The Balloon vs. the Stroller

 Yesterday I took Maximus to one of our favorite outdoor malls. Rob had been out of town and wasn't coming home until late last night so I thought it would be fun to get out. Plus, I wanted to go check out some dishes that I saw online at Crate & Barrel. The weather has been so nice here lately, high 70's, low 80's.

  

So, I put Maixmus in the umbrella stroller that I purchased the other day. It works great to have something compact for those short little jaunts. But, it wasn't too long before he got restless and wanted OUT! I tried holding him, but he wasn't into that either. Nope! He wanted to check out the stroller for himself.

 

 

Actually, he wanted to push it by himself. I thought perhaps the balloon would occupy his attention...

 

 

it did for about a minute, until he decided that having too hands free would be the most effective way to manuever his new toy.

 

If I would have let him, we'd probably still be there.

 

Here's a little video of him in action.

 

Linking up with Nancy's Photo Show & Tell post over at Small Things With Love.
 

Happy day!

hi-d

 

They Come in ALL Sizes

Would you believe it if I told you that the boy on the left is 20 months old?


This photo was taken at the playground the day that Maximus turned 19 months. The father of this very tall child was telling us that he is OFF the growth charts. Keep in mind that Maximus is pretty small for his age, but WOW!!! That's about all I can say when looking at this.


Happy day!
hi-d

 



19 Months

M turned 19 months old on September 7th, and I am FINALLY getting around to posting this photo of him. On the 7th, the three of us went out for Italian food for our Wedding Anniversary. Afterwards, we stopped by the playground where he swims to let him have some fun.


Speaking of swimming...we are in the middle of our third round of lessons. Our teacher is the best! It's more than just singing songs and splashing in the water. Maximus is doing great - blows bubbles, splashes, kicks and goes under water.  We use all sorts of flotation devices such as kick boards, noodles, dumbbell looking things and life jackets. He loves it when he gets to wear a life jacket and float around on his back. He's so relaxed and looks like he's going to fall asleep. M gets the chance to sit on the side of the pool and jump into the water. He doesn't actually jump...I just reach up and pull him into the water. He enjoys it though! We also get to play with plastic balls. Our teacher encourages the kids to throw the ball and then reach and pull with their arms, to mimic swimming strokes. He is able to go under the water and does well, although sometimes he doesn't want to. He gets a big grin when he's tossed up into the air and caught on the way down.


Lately when Maximus wakes up he wants to go sit on my glider. He's able to climb up into it...usually using the footstool for a boost. He will sit there and rock like crazy, listening to music playing on the iPod next to the chair. If he doesn't like a song, he'll point and grunt to get me to skip to the next song, and the next song, and so on...He is content when Bobby Darin plays on slacker.com. We play a variety of different music for him. He is really into some of the cool/hip Christian music, such as tobyMac. And on occasion he will raise his hand, like we do in church when we're singing. It is the sweetest thing to watch!


He continues to say more and more words or repeat things that we say. I don't always remember to write them down, so some of these he's been saying a long time and others are newer.
He says:
knee, hat, up, in
bow = boat
rah = cross (he recognizes crosses and points to them all the time)
Caw-co = Costco
I-dee = pretty sure that's Heidi (ME)
If we go over a big bump or railroad tracks he usually says, "wee."
When he swings, he oftentimes says, "wee...wee."
The other day he repeated "pizza."


If we're laughing pretty hard or he overhears a conversation with lots of laughter, he does this fake laugh. It's hilarious...definitely a forced laugh, but he has a good sense of humor. He also gets going with a fake cough sometimes.


He's becoming increasingly more affectionate and cuddly. I love rocking him in the chair as well as dancing with him. It's so sweet when Rob asks M for a hug and kiss and Maximus puts his head on Rob's shoulder and wraps his arms around him and gives him a kiss.


When it comes to bedtime, M doesn't cry as often as he used to. In fact, lately he welcomes it and will ask to go "nigh nigh" (night night).


In the evenings after dinner, M likes to run around and play with his toys. One of Maximus' favorite things to do is sit on Papa's lap at the computer and watch music videos on YouTube. They both enjoy moving and drumming to the beat of the music. Maximus will get bouncing up and down like a wild man. We don't let M watch TV...but there are those rare occasions when the TV is on and he's around.


My niece is due in about a month. She's going to have a baby girl and I am so excited to see how Maximus reacts. He's very interested in babies.


I could go on and on...I never tire talking about this little guy. He is our pride & joy!


I hope you're all having a good start to a new week. Thanks so much for all of your sweet comments lately. I hope to be back blogging a little bit more regularly...even if it's just a quick, short post. And, I hope to be visiting you soon as well!



Happy day!
hi-d
 

Chickens

 "Maximus, do I REALLY have to go see the chickens?"

 

"I mean, I don't even know these guys. You think that just because I'm a chicken I'm related to them?"

 

 

"Oh, Maximus...Save me! I'm having flashbacks of when I flew the coop!"

 

"AAAHHHHHKKKK!!!" (gasp)

 

  "Hey Gertrude, I think we found one of those kooky chickens over here."

 

 

Happy day!

hi-d

  

p.s. I am linking up with Nancy over at Small Things with Love. This week the link party involves a photo show and tell that is "animal" themed. Come check out the other participants here.

 

My New Favorite Sandwich

Rob discovered this recipe online recently, and since then I've had it a few times. I tried to see if I could find the video recipe online, but couldn't find it. I'll see about posting it if we can track it down.

  

Anyway...It consists of toasted bread, a nice thick layer of goat cheese, mixed with a bit of heavy cream, topped with a little salt, pepper, fresh figs, balsamic vinegar and peppermint. (I used spearmint here.) And yes...I took a VERY large bite before snapping this photo. It has so many different flavors and textures going on - sweet, salty, tangy, creamy, crunchy, and just plain YUM!

  

How was your weekend? We enjoyed a get together on Saturday night with some of Rob's co-workers. And I met the cutest Italian Grandma in the world that didn't speak English. I could have listened to her speak Italian all night! Sunday we spent the day with Rob's family and celebrated my Birthday, which is on Wednesday. It was a fun weekend.

  

I am so behind on my little updates and photos of Maximus and just blogging in general. There are so many things I want to blog about, but it's been nice as well to take a break. I hope to be back soon with more posts and to visit you!

 

 

Happy day!

hi-d

 

16 Years

Today marks 16 years of marriage to this handsome guy!

 

Happy Anniversary Rob!

 

It's interesting to look at where God has taken us and continues to take us in our lives together. And one of the biggest blessings He has given us is our little guy that turns 19 months old today!

 

 

I love you both!

hi-d

Summer Still Lives

 

photo: Taken at Al's Garden Center earlier in June

 

Most people have declared summer is over, but I just wanted to clarify that it "officially" ends September 21st. (At least for us in the Northern Hemisphere).

 

 

I realize that the day after Labor Day and the starting of the school year gives way to feelings that summer is behind us, but let's not cut it short!

 

 

Nope...I'm NOT ready for it to end. We are having beautiful weather in our neck of the woods. How about you? My flowers are still blooming and the sun has been shining for a couple of months now.

 

 

Join with me! Let's protest Fall, until midnight on 9/21/12.

 

 

Happy day!

hi-d