ch-ch-ch-changes

Dude is exclaiming, often, that his baba is too thick.  This must be good swallowing news.  In celebration we headed out and found a set of 3 big boy baba's (sippy cups) without valves.  With Diago.  Dude is thrilled if a bit messy.

Also bought some big boy underwear.  Not getting the same level of excited response in this department...cries and carries on every time he is trying out the big boy bathroom thing...until yesterday.  

Yesterday he figured out a very important mama rule.  It goes something like this- If I'm in the dreaded Big Boy Bed and I scream "go potty mama" she races over and saves me from that terrible isolation.  If it is bedtime and the big boy bed looms in the future then the potty is LOADS of fun.  For long long periods of time.  With no action but a very positive attitude.

Skipped nap entirely yesterday and spent the whole 90 minutes developing complex language structures.

baby

me baby

no 

no bed

no beeboy 

no beeboy bed

me baby no beeboy bed

kiss mama now pees

mama me baby no beeboy bed mama bed

pees mama? kiss mama. mama bed me baby no beeboy

mama mama mama no no no mama mama mama no no no

And so it went for 90 minutes as I lay 18 inches away on mama's bed.

A bed devoid of all of the comforts he enjoys...

like blankie, quilt and meowmeow and moosie and steamroller

And he lay on a brand new single mattress on my floor 

with all his comfort items and more.

But my bed had mama

Last night and today for nap he was asleep before I put him down.

A cop out for sure.

But he is rested and we are both happier for it.

And for the picture seekers?

In an effort to stay active we dropped in with friends (and no preparation) to the splash pad last evening.

It was a hit.

Last year, for comparisons sake.

Wow, what a whirlwind!

Hard to believe July is over.
We had a GREAT time.

A bit of cottage fun.

New favourite toys

Life changing events

And new  favourite people.

Then a road trip to Ottawa for a weekend of parties and friends and fun.

Before long we were back to the cottage for special time with family.

Fast and furious for the most part

With a side order of frog hunting at Popsicle bridge (the bridge to the marina store)

Relaxing by nana's garden

Paddle boating with his favourite girl

Eating ice cream in the sun and collecting rocks

And swimming.  
Lots and lots of swimming.  
Fast walking towards deep water with mama 1 cm from the wee one.  
Not camera compatible obviously as there are NO pictures.  

Here is one from last year when the water was low and the beach was big and the baby moved slowly...

Slowing things down a bit in August with some home time.
A few errands.
A few newborn babies to visit.

A short cottage visit (well, a week, so not toooo short, hopefully with lower water levels)

And then the back to school rush will start.

Still Devine

Yup
the cottage still rocks
i'll be back some day
but possibly not soon

Cottage Update...photo free, sorry

The cottage devine
tranquil
with big mosquitos that find Ben delicious
really delicious
with grandparents that find Ben delicious
really delicious
and a mama that actually read a novel in 3 days
for the first time
post Ben

one small face first in the surf incident
and now mama stays much much closer
he has no fear
none
but two life jackets
neither was on his wee body during the face first incident however
he was fine
i very nearly died as I watched it happen
just out of arms reach

new crocs keep his tender spoiled toes happy
nothing else will do now
crocs or nothing

long sleeves to protect the boy
from sun and bugs and mountain biking crashes

late nights and late mornings
and long afternoon naps

row boat trips for icecream
propelled by gramps

so picture my little croc'ed boy
digging in the sand
riding his strider over cottage paths
swimming about in freshwater (fuly life jacketed of course)
finding great joy in climbing mama
and effectively submerging me
over and over again
giggling with joy

endless storybooks
endless trucks and tractors
and a brand new very precious steam roller
that stays with hime, clutched tightly even as he sleeps

we are having fun.

A life of leisure-sort of

We've been here and there and everywhere this first week of summer.

A whole lot of this

Some of this

Dinner at our favourite Pho place in my fancy new shirt 

(Thanks Macy, the waitresses loved it!)

Dude LOVES spring rolls (or steamrollers as he calls them)

Then it was off to the lake for some of this

And a bit of this

And now?  We are home.

Yesterday a miracle occured and the man now has his SIN number and OHIP in his Canadian name.

2 offices 

one provincial and one federal

opposite ends of the city

done by 9:40

I wanted to dance a jig

Then came the hair cut which caused much anguish and then a sour mood that lasted for over an hour

Some play time once the anguish passed

And today we pack for the cottage.

We'll be back...eventually.

Sooooo hot...

I'm hot.
Dude is hot too.
He sweats in mid winter while sleeping without a blanket.
Now he loses his body weight in sweat every hour all day and all night long.
And he is feeling cranky.
And cranky hot boys like to play spider monkey.
Wrap themselves around mama day and night.
And the rash?  oy, the rash.
Is it the heat? The chlorine? Both? Neither?
Oh, and he isn't eating.
Anything.
Yesterday?
1/2 banana, 1/2 pint blueberries and a handful of noodles.
Today for breakfast 2 blueberries and 2 pieces of life cereal.
Make that 4, of each, he's still working on it.

In happy less cranky news....
It is summer.  Summer is hot. But school is out.
I don't have to go anywhere or do anything if I don't want to.
I am heading home today to an efficient air conditioner and a neighbourhood DQ.
I spoke to an efficient government employee yesterday.
Tomorrow Ben and I head out to start changing his I.D. to his Canadian name.
Dude has a pediatric derm appointment Sept 14th...
so we may get answers to the never ending rash issues.

Home today for a couple days,
to the cottage,
to Ottawa for fun fun fun
and then back to the cottage for a couple more weeks
then maybe home again?
Sometime in August?
A life of leisure.

My life,
wrapped in a sweaty but so lovable spider monkey.

Rushing into summer

So So So happy that summer is here.

Time with my sweet boy.

Time to let him sleep when he is tired

and time to lounge at the park for 2 hours 

instead of eating dinner

if that is what we feel like doing.

No rush to accomplish anything.

We're late?  For what?

Time for tickles in the grass 

and giggling along with Toopy and Binoo 

at 10:30pm after Canada Day fireworks.

Time for extra bed time snuggs

Extra books

Extra cars and trains and trucks and boats and excavators

Time to visit our favourite people all over everywhere.

May not be much time for blogging...

Some of our favourite places don't have internet.

And computers and sand don't belong together.

I'll pop in from time to time.

But we might be busy hanging at the beach

 (circa 2009)

or jumping in a puddle

or fearlessly climbing to new heights

But we will be thinking of you

and wishing you love and joy each night before we go to bed.

And if you happen to reside in one of our summer destinations

we look forward to wishing you love and joy in person.