Close....But Still Not Quite Right

As I set Matthew's dinner plate in front of him....
Matthew says "Thank you, sir." (Matthew calls me sir ALL the time, but I don't often correct him because is so young and he is still being polite)
Erik: "Mama is a girl, so you say thank you, ma'am."
Matthew: "Oh ok, Daddy."
I deliever a cup to the table.
Matthew shoots a quick glance toward Erik and then looks at me and says with pride and confidence: "Thank you, man."

What Can You Buy With 2 Used Pacifiers?

Apparently a pacifier's worth increases with age and use. I am pretty sure I didn't pay more than $5 for a pack of 2 pacifiers brand new, but this weekend those same pacifiers bought Matthew a big boy bike. Yes, that's right, you heard it here first, used pacifiers are not just germy baby soothers anymore. ****(Please read the post in it's entirety before taking out your life savings to purchase pacifiers)*** Since pacifiers are not (yet and probably never will be unless toddlers some day rule the country) recognized as acceptable American currency we had to use some cash as well. Matthew paid his part in pacifiers and Daddy and Mama paid for the rest. Matthew was very brave and did not shed a tear during the transaction.

He is ready to ride.

He has the mount and dismount down, but we are definitely still working on the pedaling.

Matthew and the bike have spent more time like this than with him actually riding. He likes pushing it around. We know he is a little bit young for a bike but it was something that he is really interested in, which worked well as an incentive for saying adios to the pacifier, and he was nearly too big for a tricycle. So we will keep practicing (we'll get lots of practice especially once it cools down and isn't a million degrees outside).

When Matthew turned one year old we locked up the pacifiers in the crib and threw away the key (metaphorically speaking, of course) so he only had them for sleep (and other rare occassions, like long trips).

So he really only noticed his pacifiers were gone before sleep times and the first day and night his bike was by his side for the tough times, nap time and bedtime. The first night was pretty rough, he woke up quite a bit, but never asked for the pacifiers....he just cried for anything and everything else ("Mama, I want watch cartoons. Mama, I want my car. I need hug. Mama, I want to touch my bike.). But the last 2 nights have been virtually fuss-free. It really has been alot easier than I thought it would be.

I hope I can say that same thing once Matthew is completely potty trained, but I know I won't!

What's this?

Last week when our 2 year old inquirer was bathing we were talking about body parts. First up, the chin. Then the young boy asks "Who's this guy?"(everything is a who, he never asks what, which is funny but a little embarassing at the grocery store when he appears to be looking at another shopper, but is really refering to the chips behind him, I try to answer quickly but you can tell the previously mentioned shopper is already looking a little nervous like we are talking about him and not the cheddar flavored rice cakes behind him), with his hand on his neck, he wasn't just interested in what the part was called but also it's function. So I told him it was his neck and it held his head up. He liked that answer and thought it a little funny. Then he puts both his hands on his cheeks (not the ones on his face, by the way, the ones further south) and asks...........

"Who's these guys?"

I say "That is your bottom."

He removes one hand from one butt cheek and says "Well who's this one?"

I say"That is your bottom too."

So in my mind I am already thinking about how I am going to respond to what his bottom's function is since I know that will be his next question. I was wrong.

The boy turns around, holds on to the bar in the bathtub, starts shaking that newly discovered bottom and says "My bottom helps me dance, see Mama. It helps me dance to (the) beat."

That is definitely not the function I was thinking of.

Mirror, Mirror On the Wall Who's the Handsomest Stud of All.......

....today Matthew would definitely answer that he is, of course (which wins him the vain toddler award as well). He got his hair cut yesterday. I tried to cut the back yesterday morning. I thought it looked awful and I was too scared to continue so Erik the brave, finished it last night. We strapped Matthew into his chair at the table and fed him ice cream and let him spray us (and everything else in the kitchen) with the water bottle. When he would get fussy I would distract him with the water bottle, ice cream, or tell him how handsome he was going to be when his hair was all cut. Normally, being handsome is not really a priority for Matthew, so I didn't imagine he would remember what I had said. It has not even been 24 hours since the hair cut and Matthew has said 8 times already, "I be right back, I gonna go see in the window (mirror)." He runs into our room to the mirrored closet doors, looks and says "I so handsome".

He just caught a glimpse of himself in this picture and said it again....I think we may need some sort of vanity intervention!

Why I Will Now Think Twice Before Taking A Bathroom Break

Hmm...I wonder how much finger paint I would have to buy to cover the whole wall? I really don't like that wallpaper anyway. Don't worry, even though I would LOVE another reason (besides my reason of just severe dislike) to replace this wallpaper, it was washable paint and is now restored to it's original color.

The Older Woman

Yesterday at church, when Erik and I went to pick Matthew up from his classroom we heard a funny story about our little lover boy. Normally there is a husband and wife team that teach (as much as you can teach 2 yr olds anyway) in his class. The husband was not there so it was just the wife and then their daughter came in a little later to help out. So when this tall, blond, beautiful teenage girl walks in my (scratch that) Erik's son takes one look at her and walks over and says "Oh, I need a kiss". She let him kiss her on the cheek, apparently it was love at first sight. I would normally be completely against him being interested in a girl nearly 10 times his age, but she is real cute, nice and a church-going gal so I guess I can't complain.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

As much as I would like to tell you this was Matthew's attempt to put his sandals on by himself, I cannot lie, I must admit I did this. Not only did I just put them on the wrong feet I almost left the house like this! We were about to walk out the door when I realized Matthew had put my phone on the floor. When I bent down to pick up the phone I noticed my mistake. Poor kid, I am really glad I caught it before heading out, to avoid all the laughing and pointing I could have endured at Walmart while pushing around my wrong-shoed toddler.

He May be Too Small to Ride One, But You Are Never Too Small to Use One

Erik, Matthew and I were having a snack in the living room the other night. We all had drinks, Erik and I had ours on coasters. We were talking and Matthew lifted his cup up to take a drink and he notices that he is the only one not using a coaster. Before he can even take a sip he nervously says "Oh, I need roller coaster for my drink".

My Diaper Buying Addiction

What's with all the diapers?

Did I win the lottery and spend all my winnings on diapers?
Am I planning to adopt another toddler?
Am I fearing a natural disaster and preparing for weeks of never leaving home?
Am I looking for a way to ensure my toddler will be potty trained by nightfall?

Well the answer is no to all of those (except the last one would be alright, but that wasn't my original plan). The answer of course is that these diapers were on clearance! Clearanced diapers are not common (it is something mothers only dream of). Diapers are often on sale for a week or you can have a coupon for them, but they are rarely clearanced. I don't know if Pampers is coming out with something new or my store just had too many. I don't know the reason, and I guess I don't really care! I normally buy the cheap diapers, but these were such a good price they were even 7 cents cheaper per diaper than the cheap diapers!!!

I found the clearance last Tuesday and bought one box. Then I found a coupon for a dollar off on top of that and went back Monday to buy one more box. Then yesterday I thought, well maybe I will just check and see if they have any more (since I only had 152 diapers at home). There were 4 boxes left, all the size I needed, I felt that was definitely a sign from above and bought 2 more boxes. I just could not help myself! I love a good deal and getting that one clearanced box last week made me smile for days, so I will be smiling for weeks now with 4 boxes (that's 328 diapers)!

I keep thinking about the 2 boxes I left behind, but I am going to try to stay out of Target for the remainder of the week. Yeah, I think steering clear of that store is in my best interest, considering my recent addiction and the store's ability to feed that addiction.




........ Besides, if those 2 boxes are still there next week, they are bound to get marked down even more.

The Bag

This is the bag that I carry everywhere. I like to think that it is my bag. I mean I carry it and it is purse-like, but Matthew always says when we are out "Something from my bag please?". I didn't really give it too much thought until Friday night. Erik and I were going out for our anniversary (5 yrs., can you believe it?). I very rarely go anywhere without Matthew, so I took a look inside my bag and thought I could definitely leave a few toddler related items at home. This is what I found during the inventory........

3 matchbox cars, 2 cell phones (one real, one that only calls Disney's Lightning McQueen), wallet, diaper and wipes, gum, a book about trucks, Spiderman magnadoodle thing, coupons, shark shades, 2 packs of fruit snacks, 1 pack granola bites, Yogos, crayons, handy dandy notebook, keys, raisins, 2 suckers and plenty of sucker wrappers.

I took out all of Matthew's things and this is what I ended up with....

If ownership of the bag depends on the number of items that are actually yours inside I have definitely lost (Matthew-18 items, me-4 items). I guess Matthew was right, the bag is his and it makes sense that he has more stuff because I am not the one who gets cranky and needs a distraction while running errands and I am potty trained, afterall.