Pre-Vaca Catch-Up Post

It has been a hectic few days, hence the lack of posts. I figured it was best to do a quick summary post before we head out on vacation (packing up this AM while Koen is at nursery school and then leaving at noon!!).

Saturday - March 17th

After our fun morning as a family, Doug and I had a date planned that evening. We got to go out eat downtown and then see the play, "Freud's Last Session." I had been a little overwhelmed by the intellectual potential of the play, but I ended up absolutely loving it and definitely recommend it to anyone as a thought-provoking and interesting show. While we were out, Megan and Sky stayed with the boys. These are some amazing friends. And they love our boys. They helped them finish up dinner then spent the rest of the wake time in the backyard before getting quite wet at bathtime and putting the boys to bed. Here's Sky helping Tav with his "shoooes" as Tav says it.I guess Tavin was really busy in the backyard, Megan said she was happy she got a quick peek at his face in this photo.Sky did some push-ups with extra resistance. Nothing like a workout and keeping the boys entertained. What a good guy!Koen loved this trick. By the way, isn't it crazy that it's sunny, warm and my kids are in shorts at 6:30pm at night in the middle of March?Needless to say that Doug and I really enjoyed our night out, Sky and Megan enjoyed the boys (although they probably also loved going home to their quiet apartment afterwards). Thanks, friends. We appreciate you so much!

Sunday, March 18th

Sundays are always busy days for us and this past one was no exception. It was the 5th birthday for our church, North Way Oakland, so we had a big celebration in the services. It included that the kids got to open up all sorts of new toys that had been purchased by our community to refresh the nursery and Kidz space. A fun church morning! Tav was a little confused and thought he could take his home. He got over it quickly though because we headed right to a playground to meet some church friends for some playtime and a picnic. This weather continues to hold and we are just eating it up! The boys were pretty exhausted after such a big start to the day, so they napped well. That was helpful because I was busy cleaning and getting ready for an Open House we hosted after the 5pm service that night. Thankfully I had backup. Kayla came over and watched the boys from after naptime until their bedtime. The Open House went very well and I was able to really enjoy the preparation and the time with the folks due to Kayla handling most of the responsibility of the boys. I am just so thankful for our church community and it was exciting to meet some new faces and open our home to them for an evening.

Monday, March 19th -

A preschool day, yay! Koen loves his school and Tav and I love our times together. Monday I really needed it after the busy weekend. This pregnancy has been a little intense on the fatigue/strain side of things. I'm sure it's my fault due to my level of activity, but still, I'm very glad vacation is coming up and hopefully a lot more sitting around by the pool and on the beach resting.

Doug needed the car in the early AM, so Tavin and I walked down to run errands and pick it up at the East Side Center. Doug was getting some work done before a meeting at Starbucks there and we got to see him for a few minutes. Tav was so happy (especially since Doug had scored him some apple juice from the barista).
The rest of the day was pretty normal except for this amazing weather! We keep trying to make the most of it in every way (probably another reason why I'm so exhausted!). The only other picture I snapped on Monday was after Koen's nap I let him hang out with me in the backyard and do a painting project. He's painting a plastic dinosaur. He is really into painting and using a lot of colors these days and I love it! I just wish each dinosaur took 20 minutes and not 3.

Tuesday, March 20th -

I'm so frustrated I don't have pictures for this big day for Koen. It was a rough start for me and I think I was just off my A-game all day a little bit. Again, the pregnancy was just really taking a toll on me. Koen was so sweet and understanding when I broke down about it. He gave me a hug and I think it goes in the top 10 hugs of my life I needed it so badly. After I recovered and we got ourselves together, we headed out for Koen's Kindergarten Assessment! So exciting! He was thrilled to get to see his school and meet his teacher. At the last moment I prepped him that he was going to have this time with the teacher by himself and Tavin and I would wait in the lobby for him. I was really surprised that he did it without complaint and happily. I was dying to be a fly on the wall and did get to peek at him once. I just can't believe my baby is going to school next Fall! He was such a little grown-up sitting at that school desk! After the assessment he said that he thought it was fun. He said they did some drawing, coloring and writing and talked. Well, I guess that's all I get. I'm so proud of you, Koen Douglas!

Now, that wasn't all my big boy accomplished yesterday. After that big deal we drove to Squirrel Hill to our dentist for his 6 month appointment. Koen and Tavin were a little crazy in the waiting room and after what seemed like ages, the dental hygienist came out and called Koen to come back. I was all prepared for it to be a family event as it had been in the past, but the dental hygienist said that at 4 they encourage the kids to come back without parents. Koen looked nervous at first and said no, but with very little prodding he accepted and went with a smile on his face. It was amazing. It's a good thing he did because Tavin all of a sudden got really pale, blotchy and feverish and completely fell into my arms, sucked his thumb and was close to falling asleep throughout the rest of the visit. At one point he was crying on and off and I really thought he was going to throw up or something, but it was clear that all of a sudden I had a sick 2 year old on my hands. My spirits brightened every few moments though (despite how truly pathetic Tavin was) because I could hear Koen chattering the ear off of the hygienist and dentist. They must have gotten such a kick out him! He came out eventually with a report of a great job, no cavities, a new toothbrush and a toy for he and Tavin. I was bursting with pride. What a big morning for Koen!

Tavin, on the other hand, didn't improve on the way home or with the comfort of home and I had to lay him down for a nap a little after noon! Koen was so sweet to his little brother - very concerned. Once we laid him down though, Koen was all excited to have some extra Mommy time and after such a victorious morning for the guy, I was thrilled to just have some one-on-one time. We had lunch together and then worked in the backyard until naptime. Koen cleaned all the backyard toys so that we could pack up most of them for the beach.

Tavin ended up napping until after 4pm for the most part (a few brief wake-ups), Koen didn't nap, but played happily in his room until 4pm when we packed his suitcase (he is so excited about this trip!). Doug got home early so he and Koen could run an errand for the trip and Tavin and I played at the house. Since Tavin's stomach never got upset I gave him Tylenol and it really helped. He bounced back to almost his normal self between naptime and bedtime and had some toast and apple juice for dinner. I can't even describe how relieved I am that it's not a stomach bug! Whatever it is, hopefully it is just a brief thing you have to sleep off or perhaps it's two-year molars? Anyways, I'm just thankful that it doesn't seem to be anything major that will postpone our trip.

Please keep us in your prayers as we drive to Nashville today and then on to Florida tomorrow. We are all very excited for this adventure!

Warmest St. Patrick's Day Ever!!!

So, my blog post title may not be an actual fact, but I don't remember another St. Patrick's Day with blue sky, sun and 75 degree temperatures. Amazing! With our family vacation quickly approaching starting this coming Wednesday, we did have a few errands to squeeze in this morning, but as soon as possible, we got the boys out on the playground. Today we went to Frick's Blue Slide Park. We packed a picnic and just enjoyed the weather until naptime. Here are the few pictures I grabbed amidst making sandwiches and playing with Tavin on the playground.

Koen is so great at controlling his bike and has found a fun loop to do at this park. You can see him working his way across the bridge...Tavin spent quite awhile eating. He can really pack it in! Happy little guy to be outdoors though running around amid bites of PB&J.And there goes brother again, ready to start another lap...And peekaboo! Koen finishes the loop by coming through the tunnel. He loves it!Tavin found this bike rack particularly interesting and fun today. So funny! He just kept going through it and when I pointed the camera he said, "Cheese!"A little later on, Tavin and I made up a fun game in the tunnels. We each ran through one and yelled, "echo!" and then we would race out of the other side and say, "peekaboo!" and Tavin would squeal with delight.It was a great family morning. It flew by with all that we packed in, but the best part was definitely our picnic and time at the park drinking in the sunshine and this amazing weather. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Morning with James

This morning Tavin and I were joined by Tavin's buddy, James, while Koen was at preschool. James could have cared less when his mom left, he was already pulling out the toys and getting along well with Tavin. I was happy to see he was comfortable with us as he's never hung out with us without his mom before. Tavin was a good host and shared quite well. James is only 2 weeks older than Tavin, but his vocabulary and speech are farther along than Tavin's. It was cute to hear him talk it up.

Before Koen left the decibel level was, well, shrill. When James was here there was just this sweet banter between the boys, a few truck and train noises and lots of quiet as they parallel played. It was such a nice change!

We played in the living room for about 45 minutes and then we headed out in the stroller for a walk (it was another AMAZING weather day). Before we took off, the boys got a little silly on the stairs while I put their shoes on. So cute!Our first stop on our walk was the library. On our way we saw 3 diggers and a garbage truck and lots of buses, cars and trucks. Tavin was thrilled and I think James was in awe of what a walk with Amy and Tavin includes! James really enjoyed the library. He stayed quite busy, while Tav palled around with me.Next stop was the bank and Whole Foods. We also saw a cement mixer and more delivery trucks. Probably a little sensory overload for James. Thrill a minute on this walk! After our quick errands, we walked over to Osceola Parklet. The boys were happy to get out and run around, but both seemed to be getting tired. Their favorite thing to do at the park was to eat a ton of clementines on the bench together, but here they are with climbing on the playground a little bit before that.Around noon we headed back to the house. The boys played a little in the living room while I put lunch together. They ate together and then we played a few more minutes in the living room. Then it was time to lay James down for his nap. Tavin was so excited to help read him books, etc. They were so sweet sitting on the couch with me and reading the books. I think we could've done that for 30 minutes, but I knew James was tired, so we put him to bed after 3 books. Then Tavin and I waited on the front porch until Koen came home. Tav went to nap and then Koen. James and Tavin must have had fun and they definitely wore each other out because they both slept for 2 and 1/2 hours. Koen, on the other hand, didn't sleep a wink, but he did well playing quietly for awhile in his room and then we had fun playing a card game on the front porch. It was a hectic day, but so pleasant with the two little guys in the morning spending so much time outside. James, you are welcome here any time. We had a great time, hope you did too!

All Boys at the Carnegie Science Center

Today we went to the Carnegie Science Center with my friend, Allison, and her two boys Josiah and Samuel. It was great we had high-energy plans today as Koen had plenty of energy to spend. Unfortunately, Tav is a little under the weather with a cold or allergies and a cough that is a result of whatever it is he's dealing with, but he was a trooper as usual and had a pretty good time keeping up.

Today was an exciting day for Koen as we finally ventured into the UPMC SportsWorks building as part of our experience. It is definitely still a little old for Koen, but he was intrigued by the new activities. Here he is on a skateboard...Tavin loved the hockey goal activity. It measures your reaction time. Don't tell Tav, but his reaction time is slow, but I was actually impressed at how he followed the lights and understood how to do the activity itself. A future goalie perhaps?Here's Koen being brave and trying the "You-Yo." The bunjie cord pulls you up off the ground. He loved it! He didn't want to try the trampoline though. There were big kids doing crazy turns, spins and flips and he thought it looked a little too scary this time.Perhaps his favorite thing was spinning around on the centrifugal force wheel. The simpler the better sometimes.After about a half our so in the SportsWorks we headed back into the main museum and got to the floor where Tavin and Samuel could enjoy more. Tavin did really well in here playing with the water table, the ball area and of course he found the dump truck, his favorite.Koen and Josiah mostly played hide and seek and chase and amazingly very quickly the time flew and it was time to head down for a visit to the trains and then outside for lunch. Yep, that's right. Outside! It was 68! The Science Center looks out over the point where the 3 rivers meet and there is a lot to watch...trains, the incline trolleys, construction at the point, ducks and geese in the river, activity on the submarine, barges and highway traffic on the bridges. Talk about a good spot for a bunch of boys to enjoy their lunch!After lunch we took a walk down to the submarine and the boys all enjoyed throwing rocks into the river. Tavin was so cute trying to do it too. His rocks sometimes went behind him, sometimes went only an inch in front of him, but he loved doing what everyone else was doing.Thanks to Allison, Josiah and Samuel for great company. It's fun hanging out with another mom with two energetic boys. Lots of camaraderie there!

Making Music

Tonight Koen got creative and decided to make instruments and play us a song. He set up a circle of random objects, grabbed some utensils and sang Jingle Bells at the top of his lungs. Tavin also had a little percussion section. Of course, it was set on the other side of the island because the big pot hurts Koen's ears (go figure, with all the noise that kid makes he has a sensitivity to metal stock pots). Enjoy the hilarity!

Playground Buddies

Tavin and I had fun plans this morning for while Koen was at nursery school. With the weather still supposed to be mild and rain staying at bay until the afternoon, we met friends at Bartlett playground in Schenley Park. It was a nice change for us since we've never been to this particular playground at Schenley. Tavin and I got there early and played a little together and also had fun watching a funny dog that was there playing fetch with his family. Then our friends Miss Kara and her son, James came. James and Tavin are only 2 weeks apart and Kara and I have been getting them together since they were both only a few months old. The boys did very well playing together and Tavin enjoyed having a buddy to run around with. At one point, Kara and I were chatting away and the two of them were just sitting under the playground smiling ear to ear. I couldn't resist. I had to get this on camera. They were so pleased, they both cooperated with saying, "cheese," and keeping the smiles going.Thanks, Kara and James. It was fun to start our day with you and enjoy the fresh air before the rain moved in for the remainder of the day.

Early Easter Eggs

I know that Easter is literally a month away, but with this weather, I have Spring fever, so it was time to refresh the lame winter decor I was still holding on to. I still had vases full of paper snowflakes and a bouquet of evergreen boughs. They are in the trash now! I have a pleasant, simple Spring look now with some white, happy daisies and bright-colored Easter eggs. Much better.

Due to the time change on Sunday, I actually encouraged Koen not to nap since I laid him down late anyways and knew I wanted him to lay down on time. He spent a good deal of time playing in his room while Tav napped, but then we had a special craft time decorating the Easter eggs. Here's the setup...Koen was in charge of dipping the eggs into the dye (the Koen crane we called it) and I was in charge of taking them out and putting them on the rack (the Mommy crane). Koen treated the whole activity much differently than last year. Last year he was impatient, didn't really pay attention to the instructions and this year he was very fastidious with his assignment as you can see. Also, I have to note, I was relieved that unlike last year, he wanted to keep the colors separate. Last year most of our eggs looked a pale brown because he was dousing them all through all the colors.And the finished product. A nice, bright change in the house (with a hint of a lingering hard-boiled egg smell, but oh well).Koen was a blast to work with and we enjoyed our special time together doing this task. It was also so fun to be out in the backyard, still enjoying the pretty day. Actually, when Tavin got up we ended up spending another hour outside. I weeded the whole backyard (quite a task after a mild winter, so many weeds!) and the boys played happily together with no problems, just so content to be outdoors. Ah, I love Spring!