I Love Trucks!

Ryan, like most little boys his age, LOVES trucks. He especially loves fire trucks. Every time we leave the house he asks,"Are the fire engines out?" Which translates to, "Mommy/Daddy wherever we are going, you must drive by the fire station and see if the trucks are out in the driveway." Thankfully, a good amount of the time, they are out, and it is so exciting to drive by and look at the big red trucks, that is if you are a two year old boy!

Each year our city holds a public service day in which they close down our main street and park the city's fire engines and police vehicles on the main street. In addition to that the fire department barbecues for the public, the police department gives K9 demonstrations, fingerprints children, and are just out and about to mingle with people from the community. We took Ryan knowing that he would love seeing the fire engines. The best part, from a two year old boy's perspective, was that he got a really cool fire hat and could sit and "drive" any public service vehicle that he chose. This was such a fun event for him, but it was so much fun for us to watch his face light up as he sat in each fire truck. Here are some of our favorite pictures from that day.

Our New Hobby

For Mother's Day, Sanjay bought me a beach cruiser. I had been asking for a bike because I thought it would be a fun way for the three of us to get out and exercise together. We try to ride two or three times a week, and Ryan really enjoys it. Every time we pull the car in the garage he yells, "My bike, my bike!" He will then explain what the plan will be for the evening. He'll say," We eat dinner, play cars with Daddy, and go ride bikes." Ryan is right, after dinner we will ride bikes and have been averaging about 18 miles a week. I'm trying to get a lot of use out of the bike because in a few months I may be too uncomfortable to ride. I keep reminding myself that this is the last time the three of us will be able to spend this time together, so we are enjoying every moment.

Naptime Poop

Many of my friends have told me that their toddlers (who are the same age as Ryan) have started to give up their naps. If I'm being completely honest, I look forward to naptime every day! I can use the down time and Ryan can use the rest. Last week we had two days where we went through our normal morning routines, classes, and trying to tire Ryan out. When it was time for nap, I put him down and listened to him talk on the monitor for almost two hours. He was not getting tired, and I feared that this could be the start of giving up the nap. He began to whine, so I thought oh well, might as well let him get up. I walked in his room to find him standing up in his crib. The first thing he said to me was, "Mommy, I need a wipe!" I know he is obsessed with washing his hands, but at naptime, really? I asked him why, and he pointed to his sheet and said there were "yuckys" in his bed. I looked closely at a brown smeared mark on his sheet and immediately knew it was poop. I asked him if he had pooped, to which he replied, "Yes!" I took him out of the crib, washed his hands, put him in a clean diaper, changed the sheet, and back to bed he went. He napped for an hour after that. When he woke up we had a nice discussion about pooping. I told him, "Ryan, if you go poop while trying to take a nap, you yell to mommy and say I have a poop." "You are not allowed to put your hands in your diaper to touch your poop, that is yucky." Now, all I have to say to him is,"What are the rules about the diaper?" He says," No hands in the diaper!"

I am so relieved that he is not ready to give up his naps. We are VERY lucky that he will still take three hour naps most days. How do I know that he is not ready to give up his afternoon nap? He told me today, "Mommy, I tired, I need to take a nap." I put him in his crib and he was asleep 10 minutes later.

Art Class

Recently, in art class, Ryan has decided to stop painting paper and start painting himself. I think he likes the way the paint feels on his hands, but almost immediately after painting himself, he will say," I need to wash the hands!" I think we spend more time at the sink "washing the hands," than we do creating art.