Friday, January 28, 2011

Waffle Wars


Most mornings, we're running out the door with seconds to spare for preschool. I usually have one (or two) coffee cups to carry along with my 30lb appendage known as Lincoln. Sometimes we have time for part of a yogurt cup at the table before shoe time and other times, we're eating breakfast on the go. Many a morning, Eggo's nutragrain blueberry waffles have kept us full and syrup free in the car ride to school. We usually encounter some of the terrible Fort Bragg traffic along the way that brings us to a halt. As we eat our waffles, Jackson finds it fun to put a name to our edible creations. Our most common in the begining is Noah's ark. The rounded bottom makes it all kinds of boats. As it is devoured, it can become a sail boat, a kayak, a speed boat. At some point it usuallly becomes a rocking horse. As it diminishes, it becomes a mini boat or a mini rocking horse. He likes me to show him the shape after each bite so he can determine what it is. It's a pretty fun game and it's cool to see how he uses his imgination. Sometimes, I totally see it, others leave me wondering. Maybe we should start a reality TV show called waffle wars. Hey, it could happen!

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Lincoln Lately


Lincoln has finally started putting a few words together. Sometimes they come out a little demanding or accompanied by a pouty face but he's talking none the less. I wanted to record some of the words he is saying, along with their explanation or translation, for remembrance sake.


OH, WOW- Anytime we see any, i mean any type of construction vehicle, Lincoln says this. Loud and pronounced, he's in awe of construction. Lucky for him, we're living in a booming area for construction.


SHOOS- (shoes) we still mostly wear robeez or soft soled shoes until summer time comes when we will move up to fisherman sandals but either way, Lincoln loves shoes. He likes to try on my running shoes or daddy's boots. And I can't forget how little ones like to go overboard with words. We don't just say SHOOS once. It goes on for about 5 minutes on repeat!

NOOO (nose)-Lucky for us we all have one and Lincoln keeps account of everyones. He's not into eyes, ears or any other body parts but he makes sure to point out everyone's nose on a daily basis.

Yeah-no translation needed. He knows what he wants and when you ask him he chimes in with a brute "Yeah". Do you want to watch the ABC songs? Yeah Do you want to go nite nite? Yeah. He'll probably be a man of few words. "Yeah" will probably always be one of them. I apologize now to his future wife.

No- also no need to translate. It's obvious he's learned this word by now but the funny thing is how often he gets "Yeah" and "No" confused. After a recent trip to the church Nursery we asked Lincoln, "Did you have fun today?" "NO," he says. Well, "Did you eat anything?" "NO," again. Did they even change your diaper? "NO" And we knew all of these things were true. Also one of our famous questions that he seems confused on, "Do you want me to give you a spanking for that?" Lincoln says, "Yeah!" Hmm, I think he might have it a little confused. Or, maybe not.

"Ma, Nack" -(Mom, I want a snack) My little man of few words is SO demanding with his voice. He doesn't just request a snack, he demands it on the double. Usually before I'm done pouring the milk, he's already sprawled in the floor crying about my delay. Patience is a virtue that we need to work on. But to hear him with this demand makes me thing of a little Italian boy from Jersey sayin MA!

Nana- This could mean one of two things. Usually, it is accompanied by the famous MA, and that little pointing finger directing me to the fruit bowl on the counter. It is usually filled with bananas for my little monkey. When it's not, he goes over to the bowl and points anyway to say, "MA, get me some more bananas!" I can see now, feeding this boy as a teenager might become a challenge. The other meaning is what he calls my mom. Nana is the one he always gives him what he wants and does it on the double so that their is no tantrums on the floor. She's frees him from any situation Lincoln finds unpleasant so Nana's his go to girl! Sometimes it's really confusing when he wants to ask Nana for a nana!

Pee pee- In true boy fashion, he knows what it is and what it does. I hardly ever lay him down to change him that he doesn't claim, pee pee. Yes, Lincoln, I know. That's why we're laying here. He's even been known to tell me as it's happening. Potty training? Ha, I'm not even ready to go there with this headstrong child. Maybe I'll try it naked style this summer in Alabama?

Ewww-I can't for the life of me figure out where he learned this one. (Insert 5 year old brother). When he has a dirty diaper and I lay him on the changing table, he starts to babble "Ewwwww, Ewwww." He's got a point. He can be pretty rotten sometimes. I'm sure it all started when Jackson would screech that when Lincoln would enter his space with a foul smelling back side. He's not quiet about much and besides, how much fun is it to say Ewww about something and not get in trouble for it!

Me me-(no translation) My little pint sized boy with a giant attitude has been known to hurl this obviously unkind phrase at me when I've done something he doesn't approve of. Usually in the form of physical punishment (hand spanking). He's look at me with those angry eyes and furled mouth and usually slapping at the air while saying "Me, me" in his meanest voice. It's kind of funny right now but I can see it being something we'll have to get into check later on.

Other things Lincoln is doing right now:
He's a big help with throwing things away. He will toss anything you ask him to. Sometimes he'll even toss things you DON'T ask him to. He's famous for taking any Shoos (shoes) that are lying around his room and tossing them into the diaper trash. I was sure he'd thrown away his video monitor one night. He didn't. That's another story.

He knows the Clean up song. We use it to get Jackson's room picked up and he seems to really get it. Sometimes better than Jackson! His version sounds more like "meeeee mup, meeeee mup"

His favorite movie is also one of Jackson's favorites. It's a 1990 VHS tape of kids singing bible songs and nursery rhymes. It was a pretty low budget film but they really love it. He calls it the ABC movie and asks for it by singing "A B bi bi bi" in the alphabet tune. He's also asked to watch it by saying "shhh, shhh, shhh" referring to the mommies on the bus say...

Lincoln still drags around his bumper pad by the ties. He loves it and gets giddy when I will take it out of the crib for him. Sometimes I find him pulling and tugging trying to free it from the thin slats of the crib. We take it on every trip with us like it is a stuffed animal. To each his own lovey!

He is a great night time routine guy. We read, we rock and then he goes round kissing everybody while saying Nigh nigh in that sweet little sleepy voice.


Love that little guy, I'm happy to be his "MA!"














Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Preschool Ditch Day


Where better to go on a day that you deliberately ditch preschool to hang out with your besties?
Chuck E. Cheese.
Otherwise known as "the casino for kids."
It has it all, games, prizes, jackpots, coins!
If it wasn't so much *fun* it might be considered unhealthy.
We showed up for a little pizza and gambling, er, I mean game playing at 10am on a Monday and if I were a betting woman, I'd say that was the jackpot. There were workers busily resetting the games and leaving those precious tickets just hanging out of the machines for our kids gathering pleasure. We were the only patrons for the first half hour and the kids had a blast running amuck. We even ordered pizza before 11am! This newly remodeled version of our Chuck E. Cheese was great for games and rides. Lincoln was not so sure about the rides but the pizza, he was pretty sure about that. They all got a little friendly with the giant mouse. Here are a few of the out takes of our morning with the Higerd girls. The video is a poorly shot video from my phone and you'll never get that 40 seconds of your life back but if you're into terrible, I mean adorable, dancers, then you might be interested.


















The Magic of Great Wolf Lodge

It's been 2 cold weeks since we left the 84 degrees year round temperatures of the Magical Great Wolf Lodge. I knew it was time to get on top of the blog when I had already gotten a flyer for booking our next stay. It may be quite a while before we grace them with our presence again but it's not goodbye just see you later.

This year we had a little Christmas in January. We celebrated Christmas by spending a fun filled weekend at GWL with my parents. My kids need no toys. They prefer to play with sharpies and Tupperware. We decided a while back to forgo Christmas presents in lieu of a trip together(or two) so back in September we took a little vaca to Atlanta and really had a great time. In January, we reconvened for a trip to Charlotte and GWL. I knew it was the perfect place to take the boys in the dead of winter, I didn't know we'd be in the midst of a snow/ice storm! We drove the 2 hours to Charlotte amidst sparkling trees covered in a glaze of ice and fields blindingly white with snow.

Oddly, the first thing on Jackson's agenda was to play Magiqest. All he wanted was a wand from his Nana and to play this game. It can be described as a virtual type treasure hunt using a wand to make things talk/light up/react. It turns out to be more of a parent drags you up and down the stairs to find the things the wand says to. Maybe we have a few more years and learning to read before he really gets into it. Either way, the wand was great entertainment as he and Lincoln went around pointing (banging) it on everything.

Then it was on to the FUN! I mean what could possibly be more fun than having 1,000 gallons of water dumped on your head in front of a wet and wild treehouse? The indoor waterpark boasts a year round 84 degree temp and 8 fast and furious slides of fun!
















The really brave ones (Jason and Jackson) will lay down in the wake of the dumping bucket for maximum effect!

These were the racing chutes and in my opinion the most fun. 4 people take off at the same time and race down the slides to see your time recorded at the bottom. I never beat Jason's time of 8 seconds. I claimed it was because he weighs more.



Oh, my little fish. Thank Goodness Nana bought us this puddle jumper back in July. Not only was it invaluable at the post pools (it's USCG approved) but it was a life saver in the park. He's not fond of the life jacket style. It inhibits his short arm span. He was safely independent with this priceless preserver.



Man, I love a pool with zero entry! The wave pool was a hit with everyone.





He really does love his Nana. When he wants to. Afterall, she's the one who facilitated this trip to aquatic heaven!

Jason and Jackson. Pete and Repeat. Wet and wetter. Can you imagine watching yourself grow up all over again? Jason is experiencing that right now!

Mama's baby. That boy never wants to grow up! "Mama HOLD."

Now he loves his Nana. She took him on the soaking treehouse.


Hold on to your camera, Nana, Jackson will shoot you.


Seriously, I was asked if I was his SISTER in the kiddie pool. These pigtail braids must be awfully deceiving. As if my post baby hips x2 wasn't proof! Either way, it made me feel youthful.

Proof of the SNOW on the ground as we sat around warmly inside the waterpark.

This was another highlight for Jackson(er, Jason). These boys CAN NOT pass up an arcade and this one had 2 claw machines, Jason's favorite! He won Jackson a bouncy ball and was the night's hero for it. Jackson choose a whoopee cushion as his ticket prize. BOYS!
Happy with his LOOT!

See, I told you Nana gives him everything he wants. Naked AND Ice Cream. At least he's willing to share.









Every night at 8pm, there is a bedtime story read in the lobby of the lodge. These animatronics at the clock tower help tell the song and dance story and the children come dressed in their PJ's to listen. The even make it SNOW inside on top of the kids. It's a cute tradition to see all the kids drinking hot chocolate in their PJ's.






We won't even discuss how many strangers we had to ask to make this photo with mom's fancy camera. You can see Jason and his little clones are thrilled with the outtakes.


The Charlotte Raceway was about a mile from GWL and Mom and Dad took the boys there on the way home. They got to get in a bus and drive around the track somewhere around 75 miles an hour. The boys really liked curving around the sharp corners of the track.

Isn't it funny how the seats are designed to look like there are people sitting in them.
These are PawPaw's biggest buddies.

It was by far the most memorable of Christmas gifts for all of us. I think we will be choosing a "Christmas trip" more often. The Great Wolf Lodge is such a charming place to visit. If you've never been, book your trip TODAY!