Kids Say the Darndest Things...

On Saturday morning Drew was in the bathroom... well watching me go.  (Anyone with young kids knows there's no such thing as privacy).  That's when we had this - shall we say "interesting" conversation.

Drew:  Do you have an ookiepook? (Drew's term for his male parts)
Me: I don't know, do I have an ookiepook? 
Drew: No, you pee out of your butt.

That's one way to look at it I guess...

For the record, I didn't correct him.  I didn't know how to respond to that one.

Birthday Party - For Grammy

On Friday night we headed over to Aunt Connie's house for a belated birthday party for Grammy and her cousin Lori (yes that makes her my cousin too) who came to California to celebrate her 50th.

L-R: Grammy, Kady, Lori

It was an awesome dinner - as it always is when Aunt Connie and Uncle Doug do the cooking, but of course there was dessert.

Look at all of those candles!!  On one side, there were five - for Lori turning 50.  The other side there were seven... for Grammy turning... errr.... uh.... 45? HAHA

It's always nice seeing family from out of town - especially when you haven't seen them in more than 20 years.

Wine Tasting Continues

You can't have a kid free day, be in Napa, and do the Wine Train without hitting a few more wineries afterward. 

During the orientation part of our Wine Train tour, we tasted a fantastic Pinot Grigio from a winery called Mason Cellars - which was new to us.  And we realized it was right around the corner from the train depot.  So we hit that up first - amazing.  Both the wines and the fact it was free tasting... in Napa.  (I didn't think there were any left).

Afterward we went to Chimney Rock - where we split a $20 tasting.  Great wines, but for a minimum of $60/bottle, it's a little out of our price range.

And the funny story at this winery... we tried and tried to pay for our overpriced tasting, but no one would take our money.  After waiting about 10-15 minutes we decided to take off (yes without paying... we tried doesn't that count) and hit up another winery.  Time was running out after all - the wineries all close at 5pm and it was 4:45.  Time was of the essence.

So then we went next door to Clos du Val and had a MUCH better experience!  Less snobby.

Here's a shot of that winery - their front door is magnificant, and all the ivy.  Very wine country-ish.

It was such a beautiful day - wonderful weather, good company and great wines.

All Aboard!

Wow - what more can I say about the Napa Wine Train, but WOW!

We finally used the gift certificate we got at Christmas - yes I know it's September, and Christmas is around the corner again - and Grammy and GrampC kept Drew overnight so Dave and I could enjoy the afternoon in Napa.  We did the Gourmet Lunch option - late serving.  Therefore we were able to take in the sights, enjoy a glass of wine before having our meal.  And boy did we take full advantage!

The above photo is the one taken by the good folks at the Wine Train and then I snapped a photo of it with my phone.

Walking to our car - we were in the caboose for the first part of our journey.

And then the festivities begin!

Very fancy hors d'oeuvres. 

And then we ventured outside - literally hanging onto the "caboose". 

Afterward we went up 7 cars (one shy of the front) and hit up the wine bar for some wine sampling.  My personal favorite the Green and Red Zin.

A short time later it was time later we headed back for the most amazing lunch - Dave had super tender pork tenderloin, and I had the special of the day - swordfish.  It was too good not to share - so we each had half of both.

We did the same with dessert - creme brule and tiramasu (which was the most unusual yet delicious version I've ever had).  Our waiter snapped this picture after we totally stuffed our faces.

Absolutely a wonderful trip!  Very sweet and romantic - and yet Dave we made friends with several other riders.  So when can we do this again?

Minnesota Wrap-up

I admit to being a blogging slacker this past week.  I'll improve next week I promise!  Now to finally give you the real pictures of our trip to Minnesota - and the entire scoop.

Last Thursday we landed in Minnesota - but not without a little drama on the first leg of our trip.  The turbulence was pretty bad and Drew screamed for the last 15 minutes and puked all over himself moments after reaching the gate.  That was fun. 

The rest of the trip was uneventful except for my hacking - caused by my allergy/sinus problems.  One of the ladies sitting next to me even asked "How sick are you"?  Dude really?  Where are you gonna go on this full flight - it's just allergies!! I promise.

The Lady on the Moon and her husband, otherwise known as longtime family friends Steve and Kathy picked us up at the airport and brought us home to chat and have dinner.  Kathy was so sweet she handed me a glass of wine, some claritin and said sit back and relax.  She was happily entertaining Drew - I think she's just waiting for when her own Granddaughter is old enough to do the same.

On Friday I felt so miserable after staying up coughing all night that I was one unhappy Mama.  I kind of flaked on a friend who came out to see us and do something during the day in hopes that some newly found drugs and a quick nap will help me make it through the evening.  So we showed up - albeit late - to meet her and her family for dinner and a Twins Game!

Some of our gang....
Front: Drew, Kacia, Ryan, Jodi

On Saturday, we did the family hop around the Twin Cities.  I was horrible taking pictures!! During the afternoon we went to see Uncle Mike and a few of my cousins and their kids (one of my cousins I haven't seen in 10 years, nor ever met his daughter).  Here's the only shot I took all of Saturday with Uncle Mike (my Mom's brother).

That evening we headed over to my Aunt Ardy's house to see that side of the family (she's my Grandma's sister) and saw all my cousins most I haven't seen in too many years to fathom!  I was too busy visiting to ever pull out my camera, but Drew was a fairly good kid that evening despite going on his 3rd day in a row with a nap no longer than 20 minutes.

Sunday we went to breakfast with Jodi and Lauren (photos are in the previous blog) and then that afternoon we met up with my longtime best friend Chrissy and her family.  We met up at a park in Bloomington and took the boys for a walk and some playground time.  Funny - I manged to snap a ton of shots this time (it helps when you're hanging with a fellow blogger ;))

 

 

Drew, Aaron, Mitchell, Jake (I think I've got the right order for the last two... I can't tell from behind)

 L-R: Chrissy, Matt, Mitchell, Jake (again I can't tell from behind but I think I have them in the right order), Drew, Dave

The boys were having a blast stick hunting and then throwing them into the creek.

Chrissy and I after dinner.

While this trip was awfully fast, and I was miserable with this allergy/sinus thing, I'm thrilled we went and we had an absolute great time.  Hopefully next trip we'll be able to stay out there longer than just a long weekend.

And I'm happy to report the flight home was very quiet and mellow.

What's up Charlie?

So things are pretty hectic and I haven't had a chance to update the blog. I got back late last night from an overnight trip to Houston. I went to the doctor today to get treatment for this 3 week long sinus infection and I write this from CVS.

So back to updates on the trip to Minnesota. On Sunday morning after waking up we joined Jodi and her daughter Lauren and her boyfriend for breakfast in Woodbury. I have to say we had the worlds best French Toast!

After a brief meltdown fe Drew we wrapped up breakfast and walked outside the strip mall where it is located and saw some familiar characters.




That's right. Drew's giving Charlie Brown a high five. There were several characters outside the restaurant. Dre had fun saying hi to all of the Peanuts gang.

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Minnesota Madness

Well it's been a few days since you've heard from us. That's because we had a whirlwind visit to Minnesota. The reason for the trip - to see the new Twins ballpark for it's inaugural season.



After a little drama in getting to the park and a few wrong turns we finally met up with my friend Kacia and her son Ryan. The boys needed some warming up and then they turned into hams.







Unfortunately for us, the Twins lost to the A's.

More updates as I get a chance to post. I'm on part two of my traveling fiasco - trying to make my way to Houston for work.

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Location:E Sky Harbor Blvd,Phoenix,United States

He's Normal... Or So the Dr. Says....

Drew had his 3 year old well check yesterday afternoon... diagnosis... he's normal.  Well for a 3 year old anyway.

The nurse took his measurements... he's:

• Height: 36" (20th percentile)
• Weight: 28 lbs (18th percentile)

That's an increase of about 2 1/2"and nearly 5 lbs since his 2 year visit.  Just look at his "guns"...

He was a peach during this visit!  No more screaming and panic attacks the moment we pull into the driveway.  I prepped him that they just wanted to see how much he's grown, how much he weighs and whether he's growing any potatoes in his ear.  He saw the same doctor who dealt with his burns more than a year ago.  It could be he looked at the chart, but boy did the Doctor remember the drama and fears surrounding that visit - he kept talking about not wanting to traumatize Drew for this or that... and he was so glad his hands have healed well.  (This doctor is rather young - I think we traumatized him as much as Drew was).

The things to note:

• Potty Training Regression - Doctor wasn't concerned.  Figured there was a lot going on for him and it'll pass
• Night Terrors - he absolutely thought these were Night Terrors and not nightmares.  He suggested because they often happen the same time every night we set our alarms for about 2am and wake Drew up and keep him up for about 5-10 minutes for a few consecutive nights to try and get this to pass.  By interrupting his sleep he thought we might be able to get past this stage
• Doctor was very impressed Drew could spell his name.
• Slightly concerned because Drew won't pedal a bike yet

Overall it was a great and fairly drama-free visit.  He did get his first of 2 flu vaccines (he has to have 2 because we opted not to do the H1N1 vax last year).  Drew didn't even cry!  Only whined an "ow".

"I Survived"

Ok no pictures of this "torture" session - otherwise known as swim lessons.  But on Monday Drew had his first solo swim lessons thanks to a ridiculously great deal I found on a Groupon.  When I made the appointment more than a month ago they said they had Monday evenings open (as well as some other inconvenient time for us/me).  So he was signed up in the Preschool class - since he turned 3 the day before.

All day he was pretty excited to go to swim lessons.  Even while we were waiting for our session, Drew kept talking about how he wanted to swim.

Then his time came to get in the pool.

Lets just say for the 30 minute class, he screamed - hysterically - for half of the session.  They ended up having to bring some reinforcement teachers in because Drew was demanding all of her attention while the other kids were sitting on the stairs waiting.  It was horrible. The whole while I have the Director of the program telling me we may need to consider moving him with the babies - as in 12 months or less class where parents are in the pool. 

Finally one of the reinforcement teachers took her turn with Drew and he finally stopped crying, although the hiccup effect you get from crying that hard and long stuck around for a bit.  Eventually he started playing with the water toys and let the teachers bring him off of the pool steps.

Funny thing is after the class was over, Drew said he wanted to go back in next week! 

As he and I were in the locker room, I was telling him "See you survived.  It wasn't all that bad right? Why did you cry".  Drew's response "I was scared".

After he was dressed and we greeted Dave in the hallway, Drew said "I survived" and gave Dave a great big hug.

Birthday Celebrations Continue

Sunday was Drew's official birthday and he was able to celebrate by starting his first day of Sunday School!  At our church we have Preschool - Kindergarten in one class - so it's quite an age spread.  For the 3-year olds they require a parent to be there with him.

It being Drew's Birthday and all, both Dave and I wanted to see how this Sunday School thing works. I of course went through Sunday School until I began working weekends in High School, Dave never attended.  So it would be new to him, and he wanted to see the routine and everything. 

Drew was Mr. Bashful and wouldn't participate much - especially when they realized it was his birthday.  He was asked to go first for everything (duck, duck goose).  He finally warmed up a bit and helped carry the garbage can around with Ms. Barb when it was time to clean up from snack.

After church (yes Sunday School is before services) they had a "Rally Day" to celebrate the start of Sunday School.  Drew's favorite game... the water balloon toss!

Of course Drew wasn't much into the "tossing" part as much as just throw as many water balloons on the lawn as you can.  Eventually I had to give him a Time Out from the balloon toss so the other kids had balloons to play with.  But not before some other kid nailed a balloon right under my skirt... nice.  I had a wet butt the rest of the afternoon.

Daddy was playing too - his partner.  Pastor.  See how "not-so-innocent" he looks?

After the toss - this is what Pastor looked like...

OK admittedly this was not caused by my husband, but all the older kids who were playing and saved their balloons to soak him.  But it's not like Dave came to his rescue or anything hehe.

Afterward we headed home, changed and made our way to Livermore to pick up a few of our wine shipments and to give Drew the opportunity to see his favorite "spinners"!  We didn't taste except at the final winery where we needed to determine what we wanted in our shipment.  I mean you can't go to wine country without tasting at least a little bit... right?

For dinner Drew had his 2nd favorite meal (next to chicken and french fries which of course tops his list) and had pizza. He was quite proud to go with me to pick it up too .

So it was a wonderful birthday for our little sweetie who loved telling anyone who would listen that it was his birthday and that he was 3 - while he proudly displayed 3 fingers. 

Turning 3 - The Party

It was a big weekend in our household... not only did a certain little guy turn 3, but he also had a party in his honor!

If you couldn't tell  - it was a Hot Wheels Themed Party.  It was either that or "spinners" and well a windmill themed party wouldn't be so easy to coordinate - so, yes I took the easy way out.

For a second year we attempted  to have it at the Park (last year it rained and we went with plan B at the house).  This year we had a minor panic attack when we realized Memorial Park was so renamed in honor of the 9/11 victims (one who was from our town).  Um, our party was planned on the 9th anniversary of the attacks.... YIKES.

Thankfully the memorials were moved a few cities up, so we lucked out with our park day.  Drew had a great time!!  And it seemed most everyone else did too - despite it being a little warm.

Singing Happy Birthday....

Blowing out his candles...

The Guests...

(The softball crew and their kids - well some of them)

The Family - L-R: Grammy, GG, Uncle Doug, Aunt Connie

GrampC, Uncle Matt & Cousin Kady (she was in love with the sand box)

As well as the party favors and cake!

Of course the big hit was the presents!  Everyone wants to help open them.

L-R: Grammy, Mason, Adrina, Drew, Troy

L-R: Grammy Mason, Troy, Elijah, Drew

One of the big hits this year - the states puzzle
L-R: Me, Grammy, Mason, Adrina, Drew, Troy

The other big hit... the Math Mat.  Drew LOVES anything where he learns through fun.
L-R: Troy, Drew, Mason

Despite the heat, it was an awesome day and Drew couldn't stop talking about it - he literally had dreams about it that night... we can tell because of his sleep talking.

Mommy's Birthday Letter to Drew - Age 3

Punkin',

How many more years am I going to get away with calling you Punkin' or sweetheart or baby boy.  You're now three years old and more independent than ever - hardly what I'd call a baby.  But you'll always be my baby boy - whether you're 3 or 33.

Three years ago today I met you for the first time.  Now I can hardly remember when you weren't a part of my life - it's like you've always been there.  Perhaps it's because life didn't mean as much until I became your mom or that you've always been a part of my life - just not in the physical sense.  It's like life was preparing me for these very moments - the moments where you're a part of my everyday existence.

Where do I begin with how much you've changed in the past year?  The biggest milestone in the past 12-months was hands down, potty training.  You were a rockstar (even though we're experiencing a few hiccups recently).  But when you have a goal - you go after it.  I like to think you inherited that from me.

You're developing quite the personality and it's wonderful to have regular conversations with you about how your day was, what you did, about the friends you played with.  I know beginning preschool is just the beginning to a great foundation in your life.  I'm honored to watch it play out, hold your hand along the way and get a few hugs as well (at least while it's still cool to do in front of your friends).

So what have you taught me in the past year?  Where do I begin?

• Sleep is over-rated.  Who needs sleep when your child is in the throws of a nightmare.
• Nothing can calm you down from those nightmares other than just holding and laying with you until  you fall back to sleep.
• You are so much your Daddy.  I'm in awe to see just how much you look up to him.  (I'm still trying to figure out whether all the traits you've picked up from him are a good thing or a bad thing).
• "What the Turtle?" - there are ways to disguise potty mouth
• Sometimes timeouts don't work and spanking is required - although it hardly hurts anything but your pride. 
• It is possible to survive the terrible 2's!!
• Some of the sweetest moments with you, are when we're laying in bed at night, and you grab my hand and hold it.
• The only way to end the "Why?" game is to ask the question back to you and have you figure out an answer
• It's ok to make up our own rules to games like Memory and Elefun
• There is no such thing as "Mommy Time". Everything is done on "Drew Time" including getting ready in the morning and getting in/out of the car
• You can test my patience like nobody's business, but yet when you see I'm sad or mad you do everything in your power to make me laugh at you and "be happy".  Our happiness is important to you.
• You're a sleep talker and the things you dream about are quite entertaining! 
• Flashcards can be fun.  So many times you'd prefer that to any toy in the house.
• While you may be more independent, you still like to know that Mommy's around just in case you need something

Everyday is a wonderful adventure with you.  Well, some adventures are more... shall we say challenging... but overall it's a great ride. One of the things I'm most proud of in life, is being  your Mom.  I look forward to the next year to see how much more you'll grow, learn and develop into my handsome "baby" boy.

Love you Always,
Mommy

Another Late Night

Oh man the past week has been a bear!  Since coming back from camping I've been battling a sinus issue - not quite an infection, but a pain in my rear none the less.  So I had only 3 hours of sleep on Wednesday night.  That lead into a long tough day at work, only to rush home to get Drew and head to Concord to meet my parents and siblings and their families for a chaotic evening.

Imagine 11 people in one room trying to snap professional photos!  Whew!  Here's a preview of what we captured....

Sorry the pictures aren't the full sized... these are just the thumbnails from the CD.  And I'm not sharing with you the 'real' photos until I have time to sort through them.

Mr Cheese-face (as seen in this blog header) was Mr. No-Smile tonight.  He refused to smile!  We've never seen that happen... so that lead to a lot of tickles from us to try and get him to cooperate. 

All the fun and chaos... was for Grammy's birthday present.  For years she's wanted an updated family photo - the last one was circa 1991.  So nearly 20 years!  I'd say we've changed a bit.....

OK time to get back to the cupcake baking.  Drew needs to bring something to school tomorrow to celebrate his birthday.... *yawn*.  Needless to say it was another late night.