During our nightly ritual we try to get Carter to sit on the potty while we entertain him with songs. Some of his favourites for potty time are Itsy Bitsy Spider, the signing Alphabet Song, and the Wheels on the Bus.
My personal favourite is the signing alphabet song. It goes "A is for apple, B is for brown, C is for candy, and D is for down" and so on. We do the signs for each letter and each word that goes with it. Although Carter use to do a lot of sign language (we counted over 100 words at one point) he dropped each sign as he was able to speak the word clear enough for people to understand it. That is, except for please, which he still does the sign while saying the word. We had dropped any sign language until I started singing/signing this song for him again at potty time and he just loves it. I just love watching him study each sign and try to do it along with me. When he was younger it was only words he would sign for and for a lot of them it was whole hand positioning or gestures that we could recognise. Now that he is older he really tries to get each finger in the exact position it's suppose to be in. I'm looking forward to him helping to teach his little brother how to sign!
Tonight after singing Itsy Bitsy Spider and the Alphabet Song we moved on to the Wheels on the Bus. After I got through the wheels, the wipers, the driver, the kids, the babies, the mommy's, and said "all done," Carter said "no, the daddy's!" I said "what do the daddy's on the bus say?" He replied with "let's go home, let's go home!" I see Dan's been teaching Carter his own version again!
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Thursday, December 29, 2011
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Christmas in a flash (or 25 of them)!
There were...
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| Sillies |
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| Baking |
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| Kisses |
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| Homemade gifts |
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| Christmas Trees |
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| Presents |
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| Christmas bone for pancho |
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| Stockings - well, just one this year! |
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| Smiles |
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| More smiles |
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| Jiu Jitsu |
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| Cleaning |
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| New friends |
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| Cousins |
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| Old favourite toys |
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| Breakfast |
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| New toys |
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| Topless fun (children only!) |
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| Train fun |
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| Close ups! |
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| Dinner |
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| Dessert |
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| More sillies |
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| Dinosaurs, and lots of them! |
And most importantly....
That about sums it up!!
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| Family! |
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Update!
Well, we figured out why Carter's been having so many "off" days lately! It looks like he's working on his two year molars. Luckily he's still sleeping straight through the night (thank goodness!) but he's definitely got a split personality during the day and fighting his naps each afternoon.
Of course he's still being as adorable as ever!
Of course he's still being as adorable as ever!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
"Off" Day
Anyone who has or has had a toddler knows what an "off" day for them is like. Today was definitely an "off" day for Carter. He couldn't make up his mind about what he wanted to do and any time he did decide on something he almost instantly changed his mind. He also had trouble communicating what he wanted. My usually well spoken little man struggled to say what he wanted many times today. He even fell more then he normally would. We all know what it's like. Who hasn't had an "off" day now and then. Unfortunately it's heartbreaking and quite frustrating to watch a toddler go through it since they don't understand what's going on and they too can get quite frustrated with it. Unfortunately there were lots of tears from Carter this afternoon!
The good thing with toddlers though, is that even through an "off" day, you'll have those precious moments that make it worth it. For instance, the one thing Carter did love doing today was cuddling up and reading. Although I'm not a huge fan of reading the same book 20 times in a row, it's worth it to cuddle up next to him on the couch. Then there were the times that regardless of how grumpy he was he still shook his little bum any time he heard some music. And after a fall I always love how a big hug and kiss tends to make it all go away.
The best moment of all today though was at dinner time. It started out bad as Carter tripped on his way to the dinner table. He was quite upset but after a big hug and a kiss to his knee he was ready to sit at the table. Once he got there though he started whining that he "want daddy" who happened to be sitting less then a foot away. Dan said "I'm right here bud" but that wasn't good enough, so he offered Carter his hand. Carter grabbed two of Dan's fingers in his hand and wouldn't let go. So the two of them sat there holding hands while they both ate. Of course, within two minutes Carter didn't want to eat any more so it didn't last long but it was definitely one of the sweetest things I've ever seen!
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day but still with lots of hugs!
The good thing with toddlers though, is that even through an "off" day, you'll have those precious moments that make it worth it. For instance, the one thing Carter did love doing today was cuddling up and reading. Although I'm not a huge fan of reading the same book 20 times in a row, it's worth it to cuddle up next to him on the couch. Then there were the times that regardless of how grumpy he was he still shook his little bum any time he heard some music. And after a fall I always love how a big hug and kiss tends to make it all go away.
The best moment of all today though was at dinner time. It started out bad as Carter tripped on his way to the dinner table. He was quite upset but after a big hug and a kiss to his knee he was ready to sit at the table. Once he got there though he started whining that he "want daddy" who happened to be sitting less then a foot away. Dan said "I'm right here bud" but that wasn't good enough, so he offered Carter his hand. Carter grabbed two of Dan's fingers in his hand and wouldn't let go. So the two of them sat there holding hands while they both ate. Of course, within two minutes Carter didn't want to eat any more so it didn't last long but it was definitely one of the sweetest things I've ever seen!
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day but still with lots of hugs!
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Through The Eyes of a Child
Everything is better through the eyes of a child. I now love doing things I haven't enjoyed, or even thought to enjoy, in years. Things like going to the park, a farm, the zoo, or playing in the snow. To be honest, I hate the cold but you'll still catch me outside in the snow many times each year now. There is just something different when you have a child and you get to see things through their eyes. Everything that is new to them becomes new to you again because you start to see the wonderment in it all.
I'm not anywhere close to being a baker but that too has become a fun source of entertainment on days when there isn't much going on. Today for instance, Carter and I decided we would make a kid friendly trail mix. First, at the grocery store, we had the fun of hunting down the ingredients. We got to explore the cereal isle (he usually eats cheerios and we get them from Costco, so not much excitement there), the baking isle, and the candy isle, all places we usually skip over. For each thing I picked up that didn't look familiar I got to hear "what's that mum?" Usually our grocery shopping days are much more predictable, so much so that Carter now tells us what we are getting next and where to get it.
When we got home we got to explore all the ingredients again as we mixed them all together. Some he remembered, some I had to explain again. It didn't take long but he loved getting to mix them all together. When we were done I mentioned that we would give some to his cousins next door. Carter decided he wanted to take some over "now". So we bundled up and headed next door. It wasn't until Uncle Matt opened the door that I realized Carter had an ulterior motive. He handed over the trail mix and immediately started trying to get inside. I should have known! His cousins weren't home though so we'll save that excitement for another day.
When we got home the real fun of the trail mix started. I poured some in a bowl. Carter took the bowl very carefully over to his train table. He then thought he may want a drink so he grabbed his milk from the fridge and added it beside his trail mix. Then he grabbed his spider man foam chair and pulled it nice and close to the train table. He sat in the chair and scooted himself and the chair as close to the table as he could (so much so that he later had to call for help to get out of it!) Then he looked in the bowl and the gasps and giggles began. He would stick his pointer finger in the bowl and start his search. Every time he came across a yogurt covered raisin or a reeses pieces he was filled with delight. And it never got old!
If only we could all find as much enjoyment in the little things. Maybe we could all be as happy as a two year old!
I'm not anywhere close to being a baker but that too has become a fun source of entertainment on days when there isn't much going on. Today for instance, Carter and I decided we would make a kid friendly trail mix. First, at the grocery store, we had the fun of hunting down the ingredients. We got to explore the cereal isle (he usually eats cheerios and we get them from Costco, so not much excitement there), the baking isle, and the candy isle, all places we usually skip over. For each thing I picked up that didn't look familiar I got to hear "what's that mum?" Usually our grocery shopping days are much more predictable, so much so that Carter now tells us what we are getting next and where to get it.
When we got home we got to explore all the ingredients again as we mixed them all together. Some he remembered, some I had to explain again. It didn't take long but he loved getting to mix them all together. When we were done I mentioned that we would give some to his cousins next door. Carter decided he wanted to take some over "now". So we bundled up and headed next door. It wasn't until Uncle Matt opened the door that I realized Carter had an ulterior motive. He handed over the trail mix and immediately started trying to get inside. I should have known! His cousins weren't home though so we'll save that excitement for another day.
When we got home the real fun of the trail mix started. I poured some in a bowl. Carter took the bowl very carefully over to his train table. He then thought he may want a drink so he grabbed his milk from the fridge and added it beside his trail mix. Then he grabbed his spider man foam chair and pulled it nice and close to the train table. He sat in the chair and scooted himself and the chair as close to the table as he could (so much so that he later had to call for help to get out of it!) Then he looked in the bowl and the gasps and giggles began. He would stick his pointer finger in the bowl and start his search. Every time he came across a yogurt covered raisin or a reeses pieces he was filled with delight. And it never got old!
If only we could all find as much enjoyment in the little things. Maybe we could all be as happy as a two year old!
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Living With Lovey!
When Carter was seven months old we flew out to BC to visit family out west. My wonderful aunt bought Carter a lovey (basically a teddy bear head with a small blanket attached). It wasn't his first lovey but it would be the first lovey that Pancho didn't destroy. Back then Pancho would destroy just about any toy or soother of Carter's he could get his little paws on. Luckily he's grown out of that!
I had read about lovey's and how beneficial they can be. They can be very comforting to a little one should they become attached to it. It's said to help regulate their emotions at a time when the world can be very over whelming. Usually a child will become attached to a lovey when they are around a year old, which is the same time separation anxiety tends to set in. A lovey can take any form really - a teddy bear, blanket, piece of clothing, or something like Carter had received. The good thing about the one Carter got was that it was small so it was easy to take places, plus it was from Walmart so it would be fairly easy to get another should this one ever get lost or damaged.
So the challenge began to get Carter to love his lovey! We started putting it in his crib at night and in the car seat with him on car rides. It didn't take long for Carter to take a liking to it. At that point we decided we better get a spare or two just incase anything were to happen to the original one. Unfortunately we couldn't find them at the walmart here so it was auntie P to the rescue when she was coming to London for a visit. She was able to snag us another two and bring them with her. Thank goodness!
As I had read, Carter started to become really attached to his lovey around a year old. We started to rotate them so that they would all be "loved" to the same degree and so it was easy to switch one out to wash it. After a while Carter become aware that he had three and loved them all equally. He was perfectly happy to bring one of them down stairs at a time, or to a sleep over at gramma and papa's, or out on the town, but at night in his own crib he loved to cuddle with them all. He was never upset if there were only two in his crib while one was in the wash, but if he saw the other one it would join the bedtime party. One moment that is forever pressed in my memory was when Carter was about a year and a half. I walked in to his room one morning to find him standing in his crib holding all three lovey's in his arms. He smiled at me, said "lovey's!" in a high pitched voice as he hugged them all. He was so in love!
To this day Carter still loves his lovey's. He has some other furry friends that he has also become quite fond of, such as Ellie the elephant, Hunter the doll, pumpkin bear, and most recently his little Christmas moose. But in a time of distress or despair, lovey is who he searches for. At night when he lays in his bed he will reach around for one of the lovey's and start rubbing it's soft blanket between his fingers or against his cheek. I go in to check on him each night before I go to bed and occasionally he will wake up but only to search for lovey and then drift off back to sleep before I've even left the room. During the day if he gets hurt he will search for both a hug from a loving adult and also a cuddle from lovey.
Just around the time Carter turned two he came to a realization. In the morning before heading down stairs with one of the lovey's, he started studying their faces. Every once and a while he would say "angry lovey" in an angry voice, and toss that lovey aside. He would then grab one of the other two (it didn't matter which one) and say "happy lovey" in a high pitched voice. He would then hug the happy lovey and be on his way with it. The first few times we just giggled but then we decided to take a closer look. We realized that it was always the same lovey that he said was angry and that lovey had one eye smaller then the other. Then about a month later he decided that only one of the other two was happy. So now he will pick up the angry lovey, say "angry lovey" and toss it away. He then picks up the not so happy lovey and say "no, want happy lovey." Then he will find "happy lovey," give him a hug and bring him along on his day.
He does this so much so that now when we are going out or he's going for a sleep over we have to confirm with Carter which one is the happiest as we aren't quite sure what his reaction would be should he be stuck with only "angry" or "not so happy" lovey. At night in his own bed though, he still loves all three. Gramma and I asked him the other day if we should just get rid of the other two but he said no. And even at 5am this morning when Carter was having trouble sleeping he looked to all of them for some comfort. After trying for a while to leave his room I finally agreed to leave Carter's door open if he'd stay in his room and try to sleep. He agreed. Not 10 seconds after I got back in to my bed did Carter come busting through my door with all three lovey's in hand. I brought him in to bed with us and as he layed between Dan and I he never stopped hugging all three lovey's!
I had read about lovey's and how beneficial they can be. They can be very comforting to a little one should they become attached to it. It's said to help regulate their emotions at a time when the world can be very over whelming. Usually a child will become attached to a lovey when they are around a year old, which is the same time separation anxiety tends to set in. A lovey can take any form really - a teddy bear, blanket, piece of clothing, or something like Carter had received. The good thing about the one Carter got was that it was small so it was easy to take places, plus it was from Walmart so it would be fairly easy to get another should this one ever get lost or damaged.
So the challenge began to get Carter to love his lovey! We started putting it in his crib at night and in the car seat with him on car rides. It didn't take long for Carter to take a liking to it. At that point we decided we better get a spare or two just incase anything were to happen to the original one. Unfortunately we couldn't find them at the walmart here so it was auntie P to the rescue when she was coming to London for a visit. She was able to snag us another two and bring them with her. Thank goodness!
As I had read, Carter started to become really attached to his lovey around a year old. We started to rotate them so that they would all be "loved" to the same degree and so it was easy to switch one out to wash it. After a while Carter become aware that he had three and loved them all equally. He was perfectly happy to bring one of them down stairs at a time, or to a sleep over at gramma and papa's, or out on the town, but at night in his own crib he loved to cuddle with them all. He was never upset if there were only two in his crib while one was in the wash, but if he saw the other one it would join the bedtime party. One moment that is forever pressed in my memory was when Carter was about a year and a half. I walked in to his room one morning to find him standing in his crib holding all three lovey's in his arms. He smiled at me, said "lovey's!" in a high pitched voice as he hugged them all. He was so in love!
To this day Carter still loves his lovey's. He has some other furry friends that he has also become quite fond of, such as Ellie the elephant, Hunter the doll, pumpkin bear, and most recently his little Christmas moose. But in a time of distress or despair, lovey is who he searches for. At night when he lays in his bed he will reach around for one of the lovey's and start rubbing it's soft blanket between his fingers or against his cheek. I go in to check on him each night before I go to bed and occasionally he will wake up but only to search for lovey and then drift off back to sleep before I've even left the room. During the day if he gets hurt he will search for both a hug from a loving adult and also a cuddle from lovey.
Just around the time Carter turned two he came to a realization. In the morning before heading down stairs with one of the lovey's, he started studying their faces. Every once and a while he would say "angry lovey" in an angry voice, and toss that lovey aside. He would then grab one of the other two (it didn't matter which one) and say "happy lovey" in a high pitched voice. He would then hug the happy lovey and be on his way with it. The first few times we just giggled but then we decided to take a closer look. We realized that it was always the same lovey that he said was angry and that lovey had one eye smaller then the other. Then about a month later he decided that only one of the other two was happy. So now he will pick up the angry lovey, say "angry lovey" and toss it away. He then picks up the not so happy lovey and say "no, want happy lovey." Then he will find "happy lovey," give him a hug and bring him along on his day.
He does this so much so that now when we are going out or he's going for a sleep over we have to confirm with Carter which one is the happiest as we aren't quite sure what his reaction would be should he be stuck with only "angry" or "not so happy" lovey. At night in his own bed though, he still loves all three. Gramma and I asked him the other day if we should just get rid of the other two but he said no. And even at 5am this morning when Carter was having trouble sleeping he looked to all of them for some comfort. After trying for a while to leave his room I finally agreed to leave Carter's door open if he'd stay in his room and try to sleep. He agreed. Not 10 seconds after I got back in to my bed did Carter come busting through my door with all three lovey's in hand. I brought him in to bed with us and as he layed between Dan and I he never stopped hugging all three lovey's!
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| Three very loved lovey's! |
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Visit With Santa!
So tonight Carter and I decided to go to the mall to see Santa, and to get some much needed exercise! Carter had already made it clear that he wouldn't be sitting on Santa's lap but he still wanted to go see him. When we first got there Santa was on a break so we headed to Zellers. At Zellers we stumbled upon some really neat dinosaurs. Carter played with "the big one" while I looked at some other things. When we were done I told him we had to put the dinosaur back. As I suspected, his response was "want it!" After I explained that we couldn't buy it right now but he could ask Santa for it, my easy going child put the dinosaur back on the shelf with it's friends. Off to Santa we went!
This time Santa was working away, getting pictures with lots of little ones. We sat on a bench near by for a while until Carter said "see better" and moved up to the fence around Santa. At one point between kids we yelled "Hi Santa" from the side. Santa gave Carter a big wave! After that Carter was adamant about seeing Santa. I told him that we could only go up to Santa if he was going to sit on his lap. He said "ok!" So we got in the line. The whole time he watched Santa and I asked numerous times "are you going to sit on Santa's lap?" to which he replied "yes" every time. Then came our turn. Carter walked up to Santa but stayed about a foot away and refused any mention of sitting on Santa's lap. Santa did ask him what he wanted for Christmas and Carter got to tell him "the BIG dinosaur!" Mission accomplished! Santa gave him a candy cane and we were on our way.
On our way home we were talking about Carter's visit with Santa and he again said "want BIG dinosaur." Seeing as I know Santa already bought Carter all his Christmas presents I told him that Santa likes to shop early so he may have bought him other dinosaurs. Carter replied "no, want that one!" Oh boy, looks like someone might be disappointed on Christmas day.
Who am I kidding, he's going to be spoiled rotten so I'm sure he'll forget all about the BIG dinosaur. We'll see though as he tends to remember everything!
This time Santa was working away, getting pictures with lots of little ones. We sat on a bench near by for a while until Carter said "see better" and moved up to the fence around Santa. At one point between kids we yelled "Hi Santa" from the side. Santa gave Carter a big wave! After that Carter was adamant about seeing Santa. I told him that we could only go up to Santa if he was going to sit on his lap. He said "ok!" So we got in the line. The whole time he watched Santa and I asked numerous times "are you going to sit on Santa's lap?" to which he replied "yes" every time. Then came our turn. Carter walked up to Santa but stayed about a foot away and refused any mention of sitting on Santa's lap. Santa did ask him what he wanted for Christmas and Carter got to tell him "the BIG dinosaur!" Mission accomplished! Santa gave him a candy cane and we were on our way.
On our way home we were talking about Carter's visit with Santa and he again said "want BIG dinosaur." Seeing as I know Santa already bought Carter all his Christmas presents I told him that Santa likes to shop early so he may have bought him other dinosaurs. Carter replied "no, want that one!" Oh boy, looks like someone might be disappointed on Christmas day.
Who am I kidding, he's going to be spoiled rotten so I'm sure he'll forget all about the BIG dinosaur. We'll see though as he tends to remember everything!
Monday, December 5, 2011
23 weeks....
Well, today was a rough day, physically and emotionally! I was sick like I was from weeks 7-16. I didn't realize until today how much better I've actually been the last few weeks. I'm still nauseas every morning, most afternoons, and some evenings but I can actually get through SOME days without getting sick as long as I really take it easy in the mornings and afternoons.
Unfortunately this is as good as I think it's going to get. I remember feeling better near the end of my last pregnancy but I was able to really take it easy then, with no toddler to take care of. Though I do remember thinking I was better and stopping my medication at around 8 1/2 months only to be sick again. This time I'm under no illusion...it's me and Diclectin for the long haul!
I sadly realized today that it's been 16 weeks now of:
Unfortunately this is as good as I think it's going to get. I remember feeling better near the end of my last pregnancy but I was able to really take it easy then, with no toddler to take care of. Though I do remember thinking I was better and stopping my medication at around 8 1/2 months only to be sick again. This time I'm under no illusion...it's me and Diclectin for the long haul!
I sadly realized today that it's been 16 weeks now of:
- getting sick almost every day
- not being able to work
- having to rely on Dan to do almost all the cooking, cleaning and lifting
- having to rely on Dan's mom to come every morning to watch Carter
- feeling sick every time I climb the stairs, lift Carter or have to stand in line somewhere
- having to tell Carter I can't get on the floor and play because my tummy hurts
- not being able to think about food without feeling nauseas
But what's getting me through is knowing that in just about 17 weeks from now we will finally be able to hold our new little monkey. We feel so blessed to be having another healthy little guy. We know how lucky we are and regardless of how crappy I feel I am also so grateful.
Every time I look at Carter I am reminded of how lucky we are. Tonight he was going a little crazy due to so much energy and not being able to burn it by running around outside. So Dan decided to teach him how to do somersaults. What fun!
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| Getting ready! |
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| Hands down, head under! |
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| Flip! |
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| Backwards flip! (Pancho must be hungry!) |
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| Time to fly! |
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| Time to relax! |
Friday, December 2, 2011
It's a....
Well, yesterday was a very exciting day as we finally got to find out whether Carter is getting a brother or sister in April! I had my ultrasound in the morning and then delivered the sealed envelope to a friend's so she could bake us a pink or blue cake (thanks again Ash!). It was so hard not to know but it was worth it to find out with a cake.
After dinner, a bunch of family came by to help celebrate the news, whichever way the cake did crumble!
The cake:
The result:
We are thrilled! Carter is going to love having a brother and this little guy will fit in well with his cousins as well (see pic below!). That's 8 Craig boys in a row now!
The above picture is just a picture of a picture but you get the idea. I'm sure you can imagine how much fun these three can have together. And another boy will fit right in, though he'll have to grow quick so he can stand his ground when cousin Evan decides to tackle!
After dinner, a bunch of family came by to help celebrate the news, whichever way the cake did crumble!
The cake:
We are thrilled! Carter is going to love having a brother and this little guy will fit in well with his cousins as well (see pic below!). That's 8 Craig boys in a row now!
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| Evan (2.5), Connor (4), Carter (2) |
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