Halloween

Well, this will be fast, but I want it up. Robby went as a drummer in the Penn State Blue band. I was pleased with how it turned out. We saw the parade at his daycare, trick-or-treated briefly at Chris's admin's house, Robby fell and hurt his hand, and we tried to meet some neighbors and weren't so successful. Happy late Halloween!

 

The Lion at 28 Months

I WILL at least get these monthly posts up.  Though at what age is it ridiculous?  Since they're mostly for my memory, I want to still have them, so...there.  Robby is still a pretty great 2 year old.  Chris might not agree after getting bitten twice tonight, but generally I think it's going well.  Still independent, demanding, willful, but he has been since he was born.  Woah to the teenage years.

We've definitely been having some behavioral issues recently.  He ends up in time out at daycare daily, but they assure us that's normal.  I don't know.  It doesn't seem ok to me that he hits/bites/fights over toys.  I feel so powerless as a working mom that just isn't around that much.  I WISH I felt like I had more influence on him.

On the flip side, he is very perceptive, which means he can either be manipulative or sweet.  He has started telling "stories".  For instance, I came home today, and he told me that Chris had hurt his back when he fell on the floor in the kitchen.  Not true.  Not sure where that's coming from.  He will say, "Daddy's not listening" if we bicker and he notices, but also he out of the blue will say something like, "Daddy, thank you for football.  Fun." after we went to our local high school's game last week.

His best recent comment was when we went apple picking a week ago.  I thought, "Oh, great!  Teachable moment!" And, thinking I was smart, said, "Robby, if apples grow on trees, what else do you think grows on trees?"  Without pause, he answered, "Logs".  Well played, kid, well played.

Physically, he's pretty impressive.  He is coordinated and can do any piece of playground equipment, even if it's meant for older than him.  This includes ladders, being pushed on a big swing (slowly), scarily big slides, etc.  His favorite park activity is running the bases on the baseball field, though.

He is social, but I feel like he's starting to clam up a bit from the truly outgoing boy he used to be.  He does not talk about friends at school nearly as much as he did at the old school, though he talks about his teacher a lot.  He still will talk to strangers, but it usually takes a little prompting.  This might actually be a relief.

MUSIC.  Robby LOVES marching band music and singing.  Most nights during our dog walk, he sings a good 75% of the time.  Usually the Penn State fight song, "Old MacDonald", or "Wheels on the Bus", though he enjoys "Take Me Out to the Ballgame", "Twinkle Twinkle", or "ABC's", as well.  He has also declared that he will be a "drummer man" for Halloween, so I need to get on that.

Eating is still pretty varied.  Some days he pigs out, some days he barely eats.  He is not particularly picky, though he would eat all junk if you let him.  He LOVES lollipops, grapes, carrots and hummus, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bagels, and apples.  But he'll really eat most things most days.  Tonight's dinner was spaghetti with pesto, salad, and bread and butter.  Gorged himself.  Love that this isn't an issue.  Though, maybe sometimes I worry that he eats too MUCH.

I love that he's completely still my little man, even though I'm not around.  He is so excited when I get home, and then is suction cupped to me.  I love that we can now have conversations.  I love that he is smart, funny, creative, and eager to try new things.  I love that he loves to read, sing, and just play.  Generally, I love you, Rob.

The Lion at 27 Months

I know, I know. I was going to catch up. Anyway, jumping back a couple weeks to when Robby hit 27 months, and we went next door to our community fair. One of the best things about the new house is living next to a huge park with tons of walking trails. Also, they had a community day with horses, fire trucks, ambulances, helicopters, bounce houses, face painting, etc...all free!  There of course were vendors with food or crafts too, but soooo many kid friendly activities. Robby had a blast, even though he didn't nap that day. 

He's so smart, active, and surprising these days. He's talking very well, though doesn't have his tenses perfect. (For example:  Mommy, where is you?)  He now definitely knows colors, though almost always says red is blue and blue is red. He says the full alphabet, and can identify a few letters on sight. He can consistently count items to 4, but I've heard him recite to 20.  "Why" has started to make an appearance.  

He loves to run, jump, dance, climb. He goes on the "big kid" playground daily, and can climb every slide, do monkey bars with help, climb a rock climbing wall, and a spiral ladder, and hang onto this circular spinny thing and a zip line while I push him.  He just learned to keep his feet up on our neighbor's tire swing and to hang on a regular swing well enough. 

He is OBSESSED with marching bands right now, and spoiler if I ever write about today...his life was made when we saw the blue band at Penn State. He also generally likes music, drumming, and SPORTS. Another positive with the park is getting to watch all the local baseball and soccer. He loves watching the big kids play. 

The new daycare is a mixed bag. We like it, but Robby has had a hard time. He's been acting up and hitting a lot, which he never used to do. Also, he almost never talks about friends and just says he plays with his teachers. It makes me really sad. It doesn't help that they started him in the older 2 class, then just moved all those kids up except him and one other since they were younger. So he was with those kids for 3 weeks, and now new ones. I hope he starts feeling more comfortable soon. 

We'll see if I can ever figure out how to post videos from my phone, because I have some great ones, but...yeah. http://youtu.be/jTqkP5YrWzg

Long story short, I still feel like I'm missing out, and feel terrible since he's obviously having some trouble, but he's still a great kid. 

The Lion at 26 Months

So...this was awhile ago, and did I miss last month?  I don't even know anymore. I'm so terribly behind. Robby is a new kid. He speaks so well, and gets into everything. There is literally not z singled "child proof" item he can't open. Wine cabinet?  Yup. Stove knobs?  Sure can. So the doors on the new house have gained lovely new features... Chains or hooks at the top of a few. Well, I can't shock everyone too much and do a truly great post. So a run down:

- Sleep. Rob's now in a crib without a side. He sleeps fine at night, but naps at home are a struggle. At daycare?  They're great. 

- The new school. He loves it and is doing great, though he was bitten on Friday and has been upset about it. 

-  Food. He's eating perfectly. Nothing to report. He loves sweets, yogurt, turkey, whole apples, eh, it changes. 

- Play. He prefers trucks and playgrounds. 

- TV. Favorite current movie is a Roger Waters concert that he calls "rock on". Favorite tv is Thomas still. 

-  Intellectual leaps. He speaks in intelligible sentences. Can answer concept questions. Can sing on pitch. Loves to drum rhythms. Can identify some letters. 

Alright. I can't take writing on my phone. Obviously we were just in NH. Hopefully I'll do a new house post soon. 

The Lion at TWO YEARS

Happy Very Belated Birthday, Robby!

That was literally you "yesterday" (last Thurs), but it seems like yesterday was: 

1 month, 6 months, 12 months, 18 months

At 2 years old you are so my child.  You are rambuncious, smart, curious, a dare-devil, sweet, but certainly willful.  You know what you want, and you aren't afraid to try and get it all on your own.

Physically, there's not much you can't do.  You can't hold up two fingers, but you happily tell everyone that you're two years old.  You're fairly good at saying what your full name is, but we're working on that.  I have all sorts of fears you'll get lost and not be able to respond.  You can at least tell your dog's name, and occasionally your mom and dad's names.

We're still working on undressing, which, surprisingly, you have not mastered.  It would make this whole potty-training experience easier.  As of when I'm writing this, you have gone to daycare 2 days in a row in big boy underwear.  You did great yesterday with only one accident.   

Your favorite foods are pretty much all bad for you.  And you're getting indulged way too much right now.  This is largely related to potty training, too.  You'll start small.  "Bean?" (jellybean) "Ok, if you go potty you can have a bean."  "Chocolate?"  "Ok, if you go potty you can have a chocolate."  *devilish look*  "Pop?" (popsicle) *sigh*  "Ok, if you go poopies you can have a popsicle."  Bribery at its finest.

You can be a cute little bugger, and you know it.  You'll run away from your dad and say, "Love you, Mommy" with a glint in your eye.  You are forever trying to push JUST to the limit of what you are allowed to get away with.  And, again, you probably get away with too much.

Saturday you got in trouble at swimming.  You kept jumping into the pool before the count of three and the teacher came over and reprimanded you.  OHHHH were you pouty.  It was nice to see you'd listen to her, though.  Must.  Be.  Firmer.

You were absolutely adorable on your birthday singing "Happy Birthday" over...and over...and over.  You can be a little obsessive at the moment.  You LOVE the movie Chicken Run ("Watch Chicken?"), your Mater and "Football Man" t-shirts, chocolate, "Ham" (Green Eggs and Ham - which we lost for a couple days and that was traumatizing), doing things your "self", now being forward-facing in the car, trucks, and the park.  You don't like being dirty, your environment being dirty, getting soap rinsed off you, diaper changes, waking up, getting licked by the dog, or mommy going more than a few inches away from you. 

You're my big man.  I don't know if that's really true or not.  We haven't had your appointment yet, but you're in 3T shirts, 2T pants, and 7.5 shoes.  You still like to be carried (oof!), but are happy to run more and more often.  I love that you're getting more independent, but already miss baby-hood a little.  I'm glad you're still a cuddler, though you're no longer a big fan of sitting on laps.  I wish I got to spend more time with you, but you're growing into a pretty great kid, regardless.  Happy birthday.

Trouble with a Capital T

I know I have no room to talk.  I was a terror.  And Robby's generally a good kid, but he's REALLY starting to push the boundaries.  Please remember that he is not yet 2.  (I haven't missed that many posts!)  Since I'm severely behind, though, here's a quick glimpse into our world.  


(see full image)

The cute:

Part of my mother's day present was a picture collage that Chris had made.  I showed it to Robby, and his response was, "Robby cute!"  Yup.  You are.  But, geez.  Big head?

The not so cute:

He escapes out of doors about 50 times a day.  At least he mostly goes out the back 2, which both lead into the fenced yard.  However, see above.  He's been trying to scale the fence.

The scary:

Two.  In two days.

1)  Yesterday, in approximately 30 seconds while I was changing, he climbed the toilet, opened the medicine cabinet, got the liquid ibuprofin, and removed the "childproof" cap.  Fortunately, Chris caught him at that point.

2)  Today, he climbed a couch to get to an open window, popped out the screen, and was climbing through, as he called to me, at which point I turned around and proceeded to freak out.

If my child survives toddler-hood it will be a miracle.  

The Lion at 23 Months

Can you believe we only have one more to go until 2?  He may be getting more opinionated (which I never thought was possible!), but man oh man, I must tell you.  I love 23 months.  Are we having tantrums, meltdowns, and battles?  You betcha.  But I'm also getting to have conversations.  And getting to talk about feelings.  And see him starting to learn CONCEPTS.  It's a pretty darn exciting time, I tell ya.

For the most part, I'm definitely picking my battles.  For instance, you see the shirt in these pictures?  Not a big fan.  But when he saw a metallic, Mater shirt at Wal-Mart?  WHOO boy.  Had to have it.  But, on an upside, the shirt that he MUST wear daily and has a meltdown if it's not clean?  "The Shirt" from Notre Dame this year.  (see the bottom photo)  He calls it "Football Man".  Chris is now on a mission to find a "Football Man" shirt from Penn State. 

He continues to LOVE trains, trucks, and sports.  I was a little surprised that at Target when we went to the birthday aisle and talked about plates, he chose the sports-themed one over Thomas or Cars.  Of course, we don't have a party planned, and I'm not sure if we'll have one, but mommy guilt is setting in on that front.  If the house really did pass inspection, I guess we don't have to worry about keeping it so clean anymore.  (For those not in the know, it sold after 2 days on the market with 3 people bidding on it.  We got full asking price.  We currently have nowhere to new to live.)

Lil man loves playing outside, and is very into doing things on his own.  Whether that's going on slides by him "self", climbing into the car by "self", pouring cereal, turning off lights, whatever the case may be.  All by "self".  

He is getting to be a fairly picky eater.  He steals whatever drink I might have (See the Gatorade above.  Another side, I was in urgent care AGAIN for yet another nasty bought of bronchitis, which fortunately did not turn back into pneumonia.  I'm just off drugs now.  Doing ok.)  He still likes carbs best.  Some fruit is still ok, but beyond that?  It's a bit of a battle.  Not really a fan of veggies or meat.  We have started letting him have Cars Gummy vitamins, which the only struggle with that is only letting him take one (since he has to get it "self").

I'm not sure how big he is.  He wears 3T shirts, and 2T pants, though they can be a little long.  His shoes are a size 7.  I think he's about 32 pounds?  Not sure.  He's not growing nearly as fast as he was, but it's still to fast for my taste!  I don't know WHERE my little boy went.

He pretty much says everything now.  He can tell you some words that start with a given letter (D is for dog), though that's not particularly consistent, and he is NOT saying his alphabet or counting more than, "Two Three, Two Three".  He will tell you he's TURNING two, and, miracle of miracles, I think he knows his colors.  I was convinced he was going to be color blind because of family history, but seemingly not.  He did repeat his first swear word a couple days ago, which was absolutely my fault.  Though it's his father's fault that he'll run up behind me, smack my butt, and yell, "BOOTY!"

 He's starting to develop a sense of humor, though his idea of a good joke is that a cow says "Oink".  He loves to have conversations back and forth, and they're surprisingly revealing at times.  A couple days ago he was telling me how his things had gone bye bye to the "new house" (packed for storage) and it made him sad.  I'm really worried about taking him away from his friends and teachers.  I imagine that's going to be hard.  They've been so wonderful with him, and at least they are continuing on the potty training mission, even if we aren't so good at home.  He's still only going probably 3x a day in a potty.  More frequent dry nights, though. 

Robby, you are mommy's little man.  I may have briefly fallen out of favor after the extended business trip, but you're back to being my perpetual side-kick when I'm at home.  I just wish it was more!  I only get a little over two hours a day with you, and that's rough.  I'm glad you still want to be around me every second of that time.  I'm glad you're such a good boy.  I wish I could take more credit.  I'm so thankful your daddy has been able to step up so well, though it hurts to not be the one there with you after school.  I hope two will be as wonderful as one, and that you remain my little man.

The Lion at 22 Months

Robby will turn 23 months in a couple days, so I thought I should finally publish 22 months, with or without a lot of words.  I'm sorry.  I think a headless chicken is more together than me at the moment.

Trying to recall what he was like 3 weeks ago is a little challenging!  I had just returned home, and he was using a lot more simple sentences.

He was running and climbing more.

He was getting his last 2 year molars in.

He was sick a lot, and had another couple ear infections.

He finally was going to dad for more things.  (Not surprising as I had abandoned him.)

He was in love with trucks.  Ok, that was nothing new.

He's testing the waters a LOT more.

He attempted to climb out of his crib for the first time.

He understands emotions.  He often talks about "Mommy...bye-bye...train...work...sad."

He MUST choose his clothes, his food, the air we breathe...

He can go up ladders and down slides on his own.

He thinks the word "scoosh" is the funniest thing ever.

He's still inconsistent with the potty, and must sing "Dean" (Happy birthday), read a book, and have me sitting on the floor next to him while going.

He is downright adorable, and I love him and miss spending a lot of time with him.