Blatant Mommy Bragging

So, Zac has been reading for a while now.

Well, he's been *able* to read for a while now. But it's mostly been forced by me. I didn't necessarily teach him to read, but once I knew he could, I definitely *encouraged* it on a very regular basis. Like, if he wants a book before bed, he has to read one to me, too. The teacher in me gets SO excited for him. I used to try and show off his talent, but he learned quick to play dumb and I looked crazy claiming that my barely 3-year-old child could read. So, we keep it under wraps for the most part.


I think if Zachariah was able to pick a super-power, reading at a young age would have been really really really far down on the list.


Since I've been sick for the last couple of months, I've totally dropped the ball on anything academic. No "homework" from Mommy. No Bob books. No workbooks or writing. He didn't even write Christmas thank-you notes. I was unsure if he even knew how to spell his name anymore.


Yet, all of a sudden, his reading has totally taken off! He loves it now! And he's not really having to sound things out - he can do it in his head and read the word! He has been reading signs while I'm driving and puzzles we've done together - even some words I am typing.

We went to a curriculum fair this morning, and we were talking to a potential teacher for next year. She had her daily schedule posted and she was showing me what they did during the class time. Zac glances over at her neatly typed schedule says, "Oh good. We have free play."

That's my boy!

We do a lot of puzzles and video games

Interviewing ZZ this morning:

1.What is something mom always says to you?
Be kind to people

2. What makes mom happy?
When I be good to people.

3. What makes mom sad?
When I’m disobeying.

(Is it pretty evident what we've talked about so far this morning?)

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
When I do something funny

5. What was your mom like as a child?
A girl

6. How old is your mom?
43 pounds

7. How tall is your mom?
7 feet

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Well... watch me play a game

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
Watch a movie

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
I just don’t know

11. What is your mom really good at?
You’re really good at puzzles

12. What is your mom not very good at?
You’re not very good at playing video games

13. What does your mom do for a job?
You sometimes work, but..... you don’t have a job

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
Lettuce

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
When you finish puzzles with me

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Dora

(I was hoping for Barbie, but that's cool.)

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Sometimes we watch shows together

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We both do puzzles

19. How are you and your mom different?
You don’t have a Star Wars video game

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Teach me things

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
Well, you like to hug him

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Tony's



I'm so proud of my baby boy. For all he's had to endure in his short little life so far, he sure is the sweetest thing. Every morning, he comes in to wake us up for "cuddle time." It's by far the best time of the day for everyone. He gives me massages and brushes my hair, then he'll wage a violent pillow-fight/tickling war with Brian. He's so thoughtful and sometimes wise beyond his years as he wonders and worries about life and circumstance. He's always out for a good time, especially while wielding a gun or sword. But he's the biggest and best hugger you'll ever meet. He never went through the "terrible two's" and his "3's" were even better. He says, "How did I get so lucky to get such a great mommy?" He's truly a ray of sunshine for us. Our little blessing!

Belly pics and ZZ funnies

We have 3 cameras.

*The pink one doesn't turn on anymore.
*The black one doesn't have a way to get the pics onto the computer. And the memory card slot always flies open.
*The silver one takes about 10 batteries to operate for 10 minutes. And even then, it will just spontaneously turn off right before you take a picture.

Oh and we also have a video camera. We got it last year. And keep meaning to get that thing out.



Well anyways, today I was feeling lucky and grabbed the silver one. Lo and behold - it worked! (note to self: buy several lottery tickets today)



First - belly pics!! This is me, today, at 14 weeks.

Did I mention I gained almost 10 pounds on vacation last week? So much for Subway being healthy.




Okay- ZZ funnies.

So, he is such a guy. And I mean, really. Total guy.

You know when they ask something, but really aren't listening to the answer because they have already moved on in their own mind to something far more enticing, like when they will eat next?

Well, Zac and I go to this consignment sale and I'm buying all this baby stuff. A car seat, socks, clothes, etc. In fact, he even offered to try and carry the car seat around for me.

ONE time, he asks, "Mom? Why are we getting baby stuff?"

And I say, "Oh... well..... you know."

And trusting my confidence, he says, "Yeah."

And we are starting to set up the nursery. Or really, just stuff all the new baby things inside what used to be his playroom.

And he says, "How come we got a crib?"

And I say, "Oh... it's just always good to have baby stuff."

And he says, "Yeah."

And he went to search for where I hid the Goldfish in the pantry.

Here is something he loves to do: help in the kitchen!!! Brian's created a monster! (lol)

Oh my goodness. I could just smooch on that cute little face ALL DAY LONG.

Well, the Star Wars obsession continues. At that consignment sale, I happened upon an Anakin Skywalker costume for $4. Had I not seen the description, I would have had no clue.

He squealed and jumped and I think I saw a tear in his eye. The joy I brought to him by spending that $4 was a little jarring. I will think twice the next time I spend more than that.

THIS is why I stick with resale.

Last but not least - my little puzzle genious. Okay, well, he's really a genious, but we enjoy doing it together. I've done this dinosaur puzzle so often, I think I could put it together with my eyes shut, but I still feign the best display of astounded AWE when he makes a match.

Here he is doing his Texas-Tech-Get-yur-guns-up dance.

His way of letting us know - in case we didn't already - that HE ROCKS.

Beautiful day

It's the little things that nearly bring me to tears.

I spent today with my sweet boy glued to my side, faithfully donning his (way too small) batman costume...
*flying kites
*swinging on the swings
*sliding down slides
*doing puzzle after puzzle
*playing with friends
*doing "homework" and color-by-number pictures
*sharing a bag of sunchips
*singing and dancing to the radio
*making a dinner for a neighbor


I say to him, "I guess I shouldn't call you my baby boy anymore. You are my BIG boy!"
He says, "Oh Mommy. You can still call me your baby."


*sigh*
I wish I could freeze time today.

Happy Anniversary, Birthday, Valentine's Day, and 2nd Trimester!!!

This week, Brian planned a nice vacation for us to celebrate all the fun things I've missed while sick on the couch! We almost didn't make it, as I was sick up until the day before we left, but God is good. :) And I wasn't sick during our entire trip!

The good news is - we had a GREAT time.

Bad news: We didn't take a single picture.

So, we'll improvise....

We jumped in the mini...

And we passed this place that just sounded really good. So we stopped and ate.

Then, we made lots of stops at various outlet malls on the way.

Brian loved this.

Then we got to San Antonio.

The next day, we drove out to Fredericksburg.

A cute little town, with lots of cute little shops.

And it also had...

...which just sounded really really good.

The day after that, we went to downtown San Antonio and our hotel was so close to the Riverwalk. I had never been and I loved it!

Guess what else our hotel was really close to....

I was getting really good at ordering what was becoming my signature sandwich: A BLT- wheat, not toasted, American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, black olives, light mayo, oil/vinegar, and a dash of salt.

One night, while wandering around downtown, we stumbled upon this!

Remember The Alamo!!!!

(people love when you say that a lot around the alamo)

We passed on the audio tour and promised to google it all later.

But get this. It was right across the street from...

I know. Shut up. I felt so lucky.

And did you know a footlong is only $5 and they will package the other side for you to eat later in your hotel room?

It ended up being a week we really desperately needed. We loved the atmosphere of San Antonio. The weather was to-die-for. And our hotel ROCKED. Not only was there a good breakfast every morning, but we got upgraded to a fancy suite. :)

And we got to celebrate our one year anniversary! Whoohoo!!

And Valentine's Day - which, back in February, ended up being a really crummy puke-filled Saturday.

And Brian's birthday - which was also back in February, but I barely remember if I even muttered Happy Birthday while dying a slow death on the couch.

And the beginning of our 2nd trimester!

While I'm still a little queasy, we're thankful that we can get back to our old life. I actually went to the grocery store for the first time since January and we've stopped taking meals from our neighbors. Plus we can get back to our evening walks, since my belly has really "popped" out. I'm going to try not to gain as much weight as I did with ZZ, but I'm already bigger than I was at this time with him.

Speaking of ZZ, he still doesn't know about the new baby. But we'll be sure and post when we tell him!

Flashback Friday: Playdates

I remember playdates past....

This particular one - I actually had covered the floor with a plastic drop cloth, then thousands of blankets. We hovered over our angels... hunched backs with cameras trying desperately to get a glimpse of a smile.... those sweet little photogenic darlings who could barely sit up.

Now, the playdates are my sanity! I get to sit and talk and visit and not gossip. And I'm not even sure where Zac is most of the time. It's a blur of Star Wars jedis and Disney princesses and someone is always hungry.

Well anyways, I'm going to my most exciting playdate EVER next week!

A Brunchy Hair Play Date!

This is where not only do we bring food (really good playdates have potluck), but there is a hair stylist there and while we sit and talk and visit and not gossip and, of course, wonder where our children are - we get our HAIR DONE!

Out in the real world, this may seem odd. But in my world, it's terribly exciting and I just can't wait.

And if I had a working camera, I'd post before and after pictures. But I don't. :)

Flashback Friday

so, like, all i have to do is, like, push this thing and it will, like, take the silver thingies off, and like, the tire will come off?



oh! look at me! power tool! take my picture!

Sure, hon. We can race to see who can do it first. (bless her heart)

On your mark! Get set! Go!