Two hands on the wheel...

At our most recent visit with Aunt Amy at Monkey Joe's, Quinn was not at all interested in jumping around. He wanted to play with the cars. After an hour and half warm up period, he was finally ready to enjoy himself on the play equipment. He spent a lot of his time driving the jeep and texting a couple of his friends.

Playdate....

Spring break play date! Aunt Trish brought Carter and Jackson up to Appleton for the afternoon. The company that made the playhouse in my backyard has a showroom not to far from our house. They open it up for playdates a couple days a week during the winter....and for birthday parties...hint hint.... We got to get out a little bit of cabin fever. However, I must admit that I was timid. I hadn't been on a slide or swing since fall and was a little out of practice. Since then, we've had nice weather and I'm back to my normal adventurous self...

Aparently this ball is fun to swing on but not terribly comfortable upon getting off....Carter did a little dance afterwards. Maybe he just had a really big wedgy.

I stuck to the swing like mine at home. Safety is key.

Jackson, on the other hand, is a wild man. Just look at those curls...they scream rebel....or cute depending on who you talk to.

yeah....that's right...you do see air under my feet.

The owners had two dogs that were in the office. We were quite facinated with him. However, I was not up for petting him. Only good for looks. Carter was a little braver. He had a lovely conversation with the Rainbow lady....

Carter: Where does he poop?

Rainbow lady: Well outside, of course. Where do you poop?

Carter: In the toilet.

After spending some time learning about dogs, we headed home for lunch and more play. We all stayed up way past nap time. But it was worth it.

Big Boy Bed...

Quinn mentioned a few times wanting to sleep in the big bed....meaning mom and dad's bed. He had been at our daycare lady's house and slept in a big boy bed. Andi's kids had a day off of school and her 4th grade daughter Emily (who has been madly in love with Quinn since they first met over a year ago) got to read to Quinn before nap. After reading, they snuggled in and both fell asleep. While I wasn't completely ready for this change....we inherited a matress and frame from grandma and away we went.

Quinn helped vacuum and put the frame together.

The bed was tested and approved for jumping. We took our trust Bed, Bath, and Beyond 20% off coupons that I notoriously hoard and bought new sheets and blankets. Everything was functional...not made cute yet...but functional.

After the bed was ready to be slept it....Quinn gave his approval for reading and snuggling, but NOT for sleeping. The first time I tried to leave him in bed, he screamed a scream that I have never heard before. My mellow, easy kid was now in a terrified frenzie to get out of that bed and out of his room. Brian took him back to bed with Quinn still screaming and clawing at Brian so he could not let go. I climbed in bed with him for attempt number 2. Quinn lucked out because mom fell asleep too.

Attempt number three.....we followed the bedtime routine that we've been doing forever, books, sing, and snuggle. We added mom laying down in the big bed for a few minutes. When it came time to leave, the screamfest began again.

So I quit...I slid the bed to a different wall, slid the crib to it's original spot, and took my hysterical child and started over with the bedtime routine but headed to the crib instead.

The next day, Quinn's little voice was hoarse from his intense, never, experienced before screaming.

Lesson learned...Quinn is not quite ready yet. So for now, we'll have one crowded little bedroom. We'll slowly continue reading, singing, and snuggling in the big bed for a little while before attempting to sleep there.

I'm busy mom...

I recently heard that kids spend about 11 hours a day with some type of media 14 if you count when they are using more that one for of media at a time....ipod+computer+cell phone for texting......a very sick thought. Take a look and see how that plays out in our house, where Quinn is fairly limited from media....a little Curious George once in a while is pretty much it. What you are about to read is a direct transcription of Quinn's words.

I need my glasses (borrowed from Mr. Potato Head).

I'm going to go check my email.

I guess while we've tried to encourage real imaginative play, books, and old school learning and fun....it was bound to happen. However....no kid of ours is going to be spending 14 hours a day with technology.

It's Cookie Time...

If you look very closely, you'll notice that there is a Thin Mint in Quinn's mouth. His very first one. He refered to it as a chocolate cookie. Little does he know that he's one step away from addiction....just like the rest of us come cookie time. It's all about the thin mint.

Famous quotes

Some funny things that Quinn has said recently....

• What's that under the cow's butt? (refering to the udders)


• That's 'diculous. (rediculous)


• After daddy took a bite of Quinn's snack without permission...No, Dad! That's mine's. Spit it out.


• Grand of uke of dork (grand old duke of York)


• Where does poop come from? Oh yeah...poop comes out my butt.


• Quinn recently started giving compliments. I'm not sure if he really gets the concept but it sure is cute. "Mommy, I love your shirt. It's beautiful."


• I'm going to check my email.

March Madness

Our church hosted a special event during March Madness. The church services was centered around basketball. All this kids got goody bags with sports related stuff. There were balloons and face painting, crafts and family photo booth. Brian and I volunteered to be on stage for all 4 services to sing, dance, do skits. Yes....Brian on stage. And boy was he a ham. An awesome debut for the man whose never been in a production...other than that first Christmas Eve as Joseph when Quinn was born.