Sesame Street Live

Last week Zach and I decided to surprise Drew with a trip to see Sesame Street Live. We went to Sesame Street Live a couple of years ago when Drew was a newborn and Zach was not quite three, I think, and Zach loved it. I didn't know if Zach would be as excited this time around, but Drew sure likes Elmo, Ernie, and Cookie Monster, so I figured he'd be into it. The only date that worked for us was a matinee during the week, so I decided to just go for it. I don't think Mike was too upset to miss out.

We got down town and picked up our tickets at the will call window, and headed into the arena to our seats which were pretty good. I didn't want to pay the big bucks for the most expensive, so I went for the second price range. We were off to the side of the stage, but in the front row, which was nice because we didn't have any taller people blocking our view. We were in our seats about 10 minutes before the show started, and Zach pretty much started right away with, "Mom, can we get..." I am not a believer in the idea that you need to get a souvenir every time you go somewhere special- it just leads to too much money wasted on junk, and I think it sends the wrong message, so I had already pretty much decided we weren't going home with souvenirs of any sort. I told Zach right away that just going to the show was special enough, and he took it well. He asked one more time, but quickly answered his own question with, "Oh yeah, we're not getting anything." He did ask at intermission about the Elmo balloons when they brought those out, but again, me telling him no once was all it took, and I didn't even hear whining about it later, thank goodness.

Here are the boys before the show started. I didn't want to take our good camera in, so I just did the best I could (which was not very good at all) with my phone.

Here are some of the characters dancing and singing. I wonder how these costumes work. The voices are obviously the same as on the T.V. show, so I think they have to be recorded. So how do their mouths move at the right time? The people inside the costumes appear to have their hands free to use for all of their dance moves. I can't imagine how hot it must be inside those costumes, because those people can really dance. I just can't help but wonder if this is where these dancers pictured themselves when they dreamed of dancing as their career- inside hot muppet suits getting no glory.

Some of the characters came pretty close to us when they came out and high-fived kids, but I suppose they did pay the big bucks...

All in all, the show, called "Elmo's Green Thumb," was pretty good. It carried a good message about taking care of the earth, which was nice, but probably a little lost on a big chunk of the audience, which happened to be the 3 and under crowd. There was about an hour of show, then a 15 minute intermission, and then another half-hour of show, and that last half-hour Drew was getting pretty squirrelly. He never really left the area around his seat, but he was laying on it, standing in front of it, etc. If it weren't for Zach, I might have left early. The poor girl next to Zach, who was probably about 18-21 months old, cried basically non-stop after intermission. It was just her and her mom, and just when I was wondering why on earth the mom was staying when her daughter clearly did not want to, they got up and left. I wasn't terribly annoyed by the crying, but I just felt bad for the little girl who was being forced to stay at Sesame Street Live, of all things.

Anyway, it was a nice little change from our usual Friday activities, and something fun for the boys and me to do together.

Drew Quotes

Many of the posts on this blog are about funny things Zach has said. Well, now that Drew is putting multiple-word sentences together, he is starting to say some really funny things, too. Like his big brother, Drew picks up on everything anyone ever says, and is quick to repeat things. Thankfully this hasn't really bitten me in the butt yet, at least not too badly. So, some funny (at least to Mike and me) Drew quotes:

-Drew and I were making cookies one night while Mike and Zach were outside picking up dog poop (Zach wanted to help- how long before the novelty wears off and I have to force him to help?). Zach came in and went to wash his hands so he could help with the cookie making. After he'd started helping us, I turned around to do something and noticed Zach had put the bread bag he used to pick up dog poop (imagine it as a rubber glove of sorts) on the island in the kitchen. Not anywhere near where we were making cookies, but still, a bag used to pick up dog poop sitting on my kitchen counter. I freaked out. I could not believe that a dirty dog poop bag was on my kitchen counter and that Zach didn't think to throw it into the trash immediately. I yelled more than I should have (don't worry, I apologized later), and in the midst of me freaking out, Drew joined in with, "'Scusting, Zach!" in a very reprimanding tone. You can imagine I used the word "disgusting" a few times in that little rant. Once the boys were out of the room I calmly addressed Mike and his role in the whole situation. As the adult picking up dog poop, really, he should have seen to it that the dirty dog poop bag got thrown in the big bag of poop! Either way, I don't think that will happen again!

-The other day Drew correctly used the terms "nevermind" and "just kidding" correctly when talking to me. I'm not all that surprised he used those terms because Zach uses them a lot, but I'm just surprised he used them correctly.

-In the car the other day on the way home from preschool, Drew said, "Dad home," and I said, "Dad's at work, Drew." He said, "Dad home with me," so I said, "Do you want Dad home with you?" Drew said, "Yeah. Love him." That story definitely made Mike's day.

-The boys were laying together in Zach's bed yesterday. Zach was still waking up from his nap, and Drew was just lying there with him, acting out the story The Napping House. It's just a twin bed, so there's not a lot of extra room when they're both lying on it. Once Zach decided to participate, he sort of rolled over and his elbow kind of bumped Drew, prompting Drew to say, "NO, Zach. Make me nervous!" Again, it was the correct use of the word that made me smile.

-While Drew is putting together multiple-word sentences and even multiple-sentence paragraphs, he's still not always easy to understand, especially for people other than Zach and me, and often Mike. Drew always wants to talk to Caleb, Zach's friend who we drive to/from school every day. Unfortunately for Drew, Caleb could really care less about what Drew has to say. Often times, Caleb doesn't seem to even realize Drew is talking to him. So usually I end up filling in for Caleb's part in the conversation. This has been ok in the past, but suddenly this week, Drew wasn't having any of it. He'd say something to Caleb like, "Red dump truck, Cay-bub," and I'd say, "Oh, did you see the red dump truck, Drew?" And Drew's response would be, in a very annoyed, snotty tone, "NO MOM! NOT TALKING YOU! TALKING CAY-BUB!" The second time he did this I told him he was being rude to me, and then he apologized to Caleb, which prompted Zach to say, "You should apologize to Mom, Drew!" The last time Drew did this to me was yesterday (the 3rd time this week, I think), and it was a time when Drew was talking to Zach. So I calmly told him he was being rude and that instead he should say, "I was talking to Zach, Mom," in a nice voice. Hopefully that will happen now, because although it was funny the first couple of times, if my 2 year-old keeps talking to me like that, I am in some trouble, I think.

-The last quote, and maybe the best. After the boys' bath, I always wrap Drew in his towel and sit him on the counter to brush his teeth. Then we get his jammies on. A couple of weeks ago he was sitting there on the counter, and his towel was open, and he started touching his penis and testicles, and saying, "Oh, gosh. Oh, gosh." Mike and I couldn't help but smile. Then he said, "Tiny penis," then thought a minute, and like any man, changed his mind to, "Huge penis... huge penis." It was very a very funny moment, for sure.

This kid is such a little dickens!

Pirate Show

Last Friday Mike and I got to do something special with Zach. With our good friends Ross, Kristin, and their son Caleb, we went out for dinner and then to see a show at a small community theater in town. The show was How I Became a Pirate, based on the book by Melinda Long and David Shannon. Zach has a signed copy of this book thanks to Grandma Cynthia, and he loves it, so when Kristin suggested the idea of the 6 of us going, he was thrilled. It didn't hurt that Zach thinks Caleb, Ross, and Kristin are about the coolest people on the planet, either. I think it was extra special, too, that Drew stayed home and didn't get to go with.

The show was great. They embellished the story by adding lots of songs and dancing, and the actors really did a wonderful job. I was especially impressed by the 6th grade boy who played the main character, Jeremy Jacob. The fact that a 12 year-old kid can memorize songs, lines, dance moves, and perform them all in front of a large group like that just astounds me. I couldn't do that now, and I'm an adult!

Here are Zach and Caleb sitting on the stage after the show. We almost got into big trouble for this picture!

This is Zach and Caleb with Shark Tooth, one of the pirates. I love the mean pirate faces the boys are sporting here.

Here they are with Captain Braid Beard himself. It was so nice of all of the actors to talk to the kids and give them autographs after the show.

Even after the show I was impressed with the actor who played Jeremy Jacob. I think a lot of kids his age would have acted somewhat stand-offish with little kids, but he was totally comfortable talking to Zach and Caleb. He initiated conversation and as you can see from the picture, he got down on Zach's level and was really interested in what Zach was saying. I imagine his parents are pretty proud of him.

Here are Caleb and Zach with Jeremy Jacob.

It was such a great night. It was fun to watch Zach's face as he took in the whole show and to hear what he liked best. I was a little nervous about how Drew would do at home knowing that Mike, Zach, and I were all together without him, and it sounded like he did ok. At bedtime he said something like, "Mommy, Daddy, Zach wake me up," or something along those lines, so I think he was missing us a little, but he definitely had fun with Grandma Cynthia and Grandpa Kevin. And, it was a nice way for Ross, Kristin, Mike, and me to celebrate our big boys and the end of their preschool year.

At the Circus

A few weeks ago, my nephew Cam got to go to the circus with my parents back in Colorado. Ever since knowing Cam was going and since talking to him afterwards, Zach has been asking when he can go to the circus. A week or two ago, Mike's mom and I were talking on the phone and she asked if I thought the boys would like to go to the circus. That was a no-brainer! So, Saturday morning, Curt and Linda came by early and picked the boys up to head out to the Shriner's Circus. My parents had warned me that it definitely was not "The Greatest Show On Earth," and therefore didn't really compare to Barnum and Bailey's circus, but that it was good enough for little kids. It couldn't have worked out better, though, because I had a soccer game at 10 and Mike had a tee time at 9:15, so this way the boys were happily occupied and so were Mike and me.

I met the boys and Linda after the game at Zach's soccer game; they had to leave the circus at intermission to get some lunch and get to his game on time, and I think that worked out ok. Zach was busy playing, so I asked Drew right away how the circus was, and I got a story in which the only word I could make out with certainty was "poopy," which left me wondering a little bit. So Drew repeated himself, and I understood, "Another one horsey poopy on floor." The full version of the story is that the boys were riding on horses or ponies and one pooped on the floor and held up the whole line, and then another one pooped. Apparently this made an impression on Drew!

So here's Zach on his pony.

Drew with Grandpa Curt on the pony.

Evidence to support Drew's story.

Throughout the day I got other bits and pieces about the circus. Drew's version- "Yellow snake! Tongue out!" Zach's interpretation- "There was a guy holding a big yellow snake, and his tongue kept coming out."

Another story Drew tells everyone is this- "Two elephants... walking... big trunks!" Zach's interpretation is that there were two elephants walking around with their trunks and tails interlocked. This is Drew's favorite story, and it's so cute to hear him tell it because he's just brimming with excitement each time.

The last story we hear a lot is this- "Bears... dancing..." There were bears dancing and riding bikes, I believe.

The boys must have done some inflatables before the show started.

We hoped that Drew wouldn't be freaked out by the clowns, and it seems like he was fine. He mentioned one thing to me about the clowns. "Red nose... funny paint on face!" was basically the story I got. I just love this picture because the boys (especially Zach) look so happy.

Before the show, Grandma and Grandpa told Zach and Drew that they could each pick out one thing to take home as a souvenir after the show. At first drew picked out this Superman blow-up doll that is as big as he is. Curt and Linda managed to talk him out of that (thank you!), but he ended up picking out an elephant that is almost as big as he is anyway. Oh well!

Zach picked out a gun. His first gun (sigh). I knew it was only a matter of time before he had a toy gun, and while it's something that I was against when Zach was a baby, I now know that boys will be boys, and part of that is playing/pretending with guns. It looks like a laser gun and it lights up and makes lots of neat noises (neat if you're 4; kind of annoying if you're the parent hearing the noises over and over again). Zach said he picked it out because it looks like it could be a Star Wars gun.

Here are the boys with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Curt. Thanks for taking them to the circus, Curt and Linda, and for the souvenirs they got. They love their new toys and had such a fun time! Thanks for sharing these pictures with us, too!

Milestones

We've had 2 big milestones in the past couple of weeks, one for each boy. First, last week Drew pooped on the potty, which was our first successful attempt at anything happening on the potty with him. He tells us every time he poops so we can change his diaper right away, and he knows that if he goes on the potty he'll get M&Ms, but something just isn't clicking for him. Anyway, one day last week Mike caught him right as he was about to poop and got up to the potty in time. Drew was very happy to have pooped on the potty and to get his M&Ms, but we haven't had any repeat occurrences, and that's ok with me. I have hoped he'll get potty-trained right at 2 and a half years like Zach did, and that's not until September, so I figure we still have time. And don't worry, I know he's not Zach and he may not potty train at the same time that Zach did, and I'm fine with that, too.

The other big milestone that just occurred yesterday, and this one was Zach's milestone. He rode his bike with no training wheels! We tried removing the training wheels last summer one time, and Zach just wasn't ready. He just leaned so much to one side or the other. We've been thinking for a while that we needed to give it another shot, and yesterday the boys were on their bikes (Mike and Zach on bikes, Drew in the Burley), and they ran into a preschool friend of Zach's who was on his bike with no training wheels. I think this really helped Zach to see that someone his age/size can ride without training wheels, and therefore maybe he could, too. So about 15 minutes before we needed to leave our house, Mike and Zach went out and gave it a try. Drew and I went out after about 5 minutes, and I was sort of expecting to see the major leaning we'd seen last year, but I was wrong! This video is from a few minutes later.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Zach got a little more practice in tonight with Mike, and did and even better job. He had a couple of good stops, but also a couple of crashes into the grass. Next we'll have to tackle getting started on his own and turning corners. We are so proud of him, though, and feel like this is a great boost for his confidence. I think his birthday in a month may bring a bigger bike, too.

There's a First for Everything!

First of all, this post is dedicated to my friend Alissa, who once had a similar incident on a train with an orange tic-tac. Alissa, if you read this, know I thought of you today! :-)

Today the boys were eating lunch, and I was finally getting to preparing my own lunch. I turned around and Drew appeared to be picking his nose, so I said, "Do you need a kleenex, Drew?" He said, "No, pea in there." It took me a second to realize and process what he had said. "You have a pea in your nose?!" And Drew replied, "Yeah. Pea in there." So I told him to stop putting his finger up there and let me see, and sure enough, there was a pea in there! I have no idea what possessed him to put it in there. We tried using a kleenex to blow it out, but Drew just doesn't understand the concept of blowing his nose yet. He sort of blows through his teeth to make the noise of blowing his nose, but no air actually comes out of his nostrils, so that didn't work. I told him we needed to get it out, and after sending Mike a quick text to share the news, I went upstairs to look for the bulb syringe and to get the tweezers. Drew took one look at the tweezers, which were used on him last week to extract 4 splinters (with much screaming and struggling) from his hand, and he was having none of that! I thought he'd have a similar reaction to the bulb syringe, so I didn't even bother. I decided that I wasn't going to worry about it right then; I'd let us all finish (or start, in my case) our lunches and we'd see if the pea came out on it's own.

Drew was pretty much done eating at that point. I think he lost his appetite or something, because all he ate for lunch was peas with cheese on them. I asked him why he put the pea up his nose, and he said, "No talk Mama. No talk pea." Apparently he didn't want to talk about it. So he went into the living room and played, and I contemplated my options. I have a friend whose daughter got a popcorn kernel stuck up her nose and didn't tell her parents about it, and after months of runny noses and my friend thinking her daughter had halitosis, they finally figured out that the kernel was up there. By that point tissue had grown around it, and the poor little girl had to be put under to have it removed. I didn't really think that would happen with the pea, since it's softer (though I don't know why that would matter), but still, I was hoping to avoid that situation completely. At one point Zach said, "Drew, either Mom has to get that pea out or the doctor will have to get it out." Drew said, "No doctor!" Then Zach said, "Well, if the pea stays in there and you can't breathe for a long time, you'll die. Do you want to die, Drew?" And Drew said, "Yeah, die!" It cracked me up, but I still had to explain to Zach that a pea in one nostril wouldn't keep Drew from breathing altogether.

Just this morning I noticed that Drew has been sneezing more often lately. So in the midst of this pea incident, I thought maybe we'd get lucky and he'd just sneeze it out. But as we were coming upon Drew's nap time, I thought the chances of him sneezing on his own might be rare. And even though he had kept his finger out of his nose since the pea went up it, I was worried that when alone in his crib, he might put that finger back up there and push the pea further up. So then I thought about what makes a person sneeze. Do I get out the pepper like in cartoons? No, I knew Drew would not go for that. I remembered that my boys frequently sneeze when they get out into the sun, so I took Drew outside. No luck. Then we found a feather and I tried tickling his nose, but nothing happened. I told him I needed him to sneeze, so he obliged by saying, "Ahh-choo!!" Alas, it was a fake sneeze, so still no luck.

So I decided to take the advice that Mike had texted me and enlisted Zach's help to pin down Drew's right arm. I pinned down the other arm and the rest of Drew's body, and although he was crying and squirming, and I was definitely nervous, I grabbed those tweezers and managed to pinch just a tiny bit of the pea, but enough to pull the whole thing out! Success!! Through his tears, Drew said, "Great job, Mama!" How sweet. Then he said, "Go upstairs. Night-night time." He was happy to not have to go to the doctor, and I was happy that I didn't jab those tweezers into the side or back of his nose.

So, in almost 5 years of parenting, this was my first up-the-nose experience. I really hope it's the last. I wish I had seen him put that thing up there or that he was able to explain to me what he was thinking when he did it. Despite the slight worry that I felt about getting it out, Zach and I couldn't help but have a little chuckle about how funny it was that Drew put a pea in his nose!

It's Grandpa's Fault

Zach was a little disappointed after his soccer game today because he didn't score any goals and didn't really even get a shot on goal. This was our conversation in the car on the way out of the parking lot:

Zach- "Grandpa didn't even give me any protein today!"

Me- "He didn't?" Smiling to myself.

Zach- "No! Just Grandma did, but just one cheese!"

Me- "Oh, that's too bad." Not really feeling too worried about this, because Zach still confuses

fruits for vegetables and vice versa, so I'm pretty sure he doesn't know what constitutes

protein and what doesn't.

Zach- "Yeah, he didn't give me any protein, and that's why I didn't get any shots today!"

Me- "Well, Zach, I didn't get any shots in my game today, either. Some days it's just like that.

I don't think it's Grandpa's fault."

Zach- "Well, I asked him for some oranges, but - hey, there's my coach!" Case in point about

not knowing what proteins are, I guess.

The funny thing is, and this is just dawning on me, I always have a little protein with my breakfast, either bacon or some almonds or walnuts or something, and this morning, I didn't. I had a lot to get done before leaving for my own game, so I just ate a quick bowl of cereal and got to the stuff I needed to do. I felt kind of weird not getting my protein in, but I didn't stress too much about it. But I didn't have my best game ever, and now I'm wondering if Zach wasn't onto something...