Taking Care of Puppy

Today was such a beautiful day that I had to get the kids outside. I brought the exersaucer out for Reese and I brought the sidewalk chalk out for Wyatt. He had fun coloring for a little bit while I weeded, but then he started to show signs of boredom. Then he looked over and saw that black lab statue that sits in our front stoop. He went over to it and said "Hi Noelley," and picked it up. He started lugging it around the yard with him saying things like "Noelley want to play in the grass." Then he decided that she was hungry and thirsty. He took our two planters that sit outside and put them next to each other (just like Noelle's bowls). He picked up some dirt and put it in one planter, and then decided to use the hose (which he also refers to as a "fire truck") to "fill" up the other bowl. Sadly, it's been almost four months since we lost our precious girl, but I'm amazed at how well Wyatt remembers the things to do to take care of his puppy!

Wyatt's Birthday

Wyatt had a pretty great birthday (I think anyway). For starters, Brian was back after spending a week and a half in Florida at the new waterpark. He's not going to be there full time, but he has been getting the park ready to open and getting the lifeguard program set up. He will be traveling back and forth sporadically, but he was down there so long because the park opened last weekend. Must be nice to be in Florida and be able to go to waterparks in March!

After being away from his Daddy for so long, Wyatt was thrilled to see him. He had a few "I miss my Daddy" meltdowns, and two nights of pretty rough sleep (the night before Brian came home he woke up three times calling for him). As soon as Brian got home Sunday morning Wyatt ran to the door, and then spent most of the day attached to him. There were times that Wyatt would sit next to Brian on the couch and then look up at him, smile, and throw his arms around him. It was precious. We went to dinner and Wyatt couldn't sit next to Brian, so he tried to keep his arm around him the whole time. He is such a Daddy's boy!

He started the day with birthday muffins (which he referred to as "Cupcakes), and the Sprout birthday appearance. He talked about it being Wy Wy's birthday all day. We had appointments at the Pediatrician for both kids. I know, I'm a terrible mother to take him on his birthday, but he didn't need shots and it's easier to take them both on the same day. Reese was a month behind on her six month check up! Wyatt is now 30 pounds, 8 ounces (79th percentile, up almost three pounds from November) and 35 inches (68th percentile, up two inches from November). I knew he'd had a bit of a growth spurt because his 18 month-sized pants are now too short and he's fitting perfectly into his 24 month ones. I just don't want to go buy new jeans when he's about to spend his summer in shorts! The doctor gave us a rough estimate that Wyatt might be 5'10. He also said that they'll be able to give a better estimate at his three year check up. There's also apparently some calculation where you take the height of the same sex parent and multiply it by two, add the height of the other parent, and divide by three. That says Wyatt will be 5'7. It also says Brian would have been 5'7. Since Brian is actually 6'1, we're not buying that calculation.

Wyatt names all of his animals and told "Dr. Bones" what they all said. Overall he was very good since it was a "naptime" appointment and he had to wait for his little sister (I'll give you her update later).

After the Doctor's appointment we went on a few errands because both kids fell asleep in the car. We came home and Wyatt helped me bake his cake and he relaxed with Daddy. We went to my parents' house for dinner (I did not feel like cooking), and even though my Mom made Wyatt his very own pizza, he didn't want any. The only thing he wants to do at their house is wear his fireman outfit. He loves that thing and refused to take it off. The only thing that coaxed him out of it was taking him outside to play with Bella. And then he didn't even want to come in to open his presents!

Brian and I haven't given him his present yet because his party isn't for another week and a half and he's still got presents from Christmas that he hasn't opened yet. I read an article last week that suggested boxing toys up and re-releasing them a month or two later. I think I might try that. I'd like to get rid of some stuff, but I don't know what Reese will play with and what she won't be interested in.

We ended the night at home singing happy birthday and eating cake. He loved singing happy birthday and blowing out the candles so much that he asked us to do it again. So we obliged :).

I'm really looking forward to his party. It's Wonder Pets themed (he saw it all in the box and said "Whoa Momma. Look at all the cool stuff.), and I know he'll have a great time!

Helping me make the muffins
The fireman costume is hard to take pictures of because of the reflectors.

Coloring with the chalk Aunt Katie gave him.

Wyatt and Baby Sissy getting ready for cake!

Eating his birthday cake

Birthday Boy on Sprout!

This morning we all anxiously watched to see if Wyatt's birthday card was going to be on TV. His named scrolled across the bottom of the screen, and we were sure that meant his card wasn't going to be on TV. But it was! His card was the very last card that Kevin showed. We were recording it just in case he was on there, so we've watched it again about 4 times (and it only happened 20 minutes ago)! We were all very excited!

Now back to the birthday festivities!

Two Years

So after an entire day of "labor" and thwarting my fantastic doctor off several times, she finally said I needed a C Section. I cried. I asked for my Mommy. I realized that the only way my baby was going to come out healthy was for me to put what I wanted aside. After that, everything is a blur. An Australian anesthesiologist came in. Brian changed into scrubs. There was a really mean nurse in the room. And then at 2:18 am I heard Wyatt. I caught a quick glimpse of him before he was checked out and taken to the nursery. I don't remember much after that for about an hour. They finished the operation and then I went to post op (sorry, but I'd been awake for 21 hours and I'd been on drugs all day - I was exhausted).

Finally Brian came into the post op room and told me how beautiful our son was. The nurses wheeled me back into my Labor & Delivery room and then I got to see my baby boy. It was fantastic. I couldn't believe he was ours. He was so beautiful. And then he latched right on to eat. He was perfect.

After sitting in the hospital for practically the entire day, and staying well into the morning, Wyatt got to meet his grandparents and Uncle Matt and Aunt Katie. They got to learn his name because we kept it a secret. Then they went home. Wyatt went back to the nursery for more newborn stuff. And Brian and I got about an hour of sleep before we started our first full day as the parents of Wyatt Allan.

Forget Mama!

"Dada Dada Dada Dada Dada" is the new phrase around this house. I'm apparently already out of the picture. Unless its mealtime!

What Were You People Thinking?!

36 Million votes...and Matt Giraud was in the bottom 2? I know he went first, but seriously! I spent my night voting for the bottom 2 (yeah, I voted for Michael Sarver...only because he seems like a nice, normal guy and I wanted Megan gone). At least I was kind of right about who went home, and I was only off by one person in my bottom three... but still. You're ruining my credibility.

I always like to look and see who's sitting behind the judges. Tonight Terrence Howard was back there. Sometimes I wonder if they're there because it's good PR or they actually enjoy the show... anybody know if he has a movie coming out?

I'm sure glad that the producers announced that the contestants lip sync the group numbers. I never would have figured that out. I think that they're overdoing the lip sync-ing now. Obvious.

Am I the only person that doesn't think winning a trip to watch them film a dumb Ford music video is that great of a prize? The videos are dumb. I think the only people that legitimately enjoy them are the contestants that are in the video.

Why didn't Adam Lambert listen? Last night they complimented him on being normal and he was all Twilight-ed out again tonight. Agh!

As usual, I still don't understand why people sing the song that no one liked when they leave. Shouldn't they sing something different to the judges for them to decide whether they can stay? If the judges hated it last night, they probably won't like it tonight. Although, I do think that they would have saved Matt if he'd been in the bottom.

That's all I've got. Brittney out.

American Idol: Week 3

Motown week was pretty good. A few observations:

- I saw Jill Zarin from the Real Housewives of New York in the audience last night. I love her!

- Could I possibly be the only person in America slightly irritated by the insinuation of the judges that "especially" Lil should be good at Motown? Um yeah, she's African American, but I'm pretty sure that there isn't some kind of "good at Motown" gene that goes along with that. I don't like "Heatwave" anyway. And note to Simon: her name is actually short for Lillian. Not "little." You know, like Lil and Phil from Rugrats?

- Adam Lambert was actually (ahem) awesome. It pained me to type that because I don't get the whole dark mystique surrounding him.

- Anoup - average. He can sing, but I didn't like the song (sung by him, I like Smoky's version). That's hard for me to admit because I love Anoup, but I'm not so blinded by fandom that I don't reconize his average-ness.

- Scott:Michael:Megan: Bottom Three. Uck y'all. Uck.

- Danny Gokey: at last, someone besides me isn't all in love with him. Sweet redemption.

- I really am starting to like Kris Allen. He's just like, a regular guy. I don't think he needs to be conceited at all. I think he's precious.

- Allison can sing. I think her awesome performance last night (I am a die hard Temptations fan) saved her. Plus she went last. That's always good or a few extra votes.

- Matt Giraud is now my favorite. I think the guy can sing. He can play the piano, and he's really good. My only concern is that he might be missing the "It" factor, but I think he could really emerge as an awesome performer over the next few weeks. I think his first performance ("Viva La Vida") was his worst.

My Picks

Bottom Three: Megan Joy, Michael Sarver and Scott McIntire

Peace Out: Megan Joy. Simon said he thinks she's in trouble, she was terrible (with an emphasis on the "terr"), and I think Michael Sarver might have a legitimate fan base. But I wouldn't be shocked if he went home instead. We'll have to see...

Seven Months Old!

Reese is seven months old today! I can't believe how big she's getting and how much she's learning. She's definitely becoming more alert and showing off her personality. And she is definitely more laid back than that brother of hers! She is perfectly content sitting on the floor playing with her toys or sitting in her exersaucer gumming on something. If she cries it's because she legitimately wants something...not just because she wants the attention!

Today she said her first word! I was cleaning up from baby food making (today I made carrots and apple/pear sauce) and when I turned off the water I heard "Mama!" I'm telling you, it was complete deja vu from when Wyatt said his first word. I was doing the exact same thing (standing at the sink), and as soon as I turned the water off he said "Mama" too! How crazy is that? We'll just have to see if she keeps saying it. Wyatt said Mama for about 2 weeks and didn't utter my name again until he was 15 months old.

She sits like a champ (and has been for awhile), but she's now become very interested in her feet. Putting them in her mouth while she's laying down, bending over as far as possible to reach them, whatever it takes, she'll get it done. She will put herself to sleep at night when I lay her down in her crib, but she's only slept through the night once. She typically wakes up around 4 to eat and falls back asleep.

She sits up in the tub now (no more baby bathtub for her), and she LOVES it. I couldn't stand letting that big baby tub take up any more space in the kids' bathroom, and now I can plop both kids in the tub together. I rarely use her car seat as a carrier anymore, so I think I might get her convertible car seat soon. I saw an adorable Britax Boulevard pattern online. It's the same car seat that Wyatt uses and I love that thing. I'll just have to wait for our tax return to get it...

Her brother is probably her favorite person in the world. Any time he comes near her she smiles (unless he's coming towards her on his ATV. In that case I have to run over and pick her up before he runs her over). He loves to make her laugh and try to tickle her. Anytime she babbles he says "Baby Sissy talking." When she cries he says "Baby Sissy fussy. She's crying." I asked Wyatt the other night if he wants another baby and he scrunched up his little face in a smile and said "yes." I love watching the two of them interact, they love each other so much!

Reese is definitely a scheduled baby. She eats in the morning around 6 before I get up for work and then she eats cereal and fruit at 9. She doesn't have any milk until I feed her when I get home around 12:30. She falls asleep while I feed her, naps for about 2.5 hours, and then eats again when she wakes up. I feed her cereal and a veggie at 5 and then I feed her again right before bed. I love her routine. I don't know how people do on demand nursing after 4 months!

Sorry I don't know what is wrong with this desktop, but it won't upload my pictures! I'll upload them onto the laptop when my husband gives it back to me! Here are her pictures form her other monthly birthdays!

Newborn
One Month
Two Months
Three Months
Four Months
Five Months

Six Months

Birthday Card!

Wyatt's birthday card is up on Sprout Online! The list of kids is in alphabetical order, so he's last. Don't joke my card, I worked really hard, but I didn't like anything I did. And I hate my handwriting. But it's not about me, it's about my precious almost two year old boy!

"Fwiends"

While I hate to embarrass my poor little girl in front of the whole world, Reese is a little, ahem, constipated. She's had some difficulty with the whole BM thing over the last couple days and she's got really bad diaper rash, so she's been eating prunes a lot. I've gotta do, what I've gotta do. And it seems to be helping....

But I digress. Last night I was feeding her, and Wyatt decided to pull up a chair next to mine. He put all of his little farm animals on the table and was talking about them, and then he leaned over and wrapped his arm around me. And then he said "Momma a fwiend," with the biggest smile on his face. I turned to him and asked "Really, am I your friend?" and he said "Yes." He then gave me another huge hug (or "squeeze" as we refer to them).

After I sang the Golden Girls theme song (and I totally did), I asked him about various people (Brian, the grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.), and he said yes to all of them being his friend. I have no idea where this friend thing came from out of the blue.

Today he had to go to time out because he pulled my wallet off of the counter and dumped its contents all over the den (I still can't find my license. I hope he didn't sell it on the black market as a fake ID). When I went to tell him why he was in time out he looked at me with his little charming smile and said "Hi Momma. Momma a fwiend? Wy Wy gonna give Momma a squeeze?"

I guess this would be a good time to explain that I'm not actually his friend...I'm his Mommy...

2 Years Ago Today...

I was three days overdue and I looked like this!

And this...
And my goodness, my kitchen was in desperate need of a paint job (but the brand new kitchen table looked fabulous)!

I was walking all over the place and was incredibly uncomfortable. Desperate for my little boy to get here, I walked up and down the beach. I went to the waterpark and walked up and down the stairs. But Wyatt was comfy, and he was ready to stay just like that for another week...

My Little Social Worker

This morning the kids and I went to Target first thing. After I had everyone settled into the (huge) cart, Wyatt asked if we could look at the animals. At the front of the store Target has little $1 bins, and they have two filled with farm animals. Wyatt got a horse, pig, cow and goat a few weeks ago. I figured we could go take a look at them (mainly, I wanted to make him happy because he was on the verge of an "I miss my Daddy" emotional breakdown).

When we walked up the bins they had smaller animals, and he saw the baby pig. I gave it to him to hold while we walked through the store, but I decided to get it for him before we left. The reason? Because this is what I heard while we walked through the store..."Baby piggy gonna go home and see his Mommy?" "Baby piggy gonna be back with his Mommy?"

Of course I got him the little pig! He was so excited to reunite the family!

Once we got home, he ran into his playroom and picked up the Mommy Pig and said "Hey Baby Piggy, see Mommy?" Then he brought their little pig snouts together and made them kiss. Wyatt spent the next 5 minutes reuniting the family, and then introduced the baby piggy to all of the farm animals. My little boy has the sweetest little heart!

A Little of This, A Little of That

First of all, note my amazing accuracy at picking the bottom three and the person that went home on American Idol. I think that I am a pop culture genius (really, I do. Ask anything. I dare you.).



Anywho, the past few days have been a little crazy around here. Brian's been working a lot, so I've been doing a lot by myself. Fortunately, our parents are close by so I get a lot of help :).



Thursday started out as a beautiful day. The kids and I played outside and then ended up going to my sister's soccer practice. By the time we actually got to the field, the temperature had dropped twenty degrees and it was raining. So we ended up sitting in the car until practice was over. Wyatt then stayed the night at my parents' house. My mom said that he slept pretty well, but that she thinks he might have restless leg syndrome. Apparently he's a kicker. I wouldn't know because he never sleeps in my bed, but I wouldn't be surprised. He always ends up in some crazy positions when he's sleeping.



On Friday I had a Doctor's appointment so I got home a little late. The kids and I went to dinner at my parents' house and my sister ended up coming back here to spend the night. We ate ice cream and watched Friday Night Lights. It was a pretty good episode. I won't get into specifics because Brian hasn't watched it yet, but I enjoyed it. Although I don't feel like Riggins was in the episode much. Brian will enjoy it because Lyla was.

Speaking of Riggins, I meant to mention how much I enjoyed Men's Health this month. And how much I'm looking forward to new Wolverine movie that's coming out because he's in it.

Today the kids and I stayed home all day. Brian got Wyatt a little play grill last week, so Wyatt made me some chips and "pizza-sketti" on it. Then he put it on a plate and gave it to me. Have you ever pretended to eat play food? That is some fun stuff.

Tonight I went over to a friends' house and had dinner and sat around talking for a few hours. It was so nice to be able to talk to my friends and just hang out. I think I'm going to hit the hay early tonight since I get to wake up with the kids in the morning. And if tomorrow morning is anything like this morning, it will start with a shower for Mr. Wyatt. He ended up with a bit of a mess in his diaper this morning, and I am not interested in repeating that tomorrow. That kind of clean up is a Daddy thing!

American Idol: Week 2

Country Music is probably my favorite genre of music. I've listened to it since I was little, and while I have eclectic musical tastes (to be honest, I LOVE Jay-Z and think he's a genius), country is where I inevitably always end up, whether it's on the radio or my iPod.

Which is why I feel like I would be qualified to help these contestants pick their songs this week. Because they clearly can't make a proper choice on their own. Last night S-U-C-K-E-D.

The girls: I won't waste time on Alexis. Boring and pitchy. I thought Allison did okay, but I didn't think her song was a good choice. In fact, I hate that song. Lil Rounds can sing, but I don't think Independence Day was a good song for her. She said it was "relevant," and my guess is that she was in some way trying to relate it to the Rihanna/Chris Brown situation. But I think she could have found at least one song to R&B up. Megan was fantastic for being all flu-ish. I think she picked the best song for her voice. And even though she never moves, she's never boring.

The boys: WHAT WAS ADAM LAMBERT THINKING? I think that in order to enjoy that performance you probably needed to be drugged. Or drunk....wait that explains it! It was St. Patrick's Day, so he thought that all the drunkards would like it. I can attest that from talking to a few friends...the drunks loved it.

Danny Gokey...whatever. It was okay when he was at the chorus. But the beginning was average. Brian keeps asking me why I don't like him. I think it's just something about him being so popular. I just don't like it. I had the same problem with David Archuleta.

Michael Sarver. Not good. Bad song. I think he could have picked a better one (like Bless the Broken Road or something. Or Mud on the Tires since Brad Paisley is going to be on tonight.) Kris Allen was pretty good. I've done some more research on him this week and I think he has a broader fan base than I suspected. Scott McIntyre could also have picked a better song. I didn't like his performance last night.

Now let's discuss my two favorites. Anoop was awesome. He did a wonderful job and redeemed himself. Now, in my eyes he didn't have to redeemed but I guess he did in the eyes of the rest of America. I personally (along with Brian) prefer Elvis' version of You Were Always on My Mind to Willie Nelson's, but those are two pretty famous men and he really did a fantastic job covering their work. Matt Giraurd is amazing. I loved his version of the song, I love his voice, and I really hope that people start to pay attention to him. He can really appeal to all sorts of people and I think he could make a really great album.

My Picks

Bottom Three: Michael Sarver, Allison Iraheta and Alexis Grace

Going Home: Alexis Grace (even if the story broke earlier this week that she's the producers' pick to make it to the Top 4).

Gilmore Goodness!

I've stopped in the middle of a million other naptime chores to share a tidbit of joy with the world (really, I have no one around to tell). Starting April 4th, I will be able to watch the Gilmore Girls 7 days a week. I mean, yeah, I already own every season, but whatever. And yeah, I know what happens in every episode, but this is my favorite show ever. I contemplated the name Rory for Reese. Okay, and the name Lorelai too. Brian wouldn't have it (not because he doesn't like the name Rory. He just thinks its hard to say).

And because I've fallen in love with ER again (the last 5 episodes anyway), I'm excited to announce that Alexis Bledel, Rory Gilmore herself, will be on the final show.

I can't even talk about this with Brian, his hatred of the show runs that deep. He thinks they talk too fast, and he thinks the people in the town are annoying. That's about as much as he knows about the show because he's never bothered to sit down and watch one episode. I mean, after all the Monday Night Raw and Smackdown garbage I watched when we started dating (unfortunately, there was a period of time when I pretended to think that the Rock was "the most electrifying man in sports entertainment"), he can't stand to be in the room when it's on. Whatever. He better buck up and enjoy it. It's about to be on seven days a week.

Weekend

On Saturday Allison, T, Colin and Piper came up to visit! We went over Brian's parents' house to hang out for a few hours before we went out to dinner. Wyatt was so excited to see his big cousin (and his little cousin too)! The kids all played upstairs in the playroom (even Reese played with a book), and had a lot of fun. Wyatt keeps talking about Colin riding the horse, but he also told my mom today that baby Piper can walk. I think he thinks that babies are supposed to stay small and not learn to walk. He's in for a rude awakening in a few months!

Yesterday we ran to Target and to visit Noelle, but then we came home and stayed inside all day. I am over the disgusting, rainy weather. In the afternoon everybody Brian and the kids took naps while I cleaned. Pulling out the couch to vacuum, swiffering the fan, dusting everything in sight (except the kitchen counter) cleaning. Someone out there has to know how depressing it is to be the only person in your house not taking a nap. Although someone else can probably attest to how relaxing it can be when you're the only person in your house awake (you know, when you have a half pint of New York Superfudge chunk and good movie all curled up on the couch, not when you're cleaning like a maniac).

After naptime we decided to put Wyatt in his training pants, just to see what would happen. We sat down on the potty every 15 minutes. We asked him if he needed to go constantly. Then he shouted "PEE!" I thought this was it. But it wasn't. He just felt like shouting "PEE!" Finally he ran to me when I asked if he needed to go to the bathroom. But I'm pretty sure he went in his pants at that moment. Because his big boy pants were soaked when we got to the bathroom. No biggie. I put another pair on him. He peed in those during dinner (we have excellent table manners in this house). We're going to try again today. I'd love to be able to stop buying diapers for him. I could put the money towards hiring a housekeeper to clean my fans. And pull out my couch. And I'll just sit on the couch watching a good movie (or maybe One Tree Hill on SoapNet) during naptime.

My Poor Girl

Reese hasn't been feeling too well this week. A combination of maladies have fallen upon her and made her pretty much miserable. But she has such a sweet personality that you wouldn't think anything was bothering her at all.

The first thing that's getting to her is her gosh darned tooth. I've been waiting and waiting and waiting for at least one to cut through and nothing has happened yet! I think tonight is going to be the night though. Her gum is looking pretty white and I can feel it about to break through. I know that the pain will get better after this first tooth, but I hate for her to suffer. And the constant drooling isn't helping another problem...

Which is this crazy rash! She's had a pretty bad rash (lots of little dry spots) all over her tummy and back. I've been applying Cetaphil multiple times a day, but it doesn't seem to be helping. I'm trying to keep bibs on her to keep her tummy and chest dry, but it doesn't always work.

Especially since her rash seems to be getting worse because of her apparent allergies. I breastfeed her, she shouldn't have allergies! Anyway, the beautiful weather we had last weekend and the fresh flowers (and pollen) that we've had in the house have contributed to watery, itchy eyes and a runny nose for Reesie. Her eyes were itching her so bad that she was scratching her eye with her thumb and digging her fingers into her forehead. The forehead scratching was just a side effect of the eye scratching, there wasn't anything actually wrong with it, but she does have some scabs all over her forehead now.

Anyway, I am really hoping her teeth cut tonight, but I'm gonna go catch some sleep now while she's sleeping!

A New Word

We had an exciting development in the house...Wyatt learned how to say the word "zombie" last night. I am not allowed to discuss the circumstances that caused me to teach him the word (my wife will not let me), but I am very excited about Wyatt's progress! (I am a huge fan of zombie movies) The possibilities are endless..."Daddy can we watch the zombies?" "Daddy can we listen to Rob Zombie?"

*Don't flip out...I have no intention of showing him zombie movies until he is much, much older.

-Brian

The Anatomy of Zoboomafoo

We are some Zoboomafoo freaks around this house. Wyatt absolutely loves all animals and the Kratt brothers put together this great show that is centered around a leaping lemur, but teaches about all animals. Wyatt has learned so much about animals just watching everything that happens at Animal Junction.

Sprout Online has coloring pages on their website that parents can print and let their kids color. I printed out some Zoboo pictures as well as some of Caillou. Today I let him color the picture of Zoboo. It took a little bit for him to get over the fact that some of his crayons were broken (because he plays the drums with them), but then he had fun!

While he worked on his picture I worked on coloring one of Zoboo as well. I'm making him a birthday card so that Kelly or Shawn or Kevin can sing "Happy, Happy Birthday" to him on the Sunny Side Up Show. Even if it doesn't make it on TV, he'll still be featured online!

Follow Up and Sippy Cup

How terrible was I about calling American Idol last night? I'm usually not that bad with my predictions! Seriously, I've won Fantasy American Idol for the last 3 years! If you want to know what Fantasy American Idol is...it's a game Brian and I made up to make watching TV a little more exciting. We pick who is going to be in the bottom three before and after we watch the performance show and win points if we're right. You get more points for your "before show" guesses than the "after show" guesses, and you get bonus points if you pick who was actually eliminated. It's a long process that involves a very detailed Excel spreadsheet, but it makes TV a little fun. Whatever, I'm not a dork. Don't judge me.

Seriously though, what was I thinking? Well, I was thinking Jorge would get a very segmented group of votes and he would be safe, and I legitimately thought no one knew who Allison and Kris were...but I was wrong. I get another shot to be right next week!
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Yesterday I gave Wyatt his juice after his nap and he carried it into the den where Reese was sitting on the floor playing. When he walked in the room she started whimpering, and making gestures like she wanted his cup. I introduced the sippy cup to Wyatt around 6 months, so I figured I would give her a shot too. I put water in her cup and took the stopper out (that way the water comes out easily) and gave it to her. That was exactly what she wanted! She took the cup and drank away. Actually, she munched away. We've got two teeth that are about to break through on the bottom and she really just used the cup to gnaw on.

I never give juice or water in the bottle, I just give it to them in the sippy cup without a stopper. Once they've mastered it without the stopper I put the stopper in. I haven't given her any juice yet and I probably won't for a few weeks because she's starting her veggies. But I want to get her working on the sippy cup so that it's gone by August 25th. Wyatt stopped using the bottle two weeks before his first birthday (I mixed his formula and new milk together for a few weeks), and I don't anticipate letting her either.

Here's Reese super excited to try her sippy cup!

Getting her first sip!
Gnawing on the spout
Studying Wyatt's drinking skills.

American Idol: Week 1

Alright, as much as I'd like to say that the performances matter tonight, I don't think they do. I do have to wonder though, who came up with Michael Jackson week? I don't really think any Michael Jackson is singable, and at this point its not that entertaining. And for goodness sake, why do they pick these themes when the judges think no one will ever be as good as the original?

I thought Lil, Paul and Scott were good and entertaining. Jasmine...not so much. But she had the added bonus of singing a song that Michael Jackson recorded first and then was re-recorded by Mariah Carey. In either case she still came off slightly unpleasant. I like Michael Sarver. He probably won't win, but he'll get a country record deal and stop being an oil rigs man (by the way, did you know that was what he did for a living?).

Allison was awful. Kris was decent, but he's forgettable. Anoop (as much as I like him) was not so good. Jorge was terrible. The way he looks at the screen bothers me. I felt like I was on a cruise ship.

I didn't think Megan was nearly as bad as Simon said she was, and I rarely disagree with him! Oh, Adam Lambert. All the teen ladies seem to love you, with your Twilight-like darkness and spiky hair. But I think you're a little David Archuleta-ish. That's right. You only want to be their friend. And seriously Paula, how could you predict the finals on the first night? I mean, I already have, but whatever. Next time Adam lose the chains. I could hear them janglling on your hip throughout your entire performance.

I didn't recognize Matt Giraud's song, but I thought he was good. He's got an Elliot Yamin thing going on, which was good enough to carry Elliot to the final three (and let's be honest, his song got more radio play than the two finalists...it was on a Now! CD for goodness sake).

My Predictions

Going home this week: Allison Iraheta and Kris Allen, neither of them seem to have a fan base leading up to this. I suppose Anoop could leave us too, but I really don't want him to.

The Final Five (that's right, I'm predicting who will be left in 6 weeks):
Lil Rounds
Paul Gokey
Scott MacIntire
Adam Lambert
Matt Giraud

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Update: My mistake, I thought Danny Gokey's name was Paul. Maybe that's because I just don't like him or something. His name is Danny. Duh.

Playing Outside

When Wyatt was a baby and beautifully immobile, I was able to keep him entertained for hours by taking his exersaucer out on the patio and letting him look around outside. I fear that putting this out there on the internet might make me a terrible mother, but he did play nicely in it for a few hours the day Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released. I'd been waiting forever for the book to come out and I needed to find out what happened to Harry. So we sat on the patio and read together. Don't worry, no spoilers here. Brian still hasn't finished it yet.

Anywho, Saturday was absolutely beautiful and I decided to put Reese on the patio to play too (I wasn't even trying to keep her busy, I just wanted her to enjoy the day). She loved it! She babbled and laughed and gnawed on her toys. I love listening to all her little sounds.

Wyatt laughing at Daddy and Noelle
Wyatt and Noelle hanging out outside

Reese staring at the pool

Wyatt attempting to gnaw on his toy!

Reese playing too!

Duck Tales. A Woo Hoo.

We have good family friends that we usually let stay with us this time of year for a few weeks. To be honest, they aren't too intrusive and they're pretty easy going. We don't even have to feed them, and they don't come inside. All that we really have to do is clean up their poop.

Because they're ducks.

This particular pack of ducks (and I really think its the same three that show up every year) really likes our pool. Their names are Sarah, George and Dupree. I call the last duck Dupree because I think two ducks are married and the other one is the guys' best friend who won't grow up and find his own duckmate. So he's Dupree, like the movie.

The ducks started showing up (at least, I think they did) right around the time Wyatt was born two years ago. They came back last March, and they're here again. I will forever be grateful to these ducks because they sparked Wyatt's language development. Before he was a year old he said a few words, but once he started seeing these ducks in the backyard, it was non stop talk about the ducks and their quacking, and now he talks about everything!

He still loves these ducks. He wants to watch them constantly and always wants to know where they are. He could be entertained for hours watching them out of the window!

Beautiful Weekend = Zoo Time!

This weekend was beautiful, which I was thankful for since last weekend was absolutely disgusting. Brian got back in town on Friday night and we were all eager for some family time, so off to the zoo we went.

Wyatt was ready to walk out of the house as soon as heard he heard me say "zoo." He kept walking around trying to pull us up saying "Wyatt's gonna go look at the animals?" Once we got to the zoo he was off! He wanted to look at everything, and he wanted to do it quickly. He would stop, take a look at an animal, shout its name, and then run off to the next thing. Brian and I are convinced that he thought that every giraffe he saw was a different giraffe than one he'd already seen.

He has an amazing memory (I'm not that surprised by that because I remember everything - just ask my husband :)). He knew as we approached each section of the zoo which animal we were going to see next. He does the same thing when we're in the car. While we're driving along he recognizes where we're going ("Wyatt gonna get a haircut and play with trains?," "Gonna go to Target and get Daddy Juice?").

While we were watching the giraffes (and Wyatt was already telling me that he wanted to see the birdies), we ran into Shannon and Tyler. Wyatt is usually excited to Tyler, but he had no interest in socializing, he wanted to see the next animal. The only thing he looked at for an extended period of time were the meerkats. He loves those things!

We had to walk through the dreaded barnyard to see the chickens, pigs and cows and then we left. We apparently got to the zoo just in time because it was PACKED when we were leaving. It was already crowded when we got there, we had to park far away, but it was even more crowded when we left.

We came home and put the kids down for naps (and Brian too, he'd had a few long days), and then we went to Brian's parents house. Wyatt got to play on the swings for a little bit and then we left the kids and went to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. It was my first time there and it was really good. Brian and I played trivia while we ate, and I don't want to brag, but we're pretty fierce competition. Like I said, I remember everything, and Brian and I both have a wealth of useless knowledge.

Excited to be at the zoo!
Sitting on the butterfly in the butterfly garden

Watching the ducks!

Checking out the prairie dogs!

Reesie is excited to be at the zoo!

My Birthday

I turned 27 yesterday! It wasn't a hard birthday. I don't feel old or anything. Unfortunately Brian was out of town working at another waterpark his company purchased in Florida, so he wasn't able to be here. I got to pick whether he left on Sunday and came back on Tuesday night, or whether he left Wednesday and came back tonight. I picked the weekdays. I just didn't want him to miss out on all the weekend fun. And Sunday was pretty disgusting so I didn't really want him flying then anyway.

On Wednesday I got my birthday present - a new iPod - and packed Brian up for his trip. The kids and I spent the rest of the night hanging out.

For my birthday I got to wake up at 5:30 and get ready for work! But the good thing about work is that I have great friends who decorate my desk (even if I'm too stubborn to leave it), feed me cake and wish me happy birthday all day. Apparently they're even having breakfast for me on Tuesday (I'm off tomorrow, so Tuesday is my next day back)!

Once I got home from work both kids went down for naps. And I got flowers from my husband! When the kids woke up I took them to my parents' house while I went and got a birthday pedicure :). Then I went to Target to pick up a few things (my brother and soon to be sister-in-law sent me a gift card that was burning a hole in my pocket). My Dad made yummy lasagna for my birthday dinner and we had some ice cream cake.

The kids and I came back home, and I got Wyatt ready for bed. I thought he might be ready to go to bed right away (it was 7, his bed time is usually 8, but I've been trying to get him ready for the whole spring forward thing all week by putting him to bed early since we change the clocks this weekend), but he was having a bad night. He was sad that Daddy wasn't home when we got here (really, really sad. He kept asking "Daddy gonna be home too?" while we were driving home) and he cried and cried. And with those tears in his eyes he looked at me and said "Wyatt gonna go night night with Mommy?" Now, going "night night with Mommy" does not mean that he sleeps in my bed. It just means that right before bed, he gets to climb in and watch Zaboomafoo or Caillou until bed time. Once that's over I tuck Wyatt and Monkey into their bed and they go to sleep.

While we watched TV I fed Reese and put her in her crib (she cried for a few minutes), and then I put Wyatt to bed. I followed all of that with American Idol. Can I tell you how stoked I am that they made a Top 13 to put Anoup through? I love him. I actually don't really dislike anyone.... yet.

This weekend I want to go shopping with some birthday money (I need clothes, and I've got a 30% off coupon for the Limited), and maybe go out to dinner with my husband. On Sunday we're going to Funny Bone with a bunch of friends. Dave's birthday is the day before mine, and Shannon's birthday is the day after mine, so its like an 8 year tradition for us to all do something together. Maybe longer. I think the first thing Dave and I ever talked about was our birthdays while we cleaned the nasty break room at the waterpark. That was 11 years ago. Oh my gosh, I can't believe that was 11 years ago. Crazy. Now I actually do feel old.

Snow Day

Is it really almost Easter? Cause it doesn't feel like.

Actually, snow had very little impact on our day. The kids and I stayed in and played all day. We read books, looked at flash cards and played all morning long, which is actually a typical Monday. I was hoping to go in to work today, just so I could comp the time out on Friday (the day after my birthday), but I didn't feel good and it was snowing, so I think maybe I'll just use some of my vacation time instead :).

Wyatt has gotten very good at counting...he counts everything - to eleven. After eleven he usually goes back to eight, but sometimes will count to "firteen." He's also taken an interest in playing music lately - between Brian's guitar and his own drums. Before he starts to play he says "One, two, three, four" - and then starts to play his selected instrument and sings -"Wyatt's rock and roll band, Wyatt's rock and roll band!" This afternoon his selected instrument was Brian's guitar.

Reese has been getting bigger and learning so much everyday. As soon as she gets a grip on one thing, she moves on to mastering something else. She's sitting like a champ, and now she's on her way to creeping. She hated to be on her belly a week ago, and she still does sometimes, but the rest of the time she's trying to move. I feel like her teeth might cut through any day now, but that might be wishful thinking on my part :). She is going right to sleep when I put her in her crib at night and sleeping until around 2. I'm slowly hoping to stretch that to all night and I think it will be easier now that we have her video monitor set up. She loves her new bedtime routine.

Playing with Winnie the Pooh while Daddy sets up her monitor

Weekend

It has been an absolutely disgusting weekend. I can't stand cold, rainy weather and that is all we've gotten. There's a rumor that we're going to get a "blizzard" (that would be snowfall of one to two inches) tomorrow. I really hope that doesn't happen.

Yesterday we spent the day hanging around the house. Around 4:30 we dropped Wyatt off at my parents' house so we could take Reese to get her pictures taken. The mall was packed. I guess the rainy day and the fact that it was a Saturday night all contributed to the crowd. I felt like I was 16 again. Married. With a baby.

Reese did a great job for her pictures. She even had a wardrobe change and took it in stride. Daddy got a lot of beautiful smiles out of her too. The photographer taking her pictures was a red head and she kept talking about how cute our little red head is. She also agreed with me when I told her I think the red hair is here to stay. I think the fact that her eyelashes are blonde is a pretty good sign that her hair isn't getting darker. And that I'll be spending some money on mascara when she's a teenager.

Since it usually takes about a half hour for the pictures to be ready, Brian and I decided to go to Johnny Rocket's to get something to eat. Reese sat in her stroller and smiled the entire time. I think she was happy to finally get some alone time with both of us without that pesky big brother hanging around!

When we got back to Picture People to see her pictures we saw that our little girl was already on display. The photographer had taken one of her pictures and put it in the lobby of the studio. I know it's silly, but we were so excited to see her picture there. We spent more than we planned on her pictures, but they turned out so great that we had to!

After the pictures we fought the mall crowd to get to Old Navy. I got a gift card for Christmas but didn't see much I wanted to buy then. They were having a pretty good sale so I got new jeans and some shirts and flip flops. I'm hoping I only fit in these jeans for a few weeks!

Here's the whole display case - she's the bottom two pictures

Here's a closer look at her pictures..with reflection. Brian took these with his iPhone.