Slap happy

Here we go again being all slap happy around bed time! Enjoy the silliness!

Farmer's Market

I've been anticipating the return of the Dane County Farmer's Market to scope out the fresh local produce. This past Saturday did not disappoint. Henry and I had a lovely time circling the square on a crisp and sunny morning. To finish our loop, we split a donut on the lawn of the capitol and I let Henry out of his stroller to burn off a little energy before loading him in the car again.

Here's to a fruitful spring and summer, full of tasty treats!

Digging in the dirt

My parents came for a quick visit last week and we spent the time digging in the dirt. We had beautiful spring weather, so we did a lot of cleaning up the perennial flower beds that exist at our new house, but haven't been cared for by the previous owners. Plus, mom brought me some rhubarb plants from her patch. So next year, fresh rhubarb! Yum!

I'm SO thankful for all the help! Just in time for the nice spring rain we received over the weekend.

Chores

What a good little helper! Henry has always had a love hate relationship with the vacuum. He loves to explore it, when it's not on and noisy! And when it's on and noisy, the safety zone is my leg. Housework is a challenge with a leech.

He is conquering his fear, though. Here he is with the vacuum on. Apparently I looked like I was having so much fun, he had to try it.

If only he was efficient...that chore list is closer to becoming reality.

Happy Easter!

We enjoyed a low key, warm weather Easter this year. George, thankfully, had the day off to relax. It was fun to color eggs, hide plastic ones outside for Henry, and watch Henry enjoy his first taste of Hershey kisses. He now recognizes the shape and colorful wrapping as a yummy treat. They will be in hiding for the remainder of the Easter season so they can be rationed as after dinner desserts!

As you can see, I have crocuses without even trying. (Yippee!) This year we are going with the approach of "wait and see" to discover what our new backyard holds for perennial flowers, shrubs, and plants. I did start a few tomato and basil plants indoors (the herb garden will need a little work) and planted a row of peas outside. A larger garden might have to wait a year, as part of our summer will be spent in Richland Center (more on that in later posts).

Spring weather has felt wonderful this week! Many of our days involve trips to the park. Our neighborhood has several little parks within walking distance, which has also allowed us to meet our neighbors and make new friends.

Guacamole and a Haircut

George and I enjoyed a "golden weekend" (that's actually a normal weekend to most working people - Saturday & Sunday off). It felt good to be able to do a few things around the house. We raked the leaves from the backyard for a spring pick up. Given Henry's recent climbing episode, we rearranged furniture -- the couch is no longer a launch pad down the stairwell. And we (yes, even Henry!) enjoyed some fresh guacamole.

Henry, hairy and green-faced from guacamole

Henry survived his first haircut. Having him hold still was very tricky, and we couldn't have done it without the help of a tasty and nutritious treat to keep him occupied. Marshmallows!

Here's a handsome boy (who won't smile for the camera)

Now he won't be mistaken for a girl anymore. And he won't be sporting the toddler mullet, though mommy really misses those curls sticking out from behind his ears!

Toddler for sale

For sale to the highest bidder.

1 TODDLER

Low maintenance toddler. Doesn't sleep. Won't eat much. Good for a laugh.

Carrots do something for children’s vision.
Kids can spot carrots no matter how you disguise them.

In truth, Henry has been much better about sleeping at night recently. Sometimes he wakes once a night, and sometimes when he wakes he only cries for a couple minutes and goes back to sleep by himself. Which is nice. Sometimes he doesn't wake up at all. Even nicer. The other day, however, he skipped nap time. This makes for a cranky momma, AND a cranky toddler. Missing out on some peace and quiet and "me, all by myself, alone time" is hard to rally on. Especially on a day when George doesn't come home from the hospital.

As for eating, Henry used to be a very good eater. Some of his favorite meals included quesadillas (he thinks refried beans and salsa taste really good!), lasagna, lentil soup, etc. Now he's developed a new routine which includes sending his tongue out for a taste and texture test. If it doesn't pass, it doesn't go in. This is very frustrating for me. I pride myself on my cooking and his rejection has been hard to take. Though I'm trying not to take it too personally, it's a little rough on the ego! And it varies from day to day. The macaroni and cheese he gobbled up the day before is unacceptable when served as a "leftover." What high standards he has!

Given that molar #2 has just started to peak through, directly above molar #1, this should be the time for him to continue to increase the number of acceptable foods on his menu. But we've taken a few steps backward.

Thank goodness for the moments like this (they're good for a laugh, then maybe a cry, and they get funnier when you're more removed from the situation):

• exploring more doors and cabinets. One of the curlers even took a dip in the tub, and last week, a little stuffed duck took a swim...in the toilet. The plus side? the duck washed up nicely--looking like new when he was washed and dried.
• I turned around from making breakfast this morning to find Henry on the top of the dining room table. At least he wasn't swinging from the chandelier. Yet.
  
• Henry took his first solo trip down the slide. Quite frankly, he's a little unpredictable at the park, and I'm a little slow (or too trusting?). It was more like a misstep that gravity took advantage of as he hung half over the edge on his short descent. I was SOO glad he didn't just go right over the side and land on his head. Showing no fear, he went up the stairs to have another try.
• Henry's language comprehension amazes me. If I ask him if he wants to go play downstairs, he runs to the gate at the top of the stairs. Or if I ask him if he wants to go outside, he runs to the patio door. And the other day, I actually convinced him to bring me his jacket so he could put it on before going outside. (And he sticks out his arm so I can pull the sleeve on!). Of course, I'll now expect him to continue to be more and more helpful. Is it too early to begin a chore list?!?

Well, I'm glad I made this list. It appears the pros outweigh the cons. Maybe this toddler isn't for sale. Just for RENT. During mealtimes or night time.

Happy Birthday Charlotte!

Today we had a fun time going to a live broadcast of an Wisconsin based NPR show -- thanks to the residency program. It was definitely a dorky thing to do this morning, but we enjoyed it and our friends Neal and Meghan even made it onto the show.

After Henry napped for awhile, we stopped into a favorite place for brunch and had a lazy afternoon being silly with Henry. He is just so goofy right now. Lots of fun.

I will be working at the hospital tomorrow when some other friends stop by for dinner - so here it is a day early - Happy Birthday!

Happy Spring!

We wish "ewe" a happy spring! We took Henry out to a farm to see the baby animals. There were LOTS of lambs. Henry was sort of in awe of all the noise. Lots of bleating back and forth between babies and mamas.

Additionally, we got to see chicks, pigs, calves, turkeys, rabbits, and a duck. Henry was brave and patted the lambs and chickens and the pig's nose. It was just the dose of spring we were looking for to wrap up a warm weather week!

Wearin' O' The Green

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Last weekend we had a family weekend just outside Chicago (a perfect middle meeting place between Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin). Our time was filled with silliness (what do you expect with a 5, 3, and 1 year old?) and adventure as we all rode the Metra in to downtown Chicago.

Our intention was to visit the Shedd Aquarium. Little did we know the whales, dolphins, and penguins were on vacation while their habitat underwent an upgrade. This changed our minds about spending time and money to see the "lesser" aquatic species. (Let's remember you're talking about the attention spans of a 5, 3, and 1 year old).

Instead, we ventured through the St. Patrick's day parade line up, saw the "giant bean" in Millennium park, and viewed the vibrantly green river. All in all still a successful trip, as we followed the golden rule of large group interaction, especially when children are involved: "always quit while it's still fun!" It certainly helped that the weather was gorgeous, too!

Another highlight to the weekend was swimming in the hotel pool and hot tub. It was Henry's first experience in a pool and he LOVED every minute of it. By the end of our session, Aunt Jennifer had convinced him to try dipping his face in the water to blow bubbles. To think next year he might be jumping in as bravely as Andrew and Julia do boggles my mind. You would think after all this expenditure of energy it was quiet and peaceful at night. And you'd be wrong. We struggled BIG TIME with sleeping soundly in the hotel room. Which made for one exhausted momma by the end of the weekend. Henry will have to turn over a new leaf before I think about taking him to another hotel in the future...oh wait, we have some long distance weddings to attend this year. More sleep training, here we come!

P.S. Thanks, Aunt Jessica, for providing the festive t-shirts!