themes

 There seems to be a few themes to characterize our life & they were pretty obvious this week.
First, FUN is always here when Anderson is involved!

 Speaking of fun, if you're looking for some, you should become a high school teacher. I randomly had a student "pie" my face as part of a fundraiser some of my awesome kids are doing to send money to kids in Haiti. Do not let people trick you into thinking teenagers are bad people. They are unselfish, caring, intelligent, funny and generally, some of the best people I know (even when they are shoving pie in my face). Hi, Maribeth!!

Second, (really, I guess it is first) is CONSTRUCTION/TRUCKS, which I know surprises everyone. Anderson was allowing me to play with the one bobcat while he kept the rest of them. He is very particular now about his bobcats having tracks instead of wheels. Such an expert.

The third theme (could also be first) is CHEAP or free or "How can I possibly make money from this?" We went to the YMCA Healthy Kids Day and lived. it. up. There were 4 inflatables, a helicopter, all kinds of free activities, lunch (hamburgers, hotdogs, chips, drinks...healthy stuff), Pull Ups giveaways & Anderson got a free bike helmet with GREEN BUGS!

"Green truck with black wheels" he told us.

Rockstar with the hula hoop. Again, yet another sign he is not my kid. I am terrible.

Random pool with bird seed for them to dump around-why do kids love to dump & pour stuff so much?

Diaper Derby. Anderson took his  race very seriously. He "ran very, very fast" he told us. I thought only the winners got free pull ups so I bribed him to win. Turns out everyone won pull ups or diapers, though. They gave away diapers! What on earth. 

 
Fourth is FAMILY. Always. Lunch picnic. Love my mom for not just following along but ENJOYING herself in the heat! Love hang out time with her. 

Brandon was not with us because he had to work the International Festival downtown so we went to visit him, too. I swear it is just a matter of time before he realizes how Bad A. is dad is.

Another theme could be "Green". Having a green Italian ice at the street fair. 

Final stop of Sat was "Spring Sample" day at Sams. We had free lunch so we tried to work in the free dinner, too. Anderson is chowing on an ice cream sample, but my favorite was the lens wipe samples! It was like the day was made for us.

BFFs. Bop & his buddy.

I had to chaperone prom & B was working, so GG came over to hang out with Anderson. (Yes, I know I am so beyond lucky to have such loving grandparents so close!)

Final theme is JACK! Lots of hang out times with the BFF. Please check out their first meeting when we were both pregnant!

 Last year at Jack's birthday!

 This year!

 Hide & seek in the Brimer backyard. There is also a pretty epic swingset back there but somehow I missed getting a pic of it. No worries, more to come!

Jackman is 2!! I love that he (and his mom) live so close to us and that I get to be such a big part of his life. It is so, so cool to watch him as he grows up!

my boy & my closet.

 So precious. So innocent with his little face sans glasses/patch. So misleading.

I will tell you that it is a darn good thing he is so cute because he would sure be difficult to live with if he wasn't. We are having some sleep issues. (I think they are issues, maybe it is normal? People with 2 year olds, tell me if this is normal!)

Anderson has never been a great sleeper. He just does not need a lot of sleep & has genuinely been much more interested in playing construction, running around, yelling loudly, etc. instead of sleeping. (This goes for his lack of interest in eating, too). I can count the times he has ever slept close to 7 in his life on one hand. All of this is fine because I am honestly just used to it. I mean, this is  being a parent, right? But, the frustrating thing is that he has stopped sleeping straight through the night,stopped napping & doesn't go to bed until at least 8:30 despite getting up at 5:30. I clearly lived in a naive bubble because I didn't realize napping stopped so early. He definitely still needs one, but letting him take one means him staying up until even later at night because he is not as tired. If you are one of the lucky ones who still has naptime, cling to it with all of your might!

So, back to the waking up at night thing, for about the last 6 weeks Anderson has just randomly been waking up during the night. And standing at his door. And screaming. And banging. For an hour or so.  (Remember, we lock him in at night. Responsible parenting.) We didn't sleep at all ignored it for awhile and then he slept in our room on the cruise so we got a solid 10-5 sleep. But, now we've been back for a month now and he has not slept through an entire night once. My only conclusion is sympathy pains for Stella who was born a month ago.

The above pic is an attempt to capture my new bed in the closet. I have blankets & pillows in there because I move in there after he wakes up so I can try not to hear him because it heart breaking. I tried to go in & check on him, lay with him until he fell asleep, bought him a nightlight, tractor pillow, blankets, a fan, stuffed animals, etc. We started making him cry it out the day he turned 12 weeks old and it was just as hard then as it is now. I am seriously committed to not going in there to see if the situation improves.It is so heartbreaking & I know there are people who judge this and I am totally jealous. Because, if you have time to judge me that must mean you are rested so your kid is obviously sleeping.

The 5am wake up call is just a part of parenting, but the middle of the night wake up calls are not normal for a 2 year old, I don't think. I know Lily is not a good sleeper either. What is in our genes?I am lucky I have Nicole who also has a non sleeper because we can discuss how the worst part of the non sleeping is not us being tired or the kids being exhausted but the extra hours to try to entertain them. That might sound terrible, but tonight when you are putting your kid to bed imagine that you actually have 3-5 extra hours to stay awake with them. Then, we will chat. I'm not even bringing up the patch, you'll notice. Maybe just a a little bit. 

My favorite suggestion is to "Wear him out. " Ahem. My kid is awake for almost 16 hours a day, does not watch TV & is constantly on the move. Nothing left to do there.

Anyway, I just wanted to document this so one glorious day in 10 years when he sleeps until 7:15 or so I can be reminded of who he was at this point. I like to document things. I am a nerd.

nephews.

Not sure how old this pic is, how CUTE were my nephews??

 We went to BHam for Kyler's Confirmation & got to spend some time with Uncle Zack,Aunt Manda, Kyler & Noah. It was so fun, as usual. I don't actually have pics of the confirmation, but I will get those on here as soon as I get them from Amanda! Brandon was Kyler's sponsor & we were so happy to be there as a part of Kyler's special day. My nephews are so awesome and are quickly becoming such grown ups. It is crazy to think back on when they were so little & we used to fight over holding Kyler and we always cracked up (still do) at Noah!

My parents, because they are awesome, kept the girls for us. This is a HUGE undertaking because they are not what you would call "well behaved" or "quiet" or "worth it" (kidding sort of). Look at my kids in the window that morning.

Going to Bham is sort of like a vacation for me because Zack & Amanda spoil Anderson, genuinely want to hang out with & basically let us take over their house & eat all of their food. I LOVE his face in this pic.

They made a trailer for him. Legit.

Love Aunt Manda who had green juiceboxes waiting for him!

Just climbing some rocks with Uncle Zack.

The chores have to be done, vacation or not.

Best shot I could get of the Pirate Lacrosse players! My kid should be their mascot. He is a real pirate (right eye & everything) & has an orange lacrosse shirt. The plan was to get a pic with the actual lacrosse players (Kyler & Noah), but we somehow missed that step.

First lacrosse lesson.

The trucks go everywhere with us.

The only shot I have of Izzy. It's not the best of either one of them. Noah made green rice krispies (did I spell that right?) treats for Anderson. So sweet.

Big Cousin Noah.

Found a playground at Kyler's lacrosse game.

During the Confirmation Zack took Anderson out of the mass & sent me this pic titled, "Kid Party". Apparently Anderson was making friends & telling them about the bobcat. Speaking of, we left the bobcat & dump truck there. Ouch. Amanda sent me a text that said, "You're going to be in trouble." She was right. Of all things to forget, the bobcat is up there with purse or wallet or oxygen.

projects & Yiwwy.

 Brandon & Jpa built Anderson a sandbox! Quite possibly the most legit sandbox you have ever seen to be exact. It is huge and has this awesome ledge/seat thing all the way around it. I know for a fact I am going to be covered in sand for the better part of the next few months. When Brandon told me he was building one, I was not expecting anything this huge, but Brandon does not play around!

Jack came by to give his approval to the project. Anderson somehow lost his pants along the way. This is a common occurrence around here. 

The building of The Sandbox. Anderson & I were massively helpful. As usual, of course.

Curtis did this awesome mural at a pub in the Old City. He painted this entire thing. This does not do it justice because it is a picture of a picture, but at least you get a little of the idea.

Bop was the entertainment (Balloon man) at a festival on Market Square & Anderson made sure everyone knew what their options were: green, red, blue, etc. These are the kinds of field trips he takes while at NoniBop's. Just a little spoiled.

 He also made a craft where he got to pick out green moons! Heaven for a certain Bug.

 The Farragut Book Fest! Anderson's favorite book is "Where the Wild Things Are", hence the monster pajamas. Clare gave it to him when we found out he was a boy and he loves to read it. The other day he did ask me where his (Max's) Bobble was when he came home to find the bowl of food waiting for him. He was very concerned. I might have to draw her in there. Or, get Curtis to.

 Doctor Lily applying a band aid to Anderson's leg. At this point we had pretty much taken over the entire sidewalk.

 Storytime. Our kids were clearly really into it. There was a bounce house, crafts and snacks, so sitting on a carpet listening to a story didn't really do it for them.

 Speaking of Bounce House...

 Best day with Bobble Cole. Always.

 And, sometimes best day with Bobble.

 Jumping on the couch.

S'mores! Let summer begin:)

Not an exciting video at all. But, aren't the random moments the real moments?