big boy bed!

We've had a few transitions we've been trying to make with Noah before baby brother makes his debut... one of them being moving Noah to a "big boy bed". I've been so hesitant about doing this because he really has been an amazing sleeper and to this day has never tried to climb out of his crib (although he is perfectly able to). But I really wanted him to make the transition to a bed before the new baby came so he didn't feel like he was getting booted out of his crib -- even though that is exactly what's happening!

Gma and Gpa S. were generous enough to spring for his new bed and we got it on Saturday. Noah helped daddy put it together and then slept in it that night. I was seriously shocked as to how well he slept in it. I was a nervous wreck the whole night and couldn't sleep -- I had nightmares of him ending up underneath the bed, getting wedged between the wall and the bed, or even suffocating under his pillow. I kept going in to check on him all night... I did find him halfway off the bed the first time I went in. I think he dropped one of his stuffed animals and tried to get out to pick it up, but was too tired to actually get back in bed so he slept with his feet on the floor and his head on the bed! But other than that he was totally fine and actually slept in the next morning :) He's even napping really well in it and is going to sleep faster than he had been in his crib... I'm completely shocked.

I think he still hasn't figured out that he can get out of it because he's so used to us picking him up and putting him in bed and then getting him out after he wakes up. So, he has yet to actually start wandering around his room or even attempting to escape... KNOCK ON WOOD... but, whatever... I'll take what I can get at this point!

#2 on the transition list... potty training... HA! HA!

helping daddy

napping...

awake after a great nap!

back to the blog

So, I really don't have any very good excuses for not blogging for the past month -- except for maybe the fact that my husband has worked the past 20 days straight without a day off (not that I'm counting or anything), it's been insanely cold/snowy here thus making it very difficult to do anything fun anyway, I'm 7 months pregnant with some serious nesting ambitions, and my 2 1/2 year-old could care less that I have no energy to keep up with him! (I guess there were a few excuses there.)

In any case... I apologize to the distant extended family that likes the blog updates and pictures. So, I thought I'd post a few pics that I never posted from Christmas and New Years and vow to do a better blogging job in 2009.

we love packages... and packaging!

I'm a succor for a kid in Christmas PJ's

(I think this might be the last year for the footsie ones for Noah, though -- he's a 4T now, yikes!)

the "Cars" obsession is solidified...

jammin' with uncle C's new drum!

trying out his new snowpants

building a snowman on Christmas day!

Noah's first sledding experience

never too cold for the playground

testing out the big kid swings

(luckily there was some nice padding underneath in case of a fall!)

loving the snow

a toddler's New Year's Eve party!

(snacks, snacks, and more snacks)

a little toddler karoake to celebrate!

"It's Christmas time in the City!"

The past few weeks have been filled with a lot of excitement and anticipation for the upcoming holidays (especially by my 2 1/2 year old son!) It's been really fun this year preparing for the holidays because Noah definitely understands more and gets excited about all of the new things he hears about. He's currently obsessed with the songs "Jingle Bells" and "Frosty the Snowman" and sings them incessantly. He also loved going to pick out our Christmas tree and decorating it (i.e. eating all of the candy canes while we decorated it!)

We also had a great visit with nana and grandpa-pa who came out last weekend just to celebrate a little early with us and enjoy the Christmas excitement in the city. We took Noah to Santaland at Macy's again this year, which was a big hit. He definitely understood who he was a little more (almost too much) because he was really hesitant to sit on his lap, but warmed up to him quickly when he started talking about bringing him toys! We also went and saw the Rockafeller tree, made Christmas cookies with nana and grandpa-pa, and had a great time at our ward Christmas cabaret.

The weather has really been crazy here -- probably not as crazy as some parts of the rest of the country are experiencing -- but really cold and snowy already. It just seems too early for all of this! But, it has been nice to have snow for Christmas and Noah had a blast trekking around in it last weekend. He really wanted to make a snowman, but the snow just wouldn't hold together well enough. We had fun anyway and are really excited to go sledding and gma S's house this weekend.

here are some pics:

getting our annual Christmas tree from the Canadians that sell them on the street

not too sure about Santa

Rockafeller Tree!

making cookies with grandpa-pa

suddenly deciding he wanted to get up on stage with the big kids and sing Jingle Bells

stomping around in the first snow of the season
(trying desperately to make a snowman)

ready to swing in any type of weather!

little vac-ay

This past weekend we took a little weekend trip to Florida. Noah and I tagged along on Jon's work conference in Boca Raton. It was so nice to get away and it was a far cry from the nasty 30 degree weather NYC was experiencing. We're talking 85 degrees on the beach and 75 degrees in the water! I seriously couldn't believe the weather. When we stepped outside early in the morning it was perfect room temperature. Now I understand why so many people retire down there! Our weekend consisted of pretty much the same routine... we ate the lovely continental breakfast at the hotel, played at the beach all morning, slept the afternoons away, and then hung out with Jon in the evenings. It was perfect.

We were slightly concerned about the sleeping arrangement with Noah because that can always quickly ruin a vacation. He's not used to sleeping in the same room with us and is easily distracted by little noises, etc. when he's trying to fall asleep. But after a little finagling we were able to squeeze the hotel crib into the vanity area and then cover the doorway with a sheet. Noah actually loved sleeping in his little cave and kept asking to play in his crib. He even took great naps -- which is always a plus for a 6-month pregnant mommy!

All in all it was a successful trip and I'm so glad we went along. It was just really nice to getaway as a family and spend some quality time together.

here are some pics:

Noah learned the phrase

"this is the life..."

while relaxing on his beach chair

he got over his fear of the ocean on this trip --

most likely because the water was so warm!

showing off his "crib"

nothing says Christmas like palm trees in lights!

News

I had my 18 week ultrasound yesterday and found out that we'll be having another little BOY!!! I was kind of in shock when we found out because I seriously thought we were having a girl (so much for the Chinese Lunar Baby Calendar gender predictor!) But the shock is starting to wear off and I'm getting excited for another little guy. However, this does spoil my plans of not having to "try for the girl" and being fine with 2 kids.

It's actually been kind of nice to think about what an easy transition it will be with another boy. The clothes and toys won't need to be replaced (I won't have to share my wardrobe budget with another girl, sweet! :) and I know Noah is going to love having a little bro to play with/order around. It would be nice to think that this baby will be a calmer more gentler version of Noah but the way he was punching at the ultrasound tech when she got up in his face and sat spread eagle the whole time -- it seems that we don't make 'em shy.

In other news, I think Noah is finally starting to figure out this whole addition to the family thing. We told him about the baby in my belly -- which now he automatically tries to lift my shirt to "find it" and we've been talking about what we're going to do with the baby after it grows and gets big enough to come out. However, I think a few wires have been getting crossed because it came out the other day that he thinks there are babies in pumpkins too and that we eat them when they come out. Hmmm... we'll have to do some fine tuning of our explanations.

Although, I must say that it has been really sweet to see him be more aware of little babies. Everytime he sees one he points it out and says how cute it is. So, if we can just get over the images in his head that I can only imagine consist of my belly exploding and an edible baby flying out, I think we'll be on the right track.

Happy Halloween!

The much anticipated Halloween festivities finally came this year. Noah was totally into it and he seriously had a blast. We'd been talking about it for weeks -- making Halloween decorations and treats, reading stories, watching the Little Einstein's Halloween episode one too many times, and getting our costume ready. Noah decided he wanted to be a cowboy this year (thanks to our recent church chili cook-off and square dance that got him interested!) and we found a great costume he could wear. Much to my surprise he actually wore it the whole night and didn't want to take it off when we got home (probably because he realized he got all kinds of great treats while he was wearing it!).

We went to a little party with some of our neighborhood friends at Lucy's house and then headed up to the annual Bennett Park parade for some costume flaunting and trick-or-treating. Noah made out pretty well with his candy stash, but we were still up for more fun after that, so we headed up to the ward party. It was quite the night! He was so hyped up on sugar that he wouldn't even eat dinner and I'm pretty sure he was up for another hour in his crib after we put him down. But we had a great night and now I'm spending my time explaining to him that Halloween's over...

here are a few pics from the festivities:

the costume

(and this was before all the candy!)

the prop

(I went a little obsessive and made him a hobby horse -- not as appreciated as I thought it would be but it made for a good picture :)

admiring his horse

(if only for a brief moment!)

the par-tay

the loot

Lawrence Farms

We headed up to Newburgh this past weekend for our annual apple picking adventure. It was Jon's first weekend off in over 3 weeks and it actually felt really weird for him to be around on a Saturday... almost like a little vacation! Anyway, it was so great to get out of the city and drive up the beautiful Palisades Parkway. The leaves were amazing! We stopped at gma and gpa S's house for some cinnamon rolls and then headed to the apple farm with them. It was a beautiful day -- significantly chillier than last year when it was like 75 degrees -- but who doesn't love a crisp, autumn day in the Northeast?!?

Noah loved seeing some of the animals they had, especially the goats for some reason, and we managed to pick a few apples even though there was some climbing involved by Uncle C. One of the reasons we love this orchard is because of the cute little children's village that it has. There is a little school house, a church, a post office, a jail, and even an ice cream parlor. It was a huge hit this year and I'll be honest, we spent most of our time there! Then we headed over to the pumpkin patch to pick a pumpkin and snap some family pics.

It was a great day... we even caught Miggy and fam leaving as we were pulling in... :)