Uh-oh!

Raleigh loves her new word, uh-oh. So do we. :-)

By the way... new photos are up.

Rowan is 3!!!

Hooo-weee! What a weekend. We've been celebrating Rowan's birthday since Friday and I am worn out. I think everyone else it, too.

Friday, I took cupcakes to Rowan's class. I suppose they were a hit... more so with the adults than the kiddos. I made ice cream cone cupcakes with sprinkles and a cherry on top - very cute and easy too. I think the apple juice I brought in was a bigger treat than the cupcakes. Maybe it was because everyone had just woken up from their naps. Earlier that day, Rowan's teacher called to say that he had been coughing all morning and wasn't feeling well. He went to sleep all by himself a little before noon and didn't eat a bite of lunch. He seemed to be much better by the time we got there for the party, though.

After the school party, we headed out to my parents' house for a weekend of family fun. Jeremy's parents drove down and spent the weekend, too. It was nice visiting with them. We spent most of Saturday outside because the weather was so great. I thought for certain that Rowan would be in bed early that night from exhaustion, but he wasn't. He got out of bed after reading a few stories with my mom and entertained us until close to midnight!

Jeremy and I were marveling at how fast the time has passed. In just 2 years, Rowan will be starting kindergarten. Wow! I cannot even begin to imagine all the silliness and awe that waits for us this coming year with our marvelous boy. I have heard that 3 is a magic number. From what I have seen so far, I believe it's true.

Happiest birthday wishes to my sweet, funny, whip-smart, big boy!

P.S. I will try to post photos this week.

Seen and Heard

Here are a few funny goings-on from the past week or so.

• My dad, Rowan, Raleigh, and I were in my parents' room talking and playing with Legos. Rowan, my dad, and I pretended to talk on Lego walkie-talkies. Raleigh saw all this and picked up her own Lego and held it up to her ear while babbling. Genius!
• The four of us went on a short hike at Stone Mountain one Sunday afternoon. By the time we left, the sun was starting to set. The huge hunk of granite looked dusky pink and I pointed it out to Rowan. "Hey!", I said. "Look at the mountain. It's red." Rowan informed us, "No, it's pink. It's from the sun light." Another genius!
• Rowan was jumping around on the bed so I asked him what he was doing. His reply: "I'm up here doing crazy business."
• Last night Rowan got into a jar of Vick's VapoRub. He had smeared a good handful all over his arms, face, lamp, pillow, sheets, quilt, doorknob, and play kitchen. I asked him (calmly, I might add) if he had put any of the cream into his mouth. He said, "No, I did not. And I didn't put any on my legs." Thank goodness for small mercies.
• We saw the moon the other afternoon and Rowan asked what it was doing. I told him that he was getting ready to do his job. I asked him what the moon does for a job. He told me that the moon had to make a picture for his mommy - his moon mommy.

An evening with StoryCorps

Tonight, my mom and I recorded a session at the Atlanta StoryCorps booth. What fun! If you get the chance to do this, I highly recommend it. Not only did I get to spend some quality time with my mom, we now have a CD of stories to share with Rowan and Raleigh.

Here's some more info about the whole StoryCorps project if you're interested.

Happy 10-month Birthday, Raleigh!

Raleigh is 10 months old today!

Her personality is starting to show a lot more these past few weeks. She is babbling, laughing, and gesturing a lot more – especially when she can have the spotlight to herself. She was still awake after Rowan had gone to sleep over the weekend and had a grand time playing and talking. It was a lot of fun to see her acting so grown up.

• Likes: bath time; anything Rowan is doing or playing with; stuffed animals; silly singing; being outside; feeding herself; mashed potatoes
• Dislikes: being told no; staying still for diaper changes; having to play by herself for a few minutes while I try to get something done like go to the bathroom
• Skills: She can stand at the coffee table for long periods of time – easily 30 minutes – as long as she has something to play with. Raleigh is an excellent mimic. We can pretend whistle to each other (Rowan started this a while back after hearing my dad whistle for the dog. All you do is say “wee-ooo-weet!” You can hold your fingers in your mouth if you want.) and she will “whistle” back. She will also mimic no-no sounds (“eh-eh-eh”) and the sly fox’s laugh from The Gingerbread Man story. It’s hilarious.
• Communication: She can wave bye-bye and has said “bye-bye” at least once; She claps her hands when you say “Yay!” or whenever she feels like it. She has made the following sounds: buh, duh, esss, muh, dah, dee, and zuh. When she is tired of eating whatever you are feeding her she will spit it back out with a zorbert. (It’s gross. It’s gross.) When she likes something she will kick her legs and/or wave her hands and/or bounce. She will also point her crooked little left index finger at things and people she likes.
• Teeth: Tooth #8 is getting ready for her debut. My guess is that it will be in by Rowan’s birthday. She has been rubbing her gums over the molar area lately, too.
• Food: Raleigh pretty much eats everything now. She’s had a tiny bit of peanut butter; poultry and beef; and all kinds of grains, veggies, and fruits. I call her my country baby because she loves collard greens, soup beans, grits,
• So Big: We’ve packed up the jammies that are smaller than 12 months; they’re just too short. She couldn’t stretch out her legs, poor dear. For her other stuff she is wearing size 9-12mos. I think her shoe size is still a 2.

I can hardly believe that our sweet baby will be 1 year old in just two months. This year has flown by! I can only imagine what interesting and exciting things we will enjoy and learn from this next month.

Happiest mirthday wishes to my baby girl!

Thanks to Jessica, Raleigh's teacher, for the photos.