4 + 1 = FUN

Joey hosted his first sleepover last weekend. We had Joey and Julian Williams and Trevor and Garrett Hill over. These are some of Joey's best friends and range in age from 5 to 7 years old. Even though they're a few years older than Joey, he doesn't seem to have any problem keeping up with them and their antics, and believe me there were a lot of antics going on.

We started the party off with a trip to the park for the boys and Larry. They took a ton of cars and trucks to play with, race with, play demolition derby with. However it was hot out, really hot, and so they only lasted a little over an hour at the park and then came trudging home with their little red faces and sweaty bodies. Our solution - pool time. They all changed and jumped right in and spent the next few hours playing, splashing, shooting each other with water guns and having sword fights with the pool noodles. It was a lot of fun to watch their creative minds at work.

For dinner we cooked up hot dogs and macaroni and cheese with some nice cool watermelon on the side. They all ate really well since we'd promised s'mores if they finished their plates.


After dinner the kids played dress up - we had Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, GI Joe, and Superman. I tried to talk them into changing into normal clothes before we did s'mores but they weren't having any of it so I guess you could say we had superhero s'mores. They all looked so darn cute out there in their costumes toasting marshmallows.

Then it was into PJ's for movie time. We watched some Scooby, some Batman, and then Rango. I made the kids popcorn with maltballs and licorice and they all settled down into their sleeping bags and blankets. Joey 1, Joey 2 and Julian fell asleep about 10 minutes into Rango and Trevor and Garrett weren't to far behind. Larry was glad to see them crash so soon as he was exhausted from the day's activities.

In the morning Joey 2 and Julian were the first up and being the awesome boys that they are they just went into Joe's room and put on cartoons and played until the rest of us got up. Then Joey woke up and joined them followed by Trevor. Garrett just slumbered on peacefully until the boys yelled at him to get up that "sleeping time was over". Such a rude awakening for my sweet little G man.

I fixed french toast for breakfast with some sweet melon on the side and copious glasses of milk all the way around. Let me tell you, these boys can eat. It reminded me so much of when Kenneth lived with me and all his friends used to hang out at our house and chow down. I imagine it will be the same with Joe and his friends as he's growing up.

After breakfast we again headed to the park, this time on bikes, scooters, and skateboards. The boys raced each other at the park, we had a couple of tumbles that required kissing and cuddles to soothe the hurt away, but all in all it was a fun time. Since it was morning time it wasn't near as hot and so we lasted a couple of hours there before the boys were ready to head back.

The minute we got back in the door they began their campaign for swimming, looking at me with their big blue and brown eyes, pulling on my heart strings, so of course I said yes. At this point JoAnna called to see if I was ready to have her come pick them up but it was only 10 and I wasn't ready to give them up so I asked if I could keep them til 1 and she said yes. So swimming we did, followed by a lunch of PB&J sandwiches, chips and juice boxes. I learned that Joey #2 doesn't like peanuts in his peanut butter so I'll have to remember that for the next time.

When they were done swimming they moved on to legos, video games, and playdoh play. I loved watching them interact and have fun. I loved getting to spend time with them all. I so wish they could all be mine as I already love them all as if they were my own and I know Joey would love having them all for brothers.

When it came time for them to go home they begged to stay another night, making me laugh at their enthusiasm and begging techniques. I promised them another one soon so I'm sure we'll be having the same kind of fun this month at some point in time. Joey is blessed to have such great little friends, and I'm blessed to have the friendship of their moms.

Lifes Ups and Downs

So much going on and I've been so lax in updating my blog. I'm going to try to do a post at least once a week beginning now.

Joey is getting so big, at our last measurements he was 42 inches tall and weighing in at 40 lbs. He seems taller to me now so we already need to measure him again. I think he's going to pass me up in height before he gets out of elementary school at the pace he's going now.

We've been doing all kinds of things lately - swimming, playdates with friends, library each week. He loves to have stories read to him each evening and I've found some great pre-readers that combine words along with pictures so that he can participate in reading with Larry and I. Now I just need to work on getting him to recognize his letters. We've mastered colors and shapes and he can count to 20 (although he always skips 13 and 16 for some odd reason). I was going to enroll him in preschool this year but it's just not in the budget, so I'm going to be teaching him at home. Another of my friends, Jessica, has a boy who is one year older than Joe and we're going to try to get together 2x a week to have our own "preschool".

Joey is back to swimming like a fish and has even begun to swim under water this year. We have him wear a Speedo life vest most of the time but it seems that every time he's in the pool he starts with it on, then has us take it off so he can swim on his own for a little while and when he gets tired, he has us put the vest back on. He's taken to doing cannon balls off the side of the pool with Daddy, and loves to have Aunt Crystal come play with him in the pool. She lets him dive off her shoulders and spins him around in the water. He just loves it. I don't get to play as much with him in the pool because ours is not heated and even though we have a solar cover, it rarely gets above 82 and I need it to be a little warmer or else I get flare ups with my fibromyalgia. I'm so thankful that he has others folks in his life who can participate in this aspect of his life while I sit on the sidelines watching and taking pictures.

I've been having a bad time lately with my health. A lot of flare ups and if that wasn't enough now I've begun having intense symptoms with regard to my pseudo tumor ceribri. In fact it's gotten so bad that I've had to go back on Diamox (which I hate as it has horrible side affects) and am scheduled to have a lumbar puncture (formerly called a spinal tap) next week. None of these things are fun and this situation with my health is really starting to get me down. Thank goodness for Larry who has been so supportive and helpful throughout it all.

Mom is back with us and Joey is so happy (most of the time) to have her back. He's gotten a little sassy lately and it doesn't always sit well with her, or me for that fact. He loves to spend time with her in the backyard and will just sit at the table with her and have conversations. I have no idea what they talk about but they always seem very engrossed in their talks.


Larry is doing great in his job and with his schooling. He's past the halfway point in achieving his AA degree and is on the deans honor list. I'm so proud of him and think he's setting a wondering example for Joey.

Larry's Uncle Brian passed away recently and we're all feeling the loss. He was probably the kindest and gentlest soul I've ever met. And he was so wonderful with Joey and his cousin Elsa, always making time for them. He will be truly missed by all of us.

Well that's about it for now. Will post more next week.

Joey's World

I just can't believe how fast my boy is growing.  It seems like everyday when I get him dressed something doesn't fit - the pants are to short or the waist is to tight, the shirts show his belly, shoes are to small.  I wish I had a magic wand to just slow it all down as it's going by way to fast for me.  Larry is already talking about when he's 4 we'll do this or that and I'm wishing we could go back to 2 so I could enjoy each moment even more.

This year he's big enough to play soccer, T-ball, and dodge ball with the Pee Wee league at Rancho Cordova Parks and Rec.  Each is a four week series and is aimed at fun so I'm sure he'll enjoy it, as will we who get to watch him learning all these new skills.  I'll have to take lots of pictures so that all of you who read this can see how much he's enjoying it as well.

Lately he's been in to costumes - each day it's a different character; Spiderman, Darth Vader (his favorite now that we got him a light saber to go with it), GI Joe, Captain America, etc.  He looks so cute in each of them and really gets into character.  He and Larry watch Star Wars Clone Wars most nights and then have light saber wars of their own, or at least they did until Joey conquered his Daddy last night by wacking his saber so hard that he broke it.  That's my boy, a chip off the ol' block.

My Little Prince

Joey and I were just having an ordinary day, one like so many before it, and decided to have a Playdoh day.  We built hamburgers and pizza, snails and snakes, and of course a crown for my little prince.  Isn't he just the sweetest thing?  I'm sure in the years to come he'll be kissing his fair share of princesses but right now all his hugs and kisses are for his mommy and that's just the way I like it.

Joey's 3rd Birthday

Boy am I ever behind in my blogging.  Joey's birthday has come and gone and now he's a BIG boy at the ripe ol' age of 3.  We had a couple of different celebrations this year.  The first one was a superhero playdate with my Cradles to Crayons mom's group.  There were about a dozen mom's there and twice that many kids.  It was a lot of fun.  Crystal made the Spiderman cake for me and Joey and Elsa went dressed up as Spiderman and Spidergirl respectively.  They looked so cute.  We had several Spidermans as it turned out plus a firefighter in the mix.  He got all kinds of great presents and they all had a lot of fun just playing at the park.  I think the highlight of this celebration though had to be the pinata.  Let me tell you those kids are dangerous when you put a big stick in their hands.  The great part was that everyone got a turn (3 hits each) and the pinata wasn't broken open until we were on our second go around with the kids.  It was so much fun I'm not sure who enjoyed it more, me or the kids.

His second birthday celebration was the weekend after his actual birthday and it was with all our family and our five closest friends and their kids.  We went with a pirate theme since that has been Joey's big passion this past year and all of the kids, and some of the adults, came dressed for the occasion.  We had it at the pavillion park on the North side of Rancho Murieta which turned out to be a good thing since of course it had to rain on the one day that I planned an outside function.  The pavillion was large enough to accomodate all our guests, the tables, chairs, food and games for the kids.  Though I must say the rain did not detour the kids at all from playing at the park as they didn't care if they got wet or not.

Larry did the majority of the cooking, smoking and then barbecuing ribs, plus we had all kinds of sides, soda, beer and juice.  I ended up going with cupcakes this time around simply because it was easier to do.

Joey loved this party and wanted to have another one the following weekend.  He didn't quite "get" that you only get one birthday a year.  And he had so much fun with his friends and cousins and loved being the center of attention... and getting all the presents.  Larry and I got him a skateboard that he'd been asking for for the last six months, along with some other small treasures.  He loved everything he got though and of course wanted to play with it all as soon as we got back home.

It's funny because each year I say I'm going to do something smaller, more intimate the next year and instead we keep going bigger and bigger with our celebrations.  I'm just so enthralled with my little man that I want to give him the world and to make sure that all of his childhood memories are something to be remembered.  So again, when we wrapped up this party I was saying again that next year was going to be smaller in scale and yet I find myself already teeming with new ideas for next year.  I just can't seem to help myself.

So for all of you who celebrated with us, and/or sent him birthday wishes, we thank you for making it his best birthday yet.

Ahhh The Joys of Childhood

I baked a cake last week for the family, chocolate with chocolate frosting.  And yes before you ask, I did get distracted and burnt the edges.  Mom and Larry said it was fine, but I could taste the burnt after effects.  Having said that, it still didn't go to waste as Mom, Larry and Joey still loved it.

Anyway Joey got to help me mix the batter and pour it in the pan.  Then once I put it in the oven to bake, he kept coming back to me every few minutes, "Is it done yet, mom?".  He must have did this 20 times... I guess I should have listened to him and maybe my cake wouldn't have burnt.

When I took it out he was anxious to frost it right away and I had to explain to him that it had to cool before we could frost it.  He didn't understand and kept asking why.  Why and No are his two favorite words these days.  Even when you answer his why question, he just proceeds to ask why to whatever answer you gave him and this can go on and on until finally, exasperated, I'll end up saying "because mommy said so".  I'm always so disappointed in myself when I hear that come out of my mouth.

Finally the cake was cool enough and Joey and I opened the can of chocolate fudge frosting and began spreading it on the cake.  Joey is getting good at spreading as he's begun helping to make his own sandwiches at lunch and loves spreading the peanut butter, jelly, mayonaisse, etc.  When we'd cover the cake completely I scooped the rest of the frosting out with the spatular and let him have at it.  He loved it.  I loved watching him.  Before he was done he had frosting all over his mouth and looked like he had a mustache just like his daddy.

The joys of childhood can be found in the simplest things.  So can the joys of mommyhood.

Salmonella Scare

It sure has been a tough couple of weeks.  Joey came down with stomach pains and a lot of poops and I do mean ALOT.  Plus he had fevers of 104-105 so we took him to Urgent Care Ped's and the doctor just told us that he thought it was a stomach virus that's going around and to keep monitoring him and give him lots of Pedialite so that's what we did... he didn't get any better.  After a few days I called his own Ped's Nurse Practioner and got him in the same day.  She said she'd never heard such an active stomache before and ordered some stool sample tests.  We got back the one for giardia and general parasites - he was all clear.  We put him on the BRAW diet which consists of bananna's, rice, applesauce (unsweetened) and white foods like bread, plain yogurt, etc.  He seemed to improve a bit but still complained of stomache pains and was still having the poops just not near as frequently.

After 12 days we ventured out to a play date.  I mean he hadn't had any high fevers for ten days and his tests had come back negative so I thought we were good to go, that he wasn't contagious any longer.  We headed over to the library for storytime and to check out some books.  We hooked up with about five mom's from my playgroup and their kiddo's.  We lasted about half way through storytime before Joey got to cranky to sit still and so we left and headed over to visit my pregnant friend Sam who's on restricted duty.  Her Mother-in-Law was at the library with her kids for storytime too.  Sam and I had a nice visit for about an hour while Joey played in her kids playroom and then we headed home.

Here is where the other shoe drops... I opened my mail to find results for one more test - Salmonella, and Joey was positive for it. Sh*t, literally.  I called Sam to make sure she didn't touch the diaper I had put in her garbage and to tell Eric to wash his hands after he'd taken out the garbage.  I also had to put up a message on our group message board to let the other mom's know what was going on.  I felt like an idiot exposing their kids to his germs but I honestly thought all the tests were in and we were good to go.

After researching it a little more and talking to Kaiser's Advice Nurse I discovered that he wasn't really contagious anymore at least not in a casual way.  The only way to pass it along is if they come into contact with Joey's fecal matter and don't wash their hands and then touch either their mouth or eyes.  So that meant pretty much that Larry and I were the only ones to have to worry about catching it since we're the ones who change his diapers.  Unfortunately I'm at the highest risk since I have a chronic health conditiona and because I take opiates on a daily basis.

I'd been keeping both his and my hands clean so I felt pretty safe with the practices we'd put into place as soon as he got sick.  Were down to about two poopy diapers a day, and his appetite is starting to come back so I think we're well on our way to recovery.  He only complains that his tummy hurts once in a while so hopefully things are beginning to settle down in there.  Still I think I'll keep him home for a few more days just to be on the safe side.

The real bummer about all this, well after Joey feeling so crappy, is that we were well on our way with regard to potty training and now I'm going to have to begin the process all over again.  So frustrating.

Firsts

We've had quite a few firsts today.  Started trying to potty train Joey today, so far two accidents and one success. He ran out and told me, "I peed in the toilet - YIPPEE I get to go to school". I'm probably the only mom in the universe who bribes her kid with getting to go to school as soon as he's toilet trained (lol).  I've tried a couple of times in the past but in all honesty it was a half hearted effort.  Today I decided this is just it and am having him be naked until he gets the concept down even if it takes the next few days.  I'm bribing him with organic lollipops when he's successful and the goal of going to school when he gets to be a big boy and can go potty all by himself.

He also made his own sandwich for lunch today.  I put some turkey, a slice of cheese, two pieces of bread on a cutting board and together we spread the Miracle Whip, then he took over putting on the turkey and cheese and then putting a lid on it (the 2nd piece of bread).  I cut it in half for him and he is now chowing down.  Maybe this is the secret to getting him to eat... let him make his own meals.

I can't believe how fast he's growing up, becoming so independent.  Dressing takes a lot longer now because he wants to do it himself, and can't really figure it out, and so what should take a minute or two at most takes more like 15 until he finally asks for some help.  I don't know how the mom's who have several children ever get anything done... I bow down to their mastery.

Fish Boy

I swear my boy is going to grow fins he spends so much time in the pool these days.  Daddy has him already able to swim the length of our pool all on his own without any floatation devices.  I'll be honest and say that I did not think his teaching style was going to work, it sounded like he was torturing him out there on most days, but all his efforts have paid off.  We still put him in his vest to begin with and let him play and such for the first hour but then he wants out of it, and he swims and jumps off the steps all by himself.  He's so amazing to watch.  I know you people are all thinking, "She's biased.  She's his mom, she has to feel that way and say those things", but seriously he really is amazing.

And my niece, Elsa, she came over yesterday after her swim lesson and hung out in the pool with Joey as well.  She's really got her kicking down and the ability to go round and round in an inter tube.  I bet in a few more weeks she'll be swimming like a little fish too.  Everything Joey does she tries to imitate.  They really look like your typical California kids - all blonde hair and tan lines.

Peddle Power

Joey actually peddled his tricycle for the first time yesterday.  It was a bit of a battle at first as he likes to just push it with his feet on the ground, but once we helped him by strapping his feet onto the peddles and utilizing the handle on the back of the trike to push it while he steered and tried to get his feet into some kind of a rhythm we moved along pretty good.

We've decided we'll just practice with him a little each evening until he learns to do it all by himself. I can't wait til he can actually do it all by himself because then he and I can ride along together. 

My Water Boy

Daddy took Joey in the big pool with him last night and Joey did just awesome.  He had a life vest on, but he insisted on swimming by himself from one end to the other.  He did the dog paddle and used his legs to kick.  He maneuvered pretty well, only getting a few mouthfuls of water.  The pool was only 74 so it was kind of cold, at least it felt cold to me, but he didn't seem to care at all.

We kept asking him if he wanted to get out and these were some of his responses:

"I'm enjoying being in the big pool"

"No, I like swimming"

"NOOOOO"

When we asked him if he was getting cold, we got the same exact response.  After a while I made him get out cause you could see him physically shaking.  Had to make Daddy get out too, just to be fair.  They looked so cute in the pool swimming together.  Can't wait til it gets a little warmer so that I can join them in the fun.  I'm sure Grandma feels the same way.

COOKIES!

Joey and I made chocolate chip cookies this morning thanks to Grandma.  She had bought the premade dough the other day, and Joey and I rolled it into balls.  Since he's become a master playdough ball maker, he had it down in a jiffy turning out perfectly round balls which he placed on the cookie sheet and then immediately smashed down into a pancake, thus making us have to do the process all over again.  He only dropped one ball on the floor so we still managed to get 24 cookies out of the package.  Now they're baking away and Joey is learning just how long 14 minutes truly is as he's waiting in anticipation to be able to pick out exactly the cookie that he wants to eat.

What fun, huh?  We're definately going to have to do this again in the near future.

Pool Time

Well Larry bit the bullet tonight and tested out our pool... 78 degrees on the surface and probably more like 70 in the deeper recesses.  Joey got in and skinny dipped along the first and second steps... this boy really loves his water.  He kept asking if his friends could come over and swim in his water and I of course said yes and then we had to go through a list of his friends that would get to come.  Elsa?  Yes.  Gracie?  Yes.  Sandr?  Yes and on and on.

Then while Daddy continued to do his laps Joey decided he needed to pee pee so he got out.  However he didn't tell me he had to go to the bathroom and my first inkling was when I felt the warm water hitting my back.  I hollered to Larry that, "Your son is peeing on me" and Larry started to yell at him while I started to laugh.  He stopped his stream the instant Larry raised his voice but as soon as he heard me laughing he let it go and finished... on me.  Needless to say we had to have a talk about not only not peeing in the pool, but that it wasn't acceptable to pee on people either.

The whole thing was a little surreal, but it did provide some comic relief.  What can I say, that's my boy.

Our Boy

This is Larry's favorite photo of Joey to date... and of course it doesn't hurt that he's the one who actually took the photo (lol).

And of course it didn't hurt matters that they were working on a motorcycle engine together, along with Pop Pop, and that Larry has dreams of the day he and Joey will ride together on that long ribbon of roadway.

Ear Pain is just no fun

Well Joey has experienced his first ear infection and let me tell you it's no fun.  Yesterday there wasn't hardly anything we could do to console him.  Finally Larry went to the pharmacy and they gave him some OTC ear drops and tylenol and that seemed to help some.

I took him to the doctor's today and he had to have both ears flushed out and as it turned out the infection wasn't in the left ear like we thought, but in the right ear instead.  The doctor gave me a prescription for some drops that also have a numbing agent in them so that if it gets really bad again Joey won't have to deal with the pain while he's getting over it.  I hope this will be the end of it because I, we, hate to see our little guy in so much pain.

Hi Ho Hi Ho it's off to the snow

The boys, Larry and Joey, joined Pop Pop this morning on an adventure to the snow.  I was too stick to partake of the fun.  Anyway Pop Pop did the driving since he has a 4X4 Jeep Liberty and up the hill they headed.  They went just past Sly Park up on Emigrant Trail as far as the jeep allowed.

Once they'd reached their location they had all kinds of fun in the snow - sledding, slip sliding and not to mention getting stuck.  Apparently the Jeep could only go so far before it got stuck in the road and with a little assistance from some other snow goers was soon unstuck and they made a quick u-turn and headed back down a little ways to were the going wasn't so rough.

Apparently the jeep wasn't the only thing to get stuck as Joey too had to be unstuck a number of times due to the deep snow drifts.  Larry said he soon learned how to crab crawl across the tops of the drifts so that he wouldn't get stuck as often.  He and Joey took a few turns sledding down the small slopes, along with the other 4-5 families that were playing in the same area.  They made snowballs and in general just had a rowsing good time.

On the way home they stopped off in Placerville and had all you can eat Chinese for lunch along with ice cream and pudding for dessert.  Yummy.

All in all according to the boys it was a really fun day and they enjoyed spending it with Pop's.

Out of the mouths of babes

Scene:  Joey and Daddy sitting at the table playing playdough.

Grandma:  "He sure is bossy" (speaking of Joey)

Me:  "Yep, he sure is"

Joey:  "I'm the boss"

5 Minutes later is still walking around telling everyone he's the boss.  Too funny.

Daddy's Boy - Pt. 2

Three generations of Monson's all working hand in hand.  Larry and Joe got his grandfather's bike over to Pop-Pop's house without a hitch, unless you call them leaving before Pop got here a hitch.  It was a comedy of errors, all on our end, that caused the communication failure.

Anyway once they got it over there, they began dismanteling it so that Pop could begin the refurbishment process.  I think it will turn out to be a true labor of love, with three generations of Monson men putting their heart and soul into it.  Already they've begun working as a team, even little Joey getting in on the fun.

Pop Pop is teaching him the different names of tools, and Daddy's teaching him how to use them.  It may take them a year to get the job done, but by the time it is finished Pop will have a nice motorcycle to ride and hopefully Joey will have learned some mechanic know-how while getting in some true bonding time with his grandfather.

The funny things that Daddy's say

We've all been sick now for days, our nerves are a little worn, not enough hours in the day to get adequate rest to fight this bug and Joey who brought it into our house is on the mend (thank goodness) but that means his energy level is back up while ours are definately still down.

Anyway, I've let him watch way to many cartoons in the last couple days because face it its an easy babysitter that can't catch his cooties.  So tonight he's begging for more Barney, then Elmo, etc. and Daddy says "No" so Joey gets louder and finally Daddy says in response, "Tough, it's my turn" and I burst out laughing.  It came out sounding like he was a little kid himself in competition for TV time.

I just gotta love my guys as they always make my days more interesting and somehow manage to make me laugh at the same time.

Toot Toot All Aboard

I was feeling pretty run down the day after Christmas, and the day after that as well.  Larry saw how exhausted and worn out I was and he and Joey went off on an adventure yesterday.  First they headed out to the California Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento.  They toured all the trains, checked out the station, and last but not least played in the Thomas Train children's area.  After doing all that they headed outdoors to take a walk around Old Sacramento.

They grabbed a hotdog or two for lunch and then shared an ice cream from one of the local vendors down town.

Larry determined that it was still to early to return so he stopped off at BounceTown on the way home and he and Joey had a boucning good time of it.  They have a two story slide that Joey just loves going up and then down on, plus all kinds of bounce houses to play in from basic to everything but the kitchen sink.  They stayed and played for quite some time until they'd both worked up a sweat and were worn out.  Once this stage was reached Larry decided it was time to head home and that's what they did.

He did his best to keep Joey awake so that perhaps we could get him back on schedule that night.  He ended up falling asleep at 6:00 only to wake back up at 7:30 pitching little fits.  We tryed to settle him back down, gave him juice and milk so he'd be able to choose for himself, and finally had to give up and just lock him in his room for the night until he crashed out again.  Took about an hour of his crying on and off, but finally he fell back to sleep and slept through the night until 6:00 AM.

Unfortunately he's woken with quite the cold - congestions, cough, and a whole lot of sneezing.  He keeps telling me that his nose hurts, that he hit it, but really it's just bugging him from the congestion.  Poor little guy.  Hopefully he'll get over it quickly and be back to his boisterous self.

Anyway, thank you Larry for giving me that break in time and letting me get some much needed rest.  I'm sure the memories you made with stay with Joey for quite a while.  I love you both.