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All Aboard the Cuckoo Train

8 Apr

I think I’ve caught Thomas the Tank Engine Fever.  Nate’s love of the little trains is contagious.  I sing Thomas songs, like he does.  I get excited when I see any Thomas product, like he does.  I shriek “Thomas Train!” when I see the product, like he does.  I want to have all of the trains and the train sets, like he does.

This is where it goes from cute and fun to expensive and looney.

I can’t help it though!  It’s just so adorable to see how happy Nate gets because of Thomas and I want to buy and buy and buy…

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Balancing Books

4 Apr

I don’t know how it happened but I went from only reading Harry Potter books to trying to read 4 different books at once.

– Two of them are supposed to tell me how to be a better parent.  Supernanny (I love me some Jo Frost) and Transforming the Difficult Child (I know Nia and Nate really aren’t difficult – the book just offers some beneficial advice and strategies on handling situations.

– One is supposed to help me be a better person/be inspired.  (It’s one of the many books written by Beth Moore –  she’s the woman who teaches my Bible Study – through a DVD of course. She’s an awesome speaker/teacher.)

– The last is a book called The Shack that Julie lent me during her visit with us.  (I’m halfway finished Julie!)

I’m just so excited to be reading again!  I love how much better I feel and how active my mind becomes after reading.  I actually have even been creating a list of books I want to dive into next!

I think the books (along with an addiction to catching up on the tv show “Lost”) has kept me from blogging as much. Oh yeah, that and trying to plan Nia’s 5th birthday party!  I need a book to help me with that too!
 

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Off Broadway

21 Mar

We got the movie “Enchanted” this week and the kids love the music and dancing so much they feel compelled to reenact it.  It’s very entertaining to me and they’re getting pretty good at it too! Nate even tackles Nia when a bunch of bicyclists run over one of the characters!  I’m so proud!

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And then she started screaming, “Peanut Butter Crackers!”

15 Mar

Ever hear two little girls, ages 4 and 5, talk on the phone?  Nia’s friend Nicole calls her every couple of days just to make sure her favorite colors are still pink, purple and blue and if she’s changed her mind about who her favorite princess is.  It is a riot.  Tonight, I actually got some of the conversation (if you can call it that!) on camera and thought you might like to watch Nia act all grown up and stuff.  She even told Nate to go away because he was being too noisy!

After I stopped the camera, Andrew and I really cracked up.  Nicole asked Nia what she did at school today and  I told her to tell Nicole what she had for a snack.  Although Nicole had started talking about something else, Nia just started yelling “Peanut Butter Crackers!”  She kept yelling it because she thought Nicole’s “what’s?” meant she couldn’t hear what Nia was saying but really Nicole had no idea why Nia was shouting “Peanut Butter Crackers!” at her.

I think I’m going to try that next time I get an unwanted phone call. “Hello?” “Hello Ms. Va-yez?” “Peanut Butter Crackers!”  “Ah, yes, is Ms. Va-lez there?”  “Peanut! Butter! Crackers!”

Yep.  Sounds like a plan.

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A Little Boy and His Shoes

10 Mar

I wanted to get him a pair of navy blue or maybe tan/brown sneakers.  Ones that would go well with a majority of his clothes.  I’m not a fan of the crazy colored shoes or the ones with cartoon characters.

None of what I like or want mattered after seeing Nate’s reaction to these –

Special Shoes

He was so excited – smiling ear to ear, saying “Thomas Train!” over and over again.  We bought them and he carried the bag out of the store like a big boy.  Carrying them didn’t last long though.  Why do that when he could wear them and continue to point out his “Thomas Trains” as we walked from store to store?  It actually became a pretty awesome mood changer too.  When he would start to get fussy Andrew would ask, “Nate, where’s Thomas?”  That’s all it took.  Immediate happiness. I’m not sure how long it will last but I will certainly use the power of the shoe for as long as I can!

He even wants to wear them over his footy pajamas while he sleeps!  No, we didn’t let him curl up next to his dirty trains.  No, instead, we let him sleep with a hard plastic pull-toy Thomas Train that plays music.  When Andrew went to check on him before we went to sleep last night, he was hugging it.  His precious blankey (or “kay-kay” as he calls it) was way at the bottom of the crib.  We couldn’t believe it!

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Gets Me Every Time

27 Jan

I don’t know why I do it to myself.  I just can’t help it.  For some reason, I enjoy (?) watching the same movies over and over again even though I know they are going to make me cry.  And, I don’t just mean a few tears.  I mean, I cry.  Hard.  My body shakes. My chin quivers. I leak so much liquid from my face that my sleeves alone aren’t enough to handle the mess.  Even after I’m finished sobbing and I’m calm, the tears still sneak out of my eyes. Slowly sliding down the sides of my face.

I even get mad if something happens to prevent me from crying during a movie.  For example, if Andrew stares at me and smiles when he knows I’m about to cry – ah!  I end up having to tell him to stop looking at me and then all that built up emotion is ruined and I can’t cry anymore!  I really wanted to cry dammit!

What is all that about?!

One of the worst (best?) movies that has the power of me is The Green Mile.  It’s been on a lot lately and we’ve watched it a lot.  It gets me every time.  I lose it.  One of the times I was actually ironing something – so there I was – standing, bawling, iron in my hand, frozen, hysterical.  Even the Disney cartoon Mulan does it to me.  The kids will be watching it and I’ll be cooking or cleaning through the majority it and then, I pay attention to it for a few minutes.  That’s all it takes.

I guess, maybe it’s not so much that I enjoy watching sad movies. I think I’m just an emotional person who enjoys movies.  Whether sad or funny or a thriller or a sci-fi flick, I am addicted.  Especially to the ones that are powerful, beautiful, touching, hilarious, surprising, real and an overall amazing piece of entertainment.  For me though, there’s a lot of those. They bring tears to my eyes just thinking about them…

How about you?
 

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Zombiefied

5 Dec

Could a music video be brainwashing our baby boy?

I don’t know what it is about this particular song/music video, but every time Nate sees it he freezes and stares.  I mean, it’s a catchy song (the singer is “Feist” and the song is “1234”) and the video is filled with dancers wearing colored shirts but he loves it so much he asks “Again?” or “More?” each time it ends.  Watching it over and over and over…

I just find it so funny and cute that I had to share it.  Enjoy!

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Blankey Shares the Love

1 Nov

It seems Nate’s beloved blankey now has a little competition.

We bought Nate this hat at a Savannah Sand Gnats game back when he was just a baby.  Andrew found it the other day and handed to Nate.  From there it was hat history.

Loves His Hat

Hat Head

He wanted it on his noggin all day long.  While he ate.  While he played.  While we carved pumpkins.  While we changed diapers.  He even refused to part with it during his nap time.  I would tell him, “Okay Nate.  It’s time to say night-night to your hat.”  He would scream, “NO! Hat! Hat! Hat!”  He was heartbroken so I gave in – I mean what kind of harm would it do to let him sleep with the hat in his crib?  He was so comforted when I gave it back to him.  He laid right down on his pile of blankeys and put his thumb in his mouth – all the while holding on tight to “hat.”

Andrew thinks I’m a big meanie head but I’ve since put “hat” out of sight so it will hopefully stay out of mind.  I just don’t want to have to struggle with the emotional ups and downs that “hat” can create.  I think it’s adorable and all but I just don’t want “hat” to be yet another thing I have to lug around with me.  I already have to carry two blankeys with us wherever we go (plus the angry man)!

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The GPS made me do it…

18 Sep

The other day Andrew let me borrow his GPS thinger-ma-jig so it could “guide” me to a doctor’s office in Athens.  I had used it once before – to take my mom to the Atlanta airport – but I am no where near comfortable with aimlessly following it’s directions.  (That airport trip was especially nerve-wracking but more because of all the traffic!)

I’ve witnessed how it can lead you astray from time to time but Andrew will defend it until the end.  One time we asked it to find us a Kroger.  We obeyed its commands until it said “Arriving at Kroger on right.”  Um.  No.  Nope.  No Kroger there. “That’s just because I need to update its mapping software,” he argued, “It probably was here at one time.”

Besides an occasional “software” issue, it’s really just the idea of putting all my trust in a little box with a voice that sometimes sounds condescending and irritated if we accidentally go off the course.  “Recalculating.”  “Continue .5 miles then make a u-turn.”  “Make a u-turn.” “Recalculating.”

She had to “recalculate” several times with me on the day I took her along to the doctor’s.  For the most part, I did ok because I had a general idea of where I was going. It was on the way home that I had to turn around after misunderstanding her instructions.  Fortunately for me, she really didn’t let me down.  Turns out, the place were I had to turn around just happened to be where Starbucks is.

I called Andrew from the drive-thru and told him – “The GPS made me do it.”  I mean, come on – she led me right to my drinky!  After that, I didn’t care if she got me lost or scolded me – I will never doubt her again!
 

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Partying Like It’s 1998 (but without the hangover)

11 Sep

WOW

2 of 50,000

The pictures don’t even half capture what it looked like at Saturday’s Dave Matthews Band concert at Piedmont Park in Atlanta.  It was INSANE!  Something like 50,000 tickets were sold.  That pretty much equals a crap load of drunk people and a thick cloud of smoke from a whole lotta pot.  Andrew and I were not part of either club.  We actually only shared 3 beers between us and I think it was best that way.  I think it was far more entertaining to watch the others than be one of them.  (I did enough of that during my pre-kid days anyway.)

Andrew and I were so excited to get to go to this concert.  We love DMB and the last time we saw them in concert was in 1998.  (Yes, at that concert I was one of the drunk club.)  This time was special because we did it for ourselves.  Not to go with a group of friends or drink until we were silly –  just to be together – by ourselves.  I had a blast with my hubby – rockin’ out to the music – people watching – riding the city’s public transportation (it was a “Go Green” concert and they made it so you couldn’t park anywhere near the event).  It didn’t matter what we did – I was just so happy to have that night with him.

DMB Dorks

It’s funny how even though we didn’t have the kids with us – we still had the kids with us. My mom stayed at home with them so her kid could go out and play but since Nia was sick, Andrew and I kept calling home to check on her and wondering if we should leave the concert.  My mom assured us Nia was ok and we decided to stay but it still felt wrong to have too much fun while our little girl was yucky.  It turns out though that she and her “Honey” (what she calls my mom) had a little slumber party of sorts.  Honey let her stay up late watching “Beauty and the Beast” and when we came home, Nia was fast asleep in her princess bed and Honey was crashed out on the couch.  It was a sweet sight after an evening of the usual crazy concert ones (I’ll have to write about my observations another time) and I’m so grateful for my mom and the chance to rock out again.

Concert Couple

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