Caleb Jumping on the Couch Cushion

Finnally something besides PB&J!

I may have mentioned this before but Caleb usually won't try new things from me, but he will from his Dad. He has discovered that Dad eats many good things: ice-cream, various sweets, etc. And mom tries to feed him not so good things. It has been a struggle for me because Caleb eats very little variety: PB sandwiches, yogurt, sweets, most breads, crackers, very occasional fruit, and no veggies. He has turned down mashed potatoes but yesterday Andy was eating our leftover crock pot dinner and Caleb was pretty hungry and went for it.
Then of course, we had dessert.

Go! Go! Go!

I unfortunately do not have a video clip to go with this post. Caleb has never been that interested in watching TV, however, during the Olympics he loved to watch swimming and running, and more of the latter. (He also liked seeing the bikes, but he would only point and say bike then go back to what he was doing.) One day Andy watched Caleb in the evening so I could go to the temple and they watched the Olympics. Andy taught Caleb to say "Go! Go! Go!" to the runners and he LOVED it. Every time we had the Olympics on after that and they showed running Caleb would run around and say, "Go! Go! Go!" It was so cute!

"Go" has been in the vocabulary for quite a while and a couple of weeks ago I was sort-of teasing Andy and telling him to "Go! Go!" Get dressed and get going or something. Caleb totally picked up on in and chased Andy around our room and bathroom as he got ready saying "Go! Go! Go!" Very cute.

Story time

Caleb will read stories FOREVER! He actually gets bored of a single book if it is too long or doesn't involve enough things he is interested in. However, if he has the books he likes he will have you read the books to him over and over and over. This is a flap book about construction workers.

Young Lawyer

I'm trying to set up e-bay and craig's list accounts so I can sell Andy's bar review books online. I had the books out to take pictures and Caleb decided to go through them.

Caleb playing with salt dough

I made some salt dough for a primary lesson which I ended up not teaching. Caleb had a grand time playing with it and I was actually able to use the computer uninterrupted for quite a while! :)

Berry Picking

On Saturday Caleb and I picked blackberries that I recently discovered grow by our apartment complex. He loved picking the berries off the low branches and amazingly didn't get scratched. I wished I would've had the camera. Caleb loved running along the bushes and looking for berries and eating them. We got a good sized bowlfull and shared them with our neighbor Florence who was happy to see us. That evening as Caleb and I were playing in his room I noticed some brown crumbs on the floor that smeared into the carpet when I accidentally stepped in it. Thinking Caleb had been eating zucchini cake in there I picked up one of the crumbs. It didn't look like cake. I smelled it. It didn't smell like cake. Yuck!! I hurried and washed my hands and began cleaning up all the little spots I saw. Caleb of course came over to help and I saw that he had streaks on his foot. I went to wash it off and saw it was all down his leg. The berries had made speedy passage and since our wonderful little boy is such a picky eater his system is not accustomed to fruits and especially berries in the amount he ate today. We went straight to the bath and thankfully it all cleaned up well. He hasn't eaten any berries since.

Saudades de Twin Falls

That means something like missing Twin Falls in Portuguese. I've had many saudades of Twin Falls this week.

1. This afternoon we had the opportunity of attending the Twin Falls Temple dedication via satellite and it was really nice. (One of the partner's wife from the firm Andy's working at recommended a good babysitter that lives fairly close-by so we were both able to go.) I don't know that attending the dedication made me miss TF terribly but I thought I should put that first since it was really nice to go.

2. It is lonely moving and I haven't really met anyone yet besides a nice older lady named Florence who loves to have us come and visit and tell us about her time in Iowa City or the news from the local senior center. I really like Florence and I grew up visiting older people in our neighborhood in Flagstaff, AZ, so Caleb can do the same. However, I do miss all the great friends I made in TF and look forward to making more here. I'm going to try to start a play group in our ward--we'll see what happens.

3. I miss having everything be within 2 miles and having all the places I really shop in the same little parking lot. I've tried to go shopping twice this week and I felt like I just drove around a bunch and came home with very little.

4. For anyone who sees Sister Harris in TF tell her she does a great time with singing time. We're in the primary and I miss her. Actually everyone in primary--the Twin Falls 4th Ward does an excellent job in primary.

5. I really am a small town girl--I just miss that small town (which feels large to me :)). But I will learn to enjoy the city--Boise is a small city with lots of fun things to do and I will eventually learn how to shop all at once and effectively...

So to all you wonderful people in TF--thanks for making it such a great experience!

Videos from the swimming lessons

I forgot to add these.

Hike up by Bogus Basin Ski Resort

On Saturday we drove up to the Ski Resort and hiked around. At first it was shady and steep--very pretty, then we wound over across the top along the face of the mountain. At one point we got a view to the northeast (?) and could see the mountains heading off towards Idaho City. The trail would around for quite a while and we kept thinking it was time to go downhill and start back. Finally it was and we were pretty tired. Caleb fell asleep near the end but woke up as we were nearing the lodge where we had parked. There we had a great little snack and Caleb had lots of fun.

Starting out:

This is just as we were coming out of the trees.
View towards Idaho City--this picture really doesn't do it justice. It was in the middle of the afternoon and not the best time for pictures.


Afterwards we sat at this covered picnic table and ate stale pretzels (Caleb had some peanut butter sandwich left, but devoured the pretzels as well) that tasted wonderful!

Cute picture

I just think this is a really cute picture.

"I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home..."

Andy was gone from Monday to Thursday (the 11th-14th) and we missed him! Every night when he would call Caleb would listen to him on the phone with a big grin and an attentive expression. Caleb's favorite song is the monkey and alligator song and he always claps his hands and says "snap!" at the right time. Andy would sing the song to Caleb over the phone and Caleb would sing along and love it.

We made this sign for him and hung it on the apartment door. Caleb loved coloring on it so much he cried when I said we were done and needed to hang it up. He ran around like crazy and was so happy when Andy came home.

Caleb digging at Grandma's June 15 2008

Family Home Evening

I don't know why it did this funny color/underline thing. I didn't feel like redoing it.

On Monday for Family Home Evening our lesson was on "family." For Caleb we think it was mostly on coloring. We asked him if he wanted to color for Family Home Evening and he nodded his head and put down his all time favorite toy--a screwdriver (He was "working" on a little metal stand we had put together this morning)--and went to the table where we had FHE.

Caleb coloringDaddy drew this picture of Caleb and Mommy

The funniest thing was when Andy showed the picture to Caleb, Caleb grinned pointing to himself as if he totally knew who it was and then pointed at me and said "Mama!" Yes, I guess Andy did quite the resemblance. I thought it was pretty funny. Caleb also loved the screwdriver Andy drew in his hand.Treats--an essential part of Family Home Evening, right?
Andy yes, there are still boxes in almost all the rooms, fewer and fewer now, but still a ways to go. :)

Mama and me class

A few weeks before we moved I did a swimming class at the YMCA with Caleb. It was M-Th for 2 weeks from 11:30-12:00. A fairly good time because he would fall asleep for his nap on the way home, but prime time for sun (I'm wearing my sunglasses and Caleb's lathered up in sunscreen). A couple weeks previously I had spent the week with Caleb at Andy's Grandma's house while his Aunt Janell went to girls camp. They just finished remodeling the house and it's now equipped with two very nice walk-in showers but no bathtub. I thought I could bathe Caleb, who loved his baths up until this point, in one of those plastic storage tubs. It was a disaster. I won't go into too much detail but one of the days he pooped in the bin...anyway, he screamed and hated baths. Also at Grandma's they were landscaping and there was lots of fun dirt to play in. Needless to say he was filthy every night and seriously needed a bath so into the tub screaming he'd go. After that he was on a bath strike and I had to take showers with him and it was a fight the whole way. I had signed up for these swimming lessons over a month prior and was worried I might have to opt out.

Andy and I took him to the pool the week before and he had lots of fun. Then when he was in the swimming lessons he was try to wriggle out of my grasp! Not good. The teacher had us dunk the kids and after that he clung pretty tight but still enjoyed the pool. Near the end of the lessons he was an expert in the kiddy wading pool, walking on his hands and rolling around with his head above water. He really got pretty good. Hopefully he will turn out to be more like Andy in the water than me--I'm not confident nor do I really like chlorine in pools, but Andy is a good swimmer.

My Father's daughter

My dad, as many of you know is a nature loving biologist who is against killing anything besides the creatures who eat up his garden. I was reminded of him today both as I woke up and as I was going to bed. When I got out of bed this morning I discovered I had slept with a spider. My dad takes thousands of photographs of spiders. He loves spiders. I don't know how he feels about sleeping with them. This was just a little one and I unfortunately shortened it's life because as I was trying to coax it into the cup I had over it, one of it's legs came off. However, being my father's daughter I did not kill it but let it outside. Then, to my surprise, as I was reading my scriptures late tonight what I thought was another spider leapt out at me. That was a bit startling and I captured it too and though I was in my underwear, ventured just past the door and let the thing go. I did examine it on the way to the door and it moved like a spider but was not because it only had 6 legs. I'm not so sure I want to know what I will be sleeping with tonight. Andy's out of town--should I tell him of his fellow bedfellows? I need to go to bed it's late. It think I'll check my bed again. I don't care for surprises of that sort.

Caleb's new bedtime act

I really shouldn't complain about bedtime because Caleb slept from the time he went down till he woke up in the morning last night for about the 4th or 5th time in his little life. Granted it was from 9:30 to 6:40, but it was still continuous. Count your blessings. :)

Anyway, tonight Caleb kept making the one sign he's very good at (the only sign I was consistent in teaching him) which is pointing to his mouth with his hand to mean "eat." So I would get him out of bet fearing he was hungry. This happened about three times. When he turned down a cookie I knew he was playing games with me. I had suspected it but wasn't sure. Man how fast kids learn! :) He kept trying it again even though he was exhausted and I'd been trying to get him to go to bed for over an hour, but I stuck it out and he is now peacefully sleeping.

First Bus Ride

Well today we did quite the adventurous thing. We took the bus downtown to go to the library. There is a bus stop right outside our apartment complex that takes you right downtown. We got on with a nice elderly gentleman also from our complex and also heading toward the library. He told me that he just walks from the downtown stop but he thought the walk would be a bit much for Caleb and me. I took his word for it and made a connection to a different bus without much problem. I realized I really didn't know where the library was. I had the address and I'd seen it on google maps, but that's not enough. Being myself I asked a gentleman sitting behind me and soon all around were helping. A man in front of me was also heading to the library and accompanied me there. Yes I am a very trusting person and rarely think the worst of people, but for those of you reading this and fearing for our safety, have no fear, it was still kindof downtown and people were coming and going all around. I was very grateful to my guide because he showed me how the Boise River Trail is a safer route (no street crossing etc) and prettier. He also told me all about everything around me and the library, etc., etc., and showed me around the Helen Keller Memorial.

The library was difficult. Caleb went crazy. He was pulling books off shelves, running around, running up to people. But he likes the library--that is good. I suppose we'll go back if they'll let us in the doors.

Quite exhausted from the library trip I asked the information lady where the bus stop was and was directed across the street. Not having thought much beyond getting out of the library with my child and our books with as little chaos as possible, I hadn't thought about when the bus would be coming. It was the middle of the afternoon and hot. The bus stop was on the corner of a fairly busy one-way street, and a not so busy entrance to the art museums in Boise. Still, not the place to sit for a while with a 15 month old. I was all nerves the whole time watching for
the bus (which I knew would be coming within a 30 minute window) that I really didn't want to miss abd trying to keep Caleb somewhat entertained and not running into the street. It was a long 10 or so minutes and I was very tired.

Remember I still had to make a connection to the bus that would take us home. I had thought my online studying of the routes at home had been sufficient preparation but I felt confused in the thick of it and sat behind the driver asking him how to connect to the route that would take me to my road. As I asked about the schedule and nice kid on the bus came up and gave me his. So nice!! People are so nice! Plus I think my helpless looking, naive, trusting, and open nature set me up well to be pitied and helped. :) Anyway you look at it, I'm glad to be the recipient of other's kind help.

At our stop we got out and played in the fountain downtown--one of those fountains where there are jsut little geysers coming out of the ground. Kids are always swarming it--some in swimsuits, some not. While we were there some other older kids were having a snack of those orange crackers filled with what is supposed to be somehting like cheese. Being the new mom and fairly unprepared person that I am, I had thought to bring water, but alas no snacks. Caleb went over and one of the kids offered him one. As he was about to take it the dad pulled out a new package and let him have one. Again very grateful for strangers' kindness.

We did make it home and I think Caleb had a really good time. I did too, but I learned a few things: bring snacks, know the routes better, and never, never be afraid to ask questions. :)

Nursery

I have to add these or I never will. I apologize for not having nice pictures, layout or even chronological order. But I'm always thinking of things that I could blog about and then never do it because I don't have previous things blogged, etc., etc.

With that disclaimer here's my thoughts on nursery. Andy's been taking Caleb to nursery the last couple weeks and loving it. Last week Caleb had a great time and made it to singing time. I guess they have little mats they pull out for the kids to sit on. Caleb caught on and loved it. As he sat on his mat with his arms folded he realized that the other kids were doing actions. Excitedly he started waving his arms around though songs like Popcorn Popping, Hinges, etc. Then they started singing I Am a Child of God and he started to cry and headed for the door. Our church meets from 11:30-2:30 so right during nap time so we're not sure if it was a reminder of me and he wanted me because he was tired or if he didn't want to sleep because he loved nursery and thought if we sang I Am a Child of God, a definite bedtime lullaby, he would have to go to sleep. :)

Last week Caleb was so tired but again LOVED nursery. This time he made it almost to the end. Apparently after snacktime or something (near the end), they have run around the nursery time. Crazy if you ask Andy or me but the kids, surprise, surprise, love it. Caleb gets physical when he's wound up so he started to share his exuberance with his peers by plowing them over and bear hugging them. Andy said he tried to stop him and he just wouldn't stop so they had to go out in the hall.

I got all this second hand but I thought it was really funny when I heard it so I wanted to post it.