THE NO NAP DAY

All I can say is, WTF? No nap. I guess I'll blame it on the boring ducks, or let's see...could bee that when you wake up at 4:30am you are tired around 9:00. Geez. Ryan fell asleep on our walk yesterday. I had to make a critical decision of turning around to head home, or letting him sleep 15-20 min so I could finish my walk. I looked down at my stomach that I hate, remembering I am trying to lose about 30lbs and kept on walking. He slept for exactly 20 min. I decided not to try and transfer him to the crib. IT WAS JUST TOO EARLY. I knew the afternoon would be hell if he was up from 10:00 til bedtime. I woke him up, he played, things were normal. I assumed he would go down around 12/12:30, but at 11:00 I could tell he was tired. I took him upstairs. He talked and played a while, then the whining started. He was in his crib for 1 hr 15 min and NEVER went to sleep. Holy Moly. I got him up and took him to get a haircut. Then we had lunch...still no sign of being tired. Then we hit CRITICAL MASS. The time in the afternoon when it is too late to nap. Napping this late will ruin bedtime. So, we had to push through. I cancelled my nail appt because I wouldn't be home in time for the early bedtime. My child was bathed and in bed at 5:30. Did not hear a peep from him til 4:50am! Then he took another little nap (or played quietly in his crib which is very unusual) til 5:30. He has already been asleep for 45 min so it is already a better day today!!!

Senor Head meet Mr. Cement

Yes, Ryan had the big fall Sunday. Forehead to cement. I cannot get the sound out of my head. I'm glad I didn't actually see him hit. This whole climbing thing is getting out of control. He also does "jump spins" on the bed and couch and has no fear. Scares me to death. Luckily this fall was not from a standing position. He had already climbed into the chair and the mean mommy that I am made him sit down. That is no fun so he decided to get down. I saw him start to ease himself down and looked away. The chair wobbled and he went forward. Ethan grabbed him and we could already see a bump forming. Surprisingly, he only cried for about 2 min. 2 hrs when he burnt his fingers. He is a strong little boy and as soon as he realized daddy still had cereal left in the bowl he was A-OK.

What else? Oh yeah, I'm back at the gym. I hate it. But I went 3x last week, and am on track for 3 this week. I'm also walking 2 miles in the AM, 6 days a week. The only problem with the walking is that Ryan has been falling asleep in the stroller and that totally throws off naptime, which throws off bedtime. Vicious vicious cycle. I would fall asleep if I were him too. The ducks have not been putting on a good show lately. The last few days they are laying on the lawn, heads tucked into their wings, SLEEPING.

No more straw cups!

If you are not the parent of a child who uses a straw sippy cup, or specifically, the person in charge of washing them, then you won't care. BUT I CARE. Ryan was never able to tip his own bottle. NEVER. So, for an entire year, he had to be held to drink his bottle. I tried every sippy cup out there but no luck. He would put it in his mouth, but never tilt it back. At 1yr we got rid of the pacifier and bottle all at once (Thanks Davis!). We also realized he was really good at sucking with a straw, especially if it was soda. I found this great sippy/straw cups by Nuby. They saved our lives. Ryan had the big cup for water/juice, and the smaller cup with handles for milk. But like all good things, they must come to an end. The cups started leaking. The threads were worn so the caps wouldn't stay on or tighten correctly. And the tubes...ug. The actual straw is built into the cap, but there is still a tube that needs to be attached. You have no idea how many went down the drain. We had 5 milk cups, and 2 tubes. I just couldn't take it anymore. So, last week I put more juice than water in a regular sippy cup and gave it to him. He was like "no problem mom." Like he had been tipping forever! I no longer have to keep track of tubes, or which cup leaks the worse, or which green lid goes best with which green cup, etc. Woo hoo.

B&N update: i got an e-mail confirming they got my e-mail and i'm supposed to get a response between 24-48 hrs. The 48hrs will be this afternoon. Hmmm.

Look...a shorter blog. Seriously, the blog about last weekend was outrageous. Sorry.

We could possibly be getting schedulized...and I'm annoyed at Barnes & Noble

For 3 mornings in a row, Ryan has woken up at 5:00...and napped at 10:30 OR LATER. WOO HOO. I hope this is the beginning of a beautiful schedule. But I also know he is approaching 2, and getting to the age where he should nap after lunch...but hey, we'll take what we can get from this kiddo. I'll have to do a separate blog one day about our sleep struggles with him (let's just say he didn't sleep through the night til he was 1)...oh, and I also need to do a blog about HOAs. I should have a "to do blog" list.

So, yesterday Ryan and I went to B&N. I got an e-mail coupon for a new book by Jane Green. Love her. Totally chick lit. Oh..i should do a blog on chick lit. Anywho...I have to say I never thought I would be a chick lit reader. I have an English degree, my focus is british literature. Literature-shmiterature...i love chick lit.

I look in the "new release" section, on every table, including "beach reads," then head over to the general fiction section where her other books are. Nothing. I do this two or three times because I hate asking for help, then find it exactly where I was! I also need to mention Ryan was with me (duh). No stroller...just walking behind me, charming the ladies. Seriously, he is gonna get all the girls. As I was on my way out I decided to stop at the cashier desk and ask. I didn't want to make a trip for nothing. The girl checked the computer, said the book should have been out today, then proceeded to check everywhere I checked. She decided to call the manager. Can you believe the manager told her to tell me "i'm too busy, either she can wait or go home and call and someone can help her on the phone."

WTF

Yeah, i'm gonna wait around with a 19m old who has been extremely patient (but that only lasts so long) for an unspecified amount of time. Or better yet, I'll go home, call, you have the book..then what? Are you gonna throw it to me from across town? Once we're home, we're home for good. In a last ditch effort the cashier told me to check with the help desk, maybe they knew something. They were nice, but ofcourse, checked all places we already checked. I specifically told the guy not to call his manager because he/she is too busy. Total wasted sarcasm cuz he didn't get it :(

I told Ethan about it last night and he told me to send an e-mail to customer service, which I just did today. I am more bothered about it today...especially because the coupon expires on the 25th and I really wanted this book. No wonder I used to use Amazon w/ free shipping!

Happy Father's Day! & our weekend

Well, I still haven't "invited" Ethan to the blog...but I will, so I thought I would say Happy Father's Day to him. Seeing him with Ryan is so awesome. They are like two peas in a pod. Seriously. They are constantly wrestling or acting silly. Ryan's face lights up everytime he sees his daddy, and he basically ignores the rest of us. Since they have limited time during the week they can make up for it on the weekend. The best best best part is that Ethan enjoys spending time with Ryan. Its not a chore for him. That is a real daddy.
So, the weekend...

Friday night Ethan went to the (no kill) bullfights with my brother, sister, and her roommate. This is part of the yearly Portuguese "festa" (festival or celebration). Last weekend was the crowning of the queens, the big soupas dinner, and the queen's parade. As I kid I went to th parade with my grandma every year. We always sat near the library, and watched as the parade marched from The Portuguese Hall to St. Bernard's church for mass. I wanted to be a queen so bad when I was little. BAD. I MEAN REALLY BAD. They wear beautiful white dresses that look like wedding dresses (and now that I'm older I think they are) and the most gorgeous velvet capes. The capes have sparkles and embroidery and usually some type of design or family crest. Let us not forget the crowns. Oh...it should have been me. But, no one in my family wanted to travel every weekend to take me to other parades cuz you gotta march at all the festas. Sometimes we would discuss it and they would say "we could get you in"....apparently politics were also involved. My dad's family is active int he portuguese community so it could have happened. I didn't care, I wanted in! But, alas, it never came to be. My first year back in town I had to boycott. So sad. But I read in the paper the queens (there is a big queen and a little queen) weren't even from Tracy. What is that about? All those years I lived in Tracy and wanted to be a queen and now they are getting them from other cities. Well, that is not acceptable. My dad told me he thought the president of that years festa gets to pick his queens. Um....I don't like that. But, I guess that is the politics they were talking about years ago. But even then, I knew I was destined for a crown or tiara. Just you wait. We'll see if my beautiful little boy, who is 1/4 portuguese will be an escort for one of the queens when he gets older. We might not be available. I hold grudges. Its a portagee thing...yes, i can portagee but you can't. Its just one of those things. Anyway...
So Ethan went to the bullfights where he was surrounded by portagees and totally out of element. I watched a lot of HGTV and the movie In Her Shoes.

Saturday started off rocky. I got about 3 hrs sleep. Luckily Saturday's are daddy morning. I got to stay in bed til 8, but the dogs took turns jumping on and off the bed so I never really slept. Ethan took Ryan for their morning walk to the neighborhood pool/play area after breakfast. No one is really around that early in the AM and Ryan can put his feet in the pool, then play on the tot lot. We headed off to the farmer's market around 9:00. They have the best cherrys. There is also a local baker there and we are in love with her. I so want to be her BFF. Ethan adores her cinnamon pull apart bread and I usually get an apple tart or turnover--whatever. Its all good. We also got some bbq chicken skewers, lumpia, and pancit to take home for lunch. YUMMY. Did I mention I had a doughnut? 2 actually. After the morning I had, I needed one. I also realized I hadn't had one since I was pregnant. I will have to devote an entire blog to why I only slept 3 hrs. Basically, I am a terrible sleeper.

After Ryan's nap we headed to Stockton for the Children's Museum. Ryan had a blast. He was rockin his camo shorts that have bugs on them, and a shirt that has a bug and it says Little Stinker. I LOVE THAT OUTFIT. The museum has real (but old) fire trucks, ambulances, helicopterss, cop cars, tractors, etc. Its very hands on. They also have a little bank section, post office, and grocery store. We skipped the art room...couldn't mess up the outfit! We spent the afternoon running after Ryan. He just goes from one thing to the next...literally running. No meltdowns. Good day. We had him in bed by 6:30. He had been up since 12 so we were right on. We ordered take out chinese and Ethan watched Miami Vice...i just couldn't do it.

Apparently the neighbors wanted to be outside in their backyard til 3am! Yes, noisy. Not loud music noisy, just talking/laughing noisy. Ofcourse the windows are open. Ethan doesn't like the AC on at night, and it had cooled to 78 @ 7:00 and there was a breeze. I went to bed around 9:30, I was so exhausted I was able to tune out some of it, but everytime I woke up (or they woke me up) I heard them and looked at the clock. Then at 3:45 I heard Ryan. I'm thinking "NO WAY." Yes way mommy! Luckily for us he wakes up pretty happy and usually stays in his crib for 30 min. We never get him up before 5:00 (unless he is screaming). I hoped he would go back to sleep. I don't think he did and at 5:15 I got the "i'm not whining anymore, this is going to turn into real crying" so I got him. He played in our room for a while, and we were downstairs at 6:30. Sundays are mommy morning. I would like to mention that he seems to always wake up the earliest on Sundays.

I made him breakfast, then started the macaroni salad for later today. Ryan played with his cars and we watched some of his Letters dvd. When Ethan got up we took the dogs for a walk, and Ryan napped at 9:30. As my previous post said, we cannot get schedulized. We went to my parents for a Father's Day bbq. Yum. Ethan got a Honda S2000 Parking sign for the garage and an ice cream maker. We left around 5:00 and Ryan fell asleep on the way home! We only live about 10min away. See what happens when you wake up from a nap at 11?????? Seriously, he doesn't listen to me about this stuff. We threw him in the bath and had him in bed at 6:15. He played in his crib til 6:45 and fell asleep. Wonder what time he'll wake up tomorrow.

I'm catching up on my blogs and Ethan is watching a ridiculously lame movie about zombies. I finished my last book so I should run to B&N. Ethan wants me to get a library card. He doesn't get that I like to own books...I like to have them around me. Its just one of the things where we are so different.

That was our weekend. This possibly could be the longest blog ever.

We cannot get schedulized

Yesterday I decided we were staying home. It was just too hot. I set the AC for 80 (trying to be responsible) instead of waiting for the house to get monstrously hot and then taking 4 hrs to cool down. Everytime Ryan went outside he took a few steps and gave me a weird look. I kept telling him "too hot." He got the gist. It was at least 100 yesterday. I didn't drive by "the bank" but I just know these things. "The bank" is the the bank that has a digital temp reading on the outside of the building. So, when anyone tells you how hot it is here you know they just drove by "the bank." Its at a very central location, but I have never met anyone that actually banked at "the bank."

Ryan took an early nap again yesterday-9:30. He was only asleep about 50 min. So uncool. I tried to put him down for a second nap around 2:00 but that didn't fly. He played, then cried. I at least got 45 min to myself. So, ofcourse that meant another early bedtime. We just can't shake this cycle of early wake-ups, early naps, early bedtimes. I was able to keep him awake til 10am today and I'm hoping that is progress. I keep telling him, see what happens when you wake up at 4:45? I don't think he cares.

We are picking up pictures at Walmart today, then visiting uncle and grandma. We also need to wrap father's day gifts. Tomorrow we are heading to the Children's Museum. I really wanted us to do a family thing outside but as I mentioned in an earlier post--its hotter than butt. The museum looks fun on the website so I hope it is. I love to watch Ethan and Ryan together out in public. He is the "parent in charge" and he gets to experience all of Ryan's craziness. I, ofcourse, will pack a bag, make sure he has snacks and juice, but Ethan is still in charge. Thats how it goes around here on the weekends. Except I have mommy duty on Sunday mornings. Ethan gets one day to sleep in...and it is father's day. We're also gonna hit the farmer's market before we go. Who knew my small little town would have something cool!

Hotter than butt

Well, if you're not from here then you don't get it! My friend Melissa said that one day and it just stuck. We were roommates in college for a while too and it was our favorite saying. Sacramento in the summer....yeah, hotter than butt. Today it was 98 at 5:00pm. Why did I move back here? Oh, thats right...Ryan gets to grow up with his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Ethan and I get some free time. Worth it---yes. But still, its hotter than butt.

Ryan fell asleep during our morning walk so that screwed up the day. I tried to tire him out by taking him to an indoor play area I just found about 20min away. Think Kidsville in RB but not as cool. He lasted just under an hour. There were meltdowns since he couldn't have his cup, then he couldn't have a snack, etc. I was not gonna pay for stuff I had in the car and since I couldn't bring it in, it was time to go. Plus, I already had to buy $2 socks since I didn't bring any. And yes, I did wonder about that before I left, but socks make you slip on those jumpy/slide things. Whatever.

We spent some time with Uncle Eddie. Then grandma and grandpa got home so Ryan got to go outside and feed the kitties. He loves that. Then another meltdown cuz he wanted to stay outside. This time grandpa decided to wash the car so we all went out front and Ryan got to play with the house until grandpa needed it which again meant ANOTHER MELTDOWN.

Other meltdowns:
mommy wouldn't let him bring his milk cup in the bath
mommy wouldn't let him bring his water cup AND milk cup to bed

Needless to say, my kid was in bed at 5:50pm tonight. His usual is 6:30. But on a day where he was been awake since 10:30 am it is required. 10:30 is when he usually takes a nap! He should have taken a second nap and I was hoping for that on the way home from Go Bananas (the play place) but it didn't happen. By then we had hit the time where it was too late for a nap so we had to push through to bedtime.

Icing on the cake: when I got home at 5:00pm it was 85 downstairs and 90 upstairs. Now, i am a responsible utility user and don't turn on the AC when I'm not home. I MAY BE RE-THINKING THAT.