Monday, April 29, 2013

What We Learned: 30 Months

At two and a half, Bennett has developed quite the imagination. Thirty months mean stories get more creative, animals appear out of thin air, bedtimes get delayed for leaks in the ceiling, and vocabularies explode.

Bennett learned how to catch a dinosaur.

We learned that we have quite a bear problem in Nashville.

Bennett learned to count to fourteen.

We learned he still doesn't know the number four.

Bennett learned that McQueen and my friends are from California.

We learned that Bennett's left foot is stinky, but his right foot smells good.

Bennett learned that there is a monster at the end of the book, but not every book.

We learned that we can no longer read fast and/or skip pages.

Bennett learned how to plant a garden.

We learned that we may finally have found the answer to getting him to eat his vegetables.

Bennett learned to water the fence.

We learned that harvest season can't get here soon enough.

Bennett learned not to wipe your hands off on the fence.

We learned that tiny splinters and tiny hands don't mix.

Bennett learned to sleep in a toddler bed.

We learned that he doesn't want to get out of bed by himself, but you are welcome to come in.

Friday, April 26, 2013

No wonder I have no blog content

...because, even when I do have an awesome weekend, I don't bother to share it with my adoring readers!

Last weekend, my dear friend Anne and her husband Pete (the one with a thing for moms and polka) came to Nashville to see the sights, see the house and see the terror toddler. We had accidentally or intentionally been able to see each other on an annual basis since their return from Japan in 2006. We've rendezvoused
on  both coasts, up North and now down South. I think as our families grow it might get a little more difficult to be sure we can catch up in person, but sometimes you just need to hug to keep an eighteen year friendship strong.

Upon their arrival, we introduced them to dining out with a toddler which must include chips and salsa and preferably dessert with their own spoon. Typically, I wouldn't take a Californian for Mexican, but desperate times call for desperate measures when dining with a tot either includes dip or drama.  The remainder of the weekend involved sightseeing, historic home tours, a craw fish boil and a fabulous dinner out sans bebe. I tried to keep all of our activities in the covert "please please relocate to Nashville" variety, but I don't suppose introducing them to realtors and Fortune 100 employers wasn't very subtle.

It was a great weekend to reconnect with an old friend and her husband who willingly takes the hint when we send the boys on errands for girl talk. I wish the visits weren't so few and far between and I imagine one day they will involve water parks and mini-golf, but I will always be grateful for the quick trips and the promise of another.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

That's What B Said


B: Daddy said a bad word.
Mommy: What did he say?
B: Soccer ball.



B discovered a play doh hot dog in the toy microwave a few days after hitting start.
B: Oh no! Play doh broken. It cooked a really long time!



B dropped his brand new toy behind the bed.
B: Oh no! I lost my favorite toy.
Mommy fetches it and hands it to Bennett.
B: Thank you, I look for it for days and days.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

We're Still Boring

Geez this blog is struggling lately. Then, I come back from the radio silence with one of those pathetic catch-up posts that is hardly inspiring, funny or far from worth the wait. Let me demonstrate why there is nothing worth sharing lately.

1. We got a new roof.  A freak February storm brought a leak and an hallelujah. We knew when we bought the house we were a strong wind gust and a prayer from needing a new one. Thank goodness it happened before we learned we owed Uncle Sam a few clams. (I will have to update this post later with the dramatic before and after!)

2. We paid Uncle Sam a few clams. Thank goodness Rocky now has an official title and a few deductions.

3. Yesterday, in a ten minute span of time, Atticus rolled in something stinky, found a dead animal in the front yard and I discovered a yellow jacket in the house.

4. I killed the yellow jacket with an empty toilet paper roll.

5. Bennett is obsessed with his golfing clubs and the new bettable garden.

6. We are forging ahead with our mission to rid our house of beige, but got derailed thanks to a broken beer bottle. Now the playroom looks and smells like a fraternity house.

7. I saw a woman on the street and based on her outfit, thought she must be drunk and/or homeless. It turned out she was posing for her boyfriend's camera so she could post on her fashion blog. This proves that 1) I could never be a fashion blogger and 2)fashion bloggers are kind of hilarious.

8. I broke out Bennett's spring/summer wardrobe only to find the kid is still so skinny that we have to roll his shorts from last summer.

9. I tried some more pinterest crafts and failed. However, I made some mighty delicious pinterest recipes that I would highly recommend.

10. We're boring, but you must love us anyway because you're still here. Thank you. How can I better bore you in the future?

Saturday, April 6, 2013

Sugar Bunny

There are a lot of things that you eagerly anticipate as you dream about raising a child, trips to Disney, Christmas morning, first day of school and Easter egg hunts. Then these milestones arrive and they pass by in a blur of tantrums and sugar highs.
 
I have been having these fantasies of parenthood since I was pregnant, or probably way before parenthood if I am being honest. The past few Easters we've been traveling, or moving, or navigating twice-daily naps. I was thrilled that we could enjoy the little holiday at home without the drama. I picked out a precious smocked outfit for Bennett and ordered him an Easter basket that he could use a lifetime. When I placed an order for the "large" basket, I suppose I was compensating for a lack of more smocked-holiday outfits and my failure to have a proper basket on his two previous bunny holidays. It's the Napolean Complex of Easter baskets.
 
Large as in, came up to his mid chest and as tall as him when seated.
When you are filling a ten-gallon basket you run out of ideas to fill it and have to resort to raiding the pantry.

The only shot I have of Bennett in his Easter outfit. You're wondering where the smocking is? Rocky vetoed it. Apparently B is too old for bunnies. When did that happen? He just got a proper Easter basket!  My fantasies of a precious occassion forced me to compensate with a bowtie. That's where the tantrums came in. Those certainly weren't a part of my parental fantasies.
 
When I lookback at Easter 2013, I hope I can forget the toddler shenanigans and remember how wonderful it felt to have our family in town, cousins to play with, and how the only thing my child wanted to eat was chocolate eggs and cake. Sugar is what fantasies should be made of.

Thursday, April 4, 2013

What B wants to be when he grows up

Considering his love of the kitchen, we thought he would grow up to be a chef.  When his obsession turned to hardware, we thought he would want to be a handyman. We have asked him many times in the past, but never got a real answer, more of a huh? what? huh? But, when we asked Bennett last week what he wanted to be he said a juiceman. Aim high little man, aim high!