Silent Sunday

TMNT Love

I have to share this story before I forget completely! Yesterday Orion got a kid's meal from an unnamed, horribly unhealthy, fast food joint.  The toy that was in his meal is always of interest to him, at least temporarily, however this particular time they contained Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys.  He has had a slight obsession with the TMNT movie recently so it seemed like a very fitting toy for him.  He opened his meal and pulled out the toy and saw the bright orange mask on his turtle.  In all manner of seriousness he looked at me and says "Mommy, why did they give me Mikey?  I wanted Ralph!"  I was so ridiculously proud that I almost cried.  My 3 year old is starting to know the heroes of my childhood and I couldn't be more thrilled.

Preschool Mood Swings

They say that teen-agers are full of mood swings and unpredictability.  I'm here to tell you that a preschooler that has underslept is just as full of angst and torment as most of them!  My normally pleasant and loving child will occasionally surprise me with an attitude that comes out of the blue, usually after a night where he was less than thrilled to go to bed.  A boy that is normally pretty appreciative for a good meal will throw himself a fit because he's been told that we need to eat supper.  The "No's" that echo from his little body are more than a little frustrating.  Little boys are definitely born cute as a method of self preservation.  I'm definitely glad that he is generally such a good kid.  I feel really bad for parents who have preschoolers that have that much attitude constantly.  I'm perfectly happy with my intelligent, slightly sarcastic preschooler with occasional mood swings.

Yuletide

Today is Christmas.  It's the first non-traditional Christmas that I've ever had and I have to say that it was definitely harder on me than it was on Orion.  Today we hit up a Chinese buffet for lunch, followed by some quality time at the movies.  It was just a very low key, quiet holiday.  Orion is happy, healthy, and home.  That's all that really matters.  He got a bunch of geektastic toys that he loves, ranging from rockets to super heroes.  He's spent more time than he should playing games on our tablets and watching random movies.  He is such a smart kid.

 So from our family to yours, Happy Holidays!  I hope each and every one of you has a fantastic day of celebration, family, and love.

Silent Sunday

Snow Day!

Today was a snow day for me and Orion.  It was a nice lazy day to stay safely tucked away in the nice warm house.  Orion and I made Snickerdoodle Blondies and watched movies together.  I got to introduce him to Nightmare Before Christmas.  I was concerned that it may be a little bit scary for him but he thought it was awesome.  We spent a lot of time playing with his cars and doing puzzles.  Overall it was a very relaxed and carefree day.  Tomorrow will probably be back to the last day of work before a short holiday break.  I am definitely looking forward to a long weekend of presents, food, celebrations, and family.

Ho ho holidays

Holidays are always a crazy time for everyone.  Our family has a few traditions and I'm trying to make sure that those happen even though we aren't able to spend the holidays with my family this year.  Despite the fact that I am an adult, I still love getting a stocking full of randomness each year.  This year that responsibility has fallen on me, and it's been quite exciting.  It seems like a small thing, but it is important to me.

We set up a tree and Orion helped to decorate it.  We even have 2 tree toppers because he thought both of them were necessary. I'm definitely ok with that.  I love watching him grow and learn.  I love seeing him get excited for things like this.  He is such an amazing little boy and it's a joy to get to share my traditions with him.

Silent Sunday

How is it December?

It's been over a month since I've updated things yet again.  Consistency is not my strong suite with blogging lately.  Maybe someday I can figure out how to get this thing on a schedule.  *sigh*  Anyway, the last month has been busy in a lot of ways.  Thanksgiving was a lot of driving and a lot of visiting family.  Orion loves getting to see his grandparents and all of his aunts so I believe he had a great time.

Orion started a new school right after Thanksgiving as well.  It was a pretty major change for him, but he seems to be adjusting well.  He is making new friends and seems to enjoy going.  I'm hoping that everything continues to go smoothly.

Overall, things are going remarkably well.  Orion can now write his name completely by himself.  He spells it out loud as he writes "O is a circle, R is a line with a little hump, I is a line with a little dot, O is a circle, N is a line with a hump".   It's adorable to watch and makes me so ridiculously proud of him.

So now, Christmas is right around the corner and for the first time ever we won't be able to go back to spend it with my family.  Part of me is really disappointed, but I know that Orion will still have an amazing time.  Aunt Jaime is going to be spending it with us.  We'll just call it an adventure.  Hopefully it is a fantastic one.  

And I know you've all heard it before, but I am going to try to update things more regularly around here.  I'm aiming for 2 posts a week right now....and I think I'll bring back Silent Sundays with just a photo as well.  Hopefully setting some real goals will make this successful.  *fingers crossed*

Life Is Crazy

Things never seem to turn out the way you would expect them two.  Two yeas ago I made a post announcing that O's dad and I would be going our separate ways, but would continue to work as a team to raise our son.  That was something that we managed to do very well, and things don't always turn out the way that you expect them to.  A couple weeks ago, O and I moved 80 miles away from the only home that he had ever known in order to move back in with his daddy and become a completed family once again.  It's a bit of a complicated story, but ultimately I think we are all back to where we should be.  Things happen for a reason, and living apart allowed us all to realize what is most important to us.  It was an interesting two years, and I think we both grew and learned a lot about ourselves and each other.  I'm incredibly proud that even during those times we were able to work together as a team for our son because that's what really matters.  I know it's strange for some people, but this is what works for my family.  I'm happy to be united together again.

Update!

Well the last few months have been crazy eventful and all that jazz.  Orion is growing up so fast.  He is learning to write his name.   He will be starting a new school after Thanksgiving, which is exciting but also kind of sad since he's been the same place since he was 6 weeks old.  Overall, he is very happy, healthy, and so much fun.  Here is a peek at some of his adventures over the last couple months: 

We became members of the forest in Omaha and they have a Dinosaur walk.  He thought it was fantastic.

We messed around with dress-up and hats pretty frequently.  It's more fun than it should be. 

Orion has developed a love for going down town, especially visiting the river where he can see the geese and take pictures of them.  

He also enjoys going to brunch with his daddy...

 And hanging out at his favorite book store.

Aunt Jaime moved to town, so he's gotten to spend a lot of quality time with her.  He seems to like having her around and I know I am super glad she's here! 

We went to a wedding and Orion picked this outfit out for himself.  He's such a handsome young boy.  Minutes after this picture was taken he went to play with a dog and was covered in mud for the rest of the day. 

We also got the chance to go see Bill Nye the Science Guy!  Orion thought some of the stuff they did was awesome....mommy was also pretty impressed.

More giggles with Jaime...

We took him to the pumpkin patch to pick out his very own pumpkin. 

Orion and daddy rode a trike together.

He loved climbing the hay and jumping off of it. 

We took a hayrack right to the pumpkin patch

And Orion helped carve his very own pumpkin.

He also helped daddy style his hair.

For Halloween he decided to play super-hero again and was rocking Batman. 

So far it has been a beautiful, happy, eventful fall.  Life is good, changing, evolving, growing, and so full of joy.  It's November already, which is hard to believe.   Overall, things are going fantastically, Orion is growing, healthy, and most definitely happy.  There are very few things that I could ask for to make things any better!

Well Hello Strangers.

Well hello there.  Yes, yes we are still here.  Shocking, I know!   I obviously failed the 365 project pretty terribly and am much too far behind to pick up where I left off.  I considered starting over, but I'm not sure that would be great either.  Either way, we're alive, well, and back to posting.  The last few months have been crazy busy.  Orion is growing like a weed (over an inch in the last month!) and is super smart.  We've been traveling, adventuring, and exploring this dreadfully hot summer.  We've had lots of guests and company as well.  We've seen movies, visited zoos, and been in 3 different states.  Overall, we're doing well, very well.  I don't have an excuse for the lack of blogs other than the shear lack of time.  I hope to be able to post about Orion's activities more frequently once again. I hope you're all enjoying your summer!   Here are some pics of O's summer adventures!

Baseball with Big Grandpa

Chicago Sky Line

Time at the Zoo!

O's first concert -- Meeting the lead singer of Icon for Hire

Petting some goats

Geeky 365 -- Day 204

Orion got to go camping for the first time this weekend and I'm pretty sure he loved it.  Sleeping in a tent was a big adventure for him (he kept pointing out all the tents he saw).  He also got to help build a fire and saw so many eagles.  It was really entertaining to watch him explore the woods and see the world around him.  I think he'll definitely look forward to doing it again.

Geeky 365 -- Day 203

Today we finally went back to schedule...I definitely wasn't ready though so I'm glad that it's already Thursday.  Orion and I went grocery shopping and got supper together.  It was not a very exciting night but I'm ok with that. 

Geeky 365 -- Day 202

Today Orion and I went to the Omaha Children's museum together.  He had so much fun running all over and exploring.  Neither of us had been there before so it was a lot of fun to see. 

Geeky 365 -- Day 201

Tonight Orion will be spending the evening with his aunt Krista because I am going to a concert. I'm glad they will get to spend some time together, just the two of them. It should be fun.

Geeky 365 -- Day 200

Lazy days seem to be a recurrent theme around here lately but I am ok with that. O and I made spaghetti for supper and spent the evening playing and watching old episodes of He-man.

Geeky 365 -- Day 199

Geeky 365 -- Day 198

Today Orion got to see so many animals.  We went to the Wild Animal Safari so he got to see wolves, deer, bears, and SO many birds.  He also got to feed some geese and fish.  He also went swimming with me.  For the first time he actually stood in the water without clinging to my neck.  Of course I think splashing me like crazy and laughing probably helped that process along.  The sun was shining and Orion was full of smiles and laughter.  I think we both had an amazing time, but we were definitely exhausted by the end of the day.  I'm so thankful for the time we get to spend together.

Geeky 365 -- Day 197

<p>Tonight was a great night. We went out to the park and then to the river to just spend some time outside.&#160; We caught some toads, saw a snake chase a frog, and watched a blue heron flying a around. Orion loved seeing all the animals. It was a great night.

Geeky 365 -- Day 196

Tonight was a night of very little excitement.  Orion and I picked up the house like we do every Thursday.  He helps me use the swiffer and bounces between running from the vacuum and trying to help me out.  We made some pizza for supper and busted out Cars to watch together.  Orion loves that movie. He played with his horses and took a bubble bath with them.  He spent more time uses the horses to pop all the bubbles than actually getting clean and then was amazed by his pruny little fingers.  It was pretty entertaining. 

Geeky 365 -- Day 195

Today was a lazy day around our place.  We read a lot of books and made spaghetti for supper.   Overall it was a nice evening with just me and Orion hanging out and spending time together.  Those are some of my favorite days. 

Geeky 365 -- Day 194

The weather is finally starting to cooperate so Orion is getting to spend more time outside and I think he definitely is ok with that.  Tonight we pulled some weeds (which he so helpfully threw in a pile for me), ate some Mexican food, and just watched a movie.  It was a very laid back evening and a much needed day of relaxation.  

Geeky 365 -- Day 193

I think we're both happy to be home and back on schedule for a little while.  The weekend was a lot of fun for Orion, getting to run around and play with everyone and see so much family, but it was definitely exhausting. This is what the poor boy looked like this morning when I went to drag him out of bed:

He was excited to go to school and see his friends at least.  He was super well behaved this weekend and has been super good lately, which is a well appreciated change from the attitude he was starting to show off last week.  Tonight, right before bed time, we curled up on the couch together and read some books.  He laid on my chest like he always has and I quickly realized that my time to snuggle with him like that is severely limited. He's growing up so quickly.  In 2 weeks he will be starting preschool.  I am anxious for that change, but at the same time not looking forward to it....I am perfectly happy with a toddler.  I'm not so sure that I'm ready for a preschooler.  *sigh*  Where has the time gone??

Geeky 365 -- Day 192

Geeky 365 -- Day 191

It's been a crazy busy day today do that combined with the fact that I forgot to bring my laptop makes blogging a pretty difficult task. We went to visit my mom today and O had a lot of fun playing outside and running around with his grandparents.

Geeky 365 -- Day 190

Cheesin on the couch & watching a movie.  Not a lot to report today.  Tomorrow we will be headed back "home" so it should be a good weekend. 

Geeky 365 -- Day 189

Poor O has a tummy bug so we stayed home today.  Hopefully tomorrow he'll be back to feeling better and we can get things back to normal.

Geeky 365 -- Day 188

When dealing with a 3 year old boy, the simplest things in life become an adventure.  Going to the store becomes a scavenger hunt and getting in the car becomes an obstacle course. Tonight's adventure was a bubble bath.  Orion had to try to pop ever single bubble.  He would hit them, squeeze them, dump water on them....anything he could do to try to destroy them.  Needless to say he ended up covered in bubbles and I took the time to give him a quick mohawk to add to the effect.  I started taking pictures of him and he decided to pose for me.  First I told him to show me his mad face.

I got the giggles, so I told him to show me his happy face. 

And to switch it up I asked him what he looks like when he is sad 

Apparently in Orion's world sad = duckface?   Either way I thought the pics were hilarious and we had a lot of fun taking them.  The rest of the evening was spent reading comics together and watching some Doctor Who.  I love my geeky baby.