18 Months Old & Wordless Wednesday 5hours Early

Weekend Blessings

Weekends are such blessings. We had an awesome weekend with family and there is nothing that I love more! Probably had a little too much good food, but I am so thankful for the time we all spent together. We celebrated my sister's birthday on Saturday at my parent's house and it was really cold so the party stayed indoors, but what a difference a day makes! We spent Sunday afternoon outside in Ryder's grandparent's backyard...he loves the space to be able to run around! Matt even taught him how to drive the 4-wheeler while standing up. He can't reach the pedal sitting down. I was sure that we needed the video camera handy because a funny video had to come out of that lesson...but he did really good to my surprise! As another week begins...the memories of the weekend make me so thankful for my family, the week to come, and what next weekend will bring! Love you all!!

We need a Ryder-sized Chair!

I turned the TV on in the living room while I was cooking dinner last night. I heard his car, which I had stowed away in the laundry room, rolling on the wood. I look out of the Kitchen to see this:
My conclusion is that this little man needs a chair he can climb into! He has short little legs and can't get on the furniture without standing on something or getting a boost from one of us..it really was cute to watch yesterday evening!

Car Wash

Matt decided to wash his truck this afternoon and lets just say that was the highlight of Ryder's day! I have never seen somebody so excited to be soaking wet! He is such a boy!

New Washer and Dryer!

I am super excited to be washing clothes this afternoon! I got a brand new washing machine and dryer that front loads! Our first new set ever and we have been married almost 9 Years! Thanks so much, Babe!!!

Little Engineer

Either an Engineer or a Pool Repair Man...not sure which! Ryder is very technical and always interested in how things work. Totally opposite from his Mama! This morning he was intrigued by all of the pipes that make up the Pool Pump in the backyard. I was letting him investigate until I saw a tag that said something about electrocution. Yikes! He also discovered that yes, there is water under that big black screen, in our backyard! Even with all of the protection we have for the pool..it is still scary when you see how interested your little one is in figuring out how he could possibly get into the water! The Easter Bunny is going to bring him a Sand and Water Table that will hopefully provide some distractions from the swimming pool, the toilet, the dog's water bowl, etc...!

We had rain every day last week, but the sun came back and it has been beautiful this week! I can't get enough of it! We went to the park yesterday and even had a picnic lunch...just the two of us...but lots of fun! Hope you guys are enjoying your week!
PS...the Worst thing about going outside is that you eventually have to come inside...not fun in this guys opinion! I love Black and White pictures, but I promise to put some color ones up in my next post!

Ever wish there was a Drive-Through Window at the Grocery Store?

I do! Especially when you are trying to plan dinner and there are only two missing ingredients! I think there should be some limitations...like you can only request a set number of items and they have to be the basics. Milk, Onions, Tomatoes, Diapers...things like that! Two years ago I probably would have thought that was a crazy idea, but the thought of lugging a kid into the car,then out of the car and into the store, then back out of the store and into the car...it is enough to make me tired just thinking about it. What the heck will I do in in 7 months when I have to multiply the above by two?? YIKES!

Bubbles and Handprints....

It is rainy, wet and cold here today. Playing with toys didn't last long this morning....apparently they are all very boring. I need to do the ole' switcharoo with some I put up in the attic at Christmas time. Ryder was not in the best mood, he woke up before 6 a.m. because of the rain and thunder, I guess. I then toted him along with me to the Doctor this morning...which was oh so much fun for him! We got home and he didn't want to read any books or do any of the usual. Matt sent me a link with some ideas of fun indoor things to do with your 18 month old...one was great...one not so great!

1. Blow Bubbles! Great for the hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills so the website says. I happened (not sure how) to have a big bottle of bubbles in the house. We got them out and Ryder went to town trying to catch all of the bubbles. He laughed a lot and didn't want to put them away, so that was a win!

2. Make Handprints! Not a win. I think it definitely would have been, had I been more prepared. I had the temper paints and we did it in his bathroom so we'd have close access to a bathtub if needed. If you are going to try this, be sure you have lots of newspaper and that your toddler doesn't have the instinct to put everything that touches his hands into his mouth. We managed to get two "sort of" prints on the paper prior to green paint going in his mouth, all over his face and then all over my shirt. Lessons learned here: Wear clothes you don't mind throwing away, let the little one wear as few clothes as possible, lay the floor with lots of newspaper and be ready to hose them down!

This got us through to lunch and we went down for an early nap since he was up before dawn...we'll see what the afternoon brings!

A trip to the Country

Ryder and I took a trip to the Country on Friday. Actually, it was just my parent's house...but they very much live in the country. It is where I grew up. If you ever listen to country music and hear a song about a small town with dirt roads, where everybody knows everybody and the quarterback dates the cheerleader...you will have the perfect visualization of where I grew up. My parents have about 10-acres that are perfect for a little boy to roam and get into TROUBLE! He had fun yesterday, even though it was so freakin' windy! My sister's little girl was there to be his partner in crime. The two of them got so dirty that I had to turn most of the pictures to black and white to cover up the dirt!

Sweet Signs of Spring

I love all of the sweet signs that let us know Spring is rapidly on its way. We have a little Magnolia Tree in our backyard that gets pretty pink flowers this time of year...thought you might enjoy seeing its beauty in case things aren't warm enough to bloom out yet in your part of the country!

Random Act of Kindness

I desperately needed to go to the grocery store today. We were in need of some essentials like bananas (I am surprised R hasn't morphed into one of these yet), milk, tissue with lotion for my very sore nose, etc... I usually do all of my shopping at Target, but my Mom convinced me to go to Tom Thumb yesterday. She had told me they have these family size Lean Cuisine dinners, but there not Lean Cuisine..they are a Safeway Brand and therefore much cheaper then Lean Cuisine! Score...Easy, Healthy and relatively inexpensive! All things dear to my heart right now! I also found in that same Brand ( I believe it is Eating Right) some canned whole wheat ravioli. I decided to pick up a few cans and see if Ryder would have anything to do with it...and he LOVED it! Super Score, because he has become a Very Picky Eater! I usually avoid Tom Thumb because I have in my head that it is more expensive then Target or Kroger, but by looking for the Red Tags, I spent about the same or maybe a little less.

OK, on to the point of the Blog Title. By the time we finished at the store, it was lunchtime and I was really wanting me some ChickaFlicka aka Chick-fil-a. Ryder won't eat Chick-fil-a no matter how many times I try, so I had already decided to just get myself the Chargrilled Fruit Salad that I so dearly love and go home to fix his lunch. I pull into the parking lot and the drive-thru line is wrapped around the building. So we sit...I wanted this salad really bad and we sit some more. I order and when I get up to the window I hold out my money for the lady. She says, "No Ma'am I don't need your money, the Car in front of you paid for your meal, too". I was confused and said, "On purpose?". She said, "Yes". Wow. So, I told her I would pay for the Car behind me. She said, "No, you don't want to do that, they have a huge order.". So now, I am looking for a way to randomly make someone's day and pay forward the good deed that was bestowed on me! Just puts a smile on your face!

Fingers Crossed

I am keeping my fingers crossed that my first trimester woes are starting to wind themselves down. I have had some horrible "Evening" Sickness. Honestly, I should be thankful that it is only evening hours, because if my memory serves me correctly with Ryder it lasted more of the day. This morning, I actually thought I might want a special treat from my Tassimo machine. For those of you unaware, a Tassimo makes hot tea/latte/cappucino/hot chocolate with the push of a button. For the last six weeks just the vision of that machine made me want to gag, much less the idea of actually drinking something out of it. I gave the water tank a good scrub down this morning and fixed myself a decaf peppermint mocha and it tasted delish! I was so excited!

To boot, I have been suffering with an icky cold since Saturday evening and am thanking goodness for my husband and mother-in-law. They both took Ryder off my hands so I could get some much needed rest. Feeling up to coffee was a high note for me this morning, since just two nights ago I was dry-heaving into the toilet and blowing an endless amount of yuck out of my nose. So sorry for the graphics, but that was a LOW note for me! Anyway, keep your fingers crossed along with me that this morning is not just a fluke and my husband and son can have their real Wife and Mom back very soon! LOL!