Day at Memaw's

Today, Collin, Aunt Lisa, cousins Dustin and Timmy spent the day at Memaw's. At first, Collin did not know what to do with the yipping little Chiwawa barking constantly that greeted us as soon as we walked into the house. Memaw put him the dog in a room, but he continued to bark. Collin eventually brought his attention to the windmill outside that he could see from the sliding glass door. After Timmy ate, a few of us went outside. Collin had a blast playing in the yard and running around with the dogs. He would walk up and town the steps to the back porch smiling the entire time. He found a broom and started to sweep the patio. Mitzi's husband was there working with the cows. He started the tractor and Collin got interested in what he was doing. Jason offered to give Collin an ride on the tractor and Collin seemed to be interested. They drove around the front of Memaw's yard and stopped so Collin could play with the steering wheel. It was so big, he did not know what to do with it.

Once he got off the tractor, he resumed playing in the yard. He played on the swing set but was not interested in the slide. There was a very small plastic one that he slid down once and fell on his bottom. He was not too happy about that.

He had a great day today but was exhausted from the running around outside and very little napping....hey, can't blame him. He did not want to miss out on anything.

Night Routine

A few people have commented about Collin's night routine so I thought I would share it with everyone.

After he eats dinner, we take him out of his high chair for him to play on the second floor a little. He will either then start to crawl up the stairs to the third floor or follow me up there to his room. I give him a choice of what he wants to wear that night and then he brings it along with a new diaper to daddy who came up the stairs behind us and is sitting near the couch on the third floor. Collin and I then go into the bathroom to give him a bath. I bathe him while he is either shooting hoops with his tub basketballs or playing with his bath numbers. I towel dry him and then he runs naked to daddy. When he gets near his diaper, he sits on it and lays down waiting for daddy to put his diaper on and then get him dressed for bed time. I bring twi tooth brushes out for both of them to brush their teeth. Most of the time, Collin does brush his own teeth. A few times, he launches the toothbrush over the gate at the top of the stairs. He then will play with his toys for a few minutes.

When he gets ready for bed, he will start getting a little fussy, walk into his room and shut the door where I am waiting to read some books to him. If he did not give daddy a kiss before he went into his room, I take him back out to give daddy and kiss and then we go back into his room. I have a lot of his books on a shelf he can reach. He will grab one or two of them and then climb onto the lazy boy chair next to me so I can read him the book. Most of the time, he turns the pages for me.....sometimes it's a few pages at a time. He will start rubbing eyes his which means he is getting REALLY tired and close to getting ready for me to put him in his crib. A few times, he has climbed out of the chair and walked to his crib to hold his hands up waiting for me to put him in there.

I put him in his crib and he finds his favorite stuffed monkey to hug. I kiss two of my fingers and then put them to his head and then tell him to sleep tight. Sometimes I do this to his monkey too and he thinks it's really funny. I tell him good night, turn his light off and walk out. That's it. He sure has come a long, long way from the nights that he would need to have a pacifier, be rocked to sleep or need milk right before bed. Phew....I am not as I tired too because it does not take as much effort.

Lemme Push It!

Collin's new love is to push and pull toys. He REALLY likes the toy vacuum his Mimi found at a garage sale. I first mentioned this last weekend on the blog when he was playing with the vacuum cleaner at Matthew's house. Here he is vacuuming before going to bed the other night. Notice that he is working hard so his tongue is out a little. Hey, he is cleaning up his mess. What a good boy! I doubt he will do it when I ask him to pick up his toys. Wonder if I find a small broom if he will sweep for me. hmmm......I might have to stop by the store today. hahaha

He ran to give me a big hug when he was finished. I love it!

Thinking with his tongue

Lately, I have noticed that when Collin is in deep thought or working really hard at something, he sticks his tongue out. One time, he had his tongue out so long, it was dry. :) None of us do this that I am aware of, so I don't know where he learned this from. I finally snapped a picture of him doing it.

Sugar Cookie Anyone?

Tonight, I baked some sugar cookies, put icing on them and let Collin decorate a few. Here he is helping me make the icing. After this picture, he stuck his finger on the beater to lick what was still stuck to them. Daddy came home in the middle of Collin decorating his cookies. He said he thought I was brave. Who cares....Collin was having a great time. I was grateful that I don't have to sponge bathe him anymore, because he was one sticky kid tonight.

Carousel

Today, mommy had to return some birthday pants at the mall because she was too fat for them. I used to not like the mall until I saw the horses on our way to have my diaper changed. Wow!! Mommy let me sit on one and I held on tight. We went around and around in circles like I do when I am happy to see Mimi or when daddy comes home. The horses even went up and down and I thought that was fun. We were going really fast for me and I stopped smiling so I could hold on even tighter to the pole on the horse. By the time the horse stopped, I was ready to get down and see what else I could find at the mall.

We found a playground with LOTS of things hanging from the ceiling. Mommy let me play in there a little while until she decided that too many older kids where not paying attention to me. I don't want to be back in a cast again but I was still mad that she made me leave until I saw the colorful things hanging from the ceiling again.

Hanging out with Matthew

Collin and I had a blast today hanging out at the Varesic house. When we got there, Collin needed a reminder of who Matthew was since it had been WAY too long since we had been over. Once he figured it out, he wanted to play with Matthew's Christmas present from his daddy. I could describe it but a picture would tell it best.

There are 650 balls in the Jumpolene. After 5 minutes in there, Collin saw to it that at least 10 balls where thrown out. I was putting them back as fast as he could throw them out. There was not much jumping going on but he did roll and crawl around in the Jumpolene.

Matthew's daddy made crepes for lunch. While he was making them, Collin was in the kitchen cleaning up behind him with the play vacuum while Matthew had the TV changer. The boys LOVED the crepes. They were filled with Nutella which is really sweet. Yep, you guessed it...the Nutella did get all over their faces. I liked some off Collin's check and he thought that was funny. The boys also played with Matthew's drums while Tony made additional crepes.

After lunch, the boys continued to play with the toys and in the Jumpolene. We could tell it was getting close to nap time because they were both getting fussy. At one point, Collin was sitting in the Jumpolene staring off into the distance. I knew it was time to go soon before the "Collin explosion" happened. Whew.....I did make it.

Double Trouble Birthday Party

This morning, Collin and I went to Hannah (4) and Hayden's (2) birthday party. Before we could get out of the car, Collin was excitedly pointing at the huge Jumpolene in the driveway. There were a few big kids in there already so I held Collin outside so he could watch. He wanted in the Jumpolene really bad so I took his shoes off and put him inside. He just sat there for a few minutes watching all of the older kids jump around. He did not want to come back out though. He eventually started moving around and having a good time.


When it was time for lunch, we had pizza. Collin has had pizza before but after daddy or I have pulled it apart into bite size pieces. Collin noticed the others eating their slice of pizza and wanted to do it like the other kids. He ended up eating a whole slice of pizza one bite at a time as he held it himself. Most of that time though, he was looking towards the front door because he wanted to go back outside to jump..... or crawl around in his case.


The birthday party had a Safari theme where the kids would search for the different toy animals on their Safari passport (a paper passport with pictures of the animals). They all started with a Safari hat and binoculars so they could hunt for animals. Here Collin is "hunting". He did not find any of the animals because he was not as fast as the other kids and he was more interested in getting to the top of the playground equipment in the backyard.



He watched the kids climbed up the ladder and he eventually tried it himself when most of the kids went inside for cake. He did not want to go inside so we stayed outside and played. He did climb the ladder several times and played with the wheel at the top (he still likes those wheels). There was also a slide at the top but he was not interested in going down it. He would sit at the top of the slide and look down. I was not going to force him to do it wondering if he remembered the last time he used a slide. He did reach out to my hand and let me guide him down the slide. He was cool with it after that.

He feel asleep on the 10-minute drive home. I am sure he was tired from all of the fun activities this morning.

The Cast is Off!!!

Collin and I went to the doctor not knowing that today would be the day he would be free of his cast! When we arrived, the first thing they did was cut off the cast. Collin really did not like the sound of the tool used to do this and cried the entire time that tool was on. As soon as they finished using the tool, he was fine. I asked to save the cast so the tech taped it up for us. Next was X-ray time and Collin did better this time. They took two different poises and we were done. We did not have to wait long until the doc came in and told us the good news. He said that Collin's leg healed great. The only reason he would put on a shorter cast would be to help Collin transition for the larger cast to no cast at all. Either way, Collin would still take some time to adapt to not having a cast. He said that Collin would likely drag his foot, walk sideways with it or even crawl for the first 5 - 7 days. This is normal and to be expected.

When we got home, Collin did take about an hour to figure out that he did not have his cast on. Just as the doc said, he would crawl first and then stand up and start to walk. His right foot does point outward and he does walk like he still has a brace on his leg. No worries though. Collin was a trooper when he got the cast and overcame this obstacle so I am sure he will figure out how to properly walk again.

I wanna drive!

We had friends in town this weekend that have a 7 year-old girl (Madison) and a 6 year-old boy (Justin). Collin had a blast following them around and watching what they did. Collin ADORED Madison and followed her everywhere. He would run up to her and give her a big hug every time he entered the room. It did not matter if mommy and/or daddy where in the room either....we were chopped liver when Madison was around.

Saturday morning, we took the kids to the Children's Museum so they all would work off some energy. Of course, Collin followed Madison around. Here he is hanging on to the seat she was sitting it that gave an example of a pulley system.

Madison became just a thought when he spotted a Mustang similar to Mimi's. He "ohhh'd" as loud as he could and pointed to the steering wheel. We waited our turn and Collin looked like he was in Heaven because he was playing with the steering wheel. Madison and Justin climbed in for a ride. When they wanted to drive, Collin pushed their hands away. This was his car! I knew it was not going to be easy to pull him away from the wheel to give the other kids a turn. I looked around for something else to distract him with knowing that a tantrum could be happening soon. I spotted some real baby chicks around the corner and thought he might enjoy looking at these. I grabbed him quickly, the screaming and fit started but then subsided just as quickly when he saw the baby chicks. Whew!!! I wonder if we have a race car driver in our future. Collin sure does like steering wheels for some reason.

More fun in the sun....

This morning, daddy and I took turns riding the rapids and the water rides while the other parent watched Collin. He had a good time exploring the pool area before he discovered that there was a pool! "Daddy, daddy....can I get in the water?" If he could talk, I am sure that is what he would say. Daddy put Collin in his boat and pulled him around in the water. Collin had a great time splashing in the water and listening to daddy make noises like a boat would make. Later, I joined them then next time he got in the water. Collin thought it was hilarious when daddy used Collin's hand to continuously splash me and listen to me fake scream and run away.

All of this play made Collin really tired. He took about an hour nap by the pool. He woke up rested and ready to go again.

Later tonight, we went walking around the marina so Collin could get more exercise (read that as so he would go to sleep early tonight). We found a local band and Collin was mesmerized. He could not stop staring at the band members. For a few minutes, he even danced along with them. The people walking by thought it was cute to see a toddler with a cast dancing. Here is a short video of just a few minutes of the dancing Collin. We love that he enjoys music since mommy and daddy really do.

Well, tonight is our last night. We will be home tomorrow.....just in time for company to spend the night with us and hang out for the weekend.

1, 2, 3....

Collin loves to take things out of drawers, boxes or other containers, put them in a pile and then put them back. He will do this over and over again for over 20 minutes if I let him. This afternoon instead of taking a nap, he decided to pile our shoes in the hall and then put them back in the closet to only do it over again. He probably knew I would think this was cute and not make him take a nap like he should have been doing.

He did the same thing to each of the drawers with our clothes. At least he did not play favorites and did it to even his clothes.

Sharks!!!!

This afternoon, we wandered through the Predator Lagoon through a tunnel in the water. There were hammerhead sharks, barracuda and sawfish. It was a little scary to be that close to these water creatures. Collin liked the little blue bright fish and did not seem to notice the sharks. I learned that

daddy really liked it when we saw the shark's fin coming out of the water. Here are a few pictures of the awesome creatures we saw:

Bahamas - Day 6

We went into town this morning to have breakfast at a local place (would not call it a restaurant because there were no walls), check out the sites and do a little shopping. I found a bag with Bahamas on it and Collin broke his maraca before I finished paying for it. Nothing a hot glue gun won't fix though! Here I am in front of the Queen's house.

We did not stay too long because Collin needed a nap. Before returning to our room, we stopped had to stop at the water feature in front of the Royal Towers because Collin was having a fit because of the water. We are raising a fish and did not really know it until this trip. The entire time I was holding him, he wanted down so he could get in the water around the fountain.

Here is the other water feature he just had to stop and look at. I let him walk towards it but scooped him up quickly because he tried to crawl into the water.

We did eventually make it back to the room for him to take the nap that he fought to take. Do you think he is ready to swim now? He crawled into the float himself. I had it ready to go by the door. Yep, a fish!

Bahamas - Day 5

Today, mommy and daddy went down a few of the water slides at the resort. We started at the Mayan Temple which had the Leap of Faith body slide (a slide with a 60 ft drop through a shark infested pool before landing in the water) and the Serpent slide which uses a tube float. Mommy went first and could not believe she did the leap of faith but LOVED it! Daddy decided to give it a try.

Here is a picture of the Leap of Faith.

Here is a picture of me after the Serpent slide. Can you tell that I was having fun being a kid?




We then went to one of the less crowded pools to have a snack and relax (for Collin and daddy that means take a nap). Collin REALLY likes French Fries. Here he is trying to decide which one he wants to eat next.









Daddy did take Collin the pool so he could splash in the water a little bit. Collin really wanted to get in the water and not just splash it with his hands. He is such a fish and does not know what to do outside of the water but so close to it.



















On the way back to the hotel, we stopped by the Ruins Lagoon to check out more sea life. I really enjoy and like watching Collin get excited about the fish swimming by. The Manta Ray are just so big that he does not even notice them.









Daddy thought it would be fun to have a picture of us in the huge chair outside the casino.

Bahamas - Day 3 and 4

We have been exploring Paradise Island the last two days and have done the following:

Checked out the sea life including the huge Manta Ray at The Dig which is an up-close view of marine wildlife.











Here Collin and I are in front of the Royal Towers of Atlantis. Collin really enjoyed the water feature and rarely looked toward the camera.






Here are Daddy and Collin checking the ocean out. Our hotel is on the right in the background. Collin really enjoys seeing the waves crash on shore. His pointer fingers should be really sore after this trip is finished because he is pointing and "ohhing" at EVERYTHING....especially the water features, lights and birds.

Collin got in the pool today for a little while because I was able to find a float that had a bottom for him to sit on. He was having so much fun we hated to take him out but had to since we thought it would be a good idea to take his cast out of the bag. He did not like our idea and wanted back in the pool. He eventually feel asleep and took a great nap outside. What a peaceful way to sleep...right?

Bahamas - Day 2

Some of you many be wondering if Collin is having a good time on the trip even though he has a broken leg in a cast. While he may not be able to swim, he is having a great time exploring the island and making new friends. This morning after breakfast, he decided he wanted to walk around the Marina Village. He spotted a small ledge that he could use to hold himself up and walk along (it's the white colorful ledge in the background of the picture below). Here he is walking back after flirting with some ladies than had just gotten off of the cruise ship. He is a charmer without the cast. The cast makes people stop and talk to him even more than before.

After breakfast, we went back to the room so Collin could take a nap before we headed to the beach. It was not as easy as laying Collin down in his crib. He wanted to play with his stuffed animals, walk around the hotel room and explore. He finally did get tired and took a nap when we both laid down with him. After he woke up, he and dad watched TV. Aren't they cute?

We then packed up, had some lunch and headed to the beach. Collin had a great time playing in the sand. Instead of using his cups to gather the sand, he would grab a handful of sand and then let if fall into the cup. Daddy would build a mound of sand around him and Collin would immediately tear it down...that was all part of the game.

Daddy then took Collin to the water which he LOVED!! He stood there with daddy's help, waited for the water to come in and then laugh as the water got his feet wet. I thought he might have been afraid of the water but should have known that he wouldn't since he loves swimming in Mimi's pool. He did this several times and then daddy started to head back to the beach. Collin started to point back to the water because he was not ready to go. He was having too much fun. We had a bag over his cast so it would not get wet but did not want him to be in it too long....and were not too sure it would work....which we found out that it did when we took it off.