Mama!

I love hearing the word mama again. All weekend that was all I heard. When I got him up in the morning, when I put him down for naps, when I would leave the living room to go to the bathroom, all the time! It is so sweet when I leave the room, he will come down the hall yelling mama? Mama? And when I answer him he runs to me. It is the sweetest sound ever and I get all mushy when I hear it. When he woke up Sunday morning I heard him talking in his bed and then I heard him start yelling for me. Best thing to wake up to. When I walked in he said mama! And pointed to his diaper and said pee, it was full from overnight.

Double Dates

Saturday was such a nice day. It was 81 and not windy. We just had to have an outside date. We took lunch to the park for a picnic and some playing. Monks took his push and pop toy and we walked the track across from the zoo and fed ducks. When he saw them he walked right up to the water and stared at all of them. I asked him what the duck says and he barked. I said no monkey they say quack quack! After he knew what they said he pointed and walked the whole way saying “cack! cack!” Sweetest quack ever? It was hilarious. We crossed a little wooden bridge over some water and when we got to it, he stopped and looked down and lifted his hand for Daddy to take it. He would not walk across it without you holding his hand but as soon as you crossed it, he let go. He did not push his toy, he dragged it behind him the whole time. He barked at several dogs and quacked at all the ducks. He even told a little girl bye. It was a fun day and he was ready for his nap when we got home.

That evening, Devin and I had our date night. We had a great time. Tio and Tia stayed with Monks and as soon as we got home, I could not wait to hear the stories. Tio said that Monks kept saying mama and he would tell him I was not there and told him to say Tio and he did! He said it three times in a row. He also loved playing in a tub for his cars and wanted to be pushed around the living room. Tio put that video on You Tube and once I am at home, I will add it to the blog! Our first video! He said they ate and played and had lots of fun. I also saw a video of Monks putting a book on his head and then when it fell he would yell whoa and laugh hysterically. Too cute. Tia said that about 8 he started rubbing his eyes and so she got him ready for bed. Thanks guys for watching our sweet boy while we enjoyed each other!

House Hunters

Friday after work Devin and Monks picked me up and we met Tio and Tia at a house they were looking at buying. We saw 5 different houses in 2 hours and he was such a good boy! I was so proud of him. He just walked around looking at everything in each house and carried Tia’s tape measure for her. He even warmed up to the realtor and was close to him at times just talking and talking. The cutest part was at the last house, it was already dark out and we walked through a “jack and jill” bathroom (hate that name fyi) and Monks had been in the hall but when we walked out of the room the realtor turned off the lights in there and we heard this yell and out came Monks running. We did not realize that he had gone back through one of the rooms and bathroom. Poor guy. We had a good laugh.

Tacos Anyone?

Uncle Phil works at Taco Bell and last night Tia put his apron and hat on Monks and took this pic. He was pulling the hat off but he still looks so sweet.

My Sweet Boy Knows Me Again!

Okay, so it had really been like a month since Aikman has called me Mom, Mama, Mommy, anything. Just one day I became Daddy. When I come home from work I am greeted with a hug and kiss and "Daddy!" even though he knows who Daddy is. I would correct him and say mommy and he would smile and still hug me and say Daddy. Um, okay. At least I still get the hugs and kisses.

Last night we went to Gigi's and we were watching Idol and he came out of another room and was just yelling Mama! Mama! Gigi looked at me and we both were like omg! since we had not heard it in so long and I said I am here monkey and he walked up to me, saying Mama over and over again, and reached for me. I picked him up and he wrapped his arms around my neck and kissed me with the hugest open mouth kiss I have ever received. I felt his teeth on my lips lol When he leaned back he said Mama and smiled at me. I was on cloud nine and my heart exploded! Sigh.

Silent Treatment

Yesterday I had some picture frames on a table and a Valentine’s tin. Aikman was trying to put his car on the table and he hit my frames several times. I told him not to play up there and moved his car. He then put it back and moved a frame as he pushed his car. I then spanked him and took his car and told him not to touch. He cried for a few seconds and went in his room. He came out about three minutes later to get his push toy thing with those balls that pop and I said what you got monks and he turned and gave me a look like I am not talking to you yet and went back in his room. I turned to look at Devin and we both smiled and Devin said someone is mad at you and I said I guess so. A few minutes after that he crawls up on the couch by me with a book and I put my head in his lap and he read to me.

It was kind of sweet to me that he realizes feelings and was like you hurt mine, so you get the silent treatment but sad to think of that little look he gave me. Guess that is part of being a mommy. Oh well, the great definitely outweigh the not so great.

Fumble!

Sunday we cleaned up and watched football. I was finishing cleaning Monk’s toys while he sat with Devin and they had snack and watched the first game. We were pulling for the Packers and once when the Bears had the ball, I heard Devin yelling come on fumble! Fumble! Fumble! And then all of a sudden Monks yelled Fumble! He said it so clear and with such excitement! Devin said did you hear him babe and I said yep and we both laughed. I came out to look at them and he was just sitting in Daddy’s lap eating apples with fruit dip and he claps when Devin does or yells when he yells. Nothing sweeter than seeing my two favorite men enjoying some football!

Spicy Sausage = Sneaky Monkey

Saturday morning we made eggs with sliced jalapeno sausage in it. I think the sausage is hot so we just gave Monks some eggs. I should have known better. As soon as saw the sausage on our plates he immediately pointed and said bite about 20 times before Devin gave him some. I was against it because it is hot but he loved it. He ate about 5 pieces and his eggs. My tough boy. J

After we ate, Devin and I sat on the couch watching a movie and Aikman played with all his cars in the recliner. He then saw Devin’s plate on the TV tray next to the chair. He leaned over the chair and grabbed a piece of sausage and ate it. He did it with the remaining three pieces and then went to play in his room. It was so funny how he reached for it and ate it like nothing and when he would notice us watching him, he would pause and smile and then go about his business. Too cute.

Our Ultrasound!

Yesterday we had our first ultrasound for Baby A! I was 13 weeks exactly and it was so exciting. How is a heartbeat the most precious sound in the world? Gosh, it is amazing. Our little guy/girl was a steady 153 beats per minute. She did confirm there is only one baby lol I hope you can see it in the pics! You can see the head, the body below and the dot by the head is its hand! It was waving at us. J I can’t wait for the next few months and we could not be happier. I showed Monks the pics when I got home and tried to point it all out and he smiled and laughed. He will be such a sweet big brother!

After the appointment, Devin brought me back to work and in the car he said I did not get a kiss since the appointment and so I kissed him and he thanked me for giving him two perfect babies and said he could not wait! My hormonal pregnant self just melted. J He is so sweet. I refer to the baby as “he” usually because I am like 70% sure it’s another sweet boy for us and I said I can’t wait to meet him and Devin said don’t say that and I said what and he said well, I kind of want a girl now. I was in shock. A few weeks ago he told Gigi he did not want a girl because he did not want to pay for a wedding! And then he told me he did not want a girl because he was not about to deal with boys and now he wants a baby girl. That made me laugh. She sure would have him wrapped around her finger that’s for sure!

Our precious baby!! I just wanna kiss it already!

17 Months!

Thursday Monks turned 17 months old!! Man, this time is flying by too fast. Each day brings something new and he surprises us daily with new words and actions.

He says: daddy, mama, Gigi, Apollo, bite, hi, bye, yeah, no, down, car, dog, kitty, book, pee (I am sure there are a few more but I am drawing a blank) and I have not heard mom or mama in like 3 weeks. All of a sudden “daddy” is the magic word to him. Silly monkey.

He loves: cars, barking, reading, baths, eating, Apollo, family, dancing and singing.

I also think he is getting close to being ready for potty training. I just talked to one of my friends whose son is like 2 weeks older than Aikman and we were saying that we would wait until they were 2 to start but lately Monks will grab his crotch and say pee or when he goes #2 and you ask him if he popped he will grab his bottom and if he has he gone, he will go to his changing table. He grabs his diaper when he goes and lets you know. Makes me wonder if he might be ready sooner, but I don’t want to rush it in anyway. I guess we will just take it day by day! He sure would be precious in some little undies!

Yummy In Monkey's Tummy!

Wednesday night Tia made us some delicious taco salad at Gigi’s for dinner. I made monks a plate with meat and beans and sprinkled some cheese on it and then gave him some rice she made. In the time it took me to make my plate and sit down he had already cleared his plate and was ready for seconds. My little monkey loves his Tia’s cooking, that’s for sure! So he had two full plates plus dessert. She made these delicious sugar cookies with cream cheese icing and topped them with sliced strawberries! She gave monks a strawberry to eat whole and he was eating it and then she made the mistake of putting a dot of the icing on it and he sucked it off and each time he would suck it off he would go back to her and hold up his berry (hardly anything left) and would want more. Pretty soon, he just had his fingers pinched together with no strawberry left and wanting icing on his finger. Crazy kid. We then watched Idol as he played on the floor in the living room. He grabbed two pillows off the couch and was diving on them and laughing and laughing. Then he was coming close to the chair legs and the ottoman feet so I put another pillow on the ground and everyone gave him pillows around them so he could play with. He loved being covered in them and just having his head show. He would die laughing when you would barely push him and he would fall into the pillows. I guess those pillows were not enough because he left the living room for a little while and when he strolled back in he was dragging one of the fancy queen sized pillows from Pete’s bed. I said monkey, where did you get that and he just smiled and set it on his stack and dove on them.

Snap Into A Slim Jim!

Monday we went to the grocery store and at the checkout Devin grabbed a Slim Jim. He took a few bites in the car and monks was so upset no one would share with him. So I bit off a small piece and gave it to him. He ate it and reached for more. I then just gave it to him to carry in when we got home to unload the groceries and he started gnawing on it right away. I got this sweet pic of him. I thought it would be too spicy for him but he loved it. Not the healthiest thing he could eat but he was happy.

Coming Through!

Monks loves Hot Wheels. He has a zillion of them and we find them in the car, under the couch, under beds and even at Gigi’s. He recently got a fire truck with a ladder that raises about ¼ of an inch and he loves to lift it. He will get about six of them at a time and play. The other night he lined them up the couch and then took them and put them one by one in a pouch in his diaper bag and then set them one by one from the bag to behind it and finally he took one by one to the entertainment center and lined them up. This entertains him forever. He loves to just get them in a line and then change their location.

Hi!

Sunday night Devin was asleep and I was waiting on our dinner to cook and I was watching some horrible corny Lifetime Movie. The lady was about to get killed (of course) and was walking down stairs saying Hello? Hello? and monks was on the couch playing with his cars and he turned to the TV and looked up and said Hi!! Such a well mannered little guy.

Sweet Reader

My monkey is so smart. He loves to read and I will find a way to upload videos. He gets a book and sits and reads for about thirty minutes, just talking and talking. 99% of his words are not real but to hear his tone and emphasis and see his face is amazing. He even went so far as to move his arm and hands the other day like he was really into it. It was so adorable to watch. When he goes to bed he asks for a book and when he first wakes up he will point at them on the shelf and say book over and over until you get him. He needs one when he gets his diaper changed and I would say his favorite right now is There’s A Wocket In My Pocket by Dr. Seuss. We love the Nupboards J

Tio Has A Nickname

Yesterday when we took a lunch break so Gigi could sleep while getting her treatments, Tio and I got food and took it back to our house to eat and so Devin could have the Tahoe to take Monks to the doctor since the heat in his truck does not work. As we loaded in the car to leave, Monks and I were in the back and Tio walked around to get in the front. As he passed the windshield, Monks pointed at him and yelled "Joe-gi!" I said Joe-gi? that is Tio and he was convinced that his uncle is Joe-gi. So we joked about that all last night and we shall see if he calls him it today.

Rough Night But Happy Results

Thursday was a little crazy for us but it turned out to be a great day. Wednesday night about 11:30 Monks woke up just screaming and screaming. I calmed him down and he was burning up! He had not had fever all day. I gave him some Motrin and then made the huge mistake of giving him some milk to drink. He got upset when I put him back to bed and was just crying hysterically. I picked him up and he was crying so hard he was gasping for air and started to cough and yep, threw up all over the both of us. Milky throw up does not smell too great and I was trying to undress him while not getting it on my face from my shirt and hair and it was rough. It was so sad to see him so upset and once he calmed down he stood there in his diaper with little teary eyes and pointed at Apollo and said “Paw-yoh” and then went and grabbed his Tonka truck and started pushing it around the living room all smiles. It was 12:30 and I was not really feeling playing right then. I put him back in bed and he slept for about 45 minutes and then woke up crying again. I would rock him and after about 30 minutes would lay him back down only to have the same thing happen about an hour later. At 3 he was so unhappy and I took him to bed with me (he does not like laying in big beds) and I was rubbing his back while he had his head on my stomach and sat on his knees. He was so sweet just laying on me and even fell asleep. He woke again a little while later and we went back to his room for rocking and soothing and he slept until 6 and then did not go back down until 7 and woke when Devin came in at 7:20. We decided to just keep him up. He had a popsicle for breakfast and ate it all and I got ready to take Gigi to chemo and when I left at 8:40, Monks was watching Handy Manny in bed with Daddy and he looked very sleepy. Devin went and put him in his bed and he went right to sleep. My poor exhausted monkey.

Monks had a doctor’s appointment at 3:20 that afternoon and he was so sweet waiting to see the doctor. He was playing with his cars and even told a little boy hi and stood in front of him. I don't know why I was so paranoid it was the flu even though he had his flu shot. He was swabbed for strep and thankfully that came back negative so it was just an infection in his throat and he got a prescription and stayed home with daddy again today. Devin and monks came by and surprised me at work with a new haircut! He was so sweet. He just smiled at all the girls up here but would not talk much. He was being shy. He seemed to be feeling better all ready and I look forward to a fun filled weekend!

Feverish Monkey

Well, sitter called and said Monks had a fever of 101.9 so I left to pick him. When I got there he came up to the gate and was just smiling and then started waving bye to everyone and even blew a kiss. I then took him home and dropped him off with Daddy. I gave him some Ibuprofen and he wanted his cup so I put some V8 Splash in it and he was drinking it and just as happy as can be. I don’t know if it is teeth related since that is so high, but I never know! Since Monks will be asleep for a good 2.5 to 3 hours I am just going to call in the morning and take him to Dr. Steadman so we can be sure. I just hate to have to wake him and take him today. My poor guy. That explains last night. Hope its not an ear infection. :(

Rough Day

Aikman was very silly at the sitters yesterday. When I got his daily report his dad informed me he did not take his nap. Mrs. Jennifer said he only wanted to clap and sing and so he would lay on his mat and kept clapping and waiting for her to sing with him. She tried patting his back and soothing him but he kept smiling and clapping and humming. So she just got him up to not wake the other kids. She said he did great all day and then about two minutes before Devin walked in the door, Monks had pulled a little girls hair and was put in time out. He had a meltdown in time out. Devin said when he walked in he heard crying and thought someone is not happy and then he realized it was Monks! He was so upset he was in time out, not to mention he was tired, and Devin said he was crying uncontrollably and he could not catch his breath. Devin said even on the walk outside to the car he was sobbing and when he buckled him in he started to sing to him to calm him down and he was upset still. Devin said at the end of the block he stopped and Devin turned to him and he was asleep. He said when he got him home, he took off his coat and hat and put him in his bed and he put his little butt up in the air and was out. He slept for 2 hours.

By the time he woke up, I was home from work and he felt a little warm but seemed okay. We gave him some Ibuprofen and he was picky with dinner. He only ate tomatoes and cucumbers. He did drink two whole cups of juice though. Tio and Tia had come over (Gigi said it was too cold to come out so we just took her leftovers) and Tia had made some cookies and cheese bread and Monks turned down a cookie! My poor guy, something was not right. He must have just been tired because when Tia and I came back from Walgreens and Gigi’s, he was playing with his train and dancing to a song on Tio’s phone. He also got very excited about a piece of sour candy and even though it took him long to eat it, he enjoyed it. He slept all night and woke up in a great mood so I think he was just sleepy.

When I dropped him off this morning he went right to the table to play with Peyton, Mrs. Jennifer’s 3 year old daughter. Peyton calls him “Ache-uh-men” I am sure he will have a good day today.

Late Night Monkey

Friday night we went to Gigi’s and ate dinner and played games. Monks is always in bed by 8:30 at the latest but since we were all off the next day we stayed until 10 and he was still going strong. Most people will say don’t wind a baby up or play with it before bed so they have time to calm down but Monks loves being active and then he lays right down at bedtime. I swear he is just too perfect. J Anyway, we had all the cushions off of Gigi’s couch and her chair and we had them on the ground and he had so much fun being pushed into them, being tackled on them and just diving into them. He would dive and get right back up and go at it again. We all sat around in the living room just watching him and taking turns playing with him. I swear he did this for over an hour. It is scary to watch sometimes but I swear the rougher they are with him, they harder he laughs. He is definitely my little tough guy. He is so happy and I love that. On the way home he looked tired in his car seat and he was excited to see Apollo when we walked in but still went straight to bed. I was a little surprised he woke up at 8 the next morning, but he sure made up for it with his 4 hour nap during the day.  

Singing Songs

Monks loves singing songs! His favorites are:

Toot! Toot! Peanut Butter! ( he loves the toot part)

If You’re Happy And You Know It (he loves to stomp and says tomp! tomp!)

The Itsy Bitsy Spider (makes the most precious spider that climbs and his rain coming down is perfect)

Pat-A-Cake (his roll it up, roll it up looks like he is doing a little cumbia) I love it!

He loves to dance and sing! His dancing is precious because depending on the music, he will bob his head, move side to side, sway, or just straight boogie! I know I have mentioned it before but he loves this I pad commercial where it’s just a keyboard playing. He will come from another room and dance and the other day he was on the couch, had to get down and ran to dance in front of TV. He then moon walked! Lol It was so funny, he walked backwards moving his arms. I wish I had the video!!

Every Dog Has Its Day

Monks is obsessed with cars and dogs. Not the actual dog itself, but their bark. Anytime he hears a dog bark, he barks. When he sees dogs on TV, he barks. He just loves to bark and has a mighty sweet bark if I may say so myself. The other day we went to Gigi’s and a house a few doors down has two boxers and they were barking. As soon as I put Aikman on the ground, he walked toward the dogs barking and pointing. It was hilarious.  Then one of those abused animals commercial came on with the sad music and he barked at them and then they showed a cat and he barked and I said no monkey, cats say meow. Then he saw a squirrel on another commercial and looked at me and barked but he barked like arf? As if to say well, does this thing bark? It was so precious!

Monkey Was Jealous

Last Saturday Devin came and sat in my lap in the recliner and we kissed and were cuddling and Monks was playing with his truck. He then saw us and came over and wanted to be picked up and sit with us so we both lifted him and he wiggled in between us and looked at Devin and kissed me three times and then looked back at Devin and put his head on my chest. It was so funny like he was telling Devin this is my mommy!! I love those moments!

Happy New Year!

So this is 7 days late but Happy New Year! We had a wonderful New Year’s Eve. Devin and Tio both had to work that night, Law Enforcement never gets holidays of course, but we still had fun before they had to leave. Gigi of course came over and we had wings, pizza and salami and cheese with crackers. Tia graciously shared her giant bag of pistachios with us and it was so cute because Aikman loved them! He would occasionally have a green crumb on his chin. Gigi made us for dessert this white chocolate popcorn and some bars with all kinds of yummy stuff in them! We all ate and then played games. We played Don’t Tip The Waiter (one of Monkey’s games but he did not mind) and the Game of Things! At 9:00 we toasted our sparkling grape juice and the girls wore tiaras and we did a countdown in the living room and we rang in the New Year! Tio and Tia then left (poor Tia had no one to drink her wine with L) and Gigi and I watched TV until ten when Devin took her home on his way to work. I was in bed by 10:20 and out by 10:30. I did wake up when everyone blew up my phone shortly after midnight and checked all my texts. Then I went back to sleep. Some might find my evening boring but spending time with family never gets old. I would not change a thing right now. I love my husband, my monkey and our baby on the way. 2011 will definitely be an unforgettable year.

Tonka Time

Monkey loves his Tonka truck so much! I am so glad he got one. He pushes that thing everywhere! He absolutely squeals with delight when he tries to run over Apollo’s feet. Correction, not tries, does. He runs at him full force and Apollo will sometimes get out of the way in time but sometimes he is stuck in a corner and can’t and he gets hit with the truck. Aikman laughs and laughs and changes directions and goes at it again. He will do this forever. He especially likes when Apollo jumps over the ottoman to escape. And before anyone feels sorry for Apollo, remember he is 4 times the size of Monks. J He likes it just as much as Aikman does.

Anderson......Family of 4!

We are very excited to announce in 2011 we will be expanding the Anderson family! We received the wonderful news that we are expecting a baby! It was a surprise but a great one! I have to admit I was a little nervous with everything going on with my mom but when that fear and doubt set in and I began to pray I knew I had nothing to worry about. I felt a little guilty for even questioning, well is this the right time? Seriously? There is not a better time!

We could not wait to tell our family and Devin wanted to wait until Christmas but um, this was December 9^th and there was no way I could wait that long. You could not pay me to wait that long. I wanted to call my mom right then! So we found out on a Thursday by home test and received a definite confirmation the next day so Saturday morning we ran around like mad people to find a Big Brother shirt for Monks. I saw the most precious one on Etsy but really could not wait that long so we went and had one made that said “Soon To Be Big Brother”. After many texts and calls and bugging my brother and sister in law to death I finally had everyone at my mom’s house and we walked in with Monks wearing his shirt. Phil saw him first when we walked in and my mom was behind the tree decorating it and so everyone saw it but her and then finally she did. It was just as I imagined it! We cried and laughed and shared our whole story and just talked. Thanks guys for making that day perfect!