A Boy and His Dog

I've posted this before and I'm sure I will again.  My son LOVES his dogs.  Spoons more than Cannoli, but that's only because she's softer and gentler.  Cannoli is more the same personality as Gobbles (and myself) so there's some conflict there.  But Spoons?  Laid back and calm and quiet, kind of like Daddy and the Lil Lobster Roll. 

There are times I look at him and wonder if he will go into the veterinary field, just for the sheer love and compassion he displays for them every day.  His mornings to not begin until a dog romps on his bed, licking him or just snuggling until he wakes up.  Gobbles will then sleepily put an arm around them and hold on tight, Ohhh Spoonsie BEAR.  or Ohhh Calloolli! 

The other night as we were getting dinner ready, Cannoli was hiding up under one of the beds as usual (he has an irrational fear of the oven), and Spoons was jumping around the living room.  Gobbles stopped what he was doing Oh Spooonsie BEAR!  Don't be scared, come hear give me a hug, I'm so sorry you're scared.  I'll take care of you.

Seriously, I hope and pray every day that these two somehow outlive his childhood, because I know Gobbles (and all of us) would be utterly devastated if he ever had to say goodbye.

Oh Spoonsie BEAR!

I love My DOG!

I won't let anything happen to you!

A moment.

Let's just watch TV together.

What am I, chopped liver? Well I always have you Sophie!

 

And you always have ME, the Lil Lobster Roll!!!

YUM!

Summer Travel Series: Part 2 - OCMD

This vacation took place back over 4th of July weekend, so I'm a bit behind, but trying to catch up before the memories slip away...

Remember I used to have a Prius :(

For years we've talked about how excited we were for one of our sisters to have a baby so we could vacation all together - cousins' style.  It turned out to be a great time with our niece, whom I'll call Princess Poozers from now on (before she was princess girl i think, but Poozers is a family name for her :), so hopefully this will be the start of many vacations to come.  Of course her parents weren't so bad either, but having travelled with them before we knew what to expect!

Sister-in-Law happened to be renting a huge three bedroom place the weekend before 4th of July for her bff's bachelorette party, with Brother-in-Law and Poozers to be joining when the girls went home. Since they had the space, they invited us along and we happily obliged.  Normally for this holiday we play it cool and go to the local parade, but it was nice to be able to get away since we we're short-timing in this town anyway.

Seriously HOW did I not write about this last year?? Best Parade EVER. I dropped the ball!

So, Tuesday the third we headed for OCMD, somehow escaping a massive traffic onslaught and uncomfortably screaming kids.  By the time we got there it was late so we all got to bed pretty early with anticipation of early-waking kids. In fact, I think the whole week we were in bed before 10, just because Gobbles had trouble napping in a strange room with a bunkbed (therefore we were exhausted from our lack of nap), the Lil Lobster Roll was fussing because her pack and play was inside a closet.  Well that and she was nursing her first cold / cough, and we were trying to balance nursing, weaning, drinking, and pumping.  Oh my poor girl. 

Yep - pack n play IN the closet! 

You mean this isn't for me?

The place was in a little gated community on the bay, so we decided to stick around on the 4th thinking there'd be activities and such.    First thought, we took the kids to a little beach in the community on the bay.  It was a little icky in the bay, but the kids enjoyed it (well, Gobbles enjoyed it - the Lobster and Poozers were VERY hot so they fussed / napped in the tent the whole time).  Hubs didn't have as much fun because he kept having to wade out into quicksand / muck to retrieve a ball that Gobbles made him fetch.  On the way back from the bay beach we stopped at the interactive fountain too cool off and let Gobbles play a bit.

My first time in a bikini - ohhh!

Just floatin in the bay....

Hey Poozers - Can you BELIEVE my daddy made me put this shirt on over my bathing suit??

Loves it!

No fountain for me... I'm fine in the stroller thanks!

I didn't even have a choice! My parent's left me and my stroller on the sidewalk so they could play in the fountain themselves!

And it seems our attempts to be patriotic flustered because there was a little parade that we missed completely and an "ice cream" social we attempted to go to but felt like it was a block party we weren't a part of, so we ditched out for coronas on the porch until it was time for fireworks.

All dressed up and nowhere to go...

They're having as much fun as they appear

A parade please?  And Ice Cream Social?  Something??

Luckily the night was (somewhat) saved with views from all over the island of fireworks, which were far enough away that Gobbles didn't get scared but close enough that he could see and wonder in amazement.  So all in all a good day.

The next day, we decided to forgo the sweltering outdoors altogether and use the indoor pool included in the facility.  Folks, my son is a fish!  He LOVES to swim.  As soon as we are moved and settled, swimming lessons are on the agenda.  LONG overdue.

Don't forget about us - we're ADORABLE!

Bitch- your hair's in my face!

Just floatin along...

LOVES IT!

Hey Gobbles, you're right, this is pretty nice!

That night, we decided to brave the OCMD boardwalk with two strollers, three kids, and 4 hungry adults.  I think I'd call it a FAIL.  It was beyond crowded so it was hard to maneuver through the crowds, and we decided to eat at a dough roller because the kiddies were a bit fussy, and it was hot and packed beyond belief.  But, we survived, and lesson learned for next time.  I did love the fact that my double stroller was a force to be reckoned with plowing down the boardwalk.  No one got in our way.  Well at least not intentionally!

And Gobbles isn't even buckled in!  What is this a 1985 station wagon?

Mommy - don't be so negative- there was one great thing about the boardwalk!  I learned that I LOVE ice cream!

The next day we decided to brave it and go to the real beach and loaded up everyone with as much as we could carry and off we went.  The girls had a bit more fun since the cool ocean breeze allowed them to take little naps in the beach tent, but Gobbles was a bit out of sorts with the ocean, as the beach down there is more like a cliff, causing the waves to crash violently against the shore.  The noise and force of the water kept him under the umbrella playing in the sand with a bucket of water, only rising to demand one of the adults go down to the ocean for a refill.  We all took turns playing water mule because that little cliff was steep, and we were busy enjoying our coronas to make it a true beachy fun time.

Unplanned matching suits!

It's like a Kelly / Brenda moment!  But I get Dylan!

King of the beach!

YOU get the water!

This is WHY i need all those buckets of water!

Hey Poozers, can you believe they just throw us in this tent and have some beers?

Yea but wait til we're 16 and stealing the stuff out of their fridge Lobster - we'll get them back!

STOP taking pictures of me!  Do I have sand on my chin?  No?  Not right there?  Hmm..

I can still see you!  Don't take pictures from far away either!  But can you fill this bucket while you're down there?

Ahhh this is the life!

 

Ok Momma, Gobbles has it right - ENOUGH with the pictures!

This trip was a lot of fun and would have been that much better had I been done with nursing completely, because trying to find the balance was a little tough.  And nursing in a tent on a beach in hundred degree weather isn't comfortable for mom or baby.  But, we survived and I'd say the hardest part about this trip was the traffic-filled ride home, which took over 4 hours, 2 of which the Little Lobster Roll screamed nonstop.  I'm sorry girl... next up in the travel series is a bit closer locale - the Jersey Shore.

Nature vs. Nurture

This time around, it's all in the genes.

The other day Gobbles came to work with me since his summer schedule consists of Wednesdays with Grandma instead of school, and Grandma took some time off to go to the beach.  So, I brought my little man on a date to my office.  Things were going as well as could be expected with a child in the office, he watched movies, raced cars, snuggled on my lap while I typed a report, and asked what's THAT? to just about everything.  He made post-it artwork and was a big boy about the potty, excitedly shutting me out of the stall when he had to go.

Gobbles paraded proudly up and down the hallway grabbing things from the printer for me and delivering papers to the proper people.  He was very impressed to eat lunch with me in our little kitchen and was even more fascinated with the fact that his Thomas lunch bag magically appeared out of the office fridge.  After lunch, I turned down the lights in my office and laid out his nap mat in an attempt to get some uninterrupted things done. 

The next 45 minutes consisted of Gobbles playing with the bottom filing cabinet drawer and jumping / rolling around on his sleeping bag, basically doing everything but sleeping.  I gave up and decided it would just be another day without a nap, since they only seem to happen once in awhile now.  My son went about his business chatting it up with my coworkers, collecting little knickknacks that they offered him, and then he returned into my office with his favorite prize.

A pair of Twix bars.  See, our admin has a little basket on her desk with fun size chocolate, and had asked if she could give him some candy after lunch.  Sure, I told her, but just one.  Trying to pander favor with Gobbles (and pointing out I didn't elaborate on "just one"), she let him choose from her secret stash of full size candy, which I didn't realize until after I called her up half laughing half in shock that my son was clutching a long thin chocolate bar in each hand with an iron grip.  Have I mentioned she doesn't have kids?  I guess that can be her excuse.

Anyway, the combination of no nap and a chocolate high sent things downhill by about 4, so I started packing up.  Gobbles threw a monster tantrum that echoed through the halls of my small office even when the door was closed.  Thank God the people I work with are the coolest people ever and didn't seem to care... one of the VPs even called Gobbles into his office when we were on our way out and told him next time he comes in he'll have to play with some of the construction trucks that are in his office.

So- a long day at my work without my running around time + no nap + chocolate sets the stage for Gobbles' mood that evening.  First, we swung by daycare to pick up the Lil Lobster Roll, where Gobbles proceeded to kick one of her teachers in the shin as a greeting.  Completely embarrassed, I ushered the kids out and explained to him how what he did was not nice and that he hurt his teacher's feelings.  He then required an explanation on what it means to "hurt someone's feelings".  The simplest way I could put it was when you're not nice to someone, and they go from being happy to being sad.

Fast forward to bedtime, when Gobbles is throwing a tantrum for his father.  This one was the most epic one yet, as Daddy had told him it was time for a bath and for bed, but Gobbles wanted to throw things around instead.  When timeout was called, Gobbles began kicking and screamed in a shrill voice he'd never used before "No no NO daddy! You are HURTING MY FEELINGS!!!"

I balked from the bathroom, where I had been bathing the Lil Lobster Roll.  I've definitely heard that voice before.  In fact, I invented that voice as far as I know.  A voice as if your world is being torn apart by the most awful things in the world - your illogical parents, who just don't get it. And the approach?  Using something I just learned and throwing that back in their face?  Yup, guilty as charged. 

I looked at hubs with wide eyes and asked him if he ever remembers me reacting to him in that manner in the last two years, thinking Gobbles had to have seen it somewhere.  "No", said my confused husband, "why?"

Because I just looked into a mirror of my past.  Because that voice, that attitude, is something I used constantly between the ages of 12 and 18 when I would fight with my parents.  We already knew he was stubborn, but my God - my son is my son through and through, and it looks like while some habits are learned, others are definitely ingrained in your genetic structure.  And my mother is off and laughing, finally getting her justice, her win for those countless arguments.  I wish you have children just like you.

Lord help me when this child becomes a teenager.

Oh Yea - just another thing that makes me just. like. mommy.  My affinity for chocolate.

We're BACK

This blog has been neglected lately. Not that there's nothing to write about, just that we're trying to live it up and squeeze every last ounce out of summer going here and there and everywhere every free chance we get, in between work and-oh yea- packing to move into our NEW HOUSE!

That's right! FINALLY! Settlement to sell this thing and buy our new one are currently scheduled for 9/14. Our offer has been accepted for a month now, but I was hesitant to cheer until after inspections and appraisals, because nowadays they can kill a sale just as quickly as they can make one. But we made it through that phase in one piece.

We've been intermittently packing boxes when we have time, and Gobbles has been a wonderful help popping the bubble wrap and throwing random things onto each box hoping I won't notice. He is excited for the swingset at the new place but nervous because his room is no longer decorated - The pictures are packed for our NEW house!  I'll have a BIG ROOM, and a swing set!  But I don't like swings.  As we've gone back and forth to the shore the past few weekends, he has been convinced that each time we would be returning to our "new house".  Not quite yet buddy- but just three weeks now!

I have a ton to write about including more minication stories, potty training updates, and my son's emerging rebel attitude.  But, working all day and packing a box at night or in the morning makes for a fried brain, so I'll get there!

In the meantime, some randoms from around the house:

Hey there everyone!  I'm a drool factory!

And no matter how hard I laugh, no waking up that puppy!!

Isrut gave me this awesome toy and Mommy put all my fishes out of reach with hopes I'd crawl to them!  Doesn't matter to me - the bowl is the best part!

Thanks Mom for the awesome toy!  Wait - this isn't a toy?

Well if i can't play with the bubble wrap - how about this bowl?  You don't have to pack this right?

Seriously Mommy? 

Hahaha Ok I guess I do look kinda silly - I'll give you a smile!

Ahhh here he is- my favorite puppy!

Kisses!

Headstands!

I look just DAPPER in daddy's tie.  So glad he let me dress myself today!