We had such a great time in NYC this past weekend with my mom, sister, niece, aunt and cousins. Here are a few highlights from our trip:
~ Going downtown no Friday night for dinner, we wanted to take the subway. We saw a sign for an elevator to the subway and thought we'd try to find it - it took asking three people and finally a Port Authority employee taking us up and down and around to finally get there! We were an hour late to dinner and the hostess was not happy with us when we finally arrived. Luckily the food was AMAZING and I don't usually like thai food. Lesson learned: just collapse the stroller, pick the kids up, and go down the stairs. ;-)
~ Went to the very top of the Empire State Building. Jackson wasn't too interested but he had fun running around while we enjoyed the views and got his very own King Kong gorilla as a souvenier, thanks to my Auntie.
~ Got soaked walking back to the hotel from a 5 minute shopping trip. When we went in, it wasn't raining, by the time we left the one store we made it to, it was pouring all the way back to the hotel. It was probably quite a sight to see, a double stroller, with an umbrella rigged to cover both kids, being pushed by two mommies and their cousin all trying to share one umbrella. Needless to say that one umbrella didn't do much good. To top it all off, when my mom and aunt came back ten minutes later, they were bone dry!
~ Walked around Ground Zero, amazing.
~ We were so excited to see our cousins, Casey, Erin and Lauren who all live in NY for a yummy lunch on Sunday.
~ Ate well, really well, most of the trip thanks to the restaurant planning done by Tamara ahead of time. I even enjoyed Thai food!
~ Strolled around Central Park, enjoyed the playground with the kids, and took them on a carousel ride which was not so successful.
~Bought chestnuts off the street, unfortunately, they smelled better than they tasted.
~Spent a decent amount of time on the shoe floor at Saks, but walked away empty handed, tear.
~ Took the kids to FAO Schwartz where Jackson walked out with an awesome lunch box that included 4 puzzles one of which is a fire truck so you can guess how much he loves it. Thanks Auntie!
~ Jackson enjoyed the travel days full of taxi rides, moving sidewalks and trains at the airport and of course most of all the airplane! He was sitting next to the window, then me and Tamara but Nana (my mom) was sitting across the aisle which to Jackson meant she needed regular updates of what the plane was doing. He kept saying, "Nana, we're moving." and "Nana, we stopped." It was really cute, almost as cute as Jackson and Emerson holding hands on the plane. I had Emerson in my lap and looked down to see she had extended her arm over to Jackson and he was holding her hands in both of his hands, how cute is that?!?!?
It was a great trip with great company but not so great sleeping. Although I can't really blame Jackson for not sleeping well in a pack n play that he has outgrown, it would have been nice if we could have returned home well rested. We made it home safely and were very excited to see Nick at the airport!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Jacksonisms
1. The three of us were just playing around and Nick asked Jackson how old Mommy was. Jackson replied, "Too old!" Needless to say Nick and I couldn't stop laughing.
2. We are getting ready to go to New York for the weekend and Jackson keeps saying "I wanna go to New Nork."
2. We are getting ready to go to New York for the weekend and Jackson keeps saying "I wanna go to New Nork."
Friday, October 9, 2009
Friday, October 2, 2009
Jacksonisms
1. While talking with Linda last weekend, Jackson interrupted us by saying, "Stop talking Mimi. Stop talking to Mommy, talk to me!" This is apparently his new thing because he then did it to my mom and Nick too.
2. I think I already shared this but in case you couldn't bare to read my entire potty training post, here's the best part. We've been telling him now he's a big boy because he goes to the potty. He said, "Mommy goes to the potty, she's a big boy!"
3. Last week while I was packing up the car, Jackson grabbed a halloween treat bag I had set aside for Emerson that was personalized with her name. I told him that was Emerson's. He looked at it very closely, pointed to the "M" and said, "Mommy, M is for Emerson." Even though it wasn't entirely true, okay it was true at all, I was so proud and couldn't bare to tell him he was wrong.
2. I think I already shared this but in case you couldn't bare to read my entire potty training post, here's the best part. We've been telling him now he's a big boy because he goes to the potty. He said, "Mommy goes to the potty, she's a big boy!"
3. Last week while I was packing up the car, Jackson grabbed a halloween treat bag I had set aside for Emerson that was personalized with her name. I told him that was Emerson's. He looked at it very closely, pointed to the "M" and said, "Mommy, M is for Emerson." Even though it wasn't entirely true, okay it was true at all, I was so proud and couldn't bare to tell him he was wrong.
Flu Shot Success!
I took Jackson to CVS today to get his flu shot. He had seen my bandaid a couple weeks ago and has been asking for his flu shot ever since. He was so excited to go, I felt a little guilty not explaining fully that it was not something to look forward to. After waiting patiently for about half an hour, they called us back. He was naming all the different things in the office and having a great time. Then I sat him in my lap, pulled up his shorts, and in went the needle. Mommy cringing in fear and pain for my baby. Jackson said, "Can I have my sticker now?" That was it, he didn't move a muscle, shed a tear, or let out a scream. I was unbelievably impressed...and shocked of course!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Adventures in Potty Training
I'd like to start out with a warning, this post may have some ew, ew, ew, gross or gag reflex moments so read on at your own risk. We started potty training months ago one morning in June right after Jackson turned two. After 3 hours, 6 wet accidents, 1 "brown" accident, and 0 successes, we decided it was just too early. Our decision was also made easier when we realized Jackson was about to start his new school the following week and we have read that any changes may cause the child to regress or revert back to old ways. About 6 weeks later we decided to try again, he was fully adjusted to his new school and was showing lots of interest in the potty. Nick was on call and Jackson and I had no plans all day. We started immediately after breakfast by taking his diaper off and putting on big boy underwear. We had a lazy day and just hung out at home playing and trying to potty A LOT. He didn't do bad but also didn't do well enough for me to think he was ready. And apparently I'm not great at planning because this was the weekend before my trip to Atlanta, followed by a trip to HH, and another trip to Atlanta. So again I thought maybe I should wait a few more weeks. I know you're probably thinking I was just making excuses to put it off but trust me, I wasn't. I was only trying to be realistic and not get my hopes up.
So another month goes by and it's September and I have made sure to have a weekend free of any activities. Nick had to work nights all weekend which meant he would be sleeping most of the morning so it was just me and Jackson. At first I thought this would be hard alone and it wasn't easy but I realized Nick was more of a distraction than a help. Nick and Jackson's time together isn't always consistent or daily due to Nick's schedule so when they do have time to play, it's so special and Jackson gets overly excited...do you get where I'm going with this??? Both mornings went very well and then Nick woke up and Jackson got distracted and didn't want to leave his Daddy even for the 2 minutes it took to run to the potty. It's very cute and sweet but wasn't helping the cause. Monday we decided to go out for the very first time in our big boy underwear. Good news: he didn't pee in my car :) Bad news: within 5 minutes of arriving at the park and 5 seconds of me asking if he had to go, Jackson wet himself. We ran to the bathroom, cleaned up, sat on the potty to see if there was more to come and changed into dry clothes. And again he wet himself immediately :(
More good news, that was pretty much our last bad WET accident and it's almost been two weeks. He's doing great and we are so proud of him. We've learned some lessons along the way too, for example, if your child has kept a dry pull-up on a 3 hour car ride, put him on the potty immediately and definitely before you put him in underwear, yup, made that mistake on Friday.
Now for the not so good and extremely gross part. He will not poop on the potty. We don't know what to do. In the last couple of weeks he has had an almost in the potty which we gave him credit for and made a huge deal out of in hopes that he would connect the great feeling with going in the potty with no luck of course. On the bright side, he isn't holding it in. On the dark side, literally, it's so gross. The worst part (well maybe not the worst) is that he doesn't seem to mind. He just goes in his pants and then continues playing. Or goes in his pants and says "Mommy, poo poo is gross" and sticks his hand in his pants!!! Ugh, gag me. So far my list of things I dislike about being a mom is very short and pretty insignificant, changing crib sheets can be a pain, cutting nails is a challenge, but cleaning dirty underwear??? That one tops my list! I'm not sure how parents that use cloth diapers do it, I can't deal with it. It's also been tricky to get him out of the underwear and instruct him clearly enough as to which foot to pick up first so he doesn't step in his POO! I haven't been very successful at that part, he either steps in it or it gets all over his legs as I pull his pants off. Then of course, he wants mommy to pick him up. Sorry bud, this is one time mommy is going to say no :) He's been doing good at school but has had two dirty pants incidents at school and for some reason (feel free to comment and tell me why if you know) his teacher told me she is not allowed to clean his dirty pants. She can clean him, just not his undies. I'm guessing it's a sanitary reason but all it does is add to my gross factor. She sends him home with a pair of undies with dried up poop, seriously?!?!? Can you guess what I've done with those? Yup, those have gone right to the trash can...OUTSIDE!
There's a synopsis of our adventures the last couple of weeks. I'll post again when there's been a change. We are trying to be patient, understanding and motivating so as not to put too much pressure on Jackson which could cause him to hold everything in. And if you've made it to the bottom of this very long post, here's something to make you smile; I've been telling Jackson he's a big boy now, he wears big boy underwear, he uses the potty, etc. The other day, he said "Mommy goes to the potty, she's a big boy!"
So another month goes by and it's September and I have made sure to have a weekend free of any activities. Nick had to work nights all weekend which meant he would be sleeping most of the morning so it was just me and Jackson. At first I thought this would be hard alone and it wasn't easy but I realized Nick was more of a distraction than a help. Nick and Jackson's time together isn't always consistent or daily due to Nick's schedule so when they do have time to play, it's so special and Jackson gets overly excited...do you get where I'm going with this??? Both mornings went very well and then Nick woke up and Jackson got distracted and didn't want to leave his Daddy even for the 2 minutes it took to run to the potty. It's very cute and sweet but wasn't helping the cause. Monday we decided to go out for the very first time in our big boy underwear. Good news: he didn't pee in my car :) Bad news: within 5 minutes of arriving at the park and 5 seconds of me asking if he had to go, Jackson wet himself. We ran to the bathroom, cleaned up, sat on the potty to see if there was more to come and changed into dry clothes. And again he wet himself immediately :(
More good news, that was pretty much our last bad WET accident and it's almost been two weeks. He's doing great and we are so proud of him. We've learned some lessons along the way too, for example, if your child has kept a dry pull-up on a 3 hour car ride, put him on the potty immediately and definitely before you put him in underwear, yup, made that mistake on Friday.
Now for the not so good and extremely gross part. He will not poop on the potty. We don't know what to do. In the last couple of weeks he has had an almost in the potty which we gave him credit for and made a huge deal out of in hopes that he would connect the great feeling with going in the potty with no luck of course. On the bright side, he isn't holding it in. On the dark side, literally, it's so gross. The worst part (well maybe not the worst) is that he doesn't seem to mind. He just goes in his pants and then continues playing. Or goes in his pants and says "Mommy, poo poo is gross" and sticks his hand in his pants!!! Ugh, gag me. So far my list of things I dislike about being a mom is very short and pretty insignificant, changing crib sheets can be a pain, cutting nails is a challenge, but cleaning dirty underwear??? That one tops my list! I'm not sure how parents that use cloth diapers do it, I can't deal with it. It's also been tricky to get him out of the underwear and instruct him clearly enough as to which foot to pick up first so he doesn't step in his POO! I haven't been very successful at that part, he either steps in it or it gets all over his legs as I pull his pants off. Then of course, he wants mommy to pick him up. Sorry bud, this is one time mommy is going to say no :) He's been doing good at school but has had two dirty pants incidents at school and for some reason (feel free to comment and tell me why if you know) his teacher told me she is not allowed to clean his dirty pants. She can clean him, just not his undies. I'm guessing it's a sanitary reason but all it does is add to my gross factor. She sends him home with a pair of undies with dried up poop, seriously?!?!? Can you guess what I've done with those? Yup, those have gone right to the trash can...OUTSIDE!
There's a synopsis of our adventures the last couple of weeks. I'll post again when there's been a change. We are trying to be patient, understanding and motivating so as not to put too much pressure on Jackson which could cause him to hold everything in. And if you've made it to the bottom of this very long post, here's something to make you smile; I've been telling Jackson he's a big boy now, he wears big boy underwear, he uses the potty, etc. The other day, he said "Mommy goes to the potty, she's a big boy!"
Monday, September 14, 2009
Jacksonisms
We have been enjoying Jackson's talkative stage very much lately. The phrases or questions that come out of his mouth are quite entertaining. I've heard many moms say you think you won't forget but eventually you will so I thought I'd post some of his latest random outbursts...please feel free to comment if you remember some too!
1. One day after we arrived at Nana and Jiddu's house, he started running around looking for his toys screaming "Where are my balls, where are my balls?"
2. The way he says fork...you can use your imagination here and guess why it's so funny.
3. He asks me to cuddle with him which means laying on the couch on top of me with his head resting on my shoulder. And then I start to rub his back and he sits up and screams, "No Mommy, DON'T TOUCH ME!"
4. Thanks to Nick, whenever the AC turns on, Jackson grabs his ear and says, "What's that? A mouse! A mouse is coming!"
5. When we drive to or past Palmetto Health Hospital, he points and says, "Daddy's house."
6. This one kind of goes with #5. Last night, Nick came home and Jackson said, "Daddy come home to Mommy's house." So we're guessing he thinks I live here because I work here and Nick lives at the hospital because he works (and sleeps) there :( The funny part is during dinner Nick tried to bribe Jackson with food and told him to say "Daddy's house" and Jackson took the food, ate it, and then said "Mommy's house," ha ha ha.
7. Jackson woke up one morning and started talking in his crib like he normally does so I got up and as I was walking to his room I heard him yelling, "NICK! NICK! Where are you?"
8. I don't remember exactly how old Jackson was but sometime approximately 6 months ago, if you asked him his name, he would say, "You!" Or if you pointed to a picture of Jackson and asked what that was, he would enthusiastically reply, "You!"
1. One day after we arrived at Nana and Jiddu's house, he started running around looking for his toys screaming "Where are my balls, where are my balls?"
2. The way he says fork...you can use your imagination here and guess why it's so funny.
3. He asks me to cuddle with him which means laying on the couch on top of me with his head resting on my shoulder. And then I start to rub his back and he sits up and screams, "No Mommy, DON'T TOUCH ME!"
4. Thanks to Nick, whenever the AC turns on, Jackson grabs his ear and says, "What's that? A mouse! A mouse is coming!"
5. When we drive to or past Palmetto Health Hospital, he points and says, "Daddy's house."
6. This one kind of goes with #5. Last night, Nick came home and Jackson said, "Daddy come home to Mommy's house." So we're guessing he thinks I live here because I work here and Nick lives at the hospital because he works (and sleeps) there :( The funny part is during dinner Nick tried to bribe Jackson with food and told him to say "Daddy's house" and Jackson took the food, ate it, and then said "Mommy's house," ha ha ha.
7. Jackson woke up one morning and started talking in his crib like he normally does so I got up and as I was walking to his room I heard him yelling, "NICK! NICK! Where are you?"
8. I don't remember exactly how old Jackson was but sometime approximately 6 months ago, if you asked him his name, he would say, "You!" Or if you pointed to a picture of Jackson and asked what that was, he would enthusiastically reply, "You!"
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