Week Nine: O's First Dentist Visit

So apparently I have a big kid. I'm still trying to pinpoint when exactly that happened, but it definitely did!

Since O is almost 3 we decided we really can't procrastinate on a dentist appointment any longer. 

We chose to go to St Paul Pediatric Dentistry because a friend had a great experience and it is super close to our house. I cannot even put in words how great our experience was, but I'm going to try!

O is a pretty easy going kid, but he is still a toddler, and a very stubborn one at that. If he gets his mind set on something {like not going to the dentist} there is little that can be done to change it. 

Luckily, George Monkey {Curious George} has a book about going to the dentist and O was super excited about it. He was also pretty jazzed to be able to pick out a movie to watch when we got there. They have TVs mounted on the ceiling and the kids get to pick from a list of movies to watch while they have their teeth looked at or worked on. 

After he chose Shrek, we were brought back to the exam room where the hygienist did some show and tell with O. He was able to touch and see the "tooth tickler," "tooth counter," and the water squirter. He was especially excited to squirt water in his mouth. 

He was a champ the whole time and everyone we encountered was so cheerful and nice! He got to take home a tooth brush, tooth paste, a sticker, and a bath toy. I literally had to remove him from the exam room. He didn't want to leave! 

Water squirter! Such fun!

Roaring like a lion before the tooth counting began!

Tooth Tickler in action. 

Wearing shades, picking nose, watching Shrek.

Goodbye to my kitty boy

Our sweet kitty boy is gone.

He was such a great friend to Mike, Owen, and me. If you knew Dewey, you probably knew the little jerk who tried to bite you. But that just wasn't who he was for us. For us he was a big fluffy snuggle buddy.

When he was a kitten, he used to climb up into the Christmas tree and peek out at us with his big ol' eyes.

When we moved into the apartment on Pecan he was so cautious as he explored his new home. I'll always remember losing track of him only to realize he was hanging out on the counter behind the microwave, just watching us look for him.

Whenever Mike was sick or sad, he was always there. He just knew he needed extra cuddles and would follow him around the house.

When I was pregnant Dewey was so clingy! He was always by my side and loved laying on me.

When Owen was born Dewey was so curious and gentle with him.

When Owen turned into a fur pulling toddler Dewey was still so patient and {mostly} gentle with him.

When we wiped away his eye boogers he loved nothing more than to lick them off our fingers. {So gross.}

When I get out of the shower he was always there to hop in as I hopped out so he could drink the lingering water out of the tub. Because the water dish seemed to be an insult in his opinion.

When he left us last night we were devestated. We still are. Right now it feels like we always will be, but I have so much hope it will get better.

Owen asked a lot of questions while we were saying goodbye last night and we really struggled trying to get through it.

My favorite explanation is that Dewey is all done living on this earth and his body will go into the earth, but maybe someday another kitty will have a meow just like Dewey.

Owen hopes that when we find the kitty with the meow like Dewey's, that kitty can come live with us. I hope that I have room in my heart for a new kitty. 

Week Eight: Mommy/Owen Day

Balancing work, family, marriage, and self is kind of impossible. It just is. This week I hit two birds with one stone when I took O on a "Mommy/Owen Day" and gave Mike a night off.

It was a pretty great but totally unpredictable evening with my little buddy. My plan was to take him to MOA for some rides, some dinner, and then some shopping before heading home.

Here is what transpired instead:

Arrive at mall.
Score VIP parking spot like a boss.
Argue with toddler about bringing in the carrier. {I was pro-carrier. He was not.}
Walk in {sans-carrier...grumble} carrying toddler because he "needed some snuggles but just in your arms, not in the carrier."
Arrive at the mall with plans to head straight to dinner, only to notice an elaborate Chinese New Year celebration set up in the rotunda.
Become mesmerized by the Kung Fu, dragons, and drums.
Watch for a long time, THEN go grab some Noodles.
Try to convince O that we should go on some rides.
Get distracted by the arcade, the doll stoe, the peeps store, and basically everything else that could possibly distract a 2 year old. While carrying him. Because no carrier.
Ride 2 rides.
Go home.

I'm not even sure why I still have this compulsive need to plan. Even if the plan is to wing it, I need to plan! Yet my plans always go something like those listed above. Someday I might learn. ;)

At least we bought the year long pass to rides, so we didn't waste money on a one day pass or anything!

In case you were curious, Mike and O went on a grocery store adventure and baked Irish soda bread on my night off. So yummy!

Week Six: Sunshine State

Vacations can be so stressful. The pressure to do everything and have ALL THE FUN can be so paralyzing.

This vacation was not like that, my friends. Not at all!

We had a few things we wanted to do, but plenty of time for relaxing and winging it. And wing it we did.

Hang out time with cousins, both adult and toddler sized. Lowry Park Zoo. Hang out time with aunties and uncles. Brunches. Coffee dates. Ice cream. Beaches and boardwalks. Favorite restaurants and grouper galore. Basically everything we hoped this vacation would bring!

I've been posting pictures throughout our trip, but here are some of my favorites. I truly hope everyone has a chance to take a vacation as chill as this one has been at some point in their lives. I recommend not while you have a toddler. ;) But even with O toddlerin' like crazy some days, it was still pretty amazing. 

Brunch with cousins. <3

Gymnastics!

Lorikeets 

Making birdie friends.

Total beach bum.

On our date!

John's Pass. 

Singing his heart out on the golf course. 

An evening stroll on the golf course. 

Uncle Bobby and Uncle Jerry visited!

Valentine's Day treats. 

I can't even with the cute in this photo. 

Almost every morning was lazy and delightful. 

On the way home we saw a shadow of our plane in a circular rainbow. What?!

My little buddy and I at John's Pass. 

Someone took a snooze at the zoo! Thanks, standard size Kinderpack, for fitting my almost 3 year old. 

Zoo selfie!

Owies are made better by bandaids and snuggles. 

Ready to catch Daddy on the slide.

Sand covered kid. 

Week Seven: Snow Painting

Back to reality after our trip. It is always so hard to get back in the swing of things after such a great vacation.

O had a great idea that made the best of a snowy reality. Snow painting!

It is an activity we did a while ago but I had totally forgotten about. O was eager to scoop up some snow to use, and headed out on his own to get it.

Mr. No Pants wanted to get his own snow.

Beyond some snow, all you need are watercolors, brushes, and water.

Snow painting!

What started as an art project evolved into an experiment about freezing and melting and measuring as O mixed scoops of snow into the water cup. It was a blast!

Mixing colorful snow into the water. 

How much snow can we mix in before it stops melting? {A lot}

Week Five: Operation Toddler on a Plane

I am almost embarrassed to admit how much of my time this week was devoted to mentally planning our flight to Florida. Not the trip itself; we will wing it when we get there. But the actual flights down there are what I've been devoting much too much brain space to.

But guess what? Worth it!! As I sit here with a happy toddler and a margarita, I can 100% confirm it was worth it.

Here is what we packed in the carry on:

*Applesauce pouches
*Bunny Grahams
*Raisins
*Alphabet carrot and zucchini cookies
*Fruit snacks
*Granola bars

*Change of clothes and 2 pair of undies for O
*Kleenex
*Hand and face wipes
*A couple zip lock bags just in case
*Extra contacts+solution+glasses

* A sheet of puffy stickers
*Character band-aids  {princess and minion by request}
*Two rolls of colorful masking tape
*Felt pizza {from last year's busy bag exchange}
*Velcro color matching with paint samples {from last year's busy bag exchange}
*Foam tangrams
*Color changing silly putty
*Mini slinky
*Airport sticker book
*Sticker alphabet book
*Kindle
*Headphones

We are already getting ready to land and we have gone through each entertainment opportunity, but O is happy, mama is happy, & daddy is happy. :)

Busy Bag activities from last year's busy bag swap were a hit!

Color changing silly putty. Highly recommend.

Masking tape is a hit at home and it was a big hit on the plane, too!

Mini slinky from the dollar section at Target was great.

A stacking crayon and foam tangrams from the dollar spot were both just OK.

Stickers and snacks and our BFF the Kindle. 

Week Four: A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

I have to share one of the most amusing and sweet things that has been going on recently.

O has always had a lot to say. Since birth he was loud, and found his voice shortly after. He started talking early, and was speaking in sentences that outsiders could understand before he was two. All that chatting makes me sometimes forget to take in just how hilarious and adorable some of it is.

Every night before bed Mike and I will tell O what to dream about and he has started telling us what to dream about too. We have started taking note of some of his suggestions. Here are a few from the last couple weeks, grouped by night. :)

• Really, really, really, really, really fast cars
• Crocodiles
• Kindle
• Mama
• Mac and cheese

• Alligators
• Porcupines
• Water fountains
• Barnes and Noble
• Rockets

• Mac and cheese 
• Flying planes
• Auntie Jessica
• Toy benches

• The man with the yellow hat
• Dinosaurs
• Macaroni and cheese
• Lamps

Am I writing this for you to enjoy or for me to chronicle and look back on in the years to come? Hard to say. Probably the latter, to be honest. But I just can't help it. I love every chance to tap into the enigma that is a toddler brain.