Awesome Day!

John and I started the day with an hour of bonus non-DST snuggles and such in his room before heading downstairs to bake muffins. Yum! James and Dan woke up and joined us for breakfast and viewing of the marathon pre-show. 

Then it was off to church (during which I admit to checking my athlete tracker app; my friends did great!!). 

After a quick wardrobe change and lunch, we headed off to Harriman for a family hike.

 After 80 minutes, we made it to the mountain-top lake where we enjoyed some delicious hot chocolate (milk and Giradelli) Dan had packed in a thermos and a snack. 

Then we raced the sun back down the mountain. (Dan and I were relieved to get the boys safely back to the car before the sun was too low behind the mountains!)  It was so fun hiking with James. He really talked to us and just soaked up the adventure. 

Next stop was a sushi restaurant for dinner. James ate like a king! That boy loves some raw fish! John was no slacker himself-- not only did he put away an impressive amount of chicken teriyaki, but he went wild for the baby octopus we ordered on a whim. (The couple at the table next to us were flabbergasted at our kids eating baby octopus. I think the quote was, "I don't know what that was, but I wouldn't eat it.")

We came home, and John promptly passed out. Dan built a fire, and the three of us watched The Little Mermaid. I managed not to belt out too loudly as I sang along. Come on, "Part of Your World" may be the best Disney song ever. 

Awesome day. 

Renaissance Faire

Yesterday we closed out summer by venturing to the New York Renaissance Faire. James, as we'd predicted, was enchanted. As we walked from the parking lot, through the woods and over the hill to the fair, James said, "I think we're traveling back in time."

There were many people in costume, and it seems some people have a loose interpretation of the Renaissance. There were many elf ears, horns sprouting from head(band)s, tails, belly dancing skirts, dragons, kilts, suits of armor, wench-dresses, combinations of the above,...

Fascinating!

We had lots of fun though- caught an amazing magic show, a live-action Robin Hood-themed chess match, a jousting competition, a trapeze routine, the dungeon museum, a ride on a flying dragon, a turkey leg, some dragon chips, mead,...

This evening James created some armor for himself. I think yesterday made an impression!

James's New Ride

James is pretty pleased to be heading out in his comfy big booster seat. Here we are on its inaugural ride.

Busy First Week of Leave

Last week was my first week home from school.  I filled the week with lots of last minute tasks and some fun as well:

Monday
 James had a "nothing day" (no school), and his 4 year check up.  He's nice and healthy-- 39.25 inches tall (23%) and 32 pounds (15%) which gives him a healthy BMI of 14.6.  His blood pressure was 89/44-- he found the bp cuff to be quite interesting and "tickly."  He also got to pee in a cup-- Very exciting!

Tuesday
I ran some errands,  had a meeting at school, and there was also my doctor's appointment and ultrasound.  According the u/s, Trixie/Dutch was 6lbs 12 oz at which point I inquired as to the accuracy of those measurements (the measurement had been 6 lbs 3 oz the week before; James was only 6lbs 2oz when he was born after 39 weeks!).  The dude said give or take 6 oz-- wowzers-- this looks like a big (for me) baby!

Wednesday
 I took care of some returns/shopping.  I went to the spa to get my hair and nails done-- so fun!  I had some gift certificates, so I enjoyed a spa manicure, a Mommy-to-be pedicure, and then went to the salon where I got my hair cut and blown out.  Fun!  Then I was off to meet with the Holistic Birth coordinator at the hospital before picking up James and taking him to choir practice.

Thursday
Dan and I met for a lunch date at a new coal-fired pizza place we'd been wanting to visit.  I did some work around the house, then James and I headed out on an after-school play date (complete with pancake and egg supper!  Yum!) with his "Cora's house friends."

Friday
We had another lunch date just because we could.  I took James to his dentist appointment where we were sad to learn that his baby front teeth are permanently gray thanks to a fall he took after spinning himself dizzy in the kitchen a couple weeks ago.  At least his permanent teeth should be fine!

Saturday
James had a sibling class at the hospital.  We'd signed him up for it back in December.  He was so excited that he was skipping into the lobby.  He also thought we were going to have the baby that day, but we told him, "Not yet.  Today is just for you to find out about being a big brother."
"Oh, like what Angus taught me?"
"Yes."  Angus is a dog from the book What to Expect When the New Baby Comes Home.  He received the book for Christmas (thanks, Kim & Jeff!) and had been requesting it at night quite frequently.  Angus's lessons really sank in, for James was the star student answering questions in class.  I must admit that I got quite teary-eyed seeing him hold the baby doll so sweetly.  He also diapered the baby and swaddled him/her!  Then we watched a silly sibling video and took a tour upstairs where James admired two very cute baby girls in the nursery.

That night I had dinner plans with my mommy friends.  I was feeling a little weird before I went out, but decided to go anyway.  We had a great time.  The delicious food (yum-- Melting Pot!) and entertaining conversation kept my mind off the odd sensations that I confided to the ladies "may or may not be contractions..."

A Morning at the Farm

James the goat

A Morning at the Farm

James and I are enjoying fresh farm doughnuts at Abma's. When we finish our yummy treat we will head up the hill to feed the animals. (special crackers, not doughnuts.)

Breakfast at IHOP

yummy! We dropped Daddy off at the train and came to the "pancake house" for a fun start to our day.

***Update***
At dinner tonight, Dan asked James where he and I went for breakfast.  James enthusiastically replied, "The Entire House of Pancakes!"

What a winning combination!

On Saturday, Santa came to the Maywood Train Station! James was thrilled to go to the station, and then quite pleased to find that the big guy in red was there.

As we stood outside in line, James quite enjoyed the entertainment provided by two high school girls standing in the bed of a pickup truck. One played guitar and the other sang. James was bouncing to the beat and dancing away. He momentarily forgot about Santa, and was moving gradually toward the "stage." So cute.

When we made it inside, James smiled up until he got into Santa's lap, then he resumed his freaked out look. It was fine though, and he high fived Santa on the way out.

Afterwards we explored the engine and caboose parked at the station. A very fun start to the morning.

Christmastime

James is quite enjoying the Christmas season this year. In fact, yesterday morning he came into our bedroom and asked, "Is today Christmas Day?"

On Saturday night we went to Ramsey's Home for the Holidays. They shut down the main street to traffic, and then had a light parade. James loved it!

We walked around town and got a coloring book; saw firefighters; got candy, lots of cookies and hot chocolate; and met Santa!

It was finally time for the parade, and James sat himself right down on the curb. "Do we have our feet in the street, Mommy?" He enjoyed all the floats, musicians, and rescue vehicles.

At the end, James popped up to follow Santa down the street. It was SO cute. He was going in a beeline for Santa's float. Finally, the cold caught up with us (sitting on the curb was chilling!), and we headed for the car.

So fun!

What We Learned Today

. . . always check out the bottom of the slide before you head down.

James and I went to "the fish playground" briefly after school today. This was after going home briefly because Mommy cannot go to the playground in a skirt and high heels. At least not when it is so cold outside.

So, by the time I got changed and we got our coats and mittens on and loaded ourselves back into the car, there really wasn't much time to spend at the playground before A) it was too dark and B) it was time to go home for supper.

Darkness was fast approaching, so I told James it would be a quick trip. Little did we know just how fast.

After running a few laps around the little playground in a fun game of chase, James climbed up the ladder then jumped down the steps to the platform. Then he darted back upstairs with Mommy in pursuit and launched himself down the big corkscrew slide... which had a big puddle at the bottom, as it turned out.

Splash! he slid right into the sloshy mess before I could even get down the stairs. Yuck. And thus ended our outing.

Fall Family Fun

Well, it has only taken three years, but we finally took James to get a pumpkin! We headed out to Demarest Farms this morning. We took a hayride out to the pumpkin patch. James loved that we were being pulled by a tractor which was driven by a farmer. We got out to the pumpkin patch which is in the midst of the apple orchards. James loved exploring the entire area. We easily found a lovely pumpkin and headed back to the farm.

James was happy to ride behind the tractor again, but immediately started lobbying to ride the little carnival type rides he had seen set up back at the farm. After checking to be sure he met the height requirements, we bought some tickets and crossed our fingers that he wouldn't freak out once he was really on the ride... We need not have worried. James eagerly climbed aboard the Dragon Wagon (a.k.a. the dragon train on the funny track), and was nothing but smiles, "Whoa!"s, and giggles until the ride ended. He rode a motorcycle and firetruck ride as well before returning to the dragon.

We got some lunch there and DELICIOUS farm made doughnuts for dessert. So fun!

After that we headed home for nap time. Ahhh. (Of course, James fell asleep in the car, woke up when we got home, and never went back to sleep. I, on the other hand, enjoyed a lovely two hour nap on the couch.)

Then we went to the pet shop to get fish! Last weekend Dan and James had set up the aquarium, and so now we were ready to get some inhabitants for it. Very exciting!

Quite the exciting day.

Mommy's Running Partner

On Saturday, Mommy had a race with her teammates in Central Park. There was a kids' run as well, so we decided to make a family outing of it and sign James up for his first race.

James carbo-loaded at dinner on Friday night.

He and Daddy cheered for Mommy in her race.

Then we waited for his race to begin.

Can you spot James on the starting line?

Sorry we don't have any photos of the actual race. It was pretty funny-- James, who usually runs everywhere, all of the time, just stood there when they said, "On your mark, get set, go!" The rest of the kids took off, and there stood James. I ran with him, and he just wanted me to carry him. What?! He still had a great time and was so happy with his t-shirt and ribbon.

Afterwards, we had a great time exploring the park from an almost three-year-old's point of view. There was much "mountain" climbing, playground playing, and walking about. We topped of our trip to the big city with a delicious brunch (James devoured his french toast!) and a well-deserved nap.

Big Times

We're off to go mattress shopping today for our Big Boy! We already have a twin bed headboard and footboard (which was Dan's when he was a kid) that matches James's dresser, so we just need the mattress.

Mr. Big Boy

James and I got all dressed up today (to go to a bris), and he just looked so handsome and grown up. It was the first time he'd worn sneakers in well over a month, and he exclaimed, "Mommy! I'm wearing my shoes!"

Fun with Auntie Peg!

On Tuesday, our first full day in Charleston, we enjoyed our rooftop breakfast then met Auntie Peg at the Children's Museum of the Lowcountry. It was LOTS of fun. We played with golf balls (to see physics at work) for a while, then headed into the water room.

There James donned a smock (or not) and had fun moving boats and trucks throughout a Charleston-esque model. Mag and I had fun operating the lock to make boats travel up and down. Making it rain was also great fun.

The next room was a shrimp boat turned pirate ship that James quite enjoyed captaining. The boots certainly added to his delight.

Then it was off to the "grocery store" and then the infant and toddler fun space where James sent the dump truck down the slide several times. He also still talks about getting buried in blocks by Daddy and Auntie Peg.

We went outside for a snack (and saw some neat exhibits like giant chimes) then headed in for toddler yoga. James started off hanging back from the group, sitting in a folding chair (where he did do the poses).

After a bit he got down and joined Auntie Peg on her mat. He was super cute doing the poses and has been talking about yoga a lot since we've been home. He was even doing poses in his crib yesterday morning when Dan went in to get him up for the day!

After yoga, we headed into the very cool Medieval castle, then headed off to Auntie Peg's cool house. Unfortunately, James wouldn't eat anything we were offering for lunch and turned into a complete pumpkin before passing out in Mommy's arms and sleeping on Carolan's bed for an hour or so. Upon his waking, we presented him with a beautiful plate of food which Daddy told him not to eat. This reverse psychology method has now become Daddy's new favorite way of dealing with a willful two year old ("Whatever you do, James, do NOT eat that broccoli.").

That night we headed out to see the River Dogs with Auntie Peg. James was thrilled to be at "The Old! Ball! Game!" and wanted to go right out onto the field. He became enamored with Charlie and especially liked getting "licked" by him. He also found the (person dressed as a) bunny and the "big fat green truck" entertaining. I don't remember exactly what either of these two between the innings events were, but he's been talking about them practically every day since!

When he started to get squirmy, I took him to the Kids' Zone where he played in the "bouncy thing." He wanted to go up the slide, but was too small. Or so we thought! A really, really nice "big boy" (who has later been referred to as "that big green boy" and "that big fat boy") helped James get up the "mountain" once, and James was THRILLED.

After that, the big boy went off to other activities, but James kept trying to climb the mountain. I have to tell you, he didn't give up! After many a fall, he made it back to the top! I was so amazed!

Meanwhile back in the stands, Dan caught a fly ball and was hit by another! We had a wonderful time at the old ball game!