Birthday Party!

Yesterday we had Wyatt's Spiderman party! We were blessed with gorgeous weather for a party after a morning full of fog. I handed over the reins of party planning to my husband because he knows better than I what a little boy wants at his birthday party. That should explain this:
This wall mural is taller than I am, but Wyatt LOVES it. Both kids also wore Spiderman shirts to the party. Reese wore her big brother's brown shirt!

The beautiful weather really gave us the opportunity to get everyone outside to enjoy the day. We set up Wyatt's soccer set and baseball tee, in addition to their little house and slide that have taken up a permanent residence in our backyard. Dave and Stephanie also have a bounce house that they brought with them to entertain the kids!

Wyatt was so excited to open his presents. We were all outside when it was time, and I had him go tell all his friends that it was time for him to open his presents. It made me really happy that he thanked everyone for the gifts that he gave them!

We went to get his cake yesterday, and he was in love! He wanted to hold it on his lap in the car (which I refused), then he sat at the table and stared at it until his party started. I have to say that this cake is pretty neat (another choice by Daddy)!

The only problem was that he couldn't keep his hands off the cake! He got some blue frosting on his fingers and it ended up on his face!

We set up a table and chairs outside for everyone to eat, and it worked out really well. I think the cake was cute, but I think that in the future I might stick to cupcakes. They make everything so much easier!

Wyatt really loved his cake! Until his Aunt Katie put some ice cream on the plate! I don't know why, but this kid really doesn't like ice cream!

I will forgive Katie that transgression because she did such a good job keeping Reese entertained, and feeding her chocolate cake!

Towards the end of the party (you know, after the sugar high), Colin, Tyler and Wyatt started running around in and out of the bounce house, and they had a blast. After a little bit we were able to coax the boys inside to play with some of Wyatt's new toys.

Wyatt had a really great party! He had such a blast with his friends and cousins, and it's all he can talk about today! Thanks to everyone who came and made his day so special!

Wyatt's 3rd Birthday!

Brian and I are both really lucky to have schedules flexible enough to take the day off on the kids' birthdays. I really want to make sure that they feel like their birthdays are their special days and that they have a blast! I'm sure one day that will mean that they'll want to sleep in until noon, but that's not what it means for my three year old!

Brian and I snuck in his room at 2:18 when he officially turned three, and he continued to sleep soundly. Then he woke up at 6! And believe me, he knew that it was his birthday!

The first thing that we did that morning was open up his cards and presents. Let's just say, he wasn't that interested in the cards.
The presents, on the other hand, were the best thing ever. I've got to say, I am in love with Fisher Price's Imaginext line of toys. They have lots of really neat things in different price ranges, and watching Wyatt play with them is amazing. My brother and sister in law bought him the fire station for Christmas and he loves it. And we love watching him sit on the floor actively playing and using his imagination. So for his birthday we got him the Bat Cave.

Mr. Obsessed with Toy Story also got his very own set of Buzz Lightyear wings. This was a total Daddy purchase. I objected. I mean, I can just see him running through the house without a care in the world, and then slamming a wing into his sister like she's the evil emperor Zurg. "To infinity and beyond..." or flat on the floor. Anyway, that hasn't happened yet, for two reasons. The first is that he really prefers that Brian lift him in the air and help him "fly." But if that doesn't work, then he climbs up the back of my couch and jumps onto the cushions. Seriously. He is all space ranger.

We also had some fun with the garbage truck came. For the first time in awhile (that I've seen), they both ran to the playroom and watched it out the window.

After all that fun we decided to go to Toys R Us. We mainly just went to look at something, but they were having a sale where you got one Fisher Price toy for free if you bought another. So, you know, we bought another...

We got him the Imaginext Boat. He loves this thing too! I really can't tell which he likes more, but I've noticed that the boat has been making a few sea rescues near the bat cave lately. And yes, his shirt says Birthday Boy and it is adorable. I got it for him at Carter's a few weeks ago. We had a Doctor's appointment and a few other things that day and I wanted everyone to see that it was his birthday while we were out and about. Of course, by the time the Pediatrician came in Wyatt didn't have a shirt on, but he realized it was Wyatt's birthday as soon as he looked at his chart!

When we came home from the Doctor we watched the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie until dinner. Wyatt has seen it 3 times at the movies (we have a lot of free movie passes), and he loves it!

We got lucky and also had a train come by while we were home. Whenever we hear a train whistle during the day (and they're hard to miss), both kids stop what they're doing and run to the kitchen door so we can go out on the deck. I don't know what they're going to do when houses actually go up behind us!

After all that excitement we went to Red Robin for dinner (of course). Wyatt even asked us to have the people come sing to him, and then acted all embarrassed about them coming over. He also didn't want his sundae. Can you believe that?

That was fortunate because it left more room for the cupcakes that I made from scratch. The cupcake batter. The frosting. All made by my hand and the Kitchen Aid mixer. This was a first for me, and they were delicious!

All in all I think he had a really great birthday! We can't believe how big he is getting, and we're more and more proud of him everyday. And we're really looking forward to his party on Saturday!

My Baby!

Obviously I didn't finish the post yesterday, but this about sums up the rest of my birth experience:

• The Australian Doctor gave me drugs
• Brian put on scrubs
• There was a bright light
• WYATT WAS BORN
• Brian took him to the nursery
• I passed out
• I woke up an hour later
• I met our baby and fell in love.

Three Years Ago Today...

I published this last year on the day before Wyatt's second birthday, and I always love to look back on the day that we thought was going to be his birthday. Okay, maybe "love" is a strong word for what I went through, but whatever. It's the miraculous story of his birth. On with the story...

I was at the hospital. Wyatt was 9 days late and I was being induced. Brian and I spent the night before getting everything in order...dropping Noelle off, picking up a few things for the hospital, and just enjoying our last night together with no kids.

We woke up at 6am so that we could call the hospital at 7 to make sure there was a Labor & Delivery room for us. There was an opening, so we packed up and moved out! We stopped at Target (I know, we seriously have a problem) on the way and got to the hospital at 7:30.
Let me just say, this was NOT how I pictured my delivery. There was going to be water breaking. Rushing around. No painkillers or drugs of any kind. Then the Pitocin showed up. The contractions hurt, but I was convinced I could make it through. I just needed my balance ball. Our Prepared Childbirth Instructor said that balance balls were amazing. Um, no. By 11:30 I was begging for some drugs. Not the epidural, just the light stuff. This baby is going to be here any second.

Not so much. But you know what was there? Chick-Fil-A. For my husband. My parents brought him Chick-Fil-A to eat in front of me when I hadn't eaten in 12 hours. Whatever, pass the ice chips. I still loved him anyway.
I watched some TV, attempted to play some Nintendo DS (an obsession when I was pregnant with Wyatt. I had to play at least one game of Tetris and beat my previous score before I could fall asleep at night). Still nothing. By 5 I was at three measly centimeters! Um, are you kidding me?

I tried a second helping of the light stuff, but like I heard in class, it did nothing. I decided to go all in. I mean, my "birth plan" was screwed up as soon as the Pitocin drip hit my blood stream. My baby was going to be born drugged anyway right? Epidural please!

Shockingly, that big needle isn't even that intimidating when you're having contractions. That doesn't mean it was comfortable though. I got a little stressed when Wyatt's heart rate started dropping, but we made it through.

Apparently the epidural helped me relax (that and the 85 Popsicles I consumed over the course of the day), because within three hours I was 8.5 centimeters. The baby was going to be here by midnight!

Except, that's where it all ended. The next hour there was no change. I heard the dreaded "C-Section" word. I convinced the Doctor to come back in an hour. I promised I would be ready. But I wasn't. This little charade continued to play out until it was no longer March 29th...

Our Growing Girl

Reese is going through a totally new phase right now. She is incredibly verbal about what she wants and doesn't want, and she has an opinion about everything. A few of the things she has done or said to us lately have blown my mind!

The other day she grabbed her "pocketbook" and picked it up. Brian asked her where she was going and she replied "Target."

This of course, was not too surprising, since she's just as obsessed with Target as I am. When we go to the store she has a meltdown if she doesn't get to see shoes, baby dolls or baseball helmets (I know, she's incredibly well rounded).

She's also started "stretching" with Brian. Basically, Brian has been doing a ton of work in the garage lately. You know, trying to finally move the things that just ended up in the garage into the house. Well, when things need to go to the attic he has to carry them from the garage upstairs to the attic, and it has done a number on his ankle. About 8 years ago he had a freak jet skiing accident that resulted in a completely broken ankle. Like, bone showing and everything. I was fortunately spared from having to see the ankle, but let me tell you, I was so mad at him the day it happened. I called him that afternoon and that night and he never called me back (he was jet skiing with friends). He called me the next morning (at like 7) and asked me if I wanted to know where he was. Who wants to guess that!? But then he told me that he was in the hospital and had screws and plates in his ankle, and he was out of it. He couldn't move or do anything (like take care of Noelle), and I ended up waiting on him hand and foot for two months! Anyway, his ankle has swollen to massive proportions and at one point this week we could feel a screw sticking out. Ew.

So, to make that story a little less gross and long, here are pictures of Reese stretching with Daddy.

The other night Brian brought new pajamas home for the kids. He showed Wyatt his cool new Buzz Lightyear jammies and then gave Reese her new butterfly jammies. She grabbed them and hugged them and said "Ank you! Love it!" She's also saying that things are "Cute!" Especially shoes. Shoes are always cute.

In her opinion, this outfit is also cute. She was playing dress up with Daddy the other day and she came out of her room wearing this:

Now I love all of it, separately. With all of it together there is certainly a lot going on. Usually Brian dresses her pretty well, but this I had to question!

And finally she has developed a few more words. My favorites are "no way!" and "why?" when I ask her to do things. At least she says them with a smile on her face, but it kills me.

"Reesie would you please go get you a new pull up?"

"Why? No way!"

Spiderman and Dora!

So we have all been cracking up the last few days watching videos of Wyatt and Reese. While Brian was searching for things for Wyatt's Spiderman birthday party next week, he came across this website that turns your kid into their favorite character or a friend of their favorite character. Unfortunately I can't embed the videos onto the blog, but here is Wyatt as Spiderman and Reese as Dora. Reese's is hysterical when she does her little dance!


Other than that, we haven't been up to much lately. Work. Playdates. House stuff. I'm working on my first really "crafty" project ever, and it isn't even that crafty. I have to work on getting a new trash can for Wyatt's room cleaned up and sparkling, and then I'm hoping to revamp a rocking chair and maybe jump into sewing some (really simple) curtains for the family room. I just can't find what I want anywhere without an outrageous price or a really dark design. Plus, I don't want to spend too much because I can just see jelly mouths smearing all over the curtains!

We are anxiously waiting for Wyatt's third birthday this Tuesday! I can not believe that my little baby boy is going to be three in two days! Brian and I both have the day off, and we have a nice little day planned for him. Including well child check ups for both kids that afternoon. And yes, I totally did that to him last year too! But I think we'll also go to the aquarium or zoo (based on weather), go out to dinner at Red Robin, and finish the day with cake and presents! His Spiderman party is next Saturday, and it is themed out to the max. I let Brian pick out everything, and believe me when I tell you this is about as Spiderman as it gets. Right down to the Spiderman shirts that my kids are wearing. Yes, both of them.

And yes, unfortunately I have no pictures today. And I might not even blog forever. Our power cord was literally smoking the last time it was plugged in and we need a new one. And as far as I know, it hasn't been ordered. So right now I'm at the mercy of my sister letting me use her computer. And hopefully, my husband will go ahead and order the darned power cord.

Sunday, Sunday!

Yesterday was a fantastic day for quite a few reasons. No, I didn't get to sleep in. All weekend. On Friday I woke up with the kids at 7:15. Brian's day was Saturday. He got up with the kids at 7. But he didn't turn any monitors off. And he left the bedroom door wide open. So I got up. I decided I would commandeer Sunday since I didn't get to sleep in on Saturday. And you know what happened? The exact same thing.

After all that torture, my husband decided that we could skip the Wal Mart run and just buy what we needed at Target. YES! I got all the big stuff last week, but we were still in need of the "essentials," and in case you don't already know this about me: I hate Wal Mart. So I got a trip to Target without going to Wal Mart first. Score!

The kids have been pretty obsessed with reading in the car lately, which I (and really probably any parent) love. They ask to read books as soon as they get in, and can stay content for awhile just looking through their books. Reese's new favorite book is New York Yankees 101.
When we go shopping, the boys usually go off and do their own thing in the toy section while Reese and I do the actual shopping. When we caught up with them yesterday they were trying on masks and playing with light sabers.

Reese stays with me because she gets a little um, grumpy when she doesn't get what she wants. Taking her to the toy section is currently a no no. We did need to get her some new shoes, and she was in heaven. I put them on her feet and she shouted "Cute!" Then she refused to take the new ones off. So this is how she walked through the store.

For whatever reason she is equally obsessed with trying on baseball helmets and gloves. She asks about the helmets as soon as we walk in the store. I'm pretty sure Brian will give in and buy her one at some point. Hopefully not now because I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be able to stand.

When we got home the boys had a picnic on the deck. Peanut butter and jelly, pretzels and milk. Yum!

When the kids were up from their naps we went outside to play while Brian worked on clearing out the garage. Every kid in our court was out, and we had a great time. Every family has at least 2 kids, and they range in ages from 16 months to 10 years. The younger kids make up the majority though, and we are lucky enough to have a family with a boy about 6 months younger than Wyatt and a girl 2 months younger than Reese right next door! All the kids played in the court and shared all their toys. I was astounded when two kids went to Wyatt's Jeep and jumped in and he was okay with it. He just walked over to their trike and jumped on. It was great.

Days like yesterday are fantastic because we had a blast, and they're really great reminders of why we moved. There are going to be days that we miss the pool (for sure). And there are days that I wish I was closer to work. But we have a back yard. We have neighbors we like who are respectful of one another (even if a few happen to be Red Sox fans). We don't wake up to someone's bass blaring at 6 am every day (a train is way more acceptable, and it's only that early like, every 2 weeks). We have a train that runs behind our house (but not right behind it). And our kids love it. And we do too.