Making Errands Fun

With today being a cloudy day and with my "to do" list growing, I decided to take Luke with me to run some errands. I do not like to spend too much time running errands on the weekend because I value this "play time" with Luke so much. So...I tried my best to make running errands fun today and fun it was....I'm exhausted now and so is Luke...he is sound asleep in his crib and I'll be hitting my "crib" soon myself...

We started our errands at 8:15 this morning by heading to Winston-Salem - destination - Toys R' Us. I always play Luke's toddler CD when we are riding so he and I can sing - I have the songs memorized at this point. It's so adorable to hear him sing/talk as we ride. This morning, he sung and talked until falling asleep about half way to Winston. When we arrived at Toys R' Us, they weren't open yet so we hopped next door to A.C. Moore for me to pick up some frames and a new book basket for Luke's books. Luke slept in my arms the whole time I shopped. My biceps should be huge because they sure do get a good workout - Luke asleep in one arm, pushing the shopping cart with the other. At A.C. Moore, I also picked up some sidewalk chalk and some construction paper for more fun and games with Luke later.

Luke woke up as we headed across the parking lot to Toys R' Us - boy, his eyes lit up when we walked in this store. We only came for one item, so I let him walk beside of me to find it - what were we looking for? A turtle sandbox. Very quickly (after a few stops for Luke to explore some toys on the shelves) we found the turtle sandbox and the bags of sand. I was super excited! Two men helped me load the sandbox and the sand in my car. These guys were great! Kudos to the customer service I received at Toys R' Us this morning - I will definitely continue to give them my business - they were great!

Our next stop was a pit stop to fill our bellies - I went to the McDonald's drive thru and got a biscuit for Luke and I to split for breakfast. We sat in the car at the mall parking lot to eat it. After eating our breakfast, we headed in the mall. I had two goals in the mall - to find Luke some new pajamas and to find him some soft sole tennis shoes. But...the first stop had to be - the stroller rental location. Hanes Mall has the coolest strollers - they are little cars with shopping baskets on top of them. Luke loves to ride around the mall in this car and "steer." I let Luke pick his "car" while I paid the customer service lady. He climbed in his car - I gave him his snacks and drink for the ride and off we went.

Very quickly - we found him some new pajamas - mission accomplished. Not so quickly did we find him some soft soled tennis shoes - I looked several places but nothing had what I was looking for. I'm so attached to Robeez shoes that nothing else compares. I guess I will have to order from Robeez for these shoes as well.

After our shopping was done, I returned the stroller "car" and let Luke walk around with me for a little while holding my finger. It is so adorable to watch him "window shop" - he points to what he sees and talks/squeals with excitement. I let him walk beside of me into Sears for a last resort check on tennis shoes - he loves to walk between the clothing racks and "hide" from me. He also loves to touch the tags that hang down from all the clothes. Before leaving the mall, I took him downstairs to play on the indoor play area that is designed for kids just his size. As can be expected, he had a ball! Luke does very well climbing, walking, and manipulating his way through a playground. He also attempts to interact with other boys and girls that he sees. He is such a fun baby - when he's on the move, he's happy! :) When he's happy, mommy is happy! :)

After leaving the mall, Luke and I went by the grocery store and then stopped by Wendy's for lunch - just me and Luke. By lunch time, he was getting a little extra wiggly but he managed to scarf down some chicken nuggets and fries. He did have a small meltdown in the grocery store - but the meltdown was easily tamed with some maple crunchies - he loves those things! He smells like syrup for the rest of the day and I love that!

We ended our errands by stopping by to pick up some steaks for the boys to grill for the big game tonight! :)

When we arrived home, Luke took a quick nap and then we went outside to try out his new sandbox. He wasn't really impressed! He would let me sit in it and hold him while he touched the sand and played with it, but he didn't want his feet in it. I'm sure this will change as he gets used to it. We spent the rest of the afternoon playing on his slide, riding in the wagon, playing chase around the yard, drawing with sidewalk chalk, singing ring around the rosy and BINGO, and playing with our neighbors, William and Caren. Tussey and my dad came over to grill steaks so we concluded our evening by letting Luke eat dinner and play on the deck with the boys. We literally stayed outside until dark. Then, it didn't take long before Luke's head hit the mattress - a quick bath, brush his teeth, comb his hair, 2 books, and he was out like a light.

Every night when I rock Luke to sleep, I review with him what I enjoyed about our day. I do this with hopes that one day he will do the same with me - he will tell me what he enjoyed about his day. Today was another one of those days where I went on and on about the many special moments I had with my baby boy.

I told him how much I enjoyed holding his little finger in the mall, how much I enjoyed watching him giggle/laugh in the mall and then again and again in the yard when we sang our songs. I told him how much I loved reading to him on the front porch. I told him how much I loved hearing his sweet voice in the backseat and how great it was to eat lunch with him. I told him about how I love to see that "twinkle" in his eyes when he is exploring things that are new to him. I told him how special he was and that he makes everyday a great day for me!

I didn't take my camera today...so, I have no pictures of our day....but, I have plenty of pictures and one video from earlier this week. Enjoy....

Luke loves to dig into boxes...check it out...

Luke loves his papaw, especially when papaw rides him in the dump truck....


Luke loves to climb UP his slide...this is the slide that is now outdoors.....
Luke loves to push his car and anything else that moves. Matter of fact, I let him push the shopping cart in the grocery store...
Luke loves to play hide and seek behind every door that he can...


Luke can now make two of these cause/effect buttons work...


This is Luke singing "If you are happy and you know it, nod your head."
This is my favorite....I'm so proud of Luke for this....he can write on his magna doodle and erase it....then, today, he used sidewalk chalk to write....way to go little man!

Luke loves to watch and listen while daddy and his other papaw play guitars...

I love these overalls that his mammaw bought him...

I LOVE this picture....look at those cheeks! :)

Here's a quick video of Luke writing on his magna doodle - he was distracted by Sesame Street in the background so he didn't show the video how he could erase. Also, sorry about the pantless baby, it was first thing in the morning.

Have a great night! The Heels and Blue Devils just tipped off - I'm already biting my nails! :)

I'm A Little TarHeel

It's a busy weekend and Luke is asleep on my lap so today's post must be brief. Enjoy the pics...noticing the theme....Luke can't help but be a little TarHeel, especially during this great basketball season they are having!!!

I sure hope he follows in mommy's footsteps in about 17 years!!! :) Have a great weekend! Welcome March, good-bye February!

A Day at Dan Nicholas

Today was one of those days that goes in the "mommy record book" of being one of the best days ever! There is just something so special about mommy and Luke time - one day, opportunities like today will not be available - being able to hold his little hand as we walk, picking him up and carrying him when he is tired, lifting him so he can slide down the slide, holding him on my lap as we ride the train and the carousel - almost crying as I watch his face light up at the new surroundings he is taking in - such as the huge brown bear that sticks his nose up to the glass right in front of him or the bobcat that runs up next to the glass where Luke is standing. I shared all of the these special moments with Luke today while on our own little field trip - just me and Luke.

I made plans weeks ago to take the day off today, but, at the time, I had no idea how gorgeous the weather would be. As soon as I saw what the weather would be today, I knew what Luke and I would do - take a trip to Dan Nicholas Park.

So, around lunch time, we ventured to Rowan County and begin our afternoon of playing.

We started at the 1 - 6 year old playgroud. Luke enjoyed a few of the slides, but this was not anything extra special to him since we visit other parks so much.

So, I took him to ride the train. He loved this! He sat on my lap and pointed to everything that he saw and did his jibberish talking that I can't understand but absolutely adore. His favorite part of the ride was going through the tunnels. He pointed to the dogs that he saw and said "do." He looked up at me and grinned when he saw the pretty colors in the circus tunnel. That sweet smile makes my heart melt! I think I told him 400 times today that I loved him and I can't help but kiss his little head constantly.

After the train ride, we tried the carousel. Now, this wasn't his favorite. I couldn't get him to sit on the horses. He wanted me to hold him while he barely touched the horse as it went up and down.

After the carousel, we went to the Wildlife Park. At the beginning of the Wildlife Park, there is a toddler playground. He played on the huge plastic animals and the slides for an hour. I loved watching him and following him as he climbed up and slid down. I also loved how he pointed to each animal and told me all about them in his words. He even gave the turtle and the frog a hug.

After he finished playing on the toddler playground, we headed up the sidewalk to see the animals. Luke was such a big boy. He didn't want me to carry him around the paths, he wanted to walk, so walk he did. I would occasionally grab his hand to help him ease down hills, but, other than that, he was on his own. It took us a little extra time to go from exhibit to exhibit because Luke was often distracted by the leaves and mulch. He stopped along the trail and played in the leaves every few feet. He was enjoying himself and we were in no hurry - so I let him play as long as he wanted. We did eventually make it to see the deer, the bears, the roosters, turkeys, eagles, hawk, owl, and the bobcats. The deer came up next to the fence where Luke had a close up look....so did the bears and the bobcats...they practically touched the glass where he was standing. Luke grinned and provided me with his toddler commentary of what he saw. Once again, precious beyond words!!! :) I, for sure, was having just as much fun as Luke!

In between these animal adventures, Luke sat on the bench and ate some goldfish and drank his juice. :) Then, we ended our adventure after Luke decided to jump in a puddle and then sit in the same puddle. We left with his bottom and feet soaked! What do you do???? You just laugh, take some pictures, and be thankful that you have extra onesies in the car.

Once we were back at home, we finished our day with an early dinner...Luke was starving and then a few rides in the front yard on Thomas and in the red car AND we cannot forget the usual bath adventures, tickle session, and a few books.

Luke fell asleep easily. He had a BIG DAY!

Landis' grandpa Byerly used to tell us every time he saw Luke, "If there was anything sweeter than him, they left it in heaven." Papaw - you are exactly right! My little piece of heaven is that little man snuggled in his crib right now - he brightens my day EVERY DAY and I am so thankful that God has allowed me to borrow this blessing!!! What a great day!! What a great day!!