Month: January 2014

overheard around the house

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

It’s been a while since I’ve recapped some of the cute/funny things that the boys say. I’ve been trying to keep a mental list, so here’s what I can remember right now.

Theo and Dexter both say “yo-grit” instead of yogurt.
Dexter doesn’t say “r” in words like green, broke, etc. They sound like “geen” and “boke.” I rarely try to correct him, because it’s one of the few, fleeting baby things still happening around here.  I’m enjoying it while it lasts. He calls fruit snacks are “fwoot snacks.”

Theo says “Monsters Inc Universed” instead of Monsters University.
Theo says “Teenage Mint Ninja Turtles.”
Theo calls Star Wars “Starwers.”
Dexter is starting to say grown up phrases like “how many times did I tell you?”
Theo often answers questions, “shoot yeah!” or “shoot no!” I’m not sure where he heard that!

Theo sometimes uses “responsible” and “ridiculous” interchangeably. This can be pretty hilarious at times.

Theo pronounces most things perfectly but gets a little tripped up on a few character names.

For example:
R2-D2:  R-Tooty
C-3PO: CP3PO
Darth Vader: Dark Vader
Clone Trooper:  Clown Trooper
Darth Maul: Dark Mall
Madam Leota: Mama Yoda

Dexter overheard someone expel a little gas over the holidays and said “what did YOU have for breakfast?”

Theo is always asking us, “what’s your favorite color?” and giving us a toy or book or anything that color. As if we automatically like anything and everything that color.

Every day when the boys wake up, they ask us “Is it wake up time?” and “Is it a mommy and daddy day?”

Every time I’m in the kitchen, and Dexter hears the microwave, he asks “is it dinner time?”

Oh, there’s so much more but every time I sit down to write it out, everything flies out of my brain. These are the little things that I know I will soon forget, yet love so much about this age and stage in their lives.

xo,
~C~

the winter games: how things have changed

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

As the 2014 Olympics draw near, I can’t help but feel a little sentimental about where we were in life when we watched the last winter games.  For one thing, they took place in Vancouver and we had recently visited there during our Alaskan cruise.  Watching the games brought back so many memories of that special trip.

Babies. We were just babies!

Zip-lining in Icy Strait Point.

Got sidetracked…but it’s fun looking back at our old photos.  Anyway…. I love the winter games.  I remember sitting on the couch in our old house watching the games all day, all weekend on DVR — and feeling absolutely miserable!  Because I was 8+ months pregnant with baby Theo.  Thinking back, life was so unbelievably different then.  I could lay down and nap whenever I felt tired.  Ryan and I could enjoy a quiet dinner at a restaurant.  We could even eat our food at our own pace, and while it was still hot. What!?  We even had extra money for trips, new clothes, or going to the movies.  We were expectant parents.

Feb 2010
We had no clue what we were getting ourselves into but we were ready to dive in headfirst.  I remember that time in our lives fondly. So much anticipation and excitement.  Expectations and questions.  We didn’t know how to take care of a baby, but we sure trusted ourselves and each other to figure it out. And that we did.  
Little did we know that 15 months later we’d have TWO babies.  Little did we know that a brown haired, brown eyed boy and a blonde haired blue eyed boy would consume our hearts and lives.  We didn’t understand that eating a quiet, hot dinner at a restaurant was an absolute luxury. Or a full night’s sleep, for that matter. We didn’t know what exhaustion was.  Or how full our hearts could feel or how big they could grow. 
I look at this picture and see a girl.  She looks young and naive and hopeful.  I look at baby pictures of the boys and think about how quickly their babyhood has flown by.  At the start of the 2010 winter games, I had 0 children.  Now I have two kids.  Not even babies anymore.  Over the weekend we sold their double stroller and gave away several other baby gear items.  Our house is looking less and less like a place where babies live. Legos and puzzles and books have replaced swings and bottle warmers and rattles.  The girl in the picture only ever imagined holding a sweet baby and having heart to heart conversations with her teenage son.  She didn’t realize that there’s so much in between.  That she’d pull her hair out and cry out of frustration sometimes.  She didn’t realize that by the time the next winter games rolled around, her babies wouldn’t be babies anymore.
That’s me in the picture, but it’s not.  The boys will be old enough to understand and enjoy parts of the winter games this time around.  It’s mind-boggling and exciting.  We’re moving into such a good stage with our kids right now.  They are still little, I’m acutely aware of this, yet they are growing more independent. They can entertain themselves and each other.  We don’t have to worry about their safety every second that they are out of our sight anymore.  It’s just interesting to me – time has this way of constantly blowing my mind. 

xo,
~C~

the perilous life of a kanka blanka

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

Behold, Kanka Blanka.  Or Kanket. Or Blue Kanky. Or Blue Banky.  Or a host of other options.

Whichever name comes out, we all know who he’s talking about.  Notice I said “who,” not “what.”  That’s because Dexter talks to his favorite blanket like it’s a human. Or one of his action figures.  If you heard him in the car, you’d think he was acting out a scene with little toys. Sometimes he says “I love you,” and from the front seat of the car, I’ll say “Aw, Dexter! I love you too,” only to be informed that he was talking to Blue. I bought this blanket at Walmart of all places (I never shop there) a day or two before Dexter’s first Christmas when he was just 7 months old.  We were at Ryan’s parents’ house and I ran to the store to get diapers or some other essential item and the blanket caught my eye.  Theo’s favorite blanket at the time was fuzzy like this, with satin trim along the edge, so I wanted Dexter to have something similar.

Blue Kanka Blanka about 2 years ago.  

It quickly became a favorite and he’s only gotten more attached to it as he gets older.  It’s really funny.  He’s fine with leaving it in the car and doesn’t ever cause any problems. I don’t have any intentions of taking it away from him because he loves it, but also because it provides a lot of entertainment!

The other night Dexter and I were waiting in the car while Ryan and Theo went into a store.  Poor blue kanket went through quite an ordeal.  See, he lost his mom and dad, but the he found them. It was a stressful time, because you see, blue kanket’s mom and dad were hiding in the trash truck. Thank goodness blue kanket was reunited, but it wasn’t long before trouble struck again.  While blue kanket was getting in the car, he hit his nose on the door and it started bleeding. So naturally, we had to take blue kanket to the hospital for a shot. In the nose. Ouch! Blue kanket said that it hurt pretty bad but afterwards, it felt better.  The really bad news is, though, that through the whole hospital ordeal, blue kanket lost his parents. AGAIN. Apparently blue kanket’s mom is red and his dad is … blue of course.  Oh, blue kanket. You’ve been through so much.  I’m not too sure if or when blue kank found his folks the second time or not because Ryan and Theo returned and interrupted our story.  Once Theo was in the car, Dexter and I told him what happened to blue kank while they were gone. Theo has asked me to re-tell this tale several times. Funny. Love that Dexter’s little personality and imagination are emerging and so silly.

Does/did your children have a security blanket?  
xo,
~C~