The Diaz Family

Preschool Christmas Program

2011-12-06T21:53:00.001-08:00

I don't want to forget how wonderful it was to watch our little guy in his very first Christmas program. BAM! I'm back to blogging. I have kicked myself almost daily for not blogging sooner, so here I am.

Tonight was Diego's very first preschool Christmas program! We were so proud to watch him. Leading up to the program he was SO nervous. He would tell us he didn't want to go and the next minute be very excited to go.

When we arrived, he couldn't have been more excited! Eddie and I were very excited to watch him and all his cuteness.

They all marched down the center aisle of the Sanctuary ringing bells and got right in to their first song. Happy Birthday, Jesus! Which Diego has been singing at home for weeks now. After that song, Diego was pretending to fall and sitting down. His teacher finally had to pull him down closer to her so he could be monitored (that's our Diego!). I was actually glad because then we had a better view of him. He was so sweet when he was singing. The look on his face was absolutely precious. At the end of their last song, he let out a huge giggle, laughing at a baby that was seated in the first row. He always has a way of attracting attention to himself. It was adorable and made our night! After the kids were excused they showed a really cute slideshow of all the kids. The whole thing lasted about 30 minutes and it was absolutely perfect! We are so proud of our preschooler!

It's been a fun week, Indeed!

2011-06-09T21:48:00.000-07:00

I'm back for Fun Day Friday with Little Lucy Lu!

I don't have any pictures, BORING I know. But I was just too busy enjoying myself to run off and grab the camera.

We did yard work together this week. Not usually my idea of fun, but it was just nice to be outside and enjoy time as a family working on our home! Diego loves to pull weeds (YES!!) and thinks its "hard work" so we've got him started early on chores.

I mentioned this in an earlier post, but Diego and I did some swimming outside this week, and it was too much fun not to mention in my fun day friday post! Water wings have given him the freedom and independence in the pool he has been longing for. Even though I'm still right next to him, I can see the pride in his face when he can float without me holding him. LOVED IT! He's got 4 full weeks of swimming lessons coming up this summer, and I know he will just LOVE it!

Another fun thing for me this week? I'm getting ready to have a garage sale with one of my BFF's, Mindy. I have been so excited to price and get my loot ready to sell! Don't ask my why, but getting rid of the stuff we don't need/use in our house seems so freeing to me. I recently read that so many of us attach sentiment to items that just don't deserve it and having too much clutter in our home can actually be very unsettling. This made complete sense to me! I have a hard time relaxing at home because we have so much STUFF around. I have never been good at putting things in their place, mostly because I feel like we have too much stuff and not enough places to put it. Project house clean up is underway!

Diego helped me with some baking this week! He has never been too interested in helping me in the kitchen, I think he lacked the attention span and I might have possibly, just maybe, lacked the patience (I'm not known for my patience :), but this week, it just seemed to work beautifully. He scooped and dumped flour, sugar, baking powder, etc. He operated the crank sifter and even did some whisking! He seemed so excited to be up there helping and has been talking about it ever since! The results of our baking together was a HUGE success and we are still finishing the leftovers. We made Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars, TO. DIE. FOR. Saving the recipe for another post, but basically its a layer of brownies (not even from a box, impressive? Yes, I'm just sayin'), a layer of marshmallows and a layer of chocolate, peanut butter, butter and rice crispies all melted and stirred together. Talk about YUM!

Shopping fun! Diego has become a fun little shopping buddy, sans stroller. He hides in the clothing racks and thinks its hilarious and best of all, sticks by me for the most part. I have been on the hunt for some shorts for the summer that a) aren't too short b) are good colors and c) aren't "MOM" shorts (have you seen the SNL skit for MOM jeans? Go look, you'll get it). I found two pairs today at macy's! Yay! I couldn't find pics of them online to post, but I'm so excited!

The FUN BALL finally made it out of the box this week! My sister bought Diego this huge inflatable ball for his birthday and basically its a human hamster ball. And, he loves it! It was so fun to watch him get in and figure out how to roll himself around the yard and of course it didn't take long for him to realize it was A LOT more fun to have Mom or Dad PUSH him around the yard in it. I thought the idea was for him to get a bit of exercise from it? Nope, we get the workout. :)~ His buddy Lauren came over and tried it out with him too, and also LOVED it!

And, That's all folks! Next week I hope to have some pictures to show our fun, but for now, I'm OUT.

A Pile of Firsts

2011-06-09T21:16:00.000-07:00

This week, Diego has had a pile of firsts! Watching him go through these is like magic for me, whether they are good firsts, or challenging firsts, growing up is magical to watch. Don't get me wrong, I DON'T want my only child to grow up too quickly, and I'm drinking in every second of his small little self and all its glory.

:: We took our first trip of the season to the outdoor pool and our local gym. It was a gorgeous day and I couldn't pass up a little pool time with my little guy and some friends. He wore water wings (you know, the thingys that go on his arms to help him float?) and even though he resisted a little, it turned out fantastic! He LOVES the water and has recently been longing for a bit more independence in the pool. The water wings gave that to him! Even though I was still right next to him the whole time, just the fact that he could float on his own and jump in without me catching him was exactly what he needed!

:: We've had to step up our game a bit on the discipline lately and it has really paid off. He is finally old enough to understand that he has to stay in time out until the timer goes off. Up until now, he would just get up (no matter how many times I would put him back) and thought it was a big game. This last week, he has stayed put for his 3 minutes (for the most part) and got up when the timer goes off. I have seen a HUGE improvement in his ability to follow directions and listen to us. He knows we mean business and for as little effort it took, I wish we would have been a bit more firm a while ago, but hey, live and learn, right? He was a total angel today and I know it was because of the hard work we have all put in recently to guide him. I have also started paying WAY more attention to what he does right, than what he does wrong. It is so easy (especially with a 3 year old, amen?) to just say NO and STOP THAT all day without recognizing the little things he is doing wonderfully! Praise really is the key and even though I've known this all along, consciously making that effort has been quite rewarding to he and I both.

:: He has started to be even more interested in the music we listen to, just like me! He asks the song title and artist of almost every song we hear and will sing along really well after only hearing the song a few times. I have always been this way and hearing my son pick up on it is so fun for me! His current favorites are Edge of Glory by Lady GaGa (who has been a favorite of his for a while now), Dynamite by Taio Cruz and Honky Tonk Badonkadonk by Trace Adkins. He and I sang Honky Tonk Bandonkadonk (just that line) about 10 times at bedtime tonight and he giggled everytime he said badonkadonk. I LOVED IT! I love having someone to sing with!

:: Diego has always enjoyed memorizing words and parts of books. He usually has a favorite book we read over and over for a period of time before moving on to a new one and eventually he will memorize at least some of the words. His recent favorite is "Llama Llama Misses Mama" by Anna Dewndney. Most of the other books he has memorize pieces of are board books with far fewer words than this one. Tonight, he wowed me! He recited several pages of this book without any reminding from me. It felt like he was reading the book to me! He even used the same voice inflections as I use when I read it to him. It was incredibly sweet to hear. I need to take a video, something for me to watch over and over.

:: This isn't new, but Diego is an impressive copy cat. He will copy just about anything he hears or sees in others around him. He will mimic words and sounds and today at the park he even wanted to take off his shirt and shoes because another boy had taken his off (I said NO! LOL). Its pretty cute, but not so convenient when something inappropriate slips out of someone's mouth!

:: Another benefit to the stepped up discipline is Diego is cleaning up after himself very well! Cleaning up is something I used to dread doing with him because it was such a fight and many nights I would clean up after he was in bed, just to save myself from having to deal with the fit he would throw. This week though, he will clean up one toy before getting out another! YES! Now if only Eddie and I could do the same, we might occasionally have a picked up house!

:: A bit random, but today was our dog, Chloe's, 9th birthday. When I told Diego this morning he thought we should take her to NW Kids club to play and also buy her a new train as a present. (Thoughtful and smart little bugger, isn't he?) I did let him pick out a new toy for her at the store today. He chose a soft basketball for her and came home and gave it to her, it was really cute. He also recently found a small framed picture of Chloe I used to keep on my desk as work (before I had a child!) and it now sits on his dresser in his bedroom. And he often looks at it to make sure its still there and says "Chloe is my favorite dog ever." When we came back from vacation he said to her "Chloe, oh, I missed you so much!" Weird because he seems to always be frustrated with her because she is ALWAYS in his face. They are slowing becoming best buds and I love that we can go to other friends' house that have dogs and he isn't bothered by them. Big dogs used to always scare me and now that we have one of our own, its not as big of a deal.

:: Diego had TWO bloody noses yesterday. Totally freaky for me. I never had a bloody nose until I was 27 and pregnant (I cried and called Eddie at work because I was just sure it meant something was wrong with the baby or my blood pressure was REALLY high), so they are not familiar for me. It was first thing in the morning and we are not sure if he was picking his nose or it just happened, but it seemed to stop fairly quickly at home. Then about 30 minutes later we were in the car and it just started dripping blood. It was just him and I and I was downtown Salem and had really no place to pull over so I just kept handing him kleenex. He kept it under control for the most part and finally a kleenex stuck to it and soaked up the majority of the blood. It had stopped by the time we got home and he didn't seem bothered by it one little bit. He just said "I need to tell Jaycoby about my bleed." LOL Jaycoby is one of his little buddies who we see at least weekly. Diego likes to tell everyone about his owies, even if they are all healed.

Fun-Day Friday: Family Fun Edition

2011-05-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

Better late than never! So glad it's Fun-Day Friday again!

This last week we got to spend time with family we don't get to see very often, and we ALL had a great time!

Play Doh Fun with GG Lillian (3 of her 4 Great Grandchildren)

And the Beach, his favorite!

This is just a taste of our California fun! Look for more posts soon and Happy Sunny Fun-Day Friday!

Fun-Day Friday Disneyland Edition

2011-05-13T13:45:00.001-07:00

I can't actually link up for fun day Friday this week, but we have had the funnest (is that a word?) week ever so far! We flew to California on Tuesday afternoon and today is our third and last day at Disneyland before we get to spend some time with family.

This is Eddie and Diegos first visit and we are all thoroughly enjoying every moment! Today we decided to take a break in the afternoon for a nap and some swimming so we could go back when its dark. Disneyland really is the happiest place on earth!

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Diego's First Awesome 3000 Race

2011-05-07T21:44:00.000-07:00

The Awesome 3000 race was today! Leading up to the race, Diego has been so excited. The morning wasn't quite "awesome" but we made it, he ran (most of it), got a medal and a new book. The end. (There's more, but honestly, I'm gonna print a book someday with all these blog entries for us to read for years to come, and I'm pretty sure we don't wanna read about meltdowns. Ha!) First Awesome 3000, check!

Oh yes, Fun Day Friday is back again!

2011-05-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

I LOVED my first Fun-Day Friday post last week, and now Bec @ Little Lucy Lu has made it an official Link Party. This is the first link party I have participated in, and I am SO excited and hope to do more in the future. Want to join the fun? Click the link above, or the Fun-Day Friday button and follow Little Lucy Lu!

Here's the FUN going on in our HOUSE this week:

1. Diego is participating for the first time in the Salem Keizer Education Foundation's Awesome 3000! He's SO excited, be looking for a post on how the race went later this weekend! The Pre-K Race is 300 meters (3/4 of the track) and several of his little friends are going to be running as well. I can't wait to see how he likes it!

2. Next Tuesday we are leaving for vacation. I can hardly contain my excitement. We are taking our first family trip to Disneyland and visiting with family we adore and never get to see! This will be both Eddie and Diego's very first visit to Disneyland, and we get three fun filled days! Then 5 relaxing fun days with family! Thrilled!

3. I watched the Royal Wedding last weekend, it was beautiful. Even Eddie and Diego joined my strange compulsion to watch. And that was it. Totally. Over. It.

4. Diego and I spent time with a lot of friends this week. That's what I'm calling a fun week. Playdates, trips to the park, etc. Essentials for a SAHM!

5. REALLY excited for Mother's Day Breakfast with My Mom! Sassy Onion here we come! The menu looks amazing and I'm thinking Biscuits and Gravy are gonna be on the agenda for THIS MAMA!

"Hoppy" Easter!

2011-04-30T13:36:00.000-07:00

Easter was pretty low key, but a lot of fun this year!

On Easter morning, the Easter Bunny hid a few eggs and an Easter basket for a really excited little guy!

We hit the Ram for a yummy Easter brunch!

The day before Easter, we colored Easter Eggies with Grandma, Uncle Lance, Aunt Yuni, Jack and Benie. Diego really loved coloring the eggies with a crayon and then dunking them in the dye!

Diego LOVED participating in the MOMs Club Egg Hunt. He got 4 eggs, and you would have thought the boy had a HUGE basket full judging by his excitement! He was in heaven. And, he got a bit of Candy at 10 am, what could be better?

Just for Fun...

2011-04-30T13:21:00.000-07:00

~~Because I LOVE to get dirty.~~ Because DIEGO loves to get dirty. Because it was a rainy day and we had been inside. Because I wanted to take some fun pictures. I let Diego jump in the puddle that is our backyard, just for fun! Eddie is planning on fixing the yard soon, so I wanted to take advantage of the ~~dirty~~, ~~muddy~~ FUN puddle before its gone. We were outside for maybe 1/2 an hour and I took 300 pictures. I'm not even kidding. Eddie insisted on this ridiculously fancy camera about a year ago, and because its so big, I don't take it anywhere or use it nearly enough. But it captures a lot of fun things, like flying mud! The shutter speed is amazing, so taking 300 pictures is nothing! Here are my favorites:

Jumping in the puddles is pure delight for him~!

Flying MUD!

I love the Mid-Air pics, can you tell?

All over his face!

I just like this one, because I do.

Super cute profile pic of my boy, and it gives the false impression that our backyard actually looks nice (but it really doesn't right now). Ha!

Telling me something really important about the mud.

More flingin' mud, he just can't get enough!

Jumping, oh yeah!

He fell in the mud, and it was SO funny!

"One more time, Mama."

Then, we went in and immediately took a shower!

VooDoo Doughnuts

2011-04-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

We in the Diaz household LOVE doughnuts. Don't judge us, ok? And seriously, keep the cop/doughnut jokes to yourself! ;) (Bad Cop, NO DOUGHNUT!) I won't lie, I've used that slogan myself, in my house, to my husband, on several occasions. Fortunately, he has a great sense of humor, so it always ends in laughter.

Anyway, the real story here is, we made a spur of the moment trip to VooDoo doughnuts last week. Eddie tried to go to Dunkin Donuts, but I talked him into VooDoo. NONE of us were disappointed. I'm not kidding, once you go VooDoo, you don't wanna go back. They were SO good. I will say, though, I've honestly yet to taste a doughnut I didn't like (yes, I'm a fan of Hostess Chocolate Covered Donettes), but VooDoo was superb! Diego was extremely happy with his Froot Loop donut!

March for Babies

2011-04-30T11:53:00.000-07:00

This morning, Diego and I walked in the local March of Dimes "March for Babies". We did the 3K walk and Diego went sans stroller, meaning he walked almost the entire 3K (1.86 miles). He was such a great little walker! I did carry him a little bit, but he walked darn close to the whole thing, with a smile!

We walked for this sweet girl, Lauren Marie, born at 25 weeks and 4 days, weighing 1 lb 3oz, and for all other babies born prematurely! Lauren is almost 2 (May 20th is her birthday), and is truly a miracle. She's a spunky, adorable girl, with one of the cutest voices you'll ever hear. She's growing and developing perfectly now. She hit many milestones at an earlier age than Diego (including potty training, which she is currently working on and she is NOT EVEN 2). We are so thankful to be a part of this girls life. Her Mama is one of my BFF's and I'm so glad Diego and I got to walk this morning to support this cause!

Lauren's Team (a section of Team Heaven's Hope): Jami (Mommy), Adam (Daddy), Kari (friend), Diego and I. What a fun way to start our saturday!

Fun Day Friday - First Edition

2011-04-29T09:23:00.000-07:00

Bec over at Little Lucy Lu is thinking about starting a link up for her Fun Day Friday posts. I decided to jump in this week, even though I'm not exactly sure how this works. The theme for Fun Day Friday is to post about the fun things going on in your life. Thinks you are enjoying, recipes, crafts, fun plans, etc. What a great way to stay positive, right? So, here's what we're loving lately:

1. I finally figured out how to change the font on my blog. And, it wasn't hard at all. I've often neglected the look of my blog for months at a time thinking it would just take too much time or effort to make it look cute. My friend Mindy showed me how easy it is a few months ago. Yay for a semi-cute blog! Its a work in progress.

2. I'm loving my new interest in blogging. I'm discovering how much I enjoy writing as much as I enjoy reading others blogs!

3. Tomorrow we are walking in the local March for Babies, my friend Jami's girl Lauren was a micro-preemie, and a pure miracle. She is growing and developing so perfectly now! I am so excited we get to be a part of this walk with them! (there is still time to donate or register to walk, just click the link above!)

4. Today is my hubby's 34th Birthday! (yes, we will always remember Will and Kate's anniversary because they got married on his birthday, LOL) He's not into big celebrations, but we are partying Eddie style today! (aka Delicious waffles for breakfast, family time at home for the day and roundtable pizza for dinner) Diego made him an adorable card and we got him a gift card for a massage!

5. Guilty pleasure: I watched the royal wedding this morning. I couldn't get over all the press over the event and it was all driving me crazy. But last night, I decided I HAD to watch it, so I set the DVR to record it. I watched it first thing this morning while playing games with Diego. So far I've only seen the ceremony, which was very majestic and gorgeous. Kate looked so happy and when Will saw her he said "You look beautiful, you're beautiful." Yes, I teared up a bit. It was so sweet and they are an adorable couple. Ok, now you know. ;)

Hope you all (do I have any readers yet?) enjoyed my first Fun Day Friday post. Have a GREAT weekend!

First Real Dental Cleaning!

2011-04-24T20:32:00.000-07:00

Last week I took Diego in for his second dental check up. His very first visit to the dentist is a blur of tears, snot and holding down the bucking bronco that was my sweet child so the dentist could take a quick peek and paint on the vitamins. And, he had a cavity and had to be put under general anesthesia to have it filled. All around poor experience.This time, after a very brief anxiety bout, Diego absolutely amazed me! (and the Dentist and Hygienist) He let the hygienist show him her tools, he picked out a toothbrush and wore the cute sunglasses. Then, he layed there very still, following all directions and got an entire cleaning done! He started to get a little upset when she was flossing his teeth, but got right over it.

He even let Dr Cooper take a look at his teeth and high fived him when there were no cavities! I really wanted to cry while I watched him getting his teeth cleaned. Laying there so calm, behaved and not the baby he was just 8 months ago when he first visited the office. I was so proud of him.

He was even a little flirty with the hygienist and they loved his little personality. They complimented him on his good manners and great behavior....and, even his cute jeans! Haha. He got 2 prizes on the way out, one for good behavior and one for no cavities. He was more excited about his new toothbrush than the prizes and even asked on the way home when we would be going back! Proud moment for this Mama!

First Tool Box

2011-04-24T20:28:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago, on a family trip to Lowes, Eddie decided to get Diego a few of his own tools and a small tool box. He picked up some nuts, bolts and a few kids sized tools and had some tools already set aside for him at home. Diego was in heaven! He and Daddy are "talking tools" here. Diego likes the measuring tape the best, but also just enjoys learning about the tools and knowing that soon he will be able to help Daddy do some things around the house!

Weather Optimist

2011-04-18T13:38:00.000-07:00

Today is it, friends. I'm gonna switch up my blog a little. For the most part I've always written about the cute/fun/not so cute or fun things Diego is doing. Don't worry, I'm not quitting that. I enjoy writing though, and decided to sprinkle some other things in too. Most of my friends sprinkle in other fun things too, but I was really inspired by Little Lucy Lu, a blog written by a gal I went to high school with. She writes about craft projects, her cute little girl, her home, etc. I was entertained and inspired! So here I go.

I've always considered myself somewhat of a weather optimist. I can find something good about any kind of weather. Seriously. When its sunny, of course we can go outside. When its raining/hailing we GET TO stay inside. Yes I said get to, I'm not an outdoorsy girl. When it snows, we can go outside for a little bit and enjoy it, then we can come back in and watch it silently, beautifully fall while we sit by the fire and drink hot chocolate. Well, Eddie and I can do that. Diego can run around like a crazy person, as usual. You get the idea, I don't let the weather get me down, whatever it may be. I'm also not afraid to say that I really do believe I could melt if I spent too much time in the rain and I hate getting dirty. 'Nuf said.

I took the picture above on a rainy day a few weeks ago. Diego and I were out to run and errand and I spotted this perfect rainbow and snapped a picture with my cell phone. Yes, from the car, but we were stopped at the stop sign. Shhhhh don't tell my husband (Love you Honey:). Diego loves rainbows, and that day I realized I really do too! Who doesn't, really? They seem magical somehow. This was the first FULL rainbow we had seen in a while and it seemed also symbolic to me. Symbolic of what? I'm not sure, but clearly of good things to come.

"Pull Up" Festival

2011-04-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

We met some friends at the Tulip Festival on a gorgeous day! This was Diego's first trip and he had a blast! He refers to it as the "Pull Up" Festival, and would love to go back! I rode the cow train with him (bumpiest ride EVER), but fun!
He took a little pony ride! He just hopped on for a ride like it ain't no 'thang!

This was the highlight of his day. I'm not sure what they call this, but its a bouncy thing and he went really high! He kept saying "Best day EVER" (like Rapunzel says on Tangled). It was supposed to be a 5 minute ride, but there was no line behind us so I think his turn was about 10 minutes, it was great!

He didn't quite get why I wanted him to look through this, and each time he did I chuckled, it was so funny.

The only thing we didn't do? Walk over to the actual Tulips. I know, I'm lame. But by the time we had played and played and played, it was time to go. :) Next time, we'll go see the flowers first.

3 Year Check Up

2011-03-03T22:31:00.001-08:00

Diego is petrified of the doctor. I'm not sure if its because of the shots, or if he's just scared, but he cries when we mention it and cries when we get there. We went in for his 3 year check up on March 1st and he didn't want to go. There weren't as many tears as normal, as he can verbalize his feelings a lot more now, but he was still visibly scared. We were waiting in the waiting room and he just wanted to go home. I truly feel bad for my little guy, but going to the Dr is part of life and we've gotta do it. When Maria (his pediatricians nurse) called his name, he got really upset. We went in and he needed to be weighed and measured. He doesn't like either of these things. I can't figure out why its upsetting to him. He weighs 36 1/2 lbs (88%) and is 39 1/2" tall (90%). He continues to top the charts in the height and weight range. They didn't measure his head this time, but I'm sure he's topping them there too (we got him a new bicycle helmet recently and had to buy one for 5+ years old). The doctor had no concerns about Diego's growth and development. I discussed with her his lack of interest in potty training (he goes about once a day on the potty) and general dislike for undies or most things "potty". She said he seems very independent and that most kids with this type of personality will just decide one day they are ready, and that will be it, and that I shouldn't worry about it (Erica told me this, because Jag was this way). Its hard not to worry when all of his little friends are on the potty wagon, but we'll get there. Diego was coloring when Dr Ronai and I were talking and she was really impressed at his grasp on the crayon, she said he holds it better than most 4 year olds! All those hours coloring and drawing with a pen have done some good for the lil guy. I asked her about whether or not it was too early to tell if he was a lefty or a righty, she guessed left because he was holding his crayon so well with that hand. I am thrilled, of course, because I am a lefty, but I wouldn't care either way. Just another person close to me that can agree that we lefty's think with our "right" brain. Her most prominent recommendation: find a preschool for next fall. That's our next project~! (The picture above is him itchin' to get out the door when our appointment was over)

A Visit to the Library

2011-03-02T22:40:00.000-08:00

First time wearing any sort of backpack, had to get a picture!

Today Diego and I took a little trip to the library. I have been wanting to take him back for a visit for a while now, and today seemed like a great day. It was extra rainy outside and we didn't have much going on. I took Diego to the library once when he was much younger to try out the toddler story time, it was a bust. He was trying to escape the whole time, so, we hadn't been back until now. This time he really enjoyed the visit. The childrens section has 3 large cubes with blocks and mirrors, etc and he loves those. They also had a lego table and he enjoyed making and pushing over towers. He even met another boy named Elijah. Elijah was quite a bit older (10) but very polite and very sweet with Diego. Diego would knock over Elijah's lego towers too, but he didn't mind. After some playtime, we checked out two books, one about trains (go figure) and one about a little policeman. We also checked out their themed backpacks for children. They had all kinds of themes, and we chose trains this time. (Next up, the potty training bag.) When it was time to checkout, we both needed library cards and Diego was so excited to have his very own and check out books under his own card. He left the library wearing the backpack (usually he refuses to wear backpacks, so seeing him with it was so cute). When we got home, we checked out the contents of the backpack and he was thrilled, 3 books about trains, a toy train to play with, a Toy Trains DVD Music Video (I've seen it about 1000 times and I'm pretty sure I could go without seeing it again) and the John Denver CD All Aboard.

Checking out his new card!

"Show me your library card, Diego", oops, a little too close. :)

Go Fish!

2011-02-28T13:28:00.000-08:00

At a playgroup recently, Diego's friend Jayden had a fun version of the Go Fish card game, made suitable for ages 3+. Diego was really interested in the game, and I loved the concept of it. He received some gift cards for his birthday so we picked up the game for him. The three of us played it the day we brought it home and had a great time. I love games, so the fact that he is now interested in them is wonderful! Diego ended up winning that night, and was not shy about giving himself a round of applause along with Mommy and Daddy.

3rd Birthday

2011-02-28T09:53:00.001-08:00

Around here, we celebrate birthdays for days! Here are some highlights of what we did for Diego's third birthday!Birthday Dinner at the Ram (his choice) with Ice Cream cupcakes. YUM!

Cute (and a little naughty) boy! He spend the entire time we were at dinner trying to climb over the really high backs of the booth we were sitting in.

Cupcakes with his friends at Playgroup. I love that I caught him ready to blow out his candle. Last year, he got too close and burned his eyelashes. Yes, his eyelashes. I know, I'm horrible.

A little playtime at one of his favorite places, NW Kids Club. I am still amazed that his favorite thing to do is play train table. He has a traintable at home, but anywhere we go if there is a train table, he's there!

Jaycoby, Mindy and Ella joined us for playtime at NW Kids club for Diego's birthday. J was having a snack break.

Birthday party at NW Kids club. It was a blast! We had food, family, friends a fun! Diego and his friend Madeleine were almost inseperable the entire evening. It was really cute.

Mouth full of "Jelly Buttons"

REAL Big Boy Bed

2011-02-28T09:43:00.001-08:00

Diego is finally in his real big boy bed! He has transitioned from crib, to toddler bed, to full size mattress on the floor, and now finally his real bed! If you can believe it, the head and foot boards are from his crib. It was a fully convertible crib and I'm so glad we got the one we did!
He loves his "beach bed" and of course jumping on it is his favorite.

Last night was the first night, I think it went well. He's totally crashed!

Rice Christmas Peas

2011-02-06T20:22:00.001-08:00

Today at the store we picked up the supplies to make rice crispy treats and Diego wanted to help! He sat on the counter and helped stir and happily ate marshmallows and "rice Christmas peas". I love the way he says many things, but this is my new favorite. I try not to correct anything he says, I find it endearing the way he interprets things. His favorite part about making the rice Christmas peas (besides eating them) was that I let him put pink sprinkles on them. They had a Valentine feel to them because we used strawberry marshmallows (they are pink) so we added a little more pink. Fun times! I like having a little helper in the kitchen!

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Picking Out His Own Clothes

2011-02-04T14:32:00.001-08:00

Today Diego picked out his own clothes for the first time. Normally he has no interest it doing so and would rather I just did it for him. So today when I asked him to pick out his clothes so he could get dressed I was shocked he came back with clothes! He has mastered removing his clothes but not quite putting them on. He does great with pants and can put his arms in his shirts if I put them over his head first. Lucky for Diego, I don't love putting clothes away so there was a laundry basket with shirts in it in his room and his pants are in drawers, so that made grabbing clothes easy. I loved what he picked out too!

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No More Baby Gates

2011-02-04T08:59:00.001-08:00

Right after Christmas we took the baby gates off the stairs. They were both broken, and even though the company agreed to send us replacement gates for free, we decided it was time to take them down permanently. Diego is almost three and manages the stairs very well. Honestly, I think Eddie might have left the gates up til he was 5 or so, but I talked him into taking them.down for good.

Diego loves the freedom and goes up and down the stairs many times during the day. He will even take his clothes up to the hamper in his room if he gets dressed downstairs. Score! Less trips up and down for me.

The first week the gates were down we put a tension gate at the top of the stairs at night to prevent accidental tumbles. But, quickly learned this was a terrible idea because one morning Diego pushed the gate out and fell down the stairs. Lesson learned. We both felt terrible, but he survived without any bumps or bruises just a little healthy fear of going down the stairs carefully.

He has wandered downstairs a time or two in the middle of the night but other than that we are all loving the now open staircase. Diego loves to play games on the stairs or take a ball to the top and watch it crash down. His favorite game is "pillow". He carries a pillow to the top of the stairs and rolls it down to one of us, and we toss it up to him. He thinks this is the funniest thing ever!

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Swimming Lessons, 3rd Time Around

2011-02-01T21:00:00.000-08:00

Diego and I are wrapping up our 3rd session of swimming lessons. I decided to try the Kroc Center this time and we have both really enjoyed it. Every lesson day, Diego says he doesn't want to go, but never actually has a real protest and by the time we get there he is so excited to get in the water. He gets really excited if the slide is on and he can go down a few times before swimming lessons start. Our first lesson, he decided he didn't like any of the toys they had available, so we brought our bathtub Thomas for the next few, after that I "accidentally" forgot Thomas at home and all was well. The class has really improved his ability to follow directions and stay on task. I am continually impressed at how well he has begun to listen to me, especially in public. Its weird, but he listens better in public places than he does at home, in most cases. He really enjoys the songs we sing during swimming and sings them at home a lot. His favorite is the "poky poky". His favorite part of lessons is when he gets to jump in and show his stuff! He is really helpful when we are getting changed in the locker room and can remove his own shoes and clothes, which makes things go so much faster! I asked his teacher if she thought he was ready to do Pre-School lessons (without me in the pool) and she said she thought for sure he was. He can't start until he's 3, so he will have to skip one session, but I will be enrolling him in the spring. I am a little sad he is old enough to be done with Mommy & Me swimming lessons, but also grateful I was able to participate in them with him for 3 sessons over the last 2 1/2 years. I'm excited to see him learn even more in Pre-School lessons.

Bowling!

2011-01-22T07:27:00.001-08:00

I took Diego bowling twice in the last month. The first trip was with Mindy, Jaycoby and Ella. We all had a blast! Mindy and I went ahead and used the bumpers with the boys and by the end, they were using our turns too. Diego loved bowling and using the ramp to get the ball rolling down the lane. He enjoyed waiting for his ball to come back and picking it up all by himself. One turn, he was having a really hard time getting the ball to the ramp and then dropped it, but we quickly realized it was an 11 pounder! He had been using a 6 pounder but this one was the same color so he just grabbed it.

The second time we went with Auntie Erica, Uncle Bryan, Grandma, Uncle Lance, Aunt Yuni, Via, Jag, Jack and Bennie. The adults had their own lane this time, so no bumpers. I was reminded once again what a poor bowler I am! Everyone beat me, even the kids!!! We had a blast and Diego can't wait to go back,and I clearly need some practice.

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Christmas 2010

2010-12-27T22:05:00.000-08:00

I didn't take as many pictures as I wish I had during the christmas season this year, but we really enjoyed the season. Diego was really excited about decorating the tree this year and I loved having a helper. Eddie is a scrooge about it, big shocker. :) Diego had a lot of fun playing with all the christmas decorations while they were out. He had some favorites, including a gingerbread train my Aunt Laurie sent us a few years ago. He loved it. He was also really into opening gifts this year, which was super fun to watch. This picture is on christmas eve, he was opening his Christmas jammies and movie (Thomas, of course). He also opened a 'Twas the Night Before Christmas pop up book and we enjoyed looking through it that night.

On Christmas morning we came downstairs and he tore into all his gifts. He loved every one. He loved opening so much, that while we were out of the room, he opened a gift that we were saving for when my Mom came over. Luckily it was for him, but my mom wanted to see him open it. I was talking to her on the phone when he opened it, so it was ok.
While my family was here, Diego wanted to help everyone open their presents. Everyone let him, except Jag wasn't too excited about it. He's a real trooper though and just goes with it.

We really enjoyed the day. I enjoyed hosting because we didn't have to go anywhere and I didn't even mind the cooking and cleaning up. We played toys, ate a wonderful meal (smoked ham on the traeger) and enjoyed each others company. Christmas really is magic with a child of your own. I can't believe this was his 3rd Christmas, he's growing so fast.

SPA Kids Christmas Party

2010-12-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

This was our third year attending the SPA kids christmas party and we always have a great time. Diego always enjoys seeing Santa and this year I think he even told him what he wanted. When it was time for Santa to come out and hand out presents to the kids Diego was so excited. He waited as patiently as an almost 3 year old can and when they called his name and ran up to Santa to get his gift. But, as soon as he saw it, he ran off the other way, crying. I went up to get him and realized he ran because he didn't like the gift. Eddie and I were both mortified, but we laughed anyway. Diego loves his Thomas, but recently has enjoyed Toy Story 3 as well, so on the form I listed either Thomas toys or Toy Story. Well, Santa picked Toy Story and Diego was pissed. Everyone in the gym had a good laugh and Diego sobbed all the way out the door. Diego manages to draw attention to himself every year. I'm anxious to see what he does at next year's party to entertain us all!
If this isn't the perfect Santa picture, I'm not sure what is.

Sunriver 2010

2010-11-15T08:30:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary with a 5 day trip to Sunriver this year. We rented a gorgeous house and Chloe even came along with us.

It was so nice to just relax and enjoy each others company. It snowed about 4 inches the first day we were there and it stuck around the whole time. We spent a lot of time outside in the snow, playing inside by the fire, watching movies and daily swimming in the hot tub!Diego and Chloe both LOVED playing in the snow! We spent a lot of time outside in it. There were hardly any other people around, so Chloe got a lot of free reign. I think she was in heaven. Diego's favorite part of the snow was eating it. One night we got a bowl of it and brought it inside and he ate it.
We also enjoyed yummy hot chocolate every morning. Diego was in heaven. He loved the marshmallows. We enjoyed cooking all of our meals in. We had more than enough food for the week, so we ate way more than we needed. I treated Eddie to a nice 90 minute deep tissue massage in Bend and Diego and I headed to Old Mill District to shop and have a little ice cream. We spent an hour in the great toy store they have, Diego played with the train table the entire time. And, we even left without buying anything! He was happy just to play. We ate one Dinner out at Red Robin that night.

We had such a nice, relaxing time, we are already planning our trip for next year!

I'm 2 1/2!

2010-10-20T21:52:00.000-07:00

We've been working a lot with Diego on saying his name and age when we or others ask, and he picked it up really quickly. And the day I took this video, he surprised us by also counting to 5, we really only thought he could count to 3! I love this video, I think its super cute and he also really likes to watch it, he says "I wanna watch 2 1/2"!

The Major Event

2010-09-30T16:07:00.000-07:00

When I first found out this "Major Event" was going to have to take place, I didn't want to talk about it. Perhaps it was because it was likely the most mommy guilt (as my friend Tawnie calls it) I have experienced yet in Diego's short little life. I didn't want to tell anyone, I didn't want to blog and I never posted anything on facebook. I finally ended up telling my family and a few friends, who did make me feel better about it. When I told my Dad about it, he said "well, that's a major event in his life." So, I decided to blog about it.

A few weeks ago I took Diego to the dentist for his first visit. We had chosen Dr Cooper (a pediatric dentist) to be Diego's dentist. If you know Diego, you know he is NOT a fan of the doctor and he is NOT shy about his feelings. We went in and he saw they had Toy Story 2 (one of his very favorite movies) playing and some toys for him to play with. When they called us back, he began to get uncomfortable and didn't want Dr Cooper to look in his mouth. Dr Cooper was able to get a peek and get some flouride treatment in there, but Diego was so upset he could hardly calm down so Dr Cooper and I could talk. When he did, Dr Cooper told me he had a cavity. Dun dun dunnnnnn. I immediately felt super guilty that we obviously hadn't been brushing his teeth properly. Then, even worse news, Dr Cooper recommended putting Diego under general anesthesia to do the filling since he got so upset during his visit. Oh. My. Gosh. Now I started to feel like I was the reason my poor child would have to endure this "major event." I wanted to cry right there in the office (I'm not shy about my feelings either.).

Today, they did the surgery. Diego couldn't have any food or drink after midnight last night and we got up early and headed to the surgery center at 6:30 am. Diego was able to go in his jammies (which he always wants to do, but I won't let him) and we brought "Taddy" his stuffed horse and his favorite Thomas Blankie (from Hank). We told him we were going to see Jami at work. We got really really lucky, because one of my very best friends, Jami, is a nurse at the surgery center and she was able to be the OR nurse for Diego. Diego LOVES Jami, and so do we, so that made us a little more comfortable. When we got there Diego started to get a little upset cause he could tell it was a doctors office. He didn't like it when they used the stethescope to listen to his lungs and heart, but minded a little less when Jami did it. The nurse who checked us in, Megan, was super sweet and Diego kept telling her to leave. :) Again, NOT shy about his feelings. Everyone there was so nice and Jami had told them to give us extra TLC and they did! Dr Cooper is fun and goofy and Diego likes that. When it came time for them to take him back to the OR, Dr Cooper told Diego they would be giving him some sugar water and that sealed the deal, not only was he going with Jami but they were going ot give him sugar water. They told us he talked about it the whole time before he went to sleep. Diego climbed into the little wagon they have with Taddy and his thomas blankie, we gave him a kiss and Jami wheeled him down the hall way, and we heard him chatter away the whole time. He didn't cry. I was so relieved he wasn't upset. We are so lucky to have Jami!

In the OR they fixed his tooth, took x-rays and thoroughly cleaned his teeth. And they say he did GREAT. It was about 2 hours before we saw him, and thank goodness for texting and having Eddie to chat with because it went by really quickly. Dr Cooper came out when he was done to tell us everything had gone well and told us Diego was really fixed on the sugar water. And he thought this was really funny and cute, I guess kids don't normally latch on to that. They sent us to recovery when he was waking up. He slept the whole recovery hour, which is apparently a really good thing. His recovery nurse, Jane, carried him out to us and he was obviously a little disoriented and could have passed for a drunk. She handed him to me and we snuggled for a minute. He was still asking for sugar water. He forgets nothing. Jane was so sweet and he was clearly comfortable with her. She told us that the gourney he was on was a new one and she kept hearing some funny noises and couldn't figure out what it was and just assumed it was the gourney. Turns out, he was farting. That's our boy! He really wanted a drink of water, but they try to limit giving them much in recovery to reduce the risk of vomiting on the way home, but he got a sip or two. We did a quick diaper change and were on our way home. I sat in the backseat with him on the ride home and he clearly liked it, as he held my hand the whole way. He threw up a little bit in the car (obviously the water) and then when I carried him into the house he let it all go all over both of us. But after that he didn't throw up again. He was asking for food and Jane had mentioned yogurt so that's all he wanted. He ate 2 yoplait yogurts and I was so afraid he was going to puke again, but he didn't. Eddie went to the store and got him some Jello and pudding and he ate a little of that too. He was obviously famished because by 11:30 he wanted mac n cheese, which they had said would be good too since it was soft. He ate a bit of that and a few little pieces of bagel and seemed to be holding everything down fine. He really wanted to play, but it was obvious he just wasn't up for it yet because he would go stand by his train table and end up just lying down looking at it. He drank a lot of water and then we told him it was nap time. We all went up stairs and with a little convincing he went to sleep and we all got a much needed nap.

He woke up asking for more to eat and hasn't stopped since. He is much more active and alert after his nap too, and seems to be feeling pretty good.

I'm over the mommy guilt for the most part. Dr Cooper even told me it looked like his tooth may have actually been chipped on a fall, causing the dentin to be exposed and a cavity to form and said that would make sense because everything else looked so good. It wasn't a fun experience but we are so thankful to everyone who took care of us while we were there. Special thank you to Jami!

Fun Morning with Grandma!

2010-09-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

Diego and I got up today and decided to head over to my Mom's house for the morning and we had a great time! We got there and visited for a while and then headed down the street to Silverton's Saturday Market. Diego enjoyed the walk and looking at what the market had to offer. I had to stay right on his heels, I was afraid he was going to steal some produce to eat! My mom got a watermelon (which turned out to have yellow flesh and was so good!) and canteloupe and I got a bouquet of beautiful flowers! After the market we headed back to my Mom's and she and Diego picked lots of tomatoes from her garden. Diego loves to "harvest" from the garden and enjoyed lots of fresh sunsugar tomatoes! Then we walked down to the park, and the one in Silverton is one of his favorites!
He has a newfound love for swings and had a blast swinging with both Grandma and Mama! Then, we headed off to visit Grandma Pearlee. Diego wasn't too sure about the visit at first, but decided it was ok when she gave him some candy!

Thanks Mom, for a really fun time! Love you!

Trip to the Park....with Chloe!

2010-09-09T22:07:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, Diego and Chloe aren't BFF's. She's right in Diego's face, always trying to "herd" him and she doesn't like him near her food. But, I have to also say, Chloe is always gentle and sweet with him, even though she is a little hyper.
That said, the other day we were leaving to walk to the park and Diego begged for Chloe to come! So, we leashed her up and went to the park. Usually Chloe walks with us when Diego is in the stroller because I figure its a bit much to chase a dog and a small child. But, that day, I decided we would try. It turned out great! Chloe and Diego were both very well behaved and we all had a blast! We all enjoyed exploring the park and Diego actually loved running around with her!

Chloe has proved to be a very faithful friend, even in the toddler years!!

Talking!

2010-09-06T21:40:00.000-07:00

Everyday I am impressed with how well Diego is putting sentences together. Today, he really shocked me! He has this really bad habit of throwing things down the stairs and I always know if he's done it when he comes back into my bathroom (he usually does it while I'm getting ready), laughing. And when I ask him he usually says "I fro dat downstais". Today, he came moseying into my bathroom laughing and I say "What did you throw downstairs?" He says, "I frew my teddy bear and my tye dye shirt downstairs." I was shocked. It was so cute I could hardly be upset that he was AGAIN throwing things down the stairs!

Jumping In

2010-09-02T09:01:00.001-07:00

Here is Diego bravely jumping in to Aunt Erica's pool and he had to make sure I was going to catch him. It freaked me out a little, which is why I laughed the way I did when I brought him up. He LOVES doing this and jumped in over and over! I'm so proud that he is not afraid to go under water and he always comes up smiling.

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Diego's first sleepeover!

2010-07-20T20:42:00.001-07:00

My nephew JAG is spending the night tonight and for the first time, he and Diego are able to have a real sleepover together! They both asked to go to bed earlier than usual and were passed out within minutes of laying down. We will see how the night goes, Diego usually comes to our room in the middle of the night but to do that tonight he will have to climb over Jag!! let's hope he doesn't wake up Jag too cause I'm not sure how well all four of us would fit in our bed!

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Berry Pickin'

2010-06-25T20:41:00.001-07:00

Today, I went strawberry pickin' and Diego went strawberry eatin'. We had a good time and the berries are delicious!

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The Full Size Bed

2010-06-22T22:01:00.000-07:00

Diego has been sleeping in a full size bed for a week now! He quickly grew uncomfortable in the toddler bed and needed more room, and quite frankly, so did I for my bedtime snuggles! I went and bought just a mattress for now, until we feel more comfortable with him up off the floor on a real bed (his crib converts to a head an foot board for a full size bed). I didn't take pictures or post the first night he slept in the bed because I was waiting for his comforter to arrive. He was so excited today for his "beach" blanket to arrive and when it did he had to go up and lay in his bed under the covers! He keeps calling it his new "beach" bed. He loves the beach, so that's why I told him it was a beach blankie! When I took him to pick out sheets for the bed, he insisted on tan sheets, calling them brown, and called the new bed the brown bed. I'm glad its the beach bed now, calling it the brown bed was sort of wigging me out. I actually really wanted to get Thomas sheets for the bed, but they are really hard to find in full size. I did finally find a brand new set on ebay for a reasonable price, since the only set they had on amazon.com were $50! He doesn't know about them yet, and they are due to arrive next week, so I'm sure he will be thrilled!
Here is is loving the new bed!

Two Year Pictures

2010-06-18T21:16:00.001-07:00

I finally got Diego's 2 year pictures taken, only 3 months after he turned two. In all honesty, I actually forgot. BAD MOMMA! When picture time came, it had been one of "those" weeks. I hadn't done laundry, Diego could have probably used a haircut and he was tired, but dog gonnit we were doing the pictures! I love the photographer we use, she has taken family pics and other pics of just Diego and I have LOVED them. These are my favorites... I think they could have been better had odds not been stacked against us, but Diego is cute so he worked it.

Playing in the POOL!

2010-06-18T20:59:00.001-07:00

I found a really fun pool at Costco and we had a few warm days in May so we were able to set it up and let Diego have some fun. It really is the best backyard pool I've ever had! A slide, two separate pool areas and even a bench and drink holders for the parents. :) The day we set it up it was supposed to be warm in the afternoon, but he insisted on trying it in the morning. It was only about 55 degrees but he loved it. We took him out when his lips turned blue. He even fought us, strange kid doesn't even care it was cold! BRRRR! He went back in later when it was warm and just had a fantastic time. So glad we got the pool and hope to enjoy it many many days in the summer! I'm betting Chloe will jump in at least once and she likes to use it as her water bowl!

Gettin' Dirty

2010-06-18T20:30:00.000-07:00

If you know me, you know I am NOT A FAN OF GETTING DIRTY. At all. Period. Yep, that's me, the prissy girl, who doesn't like to get dirty. But, I'm being forced to change, and you know what? Its really not that bad. It all washes off, in case no one knew that, because I clearly didn't realize it! About a month ago, the sun was out and I decided to get some weeding done in the backyard and let Diego play. He was all set with his mud boots and gloves, etc. Our backyard is SOGGY, and has one big puddle off the deck after its been raining. This was the first time I just let him have at 'er with the muddy water and he was in heaven! He and Chloe splashed and played unti they had splashed all the water out and there was no more puddle. I really enjoyed watching and even got a little dirty myself. Its not so bad and he loves it. He likes to play in the rocks and dirt at the park and now I'm good with it.

Diego's 1st Ride on a Horse

2010-05-22T22:02:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Diego got his first Ride on a Horse. We went to the Moore's for Tony's 40th Birthday party and he was nice enough to let the kids ride the horse! I was sort of joking when I asked Diego if he wanted to get on the horse, and then SHOCKED when he said "hmmm, ok" (hmmm, is his new word of choice when you ask him anything). So when his turn rolled around I picked him up and put him up there, thinking he might just flip out and want down, but he didn't! Eddie couldn't believe it either. He wasn't super excited about it since he had a bad experience on a horse when he was younger, but Diego did GREAT! Thanks so much to Skip for helping Diego have a smooth ride! And, if it weren't for Rachel I wouldn't have any of these cute pictures! (all taken on her iPhone and I am VERY impressed with how well they turned out!)

Big Boy Bed

2010-04-25T20:51:00.000-07:00

Diego made the switch to a toddler bed! I have to admit I was not excited about the transition, but he threw himself out of the crib, so it had to be done. Bedtime isn't quite as easy as it was with the crib, but we'll get there. He was very excited about the bed and immediately messed up the cute bedding we got him at Ikea and jumped on it like crazy! I love cuddling with him, but its a little cramped. Transition from a baby to a big boy = sad for the Mama. He refuses the binky now too, despite my efforts to give it to him at bedtime and naptime. My last ditch effort at keeping him a baby for just a little longer.

Going #2!

2010-04-24T18:42:00.000-07:00

I realize a post about my son going poop on the potty may be a little too much info for some of you, however, since I use the blog as a baby/milestone record for him, I gotta post about it! See the sticker book in the picture? This is the only reason he will sit on the potty. He takes the stickers out of the book and just tosses them on the floor. He just loves to peel them off the paper! I'm pretty sure that actually going pee or poop on the potty is just a bonus to sitting there playing with the stickers for so long, but I will take it! I can't tell you how excited we were that he pooped and there was one less poopy diaper to change. Its sooooo much easier to just wipe than it is to change a diaper! But, as luck would have it, he hasn't gone pee or poop on the potty since he pooped, but he's going through a big spurt of changes and growing up in his life right now, so I'm not pushin' it!

Big Week

2010-04-23T21:22:00.000-07:00

If you know me, you know I am generally uneasy when it comes to change. This has been a trying week for me. Even good changes bring me angst. Having a child magnified this a bit. This week has been a somewhat trying week for me. Diego hurt himself. He started going pee on the potty (good change but still a little scary). And, if those werent enough, he suddenly decided he hated his crib. This child has LOVED his crib. He begged for bed a lot of nights and naptimes, but a few nights ago it was all of a sudden terrible. I couldn't figure it out. The first night, he slept with us because I just couldn't figure out why he was upset. Eddie brought him to bed because we weren't sure if he was scared or what. The next day at naptime, same thing. So, no nap. Last night, I knew he was exhausted but he was still upset, so I rocked him to sleep. No big deal, then he slept all night in his bed. Today at naptime he wanted everything out of his crib and I left the door open half way and he went to sleep like normal. Tonight, he threw himself out of the crib. THUD. Not a pleasant sound or feeling for a parent. I felt so bad. He and Eddie are sound asleep in my bed and I am down here pondering the thought of what it will be like to move him to a big boy bed. I am very anxious about what this transition will bring. We have had 5 months of bliss. Put him in bed, he goes to sleep, takes a long nap or sleeps all night. Now, thats over. I have had very reassuring advice from other Mommy friends about the transition so I'm sure it will be fine, but its change and I'm done with change for a while. One other change, although good, he gave up the binky completely. He was only using it at night anyway, but he's done. If anyone can believe it, I'm struggling with that too. I'm afraid to get rid of them cause he "might need it". Maybe all the change is so hard for me because he's not a baby anymore and is giving up everything that has to do with being a baby. That's probably it. But like I said, I'd like a break from change. Maybe next week will be really boring.

Pee Pee on the Potty!

2010-04-21T10:00:00.000-07:00

Remember this picture from February? I was bribing him with candy to sit on the potty, and well, it just didn't work well and no matter how I tried, he still cried when I even mentioned the potty. Well, a few days ago I decided to let him read his very favorite Thomas Sticker Book only while on the potty. Suddenly, sitting on the potty wasn't so bad. We sat on there 3 times with no action, but this morning, he went PEE PEE! I mad a BIG deal about it and smiled and laughed and kisses and he was so proud of myself. I wish I had a camera with me when it happened, but I didn't. Just now, before naptime, he wanted to sit on the potty again and went pee pee again! I think we're on the right track!

Sprained Ankle

2010-04-19T20:29:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why, but every mother I know (including myself) takes pictures of their children doing naughty things before they tell them to stop. So here is Diego, a blur in mid-air, jumping off the couch around Christmas time. He began doing this around 16 months of age or so and at first we didn't tell him no because he was obsessed with doing it and well, I guess we were just lazy. Within the last 4 or 5 months we have instated "time out" and have told him that if he jumps off the couch he would go to time out. We knew he could understand and we were worried he would hurt himself. Today, that happened. He jumped off the chair in the front room (matches the couch so same height and everything) and his ankle gave out and he did a face plant on the floor. He had by now mastered this art of being naughty and jumping off the couch and landing on his feet, so not landing was a big shocker to him! He was limping a little but stopped crying relatively quickly so I decided I would wait until after his nap to decide whether or not to call the doctor. After naptime, he was still limping. I couldn't see any swelling or bruising, but I called the doctor and took him in. She said he has a mild sprain in is left foot and it should go away over the next few days. So, my 2 year old sprained his ankle. Sheesh. I'm sure this is only the beginning of what its like to have a boy.

Easter 2010

2010-04-15T21:42:00.001-07:00

I just realized I hadn't actually posted my Easter post yet!

We actually had a lot of fun prepping and celebrating Easter this year! Diego and I colored eggs for the first time and he really enjoyed it. Although tossing them into the colors is what he most enjoyed! We colored 12 eggs and only lost 1 in the process! He enjoyed a fun Easter egg hunt at home and found his basket full of goodies from the Easter Bunny! I made Strawberry Shortcake French Toast for breakfast and it was sooooo good! We headed over the Karen's house after naptime for a fun outdoor egg hunt and a great French meal.

Trip to Austin!

2010-04-14T13:31:00.000-07:00

We took a family trip to Austin in April for Auntie "Marfa"s wedding. Our first trip on the airplane as a family! Diego did really well on the plane ride there, even with a 2 hour delay we had in Dallas. We didn't get to our condo until Midnight Texas time, and we were all pretty exhausted! We had a very relaxing time and enjoyed some really good Texas food, including catfish. Which was pretty good I must admit! Aside from the lack of sleep Diego had, he was a real trooper throughout the trip. He and I did a lot of swimming and hot tubbing at the condo.

Diego was the ring bearer in the wedding and wore a white shirt with jeans and cowboy boots. He looked adorable. He was exhausted the day of Martha and Morgan's wedding but everyone thought he was so funny (except Eddie and I)! He actually walked down the aisle, but with a sippy cup in hand and refused to hold the Flower Girl's hand. He stopped mid way and tried to take a seat (poor boy was tired!). He made it to the front with me and waited for Daddy to come down the aisle and give Auntie Marfa away before taking off! I fully expected this since the wedding was outside on a beautiful ranch. He and I did a little exploring during the ceremony and made friends with the nice guy who drove the shuttle cart to the ceremony location. After the ceremony we headed to the reception and enjoyed food, dancing and a good time visiting with Martha's new in-law family and Gabby, who we don't get to see very often.

Diego didn't love the flight home as much as he did the flight to Texas, but he didn't scream or anything horrible. He just kept asking to get off and our attempts at distracting him were never for long. :) We had a nice visit and hope to one day go back and visit Auntie Marfa and Uncle Morgan again.

The bride and her Stella.

Only good picture of Eddie and I~!

Jag came to play...

2010-03-23T13:45:00.001-07:00

Last Friday Diego and I picked up Jag from Kindergarten and brought him home to play and spend the night. We stopped for Happy Meals (Cheeseburger n Fries as Diego calls them) and came home for Diego's naptime. Jag and I watched "The Princess and the Frog" while Diego napped and then we headed outside. We had a lot of fun outside with sidewalk chalk. I drew a hopscotch and then Diego "messed it up" (Jag says) by coloring in it. Jag had a lot of fun playing hopscotch and then our new friends from across the street came to play too! It was a beautiful afternoon so we had juice, snacks and popsicles outside!

Later we went to get dinner and Jag konked out in the backseat. When we got home, I couldn't get him to wake up! I had to carry him in and lay him on the couch and he slept through Diego being super loud! When I went to wake him up, I was rubbing his arm and shoulder trying to gently wake him up and Diego came over to help too. It was so cute. He kept saying "Do you want some pizza Jag?" In a very soft cute voice. Even though they are over 3 years apart, I think they'll still be good buddies!

"Splinkles"

2010-03-16T20:29:00.001-07:00

At Christmastime Diego and I decorated a few Christmas cookies and he fell in love with "Splinkles" and frosting. A few weeks ago we were at Target perusing the easter section and he saw a funfetti cake mix and a frosting can with sprinkles on top. Cake AND Frosting with sprinkles? He had to have them, and they were a lot cheaper than a toy. Today we finally made the cake and he had fun with the frosting and "splinkles" and I really enjoyed watching him!

New Camera

2010-03-15T21:20:00.001-07:00

About a week and a half ago, I lost my small Cannon camera. The one I use every day. I didn't just lose it, I drove off with it on the bumper of my car. Yep. I did it. I remember putting it there and thinking "I'm not going anywhere so I know I'll get it later." Then, I decided to go somewhere. Later when I went to find it to post a blog with the pictures on it, I remembered what I had done. So I walked up and down my street a little in the dark to see if I could find it. Then Eddie looked on his way home. Then the next morning at 7 am we all went out in the car and drove to all the places I had gone. It was gone. I'm glad there were very few pictures on it and the events recorded could be easily re-created. Fortunately, I have a very forgiving husband who didn't even give me a bad time about it. I'm pretty sure I was more upset about it than he was. The next day I ordered a new one from Costco.com and got it later that week. Its a Nikon Coolpix S3000 and I already love it. Its small and its purple and it was inexpensive! I'm still really thankful it wasn't the Nikon SD5000 on the back of the car I drove off in. I have a feeling Eddie may not have been so forgiving had I driven off with HIS camera and lost it.

Heeeelllllloooooo Chloe! For some reason, I die laughing every time I see this picture!

Diego and a 1/2 smile while watching Thomas

Mmmm a mouthful of bathwater.

Monkey hooded towel, complete with a tail!

Riding the Scooter

2010-03-06T20:20:00.000-08:00

Eddie and I gave Diego a Radio Flyer "My 1st Scooter" for his birthday and we have really been enjoying it the last few days outside! He would normally refuse to wear his helmet, but as soon as I mentioned taking the scooter outside to ride it, he wanted his helmet on right away. I'm not sure where he learned to ride a scooter, but he knows how to do it!

Birthday Party!

2010-02-28T09:26:00.000-08:00

I was so excited for Diego's party! I had a lot of fun preparing and decorating! We went with a Lightnin' McQueen (CARS) theme this year and I think it was all so cute. We had lots of family and friends here to celebrate and we missed those who couldn't be here with us. Diego was so excited for presents and cake! When we opened presents, he was all into it at first, but then wanted to play with a new toy, so I did a lot of opening but we played a lot after they were open! He really loved the cake and dug right in while everyone was singing Happy Birthday to YOU! Great party!

Train Table

2010-02-28T09:17:00.000-08:00

If I haven't already mentioned it, Diego LOVES trains. Specifically, he loves Thomas the Tank Engine and all his friends. We started his train collection with plastic tracks and metal trains and quickly realized we should have started with a train table and wooden tracks. The plastic tracks come apart very easily, and are difficult to put together especially for a 2 year old. He would constantly get frustrated. With his birthday coming up, I started looking around for a train table and wooden train set. I found the perfect set at Toys R Us and I wanted to get it right away, I was so excited for him to play with it. At first, Eddie said no that we shouldn't give him any birthday gifts early, but I wore him down and we picked it up about a month before his actual birthday. And, ta da, Eddie (with some help from me) put it together the same day. It took about 4 hours to get the thing put together correctly, but Diego was immediately in love. He plays with it for hours every day.He apparently got bored with the set up because even after we tried to super glue pieces of it to the train table, he has completely taken it apart, but seems happy to put it back together in is own way.

He thought the drawers were for him to sit in while playing trains. We set him straight though. Haha!

Potty Time

2010-02-27T07:59:00.000-08:00

Here is Diego about 2 weeks ago when I tried to get him to sit on the potty. This is even with a candy bribe. See the candy in his mouth? He was not happy about it. So, I've left it alone. I ask him occasionally if he wants to sit on the potty and have some candy and he says no. Everyone I've talked to says not to force the potty issue, so we are just waiting.

Well....first thing this morning he said "sit down potty, piece of candy". Now I fully realize he may have just sat on the potty for a piece of candy, but I'm fine with that. He sat there for 4 or 5 minutes while we sang songs and waited to see if he went potty. Not this time, but still a huge step for this little guy! So proud of him this morning!

Thomas Blankie

2010-02-25T20:34:00.000-08:00

My nephew Hank very thoughtfully bought Diego this Thomas blankie for Christmas. Tonight he wanted to be covered with a blankie when he got in bed, for the first time ever! And, he insisted on the Thomas blankie. Doesn't he look cozy?

Happy 2nd Birthday Diego!

2010-02-24T20:05:00.001-08:00

Today, he turned 2. 2 years since this sweet boy came into our lives and forever changed us. I spent a lot of time thinking about the day he was born, remembering just about every bit of it and smiling. Bringing this child into the world has been the best thing that has ever happened to us.

I was so excited for his special day, that I couldn't sleep. I layed out all his gifts (from us and from out of town family) in our bedroom so we didn't have to wait to get downstairs to play with them (that's how excited I was). When Diego woke up (at 5:20 this morning, ugh), I brought him to our room and we snuggled for a few minutes, then I turned on the light. At first he just looked and then he was ready to play! His favorite was the basketball hoop from Grandma GG. He also loved his new scooter and immediately knew how to ride it! Shootin' some hoops!

He got his own special "coffee" today at Java Crew. It was a strawberry steamer (warm milk with flavor added) and he loved the whip cream on the straw the most!

We hosted playgroup today and each of the kids brought Diego a special gift for his birthday. After lunch, we sang Happy Birthday and enjoyed a special small Lightnin' McQueen cake.

Here is Diego after I blew out the candles on his cake!

Here he is in his new Lightnin' McQeen couch, all "snug" with popcorn watching Curious Geore with Mommy. He is in love with the couch, which he got from the Kofoid's, all he can say is "snug" and he spent a lot of time in it today. He also enjoyed watching the Curious George movie from Aunt "Marfa" and Uncle Morgan.

When Eddie came home from work, the three of us went to Red Robin for dinner. Diego had a great time coloring and "grazing" his dinner, he wasn't too sure about the singing but he LOVED the ice cream sundae, especially the sprinkles and the cherry! After Red Robin we headed to Toys R Us to spend the gift card from Uncle Peter and Aunt Lori. What a great way to end a special day, running free all over a toy store!

Happy Birthday Diego, I LOVE YOU!

A Visit from Salem's Finest

2010-02-22T16:54:00.000-08:00

Today, some of Salem's Finest Officers visited our MOMs Club All About. We have kind of an "in" with them, so they didn't mind! We had two motorcycle Officers and even a K9 Handler and Dog! I'm not sure why, but Diego refused to get on the motorcycle today. He was having "a day."

Here's Diego chatting with friends Reed and Jack. Don't they look like a group of old men BS'n?

"Officer Eddie" was nice enough to pose with us with his motorcycle. Again, Diego was less than pleased and has barkdust smeared all over his face, but worth the shot!

Officer Steve and K9 Jett, whom Diego just loved! He can point out both Steve AND Jett in all the pictures we took!

Its a Beautiful day for Sidewalk Chalk

2010-02-20T13:46:00.000-08:00

I bought some sidewalk chalk a few days ago and the weather has been just gorgeous, so we decided to try it out this morning. We LOVED it! Daddy even joined in on the fun and Diego and I spent at least 30 minutes out there coloring before I drug him in the house for lunch and a nap.He really wanted Daddy and I to color with the sidewalk chalk, but he also wanted to hold all of them in his hands while he colored. He was torn.

Who knew sidewalk chalk was so messy? He kept sitting in his drawings. I loved that he ended up with it all over him by the time we headed in!

Walking to the Park

2010-02-17T18:00:00.000-08:00

We've been taking full advantage of this beautiful weather and the fact that we live so close to a park. Diego has walked to and from the park two days in a row now, without ever asking to be carried. He loves his walks!
Just threw this picture in. These adorable mini daffodils came up in the front yard, a sure sign of spring. LOVE IT!

A Boy's Best Friend

2010-02-16T09:17:00.000-08:00

Diego layed his head on Chloe and said, "Oh, Lollie." They stayed like this for several minutes. Maybe a dog really is a boy's best friend. Except those times when he says "Lollie go outside, go poo poo."

Take a Picture!

2010-02-15T13:49:00.001-08:00

Today he begged me to get the camera out so he could smile for a picture. I'll take 'em when I can get 'em!

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

I tried to get this kid to smile, but he just won't do it for the camera, but here is the cutest valentine shirt you've ever seen...and he's wearing it ALL DAY no matter what he gets on it. (Currently it has strawberries and smeared cheese on it and he's not changing until bedtime!).

Cupcakes Diego and I decorated.

Self Portrait

2010-02-13T10:57:00.001-08:00

I have about million blog topics floating around in my head, but today, I'm posting this self portrait I took of Diego and I. I'm always doing this and they always turn out terrible, but this one was especially good of him, even if he isn't smiling.

Self Weaning?

2010-01-03T09:00:00.000-08:00

Last Monday, Diego decided he didn't want to be rocked to sleep anymore. I was trying to get him to sleep for naptime and he said "Bed pease." So, I put him in his bed and tried to go back to get him about 15 minutes later, but he got mad, so I put him back into his bed and he was asleep within a few minutes. Later that night at bedtime, the same thing. So, although I was a little sad about missing on those sleepytime cuddles, I was happy to still have a few minutes to read stories and give him his bottle (yes, he's almost 2 and I was still giving him his milk in a bottle) and cuddle/talk/sing. Well, 2 days ago, he didn't really want his bottle, he wanted to read stories and then said "bed pease". So....now in the last week he has weaned himself from rocking to sleep and from his bottle. I'm bittersweet, I'll be honest. BUT, I'm so proud of him for doing this himself and happy he gave up his bottle and learned the important skill of putting himself to sleep. He doesn't want a bottle at all, and doesn't like to drink milk out of a cup, so now our challenge is getting him to drink the milk.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-25T20:54:00.000-08:00

Eddie and I were so excited for Christmas this year so we could share all the fun with Diego. He seemed excited about it too as we did our shopping, baked and decorated cookies and wrapped presents. I realized after I finished my shopping that next year I won't be able to shop for him while he's with me.

Here is our first "Santa" set up. The cute little Radio Flyer bike and helmet were actually from Grandma G.G. but they were a bit hard to wrap, so we threw them in. We had so much fun setting up and putting things together on Christmas eve!

On Christmas morning, we woke up to Diego saying "Merry Christmas Daddy" over the baby monitor. While you might think how adorable it is that he was saying this on Christmas morning, Eddie and I were in heaven because it was morning and he had slept in his own bed the whole night! Merry Christmas to US! He even layed back down for about 30 minutes and I jumped out of bed to warm up my very first batch of homemade Cinnamon Rolls (thanks to a great recipe from Rachel), bake a breakfast casserole and turn on the coffee! When Diego woke up again, Eddie picked him up to bring him downstairs and he was just so adorable. Every morning he says "downstairs please" immediately when we get him, but this morning he was jumping and could see the presents from Santa! He came down and said "oh look" to everything he saw. We dumped out his stocking and played for a bit, and decided we should try to open some of the wrapped presents, but he wanted nothing to do with it! So, we played for an hour or so, then he decided it was time to open more presents.

After spending the morning at home and taking a nice nap, we headed over to Auntie Erica and Uncle Bryan's house for some more Christmas fun! Diego loves to go to "Erica's House" and play with Hank, Via and Jag. Hank had a great time helping Diego open presents and we all had fun just enjoying each other's company and relaxing. We had a great dinner (thanks Erica and Bryan) and a great time!

Cinnamon Bear Cruise

2009-12-20T20:30:00.000-08:00

We bought tickets for the Cinnamon Bear Cruise on the Portland Spirit last year, but the weather was super icy and we couldn't make it, so we went this year. I have to say, I'm glad we waited a year. I think Diego really really enjoyed the show and the ride. We enjoyed snacks, a nice boat ride, and visiting the characters on the boat. Diego was not scared of the characters at all! In fact, he walked right up and high fived the Cinnamon Bear. There was some down time where he had to be entertained while in a high chair (it gets exhausting chasing this boy around), but we passed the time with candy and drawing with a pen (which he just loved and constantly asks to do now). Here are Diego and Jag on the Cinnamon Bear's lap. Diego is wiggling himself down so he can run away laughing. This is the second time he was on the Cinnamon Bear's lap. The first time, he was the first in line and sat down on the Bear's lap and immediatelly grabbed his crotch. The whole audience erupted in laughter. Those are the proud moments we will treasure forever.

Visiting Santa

2009-12-20T08:25:00.000-08:00

We were invited to visit Santa at our friend Sarah's house last night. Diego and I went to check in out and I was hoping to get a good picture of him with the Silverton Santa. This Santa looks like the real deal. He has REAL white hair and a real white beard. He also has a gorgeous suit and really enjoys talking to kids. Santa took some time to talk about what happens on Christmas Eve and answer many questions from the kids. He sang carols with them and read them The Night Before Christmas too.

We've learned that Diego really isn't a shy child. He was walking around the room to kids he didn't know just sort of chatting or holding his toy cell phone to their ear. They all loved it, even Santa. And when Diego climbed on the chair behind Santa and jumped off, Santa looked at me and asked if he was about 2. I laughed and said yes. He said, "He's not being naughty, he's just being 2. He will still get something nice from Santa for Christmas." I was shocked that Diego was not at all scared of Santa. He even layed on the floor next to him while he spoke to the other kids. Everyone thought that was hilarous! He sat on Santa's lap twice. Once for some pictures and once so Santa could give him a bag of goodies. I had told him earlier in the day that Santa would be giving him some candy, so he said "Santa, Candy!" After he got down with the bag of goodies, he said "Oh Thank You Santa." It was soooo cute! He also really loved Santa's Jingle Bells!

Diego and Auntie Erica

Here he is just Chillin next to Santa playing with the toy cell phone.

Santa is saying "I wish I could still do that!"

Even though he's not looking at the camera, I still think this is a great picture of Diego with Santa! I was just happy there were no tears!

Play Soccer!

2009-12-14T21:12:00.001-08:00

As part of our MOMS Club activities, each month we have an "All About" activity. In December, it was all about Soccer. We visited an indoor soccer center here in Salem and had an hour to run around. They did have some coaches there, but the little ones were free to run around as long as they weren't disrupting. Diego had a GREAT time! As you see in the video, he figured out how to kick the ball (he hadn't done this before) and also said "Play Soccer". After our hour at the soccer center, he came home and slept for 3 hours. We will probably sign up for Soccer Tots after he turns 2!

Helmet!

2009-12-14T21:10:00.001-08:00

Diego is always talking about Daddy's helmet, and see's him in it every day when he leaves for work. So he recently decided he needed a helmet while riding his motorcycle in the house, and here is what he came up with!

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-14T20:58:00.001-08:00

We had a really nice and relaxing Thanksgiving this year. Eddie decided he would really like to deep fry the turkey, and it turned out to be MUCH easier and much safer than we both had expected. Here is Eddie waiting around outside for the oil in the fryer to heat up. And once the oil heated....40 minutes later we had a perfectly browned, perfectly cooked, moist, delicious 14 pound turkey! Yes, it only took 40 minutes to cook!Here is the table. Not really Martha Stewart, but perfect just for us. We originally planned to have just the three of us, but the Kofoids ended up joining us for dinner. I really enjoyed making all the "traditional" side dishes and we all enjoyed eating them!

Christmas Tree 2009

2009-12-10T21:00:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to get a HUGE Christmas tree because the new house has a PERFECT Christmas tree spot with bay windows and all. I really enjoy decorating the tree, but what I forgot to think about was the almost 2 year old who now is In. To. Everything. He was in LOVE with the tree, the ornaments and the lights. By the time Christmas actually rolled around the tree was only 1/2 decorated (from the middle up) and he was constantly turning the lights on and off and yanking on the needles. Not mention all the toys he thought needed to "get in" the tree, and sometimes he wanted to climb in himself. I loved that he was so interested in the tree, but I was always paranoid he would pull it over on to himself or something! We also couldn't put any presents under the tree, which made Christmas morning that much more of a surprise for him! The day after Christmas I drug this monster out of the house all by myself. I was just ready. It wasn't too bad, except all the water that spilled on my nice soft carpet. Oh well, it only took 2 days to dry. Lesson learned.

We woke up this morning hearing Diego say "Merry Christmas Daddy" over the baby monitor.

Manners and Affection

2009-11-17T21:45:00.001-08:00

Over just the last week or so, my sweet boy has become much sweeter. He actually started giving kisses and hugs and laying his head on my shoulder when I pick him up. In fact, every time he layes his head down on my shoulder I say "Aw, my sweet boy" and now he picks up stuffed animals and puts their head on his shoulder and says "aw". I even saw him putting his head in the bath water sideways and saying "aw" tonight.

This boy is a talker. He will say just about everything you want him to, and some things you don't want him to. But, for some reason I could NOT get him to say please. Not for the life of me, not for anything! This past Sunday (November 15th) we had The Kofoid's over for dinner and Rachel was going to give Diego a bite of ice cream and she said, "Say Please" and he DID! For RACHEL! We all erupted in so much applause and praise that he giggled and kept saying it. He of course says it almost everytime I want him to now! He's said thank you off and on for a while, but now I pair it with the please and he says that just about everytime too! Of course now he thinks if he says please he will get anything he wants!

First "School" Picture

2009-11-10T20:41:00.000-08:00

We had the opportunity to have Diego's pictures taken through his Toddler Time preschool and I'm so glad we decided to do it! The pictures turned out fantastic! The class picture is actually really funny, Diego is in true form trying to squirm away from me!

Pumpkin Patch x 2

2009-11-03T08:41:00.001-08:00

Diego and I took two trips to the Pumpkin Patch this year and fully enjoyed all that comes with it, MUD! Our first trip was to Bauman Farms with a group of older kids from Preschool. It was a great trip, but lets just say Diego didn't like to be "guided", he likes to do his own thing! We took a hayride and picked a pumpkin, a gourd and a piece of Indian Corn. We watched Mr Bauman make some fresh apple cide and then tasted it right then and we also ate a warm donut! Yum!

Our second trip was to EZ Orchards with our Playgroup from the MOMs club. This was a little more Diego's style. He could run around and go where he wanted. He looked at some piggy's in the petting zoo. Played around with some tractors in the mud. And, his favorite part of the whole trip, rode in a big green wagon to the pumpkin patch. We didn't get a pumpkin because we didn't need another one, and Diego was much more interested in riding in the wagon than picking one anyway! When he did get out of the wagon, he was immediately drawn to the rotting pumpkins, lovely!

Halloween 2009

2009-10-31T14:33:00.000-07:00

Better late than never!

Halloween this year was lots of fun! Diego was a Chicken, an absolutely adorable one I might add. The costume was my nephew Jagger's and I'm so glad my Sister saves all his costumes! Diego didn't even mind wearing the costume.I dressed up for the first time in years and was SuperGirl and Rachel was "Pumpkin Spice". The best part about dressing up is seeing the smiles on the faces of the kids who came to our door. They are always so surprised to see adults dressed up and it was fun!
Here is Eddie wearing Scott's rockstar wig...a little scary I think!

Here is Scott looking like a true rocker, tattoo sleeves and all!

My Mom came over to visit for a little while and then Erica and Jagger came over to play for a bit. Jagger was captain hook, and I can't seem to get his picture to load onto the blog (maybe because this one has been a draft for over a month!). The Kofoid's came over and had dinner and we did a little trick or treating. Sawyer was a cute little Hannah Montana and Reed was a motocross rider! Sawyer did the trick or treating and the boys ran around! Diego wanted to go in everyone's house and Reed just wanted to say hi and giggle!

I'm surprised at how much trick or treaters at the door enjoyed that we were all dressed up. I think it made it a little more fun for them too!

Swimming Lessons: Second Time Around

2009-10-13T15:39:00.001-07:00

Today was Diego's first swimming lesson of the year! This year Reed and Rachel are taking the lessons with us and we are going twice a week instead of once. I have to say, the boys had a fabulous time and really enjoyed splashing each other!

Diego is a year older, a lot heavier and a lot more interactive than the last time we took swimming lessons. What does this mean? A GREAT workout for Mom! Diego is much better about going under water, loves the songs and will put his mouth in and blow bubbles!

Trip to California

2009-10-04T22:07:00.001-07:00

Diego and I and my Dad took a trip to California so Diego could meet my Dad's side of the family for the first time. It was a short trip but we had a great time. Diego really enjoyed meeting everyone and I think they all enjoyed him too, even if he was exhausted the whole time we were there.

This is Diego with Shannon and Nolan, my cousin Erin and her husband Jim's two children. They played together very well. After a slight melt down over Nolan's hotwheels car, Diego had fun. Nolan was such a sweet boy and shared his car with Diego, even though I knew it was special to him. Shannon is a sweet sweet little girl and so cute!

This is Diego at "Baby Beach" in Dana Point. I've always enjoyed visiting Dana Point, but especially enjoyed seeing Diego experience a warm sandy beach for the first time. I wasn't really planning in him enjoying it as much as he did, cause he ran right into the water fully dressed! I didn't bring a towel or a change of clothes with me, but oh well! We had a blast. Diego sat in the water, threw wet sand, dug in the sand and just really enjoyed himself. It was so nice to be on the beach in October and it was 80+ degrees and have the ocean warm like bath water!

Here is what Diego did for most of the flight there and back. It was awesome. He's an excellent traveler, besides being tired and getting a molar while we were there, the little guy was an absolute trooper!

This is Diego with his GiGi (Great Grandma) and his Great Aunt Laurie. This picture is the background on my computer and he asks for GiGi whenever we turn it on and can point to Aunt Laurie too. Diego really loved GiGi and I think she felt the same. :) Everymorning GiGi has a piece of coffee cake and graciously shared most of it with Diego. She let him just help himself, because she said he was too cute to say no to!

I didn't get any pictures of Diego with Great Aunt Lori (he has 2) and Great Uncle Peter but he sure enjoyed spending time with them too! They have two new Dachsound puppies and Diego had a blast with them. They also took us on a ride on their boat and Uncle Peter let Diego turn the "wheel" during the ride. That's when he became Diego's new best friend! I even got Diego to say "Pete" on the airplane ride to California, but he would never repeat it the whole trip. He says it now on command, of course.

I really wish they all lived closer and we could spend more time together!

First Day of Toddler Time

2009-09-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

Today was Diego's 1st day of Toddler Time. Toddler Time is a program through Creative Discoveries Preschool for kids ages 18 months to 3 years and is sort of a pre-preschool. The class is once per week and Diego and I go together. I of course had to take the traditional first day of school on the front porch picture, and it turned out pretty cute even though he was trying to get away!
Diego had sort of a rough start with a lot of tears when we got there and a lot of "home" requests, but after a few minutes he calmed down and really enjoyed himself. The first hour was playtime and there were all sorts of fun things for the kids to do. There is a big bin of dried beans for them to play in sort of like a sandbox, a wooden castle, puzzles, play dough, paint and fun puzzles. After playtime, we clean up and have circle time on the carpet. The teacher plays songs and brings out props for the kids to play with such as shakers and pom poms and they all sort of dance around, its really fun. Then its snack time and playtime outside. We had a great time and I look forward to continuing the class with Diego!

Great Wolf Lodge

2009-09-26T22:06:00.000-07:00

We went to visit The Great Wolf Lodge with Erica, Bryan and Jagger and had a BLAST! We stayed one night and I wish we would have stayed for two! Diego absolutely loved the water, but spent most of his time in the same place you see here in the picture....the boy is completely obsessed with steering wheels and gets so excited to see them. Eddie and I didn't mind just following him around the platform and watching him enjoy himself. I got him down the little kids slide once but not again!
We were all shocked how much Diego loved all the water splashing around him! Diego and Jag had a great time together too. Jag is always so sweet to Diego, he even really wanted to share his grilled pb&j dinner with him! I loved that my magical wrist band bought us everything we wanted while we were there too, but then we got the bill. We cannot wait to go back and play at Great Wolf Lodge many more times!

19 Months

2009-09-24T08:06:00.000-07:00

At 19 months, Diego is learning to feed himself with a spoon and fork! He is doing pretty well too, you can't tell by this picture because he made a huge mess with applesauce, but he enjoys himself and does a great job! He uses the utensil about every other bite, and his hand the other bites. Its pretty funny to watch. If I remind him to use the spoon he does for every bite and is so proud when the bite makes it to his mouth. I love to watch all of his new accomplishments each day. Whether its feeding himself, saying a new word, catching or throwing a ball...its all fun to experience right along with him.

Lately Diego has begun hugging Daddy and I's legs when he see's us. He's a big snuggler, especially at bedtime but I love the random hugs we get throughout the day now. I'm working on giving kisses, but he doesn't seem to interested in that yet. :) He does let me give him kisses anytime I want though!

Race for the Cure

2009-09-20T15:04:00.000-07:00

Today was Diego's second ride in the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure in Portland. We had an early start to the day, on the road by 6 am! I had to wake both Diego and Olivia (who was staying with me), and I learned its much easier to wake an 18 month old than an almost 13 year old. Diego woke up super happy and Olivia wasn't as excited. We met Erica, Bryan, Hank, Jagger and Miranda at the Wilsonville Starbucks and with Latte's in hand made our way to Riverfront Park in Portland for the walk. We spent our first hour picking up race numbers, t-shirts and all the freebies....man are there a lot of freebies at this race! We picked up lots of snacks and lots of race paraphernalia. Last year, Diego fell asleep before the race started and slept until we were just about done. This year, he was awake until we were almost done! He did a lot of snacking along the route (thank goodness for all the freebie snacks available). The boy at 2 1/2 bananas! He loves them! This year it was Jagger who slept the whole route and woke at the end! We didn't even break a sweat during the 5k because there are so many participants in the walk, you can't really walk fast, especially with a stroller. After the race we stopped at Red Robin for lunch and then headed home. Another fun walk, looking forward to next year!

Little Clippers

2009-09-18T14:54:00.000-07:00

After 4 tear filled haircuts, I decided to take Diego to the children's haircut specialists at Little Clippers in Lake Oswego. My friend Misty recommended them to me a while back and I just couldn't see driving 40 minutes to get my child a hair cut, but the first 4 cuts just didn't go as happily as I'd hoped, so I finally decided to give it a shot! This place is a playland! They have big toys, slides, video games, movies and all the haircut seats are vehicles (motorcycles, cars, jeeps, etc). Its a playland. We walk in and Diego is in heaven! We chose the red mustang for his seat, which I knew he would love because he loves "wheews" (steering wheels). Here is how happy he was when he got in the car.He's too smart for his 'ol Mom. He knew exactly what was going on. He was unhappy, there were lots of tears and even a few snot bubbles, but he did calm down a few times to turn the wheel and watch the video he chose (Thomas the Train). So, I think we'll continue with Little Clippers until he gets used to the haircuts. I wasn't super impressed with the stylist we had, so we may choose a different one next time, but all in all I was impressed. He got a fabulous haircut and even made it through a few snips with the electric clippers!

Here is the finished cut, isn't it cute? I loved this place and loved that after the haircut was done, he did get to play for a while with the toys and he LOVED that. Hopefully one day soon my sweet boy won't be scared to get his haircut.

Poop in the tub.

2009-09-12T20:41:00.001-07:00

After almost 19 months, Diego pooped in the tub tonight. I don't think I need to see anything else about it except that it was gross and then I had to clean the bathtub and I didn't want to. I hope it never happens again.

18 Month Stats

2009-09-03T20:39:00.000-07:00

Today Diego had his 18 month well child checkup, and I'll be honest, it wasn't fun. Since the 9 month check up he has had a hard time at the Doctor's office. He cries as soon as he see's the nurse, who is a sweet sweet young woman, but he remembers that she gives the shots. He cries while he is weighed. He cries while the Doctor examines him. He did calm down for a few minutes this time while the doctor chatted with me, but all in all my poor little guy was upset and scared the majority of the time. And when he's upset, he's upset and usually its hard to calm him down unless we go home. :)

At 18 months old, Diego is 36" (3 feet) Tall, which is the 99% for boys his age, which means he is taller than most other boys his age! He weighs 27 lbs and 8.5 oz, which is the 70%. His head measures at 50 1/4 cm, which is the 96% and as the doctor so tactfully put it "he's got a nice big head"!

"Yee Ah"

2009-09-02T21:50:00.001-07:00

Eddie was gone to Bend for two weeks for some training for work and my niece Olivia came to stay with Diego and I during the second week. We had so much fun with her! Diego calls her "Yee Ah" and loves having her around. We played around the house, took Via school clothes shopping, went to the fair and made pumpkin bread. Diego had such a fun playmate while Via was here. They liked being silly together. I loved having her around too, it was kind of like having a built in babysitter. She was really super helpful and I had a great time spending time with her. We had to take her home on Thursday and Diego and I were both sad to see her go. Diego still asks for her and calls her name everynight at bedtime looking for her so he can say goodnight. Come back and see us soon "Yee Ah" we love you!

Kah-Nee-Ta

2009-09-01T21:20:00.004-07:00

A few weeks ago Diego and I headed to Kah-Nee-Ta to spend the night with my sister Erica and her family in their HUGE trailer! Eddie bought us a GPS a while back and I've had nothing but success using it, so when we decided to go to Kah-Nee-Ta I just figured I could type in the address and it would take me there safely. Now, yes, I've heard lots of horror stories on GPS devices sending people on gravel roads/back roads, etc but I was just certain Eddie and I had put the settings correctly and we would be fine. A few hours before we left my nephew Hank called and wanted to ride with us, and I'm SO glad he did! I picked him up in Silverton and we headed off. I trusted the GPS at every turn, but then it told us to turn off of Highway 26 and the road turned to gravel. I began to sweat just a little. I'm thinking to myself, ok, we'll get there eventually. There were lots of other cars on the gravel road, so I figured we had to be going the right way. Then, Hank (my nephew) started to make jokes and I started to freak out a lot more. We ended up on the gravel road for 11 miles and it took us at least 45 minutes. I was sure glad Hank was there with us and I had someone to talk to besides Diego (who was asleep in the back). We got off the gravel road and back on to a main highway and I breathed a sigh of relief, a BIG one! It wanted me to turn onto another one, but I kept on the highway and it recalculated itself and we stayed on main roads the rest of the way. Lesson learned: Never drive on a National Forestry Road (NF-anything is bad), and make sure your GPS is set to avoid all unpaved roads. The trip home was much smoother. :)

We had a great time at Kah-Nee-Ta just relaxing, swimming, playing outside, watching movies, etc. I didn't take many pictures and I guess it was because I was chasing Diego around the whole time. My sister got some cute pictures and posted them on her blog. Diego is a champion traveler. He LOVES the car. He never makes a peep unless we stop, then he wants to "gdout". He had a bit of a hard time in the trailer cause its such a small space, but did great. We had our own little room to sleep in in the back of the trailer and it worked out great since he wakes up early. He was pretty quiet and we played for about 45 minutes before everyone else got up. I want to get a trailer someday, its just like a home away from home. We ate all our meals in there and everything! After Diego went to bed, Erica, Hank, Jagger and I all played Old Maid. Jag "won" both times. :) Then Erica, Bryan, Hank and I all crammed on to the masterbedroom bed and watched "I love you, Man." Which was hilarious. I really wish I would've got a picture of the 4 of us laying there watching the movie on the 8" tv screen. LOL! Fun times!

This picture is of Diego in the floatation swim suit Jagger gave us (it was his when he was Diego's size). It was pretty funny to see him in it, and he didn't seem to mind at all until he wanted to sit down or bend over. He's such a good sport.

Trip to Bend

2009-09-01T21:20:00.003-07:00

Diego and I met Eddie in Bend over the last weekend in August while he was there for some training. We had a really fun and relaxing time. We visited several parks in the area, had some great food, and took naps together every day!

This first family self-portrait is a true capture of how much Diego wanted to go home on the last day. Our little guy is so much like both Eddie and I, a homebody. We had a wonderful and relaxing time, but he was really ready to go home. No matter where we are (even at home), if Diego is ready to go he says "home" "mail". He loves to be home and loves to go get the mail. Better family self-portrait.

Diego really enjoying the swings or "fing" like he calls it.

Finally, a new picture of Diego and I.

18 Months!

2009-08-24T13:45:00.001-07:00

Dear Diego,

Can you really be 18 months old already? I watch you every day in amazement at what a fun little person you've become. You run, you hop, you jump, you slide, you cuddle, you laugh, you scream, you cry, you explore, you talk....boy do you talk! I can't even list all the words you say and you belt out a new one almost every day. You can name and request a few songs you like, not by the actual name of the song, but by the name you chose for it. You are very happy and social, and there is an occasional fit thrown, but they are often very very short. You love to play with "voovies" (DVD's) and you put them on your finger and spin them around. You love the phone and the "bebote" (remote) and will grab them at any moment they are within your reach (even off the counter). You like to get the paper in the morning with me. You love to ride in the shopping cart and when we drive up to the store you say "cart" "gdin" (get in). You tell me when you want out by saying "gdout" (get out). You are most often a very patient youngster and I really appreciate that!! You love to eat "kicken" (chicken nuggets), fries, fruit chewies (lolies), "bewies" (berries), "on" (oranges), "nana" (bananas), "bumbers" (cucumbers), "shishies" (Fishies), and anything with Momma's homemade jam on it, oh and of course "i ceam" (ice cream). Oh and your newfound favorite thing to eat is catsup! You love to watch "Noney" (Barney) and "T Tain" (Thomas the Train), when Momma lets you watch them! You love to read your books and bring them to Momma and Daddy to read to you. Daily you ask where "Yeeah" (Olivia), "Eca" (Erica), "Han" (Hank), "Jag" (Jagger), "Cott" (Scott), "Yawyew" (Sawyer), "Chachel" (Rachel) and "Weed" (Reed) are and everytime the doggie barks you say "hew" (Who's here?). You like to point out your body parts and are quick to point out Mommy and Daddy's too! You are no shy, and if someone talks to you that you don't like you say "bye bye." You will also steal food off anyone's plate if they have something you like! Each day you surprise us with a new word! You have a very hard time sitting still and love to play at the park on the play structures. You play very well at home by yourself, but also enjoy having someone to play with. Your favorite person to play with is "Yeeah" (Via) and she loves it just as much as you do! You have two molars coming in on the top and love to show off your teeth. You are beginning to enjoy brushing your teeth and ocasionally you will let me brush your teeth without a fight.

We have so much fun with you and enjoy watching you grow and learn every day!

Love, Mama

First Parade

2009-08-15T08:56:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, I took Diego to his first parade and we had a great time! We headed downtown Silverton with Auntie Erica, Uncle Bryan and cousin Jagger for the Homer Davenport Days parade. I was shocked how long Diego sat on the curb with Jag and it was so cute. He got really excited during the parade and laughed and pointed out things in the parade he knew. He even tried a little parade candy!

17 Months

2009-07-24T17:52:00.001-07:00

Diego & Auntie Erica

Diego has just exploded with words this month! He will try to say just about anything and recognizes people, places and things. He is really into "cycles", which are motorcycles, bicycles and trucks. Not sure how the trucks fit in there, but to him they are in the same category. I'm excited to get him some sort of bicycle to try out sometime soon, I think he will really enjoy it, even if he has to be pushed for a while.

Recently I opened the book "I love you as Much" to read to him, which we often read at bedtime and naptime and just happened to ask him what one of the animals was, and he said "goat" and he was right! So, I went back to the first page of the book and he named every animal in the book. I was so proud! He is recognizing so many animals these days! He gets a little confused between the horse and the bear, but its all wonderful to me! He also loves the book "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" and can name the first 5 fruits and even some of the foods from the day the caterpillar pigs out! He really enjoys playing with keys and cell phones and will reach out to anyone who has them, even strangers! He also really loves goldfish crackers, or as he calls them "shishies" and even grabbed a handful from cousin Carson's plate without asking. Carson actually thought Diego was leaning towards him for a hug and he dug right into his plate, it was hilarious!

I realized its now been 18 months since I've had a day job and wouldn't go back for anything. Staying home with Diego is the best thing our family could have decided on. Sure, some days, ok weeks, are hard, but every second is worth it. I told my friend Sarah once, after she told me about some trouble she was having at work, that I would take poopy diapers and sleepless nights over work drama, any day! And I meant it!!

16 Months

2009-06-24T20:43:00.001-07:00

"I Play" is the first thing this boy says the minute he wakes up in the morning. It sounds a little more like "I pay" but its just the cutest thing I've ever heard. He is non-stop on the go all day, everyday and just so much fun! He is really enjoying testing his limits with Mom and Dad these days. He stands on chairs and shakes them while looking at us with a big smile. He tries to climb over the back of the couch. He tries to climb on just about anything he can.

Diego learned how to say "No" on the day he turned 16 months old. Right now, its pretty funny to hear him say no, but it's quickly losing its amusement. He is constantly learning new words and has a memory better than I could have ever imagined he would have at this age. He is always asking for my nephew Jagger and for Sawyer to play with. He will also say "motorcycle" and when you repeat it back to him, he says "Daddy!" He just knows daddy rides a motorcycle.
I made a few batches of fresh berry jam this month and Diego LOVES it! Each morning he asks for "min bears" (vitamin bears) and "bam" (jam). He actually asks for vitamins all day, and I have to remind him we have vitamins at breakfast. So cute! He will even ask for a "baba" and "kiki" (binky) when he's tired.

Diego has become a pro at opening doors in the house and if we're not careful to lock the door, he's out in the garage in a split second! Opening the doors is not my favorite of his new "tricks" I must say, especially since he likes to leave the bathroom while I'm in the shower. I've since put a child lock on the door, but it still was no fun!

We are LOVING our new backyard and we spend a lot of time out there playing. Diego knows which area of the yard to avoid (although he doesn't) because of "poo poo" (where the dog goes potty). He tries to go there every time we're outside!! He got a new outside play structure with a little slide and he's figured out how to go down all on his own, and he's SO proud!

Diego is now 16 months!

Goodbye Old House

2009-06-22T20:16:00.001-07:00

Today we said goodbye to our old house. Even though we moved over two months ago and I'm in love with our new house, I'm a little sad to leave the old one behind. We're saying goodbye to the first house Eddie and I bought together, to the house Eddie proposed to me in and the house we brought our first born child home to. We bought our little house 6 1/2 years ago and were so proud to be the owner's. We spent some really happy years there and most importantly, we made it a home. We made some great friends with our neighbors there and hope to continue those friendships for years to come. Goodbye old house, we'll miss you.

We were quickly outgrowing our little house when we stumbled upon a great house coming up for sale, how convenient for us that it was The Kofoid family's house! A house we had spent a lot of time in and knew we really loved. We moved in two months ago, after our first offer on the old house died and the day after we moved in, we got our second and final offer on the old house. Two months and many, many frustrating hours later we finally signed loan docs today and we celebrated with dinner and fun at our house with the Kofoid's. All of us will sleep a little sounder tonight knowing we can finally move forward.

Here's to many happy years in our new house!

Little Climber

2009-06-13T06:53:00.000-07:00

Diego has recently begun climbing on EVERYTHING! He started with the couch, which completely freaked Eddie and I out at first and we insisted on sitting right next to him each time he climbed up there...until we realized he can safely get back off the couch without help. So, now we're not quite as paranoid. Now he can also climb up onto the dining room chairs, and as I watched him a few days ago, he climbed right on to the table after Daddy's cell phone. At first I wasn't sure if I should let him climb on these chairs or not, but then decided its not such a big deal. So, Rachel suggested just turning the chairs around so he could still get up on them, just not onto the table, and that is working, so far.

Diego is very tall for his age, so he can also reach up to the counters and pull things off which means I have to keep them cleared at all times! He has also recently figured out he can get in the coat closet and shut himself in. He will stay in there for about 30 seconds and then sort of whine to come out, but now he just lets himself out. It took him a few days to figure out he could actually open the door from the inside too!

Fun in the Sand!

2009-06-07T18:53:00.001-07:00

We took a day trip to the coast today, and were pleasantly surprised with the weather! Not super sunny, but some blue sky, only a little wind and not too cold.

This was Diego's second trip to the coast, but his first experience playing in the sand. He LOVED the sand, and kept putting it in his mouth and saying MMMMMMMM. He had a hard time walking in the dry sand at first, but quickly got the hang of it. He picked up lots of big rocks and threw them and even chewed on a few them, briefly until one of us could tell him "Yuck". He didn't have much interest in the water, so we pretty much just played in the sand. He was covered in sand by the time we left and even after we thought we had cleaned him of most of it, there was a big pile of it in the carseat when we got home! We had a great time at the coast today, and I can't wait to go again and stay the night!

3rd Haircut

2009-06-05T12:05:00.000-07:00

At 15 months, Diego got his 3rd haircut! He just got his second about 6 weeks ago and it was already out of control! I had been wanting to just drop into a barber shop or quick haircut shop, but just hadn't done it. I was also a little afraid to go somewhere other than my usual hair salon, but just didn't want to make an appointment, have to wait until the appointment and drive all the way to Silverton. We went to Keizer Station Target this morning and then stopped in at Great clips. It worked out well, there was no line and we got right in. He cried the whole time, just like he did when he got his 2nd haircut. But this time I really can't blame him, the stylist really had no patience for my sweet little man and was fairly unfriendly. She even tried to use the electric clippers, even though my sensitive boy was PETRIFIED of them! She did a good job on the cut though, and I'm pleased with the results!

When we got home and I took some pictures, he gave me this adorable cheesy grin, so I just had to post right away to share it with everyone!

Strawberry!

2009-06-04T07:58:00.001-07:00

One of Diego's very favorite foods is Strawberries, and I swear he would eat a pound of them in one sitting if I'd let him! Today, we were looking through one of his Animal Baby magazines (courtesy of the Kofoid Family for his birthday) we came upon a page with a strawberry on it and to my utter surprise, he pointed to it and said "strawberry (sounds more like be-berry) MMMM." I was so proud! We immediately got up and had some strawberries!

15 Months!

2009-05-24T06:38:00.001-07:00

I feel like Diego saw and learned so many things between 14 and 15 months and I'm sad to say I probably coudn't keep track of them even if I HAD tried. We did take a few trips to new and fun places that he really enjoyed. He has discovered how much he enjoys being outside and our new backyard has a nice covered deck and lots of grass for him to enjoy.

We bought him a tiny pool to play in on the deck and he wasn't really into it. We sat him in it a few times and he got right out. He knows what it is when we ask where's the pool, but just isn't interested in getting in. I took him swimming at the Courthouse outdoor pool with Rachel, Sawyer and Reed and he LOVED that. I guess he just prefers to swim while Momma holds him.

We took a trip to the Zoo with Leah and Cole (who is only 6 weeks younger than Diego) and had a blast. I'm not sure if Diego really looked at the animals as much as I did, but he really enjoyed being outside for the day. He ran around in the grass at the zoo amphitheater and loved it! We saw lots of animals, but I had forgotten just how big the zoo really is, and look forward to more trips up there this summer.

We also went to the carousel for the first time. Diego's friend Savannah was having her 1st birthday party there. He really enjoyed riding, which surprised me because he's a little sensitive and gets scared pretty easily so I figured the horses would scare him. We rode twice and he enjoyed it both times!

His walking skills have improved a ton this month and he has started running, which I think is cute, unless we're outside at a park or something and he's running away from me! :) He continues to chatter away and tries to immitate lots of words we say. He does say several words like "outside" and I've even heard "thank you" a few times, I'm working on please because right now when he wants more food he shouts "more"! Its funny, but it won't be soon enough. He really is just a lot of fun to be around. He's got a great personality and usually is happy to just go with the flow. He has recently started climbing on furniture, which I must say we're not all that excited about! He is awful proud of himself when he actually climbs onto something though, so all you can do is be excited with him!

14 Months

2009-04-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

My baby is becoming a little boy.

Diego is 14 months and tons of fun! He is such a happy, funny boy to be around. He can be a little shy and loves Momma the most (I can't say I don't love that), but his adorable personality always surfaces. He makes silly faces, says MMMM if he wants a bite of what you're eating, points at random things and things he wants. He is walking quite well, and is very proud of himself! The first week of walking, he would giggle every time he started taking steps. Its more "old hat" now, but he still walks all over with a smile. I am surprised how quickly other things have come since he started walking, he can stand himself up from sitting on the floor and can also bend over to pick something off the floor and stand back up...sometimes these result in a "plop" (which he says), but it doesn't slow him down! If Chloe (the dog) knocks him over, however, this is the end of it all! He gets so mad at her! He has started bringing toys or books to me, which I think is so adorable. I always thank him for the toy or read the book, and he just lights up. He also just started knocking, which is so funny! He will knock on anything, walls, windows, toys, books, the dog! He is starting to recognize people too and will point to Momma or Daddy if asked, he will also point at a picture of baby Reed we have when I ask him "Where is Reed." I was sure this was a coincidence, but he does it often! If you ask him where someone or something is and he doesn't know, he holds his hands out to the side like "I don't know." Eddie taught him this, and he picked it right up, its SO FUNNY!

We had a lot going on this month, including moving so his little schedule was disrupted quite a bit, but he was a trooper.

This month (in no particular order) we: Moved to the new house. Which we are absolutely LOVING!

Got a much needed 2nd haircut, and he cried the whole time! (above:before, below:after)

Daddy started his new position at work.

We celebrated easter and Diego participated in his first easter egg hunt.

We are so very very grateful for this little man, and all he's brought to our lives.