A New Favorite Game

Emotions

One of Landon's favorite things to do is stare different faces and admire himself in the mirror doing them. Or, if he isn't near a mirror he'll ask me to hurry and take a picture so he can see himself. Here are some of his funny faces. He'll tell you which face he is going to do before he does it. He has my tummy hurting I'm laughing so hard. This is the "I'm bored out of my mind" face

The "scary" face.

The "cute" face

"surprised"

"sad"

"Happy"

"angry"

The "thinking about stuff" face

Preschool

Any of you who know Dave and me well know that preschool has been a sore topic in our house for a while now. Dave's argument was "preschool is a gimmick, a way to weezle people out of their money!" or this "I never went to preschool, and I did just fine in school!" I tried explaining to Dave that Landon didn't need it for the learning aspect, but for reasons such as: Gaining better social skills, learning to obey someone other than mom and dad, getting out of the house, and most important.. giving me a break!! Landon is not like most kids. He will not watch TV or movies, he NEVER plays with his toys,(unless he is within 1 foot of me and I am playing with him) never just goes to his room to play.. He is constantly needing ME to entertain him. I don't mind it tons, but lately.. it's gotten out of hand. He always needs something to do or he is constantly saying "mom.. I am bored out of my mind"

So anyway, Dave was left with both kids for a lengthy amount of time and soon realized why Landon needed preschool. He told me to sign him up. So I did right away, before Dave could change his mind. That was 2 months ago, Landon has been anticipating pre-school since that day! He has been sooo excited. Dave and I got a little nervous because a few weeks ago Landon decided that he would no longer stay in nursery with out Dave or myself right there with him. I was hoping signing him up for school wasn't a mistake.


Landon woke up this morning and declared that he was NOT going to preschool. I told him he didn't need to and I would call Miss Monique and inform her of his decision. I went to get the phone and he quickly changed his mind. He wanted to go.. ALL morning he was asking when we could go. So here he is finally ready to go. Can you tell he's just little excited?

He was a little nervous when we got there, until he saw his friend, Adam. He kinda stuck by Adam's side for a while.
Then Miss Monique came out to bring the kids to class. Landon walked right up to her and gave her a high 5 (can I just say.. I have never seen someone SO good with kids!! She is amazing!) He is already talking about her tons!
Then, Miss Monique said "Ok kids, wave goodbye to your mom's! They need to go get some chores done, they will be right back to pick you up!" Landon waved goodbye to me, turned and walked away. No tears, no nervousness... NOTHING. I was shocked. especially with our nursery experience the past while. I was proud of him. What a big boy! I got a little teary eyed driving away...

When I went to pick him up the kids were out front with Miss Monique and she was rinsing off carrots they got to pick from her garden. I thought Landon would be excited to see me, but instead he said "MOM! not yet! I need to get my carrot! " I asked him if he had fun, and he said yes. I tried to get more out of him, but he's a man of few words. He did ask if he could come back tomorrow. So that's GREAT! Yeah for preschool! I got all my bathrooms cleaned while he was away and Dawson slept the whole time. I could get used to this.

From the Mouth of Landon

Yes, this is the new blog trend, so you know me! I'm gonna jump on the bandwagon! This was actually really fun to do, Landon had a good time doing it too! I wrote down exactly what came out of his mouth. He's such a cute, funny little guy. He makes me laugh so much.

1. What is something that Mom always says to you? Please Stay by me!

2. What makes Mom happy? Me loving you.

3. What makes Mom sad? When I’m gone to grandmas.

4. How does Mom make you laugh? By falling down the stairs.

5. What was your Mom like as a child? You loved to play with shoes.

6. How old is your Mom? 3, like me.

7. How tall is your Mom? SO BIG! Like 6!

8. What is your Moms favorite thing to do? Play with me.

9. What does your Mom like to do when you're not around? Play games with daddy. (hm..)

10. Who is your mom’s best friend? Me and Dawson.

11. What is your Mom really good at? Taking me to parks.

12. What is your Mom not so good at? Writing your own name.

13. What does your Mom do for her job? Go hunting with me on Friday..

14. What is your Mom's favorite food? Fettuccine Alfredo (actually Landon’s favorite..)

15. What makes you proud of your Mom? Going Poop.

16. If your Mom were a cartoon, who would she be? Cassi, the girl dragon.

17. What do you and your Mom do together? Play games.

18. How are you and your Mom the same? We both have black hair for Halloween. (I dyed my hair.. it’s a little darker than I’d planned..)

19. How are you and your Mom different? We have different eyes.

20. How do you know your Mom loves you? It’s cuz when I say funny things you laugh. And cuz when it’s chilly outside we come inside and we snuggle.

Dawson Down Under

The title of this post scares me. It scares me because my little Dawson will be going under anesthesia. That's right, he's getting tubes in his ears. I know it's not a HUGE deal, but it worries me. I'm glad he wont have to be on antibiotics all the time. He has had 4 ear infections in a 5 month time frame. He constantly has fluid in his right ear. Poor little guy! They did a hearing test on him today and he passed. (phew) so no hearing damage is done. The Doctor had me worried into thinking there would be damage due to the fact that his ear has been infected the majority of his little life. He was surprised he passed so well. I was proud of him :)

We have to go to Primary Children's to have this done, so.. on Sept 9th keep Dawson in your thoughts and prayers that this goes well. Like I said, I KNOW this isn't a huuuge deal, but to someone who has anxiety, especially where their children are concerned, this is a big, huge, scary deal.

37 Facts

1. Do you like blue cheese? Sure
2. Have you ever smoked? No, but I was offered once or twice.
3. Do you own a gun?Dave owns a few.. gotta love the hunter side of him (I guess)
4. What flavor Kool-Aid was your favorite? Loved it when I was little, not so much anymore. Landon likes blue koolaid, anything blue rocks his world.
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? YES, especially for my kids apts. (I'm like you Liz)
6. What do you think of hot dogs? We only eat turkey dogs here.
7. Favorite Christmas movie? ELF, I'm betraying the Ross family by not saying "christmas Vacation" that movie isn't that funny to me.. Except for Landon telling people in church to "Bend over and he'll show you" or if he didn't know the answer to a question youasked him he would say "I don't know Margo!" (if you've seen Christmas vacation, you know what that means)I told Dave Landon was too young to watch it, but what do I know.
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Anything but water.
9. Can you do push ups? Yeah.. .one maybe.
10. What’s your favorite piece of jewelry? My diamond ring, and necklace Dave game me on our first Valentine's together. I lost it for 2 years and we found it just last year under the seat in Dave's car. What a happy day that was!
11. Favorite hobby? Buying new clothes? I need more hobbies... this hobby doesn't happen as much as it used to. Is TV a hobby?
12. Do you have ADD? No, how about anxiety up the wazoo?
13. Do you wear glasses/contacts? Both, and when I am for sure done having kids, I am getting Lasik surgery. CANT WAIT!!! I think they could classify me as being blind.
14. Middle name? Jean, after my Grandma Bruderer who I love so much and admire. I've always loved my middle name.
15. Name three thoughts at this exact moment. I hope Dawson sleeps well tonight. I hope I don't wake up to check on him even if he is sleeping peacefully (refer to #12) What is Dave going to do tonight with no Olympics to watch? Leno it is I guess.
16. Name three drinks you regularly drink. Flavored water, juice, water (even though I dislike water, it tastes like metal to me)
17. Current worry? The health of a couple family members.
18. Current hate right now? Cancer, MS, and other chronic diseases.
19. Favorite place to be? On vacation. anywhere.
20. How did you bring in the New Year? I struggle staying awake past 8 or 9 without constant activity. So... I was asleep. Poor Dave, he married a fuddy duddy.
21. Where would you like to go? Anywhere with Dave. Maybe the kids could come too. :)
22. Name three people who will complete this. Lori, CeAnne, Kellie?
23. Do you own slippers? Yes, and I wear them lots in the winter.
24. What shirt are you wearing? White shirt.
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? I never have.
26. Can you whistle? Yes.
27. Favorite color? purple shades
28. Would you be a pirate? sure.
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? Bleeding Love, by Leona Lewis. I don't know why.. but its what I have been singing lately. Landon sings it all the time too.
30. Favorite girl’s name? It was Avery... If Landon was a girl his name would have been Avery Jean. Too bad a "friend" at the time decided she would name her daughter Avery Jean, since Landon turned out to be a boy. I don't currently love any girls names.
31. Favorite boy’s name? Dave, Landon, Dawson, Lincoln (quite possibly what baby boy number 3 will be. I'm not counting on a daughter)
32. What’s in your pocket right now? I cant have anything in my pockets, I feel like it makes my hips look bigger than they are, and we for sure don't need that.
33. Last thing that made you laugh? Watching Leno. One of his fake Headlines said "Chinese Girls Gymnastics Take Gold in Potty Training"
34. What vehicle do you drive? Trailblazer. Wish it was a Chrysler Town and Country though.
35. Worst injury you’ve ever had? Surgery for Mastitis? If that's not an injury then I guess we can settle for breaking my ankle.
36. Do you love where you live? Yes! Love the neighborhood, ward is great, but I don't love my kitchen. Why do builders give people HUGE living rooms, and small kitchens? WHO WANTS THAT?! When we bought the house, the kitchen seemed big to me (coming from an apartment) but now, it's too small, Dave and I cant even be standing in there at the same time. Not like he stands in the kitchen much anyway.
37. How many televisions do you have in your house? 2.

The Last Few Weeks..

Dinosaur Park


Our friends, the Bennett's asked if we wanted to go to the Dino park with them last Saturday. We'd never been before and thought Landon would like it. He LOVED it. I was a little disappointed myself. I thought it was over priced for the amount of activity there was. Landon loved it, so I guess that's all that mattered :) Thanks for inviting us guys!

This is Landon and his best bud, Ethan. They have been best beds their whole lives!

Rylund and Jackson' s birthday party!

My sister threw her two boys a Pirate birthday party complete with a treasure hunt, treasure chest pinata, lots of food, and swimming. Going to Amy's house is the equivalent of going to Disneyland for Landon.

This was Dawson's first time swimming, he really liked it, even though the water was cold.

Yeah... poor kid.




Just some Pictures.

Dawson's first taste of a sour patch kid. Courtesy of Aunt Shauna.

The Bruderer Campout

Landon and Rylund: Best friends and worst enemies!

Dawson enjoying some time with Grandma Bruderer

Eh, why not?

Why not do this? It looks fun!

1. As a comment on my blog, write about a memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next (if you choose to), re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

So let the fun begin!! Can't wait to start sharing memories with everybody!!

Smart Dr. Award

Dawson has been very irritable for about a week or so. He hasn't been eating or sleeping well, has been tugging on his right ear tons, and was running a fever yesterday. I knew he had an ear infection, so to the Dr. we went. This is how it went:

Me: "I think he has an ear infection."

Dr: "Ok, let's take a look. "
he then gets his otoscope (or whatever that ear tool thing is called) out to look in Dawson's ear.

Dr: "Oh.. I can't even see into his ear, there is too much wax. "
he proceeds to get this pick thing out, to dig the wax out of Dawson's ear. Dawson sat very still and was a good boy for this. I sat and realized he got absolutely NO wax out.

Dr: "Hm... well, from what I can see, there is no infection."

Me: "Well... how much can you see? You didn't pull any wax out."

Dr. "well, I saw about half of it, and the color is good. "
He then continues on with the rest of the exam, and is about to send me on my way. I'm sitting there thinking how can he see suddenly now, when 5 minutes ago he could see nothing? I'm annoyed at this point.

Me: " I'm sorry, but I would like you to take a second look after you get more ear wax out."

Dr: "Oh, ya.. that's probably a good idea."
He then gets a different pick out and pulls GOBS of ear wax out of Dawson's ear. (ew, I know)

Dr: With his trusty otoscope in his hand again "Ok Dawson, lets take another looky here. Oh... wow, your mommy is gonna make a liar out of me"

Me: "what is it?"

Dr: "Well, I'm sorry.. he DOES have an ear infection, there is a lot of puss and his ear drum is bulging and very red"

Me: "I'm not one of those parents who wants my kids to be on antibiotics, you're not saying this to get me off your back are you?"

Dr: "No, I feel pretty stupid... would you like some free formula samples?"

Me: "why yes, thank you"

*Disclaimer: this was NOT my normal pediatrician. I love him. This was an after hours doctor at Wee Care. If you would like his name so you dont visit him, let me know.

Thanks Ryan and Brooke for the trip down memory lane!

Today in the mail we got a package from Ryan (dave's bro) who is attending Dental school in Indiana, and his wife, Brooke. I was SO excited when I got it too! Ryan is always snapping pictures, and I always would tell him I needed a copy of them. Well, they definitely followed through! In the package they sent a disc with 233 pictures on it! They go clear back from when I was prego with Landon. As I was looking at them I started to tear up. I don't know if this happens to anyone else, but I get SO SAD when I see pictures of Landon when he was a baby. Even seeing pictures of Dawson when he was a newborn gets me choked up.
I realized even more tonight how much you need to cherish every stage of their life. I wish I could just step back in time and cuddle his little baby body again, or kiss those kissy baby cheeks again. It reminds me of that country song "Let Them Be Little" I always tear up when I hear that song. Maybe I like that song so much because it says "Let Them Sleep in the Middle.." and I can feel better about Dawson doing just that. (I'm still working on that one..)

Anyway, Thank you Ryan and Brooke! You made my day! It was fun looking back on all those fun memories!

These pictures are weirdly placed on here, sorry.. A lot of people tell me Landon and Dawson look nothing alike and Dawson looks nothing like Landon did as a baby. I'm here to prove all of them wrong. The picture of Landon on Grandma Ross' lap in the navy and gray shirt is Landon at 8 months. I think he and Dawson could be twins in this picture.

What cute little stinkers I have.