Uncle Patrick!

Uncle Patrick is in town! Hooray! The blog will be on hiatus until festivities with my uncle have ended. Who knows what the long weekend will bring but I've already gone with no nap and a very late bedtime! So much excitement! Tomorrow night a slumber party is scheduled with cousin Lorelli too! Such a fun time!

Will check in after Uncle Patrick leaves to share stories and pictures of how my grandma and grandpa reacted to the surprise!!
XOXO
Alexander

Happy Blog Anniversary!

It occured to me, when racking my brain on a topic for the blog tonight, that it had to be getting close to our year anniversary of bloggdom. As it turns out, I missed the date by a few weeks. Our first post was February 7, 2008, with a picture of a very happy little one year old.

I'm not sure anyone, least of all me, thought I would keep this blog up and running for a full year. I usually lose patience and interest (just ask anyone about the pile of scrapbook tools that is collecting dust in the loft) and move on to the next fad.

Alexander definitely keeps my interest and sharing him with you on the blog is something I truly enjoy. Thanks for joining us and Life with Alexander. Hope you've enjoyed it...it beats getting an email with pictures every month, eh?

Little Gym

Alexander and Mommy went to Little Gym this morning. Normally, Daddy and Alexander go during the week but today was a make up session. Each week, Eric would share stories of our independent monkey at Little Gym and I admit, I was very curious to see just how rambunctious our son acts in public. I couldn't believe a place actually encourages kids to explore and play and be off task. I wasn't sure if he was exaggerating when he told me that Alexander runs around during group time. Or that his independence is in full force as he makes choices about which events he participates in and which events he would rather spend the time playing on the equipment. I'm sorry I don't have pictures for you. Eric and I decided the other parents probably wouldn't appreciate the camera and there is probably some "no photos" rule in the giant handbook we had to sign.

I'm thrilled to say, there is no exaggeration to any of the stories. The kid loves to explore and this place happily encourages it. Oh, there were times when he would sit on my lap but I suspect it was more for reassurance than anything else. Otherwise, he was on the run and going strong the entire hour. My parents observed from the lobby (along with other proud grandparents) and will back me up when I say, Alexander never stopped moving.

I wanted to see Alexander on the balance beam because Eric says this is his favorite equipment. The first time Alexander went across he let me hold his hand and swing him off the edge with both hands. The second time, I could hold his hand but he wanted to jump off by himself. The beam is 4 feet off the ground so I said no and swung him off again. The third and fourth times, he would not let me hold his hand (believe me, my hands were centimeters from his body) as he ran, unassisted and never looking at his feet, down the length of the balance beam. And he laughed the entire time as he ran and leapt off into the air at the end...with me still holding his hands. I'll give him some freedom but a parent often has to help a child land and I'm not ready to let go just yet.

I know our son is fast. I know our son is coordinated. I know our son is independent. I didn't know how amazing it would feel to watch him put all of this together.

I rarely acknowledge that Alexander might be skilled in an area because I know there are going to be other kids out there that are better or worse in all areas. Comparing him doesn't mean a thing. But it made this PE teacher and former coach proud to watch her kid show off his athletic skills. Even I was impressed. Way to go, monkey boy.

Early Riser

My sister swears that parents get more sleep as children gets older. What age constitutes as "older"? My kid LOVES the morning hours. Faithful blog followers have heard my lament of 5AM wake up calls in earlier posts so I'll keep the whining to a minimum (the dark circles under my eyes seem to be getting worse). Fortunately, Alexander is happy and content to spend alone time in his room so we often wake up to him singing, playing with his toys, or banging the door against the gate. He is at his best in the morning and truth be told, so am I. Once my eyes actually open.

Despite being the morning person I am, I still need my alone time, waiting for the four cups of coffee to settle in my veins. Playhouse Disney is our saving grace. Mornings are spent in front of the TV and, while I am not proud to admit it, I'd be a zombie without those cartoons.

By the way, my sister has trained her six year old to wait until 9 to wake the house up.

Brilliant.

HELLO P.E.O. LADIES!!

This is the book that I hide. Mommy spends a lot of time looking for it before her meetings.

That's funny.

Playing outdoors.

Mommy does not like to be cold. I stopped playing soccer in the eighth grade for this very reason. I never took up skiing for this very reason. I do not go outside and play in the snow for this very reason. I. Hate. Being. Cold.

Alexander, on the other hand, does not care about the cold temperatures outside. This one is an outdoor boy, through and through. Today, after Daddy worked to get the Explorer running (!), we spent the afternoon walking/running around the yard, digging in the dirt, picking up branches, pulling weeds, and throwing the ball around in sub zero temps. Ok, I might be exaggerating about sub-zero temps. Weather.com states it was 50 degrees today but I insist it was colder.

As usual, I'm amazed how boys LOVE to play in the dirt and get dirty. I never liked the dirt as a kid and have vivid memories of counting down the minutes until Mom would let us back in the house (Mom, I don't blame you for kicking three kids outside in order to find your sanity). Our son showed how he is part goat as he climbed the treacherous terrain known as "the backyard". A young boy's paradise. He rarely fell as he climbed the rock wall, ran down the slippery slope of overgrown grass, and weaved in and out of overgrown trees. Before long, the young boy's cheeks were rosy red, the binky had long disappeared and, despite the freezing temps, both of us had grins on our faces from all the afternoon fun. Be forewarned Gma and Papa in Az.; helping us find a swing set on Craigslist is your spring project!

I'm still thawing out, though.

Definitely not a baby anymore.

Big Boy Bed!

Thanks to cousin Lorelli, Alexander has a big boy bed!

Tonight is the first night of this new chapter. And in my mind, a big boy bed indicates that Alexander has officially left the baby stage behind. I gotta be honest with you; I'm not really sure what to think about my baby becoming a little boy. Actually, I think I'm not a very big fan but it's happening regardless of what I think so I suppose I better learn to celebrate these new milestones.

Since he is napless and spent a good hour outside playing in the yard while we did yard work this afternoon, we suspect he may be so tired he would sleep in a cardboard box...or his tent.

A big bed for a big boy!!

I sick too.

Sick Day

Mommy is home sick today with a head cold that is finally draining into a regular cold (I can handle a regular cold; it's the sinus headaches that do me in). The boys have been terrific about letting me sleep in, lounge in my room undisturbed and just let me be sick. I've spent a good part of the morning napping and surfing the net. In my internet surf time, I have found a lot of blogs from other moms. This surfing led to the realization either I don't blog often enough or other moms have too much time on their hands and blog too much. There are some great writers out there and even better photographers who are blogging about their kids. Makes me want to do a better job with pictures but in reality, I'm just too lazy.

Being home has allowed me to spy on the boys and observe daily activities. They watch cartoons (favorites include Handy Manny, Little Einsteins, Imagination Movers, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Non favorites are The Wiggles and Winnie the Pooh). Eat breakfast. Build towers. Play with cars. Eat again. Play with Little People. Climb on couch and bounce into pillows. Kick the ball up and down the hallway. Build more towers. Play with loud crash 'em cars. Chase and tickle toddler until he screams with delight. Eric made chili. Alexander ate again. And took a bath. They took a trip in the truck to the auto store and went through a car wash. Apparently, Alexander didn't enjoy the car wash. Then they came upstairs to hang out with mommy and we danced on the bed and watched old videos of Alexander until he decided it was naptime. Boy, he sure learned to crawl and walk early...and really never stopped, now that I think about it.

Now is naptime for everyone.

And yes, I am feeling better.

Snow??

Apparently, when the groundhog saw his shadow last week, he should have seen snow boots and winter parka as well. We've got snow and school is two hours late today. However, I'm looking at less than a 1/2 inch of snow, roads that are bare and wet, and wondering who in the world decides when schools should be two hours late. Not that I'm arguing with the decision, mind you; I just don't understand it. Anyhow...I'm taking advantage of the time and getting to work on the laptop while the boys still slumber.

Alexander had Little Gym on Friday and according to Eric, he loved it. I'll try to get Eric to post about the experience. I'll post a few more pics of the cute kid...notice he's actually looking into the camera and there's no binky to be found!

Lorelli turns six today! Happy Fancy Birthday Cousin Lorelli!!

Question of the Day

This week's question: Does anyone know how to get a toddler to take a nap?

Next week's question: Does anyone know how to get a toddler to do anything without his replying "no" before you've even finished asking the request?

Yes, folks.

We've hit the Terrible Two's.

Best Helper Boy

Alexander loves to empty the Tupperware and washcloth drawers in our kitchen (usually when I'm cleaning and he's ready to have my attention again). I decided when we were sitting in the kitchen that we should take advantage of having empty drawers and clean them out with the vacuum. I asked Alexander if he would help. You don't have to ask this kid twice.

My biggest, best helper at work.

And then he remembered that the vacuum is WAY more fun when it is pulling on his fingers!

C IS FOR COOKIE!

Someone finally found his sweet tooth.