Hayden turns four!

I've decided to cut myself some slack and stop stressing about blogging, but in case anyone is still following us, I thought I'd post a quick review of Hayden's 4th birthday!


To quote my very wise former PEPS Group leader, Mimi Miller: "The days are long, but the years are short."

It doesn't seem like it has already been FOUR YEARS since this day:


I got all nostalgic and stayed up until 2am reading old posts from Hayden's baby blog. http://babylott.blogspott.com Wow, did I really manage to do a new posting every week?! I wish I had the time and energy to keep that up, and I'm glad I have that record of his first year.

So his actual birthday was Friday, but the festivities began on Thursday at preschool where he got to wear his special birthday crown, bring in a special treat for the class, and his teacher, Mrs. Pat, prayed a wonderful prayer blessing over him that brought tears to my eyes.


My mom was visiting this week from Michigan and we wanted to do something fun on Friday, and the weather was spectacular - best day of the year so far! I thought about going to Enchanted Village or Remlinger Farms, but they are only open on the weekends until June. So then the plan was to go to the Family Fun Center in Tukwila. I thought Hayden would really enjoy the bumper cars and other games they have there. It didn't open until noon, so we decided to spend the morning scouting out the community-wide Garage Sale our neighborhood had going on this weekend. About one in every 20th house had a Yard Sale and there was a lot of great stuff. Hayden rode his bike all around and Brooklyn rode in the jogger stroller. We had a lot of fun just walking around the neighborhood, looking for the 'red balloons' and finding super cheap treasures! We got a real, working weed whacker for $5, and Hayden hit a gold mine when we came upon a Hot Wheels collector's 3 giant tubs full of Hot wheels and a ton of other toy trucks and cars for $0.25 each. The man was also a Go-Kart racer so he and Phil exchanged info and Phil is excited at the possibility of getting more into Go-Karting. We were having so much fun and enjoying the low-budget excursion, that we decided to forgo the Family Fun Center altogether and keep garage saling. Who knew that would be the highlight of Hayden's 4th birthday?!

That evening, we capped it off with a night out at good ol' Chuck E Cheese, where Hayden (who doesn't like Pizza!) ate from the Salad Bar and liked putting tokens in any game he could! He and Brooklyn both enjoyed the evening and we all returned home with our complimentary germs that became colds the next day. Of course. The price you pay for fun.





The next day was his big birthday party (despite the onset of sneezes and sniffles). We did a Monster Truck theme with lots of fun decorations, a Monster Truck coloring craft project, a pinata (pull-string kind!) and a big chocolate cake with a monster truck on top.









Hayden received several fantastic and thoughtful gifts highlighted by a new Razor scooter AND a new bike.




Plus a VERY special gift from my sister - she painted a portrait of his beloved 'Doggie', which is extra special coming from her because Hayden always loves to paint with her when she comes to babysit and he even nicknamed her 'murky' because he asks her to change the water every time he cleans off his paint brush! Too precious!


And his 4 year doctor checkup went great. He's 42.5" tall and almost 40 lbs. (He actually was over 40 lbs a few weeks ago before having the stomach flu for over a week!) He's still tall for his age (75th percentile) but 50th percentile for weight. Over 40 inches, 40 lbs, 4 years old. How 'bout that?!

Some of his favorite things include:
TRUCKS (monster trucks, garbage trucks, construction trucks, you name it!)
Cars (and the movie Cars)
Toy Story
Curious George
Books
Singing and Dancing
Painting
Playing with Brooklyn (chasing, tickling, cuddling!)
Digging in the Dirt
Playing 'Yard Maintenance Man' - pretend weed whackering, lawn mowing
Riding his glide bike (soon to be real bike!)
Riding his scooter
M&Ms, Jelly Beans, chocolate
Jokes (see previous post!)

Dislikes:
Ice cream or anything cold or anything mushy
Juice except for Orange Juice
Loud noises
Naps (I think we're pretty much done with naptime for him)

Developmentally, the doctor confirmed he is right on track and we are so excited to see how he continues to blossom and grow as a FOUR YEAR OLD!!!

Toddler Humor

Hayden has been really interested in jokes lately and it is cracking me up! I Googled some toddler-appropriate jokes to teach him and here are his favorites, and his 'renditions':

Hayden: Knock Knock
Me: Who's There
Hayden: Interrupting Cow
Me: Interru -
Hayden: Moooo!

The really funny thing is that when Hayden first learned this joke, he'd let me finish saying "Interrupting Cow Who?" before saying "Moo" - We've been working on the whole 'comedic timing' thing.

Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get to the other side.
(Why do toddlers think this joke is SO FUNNY?! I don't get it. Over and over and over.)

Why did the horse cross the road?
To get to his "neigh-borhood"
(Hayden does a GREAT horse "Neigh"!)

Why did the cow cross the road?
To get to his "neigh-borhood"
(Yes, he says that as the answer again because he likes that one better. The 'real' answer is, "to go to the Moooo-vies". He still says it his way.)

Hayden: Knock Knock
Me: Who's There?
Hayden: Lettuce
Me: Lettuce Who?
Hayden: Let me in, it's cold outside


My friend's 3-year-old daughter has a hilarious rendition of this classic Knock Knock joke. WAY funnier than the original:

Her: Knock Knock
Me: Who's There?
Her: Orange
Me: Orange Who?
Her: Knock Knock
Me: Who's There?
Her: Orange
Me: Orange Who?
Her: Knock Knock
Me: Who's There?
Her: Banana
Me: Banana Who?
Her: Aren't you glad I didn't say "orange" again?!

----

Some other funny (to a 3-year old) jokes, in case you know any preschoolers:

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Boo
Boo-hoo?
Don't cry, it's only a joke!

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Who
Who-Who?
When did you turn into an owl?/Is there an owl in here?

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Dwayne
Dwayne who?
Dwane the bathtub I'm dwowning!

Knock knock!
Who's there
Little old lady.
Little old lady who?
I didn't know you could yodel!


 Why did the sheep cross the road?
 To get to the Baa Baa Shop for a haircut.


 Why did the rooster cross the road?
 To prove he wasn't a chicken.

 Why did the dog cross the road?
 To get to the barking lot.


Q: What kind of snack do little monkeys have with their milk?
A: Chocolate chimp cookies.

Why did the cookie go to the doctor?
He felt crummy.

----

Try them out! You'll be their hero.

Merry Christmas and Happy 2011

Sometimes I get so caught up in the day, always running late, always running the list of things to do in my head, and forget to thank God for how richly I have been blessed.

The holiday season this year has been even crazier than any year we have ever had. Mostly because we closed on our new (to us) house in Snoqualmie Ridge on December 15th, moved on the 18th and closed on our Issaquah Highlands townhouse today.

Our new home is more amazing that I could have ever dreamed of, thanks largely to the generous investment of my parents, Mark and Judi, who concluded that helping us buy a bigger home is a better alternative than the blow-up mattress on the floor of my office entryway, or buying a whole condo that they would only stay in when they came to visit. Since my step-dad Mark is a pilot for Delta, they are able to visit from Michigan frequently, but our small townhouse never felt very welcoming without any kind of guest accommodations. The new house has a HUGE guest room and 3rd bathroom with shower. It also has a great big bonus room and separate rooms for Hayden and Brooklyn. I'll post more photos when we get it furnished and set up better, but here are some from the listing:




It was a bank-owned home so we were able to get a crazy good deal on it in exchange for quite a process in purchasing, and an 'as-is' condition, meaning minor touch-ups the house will need over time to make it 'perfect'. But it's practically perfect already, so I really can't complain.

So what else is new with us?

I have been working a lot at this awesome design agency called The Medium. The projects offer a lot of variety, from websites to brochures to logo design, and they keep coming! They have a lot of work and so far it's been a win-win with helping alleviate some of their overflow work needs and my desire to pick up a few more hours to help with our new mortgage! On top of The Medium, I also have some other great clients who I continue to work for, so I am busier than I have ever been and just trying to find that right balance so I'm not up until 2am working too many nights in a row. Sort of brings me back to my UW days of all-nighters!

Hayden is doing really well at Joyful Heart Christian Preschool. His teachers are very experienced, nurturing, and attentive. He comes home with several craft projects everyday and talks about his teachers and classmates with excitement. Though, half the things he tells me I don't really believe, and the teachers say they only believe about half of what the kids tell them about us! Ha! Hayden sure has an imagination so that is good! The other moms at the preschool are very nice and we have monthly Mom's Nights to get to know each other better. Even 2 of the families I know from our PEPS group go to that preschool too so it's nice to have good friends continue through life with us.

Hayden is still really obsessed with cars and trucks, but also loves crafts like painting, drawing, gluing, cutting, and play-dough. His favorite movies are Cars and Toy Story. He knows all the characters and repeats lines from the movies. His memory is astonishing and any fears I ever had about his vocabulary have completely vanished. He doesn't stop talking now!! We've lately had to crack down on a 'No back-talking' rule, since he likes to say the opposite of whatever we say. Overall, I'd say he's still a really well-behaved toddler, though we've had our share of tantrums and tears with him.

Brooklyn is ridiculously fun, and a lot of work! She loves to dance! She also likes 'talking' on the phone (or remote, or anything that resembles a phone). At the end of her conversation, she pulls the phone away from her ear and says "BYYYYYYE". It's been fun watching her try to do things Hayden does. She is also a pretty picky eater so mealtime can be frustrating, but she certainly isn't hurting for calories (still off the charts for height and weight, I'm sure) so we're just trying to offer her the veggies every mealtime and usually end up picking them up off the floor. If she had her way, she'd eat cheese for every meal.

She gets into EVERYTHING! She climbs like a little monkey, opens drawers and cupboards Hayden never even thought to touch, and ransacks purses, diaperbags, and closets at every opportunity. Babyproofing has gone to a new level. She is so curious and really skilled at opening things - ziplock bags, makeup cases, pen caps... oh boy! Keeps me on my toes. She also likes to be held and has major separation anxiety with me, so it's hard for me to get anything done around the house, like dishes, laundry or cooking with her tugging and fussing at my legs and trying to climb up on the oven and dishwasher, and unfolds any laundry faster than I can fold it. Sometimes I swear it is her mission to make the biggest mess possible.

Phil has been very busy at work in his new department for computer peripherals. I'm amazed he still has energy at the end of the day to help put the kids to bed, then do all the clean-up and dishes from the day while I head into my office to my work. We could use more time together, so it will be nice when my mom comes to visit more to have some scheduled 'date nights'.

We are really looking forward to getting settled in our new house, meeting our neighbors, and enjoying the peaceful space we now have.

Exploding Vocabulary

Before I forget, I wanted to take a moment to write down all the words that Brooklyn is saying now. It's so fun to hear her talking. She is much more of a babbler than Hayden was, and she tries to mimic things Hayden, Phil, or I say. I really need to get the video camera out soon! Here are some of her "first words":

- Truck
- Cookie
- Cheese
- Daddy
- Hi
- Ball
- Bubble
- Go
- Off
- Ick
- No
- Mom (not "Mommy"!)
- Teeth
- Shoe
- Up
- A-goo-goo (what she calls babies)

She also likes to make animal sounds: Horse, duck, dog, and cat.

And her other new favorite trick is pointing to all the different parts of her face - she knows: eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, cheeks, chin, ears, hair. She likes to play this game during meal-time. With food all over her hands. :)

Video coming soon. Of course, as soon as I get the camera out, little princess Brooklyn will decide she is NOT a performer!

Family Photoshoot

Maybe it's vain, but I never tire of looking at pictures of my family. Hayden pulls out our family photo albums several times a week to look through and I happily flip through with him. Since he was born, I have diligently printed the 'best' photos each month and archived them in our multi-album photo tower. All 20 albums (holding 100 photos each) were full before Brooklyn was born, so I had to re-evaluate 'the best' and archive several hundred in a photo shoebox. I'm currently caught up through the summer, so I have a little work to go through September's photos, and I plan to do that soon. I have a good system in iPhoto of flagging them when I import off the digital camera, and then once a month or so, I go in and crop, retouch and upload about 25-40 of the 'best' to Costco photo center. It stresses me out when I'm behind more than a couple months. The hardest part is deciding which ones are 'print-worthy'!

I am a big sucker for good photography. I wish I was a good photographer, and I'm working at it. I am so envious of Kelle Hampton's blog with such stunning photos, not to mention her way with words.

And I have major Mom Guilt because we haven't really done many professional photos of Brooklyn, except when she was first born and a 3x3 grid of body details when she was about 7 months old, and here she is already one! The thing about photography is, you miss a moment and it's gone forever. As each month keeps slipping away (HOW is it already mid-October?!) and the kids are doing new, amazing things every day, I have a deep sense of urgency to capture each precious moment as much as I can.

So my awesome photographer friend, Christy Cowan, took our pictures a couple weeks ago at the Bellevue Botanical Garden. Given the nearly 2 hour photoshoot with a 3 year old and one year old, I am incredibly impressed that the photos turned out so well!

Here are some of my favorites:










Thank you so much Christy for blessing our family with your talent. Now the hard part is really going to be deciding which are 'print-worthy'.

Turning 30 and loving life

Subtitle: Another long post in an attempt to catch up.

So, where do I begin? We've had a pretty spectacular end to our summer. After Brooklyn's many birthday celebrations fizzled down, the rest of August and early September has continued to be non-stop celebrating! Phil and I celebrated 11 years of marriage by kayaking on Lake Union on a beautiful Seattle day.




ELEVEN YEARS?! Am I old enough to be married that long? I guess when you get married at 18...
It has gone by fast, but when I look back, it really seems like FOREVER ago. You often hear people who are going through a divorce say, "He's just not the man I married" - well... Phil and I are not the same people we were when we got married, and that's a GOOD THING! We started out as college students, navigated our way through establishing careers, developing friendships, growing in our faith and in who we are, trying to zero in on the important things and working on letting go of the things that aren't. Discovering what makes us happy and what we really want in life. On our anniversary date, I realized somewhere along the way, we have forgotten about having fun together. We've been so busy doing the 'grown up' things like paying a mortgage, juggling careers and kids, operating non-stop to the point of exhaustion - we just don't take the time to have fun as a couple anymore. Sure, as a family we do fun things like Fox Hollow Farm Days, Children's Museums, picnics at the park, but since we've had kids, we've honestly let our marriage take a major back-seat in the 'having fun together' department. So, a new vow on our 11th anniversary: LET'S HAVE MORE FUN!! Cheers to that!

And to get it all started, I had THE FUNNEST, Totally Awesome 80s karaoke party for my 30th birthday! Everyone dressed up in their best 80s attire and we invaded a little dive bar in Ballard called The Waterwheel Lounge - voted "Best Seattle Karaoke" and I don't think a smile ever left my face, even when I was singing!! :)






Talk about having fun! Best costume prize went to Katie, who got extra bonus points for MAKING her costume by acid washing their jeans and smacking them on the sidewalk for that authentic 'stonewashed look' and sewing her legwarmers!


Though I have to give a runner-up shout-out to Christy in her super hot pink '80s Punk' outfit (and made her gloves from lace knee-high stockings!) Best Hair went to Shaun with his giant afro wig, and Best Karaoke went to my friend Rachel, who brought down the house with her renditions of Madonna's "Like a Prayer", her harmony vocals on the group performance of Tiffany's "I Think We're Alone Now", and then holding it together when a crazy dancing drunk guy fell down on the dance floor during her Britney Spears song. Yes, it was a night to remember!


And the cherry on top? The kids spent the night at Grandma & Grandpa Lott's so we got to sleep in until 9:30 and eat a peaceful breakfast with no distractions! It's amazing how refreshed I felt! Thank you to my in-laws for that gift! And thank you to all my friends who helped celebrate my 30th birthday with me in such style! Man, I almost wish I was actually living in the 80s now, but I don't think my hair would like me very much if I teased it like that every day.

Before the glow of my 30th birthday had a chance to wear off (and get my voice back!) we were off to Chicago with the kids over Labor Day weekend to go to my step-dad's cousin's son's wedding (confused?). It was really nice to see my step-dad's family again. I saw them all 2 years ago at a family reunion (they use to do them annually) in Michigan, and since then there have been several new additions. It was fun introducing everyone to Brooklyn and meeting the other 2 babies that were born within 2 weeks of Brooklyn.

The kids were troopers through the festivities. Lots of late nights, late eating times, and new places. The wedding was gorgeous! I don't know if I've ever seen a more stunning bride!



We took a zillion pictures and danced until our feet hurt and our poor, exhausted kiddos started to turn to zombies.



After the wedding, we spent an additional 3 days in downtown Chicago (the wedding was in a suburb called Naperville), with my mom and step-dad in adjoining hotel rooms. Traveling with small children can definitely be a different experience, and we tried not to be too obsessed about getting them naps so that we weren't hostages in the hotel room, but sometimes, it was just better for everyone if they got a good nap. So, we didn't do everything on our list, but we sure had fun in the parts of the city that we did see. The Shedd aquarium was fabulous and the kids also really enjoyed Navy Pier.






For those who know my pretty strict adherence to a schedule for naps, eating, and bedtime, you would be impressed with my flexibility in trying to go with the flow a bit more. We even ate dinner one night, with the kids, at 9:30pm at Bubba Gump Shrimp! OK, I was sort of a wreck of bad-Mama guilt over that one, but the world didn't end.

The flight home from Chicago left at 7:30pm and was, well, tor-ture for 3 hours while we tried to get Brooklyn to sleep, or just be quiet, or just stop screaming, or just stop flailing her body back and twisting and kicking in an epic 2 hour tantrum. Boy, I profusely apologize to all the passengers around us on that flight. It was bad. Really, really horrible. I wanted to cry.

You know when you get home from a busy, whirlwind vacation and you think, "Boy, I need a vacation!"?
Well, the amazing thing is, I actually got to go on a "real" vacation just 2 days after returning from Chicago. One of the Moms in my PEPS group has a family beach house about an hour north of here and our group of 8 Mamas headed up for a 3-day weekend retreat. Just the perfect mix of relaxing, drinking wine, talking, girl time, shopping at the nearby outlet mall, and sleeping in til I felt like it. I couldn't help but think several times during the weekend that I don't think I've ever had such a great group of friends. So supportive, loving, hilarious, encouraging, inspiring.



We had so much fun, and it could not have been more perfect timing. Phil stayed home with the kids and said the 3 of them had a great time, the house didn't fall apart, they ate, slept, and played and it was so wonderful to come home refreshed and give them all great big hugs.

The next day Hayden had his first day of preschool.

I love his school and his teachers. I'm so excited for what is to come this year. I hope my expectations are not too high, but I just have a feeling that preschool is going to be a great experience for him and I can't wait to see how he grows. For a kid who hasn't really grasped the concept of peer socialization, I know it might take a bit of nudging out of his comfort zone. But I think these teachers, with 22 years of experience, know the right ways to love and respect his personality while encouraging his growth.

And finally, this weekend we went to the Puyallup Fair. An annual tradition I think I've only missed a few years in my entire life. My grandparents joined us and Brooklyn and Hayden both just adore them! Hayden loved the rides - a smile never left his face! While Brooklyn loved the animals - she got to pet goats, baby chicks, a bunny, a huge sheep! She kicked her legs excitedly and tried to leap out of my arms when we were looking at the cows! She wanted to pet them too! And she makes an adorable puppy-like noise when she sees animals. This girl is an animal lover like no other!




So there you have it. Our exciting and eventful end of summer/start of fall. All caught up now.