Snow Day!

Another big storm and daycare was cancelled, so Mama gets a day of snuggles and cuddles with the boy. The snow is up to our shrubbery! And, it took me two hours to clear the driveway with the snowthrower. I love winter, but I'm ready for an early spring...

One of M's favorite games is to climb on a chair and have me pile all of his stuffed animals on him. Then he throws them off one at a time, counts to three (ok, he hasn't quite gotten it, he says "two, two, three!") and then jumps into my arms.

Big boy on a little chair

A month or so ago we had friends over, so we had the portable booster seat out. M picked it up and carried it across the room, put it down next to the chair where J usually sits in the living room and curled up in it with Blankie and Doggie. We decided it was time to get him his own chair. For Christmas we gave him this mini chair from Ikea. We put it next to Daddy's chair - I love seeing my guys sitting together.

Elmo-la

It has been so much fun watching (listening) to M learn to talk over the last few months. He's started to put together two-word sentences and ask me for the names of things. It's pretty funny to hear him pronounce "dinosaur." A few nights ago I realized he was copying me when I said "chop-chop!" to hurry him along. (Later that evening J taught him to say, "Mama, bath! Chop-chop!" Apparently I was being too slow in preparing his bath...

One of my favorites is how he adds "la" to the end of things as a term of affection. It began when he started watching Sesame Street in the morning with Daddy while I take a shower. It's the sweetest thing - M and Daddy cuddled in bed with a bottle. He developed an immediate love of Elmo. I used to be so irritated by the squeaky little monster - but there's something amazingly attractive about him to little people. And, honestly now I can't help but be impressed by the folks at Sesame Workshop. A bit scared, but impressed. Anyway, M started calling him Elmo-la because of the theme song to Elmo's World. Which was pretty darn cute in itself. But then, a couple of weeks ago, we realized that he was adding "la" to other things he loved. Daddy became, "Daddy-la" and his dog is, "Doggie-la." Today when I picked him up from school I was greeted by "Mama-la!" and lots of kisses.

I love being Mama-la.

Watching Sesame, holding a cutout of Elmo-la and using a drink box as a telephone. He says "e'llo" and holds it up to his ear. Yes, my kid is a bit strange...

With Daddy...

I love this picture - my boys cuddling. M loves his Daddy so much! (And, this may have been the first time that M chose Daddy over Mama. A milestone of sorts...)

Snow!

On the morning of the snowstorm, we bundled M up in a couple of blankets and took him in a spin in his new wagon. He loved it...once he figured out what in the heck was going on with the wet cold stuff falling from the sky.

The view from our front steps a few hours later.

M was a very, very lucky boy this Christmas - one of his favorite presents is his tricycle.


He immediately spotted it on Christmas morning (and the fact that we put a new stuffed doggie in the basket turned it into the ultimate magnet for our son.)


He's still a bit little to touch the pedals, but it has a handle at the back so we can push him around and he LOVES it! Plus, it's the same brand Elmo rides when he's in the park with his daddy! (I've had this song stuck in my head for a week!)



We had an iconic parent experience one evening the weekend before Christmas when we assembled all his presents.



It was a "how many grownups with graduate degrees does it take to figure out instructions," type of evening.

I've never had that much fun being that frustrated!

The boy and his blankie...

Rolling around on the floor with his blankie and a box - a happy little guy!


Toesies!