meeting Meredith

Thomas saw his baby sister for the first time Friday afternoon right after I was discharged from the hospital. He's been talking about her for months so I was really happy for him to finally meet her - even if there was a door with a window between them. He smiled at her and seemed to understand who she was and he was definitely curious and interested in this new little baby. He continues to talk about her and knows that we go to the hospital to visit her, even if he doesn't actually get to visit with her. This morning he was playing with some bath frogs and named them - the large frog was either mama or daddy and the two little frogs were Thomas and baby Meredith. It was the sweetest thing and I hope his fondness for his little sister only continues to grow when she comes home.

Unfortunately, Meredith will remain in NICU for a few more days as she adjusts to living in our world. She's healthy and doing well, she just needs to gain the necessary strength to eat consistently and adequately. She tires both at the breast and with a bottle so she's often fed the remainder of her food through a feeding tube in her nose. Every day she gets a little bit stronger so hopefully it won't be too long now. I haven't taken many photos of her that I want to share on this blog, but will hopefully have some new photos soon to post!

Thomas is a big brother!

Our baby girl, Meredith Jane, arrived earlier than expected - Tuesday, April 24th at 7:14am via c-section. Five weeks and one day early, but she's a healthy 6lbs 3ounces and is 19" long. She looks very similar to Thomas at birth with lots of black hair. Both Meredith and mama are doing great and will hopefully go home together later this week! More photos to follow...

a new gig for Bela?

new tricks!

Thomas' new trick is the somersault. He loves to say "Thomas somersault" before placing his head on the floor to begin the fun. Sometimes he makes it all the way over and other times he makes it about halfway over. Either way, he has a blast and does them several times throughout the day. We assist him when we catch him doing them, but he does fine by himself. I've recently signed him up for music and art classes, but maybe I need to find him a tumbling class!

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A second new trick is playing hide and seek while shopping. At a fabric store this afternoon he was running up and down the aisles having a great time. Every once in a while he'd stop, stand still behind something and repeat "Mama Mama Mama" until I asked "Where is Thomas?" He would then squeal with delight and jump out from his hiding spot to show me his laughing little face. So cute and so much fun -- who cares if shopping takes us twice as long!

Dan Zanes & Friends

We took Thomas to his first concert earlier today -- Dan Zanes & Friends. I wasn't sure what Thomas would make of a concert when I purchased our tickets (the crowd, the dark venue, the loud music, etc.), but was I in for a fun surprise! He had the best time and enjoyed it even more than I had hoped. It was so much fun to watch Thomas and his cousin J jump up and down smiling and laughing and then later to see Thomas dancing in the aisles. I don't think we've ever seen him so wound up. It was great family fun!

Thomas is fortunate to have so many different cousins of every age who all live near us. He loves hanging out with all of them and J is definitely a favorite! With just one year and a day between them, I can already see many good times in the years ahead. My hope is that they'll always have a very special friendship -- something closer to brothers rather than just cousins.

T & J watching the show from the balcony. This dirty handrail got clean between their clothes, hands, faces and mouths. Blech.

23 months - "Baby, you are camping!"

Last summer we discussed taking Thomas on his first camping trip. Friends had had mixed experiences and for the most part they weren't positive, so this discussion probably lasted all of about 5 minutes. A one year old, two energetic pointers and a couple who aren't even avid campers doesn't add up to a family camping trip that is going to happen anytime soon. Truth be told, we will probably hold off for a couple more years before venturing into a weekend of camping since baby #2 is expected next month.

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However, with a kitchen remodel underway, it often feels like we are camping. Every single time we sit down to eat a meal with our paper plates and plastic utensils, it feels like we're camping. We don't have a stove or oven to cook with so we're limited to whatever can be heated in the microwave, cooked in the toaster oven, or picked up/delivered to our house. Because of this, we've found ourselves telling Thomas several times that we are camping.

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We're just over a week into our estimated six week project and it's actually been much better than I had imagined. And there have been some good changes made during this last week. More fresh fruit for us all, less coffee for M, no more Ghiradelli hot chocolate in the morning for me... I think we are probably actually eating healthier and I see far more benefits to losing our kitchen for this short period of time than simply getting a new kitchen in the end.

the pink pig

Thomas received this stuffed pink pig in his Easter basket. When he pulled it out of the basket, he immediately gave it a kiss. Since then, the pig has been seen walking around the neighborhood, riding in the car, kissing all of us, reading books with Thomas, riding his quad with him... You probably get the idea. Whatever Thomas is doing, this little pig is somewhere close by!

Happy Easter!

The Easter bunny left a basket of goodies for Thomas at our house this morning. The only thing he didn't care for was the single PEEPS that was placed inside a plastic egg (if you've tried them, you know why he didn't like it) and one of the pages of his new Curious George book bothers him. Curious George is fishing and decides to try reaching into the lake to catch a fish with his bare hands, only to fall in. This upsets Thomas so we've taken to conveniently skipping this page while reading the book to him. Thomas' favorites were the new Hot Wheels he found inside two of the plastic eggs. He's been carrying Hot Rod Car and SuperCar around with him most of the day.
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To say it's been a fun-filled, sugar-coated and exciting weekend for Thomas would be an understatement. An Easter egg hunt and his cousin's 2nd birthday party yesterday followed by Easter Sunday and a family gathering at his Grandma's house today. Whew! This little guy is going to need a good night's sleep tonight to recover from his late nights and full days!

Enjoying birthday cake at his cousin's birthday party. Three cousins born within one year and a day of each other makes for some fun gatherings! It was pretty cute to see the three seated at the bar eyeing the cake and watching F blow out her candles. Good times!

Easter bunny

This morning Thomas met the Easter bunny at our neighborhood Easter egg hunt. Before the hunt began, we took a couple of quick photos and he gave her a hug and a pet. He really seemed to like her. After the hunt, he walked up to her again and she gave him a carrot. The entire way home all I heard was "rabbit gave me carrot" over and over and over. Meeting the Easter bunny was more exciting for him than the actual egg hunt!

"more water"

Thomas enjoys spending time outdoors and helping us with the yardwork has become a fun thing for him to do. He has his own little shovel, rake, wheelbarrow and watering can. His mama doesn't have much success with actually growing things in the yard, but maybe with Thomas' help it'll be different this year. One thing is for sure, everything is receiving plenty of water these days!

PUPPY love

Thomas has this great little book titled "PUPPY Love". It has become one of the standards in our rotation of naptime reads. When it's time for a nap, I always ask him to pick out two books to take upstairs and read to duck duck and uh-oh and this one usually makes the cut. We've read it so many times since he received it for Valentine's Day that he has the book memorized. Each page has an adorable puppy on one side and a cute little saying on the other. He knows them all, but my favorites to hear him read are...

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"Ah, true love... yes, that's what THIS is."

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"When I'm naughty, I need hugs."

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[Note: No, we did not adopt a new puppy. Pictured above is his pal's new puppy, George! He's so soft and cuddly. I just love puppies...]

Tulip Festival

Today's trip to the Tulip Festival was full of sun and smiles from Thomas. Below are photos of him with some of his favorites things!

seeing the "big mouse"

A doctor appointment for me + Spring Break for Thomas' cousins + a Grandma who enjoys being with her grandchildren = a very full morning for Thomas!
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Thomas spent the entire morning at his Grandma's house playing with his cousins. He really enjoys spending time with all of them. When I went to pick him up, Grandma suggested we all head to Chuck E. Cheese for some lunch and fun. Talk about an exciting half day! He had the most fun riding the fire engine with another little boy and wasn't scared of the "big mouse" at all. Instead of crying and running away like some toddlers his age will do (and I should know because yes, I wore this costume once years ago), Thomas gave him a high five, a hug and was very much interested in this large character. I can always tell when Thomas is excited and happy about something because he'll do a little jig. Today I saw it the minute we walked into the restaurant and again several times while we were there. So much fun for the kids, but pretty exhausting for this pregnant mama!
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cosmic birthday

Thomas had a fantastic time this afternoon at his cousin's birthday party. E celebrated her 7th birthday with family and friends at a bowling alley complete with "cosmic bowling", pizza, soda, birthday cake and presents. Bowling sure has changed since I was a kid and it's so much more fun now! Thomas thought the flashing lights, blacklights, loud music and watching E and her friends was great and the girls all enjoyed seeing him, too. He received many hugs from them after the party ended. (!!) He also tasted soda (7up) for the first time today. One small sip was more than enough for him. He immediately made a funny face, put the cup down and asked for his water. I'm sure one day he'll want nothing more than soda, but it sure is nice that he enjoys and prefers plain old water for now!

Mr. Independent studies German

Thomas has really started to assert his independence these last few weeks. He has an "I can do it myself" attitude that is wonderful to see, yet at the same time tests our patience. It seems like just yesterday our little guy was dependent on us for everything. Where did the time go?

This English-German translation book is currently one of Thomas' favorite books to read. He likes to flip through the pages and carry it around tucked under his arm, but he also enjoys it when I read it to him. I'll read aloud random words from the English side one at a time and he repeats them back to me. "Passport". "Transportation". "Abbreviation". He thinks it's fun to do.

fun on the farm

Thomas really enjoyed our visit this afternoon to his Uncle Doug's farm. A couple of tow trucks, some quads to climb on, a trampoline, cows to feed and touch, chickens, young turkeys to pet, dogs, sheep, a llama, and playing with his cousin and her friend... what's not to love? It's like a petting zoo and such a fun place for kids to be. He also spotted a small airplane really close up (there's a small landing strip nearby) and saw a helicopter fly by. Talk about an adventurous afternoon! He babbled excitedly and happily the entire drive home - I can only imagine all the things he was talking about.

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Thomas helps feed the cows. He would pick up the grain and hold it out for the cows to take, but they always refused his offerings.

conversations with himself

We love watching Thomas' language skills develop. This afternoon we overheard him ask himself a question and then answer it, too. Jeeps are the latest vehicle type that Thomas quickly and easily identifies during walks and rides in the car. Neither of us have asked him these questions.

[Thomas] "Mama car Jeep?"
[Thomas, two seconds later...] "No."

[Thomas] "Daddy car Jeep?"
[Thomas, two seconds later...] "No."

haircut

Thomas gets his haircut at a children's salon every 6 to 8 weeks. Yes, it's almost like he's in the military, but with wild hair like his it just looks better short. He got his first haircut before his first birthday, so he's definitely had enough salon haircuts to be pretty well versed in the whole process and environment. Last time it was a bit of a struggle and there was some crying but he eventually settled down for the haircut. Today was different. And much worse. Suffice it to say, we may have to give the long hair look a try...

baby's got the blues?

Part of the fun for me when Thomas hangs out with someone else is learning what they did and what new interests he has found. Today I came home to a harmonica playing little guy - no kidding. The harmonica has been in his playroom for months but no one ever plays it. Nanny Sarah changed that today. Thomas now refuses to part with it and can either be seen toting it around under his arm or blowing into it and smiling at the sounds he is able to make. When he went down for his afternoon nap, the harmonica went with him and his usual must-haves (two stuffed animals he has affectionately named duck duck and uh-oh) were quickly pushed off the bed and onto the floor. It seems they've been trumped - for today, anyway!

22 months

Thomas really enjoys riding in his friend Logan's wagon. We borrowed it this afternoon for a walk to the neighborhood nursery for plants to brighten up the front porch. He enjoyed poking around the plants, but his favorites were pushing the cart and trying to pet the store's indoor cat. On our way home, we stopped at the park to play and run around. It was a nice little outing and I know a lucky little boy who will be receiving a Radio Flyer of his very own for his second birthday (if his parents can hold out that long)!