10 Signs a Child Watches Too Much TV

10. Child can identify all of Handy Manny's tools by name, except Filipe.
9. Child sang "Na na na na...Elmo World" when we pulled into the church parking lot today.
8. Child does a frenetic version of the Hot Dog dance on command, now accompanied by a (in hindsight) poorly chosen musical birthday card by his mother. (Doh!)
7. When child is presented with a stuffed Larry the Cucumber (of VeggieTales), child often requests "TB Larry!"
6. Child's mother changes the channel from Sid the Science Kid to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Child freaks and says, "Sid! No Mickey Mouse. Sid, please Mama?"
5. Child is given a magnetic art easel by child's favorite aunt. Child puts up magnetic letters one by one, after screaming out what letters they are, and jumps up and down saying, "Puzzle!!" (see #4 for clarification)
4. Child begins to ask for Wheel of Fortune ("Wheel of Chichen") after around 5:30 each night.
3. Mother has seriously considered taping Wheel of Fortune to use in behavioral emergencies, such as Sunday night at 7:00 when Wheel does not come on TV.
2. Child thinks ladybugs are called "Oso bugs," thanks to Special Agent Oso's ladybug camera.
And the number one sign that child watches too much TV is:
1. Child's father has the morning Disney Channel lineup memorized from 7:00 a.m. until 9:30 a.m.

The Shape of Things to Come

Forecast: Big and round.
Set calendar to February 22nd, 2010.
Taking bets: Pink or blue?

Not My Child Monday, 2-Year-Old Edition

Here I am picking back up with Not Me! Monday--with a twist. Since I'm SO perfect that I have nothing to say for a Not Me! Monday, I decided to share some of my darling child's antics. Note that said child is 2 years old now, and I am not guilty of hyperbole when I say that he has been possessed by a demon.

My dear son did not begin screaming like a banshee when my beloved Aunt Linda walked in the door to visit on Friday. He loves her, and despite refusing to say "aunt" while chanting happily "Uncles!" the last time we saw her, he would never make her feel so bad, especially when she brought him cookies as a shameless (and effective) bribe.

My beloved angel did not wake up at 4 a.m. on his birthday morning and keep me awake on his floor for an hour before I gave up and went back to my own bed. If he did, he wouldn't then start chattering to his daddy about "Dirt-day Quinn!" while my dear hubby just tried to go the bathroom in peace.

My child did not fall asleep 10 minutes before the start of his birthday party on Saturday. He is an impeccably polite host and would not crash at such an inopportune time.

My sweet baby did not spend all day at the party fussing about "bobby" so much that I had to explain (again) to everyone that he's having some bowel issues (yes, still). He did not then tear around like a ridiculously happy tasmanian devil after he got home and finally relieved himself.

My darling dear boy did not demand the right to "walk walking" in the mall with me and Grandma. If he had, he most certainly would not have stopped a few dozen feet into the mall and grab his crotch, saying "Tight!" He did not then shift his "stuff" around and say "Better" with clear relief. WTH?

Well, if any of you have children that would NEVER embarrass you in public, please share these little episodes. There's only so much chocolate I can consume to make me feel better about myself--and my child. Love, Us.

Quinn's Dirt-day!

Well, it has been quite a week. My sweet baby, Quinn, is now 2 years old. How is that possible? We were very blessed to have so many friends join us for his birthday, especially people from out of town. My mom came into town Thursday; Aunt Linda came on Friday; and the Connellys drove up from Charleston that night, too. Aunt Linda spent Friday evening teaching Quinn how to "do" his birthday: singing "Happy Birthday," blowing out candles, saying "thank you," and opening presents. It worked, but one of the side effects was that he got up at 4 a.m. on Saturday, too excited to sleep. I spent an hour trying to get him to go back to sleep, but he wasn't having it. After he woke up Jalal, too, he said to him, "Soccer ball dirt-day Quinn!" The soccer ball was his practice present the night before. "Dirt-day" is what he calls a birthday. So none of us got much sleep that night.

The party went off really well. The weather was wonderful, none of the kids melted down, the balloons and stick horses were a big hit, and the cake was adorable and delicious (chocolate with strawberry filling).




Quinn did pretty well opening a few presents. At one point, he even handed a gift to Sarah to open while he took a breather with a juice box. Now that's teamwork. All three of the 2-year-olds (Quinn, Sarah, and Christan) sat together politely while we sang "Happy Birthday." Quinn even spent a little time playing with Caleb, Leah's 7-month-old.

The evening rounded out with dinner with our out-of-towners. Jalal made an incredible Cajun meal of pork, risotto, broccoli, salad, and bread. Mmmm...yummy! Quinn was in rare form showing off, and he charmed the heck out of Barry, especially when he walked past Quinn in his highchair and Quinn said, "Hi, Uncle B!" After a great night with old friends and family, they left and Quinn decided to have his biggest freakout EVER!! I mean it. He was absolutely hysterical. Jalal finally calmed him down with a treat of cookies, which he refused to eat until Jalal also had a treat. We're going to have to talk to the doctor about that.

Anyway, amidst the delightful weekend of celebration and sugar, I also had the very trying anniversary of my dad's passing 1 year ago Friday. I hate that Quinn's birthday will always be so tied up with his death, especially when Quinn reminds me so much of my dad. Even my Aunt Linda (Dad's sister) remarks on how much Quinn looks like Dad when he was little. My sister wrote a really touching post on her blog about Dad, but I guess I am just trying to process things internally. I don't know.

So on a lighter note, Quinn's language skills are progressing at an alarming rate. In just a couple of weeks, he has gone from 3 or 4 words at a time to entire sentences! And he is so polite! Thank you, please, sorry--he never fails to know the appropriate time to use his polite words, even when he is upset or crying. He sings "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" at the top of his lungs and almost word for word. He likes to sweep the floor (I got him a broom for his birthday) and cheers anything in sight--drinks, forks, belly buttons (yes, that was weird). When my mom got off the plane the other day, he popped up with a perfectly clear "Hi Grandma!" She wanted to be "Grammy," which he pronounced as "Gree-gree" (awww!) until just the other day. Then she showed up and it was "grandma." Go figure.

My birthday was a week ago, and it was delightful. Very low-key, but I got to spend the whole day with my wonderful family and I didn't have to do any dishes!! Yay! Here's to 29 and fabulous. Anyway, I know I'm overdue for a vacation post, and it's coming. I promise. In a week I won't have a job and I'll have all the spare time in the world! Ha! (Insert panicked nervous laughter here.) Just to give you a preview, there are a few pics on the left side of the page. Enjoy! Love, Us.

Bounce Bounce JUMP!

Hey y'all. I had planned to update everyone on our excellent vacation ("yay-cation" as Quinn calls it), but I lost 5 days of work, so I don't have time to spend 4 hours blogging. I will post about it soon though, I promise. To keep you excited, know that there were many hats involved, stalagmites, a pony ride, and many, many Goldfish.

Today, we took a time out from work and went to Monkey Joe's to jump, bounce, and slide. In case you are wondering, jumping is when you jump up and down on your feet; bouncing is when you jump up and land on your butt. Who knew? I hope that curbed his desire to jump for a while because I'm sick of him jumping on me.

Anyway, I better get back to work and take advantage of the little time I have while Quinn sleeps. Stay tuned for the adventures of the Halabys' road trip. Love, Us.

Fun Game--No Fun Game

This is great fun. Quinn pulls a crayon out of the box and thrusts it at me. I tell him what color it is and he says no. As in, "Blue." "No blue." "White." "No white." "Magenta." "No Genten." Yay! This is after he freaked out wanting the crayons and I said he could have them and he freaked out AGAIN: NO COLORS! For crying out loud! Ah, to be two and have the freedom to act like a nightmare for no good reason and then come kissing and hugging on your mama.

This morning, Quinn started playing around with my cell phone. He grabs it, flips it open and takes it over to his Pooh chair. He starts pushing buttons and Jalal says, "What are you doing? Don't call China." Quinn holds the phone to his ear and says, "China? Hello?" We both cracked up. Jalal said, "There you go. Put that in your Sunday Silly Stories." What? He reads my blog? ; )

Our transition to a toddler bed is really trying our patience. There have only been a couple of nights that he has slept through the night. One of us has had to stay in his room with him until he falls asleep, for every nap and at night. It is getting so old. We leave in two days for our vacation. This ought to be interesting. On the plus side, when we stay in a hotel, we always sleep in the same room, so maybe all will be well.

I made breakfast for dinner tonight. Pancakes with a booster of flaxmeal and scrambled eggs with cheese. They were pretty good, if I do say so myself. I threw a couple of pieces of broccoli and cauliflower on Quinn's plate because he's been eating so poorly lately. I thought it was a lost cause, but he ate the cauliflower right away. Hmm. Since when does he not eat green vegetables? He's had entire meals that consisted solely of broccoli! Maureen thinks Quinn and Sarah have traded places because Sarah is sleeping well, eating well, and behaving great. I just want my kid back. Granted, he can still be so sweet and funny. He loves giving big smoochie kisses (when he feels like it), and when he starts, he doesn't stop. But most of this evening I've felt like that stereotypical new mom who just wants to yell, "Why are you crying?!" Maybe the change of scenery on our vacation will do us good. Well, I should go get started on packing. I have to have everything done by tomorrow at 7 p.m. because I have to go bowling with my new league. It's much different than the last league I was on. For one thing, our team is just Maureen and me. The alley doesn't have smoking, so it much easier to breathe there. And even though it starts two hours later, it only finishes one hour later because of the smaller teams (most have three people). So, I'll post again soon. Promise. Love, Us.