Big changes for a Big Boy!

Luca has been sleeping in his crib since he was a couple months old. It's been moved all over his room, the mattress has gotten lower and lower, but he's always been in the crib. And he's never tried to climb out. I know, it's crazy. At his 2 year old doctor's appointment when his pediatrician asked if he's ever tried c-l-i-m-b-i-n-g out and I told him no, he looked at me like probably I just hadn't noticed him doing it. Since it's the safest place for him (as long as he's not escaping) I was content to leave him in there until he did try to escape. And then my belly started growing. And little bit by little bit, putting Luca in the crib got harder and harder. Finally, when I was having to just drop him the last few inches, we decided it was time to break out the toddler rail. It also gave us a place to cuddle before bed again, since the two (and a half) of us had outgrown the rocker.

And he was perfectly happy! He opens his bedroom door when he's done napping (which means I can hear the sound machine) and sits back in bed or at the top of the stairs waiting for me. At bed time we put a baby gate in his doorway in the beginning, just in case he woke up in the middle of the night and decided to go wandering with the open stairs right by his door. But he is so good about staying in his bed that we haven't used the gate in a while.  And when he wakes up in the morning he looks into our room (which you can see from the doorway) and if we're not stirring he gets books and sits in bed to read. Some mornings there's just one in bed with him, other mornings, upwards of a dozen.

In addition to the big boy bed, when we painted Little Sister's room Josh painted over the letters in Luca's room.

What it used to look like...

Some time with an overhead machine later, and we added...

The TARDIS also belongs in the clouds, we think =)

An airplane! I found the overhead machine at a second hand store ages ago, and this was the first time I've had a chance to use it. Such a good purchase! Also notice the new airplane laundry basket, a good find by Mom. Still on the search for other airplane things to go in the rest of the room, but like every room in my house it will just be a constant work in progress on some level. Until he decides he needs a change, anyway. But for now, everyone is happy. =)

Close up of the airplane, I'm really rather proud =)

Encouraging Independence

Photo evidence of the consequences of encouraging independence in a two year old. With the potty training came dressing himself. Since he can reach his shirts and shorts, that means choosing what to dress himself in. And in an effort to also instill confidence, I rarely veto his choices. Which is how we ended up running errands looking like this...

Good thing he's handsome... ;)

Swing set

I realized I hadn't put up a pic of the finished(ish) swing set yet. We got the tarp made, still working on the most effective way to keep it secure. Josh got all the walls up. We're holding off on the toddler swing since Luca isn't interested in it anymore and it'll be a while before little sister needs it. And the rock wall rocks keep selling out on amazon before I buy them. So, for a while at least, it's done!

He's back to using the slide, and still thinks it's super awesome. So happy with it!

Update on Little Sister

She's been growing for 31 weeks now, hard to believe there's just a couple months left! We've ordered the crib and it should be here at the beginning of August. We moved the rocker out of Luca's room and into her's. The dresser is in the garage waiting for a coat of paint. Bought and installed a new ceiling fan (Thanks to Grammie and Poppie, and to Pa for helping with the install!) My little crafts are coming along too. Hopefully they'll be done soon, and hopefully she'll feel like cooking the whole 40 weeks instead of coming two weeks early like Luca. We got his crib assembled just the weekend before he came home!

So she probably weighs about 4 pounds, likes to stretch out completely so she hits both my pelvis and my ribs at the same time, and at every OB appointment they tell me she has a happy little heartbeat. We've already had the normal two ultrasounds, so the next time we see her will be on her birthday!

There has been some discussion (from family as much as from complete strangers) on if I look as pregnant as I am, or more or less. The random lady outside a store said I only looked 5 months,  but I feel bigger, but the scale says I've gained about the same or maybe a little less than this point with Luca. So, here's an easy comparison:

That's 30 weeks with Luca, and 31 with Little Sister. Granted, I am a full week further ahead in the recent pic, but I still think there's a pretty clear answer!

So, the dresser should be done in the next couple weeks, (depending on how good munchkin naps). Then we just have to get people out to help take it upstairs again. Then I can hang shelves and put away clothes. Still need to get the rest of the "den" stuff out of the closet. (I don't imagine little sister will be needing convenient access to a paper shredder as a new born...) Just gonna be waiting on that crib... Oh, and did I mention we ordered the crib from a store in Kalamazoo? It was almost $100 cheaper there, so once it comes in it depends on when my in-laws can pick it up and then deliver it here... Really hope she cooks the whole 40 weeks... ;)

Air Zoo

While we were in Michigan for the 4th, we decided to go to the Air Zoo in Kalamazoo. Luca and I had never been, and Josh hadn't been since they'd done some major renovations. So the three of us, plus Nate, Bryce, Ry and Poppie all went for a couple hours. It is an amazing place! The main part has a whole host of airplanes ranging from super old to current, all with signs explaining their significance. Had we not been there with a two year old, I would have learned a lot! ;)

Off to the side they had like carnival rides that the little boys could ride. And the big boys. And one the pregnant lady could. Well, not according to the sign, but I'm sure it was just for liability reasons. It was a Ferris wheel. Luca rode that one a couple times, a hot air balloon one like the swings at every state fairground, and one airplane one that was like the Dumbo ride at Disney.

He mumbled something about it being harder to get in than the GT40

There were also a bunch of things that he could sit in. The cockpit of a Blue Angels plane, a Fighter plane like from Top Gun, and a helicopter. Luca had fun playing with all the buttons in all of them.

There's a picture of little Josh in this one. He says it smelled the same

In a little room to the side was a Kid Zone, there were little rides like at the mall that you put fifty cents in, some crayons and tracing plates, and a whole bunch of toy flying machines. I think Buzz was even there. Luca enjoyed the rides but didn't pay any attention to the toys or crayons. It was kind of crowded in there and the rides were the only thing he was guaranteed to do by himself--I'm sure that had something to do with it.

I think the best part about that room was the mural on the wall. Most specifically, how they incorporated the fire alarms. Just clever, it was.

The front one is the actual panel. The side ones are... UFO weapons?

Then the back room was mostly space oriented, lots of stuff about astronauts and such. And at this point Luca had the camera. My little photographer in training!

All in all, a super entertaining way to spend an afternoon! And it's nice that it's something we can continue to go back to as Luca gets older. There are more intense simulator rides, and it would be nice to actually have time to learn about the planes!

Washing the car

Luca gets hot and wants to play in water. Understandable. However getting the pool out and filling it up and getting the toys and his suit and all is not always convenient. So one day while mom was watching Luca she asked if he wanted to wash her car.

He was good at using the hose to fill up the bucket and make tons of suds, but wasn't really interested in using the sponge. He grabbed a handful of bubbles and spread them on the car. Smeared them around a little, and grabbed some more bubbles. After some prompting, he decided to see how the sponge worked.

All was well until Mom got the hose to rinse off the car. For whatever reason (because normally he loves the hose) that was not okay. He screamed and cried until she was done, then he was more than willing to dump the bucket of suds. On the way back to my house, It was apparently exceedingly sunny because Luca needed two sets of sunglasses. Fun day at Oma's house!

Amusing Anectdotes

Little fella has a huge personality and it's so entertaining to watch it come out. Here are some funny stories from the last couple weeks.

Luca, Mom and myself were all sitting around the table eating lunch. Luca, out of the blue, said "Sooo...." Mom and I both stared at him, wondering where this was going. He then says "What's happen?(ing)" So funny. Can you tell we all talk about our day while we're eating?

Filling his pool. In style.

We play the "this little piggie" game. I've started letting him fill in the blanks when we play recently. So I say "This little piggie went to... where did this piggie go, Luca?" One day he answered "Target!" We may shop there semi-regularly...

Eating a sucker and keeping watch on the neighborhood. While being very comfortable.

Luca is like me and has vehicle induced narcolepsy. After about 5 minutes in the car he's fighting sleep. Since he was a new born, when he fights sleep he makes this noise. I'm not sure how to describe it... But as I was making lunch today he was making the noise, and he was kind enough to continue while I video taped!

But he makes it all the time in the car. Imagine hearing that noise non stop for the entire duration of a car ride... Anyway, The other day we were sitting in his room just playing and he said he was going to go shopping. Then he sat down and started making that noise. Ha =)

Playing in the sink at Oma's house, a very favorite pasttime.

Also, I once asked him if his snack was "delicious" because I love the way he says it. But he said, "No, just yum yum yum." I mean, you can't make that stuff up!