Time flies when you're having fun

I have tried to start a few post since hmmm, July, and I've come to realization that I need to start over with the blog. I don't know what's happened for the past several months but as Drew keeps asking me things he said when he was a baby, I want to document what he's saying/doing now before I forget these too.
1. He still says Girections for Directions
2. The PS3 game of choice - Bakugan. Everytime we play he asks me if he has "a powerful guy then me" to which I respond, "Yes, you have a MORE powerful guy than me"
3. The imagination has taken off in the last month or so. He has an old cell phone which he calls his "back up phone". What's a backup phone you ask...it's the phone you use when you call in for backup and you need help - of course, it is silly!
4. Making phone calls. Drew is really in to making phone calls these days and actually knows Dad's cell phone number from memory...pretty cool. Speaking of phone calls, he asked me grandma's number so he could call her. I gave him the number, he calls then hands me the phone while I'm trying to make dinner. I told him I don't have time to talk to grandma right now and he tells me I should, cuz she's my mom and I should talk to her.
5. This fall he was very disappointed we only got to play in the leaf "nests" once before the city came to pick them up. He wanted to leave a small pile to play in for the winter...that took a long explanation from mom as to why it wouldn't work.
6. Drew loves being the big kid at school. He is almost 5 and the next one around 3, so he gets to be the dad and boss. He is really good with the baby at school, Cecilia, and even gets to feed her at lunch. He also makes sure to tell the teachers when she's upset, although for most of us with hearing, it's not hard to tell.
7. We've taken Drew out to play 18 holes of golf a few times this fall and I have to say, he's pretty darn good at it...although he looks like Happy Gilmore.
8. He likes taking showers now instead of baths cuz they are easier, hotter and don't take as long.
9. He's always hot just like his dad and brother, altough his dad still insists he wear a jacket when he goes outside.
10. He's really having a hard time when he leaves to go spend the night away at someone elses house, like Uncle Scott or Aunt Janice, but of course is fine 5 minutes after we leave...just enough crying to make mom feel like poo.
11. According to Drew, he knows every word to every song on the radio, and if you could hear him sing, I'm SURE you'd agree!! ;)
12. Also according to Drew, he NEVER EVER wants to go to Uncle Scott's house unless Scott takes him to Chuck E Cheese...lol!
13. Favorite movie - Home Alone
14. Girlfriend - still Julie, the babysitter
15. Favorite food - Chicken fingers and fries or garlic bread
16. Favorite TV show - Tom & Jerry and Spongebob
17. Favorite card game - 3 card poker. When we were camping Drew kept asking me to play a game, our friend Dave was nice enough to volunteer to play a game while we were getting breakfast done. Dave asked Drew which game he wanted to play, "Three Card Poker!" They couldn't play tho cuz Dave didn't know how so they settled for Yahtzee.
18. Speaking of games, Drew still believes the ages on the boxes of games. If it says 8 and up I tell him he's not ready to play those games (except Yahtzee) and he says ok. I'm sure it's just a matter of time...
19. Not a great idea to have an open gatorade in the car. If he takes a sip and you go over a bump, you will SURELY get blamed for "Look what you made me do!" when it spills.
20. It's really important to remember every detail of every moment of every day cuz you will be asked at least once a day, "remember a long time ago passed that red car/played THAT game/went to the movie?" It could be a year ago or it could be from the morning but if you don't remember - ooooh boy someone will get frustrated!
21. Speaking of frustrated, Drew has gotten really good at listening for subtle cues. If I sigh, he'll say sorry mom, or what did I do mom? Even if it's me being frustrated at myself. I figure at least he's hearing the sighs...for now.

A month later...

I'm getting worse and worse about this blog. I guess FB takes up more of my time and the weather's been so nice I don't really get on my computer at home...not that I get on my computer even if it's snowing. Anyway, we've been out and about quite a bit this summer. Golfing a fair amount, out to our friend's lake house and we went on vacation around the 4th. Grandma came in from LA the Saturday before the holiday and Grandpa Larry came in the following Tuesday. We headed up to Indian River and had a nice time - weather was not cooperating too much for some folks - a bit too cold. We headed over to Torch Lake for the second half of the trip. Weather was a bit warmer and we finally got out on the lake Thursday before we came home. It's supposed to be the World's third most beautiful lake, and I agree. I guess that's pretty much it. Drew's getting bigger all the time. We measured the boys up and Danny's and he grew about 3 or 4 inches since last year. Funny how it sneaks up on you, before you know it, the shorts he's been wearing forever are really short and the booster seat that seemed to look so huge is overwhelmed by a 4 yr old little man.

two weeks later...

Last weekend we went camping - well actually Friday - Tuesday. The boys were going to stay until Wednesday but a big storm was coming in and changed their minds. And let me just say, I LOVE water wings! We had a couple great days out at the lake and the 4 yr olds were thrilled they could swim and float around in the shallows with the big kids swimming. We went on a wild goose chase to find a place that advertises you can go see bears and reindeer but when we got there we decided it looked more like a scene from Cujo or Texas Chainsaw Massacre and quickly left. The trail we usually use for our nature hikes was still in awful condition - several large trees and small trees were blocking the path making it difficult to take the kids and a wagon, but we made it.
This weekend we are hoping for a break from the rain and head out for more golf and more swimming...cross your fingers.
We decided to take Drew out of daycare for a month to save some money esp. since we'll be on vacation 2.5 weeks of it. Julie (Drew's babysitter/girlfriend) is watching Drew the rest of the time and last night he asked how many days in a row. I told him just today since tomorrow will be a Stay-at-home day. Normally he's totally excited about these but last night he told us he didn't like stay-at-home days...Boy does he love Julie. He's going to be in her big sister's wedding in August and is sure to tell me the wedding is coming up! Yesterday he went with the girls to get their fittings and I asked him what color the dresses were. "Pink or Red" he says. "Oh, some are pink and some are red?" "No, pink or red." "oh, they are pink and red?" "NO, PINK OR RED." "Do you mean they have pink with red?" 'NO MOM, LISTEN TO WHAT I AM SAYING - PINK OR RED!!!!" At this point I gave up and just said "oh"!
Speaking of listening, we've been having some issues with listening these days...lots of issues! After saying something several times, I give up and tell him to go sit. It works pretty well cuz he always seems to know what he did to have to sit but now he is in a bargaining phase. I'll tell him to go sit, he says he'll listen, I'll tell him to sit anyway and out come the buckets of tears. "mom, I said, I'll listennnnnn!!!!!" "too late, try again next time I ask you to do something."
And on that note we have - "just one, one, one more, mom?!!" We bought some sparklers for the 4th but broke them out early since he was there when we bought them. And sure enough he'll do one then ask to do one more. After a bit we'll let him but then it continues..."just one more" or "no buts mom, I swear, I just want to do one more, then no buts! please!!" Oh man, sometimes I wish (not really) that we could go back to the days when things were quiet.

Where did the last month go?

Well I can't believe it's been over a month since my last post. I guess that just reiterates that time is flying by way too quickly. Let's see what's been happening...
Memorial Day Weekend - We went out to the lake and Drew had no problem jumping right in - yes it was cold! We played Friday night and Saturday morning before we headed over to a friends birthday party. Had a great time catching up but then headed off to Aunt Janice's so she could watch Drew for the rest of the weekend and we could have some adult time. We went back out to the lake and enjoyed the quiet. Sunday we went golfing - not nearly as successful as the first trip out, but lots of fun. Back to the lake until Monday morning when we headed back to Janice's to help the re-siding process. Unfortunately, Mike's gout was in FULL affect and he spent the day laying on the couch in misery. I helped Janice make a great feast and helped Drew watch a HUGE bonfire uncle Jack started with the torn down siding.
Last weekend we headed out to our friends Lou & Piet who we haven't seen since Drew's been with us - yes, it's been way too long. We had a great time visiting and catching up and trying to remember the German they had taught us years before. On Sunday we went to my cousin Molly's graduation party and Drew's highlight was getting old leaves and the magnifying glass out to see if he could make a fire...see a trend here? Yep, me too...bummer.
This weekend I am on my first girls weekend in 5 years. Unfortunately the weather doesn't look great, but we'll work thru it. Mike & Drew are going to hang out in their boxers, eat their favorite snacks and watch guy stuff. Excellent!

First Camping Trip of the Year

We had our first camping trip of the year, and the weather cooperated quite well considering it was the first weekend in May in Michigan. It rained a bit on Friday but not too much. Saturday we had some sun, some clouds, some wind and some sweatshirts on and off all day. Of course, we packed up on Sunday to beautiful weather but we were all pretty well exhausted and ready to come home, take a nap and unpack. It was the first weekend Sugarloaf was open for the season and they weren't expecting many people. So when we got there, there was no water or electricity but that was fixed by the end of the day. The evenings were a bit chilly but with the heated mattresses in the camper and lots of blankets we were just fine. We went on a nature walk but it was obvious yet again that the campground had not been used since October. The trail was filled with fallen trees, leaves, mud and water. It was still a fun adventure. Drew caught a fish, well more like Mindy caught the fish for him. When we told him there was a fish on the line he dropped the pole and ran. Not like the first fish he caught, but hopefully he'll want to do it again. He loves to put the worm on, but not so much with touching the fish. Our site was close to the Horseshoe pits and playground so we could let the kids go to the playground and watch them without having to be stuck at the playground. Drew must have roasted about 100 marshmallows and ate maybe 10. Fun times had by all!

You're a goof mounder!

Yep, that's right a Goof Mounder...that's Drew's new word for goof ball. And now we've added knuckle head and pretzel head to the mix. Don't ask me where he gets them, but it's pretty funny to hear what he comes up with. We had a nice, warm Saturday and finally got out and cleaned the windows, now I just need to get the inside of the windows done and maybe we can see out! :) Drew had a blast playing in the hose and making mud in the yard. Mike bought him his own kid sized wheelbarrow so he can help when we get the mulch. And yes, this is why we had to build a shed, everyone having their own tools. Speaking of, I got quite a bit of stuff organized in the garage too, so I was excited about that progress.
Scott took Drew and my little bro, Bill, Saturday night and we picked them up late Sunday a.m. We drove up to Howell to meet up with Julie and did a little shopping while we were there. It got pretty chilly, but on the way home we stopped at the Botanical Gardens and picked up a couple rain barrels. Unfortunately, we didn't get them hooked up cuz today it's raining like mad! Drew was so pooped by the time we got home he just wanted to lay down and watch SpongeBob. He fell asleep around 4:30 and Mike woke him up around 5:30 cuz we didn't want him up all night. He was a bit testy and not really sure he wanted to be up. Just before he fell asleep he was yelling at me from the bedroom. "MOM, I'M HUNGRY!!!! It started out normal toned but ended up at the top of his lungs as I was ignoring his screams. Finally, he hit meltdown mode and started crying as he was yelling about how hungry he was. I told him next time, come find me, I'm not going to deal, but I also understood the child was at a breaking point and I better get him a snack before we were to the point of no return.

Welcome to the world, Troy B!

At least he should be here by now. Our friend Jen went in for her c-section this morning around 5 - yuck! But yay, cuz she should have a beautiful little man in her arms! Welcome to the crew little man!
On top of that, it's a beautiful sunny day, and 99.9% of the snow is gone from the 5+ inches we got on Monday...yes, Monday, as in the 6th of April - urgh! And with the snow came a power outage - but we finally got to use our generator and back fed electrical, so 5 minutes after we woke up to a cold house the heat, and rest of the power, were restored...woohoo!!!! It felt good to finally put to use all the precautions we thought we'd need 3 years ago. So Monday was a stay at home day. Then Tuesday I woke up to find I finally got the cold that Mike, dad and Drew had been fighting off for the last several days...boooo! So I worked for about two hours and went home and crashed. Yesterday I caved and took some nighttime cold meds and felt much, much better. It didn't really make me sleep all that well, but took away the aches and sore throat, which was just fine with me.
Again, I sit here and try to figure out where the last two weeks have gone. I guess we've been outside quite a bit. In one weeks time dad built Drew's play structure and with some help from Mike, our new HUGE 8 x 12 ft shed. It's awesome! Three wide, deep shelfs L across leaving us room for anything else in the blank corner. We still don't have it filled up and everything extra (except the stuff I need to donate) is out of the garage. On Saturday we worked on tearing down the wall between the backroom and the garage so we can actually park Mike's truck in the garage...say it with me now...HALLELUJAH! We still have yet to get up in the attic to figure out what could come down, but we've also added several sheets of plywood to the attic so we've got more storage up there too. Love it!!!! I feel a weeeeee bit like Martha Stewart...things are getting their own spots!
Tomorrow Drew is off and I'm looking at working 1/2 day and hangin' with the little man...not quite sure what we'll do. On Saturday, Domino's Farm has a huge Easter Egg Hunt, so I think we're going to try to hit that if the weather holds out. Speaking of, Drew found two big, fake egg decorations in the garage and we've been using those to practice our hunting. It's funny, he's added himself to the hunt by yelling, "Mom, I'm an egg too, OK?" lol, the things he says.
Honestly, he was being a little stinker a couple weeks ago. Little attitude, little talking back, little not listening - more than the absent minded "I'm watching SpongeBob" 4 year old boy not listening. And just about to the wall, I finally realized I needed to pull out the 'step away from the problem arsonal'...duh! Really, I haven't had to use it lately, but after telling Drew 4 times, not to spray the hose near mom, I finally said, "if I have to tell you again, you'll be putting it down for 2 minutes." It did, and then he did. After two minutes he asked me if he could play with the hose again, which I said no to because he asked...waited about 30 more seconds and told him he could with the understanding that it would not happen again and if it did, the hose would be gone for the day. Guess what? Yep, it didn't happen again. He's happy, I'm happy. or is it I'm happy, he's happy!? Both I guess. So back on to remembering that my great little 4 year old isn't perfect, and that boundries work so much better than saying the same thing 4 times and getting frustrated to no avail.
I have to say we've been pretty impressed with grandpa too. He's seeing that doing something for Drew quickly isn't as important as letting him do it for himself even if it takes 10X longer. And that as cute as he is, especially with some of the expressions he makes, doesn't mean that he should get away with something, even if it's as simple as needing to put on a sweatshirt if it's 50 degrees.

Guess that's all for now...Happy Easter weekend!