My Big Boy is 5!

 

Just minutes old

Five years ago today, I got my very pregnant body, which had been struggling with blood pressure issues and did not enjoy the Texas summer heat, up and went to eat at IHOP with S and Dad at 4am - and gave birth to this boy at 1:11pm. Oh, how he has changed our lives forever!

 

One year old

He is so smart, interesting, stubborn and active. He lives life in a BIG, physical way. He has so MANY questions about this world of ours, and usually those questions are very interesting, even if I've had my fill of them at that moment. He thinks anyone he meets of any age is a potential friend and wants to hear his life story, and tell him theirs. He loves to imagine and pretend play. 

 

Two years old

He loves having the "right" outfit for every occasion - be it the firehouse, the baseball field, or Easter service. He is such a loving big brother, and sweet boy. He keeps this old mama on her toes, and on good days I keep up with him. 

Three years old

 

Four years old

He will be off to kindergarten soon, which is amazing to me! He might a visual mini-me of his Dad, but has a sentimental inside that is all from his Mom. (poor boy!) He has enriched our lives beyond measure.

 

Five years old!

Last night, when I went in to tell him goodnight, he said, "Mom, what is tomorrow?" I said, "It's your 5th birthday, silly boy!" And he said, "Oh yeah, right!" with a goofy grin from ear to ear. Happy, Happy 5th Birthday to our LM!

All About Mom by LM

A friend posted this series of questions on Facebook the other day and said she wanted other people to ask their kids and post their answers. So, I did. I'm compliant like that. Here are the questions and the answers, given by LM, age 4. I post them with no comment. 

1. What is something mom always says to you? Don’t do it
2. What makes mom happy? Bringing flowers to you
3. What makes mom sad? Not giving flowers to you 
4. How does your mom make you laugh? Tickles my armpits
5. What was your mom like as a child? Short with blonde hair

6. How old is your mom? 41
7. How tall is your mom? 41 feet
8. What is her favorite thing to do? Go do fun stuff with me
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? Read a book
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Playing a guitar
11. What is your mom really good at? Entertaining me
12. What is your mom not very good at? Nothing

13. What does your mom do for a job? Play with me and BB
14.What is your mom's favorite food? I don’t know
15.What makes you proud of your mom? When she makes a beautiful painting 
16. If your mom were a character, who would she be? Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz because her skin looks like wood
17. What do you and your mom do together? Go out to the museum 
18. How are you and your mom the same? Same color hair
19. How are you and your mom different? Different color eyes 

20. How do you know your mom loves you? She always shows a sign of it
21. What does your mom like most about your dad? That she gets to see him on the weekends
22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? Chuck E Cheese 
23. How old was your Mom when you were born? Pretty old!

A Friend Update

After my last, sad "woe is me and my boy" post, I thought I better give you an update. I DID talk to his teachers and found out two things that made the whole thing a little less daunting. First, the boy who was taunting LM about not inviting him to his birthday party didn't have a birthday party. Now, I don't know if he just didn't have a friend party - that is my guess as this school doesn't seem like a place where a child's birthday would go unnoticed - but obviously this child was feeling insecure about the fact, and was sharing his insecurity with everyone else. Or, at least, LM.

Also, I learned there are "centers" in their classroom, and each center has a limit to the number of kids who can be there. The teachers thought perhaps this was part of the time when he was insinuating people weren't playing with him. They were just indicating the center was full, so he would need to move to a different one. The teachers had a talk about this with the children - how to best tell someone to move on, and how to tell someone you just arrived so to not be pushed out. LM reiterated the talk to me, and said it was important they covered it for another boy in the class. Ahem. Funny.

The teachers also said LM seems to play with everyone in the class, and seems happy to move from child to child, friendly with everyone. This is similar to his behavior in his class in Dallas, although he did have some special friends. So, it was nice to hear he had not suddenly become a quiet wallflower - ha - anyone of you who know LM know this ain't gonna really ever happen. So I should remember that!

AND, we learned one of the boys who invited him to a party will be in his class NEXT year - his school is a small one, and his preschool is in a slightly different area, where most children will go to a different school next year. But, learning one face will be the same was nice to know. I plan to invite that child over for a playdate in the near future.

What's more, the weather has broken into spring-ish temps, so we've been riding the neighborhood, meeting new neighbors. Everyone has been so nice. LM was able to meet a little girl who will be in his class next year, and learn about another boy who will also be in his class that we hope to meet soon. So, there are kids he can learn to know over the spring and summer.

If that isn't enough, a friend of mine in the mothers of preschoolers group invited him to a playdate with her son and two other boys, one of which will be in his class next year. My friend said LM especially hit it off with his future classmate, and that she really enjoyed having him over. She reported he wasn't exhibiting any anti-social behavior - quite the contrary - he joined right in, was a compromise finder, a problem solver, and very thoughtful to the other children. What a nice thing to hear.

So, isn't this a different picture? I am so glad I spoke with the teachers and we have found some other good leads on special future friends. This warms my heart and calms my worries. Until I think of the next thing to worry about.

See you soon.

Poor Neglected Blog

Oh my, oh me, oh my. I have fallen so behind here. And I don't have a really good excuse why. Life. That's what. But, the reason I like to keep this up is so I can sort of chronicle life, so I'm not doing so hot right now. Quickly, with hopefully more to follow soon, here is a snapshot update of what has happened in our lives since my last post on June 4th:

 - LM played a season of t-ball

 - BB was baptized

 - BB is almost 6 months old

 - We went on our annual excursion to Colorado where Mommy worked and the boys played

 - S got a new job!!!!!!

 - That job is in the Chicago-Milwaukee region

 - I have left my job after almost ten years, and am home full time for at least six months

 - LM turned 4, and we had a whiz bang party to celebrate

 - As part of those festivities, my dad and Torchy, as well as nieces Cora and Veda came for a visit

 - We "decluttered" our house and then this very talented woman "staged" it to look fabulous and like no one lived in it

 - We listed our house in Dallas

 - We sold our house in Dallas on the same day it was listed

 - S started his new job

 - We traveled to Chicago to look at the area and try to find a home

 - We took a short jaunt to Indy between looking for houses in Chicago. That'll now be about a four hour drive

 - We are getting quotes on moving by the end of this month to a corporate apartment until we have a house

 - We are saying lots and lots and lots of good-byes

 - And some other things I'm forgetting right now, but I am sure were also significant, if I were to remember them.


And none of this is made up. Ha! We've been busy. Life altering busy. And clearly there is a lot to talk about here. So, more to come.

See you soon.

Radio Silence

It's Wednesday and I haven't blogged yet this week. Given I've been fairly regular with the posts of late, I'm sure you're wondering what's up. Nothing, really. And lots. Basically, we are busy, but not doing a lot of cutesy photo-worthy things. When I am not working or teaching class, we are getting ready for baby, mostly, which takes a lot of time and energy. And, I sent my camera in for a routine maintenance call, so I was actually without my "good" camera for almost two weeks. But, here are some photos of what we did last weekend.

After weeks of cleaning out and boxing up at our house, we went to the storage unit to bring home all the baby stuff I saved for the last three years. Incidentally, I had decided in June I was going to just go ahead and divest of this stuff once the weather cooled off. Then, well, life had a different plan. We also sorted through baby clothes that came back to Texas this summer from Indiana after Gibson got some use out of them. You can see some of those piles (pre-washing) behind LM in that first photo, on the floor in the background.

Baby stuff, Clampitt style

To emphasize the point I made in the baby bump update, look at those two photos. Yes, friends, we have everything. Just add a baby and some diapers, and we're good to go. Seriously. We had FIVE showers for LM - we have this covered.

Last weekend, we also moved the books and toys to the front room, which we are making into a playroom - it is also the staging area for moving all these boxes, so it doesn't look like much - yet, but I'm excited about the possibility of it all having a new place. 

Lest you think we have extra room - we filled that unit right back up. Ahem.

And, after we removed all the baby stuff, we had room to move everything back into the storage unit that we had collected over the last weeks at the house. And, when I use the word "we" I mean S did it. I cannot lift all that stuff...I can hold the door open, help him remember everything, box up stuff, but that's it. So, he was the single person who moved it all.

And, we are working on LM's room to make it user friendly for both he and the baby. This meant taking down some floating shelves on one wall, which left some huge holes. This week, S is patching all of that for sanding and painting, and ultimately getting a crib and a bed up in here. 

So that's what we're doing. I do have some phone photos to organize into another "random" post sometime soon, but other than that, posting may slow down for a bit. 

See you soon.

Christmas Day

Christmas is just more fun with a 3 year old. I think, when I am old and gray (ok, older and grayer...) I will cherish the memories of these Christmases in these years the very most. Here are some photos from our time together:

First of all, LM and I made a few cookies for Santa just before he went to bed.

This was the scene on Christmas morning before the boy headed into the room.

The puzzles that are unwrapped are what he received from Santa.

We opened stockings first.

In the stocking was some candy, a new tooth brush, some silly putty, and some chocolate ducks - when we traveled to Europe in the spring the last two years, both times just before Easter, we brought LM chocolate ducks, as they were the prevalent find around town during that time of year. Since then, whenever either of us has taken a business trip, LM has asked us to bring him a chocolate duck. Of course, in November, for example, it's a bit harder to find this. But, through the magic of the Internet and with the help of Santa, we were able to have chocolate ducks in the stocking, which he really loved.

Loving on his chocolate ducks.

Then he helped me with my stocking.

And then helped Daddy with his - his was mostly candy.

Then LM opened presents.

LM had presents to open from his Indiana grandparents as well, so we went right into those.

Then S and I opened our presents.

Then, after we finished Christmas, S opened his birthday gifts.

 
LM really liked the music in the card to S from Nana.

After opening presents, we prepared breakfast, and Nonna and Papa as well as S's Uncle John and Aunt Lee came to breakfast. It was nice to have them over and visit. After breakfast, we visited a while and played with toys. Then, it was nap time. Currently my favorite part of the day. Hee hee.

Then, on Christmas night, we went to Nonna and Papa's house.

This was where Aunt Kim gave out the rules to opening presents to the troops.

One rule was we wanted them to open presents one at a time so we could see what they received.

They did pretty good with this.

And, sometimes, the packaging was still very enticing.

Then we opened stockings!

Nonna found them all "I Love Nonna" shirts.

And Kim received a special gift, complete with a trap door.

Before we opened presents, we ate a delicious dinner, and after presents, ate some delicious dessert, as well as visited with everyone. Besides the fact that it's so freaking loud with all those kids in the room, it was  a nice time together.

We missed our Indiana family this Christmas holiday for certain. It didn't seem right not to see them at all. But, the big belly kept us here, and we enjoyed time with the Dallas clan. A memorable and lovely Christmas through and through!

See you soon.

Ice Storm

A couple of weekends ago, the entire city was shut down for several days. We were at our house for the better part of three days, where we were very productive, cleaning out and up through. It was awesome to have that time. We did leave on Friday and slept at Cheryl and Sam's, when we lost power for about 24 hours. The temps outside were in the teens, and our old house is drafty. But, the electricity came back on mid-day Saturday and we were able to come back home. It was great to have a place to go, though! And, thankful the electricity didn't stay off for longer - we had friends without electricity for the better part of three days. No bueno! Here are a few photos I shot of our surroundings while the ice lasted:

Let's see - there was this - LM used an oven mitt to make is helmet fit better.

Ahem.

We lost several small limbs from our big red oak trees.

We were lucky - many people lost entire trees from the weight of the ice.

That's all ice, folks. Slick, slick slick!

For some reason, S wore his "bank robber" hat for almost this entire weekend.

I have no idea where it came from - but he found it and put it to good use!

The shrubs, falling down under the weight of the ice.

Not much outdoor play time this particular weekend...

The ice was much worse further north and west. 

We had a small dose compared to those areas.

We had a fire almost the entire weekend, which was wonderful.

 Glad it melted, finally! We loved having the time together, but it was time to get outta the house by Monday! 

Today is Christmas Eve - we are going to go ice skating this morning, and then to church this afternoon for the family service, and then by S's aunt's house later on. Then, time to get to bed to rest for the big day tomorrow.

See you soon.

Decking the Halls

LM, jingling his bell ornament, singing Jingle Bells.

Right after our return from Indy, we drug out the holiday decorations, and decked our halls. This is something I really enjoy doing, and so does LM! So, we now gang up on S the Scrooge and have a fun family time putting up the tree and stockings. Because we are working on clearing out the house to rearrange some things before baby comes, and hope to do some of this over the holidays, we didn't get all the decorations out this year. But, there is still enough to be merry about.

S put up the pencil tree.

Let me say once more how much I love this tree!

I love my pencil tree.
I really, really do!

Did I already say that?

We tried a family photo for the Christmas card - decided not to use it.
Nonetheless, it was a nice family night.

See you soon.

The 3rd Birthday Party

Man, I have been a slacker on the blog this summer! Here is a summary of LM's 3rd birthday party! We had a FIRETRUCK theme, as you know. In Dallas, you cannot have parties at the fire stations. So, one enterprising young Dallas firefighter bought a firetruck and will come to your HOUSE for the party. So, that is what we did. It turned out to be great fun for all ages. And, I went back to Dallas Affaires this year for the cake, and they knocked it out of the ballpark - you'll see - so cute! I have to say this might have been my favorite of LM's three lifetime parties - it was a good one - here are the photos - let me just say I really TRIED to do some collages of this stuff, but the software I normally use for collages would NOT cooperate with my luddite mind so, they are stream of consciousness, baby. All here:

Almost ready for prime time...

And will you LOOK at this CAKE!

I loved it.

We tried to come up with clever snack names...ahem.

We put the ride on toys along the driveway again this year, which was again a hit.

Then, the firetruck came down the street! Sirens blaring!

We are everyone's favorite neighbor after this, I'm sure.

We were so glad to have Nana and Cora visiting for the party as well!

Even the big kids had fun...

Then we gathered indoors for a talk on fire safety!

And then it was time to spray the firehose!

Everyone took a turn - and I'd show you every turn, except for that aforementioned collage thing...

Once again, even the big kids liked this.

Then it was time to take a ride...

You can barely see the kiddo's heads - S said they giggled the whole way.

Oh, and, to please the neighbors more, he ran that siren again. Whee!

Everyone took a trip around the neighborhood, too.

At the end of the firetruck time, I asked all the kids to stand on top for a photo.

Everyone complied except my boy - back there covering his eyes. Nice.

And a family photo. 

Then somewhere in here we did a couple of games. 

Where you moved water around.

Then, snacks...

And cake!

He blew that candle right out!

Then - presents. He received lots of nice things.

Including this ridiculous present from his parents.

Which he seems to really enjoy. 

We had no intention of getting him one of those types of vehicles, but when we asked him what he wanted for his birthday, a "race car" he could "ride in" was the only thing he ever responded with. And, well, we are suckers, so there you have it. 

It was a good day.

See you soon.