A Wonderful Weekend!

We had a great weekend at the beach. Daniel was a good rider in the car. I think during the 3 hour drive, he fussed once for about two minutes and then fell asleep. I met Troy at the hotel and from there we had plenty to do. On Saturday we went to the Children's Museum in Portsmouth. I had been able to download two free admissions off the internet so we only had to pay for Daniel which was a real treat. Of course everyone else had also and the museum was pretty crowded! We played hands on for about two hours. Daniel had a blast. We stopped and got him a corn dog for the drive back to the hotel and after two bite he was sound asleep in his car seat! We also swam several times in the indoor pool at the hotel and Daniel learned how to jump to Mama from the side of the pool. He was a little nervous at first and would reach out for my hands before jumping, but after a couple of tries, he finally would just jump and know I would catch him. It was loads of fun. We visited the beach on Sunday, before coming home, giving the waters time to calm after all the rain we had. The water was cold, cold, cold, but we had fun running into the water and then letting the water chase us back out. Daniel liked jumping waves in the shallow water too. He especially liked playing in the sand with his Papa, while I acted like a nut and went further out in the ocean. (I absolutely love the ocean, no matter how cold it is)!!

We all had a great time!! Pictures below!

Finally, I just need to mention that today is my father's first birthday for which he not with us. I have been struggling lately with really missing him. The Survivor premier (yes I watch junk!) came on last week and my dad and I used to always meet for dinner, play Jeopardy and then watch Survivor every Thursday together so we could make fun of the people and cheer on the challenges like a big football game. I know he's in a better place, but boy do I miss him.

Quick Update and Weekend Plans!

Daniel's been doing great at the new daycare!! He went right in the first two mornings and even had a little girl who stood by him when I left the first day. He did not nap on day one, but laid quietly. Day two he napped like a champ! He even blew his teacher a kiss when I picked him up. Both days he was very happy to see me when I picked him up and boy was he tired. He almost fell asleep eating his dinner on day one! This morning was a tad different. The weather here has changed due to the storm coming in and I can't help but think that is part of it. When we walked in there were 4 other children fussing - all boys. The last two mornings there had not been a single fuss when I walked in. Daniel looked at them gave me a hug then said "Home, Mama, Home". I wanted to take him home, but the teacher came right over and picked him up and of course he did the usual "Mama, Mama" and point at me, but then she took him to some toys and even though he was still crying I was able to leave. I'll be the silver blur on the road driving a thousand miles an hour this afternoon to pick him up. Today is also the day I get to check Daniel's artwork folder! Since I dropped him off Tuesday morning I have been wanting to check this folder. The teacher told me to check it every Thursday before we leave as it will have the work from the week. Can I check it anytime I want - you betcha, but since they sometimes hang things for the week she said my best bet was to wait until his last day there each week. I am just anxious to have my first artwork (outside of what we do at home)!! I can't wait to plaster more on our refrigerator!

In other news - we are going to the beach this weekend!! Now, we know there is a storm coming, but we are going anyway. Troy has been working down in Hampton so Daniel and I are driving up tomorrow morning after Chat and Play at the library and spending a couple of nights. We hope to be able to at least walk on the beach with Daniel and we also plan to go to the aquarium there and maybe a few other places. This will be Daniel's first trip away from home overnight since we've returned from Russia. I can't wait - we all need to relax and enjoy each other this weekend.

Hopefully some fun pictures Monday!!

First PPR and Our 100th Post

Friday we had our first post placement visit. It went great. We discussed attachment, changes in Daniel's height and weight, his habits, his likes, dislikes and everything in between. It was fun to think back to when we first came home and realize all the changes we have seen.

Speaking of changes, we have decided that Daniel is ready for day care. Our sitter was very nice, but we think he is ready for a more structured environment. I've noticed at the library that he is sitting at the stations and working with projects with other children and really enjoying himself. He also seemed to have a lot of pent up energy at night, after I picked him up, so Troy and I talked it over and agreed that day care with a teacher would be the best option for us. I do worry about putting him through a change, but I think this one will benefit him. We looked at several day cares and finally made a decision. I feel good about it and when we left from the visit, Daniel cried and cried. I guess he liked it there!!

Lastly I can't believe this is our 100th post!! I need to say that this blog has been a wonderful way to keep in touch with family and friends. Also it has become a great outlet for me and I've made some really great blogger friends. The support group out there is amazing! Thank you!!

Off to Mother Goose Time tomorrow!!

Chat 'n Play at the Library and Progress Report (long)

Today we went to our first Chat 'n Play at the local library. This is something, along with Mother Goose Time, that I have been wanting to do for some time. The programs just started back up since school is back in session so today was our first day. I wasn't sure what to expect so off we went. I was pleasantly surprised by the room we had to play in. There was a mat with lots of soft shapes to build things with, a tunnel to crawl through, cushions to tumble on, books and a rocking chair, a trampoline with handles for the child to hold on to, blankets with toys, tables set up with puzzles, ink stamps and paper, and my personal favorite, shaving cream. What a great idea. We smeared shaving cream on the table and used popsicle sticks to draw in it, and of course our fingers too!! It was loads of fun. Daniel played with several children and I got to talk to several moms and just be a regular mom myself. With me being the fabulous mother I am, I forgot my camera so at the end of the post you'll just have to settle for pictures from the other day!!

As for progress I thought I would try to list out some areas of improvement.

Attachment:

Just today at the library Daniel fell backwards on the mats where we were all sitting and right into another mother's lap. She instantly put her arms around him and swung him side to side being playful and he started arching his back pointing at me going, "Mama, Mama". They all thought it was sweet (and so did I), but also secretly I was cheering him for only wanting me. He also backs away from other women now when they want to hold him unless he knows them (family).

Speech:

"Fantastic" is his new favorite word and mine. He is starting to initiate conversation now for basic needs and to tell me something he sees. He still doesn't understand the concept of answering a question (just repeats the last few words I say), but we are working on it. Just today I pointed at something and said "How about that?" to which he repeated the same words perfectly! We also taught him how to ask for help with something by saying "help, please" instead of crying when he wanted something. Now he'll run around the house saying "help, please, help please." It's pretty amusing!! We are still working on colors and numbers but we think he's come a long way.

Potty Training:

We've just started and so far we are not getting anywhere very fast. He will go when we put him on the potty to which he gets an M&M, a sticker to put on his chart and he gets to (are you ready for this) flush the toilet. Flushing the toilet is great incentive. Of course the M&M seems more important because when I ask him if needs to go potty he instantly says "M&M?" Wish us luck!

Sleeping:

Still a good sleeper although we're figuring a few things out. The biggest thing is he hates to be woken up. Talk about not a morning person!! I only wake him up on the days I have to go to work and even then I try to bang around and make alot of noise so he'll technically wake up on his own. He likes to wake up and play then he's ready to get up. If he isn't totally awake and done playing when I go in there, he pretty much gives me the evil eye and crys when I take him out of the crib. I guess it's too bad for me, who is a total morning person!! His naps are getting shorter but still decent. I usually have a couple of hours to get a few things done in the afternoon.

Eating:

Hmmmm....this goes back and forth. Since trying the tea with milk I've been able to transition him to just milk at mealtime and he drinks it!! Although he drinks it slower than juice it still goes down and he tends to eat a little better. We still have days where he decides he doesn't like anything. We're also having days where he just wants to play with his food. I don't mind a bit of playing but lately he's been banging his fork alot and squishing his food up. Yuck!! Table manners are cinsidered an ongoing learning process and of course he is only 2!

So there it is! The update I've been wanting to post for a while but just had not gotten to it!
The pictures below are of Daniel on our new play toy that I picked up a yard sale for a whopping $10.00~~I was so excited to find it and couldn't believe the price when I saw it. I even had to go home, get Troys truck, go back load it up, tie it down, get it home, spray it off and then I put it back together again all by myself!! I don't think before becoming amom that I could have done all that!! It was worth all $10.00 and then some!!

Adventures at the Zoo

I hope everyone had a great holiday! We made it to the zoo this weekend and had a great time. We saw giraffes and their big icky tongues, we fed donkeys and goats. We checked out monkeys, porcupines, tigers and bears. We even rode an elephant!! Daniel was fantastic at the zoo. He ran from one cage to the next. We let him walk the entire time as it wasn't very crowded (a small zoo). Please don't blast me for the dog backpack (aka leash) my son is wearing in the photos. Since we did not take in his stroller because we wanted to wear him out, and because we knew we couldn't hold him the entire time, we put the backpack on. Believe me when I say we never had to use it!! He listened and held hands with us and stayed beside us the whole time. We were thrilled!! Now some pictures!