October Day at the Zoo

The day was absolutely gorgeous and the temperature was cool and when given the choice between another pumpkin patch or a visit to the zoo,

Julien chose the zoo.

I wouldn't recommend trying this.

This is not parent approved, Julien just likes to see me go from calm to crazy in a matter of seconds.

A very rare opportunity to actually see the resident alligator doing anything other than floating in the water.

Addie was less than thrilled to see him swimming towards us and demanded that she be moved out of harms way.

Walking around the zoo is tough work and required a bit of relaxation

before heading into the "cave" to explore.

#lucky

Indeed he is.

In many different ways.

Also, I feel compelled to say that Julien does own jeans, long sleeve shirts and jackets.

So while he was comfortable in summer clothes, Monkus had me bring along her winter coat, which proceeded to shed all over all of us.

She's happier than she looks.

Picture perfect.

Amazing how one piece of painted wood can provide so much excitement.

The day was perfect!

My band.

Two years later and another photo op presents itself.

My people watchers.

We had a very rare opportunity to see the lion and lioness being fed.

It was very impressive.

It was one of those days when it all went as planned.

~~~

October 26, 2013

Pumpkin Patch Slackers

Normally by this time of year, we have hit every pumpkin patch around, but this year, we've been busy - very busy.

We finally made it to the pumpkin patch and while Julien, Chris and I had a good time, Monkey had her moments.

She reluctantly followed Julien into the hay maze.

I'm not real sure what her hesitation was, it's not like he couldn't see to find his way out.

(and yes, that is the only Halloween outfit she has)

Next came the bin of cotton.

Complete fail.

She clung to the side, while we had a little girl come by and ask her if she could walk or talk and then a little boy who came by and pommeled her with an armful of cotton.

(insert no comment here)

Then we tried convincing Monkey to pet the rabid rabbit before making our way in to see all the fuzzy chickens.

The chickens really made her smile!

I thought our afternoon was looking up when she willingly sat down to have her picture taken.

She even thought the calves were pretty funny and ran away giggling.

But, when we made it to the pumpkin patch to find the four lucky pumpkins who would come home with us, Addie clung to me or stood next to me and cried.

Not exactly how I saw the afternoon playing out for us.

Chris and Julien immediately went off in search of pumpkins and pretended they didn't know either one of us.

To punish Julien for leaving me alone with the screaming primate, he was forced to take a picture with his prized pumpkin.

She didn't protest too much when I told her that we had to stop and wash our hands before we could go back to the car.

She kept a very watchful eye on Julien as he carried two of the pumpkins for us.

Monkey's determination to make sure that Julien arrived safely to our car with the pumpkins fully intact, expedited our exit from the farm.

Whew...what an adventure!

~~~

October 19, 2013

Baby B's 4th Birthday Party!

Baby B's 4th Birthday Party consisted of lots of climbing, jumping, sliding fun!

Once perched up high with a bird's eye view of the party, Addie turned into a little nut

and 

had the best time, just sitting and people watching.

However, I immediately had her full attention when I looked at her and asked, "Cupcake?"

and 

instead of her standing back like an obedient child, she decided she would take center stage with Brock.

She is rotten.

As always, I am absolutely impressed with my friend Patti and her ability to come up with homemade, creative party ideas.

Thank you for a very fun-filled evening 

and 

Happy Birthday Baby B!

How many....

licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?

The world may never know.

Just like I may never know how it is possible that my children can go for what seems like forever without needing to see the doctor and then end up needing to see the doctor every few weeks.

At this point, it almost feels like stalking.

This time, it wasn't just Fungus Monkus who had me rearranging my entire day.

Julien came down with some sort of unidentifiable funk over the weekend.

He was unable to go to school today, so the plan was for me to go into work while waiting for his doctor's appointment, then for Chris to bring him to me, so I could take him to the doctor...and then probably back to work I would go.

However, while in car rider line with Fungus Monkus, she managed to get sick - everywhere.

Which meant, I had to turn around and go home and change her clothes, my clothes, and wash the floor mat in the car.

By that time, Monkey had happily eaten breakfast and was ready for a fun day at school 

and 

it was time to head out for Julien's doctor's appointment.
(followed by a rare opportunity for me to spend an afternoon with just Julien)

Thank goodness that we have the best pediatrician - on the face of the earth

because he has Julien patched up and on his way to recovery

because

we are in...the week of the wedding.

Countdown has begun.

The goal is to make it through the wedding with everyone in my house well and in good spirits.

It doesn't sound like too much to ask, but then again...

AND

my Baby Boy is now officially 

5 feet 11 1/2 inches tall.

Yes, that is 7 1/2 inches taller than me.

Not to worry, I can still take him - and he knows it. 

It's My Job

to worry and to be cautious and to feel the need to protect my children.

I don't think I would be a very good Mom if I didn't worry about their safety.

Although Addie has made great strides with walking up stairs with a support person behind her for safety, going down the stairs is a completely different issue - for her and me.

When Addie doesn't have any distractions, she does great.

When there are distractions, Addie's anxiety goes up and her ability to safely navigate the stairs, drastically drops.

Our house is full of distractions, kitties underfoot and two children who are very stubborn and determined.

When we walk with Addie down the stairs, she holds onto the railing with one hand and holds onto our hand with the other.

Addie starts counting the stairs at the top and we count each one until we reach the bottom.

That is how it is done in our house - PT approved or not.

Mainly because of that Mommy fear that I have.

Every once in a while, an incident occurs that validates my reason for being the person that I am.

Yesterday evening while on the way downstairs, Addie and I were going through the normal (and slow) process.  

Addie was holding onto the railing and holding onto my hand.

I'm not entirely sure what happened, but somehow her right foot bent underneath her and she went falling forward - and thankfully, I was able to catch her.

Accidents happen, but it was her reaction that just tore at my heart.

Normally, if Addie had an incident of some kind, she would get mad and try to figure out what the heck happened.

This time, she didn't get mad.

She immediately sat down on the stairs and covered her little face with her hands and she started to cry.

I tried to console her and tell her that it was just an accident, that everybody has accidents, but she just sat there with tears streaming down her face.

I helped her to her feet after making sure her foot was fine and we continued down the stairs.

At the bottom, I gave her a hug and told her she did a really good job and that we would try again next time.

Her tears weren't tears of anger, being afraid or being dramatic, it was like she was sad because she "messed up".

She practices so hard and loves nothing more than when she gets it right 

and

like every other child,

she loves praise and to feel like she succeeded. 

It was an awful, awful moment and a very rare emotion for me to see from Addie.

I am just so glad that she is so resilient and goes forward with continued persistence!

Football 2013 - Game Eight

Game Eight - Win Five

I'm not a very good sports announcer, so I'll let the pictures tell the story - ...and I was very proud of my Baby Boy for sporting his pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. 

Freshman Football - That's a wrap!