Funnies

Hayden is a funny kid. He says and does some hilarious things. Since I can't find time to blog every day about our adventures, I figure I can leave you with at least a little daily Hayden. Enjoy...

Today, riding in the car to school, Hayden sees my motorcycle helmet in the floorboard.

H: Daddy helmet?
Me: No baby that's Mommy's helmet
H: MOMMY helmet??
Me: Yes, for when mommy rides daddy's bike.
H: No no *shaking hands* mommy no ride bike. Daddy bike!

Chauvanist.

A weekend in the District

I had the opportunity to head north a few weekends ago for a multitude of celebrations. I started my trip in Greensboro, with a lovely lunch with my husband. This so rarely happens, just lunch for the two of us on a weekday, so I didn't mind getting on the road later than expected. I loaded up the car, gassed up and headed north on 85. Driving up that way always brings back fun memories, particularly of the Fall Break I went up to see Lizard and we walked around DC, a mere month after the attacks of September 11th. We saw the giant hole in the Pentagon, with an even bigger American flag hanging beside it, and the whole city had a somber, hollow feel to it. Luckily this time was a different experience.

I arrived at Lizard's house early in the evening and got to meet her sweet new puppy, Ace. She and Matt were busy prepping for his birthday party the next day, so it was fun to just hang out and catch up. We went out for dinner at a fun mexican place and the food was wonderful. The drinks were overpriced, so we headed back to the house for wine and fun with friends. What a treat, to see my favorite newlyweds and some new friend I made at their wedding. I went to sleep alone for the first time in a long time, since Jay and Hayden were back in NC. It felt strange to wake up at 7, realize I had NO early morning obligations, and go back to sleep until 9!

After a series of long, convoluted phone calls, Liz and I finally had a plan. She was in town from the Pac-Nor, and staying with Melissa and Dan. I picked her up at their house and we braved DC traffic to visit the FDR Memorial. I had never seen it before and it was Liz's favorite so we found an unheard-of parking lot and set out to explore in the drizzly weather. We did stumble upon the George Mason memorial on the way and then proceeded to the FDR. What an inspiring place that is! It's full of his memorable quotes, bronze statues and water to represent the different stages of his terms of office. We decided against much exploration, as we had a full day ahead of us in Maryland. After a serious search for parking and a bathroom, we headed to the hotel.

We called ahead and requested early check in to get ready for the wedding. Imagine our surprise when we were at first denied that check-in, and then almost immediately granted said check-in. After the valet whisked away my car and the bellhop whisked away our bags we were finally in our room getting ready. For two females trying to put together two STELLAR outfits, I'd say we made pretty good time. We headed to Sandy Spring, MD for the wedding. We had arrived early in case our assistance was needed with the final touches, but mostly we wandered around taking photos and enjoying the atmosphere. Shortly after 5, the brides walked down the aisle.

After a beautiful ceremony, we headed inside for cocktail hour and mingled with friends and family. The brides and bridal party were off taking pictures and we were busy creating the weekend's signature drink. When we came back outside, the tent had been transformed into two rows of tables for our splendid dinner. We ate, we drank, we laughed and celebrated the love of these two wonderful people. It was such an amazing event, to be surrounded by so much love and support.

Sunday morning I also woke without a little person tugging at my arm and asking for juice, which is pretty strange for me. After a quick bagel and coffee at Panera, I was back on the road and headed home to my boys. I had such a great time with old friends, but there's no place like home!

Happy Mothers Day!

To celebrate Mother's Day, Jay, Hayden and I went to the NC Zoo in Asheboro. It was actually Hayden's first zoo visit. Jay and I had been to one in Germany, and visited the NC Zoo just before we moved to Germany. We were so excited to take Hayden, and it was perfect weather for it!

Hayden was too excited about everything, and we had to stop for him to see absolutely every bit of it! He was very good about being quiet around the baby wolves, and the sleeping bear and gorilla. He loved the elephants and giraffes! From the website we had seen pictures of the animals and he couldn't wait to see the polar bear. He thought the polar bear looked a lot like Oscar, especially when he was chewing on a tire. His favorite part may have been the tram we took to get from one side to the other, and he loved running through the water misters.

He fell asleep as soon as we hit the car, and slept the whole way home. Good thing too, because our day wasn't over! We went over to my aunt's house for another family get-together. My aunt Pamela was in town, she had never met Hayden and we finally got to meet some other cousins. With such a big family it's really hard to get everyone in one place at one time, so a bunch of get-togethers seems like the best way to do it. It's always a ton of fun for everyone, and the kids leave tired and happy. What a great gift, to spend Mothers Day with so much of my wonderful family!

Spring fun

One of the great things about springtime in NC is the weather...when it cooperates! In early May we had some really beautiful days that made for some great family time! Lake Higgins is right up the road, so we took Hayden for a walk around the water. He loves to see the water on the way to and from school every day, so we thought it would be fun to see it up close. He had a blast! We walked around and saw the ducks and trees and flowers, and even a tiny snake! A few men were fishing and one let Hayden see what he had caught. We had a great time and can't wait to go back for a picnic!

One of Hayden's very favorite things to do is walk Oscar. He's getting really good at it, and because Oscar is pretty well behaved we don't worry too much about him running off with Hayden holding the leash. We took a nice long family walk one evening, which was great for all of us. When we got to our pond, Hayden threw a few sticks for Oscar and we let him off the leash. To our surprise, Oscar went chasing after one of those sticks right into the pond! He had a good swim and Hayden squealed and squealed. What a fun evening for all of us!

Natural Science Center

One of the great things about where we live is that we're close to the Natural Science Center. I haven't been there since I was a kid, and I have the best memories of school field trips to see the dinosaur skeletons, the reptiles and the petting zoo animals. One weekend in April, we decided to introduce Hayden to this fun place!

It was definitely overwhelming for him, because there was just too much to take in! He of course loved the dinosaur room and had a blast in the "Just for Kids" room. He was having a great time playing in the water and the clubhouse and on the boat. We stopped by to see some reptiles, and they even had a two-headed turtle! The only thing left to do was head outside...

First we spotted a few giant tortoises and birds. Then we saw a beautiful peacock, and even some turkeys! We got to the petting zoo and I thought he might burst! We pointed out the sheep and goats and pigs and donkeys, and then we walked in to see the sheep and goats. There was a volunteer inside that showed Hayden how to brush the sheep, and told him how much they liked to be brushed. He tried it, giggled, and then asked me to do it. I showed him again, but he was much more content watching us brush them and saying "Like it, sheep? Mommy brush!" He even made the volunteer brush a few animals before we were finally able to pry him away. We saw some little donkeys and a mule on the way out, and Hayden was too excited for words. We always know when he wants to go back because he asks to "see animals". Luckily it's just down the street!

Happy Easter!

Hayden's age certainly makes holidays a lot more fun and interesting! This was the first year he got candy in his Easter basket, the first year he dyed eggs and even went on his first egg hunt! Last year we were in the Netherlands so there were no eggs to hunt but plenty of flowers to see.

On Saturday, he and Jay dyed eggs outside on the porch. Hayden was really excited to watch the eggs change color, and had a blast with the stickers. We did it with minimal mess, and I was quite surprised! Once they were dry I put them in a bunny bowl on the dining room table and every time Hayden saw them he was so excited. He was really proud and kept saying "Ea-ter eggs!"

On Sunday he woke up to a few surprises from the Easter bunny. He had a Cars easter basket with new Thomas the Train pajamas, a fun number puzzle and candy. We let him have a few pieces before our fun Easter lunch and he seemed pretty content.

For lunch, we went to Andy and Teressa's new house. They are right down the road from us now. Hayden had a blast with two of his faves, Cooper and Sydney. After lunch we busied the kids for a few minutes while the Easter bunny hid some shiny eggs for them to find. Hayden was way more interested in giving the eggs to Sydney because she had her bookbag. Hayden was all of a sudden not so excited about his Cars basket because Sydney was WEARING her bookbag, and he couldn't quite understand why he couldn't wear his basket. After some candy and cookies, we headed home with a very tired (but still handsome!) little boy. Easter might be his favorite holiday!

Happy Birthday Lily!

Hayden and I went to Charlotte to celebrate the birthday of a very special girl! Lily Godbold turned 2 and she and Hayden hadn't seen each other since the day after she was born! Hayden was way more interested in the busy ball popper and the ball pit than eating, watching Lily open presents or even eating cake! But he had a great time. And what a treat to finally meet sweet Miss Reid!

Towards the end of the party, Hayden was playing with a balloon and Lily's friend Max wanted to play, too. I was really proud of how Hayden was sharing, and when Lily jumped into the mix he was very protective of her getting a turn! He ran around outside with all the kids while I got to hold Reid. We had a blast and are so glad to be back where we can visit our special friends for their special days!