Cowboy? Fireman? Pitcher?

Family Fun Day gave Collin a chance to figure out what he wants to be when he grows up. At first, he thought maybe a cowboy. He could be totally independent, riding the range. It wouldn't matter if his clothes were dirty. He could be outside all of the time, which is his favorite place to be. Not to mention no one would be around to tell him what to do. Needless to say, he was sorely disappointed when he realized that he couldn't ride the pony BY HIMSELF. In spite of the assistance though he really enjoyed it. I could hardly believe he wasn't scared at all. I feel a birthday party theme coming on.

So, then it was off to the fire truck. Again, not afraid at all. Are you sensing a them yet? He jumped up in the fire truck. Ok, someone lifted him into the fire truck, once again crushing his dreams of independence. But, there was still the excitement and adventure of running into a burning building to save a stranded puppy. Alas, no burning buildings around, not even a siren. Collin actually wore the hat though, which is a pretty big accomplishment for him. I'm just not certain he got it on exactly right :)

So, he was off to try his hand at pitching. Ok, he wasn't really pitching, just trying to get the bean bag in the bucket. It seemed like a good precursor to me though. Alas, hitting the target was a little more difficult than he expected, though he got one out of 3 - not bad for a beginner. He also won a lollipop, which was payment enough for him. He had a great time playing the games and winning a prize for each of his efforts.

Collin is quite certain that all 3 career fields are still options. He would love to try them all again.

The Calm Before the Storm

Spring is here, and for most of us it's about time. I love seasons, each of them, but I'm always ready when the next one comes. We had perfect spring weather on Monday. So my friend and I packed up our children and headed to the park for a picnic. It's always an adventure when we leave the house. She has 3 children of her own, add in my two-year-old and we make quite a crew. Her 3 children are all older than Collin so we opted for the 'big kid' playground. I was a little nervous, as he started his climb with Jessica's middle daughter, Elle.

But they headed for the little slide and even took a second to give us a smile. He absolutely loves to play. He is his happiest running around with few boundaries. He'll even comply with the boundaries if he can be outside and play. So, after giving mom a heart attack as he took off to the "big slides" way up high, he agreed to stay closer to the ground and only slide on and climb around the little slide.

He learned how to climb up a small, plastic rock wall type structure in order to get to the slide. He certainly can't do things the easy way and use the stairs :)

Then Abbi agreed to take him down the "big slide" that had terrified me earlier. Collin was thrilled. He does seem to be a bit of an adrenaline junkie. He loves things that make his heart race and give him a thrill. Oh the adventures Robert and I are in for as our little boy grows up.

Just before we left I thought it would be fun for Collin and me to go down the slide together. This would also give me a chance to get a picture with him. So, we posed for this cute picture and off we went down the little slide. Only for Collin's foot to get stuck between my leg and the slide. When this happened the rubber on his shoes gripped the side of the slide and his foot stuck while the rest of his leg came down the slide with us. Oh, boy! It was our first playground accident and he was hysterical. I couldn't believe it. We made it through 2 hours on the playground, up and down slides and stairs and a rockwall with no injuries, not even a scrape; and here we are at the end, Mom gets in the picture and it all falls apart. Good grief! Yes, I do realize that this is not my fault. However, that does not change the fact that Collin ended up really hurting himself. We were at the doctor the next day for X-Rays to make certain Collin hadn't broken anything. All is well and Collin is starting to walk again (yes, he wasn't even walking for 2 days). I'm still a little concerned, but I am assured that he will be fine. Oh, I know, it's the first of many.

Reading Day

Collin and I went with some friends of ours to Wilmington for Reading Day. Since I am raising a child prodigy (just in case you didn't know :) I thought he would just love this education outing. Well, he did love it, but not because of the reading.

The event was hosted by the Children's Museum of Wilmington. If you have never been to a Children's Museum you are missing out. It is an absolute wonderland of hands-on experiences.

My upcoming American Idol tried his hand at karaoke, complete with a band :)

Then it was off to the longest train table he has ever seen! For those of you who don't know, he LOVES trains. He could play trains all day everyday. Thomas, Chuggington, "choo,choo" - whatever - he loves it all.

He did manage to put the trains down long enough to go grocery shopping. He really likes to push the car and this one was just his size. Not to mention he actually got to pick out whatever he wanted and put it in the cart. What a sweetheart, he picked flowers for mommy.

Alas, his other favorite love - driving. He asks everytime we walk to the car if he can drive. I swear I haven't put him in the driver's seat. How does he know this?!?!?! So, he got to drive, at least as far as he was concerned.

As you can clearly see we weren't doing much reading. That activity was just too still. He did have a wonderful time though. We will definitely be returning.

Moments with Meme

YES, that is my 87-year-old grandmother playing catch with Collin. It was the most precious thing ever. The kind of moments you carry forever in your heart that can make you smile at any moment. The red ball in the middle is airborn and Collin is laughing hysterically. He had such a wonderful time and Meme did too.

After we left the Wickers we drove to my grandmother's in Sumter. It is the perfect place to split up the trip and is a great reason to stop and stretch the trip. We got there only planning to stay overnight, but ended up staying for 3 days. It was wonderful. We just had such a great visit with her. Meme and Collin played the whole time. All I can say is that I hope I can still keep up with a 2-year-old when I'm her age.

Visit with the Wickers

Running around the farm! Collin and I had a great visit with Robert's family a couple of weeks ago. Mr. Wicker had knee replacement surgery the beginning of February so we went down there so that I could try to help Mrs. Wicker and so that Collin could provide an amusing distraction for Mr. Wicker. I think it worked. Collin did a wonderful job taking care of his granddaddy. He helped to rub granddaddy's leg each evening and would cover him up with a blanket whenever Mr. Wicker laid down. Collin just played and laughed and had a great time. He did such a great job understanding that granddaddy couldn't jump and play this time. At least with a new knee though he can jump and run with Collin around the farm the next time we are there. Collin will be so excited.

The recovery is going well and the therapy is working. From the sounds of it Mr. Wicker will be good as new in no time. I hear he is even headed back to work this week.

We also got to see Uncle Paul and Granny Mary Lou. Collin is finally spitting out Uncle Paul's name so that it doesn't come out like "applesauce." Though that was pretty cute. It was a great visit.

Fuddrucker's Fun Day

Yes, it was as much fun as it looks! We went with my Sunday School class to Fuddrucker's for lunch. One of the couples in the class is moving this week so we all enjoyed lunch together as a nice way to say goodbye. We got to the restaurant and hardly anyone else was there. So, the children had a great time playing with all of the games. The best part for me is that Collin doesn't know the difference between a game that is actually running and one that is waiting for you to insert money. So, he played for an hour for free. He had so much fun! Gavin, the boy playing with him in the picture, is a little bit older and so great with Collin. He is patient and acts like a big brother showing Collin how to do different things. They had a wonderful time. So much so that Collin forgot all about his chicken nuggets and french fries. You have to know my child to understand what a feat that is. When they weren't shooting the screen they were driving the race cars or pushing buttons on the other video games. It was nice for their parents too :) We had a wonderful lunch and only had to keep an eye on the children.

All the best to the Persons family. We will miss you!!

Potty Party!!!

Before becoming a parent (and after) one of my greatest apprehensions was potty training. I just did not want to do it. So, as in all things about which I am apprehensive but know I need to do, I bought a book - "How to Potty Train Your Child in Just One Day." Surely, this will work I thought. The author was interviewed on Dr. Phil and her method is touted on the NickJr. network as the best one going. She must know what she's doing.

So, here's her philosophy - throw a potty party. Yes, I wrote that correctly - a potty party, complete with cake, balloons, games, videos, prizes, treats and presents. For the first part of the day the child is to work with mom (or whoever) on teaching a doll (yes, we bought the anatomically correct one:) how to use the potty. Research shows that the best way to learn something is to teach someone else the concept. The doll drinks and eats with the child all morning and then uses the "big potty." The child shows the doll how to pull down his/her pants, sit on the potty, wash hands, etc... The doll also has accidents so mom has an opportunity to reinforce the notion that accidents happen, but that it's really important to go to the bathroom in the big potty. Then, lunch is a little party for the baby doll who has successfully mastered the potty. After lunch it's the child's turn. The same treats, games, and all around encouragement take place in the afternoon, just directed at the child this time. By the end of the day family and friends should be able to celebrate successful potty training with presents.

30 pair of underwear, cookies, candy, pizza, decorations, books, games, videos and a plastic covered couch later we had an UNpotty trained little boy. At the end of our party all we had was a tired Collin and a frustrated mommy (who maintained patience and understanding the whole time - yes, I was proud of myself). While I thought Collin showed all the signs of wanting to potty train (interest, knowing when he goes, wanting to go and over the age of 2) I learned Friday he was missing the biggest sign of all - knowing BEFORE he actually goes.

So, we've put the big boy underwear in the drawer, pulled the diapers back out and we'll try again another day. In the mean time, I would still recommend the potty party method. It makes the day way more exciting for all involved and if a child is truly ready I think it's a very positive, fun approach to potty training.