Paul Bunyan

Jay went wilderness man this weekend and spent a couple of hours splitting wood.

Like Nadal

Our house didn't get much sleep last week, and it wasn't because any of us were sick.  Blame it on the Australian Open.  The matches came on at 3 a.m., and Jay just couldn't resist.  So all three of us would be in bed watching tennis until the sun came up. I watched with my eyes closed most of the time, but it was cute hearing Jay explain it all to Solon and who all the players were.  Solon would periodically ask about a player "Is he good?" or "Is he bad?"  He was trying to rate them like you would a Star Wars character.  The dark side vs the good side.

So sure enough Solon wanted to play tennis himself.  We took him out last Sunday, and he said was going to be "Leyton Nadal."  That is a combination of Leyton Hewitt and Raphael Nadal for those of you who are tennis dummies:)

Practice Makes Perfect

Solon and I try and work his big boy Buzz Lightyear puzzle about once a week.  He only needs help when his attention starts to wander.

Just The Tip of the Iceberg

My mission the past few weekends has been to empty out the attic over at the old house of ALL the stuff we don't use or need.  The clothes were easy to let go of, but this Sunday I had to go through 6-7 boxes full of books.  Over the years, I have edited them down to my favorites, but I just realized it was ridiculous to hold onto so many of them now.  So goodbye to my Dean Koontz collection and hundreds of other favorites.  I kept only some children's books I want to share with Solon and Cookie one day, as well as a handful of books that made me fall in love with reading when I was younger.

A Mouthful

We have been cooking pancakes every Sunday for the past few months, and this past weekend Solon wanted to break out our cafeteria style trays. 

No More Pretty In Pink

Well, this bed has made the rounds!  It was one of the sister beds my mom and her sister, Penny, used to have growing up.  I had one of them all throughout college and recently hauled it down to Janie for her to use in the future.  She had the other one, and we did a switcheroo...since mine was in a little worse shape.  Hers was pink and had made it down from St. Louis several years ago where my aunt & cousins had used it and painted it pink.

Well Jay and Ann worked this weekend painting it a more masculine color for Solon's room.  He is now successfully sleeping in his room all night. And we have him trained so well:)  He won't even get out of bed in the morning until one of us comes and gets him.  He just has to yell "Need Something!" or one of our names.

We have a LONG way to go to get Solon's room looking okay, so I will hold off on any pics of it for now.

Big Happy From Michigan

Amanda texted me earlier last week and said that she had put a package in the mail to Solon.  She said it was supposed to be part of his Christmas present, but it had been delayed due to weather.  It took just a corner of red for me to realize what was inside of the box, and I was so excited I began to cry.  Matt and Amanda (and with a little helping hand from Caelan!) had replicated our red boards.  My parents had gotten us four girls each one for Christmas so long ago I can't remember.  We used them for everything. To mark our spots in the house for our Santa toys.  To color.  To eat.  I even used to set mine up as a hurdle in the den when I was pretending to be a horse...and would run around and leap over it. 

Anyway, as soon as I got Solon's unwrapped he sat on the couch to read, and I ran upstairs and pulled mine out of the closet:)  Wonderful present yall!

Not All Soft

This was one of my mom's decanters, and I have been wanting to use it for something.  But I can't drink!  So this past Sunday Ann showed up with a bottle of  whiskey.  She and Jay were going to get down for the football games, and it gave me the perfect chance to use it.

First Purchase

Jay and I bought Cookie a Little Giraffe pink blanket this Saturday.  I bought Solon a blue one before he was born, and it at the top of his blanket-food-chain.  What is the blanket-food-chain?  He has about 5-6 blankets that he sleeps with in some fashion every night, and they are all ranked.  The rankings change except for the top one.  His Little Giraffe is always #1.

1. Little Giraffe Blue (or Black as he says) blanket
2. Light blue with textured dots (or soft one as he says)
3. Blue/orange/green plaid blanket
4. Polka-dot comforter
5. Blue one with moon and stars
6. Light blue with his name monogrammed on it

Tight Fit

I am cleaning all of Solon's old things, and he spotted his Boppy and tried to curl up on it.  I think he is getting a little nervous about not being the 'baby' anymore because he seems to be regressing:)  Last night, he wanted me to hold his sippy cup full of milk like a bottle and feed it to him.  I can sympathize.  I remember vividly lying in the play pen with Sally and asking my mom to give me a bottle too.  But mine was filled with Coke. 

Grab The Windex

Aww my little worker-man.  That is what Solon calls himself when he helps me clean or do any chores.  The reason behind this endeavor?  He spotted a big "Mater" at Wal-Mart when he was out with Nana, and he wanted it so bad.  It is pretty pricey, so I told him he needs to earn money so he can buy it himself.  I brought out a little piggy-bank and have it set up in the kitchen, and now he is continually asking me what work he can do around the house.  And each time he puts a dime in his bank..he asks me if it is enough to buy his "Mater."  So sweet. 

Art Away

So Solon and I had to go buy some more paint paper at Micheals last week, and he immediately wanted to get to work when we got back to the house.  His first piece was the big brown blob.  I walked by and asked him what he was drawing expecting to hear something like 'a spider,' but instead I was told it was my big tummy.  Way to make me feel pretty Muffin.  Couldn't you have at least picked a color besides brown?

Making Water Features

Janie got the boys a big box set of African animals.  Solon loves to play with them, but there is one problem.  We have no water for the crocodiles.  So Monday night, he and I sat down and colored up a pond, mud puddle and then some grass (with glitter).

Off To See The Fishies

What did we do on MLK day?  We hit the aquarium, and there was almost no one there.  It was great to actually enjoy and see everything without fighting a sea of people.  Solon was a little afraid to pet the stingrays, but he thought it was cool enough to watch Jay do it.  We sat at the big tank and watched the whale sharks for the longest time. And then wrapped it up with the kid slides and tunnels.

Sally and I were talking on the phone the other day and bemoaning the fact that Solon, Luke and Poppy will never know we were part of their lives because we are the ones who take all the pictures.  So we made a resolution to be in more.  Which is quite easy for Sally because she looks so fresh and so clean:)  But I am in that stage of pregnancy where you just feel like a big ball of ugly!  I can't get my hair highlighted, so it is two toned.  And then I look like I am squashed into every bit of clothing I own.  And to top it off.  Yeah.  I have a big fever blister.  But I am posting this pic of me to prove to Solon that I am around:)

Best Buds

Solon absolutely adores Jay.  He gets excited on Friday when I tell him the weekend is about to begin because he knows what that means.  Time with his Papo.  The love to run, kick balls, wrestle, play chase and in general be rough.  Here they are at Chastain Park.  Jay started this game off by running and hiding behind a tree.  Solon was a little wary at first of approaching it, but he soon figured out that it was fun.  Running in circles and trying to surprise the other person. 

Another Adventure

Sunday the sun finally came out. Yeah.  So we packed up and headed to Chastain Park to walk/bike the 2 1/2 mile track around the golf course.  Solon did pretty well with all the steep hills, but towards the end was wanting to enjoy the swings and such.  So it wasn't the fastest trip around.

Speaking Of

Making the most of being pregnant.  Solon is on the last leg of his days as the only kid in the house, so Jay and I are making sure to take him out and enjoy as many fun things as possible.  So last Friday, Solon and I had a date to the Children's Museum.  I had to park a far way from the museum, so we had to hike in some super chilly weather.  (He kept asking me if we were on a big adventure.)  It was well worth the pain because we spent three hours playing with all sorts of cool things.  My favorite was the "moon sand."  It had the craziest consistency, and it was perfect for building all sorts of big things.  Solon loved the giant train set, bulldozer and "ice cream" truck.  Afterward, he and I hit the food court at the CNN center, and he got to pick what was for lunch.  Pizza.  Perfect.  I had heartburn the rest of the day and night:)

It was a great day with my Muffin Man.

Say Sweet Tooth

Yep.  I am big as a house, but Solon and I made a blackberry cobbler the other night.  And it was divine!  Solon placed all the blackberries in nice little rows, so maybe that was the secret.  Anyway, I figured I have about 10 weeks left of being pregnant, and I should enjoy all the sweets I can.