December fun and a surprise visitor....

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Andrew, Chris and I had prime seats for the Richardson Christmas Parade. It was super cold, so we were all bundled up. Surprisingly, Andrew kept the hat and over sized coat and gloves on the whole time! He got high fives from celebrities like Clifford and Blue! (Chris was pretty excited, too.)

Later that day, we went to Bounce U (the coolest place on earth) to celebrate the birthdays of Macy and Jackson! We all had loads of fun, but I stand by my thoughts from last year: Dads have just as much fun as the children (if not more) . The funniest part of the entire Bounce U process is the safety video they make the children "watch". The sweet teenaged employees get all the children together, "Here you go toddlers. Sit quietly and watch the safety video. Make sure you follow all these rules." The picture below miraculously captured the the 3 milliseconds that all children happened to glance at the screen.

Here are some candid shots from the awesomeness of Bounce U. (Hmmm... Can we have my 30th at Bounce U?)

Lastly, we had a surprise visitor yesterday. I bet you're thinking Santa, right? Wrong... It was Izzar! He/she is alive and well plotting his/her way back into our fireplace. Kristin was lucky enough to get a front row viewing of our lovely lizard! (She was being Santa's helper and delivering some cool presents! Thanks!)

I guess Izzar is officially a Shacklett. Welcome to the family!

:)

Anne

PS: Merry Christmas!

Fun, Yikes, and Double Yikes

Fun: Much to Andrew's chagrin, I decided to set Izzar free (the lizard who lived in our fireplace for the past several weeks). I had no idea what the lizard's long term plans were; however, I feared the following: 1- He was sluggish because he was hibernating and lighting a fire would kill him. 2- He is sluggish because he's dying and trying to find a comfy final last resting place. 3- He is actually a she, and she was sluggish because she was about to lay all kinds of gecko spawn in the fireplace. Either way, he/she had to go.
It was a tearful goodbye, but Andrew seemed to get over it soon enough. If you ask him wear the lizard is now, he simply points out the back door. God speed, Izzar.

Yikes: Last Saturday, we put on our coats and hats to meet Santa at Santa's Village. (Yay, Richardson for having such a fabulous holiday hot spot.) Andrew loved the sights and sounds and didn't even mind waiting in the cold. After over an hour of waiting in line to meet Anta (Santa), Andrew finally got his turn. He walked up to Santa chanting "Anta, Anta, Anta" with a big smile on his face. Then, we put Andrew on Santa's lap. Yikes. Andrew couldn't get down fast enough. To be honest, Santa's expression seems to say, "the feeling's mutual, kid". Double Yikes: Andrew begged and begged to give Lady a treat, but before I made my way to the pantry, he stopped begging. Over the past 22 months, I have learned a quiet baby usually means bad baby. Andrew grew tired of waiting for me to open the pantry, so he did some problem solving.

That's Andrew balancing on a 12 ounce cup to reach the handle of the pantry. You've got to him props for figuring it out. I'm glad it didn't lead to another black eye.

:)
Anne

Natural Consequences

In education, I love when children can experience the natural consequence of their actions because I think it is a better deterrent than me nagging. For example, if a student keeps rocking in his chair and falls, his natural consequence is a bump and the embarrassment of falling in front of the class. Ergo, he won't rock in his chair.

Apparently, natural consequences don't mean much to toddlers. Rule: Don't climb on furniture like it's a jungle gym. Andrew hasn't made the connection... although his face has connected with the floor several times. The picture quality isn't great, so you can't see the red and purple shiner (looks like late eighties eye shadow). You can definitely see the swelling.

Poor baby.

:)

Anne

PS: Still to come... Izzar moves out, Andrew meets Santa (yikes), and Andrew becomes a problem solver (double yikes).

Thanksgiving

Happy belated Thanksgiving to all! This year, Andrew had his second chance at eating the wonderful Thanksgiving spread put before him. The only difference was that this year he could actually say no to show his disgust and not just throw the food on the floor.

I was finally able to convince him that whip cream is delicious and avoiding it would be sinful to turn it down.
After a wonderful feast at my mom's house (with the beast turkey I have ever had), Walt, Chris, Andrew, and I packed into the truck to get Sharon. Once we picked her up, we headed to OKC to visit Aunt E and Uncle Ayne (Lisa and Wayne).

The drive went well, and the trip was lots of fun. The boys spent lots of time splashing in the hot tub.We got to see Wayne's daughter, Krista. The last time Andrew saw her, he was only 3 months old, so he didn't remember her... or how fabulously, gorgeous she is. He fell in love with her instantly.

Last but not least, Andrew decided that they only part of Thanksgiving feast he wanted was the arm that was feeding him. Oh yes, The Biter is back. Check the red mark on my arm i know it doesn't look like much, but I have several others on my belly, back and legs to match. If anyone has a solution, I would be willing to try it.

:)

Anne

Our New Pet

I know what you're thinking, "Where's the Thanksgiving stuff?" Be patient. I will post that stuff soon... Well, it will be soon in Anne terms.

Anyway, we have a new pet at our house named Izzer (Andrew's name for "lizard"). Izzer is a big, fat, gecko that has taken residence in our fire place. He's been living in there for a couple of weeks. I don't know what he eats in there or what he does when we are not around. When we are around, he just clings to the glass or the chains of the fireplace.

Needless to say, Andrew loves Izzer, and we have even touched him when he was hanging around! Izzer doesn't care that Andrew bangs on the glass, yells at him, and attempts to attack him with a plastic dinosaur.

Luckily, Andrew isn't old enough to realize what the first fire of the season will do to Izzer.

:)

Anne

PS Here's a random cute picture of Andrew with one of his favorite toys, his broom.

Baby Loves Me

Today is hat day at school, so of course, Andrew had to participate. He kept yelling, "Hat! hat! hat!"

Right after this picture was taken, I did my normal routine: picked up my stuff, said bye and told the boys I love them... This time, Andrew said it back. "I wub u".

Hello waterworks.

I love wub that baby.

:)

Anne

Yucky Baby

The other night while we were reading and singing before bed he had an amazing case of projectile vomiting. Andrew was sitting on my legs, so both of us were COVERED. Yum. In response to this, Chris and I hustled around with startled faces that upset Andrew. Andrew and I got in the tub in our pajamas to rinse off.

Noticeably upset and crying, Andrew looked down at his pajamas and repeated the phrase, "yucky baby, yucky baby, yucky baby". Poor guy. He had know idea what was happening, he knew he was covered in yuck, and everyone seemed to be mad.. at him. Or, that's what he thought.

Luckily, we were able to clean everyone and everything up before lady had the pleasure of doing so herself. With new pajamas and his Mip (his blanket- no idea why he named it that), he snuggled on the couch and watched a little ball.

Although the throwing up was an isolated event, he still keeps muttering "yucky baby" and shaking his head.

Poor Andrew.
:)
Anne

PS:

Missing the Boys

I am such a dedicated librarian that I gave up 2.5 days with my precious boys. I was a chaperon at Sky Ranch with the 5th graders from my school. Well, as they say,"when the cat's away...the giraffe will play??" ...maybe that's not the exact saying, but Andrew and Daddy sure had fun at Andrew's Halloween party today. And Andrew was the cutest giraffe around...at least the Shackletts think so. Here are some shots that Daddy took. Hope

From left to right:

Pic #1: Andrew got to Trick-or-treat at daycare. All went well until they told him he couldn't have the candy anymore. Chris got to be the proud papa as Andrew threw himself down and failed while screaming madly to get his candy back. I wonder why the iPhone wasn't clicking pics for that moment.

Pic #2: Andrew finally settled down to enjoy his Halloween feast. I got to see this picture in real time. At first, I was so excited to see my sweet giraffe enjoying his party and costume. Then I realized he was drinking orange juice... from a cup... with no lid... while wearing his costume. Awesome. Luckily there was minimal spillage (shocking), so the costume would be ready for Halloween.

Pic # 3: Eventually, the fun of the hood wore off, and Andrew finished his meal of cookies as a headless giraffe.

Yay, Halloween fun. Bring on the Trick-or-treating with the Clarkes tomorrow!

:)

Anne

Lover or a Fighter?

Hmmm....

Wow. Andrew apparently has a fighten' streak in him. Is it the Italian or the Irish that makes him box? Will we ever know?

Either way, I picked Andrew up yesterday, and his teachers were VERY upset. Apparently, Andrew (overnight) has become a serial biter. Awesome.

He bites everyone... at least once... even the teachers. (FYI: Poor, sweet high school girl who is doing a part time gig with kids... this is what toddlers are like.)

We had a"heart to heart" with Andrew last night about biting. I know what you're thinking, "a heart to heart with a kid who eats dirt, how does that work?" I get it, and Chris gets it... and we feel like idiots having "a talk" when Andrew is so young...and still occasionally eats dirt. Either way, we did and thought it might help.

It didn't.

Here's how it went down: After recess, Andrew stalked his prey all the way back to the classroom. Once alone, he bit the crap out of the victim. The victim was ready (after yesterday's string of attacks- who wouldn't be?). He grabbed the closest board book and whacked Andrew across the face.

Here's the beginning of his shiner... that my bully of a son fully deserves.... what a jerk. (When you're looking at the picture, it's the left side of his face, or his right eye.Yikes)

The funny part is everyone still loves him because he's so super cute... jerk. I love my little fighter...

:)

Anne

Sick Mommy

Dear Andrew,

I know you don't understand, but Mommy is sick. She doesn't feel good and she has a fever. Trust me, you don't want to feel like this, so that's why your getting less snuggles and kisses. You really just need to play by yourself.

:(

Sadly, in an attempt to occupy your time without Mommy, you managed to pull the highchair down... on your face... on picture day. At least now, we will have professionally made pictures of the trouble that little boys get in.

:)
Anne

Proud Math Mommy

So, I have to brag... Do you know what this is a picture of? Andrew does!


When Chris and I took Andrew for a walk on Monday, and I took him for a jog on Tuesday, he pointed something out to us. As we passed the yield sign, Andrew sat up in the stroller, pointed, and yelled "triangle"... or at least his approximation of the word, which currently sounds like "unga". He also knows square (skare) and circle (no clue how to type what he calls it but he can pick a circle out of any line up!).

Yay, math-y baby. He may not know what yield means, but he sure knows the sign is shaped like a triangle.

:)
Anne

The Busy Fall Beginning

First, we got a new addition to our backyard a few weeks ago, and we all love it... It's Andrew's Sport Climber. It's a five-in-one play thing that includes a tiny rock wall, slide, football goal, soccer "net", and basketball hoop. He LOVES it. You can throw a football through the hole in and keep score. You can shoot the soccer ball into the plastic net, and it bounces back to you. You can dunk on the super tiny basketball goal. Of all theses awesome posibilities, Andrew just jams the soccer ball in the basketball goal and then slides. He'll figure it our eventually.

Anyway, the day it arrived, we put it together, and it started to rain. Boo! So, like any good parents with a new outdoor toy, we moved all the living room furniture and let the fun begin.

Here's what it looks like when it's outside.

So, yay for the fun of climbing and sliding... and although they have VERY clear weight limits, you better believe that Chris and I have spent our fair share of time on it.

Along with work and the sweet baby, Chris and I have been participating in Corporate Challenge, which is like Olympics for different companies. Each division has 8 companies, and Chris and I have been competing with his company, City of Richardson's City Slickers. We ran the 5K (our team won bronze), I played volleyball (won silver), Chris played flag football (won Bronze), and we played softball together (Chris coached and we won gold). With all the events, we had practices, and I had a pre-tournament league for volleyball. We have been super busy, but we have had so much fun... Sadly, because of the busy schedule and running the Race for the Cure, we chose to drop out of the Corporate Challenge bowling. :( Maybe next year!

In the midst of all the sporting events and sporty things in our backyard, I had my 10 year high school reunion. I had SOOOOOOOO much fun. In fact, I had so much fun at the pregame happy hour Friday evening, we never even made it to the Homecoming game. It felt like high school all over again when I overdid it and wound up playing in the softball tournament the next morning with dark sunglasses and a box of saltines next to me in the dugout. (Yikes.)

Saturday night was a more formal night downtown with dancing and pretty dresses! It was so good to see friends that I haven't seen since high school. Chris finally got to put a name to lots of faces and now I have like tons more Facebook friends... I'm moving up in the world for sure. We stayed out with the Leglers and Barnicles until the wee hours of the morn. We had tons of fun, and the boys developed quite the "bromance". Those three boys are never allowed alone together from this point forward... They think they are hilarious, which is scary.

So, fall began with a bang, and right now Andrew has a stomach bug. He is on day four, so we are hoping he feels better ASAP. The bug doesn't seem to slow him down though. The pictures from above and the ones below are all from his sick days.

Right: Who says pool noodles are just for the pool? They are great for chasing dogs around the yard...

Below: In response to my question Andrew says," No, no, Mommy". Awesome.

Bottom Right: Although it's not the best picture, it's the first time that I have asked Andrew to smile for a picture and he actually did it. So, i guess this is his cheese ball smile.

That's all for now. Hopefully after these past few busy weeks, I will be able to post more regularly... It's almost time to hit the pumpkin patch again! I can't wait.

:)

Anne

Hmmm...

I know for a fact that I told Andrew to put the dog food in the bowl.

Nice try, Bud.

:)

Anne

The Sample Nazi

Everyone knows that grocery shopping is no fun unless you happen upon some delicious samples. They are free, they are food, and that makes them yummy. So, when Andrew and I had to make an impromptu stop at the grocery store on Wednesday, we were pleasantly surprised to see beautiful sample ladies dressed in there aprons and plastic gloves dishing out the goods.

All was well, until we met the meanest sample lady ever....The Sample Nazi... She was at the cookie samples... and she was only giving half cookies... really? A half a cookie?

Let's just say that Andrew didn't agree with The Sample Nazi's half cookie policy.

The ensuing tantrum lasted a record 21 straight minutes. Through all the crying, flailing, kicking, and SCREAMING BLOODY MURDER, I still had to check out (self checkout-no less- which was awesome), unload the groceries, load Andrew, drive home, unload Andrew, unload groceries, try to divert his attention and then... grab my camera.

This will go in the record books... Thank you Sample Nazi.

I hate to show Andrew in such an unfavorable light because he is such a fabulously sweet boy. Here's a video from last month when we celebrated Jason's birthday. Andrew enjoyed some play time with his Uncle Tim, or Te-te as he calls him.

:)

Anne

Mohawk Monday

...and if that's not good enough, here's some fun with Bre- or Beee as Andrew called her.

:)

Anne

Super late is still better than never...

I don't care what anyone says about the Dallas Zoo. I think it is wonderful. Andrew, Grandma Mary, Jodi, Wyatt, and I went for Zoofari Days last week, and it was the best zoo experience I have ever had. (Andrew's been "oo-oo-ooing" like a gorilla ever since!)


Here's the secret to our success:
1. Get there early to beat the heat and the crowd. The animals were very active and many of them were munching on super delicious grass and carrots for breakfast.
2. Read tons of animal books with real pictures so that your baby knows what he's looking for. (If you have ever met Andrew, you know he's obsessed with these books!)
3. Pack lots of water. When you think you have enough water, pack a little more. We were short on water very quickly even though it wasn't that hot.
4. Wear comfy shoes. Duh.
5. Don't let any cute toddler girls distract your son with the excitement of a vending machine... then the zoo loses its luster.




Here are just a few of the wonderful pictures we took at the zoo. The pictures turned out so fun because the babies and animals were equally into each other!

We went to the zoo on August 6... forgive my lateness, but I have been working since August 7th...

:)

Anne

Back to work blues

Andrew,

I'm sorry that... the summer had to come to an end.
I'm sorry that... I have to leave for work before you even wake up.
I'm sorry that... I'm not there to tear apart your waffle.
I'm sorry that... we only get to spend 2.5 hours together a day.
I'm sorry that... my job has open house and nighttime events, so some days i don't even get to see you.

I love my job, but sometimes I feel so bad being a working mommy. I hope you understand someday. I hope this is what I should be doing.

I miss you,
Mommy

PS: This picture was taken from Daddy's phone because I am out of town and missing you big time.

Cousins, cousins, cousins!

Next on the agenda for July was a visit from Andrew's cousins from Florida. We played in the pool, ate hot dogs, and even had a birthday breakfast with chocolate covered donuts. We tried and tried to get a picture of the five cousins, but as with Easter of '08, getting five babies to sit and be happy can be a challenge (to say the least).

Here is some pool fun at Grandma Mary's house and the birthday girl getting her donut and song!

Since we had zero success getting all five kids to sit in the same spot and smile simultaneously outside, we decided to give the inside of the house a try. I also posting the picture from last Easter below the new picture, so we can compare.

Above from the left: Kallie, Kaitlyn, Jackson, Andrew, Macy.

Below from the left: Andrew, Macy, Jackson, Kaitlyn, Kallie. It was great getting to spend some time with all the cousins around... although a group with kids ranging from 1.5 to 5 years old was quite an interesting group to watch interact.

:)

Anne