We made it back.....and Happy New Year!!!!

We made it back safely from an awesome trip to see Collin's cousins.  He had so much fun....and I did too.  I was hoping he would sleep on the way home because he really needed it and I knew we had plans tonight.  He slept 3 of the 4+ hours back home.  We stopped about an hour away from the house to go potty and get some food to take over to the party tonight.

Collin was happy to be home.  I thought for sure his neighbor buddies would be outside playing but they were not.  That worked out OK anyway because he was fine to play in the house with his new Buzz Lightyear wings (sorry, no pictures...busy unpacking from the trip).  I could hear him say from several different rooms in the house..."To infinity....and beyond!"....and then start running. 

After Daddy got home and rested for a little bit, we went over to Ella's new house because her parents were throwing a party for New Year's Eve.  Collin is so happy now that Ella is close to him again.  I can see us spending lots of time over there...until her mommy gets sick of us.....hehehe.  When we arrived, Collin went outside to play on the playground set.  He was a pro and climbing the wall and then sliding down the slide. He also wanted to swing and swing "really high mommy!".  Ella's Daddy eventually brought out sparklers and poppers for the kids to play with.  I was not sure what Collin would do but he loved them and kept coming back to Ella's daddy for more.  We went back inside, played a little longer and then went home because it had already been a really long day for Collin.  As soon as we got home, Collin did announce "I am tired Mommy.  I want to go to bed".  It's rare that we hear that so I know he was tired.  Right now, both he and Daddy are in his room snoring.  Happy New Year everyone!!!

Cousin Trip - Day 3

Today, Collin got to ride a train for the first time.  His cousins had been on one before but they all had a great time as if it were their first.  We were headed to the zoo but they did not know that until we arrived in the parking lot for the train.  Hollis and Collin loved looking out the window and calling out what they saw.  Hollis favored the Christmas decorations in the yard and Collin pointed out all of the trucks.  They both liked the tunnels.  The ride was about an hour to the zoo....MUCH longer that the mommies thought it would be but the kids did great. 

We stayed at the zoo for over 3 hours.  The kids really liked the birds, lions (or cats according to Hollis) and the monkeys.  Collin was climbing all over the place.  I have never seen him climb around that much before.  It started because he saw other kids doing it and then he did it on his own the rest of the time we were there.  They all had to sit on the animal statutes that were all around the zoo.  We ate lunch there, looked around at a few more animals and then headed back to the train.  I knew the kids were tired and us mommies hoped they would take a nap on the way back. 

Here are Will and Collin waiting for the train.  They had fun guessing which way the train would be coming.  I liked it because it kept them occupied while we had to wait less than 10 minutes.  Collin and Hollis sat together for just a short period of time.  Then, Hollis sat near her mom and Collin fell asleep.  He slept the rest of the way home.  Hollis and Will did not.....sorry Karen!!

We got home, had dinner and then were off again to see some lights since they will be taken down soon. We got home around 10pm with all of the kids sleeping.  Hey, I wanted to make sure that Collin slept through the night tonight.  I cannot take another sleepless night.

We are headed back home tomorrow.  We had a great time while we were gone but it's time to get home and see Daddy.

Cousin Trip - Day 2

We survived Day 2 of the cousins trip.  The night was rough though.  Collin has developed a dry cough and that kept him.....and me.....up.  I did give him some medicine but that did not help.  Also, it stormed around 4am which woke him back up.  So.....we only slept about 2 - 3 hours.  This night followed a similar rough night the night before we left on the trip so Mommy is EXTRA tired now. 

In the morning, Collin showed the boys how many donuts he could eat.  They were amazed that he could eat as much as them (6 donuts this morning).  He has been known to eat 10 before but that does not happen too often.  Then, they watched cartoons and played in the living room.  We thought about going to a movie just to get outside but ended up at the mall for a few hours instead.  The mommies needed to return some things and thought the kids would have fun on the playground.  Getting lunch at the mall was a little crazy but we were glad to sit.  Next, we all rode on the carousel.  Collin was a big boy and rode on one of the horses that went up and down.  He did not want me to strap him in or hold onto him.  Can you tell from these pictures that he was having fun?

After the ride, we walked around and looked in just a few stores.  We had a gift certificate to the Disney store so we went in there.  I found some Buzz Lightyear wings and accessories and thought Collin would love that.  I was proud of myself for getting it for a third of the price.  There was a hat missing and the lights (the set also came with Woody clothing so it was missing Woody's hat) so I asked if they had a new one in the back.  They did and the person still gave me the agreed upon reduced price.  Yeah me!  We then watching the people ice skate while Ms. Karen exchanged a gift at another store.  Wow,  I am not used to entertaining four kids....and especially at the mall.  It seemed like she was gone for 2 hours but it was probably only 20 minutes or so. 

After the mall, Collin and I went to see one of my cousins that lives about 30 minutes away from the mall.  She has older kids so I knew that Collin would be bored and not want to stay long.  What I did not realize is that her kids have two pets EACH.  Collin had fun walking from one room to the next checking out the animals.  Thank goodness he did not ask for one while we were there or on the way home.  Here is Amy and Collin before we left.

We came back to the other cousins house, had dinner and watched a Curious George movie.  We had plans to go look at lights but the kids seemed really tired by 7:30pm so we thought we should stay in and try to get to bed early.  HA!!  They all were wide awake until midnight.  Yep, another late, tiring night. 

Cousin Trip - Day 1

What a day yesterday.  Collin and I loaded up in the car yesterday morning for a 4+ hour drive.  I had no idea how Collin would be in the car and hoped that he would sleep most of the way.  Hence, the reason we left early in the morning.  He did not sleep at all!  It was OK though.  He brought his backpack loaded with some of his toys.  I set him up in the car seat with a travel tray.  He took toys out of his backpack, put them on the tray and played with them.  When it was time for a snack, he moved the toys over and put his snack on the tray.  I was SHOCKED that he did not ask to watch a movie until we had been on the road for almost an hour.  He did end up watching Ratatouille, Stuart Little and a little of Pete's Dragon.  Only until we were 15 minutes away from our final destination did he ask where we were going and when we would be there.  He did make a comment about 2 hours into the drive saying that we were going a really long way.  I had to agree with that.  Here he is having a snack.  The next picture is of him looking like the chef on Ratatouille.  He took the pillowcase off his small pillow and put it on his head.  He said he was like the chef with a rat on his head (you have to know the movie to know that this was hilarious to me when he did this.....and very imaginative).

When we arrived, he was shy for about 10 minutes and then gladly started to play with the older boys.  There is Ben (8) and Will (6).  They gave him a Nerf gun and started to shoot and chase each other.  Collin was having a blast.  Then he slowed down long enough to play with Hollis (2).  They were buddies for a few hours and where really cute to watch play together.  At dinner time, the boys sat at the bar.  Spaghetti was being served so the shirts were off.  Collin did not want to be left out so he took his shirt off too. 

After dinner, the adults played a game and the kids were supposed to play with each other.  They ended up "helping" us with the game.  This game involved some acting out and the kids joined in with their own "acting".  It was a lot of fun. 

After Collin had a bath, he announced "I am tired and want to go to bed".  I was shocked because I had not heard him say this before.....Collin willing to go to bed?  I did not get too excited thinking that the night might be hard because he will be in a different room with different noises.  I was right.  This was night #2 that he was up and down until about 4:30am.  We are both tired this morning. 

Road Trip, Road Trip!

Collin and I are headed on a road trip for the next few days.  It's a short one, about 5 hours, but it's still going to be long enough in the car with a 3-year old.  Thank goodness for DVDs and some of his new toys from Christmas.  We are headed to see some cousins that he has not seen since he was 9 months old.  Yes, it's been WAY too long. 

I plan to post while I am there, if I have Internet access.  Stay tuned....

"There's a Lady Bug in my Bed"

Collin continues to come up with reasons to not go to bed at night.  He thinks if he does not take a bath, then he does not have to go to bed thinking that bath comes before bed time.  He has already tried the following to not go to bed or for me to stay in his room longer and these don't work anymore:

• My tummy hurts.  I need medicine.
• I am coughing so I need a drink
• I did not give Daddy a hug
• Mommy, I love you...when I am telling him that this is the last song before I leave for my room.  I guess he thinks I will sing another song or stay longer

I could go on and on with a list of things he has said or done to delay having to go to bed.  Tonight, he used a new one I had not heard.  I was covering him up over and over again because it's 43 degrees outside right now.  He quickly figured out that if he uncovered his legs that I would stay and cover him back up.  The last time he did it, he said, "My legs hurt.  There is a lady bug in there.  Did you see her?  She is biting me and it hurts.  Does that make sense?"  First, what a mouthful.  Second, I guess he gets asked "does that make sense" a lot for him to use that same phrase.  I really did not know how to respond to this one.  I knew that if I did then he would think he "won" with this tactic and continue to use it.  I left the covers off of him because he was in flannel PJs and not cold at the moment.  I would cover him later after he was asleep.  So...I did not respond at all verbally.  I gave him a kiss and a hug and then turned his lamp off.  He was asleep in about 5 minutes. 

Merry Christmas!!

I am sure Collin had a fantastic day yesterday.  Not only did Santa and his parents bring him great presents, he got to play with Timmy, Daddy and the other guys...because they wanted to play with all of the cars he got.  Plus, Mimi and Grandma H were both there to get him whatever he asked. 

The morning started late because he slept in until after 8am.  That's probably because he woke up several times the night before.....needing water, wanting me to put his Santa socks on find his "guys" in his bed or to sleep at the end of his bed.  Daddy finally woke him up around 8am because we could not wait to see his reaction to his toys...and because I had to start cooking again before the family came over.  The video of when Collin first came into the room was too long to post her so here are the still pictures:

He and Daddy enjoyed playing with his fire house.  Collin also got additional train tracks from Santa and some animals but the fire house and firemen really caught his attention.  We let him play with these for about 20 minutes and then he opened more gifts from us and Grandma H.  Here he is opening Toy Story back pack from Mommy and then he opened a few more gifts from us.  We saved he rest to open while Timmy opened his later in the day. 

He also opened his stocking.  So, in the morning, Colling got the following presents:

ImagNext Fire station with additional guys
ImagNext Spiral Airplane
ImagNext Steam Roller
Toy Story Backpack
Puzzle book and Toy Story puzzle
Hi Ho Cherry-O
Bathtub finger pants
Books
Train tracks
Velcro wall baseball game with Velcro balls
Matchbox cars

While I was getting lunch ready, the rest they ate breakfast I made the night before and watched Toy Story.  During the part where Andy opens his birthday present, we gave Collin the "big gift" from us: Buzz Lightyear.  The rest of the new toys were forgotten after this.  He ran around and played with Buzz the rest of the morning.

Ryan and Yoko stopped by for a short visit and gave Collin two gifts: a Toy Story tent and a Toy Story floor puzzle (see the theme yet for the toys this year?).  The rest of the family (Mimi and Pappy, Grandma Filla, Aunt Lisa and Uncle Paul and Timmy and Tom from the bike shop) came over for lunch.  I must say that the food was delicious!!!  Lisa brought sweet potato and green bean casserole, Mimi brought the awesome Turkey and relish trays and I provided the rest.  There was PLENTY of food for 9 adults to eat.  They little boys did not eat because they were too busy playing with Collin's new toys.  Collin was not too excited about sharing with Timmy at first but it took only 10 minutes for him to play right along with him. 

The family participated in the Holmes tradition of having Crackers at the meal.  There is a gift inside and a paper crown.  Here we are enjoying the food and conversation. 

We opened additional family gifts after we ate.  The boys got even more cars, dump trucks, garbage trucks and jumper cars.  They loved them and played with them the rest of the afternoon until Timmy had to go.  At one point, Collin told me that Timmy made a mess but that he did help him.  Collin does not usually spread out his playing area but Timmy was a tornado and that bothered Collin a little.  Hmmmm.....I wonder where he got that from?  Hey, no finger-pointing this way. 

The was traditional TV watching after everyone left.  Collin was still "wired" and did not want to sleep.  He did finally eat.  I knew after a full tummy like that to have him sit on the couch and work with one of his "lace up" toys.  He asked Daddy for a pillow, he laid on Grandma H and then fell asleep.  I think he had a great day.  Mommy and Daddy went on a date to the movies and also had a great day.  I love Christmas!

Peer Pressure....at 3?!?!?

Daddy dropped Collin off at school this morning as usual.  When Daddy was about to leave, Collin jumped up to give Daddy a hug but slipped, fell and landed HARD on the back of his head.  Daddy thought for sure that Collin would cry because he did hit his head really hard.  He looked at him and Collin's face did look as if he wanted to cry but he did not.  Daddy scooped him up and took him out of the class for a little bit.  While out there, Daddy told him that he could cry if he wanted to because he did hit his head really hard.  He was already tearing up a little but he did not want to cry.  Daddy, thinking he knew the reason why, asked him if it was because he did not want to cry in front of his friends.  Collin said "yes".  Daddy told him that they would understand because of how hard he hit his head.  He just wanted a really big hug and then it was time to go back to class.

Who knew there was that much peer pressure at 3?  Actually, we have heard Collin make references about other pressures such as being a baby because he is referred to as a "Napper" at school.  All of the kids under 3 are required to nap.  Hence, the name Napper.  The older kids call the "babies" this knowing that it is not a nice reference.  Collin does not like it when I use the word nap.  He changes it and says that he is either sleepy or wants to rest his eyes.....but there is NO WAY that he is napping.

"Rudolph, the Red Nose Reindeer!"

Collin usually likes for me to take pictures or videos of him.  However, getting him to sing his Christmas songs has been a challenge.  For some reason, he does not want to sing these songs for me.  Well, tonight, I got him!  He was building with Legos in the kitchen while I was cleaning up after dinner.  Here is what I could get of him singing.  I am impressed that he does know the entire song of Rudolph...whether you get to hear it here or not.  He also knows Santa Claus is coming to town and Jingle Bells.  I will see what I can do to video him singing these.

"Mommy, your hair is bootiful"

I was putting Collin to bed last night and he asked to be rocked.  He was having a rough night going to bed already.   I am sure it's because he had so much fun at the bike shop Christmas party that night...and the Coke he was drinking (note: no more caffeine for Collin after 5pm).  So, it was 11pm and he was still awake.  I would rock him if that's what it took.  The Christmas lights in his room were still on so he could see me and my hair.  He sat up on my lap, looked at my face and started to stroke my hair by my ear.  He announced, "Mommy, I like your hair.  Your hair is bootiful".  I told him thank you and asked why he thought it was beautiful.  He said, "I like it when it looks like this and is not in the back in the pony tail and up like this" and she shows me what he is talking about.  He gathered my hair in the back and pulled it up and then he said, "like this...this is a pony tail Mommy".

First, I could tell that he was not going to bed anytime soon and, second, my son just told me, like his Daddy, that he likes my hair down and not in a pony tail.  I think he likes to run his fingers through my hair....which I don't mind at all.

He did finally go to bed after 12:15am.  Daddy had to come in and rescue me so I could get some sleep.  Thanks Daddy!!!

"Mommy, look at my skid mark" and other funny things Collin said today

Collin had my laughing or smiling most of the afternoon after I picked him up from school today.  We came home to have a snack and wait for Daddy to get home.  I wanted to wrap Daddy's presents before he came home so I had Collin help me.  He announced he needed to go poo-poo so off we ran to the nearest potty.  He sat, did his thing, stood up and was so proud of what he saw.  He said, "Mommy!!!  Look at my skid mark.  It's just like Daddy's".  He was so proud of himself.  I am sure that Daddy would have been proud of the mark he left. 

After he finished, he sat on the couch to finish his snack of cheese and strawberries.  He wanted me to help him with something on the table.  I heard his stomach make a noise and he said to me, "Did you hear my stomach growl?  I must need some more cheese Mommy".  Indeed, he did.

Later that night, we went to dinner with the neighbors.  Daddy happened to be outside as they were leaving.  They invited us to join them for Mexican food.  It's hard to pass on Mexican food so we did join them.  We were crazy though since that meant four boys under seven.  They were really good...for boys and being past most of their bedtimes.  At one point, Collin and JP (the youngest) started to sing Jingle Bells.  Their version went like this:

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,
Jingle all the Day
Oh much fun it is to ride
In a one horse orken sleigh
HEY!!

The people around us were smiling at the little ones getting into the Christmas spirit.  I was too because I had not heard this version of Jingle Bells before.

As I was addressing a few Christmas cards tonight, Collin came into the office and told me, "I  just remembered that I did not give you a kiss or a hug today".  Then he reached up to give me the best kiss and hug I had all day.  I love that little guy.....even if he took until 10:45pm to go to bed tonight.  He was so wound up from dinner with his friends.

********
Here is one from Mimi when she picked him up Thursday:

I knew Collin sang Jingle Bells song so I started the Better not Cry one and Collin insisted on finishing it himself while we were on our way to his house.  Also along the way home, Collin said his house was white and brick so the wolf would not blow it down (as in 3 little pigs that I read to him).

The Elf is Serious about Flossing

Colling really got into flossing his teeth tonight.  He was very serious about it trying to get to the front and back teeth.  He has watched me do this so many times that he knew how to wrap the floss around his fingers and just "went to town" on his front teeth.  He could not get to his back ones and needed some help. 

At one point, he let the floss ends fall down out of the sides of his mouth.  He said, "Look!  I have whiskers!"  He did this at first because he was resting from his vigorous flossing.

He was funny standing in front of the mirror.  We caught him (Daddy was there too) checking himself out in the mirror several times.  He would turn one way and then another but looking in the mirror the entire time.  That's what he is doing in the top right picture.  I love his little belly sticking out.  It's full of chips and queso tonight.  That's my boy!!! 

First Successful Dentist Appointment

Collin went to the dentist this morning.  I was hoping that it would be a successful visit but I was prepared to show up and then leave within 10 minutes of when it was his turn.  That was not the case this morning.  Collin was a rock star!!  A few days before the appointment, I read to him a customized book downloaded from the dentist's website about the visit and what would happen.  The little boy in the book was named Collin and he loved to read it every night.  So....when we arrived at the appointment, he was not scared and thinking that he would get shots....like he does whenever someone mentions "doctor" to him.  The hygienist called us in.  First, he was weighed (34.5 lbs) and then we talked about what kind of food he eats.  He pointed to the pictures on the way and the fake fruits and vegetables of the food he eats.  He did not recognize the sweets/candy or the soda.  She talked about how gummy candy sticks to his mouth. 

Next, he had to brush his teeth for her.  He was too shy to do it so I squatted down to his level and said that he can brush his teeth for me.  He brushed the tops, front, and sides of his teeth and then his tongue.  I was proud that he did just as good as he does at home.  She was really impressed and said that he did a good job.

It was time for Xrays next.  Here we go....this had to have been when he was going to throw a fit or not be cooperative.  He did not want to sit down in the chair at first but eventually did when she said that he would get one of the stickers sitting on the counter.  Bribery works wonders with a 3 year old.  He sat still in the chair and let her put the heavy lead blanket on him.  He even let her put the Xray film in his mouth.....3 times!  She was able to successfully take the pictures and he got to pick out a sticker. 

We then went to the other room to have his teeth polished.  He sat on the bench and listened to the second hygienist talk to him about polishing his teeth.  She polished his finger nails first so he could see what it felt like.  He then picked out the flavor of polish he wanted.  He picked grape.  I thought for sure he would have picked out strawberry or another flavor....grape...really?  She then switched the polish head to one that looked like a zebra and polished all of his teeth.  He sat in my lap so he was more comfortable.  She then counted his teeth.  He has 20 teeth which is how many he should have at his age.  She then talked about flossing and that he needs to for his back teeth because they are very tight and close together. 

We waited for the dentist to look at Collin's teeth.  The dentist came and Collin picked out sunglasses to wear so the bright light would not hurt his eyes.  The hygienist flashed a light on Collin's teeth and he opened up for the dentist to look inside.  He even let the dentist use a pick on his front teeth...the ones that never developed enamel on the bottom half of the teeth.  There were flecks coming off the teeth but the dentist said that the Xrays showed that the inside of the tooth was fine. 

The outcome:  The dentist said that Collin's teeth looked great.  We do need to be careful of his molars because of how close together they are and to floss them often.  If we don't, he will likely develop cavities back there.  We also are going to use MI paste once a day at night for the front teeth.  This paste has calcium in it and will help build up the enamel on the front teeth which should help reduce the chance of getting cavities there....and make the teeth stronger.  It's worth a shot.

  

Later, when both Daddy and I picked Collin up from school, Daddy asked about the dentist visit.  Collin said mater-of-factly, "Dr. James said my teeth looked good".  When we brushed his teeth tonight, he said that he needed to brush them because there was food stuck to his teeth.  He must have been listening to the hygienist talking about candy sticking to his teeth.  He also let me floss all but two of his molars.  What a shocking day today.  My little guy made me so proud!!

"Mommy, you are my best friend"

The kids at school must talk about best friends.  For the last week or so, Collin has told Daddy or I that we are his best friend.  Then, he will ask "are you my best friend?" and wait for the answer.  Once we answer "yes", he will continue what he was doing before he asked the question.

Last night, the little jokester he is, told Daddy that he was his best friend.  He turns to me and says "Mommy, you are not my best friend".  I guess I did not react the way he wanted me to because he told me that I needed to have a sad face.  I showed him a sad face and then he said, "I changed my mind.  You are my best friend.  Daddy, you are not my best friend."  This went on a few times until it was a big game to make one of us seem mad or jealous at the other. 

BTW, Collin did go to sleep last night without either of us in the room.  He did get up twice after I left the room, but I put him back to bed without singing additional songs or talking much.  He got up one more time, came to the living room to ask Daddy to sing a song to him.  I think Daddy sang one song and then left the room before Collin was asleep.  Small steps....but we are getting there.  I do feel more rested this week already. 

"Leave.....I am a big boy"

At night, I will admit, it's easier to leave Collin's room AFTER he is asleep because there is less negotiations and crying that way.  Well...there is plenty of that before he does fall asleep too.  However, if I leave after he is asleep, I usually don't see a little shadow behind me when I am in my room changing into my PJs or picking out what I am going to wear in the morning.  Most nights, after reading books and singing a few songs, Collin takes FOREVER to fall asleep.  He has to make sure that all of his "guys" are in bed with him and in a certain place.  The cold covers have to be on him or not.  He wiggles around so much to find just the right spot.  This can take up to 20 - 30 minutes.....after I have already spent over an hour getting him to this point.  This makes for a tired Mommy because that is a lot of energy at the end of the day...and sometimes, I do have to work an hour or two after Collin goes to bed.

Last night, I read books and sang songs.  He crawled into bed like he usually does.  Before I sang songs, I talked to him about how much of a big boy he is and the big boy things he did that weekend.  Daddy really praised him this morning for putting his own shoes on before we left the house so I referenced that.  He really liked this.  Then, I told him that big boys know how to fall asleep and are not scared if Mommy or Daddy are not in the room with him.  I told him that I was going to sing a few songs and then leave his room to go to my room.  I said that I was not leaving the house and that I would be there for him if he needed me.  I would not let anything get him because I loved him so much.  I asked if he was listening and if he understood.  He told me "yes, I know you love me".  I then told him that other big boys like Jacob and Griffin, his buddies at school, stay in bed after their Mommies leave the room.  They don't cry or get out of bed because they are really big boys.  I then told him that I was going to sing three songs and then leave to my room.  There was no protest to that.  I sang three songs, told him how much I loved him, then to have sweet dreams and sleep tight.  He wanted to give me a big hug and what he called a wet kiss (nice....from my son!?!?) and then told me "leave.....leave Mommy".  I could see in the dark that he was pointing to the door.  He said "I'm a big boy".  I left and Collin did go to sleep.

That is at least a start.  I am sure the weeks ahead will be challenging.  I know it's best for both of us...and Daddy when he puts Collin to bed....to not stay in his room until he is asleep.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I had the best birthday today.  First, Collin slept in until after 8am so I got some much needed extra rest. Then, I got to spend the entire day with my boys.  Daddy stayed home from work for my birthday.  This morning, Collin gave me my birthday present.  He walked in with a little bag and told me "Happy Birthday Mommy..I love you" and then handed me the present.  He and Daddy picked out beads from the Trollbead collection and created a bracelet.  I LOVED it.  Later today, I picked out a few more to add to the ones Collin picked out.  I cannot wait to add to it throughout the year.

We ran a few errands this morning and then came home in time for Collin and I to go to the Winter Wonderland party the bird sanctuary was having.  Santa was there so I was hoping that Collin would want to sit on his lap this year.  When we arrived, Collin's buddy, JP, was on Santa's lap with his brothers.  Yeah!  I thought for sure that Collin would want to sit on Santa's lap seeing these boys there.  Nope....I think we stood there a minute too long.  Collin was not interested at all by the time it was our turn.  No worries....we can try again next year.  We then went outside to see what crafts he was interested in doing.  He stopped a the snake bracelet place.  He got to pick the color of the pipe cleaner (pink) and then added beads on it to make the beaded snack.  He was VERY particular about the beads he picked.  He found some that were a different shape than the others and was very excited about finding these. 

After the crafts, we went to see the reptiles on display.  He was fascinated with the turtle but did not want to touch it.  He also liked looking at the Walking Sticks, beetles and the Milk Snake.  He did finally touch the snake.  We hung out by the reptiles for at least 20 minutes.  I was getting tired standing there but he was loving it. 

Eventually, we left and walked around the pond looking for frogs and turtles.  After not finding any, he wanted to go fishing in the front pond.  He LOVED this and wanted to show me everything he caught in his net.  He did not catch anything alive (phew!) but caught lots of leaves, sticks and other vegetation in the pond. 

We went home to rest.  Daddy gave me another present, a blue North Face jacket.  We looked a these when we were in Seattle.  I love the color and cannot wait to wear it.  I was getting hungry and wanted Mexican food so we went to Escalantes near the house.  Collin takes after his Mommy and chowed down on the queso and chips.  Maybe that's because I had a ton of the stuff when I was pregnant with him.....just maybe.  After dinner, Daddy had the fabulous idea to drive around and look at lights.  We went to a neighborhood that, for 35 years, had required all of the homeowners to put up lights for Christmas.  Each street competes with the other.  Collin fun yelling out "CANDY CANE" whenever he saw the candy canes.  He also sang a lot of his songs that he learned from school for his Christmas program.  I loved listening to him sing.  He did get stuck on one verse of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"...got old after awhile. 

I had a fabulous day with my boys today.  Thanks for a wonderful birthday!

Collin's Winter Program at School

This morning, Collin had his Winter Program at school were they sang several songs for the parents.  I was unable to attend because I was teaching a class all day at work.  However, Daddy was there and took a video so I could see if Collin participated this year.  If you recall, he was not interested at all last year in singing any song and wanted to sit in my lap the entire time.  I was not sure what he would do this year.  He is a year older and has more confidence.  He also has been singing the songs at home so I know that he knows the songs.  What was he going to do this morning?  Well, he did stand with the rest of his classmates but was very focused on his friend and holding her hand.  Apparently, she really likes him but she is just a friend to him.  Daddy is proud because Collin is already a hit with the ladies.  Go Collin go!

"Shhhh, don't wake up Daddy"

This morning around 3am, Collin got out of his bed, came to my side of the bed and said "Mommy" in a whisper.  I turned over to look at him and he then said, "shhhh, don't wake up Daddy".  I thought to myself "well, what about me?".  I asked what he wanted and he said he needed help finding Monkey.  This happens occasionally that he cannot find Monkey in his bed so he gets one of us to help find him.  I did get out of bed to find Monkey who was laying on one of Collin's pillows.  The "stink butt" woke me up to get me out of bed and in his room.  That was all part of his plan....he had Monkey and really wanted me to be in his room.  I tucked him back into bed, sat there for about 5 minutes to make sure he was asleep....but then fell asleep myself.  I finally got back into bed at 4:45am. 

Collin has done something similar all week.  Daddy and I have been taking turns.  Collin went to him the night before and it was my turn tonight.  I thought he might wake up in the middle of the night anyway because he went to bed so early.  We found out a buddy of his did the same last night.  I will have to check to see if there is a full moon out....that could be a cause of all of this.  ;)  I am sure it's just part of being a toddler and parents of a toddler. 

How did Daddy do it?

After work tonight, I stopped by a few places to see if that had a certain toy for Collin for Christmas.  I was looking for the Fisher Price Imaginext Fire Station (see picture at right) that Daddy and I decided would be Collin's big gift for Christmas.  Daddy and Collin were out running errands and would be home 2 hours later than usual so I thought I had time.  I did end up finding a fire station and a set of firemen figures to go with it, grabbed dinner and was home before 8pm.  Daddy already had Collin in bed with the lights out.  I will assume that Collin already had a bath, read books and was now in bed.  This was a shock because it was at least 30 minutes to an hour earlier than usual.  I was looking forward to seeing Collin because I had not seen him this morning.  I left before he got up (big presentation this Friday I needed to work on.

Not sure what Daddy's secret was to getting Collin to bed early.  He is asleep now because I hear both of them snoring.  Yes, Daddy is laying in bed with Collin.  Here is a picture of the monitor:

Christmas Dinner Party

While Daddy was working late, Collin and I attended a Christmas dinner party for the Woodmen of the World members.  It was Nancy's last night in town which was the main reason we went.  Collin had a good time going between Nancy, mine and Mimi's laps playing with the decorations on the table that were to be "give aways" later.  He really liked the santa, Christmas tree and the snowman that had blocks in it used to count down the days until Christmas. 

He said he was hungry, so I ordered him dinner which he barely touched.  I am sure he was just too busy playing with the new "toys".  I did bring him an apple (which he did eat later) and a snackable so he did not go hungry.  At one point during the dinner, he discovered that Grandma F was there and ran over to her.  He said "hello Grandma F, look at my Santa" and then sat in her lap for about 15 minutes talking to her and playing with Santa.  David was also there and Collin called his name out a few times to show him what he was working on or playing with.

Later in the night, the kids were given $15 gift cards.  His was to the Disney Store and had Mickey Mouse and friends on it.  He LOVED that Mickey was on his new gift card....and he DID refer to it as his gift card.  No one else could touch it though so I am not sure if it will ever be used.  He did also get to take home the Santa, a chair he was sitting in (technically a separate gift) and the Christmas tree because Nancy and I gave him our gifts.  Mimi ended up getting the counting down snowman. 

We were there for 2 hours and needed to leave before the party was over because Collin was fading.  He got to watch Toy Story on the way home (yes, I have that movie memorized now...even though I cannot see the movie on the screen in the front of the car) and was asleep an hour after we got home.  I wonder if he will remember his gift card this morning?

Gingerbread Train Complete

This morning, we put the final touches on the gingerbread train.  Collin is so like his Mommy because he wanted to make the train look exactly like it did on the box and not make it how he wanted.  We did the best we could to make the train look the same.  Collin did have fun picking out the colored candy as it was on the box.  Can't you see the concentration in his face? 

Here is the final result.  I must say that I am very proud of our train.  I put it on the box while Collin was sleeping tonight.  I bet he is going to enjoy seeing it in the morning.