Home Alone

First of all, ya'll let me just say - it is unbelievable how tired I have been at night lately after Luke goes to bed. By the time I lay him down in bed, it's 9:30 and it is all I can do to straighten up his toys and load the dishwasher. I am enjoying our extra time together in the evenings but I don't know if I will ever catch up with the small things that I need to do around the house because I'm so exhausted at nights - which is why you will notice that I am posting this blog at 5:30am on the first morning of my Spring Break!!! Because I was in bed at 10:00pm, I feel rested and ready to go, so why not catch up on a little blogging???

Speaking of Spring Break!!! Happy Spring Break everyone!! For Davidson County staff and students, we are beginning a LONG spring break - no school or work until April 16th!!! Oh my - AWESOME! Enjoy every second of it!! :) Our family has some exciting things planned. I will probably post all of our Easter fun in ONE LONG blog next week.

Let me go ahead and put one more tidbit of information in here that I am very proud of - one reason that I'm exhausted at nights is because I have increased my running tremendously in the last 2 weeks! I am motivated, excited, and have been very consistent with my running. I can now run the entire 3.1 miles while pushing the stroller. It's slow - about 10:57 per mile but I'm still working on cutting back the time. I can also run 3.1 miles without the stroller at 10:04 per mile, which is still over a minute from my personal best, but, that's okay, I will keep working. Matter of fact, this next week, I think I'm going to increase my miles to 4 with the goal of speeding up the 5K mileage.

The main reason I have been able to become more consistent with my running is that I have finally been liberated from the feeling that I have to be with Luke every second of every evening. I used to think that when I got home from work that I was a bad mommy if I took off and left him again to workout. But, now, I have mentally adjusted to the fact that I NEED that 30 to 35 minutes and it's okay - Luke is fine. It helps that he's staying up later because I have almost 5 hours each night with him so 30 minutes doesn't seem so bad. Plus, with papa Dale next door, he is often times playing with papa Dale for the 30 minutes that I'm gone and he doesn't care whether or not I'm here or not. :) Landis has been running too and I'm very proud of him! He's running much slower than me but he is still able to finish 3.1 miles and that's great! We run about 2 to 3 times a week with Luke in the stroller and then the other 2 to 3 times a week, I have been taking off around my neighborhood. This weather has been gorgeous for running and I'm so very excited that I can already tell improvements in my body from this much needed exercise. I'm feeling better and better each day about getting in a bathing suit. :) I have a 5K coming up at the end of May. I will be running with the stroller so my goal is a 10:00 minute mile. I would love to finish at 30 minutes. We shall see....

Now, on to my "Home Alone" post...

Two weekends ago, Luke and I found ourselves Home Alone, here in Thomasville, for the WHOLE weekend. Landis was in Charleston on a golf trip. Papa Dale was at the beach for a cheerleading competition and my mom was in Loris visiting relatives. Everyone was in some part of South Carolina for different reasons EXCEPT for me and Luke. My original plan was to keep us so busy that we didn't even no anyone wasn't here but, to my pleasant surprise, we were just the opposite - we took it easy and had so much fun.

On Friday night, we met Heather, Jay, and Silas at Bur-Mil Park in Greensboro. Our intention was to run a little and then let the boys play on the playground. I have been wanting to check out the trails at Bur-Mil. To my disappointment, the trails were not very good - most of them were dirt so we couldn't run using a stroller. Instead, we ended up having to repeat one paved section of the park several times in order to get just a little over 1.5 miles in. I don't think I will return to Bur-Mil to run. I may, however, return for the playground one weekend. There are several playgrounds that Luke and Silas enjoyed. The first one that we visited had several dinosaurs they could climb on. Luke enjoyed that and he also enjoyed the tall slide that he could climb and go down all by himself.

After leaving the smaller playground, we went to a larger one that had swings and several other slides. There was a safe tunnel slide that Luke LOVED! He would go down all by himself and say, "Mommy, meet me at the top." I would remind him that he meant meet me at the bottom and then he would correct himself. I would slide down the small slide and then sneak up on the big slide and scare him. He laughed and laughed. When he got to the top of the tunnel slide, he would look through the peek holes and yell to Silas at the swings, "Hey, Silas, I see you." This slide was a hit for quite awhile. Heather, Jay, and Silas were hungry so they went ahead and left for dinner. Luke was having a blast - we were in no rush to get home (because no one was there waiting on us) so we stayed and played some more. I had no idea that we would be there for another hour!

Luke met this little girl named Lexi. She was probably about 6 years old. She came over to Luke and asked him to throw the ball with her, and, of course, he did. They threw it back and forth several times and then Luke would throw it the opposite way so they could both go and chase it. The attention spans for the ball didn't last too long - Lexi went to slide and Luke started digging in the dirt with a stick. I couldn't believe it but Luke actually sat down in the dirt with no concern of getting dirty - usually he hates getting dirty. I was proud of him! Get dirty boy - that's why a mommy invented Shout!! :) Get dirty he did - by the time he was finished digging, he had dirt on his shorts, shirt, and all over his legs.

Before long, Lexi returned and this time she had her mom's IPhone. She was playing some Justin Bieber song very loud on the phone. She tried to get Luke to dance with her. She was breaking it down. :) Luke didn't want to have anything to do with dancing but he took off running around the picnic shelter. He ran and ran and ran while Lexi with Justin Bieber playing in the background chased him. He ran up and down the nearby hills and thankfully only tripped one time scratching his nose a little. He didn't stay down long - he was up quickly running again. He was playing so hard that the back of his hair was soaked with sweat!! :)

After running himself to death, he asked to swing on 2 different swings for just a few seconds and then he slid down the slide a few more times and, finally, told me that he was ready to eat some chicken nuggets. I have to say that Luke plays hard all the time but this might have been the hardest I have ever seen him play. He was pouring with sweat when we left - what an active boy - I love it!!! :)

Luke and I stopped at a Wendy's in Greensboro. While we ate, he kept asking to ride his green lawn mower when we got home. I told him "okay" not thinking that we had a 30 minute drive home and that it would be dark. When we got home, he asked to ride his lawn mower and it was pitch black outside. Because I promised, I went ahead and got it out. Papa Dale's flood lights are so bright that Luke was able to ride the lawn mower near Papa's house for just a little bit and then it started raining. Because he didn't want his lawn mower to get wet, he came on in without any arguments.

By this time, it was half time of the UNC game in the NCAA tournament. I watched it while Luke and I played on the floor, snuggled on the big bed, and while he walked around our room in Landis' shoes - it was hilarious! All of a sudden, before I realized it, it was 9:45pm and Luke was still awake. The UNC game just went into overtime and Luke was getting exhausted so....I put on Luke's pjs, brushed his teeth, and asked if he wanted to ride in the car. He was exhausted and gladly agreed. While I listened to the UNC game on the radio, I drove Luke around until he was asleep, which only took like 5 minutes! He loves to fall asleep in the car! We came home, put him in bed, I went to bed, and the next day was here before we knew it.

On Saturday morning, we took our time playing around the house - Luke rode in his red car while I danced to the Wiggles singing the Popcorn song. There is a part of this song where tap dancers do a dance. When it gets to this part, I stop the red car and "tap dance" in front of it. Luke giggles at me like crazy! I'm sure I look quite silly, but it's very fun!!! :) We listened to music and danced all morning long. He loves this one song where I put him over my head and flip him to the floor. (It's a great bicep workout for me and Luke loves it!) :) I gave Luke his bath (since we missed it the night before) and we headed to Chuck E Cheese in Greensboro.

He had a good time at Chuck E Cheese. He didn't want to eat. He just wanted to play so that's what we did - played and played. All Luke wanted to do was steer everything with a steering wheel. I didn't have to buy hardly any tokens because all Luke wanted to do was steer things and that didn't require a token. For like an hour, I just followed him around and let him steer whatever he wanted. Luke was a little disappointed that he couldn't climb up the jumbo gym and slide. I explained to him that he was too small and that he might get stuck up there but he still whined about that a little. We played and "steered" until Luke looked like he had enough. I asked him if he was ready to go home. He said, "yes, I want to ride my lawn mower." So, we left. I knew that Luke was also probably getting tired. Well, sure enough, he was because he had a major meltdown in the car. All of a sudden, he told me that he wanted to go back to Chuck E Cheese. I explained to him that he told me he was ready to go. He said that he changed his mind and that he wanted to go back to Chuck E Cheese. When I said, "No!", he cried and cried and cried. I got it on video because it would make a great Chuck E Cheese video. Just wait until you see it at the bottom! :)

After his meltdown, Luke fell asleep and slept at home for a few hours. After his nap time, it was nice outside so we headed outdoors. All Luke wanted to do was mow and mow and mow - using his big green lawn mower and the little push lawn mower. Papa Dale's grass was getting very tall and I knew that he wouldn't be home until late Sunday night so I had an idea....why don't I mow Papa's grass while Luke "helps" me??? I asked Luke if he wanted to watch Mommy mow and he said, "Yes!" So, I got out the push mower and began mowing. It was great exercise! Luke stayed near me (not too close so he wouldn't get anything in his eyes) but close enough where I could see him. He would mow behind me and then on the pavement behind Papa's house and then he would sit on the porch and watch me. I enjoyed the mowing and we helped out Papa Dale.

After we mowed, Luke helped me sweep off and wash the lawn mower and he helped me trim a few areas with scissors that I couldn't get to with the mower. (I don't weed eat!!!) Luke had the little scissors and I had the big ones and we enjoyed "cutting" the grass. Luke continued to trim and mow all afternoon. He took a little break from mowing and had a quick Easter egg hunt with me but that didn't last long. :)

For a little while, I put Madi on the leash and let her walk around with me as I followed Luke on the lawn mower. She enjoys being in the front yard with us. While she was with us, she decided to take a stinky right in front of the lawn mower. Luke couldn't believe it. He reminded Madi that she was "nasty" while I cleaned it up so he could keep mowing.

After we put Madi up, Luke played with Tigger, the neighborhood cat. That cat will come out of nowhere and run towards your feet playing. Then, he will go hide in the bushes and jump out again. Luke loves to guess where Tigger is at! :)

As it got later, a storm came up - matter of fact, such a strong storm that Luke and I pulled my car up to Papa's carport because it was hailing. We didn't make it back down to the house in time so we sat in the car and let Luke "drive" while the storm passed through. Surprisingly, Luke is not scared of storms. He stays calm and doesn't seem to worry. I'm like that - I'm not scared of storms - I respect them, but I don't panic. I hope Luke is always like that. I explain to Him that God protects us during storms. :)

After the storm, Luke and I played inside for the rest of the night. We played play-doh, we read books inside his tunnel, we snuggled in the tunnel and on the bed, we called daddy on the phone and talked to him, we ate a quick dinner at the living room table, and then Luke played in his toy corner by himself while I straightened up the house. Luke looked over at me and said, "I'm just playing with my toys." :) I heard him talking to his airplane, dinosaurs, and cars about where they were going to go. I love watching him play by himself like this - it's so sweet! :)

Before bed, I read him his "If you are happy and know it book..." (which is a funny one). I read it several times and then we headed to the rocking chair. We read a few extra books and then he was out! What a fun, fun day we had!!! We did nothing spectacular - just played at home - just me and Luke looking out for the property!! :)

On Sunday, Luke and I took a quick trip to Wal-Mart. Luke was very well behaved. I let him pick out one toy and he chose a green John Deere jeep, imagine that? It looked sort of like his tractor - it made the same sounds and had the same lights. He was so proud of his new jeep. Matter of fact, we saw a friend of mine in the parking lot at Wal-Mart and he told her all about it - it's green, it has 4 wheels, it makes noises. :) When we came home, he pushed his tractor and his jeep on the table while I unloaded the groceries. He was so sweet - he even told me thank you for buying him his jeep. I love it when he's so appreciative! :)

Thinking back, I have no idea what he and I did for lunch that weekend. All I remember is that after Luke's nap, I pushed him in his red car in the house and we danced some more. We found a new song by the Wiggles - Mr. Knickerbocker and the #9! It's great! We sang and danced to it over and over! We went outside for a little while and took his dump truck with blocks, his mowers, bubbles, and some sidewalk chalk. We stayed outside for the rest of the afternoon. Matter of fact, I listened to Carolina lose to Kansas on the radio (up loud enough where I could hear it) while Luke and I played outside. We put weeds in the wheel barrel and did some more grass cutting with scissors. Then, before we knew it, Daddy was home!!! We were both excited to see Daddy. While Daddy and Luke spent some time together, I went for a run all by myself. It was wonderful! It was a gorgeous night - I just ran and ran - so peaceful! :)

What an awesome weekend! I never would have thought that Luke and I would have enjoyed ourselves so much just by playing at home but, we did, with only one trip to the park and a quick trip to Chuck E Cheese, being home bound was pretty fun! :)

Here are a few pictures....

Luke being silly with his toys...

Landis turned 35 last week! Here are some pictures of Luke and Landis blowing out the birthday candles.

These pictures need an explanation....last week, I was the cheerleader at Fair Grove's Annual Staff versus Parents basketball game. It was a lot of fun! The cheerleaders had to wear these tutus that PTO made us. I got ready to put mine on at home before the game and Luke laughed and laughed at me. He thought it was hilarious so I said, "Why don't you wear it??" He put it on and ran around and laughed and laughed at himself, see???


Here are some pictures from our visit to Chuck E Cheese....











From our Easter Egg Hunt....

Mowing and mowing and mowing...

Just chilling in the red car....check out that laid back position...I hope he doesn't drive like this one day.....



And, now, to some recent pictures....last weekend, Luke and I went to a birthday party of one of Luke's gymnastics buddies, Summer, she was turning 2! :) The party was at the gymnastics place so, of course, Luke was excited! He was able to do gymnastics 2 times in one week! And, the best part is that, at birthday parties, they get out the parachute and Luke loves playing with the HUGE parachute. Luke did so well listening to Ms. Lisa give directions about how to use the parachute. He would hold his handle and do all he could to lift the parachute up high. He smiled the entire time. He also loved getting under the parachute when we made it like a tent. :)

After the parachute, Luke did the circuits (ladder, bars, pit, rolls, and trampoline) sort of like we do at gymnastics. He did well. His favorite was the pit, of course. He would slide down the slide into the pit and then jump into the pit from the edge. He even slid down head first one time. :)

Here are some pictures of Luke playing in the circuits!

Sliding into the pit...
Jumping into the pit...
In the pit....
Dancing and running....
Playing with the parachute....

Playing on top of the parachute....

Hanging on the bars...
Here's his straddle....
When it was time to eat, Luke was so sweet. He just sat there very calm waiting on his drinks and snacks. They served red kool-aid in cups with no lids - I was so proud of how neatly and carefully Luke drank his drink. Luke's favorite part of the snacks were cheese doodles. At first, he said, "I want some of those french fries." :) Those aren't french fries, silly! :) Those are cheese doodles! :)

When they sang Happy Birthday to Summer, Luke did awesome! He sang right along. I have him singing on video below. Here is Luke eating his snacks..

After snacks while Summer was opening her presents, Luke ran and ran all over the place. He did not want to sit down and watch. He even ran out into the lobby where the toys are. He found him some books and asked me to read them to him, so we sat in the lobby and read a few books together. Then, he found a basket of toys and looked through them and asked me what each figurine was until he found a bouncy ball. He loved the bouncy ball! He looked at me and said "Let's play catch." So, he threw it back and forth to me several times in the lobby and then he took it inside the gym and threw it.

One time when he threw it, another little boy ran over and took it. Luke had the saddest look on his face. This always breaks my heart when kids take things from him and I want to go "fix" it for him each time but that will not teach him life lessons. I reminded Luke to go ask the little boy to give it back using words, I said tell the little boy that you were playing with that and would like it back. Luke would not do this. He just followed the (much bigger) boy around until the boy finally put the ball down. As soon as the boy put the ball down, Luke went and grabbed it. Luke, being very small and probably will always be, is going to have to get a little tougher. I am going to continue to encourage him to take up for himself. :)

At the end of the party, Luke got his goody bag and enjoyed his treats. His favorite part was the little sweetart candies. As usual, he passed out on the way home! I'm sure he was exhausted!

What a great time we had! I always enjoy our fun times together! Thanks, Summer, for inviting us! :) It was so nice to just "play" at the party and not have to worry about hosting it. :)

Here are some videos that I promised...

#1 - Luke's fit after leaving Chuck E Cheese.

#2-Luke singing Happy Birthday to Daddy - the video didn't work right (because of me) so I only got the last few seconds.

#3-Luke singing Happy Birthday to Summer.

#4-Luke jumping on the yellow trampoline.

#5-Luke jumping into the pit.

#6-Luke doing his front roll.

The next time I post, I have some cute conversations from the Lukester and will have some fun times to share from our Easter fun!! :) Thanks for being patient with me - check back early next week. I should have more time to post over the break! I'm going to eat some breakfast! :)

Toddy