C...O...O...O...

AJ went to his first football game on Saturday. It was Band Alumni Day at the UH vs UCF football game at Robertson Stadium. I saw some friends I hadn't seen in 15-16 years. It was fun catching up and participating in some of the UH band traditions.

1) The band has a 350lb brass bell that they ring for every point after each score. By the end of the first half, AJ was waving his version of the "Cougar Paw" in the air to count points also.

2) The band sways left and right while they play the fight song. We had AJ swaying along with us. He was very cute.

3) AJ loved dancing to the drum cadences. Particularly the "Cougar Spellout". He would yell "C!", "O!", "U!", "O""O""O"......so maybe his spelling needs a little work.

It's Potty Time

AJ went poo poo in the potty for the very first time yesterday at school. Does it count if it wasn't on purpose? Apparently the teacher was changing his diaper when he decided he wanted to fill it, so she scooped him up and sat him on the potty to finish. He was very proud of himself...

I SOOO don't want to be in the middle of potty training when we leave for the cruise in a couple of weeks. I was hoping he would hold off on making any progress until we get back. I suppose that's kind of selfish...On the bright side, if he does actually figure out this whole potty thing before we leave on the 12th, we will be able to go into the kiddie pool on the ship. They don't allow diapers in the pools.

Oh NO! Not nice!

Two of AJ's latest phrases have been popping up in hysterical places lately. AJ now has a very dramatic way of saying "Oh, no!" that makes it sound like his little world has just been ruined. When we are watching "Deal or No Deal" on television, when a contestant opens a large number, the audience reacts with a gasp or "aaawww". AJ screams out "Oh, NO!"

This weekend when Daddy had to apply the brakes pretty hard while we were driving, we all lurched forward a bit, and hear AJ shout "Oh, NO!" from the back seat.

His other new phrase is "not nice". Yesterday's application came when Daddy was tickling AJ on the leg. AJ pushed his hand away and said, "Not nice!" I just about fell out of my seat.

The Great Pumpkin

Saturday we decided AJ looked bored so we took him out for a ride to the park to play. On the way to the park I had the great idea of taking him out to Dewberry Farm in Brookshire. It's only about a 20-25 minute drive from our house and looked like we could have some fun. Let's backtrack to last Monday....when the Houston area was deluged by several inches of rain....Let's take a toddler out to a big field. What a huge, muddy mess!!

AJ took his first hayride out to the pumpkin patch to pick out a pumpkin. Of course, first rattle out of the box, he steps into a ditch and gets stuck in the mud. From then on, he doesn't want to walk -- only wants to be carried. So Daddy and I are taking turns toting this 23 pound squirming weight around in a muddy, uneven field full of pumpkins about the size of an orange. AJ had a blast on the hayride, though.

He also got to ride the corn train. The corn train is a "train" made of 55-gallon plastic barrels that have been turned sideways, a hole cut out of the side, slapped on some wheels, and dragged through a field by a tractor. AJ was too small to ride by himself, so I had the privilege of riding with him. Here's the visual -- muddy toddler and me wedged into a 55-gallon drum, staddling a piece of wood "seat" about 6 inches wide, being dragged and bounced along with other parents and children through a muddy, hilly field for about five minutes. Count me out for the next ride!

There were lots of neat things for the kids there, but AJ will probably not be back until he is a little older....and that will give my butt time to recover...

Cleaning the Bathtub

Well, I have now had another momentous "first" with AJ. Last night during his bath, he actually pooped in the bathtub! I made AJ stand up and asked him if he was finished, then sat him down on a towel on the floor. I left the tub draining while I went to dry AJ off and put on his pajamas.

Unfortunately, I then had to go back into the bathroom and figure out the least offensive way to remove the poop from the tub...EEEWWWW....

Renewable Resources

AJ posesses a highly valuable renewable resource. It's called N.O.I.S.E. He has so much of it inside of him that occasionally some of it just bursts out. And no matter how much of it he uses, there always seems to be plenty more...

Homecoming

I have finally returned home from a week away from my family working a show in Washington, DC. It was my first time away from AJ for more than 2 nights, so I was really a mess leaving. Daddy kept me informed every day about happenings on the homefront....AJ wandering around the house with one of my shoes.....AJ looking for me in the mornings in the bed, then pointing the the bathroom sure I must be in the shower....

I was really excited to get home Friday night. I thought AJ would be excited to see me too. The van door slid open for me to get in next to him. He had a HUGE smile on his face. But rather than shouting "Mommy" with joy in his heart, he just threw his arms out wide and screamed "AIRPLANE" (well, his version of it). Apparently when they were driving around the airport, there was a plane sitting on the overpass above the road. He thought that was just the coolest thing he'd ever seen. He spent the rest of the ride home pointing out the window saying "airplane".

On Saturday, the local fire department had a open house. AJ got to sit inside a fire truck and an ambulance. Then they brought in Life Flight. AJ got to sit across the street and watch the helicopter land in the parking lot. That just got him started on "airplane" again.

We were looking online at the Carnival site to find our stateroom for our upcoming cruise. AJ was sitting in Daddy's lap at the computer, pointing at the ship on the screen and saying "airplane". I think I'm sensing a trend...

Transition Time

AJ started transitioning into his next classroom this week, and it looks like we have some practicing to do! In this class, the kids eat in the cafeteria with the rest of the school instead of their classroom. There are no more sippy cups (I see a lot of wet clothes in our future). AJ will have to put away his own toys when he is finished playing with them. The room is divided into different "stations". Throughout the day, the kids move from station to station for a set period of time. They can play with whatever is in that station, but must stay in that station. No more running crazy around the room. And the strangest thing to me -- stand-up diaper changes! They start potty-training here, and there is no changing table. At potty time, the teacher takes each kid into the restroom, lets the "trainers" sit on the potty, then changes their diapers while they are standing up. I have tried this. IT'S NOT EASY! How do you keep him from walking away while you are holding his shirt up with one hand and trying to put on a diaper with the other hand?

My first spontaneous kiss

5:20am this morning...AJ standing next to my bed waving "hello" and raising his arms up to get in the bed...He laid down between me and Daddy in the middle of the bed. A few minutes later he sat up, leaned over me, and gave me a big "SMACK" kiss on the mouth. Then he laid back down and giggled.

AAWWW....

Communing with nature

My baby has turned into a little boy before my very eyes and seemingly overnight. I know he's a little boy because of his newly-found fascination with dirt, bugs, and worms. He loves his new sand/water play table and spent over an hour on Friday evening throwing sand across the yard, putting sand on his head, and using handfuls of sand in the "water" side to build a dam. When we got back into town last night, he got out of the car and went straight to the sand pile.

Saturday night he made friends with an ant and a cricket. While spinning around in circles he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. It was a tiny ant crawling across a small leaf. He leaned down over the leaf and waved a cheery "hi" to the ant. When the ant kept walking, AJ lay down on his tummy next to the leaf to take a closer look and tell Mr. Ant "hello" from up-close.

A few minutes later, he discovered a cricket walking across the way. He had to lay down and talk to the cricket for a while also.

Yesterday while we were unloading the car, AJ found a live earthworm crawling across the sidewalk. We had to stop and carry on a conversation with the worm too.

The "after party"

After the school party, we went home and played outside while we waited for more birthday guests to arrive for dinner and presents. AJ had another cupcake and blew out his candle (with help from Daddy). He got another couple of books for his Little Leappad, a Little People barn (which he seems to LOVE), and an activity table that Mommy and Daddy are having trouble assembling. Gotta find a customer service help line to Fisher Price now. Can't wait for Christmas.....*SIGH*

Happy Birthday

I am now officially exhausted. AJ had a party celebrating his 2nd birthday yesterday at school with 15 other toddlers. We had balloons, Elmo hats and napkins, goodie cups, and cupcakes for everyone. The kids really seemed to enjoy it. We completely trashed his classroom, though. I understand now why they wanted cupcakes with white frosting!

Weekend

We got up and took AJ to the zoo on Saturday morning. His only other trip to the zoo was about this time last year, and he wasn't interested at all. This time he really seemed to enjoy himself. It's all about the elephants, bears, and monkeys...He was kinda cute waving and saying "bye" to each animal as we walked away.

"Aunt Marsha" and "Uncle Rafi" came over yesterday on their way home to San Antonio. They are getting married in January and want AJ to be their ring-bearer. AJ is such a ham that I don't think he will have a problem with that at all. And he'll look really cute in a tuxedo!

Miscellaneous Ramblings

Not many good stories lately....AJ has started being very clingy and doesn't want us to leave him at school. This is very unusual for us.

Yesterday AJ found a dead earthworm curled up on the sidewalk. He picked it up and tore it into pieces. I must admit, it was rather disturbing...

Two of AJ's school friends are almost potty-trained. Both of them were born the week of AJ's original due date, so they are 3 months younger than he is. We haven't even started trying to potty-train AJ yet. Are we behind? Do girls always do this faster than boys?

One week until AJ's second birthday and his party at school. Must remember not to bring cupcakes with colored frosting. Apparently the food coloring stains everything.

Puppies for Breakfast

I will be very glad when AJ finally begins to speak clearly. But life won't be nearly as funny.... On Saturday morning AJ starting pointing toward the kitchen saying "eat". I asked him what he wanted for breakfast. He said something that sounded like "puppies". I just stood there scratching my head wondering where the puppies were (since we only have a cat). So I asked him "what puppies?" He just kept repeating "puppies". After about the fifth time, I realized that maybe he was trying to say "breakfast". When I asked him "breakfast?", he got a big smile on his face and started applauding. He was so proud of his stupid Mommy finally figuring it out.

As for the "Mommy" thing...I apparently have a new name. Instead of saying Mommy now, AJ replaces the middle "m" sound with an "n". I am now "Money"! I hope that isn't prophetic. This child is already very expensive!

My new favorite picture of AJ

I think he looks so grown up in this one....it's hard to believe he will be two years old in a couple of weeks.

Early morning ...

If you spend any time around AJ, you will soon learn of his love for books. When we get home from school each evening, he immediately starts bringing out books for us to read. We are required to read at least 5 or 6 books before dinner.

This morning at 4:18am (jeez, that's early) AJ came into our room. Since he moved into his big boy bed, he can get up by himself without having to wait for someone to rescue him from his crib. He navigates very easily through the house in complete darkness to find his way into our bedroom.

Anyway, this morning he showed up next to my side of the bed at 4:20am. When I reached down to pick him up, he handed me a book!

(I should have known this was coming when he started "reading" so early in life...)

I'm Sorry

Last night I was tired and yelled at AJ when he picked up his plate at dinner and emptied it onto his lap and the floor. We took this as a sign that he was through eating and (after cleaning him up) he was sent away from the table. My own dinner put aside now, I got out the broom and started cleaning up the food, because AJ will just come eat it off the floor.

Daddy took him into the living room and explained to him that we don't throw food, that he had hurt Mommy's feelings, and that he needed to apologize. I heard this and immediately thought "Right...that'll happen....he's just a baby and won't understand."

AJ walked into the kitchen where I was standing and started hugging me around my leg. I got down on my knees and he gave me a really big hug....

Of course my eyes filled with tears and I felt about this small....

Like a day at the beach...

Since we are going on a cruise in November, we decided we should see how AJ would react to the beach. So we went down to Galveston on Saturday. He wasn't too sure about the water, but really enjoyed playing in the sand. Daddy took him out to wade in the water -- that was fun. AJ liked destroying Daddy's sand castles. I took him along the beach to pick up sea shells; until he ate one! I saw him put it in his mouth, but by the time I got him to open his mouth to let my fingers in, all I found was crunched up shell. Guess he needed some calcium is his diet!

Of course sand was EVERYWHERE! During his bath, he kept putting his hand under the running water, then reaching up to touch the faucet. After a while we realized he was copying what Daddy was doing....he'd put his hand under the water to test the temperature, then reach up to adjust the faucet.

Monday (Labor Day) was a trip downtown to the Children's Museum. That place is AWESOME! There is an area called the Tot Spot, designed especially for toddlers. AJ was able to touch and play with anything he wanted to without being told "no". There were all kinds of toys and developmental areas. Signs on the walls explain to parents how children play with certain objects and how they learn from their play. Some friends and their 15-month old daughter went with us, and the kids had a blast. There is also a play area outside with jungle gyms, duck ponds, etc. We bought a year's membership so we can take him back any time we get a chance. The museum had lots of different activities that should interest AJ for several years to come. It's indoors, so it makes a great place to take him to play when it's really hot and when it's really cold.

Monkeys with typewriters

I now believe a little more in the theory that if you park a monkey in front of a typewriter long enough, he will eventually type the works of Shakespeare.

AJ picked up Daddy's cell phone from the table yesterday. During the course of the 15 minutes or so that he was playing with it, AJ managed to turn the phone on, and make two phone calls to numbers in the address book. Of course, we didn't know that's what he had done until we started getting phone calls later in the evening from friends returning our calls.

Kid is getting too smart too fast....