"DADDY!"

Every time Mikey and I enter Hannaford, our local grocery store, we always follow the same routine. We walk into the entrance way, pick a shopping cart, insert the grocery cart "protector" (for lack of a better term), I strap Mikey in and we are on our way. The past two weeks have been different. Recently when we walk in Mikey will yell in a very excited tone...."DADDY!". (As a side note: we primarily visit the grocery store when Michael is working so I was baffled by the connection between Daddy and the supermarket.) It can be a little awkward when strangers turn to look at you and your child calling them "Daddy". Then today it all made sense. I noticed that there are pictures of the managers of the different departments hanging on the wall right when we walk in. It just so happens that 2 of these men are bald. Mikey looked at the pictures, smiled, pointed and yelled his famous "DADDY!". Mystery solved!

Weekend Visit

Auntie and Uncle Scott came to visit this weekend! We spent time with them on Sunday afternoon and all day Monday. Mikey had a great time sharing his toys and playing. He really gravitated towards Uncle Scott (and also taught him a lesson about locking the bathroom door!)! We took them to the Publick House for dinner on Sunday and on Monday afternoon Auntie came with us to My Gym for class. While we were there Mikey was in one of those "I'm-a-two-year-old" moods but all-in-all we had a good time.



Thanks for coming to visit, guys! We loved having you!

GOOD LUCK wishes to Auntie as she begins her new job today! Yay!

Back to the farm!

We made it back to the farm for the first time in 2011! Mikey and Mommy bundled up and headed out on Friday afternoon. It was "warm" when the sun was out but the high was only about 40 degrees. These days as long as the sun is out, we're going outside!

Mikey surprised me this time around as he was intimidated by the animals up close. They poke their little heads through the gates and you could tell he was really uncomfortable (squirming in his stroller and whining). He was more comfortable when I held him in my arms but we still had to maintain quite a distance. I have a feeling the initial fear will wear off and he will enjoy the animals more. Our favorite animals were the baby goats. SO CUTE. Next we are waiting for the baby piglets to be born on April 26th.

And we can't forget about the TRUCKS. There were a few tractors and bulldozer (they are building a new building on the property). Mikey was in his glory. He spent most of his time sitting on the old fashioned tractor and "driving". Wonder what he will do next time......

Busy Week!

This past week was SUPER busy for us. In addition to our regular routine of My Gym on Mondays and work & Eva's House on Tuesdays, we now have joined Boston Sports Club!

Wednesday was my first "orientation" session with the trainer. They set these appointments up to familiarize you with the gym and also have you do some exercises to make sure you know what you are doing and don't do anything that could end up harming yourself. One of the best things about the gym is the babysitting program. Although you have to call DAYS in advance to secure your child's spot, it is nice to go exercise and know that Mikey is being cared for and having fun. This was always a reason why it was difficult for us to work-out in the past. The babysitting area has all sorts of fun toys and crafts to play with, in addition to also a full gym with balls, trampolines, climbing structures...you get the idea. He LOVES it. His most favorite activity at the gym is to play "hockey". We did NOT teach him this. He immediately gravitates towards a stick (the same height as him) with a sponge on the end and runs around the gym hitting balls and pucks with the stick! I must admit he is quite good!! So while Mommy works out, Mikey plays hockey! We all get our exercise for the day! (Next time we go I will be sure to get some pictures!)

Thursday Mikey participated in a study at Boston University regarding language and cognition. They were looking to see if Mikey would understand a certain direction even though he observed something else. For example, Mikey observed one of the examiners putting a puppy dog in a drawer. Then, they closed a curtain and moved the puppy behind a pillow instead. They opened the curtain and told Mikey "I moved the puppy behind the pillow. Can you get the puppy?". So even though he SAW the puppy placed in the drawer, he was to follow verbal direction and get the puppy from behind the pillow. They said he did wonderful! He got a BU t-shirt as a "prize" for participating.....not sure how Daddy feels about that "prize"!

Friday morning we started another semester of "Music Together" with the maracas collection. Mikey is in the same class as his friend Maggie McNeal. The whole car ride to music all Mikey kept saying from the backseat was "Maggie! Maggie! Maggie!". And when we left we saw our friends Ruby and Kieran as they were heading in for the next class! Yay for girlfriends!

See the next post for our Friday afternoon adventure.....

Another game!

As if last night's hockey game wasn't enough fun, today Daddy and Mikey met Sean and Abigail Irwin at Conte Forum for the second round of the NIT featuring Boston College and Northwestern.

Although BC lost, everyone had a lot of fun!

"Hockey"

Mikey is coming out with new words every day. Although he is mostly speaking in one word phrases, he will imitate most of what we say. His new favorite word is "HOCKEY". And what better way to put that word to good use than to take our adorable son to his first BC hockey game at the TD Garden in Boston for the Hockey East Semifinals!

Mikey was such a trooper. The game started at 5, which was perfect timing for him. As soon as we walked in and for the ENTIRE first period all we heard was "HOCKEY!" and his little finger pointing to the ice. We think he means the puck when he says hockey, just like whenever he sees football, baseball or basketball, he says "BALL!". Mikey alternated between sitting on Mommy and Daddy's laps and also sat in his own chair. He ate, drank, watched the game, checked out the people.....he was fabulous!

Oh....and BC beat Northeastern 5-4!

Our favorite new store

Last Saturday we ventured out for our first trip to IKEA. I had seen a cute table and chair set for Mikey online that I wanted to check out and it was the perfect day to go. As soon as we arrived we asked each other: "How have we not been here before?!". For future reference, whenever it is cold and ugly outside THIS is where we will be taking Mikey when we need to get out of the house for a few hours! The place was great! We were a little confused with how everything "works" around there (you write down the big items you are interested in and then locate it in their warehouse prior to checking out). Once we got the hang of everything, it was SO MUCH FUN. And cheap!!

We first found the table and chairs. Adorable and worth every penny. Mikey loves to set his farm up on the table and play (we don't praise the OTHER things he does like flip the chairs over constantly so he can say "uh-oh" or attempt to stand on the chair and/or table to touch the light switch, windows, etc).

The great thing about IKEA is that they encourage you to try out everything. There are great toys out in ALL the departments for kids to entertain themselves with while the Mommies and Daddies are shopping. Mikey especially liked when we got to the children's bedroom section. Mikey LOVES beds! At home he will ask for "bed?" (meaning our bed) and he'll climb up, he jumps on it, curls up with a pillow and does his snoring sound....the kid LOVES the bed! So naturally when we came to the children's bed section, Mikey was in heaven. He must have tested out EVERY BED in the place! He did the same thing in each one....climbed right on in, put his little head on the pillow, closed his eyes and made his sleeping sounds. SO CUTE. People were coming up to us going "get the camera out!". Mikey had so much fun.

Speaking of beds, Mikey is still in a crib. And we want to keep it that way for as long as possible. How else will I get anything done (ex: SHOWER) during the week without Mikey contained in the crib?! Last week I went to get him from his crib after his nap. He was standing up and I said "Okay, let's get out" as I put my arms out. The climber that he is hoisted up one leg as if he was going to climb out of the crib himself!! I immediately was like "NO! I'll help you". The good news was he didn't have a sleep sack on. I think the sleep sack will be able to deter him from successfully climbing all the way out. So now, every time he is in the crib, the sleep sack goes on----naps and bedtime. That's not saying I'm not worried about it. This past week I have been quite nervous with the anticipation of hearing a LOUD thump as Mikey exits the crib. He does love to be in there with all of his "friends" and blankets, so I'm hoping it was only in my presence that he tried to be independent and let himself out. I guess only time will tell.....

Cross your fingers for us.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

We hope you had a FUN day!

Love,

Michael, Allison & Mikey

Mr. Independent

Here's the scoop from your latest pediatrician appointment:

Height: 34.5" (52nd percentile)

Weight: 27 lbs (36th percentile)--your weight was calculated via a math problem, as you wouldn't step on the scale yourself. Mommy got to stand on first and then I held you to calculate YOUR weight. We don't need to document Mommy's weight on here....

Head Circumference: 46.5cm (6th percentile)---you have always had a small head circumference, yet you seem very proportionate to us. Weird.

You are becoming more and more independent every day. We are only allowed to help you when you ask for "help" (which you say AND sign).

Every time I go into your dresser drawer to pick out a shirt, you always yank out this one:



or your Star Wars t-shirt (could be worse!);

and you boycott your Trip-Trap chair and only want to sit here:

You even bring your toys and sit at the table to play with them. I guess it's time to get you a small table and chair set!

Now the question is.....where do we store of all of this STUFF?!?!?!

Happy Birthday, Mimi!

We hope you have a GREAT year!

One day at a time....

Due to all of the activity of the party, Mikey came home on Sunday evening quite exhausted! He opened his gifts from Mimi and Grandpa and a few more before calling it a night. It has worked out wonderfully as now he has a present to open each day!

When Mikey opens a gift, he gets so excited about each item, he only needs to open one gift to be content. He asks to open the gift and starts playing with it immediately. Why rush it? It helps the birthday celebration last even longer!

Here are some of his favorites thus far......

Happy Birthday to YOU!

Mikey celebrated his 2nd birthday with a party at My Gym on Sunday, February 27 at 2:30 in the afternoon. His friends Brody, Chloe, Zoe, Ellie, Abigail, Molly, Ruby, Maggie, Nora and Alexandra were all in attendance--Mikey and Sam Frost (from NH), Jimmy Casey (from NJ), Kaylie and Madyson Tolska (also from NJ) were there in spirit. The party lasted for an hour and a half. It was JAM PACKED with lots of activities for the kids and we cannot believe how fast the time went. Mikey had a ball! He participated in activities that I haven't seen him participate in during a regular gym class. It was like he knew the party was for him!




My favorite part of the party was when Mikey was brought out on a train with a special birthday hat and he was paraded around the "big red circle" to a "Happy Birthday" tune. The look on his face was priceless. (Picture to be inserted when I get it)

The kids enjoyed Elmo cupcakes (made by Mommy) after we sang "Happy Birthday" and finished up on the swings before we said goodbye. What a FUN day!



On Mikey's actual birthday, he attended Eva's House while Mommy and Daddy went to work. Mommy made carrot muffins for snack to share with Mikey and his friends. (Pictures to be inserted when Eva emails them to me)

For dinner, we went to Friendly's. Mikey indulged in his first hot fudge sundae made with vanilla ice cream and topped with whipped cream and 2 cherries! He LOVED it. He kept saying "Mmmmmmm" after every spoonful!






Happy Birthday, buddy!

Mikey is TWO!

(Man, it used to be A LOT easier to get these shots when you were younger!)

Here is a quick list of all the things that make you so special these days:

• You love to show off your toys to anyone and everyone that comes to visit in person OR via skype (more specifically your cars, tractor, "choo-choo", trucks, ball/bat, and farm);

• Your attempt to jump is also your famous dance move----your feet are not yet leaving the ground and it is my most favorite thing to watch you do;

• You are now in L-O-V-E with your Daddy and it is so sweet to watch. You are constantly saying "Daddy" and you get so excited when you hear his key in the door when he comes home from work (you also say "Mommy" and lots of single words at this point.....not yet putting 2 words together);

• You recently began to display some separation anxiety when I leave you on Tuesdays at Eva's house. You have the saddest face and reach/lunge for me when I hand you over. This morning you clung to me as soon as I unstrapped you from the car seat. Eva says you stop less than 2 minutes after I leave, but today you had me crying in the car. I did not want to leave you crying on your birthday.
  

Happy 2nd Birthday, Mikey! We find ourselves thinking that we love you so much today, how could we possibly love you even MORE tomorrow....yet we do! These past two years have FLOWN. You are such a joy to be with and we are so blessed that you came into our lives. WE LOVE YOU!

xoxo
Mommy & Daddy