My view from here

was this for most of the day today.


We started off in the morning meeting with friends for a walk to Falls Park and a picnic. We ate, fed the ducks and ran around. Lane was referred to as the "big kid" (crazy!) and Parker was the only girl. All of the other little boys were around 16-18 months and they seemed like babies compared to Lane. (Even though when Lane was that age I didn't feel that way.) We had fun with the group and then decided when they were ready to leave we would stay a little bit longer.

The day was just too nice. So we walked down Main St. and rode the elevator and Lane had a snack in the stroller


and Parker slept.


After a loooong walk, we headed toward where our car was parked and stopped to play at the train for the second time this week. It doesn't move or make noise, but apparently he can't get enough of it! :-)



I fed Parker

and directed a game for Lane that was essentially running hills. Haha! But he loved it! "Run and touch the fence. Now run and touch the tree" "OK!!!!! Momma!"


They are both currently out cold and have been since we got home! I love fresh air for more reasons than one!

Read more...

Labor Day Picnic

Monday we spent the morning at the zoo and then headed to Falls Park for a picnic.


I must admit

this is probably

the most fun way

for a 2 year old to eat.

You can run around

sandwich in hand

and noone is yelling at you for making crumbs.

Picnics are best when a 2 year old is involved!

Read more...

Super Summer Night

Seriously LOVE summer! Yes, it's hot, but whatever. Summer is where it's at! Later bedtimes, picnics in the park


that inevitably end with a trip to the ice cream shop,




Where I concocted some yogurt goodnes...chocolate yogurt with peanut butter chips, bananas, and granola...heaven!


sweaty-red-faced babies running around no matter how hot they are,




stops in the fountains to keep cool, outdoor concerts, and cool showers in the evening to wash away the day before you relax on the couch waiting to slip between your cool crisp sheets! Love it!

Yesterday we took summer seriously! We had a playdate at Barnes and Noble (in the AC) with a few other mommy's and their about 2 year olds. The kids had a blast and they all suprisingly played nice and semi-quietly around the train table. We spent a good portion of the morning there. Lane and I left to run some errands and we stopped at a local bookstore to freshen up his collection for our 12 hour trip home. He picked a train book. Trains were seriously on his mind. And then when we went downtown, what do you know!? We walked over some train tracks and he was thrilled.



But still cautious :-)


Can you see him saying choo-choo here?








Our night reminded me of one 6 months ago and a year ago
I caught Matt doing this:


And we did this:


Except it was dark, cold, and Lane wasn't more interested in doing this:


Lane had a lot less hair or maybe none at all. And instead of a movie, we listened to music.

Oh summer, you are here you are here! And we like it!

Read more...

So we like picnics

I think next up on my 'to-purchase' list would be a small table for Lane. He loves outdoors, I love outdoors and at least once a week I declare that we are going to have a picnic! "Picnic!" he yells. He actually might understand what it means at this point. But the first few times I could have declared it a garbage day and he would have yelled "garbage!" or a clean the toilets day and he would have yelled "toilets!" Do you see what I'm saying? Using an excited tone with an almost 2 year old makes them excited even if they have no clue what it is...but I think he gets 'picnic' now. So picnic it was.

Why do I think picnics sound so fun? Because I envision them like this:
Mommy makes picnic lunch brings it out to toddler who's sitting on picnic blanket

Toddler sits happily, without dropping a crumb, eating every last morsel of his lunch.

Toddler does not get up and walk around because toddler wants to finish lunch without making a mess.

Do toddler picnics go like that? Ummmm, not in my house...

In my house they go like this:
Mommy makes picnic lunch and brings it out to toddler who at the moment is deceivingly sitting nicely on picnic blanket. See picture:


Toddler gets up in 2.7 seconds and starts picking food off Mommy's plate.


Toddler, in the process of stealing mommy's food, steps on his own plate.

Toddler now has ham sandwich stuck to the bottom of his shoes.
Mommy's anxiety rises.

Toddler then walks in the house (why does it always have to be after I wash the floors?) with ham and pieces of bread stuck to bottom of shoes that are now all over clean floors. Cue: Harley to clean up bits of ham and pieces of bread all over floor.

Mommy scarfs down lunch and decides this picnic needs to be over.

The End!

And that's why they make toddler seats with buckles and straps...so toddler can't move!

Read more...

Watermelon and Waffles

One afternoon a few weeks ago, on a whim, I decided it would be a good idea to let Lane eat outside. On the lunch menu for the day...waffles with blueberry jelly and watermelon. I'm not a whim kinda person. You've probably gathered that already. It took me 9 months to hit "buy" in my shopping cart that housed my Canon, 2 months after that to finally decide on a camera bag that would work best for me, and don't even get me started when I have to book a hotel room whether it be for a quick overnight stay or a week-long family vacay. I don't make decisions very well. I like to think things through and then do them the best way they play out in my mind. Although the way they play out in my mind doesn't=the way they actually play out...

It started out...let's say just ok. I had just downloaded the FB App back to my iPhone and I settled in a chair to catch-up on some much needed FB time. Lane was sitting perched on the step with his waffle in hand and watermelon at his side.

 He was looking quite cute in all his jelly-faced glory so I decided to fore go the FB time and take out my camera.

All was well....until he started to move from his perch....

and came at me with a mouthful of watermelon and watermelon drool...

he wanted to sit on my lap...

and then proceeded to give me a jelly-lipped kiss. Which I didn't so much mind, but that made it hard to take pictures when he was sitting on me. So when I asked him to sit elsewhere is when it got a little hairy. He thought I meant lay halfway outside the house and halfway inside on the wood floors I just scrubbed on my hands and knees during nap time the previous day.

And then he thought walking under the table looked like fun.

Fun for him...yes...fun for the person that decides to sit on the chair full of jelly...not so much.

This was not turning out as planned.

Needless to say my anxiety of sticky fingers at my lens and on my outdoor cushions got the best of me and we ended our waffle and watermelon lunch inside...strapped in a confined chair where lenses and cushions were far out of reach.

Read more...