Thursday, January 29, 2009


And The Other

I only got around to one update the other day, so here's the other. 

Will got a trundle bed in December, a little on the early side for my taste, but he was threatening to climb out of his crib and I didn't want him falling. Of course he thought this new-found freedom from bars gave him a carte blanche invitation to come running out of his room whenever he felt like it, including nap and bed times. 

After miserably sitting and holding the door shut one day to ensure he actually took a nap, I broke down and got doorknob covers. I felt so bad for doing it. We never had to do it with Abby. Of course, when we told her she had to stay in her room after we left, she did. She didn't like it, but she stayed. She's a rule follower (not sure where she gets that!) Will is NOT a rule follower. 

We also reassembled the crib, which we had prematurely taken out of his room. So, now he gets to choose where he sleeps. Somehow the choice between crib and big-boy bed has made the transition easier. He picks the crib more, but the kids love playing on the trundle.


He's still into sports. He uses a tennis racquet to hit a volleyball and toy skillets/griddles as ping pong paddles. When he throws a football, he yells, "Go long!" thanks to his dad and his new favorite movie, The Incredibles. And he's learned how to "tackle" himself by falling over and yelling "Tackle!" I actually heard a neighbor kid walk by the other day and say "I think the only thing [Will] doesn't play is bowling!" That's about right although I'm sure we'll discover that soon enough. It's a good thing we have a big open space upstairs. It has become his indoor field/court/gym.

As for his movie preference, "I'n watch crebibles" has now become a regular request around here. Along with it has come a fascination with guns. Great. He runs around the house using whatever he can find as a gun and yells "Show yourself!" 
I say "No guns." 
He says "Yes guns. Mommy, please!?!?!"
"No, mommy doesn't like guns. They are mean and they hurt people."

He doesn't even own any kind of gun. A whole lot of use that's doing. So far, he's used a Barbie-sized hairdryer, a lotion bottle, his stroller handles and, of course, his fingers. Guess I can't take those away. Sigh. I knew it would come eventually. Just didn't know we'd hit it by two. It's pretty hard not to laugh at him yelling "Show yourself," but I'm really trying to stick to my, uh, guns (pardon the expression!).

He is at a fun age where almost everything he says and does is funny without him meaning for it to be. He puts himself in timeout when he's done something wrong. And now, he can't come out of his room until I open the door, so he yells "I want out!" when he's done.

At Christmas, every baby became Baby Jesus, including Simba from The Lion King. When he wants to watch that movie, he asks for Baby Jesus. There's gotta be some allegory in there somewhere. He's also named his one baby doll Baby Jesus. Apparently he learns something at school! :)

And he's really into playing the guitar. Sometimes he rocks out (and has great rhythmic instincts). Other times, he plays Twinkle Twinkle or the ABCs, which he sings A-B-C-D-H-E-B! This clip is a slow, lyrical ballad, albeit non-sensical. I just had to include it! And then I'm done. Really.



Monday, January 26, 2009

Thy Bed Overfloweth

Will is now napping with 4 footballs, 1 volleyball, 1 basketball, 1 baseball, 1 golf ball, and 1 non-sports-related ball. 

Whereas Abby goes to bed at night with 4 unicorns, 3 baby dolls, 2 lobsters, 1 life-sized frog, 1 gorilla, and various other animals and blankets. 

It's a good thing they each still fit in their beds!


Wednesday, January 21, 2009

GIRL SCOUT COOKIES

I realized I probably shouldn't have added that at the very end of a super-long post. So, here it is all on it's own. Abby is (and, by default, mommy is) selling Girl Scout cookies. Place your orders now!
Status Update(s)

Oh yes I did. I joined the millions of others on Facebook. And now I'm addicted. But I must provide status updates for the kids!

I'll start with Abby. She was home from school for two weeks over the holidays. The two kids got along so well and loved playing together that it made the time off really enjoyable for everyone (thank you, God, for small blessings!). 

She got to bring home the class turtle, Smarty, for the break. You've never seen such adoration and responsibility from a five year-old. Of course, she enlisted Will to help with mealtimes too. He loved it. In fact, he would have fed the poor turtle all day long if we'd have let him. He kept saying "Smarty. Smarty. Feed Smarty" Except his "sm" sounds like "p," so we kept thinking he was saying "party" or "potty." We grown-ups are sometimes slow to learn. Of course I should have known because his small football is his "par one." (I've had to explain that to a number of people!). But, I digress.

Okay, back to Abby. For Christmas, she got her first Webkinz. She really wanted to call it Butterscotch, so we went onto the website and typed it in. Well, the site came back with "I'm sorry the name you have typed contains a word that is not allowed." 

"Wow, I guess scotch is alcohol so they don't want it," I thought. So, we typed "Butter." Same message. "Oh, it's butt." We typed "Buterscotch." Same message. The pony's name is now Golden. And see if you can guess her log-in. . . . Oh yes, it's julialathrop. Remember her?


She also got a Razor Scooter. She figured it out in no time and it's really helped her balance! We may be well on our way to removing training wheels too!

Since school started, she has been working on an eggsperiment for her Science Fair. We'll turn it in tomorrow for display. The pictures say it all. 


She also starts a Spanish class Monday, aaaannnddd she is selling GIRL SCOUT COOKIES. Call or email and we can hook you up now through Feb. 27!
Abbyism of the Week:

(While I was tucking her in for bed) Abby: Mom, I love you. You're the best. You're the best Daddy was ever gonna get.

Thanks, I think.

Sunday, January 04, 2009

Over Here Santa!

Darn it if he didn't look away from me the whole time I was taking pictures. He just kept looking at the kids. They have the drill down. Shouldn't he??

Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Visit from the Villains

My parents dressed as Cruella DeVil and Captain Hook for a Christmas costume party. Don't they look great?


Will's World

We're settling into two a little better now. It's been nice to have Abby home over the holidays. They've been playing so well together! How she gets him to obey her every command during make-believe games is beyond me. 

He still won't ride his McQueen scooter. In fact, Abby got a two-wheeled scooter for Christmas. He has now mastered that one. Amazing. He's also pedaling his new trike.

He's really getting vocal. His favorite catch phrases include "Ka-chow" (from Cars), "I ah no i ee ah" (I have no idea), and "Aw, man!" I may have to start writing Willisms too:

Brad: Don't step on the pictures please.
Will: Okay.
Brad: Well, you just did.
Will: (You're) Welcome.

I just happened to be going through our videos and found this clip from his birthday. I thought it was so cute I had to share.