Wordless Wednesday

The Bane of my Existence...or not

 Lightning McQueen...the bane of my existence.

For those of you who don't know him, he is a red race car and the star of the 2006 Pixar film Cars - he is also Jack's favorite car.  I believe Jack owns every variation of Lightning McQueen that the Mattel toy company has ever produced.  The marketing has been amazing, that's for sure.  After first seeing the movie, Jack was happy with the traditional red race car.  Then there was the Dinoco blue version.  Then there was the Dinoco blue "dream sequence" version.  Then there was a Lightning McQueen with dirt on it's tires.  Then a Lightning McQueen wearing night vision goggles.  Then there was a Lightning McQueen with barbed wire and a tree branch.  Then there was the "Crusin'" retro paint job version.  Then there was the Lightning McQueen with his tongue sticking out.  Then Jack discovered the mega block/lego version Jack spied at Toys 'R Us.  Just before Christmas, a new, "eyes change" Lighning McQueen debuted. At this point, I seriously did not think another version of Lightning McQueen could be made, but I, of course, was undoubtedly mistaken.  And yes, Jack does own all these Lightning McQueen versions.

In the new year, "Color Change" Lightning McQueen and friends debuted.  Previously, the mounting collection of Lightning McQueen and other Cars characters in our house was slightly annoying, but tolerable.  Unfortunately, "Color Change" has about done me in.  In a nutshell, the car has two paint jobs in one.  When the car is hot, it's one color and when it's cold, it turns another.  I really do like the concept because Wyatt has learned his colors and the difference between hot and cold, yet at the same time Jack has taken a great interest in the sink, the bathtub and refrigerator as a means to get his car to change colors.  Jack is now going through 3-4 shirts each day because he manages to get himself soaking wet while doing his science "experiments" in the bathroom sink and he also ONLY wants to wear polo shirts currently.  He has just 5 or 6 polo shirts right now because when I bought his shirts for the season, he wanted to wear a different style.  Now that the boys have discovered the refrigerator as a way to cool down the cars, I have found some broken eggs in the carton and some other edible "surprises" scattered about.  And bathtime has turned into a marathon...

Despite all the complaining, the "Color Change" cars are a lot of fun for the boys.  And despite some of the messes the boys have made changing them colors, they have been playing pretty well together as brothers and as a result, I have gotten a few minutes to do things around the house, even if there is an inevitable mess to clean up after their fun!  But please Mattel, no more Lightning McQueens!

Today's Jack & Wyatt quotes

Jack: "Mommy, when I am older I am going to drive - and drink beer! Wyatt will drink coffee."

Wyatt: When daddy got home from work tonight, he asked Wyatt what he did today and where he went...instead of telling Daddy about our car breaking down, or riding the train, or his haircut, he told Daddy that we went to GAP! Uh no, we didn't, not today.

 

Blog Resurrected?

At the suggestion of friends, I have been told I should write a book about all the crazy things my boys do each day.  While I don't feel I really have material for a book, maybe a blog would be sufficient - we'll see.  Jack and Wyatt sure do keep me busy, so I can't guarantee that I'll be able to keep the blog updated, but I'll try!

Since my last post in August, where Jack was clearing the table display of a colorful array of women's shirts at Gap, other similar incidents such as this one have occured.  Many times Jack has been involved, but as of late, Wyatt is the usual culprit.  In August, he had just learned to walk and was still very innocent, but over the past few months he has gained the nickname, 'Wild Wyatt'.

Here are a few examples of what my boys have done and said over the past 6 months -- most are taken from Facebook updates:
  
Today against my better judgment, I let Wyatt out of his stroller to sit with me in a chair at Dairy Queen in the mall. The next thing I know, he started to run away from me and headed straight into See's Candies (smart kid), by the time I got there he was running out of the store with a box of Valentine's chocolates ...-- for me! But unfortunately, he forgot to pay for them.
  
sorry to the man at Panera during lunch today, for Wyatt hurling his mac 'n cheese off the table and having it land all over his pants. thanks for being so understanding.
  
Another "incident". Today we were at Gap and while I was browsing I heard a loud crash...I immediately thought it was probably Jack. He had gone into the display window at the front of the store and somehow pulled down a 20 foot sign. And I thought he was standing right next to me, but I looked down for a second and he managed to cause havoc.
  
Incident #2 of the day -- dinner at Tomatina -- Wyatt grabs plate with food, throws it off the table and causes the second big crash of the day -- enough to stop conversation in the restaurant, when the plate shatters into a million pieces. I am starting to think we can't leave the house anymore!
  
Dear Wyatt, PLEASE STOP taking off your shoes when we are out and about. Finally today, I lost one half of your $40 pair of Pumas...it is amazing I haven't lost one until now.
  
Why is it that both my boys finally fall asleep at 6:22pm? Wyatt at the dinner table and Jack on the couch waiting for dinner to be made...I love the peace and quiet right now, but won't be happy if I let them sleep much longer or else no one will sleep tonight.
  
the family went out for ice cream this afternoon. Peter and I had the traditional order of, what else? Ice cream. The boys ordered sprinkles, minus the ice cream, and loved every bit of them.
  
Today Jack yelled "Fire, Fire, Fire" in the middle of the mall food court...
  
Took both of the kids to The Jungle today for playtime. Besides, Wyatt fallling down 5 stairs and landing on his face, cutting his tongue with his teeth and all the blood that ensued, we had a fun time. Mommy is worn out though.
  
Scare of the night: While we were at dinner at Chili's, Wyatt stood up in his high chair, lost his balance and fell backwards. Luckily, I caught him by the leg and pulled him up, just as his head was centimeters from hitting the tile floor. Seriously, so scary!!!
  
My 3 year-old just called me "stupid".
  
Now that Jack has watched "Aladdin", he is using anything he can find around the house as a sword...should I be concerned?
  
going on 1 hour of sleep. Stayed up too late catching up on DVR, then Wyatt thought it was playtime from 3am-8am. He had a normal routine yesterday, so I have NO idea what was going on with him. I don't think I have slept this little for a night since college.
  
We were watching TV just now and there was a commercial for the Chipmunks movie. I asked Jack if he wanted me to take him to that movie and he said, "No, I don't like the Chipmunks". A few minutes later he informed me he wanted to see another movie that was being advertised instead because he liked it better. It was a paper towel commercial....
  
We were at Target today and Jack wanted a pepperoni pizza from Pizza Hut. At the time they only had cheese, but he didn't want one -- he wanted pepperoni. They prepared one and brought it out a few minutes later and he was happy. Then he proceeded to pick off all the pepperoni and never eat it, but he did enjoy his "pepperoni" pizza.
  
Don't let an 18 month old have access to the kitchen or refrigerator. Apparently, he wanted some yogurt. More of it ended up on the floor than on him, unfortunately.
  
Tantrum Time! This is only one of the many today. Jack was mad because he wanted to eat McDonald's in the mall food court, but I told him that it wasn't healthy and we'd have to choose something else. Don't think I am too mean though. He already ate there once this week.  About 10 minutes before this he had a tantrum at the Disney Store because I wouldn't buy a toy for him. What did he do? He grabbed the toy and ran out of the store! By the time I caught him he was well down the corridor...it was truly and awful day.
  
Peter and I tried to take the kids to a movie today for a Thanksgiving treat, but they were both too scared during the previews, so we had to get a refund and come home. And also, there weren't really any restaurants open for lunch, so we found ourselves at IHOP.
  
happy to report that after 1.5 years, Jack will listen to another song in the car besides Carrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats". Now he want to listen to Bruce Springsteen and luckily it is not just one song -- it is an entire CD.
  
Tonight's drama involved Wyatt starting a small fire. No, I did not let him play with matches, but he banged the light in Jack's room against the wall until the bulb started flickering, then smoking and then had flames. Luckily, I had a spare bulb and light to replace it.
  
Scary moment of the weekend: at an open house and Wyatt took off running. I panicked that he might fall down the stairs, only to find that the front door was left WIDE open and Wyatt was running down the driveway toward the street! Luckily I caught him right as he got into the street! I really think this kiddo is going to do me in with all of his daredevil antics and being such a fast runner. Leash time?
  
Jack tried to "help" me while I was checking out at Safeway. He was pushing random buttons on the keypad and apparently he managed to push the buttons to request $60 cash back. I guess he saved me a trip to the ATM.
  
Something tells me Wyatt really loved Halloween. Tonight he put on his shoes, got his pumpkin treat bucket, said "Trick or Treat, candy" and then opened the front door...
  
Does anyone know how to remove Sharpie marker from a stained wood table????
  
finds it hilarious that when I ask Wyatt his name, he says "Jack". When I ask him how old he is, he says "Three"...I guess he thinks he is his big brother.

A Mother's Humiliation

I don't think I really need to say much -- this was how my shopping experience turned out earlier today...

Jack and his fire truck

We have had this fire truck for awhile, but Jack has recently discovered how much he likes it. Each night we take a walk around the neighborhood and Jack rides his fire truck all over the place!

A Day Out with Thomas

Last Saturday, we took Jack and Wyatt to "A Day Out with Thomas" in Felton, CA. They got to ride Thomas the Train into the redwood forest, along with pretty much every other little boy in the San Francisco Bay Area. They had a fantastic time!



Meeting Sir Topamhat, on the other hand, was not so popular.

What Sweet Boys...

The World According to Jack

Jack is definitely a talker (gee, I wonder where he gets that?) and he offers many opinions and observations on life! He has a great vocabulary and can usually get his point across quite easily. That being said, most of the things that come out of his mouth are quite hilarious because he is 2!!!

Here are some snip-its of our recent conversations with him:

-Jack fell on some stairs and cut his nose pretty badly while we were in Colorado. Usually during diaper changes, he asks for me to put "cream" on his nose. The cream I use is Neosporin. The cream Daddy used while I was away with Wyatt was Boudreaux's Butt Paste. When I got home, I wondered why Jack's scab looked whitish, so I asked him about it. Jack's response was, "Silly Daddy! He put poop cream on my nose!"

-Fairly consistantly, Jack asks, more like begs, to go to the toy store or Target. The other day around 8:30am, he told me multiple times that he wanted to go to Toys 'R Us to buy trains. I told him that we had other things to do, but we could go after his nap, which is usually around 2pm. Jack was quiet for a few seconds and then proclaimed "IT'S NAP TIME!!!". Finally I just had to tell him we'd go at 4pm!

-We have been working on potty training without much success. Right now Jack is scared of the potty, although he is very aware of when he is pooping. We have explained to him that when he feels like he needs to poop, he should tell us. We were out on a walk a few weeks ago and Jack noticed a dog pooping on the grass not too far from us. We praised him for recognizing what the dog was doing, however a few minutes later he squatted in the grass and yelled, "Look Mommy! Look Daddy! I am pooping! I am pooping in the grass like a dog!" Then we had to explain to him that dogs go potty outside, but people go potty inside. Oh, the joys of potty training.

-When I change Jack's diaper, we usually play silly games. A recent game we play is we name people Jack knows and he tells me if they are a boy or a girl. We went through a whole list of people that Jack got right, until we got to Grandma.

Mom: "Is Grandma a girl or a boy?'
Jack: Grandmas was a teacher.

First of all, I was shocked that he knew Grandma was a teacher. Secondly, Grandma retired from teaching this year and he used the word "was". I guess he must really be paying attention.

-While I was driving the boys home from one of our frequent trip to Target, Jack started kicking the back of my seat, which was actually really bothering me. I was about to raise my voice a bit and tell Jack to cut it out, when he said, "Mommy, my feet are dancing!" All of a sudden, I found it really cute!

-Jack continues to be a very picky eater, as most toddlers are. He is mostly surviving on junk, such as hot dogs, chicken nuggets, candy, fruit leathers and bread. While exiting Chili's the other night after dinner, where he of course had chicken nuggets, Jack turns to me and said in such a satisfied tone, "Mommy I LOOOOOOVE chicken nuggets!".

-Sometimes Jack freaks us out because it seems like he can read. He identifies so many signs while we are driving around town. A few weeks ago there was a huge Safeway delivery truck next to us on the freeway. Jack yelled out, "Mommy look! There is a big white truck with Safeway on it!" Now of course, we frequent Safeway 3 times a week, so it is all recognition from our frequent trips there, but it still throws me for a loop everytime. He can also identify Starbucks, McDonald's, Taco Bell (which is weird because we have only been there once or twice), Target, Marshalls (which was another one that surprised me since we don't go there very often), Trader Joe's, Gymboree, Red Robin (he even identified it while we were visiting Kansas) and Chilis. I am slightly concerned that most of the signs he knows seem to be fast food, but at least he the wheels are turning in his head.

-Continuing on the food topic, awhile ago, when I picked Jack up from preschool he yelled out in front of his class, "Starbucks time! I NEEEED Starbucks!" It was just so funny because that sounds more like something that would be said at "the office".

-During one of our walks, the sun was beginning to set and turned the sky orange. Jack noticed this and told me, "Mommy, it is time for Mr. Sunshine to go to bed. But first, his Mommy is going to give him a bath and put on his pajamas". Oh, the innocence of childhood.

-According to Jack, so far he has had 3 girlfriends. First it was an adorable little girl in his class at school, then it was his favorite barista at Starbucks and then it was his teacher.

-I bought Jack a really, really cute shirt with a shark on it. On the shirt, the shark has it's mouth open and you can see all it's teeth. Jack assured me that he really liked the shirt and he wanted me to buy it for him. He told me, "I am going to wear it to school and scare (a boy in his class)!" So I bought the shirt. Three months later the shirt has not been worn. I asked Jack why he hasn't worn it yet and he told me, "it's too scary. I am too afraid to wear that shirt. I am scared of big sharks -- and baraccudas -- not little sharks though." Apparently, his plan to scare his classmate failed, since he is too scared to wear the shirt himself!

-Jack NEVER shares his toys with Wyatt. I can probably count on one hand how many times Wyatt has played with Jack's collection of trains or cars. During one of our many trips to the Target toy section, Jack found just what he wanted, however it was almost an exact duplicate of what he already bought the week before and he was carrying in his hand at the moment. He REALLY wanted the toy though. We kept telling him that no, he couldn't have that one and that he would have to choose something else, or nothing at all. Finally, after thinking a moment, Jack decided, "I am going to give my toy to Wyatt. Now can I have the new one?" He seriously must have REALLY wanted that toy because he never offers to share, much less give, his toys to his brother.

-Finally, this is an oldie, but one Saturday afternoon we were at IKEA in the kid's section. Jack always stops to play with the demo toys they have out on display, as do most of the other kids in the store. He noticed a little boy with a Thomas Train shirt on and finally started to make friends with him. We asked the little boy's dad what his name was, so he and Jack could get more comfortable with one another. After a few minutes of playing, Jack shouts out, rather loudly I might add, "Look Daddy! Brian is brown!!!! Brian is brown!!!" With red faces from embarrassment, we tried to change the subject and said something like, "look, Brian likes Thomas Train too!". Then we made a very hasty exit from the toy section. I know Jack was only telling us what he saw in the most innocent of fashions, but it was one of those "moments" where kid's say things at the most inopportune time!

New Flip video recorder

This week Peter and I treated ourselves to a new Flip video recorder. It is so small and can fit in my purse! Today I practiced using it and got this short video of Wyatt.