The Big Boy Bed.

Meet Lilly and Livvy. Lilly is in pink, Livvy (Olivia) is in green. When we first met these two cuties, I never knew who was talking about who. But now that we've gotten to know the little neighbors better (that's their mamma's foot in the corner), Lilly is always in pink. And Olivia is VERY shy (I get that). So Brayden shows off for them, and they share shovels, and we play on their really cool swing set, in the clubhouse and on the really fast slide. This particular day, their puppy, Rueben needed to work off some wriggles, so the kids sat safely on the benches while the dogs romped. And we didn't even coach them to sit there! They just thought that was the place to be. They make me laugh because Brayden wears 18 month tops and 12 month bottoms and little Olivia wears the exact same thing, at just over a year old. I guess having tall parents means nothing in toddler-hood.

Later, we worked on getting to know the big boy bed.

Lilly and Livvy are both getting big girl beds by the end of the summer, too.

I hope they like theirs as much as Brayden likes his!


We got in some good practice before we actually made the switch.
By the way, this is the bed Auntie Deandra slept in for a long time.
It is the bottom bunk, from the set she shared with me for most of our lives!
Then, we thought we'd start with naps.
And I hovered, quietly outside the door for most of it.





But Brayden slept just fine.
It was a short nap, and we need more practice.
But when his crib goes away, and then comes back for
new baby, hopefully he will roll with that just as easily.
I think that as long as new baby doesn't try
to take Kitty or Lambie
(or Brayden's new "crucks"),
we will be just fine.



In other news, Auntie Deandra and Uncle Tim are over their "baby" stage.
So they packed up 6 garbage bags of boy clothes (that I am determined to make work for a boy or girl) and a crate of toys, a chair and a bunch of other stuff.
Brayden explored the crate of toys like a little scientist while I worked in the kitchen. He quietly excavated soft books, Leggos and TRUCKS! "Mamma, TRUCKS!"
This sweet little train set was in crate and Brayden loves them.
He calls them "crucks".
And since he found them, he hasn't let them go for anything.
He gave Grizzly smoochies while he was holding them. He screamed and chased Peanut around the house holding them. Before our first bed time in the big boy bed, we had to set them on the dresser, close by. And his eyes lit up when he saw them this morning, his mouth a big "O" of surprise. It was a very sad parting when he had to leave them in the car to go into daycare. But it sure will be happy when he finds them waiting for him in his car seat this afternoon!

Toddler Pants. Yuck.

Brayden is wearing his toddler pants today.

He doesn't wear them all that often, and it is usually just for a few hours at a time, but today, he seems to be wearing them all day. They are the pants that make him scream when he doesn't get what he wants, cry for no apparent reason and cling to his mamma like he is terrified of the world around him. He screamed when I changed him out of his pajama shirt, and spent the next 10 minutes trying to rip his clean shirt off. He threw a tantrum when the socks went on his feet, and as I expected, just about lost his mind when he had to wear his tennies instead of his sandals today. Even his little jacket just about put him over the edge. During all of this he hit his head on a sharp corner, didn't get his favorite snack (I am not sure what was missing) and just nothing was right. Those are toddler pants.

For a change of scenery, we went to play with the neighbors and their really awesome jungle gym. When we came home, only yogurt and milk were what we would eat of our lunch and then it was time for nap. I unfastened his belt and he wrapped his little arms around me, and then his little legs, hugging me with his whole little self.

And I soaked it up. I stopped cheering for bed time and pressed my check into that sweet, soft little scalp and hugged him right back, with all of me. When he didn't let go, I soaked the moment into my soul, knowing that this moment wouldn't last forever. That someday soon mamma and daddy won't be his favorite things in the world anymore.

Then we changed his diaper and he gave me one more great, big squeeze, grabbed his kitty and laid his beautiful little head on his pillow.

And suddenly, toddler pants just don't seem quite so bad.

Hiking at Lake Rebecca

We've decided to do some more exploring around our area (it really helps when we are missing the mountians!). Now that Brayden stays up until 7:30 or 8 at night, it isn't so much of a race to get home, make dinner, do the dishes, give him a bath, read a book (do a nebulizer treatment), and quick throw him into bed. You wouldn't think a half of an hour would make so much of a difference, but for us, it totally does (just in time to add another sleeper into the mix! oh well, newborns sleep anywhere). We have been enjoying Lake Rebecca the most.

One day we decided to try out Auntie Deandra's hiking pack, and that was our first evening at Lake Rebecca. We loved it. Then, we found the GIANT playground, made to look like it was made out of logs! We love that too, though we haven't spent much time there so far.

Then, we found the Lake (I know, you would have thought we'd have found that first). We usually go after dinner, when the humidity loses some of it's oppresive force (the heat index has been up over 100). And Brayden walks right in. Up past his knees, past his diaper and we have to grab him before he's up to his armpits! And then we kick and float, and blow bubbles and let the fish nibble at our toes.

For a southeastern suburban girl (who would never admit this otherwise), I love the area we live in! Between the clear lakes with the great beaches, the apple orchards and farmer's markets surrounding us, I have to say, the northwest metro rocks!!!