Merry Christmas!!!!!

Not much to say other than we've had a wonderful Christmas and Evan is WORN OUT!!!

Here is a photo slideshow from the day... Please click on it to make the photos larger and to control the speed.

Merry Christmas!

Lazy headbanger...

Title says it all...Evan insisted that Daddy get his guitar out. Then he proceeded to sit down to rock out. I thought I raised him better than that. :) Here's video anyhoo...


Lazy headbanger... from Rena on Vimeo.

"I'm gonna build a waccoon!!!"

No one prepared me for how seriously funny kids are. Evan has reached the point where his inherent weirdness is a source of consistent hilarity.



Today he got his blocks out because he was "gonna build a waccoon." Waccoon, of course, meaning "raccoon." Why, on earth, would anyone decide to build a raccoon out of blocks? He was insistent, though. And of course I took pictures of the block "raccoon."


He was so proud. And so were we.

Jesus, Mary, Joseph...and all the crew!

Despite my gentle but firm requests to "leave Baby Jesus alone," I came in last night to find this:


Needless to say, I may not be artistic but I did take greater care than this to arrange the Nativity Scene. Apparently Evan took the liberty of redecorating while I was in at the computer frantically searching for airfare to Missouri.

For some reason, spying the updated look of Bethlehem made me laugh hysterically. Was it holiday stress? My perpetual "laugh or cry" mentality? Or just the fact that this new configuration resembled something strangely akin to a college fraternity party, with way too many co-eds crammed into the stable... Perhaps we'll never know.

All I know is that one of my major sources of the Christmas spirit this year is about three feet tall with beautiful blue eyes, blond hair, and the ability to melt my heart when he says, "I lub you, Mama..."

Grandpa Tim comes to town...

These photos are actually almost (gasp) a month old. Tim came through town in mid-November...and Evan thought it was great fun to have Grandpa Tim come to play. Here are a few pics of them horsing around...

Chef Evan Boyardee...

Excuse the flurry of posts...but I'm trying to get caught up!

Evan has been obsessed with "helping" lately...a skill that is, of course, developmentally on target (yay!) and, in many cases--well--helpful! So I'm trying to indoctrinate the boy into the fine art of cooking. Because my people...well...we don't starve. :)


Here are a couple of photos from his most recent pizza-making effort. He LOVED making the crust and spreading the sauce. He ate most of the mushrooms before they made it onto the pizza...but that's just how it works, sometimes. Please also note that he INSISTS on having a towel over one shoulder (like Daddy) before he can cook...

I love having him cook with me. He's so proud of himself: "Mama...I COOKIN'!" I can't wait to make many more things with my little sous chef...

Future musician? Or just our "Guitar Hero?"

Bryan rented "Guitar Hero--World Tour" last weekend. And so, like the most excellent parents we are, we started jamming. Hey...the little guy enjoyed it too!

Here's a photo slideshow. Please ignore the heinously ugly recliner in the background. It will be replaced someday...I swear!!! As always, click on the slideshow to make the photos larger and to control the speed...

November then and now--Thanksgiving style...

November 2006

November 2007


November 2008

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!!!

Why Evan is not round like Mommy...

Mommy: "Evan...here's the tasty 'Kitchen Fresh' chicken that Mommy picked up from KFC on the way home for dinner. See...there's a biscuit, mashed potatoes and gravy, and fried chicken."

Evan: "Mommy...want some vegetables."

Mommy: "What?"

Evan: "I want some vegetables, Mommy."

Mommy: "Ummmm...okay...what kind of vegetables."

Evan: (thinks for a moment) "Yellow ones."

Mommy: (rummages around in freezer) "How about some green beans?"

Evan: "Yes. Green beans, please."

Mommy: (pops green beans into the microwave)

Evan: "Vegetables...green beans...please, Mommy."

Mommy: "I'm getting them, son. They have to heat up."

Evan: "VEGETABLES PLEASE MOMMY!!!!!"

Mommy: (blowing on the now blistering hot green beans) "Here you go, son."

Evan: "Careful...they hot, Mommy. Mmmmm...green beans. Mmmmm...vegetables. Tank you, Mommy."

Mommy: (gnawing through fried chicken flesh) "You're welcome, sweetheart."

You just can't make this stuff up.

October then and now...

Here's the "then and now" for October...Halloween style (forgive this year's picture...our subject was consistently in motion...)

October 2006--Yoda...

October 2007--the bat...

October 2008--Tony Romo...

Evan's first jack-o-lantern...

Although Evan wanted NO PART of the pumpkin guts...he nevertheless enjoyed it when Daddy carved his first jack-o-lantern for him while Mommy took commemorative photos. He enjoyed it, that is, until Daddy made the pumpkin "boo" at him. Once he realized the pumpkin would not attack, Evan enjoyed the experience again.

Here's the slideshow. Click on it to see larger pics and to control the speed...

So peaceful...

These shots are rare nowadays...since I'm usually awakened each morning by cries of, "Moooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmyyyyyy...wheah aw youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu?"

Aren't they precious when they're sleeping? :)

Your whole worldview changes when your dad drives trains...

Quote of the day...

Mommy and Daddy: "Evan...what are you doing?" (spoken to Evan as he's running around in circles in the living room)

Evan: "I'm wunning awound turning on my legs!"

:) :) :)

Pictures are forthcoming. A whole bunch of them. Train table, pumpkin carving, Halloween "costume"...cute sleeping pic...you name it.

Mommy's just lazy and tired right now. But stayed tuned. They'll be posted before he's a teenager, I swear. After all, I need the camera memory space. :) :) :)

And I just thought these pictures were cute...

E-V-A-N...Evan...

Something occurred to me after I posted about Evan's supercool mittens last night: I forgot to acknowledge some OTHER cool things that my friends have made! There's the fantastic thank you card that Mary made. There's the awesome tutu that Shannon made for Hannah's party favor at Evan's birthday. There are the cool shirts that Sofia made...and most recently, the fantastic letters made by Brandi. Have I got some talented friends or what!?!?!?!?!?!

Here are some pics of Evan with his letters. He HAS to read them every night before he goes to bed: "E-V-A-N...EVAN! Spells Evan, Mommy!" He usually yells this. He often has to do this during the day as well. And before nap. And just because.

The boy loves him some letters!

Mittens!

Check out the awesome mittens that my friend MaryJane (MJ) knit for Evan! Okay...so the fact that he is shirtless while wearing the mittens may be a bit distracting...but bear in mind that we had spaghetti for dinner, so the shirt was stripped off before the carnage.


Isn't MJ talented? You can check out her coolness here... Seriously...I want this woman to adopt me. She's amazing. :) :) :)


Thanks, MJ! And thank you, Evan, for being such a fantastic hand model...

Out of our gourds...

Today Evan, Daddy, and I met Ivette and Hannah at the Pumpkin farm. We had a GREAT time...despite a few meltdowns over who got to control the wagon (between Evan and Daddy...NOT Evan and Hannah). Those two-year olds are certainly opinionated!

In retrospect, given that it is Texas-OU weekend, we probably shouldn't have dressed him in orange. Oh well. Live and continue to learn.

Also...while taking our somewhat circuitous route to said Pumpkin farm...we learned that Evan has customized his own song. Instead of "pattycake"...we now have "Spiderman." It goes a little something like this:

Spiderman, spiderman,
Baker's man.
Bake me a cake
As fast as you can.
Roooooooooooooollll it up...
Roooooooooooooollll it up...
Frow it in the pan!

You go, Spiderman.

After a tasty lunch at Bone Daddy's (a BBQ joint with killer food but questionable waitress attire), Evan is napping and Mommy and Daddy are prepping for a Husker miracle. SURE we can beat Tech! You just gotta believe! :) :) :)

Here are a RIDICULOUS number of pictures from the Pumpkin patch. Photos of carving to come later...when we actually get the pumpkins carved...

Ol' Blue Eyes...

So tomorrow is Evan's last day at the Montessori. I haven't really blogged about the whole strange situation because it's been...well...strange. Having already been through the "death" of one daycare...I've come to recognize the signs of another one in trouble. Losing 8 teachers in a month does NOT bode well for the future of the institution.

Evan is handling the change fairly well...despite the fact that he has lost all his favorite teachers. What strikes me as funny is that the current "teachers" seem completely clueless as to why the children might be a little "off." Let's see...teachers (and students) keep disappearing left and right, their whole world is different, and they don't know what to expect. Seems like the children should be proceeding entirely as normal...don't you think?

Here are some transcripts of today's conversations:

Teacher 1: Does Evan know he's changing schools?

Me: Umm...we've talked about it a little bit...he knows he's starting a new school. (scratches head)

Teacher 1: Well he's been very sensitive the past week or two.

Me: Ummm...could it be because {insert lead teacher's name here} is leaving? He's pretty intuitive.

Teacher 1: Oh yeah. That makes sense. He's spent a lot of time on her lap and next to her recently.

Brilliant. It's that sort of insight that makes for successful classroom interaction.

Here's another one...

Teacher 2: Evan has seemed restless and upset today. He wouldn't nap. And he keeps mentioning visiting someone named Jacob. Are you visiting Jacob this evening?

Me: We don't know any Jacob. Are you sure he was saying Jacob?

Teacher 2: Oh yes. I'm certain it was Jacob.

Me: Ummm. I dunno. We don't know any Jacob.

Teacher 2: Are you sure?

Me: Yeah. I'm sure.

Me (in my head): He's two. Jacob could be his pet name for his shoelace. Or, more likely, a book character. And he's restless and upset because his classroom is entirely different than it was yesterday. And he misses his teacher. And he sees Mommy getting that slight twitch in her eye that can only mean we're switching daycares. Again.

Me (out loud): Have a good evening!

Me (in my head): Tomorrow (his last day) can't come soon enough!

So anyhoo...he's starting a new daycare. Wish us luck.

On a happier note, my troubled restless son had no problem relaxing with me this evening to watch a little television and croon a few tunes. For your viewing pleasure, I present, "Ol' Blue Eyes" singing his celestial song:


Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star from Rena on Vimeo.

Evan's friend Hannah is TWO!

If you've never been to Chuck E. Cheese with a somewhat reserved 2-year old...then you haven't LIVED! :) We went to our friend Hannah's birthday party yesterday...and had a BLAST...even though we refused to ride any rides or play any games...other than perpetually stealing Aunt Kel's skee balls. Oh...and Evan wanted to ride a game that you couldn't ride.

Oh well. Here are some photos. Click on the slideshow to see bigger photos and to control the speed...

A pirate says arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhh....

A pirate says arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhh... from Rena on Vimeo.

As seen on T.V...

Daddy is very creative. There was never any question about that. That's why Daddy figured out it might be fun to convert Evan's boring old diaper box into a cardboard television. This conversion elicited joyful cries of, "Evan on TV!!!!" And, because we need lives, we laughed like fools.

Here are a few pics of Evan on T.V. Please note: this cardboard masterpiece has already been relegated to the big Zenith graveyard in the sky. But how we loved it while it lasted...

Sesame Street Undead...

...is what we currently feel like after seeing "Sesame Street Live" in Abilene yesterday. "Elmo Makes Music," to be exact.

They say you can't measure love. I agree...but I'd come close to thinking that love is at least partially measured by one's willingness to drive 150 miles with a 2-year old, stay overnight, get up and drive said cranky 2-year old around (while stopping at Big K to attempt to find a non-threatening Cookie Monster toy...only to have cranky 2-year old throw the hard-earned Cookie Monster on the floor saying, "I no want it."), and then taking cranky 2-year old to "Sesame Street Live."

The event was so stressful, Bryan and I are lucky we are still married (is "attending a puppet musical" listed as one of the top 10 life stressors?)

Despite all the traveling, the money, and the 2-year old (who we later discovered was coming down with a cold--AHA! That's why he was so cranky!)...the trip was still very much worth it. Evan had a great time, and we enjoyed getting away as a family.

And I learned that the louder Evan whines and cries (as he did the ENTIRE last 80 miles home), the faster Daddy drives. :)

Enjoy the pictures!

September then and now...

I decided to start a new blog "feature"--each month I'll post pics of the little guy from that month in years past (i.e. this month we'll have September '06, '07, and '08). Thought it would be fun to compare how much he's changed... But then again...I'm a dork. :) Enjoy!

September 2006

September 2007

September 2008

Simplicity...

In the wake of Ike, the weather has become beautiful, mild, and temperate. And so Evan and I spent an hour and a half outside this evening unwinding before his bath time.

He spent a good solid 15 minutes playing with a bottle cap he found. He threw it...searched for it...clanged it against his wagon...and made it "ride" on the back of his tricycle.

Why do we spend so much money on toys?

So were the animals in front of or behind the glass?

We just got a home a little while ago from a VERY FUN trip to the zoo with our friends Ivette and Hannah (Hannah is the wee one--she's 5 months younger than Evan). We had such a great time...until Evan finally became overwhelmed in the "snake house" and we had to leave. (to the oh so heartbreaking cries of "no leave zoo, mommy...no leave zoo!" But Mommy bought a zoo membership...so we'll be back to see the rhinos again soon!

A slideshow for your pleasure. Isn't Hannah precious? :) :) :) :) Again...as always...please click on the slideshow to see larger images and to control the speed...

Child labor laws...

Is two years old too young for yard work? Hey...he WANTED to shovel the mulch into his dump truck. I didn't make him... I just took pictures!

Grandma and Grandpa came to visit!

Well Mommy has been a lazy blogger (among other things)...and so even though Grandma and Grandpa visited over Labor Day weekend...she is JUST now getting pictures posted.

Evan enjoyed reading books with Grandma...and playing farm with Grandpa. Please note how Evan is laying on his side...just like Grandpa...in one of the pictures.

Evan was SO HAPPY to see his grandparents. Who else but grandmas and grandpas will dote on you and hang on your every word! :) :) :)

Also...here are pics from the first Husker game of the season. Time to get Evan a bigger jersey!!!