Not-so-sweet Halloween

Who doesn't love Halloween when you have a little one you can dress up (and they're too young to protest your costume choice!)?

Well thank goodness we took the dragon costume for a trial run and snapped a few good pictures, because it most certainly wasn't going to happen on Halloween.

Mama Bug all settled into the work day...
Email:


Daddy Bug:  rough rough morning. June Bug puked ALL.OVER his costume/car/carseat...


Me:  Oh no! So you're at home?  I'll get home as soon as I can so you can get in a half day at work.

Daddy:  No I dropped Bug off at daycare, I'm at work.

::insert shock face and head hitting desk::

Me:  ::sigh::  He can't go to daycare if he's throwing up, I'll go pick him up.

So home we go, horrified to open the bag containing one puke covered dragon costume. I'd be lying if I didn't admit that a small (ok large) piece of me wanted to deposit that bag in the trash bin. But I didn't. Instead I put June Bug down for a nap, wrapped a perfume doused scarf around my face (seriously, I did) and cleaned his no-longer-all-that-cute costume. 

One hour later and 6 strongly scented candles later, I realized June Bug is STILL awake in his crib. ::sigh:: Off for a walk we go in hopes that he might opt for a nap.  He didn't. Instead he screamed the entire 3 mile walk; not unhappily, more because he's finally discovered he can adjust his "volume". Though I'm sure the neighbors thought I was torturing him.

It's 6:15pm, June Bug is curled up, sound asleep in his crib looking sweet as pie. I'm thinking it's not too early for me to do the same.  It's days like today that make me wonder if I can really handle two kids.

A delightful trip to the pumpkin patch...

First I had to bathe him BEFORE we went because he smeared butter in what little hair he has and I wanted cute pictures not a kid who looked liked a greased turkey:



so it started out as a normal trip:


He hated most everything, but especially the petting zoo. I'm pretty sure he was stunned at how big the animals are bigger in real life. I kept pointing to a duck and saying "duck" and he looked at me horrified and kept shaking his head no!



He did love the pirate ship, a weird addition to a pumpkin patch. Figures it's the only thing June Bug liked.



Then I noticed the paparazzi, only in California.

The Sweetest Surprise

Good bye sweet summer...
Ok so per the calendar summer ended last weekend, though around these parts it's really summer until November if you look at the weather. But as a teacher it ended in August with the return to work. Regardless, it was a bittersweet end of stay-at-home mommy time with my sweet little June Bug.

I forget how much fun it is to be a kid in the summer and I thoroughly enjoyed relieving my childhood. We enjoyed trips to the pool, parades and wagon rides with our favorite gal pal, watermelon,  and picnics in the park and of course June Bug turned 1.



But it wasn't just a busy summer that kept me from blogging a little more regularly.  Our sweetest surprise came in July and sent me packing to the bathroom floor for... well, I'm still hanging out there.  June Bug is very excited to announce that he's going to be a big brother come March. Ok, he was actually pretty indifferent to the news, but hopefully he'll be more excited once Baby Bug arrives, in the meantime Daddy Bug and I'll be excited on his behalf.

On a side note, I'd like to meet the man, because clearly it was a man, who coined the term morning sickness and smack him upside the head for being an unobservant male.

How's this for a surprise face??

I've Created a Monster...

My little techie

Ever since Daddy Bug and I got new phones, June Bug inherited his own iPhone. It doesn't really do anything but play music. But to say June Bug loves music might be the understatement of the year.  He has become quite adept at unlocking the phone and starting up the music. It took him all of .3 seconds to figure it out (I'm pretty sure it took me closer to 3 weeks).  So June Bug will happily fire up the iPod and dance around for a happy long time.

More recently he's figured out how to open the TV cabinet despite the baby lock on it (Dear Safety First, Your locks are NOT babyproof).  I watched him remove the lock, open the doors and stare at the blank TV for a good long time.

Then he proceeded to slide his finger along the bottom of the TV screen in an attempt to "unlock" and turn on the TV.... I didn't know whether to laugh or stare in complete astonishment.

Mommy Milestones

Yep, this one's for Mama Bug...

Surviving Day 1 of Daycare.   June Bug's off to daycare for the first time now that we're both back to work. And frankly, someone needs to write a "Daycare Survival Manuel" for PARENTS. You know, "deep breaths", "think about something else", "no the world's worst natural disaster will probably NOT happen today".... that sort of thing.

I only cried 6 times and I didn't even have to do the drop off. My poor coworkers must think I was really unhappy to see them all. I could see the side eyes of "jeesh, we're all sad summer's over, but get a grip Mama Bug."

Needless to say June Bug was just fine. I really think daycare is survival of the fittest parents, not kids.  June Bug LOVES other kids, so he was pretty taken with them upon arrival (or so I'm told).  He loves toys, he loves food....so really what's not to love about daycare?

June Bug enjoying the fountain with Nana on our last day of break!

And of course he came home happy as a clam and playful all afternoon.  Meanwhile Mama and Daddy Bug crawled into bed extra early, and I mean crawled... after what was clearly a day full of anxiety, emotions and tears who wouldn't be exhausted?

The Fundamental Difference...

...between Mama Bug and Daddy Bug:  the song choice.

More specifically, the bedtime song choice.  Each night before putting June Bug down to sleep, I sing a few rounds of You are my Sunshine,  classic, appropriate, obvious choice.

Over the weekend Daddy Bug had bedtime duties.  And what do I hear coming through the baby monitor?    My husband sweetly singing: The Gambler

There is not an emoticon to express my disbelief.    So instead I'll leave you with a sweet image of June Bug; here's to hoping he doesn't grow up to be a vagabond.

An Apology

What is going on??

Dear SoCal weather,

I am so sorry that I ever called you boring or blah. Your predictable perfectness is blissful. Please carry on.

Sincerely,

Mama Bug

Dear Chicago weather,

I thought I missed you. Especially a REAL thunderstorm full of flashing lightening, pounding thunder and torrential downpours.  I was wrong. Very, very wrong.  Thank you for setting me straight with the following events:

12 am:  Begin thunderstorm

1 am:  June Bug wakes completely mystified and horrified by the pounding noise and flashing lights having never experienced a thunderstorm (to my midwest friends, it really doesn't thunderstorm in the basin. No, Angelenos, the distant rumbling and perhaps a flicker of lightening does not qualify as a "real" thunderstorm)

1:15 am:  June Bug joins Mama Bug in bed so he can sleep. Mama Bug, not so much.

3 am:  Tornado sirens go off. Down the basement we go....

3:45 am:  back in bed with one very awake June Bug.

captivated by the storm

The weather man said there would be no more storms. He was wrong, per usual. So Chicago, thank you for making me see the error of my ways.
Sincerely,
Mama Bug



::runs of to recuperate the missed sleep on this fine stormless SoCal night::

Yucky Utensils

Ok, not the utensils themselves, but the mess I have to clean up afterwards.  No, I really do not want to still be feeding my child when he's 10, but this whole teaching them to use utensils is for the birds.  It's times like these that I wish I had a dog to clean up the mess surrounding June Bug's chair, and perhaps June Bug himself.

diligently licking the spoon clean

The best part or the worst part, depending on how you look at it, is he get's it. He understands 100% how to use his spoon and fork and he LOVES it.

Why is that bad you ask? Because he insists on doing it himself at every.single.meal.  Thank goodness for summer break and not having anywhere to be since meal time is officially 6 hours of our day as he happily manhandles his spoonfuls of yogurt or forkfuls of pasta. He's a dedicated utensil user, down to licking the damn thing clean after every.single.bite.  If only he kept himself as clean as he does his spoon a bath wouldn't be required after every meal.  

Bad blogger...

It's been pointed out to me on numerous occasions over the last week that I'm slacking in the blogging category.  June Bug and I have been busy enjoying summer. As he becomes more and more of a walker I've been trying to find fun places to let him loose....

Well I found one, the best museum ever!! They open early on Wednesday for kids under 2, which really  meant it was just Bug and one other little girl. We won't talk about her, frankly, I didn't like her much and if she screamed "no" one more time at my child, I was going to have words with grandma. Ok, not really because I'm a giant wuss, but perhaps grandma should have put down the iPhone and watched her not-so-nice toddler.

Walking to the next exhibit!

Luckily June Bug is easy going so he had fun anyway.  Here are some of the many things to do! Really, seriously there are TONS of rooms in this museum. My favorite thing was a giant magnetic wall. All the pieces form different animals and trees. My child preferred to rip everything off of the wall, but you get the idea.




This tree house had little circles with bugs that lit up at the touch of a button, so of course Bug was obsessed with both the button and the lights.

The water table had a current, and using the slates you could dam-off a route and sail your ships.  June Bug was won over at the word "water".



A small portion of the magnetic wall.



This is the toddler bouncy room. Bug was more impressed with the big kid toys, but he still enjoyed kissing himself in the mirror.



All in all, it was a successful trip. The museum held his attention for 90 minutes before it was nap time.

The Outdoor Road to Walking...

Some kids just up and start walking. June Bug wants to be a walker, but he was an early crawler at 7 months and he knows he's fast on all-fours. I mean it's frightening the speed at which he can get from A to B. He starting to give the cats a run for their money. Needless to say they are not happy with June Bug's growing speed. But walking is really what he wants to do.

Some days I can actually see him thinking, I'll just walk over there, but for whatever reason, his next move it to fling his upper body forward and just sort of hope that his feet follow suit. Yeah, they don't, and he usually ends up flopping down like a fish out of water. I try not to laugh, but he's usually giggling has he goes down.  What's funnier, is I've seen him march across his room. But some days the feet and the brain just don't communicate. So for now, while indoors he still favors the tried-and-true crawling. Outdoors however is another story.

Plants are captivating.

While sitting at Starbucks this morning he proceeded to circle the table, the chairs and then attempt to escape the patio via half-walking, half-cruising.  When his little red car takes a trip outside, he would rather push than be pushed. And like everyone should he always stops to smell the flowers or mutilate them, but I like to think he's picking flowers for mama. Something about the fresh air and California sun that must inspire his confidence.

One day this kid is going to just up and run when I'm not looking. And my guess is it'll not be in the safe confines of home...thus provoking a favorite, child-rearing debate, one which clearly divides all parents into two very distinct groups:
pro- vs. anti-child-leash
and discuss....

Just for you!

Summer Splash!

This weekend marks a long awaited event... the neighborhood pool finally opens!! June Gloom delays the start of summer around here, often keeping our temperatures in the lower 60's, maybe 70's, but most definitely overcast most of the day.  However, the last few days have been perfect pool weather, but alas no pool.   We tried the beach, but clearly that didn't go quite as planned.

So it was time to improvise. June Bug's infant bath tub was closeted long ago when he learned to climb out of it-- fun for Bug, not fun for Mama.  But with 85 degrees and sunshine, it was time to be creative. So we dragged it outside, along with beach toys and gave it a shot.

Day 1: June Bug immediately climbed in, excited by the prospect. Then Mama Bug was stung by a bee, so that quickly ended attempt #1.

Day 2:  Reapeat of June Bug excitement and no bees making both Mama and June Bug happy campers.

I'm thrilled this option has kept June Bug entertained, but I'll be happy to walk over to the pool come Saturday. Hopefully it's as big of a hit since I will be spending my Friday night lined up with throngs of other mothers to get into Mommy & Me  swim classes...yes that's right, it's a lottery for swim classes.  Yet as ridiculous as I think it is, ::hangs head in shame:: I will still be joining the masses hoping and praying my number gets picked and my kid gets in. I'm sure my parents are dying laughing right now.

The Toddler-Costco Challenge

Snuggles!

What could be more fun than a Saturday afternoon trip with a toddler to Costco?

Perhaps a toddler that can also throw up in the back seat as you pull into the crazy-don't-even-think-about-stealing-my-spot-or-I'll-gauge-your-eyes-out Costco parking lot. Awesome.  Thankfully I must have had some good karma because I found a spot in less than 20seconds (that or other drivers could sense my radiating desperation).

At least we were at Costco, so June Bug did get a new outfit out the deal. The car seat was another tragedy and of course there are no baby wipes left in the diaper bag, talk about an epic mommy-fail.  But again, we're at Costco, they have wipes...in 30lbs boxes containing no less than 1,120 wipes. I wish I were making that number up.

And for the car, well it was suggested to me that a few dryer sheets would remove the smell. FYI, do NOT put them on the dashboard, they will melt and adhere to it. But at least the car smells Bounce fresh.

Recuperating from the dreaded Costco trip

And now it's Monday. So far:

1. June Bug managed to pull a vase of flowers off the counter, shattering the vase.
2. He repeated #1 with an expensive crystal wine glasses.
3. I put a knife through my thumb chopping vegetables.
4. I lost my keys, my wallet and a gift card all on separate occasions.

I should have stayed in bed.  But then I would have missed June Bug walking across his bedroom floor. He was so proud, and so was this mama.  June Bug makes everyday worth getting up.

Ahhhh Summer Break...

Hahahahahahahahaha, hahahahahaha, I have tears streaming down my face right now. All I could talk about for the last month was I can't wait for summer break! Don't get me wrong, I'm loving every minute of my stay-at-home-mommy-summer-JOB. Not break.  Ok, and maybe not every minute.  I could do without the following:

1. diaper blowouts at 10pm after June Bug's been asleep for 3 hours
2. Food throwing
3. temper tantrums
4. The dreaded molar-teething (please, please come in soon, you're soooo close!)

I tried laughing, it didn't fool him.

Other than those minor events, I'm loving being home with the little guy. It was a no-brainer when I picked my summer activity. Stay-at-home-mommy for me. And props to June Bug for keeping it interesting.  He has already foiled my summer plans of renaming him June Bug the Beach Bum.  

The dreaded June Gloom had finally cleared and I raced off to the beach, excited for this inaugral summer trip!!!! And what did I learn? That the beach, is the scariest place on earth. I mean scariest.  Complete with shaking, sobbing, head burying, run, run far away, meltdown. 

Even at a safe distant from the water, still scary!

There's no doubt that June Bug looks like his mama, but he apparently inherited one of Daddy Bug's lesser traits:  a hate of the beach.  Yes, that's right my husband hates the beach because....wait for it...."sand is messy"  

::insert eyerolling::

I love, love, love the beach and I will not be deterred by this ridiculous male-dominate-beach-hating trait. Hopefully round 2 isn't met with as many tears from the boy bugs.

I do hope he doesn't hate the pool this much or we're going to have a boring, boring summer.

 

I will leave you with a happier June Bug, listening to music with his daddy. Man, do we need to work on the mommy-friendly hobbies...

A Helping Hand

Disaster of the day...Thanks Bug!

Or not so helping hand...
June Bug LOVES to lend a hand when I decide to clean and organize.  Well, he thinks he's helping.

Usually it entails him ripping everything out of the neatly packed bin and crawling in it.  If I'm lucky, he'll hand me the items instead of throwing them.  And is he ever proud of his handy work. His excitement usually results in him reclaiming the recently shared item and throwing it...as far as he can.  

But he gave it to me first, so that's what counts in that little head of his. It's definitely a 3 steps forward, 4 steps back process. Yes, you read that right, our humble abode is getting progressively messier. I'm just doing what I can to slow it down. 

Look mom, the basket is all clean!!

I really should be attempting to get more picked up right now.  But instead June Bug and I are enjoying Dance Party Friday. It is the start of summer break and a 3 month stint as a stay-at-home mommy.  Which means that I technically have more time to clean.


I say 10:1 odds, this place is a bigger disaster come August. 

Dancing is so much more fun than cleaning!

Birthday Bash

Okay, more like an intimate gathering. This is one of those moments that our small living quarters make me sad as it's not particularly conducive to big gatherings or really gatherings of any size, as made evident by the cake on the computer table (though I was able to play a slideshow then).  One day we'll have space to host everyone but in the meantime I was determined to make the most of this wonderful event.  We do have a little bit local family who joined us for the afternoon along with a few friends to help us celebrate his First Birthday!






I swear I missed my calling as a kindergarten teacher. I'm not one to brag, but I'm pretty proud of my resourceful craftiness. I made/printed everything using old file folders.  I baked the cake/cupcakes and decorated the cake aka the hungry caterpillar's head. One of my BFF's decorated the cupcakes, she's pretty talented like that!  Of course I bought food like I was feeding any army.  So I'll be eating a cupcake-a-day for the next two weeks, along with fruit, hummus and other assorted finger foods.

I will say as proud as I am of my decor, I was waaaaaaay more excited about this AWESOME  bottle of wine I found --------------------------------->

A few people actually thought I made the label. I wish I was that crafty! But seriously, could it be any more perfect??!!

As for my shy little June Bug, he shocked both me and Daddy Bug by hamming it up during cake and song time. I really expected big fat tears. Nope, this kid apparently knows a good thing when he sees it: cake and attention.

He was very intrigued by all the singing

The Birthday Boy pre-cake

Happy Birthday June Bug!!!

What a difference a year makes....

Memorial Day 2010, 40 weeks and 1 day pregnant.

Yes, it was impossibly hard to drag my past-due butt up that hill. But desperate times called for desperate measures.  I would do it again in another 5 days.  No, it did not bring on labor.











Memorial Day 2011,
June Bug is 11 months, 3 weeks and 1 day.  This was shockingly easier than the above expedition.

Not so shocking, the weather is exactly the same.   If I weren't 30 lbs lighter with a nearly 1 year old, you might think it was the same day. This is where I tell you I think SoCal has the most boring weather  ::ducks to avoid tomatoes::

Tumbling towards toddlerhood!

With a mere two weeks until toddlerhood, I can't help but think where we were one year ago:

1. I was still pregnant, 5 days from my due date.
2. I really had 15 days until June Bug would actually join us---->

3. Publicity decided it was a good time to take photos in my room

4. I convinced Daddy Bug to watch the Bachelorette I had DVR'd

Publicity shot....2 days from my due date

I had long since shunned the show after a few bad seasons. But with 5 days to my due date and no desire to be productive I parked my tank-sized-self on the couch and got sucked into Ali's season. 

Why is this relevant to my baby blog? Because this is what I would  watch while in labor. Trust me when I tell you that the show is NOT intriguing enough to distract from a quickly worsening labor. The Bachelor/Bachelorette series is pretty painful at times to watch, add labor and well, you don't exactly have a party.

But since I had stuck out a 2 hour episode (seriously, why are they 2-hours???) with 90 second contractions on top of each other, I obviously had  to finish the season.  I'm convinced it was the Bachelorette that sent my labor into full force. It was shortly after the episode that I requested the anesthesiologist.
                  And as we attempted to watch Ashley's season this week, I'm wishing I still had that anesthesiologist at my disposal.

Current June Bug, with his lovely Turkey and Veggie Dinner

 
Now, one year later, Daddy Bug is a stay-at-home-dad to this cute little June Bug--------->

But he's decided he wants a job, Chris Harrison's to be exact.  Here's why...

I like to move it move it...

Excuse the messy, shirtless baby

So we've had a mobile June Bug since January 15th, to be exact.  He took off crawling and hasn't slowed down since.  Walking is in the none-too-distant future. June Bug has definitely realized he can stand sans a crutch and that running with Stride-to-Ride dino is an okay activity. We have a slight turning problem, aka we run across the room, slam into the wall and then scream until someone comes to turn dino around for another round of race-across-the-room.

So we figured we'd spare the hardwood floors and our walls and take dino to the park.  I mean who doesn't love a walk around the park with a singing dinosaur?




Ok, so he loved it for all of 30 seconds and then cried until I scooped him up. Apparently we're not quite yet confident enough for outdoor dino-romping.

So instead we played on the swings and slides to make up for the scary walk.  Meanwhile a nearby 3-year-old sat plotting a way to steal Bug's dino...luckily said 3-year old's dad was onto his scheming.

A "Typical" Day

Yeah, that's an oxymoron when you're a working mom. I don't know what typical means anymore!

But since I had the privilege of guest blogging for PDX Momma about what our day looks like, I tried to hash out some semblance of a normal day.  I'm still learning how to be a working mom, but here's a peak into a typical day with Mama Bug and June Bug.

She's doing a whole series on working moms and I've already learned several great tips! Thanks Jenn!

A Day in the Life of Mama Bug and her June Bug Baby...  Click Here =)

Danger Zone

Arched back, suddenly limp 20 pounds of dead weight, flailing fists and sharp shriek...  I thought tantrums came with toddler-hood. I am wrong. Very wrong. 

Um, no, sticking your fingers and other objects into the now-unprotected-outlet because you-pried-off-the-cover is not a good idea on many levels, electric shortage, fire hazard oh and might I add: your personal safety. Most of our tantrums involve me attempting to ward off a dangerous situation resulting in a very frustrated June Bug.

You have lots of toys, LOTS of toys.  Why the power cords, the toilet, the not-anchored-down nightstand?  Your book shelf and toy bin are colorful and inviting and SAFE. The nightstand is old, dusty and might I add dangerous!!

There's all this preaching that you shouldn't use the word "no" too much at an early age and you should use the words that corresponds with why they shouldn't be doing what their doing, ie. dangerous, heavy, sharp.... I'm 100% sure all June Bug hears is:  blah blah blah blah blah as he carries on with the dangerous activity of the day. He doesn't care which word I chose to use.

I don't have any tantrum photos, it's not really worth risking his life for a good shot. So here's the complete opposite. June Bug playing nicely. You'll notice it's a short video...

Pretty in Pictures!

The Family Photo! How cliché, you say?  Yep, well that's family life and I'm not ashamed! I'm admittedly a little obsessed with getting a good family photo! Living far from family means that Daddy Bug or Mama Bug are behind the camera so our family photos are few and far between and the ones we do have leave a LOT to be desired.  In fact, I think I can count on one hand the number of photos we have of all three of us.  Though Daddy Bug is thrilled by this as he's never been one for the camera, I disagreed.  And in true Daddy Bug fashion he's particular about who's taking his picture. Luckily I know an awesome photographer who never fails to make me look good.  Vain you say? Yes it is. Bothered by said vanity? Nope, not at all. 

Pete and his lovely wife (also one of my BFFs) made the trek out to the suburbs (thank you!!) on a recent trip back home and kindly took a TON of pictures of June Bug and family.  So I finally got some fabulous shots of our lovely family!!  I sort of wish he could follow us around and be our personal photographer. So far he's done our wedding, 3-month shots, and now our 1-year family shots and I never fail to be wowed by his work.



Thank you Thompson {Family} Photography for making us look good and sharing your amazing talent with us!!  I had trouble picking one or two to share...

© Thompson {Family} Photography