Stroller Shopping Revisited

After I posted that last post about the stroller a hilarious memory popped in my head. Recently my friend Melanie and I thought we could go try on clothes with all 4 of our children in tow. Yeah, it was a brilliant plan! We had out strollers (see previous post) but no one wanted to be in them. It was chaos! (However, I am sure we will do it again!) This memory just popped in my head because I went back to the same store the other day and the lady said, "O, I remember you!" Abby was screaming (in said stroller) at the time which I think helped jog her memory!

An Observation

Here is my question...how was shopping possible before kids? Obviously, it was more leisurely. However, there was no stroller. How do you shop without a stroller? The basket underneath is absolutely essential for holding packages. Did I really carry my own purse? (It too belongs in the stroller!) My parents watched my kids for me so I could do some shopping awhile ago, and my arms were seriously about to fall off my body from toting packages and my purse through the mall! Plus what do you do with all that stuff while you are trying to look through a rack of clothes? Well, it was a lot of work but I had so much to do it was a blessing that my parents watched the kids so I could get things done. I may have missed the stroller, but I did not miss the impatient screaming and kicking that would have been going on inside of it!

Connorism

When you have two kids it is always difficult to figure out which kid to get out of the car first. Once one is out, you have to make sure they are safe while you get the other child out. The other night we ran to the grocery store and I got Connor out first. While I was getting Abby out, I checked to make sure Connor was safe and reminded him to stay put. He replied, "I'm holding my horses Mommy!"

The Santa Train

This year our good friends Melanie, Ryan, Makena, and Brody joined us for our annual trip to ride the "Santa Train." At a nearby (relatively) park, you can ride the train through the park past lighted Christmas decorations. Halfway around the Santa train stops and you disembark to visit Santa Claus. Then you get back on the train and go through a tunnel of lights as you head back to the station. It's a lot of fun...that is until someone gets hurt. Unfortunately, as we were waiting the kids were playing and Makena bonked her chin. As the wound was somewhat gaping and reminded Melanie of Ryan's own recent trip to the ER, it was decided that they would take Makena to the ER just to be safe. Makena was fine thankfully! As we were at basically the front of the line when all this happened, Connor and Abby still saw Santa. Connor was very excited and told Santa he wanted...oh come on take a guess here...trains! No surprise that Abby wanted no part of Santa and cried. So while the excursion was not a complete failure, it was certainly a bummer that Makena was hurt. (We just felt awful!) Next year I hope we can all go again without any injuries!

Rockin' around the Christmas Tree

Here are some pictures of the kids when we decorated for Christmas. They were so excited as we pulled out the ornaments. Connor enjoyed putting them on the trees. Abby was very excited about her Santa hat. The highlight for Connor was of course setting up the train around the tree.

Connor the Entertainer

Connor is a very funny little boy. He really loves knock, knock jokes. Unfortunately, he doesn't know any knock, knock jokes. This does not stop him, however. He just makes up his own which he believes are very funny. Connor has also decided he is a magician. Again, he doesn't know any magic tricks, but he is happy to make up his own! The other day he said,"Mommy watch my trick." Then he took a whole bunch of hangers and connected them one by one to make a very long chain, which he held in the air. His showmanship was excellent. He also has many "jumping" tricks in his repertoire. Tonight he lined up several shells for a "trick." I thought this was very interesting and wondered where he saw that game. Connor has recently decided he really likes to take showers. While in the shower, he puts on quite a "fireworks" show. He says, "Mommy, watch this. It is time for fireworks!" Then he fills cups up with water and throws the water at the glass door. This of course causes a splash resembling a firework. I thought this was very clever. As mentioned in a previous post, he loves to play with his instruments and we frequently have a marching band through the house and also at preschool (which he organizes by passing out the instruments). Connor is very entertaining to us all!

Abby is 18 months old!

I can't believe Abby is 18 months old today! She is a beautiful girl and we love her very much. Every day she amazes us with her vocabulary. She will repeat just about any word you say and has a very long list of words in her own regular vocabulary. The other night Abby had on a pair of pajamas with a cupcake on the front. She started pointing to it and said "birthday." Then we sang the birthday song (she helped a little) and she pretended to blow out the candle. It was very cute. The next morning she was laying in bed with us and says, "Abby birthday!" I guess she decided it was her birthday. We of course sang the song again and blew out the candle followed by clapping and "Yeah!" Now we frequently play this "birthday game." Anything that looks kind of like a birthday cake she will point to and say "birthday" and starts to sing the song. In fact Abby really loves to sing. She loves the song "The Wheels on the Bus!" She turns her arms around and around when we sing it. She also loves the part about the mommies on the bus..."Shh! Shh! Shh!"
Abby has become fascinated with the letters of the alphabet. She points out letters everywhere we go and starts to sing, "ABCD." That is as far as she can get but gets so excited when I start singing with her and finish the song. Abby is also very independent. When she wants a snack, she will frequently walk in to the pantry and pick something out! Or if she is thirsty, she will go to the cupboard with the kid's dishes and get a cup and say "Water!", "Milk!" or "Apple Juice!" (All juice is apple juice to her.). She is not great about saying please however. When I tried to work on with her in the past I would say "Please." and she would respond with "Thank you." She loves to say "Thank you." She says it all the time which is hilarious. Her inflection is just too funny!
When I pull Abby's shirt over her head, she always says gleefully "peek-a-boo" as her head comes through the hole. Then she starts saying "Socks! Shoes! Socks! Shoes!" She loves her shoes. Often when she gets them on, she jumps up and says, "Outside!" She loves to play outside! Recently, she has fallen in love with her swing. Her grandpa pushed her in it for about 45 minutes the other day.
In the car when I put a movie in, she always says '"Push it!" meaning to start the movie. Recently, we went to see a movie. Every time the rating screen came up before a preview, Abby would shout out "Push it!" It was so funny! When we go shopping, Abby can spot any baby doll or Little Einstein or Dora product from a mile away. She then shouts the corresponding name so I'll take her over to see it. Abby also loves animals, particularly doggies and kitties. She can name most farm animals and tell you their sounds which she loves to do. She says all of the sounds very enthusiastically which is very cute. She likes to play with blocks, dolls, and her brother's trains, she loves to read books, and she sleeps with a lavender and green blanket every night. It's very cute because Connor can't wait for her to wake up in the morning or after her nap. He even sneeks in her room sometimes to "check" on her. Abby is loved by all of her family and we are so proud her!

Front of the Class

Remember the kids in school who always had to sit in the front row, right in front of the teacher? Well, that will be Abby! Connor and Abby have both been going to a class called Musical Munchkins since they were 6 months old. The teacher plays the guitar and sings and the kids clap, play instruments, and move to music. It is so much fun. Abby just loves this class! When we pull up in the car, she starts kicking her feet and saying, "Yeah, music class!" When we go in we sit on the rug in a semi circle. I try to sit on the edge closest to the teacher but sometimes we have to sit somewhere else in the circle. I guess it doesn't really matter because Abby goes and plops down right in front of the teacher. It is hilarious! When the teacher starts playing the guitar she gets so happy. The best part is the song the teacher plays where the kids have to do different things like clap and pat their knees until she stops the music. Abby loves the part of the song where they stand up and bounce their knees. I swear it is the cutest thing you have ever seen. She bounces so enthusiastically. I laugh every time! Bouncing is followed by spinning and swaying which she also loves and does so excitedly that she falls frequently. Of course she also has to help Miss Cindy with the song by "singing" along and loves the part when she can yell "stop." Honestly I can not really describe the cuteness involved.

Connor also loves music class. I have so many fond memories of taking him when he was so little. I can't believe that now he goes in without me. It has obviously made a big impression on him because he loves plaing with musical instruments. We spend alot of time playing band at home. He passes out the instruments to everyone and then we march around the house. Abby loves this too of course. His preschool teacher says he is always starting a band at preschool too. I miss going to music with Connor but luckily I get to go in and watch a little bit of his class at the end of each "semester." And guess what? Abby has to go sit right next to her brother!

Thanksgiving

This year we celebrated Thanksgiving at our house. It was a lot of fun and very nice for the kids. They had their toys to play with and their beds to nap in. It was a good thing since Abby fell asleep before we got the food on the table. I guess she had too much fun playing outside! We had a great time with everyone. It was a special day! (We only wish Richard's side of the family could have been here, and Gage and Caitlin!)

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A Day with Grandma and Grandpa

Connor really loved going to the mountains to go apple picking. Since going, he talks about it all the time and even plays "apple picking" frequently. So, we decided we wanted to go back up to the mountains and he was really excited! To make the day even better, Grandma and Grandpa came with us. It was absolutely beautiful up there! This time we ate a barbecue lunch in the barn. A band was playing and Connor and I decided to dance. Then Abby and Grandma joined us. It was really fun twirling and clapping with Connor and Abby. Next we made some apple cider. Abby had a lot of fun washing the apples and Connor helped turn the press. Connor has been dying to go on a hay ride and we were able to take one around the farm. He was very excited! We went to another farm and ate apple pie. Connor spied the train so of course we went for a ride on that as well. It was a great day with Grandma and Grandpa!

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Connor's Card

Today Connor and I worked on a project for preschool. It's called "Operation Christmas Child" and basically you fill a shoebox with gifts for a needy child. We went to Target today and picked out gifts. Tonight Connor worked on a card. While I was busy trying to fit everything into the shoebox (no small task), Connor worked on his card on his own. He decided to draw a family portrait. When I looked over I was very impressed with what he had drawn! It is very interesting to see the details he included. (Those are teeth on his smile.) The arms out of the head are so classic for beginning preschool drawings! After he was done he told me who everyone was. Then he turned over the paper and said, "I'm going to write my name." Now he has been able to spell his name verbally for a long time. While he writes/paints letters on his own, he has not attempted to write a word. We have not worked on writing his name either. I didn't prompt him or provide any guidance. He wrote backwards c, o, o, backwards r. It was so exciting. Needless to say we had to start working on a new card for "Operation Christmas Child" as this card is priceless!Ahhhhhh...I wrote this post on November 12 and it has taken me 2 weeks to post it because our card reader broke!!! Then it took us forever to replace it. Now I have so many things to post on here! I can never stay up to date!!!!!

Where did you get me?

When I put Connor down for his nap, we spend a lot of special time reading, cuddling, and talking. The other day as we were cuddling and talking, I was telling Connor how much I love him and how we are so glad to have such a wonderful and sweet boy. He was giggly at this and then he said very seriously, "Well, where did you get me?" So, I laughed and said, "Oh we got you at Target for $19.99." He thought this was very funny and laughed and said, "That's silly mom!" So I said, "God gave you to us and you grew inside Mommy's belly. Remember how Abby grew in Mommy's belly?" He thought about this for awhile and said, "Was there water in there? And food?" I showed him his belly button and explained that he used to be connected to Mommy by a tube and that is how he got his food. He gave me a strange look and said, "Mom! That is too ooey!" I guess that was more information than he wanted!

Trick or Treat

This year we trick or treated with our good friends Melanie, Ryan, Makena, and Brody. Connor and Makena were very excited about trick or treating! Abby had a good time too after she got over the trauma of being put into her costume. She was very busy playing with all of Makena's wonderful girl toys (especially her vacuum) when Mommy forced her to stop and dress up like a ladybug. Needless to say she was not impressed! But all was well again thanks to a lollipop which was unfortunately blue. Guess who else was blue? And very sticky which was shared with Mommy. Connor and Makena believed that trick or treat was some sort of race and ran to every house. Their pumpkins were so full of candy that Connor's handle kept breaking. Abby also became a very good trick or treater and said something close to "Trick or treat!" and of course "Thank you!" which is one of her favorite phrases. I wish I could type the inflection she uses when saying it because it is very cute. As we wound down our trick or treating marathon, Connor kept saying, "Just one more house, just one more house!" What a great night!

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Carving Pumpkins

Halloween Party

Our annual Halloween Party, which we hold with some good friends, was very exciting this year. With all the fires in our area we weren't sure if we would be able to have it. It was actually raining ash! But, the fires avoided us and we moved the party inside (the air was smoky outside)! We had a great time playing games, eating, and talking with friends and family. The kids were adorable!

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Happy Halloween!

A Very Special Birthday

Our family recently got together to celebrate my mother's birthday. We rode the Palm Springs tram to the top of a mountain. Connor of course was very excited! He thought the tram was very cool. Once at the top, we got to go on a hike. Connor was so excited that he barreled ahead full steam. Abby also enjoyed the hike but she wanted to stop and sit on every rock and log we passed. Needless to say this made for slow going. After the hike we ate dinner at the top of the mountain with an amazing view! It was a special birthday for a special mom!

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The Pumpkin Train

Connor and Abby went to Irvine Regional Park to ride the "Pumpkin Train" with their friends Makena, Brody, and Christopher. We had so much fun! First, we rode the ponies. There was a little wait but the kids had no trouble occupying themselves. (They climbed fences and hay bails!) Connor thought the pony was great but Abby said, "No, no, no!" She walked around with Connor and me and we had fun singing pony songs. Next, we rode the pumpkin train. Connor and Abby were very excited for the choo choo. Connor was afraid I was going to miss the train because I was taking pictures. He kept waving me on. After our train ride, Christopher and Connor went through the "haunted house" (just cobwebs, spiders, and black lights) a million times! We also ran through the hay maze and climbed a tree. The kids jumped out some of their extra energy in the bouncy house and we picked pumpkins of course. Before going home we had a picnic and ate cookies. The kids loved that of course! Abby was so tired she fell asleep eating lunch! It was a great day with great friends!

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Night Swimming

Daddy heated up the pool and we went swimming for probably the last time until next summer. The water was so warm and we had so much fun! Connor did a great job swimming! We love our pool and will miss it!