Tavin's Spring Break in A Nutshell

So this week Tavin didn't have preschool as it was their Spring Break.  Koen still had work and Doug still had work, so this was a stay-cation for Tav.  The week ended up being full of some really fun special moments.  I'll take you on a review of the highlights.

Tuesday
I had some errands to run in the suburbs, so on a whim I contacted a friend in that area to see if she could meet up at a playground late that morning and it worked out.  That morning I got to tell Tav that he was going to see Will and he was so excited!  The weather was forecasted to be sunny and in the 50's and instead it was cloudy and in the 40's, but it was still great to have the boys play outside and Will's mom, Bethany, and I had fun catching up as we always do.

We had a super surprise in the afternoon with a spontaneous visit from Nana!!  The boys were so excited to see her.  They really didn't leave her presence the whole time she was here for her few hour visit.  It's great to see how all 3 are so comfortable with her.

Thanks for stopping in on your business trip, Nana.  It made our week so special and it's always great to spend time with you and see you with the boys!

Wednesday
Tavin got to have another playdate on Wednesday morning with a neighborhood friend visiting for several hours and lunchtime.  No pics (sorry, Tav, don't want to freak out our new friends with snapping tons of pics).  Wednesday evening Doug was playing with the boys after dinner and they developed this simple, hilarious game.  Basically a silly version of ring-around-the-rosy.  They all love it, but Penn is just beside himself with joy when they do this.  It's fun to watch.  I got a few great pics of their facial expressions.

Thursday
This morning Penn had his first meeting with his speech therapist.  It was just an introductory meeting, but it went really well and I like the therapist, so that was a positive start.  My plan for after the session was to take a long walk with the boys to the library, Whole Foods and the bank, but again the weatherman was wrong and although it was supposed to be in the 40's and sunny, instead it was in the 30's, windy, cloudy and flurries of snow were blowing around.  I made a quick decision to stay in and asked Tav if he wanted to make cookies.  He was ecstatic.  I got a little creative and made chocolate hazlenut cookies.  I let Tav lick the spoon I used in the hazlenut spread.  Can you tell that this kid just had his first delightful taste of Nutella?

I turned the camera around to snap a picture of Penn and he totally tried to imitate Tav's huge smile and head tilt, how cute!?!

Here's our finished product.  Let me just say they taste even better than they look.

While I was switching the cookies in and out of the oven, the boys developed a fun little game.  Tavin would stack up randomness from the pantry and Penn would knock it over and then they just laugh their heads off and throw themselves on the floor.  It's ridiculous, but it was so fun to see them playing together like this.  I loved it!

After our cookie project I decided we would dive right into getting these two straggly haired boys some hair cuts (by me).  Tavin was all excited to be Penn's example and go first.  He was an easy client and made it look like no big deal for Penn.  Here's Tavin after the cut.

When I was done with Tavin, I asked Penn if he was ready to have his hair cut in the chair like Tavin.  He patted his head and tentatively nodded yes.  It turns out the great example by big brother Tavin worked wonders and Penn was also an easy client (although I kept his haircut very brief!).  Here's the shaggy silly man before the cut (he's learned to stick his tongue out at the camera, can you tell?).

And here's my clean cut, handsome little bug after the haircut.

Big thanks to Tavin for making this work.  Oh, and thanks to Bob the Builder On Site: Houses and Playgrounds.  Penn watching diggers, dumpers, mixers and more made this a much simpler ordeal!

Well, it's been a simple week with some fun highlights, but I think Tavin would say he's had a nice Spring break.  He's my homebody, my contended, chill, go-with-the-flow pal.  I love that about him.  On the way up to nap today he looked up at me and said, "wow, Mommy, we had a really nice day today."  Like I said, this kid is easy to please and so much fun to do everyday life with.  Happy Spring Break, Tav!