Musical Max

As mentioned, Max has been getting into the harmonica. 

It's hard to capture on video...but here was the first attempt.

 

 

and tonight...before bed, Papa Rob found an old harmonica he had.

Max went to town again! 

love it!

 I think he's ready to join Grandpa Jim in a duet :)

 



Adventures with Grandma and Grandpa

Max just got back from spending a couple of nights with his Grandmim and Grandpa Tim in Dayton.  It's funny how time changes things...at first I could not imagine leaving him for even one night.  This time, I suggested another night.  Hopefully that doesn't make me a horrible mother.  I'll tell you what it does make me - and that is sane. 

 

I took a day off work and got my WHOLE HOUSE CLEAN!  A can't even remember the last time that happened...the bathrooms, the kitchen floor, and open shelving, all the vacuuming, new sheets on the bed, counters cleared...you get the idea. I ate dinner with my husband.  We talked about things other than the last time Max pooped and cleaning the humidifier...and we sat down the whole meal.  Mind blowing I tell you. 

 

Now...does that mean I didn't miss him?  Heck no!  I thought about him constantly. But, I knew my parents had the situation under control.  They have all his favorites and necessities ...so it was easy remind myself that he would be just fine....as you can tell from the below pic...

he made himself right at home. 

 

 

Each day my mom would text me several updates...including everything he ate at literally every meal. And, they did art projects!  I'm not even brave enough to try that at home.  But Grandmim, she busted out the stamp pads, glue, and googley eyes!  WOW!

 

 

Her texts would crack me up - reading something like "good morning mom and dad!  I woke up at 6:00 but Grandmim brought me into their bed and I slept until 8:45.  Now I just finished off my pumpkin bread, egg, banana, and glass of orange juice."  And then, my mom would go on to say "Does he think I'm running some kind of cafeteria?!"  haha! 

 

 

It actually makes me really happy that he can have some leisurely mornings.  So many times, I'm rushing him around...getting him dressed, feeding him, and then hurrying out the door...all so I can make it to work on time. No wonder he ate so much there...he had nothing but time and a captive audience for all his breakfast shenanigans (mind if I throw my food on the floor? 

don't mind if I do...this is #classicmax)

 

 

Speaking of shenanigans - Max picked up on how to play the harmonica while at Mim's!

He has been super into mimicking lately....so I simply showed him what to do and he went to town. He's a regular one man band. It's kind of hysterical to see him toddling around while simultaneously puffing out his cheeks filling the harmonica with hot air. It's kind of my new favorite things he does.

 

 

(This picture is pretty much the epitome of his days at his grandparents house.

Toys everywhere, candy basket in hand, and still in jammies at noon that accurately read

"Grandma let's me say up late)

 

The adventures are non stop at the grandparents house too.  Max went to play at an indoor play center at Fairhaven Church (where Grandmim chatted up all the other stay at home moms and found out some other little hot spots around town)....and of course let's not forget dinner at Frisch's (with his great grandparents too!), and he met all his favorite scrapbooking ladies and ended up staying for lunch, tooled around the neighborhood looking at all the trucks, even went to another pumpkin patch!I'm worn out just typing about it!

                                                                                   

(Grandpa is always good for a video or two...and cheese puffs!  And bananas!)

 

As his Mama, obviously I love Max. 

I love reading to him.  I love playing with him.  I love cuddling him. 

I love seeing his little belly bulge out after dinnertime. 

I love watching him run around in just a diaper.

 

But, you know what I love even more?

 

Watching other people love him.

 

When I hear any of Max's grandparents or even his daycare teacher rave about how well he shares....or a new word he says....or how he is starting to put words together... or how much fun he is to be around.  Or even that he was well behaved over lunch. It makes my heart swell with pride.

I'm proud of how he is.  I'm proud of who he is becoming.

 

 

These people...the grandparents...the aunt and uncles...the teachers....they don't have to love Max. 

In fact, it would be easy to judge (after all...not my circus, not my monkeys...right?)

But, I'm beyond grateful they do.

 

You know what else I'm thankful for?

 

I'm thankful for this little dude.  My tiny boss.

He may tell me to "sit down," "put it back" and 

"I want paci" about fifty times a day....

But, his loud, curious, and funny little self are basically adorable.

 

And I'm so glad we have these patient, helpful, and (basically) adorable people to

share him with.

 

xoxo forever!

If you take Max to the Pumpkin Patch

If you take Max to the Pumpkin Patch...it will be a cold and blustery day.

He will need to bundle up. This will include a long sleeved pumpkin shirt,

downy vest, and coat with hood up.

 

 

He will jet out of the car and into the patch.

He will run up and down the rows barely stopping to admire the pumpkins.

 

 

He will stop to play in the fort made of corn stalks.

And, (not pictured) ride on the plastic bouncy ponies.

 

 

He will also stop to help grandmim and grandpa adjust their stack of pumpkins.

He will attempt to lift pumpkins that are wayyyyyy to heavy.

 

 

Then, he will briefly consider a pumpkin to grace our front porch.

It will also be too heavy for him to lift (despite the grunting).

 

 

Then, he will consider one more his size.

 

 

He will decide it's just perfect.

 

 

Then, he will demand you pull him and his perfect pumpkin up to the register

in a wagon.  The handle to wagon will accidentally clock him in the head.

He will demand his paci. 

 

 

He will pick out a more suitable wagon.

You will pay and off you will go!

 

 

But...the fun doesn't stop there! Oh no, you will venture to Windmill Farms.

 

 

You will remember fondly all of the pumpkin patch trips of your youth to this very farm.

You will quickly purchase hayride tickets without question.

You will wait in line...while Max shouts "tractor" every time one goes by.

(sidenote: you will have convinced Grandpa to give you his beloved Browns hat!!!)

 

 

The hayride will start out okay.  Then the tractor will pick up speed.

This will NOT make Max happy. He will start to say "go back".  A LOT.

Then random creatures will start to jump out of the woods.

You will realize that although it didn't say the hayride was haunted.  It is.

It will take a painstakingly long time to get to the "patch".

The patch is really just a couple of rows of pre-picked pumpkins lined up in a field.

 

 

Once back from the patch - Max will warm up to all of the animals (there were soooo many).

Peacocks. donkeys, sheep, llamas....oh my!

 

 

And you will finally pick the perfect pumpkin...a startling 31 pounder! 

Perfect for the front porch....and we all survived.

 

XoXo

 

p.s. round two: this weekend!

October Lately

Digging:  days off to get things done, Facetime with my little cutie (who is at his grandparents house), and all my new Stella and Dot goodies (a necklace, getaway bag, and elephant bracelet)!

Eating: Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, Penn Station (a new one opened by us and it's also close to the Zoo), peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (with my natural peanut butter from Grandpa Jim), apples and caramel dipping sauce.

Listening: to a CD in my car with mostly Luke Bryan songs, but also "all about that bass" and "bang", and Taylor Swift's "shake it off".  Love it!  Also, Max's special CD from Grandpa Jim and Grandma Sugar with his name in all the songs!

Drinking: chai tea lattes and caramel lattes from Panera

Wearing:  skinny jeans, and my jean jacket with the grey sweatshirt sleeves and hood - pretty much non stop.

Reading: Gone Girl (want to read it before seeing the movie) and another book called The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

Feeling: excited that fall is here!  So many fun things to do...apple picking, pumpkin patch visiting, fall festivals, gathering leaves, and Halloween costumes!

Weather: unseasonably cold (it was in the 40's this weekend and we are looking for a new winter hat and toddler mittens for Max)...and rainy too.  blah! 

Wanting: to get all my Christmas shopping done by mid November.  And, wanting to decorate for fall (hopefully tomorrow after work).  And, to hire a maid! haha! But really, who wants to spend time cleaning when you can be having fun with your family!

Needing: to get better at not stopping for coffee in the morning...oh Panera, I can't seem to quit you.

Wishing: for a few extra hours in the week to watch all the Gilmore Girls on Netflix that I want!

Thinking: about how Max is doing at my parents (they offered to keep him for a few extra days after the weekend)...he seems to be doing fine but I miss him like crazy!
Enjoying: Netflix, all the fall television shows, having my cupboards restocked after a trip to Trader Joes, sending mail to my best gal pal Candice in Oregon, all the new words and phrases Max is saying ("i sit down", "go back", "that way", and recently "I poop").

Loving: taking Max to swimming lessons, how Instagram makes it easy to capture little snippets of our life, coffee, our cozy home (with the furnace on...it was 57 degrees in here when we got home this past weekend), Max in all his pajamas, pumpkins on our porch, clean sheets on the bed, and all the laundry put away!

**Bonus for reading mostly all about me....cute pictures of Max in the leaves!

(he picked all the leaves himself...gravitating toward the brown crunchy ones,

and then proceeded to put them all in the mesh pocket attached to the back of his

stroller).

 

xoxo

Welcoming Fall!

My favorite season is upon us!  Bring on the pumpkins!  Bring on the sweaters and flannel!  Bring on crisp air and crunchy leaves!  Tis the season :)  How can you tell it's fall around Haucks' nest? 

The proof is in the pictures!

 

 

The leaves on our Sweet Gum tree in the front yard are changing colors.  They are my absolute favorite as the leaves look almost tye-dyed.  Our neighborhood is actually full of beautiful leaves and we see lots of them on our walks...and they crunch under our stroller.

 

 

 

Max likes to pick up the leaves in our yard and hand them to us too. It's pretty cute.

  I see some raking in his future!

 

 

It's hard to tell from the angle of the picture but Max's shirt says "Change my diaper it smells like Michigan".  (a gift from Uncle Vincent).  Most Saturdays you can find Max rocking his football gear.  When the OSU and Ducks stuff comes out...it's a sure sign of fall.

 

 

We went to Fall Fest at the Columbus Zoo!  Pumpkins, Corn Stalks, Polka, and soft pretzels!  Yum!

 

 

I don't know if it's the fall weather or what...but Max has been falling back asleep in our bed after he gets up in the morning.  He snuggles right into the blankets and pillows and looks pretty comfy.

I don't mind one bit...except for it usually makes me just a little bit late to work because obviously some serious snuggling has to happen.

 

 

Speaking of snuggling....in the fall we bust out the fleecy, footey pajamas. 

I love love love toddler jammies!  Is there anything cuter?  I think probably not.

Carters brand is the best and I might go broke buying up all their snuggly, zip up pajamas. 

It doesn't hurt that they keep Max looking like a baby...instead of the little boy I see running around our house.

 

 

All of the holiday wear comes out in October.  I've been hoarding festive Halloween/fall clothing for months.  Gymboree, Carters, Target, thrift stores...you name it...I've probably looked there for holiday clothing.  I cannot resist pumpkins, bats, stripes, mummies, and Frankensteins on clothing!

 

 

And lastly - we know it's fall when we start searching for the perfect Halloween costume!

I don't think it's going to be the Alladin/Genie costume.  He was not a fan of the scratchy vest....seemed to dig the silky pants though. 

Don't worry though...we have the perfect costume for Trick-or-Treat!

Happy FALL dear friends and family!

XoXO



Swimming Lessons

We are heading into week four of "swim lessons" in the "wa-wa" as Max calls it. 

So I figured it was time to give my dedicated blog readers (looking at you Grandpa Tim and Grandpa Jim) an update! The first week was a total fiasco.  Oh man, between the screaming children in the pool, running around like a crazy person trying to get us both dressed in the family dressing room,

and barely making it home carrying the five hundred toddler essentials for swimming...it was a doozey.  But - we got smart and now we go as a team!  And it's lots of fun!

 

 

First things first - I'm in a bathing suit and now it's on the internet.  I must be feeling brave :)

Secondly, though the title of this post is "swimming lessons" - no actual lesson is taking place.

haha! Silly mama...a more appropriate name might be "wear your child out before bedtime class" or "how to make ten toddlers happy by dancing and signing for half and hour" .  Either way...we are having fun.  And Max does seem to enjoy being in the water.  

 

 

We are doing the "lessons" at the Powell YMCA.  And title for the series was "Parent Child Swim Lessons" for children 6 -24 months.  After the first week going by myself fiasco, Papa Rob and myself have been switching on and off who gets in the water with Max.  The funny part is - anytime he sees either of us on the side, he yells "Mama, Mama!" or "Dada!" and wants to be brought over to the edge immediately for a quick little high five or acknowledgment of his awesome-ness. 

 

 

There are about ten children total (plus their adults). 

It's a private pool (that said it was heated but I strongly disagree. It might be a tad warmer than the "big pool" but Mama wouldn't mind if they kicked it up a few degrees".) The other nice part is that they send in a life guard to watch us the whole time. 

 

 

We sing lots of songs with movement built into them. 

For example..."motor boat, motor boat, go so slow" (spin child in a circle....slowly)

"motor boat, motor boat, go so fast" (spin the opposite direction a little faster).

"motor boat, motor boat, step on the gas" (change direction again and pick up the pace).

Max likes this one.

 

 

 

After we are all warmed up....the teacher dumps out a whole basket full of water toys!

Max really perks up when he sees the toys floating by. 

He shouts and points "duck! duck! duck!"...and we float over and he grabs it.

Then, the teacher asks us to sit them on the ledge of the pool and lure them to jump in

by waving around the water toys. Max LOVES doing his.  I think mostly because he gets

the toy back quickly (it's weird...this child of mine seems to have very little patience...no idea where he got that from...)

 

We also do "kicks off the wall" - which is probably the closest thing to a lesson that we actually do.

We place the bottom of Max's feet on the wall....scrunch them up, and push off! 

(like you would when pushing off the wall into a back stroke...or something).

Max seems to like this part too.

 

 

Just a few more laps, kick pushes, and back strokes...and he's practically Michael Phelps :)

 

 

 

Is Max Olympics bound in Summer 2028?

Luckily we have five more weeks of lessons to find out!

Xoxo

 

 

 



Around Here Lately

 

We are soaking up the last of the summer weather...

which means cool mornings with sweatshirts and hot afternoons

calling for an outfit change. Can't complain though...because

Max still loves being outside.  His new thing is side walk chalk.

He loves to pick up all the pieces and gets mad when he can't

fit them all in his hands.  Also, you may a hear a constant

chorus of "we don't put that in our mouth, Max" coming from

myself and Papa Rob. Ahhh toddlerhood.

 

We are also taking swimming lessons.  The word lesson should be used loosely.

It's more like "get ten babies in the water and they all start crying and then we

sing songs and jump off the ledge and take hundreds of pictures".

also, sidebar: I went by myself the first week and that was a huge mistake.

I couldn't carry all of our things, and Max, and get us out of the family

dressing room by myself.  Need proof? Ask the old lady who came running

after me with my polka dot bra (because I left it in the dressing room).

It was certainly one of those times where I wished I had three arms.

 

This weekend was two full days of amazing weather.  We pushed the family fun bar to the max!  haha!  But really, we hit up Fall Fest at the Zoo on Saturday and then Franklin Park Conservatory on Sunday. The Zoo was super crowded and made me want to pull my hair out. It's so hard to maneuver a stroller in crowds of thousands.  But, Max did seem to love all the animals (as usual) and I think we all did a fair amount of people watching. (What is it about the Zoo that attracts all the crazies?)

At the conservatory we ran into an old friend and who hooked us up with a really large butterfly to release!  I think Max's favorite spot was the room with all the windows that you can see the butterflies emerging from their cocoons/chrysalis's.  He would point and run from window to window.  I love the look on his face in the last picture...always full of wonder and excitement.  Sometimes I have to remind myself that often it's his first time experiencing things that might seem like old hat to Papa Rob and me. So many fun firsts to look forward too. :)

 

xoxo