Exploring

Sully found a large downed tree and was able to climb up and play.

...and give him mom small heart attacks...

Running towards the creek.

He was ready to dive in. I had a hold of his hand though he did try to pull away and remove my fingers. No such luck!

He was soaked. That water was cold!

Sully doesn't stop to smell the flowers as much as he stops to pick them...

...and he gets very, very excited about each one; his voice sounds exactly like you think it would from his expression...

My little sweetie always shares with his mama!

He Dreams In Chocolate

Sibling Rivalry

Well, I officially have kids now. Not babies or toddlers or anything cute & sugar-coated like that.

Nope, I have actual kids.

How do I know? Today I heard the words that make you KNOW you have kids, that babyhood is essentially over...and that another episode is life is opening.

Today, I heard the words, "Mom, I don't want Sully to look at me! Make him stop looking at me!"

I know this was bound to happen. I was just hoping it would happen in a decade or so. Maybe longer. *sigh*

I even tried the whole "well if you weren't looking at him, you wouldn't know he was looking at you" tactic which, naturally, failed to sway the older brother.

I'm not always so sure I'm ready & prepared to take this motherhood thing on...but hey, here we go!

Keats At Brush College Park

Sullivan At Brush College Park

Two Silly Boys

Textures At The Playground

Just having some fun with close-up shots of random things from the playground today.

Don't Ya Just Love His Eye Color??!!

These pics were taken one right after the other a little while ago. In each pic he looks like a different family member. Funny that.

Here he looks like his own baby pics, at least to me.

Here he looks like younger pics of Mike.

Here he looks like the goofball that he is...

Here he looks like my mom, Debbie, Mason...

I see some Sully in his eyes...but think he looks like his Grandpa Paul here...something in his eyes & grin.

ABCs

Oh Frog

Sully is really sick in this video, and he had only been out of bed for a few minutes, so he looks a little haggard. Mike was trying to correct Sully's speech, though, so I had to capture this on video while I had the chance.

No hables Espanol

Yet. ;o)

Okay, dust off your Spanish speaking skills cuz I signed Keaton up for the dual language program.

I spoke with employees of the school as well as other parents who were there signing their kids up for kindergarten. It really is a tough decision but I decided to go for it. If we hate it we can always switch.

Epi Pens

I took Sullivan to the doctor this morning. The doc didn't even really need to do much: I told her the story and she said, yeah, he needs an Epi Pen. She listened to his lungs but mostly she just wrote the script and said we need to see an allergist. I filled the prescription at Wallgreens and told the pharmacy that we'd just wait while it was filled. Ten minutes later the pharmacy tech found Sully and I wandering the store and she said, "Everything is ready...but you do not want to know the price!" The 'pens come in a two-pack and don't expire for 18 months. We paid $106 for the package; our insurance covered about $40. Why? I don't know. Today's appt was not exactly urgent but it wasn't what would be considered a "well child" check-up, so we'll be charged a higher fee and our insurance will still only cover the paltry sum they normally do, so this will also mostly be out of pocket. The allergist appt scares me....will our insurance see this as preventative? If so, they'll cover it 100%; if not, we will get our measly $100 per month of coverage. Today's appt will be much more than the hundred bucks...so this is going to get spendy!

I seriously want to consider going back to work full-time so I can get us some better insurance coverage. I think I will look into paying for our own insurance and compare the cost. I think Mike's employer would add $500 per month to his checks if he didn't need their insurance. If I can find Blue Cross for around $500 a month, I think we may switch. Especially if Sullivan will be in need of frequent & expensive treatments.

Keats & I will leave in a couple of hours to sign him up for kindergarten. I have to decide whether to choose the spanish immersion program or not. Inside his school is what they call the "West Salem Language Academy" which is the spanish immersion program, from something like K-3. I really don't know if I will choose this program for Keats or not. It sounds like a no-brainer but there are some things with the program that I'm not super excited about. Anyway, Kindergarten Sign Up....Big day ahead!!

Partying Like The Irish

The owners of the NW Kids Club are of Irish descent, the husband is from Boston and has a very thick Boston accent, and they threw a party last night. Their younger son was turning four so they used the excuse to throw a very fun party for all the members of the Club.

The DJ was fantastic. He put on crazy hats & costumes, got out on the "dance floor" and led the line-style dancing. Very energetic & the kids all loved him.

There was also pizza and cake, so for my boys it was as though they were in Disneyland!

Sully spent a lot of time looking at the room through various balloons. He seemed to particularly enjoy the view from this green balloon.

He can't reach the pedals of this bike system so when bigger kids aren't riding he has to get out and push. ;o) Right after I took this shot a kid came up and tried to jump on, without stopping the bikes, and Sullivan was knocked down. The wheel of one of the "bikes" ran over his fingers...his broken finger being one of the newly smashed digits. :o( He was okay though, didn't cry, mostly annoyed that his fingers had black smudges on them.

Sully on the dance floor, trying to do the Electric Slide. ;o)