Ahhh...Paradise!

Well, this photo could say it all...after three long years without a significant vacation we were lucky enough to be invited to Florida. A popular question asked is how was your weather? Well, in a word PERFECT! I have never been on vacation were the weather was better...80 degrees and sunny everyday. Absolutely heaven.

To say I was nervous to fly with Wyatt is an understatement. I realized I just needed to let go of the anxiety as I couldn't control what would happen and I just need to roll with it. Our plane left on time and even made time in the air so we landed early. Our only issue was changing Wyatt in the airplane bathrooms. I could probably blog about this separately and I can see the humor in it now...that it is over. Changing a toddler on a plane is the perfect kind of torture and add-in that your two year old is horrified by the idea does not make it any easier. Yes, my laid back toddler hates to have his diaper changed in most places. Finding the bathroom with the small tray table was the first challenge. While waiting for that bathroom to become available Wyatt was crying and everyone else waiting thought we were in the back of the plane to console him. Once inside, Wyatt made it clear that he was not laying down anywhere. Can't say I blame him. After singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" multiple times - I had to change him standing up (not my first time) and found out that he did not need changing after all the drama. Are you kidding me I ask him. I just had to laugh. Ahhhh yes. I guess I needed that experience...next time I think Ken will enjoy it. LOL.

We landed and after some late lunch we headed to the beach for a our first glorious sunset. Ken was able to play some golf on the trip and Wyatt enjoyed everything! Just wearing shorts and being outside was the best. I must say I rather apply sunscreen than wear a coat and gloves any day. The warmth and the sunshine was blissful. Just to see sunshine, green grass and blue skies everyday was glorious. It was just fun not to worry about having to be anywhere and to just be outside. Wyatt did wonderful with the time change and napping/sleeping in a pack-n-play.

We were invited on a friend's boat to take a ride and we found out that Wyatt loves boats as much as we do. The day was beautiful and we were so thankful to enjoy the day with such amazing family and friends and make some fabulous memories for Wyatt.

Don't you just love the hat!

The guys were able to drive the boat.
Wyatt loved the horn and still talks about it.


This was a common face...I guess he needed his own sunglasses.

Too cute.

We even saw some dolphins!


Boating in paradise is exhausting!

Look at me I am on vacation!

On our last day we had to make sure we went back to the beach to see the sunset. Wyatt saw some older boys make a sandcastle and wanted to make one. So of course we did. It was a family project. Below is the finished product and some photos of the making of...

Wyatt's favorite part was washing off the seashells before placing them on the castles.

So how big can we make the sandcastle?
I brought my truck.

Daddy are you sure the wall is big enough to protect the castle?

Ahh to use your rake in the sunshine on the beach!

Probably not our Christmas card, but it was nice to get a family photo to remind us a wonderful vacation.

The ride home on the plane was just this easy. I couldn't believe he fell asleep and stayed asleep for almost half the flight.

Why was I worried about Wyatt flying?

Wyatt saying goodbye to Florida and enjoying the airport.

To everyone who made our vacation possible...we can't thank you enough!

We hope you all are blessed as you have blessed us.

It was just what we needed. I REALLY needed it.

Counting down the days until it is like Florida here.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We hope you all had a great Valentine's Day! Having a lil' voice tell you "Happy Valentine's Day Mommy" is really priceless and just the best gift. I must say leaving Wyatt three days a week to go to work has been easier because he spends time with my Mom and she loves him almost as much as I do so that is such a blessing. It always pulls at my heart to say good bye to him as I get out of the car to board the train into the city. This week especially was priceless as I opened the back door as I usually do and he tells me, "its slippy Mommy be careful" and I assure him I will and I kiss him and say I love you and he looks right at me and says, "I luv you, Mommy." My heart melts just thinking about it. I am beginning to transfer over to Mommy on occassion from Ma-Ma. A couple occassions I have been Mom which is just too soon to hear so I tell him it is Mommy. I only have a couple years to enjoy it so I don't want him to skip over it.

Wyatt's valentines were very generous to him this year so many thanks! He loved everything. The photo above shows what Ken and I got him for Valentine's Day. I must admit that it was kinda of selfish that we got him a backpack. I have a diaper bag that I have despised for awhile now and I am anxious to let it go so 'hippity hoppity" is a welcome site. What is so surreal is to see him wearing it because he looks like he is ready for school and so grown up.

May you all feel loved today!

Out and About...

We ventured out! The photo above is from our walk/sledding excursion this past weekend; however, the sledding was pretty much non-existent although Ken did give Wyatt a short ride. Our sidewalks no longer exist so we had to stick to the streets which were in great shape. The snow is over Wyatt's head so unfortunately he couldn't play in it.

The flu is behind us . Although, we walked right into new molars! At least, that is my assumption since eating certain "favorite" foods is now not happening. I try to look in, but Wyatt has not approved a viewing of any new teeth at this time. Eating has never been issue for us so my heart goes out to those who encounter this on a daily basis as I am assuming our small challenge will be short lived as he is teething. One unusual side affect has us scratching our heads so if this is common please let me know. Wyatt has these bouts of blotchiness. All of a sudden redness will appear on his cheeks or anywhere on his face and as soon as it comes about it will leave just a suddenly. It is weird enough to freak you out, but since it is very fleeting I tend not to worry about it too much. Since it is on his face I would like to think it is related to the teething.

Okay, yes it is past Christmas but Wyatt loves his Santa shirt and requested to wear it and since we are in a winter wonderland I thought Santa would appreciate a little face time after Christmas. Anyway, Wyatt got a Mr. Potato Head and well he likes to wear his glasses. Believe it or not it happens daily. It is amazing how a toddler will use the pieces to a Mr. Potato Head...eyes to fix cars, hats to adorn his stuffed animals...etc. I have also found that Wyatt loves to be in the kitchen. Now if I could just figure out how to hold him and make dinner at the same time.

Have a great week!

"It" Arrives at Our House…in more ways than one.

Last Friday, it came to our house and for about a month I had known we were living on borrowed time. What am I talking about? The flu. Yes, Ken and I were out with our small group when the bug arrived so we rushed home to relieve our #1 Babysitter. Nothing can compare to that feeling of knowing your “baby” (Yes, he will always be my baby even now that he is officially a toddler.) is ill and you can’t do anything to stop it. Wyatt is a trooper and was in good spirits considering…luckily it was the weekend so it didn’t truly “rock” our schedule. It is weird to tell your two year old that he can’t have milk or fruit…etc. and know you are giving him awful news. I felt like I was on pins and needles all weekend just waiting for "it" to turn its ugly head again and again. We survived…maybe I should say I did…I think I was the one the most stressed about it. Did I mention that he never had a fever and hit his head about an hour and half before we left on Friday night so we had to call the doctor for a consult to make sure it wasn’t a head trauma of some sort. Ah, yes…a first time Mom. Add in a couple calls to Grandma to double check that my thoughts on what to feed my patient were actually a good idea. Grandmas are priceless and excellent consultants. Anyway, we are back to milk and starting back on regular foods. Whew. Wyatt did have a first…he tried his first popsicle. It took a bit of coaxing but I believe he likes it and will try it again.

What end do I start with?

The orange popsicle was his favorite.

As you can see in some of the photos above...you need to try both flavors…just to make sure.

Well, the blizzard hit us full force so stay tuned for Wyatt enjoying his first blizzard's snow. I had hoped to include images of him outside, but when a two year old watches the wind at 50 mph he decides that he won't be putting on his snow pants. So, we hope to get better images of him outside this weekend. In the meantime, here is what I saw when I ventured out and the one above of Wyatt from the window.

Over 18 inches!


It was going on noon and still no plowing on our streets.
Residents started to use their snow blowers in the streets.

This is outside our garage that leads out to the street.
Believe it or not this pile of snow is right in the middle of the street.

We had power and heat (praise), but lost cable and internet from about 9 pm on Tuesday night till 5 pm on Wednesday night. We were thankful to be in a condominium because we don't have to do any shoveling. However, the entrance to our garage is still piled high with snow. So, all in all not a bad blizzard.

Many people commonly ask me what is Wyatt learning these days. Well, we are working on the alphabet by recognizing and associating letters to words. For example: U = Uncle Matt or Uncle Kurt. D = Daddy or Doggie. M= Mommy. It is remarkable how he is starting to associate with the different letters. Numbers too…it is fun to see him recognize a number in the weather report on tv or in a magazine/newspaper. Wyatt’s imagination has really taken off as well.

Hope you all can see how you are blessed this week. Having a heated home and able to work remotely are big blessings in my life that are precious to me this week!

Shoes and socks off...no problem! A haircut...well...that's another story.

Now that Wyatt is two I am trying to get him to do more and more on his own. Potty training is coming soon, but not just yet...maybe this spring or summer. My idea is for him to put all his toys away himself. Which, I am happy to report he does somewhat but we have a ways to go. However, his idea is to now take his shoes off and put them on by himself. Taking his shoes off has been accomplished as you can see by the photos and he can now do socks as well. Putting shoes and socks on is a bigger challenge but he has done one shoe and even a boot so I am sure he will be doing it in no time.

These photos are also for everyone who thinks Wyatt's hair is perfect all the time. It will also show how badly he needed a haircut. I am sure I have mentioned before how much he dislikes getting a haircut. If you see his hair getting long it is not that we have decided to grow it out just that his Mom is reluctant to go. Anyway, this is also his "before" picture as today we all headed to "Snippets" for Wyatt's new hair do.

Ta-Da! Here is Wyatt's "after" photo. Isn't he adorable. It is worth the drama. This time Wyatt recognized where he was going and did not wish to go in. When it was clear that he was not going to sit in the car or train...I volunteered to hold him. Ken told me afterwards that he didn't think Wyatt would be as good if he held him. Well, we won't know until we try...nice try but you will get your turn too Daddy! Wyatt clearly does not like the "buzz clippers" and was trying to peel himself away from me everytime she used them on him, but no such luck. He did great when she was just clipping the top of his head and bangs with the scissors; but turn on the clippers and he wants nothing of it. He was great and thanked the lady; however, we were both covered in hair. God bless Sunny as she was so nice to him and worked fast! I don't know how she does it but they are great at Snippets...we walked right in.

The photo below is what Wyatt thinks is smiling when asked...at least he will stop and stand where I ask him to....so that is nice. Sears get ready because we are coming soon.

Wyatt has been incredibly good lately...my angel. I had a very busy work week and he was absolutely amazing for me when I worked from home. He loves his trucks and cars...and loves to have a pan and a wooden spoon as well. Maybe he will be the next Iron Chef!

It was funny because he walked around the mall with a little confidence strut after his haircut and a lot of people said "Go Bears" to us and "nice shirt" to Wyatt. Hopefully, Wyatt's Bear's shirt will be lucky today. Here's hoping...GO BEARS!

Happy New Year!

How did you spend New Year's Eve?

If you said, "the zoo"...then we are sorry we missed you. We decided since it felt like October out we better take advantage of the nice weather. Since, it had been raining all day we were ready to enjoy the zoo lights. Wyatt got to see the Bears and Penguins so it was a huge hit. Not to mention the fact that he

got to walk a bit in the dark!

Wyatt loved that he could name everything on the sign.

Wyatt got a Wheelies ramp and garage for Christmas and he loves to flip it over to "fix" it.

Did I mention that he loves to fix it with the eyes

from Mr. Potato Head? Priceless.

You can't fix it without sticking out your tongue.

It's a mechanic's secret.

We wish you all a very Happy New Year!

May we all concentrate on our blessings in 2011.

Merry Christmas and then Happy Birthday!

Can you have a incredibly wonderful holiday and be utterly exhausted? I wouldn't have changed a thing except for my late nights of preparation. I need to get better at organization if I am going to survive future Christmas holidays followed by my son's birthday the next day. I am fully committed to making it "his" day and not the birthday that followed Christmas. I must say my "hat" is off to Wyatt and Ken for dealing with me stressed. I think I am getting better and I hope to develop a system soon so it is not at all stressful....okay...let's say so stressful.

This blog entry is mainly a photo journal (so it is long - be prepared) that starts with our trip to Santa. The photo above was taken at the Santa brunch that Gigi and Papa took us to and we all had a great time. Did Wyatt sit on Santa's lap...not this year, but he did say "hi" to him often. Wyatt was also given a gift from his cousins...An Elf on a Shelf. All Mom's should have one if you celebrate Christmas with Santa. You have to name your elf and Ken and I tried to think of something clever. Ken came up with the perfect name...Nutso (take the K and S off of Knutson and you have our elf's name. It was fun to see Wyatt look for him each morning and now after Christmas he still asks about him.

In trying to take photos for our Christmas cards these two photos show what an amazing job Ken did at picking out our tree. He has gone to get it on his own for the past 3 years and he is amazing at it. It smells wonderful (like we live in a forest) and it is so perfectly shaped that you would think it is artificial. However the needles shedding show that it is real.

Last year, I had a funny blog that told the story of trying to buy Wyatt a hat...he is a head above the rest in size and so this year I got him one that will fit next year too.





My Uncle John is a master with wood and he made Wyatt a big surprise this year! He made him cars and trucks out of wood that fit perfectly in their own little wooden box...shaped like a tool box. Wyatt couldn't get them out of the box fast enough.

He immediately started to play with them.

Lining them up is very important...traffic you know.
In this photo you can see the box made to carry them in.


Did I mention they have circles for windows? Perfect shape for his fingers.

Brutie (Wyatt's BFF) loves to play with them as well.

Thanks Uncle John!

December 24th - Christmas Eve Arrives!

I start to make Wyatt's birthday cake. A Dump Truck Birthday Cake. Have I made any sort of theme cake before. Nah! I'll look online and see a few photos...I can do that, right. I quickly saw I was way over-my-head, but my drive and Ken's confidence in me I decided to dive in. The grocery store is open the day after Christmas, right?

I had this image in my head as to what Wyatt would wear on Christmas Eve to church and I could have cried in delight when on my late shopping spree to Wal-Mart to get birthday supplies led me to an outfit with a red velvet vest with tie (pants and shirt that were included in purchase not shown in this photo). I already had black pants and white button down shirt...I just needed the finishing touch. This is by far my favorite photo. If I had it when I did the Christmas cards this would have been it. I will never forget this Christmas...he looked so adorable.

I think this should be a yearly shot...Wyatt and Pa enjoying Pa's train under his tree.

December 25th - Christmas Day

Wyatt helping Ken to put together his Wheelies Ramp.

Before we head off to Ken's folks for Christmas I had to get going on the cake. Is it beginning to look like a Dump Truck yet? I was beginning to wonder...will I have enough icing?

We had a glorious Christmas and in all the hype I did not take any photos.

I meant to take more photos of the dump truck cake creation, but once I got going I couldn't stop. It was a late night, but before I went to bed on Christmas Night...okay it was Sunday morning before I went to bed...the cake was done and the decorations were mainly up. Ken is great with decorations and as he puts it...wants to see my vision come to life. Who wouldn't love to hear that?

Ta- Da! Here is Wyatt's 2nd Birthday Dump Truck Cake.

Not exactly my vision, but I stopped before I thought I may ruin it. Less is more, right? I did run out of black icing, but Wyatt didn't notice. For those curious...two and half 9x13 sheet cakes (2 = white cake and 1 = chocolate). The wheels are ding dongs. Orange lights on the top of the truck, red brake lights in the back of the truck and the door handles were all M&Ms. In the dump truck after icing it was crushed Oreo cookies, chopped up Snicker bars (just about 2-3 snack size bars) along with a few brown M&M's. The dirt around the truck is crushed Oreos.

Trucks had to be the theme as Wyatt is all about trucks!

A view from the back. The license plate is also just icing.

I have to tell the story of Wyatt waking up on his birthday. Ken went and got him up as he woke before us around 8 am. Always anxious to be the last one out of bed and since I was up quite late I had closed my eyes for just an added bit of shut-eye. Since, Wyatt commonly comes into our room I thought I had a second or two and was surprised when Ken had gone into another room and Wyatt went into the living/dining room and saw all the birthday decorations and the "truck cake."

His absolute delight in the streamers and seeing the truck cake...'oh, Mama come see...look at the...look at the'...(assuming he is looking at streamers) then he saw the cake...'Oh, Oh, Mama the truck cake...come see.' I couldn't get out of bed fast enough. He was so excited...it was worth every minute and any stress.

Since all our immediate family was coming at 3 pm - Ken took Wyatt sledding (so far it is a yearly tradition) so he would be ready for an early nap. All bundled up and ready to go.

Believe it or not...after touring around they headed to the park and Wyatt went on the swings! Who doesn't do that in late December in Chicago?

Right before the singing and candle is ready to be lit!

We had been practicing blowing out the candle. I was holding his hands because he wanted to touch the cake with the candle being lit.

Wyatt was anxious to dig-in!

Pa took this video after we finished singing and you can hear him trying to blow out the candles. So adorable! I must thank all of our family who come to our small abode and squeezed in to celebrate Wyatt's birthday. They flooded him with love and gifts! Wyatt is in heaven...so much to play with and everything he loves.

Christmas will always be amazing for us. I will forever be humbled by the gift that God gives to me each day and especially the precious gift of Wyatt in our lives.

We hope you all had a glorious Christmas and Happy New Year. Wyatt is now 2 so 2011 shall be full of fun!