Boo at the Zoo

We took a trip to the zoo on Sunday. Boo at the zoo is so fun for Aidan. He was a duck. By his request. For the last year he's been asking to be a duck. No idea why.


Not only were there other kids in costumes. "Look Mom a robot. Look a zebra" There were animals to pet. Like the 'lizard' above.

I am so proud of his duck costume. 2 bath towels and a hand towel. I especially like the duck tail (OOoo)




Aidan likes that his crocs are orange like duck "foots"

first bath and a firefighter

Asher loves his swing. He sleeps in it and watches Aidan run around the house. Aidan is his favorite thing to look at. Whenever Aidan talks Asher turns his head to try and find him. This thrills Aidan to no end. "He found me!"




Aidan and I gave Asher his first bath the other night. Aidan was so 'helpful' he loved dumping water on Asher. Asher was fine until the water cooled down a little. And he is sooo cute when his hair sticks up all over the place.
Aidan has been thrilled with his new (read I just realized I have this) fire hat, boots and rain coat. (Thanks for the Hat Georgia) He has been rescuing people on his bike all week.Jumping is also imperative when wearing fireman boots. Some days those boots are the only things he puts on. (I am sure you understand why I have no pictures) It's like he's practicing for one of those Firefighter calendars.....

Welcome baby Asher

We are so proud to announce the arrival of baby Asher Gideon! 9 # 2oz. and 21 inches long!
He is doing great and eating a ton already. Below are some pictures of Asher and his company in the hospital. We can't wait for him to meet everyone.He has quite a personality already:

• He hates poopy diaper changes
• Doesn't like his hands swaddled
• Loves to sleep on mom's tummy
• Is very alert when he is awake.

• Squeaks a lot.

Aidan's world

I had forgotten the imaginations that little boys have. Aidan continually reminds me of a little guy in a cape I used to know... He has such an active imagination. We went down to the river and he "fished" for a long time. He kept telling me what the fish looked like and how big it was.
Later I asked him to tell someone what we say at the river. The conversation went something like this:

Mommy: What did we see at the River?
Aidan: Amnimals
Mommy: What kind of animals did you see?
Aidan: (thinks a bit) Lions!

HA! I guess in his little head they were there.

Yesterday we went to Whole Foods where Aidan ate "Lepard" meat balls... His first choice was horse. (sigh) I suppose I should be thrilled that he is not a picky eater....

Today he decided that he wanted "Waterlemon" for lunch. I think my favorite part of having a two year old is the words he says. He wanted a "big waterlemon" and ate 4 pieces. The best part is the way he enuncates all his words, so it comes out "Wa Ter Lem on" too cute.

Play days

Aidan is almost 2- and we can tell.

He helps me unload the dishwasher, fold laundry, and sweep.
We made a tent- he loves it.

Snow, snow, snew (with apologies to Neil Diamond)

Snow, snow, snew
Aidan really loves it.
Snow snow, snew
we've really got tons of it.

Ok now that's out of my system. Aidan slept in until 8 today--woowho!
We took advantage of the tropical heat wave and went outside. The snow was finally wet enough to build things. We made a snow man, and snow fort and a slide. (The slide was Aidan's idea.) We also discovered that snow is good eats and if you walk with your tongue out it helps. Yea Snow!

Cribs, food, and stuff

We have had an eventful few days. Aidan has some new favorite tricks.
He screams. Loud. I am sure this is just a phase and will pass as soon as he learns to talk. Already his screams are followed by words. As in, "Aiiiiiiii, Joo" or "Aiiiiiii, Cheese" I wish I could get him to skip the hollering. Any ideas?

Aidan also climbed out of his crib yesterday. I didn't hear a thump or crying, and I really was listening, just the door handle rattling. I opened the door and out popped a very-pleased-with-himself dude. He did not climb out at all today, maybe was a fluke... (I hope)

Peek-a-boo, Hide-and-seek, and reading are his favorite games right now. He gets a book sits on the couch and says, "Aiiiii Ree".

Oh, and cheese, blueberries, and breakfast are the only things he is interested in eating. So we eat a big healthy breakfast. he can feed himself mostly now. (Hooray)
I think he is teething again- His little nose is starting to run and his gums are sore. The big boy brushes his own teeth now- Moringing and night. But today he refused to brush the top half. Poor little dude.

I realized the other day I havn't taken any pictures sicen Christmas--sorry. i'll get right on that... right after i read Go, Dog, Go....Hand Hand Fingers Thumb.... and The Mitten..6 times. (he thinks I am a reading machine--stop laughing mom)

Cute things Aidan does

Aidan changes and grows so fast I am amazed. He has reached the 'pretending' stage. I thought he was cute when he played with his spoon like it was a car (vrooms and all) this morning at breakfast. (he also demands that he feed himself in conjunction with me)
However, I was not expecting the level of super cuteness attained when he picked up his baby doll, 'counted' it toes, and gave it a ride on his tonka truck. No joke, he sat on his truck leaned over and picked baby up off the ground, sat it in front of him, turned the key and 'broom broomed' around the living room- very carefully i might add. As if that weren't adorable enough after the scenic tour he brought baby over to me for some group hugs and cuddling.

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend this year. Everyone came to our house, the turkey was great, Aidan had a blast, and we found a great tree for the G's. We loved meeting Allie and seeing Amanda again.

This slideshow is a little long... enjoy

New word

New word today. Well new sounds that mean something to Aidan.
We had a thunderstorm tonight after dinner. Aidan blew out the lightning... yup he defiantly has a problem...
Then he ran around screaming MUM MUM! and pumping his arms to the thundering... MADE His night!

What a funny kid...

Matthew Curtis

Congratualtions Craig and Shantelle on the birth of Matthew Curtis! We are so happy for you and can't wait to meet the little guy.

Great Aunt Terri says Matthew is 8 lbs. 5oz. and had curly dark hair. I "stole" this picture from Stacey's website.

Boy Stuff

Aidan's obsession with all things boy continues.

On Sunday the Clutter's where here and Ben got some help for our leaky dishwasher. Aidan was enthralled. Grampy was super patient and let Aidan "help" with the screwdriver. When he decided to help with the basketball (boball) however, we knew it was time for bed.

Aidan now thinks he is in charge of all things dishwasher. He had figured out how to turn the cycle knob... not sure how I'm going to handle that. Any ideas??? Why don't they make dishwashers with parent lock features. My microwave has a lock button, like he's going to scale the range to get it.....

This weekend the G's came to see us and help us finish our cabinets and counter top. It is wonderful!!!

Then we went to the Pumpkin fest and had a great time looking at pumpkins, carving pumpkins, and running through the corn maze.

Teething update: His lower first molars are all the way through his gums (finally) he is now working on his upper first molars and his lower lateral incisors (they're mostly through)

Why we love fall

Much like Shawna, we also love fall. There is nothing quite like an October blue sky. (See slide show) We had such fun yesterday playing outside until lunch and then doing laundry after our nap. (yes, our nap) Aidan is a hoot. I have no idea where he got his sense of humor.....

Today we went to the park where dad works. We played on the playground AND they were working on the landscaping with a backhoe!!!!!! Why do boys love machines? Is it genetic? How do you fit all that "boy stuff" on that little tiny Y chromosome? Everything with wheels is a car to him. He saw a wheel chair today and said, "vrooom". Even things without wheels go "vroom," like his Nemo squirt toy and his frog sponge. When I ask him if he wants to go for a ride in the car he pretends to turn a steering wheel.

On the teething front- His bottom bilaterals are finally coming in! It takes me awhile to figure these things out because the only time he takes his fingers out of his mouth is when hes eating, or has socks on his hands...

A Visit to Farm Park

On Sunday Ben took Aidan to Farm Park with his parents. I had to work. They had a great time. Ben said he was worried about the bigger kids "tramping" Aidan, but Aidan just "tramped" them right back.... Not sure if this is a good or bad thing.
Aidan loves being outside so we have been loving this fall sunshine. He also loves both his naps so we have not been outside as much as I would like.

Funny Stories

Sorry no pictures but I had to tell you all about the cute little boy I have.
Sunday we went to the Grape Jamboree with Grammy Clutter. Aidan saw his first parade. He loved the fire trucks ("car") and the classic cars. He danced with the Bands and Drum Corps and waved at the twirlers. Grammy (who spoils him alot) got him a balloon. It's huge... lots of fun to fit in my trunk.

When we got home Aidan fell in love with his "boon" (Yep, I have no idea why he picked up that word but won't say Mama) He played with it all afternoon. We tied a John Deere Tractor card to the string. Now he can get the Balloon for himself. He looks at the balloon and says "Boon", then looks at the tractor and says "Car"... sigh.
After dinner and a lively game of chase-peek-a-boo (best game ever) I told him he needed to go to bed soon. The little cutie popped off the couch and ran into the bedroom. I followed him and he held his arms up to be put to sleep. (I have decided that this is normal and all my babies will do this- so no need to post and tell me they won't :)

This morning after he was done talking to his bears (that's how he wakes up- no crying) I went in to get him. He looked at me and said, "up, boon" he was so excited to play with his balloon he didn't nurse. I'm not sure if I'm ready for that.
He is having "quiet alone time" now as I type. I think he wants to give up his morning nap but still needs crib time. What a cute little bug.

Labor Day weekend

Fun so far... we can't wait to go to the lake tomorrow. Aidan had fun with both families this weekend... and my counter and cabinets are wondrous. We got cabinets from Hammer and Nails and tile for the counter from the Restore. Anyone who is thinking about tiling anything in their house should definitely go look at the stuff they have there. We got such a wonderful deal. So good in fact we are trying to think of other things to put ceramic tile on.....

baby rearing questions

Do babies get tired when they grow? Aidan has been sleeping through the night- 12 hours- and up to 5 hours between his two naps. I think that's alot.... He runs around like a freak when he's awake and eats well so my only guess is growth spurt. We are enjoying the long naps and internap silliness. The slide show pics were all taken on the same day. After a nap.. and before bed. guess which are which.

A visit from Uncle Ben

Yea!!! Uncle Ben came up to visit. He played with Aidan and did my dishes. We went to the zoo and the beach. Aidan had a blast with his uncle. He is perfecting his raspberry blowing and has discovered a new appreciation for watches with buttons.

Of course he loved the beach. He is obsessed with rocks, sticks, and birds. Plenty of all three at the beach.