiz through this phase quickly. You've always been my kind and gentle little boy. Now you get a mean look on your tiny face and you purse your lips and then you take a swing to slap my face.

We need to teach you how to speak as soon as possible so you can express your emotions better.

I know you still love us and we still love you, but it's our job to teach you self-control and self-expression, so don't be mad at us for teaching you these things.

No matter what, I'll always love you little man!

Baby-in-a-box

A couple of weeks ago I received a shipment of things I had ordered off of the internet. It came in a sturdy 15"W X 24"L X 10"D box that became your new favorite toy. Once you found out you could actually climb into the box there has been no stopping you.

You sit in the box and wait for me to push you all around the downstairs - through the family room, past the bathroom and hall closet, by the stairs, and around the office. On the way, you pick up anything that will fit in the box with you. I remember as a little girl I used to surround myself very tightly like that with whatever I could find. Does it remind you of being in my womb? Is it armor used as a way of protecting yourself? I don't know, but I remember I did it too.

By the time we get from one room to the next, you usually have books, Little People, of course Billo-Billo, blocks, an assortment of toys, and a myraid of other things stuffed in the box with you! Watching you extricate yourself from this pile always makes daddy and me laugh!

Right now the box sits upside down and serves as a stepstool for you to stand on so you can knock on the wall by my scrapbook closet. I wonder how long it'll be before you figure out that if you drag the box over near the light switches and you can turn them on and off without daddy or me having to pick you up?

Who knew a simple box could be so many things?!

Till our next game of "baby-in-a-box"...

I love you little man.

Prince Charming

Today you gave me five kissies when I dropped you off at gramma and poppy's this morning! Five! You are a prince charming! I love to play sleeping beauty and have you wake me up from my slumber with a big sloppy wet kiss - sometimes laced with formula, sometimes with cracker crumbs - but always nice!

You seem to be OK after your shots. You've recovered back to your old self, which is changing every day.

Yesterday was Earth Day. To celebrate we walked the Rail Trail. You got to see some birdies and squirrels, and we crossed a walking bridge and stopped so you could see the water babbling underneath. By the time we got back to the car, all that nature had worn you out! You fell asleep in the stroller so daddy and I sat in the shade and watched you sleep for a while.

Of course Saturday night, after we told the doctor that you seemed to have a disdain for table food, when we took you to La Stazione for dinner, you happily at pieces of mommy's fried mozzarella triangles, and you took the spoon and fed yourself mommy's mashed potatoes. You at the wholegrain bread like a big boy and drank your yummy ba-ba.

Sunday night is bath night with big ducky tub and little rubber ducky. You always have a fun time getting washed and splashing in the water. Tonight we took your diaper off in the bathroom (usually we take it off in your room). You ran to the other end and pee-peed on the floor. You're so funny with your little nudie self! We marveled at how lucky we've been that that rarely happens.

Daddy read you to sleep at around 7:15 while I made your ba-bas for today. As usual, you slept soundly through the night until I walked in and said "good morning" to you at 4:30 this morning.

If I ever forget to say it, I want to say it now: thank you for being such a good boy and getting up early with mommy so she can go to work early. Mommy hates it that she can't be home having fun with you all day, but mommy and daddy both want you to have all the choices possible in life. To do that, we need to make sure we provide all that we can for you along the way. We know that your grandmas and grandpas take the best possible care of you because they took the best possible care of us. We know how lucky we are that they're here to love you.

Until tomorrow...

I love you little man.

Taking It In the Arm Like a Big Boy

Well, bright and early this morning you had your first MMR vaccine. So far you seem entirely unfazed but the nurse said it would take 7-10 days for a reaction to show up, most likely in the form of a fever. You were more afraid of being weighed and examined than you were of the needles. We gave you the last bit we had of LMX - the lidocaine cream that numbs your shot area. Thankfully, after a year of waiting, the drs. office received a shipment and we could get more!

Your stats at 19 months:
26.5 lbs (50th percentile, where you've been since birth)
34.5 inches (90th percentile, also where you've been since birth)
19 inch head circumference

While you cried and cried on my lap in the exam room, once we left the room, you were back to your old self - chatting and waving. You even blew a kiss to Dr. Clare! That made her feel better than leaving you crying. :-)

And these were the first shots you received in your arms. You took them like a champ, my brave little man!

Today is the first really nice day we've had in ages. Daddy and I are so glad you felt OK so we could take you outside. When we got home, Daddy set up the ride-on Peg Perego train that Gramma and Poppy got you for Christmas outside on the deck and you pushed it around. We played outside for about an hour and then had to go in as you were getting a little red. You're going to have to wear a hat all the time outside you know, so you had better get used to it.

Gramma and Poppy stopped by to visit so we went back outside for a while later on and you ran around like a banshee.

Well, it seems you're waking up from your nap. I'll have to continue more thoughts tomorrow.

I love you little man.

Please Don't Change

I hope you never change your underlying disposition. You have your daddy's easy going spirit and my sense of happiness. It's the best of all possible combinations! You're not the type of baby who whines and cries much. In fact, you cut 12 teeth, including your first year molars, and hardly even whimpered about it! I'm sure it hurt, but you're such a trooper.

You laugh so easily, and, when you do, your whole face lights up and your eyes sparkle. All those around you get to see those glorious white teeth. And that laugh...it's infectious! You let me chase you around the house and you run to Grandma and Poppy to protect you, laughing the whole time. You peek around corners knowing I'll be there to scare you, but you do it anyway and you laugh and laugh and laugh!

Tomorrow daddy and I will be taking you to Dr. Clare's to get your first MMR vaccination. Aside from the fact that I hate to get you a shot, I'm frightened of what your reaction may be to this vaccine. It's one of the toughest, but I know you're tougher. You had very little reaction to all the other vaccines you've gotten, so I'm sure this one will be a piece of cake too. Mommy's just a little scared for you, but she knows you need it because the diseases that it prevents are much, much worse than the shot.

Next time I'll tell you all about your baby-in-a-box antics and all your friends, including Billo-Billo and Froggie. Until then, keep those socks on so we don't have to smell those punky feet!

I love you little man.

I know this is late but...

Hello my sweet boy, I know that you're almost 19 months old, and I meant to do this sooner, but there's no time like the present to begin, right?

I wanted to write down all the funny and smart and wonderful things you do so that when you and your dad and I get older we'll remember them.

I'll start your journal with an explanation of its URL. Why "digummm"? Be cause that's one of your favorite words! Your dad and I, and all your grandparents, can't wait until you can talk to tell us what it means! The only thing we can tell is that it means something good. You only use it when you're happy and excited. You stiffen your body, splay your hands and arms down in front of you, and, in a deep voice, say "digummm". We can only laugh and say it with you!

Well, that's a start. I will follow with more about your moon and star gazing, your books, your laugh, your Prince Charming kisses for Sleeping Mommy, your go, go, go's, your love of Dora and Diego, your broom and rake, and so much more...

Laurie A.
04/19/07