I have been reprimanded

So, apparently the power cord thingies I talked about in my Longwood lights post are, in fact, fiber optic cables.  Attached to a light source in some box far away.  And the box has some light in it or something, and that light in the box changes colors, and then all the little fiber optic cables change colors, thus making an entire field of Longwood lights change colors all at the same time.

And John thought I didn't ever listen to him.  Whatever.

Funnier and Funnier

This child, man.  The things he remembers continually amaze me.  Events that have slipped my mind ages ago, he still brings up and remembers clear as day.  Things I never thought had any impact on him clearly did.  He has memorized how to read a ton of words.  Sounding things out is not his forte, but if you tell him what a word is, chances are he will not forget it.

But the thing that has been KILLING us recently is how goddamn funny he is.  Mostly without even meaning to be funny.

Sunday morning he and Daddy were outside playing.  It was chilly.  John was wearing shorts.  John said something about being cold, and for the rest of the morning Dex called him "Cold Guy."  Throw your ball, Cold Guy.  Play catch with Mama, Cold Guy.

He's got some new stock sayings:  "Oh, MAN!"  "Ooooh, yummy!"  Or any time I tell him what we're doing, or what we're eating, "Ooooooh, eggs!"  His typical "SURE!"  Pretty much any stock phrase I might say is guaranteed to come out of his mouth these days.  He's a mini-Mama sometimes.  With some Daddy-isms thrown in there, too, like when you ask him to do something and he says "Hold ON!"

He's learning to tell time on a real clock - I think today he got 5:30 pretty well pegged, and now knows that Daddy will be home at 5:30.  And Daddy had better not be late, because damn if the boy doesn't know what 5:30 looks like on the clock.  He also knows 12 noon, because that's when his bus comes.

In other fantastic milestones, I think we've finally gotten him to put his own shirt on without freaking out.  He still can't take a shirt OFF, but hey.  We'll take it.  This morning I left his clothes on his bed and went in to my room to get dressed.  He came wandering in to my room with pants, underwear, backwards short sleeve shirt, backwards long sleeve shirt.  I was so damn proud of him for putting both shirts ON that I didn't have the heart to tell him they were backwards.  So he wore backwards shirts all day.  His teacher asked him if he dressed himself...  :-)

Finally, Soccer Shots started a couple weeks ago.  This class is much more up his alley than the spring class, as it's Dex and a bunch of other 3 and 4 year old boys.  Who don't listen.  So Dex and this one bored little 5 year old girl look like stellar fantastic brown-nosing rule followers, while the rest of the boys are usually off in a corner wrestling with each other.  It's awesome.

Actually, one of the hardest parts of soccer is convincing Dex to actually PLAY SOCCER, instead of playing on the playground

I do believe he's actually supposed to be doing this.  Rule follower.

Lights. Camera. Tired.

Last Wednesday we went to see the "Light" display at Longwood before it closes on Sept 29th.  It's been open all summer.  But it also doesn't get dark til really late in the summer.  So we waited til fall when it gets dark at a much more toddler-friendly hour.  Apparently the entire rest of the world was thinking the same thing.  So we looked at lights with ourselves and about 70 trillion other people.  It may well have been more crowded than the lights at Christmas time.

We had a nice time, but the child was tuckered out by the time we finished looking at outside lights and wanted to go inside the conservatory.  So we leaned his stroller seat back, gave him a jacket for a blanket (blankets are the farthest thing from my mind right now.  I was hot all night long), and let him rest for a little bit while we wandered through the main part of the conservatory.  I don't know why HE was so tired - he had his butt pushed or carried around Longwood by Daddy.  We're the ones who walked forever.

It's hard to capture the lights with a camera.  I certainly tried, but you can't fully appreciate it without going.

The boys feed the fish and check out the lights on the other side of the pond.  Piece of bread for me, piece of bread for the fish...

Pretty candle lights inside the Loft Treehouse

I think that might be a posing child.  Or a child who just bumped his head.

With Daddy

Oh, happy day!  Dexter's favorite fountains now have LIGHTS!

Watching fountains from Daddy's back

Moon setting over the big lake, and you can see the lights on the other side of the little pond.

We went back toward the pond to see the lights over there in the dark.  They changed colors, as did the little power cord thingies.

Field of Light

Then we wove our way back through the crowd to see the Light Towers - recycled plastic bottles with lights in them, stacked in towers.  Dex was not psyched about the music that was playing, but he did enjoy the flashlight that a Longwood employee gave him.  Mostly he enjoyed shining it in Daddy's eyes.

That little beam of light toward the bottom of the tower is a small child and his flashlight.

These changed colors, too

From there we walked through the forest of lights to the Bee Treehouse (I'm sure it has some other name, but we call it the Bee Treehouse)

And we checked out the bees

And then walked through the woods til we found the spot where Dexter jumped off the stumps with his friends, when we came here in the spring.

We were super close to the lights here, so we spent a long time checking them out

Dexter was checking out "his favorite light."  Poor tired kid - he was fading fast.

Zipped quickly through the Conservatory to see these lights.  John declared them his favorites.

They changed colors, too

And, finally, the very cool looking lights right outside the entrance

I've been working on putting the baby's room together this week.  I think we're pretty much ready up here.  Still getting a book shelf from Grandma and Grandpa next weekend, and then all things will be in here.  Shout out to Grandma and Grandpa - thanks for the awesome dresser!  We picked it up last weekend.  It's beautiful, solid oak, Amish made, and should last this child a lifetime.

And it even has clothes in it.

And a snazzy chair from IKEA next to it.

Based on my last doctor's visit, this child is going to take her sweet-ass time coming out.  She's not dropped at all, not anywhere close to being ready to be born.  But all the ultrasounds and non-stress tests look good, and they know me REALLY well at the hospital these days.  Outpatient check-in on Friday took me about 25 seconds.  Sweet...

Kindly

Dearest Baby,

Kindly stop head-butting me in the bladder.  It.... is not comfortable.

That is all.

Love,
Mama

Rainy Saturday

I just spent a rainy Saturday afternoon napping, watching football, and sitting on the front porch watching the boys.  Life is good.

Dex just spent a rainy Saturday afternoon napping, watching football, playing an annoying monkey game on his IPad, and romping around the front porch splashing in puddles.  Life is good.

John just spent a rainy Saturday afternoon tuning up the lawn mower, cleaning out the gutters so the rain could actually go down the downspout, getting pizza, and sitting on the front porch.  Life is probably not quite as good for him, poor boy.

I think today was our last day of hot, and we've been promised a nice cool week with temps in the 50's at night.  I shall have the windows open and enjoy actually needing a sheet.  John shall be wearing flannel PJ's and will have every cover we own on his side of the bed.  Babies make me hot.

Lemme see if I have any pictures for you.  I think I can rustle up a couple from the last few weeks.

This is from ages ago, at Port Discovery in Baltimore.  It took YEARS off my life and we shall not be going back until Dex is at least 7.  Holy hell.  Huge climbing structure in the middle, three stories high.  When you're 8 months pregnant and can't climb through there with your kid, and you just trust him to go and not get lost or die...  Nerve wracking.  I can't go back any time soon.  I am traumatized.  Dex, however, thought it was fantastic.  Save for the flashy lights at the entrance, which he was terrified of.

Trike riding in the garage.  Usually when we are coming home from any trip I ask if I should leave the car out of the garage so Dex can ride his bike.  Usually he says yes.

Plasma car riding

Bike riding cuteness

Second day of beach mini-vacation.  Riding the bike around the 'hood.

Spent the morning at the beach

The waves were much bigger this day.  And John said when he took Dex back on Sunday morning the waves were huge.

Still so proud of this child for being so brave this year at the beach.

Trying desperately not to smile

Proof that Mama was actually at the beach