A visit with Betsy and Stan

After Daddy returned from Philadelphia on Sunday, we met up with Betsy and Stan. They were just in town for a quick weekend, so our time went by too fast. We really miss hanging out with them!!

On the way home from dinner, Calder taught himself how to plug his ears. He thought it was so funny!

(By the way, notice his haircut? It came out surprisingly well given all the screaming, thrashing and flailing around that he did. I couldn't believe it -- he was a perfect angel during his previous cuts! Funny thing is, when we first got there another child was having a meltdown, and I thought to myself how lucky I am that Calder isn't bothered by haircuts. Little did I know...)

HOT! HOT! HOT!

It was ridiculously hot here this weekend. The kind of hot where you start sweating the moment you walk outside. I am usually not one to balk at the heat, but I just wasn't up for it this weekend.
So, we scrapped our plans to go to a local festival. Instead, Calder and I enjoyed a Saturday morning Mr. Don performance and then met up with Vandana and Sandhya at a local mall play area! The kids had a great time, then we all enjoyed a yummy lunch at The Corner Bakery!












On Sunday, the heat still hadn't let up, so we met up with Vandana and Sandhya at a different mall for more indoor fun!

Chatterbox

Calder is starting to become quite the chatterbox! Here's a look at some of the things he's been saying lately:

• "All aboard, choo choo train! Chug! Chug!"
• "Watch Mickey Mouse after eat!"
• "Come, Lucky, watch Thomas."
• "Come, Lucky, up hill."
• "Come on Lucky dog, sit."
• "Shh! Shh! Listen."
• "Look Mommy, right there!"
• "Daddy (or Mommy) all done brushing."
• "Hi [insert name of person or toy], happy to see you!"
• "[Insert name of animal] in barn."

That last one has a cute story behind it. We have a small little playground off the wooded trail behind our house. When Calder's sitting in the swing, he can just see a glimpse of a house through the trees. Well, he's convinced that the house is a barn and that it is filled with animals. And he spends the entire time in the swing talking about all the different animals that are in the 'barn'. :)

Pinkeye and Hives!

Our poor little boy has had a rough week. Earlier this week, we noticed a few sniffles, a mild cough and red eyes. Then, he woke up on Thursday morning with his little eyes practically glued shut with goop -- the telltale sign of pinkeye. It broke my heart when he cried and said "Mommy, face hurts!" So, we were off to the pediatrician and he was feeling fine in no time.

Until...Friday morning when he woke up with his tummy covered in red bumps and blotches!!! We weren't sure what they were, and as we set off for the pediatrician for the 2nd day in a row, I was really hoping that we weren't going to be the silly parents taking their child to the doctor for mosquito bites! (They looked a lot like little bites.)

The verdict? Hives. The pediatrician tested him for strep, which was negative, so they are likely the result of some other virus. They come and go, and tend to alternate between covering his tummy and covering his back. Staying cool helps a lot, as does benadryl and hydrocortisone cream.
Remarkably, Calder has remained in a pretty good mood throughout! He is such a little trooper when he is sick! He hates the eye drops, but loves the taste of benadryl, so I guess it all balances out. :)

By the way, I realize his hair looks incredibly dirty in these pictures. It's not -- he's just an incredibly sweaty kid. Before he was born, Dave and I took a baby care class in which we were told that kids don't sweat until they are about 8 or 9 years old. Calder has definitely proved that statement wrong!!!

Presenting...

21 Months and Counting from courtney on Vimeo.

...our boy genius!!! We couldn't be any prouder. :)

An engineer in the making...

...albeit a different kind of engineer than Daddy!

I bought this dress up set thinking we might give it to him as part of his birthday present. But, he has been SO into trains lately, we had to break it out this weekend. Too cute!

Sidewalk Art

While Daddy was in Atlantic City on Saturday, we decided to craft a little welcome-home message for him. Calder was really into the sidewalk chalk, and was intent on making one pink slash on every sidewalk square -- all the way down the street! (Pink is still his favorite color.)















Taking a break for some sustenance. Probably some of the most intense apple-eating you'll ever see!