Above are a few pictures from last night. We had a great night minus having to put Caleb in time out a few times.

Caleb ate his dinner and he was being such a great little boy all night until we went upstairs to play trains. He kept trying to climb on top of his train table and we kept telling him no-no. But, he wouldn’t listen. So, he had to be put in time out. As soon as he would get out of time out, he would run right over to the table and climb up it again. After this happened 4 different times, I caught myself saying, “That’s it, Caleb. You are grounded from your trains!”. Really, did I just ground a 21 month old? We went downstairs and after a few minutes he forgot he was grounded because he wanted to watch Mickey Mouse.

This morning Caleb picked out his entire outfit for school. He wanted to wear a Celtics T-shirt because he thinks the mascot is his Papa. The little mascot looks nothing like my dad! I think he likes the shirt because my dad and brothers are huge Celtics fans. He also wore his Mommy shoes which are Nike’s I got at the consignment sale last week.

When we were pulling into school, Eva was pulling up at the same time. Caleb, Eva, and Xander all started daycare on the same day and are best friends, so needless to say he started clapping when he saw her mom pulling up at the same time. Caleb hates being dropped off at daycare, so I thought this may be the turning point for him. Maybe he would just walk in with Eva and not scream and cry when I left. We got out of the car and both him and Eva said hello. Then, they decided they both wanted to walk together. I put Caleb down, he grabs Eva’s hand, and they walk into daycare holding hands! All the teachers were cracking up because they looked so cute. I have never been so mad I didn’t have a decent phone with a camera. They both walked holding hands until they got to their classroom door where they both broke down crying not wanting to leave their moms. It was cute while it happened.

The other cute thing is Eva got new shoes because she wanted shoes like Caleb. So, they both were talking about their shoes this morning. They are identical except for the colors. Eva’s are pink and black and Caleb’s are red and black. I laughed because Eva’s mom was telling her it was way too early to start caring what boys want her to wear.

Just wanted to let you guys know the cute stories.

Several people at my work told me about the First Friday event on Bentonville square. So, since it was such a beautiful day on Friday we took Caleb down there! I am so glad we did.

It is the perfect outing for a family. There were pony rides, trampolines, face painting, balloon animals, bands, cupcakes, Chick Fil A, mascots, and more! I can’t name all the cool booths they had set up for children.

Caleb saw the ponies and started clapping. I asked him if he wanted to ride the pony and he said yes. Jeff was convinced there was no way he was going to ride the pony. We walked up to the pony and tried and he immediately started to cry. The nice lady who was working the event said she knew a trick and asked if she could try. I told her that Caleb could be quite stubborn at times. She said she understood and if it didn’t work that we could have another free ride at the next event. I said, Ok Why Not.

The trick was to place him on the horse while the horse was moving rather than stationary. It actually worked! Caleb loved riding the pony. He held on to me pretty tight, but he still had a great time!

After we rode the pony and went to all the exhibits, we went and got some Mexican food. Caleb loves eating chips and dip. After dinner, we didn’t want to go home yet because the weather was beautiful so we took Caleb on a train ride at the mall.

It was a great evening for our family! I am so thankful that God allowed our house to sale so we can be in a community with lots to do for children

Saturday morning, I took Caleb to Gymboree and to get his hair trimmed. At Gymboree, one of the mom’s told me about a hair salon that has an airplane chair for the kids to get their hair cut in. I thought that might decrease the screaming that typically happens when Caleb gets his hair cut. It didn’t help:( But, at least he looks like a little boy again! After our morning errands, we headed to Miami to see Meme.

Meme had the refrigerator stocked with Caleb’s favorite yogurt and juices! He was in heaven. He also had a new picnic table that he got to sit and color at that afternoon with the coloring books she had picked up for him. Another fun surprise was that she made him cupcakes. He got a cupcake and a bowl full of sprinkles so he could put on as many sprinkles as he wanted too. Caleb loves sprinkles, so that made his day! In addition to that, Caleb got to go play in Meme’s classroom. He threw balls, played with the parachute, and played with several other toys in her classroom. Having a grandma that is a PE teacher is fun!

After a fun afternoon, Jeff’s grandma and grandpa came over for dinner. We had a great meal! Stir fry! Then, Great Grandma was telling Caleb that he needs to come to her house to see her nativities. Caleb looked at her and said “Go!”. He immediately grabbed Meme’s purse and was ready to go! We went over to Great Grandma’s house and looked at all her beautiful nativities. Caleb liked baby Jesus, the cows, and the goats the best! Then, after looking at nativities he went around giving out hugs and tickling everyone. He was such a perfect boy that afternoon and it made our hearts so happy that he was having so much fun with Great Grandma and Great Grandpa.

Sunday morning we woke up and ate Mickey Mouse pancakes. Then, we headed to Grove to spend time with my parents, Tyler, Grandma, Meme, and Aunt Brenda. My parents had a huge BBQ lunch ready! Caleb decided he didn’t want to eat lunch and instead ate brownies with his GiGi! I guess that is what Grandmas are for:) After lunch, we all got to visit with my grandmas and aunt which was lots of fun. After they left, Caleb took a nap with Gigi and Tyler, my dad and Jeff went golfing, and I went to the gym.

When I got back that evening, Mom and Dad said they had a surprise for Caleb but we had to go before it got dark. We got in the car and drove to an older gentleman’s house. He had a train track with several motorized train cars on it! There was over 4,800 feet of railroad tracks. It took him 15 years to build! He immediately came outside wearing a button that said, “I still ride Trains” and took Caleb and Papa for a ride around the track. The train cars and track were awesome! He had little funny signs up everywhere and exhibits with airplanes and train memorabilia all along the track. There were even tunnels to go through! Caleb loved it! He asked to ride again so the next time he rode with Uncle Tyler.

I know Caleb loved it because he has talked about it for the past few days. In addition, the other night he was sleeping and in his sleep he started saying “Choo Choo” over and over again. He loved it.

After going to the train, we went out to eat pizza and then to the park. I love the park in Grove because they have slides that are made for toddlers. Not too high so you don’t have to worry about them as much. After all that activity, I thought for sure he’d go to sleep at 8:00, but he was far too hyper. He ran around my parent’s house for another hour that night playing. GiGi and PaPa also taught him the song, “This Little Light of Mine” and he has been asking me to sing it every day since.

Monday we got up and ate homemade pancakes that GiGi made. They were great. Then, I went for a walk with my mom while Caleb hung out with the boys. They went to chip at the golf course, went to throw rocks in the lake, and dad took him to look at the school buses and to the park. It was a great day.

We did notice mid morning he kept pulling on his ears, so I made a doctor’s appointment and we came home around noon. Sure enough, his left ear was infected again. The nice thing is that we caught it before the infection was too bad so we haven’t had a fever yet! Thank goodness.

Overall it is a nice weekend to go home and spend time where we grew up. It makes our hearts happy to see Caleb have so much fun too! Thanks everyone for a great weekend!

When we were in Tulsa a few weekends ago, Grandma and Lauren went to the JBF sale and found a Thomas the Train table for Caleb! It looks brand new. It even has a cute seat for him that is actually a storage box for all the pieces.

As soon as Caleb saw it in the back of the car, he went crazy screaming “Train, Train! Horray!” He was so excited and continues to be so still today. Every night when he gets home from daycare he asks to go upstairs and play trains.

This is terrible but sometimes we take his dinner upstairs and pretend that Thomas is eating it. We’ll ask Caleb if he wants to be strong like Thomas and he’ll say yes and eat his entire dinner! I know the books say not to bribe your child, but like my dad says, “A book never raised a child”. Ha!

Above are a few cute pictures of him playing on his table. Thanks Grandma and Lauren for taking time out of the sale to find this for Caleb. We play with it every single day!

A few weekends ago, we went to Tulsa to visit with Papa/Poppy, Grandma, Lauren, and Emma. We had a great time visiting and having fun with the family. Caleb loves going to visit them. He drove trains and flew airplanes with his Poppy on the computer, ate M&M’s with his Grandma, and played lots of toys with Aunt Lauren and Cousin Emma. It was a great time! He also got a pirate bed there which he thought was really cool.

Another fun part of our visit was that we got to celebrate our niece Emma’s 2nd birthday at the Bouncy Barn. Knowing Caleb, I thought this could go two ways. Either he would absolutely love it, or he would scream “No No” or “Go Go” the entire time. Luckily, he LOVED it! And, I think love is an understatement.

Emma’s party theme was Elmo and Abby Cadaby. As soon as we pulled into the party, Caleb started yelling Elmo Party, Elmo Party on the top of his lungs. We went inside the Bouncy Barn and there was three large inflatables for the kids to plan on. The nice thing is most of the children were the same age and size so it wasn’t as intimidating for Caleb as it would have been with larger children.

Caleb and Emma played non-stop the entire time. I think Caleb’s favorite inflatable were the ones with slides or the ball pits. He loved bouncing around in all of them. Caleb kept asking me to come play with him in the inflatable, so I crawled in to play with him several times. At one point, I was the only adult in the inflatable and I was throwing about 5 toddlers over the slide over and over again. I got a good workout that day!

After lots of play, Emma blew out her candles. Caleb was very excited for the birthday cake. He was even more excited when he saw he got birthday cake and ice cream. Double the fun!

I think Caleb and Emma had a wonderful time that day. I am so thankful he has cousins that are close to his age and will be fun to play with for many years to come.

Caleb is talking up a storm. He can say over 200+ words! He also repeats everything you say. This weekend, my mom said “Oh Gosh” and Caleb repeated it right back at her. His Meme was showing him motorcycles this weekend and he now says it over and over too. I love hearing him say new words.

Caleb is also starting to put words together. He uses 3 or 4 word sentences! His favorite sentence right now is “No No Daddy. Be Nice.” He is a mommy’s boy lately which I secretly love.

Caleb can also count to 10 on his own. He counts everything from the French fries on his plate to the stairs up to the playroom. I am SO PROUD of him and his counting. He does get the numbers confused sometimes, but overall he can count really well.

Caleb moved up to the two year old classroom at school. I am excited about this because they focus more on learning new skills. He has only been in the classroom a few weeks and he can already count to five in Spanish! He is also learning to cut and paste in his classroom. I love seeing what artwork he puts together at school. Last month they learned all about me. This month they are learning about transportation which Caleb will love. He loves anything that moves: School Buses, Trains, Cars, Planes, Boats, you name it!

Caleb still isn’t eating well. We are lucky to get one full meal down him a day. He weighs 24 pounds now which puts him in the 5th percentile on weight. The doctor says that I shouldn’t worry about it and continue to give him 5 or 6 things on his plate each night. When I was pregnant with Caleb, there was a couple in our community group whose children wouldn’t eat. We had them on the prayer list for a few months. I remember thinking, “Well, if they are hungry they’ll eat.” I was wrong. I now realize the stress, frustration, and worry that poor mother had each time her kids wouldn’t eat. I have hope because I know they are eating now, so hopefully with prayer and patience I’ll get this boy to eat sometime soon.

Caleb’s favorite toys are his golf clubs, blocks, train table, and slide. Funny Story. We took him to Academy the other night and he wanted a $1,000 swing set. We told him maybe later. The next day I was at WalMart waiting on some people from our corporate offices, so I picked up a TBall set for him that was on sale. That night I picked up Caleb from school and I said, “Mommy got you a toy today. Can you guess what it is?” He yelled “Swing set with Slide”! Umm, No! But, I have taken notes and Jeff and I are saving to get a nice one for him for Christmas possibly.

Other than playing toys, he loves to read books and color! He is also starting to sing which is too cute. He loves to sing This Little Light of Mine, Twinkle Twinkle, The Wheels on the Bus, If You’re Happy and You Know It, and Jesus Loves Me. He also sings the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song. Ha!

One last thing he loves is Golf Carts! His Papa and Uncle Ty-Ty take him in the golf cart when we are home and he loves it! Also, the new church we have been visiting has a golf cart that picks you up in the parking lot if you need it. It is supposed to be for the elderly. Yet, Caleb now yells Golf Cart and Brother Keith every time we go to church, so now we get rides into church. It is too cute because the church is close to his daycare and each night when we leave daycare Caleb says, “Bye Bye Church. Bye Bye Jesus.” He even yells “Amen” after we bless our food at night. I love that he is learning about God at an early age.

Caleb is growing up so fast. I just can’t believe how quickly time flies. I am so thankful to be his mother. Jeff and I are amazed at how we just woke up one day and he went from being a baby to a toddler. I wish I could make time stand still and enjoy every second more and more. Sorry for the long post. Most of this is just so Jeff and I can remember in ten years all the fun and silly things Caleb was doing at this time!

Have a great day!

Until then, here is a video of Mr. Man calling those Hogs! I love how he works the room and just keeps on calling the Hogs! He is ready for football season.

The funniest part of the trip was when Jeff and I went to do a hydro therapy session at the spa. You had to jump into cold pools and then hot pools. After I jumped in the cold pool, I yelled HOLY MOLY! First thing that came to mind. The Spanish lady looked at the other attendant and then at Jeff for a translation. Jeff just said Wow! They were so perplexed by me yelling that. It was so cold.

Other than great food and beaches, we had a wonderful time just being together and talking. We made our bucket list one day on the beach. We have a lot to accomplish in the next 50 years:)

I was so happy to get back to see Caleb. He had a wonderful time with his Meme. They did lots of fun things together while we were gone like make cupcakes, go to Chick Fil A, Pets Mart, Target, go on walks, go to the pool, the list could go on and on. He was spoiled rotten.

The rest of the weekend we just enjoyed time as a family. Caleb’s favorite day was Saturday. We started the morning off with doughnuts from a store that looks like a barn! Caleb loves barns and doughnuts, so he was very excited about that! Then, we went to the Farmer’s Market and to the park. After that, Caleb went home to take a nap while I went to host a baby shower for a good friend. After he woke up from his nap and I came home, we made dinner and headed to the Promenade. Caleb rode the train and fell in love! It was his favorite thing ever. He has asked to ride it every day since. He also got ice cream, got to play at the playground, and go walk around the fountain. I have never seen that boy so happy!

We had a great week off work as a couple and as a family. This week has been a little slow because we are readjusting to our normal routine, but overall it is going well.

Caleb keeps surprising us this week with all the new words he is learning. For instance, yesterday a Victoria Secret came in the mail and Jeff was teasing me about the sexy models. The next thing we know, Caleb has the magazine and is saying “Sexy” over and over again! We know he shouldn’t know that word, but we were laughing way too hard to tell him no.

Other exciting news is we got an Elmo Potty. He really likes sitting on the potty. We haven’t started full force potty training yet. We are just getting used to the idea, but I think it will happen soon. He is really ready to learn. It is awkward for us because there is no alone time in the restroom anymore in our house. Caleb opens the door to watch you every single time. Oh how life changes with a toddler:)

Have a great day!

Friday night, Jeff, Caleb, and I went to eat at a new Mexican place called Sabores in Bentonville. It was excellent food and the service was fantastic. The salsa was great too. We loved it. After dinner we went to get our groceries and play with toys! Caleb ended up coming home with some new train toys for his bathtub. Much cheaper than the $79 train set that he kept begging us for:) We then came home and played in the sandbox. Fun night.

Saturday was the best day. We woke up at 6:30AM (joys of a toddler) and went to get doughnuts. At the doughnut store, Caleb had doughnut holes and a chocolate sprinkle doughnut. He ate a few doughnut holes, but his favorite thing to do was eat each sprinkle, one at a time, off the doughnut. Too cute.

After breakfast, we went to the Bentonville Farmers Market. It was much less crowded than the Fayetteville Farmers Market. We had a great time. We left with some vegetables, dessert, salsa, and kettle corn. Not really organic items, but you know me and Jeff.

From the Farmers market, we headed to a cool park off the square. Caleb enjoyed going down the slides and climbing up the rock mountain. While we were there, we saw a tractor that was digging space for a new parking lot. So, we jumped in the car after playing at the park and drove closer to the tractor. Caleb loved watching the tractor dump the dirt and rocks into the dump truck.

Then, we went to Pets Smart to see the fish, cats, and birds. Caleb loves doing this and we do it almost every week. After Pets Smart, we took him to the Promenade to see the water fountains and play with the train set at Melody’s Choices! By then, it was 11:00 so we ate lunch and headed home for a nap.

But, oh, Caleb was not interested in a nap. His mind was set that he had a party to go to later. He kept saying Pool and Party over and over. Finally, it was party time. Our neighbor’s boy across the street turned 1, so they hosted a pool party at our neighborhood clubhouse. The party was fantastic. She had decorated it so cute in a soccer theme. We had a great time visiting at the party with all the guests and watching Caleb play with the other children. He was amazed by the cake and all the balloons. He kept saying cupcake, party, and juice over and over again. I enjoyed the party too because I got to meet several moms in the neighborhood whose kids are close to the same age as Caleb. I love our new neighborhood. The people are fantastic and I can tell that some of the neighbors are going to be lifelong friends!

About an hour and a half into the party, Caleb grabbed his dad and said “All Done” and climbed into his wagon. So, we left the party and he immediately went to sleep. When he woke up, his Papa, GiGi, and TyTy had come over to play and stay the night with us. You could tell that Caleb thought this was the best day ever. Caleb went to a basketball game with my parents and Jeff and I got to stay home and watch a movie! It was fun just to sit in the living room and watch a movie. We both laughed at how we were too tired to deal with the movies or going out for a drink or dessert. We just wanted to chill out:)

Caleb came back and we headed straight to bed. Sunday, we got up and went to a new church. Caleb made it about 30 minutes into the service before he was kicked out of nursery He tends to not like new people or new places. After church, we went to Fred’s for lunch. My family was able to hang out most of the day before heading back to the gym to watch Tyler play basketball. My parents brought Caleb a sprinkler for the backyard and a water bazooka thing. He loved the water gun. After playing in the backyard, we went to the pool. Caleb loves the water. He was doing belly flops into the water. We were counting to 3 and he was jumping on 2. So much fun!

Then, Sunday night was cleaning up the house and just spending time as a family. Caleb rode his mini ATV up and down the street and headed to bed at a decent time.

Overall, it was a great weekend! We enjoyed getting to do so many fun things with Caleb. He is growing up so fast and he amazes us each day how smart he is. And, it was also nice to have my family in town and get the opportunity to catch up with them. With all of our busy schedules, we don’t get to spend enough time together. But, when we do, we have fun!

This time next week, Jeff and I will be on vacation. I can’t wait to go. He surprised me with a little trip for my birthday! Caleb will get to hang out with his Meme and have his own vacation which I have a feeling will consists of lots of outdoor time, McDonalds, and maybe some chocolate chip cookie batter! He loves it as much as his daddy. I will miss my boy terribly, but am excited to spend some time with my husband.

Have a great day!

After dinner, Caleb found some “monies” so he put them in his piggy bank. For the rest of the night, he kept asking for more monies! It was too cute.

Hope everyone is having a great day!