Bursting at the Seams

This weekend was bursting at the seams with activity, none of it was particularly planned or organized but it all just came together in that perfect way that things can in the summertime.

There was lots of running...

Some cruising in our new wheels that we got handed down from a friend...

a new haircut at the beloved barbershop (Cal literally followed around the 20-something hair stylist afterwards saying, "Thank you, barber!" I seriously doubt this guy has ever been called a barber before.)...

Some book reading...

The very, very exciting return of a buddy who had been on vacation (Oh! How we missed her!)...

And, of course, the construction of diggers, which in case you didn't know is very, VERY serious business and you should not take it lightly and always act serious about it.

Trip to see the aminals

Just down the road from us is the Rutgers Agriculture School and their attached farm. Oh, what an exciting (and free!) trip this is. "So many aminals, Mama!" Cal loves the horses, of course, but also the goats and quiet cows (the ones that aren't mooing.).

There is a whole lot to discuss at the farm and it is pretty much non-stop talking.

Jude seems to like it alot as well so perhaps there will be a few more trips here in the future!

Summer and Water go together like Good Friends and Fun

Callum and his buddy Sophie had gut-busting fun with this sprinkle ball. There was screaming, running, drinking, and messy, wonderful summer fun. Yeah for summer!

Looking Forward

Well after lots of hand-wringing and hair-pulling the much anticipated first week at "Big Kid School" arrived for Cal. We had his whole week of lunches and fun outfits planned. We had been talking it up for around a month but secretly we thought it was going to be pretty hard for him to leave his beloved teachers and some friends (some went with him) to move across the street with the kids age 2-5(gulp.). And, well, it was easy. He moved over with ease. First day there he said, "you go home, mama" as he played with the cars and trucks right alongside the 5 years olds. Second day, "you go to work mama" and the rest of the week he was booking it for the door before we could say "it's time to go to Big School." Way to go buddy!!

Jude is also looking ahead these days. He has enough neck control to sit in his little chair and look forward in the bjorn. And, he is loving it. He will slump after too long in the chair but he could walk forever in the bjorn, which we used to think he didn't like at all. Turns out he just didn't like having his face smooshed against someone's chest. Seems these boys are growing up and FAST!

The Joy of Discovery

There is lots of discovery happening over here. Jude is discovering that he is alot more 'in the action' now that he can sit upright on the couch. He is also learning about mmmm hands. Very interesting. They seem attached to me, I can move them and look at them and even eat them. Nice.

Callum is busy discovering, well, just about everything else. The new echo in our house seems to be, "What is it Mama/Papa?" The other day he was wondering "What is it?" about his wrists and we realized he was asking about his veins. We just said, "Blood." I mean, what do you say to that?

If it isn't 'What is it?' it's "Who is it?". Everytime we see people walking by, he asks this. Especially if they are pushing a stroller, he assumes it is a friend. Then he says, "I don't know them." Cal is also discovering the joy of nonsense words. In retrospect, this seems inevitable from our Irish-blooded gift of the gab little man. He has now assigned each of us a silly name. Mama is Mam-ba, Papa is Pop-da, Callum is Cal-dom, Jude is Baby Doob'd, and the cat Nush is Nush-tee.

Mama and Papa are also enjoying some new discoveries. A favorite is that Jude is ticklish on his neck and will let our a great little laugh if you kiss him there, that is if you can find his neck beneath the layers of chin.

And, along with the joys are a few less than pleasent discoveries including the fact that yes, folks...the twos are for real. The push and pull of wanting independence and needing Mom and Dad is certainly cause for a good deal of emotional uncertainty.

For example: "Don't hold my hand" is said while going down the stairs but is followed by a hand reaching for a helping hand. This instinct is swiftly nipped in the bud by balling said hand into a fist to avoid inadvertantly receiving/accepting help down the stairs. All of which makes getting down the stairs "BY SELF" all that bit more shaky and unsteady prompting a desire for help. Sigh. We are trying to weather this storm with lots of strong coffee and a sense of humor.

The cat has also made some discoveries. She discovered that the only way to get any love is to sit on the newspaper during the one moment of the day that everything is done and the adults can sit quietly while their drink is still hot and attempt to do a little something for themselves. Thanks Nush.