Rodeo

I hope I have never claimed that things are normal around here, because they certainly are not! We could not just have a horsey ride, we have to have a rodeo. Just be careful how you bend over when you are at our house, you might just end up with a cowboy on your back!

Hallelujah

So Camlyn and I have been reading The Potty Book For Boys and practicing sitting on the potty. Maybe it is paying off sooner than I thought it would. Tonight after his bath, before we got his clothes put on, Camlyn looked at me with a worried look in his eyes. "Poobie." So we hurried to the potty and.... he did tinkle, a little! In no way do I think it is time to throw away the diapers and go shopping for undies. Still it is exciting no?

Sneaky

Cleaning today, I found this book under the bed.

Camlyn and I promptly sat down and read the book. It was fun to watch Camlyn and how he reacted to all the baby faces. Smiles for the happy faces, frowns for the sad faces. His favorite face that we kept turning back to?

The sneaky baby, or was that the stinky baby?

Cupcakes

For anyone who is interested. Here is how the cupcakes turned out. This is what I was shooting for. While we are on the subject of cakes, check this out. www.mikesamazingcakes.com You have to be a bit patient, but it is worth the wait. I could not believe they were cakes.

Sweet Heart

A few weeks ago Moises got spring fever. He and Caeden planted some seeds in pots and kept them inside. Moises even made a little stand for the pots to sit on. When the weather got warmer this past week, Moises took the stand outside. Something happened and the stand broke. The pots fell and broke and all the little seedlings were lost. When it happened Caeden was there and said, "That is really sad Daddy."

He must of took it harder than we thought though. Last night Caeden woke up crying. Moises went to see what was wrong. "The pots fell Daddy and they all broke." The poor little guy had a dream about it. He really does have a sweet heart.

Beach

Since I am feeling a bit lazy today, how about another geography lesson. Does anyone know what famous beach this is?

A shot from above. This picture was taken from atop the Pao de Acucar.

And a shot from the coconut stand.

Yes, there is a coconut stand! Dorival, Moises oldest brother, is the guy in the cowboy hat. Moises is in the brown baseball cap, everyone else has their backs turned.

Here's the answer. Ignore the beer references and the ahem "sights on the beach." This video shows the highlights the best.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbhR_6wE1TQ

All together now, 1 2 3, "At the Copa Copacabana..."

New Tires?

*Sigh* Is it possible to buy new tires for a stroller? This stroller was an amazing garage sale find. It has gotten me through many a workout when other wise I would not have gotten it done with two kids. It has been a lifesaver getting three kids to school and back. The tire has worn through completely. The tire on the other side is just as bad.

Now for the public service announcement. Ya know I never thought to check the tread on the stroller tires. All you mommies out there might want to go check yours out too. It is not fun getting home.

Blanket Rules

His Highness, Sir Sweetness has established some rules regarding The Beashes.

• Under no circumstances should The Beashes be found in any ones possession other than Sir Sweetness himself.
• No part of your body should be found on top of The Beashes.
• The Beashes may lightly rest on you if Sir Sweetness is in the general vicinity of The Beashes.
• Your nose and/or forehead may touch The Beashes. This action may produce a giggle from Sir Sweetness.
• Your cheek is not allowed to rest on The Beashes.
• Regarding touching The Beashes with your fingers, fingers 1-3 are OK, for full or partial touch. 4 fingers touching The Beashes will make Sir Sweetness nervous.
• 5 fingers touching The Beashes IS NOT ALLOWED, especially if finger number 5 is on the opposite side of The Beashes.

If these rules are followed peace will reign in the kingdom of His Highness, Sir Sweetness.

Basketball Hoop

Yesterday I walked outside to watch the boys play and was confronted with the saddest little boy ever. "Basketball hoop." He lamented to me over and over. I couldn't figure it out, nothing was broken. The hoop was there waiting on him to come play. Then Moises showed me how he created the monster..

So what are a tired daddy and mommy to do with a toddler that won't give it up?

Where in the world?

I am going to take a page from Laurie's book today. Where was I?

Let's see who I can pull out of their shells to answer. Lani is right it is somewhere in Brazil. Maybe the one city in Brazil that everyone knows. This is a touristy spot.

Laurie got it exactly right. This is the "Pao de Acucar" or Sugar Loaf.

We are going on a bat hunt

We are going to catch a big one. What is it with my boys, workers, and bats?! Caeden could not wait to finish supper so he could drag our wonderful company to the dungeon. It is a good thing they were such good sports. Although in the photo Melinda does look awfully worried.
It was an eventful night, full of bat hunts, magic tricks, and car chases, complete with noises...

Oh, what an awful time to have the battery on the camera die! A lot of fun was had by all. So sad to see you go this morning. Come back soon Twyla and Melinda!

Meghan

My skin gets very dry in the winter, especially my hands, because of all the hand washing and dishes. I keep a special pair of gloves by our bed to wear at night. I slather up with lotion and put them on. Caeden found these gloves. He put them on and instantly turned into a doctor. Ordering Camlyn around, stand here on the scale, and issuing flu shots. He was very busy and was playing quite nicely, so I let him keep them for the time being. They quickly turned into an obsession though and would only take them off for the essential things, eating, shower, bathroom, when we ordered him too. I found out why tonight.

He came to me with a dreamy look in his face. Yes, he was smelling the gloves. "Mommy, these smell like Meghan." Meghan is a little girl in his class.
"Do you like Meghan."
"Yeah, Meghan is my friend." He spread his arms way out to the side. "I like her this much."
Maybe we have a first crush? She is a cute little girl, mommy approves.

Talking Talking

Well, the good news is that Camlyn is not quite 30 months yet and he is talking more. The bad news, we don't quite understand everything. He really has been talking up a storm lately. A lot of it I have been noticing is Portuguese, which is good, and probably why I don't understand everything. When we were in Brazil we were able to pick up some books. We didn't have any books in Portuguese when Caeden was little and I think it does help them to learn. A few things I have deciphered, fome and sede is hungry and thirsty. The phrase that really has me stumped? Sabe doo doo. You can tell that he is asking for something or means something when he says it. He really gets frustrated when we don't understand. We need some help here. Sabe in Portuguese means you know. So is he telling us that we know doo doo? Could be, maybe Uncle Justin is right and he already has all of life's mysteries figured out and he is just rubbing it in our faces.

Exercise

Sorry, the light is bad on this. Camlyn is laying on the floor pulling the chair back and forth with his arms. Working his triceps I guess. Why my boys eat so much! This is what they do for fun.

I Love You

Just a little note for Grandma!

Crazy Town

You are about to enter Crazy Town. Enter at your own risk. I thought I would let y'all know just how this week has been going. The mornings have been spent wiping milk off the walls and windows and rescuing monkeys from their crazy perches on the counter top and the tops of chairs. The afternoons are nap times right, right! Not anymore it seems. I still rock Camlyn for his nap but the other afternoon it wasn't working. He did not want to go to sleep and in between sticking Alison back in her crib, I gave up. He did eventually fall asleep. I thought I would try it again this afternoon. Stuck him in the crib and this is what I came back too.

The diaper and clothes were on the other side of the room. "Poobie, Poobie." Yes, he did pee on his blankets.

New Pet

Yes, we do have a new pet. Two of them at the moment. Those of you that know me will be surprised, a pet ladybug. I hate bugs, but secretly I am fascinated by them. As long as they are on the other side of glass and I know they can't get out. It says it is a ladybug playground. I really think it a ladybug torture camp, poke, poke, shake. Or maybe a mommy torture device, "Mommy, he is not moving. (1 second later) Mommy, it's OK, he's moving. (1 second later) Mommy he's not moving." You get the idea. So what is the little guys name? Camlyn, quite the tribute no?

Loot

The first garage sale of the season in our little town and here is what I came away with.

A pair of pajama pants. I have decided that a boy can never have too many pairs of pajamas, even if they are mismatching. A navy hoodie with a football on the sleeve. A pair of brown plaid shorts.

A tee shirt with soccer balls on it, no I can't resist anything soccer related anymore. A matching set of navy pants and a basketball shirt.

A pair of brown cords from Gap. Camo pants from the Children's place, a pair of Levi jeans All for $9, don't think I did too bad.

Not all of it will fit right now but it won't be long. I have a drawer of stuff for Caeden to grow into and have been thankful for it in the past. He is just starting to grow out of his current size, so it is time to replenish the drawer.

Beashes

I do not think that I have ever explained about the blankets, yes plural. Mommy's fault. The first one was a present when he was born from our good friends. From the time that he was able to make a choice, this was the blanket that he preferred.

Being the smart mommy that I am (eyes rolling). I decided that maybe I should buy a backup, ya know, just in case. They had the same blanket just in different colors. He had to have it before we even left the store. Here I was worried that the variation of colors would make a difference. Yes, I have tried to hide it and switch them out when it is time to wash them. The stinker always finds them. Recently he has been trying to lay claim to another blanket. I do draw the line there though. We are not dragging a full size blanket around!

1,2,3,4 Give me all the blankets. I want more!

Awwww

Camlyn is a sweet little cuddle bug. He not only likes to cuddle, he likes all things soft and fluffy. To name a few his beashes, kitties especially but all soft little animals, and his brothers hair. Caeden does not normally appreciate this last one!
So, what is a sick mommy to do with such a boy when he is being extra stinky? Stick him in front of the computer and go to Cute Overload. I think he managed about two awwws per second.

The Weekend

Well, I do not even know where to start. This is going to sound horrible, but I did not like my oldest son very much over the weekend. Caeden woke up on Monday night with a fever and a sore throat, no it wasn't strep. It was nice to know that the devil did not possess my little boy though. He has been home with me the past two days, and yes I do like him again. Poor little guy didn't feel very good, unfortunately he wanted everyone to feel the same way!

In other news, Daddy is home! He got home around 1 am on Tue morning. After we got back I noticed something else that had left with him. The music in our house. I usually sing to the little guys, just silly songs that I make up for the occasion, nope none came out. Camlyn always sings himself to sleep. The night that Moises left Camlyn was singing "Happy Birthday" to himself two hours after we had put him down. Tuesday night when Moises was giving him a bath he was singing, "Daddy, daddy, daddy." We are glad to have the music back, even if it does continue on until after we have retired too. No wonder that boy sleeps in so late....