Christmas is so magical with you. We spent so many nights driving around looking at Christmas lights- your eyes would just light up, even if the house had a simple strand or two- you loved seeing any lights at all. We spent so many hours singing and dancing to Christmas music (your favorites this year were I want a hippopotamus for Christmas, The little drummer boy, frosty, and Rudolph.) mama and you had several baking days and you would always suggest turning in Christmas music, then you would say "that'd be a good idea." So mama would turn on kids Christmas station and we would laugh and sing along. Making memories like that are so important - I have so many wonderful memories from my childhood and I want you to have the same. My parents didn't have the most money growing up but that never mattered to them or us- we had such a happy home and I want you to look back and smile about your childhood like mama does hers. You had a lot of fun making sugar cookies- you never took a bite of one (neither did mama, I don't like sugar cookies either) but you loved using the cookie cutters, helping me frost them, and pouring ridiculous amounts of sprinkles on each one. We made Nancy (your daycare provider) two large containers of goodies...when we were making the Reese's cookies (that you love) you told me that maybe nancy could make her own Reese's cookies and you would keep these. Ha. You kept some but nancy definitely got her cookies too.

You helped mama wrap a million presents - I smiled when I remembered how my Mom would corral us when we were trying to help when she wrapped. She would fold the paper and give us the important job of holding it down

So she could tape it. Thanks for the tip, mom. That was your super important job this Christmas too ;) 

Every year, Auntie takes the girls shopping at the Dollar Tree and they choose our presents for everyone. This was the first year I took you to do the same. Mama has two weeks off of work for the holidays but Daddy does not- so sadly, he missed out on this adorable shopping trip! You chose Planes wrapping paper and Ninja Turtle name tags that way everyone knew they were your gifts. You were so excited to shop- you were adamant that you were going to carry the shopping basketball by yourself, but that lasted about twenty seconds ;) I had the greatest time doing this with you- I think some of your gifts were so incredibly random but you were so proud and excited of each one...the randomness made them that much more special! Daddy got a blue loofah...when I asked if that was for a girl or a boy...you said "that's for a man!" Poppy got shampoo (the fact that poppy is bald made mama laugh inside.) Uncle Ezra got a large mirror, Auntie got a green bird, Kendalyn got a toy guitar, Kassidy got a rhino toy that makes sounds when you too it over, Kam got the same thing but in a tiger form, Aunt Sheena got a yellow bird, and uncle David got a green cup. "Uncle Dave will really love this." Was what you said as you chose it. In line to pay, you decided you needed to get mama "hand polish" so you chose a bright pink polish for me and a toy motorcycle for yourself. We came home and wrapped them up immediately :) 

Daddy did hi infamous Christmas Eve shopping, so you and me went to Grinchmas" with auntie, uncle Ezra, and the girls. It was a church program that was based around the grinch ...absolutely adorable! You were in awe! I so wish our church did big productions like that...it was definitely amazing. 

Christmas morning, we woke you up and you were so excited to see if Santa had came! You had set out cookies and milk for him the night before and you said you were going to try and listen for him. When we woke you up, you told us that you didn't think he had came because you dint hear him. However, when you made it to the living room and saw all the presents under the tree...you could not have been anymore excited! You ran to see if Santa had eaten your cookies- which he had! Dusty was also sitting there in he cookie plate so in sure he helped Santa eat the incredibly sprinkled sugar cookies ;). Our fireplace doors were still open from Santa coming down the chimney and get this... There was a piece of santas coal that must have gotten snagged and was stuck in the door!!! You were just certain he was going to come back for it. Santa had also left his magic Christmas glitter on the fireplace. Amazing!!!!! 

You were definitely spoiled this year - not just at our house but everywhere!!! At our house you got a big slide for the basement, lots and lots of toys, puzzles, movies, books, your stocking was over flowing with candy! We had a brunch at poppy's house which was so nice and relaxing. There was a million presents there for you too- talk about sensory overload. We joked that you were going to have a heart attack if you didn't slow down a bit, I had to tell you a few times to sit down and take some breaths. You were so cute! You did not quite understand that other people had presents to open too though...you were just running around trying to help everyone open their presents, you wanted to here every one of your presents out of their boxes and play with everything immediately. ( Poppy bought you a big batman play set which seems to be the Christmas hit this year. We have spent many hours playing with it since.) after Poppy's, we went to great grandma kathys where you had even more presets, and then great grandma party's for EVEN MORE!!!! By the time we got home around 8, mama and you were easy to crash. Which is exactly what we did. What a long but wonderful day!  

The Adventures of Dusty

Day 1: Toilet Papered our Living Room
Day 2: Dusty was sitting out with a tea cup full of milk and opened up your favorite breakfast - chocolate chip muffins. You caught him just in time though before he was able to eat anything!
Day 3:Dusty was fishing goldfish crackers out of the bathroom sink - he caught three!
Day 4: Dr. Dusty had a stethoscope on and was checking Mickey;s heart.
Day 5: That ornery little elf was sitting in the bathroom on the christmas tree - he had put christmas bows all over the bathroom mirror!
Day 6: Listen to this! Dusty colored, cut, and pasted a mustache onto your picture!
Day 7: Dusty put streamers across the hallway entrance so you had to break through them to get into the livingroom - SILLY DUSTY!!!!

Day 8: Buzz Lightyear and his Army-Men friends must have gotten tired of Dusty's ornery shenanigans - we found him taped to the wall while Buzz and the Army Men surrounded him. You were not very happy - you kicked over the army men and threw buzz on the stove to "cook" him. YIKES!
Day 9: Dusty turned our bananas into MINIONS!!! We found him sitting on top of them holding the permanent marker.
Day 10: We found Dusty sitting on top of your Woody remote controlled racecar - he apparently was racing Lightning McQueen last night and WON! Buzz and him must have reconciled their friendship because he was controlling the remote control and helped Dusty to win! :)
Day 11: We found that bad little elf in the bathroom with shaving cream on his face and your Daddy's razor - oh my!
Day 12: Every morning, you help make Mama's coffee. Dusty was trying to steal your job! We found him by my Keurig trying to make some coffee!
Day 13: Dusty was in the bathroom sitting on your Lightning McQueen potty...he had pooped marshmallows!!!!!!!
Day 14: Dusty decorated the dining room with christmas lights! They started on the kitchen floor and we followed the trail to the dining room - they were wrapped all around the table, chairs, and chandeliers! You loved it!!!
Day 15: Dusty and his friends (Mickey Mouse, Kitty Kat, and a Snowman) were playing Candyland this morning.
Day 16: Dusty tried to rob your piggy bank. We found him in the living room with your blue piggy bank and he had gotten some of your change out - we caught him just in time! We put it all back in your bank. Bad Dusty!
Day 17: Dusty cornered Rudolph with your marshmallow gun.
Day 18: I woke up and could not find my glasses anywhere - I woke you up and told you that I had lost them. You said "Mama, you need those!" So we woke up and walked around the house to find them...DUSTY had taken them and was wearing them as reading glasses! He was reading a book to all of his friends. You were so happy to have helped find my glasses.
Day 19: After waking you up, you told me that I had something all over my face. That bad little elf had drew ALL OVER Mama's face - he put spots all over my face and gave me whiskers. I looked like a cat!!!! You laughed and laughed!
Day 20: Dusty turned three rolls of toilet paper into a snowman! Dusty the Snowman!
Day 21: We found Dusty in the living room riding your bike!!!!
Day 22: OH MY GOODNESS! Dusty took all of your underwear and decorated the Christmas tree with them!!!!!!

Day 23: Dusty made you cinnamon rolls for breakfast! He said they were from the North Pole! 

Day 24: Silly Dusty crawled into your race car bed last night- we found him all warm and comfy under your covers and sound asleep on your pillow. (You were comfy in mama's bed) 

Day 25: Dusty bought you pajamas to wear and he wrapped them up for you! However, he must have gotten a little too excited bc he started to unwrap them himself- we found him halfway inside your present! 

Day 26: He was sitting on the milk and cookies plate you left for Santa. He must have helped Santa eat all those delicious sugar cookies you made him :) 

Winter is here! Not officially - that is not for a few weeks - but the winter cold has certainly arrived. 

Daddy and Poppy went on a hunting trip a few weeks back - we had a fun weekend just the two of us. We spent a lot of time with your girls and a lot of time lounging around together. Also, while he was gone - we celebrated Kassidy's birthday party with her friends at the skating rink! Daddy was upset that he was going to miss your first time skating - and I will be honest...he certainly missed something special. I find myself thinking of you on that day and I still cannot help but smile to myself. You had the time of your life. You spent most of your time chasing Uncle Ezra and Kambree around - you sure love them. You had on little fisher price skates and the skating rink has little "walkers" that are to help little one's skate - they are just made of PVC pipe but they worked wonders for you. You skated your little heart out - I have this image of you "skating" around and dancing to the music - it was obvious that you felt like such a big kid out there. It makes me smile but it certainly makes me sad to think about - time has really gone by too fast. I cannot believe you will be four next month - it just truly feels impossible. Anyhow, back to our solo weekend.. Another thing you really enjoyed was baking! Mommy and you decided to surprise Daddy and make him his favorite cookies. You are at the age where you just love to help so you helped with every single step and we ate a lot of the dough in the process... You could not have been more excited to give Daddy his Resses peanut butter cup cookies though as soon as he got home. 

We celebrated Thanksgiving with the whole family - you (of course) helped Mama make a peanut butter pie and Daddy and Mama made the other dishes. Might I say, we brought baked corn and macaroni and cheese and everyone raved about them - we gave ourselves the "Best dishes of the day award." Ha. Naturally, you did not eat anything at all but a Lunchable...but there was SO much food there. We had it at Auntie and Uncle Ezra's house. 

You continue to thrive in preschool. We catch you singing songs that you have obvioulsy learned there - we love listening to you and watching you learn and grow so much in such a short amount of time. I love going through your backpack when you get home so you can proudly show us all of the artwork that has been sent home for the day. You do so many crafts there!! I had to buy a three drawer storage bin that will be used for all of your artwork. I am just a hoarder and want to keep EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING you do is just too perfect and too cute! I want it all! Your last day of preschool for this semester is the 17th and that will be the day of your Christmas Program - I am so excited. I have always gone to Kendalyn and Kassidy's programs and finally I get to see my little man up there! 

We have been going to church a lot - Mama is serving communion and I now help teach Sunday School. It has always been so important to me for you to be an active part of the church so Mama is really trying to encourage that. You have been doing fantastic in Sunday School, you run right up to the front of the church for "Children's Moment" and you happily go up to "Worship and Wonder" during church. The church program for our church is this Sunday - it is the 50th anniversary of the "Peanuts" movie so that is the theme for the program - I am interested in seeing how you participate in that ;) 

We decorated for Christmas this past weekend. Christmas is a hard time for Mama - I just miss my Mama so much, I miss my Grandpa so much. As I have told you so many times - YOU make my world happy again. YOU make my Christmas special. Every time I look into your eyes as you see Christmas lights or you help decorate the tree - I see the magic of Christmas. It is just so special. You loved helping Daddy put the Christmas tree up and then we put all the ornaments on it. I showed you the ornaments that Ma bought you - she bought you two "First Christmas" ornaments and I told you that. After you saw your first christmas ornaments - you could not stop talking about how this was your first christmas and you were just so excited for it. Ha - so you misunderstood a little bit but you were certainly a blast. We put out our christmas houses, set out our christmas calendar, and put out tons of decorations everywhere! We have so many decorations that we actually had to put a christmas tree in the restroom...Mama might buy a lot of stuff...again, I say...I am a hoarder.

With the christmas decorations came your new friend DUSTY!!! One day we woke up and found the elf on the shelf book - we read the book which explained that an elf might be coming and that he or she would be Santa's little helper. The book explained that he would report to Santa if you were bad. Your rseponse was "I dont want that elf here... I want to be bad!" Well...you did not get your way because the next day we found the ELF! He had toilet papered our living room - that ornery little elf. You laughed and laughed and named him Dusty! You explained to Mama and Daddy that you could not touch the elf because it would make his magic disappear. Christmas will be so much fun again this year - every year you get more and more excited about it. :) 

We have had an exciting week! Halloween was this past weekend - you were one super awesome SPIDERMAN!  We had bought you a costume with a mask but you refused to wear the mask - it actually worked out perfect though because Sheena's Mama owns "Aunt Nancy's Face Painting" so we just went to her house and she had her employees get you and the girls all painted up perfect.  Your face looked AMAZING!  Kendalyn and Kassidy were zombies and talk about creepy - they really enjoyed playing that role. When you looked in the mirror after seeing your face - absolutely priceless.  You were so excited! We went to Trunk-or-Treat at our church, stopped to eat Taco Casa (just like last year) and then just did some trick or treating around the neighborhood.  Uncle David and Aunt Sheena were in town so we all walked as a big group and then went back to Poppy and Ma's house to watch the Royals game.  We let you stay up late to finish the game and watch the boys in blue win the 3rd game of the World Series.

WELL....just a few days after Halloween the Kansas City Royals won the World Series - first time since 1985!  I woke you up the morning after they won and told you that the Royals were World Champions - you said "Yes! Yes! Yes! The Royals are my team!  Not the Mets!!!!" (which is who they were playing.)  Daddy convinced Mama to take off work to go to Kansas City for their "welcome home" parade. So we surprised Kendalyn and Kassidy and took them with us - we also took Nancy's son Zack. Talk about INSANE!  We were a small group amongst the other 800,000 people that showed up in downtown Kansas City to welcome the Royals home - needless to say, we could not see a single thing. We could not walk, could not move, could not breathe - but you will be able to say that you a part of what is being called the "biggest celebratory parade in history." There was a moment when Daddy had Kendalyn on his shoulders, Kassidy was on my shoulders and I was holding you as well - talk about a sore back afterwards!

Yesterday, you were scheduled to get a flu shot. Mama had been trying to prep you for it - we talked about being brave and how it will be just a little pinch for a really quick second. Poppy picked you up from daycare where you told him repeatedly "Daddy is picking me up from daycare to take me to the doctor - I am NOT getting a shot." Uh-oh. We were a little concerned how you would act when Daddy actually took you to the doctor for it - but you were so BRAVE!  Daddy said the nurse told you to look at the wall and count to 5 - you made it to 3 and she gave you the shot and Daddy said for a minute your eyes got big and a little watery like you might cry but never did. Daddy told you we were going to go to Orange Leaf and then that was all it took- you were completely fine!

On the way to daycare today you told Mama "Mama...I have BAD news!"
"What's wrong baby?"
"The doctor told me bad news.... doctor doctor gave me the news. I got a bad case of loving you!"

Oh my goodness....I about died laughing. I reached back and grabbed your hand and we laughed and laughed. I do not think that you could be any cuter.

Mama just got back from San Antonio, TX. I was there for a work conference - what a long four days without my little mister!  I called and face timed you multiple times a day but it just wasn't the same - I missed you so much. Daddy told me that you were having a hard time when I was gone - you would cry a whole lot and just really clingy to him - I think it was because you were afraid he would leave too. It broke my heart - one night, I guess daddy bought you a pizza to try and lift your little spirits. You sighed and told him, "I'm just not hungry daddy."  Daddy kept asking why you were so quiet, why you were so sad, why you wouldn't eat - finally after enough prying from Daddy, you said "I just miss my mama."  Just about ripped my heart right out of my chest when I heard that!  I couldn't get home fast enough!!! I was dropped off about 20 minutes before daddy and you came home from daycare - I was hiding and when you walked in, I stepped out. I have never seen your eyes light up quite like that - you really made Mama feel special. You ran as fast as you could and jumped in my arms. Over the course of the night, you wouldn't leave my lap and would just randomly lean up and give me hugs and kisses. I got so many "I love you mana's" and "I missed you so much!"  My favorite job in the world is being your mama - there's really nothing like it. When it was time for bed, you told daddy "you can sleep downstairs tonight." I just cracked up. Daddy said he loved the boy time while it lasted but knew it would end as soon as I returned. That's right Daddy, Lathan is a mama's boy and I am certainly a Lathan's girl! ;) 

Mama stayed home the next day from work and just worked from home. I needed some special Lathan time. We had your parent teacher conferences with Mrs Dreher for preschool - she had nothing but AMAZING things to say about you. She said her and her assistant are very impressed and pleased with your capabilities - you are one of the only ones that can recognize and spell your name. (Mama made up a song as to how to spell it for you - it really worked! L-A-T-H-A-N. That's how you spell Lathan!  That's me!!" She told us that you really are such a sweetheart- you play really nice and share with everyone. (That actually kind of surprised me because you really struggle with sharing with the girls...) She also said that she can tell you really love to learn - you always follow directions and are right there ready for 

"circle time" and "group time" waiting to see what the next thing you will be doing is. She also told us that you are very helpful - in fact, you are a leader when it comes to cleaning up after yourself and picking up all the toys that are out.  (Sometimes you will help clean at home but most of the time you find excuses not to.) So in summary, you're still a little sweetheart genius - DUH. 

We went to visit Grandma Bye and Aunt Theresa the other day after I picked you up from preschool.  They asked where Daddy was and you said "At work."  Theresa asked why he had to go to work - why did he have to pay all of those bills?  You very quickly responded "He has to pay for all of his speeding tickets!"  We all about died laughing - I immediately texted your Daddy and told him that was why you said he had to go to work - let's keep in mind that he has gotten ONE speeding ticket! Haha!  It is not like he has gotten multiple tickets or is this crazy speed racer! :) Hilarious!

Poppy was over Monday night and was telling us a story - you interrupted him and said "I was not done with my story yet."  (You were not telling a story at all, you hadnt been talking one bit.)  I said "No poppy, is talking.  You were not telling a story Lathan."  You looked at Poppy and said "Poppy, say 'Go ahead Lathan.' " Poppy cracked up and said "Ok, go ahead lathan."  You very quickly looked around to try and come up with this so-called story you needed to say.... your story was "My toe-nails are growing, I am going to eat chicken and drink water.  Go ahead Poppy."  Oh good grief child, you are hilarious. 

You are really enjoying both daycare and pre-school - you will randomly start singing songs and saying expressions that I know you learned at school.  You do not really talk a lot about Children's Day Out though - little bits and pieces of information come out at various points throughout the day.  Nancy drops you off and Mama picks you up every Tuesday and Daddy and Poppy take turns picking you up on Thursday's.  On Tuesday's, Mama takes the rest of the afternoon off and we hang out at home - on Thursday's, Daddy and Poppy have to take you back to Nancy's to finish the day there so they can get back to work.  When I pick you up, your teacher always has fantastic stuff to say about you - "He is such a sweetheart."  "He really behaves great."  "He does perfect!"  That makes me so proud of you; sometimes you can be a little stinker, so I was a little worried.  Ha! ;)  On the drive home, I always ask you what you have for snack, what songs you sang, who you played with, what books you read...you typically only answer the snack question and then answer the rest with a "I don't know."   It really is the same for daycare too - I ask what you ate for lunch, "I don't know. Nothing."  Who did you play with today?  "No one."  You are just stubborn!  :)  Like I said though, then there will be moments when you will start singing an adorable song, or you will tell me about the dinosaur picture you painted, the yummy graham crackers with frosting that you ate...it lets Mama know that you are enjoying yourself.

This past weekend, most of the family went to Wichita to visit Uncle Dave and Aunt Sheena.  Daddy could not be there because he was playing in a softball tournament, Kendalyn could not be there because she had a friend's birthday sleepover to go to, and Uncle Ezra had to work.   We got there about lunch time so we started our fun day eating a lot of pizza at CiCi's - YOUR FAVORITE!!!!!  You ate three pieces of pizza and a cinnamon roll - little piggy.  Aunt Sheena had a surprise planned - we were going to Tynaknaga Wildlife Park - Talk about AMAZING!!!!!!  It is an interactive zoo about fifteen minutes outside of Wichita.  I bought you a wrist band which allowed you some of their "premium experiences."  You fed a giraffe; talk about neat.  Mama held you up so you could pet her neck and the giraffe licked your head; you laughed and laughed.  We then fed lemurs - the monkey grabbed your hand and pulled it closer to take the food out of it; we fed lorikeets - one landed on Kassidy! You were all set to go on a camel ride with Aunt Sheena, but in typical Lathan-fashion.....you panicked at the last minute and cried!  So Mama and you just watched Kassidy and Sheena go for a ride on Charlie the Camel!  You got to pet kangaroos - and we even saw two mama kangaroo's with their babies in their pouches!  All of you kids really loved feeding the bunnies and the gigantic tortoise's; the tortoises got a little aggressive though - they kind of worried Mama, so I had you stand outside by me.  They were climbing on top of each other and using their fins to hit one another...seriously!  Kind of nuts! :) You fed and pet llama's and also went on a little train ride pulled by a llama.  It was genuinely a perfect day!  Daddy was very sad he missed it though - but we sent him lots of pictures (to make him even more jealous!) :)

You are in a really clingy Mama-Boy phase right now - Mama does not really mind AT ALL!  Every night you want me to put you to sleep and cry and cry if Daddy wants to lay down with you, I am the only one that can brush your teeth, get you dressed, take you potty, etc.  "No, Mama do!" or "Mama's turn!"  You always tell Daddy that you want to "take turns" with who puts you to bed...but somehow it is always "Mama's turn." Breaks Daddy's heart....but makes Mama's heart smile! Hehe.

When you grow up you want to be a race car driver.

Your favorite colors are blue, orange, and green. 

You are going to marry mama someday in our church (when asked where daddy would be...you told him he could go to Wichita.) 

Your favorite food is pizza!

Your favorite tv show is Dino Dan!  (T-Rex is your favorite dinosaur.) 

Your favorite song is the Planes themesong. 

You say your best friends are mama and daddy. 

Your favorite toys are cars - especially remote controlled cars. 

"I love this fruit cockatoo!" (Fruit cocktail) 

While holding your finger under your nose "I have a mustache question." (I mustache you a question...)

You wanted to wear a certain pair of Lightning McQueen underwear to bed. I found one but apparently they weren't the right ones:

"Mama, those are really really great and I love those a lot...but I don't want to wear them tonight."

"I have a lot of trigger bites!" (Chigger bites)

"Someday I'll be big like daddy - and then I'll be bigger than you Mama. That means I will be your big brother and I will protect you."

"Kambree sure is beautiful...especially that day in the church!"  (David and Sheena's wedding.)

You are obsessed with dinosaurs right now...when telling Mama about a Dromaeosaurus, I tried to repeat it and could not pronunciate it.  "Mama....say DROMAE (Pronounced like Dromey) now say ASAURUS."   I could not help but crack up inside at my little three year old teaching me pronunciation of dinosaur names. 

You run really fast because you have rockets on your feet.

Nancy has a stuffed giraffe at daycare with a long tail - you told Nancy that she had to cut that off because you could not teach Bristol (a 5 month old little girl at daycare) that giraffes have tails when they really do not.  Nancy told you that giraffe's do have tails and to look for them at the zoo.  When we walked up to the giraffe's at the zoo you said "Ugh, I messed up!!!!"   :)

You went to a workout class with Mama the other night - you sat and watched for about 25 minutes. The other 45 you were participating beside me - you sat on my workout bench and attempted tricep dips with me - you very loudly told everyone that "you were my BEST FRIEND!"  :)  Yes, little man.  You certainly are my best friend. 

Dromaeosaurus

 

Today was your FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL!!!!!!  So proud of my big boy!  Tuesday was your sneak peek - that was when daddy and I went with you to your school for an hour. We met your teacher, had a snack, played with your friends, and went outside and played on the playground equipment. You wore your Lightning McQueen backpack and couldn't have looked any sweeter. Your teachers name is Mrs Drehere and her assistant is Mrs. Stewart. Afterwards, mama and daddy took the rest of the day off and we went out to lunch with you and then bought all of the school supplies that you needed. We spent the rest of the day cuddling and playing. 

Today was your first day without moon and daddy there. We were pretty anxious about dropping you off - I didn't know if you would cry...and honestly, I didn't know if I would cry too!  However, you and I were both very brave and no tears were shed. We dropped you off at nine - we walked you in and gave you the biggest hugs. You then said you were ready to play with your friends and teachers... So off you went. There's "observation windows" where we can watch you play and you can't see us ... So we stood there and watched you play at the sensory table for a while.  I am just so proud of you and the big boy that you are. Although it is every parents goal to raise successful and well-adjusted independent children, the fact that you are so grown up does break my heart a bit. 

Daddy and I picked you up at 1130 and you were all smiles. You told us that you played outside and are frosted graham crackers. We took you to Toys R Us to get the remote controlled car that you've been begging for a while and then met Poppy for pizza.  I would say you have had a pretty special day!  :) 

I'm so thankful that I have the job that I have now bc I do not have to miss anything in your little life anymore. God has truly blessed us with you and I am so thankful everyday!  We are so proud of you my darling!!! 

A lot of big boy changes are coming your way!  :)  One exciting thing that has happened within the past few weeks is that you have a BIG BOY BED!!!! Daddy and I (Ok, Daddy did all the work, Mama just came up with the ideas and bought the stuff) worked really hard on a Lightning McQueen Room!!! You have a big Lightning McQueen bed with headlights that actually turn on and off, you have fun signs everywhere (Stop signs, caution signs, route 66 signs) you have a traffic light for a lamp.  Daddy painted a new dresser for you red and black to look like a Craftsman Toolbox, and Daddy painted your white pocket book shelves to look like checkered flags!  You have checkered flag curtains in there too.  When you saw them you screamed "Checkered flags - here I come!!!" (What McQueen says when he's winning a race.)  You were SO excited about your big boy room.... Mama and you took a nap in your bed....once :)  Haha.  We kind of expected that you wouldn't be quite ready to leave Mama's pillow and Mama and Daddy's bed...but at least you have your own special space for whenever you are ready.

Daddy and I went to your preschool orientation last week to over the policies and the handbook.  Then the three of us go on September 1st for a sneak peek and then on September 3rd will be your first day!!!!  I am so excited for you.  You will only be going Tuesday and Thursday from 9-1130 but I think that will be perfect for you to get a taste of school and really enjoy yourself.  I find it so hard to believe that my baby boy is starting preschool.  I am just not ready for you to grow up.  I find myself looking at you all the time in awe at how tall you have gotten or how you don't look like a baby anymore.  You look like a little boy.  Breaks my heart but happy for you to be so healthy and thriving as well.

You continue to melt our hearts on a daily basis.  You will randomly tell me "Mama, you are my best friend EVER!"  Or you will just say "I love you so much."  for no reason at all.  Well today, you had spilled your water over on the coffee table - Mama told you that you needed to go grab a towel and get it cleaned up since you made the mess.  You got one and wiped the table off completely.  I told you what a great job you had done!  You ran back into the kitchen and said "I would do anything for you guys."  It was just one of those moments when I know Daddy and my heart melted completely - we just looked at each other and were speechless.  We grabbed you up and gave you lots of hugs and kisses when you came back in the living room... you are just so special baby boy.

You had your first dentist appointment last week!  You impressed everyone!  You had the sweetest little attitude - all please and thank you's. You laid down perfect and held still the entire time while she cleaned your teeth. The dentist said they've never had anyone be so fantastic on their first visit :) 

We talked about your under bite - something that we will definitely have to watch. He said sometimes as people get older and their big boy teeth come in- they can come in different. If they don't - we will have to talk about braces. Mama and daddy both had to get them when we were older - so it's not the end of the world if you need to someday- but we will just watch them. We talked about starting to floss - and the hygienist tried but said you had a "very curious tongue."  Your little tongue would follow her hands everywhere. Haha. I know it's true because you just did the exact same thing to me when I just flossed them. ;) 

You currently have a summer cold - the other day at daycare you kept sneezing over and over and told Nancy that you had the "bless you's."  Good lord, could you be any cuter. 

Yesterday was your half birthday!!! I can not believe that you are 3 and a half - I still just find it so hard to believe.  The days and the years have truly gone by so fast and sometimes I seriously just want ot cry at the thought. Yes, 3 and a half is still a very young age - but I know that the next 3 and a half years will go just as fast.  And then the next three and a half years after that and so on and so on.  You already tell me that you are not my baby - you are a big boy.  Break my heart in a million pieces.  That is why I take all those extra special cuddle times, I love snuggling you in bed, I love carrying you around places, I love holding you, I will take every minute of it because I know there will be a time soon where I will not get that opportunity anymore. 

This was the first year that Mama was not off work to spend your half birthday with you - I did get off early and pick you up - but I did have to go to Washburn...I guess being such a new employee, I should actually go to work :) Mama got off and picked you up from Nancy's - I asked you what kind of cake you wanted (Duh, you know Mama bakes you half a birthday cake every year) you told me you wanted a cake with a big Spiderman on it.  "Well Lathan, Mama can not make a Spiderman cake... do you want chocolate, white, strawberry?"  "Spiderman.  If I can not have Spiderman then it is not my half birthday and I do not want a cake."   (You little brat, haha.)  So this was the first year that I did not bake you half a cake either... instead, Daddy ran to the store and picked you up a little store bought cake with a big Spiderman toy on top.  It said "Happy Birthday SpiderLathan" on it.  Kassidy and Kambree were over while Kendalyn was at her swimming lessons and so we sang "happy half birthday to you" and we all enjoyed a piece of your Spidey cake.  You were very excited.  I think you might be a little spoiled...not quite sure, but I kind of think so.)

This week you have been attending VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL!!!!!!  It is not at our church - West Side Christian Church - but at the Shawnee Heights Church right down the street.  Kendalyn and Kassidy went last year and so I thought we would give it a shot this year.  You really are such a big boy!  Mama had student orientation at work on Monday so you missed the first day - but you went on Tuesday and had the time of your little life.  It is technically supposed to be for 4 year olds but I asked them if you could go and they said YEP!   It is softball themed....so it is right up your alley.  The first day Mama took you up there, you were hesitant to go until Kassidy took your hand and led you to the front.  Auntie and Mama sat in the back to watch for a few minutes - I had all intention of staying there with you the whole time though, of course.  So they started by singing two songs, doing a bible verse, and a short little teaching.  The songs are fun ones that you can dance to and have hand movements that go along with it - it made Mama's heart just so happy as I watched you sing and dance while learning about God and Jesus.  Mama was SO active in West Side Christian church growing up and it is really quite sad that our church is not the way it used to be - they do not have a very large child population so they don't do a lot of the activities with the youth that they used to do when Mama was younger.  Hopefully I can help change that.  I told Daddy that I wanted to talk to the church and see if I can help get a Vacation Bible School planned for next year.  Anyhow, I got completely side-tracked...so back to what I was saying....seeing you jump and dance around while learning about the Lord made me so happy (and Ma's heart so happy in heaven...she always wanted you to be raised in the church.)  After a few minutes, Auntie told me that I really needed to let you attend VBS on your own - so I thought I would just see how you would do knowing that I was leaving.  You blew me a kiss, waved me off, and told me you would see me later.  I have never felt so weird in my life - I have never dropped you off anywhere (besides Nancy - where you have been going now for years) but you really are such a big boy now. 

Each day in vacation bible school starts with singing and ends with the same songs - there is a bible lesson, snacks, and softball in between.  Today when Daddy and I dropped you off, the man asked us if you were left-handed....he said wow!! He hits REALLY good!  I do not think Daddy could have looked any prouder.  Haha.  Tomorrow, Friday, is the last day and you will put on a little concert and show the parents everything that you have learned.  It is family softball game night from 6-8 and we are just so excited to go with you. 

The other day you were riding in Daddy's truck and he said you were really paying attention to the sun on your arm...really studying it shining in.  Daddy asked what you were doing and you informed him that the sunlight turns on your powers and when the sun goes away...your powers go away.  You then told him that you had ninja turtle powers.  Good Lord your imagination has really taken off! haha.  Who knows where you come up with this stuff from.... all I know is I love hearing it! :)

So I have been at Washburn University for two weeks and I could not be any happier with the career move - my little Man gets to sleep in until after 7 now - a whole hour later than you used to!  Plus, we don't have to rush around and hurry - if I get to work at 8, great.  815, 830 - well that's ok too!  There have been a few afternoons where I got off at 1 and was able to go pick you up and lay you down for your nap ... this is just so fantastic! More time to be a MAMA!!!!


We had the 4th of July two weeks a go - we did our typical stuff.  Shot off fireworks on the 3rd and you really enjoyed watching every thing... you would walk out with us to light something but before we even got a chance to light it you were running away to watch the firework.  Safer that way.  :)  On the 4th, we went to Ma's grave and did some fireworks for her, then had everyone over in the evening for the typical BBQ/ swim party at our house.  Then, we went to Lake Shawnee to watch their big fireworks show...last year when we went, we went pretty far onto the West side of the lake which meant that traffic was insane....it took well over an hour for us to get home so we decided to stay on the East side of the lake this time.  We were home in two minutes afterwards...BUT we didn't have nearly the amazing seats that we did last time so it didn't really keep your interest like last year.  You hardly watched the show at all...but that's ok.  They were pretty far away and you are only 3 and a half years old...your attention span still struggles.


We have really been working on sharing lately - you struggle with that a lot. Only child syndrome.  You also have the highest and most SHRILL scream when you do not get your way...so we are working on that as well.  We try to explain to you that when you scream or just start crying, Mama and Daddy have no idea what you want... so "Use your big boy words" is a phrase that we use a lot these days. 


You are SUCH a sweetheart though...I think I say that all the time...but you really are.  "I love you SO much Mama" is something that I just can not hear enough and you wrap your little arms around my neck...life just can not get any better than that.  Sometimes during naptime, you ask mommy and daddy to lay with you and I just know that that is when you are the happiest in the world..when it is the three of us.  We are your world and you are ours.... so we lay down with you and you put an arm over each one of us and fall asleep.  Again, life just can not get any better than this.  :)


You are still incredibly picky when it comes to eating at home...pizza, waffles, hotdogs, pancakes, lunchables, peanut butter and jelly, chicken nuggets....that is pretty much your food staples.  Slightly better than it used to be because you will actually eat chicken and fruit now...but we still have so far left to go.  Nancy said you eat a lot for her though and at least try everything with one bite...not sure how the heck she gets you to do that because when I try to get you to at least try one bite...you clamp down your little jaw, and there is no changing your mind.


We bought a bicycle seat for Daddy's bike so you can actually ride on the back with us rather than be pulled in that bicycle wagon - you feel pretty neat up there.  We went on a ride the other night and you kept telling us how much fun you were having the whole time - after five miles, you were over it though.... time to go home. 


You are really enjoying summer - you love to ride your bicycle, go for walks, play on your swingset, swim in your pool, or play BASEBALL!  Gosh, you love baseball.  Daddy spends a lot of time throwing the ball to you outside and you do amazing hitting it....mama is your cheerleader and after you hit it, you run over to get a big hug from me on the sidelines.  You get so proud of yourself and we all cheer so loud for you.  :)


You still say Poopie way too much -  it somehow finds its way into almost every sentence you say.  The other day we were getting ready for work and daycare and out of no where you say "Mama, Kambree says Poopie all the time...I tell her No Kambree! We don't say Poopie - that is disgusting - but she still says it."  I laughed and laughed.  First of all, IF kambree does say poopie, its because she learned it from you.  Second of all, you are NOT telling her not to say it, you are encouraging it and probably saying it right along with her.  Haha.  You are always blaming poor kambree for everything.  The two of you have gotten pretty close though - the older she gets, the less the 13 month age difference between the two of you is noticeable. You love all of your girls, but I am glad that you are enjoying her so much now too.  You do fight like brother and sister though - that's what happens when you spend so much time together though.  You call them your sisters and they call you brother.  So cute.

In news not related to you - but a few weeks a go the USA decided to allow same sex couples to legally marry. It makes me so happy that you will be raised and not have to see that type of discrimination - it's something that will not affect us personally, but it is just a huge deal in general. It's definitely something that will be huge in the history books - just like the civil rights movement or equal rights for women - just one more step to equality for everyone. I just want he world to be a peaceful place for you - I know that won't be the case bc it's actually so evil...but this was a positive and good move towards a better world for all. 

Last Tuesday was mamas last day in lawrence!  I start tomorrow at Washburn but it has been the greatest week off with you!  Wednesday, we slept in... Went to see Rio2 in theaters with auntie and the girls (that was your first real movie experience!! Nancy had taken you once before but you fell askeep during it so that did not count.) you really enjoyed it - you sat in your seat the entire time - until the end with the singing and the dancing - the you decided to get uo and dance on the aisles with Kambree. Which was ok because it was adorable :) Afterwards we went swimming and then took a nap together!  Thursday, we did some more swimming and just hung out with Poppy doing wedding errands.  We went and picked up your tuxedo for the wedding - talk about handsome!! You felt pretty fancy In it - you could just tell!  When I went to change you back into your regular clothes, you didn't understand why you had to change...you wanted to keep that fancy tuxedo on!!  Friday night was the wedding rehearsal - you did sooo good!!!!!  Really eased all my anxieties about the wedding - you just never know what is going to happen with you and Kambree haha.  At the rehearsal dinner, GG fell and really hurt herself - you were so concerned and talked about it all night. She sadly ended up with a broken hip :( which is heart breaking but we promised to take so many pictures .  I was happy she was able to attend the rehearsal and get to see everything that day, at least.  

Saturday, mama had to get up early to get started with her bridesmaid duties.  You spent the day hanging out with daddy - while I was getting my hair and make up done, you two were lounging in the pool.  You came to the church at 2 for pictures and holy moly, did you look AMAZING.   Melt my heart Completely,  you said "that's a really pretty dress, mama."  Yup, heart melted.  I just don't think it's possible to hug and kiss you enough.  The wedding reception started at 330 - I gave you a big kiss and told you I would see you down front.  Uncle David's wedding was hard on mommy, it's just another day where I miss my mama so much,  she would have loved to be there for her baby boy's wedding - the way my heart melts for you is the way hers melted for us.  I know she was watching in heaven.  When mama walked down the aisle with your daddy (who also looked very handsome in his tuxedo) I cried and tried so hard to contain myself.  There was a collage of Ma and Uncle David sitting up front with a wedding bouquet for her.  I was so incredibly happy for uncle David but so sad for him as well - anyhow, it wasn't until seeing you kiddos walk down the aisle that brought a smile back to my face.  Kendalyn and Kass were junior bridesmaids and then you and Kambree followed,  you held her hand and led her down the aisle - she didn't put down a single rose PETAl but you both did so fantastic.  Then she went out of the church with her grandma bobby and you sat in the front row with poppy.  I was kind of nervous that you would be loud during the ceremony, but you wer such a big boy.  I kept looking at you and you would wink (blink) at me... Such a doll.  

After the ceremony, you hung out with ooooy while mommy and daddy took wedding pictures and then we met back up at the reception - at the train station.  You danced your little heart out!!!!!!  Everyone could t stop talking about your movies.. Haha.  We had amber lined up to come pick you up to head for bed but when you heard that, total meltdown.  So we cancelled amber and you stayed the whole time.  Little guy didn't go to sleep until after midnight and then woke up the next day at z930 - super late for you!  You were exhausted!  But you had the time of your little life :) and it's those memories that matter the most 

Well, Mama only has a few weeks left at the Lawrence Cancer Center - then it is onto Washburn!  I just can not stop thinking about how much more time I will have with you, my little boy.  I absolutely love my career but I absolutely love being a Mama five thousand million times more - so although I will miss the patient care and interaction, I know the switch to Washburn is truly the answer to my prayers - Thank you Mom for making this happen for me - Ma is always looking out for you - her little Peter Pan.  She knew how badly I wanted the flexibility to be a full time professional but also a full-time Mama - this job will provide just that!  So only two weeks left!!! :)

Another huge change...due to my career change, we are now able to make preschool work! Before, I had no idea how we would get you dropped off and picked up - Mama and Daddy's jobs are very strict and especially with me working out of town, I couldn't just leave on my lunch break to get you picked up... we had came to the decision that we would just keep you in daycare and work extra hard with you at home.  It tore me up inside - I was so afraid that I was harming you educationally and hindering you by not sending you to preschool - in fact, the day that Mama was emailed about the job - I was telling Auntie just how upset I was that I couldn't make preschool work for you.  An hour later, I get an email about this job with great flexibility "and it would be great for my family," and here we are! SOOOO we enrolled you in Children's Day Out preschool!  IT is the same one that the girls went to - the teachers are great, weve been there for their preschool events - it is just a really good decision.  YOu will go Tuesdays 9-1 and Thursday's 9-1130.  The long day on Tuesday really makes me nervous - I wish it were only until 1130 - but unfortunately, those classes were all full. I told them to put us on the waiting list though so we will see what happens.  Mama talked to Becky (the radiation therapy program director at Washburn) and I told her that I would just use my lunch break to pick you up on Tuesdays and her reply : "why don't you just pick him up and go home for the day?  You don't even need to come back...just go hang out with him every Tuesday afternoon."  Good lord, this is just too good to be true!  Nancy will probably drop you off somedays so mama can get some work done and then you will remain at her daycare on the other days when I have to go into the office...but as of September - I have a little preschooler!!! (Heart broken Mama, here.)  Please stop growing up so fast.

Mama has kind of been limited these past few weeks - one night while Daddy was putting you to bed, I was closing up the house and making sure all of the doors were shut and locked. I saw the back garage door was shut but I wanted to make sure it was actually latched so I barely put any pressure on the window (I wasn't thinking...I should NEVER press on glass....that's a good lesson for you, my love - NEVER PRESS ON GLASS!) Anyhow, the whole panel shattered and Mama's arm went all the way through it.  Immediately, I saw that my pinky finger was just shredded - for lack of a better word.  I knew instantly I needed to get to the emergency room.  I was screaming for Daddy but he couldn't hear me because we had two fans on in the back bedroom - after a few minutes (but felt like hours) he came out and asked Why in the world I was screaming.  Seeing all the blood EVERYWHERE - he knew we had to go.  I was so worried about you though.  Even then, I was just worried about shielding you from it all - I told you that Mama had spilled her kool-aid everywhere.  I decided Poppy would take me to the emergency room so you wouldn't have to go sit there and see mama in so much pain.  You were very sad for me that I had spilled all my kool-aid though :)  Several stitches later and still possibly waiting on surgery - Mama is going to be ok.  THe finger - not so much.  It's completely dead.  I don't know if it will be deformed or what will come of it, but I just know that I am so glad it was me and not you or one of the girls.  That could have been just tragic.  Mama can handle it but I couldn't handle seeing my little loves hurt.

Last weekend was Sheena;s bachelorette party and Uncle Dave's bachelor party.  The girls stayed the night in Kansas City and all the guys went to the Ozark;s - that meant you had your FIRST SLEEPOVER!!!!!!  I was a nervous wreck for you to sleep away from Mommy and Daddy but Poppy said you did really great!  You all stayed at Auntie's house and you slept with Kassidy.  You had such a great time!  Kassidy said she didn't get any sleep :) but you told me you loved sleeping with Kass and wanted to do it again!  Such a big boy!!!!

Kam: "poop, poop, poopie!" 

Lance: "hmm, I wonder where you learned that word. Lathan, did you teach that to Kambree?"

Lathan: "that's a really good question daddy!" 

Hahahaha the things you say. 

Daddy: "is everyone nice to you at daycare?"

Lathan: "yup! They are all nice!"

Daddy: "ok, well if anyone is ever mean to you or hurts you...you tell daddy and I'll take care of it."

Lathan: "ok daddy, thank you."

Ten minutes later 

Lathan: "daddy, if anyone is ever mean to you or hurts you- I'll take care of it."

Melt my heart!!!!!!!!!!

Today is our day baby boy!  It's Mother's Day!!!!   You are the reason that I celebrate today - you have given me every thing it could ever have wanted in life. (Well actually, your daddy has given me everything bc he gave me you!) but you have completely fulfilled me. My mom always told me that having a child meant you had your heart walking around outside the body, and it is so incredibly true. You have my entire heart and every time I leave you...you take it with you. 

We had a nice day today - we spent it with the entire family. We all went to breakfast together - party of 25 - and shared stories, laughed, and just enjoyed each other. It's amazing how much our family has grown - sitting with mama's cousins and their families - it's just great to have such a big loving family. I miss my mama every second of every day, but being around her mama and sisters makes me feel her a little more.  You loooove pancakes so you really enjoyed breakfast. :) we went and spent some time with grandma bye and everyone else at her house and then came home to celebrate together. Year day, You told me that you had bought me "hand polish" so I kind of had an idea what you bought me ;) You bought me finger nail polish and some workout clothes, you are always so excited to give presents and at just so incredibly sweet. You gave me the presents and you wished me a happy valentines day ;) and then happy mamAs day. It was so sweet and followed by a great big hug and kiss.

We went to Ma's grave and took so,e flowers and a long letter to her... When mama got out of th car there was an older lady out standing at her Grave. I walked over there and asked who she was so I could introduce myself to her - she told me she actually didn't know ma but she saw all the flowers and balloons and just knew that she must have ebeen pretty special so she wanted to go talk to her for a minute.  Th lady was just standing there talking to her and w as crying at her grave. It's obvious to strangers that she was so special :) your ma was amazing. She taught me everything I kmow about being a mama - so everything that you love about me, you thank her for! 

We continue to work on our letters - you recognize up to the letter "p". You're doing fantastic!  You kmow your left from right, can count up to 30, and continue to crack us up daily. The things you say are just so funny!!!!!! 

Today, mama was offered a new job!  I will be the clinical coordinator at Washburn University- basically, I will be teaching radiation therapy at the university I graduated from. Baby boy, I made this move for you...I could not be anymore excited about it. Mama's old teacher, Becky, the current program director - sent me an email on my 30th birthday telling me that there was an opening and she wanted me to apply for it. I called and talked to her and she told me that the hours and the schedule is just so incredibly flexible she thought it would be perfect for our family so I could be with you. So I stayed up all night on my birthday getting my stuff together to apply and had my application in the mail a few days later. At my interview, they told me how flexible my schedule would be - I would be salary so I get paid whether in in the office or not - and I can leave and do stuff with you whenever I want! They said if you had a doctors appt, I just leave and do it - when you're in school, I can just leave and go to your stuff... It's just what I have always prayed for!  I know that Ma was working with god on this one!!!!!  I can not wait for this new opportunity. 

Charlie (David and Sheena's dog) is such a jealous little dog- I am not sure it it's because you are a a little boy, but he's threatened anytime you are too close to Sheena. Anyhow, he was barking at you the other day and out of no where you put your hand out and say "Charlie, I would like to extend a hand of friendship."  I about died laughing. Apparently, that's a line from IceAge. It was so funny. 

Spring is here. The weather has been in the 60's and 70's for the past few weeks- one day creeped all the way to 86!  You are loving it. We've had several afternoons at the park- you're such a little monkey there - climbing up the slide, climbing the ladders by yourself, Mr. Independent!!! One day you wanted to go climb the rocks at the lake (the dam) so we did just that. Once we got down to the lake you just wanted to stay and throw rocks into the water - I think it was a good hour before you got tired of doing that. Mama had a flashback of sitting beside Ma and doing that with her - her and poppy fished all the time and mama didn't like to fish...I would just sit there throw rocks in the water like you were doing. It made mama get sad - those memories of a happier time pop into my mind and remind me that there was a time that I wasn't motherless. Do you know how when you fall down and up run to mama to make it better?  That feeling of wanting/needing your mama never goes away...no matter how old you are. Someday, you'll understand. Mama will always be here for you though - you'll always be my baby boy! 

Easter was last weekend - it was different but nice. Uncle Ezra, auntie, and the girls spent the weekend in Wichita - typically, we would all be together, but not this year. Daddy has been really busy with side work so we couldn't go to Wichita for the weekend, Poppy wanted to spend it with GG (his mama) so we all were split up for the day. That morning, we woke you up and told you the Easter bunny had came! You were so excited as you ran through the house collecting all the eggs- you thought it was so funny that the Easter bunny out eggs in your toys!  You found your Easter basket and all of your goodies - a kite, flowers to plant, flip flops, fun water bottles, socks, tons of candy, and lots more!!!  You (and me) ate so much candy that candy that morning...and then we headed off to church.  Church - well, you're still a work in progress. At one point you were laying on the ground spinning in circles, you dropped the hymnal on the floor about 100 times- landing on grandma bye's foot once, while listening to the sermon...you very loudly and excitedly whispered "Jesus has risen! Mama! Jesus is back!"  Soooo church wasn't the greatest. Jonny's was nice though - they had an Easter egg hunt for you and Malachi - of course that was a race for you!  Although, you realized he was moving much slower so you did grab some eggs and out them in his basket!  So sweet. You ended up with so so so much candy!!! They had a huge lunch over there but we didn't eat... Auntie was headed back to town and we were going to have a late dinner and egg hunt at Poppy's house.  Dinner was very nice...you were very happy to see the girls and hunt eggs in the backyard with them. The plastic eggs were full of candy and money or as you say "treasures for your piggy bank."  The Easter bunny brought you a tackle box filled with candy and various goodies...now you're ready to fish!!!! 

Mama turned 30!!!! Eeeeek!!!!!  We didn't do a whole lot- I didn't work so we slept in (to 730) and cuddled in bed watching cartoons. Auntie and Kambree came over to play and then we all went to meet poppy, Debbie, and grandma bye for lunch. I'm at the age where hanging out with you and visiting with family is my ideal day. So my 30th birthday was quite relaxing!  

Mama took a leap of faith and applied for a career switch. On my birthday; the Washburn University radiation therapy program director emailed me and told me there would be a job opening in the program. She said the hours are really flexible and she thought it would be a great job for me that way I could be available for your future school events. Mama wants it SO SO SO bad ; I don't want to work out of town, traveling all over, having you in daycare so many hours, etc etc. This would be a great opportunity for our family and I just hope that this happens for us - whatever's supposed to happen will happen though. Mama should know by next month. Fingers crossed and prayers!!!! 

"Daddy, when you're at work...I miss you so long!" 

I just love how you put sentences together -  You have your own sense of Time - every thing is tomorrow or in two minutes. "Summertime is tomorrow." "Poppy's taking me fishing tomorrow."  You don't really understand the actuality of tomorrow - but in your mind, that is when every thing happens.  "Two more minutes" is your bargaining line - two more minutes of playtime, let me stay up two more minutes, two more minutes of tv, etc. Two minutes! 

I know someday you will grow up and talk like a big boy. For now, I will smile at kassawee instead of Kassidy, bunny instead of funny, baba instead of mama, credabull instead of incredible, and all those other adorable words that you say. I love you lathan. Oh so much. 

Fishing Fun

You are quite the little story teller - the other night you told me Auntie was coming to pick you up to go eat pizza. You were so believable I actually had to call Auntie to see if I had forgotten something...haha. She said that she would love to do that with you soon but she just couldn't that night. Almost every morning you tell me that you and Poppy were going to go fishing and have so much fun. So now that the weather has been nice, we went fishing Wednesday after work. Although none of us had any luck...you had a great time!  You "casted" over and over and tried to catch a big fish. We were bass fishing - which is when you literally cast and reel the entire time - probably not the best thing to teach an inpatient toddler...now you'll only want to fish that way. Cast and reel, cast and reel. Oh well, no fish but it was a great time sitting on the dock in the sun!  Better luck next time little buddy!!!  

You have a bruise on your back - you call it your "bruiseter" (one of the trains on Disney's Chuggington is named Brewster- I think you have just gotten confused." ;)

List of toys that goes downstairs with us, goes in the car to daycare with us, goes to bed with us:

(Disney car characters:) Three Lightning McQueens, Mater, King, Brush, Mack Truck

Mario Car

(Disney Planes Characters:) Two Dusty's, Peter [actual name is Skipper but peter is what you named him] LeadBottom, and RipSlinger

Whew. Loading mama's pockets with five million toys five million times a day is hard work....but what's even harder is keeping track of five million toys every day. Lord knows if one comes up missing... nighttime will be a NIGHTMARE!!!!  Mama comes in to bed every night and feels around on the bed beside you to move them all...so we can do the same thing the very next morning. You love your toys! 

Another weekend down - Sunday evenings always give me the blues. I love the weekends with you, I love sleeping in with you- just this morning you woke me up by kissing my nose. Talk about a sweetheart. Daddy had to work this weekend, so it was just you and me Kid. Yesterday, we hung out with Poppy and today we spent the day at Grandma Bye's with Debbie and Rodney. Our weeks are so busy that we don't always get to see too many other people - we like to take advantage of the extra time when we can. Poppy drive us around to run errands yesterday - weatherman was calling for a blizzard...We might have gotten two inches and it's already melted. Ha. Oh well, I felt safer with him driving. Grandma Bye had the greatest afternoon with you - you two played "river monster" and she would capture you and you would have to break free. You wore her out! I love that you love her so much - I know that you would love Ma - it still stings so much that she doesn't get to really know your ornery little self. Of course, she's always watching and she's always with us...but I just wish that she would be here to enjoy these moments in person.  They all got a kick out of you today - Rodney was really impressed with your vocabulary. :) 

You and Daddy were neighborhood snow patrol this weekend. You always want to be Daddy's little helper, or as you like to call him "partners". The two of you decided to go shovel our driveway, Cheryl's, and Koty's. You told Mama to stay inside where it was warm.  Such a tender heart. 

You have gotten quite into the movie -Disney Planes; Go figure, another racing movie!  Every thing is a race with you - we have figured that is the way to get you to do stuff- we race you!  Every morning, we race each other while brushing our teeth, (you always win) we race you to get dressed (you always win) we race you to finish your food (you always win) :) Whatever it takes to get done with your daily rituals!  You are becoming such an independent little boy - you like to put on your socks and shoes by yourself, you like to go potty by yourself (we do the wiping of course haha), you like to climb in the car and car seat yourself, Mama is always standing there and ready to help at anytime...I'm not quite ready to let go of the baby reigns. 

Hopefully in the next few weeks, we get to start re-decorating your room. You want a Lightning MCQueen room with a big racecar bed.  Daddy and Mommy are working hard to pay off our debts so we are budgeting your remodel- there's really no rush because we know you sure won't sleep in it. You've already told me, you are planning on sleeping with "Baba" (mamA). When we ask you whose room ours is, you say "Baba's," Daddy asks "who else?" You reply "me." "Who else?" "Baba." Haha, not poor daddy. You told us that his room is downstairs. He's been banished to the basement. ;)

We have not done a lot of exciting things lately - we have spent a lot of time staying indoors avoiding the colds and flus, or trying to recover from the colds and flus we all caught anyways. It's been a tough winter for illnesses.  I have been working hard on your numbers and letters - you can recite the alphabet, but only recognize a few of them.  I think you're right on track for your age though - if not advanced. So Mama needs to relax. :) 

Sometimes my heart feels overwhelmed - like it is just going to burst with love for you. The other night, you and I were in Mama's bedroom dancing to "Ma's chemo bear."  (She bought me a bear that sings "I hope you dance" - her favorite song for her kids...she said the lyrics were just perfect. She found the bear at the cancer center so it has a chemo turbin on...it's adorable."  Anyhow, you were listening to the bear sing the song and we were dancing around like ballerinas together - you took my hands and started singing it. I instantly started to bawl. I am not sure if it was because it was such a special moment dancing with my baby boy, or if it was because you were singing Ma's song...I'm sure it was the combination of the two...but my love for you felt like it was going to burst our of my heart. I just picked you up and squeezed you with a big hug. 

Well...I am the proud mama if a big three year old!  Enter sad face here!!!  :( I can not believe it has been three years since I held you for the first time, since you stole my heart and changed my world completely. Time is just going by too quick. I am so proud of who you are and who you have become...I just wish it would slow down. We celebrated your birthday last weekdnd ; Uncle Dave and Aunt Sheena were only available on that one Saturday so we scheduled it so they could come. His medical school schedule is so hectic, I am so thankful he makes time for family; they drove from Wichita for your party and that was it. Talk about being loved!!!! :) we had a huge, ridiculously over the top Lightning McQueen party - you know Mama can't keep parties in moderation! Sadly, over half of your party guests were unable to attend due to illnesses; this winter has been just awful for the stomach flu and the imfluenA virus- the flu shot is actually not working because the flu strain is immune to the vaccine. It's been a tough season- thank goodness Christmas has been your only illness setback so far. Anyhow, even though it was a small party...you had a fabulous time!  The weather was actually 60 degrees so you and your friends and your girls played outside for a long time afterwards.  Daddy worked so hard to make a photo booth for you and your friends - it was so adorable!!! 

After everyone left your party, Mama and Daddy gave you your birthday present- a new lightning mcqueen bike!! We waited until people left because I always feel like we are bragging or trying to show off what we can afford; even though it is only a bike, I just still felt it was appropriate to do after your guests left. Anyhow, your bike is so big for you!!! The only options we had was a 12 inch or a 16 inch so we chose the larger one so you could use it longer. The bike has neat sound effects- you sit on it and we push you around...someday you'll learn how to actually ride it, but for now you think it's just pretty neat! 

I found a book Ma and Poopy bought you on your first birthday - she said she loved watching you grow up. It breaks my heart that was your only birthday she was here for - she was gone just a few months later. :( 

Mama took off on your birthday and spent the day doing your favorite things!  We couldn't actually go to too many places due to the flu epidemic, but Kambree came over to play, then we went to a pizza lunch buffet with auntie, Kambree, and poppy. You ate pizza until your little belly almost exploded, then we cuddled and watched the Lion King. After naptime, you wanted "chips and sauce" for dinner so we went and had Mexican food; they brought a huge icecream for the birthday boy! It was a perfect and relaxing birthday for you!  

Friday, daddy took off with mama and we hung out with our big three year old. We had your doctor appointment - she said you are obviously advanced, 83% for height, 21% for weight. We talked about your eating habits - she wasn't too terribly concerned but did say we should probably be a little more strict with making you at least try other things. We talked about your sleeping habits and she wasn't too concerned with that either - you'll sleep in your own bed eventually! Just enjoy the cuddles now! ;)