Mothers Day, Monkey Bizness and More

(Oops, I though I posted this on Friday!) Tonight is date night and I cannot wait! We try to have date night twice a month, sometimes more, sometimes less depending on what's going on with our life. Tonight we are going to Upstairs Circus in Denver to get our craft on. I've been wanting to go for a couple months and finally made reservations. Yay! Can't wait!

Last Friday Lucas got his third haircut. He was so good, loved wearing the "cape." We went much shorter this time and he looked like such a boy! Jason thinks he looks younger but I think it makes him look older. Either way, he needed one badly...I'm just so cheap, I hate spending money for a haircut. But there's no way I'm going near him with scissors or a razor. One of us would surely end up cut.

  

Saturday, Jason treated me to a "Mothers Day weekend" and took care of Lucas as much as he could all weekend. He got up with Lucas and I stayed in bed and eventually fell back asleep! Bliss! Then I got to go to the gym and ran on their track...the fastest 4 miles I've ever ran! Under 10 min miles. These days that is unheard of for me, especially at that distance. Love running on FLAT tracks! ;-) That afternoon our plans were canceled because of bad weather so we did an impromptu visit to a friend in our MOPS table's sons birthday party. Lucas loved playing with all their toys! We dendes up having to do church online because of the timing of the birthday party and church. Willow had a special service for moms/woman which was a nice little treat. We also got 10 inches of snow that night! Crazy!

Sunday I was able to go work out then get a massage! The massage was weird and not relaxing. Without going into details, I ended up getting a comp one in its place so I'm really looking forward to another (better) one! I love that Jason took care of Lucas for me so I could enjoy a morning to myself. Then that night we went out to dinner as a family. Always interesting (and loud) with Lucas!

Last year I took a pic on Mothers Day after my massage in his room so I tried taking another.  He is getting so big! Both of us in our PJ's all ready for bed. 

Jason had to travel this week but it wasn't his normal travel schedule. He left at 4am on Wednesday and is getting back this afternoon. Short and sweet but we missed him! Especially since Lucas had a rough weekt his week. He didn't sleep well at all this week and on Wednesday he woke up from his nap with a low fever. He's had a cough and clear runny nose to accompany the fever. He's been waking up screaming a few times at night so there were a lot of snuggles this week both in the middle of the night and during the day. Wednesday morning I just soaked up the snuggles as he slept on me for over an hour in the middle of the night. Usually I'd be so tired and out of it but for whatever reason I was alert so was able to enjoy every second of him sleeping on me. It was the best!! 

Wednesday morning we went to Monkey Bizness with Laura and the little girl she nannys for, Quinn. Quinn is only a month older than Lucas so they're cute together. Except when Lucas tries to hug her, she's not a fan of that. (He is big into hugging these days) Lucas loved Monkey Bizness, he was squealing with delight the first 10 minutes. He loved being able to run ALL over while I chased him. He had his first experience in a bounce house which he also loved. The whole morning was exhausting for me but seeing how happy he was was so worth the sweat! 

the hug ;-)

our little artist - he got more paint on the floor, hands and shirt than he did the paper. But he had fun!

playing with the big kids

Friday we had new windows put in (from the hail storm last fall) so Lucas, Cooper and I had to be out of the house all day. We went to the outlets for new shoes for Lucas. Then he was supposed to nap in the car but instead did a cat nap. Not cool for any of us! By the time we got home Jason was home from DC and the joy on Lucas' face when he saw his daddy is priceless. He is such a daddy's boy and it's the sweetest thing!! 

Thankful for a great week with Lucas and happy that Jason is back home. Looking forward to the weekend with those two! 

he is so snuggly now! always wants to sit on my lap, give hugs or lay on me. YAY! (excuse my look..I had just gotten home from a run!)

Trying to use my foam roller is quite a task with this one around. He was trying to roll on it when I did, rolled under it, beside it then took off running with it! LOVE him!!!

Monday Meanderings on Friday

I was just reading through my old blog (found here) and loved going down memory lane! Its why I started this blog in the first place! The purpose of my first blog was to capture all the things I was seeing when everyone else was at work. (since I had just been laid off).

Well, I just went two months without writing anything because I couldn't find the time...but these are the moments I want to remember and have to read back on forever! My precious moments with Lucas that I wish I could bottle up forever. It's going TOO fast!!  So I am going to pledge to myself to try to write at least once a week. Maybe a "Monday Meanderings" post but something to capture my time with him and Jason...and Cooper and Sam.

So while it's Friday, I am still going to kick this writing off!

Meanderings...

On Jason's Mom and Mark's Visit -- They came in town from Iowa to visit for Marks, daughter, Jen's, (Lucas' aunt) celebration party of her passing all her tests for her CPA. The party was on Saturday in Longmont. We had a great time celebrating her achievements while sampling some local beers. Lucas had fun throwing rocks in the pond with his grandma! Congrats Jen! We are so proud of you and can't wait to see you more now that you'll have more time on your hands!

Judy and Mark were here through Tuesday afternoon. We ate out a few times, celebrated an early Mothers Day for Judy. We all went swimming, Jason and I took a few minutes to ourselves while Lucas swam with his grandparents to enjoy the hot tub.  The had a few races down their slides where I lost time and time again.  Judy also took me to Walmart to pick out some flowers as an early Mothers Day present. I don't really enjoy gardening but that is totally "her thing." So she helped pick out what works well here then spent hours on Tuesday planting them all for me.  She even surprised me with lots of herbs and explained how to take care of them! 

Lucas loved all the times spent with his grandparents! Thanks for the visit Judy and Mark!

On the Columbine Classic 4 Miler -- On Sunday I did a 4 mile race at the Aurora Reservoir. It sort of gave me my fix of being by water...well, not really. But as I run along side it I pretend that it does and take it in as much as I can! The run was super hilly and most of it was on a gravel trail so it was pretty tough. I was happy with my pace given the hills and it just encouraged me to try harder to get even better at those darn hills that are inevitable here. I absolutely love running, especially once it's over! There's nothing like a runners high!

So I'm not sure why it looks like I'm the last runner of hundreds!! 

There were people all around me the entire time!? Ha!

He loved the watermelon, even part of the rind! 

On Rain -- I feel like I'm back in Chicago.  It's been cold and rainy all week. Only difference from Chicago is that it;ll usually get sunny for a couple hours a day and dry up but for the most party its been gross out. Makes me so appreciate that we moved here and that this isn't the norm anymore. On the plus side...many of these storms have been thunder storms! Actual thunder and lightening, which we don't get often! I love a good storm!

On Lucas -- I've already shared about Lucas wanting to read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear," but it's been such a treat! Every morning her grabs the book and brings it to me to read to him on his rocking chair. Also in his playroom, hes been getting books off the bookshelf and bringing them to me, then backing up into me to sit on my lap to read.  I just barely get the book opened to the first page and he's already darted across the room but it still makes me so happy! He's been such a cuddler this week with me.  I mean, he's not a cuddler...so when I say cuddler, I mean he's sitting on my lap for a few seconds or wanting a few more hugs.  He also now gives kisses.  All he does is bring his face to yours but it's the cutest. Its unbelievable how much he understands. He doesn't talk much but he sure does understand!

On "PlayGroups" Playdate at our House -- Back in December I took over the planning of the playgroup that I was invited to back in August. We meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month, the first week at someones house, then the third week out and about. This week happened to be at my house. I love having people over and it's become even more joyful now with kids! We had a great time and the kids had just as much fun. I loved watching Lucas play with them especially since they were all his toys. How he shared or more like how he didn't share. Beyond thankful for this group and the time we get to spend together each month.

Happy Friday all! Have a great weekend!

Healthy Obsession - The Library

In my last update I said I was slightly obsessed with children's books. I am. Very obsessed. I even bought Lucas four more at a garage sale this morning. Four books for $2.50. Seriously how can I pass that up? I told Jason I cannot imagine what it'll be like if/when we have grandkids! Grandkids are meant to be spoiled and I love buying books. My children will have to buy our grandchildren an entire room to house all the books I plan to buy them!

So on that note, I am also slightly obsessed with the library and each time I go in there I learn more reasons to be obsessed. I shared a very long time ago here about my very first library card. The whole idea of a library was a pretty foreign concept to me until about 5 years ago. But the library offers soooooo much! They have lots of educational areas for Lucas to play which is a nice little break for us to get out. There's the obvious of books to check out but I've never been much of a reader. However, lately I've checked out some really good cookbooks. I absolutely love that I can get audiobooks on my phone for when I go running. FOR FREE. I've recently checked out a few magazines on my iPad, ones I wouldn't really want to subscribe to because who has time to read a magazine every month?! But how nice to just read one when I have the time or need some quick info. We checked out Chicago Fire on DVD.(Which, by the way is another obsession. If you're not already watching and want to get addicted to some drama-filled, mindless TV...I highly recommend it!) I've been wanting to watch that show since it came out but Jason wasn't into it. Now I'm unable to get it on Netflix so the only way I can get it is to pay On-Demand or buy the DVD's. Got it at the library. FOR FREE! Lucas and I would go to Story Time but I just shared last week how that doesn't work so well for Lucas at this time in his life. ;-) But the option is there...one of the many amenities of the fabulous library! Oh and we get CDs for Lucas too! Yes, yes, I may be a dork because the library is not a new concept but it's just so convenient and I'm obsessed.

oh and yes...I'm well aware our tax dollars are paying for it...so I may as well be using what we're already paying for and consider it free. It makes it more fun for me!

Lucas Loves a Book!!

I'm obsessed with children's books. I think it's so important to read to children for so many reasons but I have to admit, I just love a good children's story! We own way too many children's books and I've been reading to Lucas every chance we can get since the day he was born. He's never shown an interest. I've found myself reading more books while he's doing laps around our house or talking over me. At bedtime when we read he's crawling all over me, turning on and off the heater, taking all the books off the bookshelf, knocking over the diaper pail. Anything except sitting and listening. I know he still gets some of the story and he's hearing words which will be beneficial so I continue but he's never shown an interest unless the books makes notice or is a "Touch and Feel."

Well last week he's taken an interest in "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" and the other two that go with it. Starting yesterday morning it's the first thing he went to after I got him out of his crib. He then went back to his crib to get Skip-It, his lovey, and walked the book and Skip-It to the rocking chair for me to read it to him like we do at night. Ahhhhhh!!!! My persistence has paid off! He points to all the animals and we are now working on learning colors and animals along with the sounds the make. My heart is full. So full! 

Zoo! In March and Today

When we decided to move to Colorado I was so excited to try out all the museums, zoo, aquarium, and other kid-friendly places with our future children. Jason and I finally went to the zoo about a month ago but I never posted pictures.  Lucas and I also went with some friends today so I thought I'd share pics from both days. The first time we went Lucas barked like a dog at every animal. We enjoyed our lunches by the elephants. It was a lot of fun, so much so that Lucas fell asleep almost the second he was in the car. Very fun family and animal-filled day!

Today we went with a couple friends< Val and Laura. Lucas enjoyed the snake and fish in the aquarium. I loved the giraffes...I've never been up that close to them before, they're enormous! We also went for a ride on the train which I thought Lucas would love. Not so much, he wasn't into being held the entire time. Go figure! We had beautiful weather and a fantastic time. This time I was expecting him to fall asleep on the way home but nope...wide awake the whole drive.  He likes to keep me guessing!

 Snakes!

Its Been a LONG While...An Update on Lucas

I haven't blogged in forever. Time is passing way too fast and I want to remember every single moment of Lucas. I am on Instagram and post almost daily just for the sole reason that I can look back and remember these super awesome, yet challenging, tiring times. I just want to freeze time. Or make every day last a week long. So much is happening in each day and our baby boy is growing so fast. I need it to all slow down!

Lucas is now 15 months old...almost 16 months old.  All parents say it, how did this happen?  Where did the time go? But seriously, where did it go? My Timehop app is showing me pictures of him last year at this time when I had to leave him to go back to work. When I was so heartbroken every day that I couldn't be with my baby. I still look back and am not sure how I made it through those days. But it's been a year since then!  A YEAR!!

Lucas cracks me up daily...more every minute. He is the most active boy I've ever met. Yes, all moms who have boys say, "he's all boy." But I am not kidding. This kid never stops moving. Ever. He chases Cooper around to the point where they have to be separated...at least twice a day. For safety reasons, we have a gate at the top of the stairs, and the bottom. We have a safety latch on our stove and on our toilet, on our door to the stairs to the basement. I've had to move our entryway table to the basement because when he wasn't crawling on it he was pushing it through the house. We've had to move our cable box out of reach because if we ever turn the TV on he immediately goes and pushes the button to turn it off. He trips on his own feet or Coopers about 300 times a day but never cries. He's a toughie, very rarely cries. He gives super fast hugs often, and loves to lay on the floor for .05 seconds. If  you're on the floor he'll come over and rest his head on you. As I've mentioned, him and Cooper are the best of friends, constantly playing ball or playing hide and seek with Coopers favorite toys. His favorite hiding spot is the bathroom...but Cooper finds it every time. Time to find a new spot Lucas. Adorable.

He loves stacking blocks, but especially loves stacking anything he can find in the pantry. Boxes, tubs, anything he can get to stack. He likes to put things in, then takes them out...anything he can find that he can put in or take out. Boxes, bins, cups, bowls, pot and pans.

He likes to throw things away. Yeah, that's awesome right?!  We have a garbage can with a sensor to open it. He knows how to work the garbage can! Mostly he throws away receipts or things that have fallen on the floor which for the most part can be thrown away. But he has thrown away valuables too...we usually catch him as it's happening but one of his hats are missing. I'm almost positive it went in the trash when I wasn't looking. Only time will tell.

The doctor has told me not more bottles but as I already said, he never stops moving and the only way I've found to calm him down before bed is with a bottle. He doesn't do pacifiers anymore, he's not a cuddler. If giving him a bottle before bed calms him enough for him to relax and to go to sleep each night, I will pick my battles. Give it a couple more months and we'll have hopefully have come up with a better solution. But for now, he loves his bottle and so do I.

He loves bathtime and swimming. He is a little fish. We went swimming a few days ago and were in the deep end and he did NOT want to be held. Nope...he threw his arms up and arched his back. Um Lucas if I let you go, you will drown!  He wants to do everything himself. Next time I think we'll try his life jacket, give him a little bit of independence.

Lucas is impossible to change. Not only does he squirm but he flips over faster than I can blink. What should take 2-3 minute to change him generally takes 5-10, I am sweating like a pig, hardly able to catch my breath and we are both covered in diaper cream from head to toe from all the squirming. It's awesome.

He is finally starting to enjoy or at least pretend to enjoy reading books with me. At night when he takes that bottle before bed he is calm enough to sit in my lap and listen to a story. He loves "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See."  He points to it and then sits and listens and flips all the pages until the last page that takes longer to read. He just sits there and points to all the animals on the last page. My heart melts. Best feeling.

Oh and on the subject of  books, I'll share a fun little story. We went to what will be our last storytime a few weeks ago. There were 25 children there all aged 0-2 years old. They all sat or crawled/walked around quietly while being read to and sang to. Lucas was ALL OVER THE PLACE. I mean ALL OVER. Off to the front of the library, to the back, trying to climb down (AKA fall down) the stairs. Then he'd scream and arch his back when I'd pick him up.Then back to the adult (supposed to be quiet) section of the library. Then for two seconds of the 20 minutes we were remotely near the children's section just barely in earshot of where the story was being read, the librarian told me, "oh sweetie,  its okay if he wants to squirm...he is still getting part of the story." My eyes were welling up, my adrenalin was pumping and sweat was streaming down my face from chasing him. I'm pretty sure he's not getting any bit of this story, super sweet lady. He is more concerned about stealing that other calm, attentive boys lovie away from him for the two seconds we're "engaged." I know she meant really well but it's just added to my frustration. But while I left the library in tears that day (I later learned I was PMS'ing which explains the extra emotions) I decided Lucas needs to be moving, all the time. The park, a trampoline, a pool or anywhere he can be moving is a better option for us and from that day forward, we were going to go with it!  No more story time!

He doesn't really say many words, yet. But he says "hi."... to every single person he encounters. Literally, every single  person. He is so much fun to have around. We were on a run the other day at the park and a lady rode her bike by and from a mile out, Lucas sees her coming and he's waving like crazy and says in his little voice, "hi!" as she rode past. It was the cutest thing. Along with his waving he gives high 5's. Jason's also taught him how to throw his hand in the air then clap when the Cubs win. (which by the way, has been a LOT this season...woohoo!!) He also still barks like a dog EVERY single time he sees a dog. The dog park where we run is entertaining to say the least. He roars like a lion and oooo's like a cow. Just oooo, no -M- sound. He said mama for a couple days but I can't get him to say it again. He says dada constantly and also knows to say it when Daddy is around. He loves shouting up the stairs when Daddy is at work..."Dada, Dada! Dada!!"

If we cough or sneeze he fake coughs and sneezes. Ever since his surgery, whenever he sneezes he usually sneezes three times instead of twice. I tell him, "God bless you" and he laughs then continues to fake sneeze until I stop blessing him.

He loves to clap. If we are watching a church service online and they clap he immediately starts clapping. When Jason travels I watch TV in the morning to keep me company and yesterday while I was watching the Today Show the Toyota concert came on. Lucas heard them all clapping and screaming and he stopped to clap and then started dancing along to the music.

He folds his hands to pray every time Jason and I sit down at the table. Every time. So if I get up to get something, Lucas wants to pray again as I sit back down. Seriously, so sweet. And he folds his hands one over the other...and so fast. Which makes it even sweeter!

I love this kid. LOVE LOVE LOVE him! I am so thankful for all the days I get to spend with him at a stay at home mom. Okay so honestly, last month when he was into his hitting phase, that wasn't so much fun. And all those diaper and clothes changes those times I'd like to swap out too. But other than that I am just loving this parenting gig. I am beyond thankful that I get to be Lucas' mom and spend so much time with him! He is such an absolute joy with, oh so much energy!! Love you sweet boy!!