18 month pro pics

Here are a few more shots Leah took of us back in September.Snazzy, right? I do love them a whole lot. Thanks Leah :)

By special request from Sarah, here's a clip of some of Colin's words. This was taken a few weeks ago.

Also, one of him rockin' out to Busy Ball Popper tunes amidst a sea of plastic, wood, and classic FisherPrice toys. My favorite part is his little butt bee-bopping.

I know a Guiness Book Record Holder

My co-worker, Amy, and her husband Chris grow giant pumpkins. This year, their 1810.5 lb pumpkin smashed the world record. They drove the mammoth pumpkin to NYC in a pickup truck on Tuesday, and Chris made an appearance on Live with Regis and Kelly. Here's a link to a 2 minute clip:
http://kstp.com/article/stories/S1802057.shtml?cat=1

It's going to end up in the New York Botanical Gardens and get carved by a world record pumpkin carver.

My mom, Colin, and I were at their house for a few minutes a month ago, and Amy asked if we wanted to take Colin's picture by it (before it was known to be a world record), but I didn't have my camera. :(.

It's surreal the amount of press they're getting! Good or bad, it's pretty cool to say you know a world record holder.

Happy Half Birthday!

Dear Colin,

You just celebrated your golden monthday. You're 18 months old and born on the 18th! We celebrated extra special by having some great food.
Chicken Veggie Tortellini (one of our favorite e-mealz recipes):
and, of course, cupcakes and ice cream.

Then we took your monthday picture. You actually were kind of hamming it up for the camera this time! Here you are in your undies, which you wear every night for a little while before taking a bath.
You are such a goofy little boy. You're always saying something and you're always moving. You want to be in the midst of all the action; whether it's watching Mommy or Daddy cook (and eating your way through the preparation of supper), or ripping apart the office.

You have started to show an interest in potty training again. Last week, you went potty 4 days in a row before bath time. Over the weekend, you went potty once before and once after your naps. You're still very inconsistent with it, but we're happy you're starting to want to try again.

Your favorite things are still trucks (dig digs), lawnmowers, food, and being outside. You get so excited about trucks you see. You can spot a lawnmower--riding, push, toy--from a mile away. Sandy says there's no food she makes that you don't like. She says you always finish your food, and we believe her. You're eating your veggies so well now too! We had broccoli tonight and you chowed right down. And we're not so sure what we're going to do with you when it's 30 below with 3 feet of snow. Mommy and Daddy won't be going outside when it's that cold out.

You now have 10 teeth.

You can point to your nose, eyes, ears, mouth, hands, fingers, toes, feet, back, belly, belly button, head, and hair.

Your newest word is "off." You are very good at telling us when you want something off (hat, mittens, shoes, coat, a light...).

The only time you use your nukie right now is in the middle of the night and you wake up asking for it. By that time, Daddy and I are so tired that we just give in. I have bad news for you though. We have devised a plan, using the Bye-Bye Binky method. According to the plan, you will start to hate your nukie and make your own decision about getting rid of it. The plan involves poking holes in it, and then cutting off the tip. I'm sorry we're doing this to you, but you're old enough not to need it anymore, even at night time.

I can't believe it has already been a year and a half already. You mean the world to me, and I am so lucky to be your Mommy. I can't imagine my life without you anymore.
Love,
Mama

Since I got so many comments about the picture where Colin is walking Rocket, here is a bonus clip of Rocket walking Colin this past weekend.

In case you're wondering, Colin did pull Rocket around that light pole at the end. He's a tough little guy.

Weekend antecdotes

Colin is able to open the refrigerator and get his sippy cup, take a drink, put it back, and close the door without any help from us.

A little while after he woke up from his nap today, I was sitting here in the office and he signed "milk" and said "ma!" (his word for milk). I told him to go get a drink and I stayed in here. 30 seconds later, he walked into the office carrying the whole half-gallon of milk and saying, "ma." Apparently there wasn't a sippy cup ready to go in the fridge for him.

* * *

Last night after supper, Colin had a lot of water to drink. He went pee on the potty before his bath, took a bath, and ran around the house naked for awhile. All of a sudden, Kevin and I heard pee hitting the floor. I scooped him up and sat him back on his potty while Kevin cleaned up the mess. Colin told me to sit on the toilet seat, so I did. A few seconds later, he stood up, did his potty dance (even though there was no pee in it), and promptly projectile vomited. All the water he drank, plus the excitement of running around naked must have upset his tummy a little. He looked at me like he didn't know what had just come out of his mouth. I cleaned him up, re-brushed his teeth, and put him to bed. All I can say is I'm sure glad he told me to sit on the toilet, otherwise he would have thrown up all over me!

Lessons from Andy Griffith

Sandy told me a story about something that happened earlier this week at daycare. M, who's 3, was dumping sand on the other kids, including Colin. The next day, Colin dumped a shovelful of sand on M. Sandy told M that the reason why he shouldn't dump sand on the littler kids is because they learn that they should do it too.

My first reaction when Sandy told me the story was, "Atta boy, Colin!" I said it out loud. But then no sooner than I said it, I began to doubt if I should say it at all. As a teacher, I constantly tell students that they need to "use their words" to work out problems. If someone is bugging them, they need to tell them to stop, not to use their hands or be aggressive. I teach the students the golden rule. Treat others how you want to be treated. Schools suspend and expel students for aggressive behavior.

As a parent, I want Colin to stand up for himself. If someone isn't treating him nicely, I want him to be able to show the bully who's boss. Even if it means just "getting him back" by giving him a taste of his own medicine.

As I was thinking this through, I was reminded of a classic Andy Griffith Show episode, titled "Opie and the Bully." The bully, Sheldon, meets Opie on the street before school and bullies him into giving him his nickel for milk or he'll get a knuckle sandwich. Every day, Opie asks two adults (Aunt Bee, Andy, or Barney) for a nickel. But the adults don't know that he's getting two every day--one for Sheldon, and one for himself. Barney finds out that Opie is being bullied and tells Andy. Opie doesn't know that Andy knows when they go fishing together...

Click here...for the in-a-nutshell lesson, watch 3:00 through 7:15.

...Opie shows up at the courthouse later that day with a shiner on his eye, and exclaims, "Ain't it a beaut?!" He tells his dad that it didn't hurt, and that he laughed. Then he lit into Sheldon like a tornado. And I bet Sheldon didn't bother Opie for a nickel anymore. Opie's shiner went away, and I can rightfully assume that Sheldon's did too.

Of course, most little playground disputes can be settled using only words. But as we know from recent headlines, there's a certain point where words just don't work anymore. Apparently schools aren't doing enough, either. Even with the anti-bully messages/lessons/programs that are circulating throughout. What's wrong with a knuckle sandwich once in a lifetime? Black eyes heal, and the lessons that are taught by getting them are sometimes worth it.

What I love most about this episode is that Andy didn't go calling Sheldon's parents saying, "My little Opie tells me that your mean Sheldon is being a bully and taking nickels away from him every day before school. What are you (or we) going to do about this?" He lets Opie settle it for himself and teaches him to stand up for himself and don't let a bully push him around. I highly doubt that just because Opie did it once, he'll do it over and over again to anybody who is ever mean to him.

Funny how a minor sandbox squabble can get you to think about your kid as school-aged and having to deal with life's decisions on his own, isn't it?

What do you think? Does a bully deserve a knuckle sandwich every once in awhile? Or should we stick to words?

Words

Colin's list of words he knows is growing so fast! Here are the newest words I can remember he can say:

yellow (weh-woah)
blue (boo)
green (gee)
vroom
shoe (voo)
boat (bow)
book (buh)
nigh-nigh
moo
neigh neigh
baa
meow (love his little high-pitched voice for this one)
bye-bye (sometimes it comes out as die die. nice.)
blocks (bah)
dig dig (any construction vehicle--ones he sees from the car and ones he plays with, his book called The Digger)
poop (boo)
eat (ee)
mail (ma)
bus (ba)
toys
baby
tree (dee)
that way (da da)
walk (wa)
milk (ma)
water (ba ba)
keys (deese)

I just love to hear his little voice saying words :)

I interrupt this running...

I haven't ran one little bit since I ran the 5k. But I've wanted to! I have been plagued with this annoying cough. I'm sick of it, Kevin's sick of it, and my students are sick of it. I'm trying to stay away from the running in order to kick the cough to the curb.

But this is the start of the 4th week. I've had it since the day after we left the hospital.

I've thought about going to the doctor, but for what answer? "Uh...yeah...seems you have a cough. Guess you'll just have to wait it out."

I took last Wednesday afternoon off of work to just catch up on sleep (as previously posted, conference week is tiring!). Thursday morning, I walked in to the office and my principal asked me how I was feeling and if I had gotten my pertussis (Whooping Cough) vaccine. Uh, no...I haven't.

Then I did some research on Whooping Cough. I could possibly have it. Cough drops don't work, cough medicine doesn't work, my inhaler doesn't work. All typical of the Whoop. And....how long does it last? Typically 7 weeks. Kidding, right, mayoclinic.com?

On the other had, soooo many adults that I work with also have this cough that just wont. go. away. So maybe it's just viral. Or maybe we all have the Whoop.

Regardless, the students have been vaccinated for it. Colin has been vaccinated. Kevin doesn't seem to be getting it. It's too late for me to get the vaccine now, and you typically only get Whooping Cough once (like Chicken Pox).

I'm just thankful I seem to be on the way down, because I can actually sleep lying down now. And I usually only wake up once to cough.

So, until this cough is gone...running is pushed to the wayside. And that makes me sad. I'm going to have to start with a shorter distance when I do start up again because I won't be able to consistently run the 3 miles. But that's okay.

What a week!

I had conferences this week. All of them went just fine, especially since I have a great bunch of kids this year. Conferences are much easier to face when you have very few negative things to share.

It's just that they wear me (everyone) down. I get to school at 7:30, teach until 3:00, and conferences are from 4:00 until 7:30. So I'm there for 12 hours, and 12 hours later, I have to come back and teach again. And then the next day you do it all over again.

Needless to say, I drank some leftover wine straight from the bottle on Thursday night, in honor of being done with conferences and our 4th wedding anniversary.

The weather this week has been reminiscent of 10.07.06.

(Betsy Cole Photography)

Sunny and warm with a breeze. One last hurrah before the fall chill finally sets in. Although I'd be happy if it stayed just like this until next spring.

We're going to celebrate our 4 wedded years together later this afternoon. We're thinking Ruby Tuesdays salad bar. We're romantical like that.

But earlier today, after we cleaned the house that had been overly-neglected this week, we went to the fire station's open house to let Colin check out the firetrucks. He (and I) also crawled under some blanket-covered tables to practice crawling out of the house. And, of course, he got a plastic fire hat. He's more amused when we wear it than when he does.

Hodge Podge

My fabulous friend Leah over at Leah Maria Photography held mini sessions last Sunday, so we took part. Even though he just barely turned 17 months old, these are his official 18 month pictures. It's always good to get a family picture or two as well!
Don't get me started on that apple. Colin took a nap before we left, but wasn't finished with it when it was time to get in the car. So he slept another 50 minutes during the car ride, and then when he woke up, he was hungry (like always). I brought a honeycrisp apple because what says fall in MN more than one of those tasty fruits? And...it's a better "prop" than goldfish crackers, right? Except we couldn't take it away from him. He ate the ENTIRE thing too, except for the core which I had to remove for him or he definitely would've eaten it.

She's busy editing the rest (along with all the other families that she shot that day, and other families on top of that!), and I'm so excited to see them. (Seriously, Leah...although I'm super excited, I'm being super patient. I know how busy you are).

The velcro on our beloved BumGenius diapers has worn out to the point where it just doesn't stick anymore. We've decided the best financially-sound thing to do is to get the diapers converted from velcro to snaps. So tomorrow morning, I'm sending them to a lady in Utah who converts diapers. In the meantime, Colin is wearing a piece of paper on his butt, which aggravates his teething diaper rash, which aggravates us.

Speaking of teething, did you know this boy has officially grown 6 teeth in the last 6 weeks? And there are 2 more on the way. Maybe we can make it 8 teeth in 8 weeks. Wouldn't that be grand?