My Little Gardener

Since I love flowers and gardening so much I want Kyle to grow up to enjoy it as well. To help with this goal, Kyle now has his very own flower pot to take care of. His "pot" is actually a bucket decorated with the "Cars" movie theme and I added a few stickers to personalize it for him. I also found the cutest little watering can and gardening tools to assist him while he is working. It will be interesting to see how long the flowers will stay alive...he will probably not water enough, over water, or dig the flowers out. Hopefully, this will keep him away from my flower pots! Below are a few pictures of his new pot and tools. I think it is adorable!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Height Predictor

Are you curious to see how tall your child will be as an adult? Go here to calculate: Child Height Predictor. According to the calculations, Kyle will be 5ft. 10in. tall at the age of 18. Taller than his Mommy and Daddy. Pretty amazing to think he was 12 inches at birth. I will be curious to see how true this is in 15 1/2 years! How tall will your children be?

What's So Funny?

Kyle is keeping it a secret, but I sure wish I was in on the joke. One awesome quality about Kyle is that he is a happy little guy...for the most part! He loves to be goofy and laughs a lot. This is certainly a true statement when Kyle is attempting to go to sleep for a nap or at night. He spends time having so much fun and he just cracks himself up. He really gets on a roll and just can't stop laughing. This afternoon at naptime I called John so he could listen to Kyle since he was really going to town. He naps downstairs in a very dark room and doesn't have anything with him, but somehow he finds something to entertain himself. I think he must get this trait from me because there are times when I start to laugh and can't stop. My husband learned this fact about me the very first time we met and he still married me...amazing! There are even times when I have no clue what I am laughing about. Do you ever get into these moods or am I just an oddball?

Just thought this would be a cute "nugget" of information to share about My Little Munchkin. At least I know that Kyle has a sense of humor and a very vivid imagination.

Getting Old or Growing Up?

Our neighbors behind us were having quite the loud party last night with loud music, talking, and laughing. Of course, the party started soon before we were headed to bed. John and I think it was a high school graduation party, but are not a thousand percent sure. Thankfully, Kyle's room is on the other side of the house so it didn't disturb him. It did, however, keep John and me awake much later than we had anticipated and had Chloe wound up.

"Back in the day", I would have been the one having a great time at the party and wouldn't have thought twice about disturbing people in close proximity. You could say I had my share of fun the last two years of high school and into college. A scary thought occurred to me that this will be Kyle 16 years from now...having a graduation party in our backyard. As fast as time flies, it will be here before I know it. I may need to start preparing myself for it now!

Last night I came to a conclusion that either, I am getting old or have grown up because I was quite annoyed with the festivities. It probably is a combination of the two, along with the fact I have to wake up early with a toddler the next morning. Which isn't easy since I am not a morning person what-so-ever!

Even though, I was operating on a little less sleep this morning I had a very productive couple of hours while Kyle was at school. On top of that, Kyle had a great day at school. The past couple of weeks, Kyle has been having somewhat of a rough time at school so I was super excited to get this report. I have my fingers (and toes) crossed that it continues.

I realized my posts haven't included pictures recently. I've been slacking in the picture taking department. Need to get the camera dusted off and get too work.

Slowly, But Surely

Kyle's main developmental delay is speech. He receives speech therapy at home and also at preschool. He is a very vocal little guy and is always making noise of some sort. (Takes after his Daddy.) At first it was strictly babble, but it has recently turned into jargon...AKA "Kyle-ese". He has quite a few consistent words he uses frequently and plenty of words he uses every now and then. Not everyone would be able to understand his words or phrases, but I do and can make out what he is saying due to the context of what he is doing. As a homework assignment his speech therapist asked us to write a list of words he says, so just for the record I wanted to list them here. (Car, dog, clock, cracker, Kyle, daddy, no, yes, down, ball, up, duck, star, book, wee, what's that, oh no, all done, and Thomas, Dora, this is (have heard only once or twice.) I'm sure there are several I am forgetting, but the list will be a work in progress.

It's so cute to listen to him talk...his tone of voice is so adorable! His favorite word of all time is "car" which he must say a thousand times a day. Anything with wheels is a car, although he is beginning to understand there is a difference. "Oh No" is another one heard in our house countless times a day, considering he is constantly dropping something or being too mischeivious... it is very appropriate.

On the flip side of his communication skills, Kyle's receptive language (what he understands) is amazing. The child understands most of what we say which certainly helps a great deal and follows most directions like a pro. He certainly knows when he is in trouble and will lay his head down or cover his eyes with his hands. After a few minutes he usually wants a hug just to assure him that everything is OK. Oh, I love my sweet, affectionate, little boy!

It will be very exciting when Kyle and I are able to have a "true" conversation. When that time comes, I will most likely say, "Why was I so anxious for you to talk." Kyle has overcome so many obstacles in his two and half years and I have faith he will overcome his speech delay in the near future. He is definitely "My Miracle Baby", as well as "My Little Munchkin".

Happy Birthday...

TO MY HUSBAND

We have double the celebrations today since today is my husband's birthday and also Memorial Day! We enjoyed a pretty low key day...just the way John wanted it to be! John received a digital photo frame (shown below) for his birthday. He's being eyeing this for a while and is excited to display it on his desk at work. I'm sure all the pictures he will upload will be of My Little Munchkin. A couple of other "gifts" I gave him were being able to sleep in this morning and cleaning out my closet. As much as I hate to say it, John usually wakes up with Kyle on the weekends, so sleeping in was a much needed gift. My poor closet has been needing major attention for a really long time and it always "scared" him so I cleaned it just for him! It's the silly little things these days that mean so much!

I am in the process of preparing his special birthday dinner. It consists of our usual special occasion menu...filet mignon, roasted potatoes, and corn on the cob. It has been a wet weekend in STL so we weren't able to enjoy any outdoor festivities to celebrate the weekend.

Hope everyone had a wonderful, fun-filled weekend!

Happy Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day! Hope everyone enjoys the day, spending time with family and friends, BBQ'ing, or just relaxing!

Have a wonderful day!

A Is For...

ARTWORK

Kyle is becoming quite the little Picasso. At preschool he creates quite the masterpieces to bring home and as a proud Mommy, I display them on the refrigerator. I'm pretty sure he gets a "little" assistance, but I sure give him all the credit. I treasure each and every one of his drawings, paintings, etc. One day I know Kyle will enjoy looking back at some of his artwork from his toddler years.

Below is just a small sample for your viewing pleasure.

Blog Project

ABC's OF BLOGGING

My new blog project will be the ABC's of blogging. I will post about each letter of the alphabet with past memories about My Little Munchkin. I decided to do this project with previous experiences since my regular blog posts are current events. Hope everyone will enjoy our journey through the alphabet.

Kyle At Work

Who said that therapy isn't fun? As you can see in the pictures below Kyle was having a pretty good time. During his Developmental Therapy session Kyle played with shaving cream. For children who are tactile defensive, therapists often use shaving cream to help them adjust to different textures. If we had tried this six months ago with Kyle he wouldn't have had anything to do with it. His therapist used cars, trucks, and animals to get Kyle involved in the activity. Actually, I was shocked that Kyle didn't attempt to "eat" the shaving cream. That is certainly progress, at least in my book.

It has been a very busy week. In a million years I never would have dreamed a toddler could have such a busy schedule. With home therapy sessions, preschool two mornings, and a doctor's appointment, Kyle has been on the go this week. In between, we had our normal running around to do. A couple of nights this week Kyle didn't sleep very well and in turn I didn't sleep well. Kyle sure is making up for his sleeping today though..he took a FIVE hour nap. Needless to say, his bedtime schedule is out of sync, but we will readjust tomorrow...keeping my fingers crossed!

Hope everyone enjoys the long Memorial Day weekend.

Pool Time

Wow, I can't believe it's almost Memorial Day weekend. The swimming pools at the clubhouse in our neighborhood are opening on Saturday. I need to take an inventory to see what we need in order to head to the pool this summer. One item I will definitely need to purchase is a flotation device for Kyle. I really liked the one we used last year, but he is now too big for it. What type of flotation device is best for a two and a half year old? If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Thanks.

We headed to the pool a few times last year with Kyle and he really enjoyed himself. I'm curious to see what his reaction will be this year since he is a little older. In the next year or two I would like Kyle to take swimming lessons at the local YMCA. This will most likely be a father/son experience since I'm not a very good swimmer.

I'm sure as the summer progresses I will have pictures to share of Kyle at the pool. To tide everyone over I'm including a couple from last summer.

Summer 2007

New Addition

I recently added the "My Little Munchkin Guestbook" to my blog. Everyone is encouraged to sign the guestbook. Kyle is excited to keep up with his fans.

Please click on the Guestbook icon located at the right.

The Great Outdoors

I have yet to catch Kyle playing "dare devil" this week...key word being yet! Maybe he caught on to the fact that the camera is continuously following him around so he's on his best behavior. Yeah right...I don't think so! I did, however, want to share a handful of pictures taken this past weekend of The Little Munchkin. In a previous post I mentioned taking "93" pictures of Kyle and I couldn't resist sharing a few.

If it was up to Kyle he would live outside, he loves it so much! He does have a great time and it shows because once playtime is over he is usually a mess. However, since he has learned to wipe/wash his hands he hates when they are dirty. In one of the pictures he is running to us to clean off his hands since they became muddy. Other parts of his body he is fine if they are dirty, it's just his hands. Who knows why, but this is one thing that makes Kyle, well Kyle.

Hope everyone is enjoying their Wednesday. It is an absolutely gorgeous day here in STL!

Test Drive

Unfortunately, not test driving a car!!

I mean a second child. It's always fun for Kyle to have a friend over since he's around Mommy and Daddy continuously. He always has a great time with his friend, but today was a little hectic. One wanted to play outside, the other wanted to be inside. Since his friend is a little older, I was able to experience a little of what I have to look forward to down the road with Kyle. Fun times ahead! I will spare everyone all the details. After awhile everyone became happy and eventually were able to do what they wanted. They had the best of both worlds...being inside for a short while and outside for a while. I wasn't able to get any photos, but I'm not sure we had any great picture moments to capture. LOL.

We are settled in for our night of television. Big TV moments this week. The Dancing With The Stars finale is tonight. My prediction is Kristi Y. will take home the mirror ball trophy. She has been wonderful and consistant through the entire season. Also, the American Idol finale is this week. I've been rooting for David A. the entire season. David C. is very original and good, but there is just something about him...can't put my finger on it.

For any reality TV fans out there, Fun Office Pools is lots of fun. I've been in a few pools for the two shows mentioned above. One is between me and my husband. I'm sure I will win DWTS, but American Idol is a coin toss since John is a major David C. fan.

Who are your favorites?

Sibling Rivalry

It has taken quite some time for Kyle and Chloe (our dog) to become friendly with one another. The first few months after bringing Kyle home, Chloe was very depressed and moped around..she was so sad!! She was used to all the attention and then boom...her whole little world changed. Chloe has gradually been warming up to Kyle and now they "play" with each other a little. Kyle loves to feed Chloe, so this has certainly helped the friendship.

On the flip side, Kyle has always been infatuated with Chloe. He thinks she is silly and extremely funny...he really does love his "big sister". Within the past several months Kyle has become much more gentle with Chloe and actually pets her in an appropriate manner. Before, Kyle was very agressive with Chloe, which of course bothered her.

Below is a picture taken last summer. As you can see, it's no wonder Chloe wasn't a big fan of Kyle. Just for the record, no one was injured during this picture! The second picture was taken this weekend...how sweet!

Summer 2007

Kyle harrassing Chloe

May 2008

I Love Chloe!

Fifth Anniversary

We had a very nice anniversary and a wonderful evening.

Our morning began with Kyle greeting us in our bedroom to tell us Happy Anniversary! Honestly, we both loved it and thought it was so sweet! John gave me a diamond pendant for our anniversary (yes, it has baguettes). It is absolutely beautiful! Wood is the traditional gift for a 5th Anniversary, but wood just doesn't seem very romantic so we passed on any wood gifts. During the day, we did the usual Saturday type outings and played outside. After taking 93 pictures (yes you read that correctly...93) of Kyle playing we headed inside to prepare for our much anticipated evening out...sans My Little Munchkin. It was a very good feeling to get all "jazzed" up, since I'm always dressed in my "Mommy" attire.

Actually, our anniversary began Friday evening when John brought home a dozen red roses for me. What a great surprise and perfect way to start off the weekend! Who doesn't love roses??

We celebrated at Dominic's Restaurant on The Hill in St. Louis. The restaurant is very elegant and the food was absolutely amazing. We hadn't eaten during the day to be absolutely sure we were hungry and we sure made up for it at dinner. We started with calamari and shrimp cocktail for an appetizer, enjoyed spinach salads, John ordered Veal Osso Buco with Risotto, I ordered Veal alla Crema with Artichokes., and we finished dinner with Bananna's Flambeau for two. Everything was just so and perfect! Hopefully, we will go back again one day for another special occasion.

Of course, I have to include a few photos from the evening. Thanks for looking!

Outside of Dominic's

John before leaving home. Before Heading in Dominic's

After dinner, we went to The Millenium Hotel in downtown St. Louis for a cocktail. The view from the hotel is beautiful and overlooks the St. Louis Arch. A few years ago we went to a restaurant in the hotel for Valentine's Day called The Top Of The Riverfront. The restaurant turns 360 degrees and it is amazing to view the city from all different angles.

We had such a wonderful evening together. We were a bit concerned leaving Kyle with his babystitter since he is now escaping from his crib, but thankfully he was well behaved while she was here. John and I were looking forward to Kyle greeting us again this morning, but he decided to stay put this morning.

Back to the regular routine today. Hope everyone is enjoying the day!

Five Years Ago Today

Five years ago today I married my husband John. Our wedding was very small, but perfect! We were married in New Orleans, LA. at the French Quarter Chateau LeMoyne Hotel in the courtyard.

I definitley consider John my best friend, as well as a wonderful husband and father. He is the only person that truely, completely understands me. We have had many fond memories over the last five years, as well as many hard times. We have proven to each other that we can make it through anything. I look forward to many happy years in the future.

Below, is a small glimpse of "our day". The picture of the hotel and the overview picture of the courtyard wasn't taken on our actual wedding day. I just added these pictures to show, since the setting is so beautiful.

Chateau LeMoyne Hotel where we were married.

Overview Picture of the Courtyard

John and Lindsey - May 17, 2003

With Our Parents

We have an exciting anniversary date planned for this evening. We are really looking forward to celebrating! I know I will be back tomorrow with a recap from our actual anniversary!

The Time Has Come

HAPPY FRIDAY!

My Little Munchkin caught me by surprise this morning!

As I was getting ready this morning, Kyle was in the process of waking up. He decided to make a liar out of me since my post a couple of days ago about wanting to sleep in on school days! LOL. He does well having alone time after waking up...he plays, laughs, and entertains himself quite well. After showering and blow drying my hair he would have had enough and it would be time to rescue him from his crib.

Not this morning...I'm in the process of drying my hair and turn to see Kyle running to greet me. I was shocked...Yes, he climbed out of his crib! He had this sense of great accomplishment and such a big smile on his face. I was caught off guard, but honestly I can't believe it took him this long to figure out how to crawl out of his crib. As much as he likes to climb, I was expecting this much sooner! I so wish I could have been a fly on the wall to catch the action on video or at least have gotten a picture or two.

Well, our next step??? That is yet to be determined. I always said once he climbs out of the crib I was going to try a crib tent. Well, at this stage of the game, he probably is too big for the tent and would figure out in a heartbeat how to take it apart. Kyle is a great problem solver, once he does something once or twice he has it mastered and will repeat it continuously. I assume if this keeps happening a "big boy bed" will be in the near future.

On one hand this is an exciting "milestone", but on the flip side it may be a bit stressful. We will see how he does tonight at bedtime. It should be an interesting weekend around our house.

If anyone has any helpful hints or words of advice please let me know! I will keep everyone posted on how things progress.

Hope everyone enjoys the weekend!

UPDATE: 8:20P.M. Kyle climbed out of his crib again. We heard a loud thud and as we were heading upstairs we heard the door to his room opening. My main fear is that he will hurt himself, so we put some pillows on the floor around his crib. I'm afraid this will make it easier for him to get out, but for the time being it gives me a little bit of comfort. I will be researching crib rails on the internet tonight. If we think we may need to special order rails for his crib we will be headed to Treasure Rooms in the morning. (Treasure Rooms is where we purchased his crib.) Wish us luck. Hopefully I won't be back with another update this evening. I'm mainly updating just to keep a record for the future. Good night.

Clarification

I just wanted to clarify any miscommunication from my Toddler Intuition post. After reading the blog, a few people were under the impression we are moving, which isn't the case. I have edited the paragraph, but know a few people already read the post and may not reread it.

Things I type make perfect sense to me, but not always to everyone else. I may need to hire an editor for my blog...anyone want the job?

Snug As A Bug

I thought these were the cutest pictures of My Little Munchkin. He looks so darn adorable and comfortable all snuggled with his Thomas pillow and blanket. Unfortunately, he doesn't stay like this throughout the night. He doesn't really sleep with any pillows, blankets, etc., but they are there in case he wants them. He must not take after me because I'm a high maintenance sleeper. There's still plenty of time for him to change his mind in this department. At this stage of the game, I should just be thankful he still takes a nap and sleeps through the night.

Kyle may not be a high maintenance sleeper, but he certainly makes up for it in other areas...as you can tell from previous posts. These are all the special things that make Kyle, My Little Munchkin.

Question For All The Bloggers

I am still fairly new at this whole blogging thing...it's only been about two months since I started My Little Munchkin blog. I love blogging and wish I began a long long time ago. It sure is addicting! I am using this as a little scrapbook and journal of sorts and have created a binder for all my posts.

I visit many different blogs each and everyday and notice "blog rolls" listed. I wouldn't mind starting this on my blog, but have no idea where to begin the process. Can you just randomly add blogs you like to read to your site or do you have to get permission from the blog author? What is the blogging "etiquette" in this situation? How do you attract so many readers and obtain your blog friends?

If you are reading my blog and have your own blog please leave me a comment. If you would like to be added to my future blog roll just let me know as well. Even if you read my blog and don't have one, please leave a comment. I love comments!! Any and all are welcome! Thanks.

Am I completely lame for writing this post?

Toddler Intuition

This is a question I've wondered about since having a child. I know it isn't unique to Kyle, but it just amazes me.

Kyle generally wakes up in the morning between 7:00a.m....7:30a.m. at the latest. Although, Wednesday and Friday mornings when he needs to wake up on time to eat breakfast and get dressed for preschool he decides he could sleep till noon. I really hate to wake him up, but in a situation like this I have no choice. He isn't upset when I wake him, but I've always gone by the phrase..."Never wake a sleeping baby."...or toddler in this case.

This happens during naptime as well. If we have plans or somewhere to go after naptime he would take a marathon nap. If we have nowhere to be after nap, he will take a shorter nap.

How does he know? He must have a sixth sense...who knows what the explanation is. Babies and toddlers can be such a mystery...it would be nice if they came with an instruction manual.

That's part of his job...to keep Mommy on her toes!!

Since he did wake up early enough this afternoon and we had a few hours before Daddy was to arrive home, we headed to get Kyle's haircut. He always does look so adorable and grown up when his hair is freshly cut. Of course, I have to add a picture of his new "do".

In other news...About a year and half ago I finally convinced John we needed a cleaning service. I have been with the same company the entire time, but wasn't ever 100% satisfied with their cleaning. It was always just OK, but not anything exceptional. A couple of weeks ago, the company opened a franchise closer to our neighborhood and they are FANTASTIC!! This is the second cleaning from this team and our house is ssssooo clean I don't want to walk in it or even live in it for that matter. Such a great feeling!! I actually feel like we are getting our money's worth!!

I assume you have had enough rambling from me for one day so I will sign off for now. I'm sure I'll be back tomorrow !! Bye for now.

No Fear

My Little Munchkin has NO FEAR...he certainly is ALL BOY!! He will climb, jump, or walk on anything and everything. Just to prove my point I caught him in the act yesterday. I couldn't help myself... I had to leave him in this "not so safe" position long enough to get the camera and snap a picture or two.

Kyle has a Thomas and Friends poster in his playroom that he absolutely adores and under the poster is his book rack. Well, he decided to push his table over to the book rack, climb on the table, then stand on the book rack, to touch and examine his poster. This moment was too priceless for me to pass up and not have documented.

Am I supposed to be up here?

I realize everyone out there must think my son is not very well behaved and always up to no good. I promise this isn't always the case. It would be pretty boring to always blog about my perfect little angel, right? These are the moments that make the posts more interesting for everyone. I think, I hope... am I right?

We shall see if I capture anymore "Kyle moments" at some point today. Have a great day!

Toddler Treats

I really believe that Kyle thinks he is a dog. Very scary ...I know! First, he loves to crawl in and out the doggie door, now he wants to eat doggie treats. Recently, Kyle discovered the new art of opening doors, the pantry door being one of them. You would think he loves to eat, as much as he enjoys digging around in the pantry.

One day, I found Kyle with the proudest smile on his face, handing me the largest bag of Chloe's treats. As you may have guessed, a small tantrum arose due to the fact that I wouldn't let him have any treats. As a good mommy, the next day I headed out to purchase more door grippers so he isn't allowed to open the pantry anymore.

Chloe, in the background, following Kyle

around to score on some treats!

Mother's Day 2008

Time sure does fly by. I can't believe this is my 3rd Mother's Day with My Little Munchkin.

I had a very low key, relaxing day with my little family. Typically, we enjoy spending these holidays outside, but today was a little chilly and windy. I have included a picture of my two Mother's Day cards I received. John always does such a great job finding the perfect cards to mark the particular occasion. My card from Kyle is very fitting since Kyle and I sit together often reading and looking at books.

John is in the process fixing my special Mother's Day dinner consisting of filet mignon, roasted potatoes, corn on the cob, and a salad. Yummy!

I thought it would be a special idea to include a few pictures of Kyle and me together since 2005.

NICU - December 2005

Kyle's 1st Pool Outing - July 2006

Grant's Farm - April 2007 Gatlinburg/Smokey Mountains - September 2007 At Home - May 2008

Hope all the Mommies out there had a wonderful day!

Happy Mother's Day

Wanted to wish my Mother a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! She lives 700 miles away in New Orleans so we won't be seeing her today. Hope you enjoy your day!

Below is a picture of my mom and me taken several years ago. Another post to follow later today, so please check back.

Family Wanderings

Mommy and Daddy were in a very adventurous mood this morning and took The Little Munchkin to the mall. Next Saturday is our Five Year Wedding Anniversary and we were on the hunt for new clothes for the special occasion. We both had great success, but it certainly was a challenge. Shopping with a two year old, especially Kyle, isn't always a pleasant experience.

This evening the three of us went to dinner at The Red Robin. We really enjoy this particular restaurant because it is very Kyle friendly...meaning it is loud and best of all they have balloons. Balloons are definitely a prerequiste to finding a great dining establishment with a toddler. We enjoy going out to eat, but realized we haven't been in a while. Our last dining experience, almost two months ago, Kyle was a complete bear so we stayed clear of restaurants for a good while. I am happy to report that Kyle was very well behaved tonight...what a great Mother's Day present!!

Below are a couple of pictures we snapped of Kyle in the restaurant. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!

What a goofy expression...that's my boy!

Mommy, why are you taking my picture, AGAIN??

Mother's Day Poem

I received this poem and flower when I picked Kyle up from preschool on Wednesday. The poem is so special and so true. It is perfect for any mother of a baby or toddler. It was so touching and I wanted to share it with all the mother's out their with little ones.

The poem may be a little hard to read in the picture so I will post it below. Enjoy!!

Dear Mom,

I am your little flower, Mom

Please help me grow and bloom;

Take the weeds, but leave the roots

And give me lots of room.

Mom, you are my gardener;

My sunshine and my rain.

Too much will make me wither

With enough, I'll bloom again.

I am your little flower, Mom

I'm different from the rest;

Don't pick me Mom, just let me grow

To be my very best.

-Rebecca Armstrong-

Wishing all the Mommies out there a Very Happy Mother's Day weekend!

My Yard Stick

Kyle had his two and half year check up with the pediatrician this morning. He was 36 inches tall...the length of a yard stick! I thought this would be a cute little "milestone" to share with everyone.

"My Little Munchkin" is getting so big...compared to where he started two and half years ago at 12 inches. He is following his own growth curve...Kyle seems to grow up and not out. He is a skinny little fellow...hence the nickname Little Munchkin. He is so very active it's not surprising that he is so skinny. He received an all around postive check-up from the doctor and she was pleased with his health, growth, and overall development. She can certainly see improvement which is excellent to hear since she hasn't seem him in six months. He has all 2o teeth, which includes his two year molars, so hopefully this means No More Drooling!! The best news for Kyle at the appointment was "No Shots"...no more until he is four. Yeah!!

Going Up Again!

No, I'm not talking about gas, although it is going up, up, up as well.

Postage stamps will be increased to 42 cents effective this Monday, May 12th. Just wanted to give everyone a heads up...so get all your mail out before Monday. Guess I need to stock up on my penny stamps once again.

Is It Just Me???

In general, I would say I am an organized person. This week...not so much! Do you ever just get overwhelmed with life? For some reason, I am right now. I don't have that much going on, but I just can't seem to keep up. Yes, I'm keeping up with the necessary duties in life...don't think Kyle isn't being cared for because he most certainly is! I'm talking about things like laundry, bills, household duties, etc...even my blog. When I started blogging, I had a goal of trying to post once a day and I was doing really well with my plan, but this week I have started to slip. My creative juices aren't flowing...if that's what you want to call it.

I do have "my time" in the afternoons to get things accomplished, but this week I just prefer to take a nap. What is my deal? Maybe, it's the weather since the past couple of days it has been raining. Maybe, it's because my husband began working longer hours this week. Who knows? I'm sure I will "snap" out of my funk soon.

I'm slowly getting things accomplished...I know it's driving my husband insane. I'm sure I will be on track again in the near future.

Angie, if you are reading this, you must think I am pathetic...LOL. You really are an inspiration to me!!

Hope everyone is enjoying there week!!

It's Potty Time!

I finally decided to start the process. Just recently, Kyle has started showing a couple of signs he may be ready to learn about the potty. Well, as a first time mom I'm thinking they are signs.

There are so many different types of "chairs" out there...ones that are just plain and simple to chairs with all the bells and whistles. Typically, things for Kyle I usually want to go with the ones that have everything, but for this I decided to go with one that is in between. The one I chose is the Fisher Price Royal Potty. It has a sensor so when he does have success it plays music. I figured this wouldn't be a distraction to Kyle...hope I am correct.

Kyle has a Potty Time With Elmo book and four Thomas The Train board books only to be used when he is on the potty. Honestly, at this point I really just want to introduce him to it...today he was very cooperative, but didn't have any success. Of course, I did take a couple of pictures, but didn't think everyone would really want to see them. I am attaching a picture of his new potty chair and his new books for the special occassion.

I know there are tons of books on the market on this subject. I am tempted to order a book called "Potty Training Made Easy In 3 Days". Does anyone have any experience with potty training? If so, any advice, suggestions, etc. would be greatly appreciated.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

This morning we participated in our neighborhood garage sale. It sure is nice to know the advertising will be done for you and know there will be a big turnout since many people are participating.

We had a storage room full of items we haven't touched or seen in years, plus plenty of baby gear, toys, clothes, etc. that Kyle has outgrown. It certainly was a ton of work to get everything prepared and moved to the garage, but I will tell you it was SO WORTH our time and effort. We actually had a couple of big ticket items sold yesterday to one of our neighbors.

We opened our doors at 6:45a.m. and our first customers arrived within seconds. We were still getting things moved out for display. For the next hour and a half I was having so much fun and on a high...we had so many people during this time frame. People were making piles of things they wanted to purchase. We set all the plastic kid items out in front since that is what attracts people to stop.

I have attached a few pictures of our setup in case anyone is interested in viewing them.

We sold at least 85% of the things we had out...there was an item or two we wouldn't budge on the price so we still have. I will attempt to sell them on Craig's List or put out next Saturday since the neighborhood is having the garage sale again.

It was a fun morning and we made quite a bit of money doing it...which was the best part!! Now, what can I go buy to fill our storage room back up??? I'm sure I won't have a problem finding something!

Hope everyone in the blog world is having a great Saturday!

Playtime With Friends

This morning we went to playgroup at Regan and Grant's house. Grant, Kate, and Kyle had such a fun time playing and exploring in the backyard. Regan has such an awesome, child friendly yard with such a wonderful playset. All three kiddos had a blast climbing, swinging, and sliding. The temperature was perfect this morning and it was windy which made it feel even better...at least to me!

I was able to snap a few good pictures of the three kiddos, although I didn't have luck getting a group shot. Grant and Kate don't mind having there picture taken, but Kyle runs whenever he sees the camera. I think he is tired of seeing the camera, since I'm constantly taking pictures of him.

Kate having a great time! Kyle getting ready to slide. He is sporting his new Thomas t-shirt. There is a button you press to make train sounds and Kyle thinks it's the coolest shirt.

Grant stops to strike a pose before going down the slide.