Our Summer Bucket List

I've seen a lot of summer "bucket lists" popping up, so I started thinking about what I'd like to accomplish with my little family. Here goes...(in no particular order)

1. Make lemonade
2. Visit the ocean
3. Take a boat ride
4. Go to the zoo
5. Golfing with Jim
6. Go swimming
7. Have a picnic
8. Purchase fresh produce baskets
9. Make pizzas for dinner
10. Get a pedicure
11. Take a family hike
12. Cheer on the Rainiers at an evening game
13. Eat a s'more
14. Host a family BBQ
15. Visit a farmer's market
16. Take the dogs to the dog park
17. Make ice cream sundaes
18. Take Landon to the library
19. Homemade Greek yogurt  (epic fail, but at least we tried!)
20. Have a living room dance party
21. Go camping
22. Ladies night with my girls
23. Cool cocktails on a restaurant deck with Jim
24. Movie night with Landon
25. Try a new restaurant

What's on your list?

Spanish

On the drive home...

"Momma, I had water at school...agua."

"You did? Is that how you say water in Spanish?"

"Yes, Momma."

Cozy!

On weekdays it's hit or miss in the morning. Some days we have to wake Landon up, others he wakes up on his own. He loves getting cozy in our bed with his milk and movie. (Which makes it very easy for us to get ready right next door in the bathroom.)

I don't think he could be any cuter.

Bye-bye baby boy

Well, it’s official, for the first time last night, as I said “Goodnight, baby” to Landon he told me that he wasn’t a baby, he’s a big boy. Sad, but true. I agreed with him, but reminded him that he’ll always be my baby (and then I launched into singing the Mariah Carey song of the same name before he told me “No singing, momma.” Sigh.)

The conversation made me think about just how much he’s grown (and grown out of) over the past few weeks, including:

• Binky free! That’s right, no more binkies. He was down to only using them at nap and bed time, but one night I simply told him that we’d lost them. He was a little sad and concerned, but rarely asks for them. When he does, we remind him that they’re lost and he just nods.
• No more highchair! We really liked the highchair, because it contained him during meals and it was much easier to clean a tray rather than the whole table. We decided it was time for his booster seat, which he uses at other people’s houses and in the camper. He’s done really well, which isn’t a surprise, because he sits at the table while at school. He is also using normal plastic cups with meals. No spills yet, but he does like to dip his fingers and food into the milk.
• Potty training! It’s just around the corner. Landon has had a potty at home for several months, and sits on the one at school all the time. He’s even gone pee into them a few times. He actually prefers sitting on the regular toilet with a kid seat on it. Several of the kids in his class are potty training and I can feel that it’s almost our turn. One of the other moms recommended the 3 Day Potty Training eBook. Honestly, I read it and it stressed me out a little. I think I need to mentally prepare myself before I throw out all his diapers and buy him underwear. I also need to take a few days off work to do that, so I’ll have to check out the calendar.
• Crib! Landon is still in his crib, simply because he’s comfortable in it and he’s never tried to climb out. He physically could, but just doesn’t, which is super. We have been checking out a few beds and bedding sets, and will probably transition him into a big boy bed this fall.

All of these changes make me so proud and happy, but I wish time would SLOW DOWN. How did my baby boy go from this to this so soon?

On a hilarious side note, Landon's teacher emailed me to let me know that one of Landon's classmates was being naughty, so L grabbed the play phone and told the little boy "I'm gonna call your momma." Ha! Only my child.

Steamboat Rock State Park

We spent July 4-7 camping at Steamboat Rock State Park in Eastern Washington, near Electric City and the Grand Coulee Dam. It took us about five hours to get there, which felt like a quick jaunt since we have driven 10+ hours to Boise twice in the last four months. The campsite was clean and spacious and the scenery was exquisite—I swear you could drop someone off there and they wouldn’t know they were in Washington state. The rock formations and canyons were gorgeous—especially during sunrise and sunsets.

Landon had a blast and was really excited to ride in daddy’s truck and sleep in the camper. (We’ve taken him on other camping trips, but he was too young to remember much.)

It was hot, hot and even hotter during our stay. What can I say? We are from the Puget Sound region and 90 degrees plus (at 9 a.m.) is a little too much for us (thank God for shade and A/C in our camper). The mosquitos were out of control too, and it was a challenge (to say the least) to keep the three of us in sunscreen and bug spray for four days. We were successful in keeping Landon comfortable, but Jim went home with a sunburn and we both looked like we were the main dish at a dinner buffet for the mosquito population.

The lake was clear and refreshing, but, alas, the beach park was a mile walk from our campsite. We took an early morning walk the first day, but that was a long way for Landon’s little legs and it is a pain to take the camper off the truck—especially so because we moved to a different campsite after the first two nights due to availability. However, we needed to find a place to swim…when it’s 95 degrees, you need to be in water.

Luckily, we found a secluded little cove that we made ours for the four days. It was sandy and partially shaded, which made it even better. Landon wanted nothing to do with the floats that we brought, except to sternly remind you that they, in fact, belonged to him when anyone attempted to use them. (I’ve never heard the words “No, that’s mine” so many times in one day.)

The water was really shallow, and Landon proved to be more daring than I expected. After he got over the little shocks of cold water on his body, he swiftly walked out farther and farther with us until the water was up to his little chin—then he wanted to be picked up (“Pick-a-up-me”). He also enjoyed splashing and being splashed.

Thank God for the portable DVD player. When it was time to dry off and escape from the sun and insects, we had snack time in the camper and enjoyed a few of our Pixar favorites (it was Cars this trip). In the past, we have brought a Pack-n-Play for Landon to sleep in. Now that he’s the size of a three-year-old, that wasn’t going to work. We folded the dinette down into a bed and brought his pillow and bedding from home to make him comfortable. He was so exhausted the first night that he laid down without a peep. Naptimes and bedtimes went remarkably well the entire trip—with the small exception of Landon rolling off the dinette bed in the middle of the night. Luckily, he slid down on top of the body pillow that was there to keep him in the bed, and there were only a few tears of shock, not pain.

Jim taught Landon how to roast a marshmallow and a lover of the S’more was born (who can resist a S'more?). We also learned just how much Landon loves watermelon. He ate three plates of it the first night and we had to ration it for the rest of the trip.

Overall, we had a great trip and it was nice to spend uninterrupted time with our little family of three (the dogs stayed home with Grandma Terry—thanks mom!). I loved watching Jim teach Landon new things and seeing how observant he is. He really appreciates being outside and it’s amazing to watch him drink everything in and watch the questions form on his little face before he asks them. I can’t believe how quickly Landon is growing and, although it’s totally cliché, I truly fall more in love with him every day.

We are looking forward to more summer fun and adventurous rendezvous.