Pop Pop Game

On one of the blogs I read, linked to this game, which Zach calls the Pop Pop Game. The game is really for older kids, as they are supposed to draw cards or roll dice and then jump on the appropriate letter/number/shape. I made it work for a 2 year old by making cards with a picture of the shape in the color it was on the floor and the numbers 1-5. Using an old piece of bubble wrap I had laying around I glued the pieces to it, cut them out and let him go. He now plays the game on his own, which mainly means he jumps on the pieces saying "Square!", etc. 

I think I will make him another set in a few months with more numbers and letters. He is pretty good with numbers but he only knows the letter Z. Which I take FULL credit for since I cut his bread pieces into the letter Z. And I need to know that I have taught him more than saying "Come on people!" in the car and "Are you serious?" to random people in the grocery store. 

Cousins

My sister and Baby Charlotte flew in to spend the weekend with us and it was a good test run of having 2 children. And by good I mean terrifying. Baby Charlotte is 7 and 1/2 months old and cute as a button! Zach was fascinated with her and kept rolling around like she does, trying to kiss her and sharing his toys then grabbing them from her.

It also turned out to be a good thing that Chuck wears a helmet as he binged her a few times with books on accident. She was not the least bit disturbed.



This picture is an excellent portrayal of what our weekend was like.
Everyone is talking and moving and there is a dog running sprints around us
the entire time. 

Zoo - 2nd try

At the end of our last zoo incident I promised Zach we would go back to the zoo ASAP to see the seals. And I called on my friend Beth and Zach's friend Sophie to join us. Who would NOT want to go to the zoo at 4pm in June? Luckily Beth is my type of gal, always looking for something to do with our kiddos in the afternoon, so she sweetly packed up Sophie and her baby sister Lily and off we went to the zoo. 

Turns out there are not many (aka zero) animals out at 4pm in June. Strange I know. But the kids got to see the seals and elephants who don't care that it is 95 degrees out and we walked around and pretended we could see the other animals. Alex joined us around 5 and the three of them  played tag (or something) and splashed in the fountain. Luckily this time he did not let Zach get in the fountain, which is very surprising I know. 

About this time I was yelling for Zach to stop drinking the water, 

I had a perfectly good cup of water RIGHT HERE!

It's for the baby

Whenever Zach comes across anything too small for him or anything he perceives as a baby toy, he says "I give this to the baby." The other day I was stuffing his big head into a shirt that might have been a tad bit too small in the neck and Zach started yelling "Its for the baby! Its for the baby!" while stuck inside. I had to stop laughing long enough to force that head on through and tell him that after today, the shirt would be for the baby.

Honeybees say Buzzzz

The first day of June is annual "move up" day at Zach's school, meaning he goes from being a Bluebonnet (18mos to 2 years) to a Honeybee (2-3 years). There was significantly less change with this move versus last year when he went from sleeping in a crib to sleeping on a mat and sat at a table to eat his lunch rather than in his own chair. He took to this his new room placement pretty well. He was a bear that entire week for me....but his teachers said he was delightful and very polite. 

Last week he said to me in the car, "Mommy, Honeybees say buzz!". I asked if they did that when they walked around the school and he said only when they go outside. He does still call it "Miss Renee's class" but he does seem to know that is where he belongs. 

Just for my fun, here are all the pics of Zach on his first day of school.

2011

 2010

2009 - I die. Where is this sweet, chubby boy?? 

Countdown is On

Today is my last days of work and we only have 3 more weeks until Baby Wall arrives!

Alex and I went to the doc on Monday for our final ultrasound and the baby looks huge. It is not, but considering the last time we saw him/her on the monitor his/her tiny body filled the screen. Now it just the head. Taking up the entire space. I am highly thankful I am having another C-section.

Per the measurements taken by the ultrasound tech, the baby is measuring a good week/two weeks ahead. I can confirm this by my excessive girth. With that info in hand, we decided to schedule the birth for July 7th. And by 'we' I mean Alex and I. Actually really just Alex. He had it all worked out - the 7th is far enough from the 4th to not have to share the holiday but I don't want to be in the hospital over the weekend if at all possible and the 7th is a Thursday so I will be home by Sunday.

When my doc came in to see us I told her that we had a date and were ready to schedule the surgery. Here is how the conversation went:
Me: "Hi Dr. Faro! So I need to go ahead and schedule my C-section and we have a date picked out."
Alex: "Kinsey! Isn't the doctor supposed to tell us when we will schedule the due date?"
Dr. Faro (as she leans around me to look at Alex): "Usually. But with your wife, no."
Back to me she says: "So tell me when you want to have this baby?"
I love her.

Baby Wall was not cooperating with a profile or 3D picture but we did get this super cute (though fuzzy) image of him/her grabbing its foot. Being the carrier, I do not appreciate this type of movement as this baby moves all.the.time and big movements, like the one below. Reassuring, yes. Comfortable, no.

My Papa

A few weeks back my Papa was in town visiting his other multitude of grandchildren and great-grandchildren who live in Houston and my sweet Aunt Vickie brought him on by to see us. He was formerly known as Big Papa since my dad is Papa Wayne and Zach couldn't say it all. Now they are both just Papa. And everyone seems fine with that.

Zach is wearing the Easter shirt his Granny Marsh made for him and the bunny ears he made at school. The only way we could get him to smile and stop stone-facing the camera was to say "cheese pizza!" which you can totally tell he is at the end of saying in this photo.

A Glimpse into my Future

Have you seen this child? Becuase he looks about 8 and I want to know what he has done with my 2 year old....

Of course I don't think that 8 year olds get great joy out of sitting in a big box breaking up the sytrofoam.  With accompanying rules about how he is to only break the styrofoam (and thereby leak toxic chemicals) INSIDE the box. I might freak out if there are little bits of styrofoam around my house. The trucks, balls, sunglasses I can take for now - unrecyclable materials, absolutely not.

We are still new at this

This past Sunday, Alex, Zach and I headed over to the train station at the zoo for Dinosaur Train day. We were all looking for something to do and when I mentioned I had spotted the event on my new go-to-Houston kids blog Alex almost shoved me into the bathroom to put in my contacts and get ready.

There were about 50,000 people there but we did not care. Zach got to dig for a mini-dino, which meant that he touched it with the tip of his finger, I scraped off the sand and Alex picked up the dino and shook out the sand before our precious would dain to touch it. Zach also got to get stamps on his hand and to color a dino fan. We were done with the Dinosaur Train day in 10 minutes. That is how we roll. We were not rushing him at all, that is just how fast our child is done with activities. And we refused to wait in the line for face painting.

Alex told Zach we would then walk to where we could get in the water. I looked eskance and we had this convo:
Me: "There is a wading pool here?"
Him: "Yes, on the steps of the reflecting pool"
Me: "Ummmmm I am pretty sure that is not for wading." (I am such a buzz-kill)
Him: "Sure it is, I did it last time. There were a bunch of people doing it."

So off we hiked to the steps of the reflecting pool. About halfway down we realized we are idiots and did not bring the stroller. It is back at the train station and Zach is on Alex's shoulders. How have we not learned in 2+ years of parenting?? We get to the steps and Alex and Zach get in and walk back and forth, stomping and splashing, throwing mini-dino and having a grand time. I walk over to offer juice and this convo happens:

Me: "You are really not supposed to be in here." (again, total buzz-kill)
Him: "Why? There are no signs."
Me - as I point to a sign: "That sign says no wading or swimming and I would like to note that there are only dads in here."
Him: "Would it help to point out that we were the first in here and no one was in until we got in?"
Me: "Negative. I will be sitting over here in the shade pretending not to know you when the park police arrive."

Then, of course, the inevitable happens. Zach falls down on the slippery rocks and is hysterical. And wet. So we start to make the loooooong walk back. A tired and hungry 2 year old, an 8 months pregnant woman and a man with a bad back. Just for reference, here is a map of our issue:

Alex carries him on his shoulders for a while but that is killing his back and technically, TECHNICALLY, Zachary can walk so we put him down. Again, total and complete hysterics. He cannot calm down. We try stopping and hugging, we try leaving him and running. Nothing is working. Finally when we make it back to the big pond I am at my wits end and leave my family to go get the stroller and come back. The second he is in the stroller he is fine. Stops crying, drinks his juice and just looks beat.

We decide to head to the car as it is noon and he needs to eat. What we forgot is that we told him he could see the seals. Again, we should totally know bettter. As we get to the car he says "Seals, Mommy? I see the seals?" I explain that all his crying took so long that we have to go home at eat lunch, we can't see the seals.

We are about 5 minutes from home and he says "I calm, Mommy. I ready to see the seals. I no cry anymore." I wanted. to. die. If it had just been me I would have turned that car around, parked illegally and ran my baby into the zoo to see the seals. It still breaks my heart thinking about it. But calmer heads (aka Alex) prevailed and we proceeded home.

But I did tell Zach that I would take him the next day after work. That is the best thing about working part time - if you screw up on Sunday you can make it up on Monday! And that morning he told me, "Mommy, I no cry at the zoo." And Mommy will not forget your stroller, my sweet boy.