Mama, Max, and Papa - July 2015

In an effort to remember the details of our lives during Max's third year,

I'm documenting some of our favorites each month. 

 

Here is what Mama, Max (26 months), and Papa were into during July 2015.

 

DRINKING:  Iced, tall, skinny mocha (with whip)/ water from his water bottle/ Diet Coke

 



WEARING:  stacking bracelets/ Thomas Train hat/ uniform shirts

 

GROWING:  coneflowers/ his painting skills/ succulents

READING: Glitter and Glue/ Chengdu/ Red Prophet

 

EATING:  Multigrain Tortilla chips/ Yogurt Pouches/ cookies

 

LOVING:  roll on perfume/ elephant backpack for carrying trains/ sleep

 

WORKING ON:  braiding my bangs/ potty training/ organizing the basement

 

This month was all about potty training and sleep regression.

The potty training went surprisingly well and was so much less dramatic than

I thought it would be (please Lord let it be like this when we have to get rid

of the paci too).  But basically, we just followed the lead of Max's teacher.

She said he seemed ready, so we went to Target and picked out some undies.

The first three days were filled with multiple accidents and holding our

breath every time we went somewhere.  But, after he felt the uncomfortableness

of having wet underwear it sort of all clicked.  The hardest part was how much this

wrecked his sleep.  I don't know if this is because he was making such a big

mental leap and was processing it all but - man - lots of night wakings

and harder bedtimes. He wanted nothing to do with wearing the diaper at night

either and it seemed to just confuse him.  So, he would also wake to tell us multiple times

a night to say that he needed to go potty.  Fine - but then, he started to use going potty as an excuse

for not going to bed. Argh! Papa Rob usually deals with these shenanigans because

it frustrates the crap out of me. And it must literally frustrate the crap out of Max because

it seems he saves one final poop for the evening and it takes the longest.

At this point he wears underwear all night, has only wet the bed twice,

and is down to about one night waking.  This is doable because he goes back to bed

quickly and without argument (usually).

 

Can I just also add - that I picked up that book Glitter and Glue

because a blogger I like a lot recommended it.  And, it packed a big punch.

I cannot recommend it enough to mothers, sister, daughters, anyone that is

raising a small child :)  There is a quote from the book that goes,

"And it occurs to me that maybe the reason my mother was so

exhausted all the time wasn't because she was doing so much,

but because she was feeling so much".

This could not be more true - each day of Max's life brings

ALL THE FEELINGS.  Like how on earth is he potty trained?

Wasn't he just swaddled in my arms?  When did he learn that word?

Or better, what if he needs his paci forever? ha!

Basically it just made me appreciate my own parents

and the enormous amount of love that goes into

raising a tiny human.

 

Xoxo

Around Here

We are in full summer mode at work - kids every day.  

Messy office, toys everywhere (at home and work), 

seasonals in my office 24/7 and of course donuts 

to keep spirits high!

Hot days spent at the park and library. 

I'm still impressed at how well Max keeps on his

sunglasses!  Recently Max has been loving the

doggie at the park with the big spring on the bottom.

He can hop on all by himself and then ride to his heart's delight. 

Still loving Target (both Mama and Max!). 

Our recent purchases include new dinosaur

pajamas and a Thomas Train hat! 

He also loved having his own water cup with straw. 

He makes a great shopping buddy.

Our second trip to the Farmer's Market in which 

we hauled home some fresh delicious peaches, 

zucchini, and a bouquet of sunflowers for Mama. 

Sunday trips to the donut store - especially when the light

is on and you get free samples!  Max still loves to watch

the fresh donuts come down the line and go through the

"glaze waterfall". 

We visited the Powell splash pad.  Max ran around the 

outside and dashed in the middle a few times but 

was ultimately more interested in the playground

next door. 

I mentioned this on Instagram but a butterfly 

flew into our yard and stopped at our cone flowers. 

It was so beautiful and now I have aspirations

to become a nature photographer as a second career. 

Papa Rob discovered a new park super close to our house

that Max refers to as the "dino park" because there 

are two ride on dinosaurs.  The park is awesome - 

swinging bridge, rope wall, slides, and all sorts of 

other things. The one tiny problem is the only bathroom

is practically a mile away and it's porta john. Gross. 

The last time we were in it - Max goes "there's a lot of poops in there mommy". 

You aren't kidding kid. 

As always - we are staying busy and summer is flying by! 

More adventures to come too :)

summer adventures no.4

It seems crazy that Papa Rob and I work right next to an enormous water park (Zoombeezi Bay)

and yet, only took Max one time last summer.  We decided to change our attitude this summer for sure! And, it's been totally worth it.  As employees we get in for free - and so does Max since he's still two.  Can't beat free fun, right? 

 

The first visit was just a random sunny Thursday - we decided last minute to have Papa Rob and Max meet me after work.  The second visit was our employee family night - so free food, ride wristbands, and fun for all :)  The water park is actually quite big - lots of water slides, wave pool, two lazy rivers (a kiddie version and adult only version), and the new baboon lagoon - and on top of all that - a dedicated toddler area, called Toddler Tides!

 

 

Toddler Tides is a water area only about a foot deep (at the most) - and has

slide structures (whale! turtle! etc.), sprayers, etc.  The first time we visited,

Max was a little unsure about the spraying - he would run around the edge and dip a toe or ankle in

but not really his whole body. However, he really enjoyed the larger

water slide in the middle.  It had a wooden platform that toddlers can climb up

and then individual slides off the top in every direction. (Pictured below).

 

The animal slide structures were also super fun for Max!

It took some coaxing at first - but then he couldn't get enough!

He would sit at the top and poke his finger in the sprayers

and then slide on down - unfazed by the water nearly coming up

over his head. Crazy that when he's in the pool - no big deal, but

when the water hits his hair in the tub - meltdown city

 

 

Max constantly surprises me with the things that he is willing

to try (with some cheering from mom and dad).

The smile on his face was just incredible! 

By the end of our visits, he is usually wading on his own
throughout the water.  He even attempted a little swimming/floating (which is hard with the
hoards of parents and kiddos) - but cool to see none the less.
Another bonus - the kiddie rides in Jungle Jack's Landing aren't too far from the exit -
so we did a few of those too!

I feel like this is just the first of many future visits :)

Feeding the Birds

A couple of months ago I read a slightly terrifying article that basically 

stated that by the time children are three - they can correctly identify 20 cartoon

or online characters but know less than 20 nature words.  What the what?!

How can that be?  I probably find this hard to believe given

the field that I'm in and the amount of time we spend outdoors.  

But, none the less - I've made it my own personal mission 

(and Mim's has adopted it to) that Max will know lots and lots of nature words. 

This particular Saturday we were home (in Dayton) for the weekend

and Mim's invited Max to help her fill her bird feeders.  

It's simple really.  Kids like to help.  They like to feel needed. 

I can always tell when Max is extra proud of something. 

I will say, "Did you ____?" (whatever) - in this case, 

"Did you help Mim's fill the bird feeders?"

And he pauses, thinks about it for a second,

and then says (with an enormous smile) - "I DID!"

Within the simple act of filling the bird feeders, 

Max learned lots of words (i.e. suet, peanuts, bird seed, bird feeder, 

beak, mulch, etc.) and actually worked on 

lots of toddler skills...

Fine motor skills - like grabbing the scoop, digging in, 

picking up little pieces that escaped, and finally dumping the actual seed.

Gross motor skills - like climbing up and over rocks

and logs.  Navigating mulch and side stepping plants...

keeping your feet on the stepping stones etc.

Also - it gives a chance to talk about feelings - 

"Max, do you think the birds were hungry?" 

Followed by, "YES!"

Mims also makes sure he knows which birds eat which foods. 

He can correctly identify a cardinal (TiTi's favorite), dove (mommy's favorite), 

crow (because of their familiar sound), woodpecker, and hummingbird. 

The sense of pride he feels when helping with even the most

mundane tasks is actually really precious. 

He reminds me daily to put away my phone and really get down on his level. 

He reminds me to look up, down, and all around.

He encourages me to stop and take pause - not to rush. 

I hope he continues to love to be outside - and curious 

about the natural world.  I hope that I can foster empathy 

and understanding.  I hope his nature vocabulary GETS huge!

XoXO

4th of July

Friends, I think I might have a new favorite holiday - because this whole three day weekend/Fourth of July extravaganza was a blast!  We three Haucks hit the road to Dayton on Friday afternoon during Max's nap - and crammed so much fun into our two day visit!  

On Friday evening, we all ate dinner at Chipotle and then Mama and Papa

had a little date night action at the Greene (local shopping mall). Meanwhile, 

Max, Gramps, Titi, and Mims went to the park - which eventually turned into

a run through the splash pad! 

I thought he might be nervous, but once he was wet and the pants came off 

(he loves being pantless) - it seems like it was game on! He also made a little

friend (named Alex) and they ran around like crazies. Mims recounted that they 

almost got a whole bucket of water dumped on their head several times, 

but ran away seconds before it tipped :) those lucky ducks!  I just love

how brave he is getting around water!  

When they put Max back in his car seat to go home, Mim's and Titi said

he said, "I had fun with Alex".  So precious. :)

 

On Saturday morning, all the early birds headed to the Americana parade in Centerville where Mim's and Grandpa live.  Lucky for us, they had put our chairs out A WEEK beforehand so we

had prime real estate on the parade route.  It was also lucky in that we only had to walk a short distance and we did not have to wait very long for the festivities to start!  But first,

let us take five hundred, alright five pictures of how adorable we are :)

 

 

Max was living it up in his Fourth of July gear - from the red sunglasses, to his red

shorts, to his Mr. Independent (so appropriate these days) shirt - the holiday

apparel was in full force. Highlights from the parade included - CANDY (turns out

when you're a real cute kid, you get lots of candy...including two suckers, and an otter pop all before 11:00 in the morning...YOLO or something) - also, ALL THE FIRE TRUCKS,

and the doggies, and police men too!

 

 

Max's signature phrase  - "did you see that digger/truck/doggie/anything that moves?" to

whoever he happens to be sitting with or around.  Some of the awesome things he

pointed at are pictured below - in no particular order:

 

horses...and the pooper scoopers...

 

a tiny remote control car with two dogs in front....

 

a flat bed with a digger on the back...

 

Abe Lincoln and Betsy Ross...

 

the Centerville Washington Township Park District float...

(shout out CWPD - the place I worked for three summers

during college...great memories)

 

and last but not least - a concrete alligator with a firecracker in its mouth -

because, why not?

 

Not pictured - the stilt walkers, the goose patrol truck (who knew?), civic bands,

policemen on bicycles, horseback, and cars, corvettes and other fancy cars,

and lots of armed forces men and women.

 

 

You can bet that Max waved that precious chubby little

hand at nearly all of those things and more! He also bounced his little

bootie in my lap when the Centerville High School marching band

came by. Also sidebar: I've decided in Rob and I's retirement years

we will take up our respective instruments and join some sort of

civic band so we can roll through all these parades full time.

He is not fully convinced of this plan - but luckily

I have quite some time to convince him.

 

 

 

 

Grandmim has been hyping this parade for nearly a year (since we didn't make it

last year) - and I was kind of skeptical that it would be as fun as she made it out to be.

Grandmim is a notorious exaggerator....but - in this case the parade WAS SO GREAT!

Like, at one point, I turned to her and said, "'I'm having so much fun today!!".

Max was so well behaved (no potty accidents even after he refused the porta potty, though who

can blame him), loving all the people and things to see, was more than willing to

sit in our laps, and wave his little flag around! Seeing him scamper off our laps to

grab the candy and then come running back, was just magic. His

excitement for nearly everything was just so contagious!

Perhaps as an adult the wonder and awe of a small town parade had begun to lose

it's sparkle on me - but after being there with our little tribe on Saturday - consider

me a parade goer for life (though maybe next year Grandmim will put our seats in the shade)! :)

 

The rest of our Fourth was spent at the pool (another post for another day),

plant shopping (always a favorite), and of course the obligatory cook out with family.

I'm already looking forward to Labor day - bring on more three day weekends, I say!

Xoxo

summer adventure no. 3

Two Sunday's ago, we completed another summer adventure. 

It was Father's Day, so we headed out to get donuts first (anything for a donut, right?)

You will notice that Papa Rob is missing from some of these pictures...

but be assured he was hungover resting from the previous night's activities. :)

This is definitely not a reflection on him as a dad though - he's absolutely the best at that!

One donut turns into a dozen at Krispy Kreme! And it's pretty

standard that Max gets a sprinkle donut and his own orange juice (that

he usually splits with Mim). And of course, Grandpa gets chocolate milk. 

After we watched all the donuts come through the glaze waterfall and

out on the belt -- we made our way to the car and over to 

Franklin Park Conservatory. (Also, we successfully pooped on the potty at the

Krispy Kreme, and then ran out, terrified of the flushing sound...but that's another story).

The Conservatory currently has a "big bugs" collection - 

and they are LARGE! It started out with some ants on the

outside of the building.

 

Then, we ventured in to check out the rest of the collection.

An assassin bug greeted us in the desert room, and

a dragonfly in water garden.  Max seemed to care less

about the dragonfly and more about pointing to all of the fish.

His signature line these days is "Did you see that, Gramps?"

 

 

The Conservatory also has its signature butterflies and blooms

event going on right now.  Max loved checking out all of the

butterflies in their "Ca-Coons" (as he says) and then was

delighted to see them float by him on the path through the exhibit.

He would say "there's another one mommy!"

 

 

We made one more trip outside to see the damsel fly

and the daddy long legs.  Max proclaimed "I standing underneath, Mommy!"

 

 

Before leaving we did walk the extra distance to the community garden

which was so pretty!  The flowers were just gorgeous - and Max loved playing

in the very low fountain with the ball in the middle.

We certainly missed Papa Rob, but were more than happy

to give him so extra time to rest and relax before manning the grill for our

Father's Day barbeque!

 

 

We grilled Cheddar Brauts with lots of delicious sides (love that DLM

macaroni salad) - and celebrated the men we love most!  Max

also thought it fit to have a major throw down over the I-pad just

as we were face timing Grandpa Jim.  Ah, toddlers and technology.

But really, we are so lucky to have Gramps, Papa Rob, and Grandpa Jim

in our lives - they cheer us on, assure us "this too shall pass" and remind

us that we are in fact, good parents (no matter the rager Max is throwing).

 

Xoxo