One Man Band

What do you mean I'm doing it wrong? 

Spring!

Spring sprung on us a little early this year!  Mid-March is normally pretty cold and gloomy, but the stretch of warm sunny days we just had was fantastic!  It (almost) makes up for having no snow days this winter! 

Despite being totally unprepared clothes-wise (all shorts and t-shirts were either too small or too big), Cal loved the warm weather.  We went on lots of walks and played outside daily.  He has a major love affair with his wagon and asks to go for a ride whenever he sees it.

Going on a walk to the diner for dinner.



Watching the neighborhood kids play.



Playing at the park on St. Patrick's Day.

Yet another walk!

We also enjoyed "pajama walks" on some of the warmer evenings.  Cal (in his jammies) enjoyed his milk while we took one last spin around the block.  It was the perfect way to end the day!  I can't wait until the weather is warmer consistently so we can do this daily.

Unexpected Sunday Funday

Ever have one of those days where nothing goes as planned but it turns out great anyway?  That was our Sunday.  When our tax return showed up in our account late Friday, Billy and I decided to head to Ikea to buy the rest of the cabinets for the office portion of our kitchen. We asked my mom to watch Cal because we didn't really want to worry about him while we were dealing with all of those boxes.  It turned out to be a good idea - he wouldn't have fit!  While we measured and planned and sorted a million flat packed boxes, Cal got to enjoy a nice spring walk (and nap) with Grandma.

As we drove home, I got a call from my sister.  The family (and Joe!) was hanging out at my aunt's house watching basketball and relaxing.  Billy dropped me off and continued home to unpack.  My mom brought Cal over.  I wouldn't call it a relaxing day (although my sister and Charlotte did give me some free time), but Cal had a ball.  He was a little shocked by the big screen projector, and the excited shouts from my family of State fans frightened him to tears a few times.  He did like acting like he was part of the show however, dancing gleefully on the padded floor.  There were all sorts of new things to discover and he liked exploring the house, checking out the animals (dog, cats, turtle, fish) and playing with all the old toys.

It was nothing like what I planned for Sunday, but a good day nonetheless.  Family, food, a curious toddler!



Hanging out with Dom in front of the big screen.

He pushed the putter around like a vacuum.

Hanging out in Charlotte's room with a toy car he stole from Dom's room.

Going to the Rodeo

Cal took his second trip to the D over the weekend.  On his first trip we went to the Roller Derby.  This time we took him to the Professional Bull Rider's Last Cowboy Standing.  Culture - he has it!  Billy got free tickets from work, so both sets of grandparents joined us.



Petting one of DPD's Mounted Division horses.

It was a busy night downtown.  In addition to the rodeo at Ford Field, the Fresh Beat Band was at the Music Box, Lyle Lovett was at the State and Barry Manilow was at the Fox.  Talk about a diverse crowd!  Our plan was to eat at Hockeytown, but the wait was an hour and a half so we went to R.U.B instead.  While we were seated quickly, we had to wait over 50 minutes for our food. Luckily we had lots of snacks for Cal, because he was hungry!  He ate two pouches, graham sticks, and a cereal bar PLUS his grilled cheese and fries.  He impressed all of his grandparents with his fork skills, preferring to eat his fries in a civilized manner.

Gimme more food!

Before the bull riding started, Big & Rich and Cowboy Troy gave a mini concert.  Cal loves music and was enthralled.

Cal did great, despite it being past his bed time.  We left early and he was asleep before we even pulled out of the parking garage.

Very full and very sleepy, but very entertained.


I had a really good time and will totally take Cal again.  It was very cool to watch and the emcee was very funny.

The view from our seats.



15 Months!

Cal had his 15 month check-up last week and I am happy to report that we have no doctor anxiety yet!  He was a pretty happy guy all through our appointment!  He tipped the scales at just a touch under 27 pounds and was about 32.5 inches tall.  He was a bit tough to measure, as he did not want to lie still for the height check (we had to try twice and it is still a bit of a guess).  It took us two tries for his weight also, because the little bugger turned the scale off - he really likes to press buttons!

As always, he thoroughly enjoyed the paper on the exam table.  It was completely shredded by the time the doctor came in, but at least he was entertained!

He got two shots which he took like a champ - maybe 5 seconds of crying!  He is becoming such a big boy.

Likes:

• Cars
• Daddy
• Blueberries
• Pasta Pick-ups
• Pouches (why did I never offer these before?!?)
• His stuffed dog (I just ordered two spares)
• Music
• Bath time
• Pushing buttons
• Walks in the wagon

Dislikes

• The end of bath time
• Being told no

Cleaning Baby

Who needs a cleaning lady when you have a cleaning baby?

Vacuums have always been a favorite of Cal's.  It is the one chore I can count on getting done while he is awake.  When he was younger (read: not mobile), he would be perfectly content to sit and hold onto the cord while I vacuumed around him.  Once he started crawling, he would actually push the vacuum around as he scooted across the floor.  He is very observant when it comes to vacuuming.  He now knows that to turn it on you have to plug it in and push the big red button.  He will do both if you let him.  It was a given that Billy and I gave him a toy vacuum for his birthday.

Last Sunday I captured this gem:

Sunday is normally my cleaning day, but I had been away all weekend and was just not feeling it.  I guess Cal decided to do the job himself!