Left to His Own Devices

I am getting stuff ready for an afternoon cookout, Jeff is powerwashing the deck (to come: shocking before and after photos) which leaves Wyatt to entertain himself. I heard clanging and turned around to see he'd grabbed a metal pie pan and two springforms from the cabinet, taken them next to his chair and was having a big time. Wyatt, exploring the properties of magnets on metal, was putting his letters on the springform base, turning it over and then hitting it as hard as possible to see if he could make them fall off. Lather, rinse, repeat. This is such an intense game/project that he didn't even cheese for the camera! Wow, the focus is incredible. Must get that from his dad.

22 Months

Another word picture, plus some real pictures. First and foremost, my son amuses, amazes and entertains me every day! I love my sweet baby boy.

1. Favorite foods: shockingly many, though ro ro chee (macaroni and cheese), rih chee (grilled cheese), nana (banana), coo-kee (cookies) and anima cah-kos (animal crackers) are the most requested. We now feed him whatever we're eating for dinner and most nights this goes pretty well. A couple nights ago we had slightly spicy chicken paprika and he loved it...until his mouth got too hot and then he had to mow down some bread and butter sandwiches to cool himself. He picked all the carrots out of his soup first last night (to eat), likes peas, green beans (gee bee), is doing better at drinking his milk and likes oatmeal (omeelt), waffles (waffo) or eggs (eeeg) for breakfast.

2. Favorite books: no book is a bad book to Wyatt, though Hop on Pop (oponop), Go Dog Go (go gah go), any Elmo title, anything with animals and the Airplane Alphabet are all on frequent rotation. He demands book! book! many times every day and I find myself feeling horrible when we can't accomodate the request. He loves to read and it would be so much easier to tell him no if he were requesting television. His new thing is to point us (the adults) into the rocking chair in his room and then point to his little green chair in the opposite corner and say, "Wy wy!" meaning "you sit here, I'll sit there, and you'll read me the books I tell you to. Thanks."

3. Favorite activities: dancing, hands down. Besides book, this is the most requested thing every. single. day. of. my. life. It sounds something like this: dass! dass! beeeeeez! dass! dass! And when he says it, he means it! Like, get a move on, momma, because this short fuse is going to blow if I don't hear some Ralph or Raffi or Dog Train or Philadelphia Chickens or Veggie Tales RIGHT NOW. Again, I am also glad he enjoys music and getting down with his bad self, but LORDY, sometimes a mommy just loves peace and quiet. The runner-up favorite activity is collecting acorns out of our front yard. A-ko! comes the cry every time we enter or leave the premises and no day is complete without gathering a handful, presenting them to mommy and then crying when not allowed to take them all inside.

4. Favorite toys: anything. He still spends a lot of time in his cozy coupe, likes his cars (that's "go's" in Wyatt-speak), enjoys his two little plastic rackets (rap raps) from 100Yen, randomly chooses a stuffed animal to love a little extra for a day or two so that it gets to go all over the house with him and sometimes even in the car, the ANA magnets that Lisa sent, all his leapfrog letters (he likes to present these one at a time to guests, announcing each letter as he plucks it from the refrigerator then again as he lovingly hands it over), the wicker balls that are actually decoration but sit on the coffee table making them fair game. Last weekend we picked up two rocks at a greenhouse and he has carted those around in his sweaty little fists all week, so he's very equal opportunity when it comes to the class of toy he chooses. And at first I thought it was kind of amusing that he was clutching his rocks with such fervor, but then I remembered my own little rock collection when I was a young thing, so I can't really say anything, now can I?

5. Words: honestly, too many to list. Wyatt will attempt any word you give him. He is very clear and extremely communicative and incredibly opinionated (no idea where he got that trait. Ahem.), not to mention that he apparently doesn't forget much. Example 1: we drove by the NASA facilities on the way to the commissary the other day and I was just narrating as always, "blah, blah, blah, see the bus? blah, blah, blah, trees, blah, blah, wind tunnels where astronauts work, blah, blah, blah" And as we headed home an hour and a half later, he starts bellowing from the back seat, "ah ah noss! ah ah noss!" and I couldn't figure out what the heck we were talking about since his plastic astronauts were in my bag...until I looked around and saw the wind tunnels where I told him astronauts work. Mind you, I really have no idea if astronauts work there and would actually guess they don't, so I'm hoping I never get called out on this. It was at that moment I realized I need to be as factual as possible all the darn time because he's really listening to me. Gives you chills, doesn't it? Example 2: I just got around to framing a lot of pictures, including the family pic of all the Rocks at Christmas. I happened to put it at Wyatt's level and about hit the floor when he walked over to it, pointed and said, "Matt" clear as day. Then did it again when I asked him to (because honestly, I thought it was a fluke). He also identified "ee-mee" (Aimee) right off the bat. I was kind of freaked out (you can ask Rife Wife, she was here) because as much as I'd like to tell you that we review pictures of family so he'll know who they are, that would be a lie. As in, we haven't looked at them since Christmas. He wasn't even talking (really) at Christmas. Scary! So of course now we review pics of both sides of the family almost daily and he's doing really well. He gets a little confused on the cousins, loves saying Uh-Mok for Uncle Mark, still says EE-Mee instead of Aimee, and is continually perplexed by my sister not being mama, but all in all he's remembering quite nicely. My little elephant-minded son. Oh, and just so I don't ever forget it (being that this is his baby book and all), he calls Millie "lalalal" and I love, love, LOVE hearing him call for her then watching them chase each other through the house.

6. Randoms: Wyatt finds the following phrases worthy of a belly laugh: "owchie, owchie!" and "8 hippos sneak in the back" (from a book, FYI). He flaps his 'wings' every time he sees a bird, says "a-ko" every time we see a squirrel, is figuring out to say please (beeeeze or peeeze) when he asks for things (especially "up peeeeze"), gets his own beeb (bib) out of the drawer before meals, reminds us to get him a placemat (mat mat), goes to bed around 8 every night, gets up at 7 and can be counted on for a 2-3 hour nap every day (4 hours on special bonus days that are granted rarely but always received gratefully), kicks and flails during every diaper change, loves to run naked before his bath, enjoys having his teeth brushed and his hair dried, is a brush thief so we never know where to find ours if we've left them too close to the edge of the counter. He still sleeps with nana but now understands we have more than one, so often requests, "doo" (two) if you only hand him one. He loves to count on fingers but can't quite figure out how to do it so he holds up the index finger of each hand to make two. He loves to be sung to, often cheers for me when I'm finished and then asks for "mo beeze". He is alternately patient, stubborn, willful and compliant but is always loving and makes me feel like one lucky mama every day.

Life in These Parts

Or, how time flies when you're trying to accomplish *things*. We've had a busy few days around here, and by "we", I mostly mean Jeff & his dad because they spent the better part of the weekend installing our new half bath. Yay! We had the fixtures torn out before the floor was put in (before we closed, actually), so it's nice to finally have a functioning bathroom downstairs. I'm so stinking lazy sometimes that the trip to our bedroom seems soooo verrrry farrrrr. Slothful, I tell you! But now I can be sloth-girl and use the loo without any stairs involved.

Before:

After:

Next step: paint. I'm thinking a COLOR since our house is so very beige, but am having trouble picking one. So dear internet, how about if you tell me what color you would paint it? And then if you choose the winning color, I'll give you a prize....like you can use the downstairs bath! Ooh, that's enticing, isn't it? And while it looks like "oh they installed a toilet and a sink", it really was a LOT more work than that. New baseboards, new chair rail, new plumbing valves and that's only the stuff I caught wind of while I was doing my own thing with Wyatt. We are so very appreciative of all the help and expertise from Grandpa!

Wyatt was thrilled to have his grandpa here, too. We waved goodbye to Daddy on Thursday evening as he left to get Grandpa at the airport. Wyatt was in bed when they returned, yet still the first words out of his mouth on Friday morning were, "Bapa! Bapa!" And so it was every morning that Jeff's dad was here. Wyatt loves his Bapa! Friday was also exciting because my aunt and uncle came to visit for the afternoon. They brought Wyatt a couple of new books (a sure way to his heart) and Aunt Martha spent a good chunk of her afternoon walking him around our neighborhood while the guys were working in the bathroom and I was prepping dinner. We had a great time with them! Unfortunately, I didn't take a single picture. I'm really slipping in the photo department.

I spent Friday evening with Rife Wife and her boys at Urgent Care. Thankfully her kiddo's okay and I'm just so glad that we're close enough to count on each other! But not to be outdone, Wyatt decided to take a header into a windowsill on Saturday morning. I was literally right there since he was climbing over me to watch the squirrel outside our window when he fell. I just didn't catch him in time and thought he bumped his forehead. So I scooped him up and came downstairs to get a little ice for whatever bump appeared. Needless to say, my adrenaline ratcheted up a bit when I looked down and saw blood. It turns out he cut and brusied the inside of both lips and tore that little piece of skin that holds your upper lip to the gums (my sister tells me this is the frenulum. So last night I googled "torn frenulum" and all these child abuse info sites pop up - apparently this injury is a hallmark of abuse. That makes me feel even better about failing prevent this accident!) He looked a little like Angelina Jolie for the rest of the weekend but bounced back pretty quickly otherwise.

I'd like to add that we don't ever intend for Wyatt to have a bowl cut, yet somehow it always looks that way. Maybe because he messes with it so much? Maybe because we leave it too long? What gives?

On the kitchen front we're stymied again. I thought I'd found the perfect company - they could match our existing cabinetry for the new island, he said their granite quote was "phenomenal" and could get all of this going in a few weeks. I eagerly went to get the quote from him on Saturday morning and had to refrain from getting really short with him when his price for 4 new cabinets was the same as Lowe's quote for redoing our entire kitchen. Are you freaking kidding me? I pretty much told him he was way off base, asked him to rework the quote with some more clearly defined parameters, asked for a breakdown of exactly where all the gajillion dollars was going and went back this morning to get that bid. He said, "good news!" when I walked in the door which made me expect, well...good news. His idea of good news and mine are very different. He apparently thinks that shaving a thousand dollars from his astronomical bid makes it a good deal. Oh, and when I asked (again) for a line-item breakdown of how the eleventy billion dollars (that's a thousand shy of a gajillion, you see) would be spent, he told me he "wouldn't be able to do that until we entered into a contract. It's just a business policy we have." I think this policy makes him (1) crazy and (2) lose my business. Aargh! This should not be so difficult! So today I'm rearranging some things in the pantry since all those appliances might have to stay in there longer than I'd hoped.

I know, I know. I need more to fret about. Like how to organize Wyatt's toys. They're out of control and I'm hoping to figure out a good system for his room and one for the family room that doesn't scream I HAVE TOYS INSIDE. Any suggestions, smart readers?

If You Were a Fly on the Wall

At 7:58 pm, EST, you would've seen my husband hide under our bed and grab my leg as I walked by. Stinker! When will I learn?! Also, this is what I get for having the bed on risers and nothing stored under it yet. Tomorrow's to do list: fill space under bed so there is no more room for hiding!

P.S. Wyatt found this whole interchange hilarious! I think we're training the next generation.

P.P.S. I should read my own writing more often. Check out this oldie but goodie and then have a good laugh about me being such a sucker.

Creative Give & Take

Wyatt has a tendency to add syllables to a lot of words. For instance:

Elmo = elmomo
Wyatt = wywy
Millie = lalalala
Oval = ohohvo

Turns out you can't add syllables without taking them from somewhere else. We just didn't know that until he started saying two new words this week:

Buckle = buck
Button = butt

Nice.

Happiness Is...

1. The first words of the day from a little boy. Yesterday: ah-ah-noss (astronauts). Today: book! book!
2. Finding a cabinet guy who can do exactly what you want without overhauling what doesn't need fixing.
3. Figuring out a shortcut from point A to point B.
4. Discovering that in the midst of the city, there are rolling fields of horses, beautiful tall trees and surprise lakes.
5. Long nap afternoons.
6. Friends up the street.
7. Family coming to visit.
8. Checking things off a to-do list.
9. Finding a spare three minutes to blog, read others' blogs and check email. How are my days so full?
10. Whittling down the laundry piles.
11. Finding sales on things you need.
12. Dark chocolate and a Diet Coke.

What makes you happy?

Bah Do Bah

You might be wondering what that title is. That makes two of us! Of all the words that Wyatt speaks these days - and lo, there are so many - this is the catch-all phrase that has us baffled. Is it a command? A request? A statement? Yes, yes, yes and maybe something else entirely. So of course that makes it the perfect title for a post that has no direction. Welcome to it.

We are knee-deep in discovery around here. We're learning that homeownership is full of all kinds of hidden joys, frustrations, surprises and I, personally, am learning that what makes me certifiably crazy one day will make me laugh the next because really? Can it be so hard to just make a decision? I think we all know the answer is yes, especially where I'm concerned. This is not to say that our weeks here have been without progress. Quite the contrary - our garage sale last weekend was wildly successful, our new fixtures for the gutted first floor bathroom are on order, I've discovered overstock.com has killer prices on area rugs and, even if they're not quite what you thought they'd look like, there is value in just having them in your house and crossing that task off your list. Just yesterday I discovered that the "little bit of raking" we needed to do in order to actually be able to mow our grass/weeds actually involved 6 hours of my life and 10 large lawn bags. I also discovered that even Wyatt has his limits to how much time he wants to spend outside (approximately 4.5 hours, for those of you who are wondering). I asked him if he wanted to go back out after dinner and his reply was, "umm, nope."

We are learning that some things are necessary expenditures (hello, window coverings! It's like we're in a real! live! diorama! each evening for our neighbors' viewing pleasure), some things are not (goodbye custom dream sofas, hello Ikea! And also, the new not-that-fancy-to-you-large-tv-owners-out-there television purchase) and that some things are smack dab between the two (do we need new cabinets or not, Mr. Granite Man?). And while all of these things are somewhat stressful and frustrating and may result in me calling my mom too many times in a day to whine and complain, it's also really great because hey, it's ours and I'm actually enjoying the process (most of the time). I really love our house, our neighborhood and this area.

We're starting to learn our way around a little more. I now know a couple of cut-throughs or back roads but still haven't done much true exploring, which is really the best part of any move. The weather is finally clearing up - we had a solid week of gloomy, rainy, cold - and I discovered an amazing greenhouse this morning so our yard could soon look much better. Well, that's an exaggeration. No amount of plants could really offset the lack of grass in our yard or eradicate the mole, but we'll get there. Right?

Wyatt has more words every day and surprises us with the things he remembers and how he says them. My current favorites are weewow (window), anything that ends in a hard 'k' like milk, book or work because he has just figured out that sound and e.nun.ci.ates. VERY clearly. I would love to provide you with video footage of him talking but once he sees the camera, all we hear is "deeeeeeeze! deeeeze!" (cheese) accompanied by a crazy exaggerated grin. He's pretty good company most of the time, though I feel like the two's are creeping in some days.

In other words, we're just truckin' right along. Sorry for the lack of pictures - I know I really should post some but everything that is non-essential is taking a backburner to the more requisite task of making this house our home. We're having company next week, so hopefully that will pull me out of my picture-taking drought. Now I've got to spend some quality time with Google - topic: what does a termite look like? Wish me luck!

20 Years Ago,

I was a scrawny junior high student watching Danny Manning and the Kansas Jayhawks from the comfort of my parents' family room, sitting on rust colored shag carpet in front of a black and white houndstooth couch. I probably turned some cartwheels when I found out school was going to let out early the next day for a parade.

Tonight, I am silent screaming in my own family room because my son (who sadly is too young to remember any of this) is sleeping right upstairs - my husband, on the other hand, feels this once-every-two-decades occurrence means it's okay to scream, come what may, we disagree on this topic. My carpet is a lovely shade of beige, as is my couch, yet I still want to turn cartwheels.

I love my Jayhawks, I am proud of their sportsmanship (can any Memphis fan say that?!) and desperately wish I were in Lawrence right now. Oh, and I'm also feeling a little justified in our completely rash decision yesterday to buy a new tv because it was SO worth it!

Need I say it again? ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK, KU!

And also? Today is my mom's birthday. All she really wanted was a Jayhawk championship. Isn't this cool?

SAY IT WITH ME

ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK!

And yes, I'm yelling that at you. Have you ever seen such a game?! It is a fantastic night to be a Jayhawk! I think it's safe to say there are few people out there who predicted that's the way it would go. But I LOVED it, didn't you?

I don't really care who you've supported up until now (ahem hacsac, husband of rifewife, registers, odiebug), but I do know that the Jayhawks could use your love on Monday (Tuesday a.m. Okinawa, don't pretend you don't know when to cheer). So please wear your crimson and blue and repeat after me:

Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU, Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU, ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK KU!

Ahh, Yes

Well, there are many ways to take the previous postless post. Let's just leave it as is, shall we? As in, maybe that was even better than the post I had come up with before who-knows-what happened. Maybe it was the internet/wiring issues in my house, maybe it had something to do with Wyatt getting up to his elbows in fruit cocktail at dinner. I just can't be sure, but I thought I actually posted something of substance.

It also goes to show that I'm really on my A-game here and am running a fairly tight ship these days. That's how things like this happen.

No children were harmed or coerced in the making of this video.

This gives new meaning to the idea that every piece of furniture needs to have at least three functions before it should be purchased, don't you think?

Focus on the Positive