2nd week of October 2013

Max coloring with his left hand.

Max coloring with his right hand.  That's right - he uses both of them.  

Still not sure whether he's going to end up left handed or right handed.

We were BOO'ed by a neighbor.  They were quite kind and even included stuff for all 3 kids.

Peter really likes Ghengis Grill (mongolian bbq).  We went the last time I was pregnant and the smells were too intense plus I couldn't handle looking at the raw meat.  Ever since then, it takes a lot for me to go there.  Somehow I had a strong moment and agreed to go back (while in my first trimester!).  I dealt with the smells and just didn't touch any meat.  I had a great time at dinner with my boys.  Max takes effort to be entertained but he was happy, cute, and even ate some food so it was an enjoyable meal.  

I am happy with the way my flowers did in my front yard this year.

It's starting to look a little wild since it's so late in the season, but there still is a nice amount of color so I don't want to pull them.

I did have to do a little trimming because the lantana was taking over the lights and everything else.

Front yard

Man, how the neighborhood has changed in the 1 year and 3 months since we moved in!!! Click here and here to see what it used to look like.

The house next door is getting close to being done.

A two year old tornado.  It's mind boggling how quickly it can get this messy.

Here's my two "boo" buckets ready to be delivered to 2 lucky neighbors.  I know this is supposed to be a fun thing but man, it just irritates me and stresses me out.  I don't need another "to-do" added to my list nor do I want to spent the time shopping for the stuff.  Call me a Grinch.  :)

Mr. Cool - loves wearing his "eyeglasses"

Max is talking so much now!  When you ask him a question and he has to think about the answer, he says "ummmmmmmm" while he's thinking.  He also says "How 'bout"... for example if we ask what he wants for breakfast he will say "Um....... How 'bout oatmeal?"  He has started saying "yes" instead of "yeah".

He's made improvements with knowing his colors.  He still defaults to an automatic answer of "yellow" but when I ask him to think about it then he will usually get it correct then.  That is, unless the answer is Red.  He's having a hard time with that one because he can't remember the word.

He surprises me by saying Spanish words he's learned from the TV show Dora.  He loves Dora (which he calls "Dora and Boots").

He's aware of what the word "scared" means and will let us know when he is scared.  For example, he's scared of the baby doll I got at a consignment sale and he will tell us that when the baby is around.

He still has the habit of touching his nipples as a method of self-soothing.

He can feel the beat of music and will dance to the beat.

Maxwell loves singing the ABCs.

He really likes watching Jeopardy.

We taught him the numbers above 20 once and he retained what we taught him and is now remember them!

Hayden is working on learning the sounds each letter makes and because Brittany practices with Hayden when Max is around, Max is also learning the sounds.

Max loves everything soccer.

Lately he's been waking up at 5:30 am, ugh!!  One day it was 5:08.  Much too early!

Rarely do we have to remind him to swallow anymore so he won't drool.  We usually only need to remind him when he's playing really hard or watching the iPad.  When we do remind him, he will swallow and then use his pointer finger to wipe the drool up and away from his chin.  It's a really sweet gesture.

I had another parenting "fail" moment.  Max was running around in the morning without his diaper, no big deal.  Well, all of a sudden he starts pooping!  He's NEVER NEVER NEVER done this before.  So, I basically froze and didn't know what to do.  I started telling him to stop, which of course didn't work and only served to freak him out.  So now I had poop on the floor, a naked boy with a poopy bum, and an extremely sensitive pregnant nose and stomach that made me start to gag.  I seriously didn't know what to do.  So, I did what I always do when I don't know what to do - I called for Brittany.  (I would be lost without her!  She's just amazing and calm.)  She came to the rescue and took care of Max and the poop and I let her.

I am typing this months later and rolling my eyes at myself.  Why can't I just take care of it?  Why does it have to be a big deal?  It's silly how I can go from being so capable at work to being so helpless at home.  Sheesh.

UPDATE:  Peter has reminded me that it was him that helped me with this situation, not Brittany.  Whoops.  My memory isn't just as good right now.  :)