garbage truck

we are starting the dreaded potty training this month. i don't really think the little guy is ready, but i want to encourage him to sit on the potty a few times a day. he is rewarded with a sticker for his potty chart and one m & m for sitting. if he actually goes, he gets a small present (i am not ashamed of this short-term bribery technique, he is motivated by food and presents, who isn't). i have a bag full of little goodies waiting for him when he goes.

he went peepee in the little toilet once at school this week and they made a big deal out of it, in the hopes of encouraging repeated actions!

today, for the first time at home, he peed! i placed him on the potty before nap to see if anything would happen and we got a little stream! sorry for any non-parents reading this, i always thought potty talk was disgusting, but it is now just a normal part of life with a 2 year old!

i pulled out my favorite gift from the loot bag first. it was quite a hit. it is a tonka garbage truck which has little trash cans that "dump trash" connected to the back end and it makes lots of truck sounds.

declan was completely fascinated and excited by this new toy, he absolutely LOVES garbage trucks, trash cans and the trash process in general. he insisted on taking it to bed for his nap, of course, i knew that was coming.

it is such a noisy thing (sans off switch) that i snuck in to remove it from his crib so the truck sounds wouldn't awaken him during his nap.

here's how i just found him sleeping, with his three loves: lambie, doggie and now garbage truck.




he looked so uncomfortable so after i gingerly removed the noisy truck, i helped him turn over. ah, much better!


i know what you are thinking. he looks a little big to still be in a crib. well, why ruin a good thing? he loves his bed, strangely hasn't figured out how to climb out yet and sleeps 8pm to 8am so we're all happy and not changing a thing! when he's in 5th grade we'll open it for discussion.

american idol 2030

we have been really busy lately and i am so behind on posting. to hold you over, here is half of declan singing twinkle twinkle. at the end he goes into wheels on the bus but the camera cut off. i think you will still appreciate this video!

we hear this 75 times a day and it never gets old! love our little singer!

buddies

parker got a new playset so we were super lucky to be invited over to play and enjoy the first cookout of the season! can't wait for more summer nights like this!
the boys were definitely in little boy heaven with the basketball hoop, tons of balls, the huge new playset, a playhouse, slide and their friendly neighbor blowing bubbles over the fence at them!





his new thing is to drink from his own bottle of water

easter 2010

some highlights from easter weekend in grand rapids.


easter basket opening after church at grandma nancy's




spent saturday afternoon with grandpa and mimi after the eventful ER morning (see next post)


played lots of basketball in the driveway and a little baseball too



found a few of his favorite things wandering around grandma's house after breakfast: elmo, basketball and a picture of mommy and daddy


his poor hair didn't have a chance on easter morning. extra hold gel was no match for the bedhead side curl, he wiped yogurt in the front and there was neosporin on the wound in the back making it very greasy

d and grandpa lynn in a titanic-like pose taking inventory of the duck pond

an unfortunate event... involving head staples

declan had a little run in with a glass table over Easter weekend at my mom's in grand rapids. unfortunately since he has always been such a busy little monkey, we had assumed stitches were somewhere in his future, just didn't know when.

there were tears from declan and mommy, a lot of blood and a missed easter egg hunt. as our pediatrician told me today, "the head is very vascular" so the bleeding is normal, it just looks freaky. by the time we all got in the car heading to the ER, declan was fine but we did need to get his head closed up.

he was such a tough little boy, just continues to amaze us at how resilient he is with painful situations. we read books, tried on surgical gloves and he sang "no more monkeys jumping on the bed" while waiting for the doc. he got 3 staples to hold the big gash together and moments later waved and said bye bye to all the docs on the way out. everyone thought he was a hoot. the nice male nurse gave him a cadillac escalade matchbox car with special gold rims, i thought it was incredibly sweet that they have treasures on hand for the little patients.

dear declan, i do not wish to be the "experienced" mom on the block when it comes to ER visits so i would appreciate if you could please limit your calamities, even at your impulsive, adventurous age of 2. love, mommy.

WARNING, THESE ARE A LITTLE GORY

hipster

we have been outside so much these days! on one of the gorgeous 70+ degree days this month we just busted outside after dinner with no plans. having been stuck inside for the cold winter months, it feels so nice just to be outside. declan insisted on wearing his colts hat and sunglasses, i think he looks like he's pretty cool stuff!




he just looks so grown up to me these days!

daddy came home! he loves to help drive into the garage

always curious about the "water" in the sewer. thankfully this is on our cul-de-sac so he is out of harm's way with all his exploring.

egg hunt!

our awesome neighbors host a lunch and egg hunt at their house every year. 60 people were invited, they are BRAVE! the weather was freezing and it sprinkled on and off. why do people pretend that easter is the onset of spring? for some reason 30 degree temps just do not lend themselves to seersucker and peep toe wedges.

somebunny's excited!!! we practiced putting eggs in our basket the night before, i think everyone does this!


about 30 kids played and rode bikes down in the HUGE unfinished basement while the adults ate and eventually hid eggs in the nearby yards. this marks the first time we left declan alone and unsupervised, it was a strange feeling! i kept peeking down on him but he was being babysat by the big wall-mounted basketball hoop.

almost GO time!

i think this is what i'm supposed to be looking for
yeay, first one!

bipolar spring weather creates for interesting outfits. raincoat with a fleece underneath for warmth + winter hat + boots.





i think we all took naps after this!