Play-Doh with Daddy

Evan played play-doh with daddy for the first time tonight.  He loves it but we don't do it too often yet.  Daddy was making some pretty advanced things (a fancy car, an airplane and an elephant).  Evan will quickly learn that Daddy is a much better play-doh-er than Mommy!

Watching the car assembly and requesting an elephant at the same time

Lia!

We had a play date with Em and Annalia today.  On the way there, with about ten minutes left in the drive, Evan started screaming, "Lia! Lia!" from the back seat.  I guess he was really excited to see her.  You would never know this from the way he "played" with her though, or rather the way he ran away from her multiple times.  Poor little Lia, she was so sweet and even gave Evan big kisses when they were both sitting on the couch.  Such a love bug!  The feeling is mutual though.  Evan talks about her constantly when they aren't together.

One of the few moments when Evan actually played with Lia

This was more the norm.  "Help, Mom, she is trying to touch me again!!"

De-Fense!

You may remember the touchdown video from earlier in the Pats season.



Well this week during the game, Evan was yelling for a touchdown when the Eagles had the ball.  We didn't want him rooting for the wrong team (sorry, Chuck!) so we taught him to say "De-Fense!"

I Scream, You Scream...

...We all scream for ice cream!  Who doesn't love an ice cream sandwich?  Especially when it's "free" with the purchase of a kids meal!

Sledding! (Sort of!)

Who needs snow to go sledding?  Not this little guy!

Fixing the Hot Tub

We finally had a long weekend without too much going on and nice weather so that we could take care of a few things around the house.  One of which was fixing some jets in the hot tub.  Bruce was hard at work and assisted, as always, by the cutest little helper in the world!

Over there, Dad.  That's what you need to fix.                 Here, Dad.  You need the needle nose pliers. 

Do you want me to do it?  My hands are little.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We sure have a lot to be thankful for this year.  We have a wonderful little boy who gives us so much love and joy every day.  We have so many special people in our lives, both friends and family, who help us create many wonderful experiences and memories.  Bruce has a good job where he is appreciated for all of his hard work and is challenged on a daily basis.  We are fortunate enough that I was able to take a break from my teaching career to spend my time raising Evan.  We have what we consider to be a lovely home that keeps us warm and dry.  The list goes on and on.  At a time when so many people are finding themselves in tough times, we are very blessed and grateful for all that we have!

Mama called the Dr. and the Dr. said...

...no more monkeys jumping on the bed.  Well, according to Evan anyway.  What the Dr. really said is that Evan has bronchiolitis and he needs to use a nebulizer for a few days to get rid of the wheezing.  Evan started coughing with a runny nose last week and then was worse over the weekend.  With Thanksgiving coming up, we didn't want to take any chances on him just getting better on his own.  Plus we wanted to rule out an ear infection and pneumonia (his cough had gotten pretty nasty!).  Evan had two breathing treatments at the pediatrician's office and then she sent us for a chest X-ray just to be sure.  Thankfully, everything came back negative and Evan was such an angel all afternoon.  After just one day of using the nebulizer, we already see him getting better!

Helping daddy hold the nebulizer

Seriously, what 18 month old semi-smiles during a nebulizer treatment?

Feel better soon, Angel!  

Leaves!

Bruce decided it was a good idea to take advantage of a free weekend with nice weather to do some fall leave clean up.  It is strange to think that we had 7+ inches of snow on the ground just three weeks ago but that today it was beautiful out.  Evan, who always wants to help, was eager to get outside and rake.  He helped get the lawnmower ready while Daddy did some raking then had some fun in the leaf pile...until he got a little too much in his face.  So glad we can still get outside to enjoy the weather!  It's so nice that Evan helps to make a "chore" fun again!

Post Office

Evan's vocabulary amazes us everyday.  He can say just about anything we throw at him pretty much perfectly the first time. Here is one thing he can't quite say...which is what makes it so cute!



The story behind the this post: About a month ago I took Evan to the post office.  I told him during his lunch that we were going to go after lunch and all during his lunch he kept saying "Ka-foffice", his version of post office.  Later that day (and since that day) I tried taking a video of his cute new phrase but I can never quite capture it on camera.  These are the best I have and I'm sure if I wait much longer he will be able to say "post office" like a pro.

Bye, Bye Droid

A couple of months ago, Bruce and I said good-bye to our first Droid smartphones and hello to our new Bionic's.  With so much else going on, it has taken me this long to actually download all of the pictures off my old phone.  Looking back I am amazed!  It is hard to believe that Evan was really ever that little...or that chubby...or that we had a life before him!  Here is a sampling of those photos.  (Sorry not all have captions.  Feel free to suggest one!) Enjoy!

Say Cheese, Mommy!

I am always taking pictures of Evan so today I guess he decided that it was his turn to take a couple of pictures of me (while Daddy took pictures of him!).

From Collages

Na-night with Friends

Lately, Evan wants to take Curious George and Pooh Bear every where he goes.  Upstairs, downstairs, in the car...it doesn't matter he wants them to come too.  He has also started pulling his blankets and other animals out of his crib to play with during the day.  It is quite cute!

Cooking with Mommy

Bruce was going to be late coming home from work tonight due to traffic and needing to stop at the Verizon store so I was trying to have dinner ready when he arrived.  Thankfully I had the best little helper to cook right along side me!

From Collages

Rocking George and Pooh Bear

Evan loves to drive his hocus pocus chair that was daddy's when he was a little boy.

Today, he decided to take Pooh Bear and George for a ride.

It worked out perfectly because Pooh was a great pillow when Evan needed to rest.

He even gave Pooh Bear and George a turn driving.

Silly little monkey!

Auburn High School Playground

Today was our third trip to a playground within one week.  Maybe that is why Evan was so independent and a little explorer.  He generally sticks close to me and doesn't try to do to much climbing or playing on his own.  Today was a different story.  He was climbing all over, going down slides, swinging and having tons of fun while doing it.  We met another little boy who was born one day after Evan at the same hospital...small world.  Hopefully the weather will stay nice so that we can visit the Auburn High School playground again soon.

Weekend at Papa & Gramma's

This past weekend was our first weekend away from Evan since he was born.  Bruce has taken business trips or been places over night like camping but I have not had a single night away from Evan in a little over 18 months.
We went to Luray, Virginia to celebrate the wedding of Adria and Avi and it was a much needed weekend!  It was nice to be able to come and go as we pleased without considering nap time or whether or not Evan would enjoy what we were doing.  We both love our little guy but it is nice to have some "us" time too.
We had a wonderful weekend celebrating a special couple and were so glad to hear that Evan was an absolute angel for Papa and Gramma.  They had so much fun together that I don't think Evan really missed us at all...which is just fine!  Sorry, no pictures of Evan's weekend this time...just pictures of ours.

Yuppie Playground

Today we met Auntie Karin, Danny and Sean at the "yuppie" playground in Pawtuxet Village.  Auntie named this playground a few years ago and today was our first time visiting it.  It was a beautiful fall day, likely one of the last ones we will have this season, and the playground had something for everyone.  We brought a picnic lunch to enjoy when the boys needed a break from playing.  Evan loved driving the "woo-woo" (fire truck), Sean loved the slides and Danny was such a good big brother and cousin, always making sure the little boys were safe and having fun.  Danny and Evan loved the spin bucket and Sean knew to stay away...smart boy!  It is so nice that Auntie is home on Wednesday's so that we can share these special days together!

18 Months!

What? I am 18 today...I can drive! Oh wait, I'm only 18 months...guess I'll have to wait then.  

Checking out the new Super Why app with mom

What an amazing 18 months it has been! 

Tractors, Ponies and Pumpkins

A few weeks ago we received a flyer in the mail advertising the Harvest Home Festival at a community farm in Grafton. It sounded like a fun thing to do if the weather was nice and we didn't have much else going on so I saved it.  Turns out, it was a fun thing to do when the weather was nice and we didn't have anything else going on!  There was good food to eat, tractors to climb on, ponies to ride on, muskets that went "a-boom" and lots of other family fun to support the farm.  After lunch and climbing on the tractors, Evan decided that he wanted to ride a horse.  The line was long but we waited and waited so he could have a turn.  I wasn't sure what would happen when it was actually his turn but we put him up on the horse and he loved it!  I was so proud of him!  We had a fun fall day close to home!

Like Father, Like Son

Read...Read books

Evan has always loved to read and be read to.  It is adorable to watch him "read" on his own.  Just by looking at the pictures and identifying familiar objects he really can practically read some books.  He also likes to read books in mommy and daddy's bed.  Such a great excuse for a little extra snuggle time!

Reading in bed with Mommy

Sharing books, blankets and milk with George

Reading to George

Teddy Ballgame

Today we met Papa, Gramma and Gramma's friend Marsha at Jerry Remy's Sports Bar & Grill behind Fenway park for lunch.  Marsha is here visiting for a few days and is a big Red Sox fan so Gramma thought it would be a fun place to go and she was right.  The food was good and the restaurant itself is really nice.  It wasn't too crowded on a Thursday afternoon and Evan had fun sitting like a big boy in the booth between Mommy and Gramma.  After lunch, we took a quick walk over to Fenway.  Even though the 2011 season ended on a sour note, we are still faithful fans!

Evan "meets" Teddy Ballgame