Little Man Dame

I am always behind. Because that's what happens to Mommies.

Damon, you're already 10 months old.

Ten months, 1 week, and 4 days, actually.

And you are LOVE.

Still my easy-going, ray of sunshine. Bless your sweet heart!



You are so cute, I couldn't only choose a couple of photos... so here are some little bits and pieces I want to remember about you at this age... and a lot of "you're-so-cute-I-want-to-kiss-your-cheeks-off" shots. I couldn't resist!


You LOVE the bath. The second you hear the water running, you almost FLY into the bathroom, pull yourself up to the edge of the tub, and shriek in anticipation while you bounce up and down.

You also, for reasons unknown, must have a foamie letter in your mouth at (almost) all times while bathing. Every time... I don't know.


You are eating about 4 meals of solid food a day.


Of big-boy food.


Your favorites? Broccoli, cottage cheese, string cheese, cheerios, shaved turkey, yogurt, macaroni and cheese, crackers, graham crackers, cream of wheat, and oatmeal.

I am getting a little nervous though...

... you still barely take a sippy cup. Not enough to get any nutrients from. Ugh. And I'm going to try to wean you in a month and a half. But I won't think about that.

You are so squishy. Your cheeks are squishy. Your tummy is squishy. Your thighs are delightful, and your bum is perfectly pinchable. Your are solid. I love it. It's so much fun to kiss a squishy cherub. And an added bonus? My biceps are HUGE!

You are in love with your Daddy. Dom has been more of a Mama's boy. You? You like your Dad. Lately you've been lunging for him out of my arms.

You think your big brother is the funniest person in the world. I can't make you giggle the way Dominic can. And he doesn't even try. You giggle at him as soon as he walks into the room.

You want to play with everything he plays with... while he's playing with it. This is frustrating for him. I can just see the battle wounds of the future now. Hopefully you'll learn to hold your own.

You could spend all afternoon in your baby swing that we just hung from the tree in the front yard... and you love to go on bike rides with Mommy and Dom on Mommy's bike... you even know how to ring the bell. (Sometimes you almost make me crash. The bell is attached to the handlebars, and that's a problem when you really get-a-ringin'. Aaaannnd you hate to wear your helmet... not a great combination.)

You have a bad habit of eating your crib. And it makes me want to cry. It was such a beautiful crib... and it only took you 3 mornings to destroy it. This is what your face has looked like the past few mornings. Gross.

You are still not sleeping through the night. Stinker. It's mostly my fault though, because I don't make you. You're a bit spoiled... but you're still sweet as pie.

I love you little guy.

Here's you splashing in the bath... you have such a cute laugh...

Love, Mommy

Home Again, Home Again... Jiggity-Jig.

Could the last two weeks have been any longer!? Ummm, no. I've been watching this all day long. Courtesy of flightstats.com. It helps me not to be so worried...

...although I doubt they'd display it if the plane did, indeed, go down in the ocean. (Why do I put myself through those crazy, useless thoughts!? I don't know.)

Anyway, as you can see... my guy is only about ONE HOUR AWAY from touching down in LAX. He'll be home tonight by 10! Whooooo-weeeee! I am stoked. He was missed in a big, HUGE way. And although he'll be rendered useless to me for the next week (coutesy of jetlag and thirty or so hours of travel) I'm just happy he'll be here. So happy, happy, happy... I could do a little Jiggity-Jig. ;) (heel click)

Sand, Cars, Scissors, Paint, Scarves, Forts, Legos, Puzzles, Chalk, Shopping, Noodles...

I.love.this.place.

Oh my gosh! How could I have lived in Phoenix for this long without knowing about such a wonderful, wonderful place. I couldn't take ENOUGH pictures... it was just so cute. My boys were in heaven. This post is ridiculously lengthy, with enough pictures in it to be really annoying, but you've just got to see how much fun these guys had at the Phoenix Children's Museum. Maybe it will inspire you to go too... and if you do, let's make it a date! I'm in love.

This is my friend, Amy. We used to teach together in our former lives. Now we get to "mother" together. Sadly, since Rich and I moved to the other side of the valley, our visits entail an hour of driving, and a missed naptime... but it's worth it because I love this girl. :) And her sweet family too. Thanks for introducing the museum to us, Amy!

Dom, playing with the Sand Table...




Damon and Amy's Camden in the "3 and Under" room.

Sometimes (often) I inadvertently make myself the "unofficial spokesperson" for things/places I love. Today will be no different. You've GOT to check this place out! In the "3 and Under" room, you can let your babies roam free! Nothing for them to put in their mouths and choke on. Plenty of gadgets to entertain. Floors are (relatively) clean as you remove your shoes before you enter. There are curtains to pull around you that hang from the ceiling in case you have a nursing baby in tow and need to take care of bees-ness. There are even little "pods"... papasan looking plush little beds that spring up out of the ground so you can lay a newborn down to sleep while your other ones play. Genius.

Dom was in love with the little circular vent pictured below.
When you stand on it, it blows out air.

We could have seriously stayed in the first room all day long and both my kiddoes would have been pleased as punch. But... we moved on to the room next door and THIS is what we found...

A Grocery Store!

Just their size. I remember going to one of these as a child and being in love and never, ever wanting to leave. How fun is this!?

Dominic, price matching. He's just so saavy. That's what I love about him.

"Yeah... the juice is on sale at Trader Joe's for $2.69."

"Ok...$2.69? Do you need help out to the car with that, Sir?"

Next, the boys found the racecar ramps. We were here for a while.

Then, Dom borrowed a motorbike and suprised us all with his sick driving skills...

...so responsible, that boy. Even topped 'er off after his joyride.

Are you starting to fall in love with this place yet?

Here's Dom's absolute favorite, hands down...

...the Noodle Forest!

This was endless entertainment... so much fun!

Here... have yourself a virtual noodle experience...




Here's the Carwash. Complete with the "dryer" that blows air down on you as you exit. Man, I wished I were 2.

... taking the big bike through the wash.


On our way to make crafts, we stopped to admire this little contraption...

... this one too.

Then... we crafted. We made and decorated our own "Monster Bookmarks" from the book Where the Wild Things Are.

Dom helped (hindered) me as I cut out the bookmark with scissors. And he decorated his bookmark (and his nose) with yarn, markers, and stickers.

This is the Castle. Every day it gets painted a different color. Isn't that awesome!? Dom was very serious as he painted. No messin' around.

Our next stop? The Fort Room!

Fully-equipped with blankets, clips, cushions, and props... everything you need to make a blanket fort.

There was a "tots" area in the Fort Room for the little ones. Damon busied himself with puzzles, legos, tents...

...and wooden toys.

And then all the little guys played some peek-a-boo.

As we reluctantly made our way to the exit, Dom stopped briefly to enjoy this little contraption... air shoots ping-pong balls out of the PVC pipes into the air.

Oh... and this BIG contraption...

Here's the play structure upon entering the museum. It was field-trip day when we went (although there was PLENTY to do for all the kids and didn't make me crazy like my trip to the dinosaur museum!) it was being well-loved when we arrived, so we skipped it in the morning and decided to enjoy it on our way out.

This thing is HUGE!

There were still so many things I didn't get pictures of. (I was already being really annoying taking as many pictures as I did... at least Dom's not old enough to be embarrassed by me yet!)

We're going again tomorrow... I'm so excited. Maybe more so than the kiddies are.

And, I won't be a crazy camera lady.

We'll just enjoy.

(and maaaaybe I'll take a picture or two!)

P.S. Any well-meaning grandparents who may be reading this post might make their Christmas shopping experience a bit easier by maybe, possibly contributing to our "Phoenix Children's Museum Year-Pass" cause. Haha! ;) Just sayin'.

Fiber

I gave Dom a banana-nut muffin a couple days ago. I was distracted... didn't peel off the paper for him. I finished making Dame's lunch, and walked over to check on Dom's progress.

Uh... muffin still 100% intact.

Where is the paper?

I looked on the floor, behind the highchair, under Dom's bum, down his shirt. What in the heck? The fact that he kept saying, "Mmmmm, Mom. Mmmmm, Mom," started to worry me. So, I gave him another muffin, and watched him eat it. Seriously!? He took his first bite... right out of the paper. Then he smiled at me while he chewed it and said "Mmmmm, Mom."

He loves ice cream cones. Particularly the "cone" part. I guess this is not too far off when you think about it that way. How's he supposed to know, right?

(No, I didn't let him eat the entire 2nd wrapper, geez! Just had to snap a picture for posterity.)

I did explain to him which part he was supposed to eat though.

He thoughtfully considered it...

...and then polished off his muffin.

Scatterbrain

scat·ter·brain

somebody incapable of organized thought.

a person regarded as unable to think seriously or systematically or to remember important things.

This morning I opened the fridge to get out the milk so I could make the boys some oatmeal...

...Uh-oh.

I heaved a heavy sigh, turned around, and opened the pantry door.

NICE.

I do stuff like this all the stinkin' time! We ate our oatmeal with water.

Last Thursday we were eating dinner at a diner in our neighborhood. We were sitting outside on the picnic tables, kind of next to the street, when I lost Dominic. I panicked.

Me: "Where's Dom?" (Head wildly spinning in a 360)

"Rich, where's Dom!?

"Dom!?"

"Dominic!"

My friend, Khendra: "Crystal, he's in your lap."

Here's another story for you...

Last Tuesday was a busy day. I had two Dr.'s appointments.

First, Dame's. Then mine.

Lady at the counter of the first appt.: "What's the patient's name?"

Me: "Damon Innes"

Lady: "Uh... this appointment was scheduled for the 21st."

Shocked me: "Oh no, no it wasn't... see? It's right here in my planner on Tuesday, today. (me thrusting my planner in her face... because that's evidence, right?) There must be some mistake."

Lady: "No, no mistake. Dr. So-and-so doesn't even work today. Can we reschedule you for this Thursday?"

Annoyed me: "Well, I guess we're gonna have to."

I was kind of snippy, but geez! It was obviously a mistake on somebody's part and I was peeved. So since we had an hour to kill now that we weren't being seen... I decided to run to Walmart next door to buy a gift sack for a baby shower.

I didn't want to lug my whole purse in, so I just grabbed my wallet and keys. Then... I absentmindedly let Damon play with the keys so he'd stop screeching.

You can guess how this story ends up.

I spent the next HOUR running in and out of the store to make sure my car was still there, and retracing my steps up and down the aisles.

FINALLY, after an hour, someone turned them in at customer service... I guess they needed to finish up with their shopping first.

So... to end the day, I drove from Walmart to my friend's house to drop off the boys so I could go to my second appointment. I loooovvve the dentist... (as much as I love my eyelashes being torn out) ...I go quite often. Ugh.

Anyway, it's a 20 minute drive because when you find a good dentist, you make the trek. I got there, just in the nick of time (spent too much time roaming the aisles in Walmart, I guess) and Lorraine, the receptionist says,

"Oh Crystal! I've been meaning to call you, Sweetie... did you realize that your appointment was on the 21st?"

Seriously!? I scheduled TWO appointments on the wrong day. And now I felt like a complete loser for being all miffed at Damon's receptionist. (who, by the way, slapped a nice $30.00 missed appointment fee on me when I returned Thursday).

Please tell me you've done things like this before.

Sometimes I don't even feel responsible enough to be a mother! Sheesh!

A Shout-Out to the Birthday Boy!

I am so grateful for September 11th.

What!?

Haha... that's Rich's birthday.

His cake was reeeaaallly bright. :)

And I think it may have taken him and Dom 3 blows to conquer the candles.

Thank you, sweet friends, who helped us celebrate the big 32.

You guys are awesome!

Just want to take a second to gush about what an amazing man I've got.

I love that he...

... works tirelessly for our family, even if that means he has to fly all over the world for weeks at a time. ;) He's such a good sport.

... reads to Dominic every night for, like, a half an hour. Every night.

...takes me on dates.

...makes up the words to songs because he can't remember the lyrics.

...tries to help me to be a healthier me. (I'm a tough customer, though.)

...has never lost his temper with me or our boys. Not even once.

... has such a great sense of humor.

... is an eternal optimist.

... likes to play devil's advocate, just for the heck of it.

(Ok... actually, that drives me insane!)

...is so friggin' handsome. :)

... always roots/looks out for the underdog.

... insists that we always have some sort of friendly competition going so that we can "compete" to reach our goals.

... is super-patient with our boys.

... loves his family with all his might.

... belongs to me. :)

Happy Birthday Babe!

(Even though your big day was "stolen from you by the International Dateline". -according to JP)