Stay-cation & Easter

First day of break began with 5 inches of snow. Parker was so confused as we had just worn sandals and tshirts the day before! His sandbox was a little hard to play in when it was covered in snow!

We spent the night at Timber Ridge, because we were able to get a great deal on the room. The water park was fun and Parker probably spent a total of 8 hours swimming. We had swim lessons the next evening and he was so done with the water!

We also went to the Round Lake Children's Museum and Artist at Heart's Artsy Tot class, and of course some shopping at the mall. 

It's amazing how quickly a week can pass! I planned for a relaxing week at home (full of cooking, cleaning and laundry!) and all of a sudden it's the weekend again and time to get ready for the work week. But it's always a good time with family, and this energetic two year old sure keeps us busy!

We went to the Lindenhurst Egg Hunt Saturday morning. It was quite chilly and wasn't busy at all. I think last year he only got 5 eggs - this year his basket was full! Next year he can move on to the 3 year old section, which means there are other neighborhood hunts he can join. As we were waiting for the festivities to begin, Parker told me he was going to get a blue egg. Once it started, he grabbed the blue egg and came running back to me! I told him to go get more and off he ran! He was very excited to see "chocolate" inside the eggs!

Last year at the same egg hunt....

We also took a picture with the Easter bunny. I could sense his apprehension and so I asked him if he wanted to sit on his lap or stand next to him. He chose to stand, took a picture and went about his day. So proud of this little guy with his outgoing personality! No tearful holiday pictures for us!

And last year's photo with cousins!

At one point this week, Parker started talking about Santa. I told him no Santa, but the Easter bunny is coming. He looked at me, cocked his head to the side and said "presents?" I said yes, the bunny brings presents. He asked "You too?" Nope, Easter bunny brings presents just for kids!

Parker woke up Easter morning and immediately asked me to move his Easter basket and present off of his changing table. He wasn't too excited until after I changed his diaper! He really got into the egg hunt at the house. Basket over his arm, he walked around and you could literally seeing him scanning the room with his eyes, looking for eggs. He would get so excited when he saw one - OOO! ... and then "silly Easter bunny!" He would find a handful of eggs and bring them back to the floor to open them all. He did a nice job sorting his candy out! There are quite a few eggs still around the house, so that will continue to be fun over the next week or two.

Waiting for spring

Spending the day according to Parker - visiting the choo-choo's at Milwaukee three domes, which entrance is free with our Chicago Botanic Garden membership. 

Some funny Parker stories I don't want to forget!! ...

Parker does not like the bright sun in his eyes & needs to wear his "eyes" when we are in the car or outside. One morning we stepped outside and it was dark and foggy. Parker asked, "bright? no sun?" and I said "No, it's foggy out today". A few minutes later, Parker asked, "Ribbit? Froggy?" ... as though he had been looking for the frog this whole time! We had a nice long explanation, and then he laughed about it!

When the car backs up, Parker will say "beep - beep - beep" and then make a "pshhh" sound for my air brakes when we park!

Parker is really good at delaying bedtime. He lays in bed and needs to rearrange his animals and his pillows and change the color of his starts, etc. One night I was sitting on the rocking chair, waiting for him to settle in. After rearranging his bed a few times, he stood up and looked at me, and said "eyes OPEN" ... little stinker was telling me he was not closing his eyes! I actually walked out of his room at that time (to avoid laughing) and it took him a good 3-4 minutes. Then I heard him say "Where Mommy go?" He was so busy in his bed that he didn't even notice I left!

Cold winter months

It has been a cold & snowy these few wintery months and we've been stuck in doors many days. We have enjoyed a few days playing in the snow. Parker loves to shovel the driveway for us, and even in the coldest days, he will ask, "Shovel...minute" meaning just for a minute he would like to shovel!

Another one of my favorite Parker-ism. He likes to tell us to "stop it." He will says this when we are doing something he doesn't like, but will also sarcastically say it when we are being funny. He will laugh and say "stop it" with a sarcastic twist. He also likes to put up one finger and wave it in our faces and say "no no no" in a high pitched voice. Just like he's talking to a dog or a baby! We also had Parker's two year check up. He is now 33 inches (15th percentile) and 27 pounds 4 ounces (55th percentile).

We also had to say good bye to my grandpa (my dad's dad), which is so unfortunate. But we know he is in a much better place, as his health and mental well being had been declining over the past years. Parker is also very much into cartoons and will be rather demanding about what he wants to watch! He discovered Bob the Train on You Tube. As annoying as Bob is, Parker now practices his counting, labels some letters (O is his favorite) and is pretty good about identifying all of his shapes. 

We are taking a class once a month at the Chicago Botanic Gardens. It's an hour on a Saturday morning and set up like a Montessori school. A couple different stations that he can choose to go to when he wants. Then circle time with a story, song or an activity. He loves to go and is so great sharing with the other kids (unlike some of the others that are there!). He loves the green houses and is quite comfortable walking around on his own. He even remembered when we went to the orchid exhibit, that the last time we were in that room, we saw "Thomas" from the Christmas exhibit (three months ago!). He was only slightly disappointed that Thomas wasn't there!

Start each day like it's your birthday!

We celebrated Parker's actual birthday at home with a few presents, breakfast for dinner and a chocolate birthday cake. He did really well with the candle (unlike on his first birthday!!) We had been practicing singing Happy Birthday and blowing out the candle. He was already blowing as Jeremy brought the cake to the table! But his breath wasn't strong enough and we had to help him out. He loved his chocolate cake and asked for it frequently throughout the week!

We had his family birthday party at the Treehouse in Lake Zurich. We need a place big enough to host the family (30 people for close family & friends!) and that didn't break the bank. I would highly recommend hosting a party here and we may do it again in the coming years. The kids played, enjoyed pizza and a quiet corner to socialize. It will be nice next year when he can play on his own and I can enjoy the family a little bit more. But I also enjoyed not having to do much prep before or clean up after the party!

 

 

Parker was up at 5am so was tired and hungry as we left for his party. He saw the cupcakes at home and had a major meltdown when he couldn't have one. When he saw them at the party, he had no patience for the singing and the candle - he just wanted to eat his cupcake! Very thankful to my friend Christine with Benjamin's Treat Box for these peanut free cupcakes - they were a big hit!

Parker spent a good amount of time in the baby section, probably because he could handle everything on his own. According to the sign, he has just three more weeks to be in this area, so he had to make the most of it!

 

Here's to another year with this fantastic little guy!!