Just a mullet away...

We are super classy at the Shacks. In case you doubt our high level of class, check out my sweet baby walking the dog... in only his diaper and fake Target Crocs.

I know there is a picture of my little brother that looks strikingly similar, so hopefully I will get my hands on it soon.
Luckily, Lady came home when I called, so they never got very far. (Not pictured here: Andrew letting Lady poop in the neighbor's yard and leaving it.)

Stay classy~

:)

Anne

Swim Lessons

Well, after 10 swimming lessons, we know a few things.

1. Andrew can now go under water and hold his breath (for the most part).


2. He loves being thrown up in the air. (He likes that regardless of the setting.)


3. Nothing beats the sprinkler in the backyard.

So much for swim lessons...

:)
Anne

About Eating

Dear Andrew,

Here are a few thoughts to remember while eating:

1. Ten bites at a time is enough.
2. Along the same lines, please swallow occasionally. I have noticed you like to eat by osmosis... letting the food sit on your tongue until it seeps into your blood stream. That won't work.
3. Staying with the same theme, if you choose not to swallow, please don't share my drink.

4. If we are at a restaurant, you do not have to yell "mama" and point to me. The people at the surrounding tables both know that I am your mother and they do not care. (This goes for any time that we are in public and you incessantly remind people of my relation to you.)

I'm sure there are other "reminders" I need to give you, but I am drawing a blank.

:)
Anne

Tricky Baby

Sometimes I wonder how Andrew could be so tricky at such a young age. His trickeration comes in many forms, and although somewhat angering, it's always impressive.

1. Mine. I learned a valuable lesson about the word mine. Andrew has a new found obsession with my cup of coffee each morning. In an effort to explain that he couldn't have it, I touched my cup of coffee and my chest and said "mine". Now, instead of Andrew letting me drink my coffee in peace, he points to it, touches his chest, and says "mine". He does this with anything he wants now. I think it's safe to say I didn't teach him the true meaning of mine.

2. Coughee. Along with Andrew's misguided understanding of the word mine, he also doesn't get what is in my mug each morning. I know this because of what started yesterday. We went through our normal rigmarole with him pointing to my mug, touching his chest, and saying "mine". I responded by saying, " No, Bubba, this is mommy's coffee". He then touch his chest and coughed. Andrew now thinks that each morning mommy enjoys a big cup of cough-ee to get her going.

3. Teet. No, it's not what you think... Teet is Andrew's approximation for treat. He used to be able to trick Ladyby pinching his fingers together as if to offer her food. That no longer works; however, he does know that Lady responds favorably when offered a treat. Now, he chases her around saying "teet, teet". While playing outside, Andrew spilled out my entire water. I encouraged Lady to drink it up, but she quickly left after she had her fill. When Andrew saw how much she enjoyed the water, he devised a plan: he splashed his hands in the water and held it up saying "teet, teet".

I know that baby's get smarter by the day. They are little sponges that pick up sounds, words, actions, etc. I just didn't know they were conniving at such a young age. Fabulous.

:)

Anne

Even the Rangers could feel it.

Did you try to watch the Rangers game last night? Were you frustrated with the light malfunction that led to the hour and a half delay and the eventual Rangers' loss? We all were. Would you like some answers? Here's how it all went down....

At approximately 2:30pm yesterday, I arrived home from a very brief shopping excursion to find my husband and son in the kitchen. We were headed out to Arlington for the night, so that Chris and his dad could celebrate Father's day watching the good ole Texas Rangers versus the hated Dodgers. (Sorry, Walt. I hate any team that's not the Rangers.)

Chris greeted me with, "I packed Lovie, and Andrew went crazy." Period. End of discussion... We pack into the Malibu and head to Arlington.

Once Chris and his dad were enjoying countless cold beverages at the Rangers game, it was time to get Andrew ready for bed. The milk was warming up, and I reached in the bag and found... no Lovie. "This can't be," I tell myself recounting the short Lovie related conversation only a few hours prior. "Chris said he packed, and that Andrew went crazy," I kept repeated this over and over trying to somehow will Lovie into the bag. No luck.

I call Chris, and here's how it went:

Me: I thought you said that you packed Lovie. I can't find it.

Chris: I did pack Lovie, and Andrew went crazy. So, I took him out and let Andrew put Lovie back in his room. (Aside: this sentence would have been helpful around 2:31)

Me: Chris, what the (insert choice four letter word here) am I supposed to do now?

Chris: I'm sorry. He was freaking out, so I let him... blah blah blah.

You get the point.

So, here's what happens with no Lovie: Andrew screams and screams unless I let him sleep on me. The Rangers lights mysteriously wouldn't work, and they eventually fall to the hated Dodgers. Life isn't good without Lovie.

Next time we go ANYWHERE overnight, we will have a checklist.

:)

Anne

A few questions

Dear Andrew,

As of today, we have spent the past 5 uninterrupted days together, and it has been fabulous! (Even with the teething and the onset of your terrible twos...) With all this time together, I have a few questions for you. However, considering your communication skills are still in the works, I have to write them down and just hope that you'll be able to answer me later.

1. First of all, I am super glad that you fulfill the role of Mommy's Little Helper for all of my chores. It really adds a special something to each household duty. Speaking of adding things, here is my question to you: Why were there a fork and a spoon in the dryer with the newly changed load of laundry?

2. Next, I know that you have a newly discovered little toy hanging below your belly button. It's what you call your "teetee". With that "new friend" in mind, here is my question to you: Why is it that whenever you are naked you have to have a handful of your "teetee"? (By the way, no matter what you may think, it will not fal off if you stop holding it.)

3. Lastly, I have seen you watching Lady as she goes about her daily business: eating, sleeping, begging, faunching, and bathrooming. I know you love her, and you're curious about your sweet "goggy". Having said that, here's my question to you: When I walked inside to get my coffee, you were playing with a truck on the deck watching Lady take her "daily constitutional". About 30 seconds later, I returned to see you still sitting on the deck, and Lady had completed her duty and was out sniffing around the slide. So, here's my question to you, why was there a single Lady turd sitting right next to you on the deck? (I have a nagging feeling that I don't really want to know...)

Well, we have lots more "adventures" like these ahead of us this summer, but I can't wait.

I love you, my strangely fascinating boy!

:)
Anne

PS:
Next week, we will hopefully have pictures from our Waterbabies swim class. After the first week, Andrew's going under the water like a champ!

Narcissism

... is an inordinate fascination with oneself or excessive self-love... or staring at yourself in pictures whenever the opportunity presents itself.:)
Anne


PS: I wonder where he gets that?

Totally tubular

Dear Andrew,

You're parents are super cool... like totally.

I promise....you should have seen the rest of the peolpe at the party.

:) Mommy

So that explains it!

After a week of worry and Andrew's diarrhea, low grade temperatures, tugging on ears, and zero appetite, we have- drum roll please...........the appearance of the lower cuspids! Yay, for more teeth. It has been so long since we last "teethed", we have forgotten what it looks like. Next time, I hope Andrew has the decency to tell us when he plans to teethe again.

Here's the breakdown of our overachieving, super early, super-toothy baby:

Note to self: The next time the baby just isn't acting like himself-think teething. By the way, thank to baby ibuprofen for helping Andrew through those grouchy evenings that he couldn't communicate the problem to us.

:)

Anne

PS: Good luck baby having friends. If you haven't reached teething, you will be there soon, and you will all survive. Even if your child has a million teeth.

Random Videos

There's no doubt that I love that sweet baby, so here are some random times we have turned the camera on to record a little bit of baby fun.

1. Chasing the dog. Lady's a lot tougher than I am. She doesn't give in even when Andrew says "peese" for her chewy.

2. Where did she go?

3. Thanks to Kathryn, we are now OBSESSED with animal sounds in the Shack house. Here is Andrew's animal sounds. (I'll explain them after you watch. Let's see if you "get" what he's doing.)

Although I am sure you understood it perfectly, Andrew growls like a bear, pants like a dog, and quacks like a duck.

:)

Anne

The "magic word" holds a great deal of power. It shows people you are curtious, have manners, and are generally a nice guy. Mainly, it's magic because when you say it, people are more likely to do what you say. Haha, suckers.

As I told you in a previous post, Andrew has mastered this "magic word". It now comes out as "peese", which is pretty impressive, and I dig it. Anyway, here are a couple of examples of using the "magic word" for good:

1. At breakfast, Andrew uses a combination of signs and words. He signs eat. I hand him a NutriGrain bar, and he hands it right back saying "peese", so that I will open it. Score 1 for Andrew's manners. I will absolutely open your breakfast bar!

2. When playing Andrew will hand Daddy or me a book and say "peese", so that we will read to him. Another score for Andrew. Reading is fundamental, and who wouldn't want to read to polite little man.

Now, here comes the tricky part about the "magic word". Here is an example of using the "magic word" for evil:

Andrew is sitting in the car seat eating his paper from daycare. I take the paper away, and he looks at me with that sad, sweet face and begs, " peeeeeeeeeeese". First of all, that's not fair. Secondly, I don't know if anyone would have been able to keep the paper away at that moment. I gave it to him.... How could I resist? He said the "magic word".

For the future, I plan on being stronger. So, I have news for you sweet toddler: Just because you say the "magic word" it doesn't mean the magic is going to happen.

:)

Anne

PS:

Here is a picture of a time when Andrew used the "magic word" for evil. He was begging for us to turn on the hose because he likes to drink out of it. (I know... super classy.)