Dylan's 2nd Birthday Party

Here are the pictures from Dylan's party last Saturday. Notice the game with the guessing what's in the paper bag and the dump truck cake. See my earlier post.

Elmo

We let Dylan open one of his presents a day or two early. Martin's parents got Dylan a Tickle Me Elmo. Dylan loves the Elmo. He "parents" it - he gives it juice and lots of hugs. He also laughs when Elmo laughs, except when Elmo falls over from laughing - that scares Dylan a little but after hearing us tell him many times "Elmo's okay," he just says "Elmo OK" when it happens now.

Photo #3 and Clue #3

As you can see I look a lot bigger than the last picture that I posted. This picture was taken yesterday at almost 30 weeks and I've gained at least 13 lbs since that last picture was taken. Here's a comparison picture from when I was pregnant with Dylan. I guess I'm about the same as where I was with Dylan but I know that I weigh more now than I did at 30 weeks with Dylan. I'm on track to gain about 5 more pounds with this pregnancy than I did last time which I guess isn't bad since I've hardly exercised at all this time around. I'm definitely feeling the uncomfortable-ness sooner this time. I feel like I'm full term. But some of that might be psychological since Dylan was born at this time of year and so it's almost like I'm mental ready for our little girl to be born now too. But hopefully she'll stay in the nice warm womb for another 8 weeks. It's weird to think that I've never been pregnant at this time of year before. I notice it most when I'm trying to find something to wear to work. Since it's gotten so cold lately I haven't wanted to wear my skirts and dresses (in particular since I can't find any nylons that fit) so I'm down to about 5 pairs of pants that are work appropriate. I should get some maternity nylons though and I might start wearing some more casual clothes if I know I don't have any meetings.

I'm sure you all love my rambling on about clothes when you really just want the next clue. Well, I have to tell you something first. We actually have had a winner! I'm not going to disclose who it is just yet since she may get hounded by those who really want to know. But I will give her some props on this blog eventually. In the meantime though, I've decided to keep the contest going. The great thing about the prize is that there are easy 2nd and 3rd place prizes to give out - you get the 2nd and 3rd calls from us after immediate family. So keep guessing. Here is this month's clue: It's biblical. Hmmmm.....

Birthday Happy!

I can't believe my little baby boy is 2 today! We told Dylan "Happy Birthday" when he woke up this morning and he started looking for the candles (and the dump truck - we had a dump truck cake for him at his party on Saturday, see below). I think that's all he gets as far as what a birthday means right now. He got a singing card from my parents that has candles on it which reinforces that concept. We gave him some of his presents this morning from Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Mark. He got a Thomas sticker activity set that he loved and wouldn't let go of. We also told Dylan about the day he was born. Mommy notes that it was much lighter in the morning (I think we had already turned the clocks back at that point that year) and it was much warmer (it was 34 this morning when we left the house!). Tonight we are taking Dylan out to dinner at IHOP. That will be lots of fun. I won't be able to upload any pictures today but there are some good ones coming.

Since Dylan is learning a lot of words by repeating, I think he likes to repeat the last word we say a lot. So when we say Happy Birthday he says Birthday and then there's a pause and he says Happy too. Sometimes he puts it all together and says "Hap-pi-dy."

Dylan's party was awesome! We were going to have it outside but it rained so we had about 30 people in our little place but it was fine. It kept all the kids contained. We played a game where the kids put their hands in paper bags and had to guess what was in the bag just by feeling. All the kids wanted to peek but I think they had fun with it. We also had a dump truck filled with brownies as the cake. After singing, we dumped the brownies on a table cloth on the floor and let the kids go at the brownies. We had about twelve kids and their parents: Oliver, Richie, Jamie, Charlie, William, Anna, Ellie, Abigail, Aiden, Hamza, and Blawal. The balloons were also a big hit with the kids. The adults enjoyed the BBQ and hanging out with other parents.

Learning words

I know this is like the fifth post talking about experiencing Dylan's language learning but it's so fascinating to me. Recently, he's been trying to learn some new words but since they sound like other words he knows, he can't quite get them. For example, he knows aligator (although he says al-gee for aligator). Then, yesterday we were in an elevator and we were telling Dylan this is an elevator and he kept saying "al-gee." He was also getting two other similar words that he know mixed up - kitchen and chicken.

Dylan pretty much talks from the time he wakes up until he falls asleep. It's fun. It helps us to continually engage him and continually teach him new things. No full sentences yet but his vocab must be up in the 300s now.

Bike riding

At the beginning of the summer, I had grand plans for biking riding this summer (well, at least one trip on Fathers' Day). Then morning sickness hit. So, one of my goals for the fall was to do some bike riding. We had tried to install the bike seat that my sister got us two Christmases ago earlier but wasn't able to get it on right so we finally got around to taking it to the bike shop to get it on Martin's bike correctly. These pics are from Labor Day weekend. We did one ride near our house and then one trip to this trail near Annapolis. We've gone out one more time since then before it got to be too unfortable for me to bike ride. We didn't think Dylan would like the helmet very much. It took a little while but now since he knows wearing a helmit means going for a ride, he goes and gets his helmet and even tries to put it on himself.

Playdates

A couple months ago we were able to return one of the many babysitting favors that Richie's parents have given us. Patricia and Russ went out for Patricia's birthday and we got to play with Richie. Dylan really enjoyed the little playdate. (Actually they had two playdates, two days in a row because Patricia watched Dylan for a couple hours the day before they went out while we were at the ultrasound. Hence, the different clothes on Dylan.)





Not sure why I couldn't get this picture to post straight. Here's Dylan making sure Richie is safe by putting his helmet on him.

Uncle Justin's visit

My brother made his once every 3 year visit to DC in August (I shouldn't give him a hard time though - we've only been to his place once since he moved there in '06.) Justin liked getting Dylan to say dump (wait for it...) truck. Our trip to Silver Diner below was lots of fun too as you can tell by the expressions on Dylan's face. Recently, Dylan impressed Uncle Justin by being able to say "Happy Birthday" to him on the phone on his 28th birthday on 9/30.

Pictures from our trip to FL in July - Part 2

Dylan and me on the beach during the 20 minutes we were there in all of the 10 days we spent in FL. I often question why I have so many relatives in FL who do not enjoy the beach as much as I do.

Dylan and Grandpa at the aligator (algie - as Dylan calls them now) zoo.

Dylan with Grandma and Great-Grandma at the museum by the train.
Dylan and Daddy playing on the train.

Can You Peas Smile?

We still have a hard time getting Dylan to eat solid veggies but he seems to really like the pureed ones. I think peas are actually his favorite, or maybe he just likes saying "peas." (I guess you have to look kinda closely to see the peas on his face.)

Pictures from our trip to FL in July - Part 1

Yes, I know it's October and I'm just posting pics from July. I'll use the financial crisis as an excuse even though the fact that I'm behind on my picture posting is due not to work reasons but to personal reason- Martin's new job, Dylan's swimming lessons, the fact that Dylan won't let me use the computer while he's around because he wants to look at the Cars website....etc.

Here I am meeting my godson and nephew Zak for the first time. Zak is known as Baby Zak in both our household and my sister's household. Not to be confused with Baby Zack - a name my band director called Justin when Carrie and I were in high school. I was Zack and Carrie was little Zack.


This is Zak in his baptism outfit - also worn by Dylan and Uncle Justin. Two blond cousins! Stevo and Dylan fought over Steven's toys most of the time we were there but I don't think they held it against each other. They were just bonding.
Dylan checking out Baby Zak.
Dylan in a firetruck at a children's museum we went to with my sister and her kids. Erik, Steven, and Dylan in the firetruck.
Carrie and Steven, Martin and Dylan.
I didn't get very many pictures of Rachel except this one at the zoo. Rachel was a big help with the little ones - she was always pushing one of the strollers.
Betcha ya never saw a giraffe at a petting zoo before...and now you'll think twice before shaking hands with Martin.

Photo #2 and Clue #2

This photo was actually taken 2 weeks ago (23 weeks pregnant). I feel like I got a lot bigger in the last month. I gain 7 lbs. I'll take another picture soon.

Okay, so I know you're all waiting for clue #2, here it is: her name was NOT on the SSA's top 100 list for 2007. However, it is in the top 1000, unlike her middle name which has not made the top 1000 since the 1950s. (Note: you do not need to guess the middle name to win.)

Fun! Awesome!

That's a Dylan quote. He said it after singing and dancing with Mommy and Daddy today. Oh how we need to cherish these days when he thinks we're fun. I was cleaning today (try not to be too shocked...) and Martin was watching a Thomas video with Dylan. Dylan decided he wanted Mommy there too so he came and took my hand and led me to the couch and said "couch."

One reason I was cleaning was that Dylan looked into my closet and said "messy." So I take that back about me liking that Dylan understood that concept.

Other fun things that Dylan says: Ein-tine, Baby Ein-tine; baby sista; he names all the characters from the movie Cars and he is quickly learning all the Thomas trains. I can't even tell the difference between Percy and Henry but somehow he figured it out. And it's not like he's been watching these videos that much. We just started getting them from the library (along we lots of books too!) and he watches them twice, maybe three times a week for a half hour. Grandma and Grandpap come tomorrow so we're excited to show them all Dylan can do now.

We went for a short bike ride today. Dylan loved it the whole way. Before we left I told him he had to get his helmet on and he went and got it and actually wanted to wear it. Martin has been riding his bike to work a couple times a week. It's about 30 miles round trip. I'm so impressed. We're using the money he saves on not paying the tolls for a new bike for Martin.

Language

It's so fun and amazing watching Dylan's language skills develop. These days we get a one word running commentary on all that we are doing. Car, home, door, high chair, tray, milk, sit, etc. The funniest thing was Saturday when it was raining hard all day from Hurricane Hanna - Dylan looked out the window and said "bye-bye sunny." I've recently got into the habit of having him say "bye-bye" to things as a way to transition him from one activity to another when he doesn't want to. So when we go to look at the trucks at the construction site down the street and it's time to go eat lunch, I tell him to say "bye-bye" to the trucks. It actually helps! Although now I wonder if talking to inanimate objects has been raised to the same level as talking to people.

Dylan also learned a useful word on Saturday - messy. He spilled some milk on the floor and looked down and said messy. I got excited because I was so thrilled that he understood the concept. He must have picked up on that because he was so excited to learn that word too. He got this big smile on his face.

One "word" that we don't like that Dylan has picked up on is "gimmie." I wondered where he learned it until I started noticing how many times I use it when I talk to him. "Gimmie your milk so you can climb into your high chair....gimmie your foot so I can put your shoe on...." How do you explain to a two year old that it's okay for you, the parent, to give orders but not for him to give orders? (Feel free to take that as a rhetorical question or to give me advice if you have any insight.)

In other news, Dylan's regular day care provider made it home safely on Sunday and so he goes back to her place on Wednesday. I called on Sunday to make sure we were on the same page as to when Dylan was going to start going to her place again (making sure she had some time to settle back in after being away for 3 months). In talking with her and her husband on the phone, I tried to get right to the point because sometimes communication can be difficult since they don't speak perfect English. They both sort of ignored my directness and wanted to know how Dylan was. It was so sweet. I told her Dylan was talking a lot and she asked to talk to him on the phone. It's so comforting to know that his caregiver truly loves him and misses him.

More fun get-togethers

Melissa and I are friends from Treasury (we started on the same day but she left years before I did) and we are in a book club together now. We have a lot in common (from PA, in-laws in FL, working moms in similar fields, etc.) and we both seem to have very busy weekends (although the wedding blitz from a few years ago have tapered off for both of us). So it is a rare occasion that we see each other outside of getting together for lunch while we're at work. This occasion in July was also rare because it wasn't planned 2 months in advance. About a week before, we realized we both had a free Saturday morning! I would get to meet her then 2 month old and we would finally get to hang out together with our husbands and kids. We had a delightful brunch and walk around the neighborhood of their new house. Here's a pic of us gals with our little ones. Melissa's daughter Cassandra will be about 9 months older than our little girl. We're sure they will be friends.

Cara and I were roommates when I first moved to DC. She now lives in her home state of GA with her hubby and their little girl. Cara graciously brought Caroline to DC so all her friends could meet her. We met up with them at Tysons Mall at the beginning of August.

Exercise ball

We caught Dylan on video imitating Martin when he was sitting on the ball. He did it again when I was working out last week with the exercise ball.

The FUN air and space museum

Don't get me wrong, I like the air and space museum downtown. But when you've been there so many times, it does get old. The big air and space museum out by Dulles Airport is much better IMHO. We went there (me for the first time) the day after the 4th with my parents when they were visiting. Here are some photo highlights.

Fourth of July

A week or so before the 4th my parents and I realized that there wouldn't be a time for them to come to visit for a while so they rearranged some things to come down for the 4th. We probably wouldn't have done anything but since they were coming we decided to watch the DC fireworks from the Iwo Jima park. And we were curious to see how our nearly fearless and easy-going 20 month old would do seeing fireworks. You can see the results in the last picture below.

Dylan had a blast except for the 20 minutes of fireworks. He wouldn't let go of Daddy for a second. We didn't even think they were that loud from across the river. You never know how kids will react.

Dylan had fun playing with the other kids and Grandma and Grandpap before the fireworks. We brought bubbles to keep him occupied.

(Amy, yes we were wearing jackets in July but that was just because of the rain, it was still quite warm.)

Article about baby in abdomen

Why does it seem like you read a lot of stories of rare births like this one when you are pregnant? This is amazing though.

Grad school friends get-together

I'm way behind on posting pictures. These are from my birthday actually. Tom and Karen C. and their kids were in town and we had a get-together over at Laura H.'s. I hadn't seen Tom and Karen since Laura's wedding - they didn't change a bit but man did the kids grow up!

Laura pushing Jamie as Isabelle watches

Charlie and Alexander's balloon fight

Tom, Karen, and Isabelle

It's fitting that I post this today because I randomly ran into this other guy from grad school today (John H.!) It's so strange to me to run into people I know from elsewhere on the streets of a major city. I feel like this happens to me a lot too. Most of the people live here in the area but it's still so neat.

Some cute photos of Dylan

Clue #1 and Picture #1

Here I am at 21 weeks pregnant with baby #2. Check here for a comparison picture when I was 22 weeks pregnant with Dylan.

I think I'm showing more than I was with Dylan but I still get weird looks when I tell people I'm 5 months pregnant.

I tried scanning the ultrasound pics and that didn't work so I took a picture of the best one. It didn't turn out great but it's something. If you want to see the hard copies you'll just have to come over and visit! I think she looks a lot like Dylan.

Okay so since we're pretty set on the name but still want it to be somewhat of a surprise we've decided not to tell people for sure until the baby is born but we are going to give clues. Check back here on the first of the month for a new clue. This month's clue is: the name has 3 syllables. If you guess the name you can email me and I might tell you if you're right if you promise not to tell anyone else until she's born. I will announce on my blog who the first person was to guess correctly after she's born. And the first correct guesser will also get the first phone call from us on the baby's birthday (after our parents and siblings).

7

Seven years ago today I started working for the government. I've now been in DC longer than I was in college and grad school combined. Wow.

Updating things

I updated my baby registeries this week to help the family shoppers. I do want to get some new things in girl colors other than just clothes (like blankets and towels and such) but I don't want to overdo the pink which I think can happen easily. Maybe I just like blue more than pink and so the girl stuff seems a little overwhelming pink. But hopefully we can mix it up with some light purple.

And here's the update on some of Dylan's fun new words:

aape-pain - translation airplane; he is also now learning that his toy airplanes go in the air instead of on the ground like the other transportation vehicle toys - he even makes the "swwwwoooo" noise for the plane flying through the air.

dump (wait for it) truck; for some reason Dylan says this as two separate phrases instead of one

lots of verbs - come, clap, burp

new-new - fig newton

Even though he's not speaking in sentences, he can now string enough words together that we know what he's talking about more and more. We are also trying to teach him 'sister.' He can repeat it.

I think Dylan is going to be good at foreign languages. His dolphin sound is essentially a rolling r sound like in spanish and he says his friend Richie's name with a very spanish r (very appropriate since Richie's mom is from Peru). He also says his Ks like he's speaking Hebrew. Milkkkaa. And Truckkkaa with that deep throat sound. Maybe that's more German.

I like pink.

It's a GIRL!!! We're very excited! So are the fams. She will be the first baby grandaughter on both sides. (The shoppers, our moms, have been released!)

We already have a name but we're not telling....but I might give some clues on the blog so stay tuned.

(The title of this post is a very rare Simpsons reference that *I* came up with, not my hubby.)

It was a date

For the first time since Dylan was born we paid a babysitter and went out on a date on Friday. It wasn't a special occasion or anything. Except maybe that we wanted to use the movie gift card that we got for Christmas. We saw Dark Knight (excellent movie, btw) and went out to eat afterwards. Not sure our pocket books want to stand doing that more frequently but Martin and do want to spend some alone time together before the new baby comes. Not that we feel like we need a break from Dylan - on the contrary, in fact, about 2 hours after he went to bed last night we missed him and wanted to wake him up to play with him. But we feel we should spend some alone time together. We're looking forward a "baby moon" this fall probably to the Shendandoah.

Hiking again!

Today we went on our first hike in what seemed like forever. We did probably the shortest hike in our 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of DC book - Winkler Botanical Preserve. We had actually tried to do this hike twice before, but the gate to the preserve was closed the other two times. We took Dylan in the backpack, but he started crying after about half way. We took him out of the backpack and let him walk for a while. That didn't seem to appease him until we came to this really cool creek that was just deep enough for him to walk in and get his feet wet but not too deep that he would get too wet. Luckily he had his fake crocs on, so we just let him walk in the creek in them. He loved it and stopped crying. I think we'll definitely go back to this place, even if only to play in the creek. Unfortunately I didn't take the camera to get any pictures. The place was really pretty too with a lake and a manmade waterfall and many flowers in bloom.

Chincoteague - Day 2 (at the Beach)

We only spent about an hour on the beach - just to eat lunch and get our feet wet. But the beach is one reason I want to go back to Chincoteague. It's a natural wildlife refuge so there are no hotels on the beach - it's so nice. The sand was really really hot but apparently it didn't bother Dylan. After the beach we went on a hike in the more wooded area. The paths are paved so I think it would have been cooler to do on a bike. So that's what I want to do next time.