A new camera...finally!

Things have been very quiet on the blog front around here. Mostly because our family camera bit the dust. Back when Andrew was about 3 months old, a bottle of milk was in my purse for an afternoon feeding. The beauty of Avent Bottles - they leak. The milk turned over in my purse and soaked our camera. It still worked - for the most part - for almost 2 more years. Although, to see your pictures, you had to look through a very cloudy screen of old milk. It was gross - but I was not going to spend several more hundred dollars to get a new camera when the one I had would work just fine. Well - those days are done. The camera gave up.

I bought a new camera and it should arrive today. I'm thrilled!

In the meantime, here are a few pictures of my kiddo from my mom's camera.

Halloween 2011

 Happy Halloween! We had a fantastic time trick-or-treating last night. It was a beautiful night, the weather was absolutely perfect and the kiddos had a blast.

To address his costume - typically, Andrew is allowed to watch 2 shows - Sesame Street in the morning before school and Yo Gabba Gabba in the afternoon. Andrew's Costume is one of the characters on Yo Gabba Gabba, a robot named Plex. I was not overly thrilled to dress my child as a character from a tv show but that's what you get when you shop for costumes 3 days before Halloween. We were lucky to get something that sort-of fit and after 2 trips to the same store - had all of the pieces and parts.

We decided yesterday afternoon that our neighborhood was not the best for trick-or-treating. There are not many kids on our street and historically, we've never had more than 10 knocks on the door in the past years. So, we wanted Andrew to see what it was like to be around tons of kids and a big neighborhood with lots of decorations and candy opportunities. Mission Accomplished. 

We, along with "Aunt" Jennifer, met up with our friends Mendy and Joe who live across the street in a much larger neighborhood. Their son, Carter, is a month older than Andrew and so we figured the boys would have lots of fun together.

It started pretty slow for Andrew. He was nervous and was not comfortable saying Trick-or-Treat. We had been practicing door knocking, trick-or-treat saying and thank-yous all week. But, at go time - my kiddo was a bit shy. That shy behavior lasted for the first 5 houses and then he really embraced his role. So much so that we had to tell him kicking the door to get them to open it was not necessary...neither was helping them open the door or actually walking in to their home to find more candy. It was tons of fun to watch and I was beaming with excitement for my baby boy.

Andrew mastered the Trick-or-Treat pretty quickly, but the Thank You usually came about 3 seconds after they closed their door and we were turned around to leave. But, hey - the sentiment was there.

We trick-or-treated for about an hour and a half. We found ourselves a bit further from the starting house than we anticipated so we were out a little longer than Andrew was prepared. But, he was still a trooper. He had so much fun.

It could not have been more perfect! It was an amazing Halloween and it makes me absolutely adore even more being his mom. I can't wait to watch him get to experience more holidays.

 P.S. - Pictures are terrible quality - my camera broke and I'm using my phone to capture moments. It is not a good alternative and this will be remedied very soon.

Andrew And The Hat

My parents came in to town this weekend to spend some time with us. And, when I say us.. I mean Andrew. They are so enthralled with him and are amazed at how much he grows and learns in the short time they are away from him. As much as they told me that they did not want to leave, I don't think I could have paid them to stay. They were absolutely worn out from my kiddo. He is a handful and has non-stop energy. He is obsessed with them and insists that they are involved in all aspects of his day. Hard for them - but a vacation for me!

At one point in the weekend, my dad gave Andrew his hat to play with. Well, this started a bit of an obsession with "the hat". Andrew adored wearing it and running around with it covering his eyes.

A few pics from the hat moments...

This is when it began... at the park.

 The next day...it started again.

He thought it was hilarious!

We will miss Granny (pronounced nannneee by Andrew) and Pappy very much. Can't wait to see them again! I have a feeling it will be sooner than later - they are as obsessed with him as he is with "the hat".

Andrew -- My baby is a boy

As the time continues to fly by, I find myself so wrapped up in life and work and marriage and the wonderful time that I get to spend with Andrew. I almost did not notice how much he has become a big boy now. We have full blown conversations and he understands everything that I say. We talk like we are buddies. We negotiate to satisfy each of our needs and wants. But, mostly we have a lot of fun together.

This stage that he is in is overwhelmingly amazing to me. I understand most of his words and how he communicates. What seems like gibberish to others is very clear to me. That's how I know our bond. We are thick as thieves and I absolutely love it.

I still continue to miss and long for the times when he was a little tiny baby and he would be so calm and quiet and we would just stare at each other. But, I would never trade the little guy I have now who races me to the mailbox, throws a ball with me and gives me genuine hugs and kisses.

Being a mom to that amazing boy is the best experience ever.

Girls Night Out

On a rare occasion, I get dressed up and head out on the town with a few girlfriends. Just a few weeks ago, Lauren and I decided to go see Horrible Bosses and then find some live music. I am a huge fan of Horrible Bosses. I thought it was a fantastic movie and it had me laughing the entire time. It's raunchy humor for sure, but I found myself sad to see it end. Now, seeing a movie at the "Drinking Theater" always has a way of making things funnier so I'm not sure how much I would have enjoyed it without the wine.

We met up with Jennifer after the movie and went to a bar to listen to some live music. We had more fun people-watching than actually listening to the band. Seems to be the case as I get older.

Night ended with the girls at around 1am and I could not resist a 'late-night Taquito run' at Whataburger. I brought home Taquitos for me and for Jeff (in case he was still awake). Turns out he was which is a really good thing because if he had been asleep, I would have completely devoured his Taquito as well. Saved myself about 20 minutes of an additional guilt-trip.

I love Girl's Night Out!

Sprinkler Fun

While we were visiting my parents, my mom bought Andrew a little kiddy pool and a sprinkler that shoots balls in the air. We were really happy that he liked it. It took a bit to warm up to but once he got used to it, he had a great time. I feel confident that the babbling and screaming with joy was accurately translated in the captions.

"Why is this water hitting me on the head? Make it stop!"

"Wait a minute - this thing shoots balls in the air? I guess a little water in my face is ok."

"Bravo! - Clap, Clap - This is my new favorite toy!"

"I've never been so happy in my whole life. This Sprinkler Completes Me."

"Ok, I'm done. Daddy go get this ball while I jump in the pool."

"Ahhh, this is the life! I love retirement."

Roar!

Pappy and Andrew having some fun.