Weekend Update

Where to start? I haven't posted in a while, mostly out of sheer laziness. Lots of things going on and when I had a free moment, I couldn't find the motivation. Anyway...

Nick's MDO had a valentine's day party on Thursday. The teacher had two plates of cookies she was offering. Of course she started on the opposite end of where Nick was sitting. He had to sit there and wait for her to ask each child if they wanted a heart or a smiley face. And he would answer each time, "heart. heart. yes?" He did this about 8 times and couldn't understand why she didn't give him a heart cookie. When she finally got to him she said, "Nicholas, do you want a heart or a smiley face?" He answered, "smiley face." That made me laugh out loud. Nobody else caught it but me.

He was just so excited about the cookies

Here he is anxiously awaiting his cookie.

With his favorite teacher, Miss Trish

He also got another sweet treat on Friday when his Magi and Grandad came for a visit. They couldn't make it to his birthday last week b/c she was sick. They got him this really cool keyboard that has a mic and you can record yourself. He has been playing w/ it all weekend. Nothing like hearing Old McDonald w/ a techno beat. Really gets you moving. He loves spending time w/ Magi and Grandad. It was a nice, relaxing weekend. Thank you so much for coming!

He couldn't wait for his grandparents to see him in his Indiana Jones hat.

I'm hoping the batteries will die in this thing sooner rather than later, but he loves it.

3 Years Old!

Our little boy is now 3 years old! I wanted to post sooner, but I could not get all the pictures loaded. This will be kind of a long post, but there are so many things to post.

I'll start off w/ Thursday, where Scott and I brought cupcakes to his MDO. He was so excited to see Scott there. He ran over and unleashed a torrent of words, most of which we did not understand. We did catch the words "play", "slide", "outside" and "friends". We got the general picture.

He had birthday pancakes on his special day. It was basically his normal breakfast w/ a candle. He loved it though. We let him open a couple of presents from us. We figured we would pace ourselves since we knew he'd have more coming. Next his Uncle Huy, Aunt Shannon and Uncle Steve stopped by bearing gifts. Huy and Shannon got him some much needed play clothes. Steve got him a cool bicycle complete with helmet and pads. Thank you for your generous gifts! We headed out for a celebratory lunch afterwards. We had a great time. We're sorry they couldn't stay for the party, but appreciate the time we had w/ them.

It's off to the Little Gym for his party! He's been there once for Zach's birthday and had a great time. Today was no exception. His theme was Mickey Mouse. We received a catalog in the mail a few weeks back from the party store and they had Mickey Mouse stuff in it. He would look at that page everyday telling me he wanted a Mickey Mouse cake. It was a done deal. I don't have a picture of the cake. Doh! Fortunately, Christina does and I'll add those when she posts her pictures. Thanks, Chris. I think my favorite part of the whole day was when he was "blowing" out his candle. He had trouble blowing it out b/c it was further away from him and he wouldn't lean in. I don't know why I didn't think to turn the cake around and push it closer to him, but it was fun watching anyway. During one attempt, it came out as more of a big sigh. He also tried to wave it out w/ his hands. I loved it. In the end, he had a little help from me. On a side note, I did want to say to both our parents and the rest of my family that we missed them. Scott's mom has been sick for over two weeks now and my mom has shingles. We wish them a very speedy recovery and Nicholas is looking forward to seeing you soon.

We want to say how much we appreciate everyone that help make this day so so special for our little man. Thank you for the thoughtful gifts. But most of all, thank you for being there, not just on his birthday, but every day with your love and support. He is blessed to have all of you in his life.

Bittersweet

Well, our baby boy turns 3 tomorrow. I can't believe how quickly it has gone by. And there's not a dang thing I can do about it. We were waiting at Rick's bakery this afternoon (to pick up his cake) and I almost started crying like a fool. He was sitting next to me, swinging his little legs, singing a sweet song he learned in school. He would occasionally glance at me and Scott, give us a little smile and continue singing. He looked so content (he did just have a choc. chip muffin). I did lose it this evening. Scott usually reads to him and sits with him in the dark for a while at bedtime. Tonight, I stayed after Scott left. We talked awhile about what we were going to do tomorrow, then he sang Amazing Grace, Rainbow Connection, Take Me Out to the Ballgame, Folsom Prison and Hush Little Baby. What can I say, he loves to sing. I cried listening to him sing that last song. He's got the sweetest little voice in the world.

Our little man is a true blessing in our lives. We thank God everyday for him. Happy Birthday! We love you, Nichol-hiney.

Background Check

My friend Kim recently blogged about her top 5 addictions. So I thought I'd share my latest addiction, but not top 5, I'll save that for another day.

If you read my blog regularly, you've probably noticed I love to change my background. Often. In fact, I'm a little obssessed with it. I love being a SAHM, but it provides me w/ very little mental stimulation. Since I started blogging, I've been learning html and photoshop in my spare time. I wanted to learn how to make my own backgrounds. There are tons of sites out there that offer them up for free, but it's much more fun to do it yourself. This is a creative outlet for me, and we all know I'm not the least bit creative. Well, after learning html, I'm finally working on photoshop and recently made my first background. woo hoo. You're looking at it right now. What do you think? I know kinda of simple, but I love the colors.

Anyway, I thought I'd share my favorite websites I use to get free backgrounds. These ladies do some amazing work. Once this post drops off, I'll put it in my sidebar. Your one stop shop for free backgrounds. If you know of some other sites, let me know and I'll add it to my list. Enjoy!


Allison Brown's Layouts

Bling on the Blog

Knottymoose Designs

LeeLou Blogs

The Cutest Blog on the Block

Paisley Cat Scraps

Scrap-E-Blog

Simply Chic Blogs

Shel Scraps

Aqua Poppy Designs

The Blog Fairy

Bloggers Pond

That's Gonna Leave A Mark

The other day I left Nick to color at his easel. I'm in my bathroom changing when he comes in and says...

Nick: No coloring on the wall. Only on paper.
Me: That's right, only on paper. No coloring on the wall.

Pause.

Me: Did you color on the wall, Nicholas?
Nick: Yes.

He scribbled on the hall wall w/ a black crayon. It wasn't huge, but you can see it. Worst thing is, it's not a washable crayon. I know, I know, but he has never done this before. I cannot get it off. He got a stern warning from me that if he ever did that again, I'd spank his little hiney. Anyone have any suggestions other than painting over it?

Let's Catch Up

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. We did, thanks to the nice weather. Just a quick post to catch up and respond to one of my adoring and loyal readers.

** Kim, you didn't know we lived on the oceanfront? Actually, the pictures in my last post were of Lake Geneva, Switzerland. They're pretty crazy looking, but they are in fact real. Heidi verified this on Snopes. Nice detective work. Unlike me, she doesn't believe everything she reads on the internet.

** Saturday we ran errands in Fayetteville, one of those stops being Rick's bakery. Nick had his face pressed up against the display glass the whole time, mumbling something to himself or to the cookies. We were there to order his b-day cake. That's right, my baby is turning 3. Let's not talk about it, I get verklempt thinking about it. Later that evening, we had a lovely dinner w/ some friends.

** I went to see The Reader at the theater Sunday afternoon w/ some girlfriends. My review?... Huh. That's what I thought when it was over. I'm not going to put it up there w/ The English Patient, but, man, did it come close. And in case you don't get my drift, it's not a good thing. But I'm glad I went. It had been ages since I'd been to the movies.

** We went to a Super bowl bash at the Pittmans on Sunday. We had a great time, especially Nick. He wasted no time tearing up their recently cleaned playroom. The food was fantastic and the company even better. Thanks for having us over. Glad the Steelers pulled it off.

I'll leave you w/ some action shots taken over the weekend...

Not really an action shot, but the calm before the storm

Sure Surly

I realize my last post sounded a bit surly. It isn't that I'm not grateful that we were one of the few fortunate enough not to lose power. I am. But take a look outside our window and you'll understand where I'm coming from.




Anyway, Nick and I were able to get out and about today, so the irritability (poor Scott) is gone. It was a glorious 43 degrees today. I took him to Gymboree and we met up w/ Heidi and Erin and their girls at ChickFilA for a late lunch. Impromptu lunches are rare, but always lovely when you can swing it. One more sunny day of 40-50 degree weather and all the surliness will completely melt away.

Cabin Fever

We've been trapped here for days. I've not seen civilization since I don't know when. Okay, we could have gotten out of the house today, but, admittedly, I was too lazy to get myself and Nick all bundled up. Scott and I let Nick play in the "snow" yesterday for a bit, and it took longer to dress him than the time he spent outside. He did enjoy his brief escape from confinement, running around like a mad man in the back yard. Nothing like playing on a huge sheet of ice with a dusting of snow. Our final total is 2 inches of ice. I won't wax poetic about the ice. I'm done w/ it, ready for it to be gone. If I'm gonna be trapped by a winter storm, there needs to be snow. Lots of it. Laura Ingalls, Little House on the Prairie style snow.

Here are some pictures during our confinement...

Not sure why, but he's obssessed w/ looking glasses. That's what he calls them.

Made a get well rainbow for his Magi, who's feeling under the weather. Hope you feel better soon!

Don't you just want to eat him up?!

Bundled up like Randy on a Christmas Story

Old Man Winter

We've been iced in since yesterday afternoon. We're feeling a little stir crazy (esp. Nick), but are grateful that we still have power. For now. Thought I would share some pictures of the the ice storm. The ice is about an inch thick in some places. Hope everyone is staying safe and warm.

Year Of The Ox

Happy Vietnamese/Chinese New Year! In Vietnam it is called Tet. For those who don't know, just a little bit of background. It is based on the lunar calendar and falls on a different date every year. This year is known as the year of the Ox (one of 12 zodiac signs), which symbolize patience, hard work, tenacity and loyalty. I'd say that about sums me up. It is typically celebrated for 3 days with lavish meals among friends and family. A big tradition is giving away red envelopes called "li xi" stuffed w/ money. The red color symbolizes good luck. The younger you are, the more money you rake in, as it is normally given to you by someone who is older. I remember when I was a kid going to the Asian market and wishing every adult I could find a happy new year. That would immediately produce a red envelope. How easy was that?

We went to Fort Smith on Saturday to have an early celebration w/ my family. This year, my parents set up a "money tree" and you could pull 3 envelopes from it. Some had more money in it than others. Nick got the envelope w/ the most money in it, of course. I'm sure my mom rigged it. I hope this will become a regular tradition. My mom also made a traditional Vietnamese soup, which contained among other things, pigs feet. Scott ate it, I had chicken nuggets, we'll leave it at that.

I don't have any pictures to load yet, but will add them as soon as I get them. In the meantime, I thought I'd change my background in celebration of the holiday. Here's wishing everyone and happy, healthy, and prosperous "new year"!

More Than Meets The Eye

So I totally stole this from the Meanest Mom blog, but it was just too awesome not to share...



Can't decide if Starscream or Optimus Prime is my favorite.

Pokey Pokey

Nick calls the Hokey Pokey (sp?), "Pokey Pokey". And for some reason he thinks it goes something like this...

Redefining The Word Fun

Well, the over-nighter went off w/out a hitch! We headed out Saturday morning and dropped Nick off at my parents. He loves going there and had a huge grin on his face the moment we pulled into the driveway. We got a very distracted goodbye. He apparently asked about us a couple of times, and for some reason my mom told him that we went to Walmart. The whole time. I was torn b/t laughing hysterically and asking her what in the world she was thinking. Seems it was enough to placate him though.

Scott and I lost no time getting out of there. Guess my mom was anxious to get rid of us too, as there was no offer of lunch. This coming from a woman who will ask you an hour after Thanksgiving dinner if you're hungry.

On our way back up , Scott suggested we do least 10 "fun" things. We redefined the word. Let me quickly outline...

* Ate Corn Nuts and drank Big Red. I'll let you guess which one of us considered this a "fun" activity.
* We had a leisurely lunch at Pesto Cafe. Yum!
* Was going to watch a movie, but nothing good was showing. Instead we curled up on the couch after lunch and watched a rental. Pineapple Express. Weird, but funny.
* Had afternoon snack at Cold Stone Creamery
* Took a short nap
* Had drinks at the Aloft bar
* Ate dinner at Bonefish Grill
* Turned in early (it's fun when it's a choice)
* Slept in
* Read the paper in bed (this is impossible w/ Nick)

Rock stars got nothing on us. We left Sunday afternoon to pick Nick up and to hang out w/ my family for a couple of hours. Nick gave us a big grin when we arrived, but was too busy bossing his uncles around to pay much attention to us. We probably could have left him there a few more days. But we missed him too much. We spent a good portion of our free time talking about our little man and how much he makes us laugh. We missed his constant jabbering and singing. The house was lonely w/out him, especially by Sunday morning. We are glad to have him back.

A big thanks to my family for taking him this weekend. It was nice being able to recharge and relax, knowing he was in good hands.

A picture of our little thug

Over-nighter

Scott and I have only been away from Nicholas on one occasion. Last May we took a trip to DC w/ another couple for the weekend. Scott's parents came and watched Nick. He did extremely well, in fact, he didn't ask for me once (traitor). I imagine "no" was not a word he heard often that weekend. He was living the good life. Well, Scott and I are planning to take our little man to my folks tomorrow and let him stay the night. Then we plan on having a grand ol' time! This will be his first time away from home w/out us. Fortunately for Nick, the word "no" is rarely uttered by my parents when he is around. I can see it now... he'll strut into my parents' house and immediately demand ice cream, which he will receive posthaste. He'll eat copious amounts of candy and will be up until midnight. He will then believe this is the new order of the world and expect the same treatment when he comes home. *smirk* Let's wish them luck!

I'll let you know how it goes. Have a great weekend!

One Mean Blog

I know we all do it. We click on links from our friends' blog to other people's blogs, people we don't even know. It's really entertaining when you've got the time. Don't remember where I found this particular one, but it has been one of my absolute favorites. She will crack you up! If only I could be half as entertaining.