Day 152: Don't Go to the Bathroom...

...when you have a toddler.  Just don't.  It's not worth it.  Even when you think that your toddler is safely playing with his cars for the few moments you need to go pee, don't chance it.  It's better to wet yourself.  Otherwise, you risk hearing a bang and subsequent crying, and having to run quickly out to your kitchen to find this:

When I first happened upon this scene, Little Buddy was wrapped up in the tablecloth, crying.  He had a bump on his head but was otherwise ok.  As near as I can figure, he either pulled everything down on himself or climbed up on the table and fell, pulling the tablecloth with him.  I wasn't thrilled with either scenario (I'm pretty sure my nervous system was on overdrive as I checked him over).  Neither was he, because it took some time in the big bed to get him calmed down.

"Momma, I got a bump on my head."

"Maybe laying down will help..."

Starting to feel better.

After soothing a sore baby head, I decided we needed an outing.  We went ahead and ran a few errands, including getting Little Buddy some new polo shirts.  Then we met Daddy for lunch because he wasn't going to be home in time for dinner.  Our outing must have tired Little Buddy out because he slept until 3 PM!  Our neighbor girl then came over to watch him for a bit so that I could finally get some of the house cleaned up.  I was amazed at how much I got done while Little Buddy was occupied!  Then it was was time for dinner.

Someone is excited to eat!

"I love dinner!"

Chowing down on his baby pizza (whole wheat bagel topped with tomato sauce).

We ate dinner a little late, hoping that it would keep Little Buddy awake long enough to see Daddy when he got home.  It worked and my two boys were happy to hang out for a few minutes before Little Buddy's bedtime.  He is so calm and peaceful before bedtime, not at all like the table-jumping monster of this morning...

Honestly, I'm not going to the bathroom anymore.  Or I'm just switching to Depends.

Night all,

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 151: Bee Rider and House Cleaning Fireman

After giving my voice a rest yesterday, it finally started to come back a bit today.  This was good because Little Buddy and I had a busy day planned!

We started the day with boot camp (even though somebody made us 10 minutes late, ahem) and after Little Buddy watched Momma sweat it out in the Texas heat, we headed over to the park with Ms. E and her daughter O. 

"Look Momma, O and I are riding the bee!"

Two pretty cute kids.

Following park time, Little Buddy was hungry and missing Daddy after five straight days together.  Thankfully, Daddy was able to come meet us for lunch.  Little Buddy was thrilled to see him.

My boys.

When we were finished with lunch, Little Buddy and I dropped Daddy off and went home for nap time.  But that was certainly not the end of our busy day.  Once Little Buddy woke up, we packed up again and went to the grand opening of the new SHSU building.  While I checked out the classrooms for my upcoming classes, Little Buddy waxed on with some professors about future college choices.  Since he did so well on that excursion, I decided to reward him with some playtime with friends at the Children's Museum.

Fireman LB is on duty!

Uh-oh, time to go put out a fire!

"What, no fire here?"

 "That's ok.  Firemen are also great at sweeping floors."

We got home a little late from our outing, meaning that there was just enough time to feed and bathe Little Buddy before bath.  We really didn't get any chores done around the house, but that was ok.  Now that I know Little Buddy has such skill sweeping, I just need to get him a pint-sized broom and dustpan and put him to work.  The house will be spic and span in no time!

Good night, 

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 150: The Sound of Silence

So after all of the excitement at the cabins this past weekend, I knew that the first day back to reality wasn't going to be easy.  However, I expected Little Buddy to take the transitions hardest, not me.  I woke up this morning with NO voice.  It was terrible.  I couldn't even whisper.  A soundless Mommy is not a very effective Mommy.  Thankfully my husband was able to work from home today to help me take care of myself and of Little Buddy.

It ended up being a very low key day, but Little Buddy was thrilled to have both of us home with him again, even if I was much quieter than usual.  We played in the park, played in the backyard, and took Chesney for a walk.

Firetruck time!

Working on his pirate ship.

Even though it was terrible having to stay silent all day, I took comfort in the fact that I got the opportunity to stand back and watch my husband be the amazing father that he is.  He is so good at interacting with Little Buddy and I couldn't ask for a better man for my little guy to look up to.  Just watching the two of them play together makes me deliriously happy.  Something else that would make me deliriously happy?  Getting my voice back tomorrow!  Here's hoping!

Good night all, 

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 149: We're on a Boat!

Sadly, the last day of our camping trip came much too soon.  Happily, it was also one of the best days because we rented a boat to take the kids out on the lake!

The day started with us packing everything up and checking out of our cabins.  It was a little sad because the kids loved the communal living.  They got to walk right outside and go play with their friends.  Honestly, I think the adults loved it too, because there was always someone there willing to keep an eye on your little one so that you could run to the bathroom or make a snack.  Even though we were in tiny cabins, those features made it feel like we were living in the lap of luxury.

But we packed up (and in our case, plugged the TV back in.  With no power, Little Buddy couldn't get it to turn on, so my husband and I had a blissful Elmo-free weekend.  There are no words for that joy) and headed out to pick up our rental boat.  Little Buddy wasn't thrilled with wearing the life jacket, but we bought him off with a pretzel.

"Hmm...ok, I guess I will wear this weird vest thing."

Our fearless captain taking us out to sea.

Beautiful day on the lake.

Happy family!

After cruising around the lake for a bit, we decided to anchor at a little island with a beach.  There the kids got to play in the sand, wade out into the water, and enjoy a picnic lunch.  Little Buddy had no hesitation about the water today!

My water baby.

It was Little Buddy's first time on a boat and he loved it (so much so that Daddy is now entertaining the idea of maybe getting one in the future).  Again, after all of that adventure, the babies (and some of their parents) were pretty tuckered out.  As we headed back to the dock, several naps got started.

Sleeping babies in life jackets.

We really had a fantastic time with fantastic friends this weekend.  There has been some talk about continuing the trend and doing more camping weekends in the future and I know Little Buddy would certainly approve!

Good night, 

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 148: Hayrides and Lake Time

After sleeping like a rock following all of the fun yesterday, Little Buddy woke up ready and raring to go for Day 2 of our camping adventure.  We ate breakfast and played outside with our friends until it was time for the camp's hayride!  It was just a quick jaunt around the campgrounds, but the kids didn't seem to mind.

Hayride!

We then decided to go to the lake for swimming and a picnic lunch.  Little Buddy was impatient for his first visit to a lake, and wasn't happy when Momma and Daddy had to stop to pick up some things they had forgotten to pack.

 

"This doesn't look like a lake..."

"Hurry up!  Let's get to the lake and swim!  Please?"

Once we got there, Little Buddy wasn't quite as excited about the lake.  Turns out he was a little unsure of water where you couldn't see where you were stepping.  It took some time, but eventually he warmed up to the idea and we were able to get him off the beach and into the water.

 

"I guess you're right Momma, this isn't too bad!"

All that activity wore Little Buddy out and he was ready for a nap when we got back to the cabins.  I can't believe he still fits into his pack-and-play, but it was put to good use on this trip.

Sleep guy.

When he woke up, I was helping to make dinner, so some of the dads helped out by entertaining the troops.  They did such a good job, I think they should consider going into professional childcare!

Silly babies all in a row.

Listening intently as Mr. R entertains them!

After dinner, the kids lined up again, but this time for popsicles!  Another successful end to another wonderful day! 

Night all,

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 147: Mud Run and Camping Fun

Little Buddy is ready to go for a big, busy, fun Memorial Day weekend!  

We started today with Little Buddy and Daddy cheering me on as I, and several of my friends, ran 3.1 miles through mud and obstacles by choice.  I love Mud Runs!  My greatest hope is that one day Little Buddy will want to train to run one with me.  What a fun family activity it could be!

Little Buddy and Daddy with a pre-Mud Run Momma.  Little Buddy wasn't quite so sure of post-Mud Run mud-covered Momma, so we don't have an "after" shot together.  ;)

Hanging out in the wagon and cheering Momma on!

After I survived the Mud Run and got cleaned up, it was time to head out on our next adventure: Camping at Lake Conroe!  We went up with three other families (friends from BBC) and stayed in cabins.  We all loved it!  On the first day we got situated in our cabins, went swimming to the pool, and ate a tasty meal together.

Our cozy little cabins.

Little Buddy is a fan of the swimming pool!

The kids ended up sharing a communal bowl of fruit salad.  I'm pretty sure Little Buddy ate more than his fair share!

Then, after the kids went to bed, the adults had the luxury of sitting outside together.  It was amazing:  no chasing after kids to stop them from tumbling in the lake, no need to rush to home to a baby sitter, and no little voices begging for attention interrupting the conversation.  It was nice to be adults with other adults for awhile.  You almost forget how to do that, how to engage in conversation that does not revolve solely around Elmo and potty-training (though we certainly had a few kids-based side discussion) but it was nice to relax and hang out with friends.  We're certainly looking forward to Day 2 tomorrow!

Good night, 

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 146: Evil Geniuses, Wagon Rides, and Crow's Nests

Walked out in the living room this morning to see that my favorite Little Evil Genius had gotten taller (aka able to reach more things) and more cunning: 

"First step in my plan of world domination, grow tall enough to reach and steal Momma's computer!"

"First the internet, next the world!"

After liberating my computer from Little Buddy's grasp, we decided to go take a wagon ride to the park so that Daddy could spend the day working uninterrupted on pirate ship construction. 

The pirate ship is coming along great.  Check out the crow's nest!  I can't wait for Little Buddy and all his friends to play on it for Little Buddy's birthday party!

Tomorrow we are headed up to the lake for a camping trip with some friends, so I probably won't be able to post again until Monday.  We should have a lot of great photos of our adventures to share!

Night all,

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 145: Toothbrushes and Bucket Heads

Motherhood changes your life in so many ways.  You know everything is going to change once you have kids, but you never realize how minute parts of your day will be forever altered until you actually have a baby.  One thing that will never be the same is showers.  When you have a baby, you barely get the luxury of taking one, and when you do, you normally rush quickly through it to finish before nap time is over.  I honestly can't tell you the last time I dried my hair.  I thought it would get better once Little Buddy got older, but now he's just taller and able to get into more trouble.  This is what I stepped out of the shower to see today:

At least he's committed to oral hygiene, I guess.

The crazy continued this afternoon when Little Buddy decided that he needed a new hat.  Thankfully, there was a bucket nearby.

We're going with the idea that he wanted a top hat as opposed to a dunce cap, but who knows? :)  I certainly didn't know before motherhood how entertaining I would find bucket head wear!

Have a good night,

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma

Day 144: School's Out!

Today was Little Buddy's last day of the school year!  They celebrated with a Water Day!

He seemed to have a lot of fun!  I am so glad that he had a good year at school.  He's done so well that we enrolled him for the June school program, so after next week off, he'll be headed back for Wednesdays in June. 

Later on in the afternoon, I attempted to take care of some much needed housework.  Little Buddy wanted to "help" me again.

Vacuuming just doesn't seem to be his thing yet.  We may just keep assigning him dusting tasks.  :)   Anyway, we had a lovely day that ended with a full moon. 

Goodnight everyone,

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma