Today Does Not Deserve an A

Well, most days are pretty grand around here. Our little toddler is growing and learning and brings more joy to our lives than we ever thought possible. However, with the good...comes the not so good. Cayle's new habit he has picked up is really not one I am a fan of: hitting. This morning at storytime he hit a little girl in the face. I hate to even type the words that he did such a thing. I felt awful for the little girl, her mother, and everyone in the room that witnessed it. Yes, our kid was "that kid". He also proceeded to hit the dogs and myself all afternoon. He had to sit in time-out several times today for hitting. I am hoping and praying he learns sooner than later that this kind of behavior is UNacceptable. WELCOME TO THE TODDLER STAGE!! ugh

Aside from all the hitting he did today, our craft/activity I had planned for today didn't go so well either. :(
You know the days you just wish you could hit the rewind button and start over? Well, today was one of those days. (Oh yea.....I failed to mention that BEFORE we went to storytime this morning he stuck his hand in dog poo. Yup! Right before we were getting in the car to go. I started the car and off he walks over to the neighbors yard. He had his bear in one hand and sticks the other hand right in a fresh pile of crap!! Thank goodness he didn't get it on his khaki shorts or new Star Wars shirt!! )

I have been saving brown paper bags from the commissary and today I let Cayle color on one of them. The coloring part was a success. He used markers and now loves trying to take the lids off of the markers. He scribbled all over the paper bag, other paper, and the table. I just love his baby scribble. I cut a big hole out for his face and two holes on the side of the bag for his arms. And then....I put it over his head. He immediately started his unsure moan like, "Mommmm, what is going on???" I took the bag off of his head and put it over my head and giggled and talked to him and tried to show him how much fun it is.
Round two. Nope, he still wasn't a fan. So, the paper bag man will have to wait awhile longer until he is a little older and hopefully can have fun with it.

Mommy note: make sure to show the kiddo how to have fun with the bag before abruptly shoving it on his head and freaking him out. (my mental note)
This activity is an oldie and one day (for us) will be a goodie. :)

He wasn't a fan of the brown paper bag. But can't beat this pic. Right!?

Play-Doh and Hard Noodles Don't Taste Too Good

Today Cayle got to play with Play-Doh, noodles, rice, and cookie cutters for the first time.
First, he experimented with the Play-Doh and cookie cutters. Of course he tasted the PD right off the bat. He made a squeamish look and then still continued trying it several times after. I am not sure if he was hoping it would taste better the next time he tried it. No clue.
He wasn't quite sure what to do with it so I showed him how to smash it and push the cookie cutter down on it. I also rolled up some balls for him. As soon as I did that he just wanted to throw them. Nowadays every ball he sees he has to throw. It must be hard for him to comprehend that a bouncy ball he can throw and a basketball he can throw...but not a Play-Doh ball. Anyways, he enjoyed pulling apart the PD and smashing it...and tasting it. :)

First: HAD to taste it

SMASH!!

He loved that I could make balls with the Play-Doh:

Next, he experimented with uncooked noodles, rice, and cookie cutters. This was just to let him play with different objects of different size, shape, and texture. He eats cooked pasta so immediately he put the pasta in his mouth. He quickly realized it was not easy to chew. Ha! He wasn't quite sure what to do with the pan of stuff. I showed him how to fill up the cookie cutters with the big noodles. He like that okay. BUT THEN....he discovered smashing his hands down on the pan and then picking up handfuls of the mix and dropping it in the air. My first instinct was, NOOOOO! Mess!!!!! But hey...we have a broom and dust pan. It isn't food he is eating...so I let him go to town. He absolutely loved picking the noodles and rice up and dropping it from above his head by the handfuls. Lots of laughs bestowed at this point.
Mommy note: Next time I would like to have more random objects and cups that he could pour the mixture into.

Experimenting:

So...now you DON'T want me to eat this??

Making a Mess! Yuppee!!

Rainy Day. We Still Play!

It seems that rain has been on the daily forecast for weeks now. But after Cayle woke up from his morning nap it was nice out so I decided we better get outside and have some fun while we can. We got the water table set up outside, got the dogs tied up, got all the toys, and yadda ya. We were five minutes into playing and what happens?? Rain! So, we sat on the porch and watched it rain for a bit and then went inside for lunch. After lunch the sun was back out so back outside we went!
Cayle loves splashing and playing in his water table. But today I decided to spice it up and add bubbles!! He doesn't quite know all the cool things to do with bubbles yet. So, I had to show him how to pile them in your hands and clap and sling the bubbles everywhere! He liked that. I have recently been trying to show him how to blow bubbles in the bath water and at the pool. So, he tried blowing bubbles in the bubble water. It was so funny to watch because every time his little head would pop back up he would have a forehead full of bubbles. We also splashed around in his kiddie pool and played in the water hose with Diesel. He loves loves loves watching Diesel play and jump at the water from the hose. He just laughs and laughs. Even though the rain has come and gone several times today, we still had a great day playing outside.

Mommy note: the bubbles were a hit in the water. I also tried putting shaving cream in the water so he could play with that too. However, I didn't realize but my shaving cream is the gel kind so that didn't work out as planned. I will definitely have to buy the foam shaving cream so he can play with that in the tub or outside in the water table. That could be a fun thing to do with Papa. Him and Papa could put the shaving cream on their faces and pretend to shave!

Bubbles!

Hahaha He cracks me up

One of his many attempts at blowing bubbles:

Waiting on the rain to pass:

One of his favorite pastimes: Pushing the wagon

Painting with "Magic" Paint!

 I got a great idea from my friend, Amy R. She suggested getting a paintbrush and water and letting the kid go to town outside with "magic" paint. This morning our a/c was acting up so we have had it off since last night. Since it was already getting hot inside at 8am I decided to take some fun outside! I got a sponge brush, sponges, a bucket, and the handy water hose. Oh! I also brought out some washable paint for him to use too. He didn't care too much about the paint though. He just loved dipping the brush and sponges into the bucket of water and slinging the water out from the brush or painting on the sidewalk and porch. It was so cute!! After awhile he kept wanting me to refill the bucket with water and then proceeded to dump the water on himself. Over. and over. and over. Silly boy! It was nice to get out of the house and since we were playing with water it definitely cooled us off. Next time I may have more bowls/buckets for him to play with and maybe more paint colors. But for our first round it was a success!!

Here he is dipping the brush in the "magic" paint:

Painting the steps: 

 Water play is the best!!

 I was using the paper towel roll as a megaphone. He was trying to do the same. He thought it was more fun to try and get the dogs to yell through it too. :) CCJ: 14 months

I have been inspired by some friends, information online, and life in general. The inspiration that has recently grown in me wants me to start up this blog. :) I love sharing pictures and info about our life via Facebook. However, I know not everyone loves seeing the 85 photos I post everyday and knowing every thing that is going on. This blog will be for me to post photos and share things that we do throughout our days. Cayle is almost 15 months old now and is learning new things daily. I love it. He is getting to the age that I need to step up my game on activities and things that we can do together to learn, grow, and love. I want to share activities that we do so other parents may be inspired to do the same with their loved ones. I also just want this to be a place where the people in our life that really give a darn can come see what we are up to. I want to be the best mommy and wifey to my boys. It is my goal to learn and take in as much as I can from the world around me and share it with them. So, stay tuned.
Until next time. Love, Laugh, Learn.
-CJ