This was not a good weekend for me to be a lazy parent.  

One of Jack's best buddies thoughtfully brought him a science experiment kit this weekend.

He asked me no less than twenty times if we could do the experiment.  He would not be dissuaded.  He was so insistent that I had to play a little negotiation hardball.  (Who knew that law school would come in so handy with a four year old?)

Jack:   Mom!  I want to do my experiment!!
Me:    We can do it in a little while.
Jack:   Mom, how many minutes?
Me:     A few.
Jack:   Mom.  Name how many minutes.
Me:    Forty.
Jack:  THAT'S TOO MANY!
Me:    A hundred.  And if you keep asking, it will go up.
Jack:  [sullen silence]

After that exchange, I actually got him to wait until after nap.  However, in hindsight, this was a Pyrrhic victory because it wasn't after a nap FOR ME.  

It was fun, though.  He was super into it.  When you consider this and the fact that he loves to watch Nova with Durel, I think we may have a budding science guy on our hands.

Maybe Sawyer will be a poet.

Hope you see the potential in people today.

Talk soon,
Heather

what we've been up to

I got a text from one of my besties the other day, requesting that I send her some new pictures of Jack.  In that way that only besties can, she told me frankly that I'd been far too quiet on the blog for her liking.

a) Besties are awesome.  b) I totally did flake out for a while.  Sorry!  c)  Work has been kicking my ass lately.  But I've been kicking back, so it's fine.

Anyway, Jack's New Big Thing is building tents.  

There was some cardboard, you see.

And then there was a great idea.  

Add some tools, some creative juices, and BAM!  A tent like you've never seen graced our dining room.

It was a cozy place to share stories from our respective busy days as LawDog and Dolphin.

We were both quite tickled with it, as you can see.

So, you know.  Tents rule.

Hope you've been building fun things lately, too.

Talk soon,
Heather

Sick Days

Earlier this week, Jack and I shared a sick day.  He didn't feel good.  I didn't feel good.  We stayed home together.

For those of you without children, please HEED MY WORDS.  

Enjoy your sick days.  Enjoy them to the fullest.

I know that sounds like an oxymoron.  (Duh, if I'm sick, I'm not enjoying it.)  But you know what?  You are and you just don't know it.  Because when you are childless and home sick, you do things like sleep when you want, eat what you want, watch what you want, and lay comatose on the couch as long as you want.

You know what happens when you are home sick with a toddler?  You make breakfast, snacks, and lunches.  You get sippy cups with various beverages on demand.  You watch more Nick Junior than you would like on even a *well* day.  You get up to do things like change diapers, prepare meals (see above) and ensure that your child does not injure themselves, even a little.

Which led me to think that, in fact, it was Jack who was taking care of me the other day.  Because he drove the agenda for our day with a relentless pace.

First, we drew.

Yes, that is the blanket I was *trying* to be sick under.
It may or may not be a Wonder Woman blanket.

Then we drew some more, though we were just about to be distracted by Yo Gabba Gabba.  I was also distracted by that adorably chubby hand.

Also, please note that he's left-handed, LIKE HIS MOMMA.

Then we put all of his favorite things into the box.

Everybody, get in the box.  Dee Dah, you're in charge of what happens in the box.

Then, we took his favorite things out of the box.

That's enough of that, team.  Everybody, get out of the box.

You will note that our living room looked more and more like a toy store exploded in it as the day wore on.  This is a testament to my (futile but consistent) attempts to *relax* and not clean up in cycles, as I do on normal days, like weekends or whatever.  In truth, it probably took as much mental energy to stop myself from organizing and straightening as it did at the end of the day to clean up all the toys (with Jack's help, of course).  Whatever.  I tried.

We also counted to ten in English and Spanish.  We napped (twice).  We ate (me, a little; him, a lot).  We drank water and juice.  And as soon as Durel came home, I passed the parenting baton and promptly excused myself to go crash into the uninterrupted sleep that had eluded me all day.

And...you know you're a mom when even the day I've just described was actually fun, because you got to spend it with your Little Dude.

Here's hoping you contradict yourself (in a good way), this weekend.

Heather

Thanksgiving by the Numbers

Turkeys I cooked this year for Thanksgiving:  0

Turkeys I purchased from Central Market to reheat and serve:  1

Ranking of the quality of that turkey, on a scale of 1 to 10:  10

Number of pictures I took this Thanksgiving:  0

Number of pies I baked this Thanksgiving:  5 (4 pumpkin; 1 cherry)

Number of large pieces of pumpkin pie Jack ate in one sitting:  2

Number of pieces he would have eaten if we hadn't cut him off:  Unknown

Number of guests we had for Thanksgiving:  5  (Grammy, Pop, Cristy, Dagwood, and Schatzi, their adorable dog)

Number of nicknames we considered for Cristy:  1.  She is now known to Jack as "Kiki."

Number of nicknames we considered for Dagwood:  0.  Jack has, practically enough, simply shortened his name to "Dag."

Number of books read to Jack by Dag and Pop this weekend:  Unknown.

Photo by Dag.  Because I didn't take any, remember?

Hope your Thanksgiving numbers are off the charts, too.

Heather

Sit

Jack heard that this was a cool place to have a seat.  So, he opened the cabinet, removed the bag of kitchen sponges, took a seat, and obligingly posed for this photo.

Because it's cool to hang out in the kitchen.  And everyone needs to sit down sometimes.

Here's to copping a squat,

Heather

Flashback: Back Porch Time

Durel bought Jack the cutest chair, ever.  We enjoyed it a little bit before the Arctic Texas Winter began.  Little Dude was a bit unstable in it, but it caused him to lean and look endearingly at the camera, as witnessed above.

Given his new propensity to ride around in his sidewalk car, I have a feeling that the chair will be getting some quality hanging out time when spring arrives (which will be soon).

Here's to grilling and chilling,
Heather

Stay Goofy, People

Don't babies have a wonderful way of reminding you to laugh?  Jack does.  And I love it.

Hope this finds you laughing.
Heather

Jack in a...well, you get it.

Needs no explanation, does it?  Good times were had by all.

I know these are a smidge blurry, but he moves so stinking fast!

I was just warming you up for the total framer of the bunch.

Aw, yeah.  In a box, baby.

Hope this finds you well,

Heather