The Fair

We went to the Fair last Sunday with my Mom and Mike, and Noah had such a good time! I think to say that he was overstimulated is a huge understatement. He fell asleep in his stroller, something that he hasn't done since he was a little baby, I couldn't believe it! We weren't sure how he was going to do on the rides, but we thought we would give it a shot. We should have known that he was going to love them! Noah is very good about trying new things and the Fair rides were no different. He had so much fun doing that, petting the animals, and of course, eating all of the different foods. (I had been dreaming about scones and so we headed there right away and then you have to bring the huge bag home...it's terrible!)

After having worked there for all of high school and most of college, (me and every other kid from Puyallup!) I don't think that I have the same love for the fair as most people. After a few hours I am ready to get out of there, but its always fun to go. Josh is so funny about it, he's very serious about his food, so he plots what he is going to eat before we get there. It is so funny, but to give him some credit, he did share well with me this year. Though I'm sure he was cringing on the inside every time I said, "I'll just have a bite of yours," he went along with it!

Noah Update

Noah in the Paint!

Noah is doing so much better and we are so thankful! He has had very few fits or even melt downs in the last five days. I think part of it was that it was just a phase and part of it is that he is understanding that it's not getting him anywhere. I felt like things were improving and I knew that the true test would be how he did at school.

Josh was able to come with us to check out the class. He was coaching a game in Walla Walla that day and they let him miss the whole day as the bus left so early. Noah got off to a great start and was going from station to station very well. Teacher Noel told Noah that there was paint in the other room and acting as if he understood he took off running. Before we could get in there Noah is covered in paint. He had so much fun with it. The other kids didn't want to get their hands dirty, but Noah sure didn't mind! Paint and glitter make me very nervous, so it was hard for me to sit there and let him get himself, his friends, and the whole room painty, but he was having so much fun that we just let him do what he wanted. His teacher is great and really encourages them to experiment, even at the expense of a huge mess.

It was fun for Noah to have his Daddy there with him and it was good for Josh to see first hand what Noah and I do at school. The first thing he said after we left was that this is really good for Noah. I couldn't agree more! It is such a neat group of kids and parents and it is really good for Noah to hear other people give him directions. He is also learning that he doesn't always get to do what he wants, when. We are so glad that he is making better choices, having fun, and learning a lot at school.

Our strong willed child

Noah has been wearing Josh and I out for the last couple of weeks, literally! He has never been the easiest baby, but this is new. He fights us, screams, and has been known to hit on occasion. I at first thought that he was defiant, but after giving it more thought I decided that he's strong willed. He doesn't have tantrums to upset us, but he doesn't hesitate to have a fit if we won't let him do something that he wants to do. For example I have been showing Noah how to sit in his chair the right way, but every time he tips it over and sits in it how he wants to...its driving me crazy! Noah's behavior has become my obsession in the past couple of weeks. I know that Josh, my Mom, my friend Amy (and everyone else I know!) has heard all about my "problem" and my new ideas for handling it (which change daily.)
I recently bought the book, "Love and Logic for Early Childhood." I love it! My Aunt Jane discovered it and told me that I needed to get it. She is reading the one for teenagers as my cousin Ally is 17. I asked Ally how it was working and she thought it was going pretty well! I have read so many parenting books and I feel like I finally found one that makes sense. It is so easy to implement and it trains kids to be independent decision makers. Schools more or less use this approach now, not always with the same name, but the same idea. The problem with this book and all of the others is that it does very little to address how to deal with behavior from someone as young as Noah. Love and Logic had the most info, but there still isn't a lot. When he starts to have a fit or throws things, etc. we pick him up and say, "that's so sad." We then hold him until the tantrum stops or we take away what he was throwing. He is such a fighter, but I think that he is starting to understand.
I am going to substitute teach, mostly for Josh, until the baby is born. He received a state grant to help him with his administrative internship that pays for him to have a sub. This will be just a couple of times a week. Noah went to a lady named Tanya last year who lives two minutes from the school and watches two of the other teachers kids. She loved him and he loved her and it was a great situation for everyone as she only had two other kids. He had his first day there last week and when I picked him up she informed me that he had been hitting a little girl that is exactly his age. The first thing I asked about was his nap schedule. He is really a two nap kind of kid. When he doesn't get them his behavior is not good (not that its ever good right now, but worse!) Getting two naps at Tanya's is not possible with her school pick up schedule. He just can't handle that environment right now. We called our baby-sitter Kaitlyn to see if she could watch him at our house and we were so happy to hear that she could. She is the best and Noah just loves her, so hopefully he will be on his best behavior so she doesn't quit!
I started worrying that we were sheltering Noah too much and that maybe he just needed to deal with it. The more I thought about it, the more I started to feel that we needed to set him up to be successful, especially because he is having such a hard time. Not getting enough naps and being out of his home environment all day is not setting him up to succeed right now.
We found a great pre-school and Noah had his first day last week. I am hoping that he will learn the necessary skills to play nicely there and to also learn that he doesn't always get to do what he wants, when he wants to do it. It's a co-op so I go with him and so I was able to see first hand what we were dealing with. He played very nicely with the other kids, but didn't like transitioning. When is was circle time and he still wanted to play with toys he started screaming and fighting me, I held on tight until he stopped. He then loved circle time and didn't want to go to a shaving cream station. This went on and on for each transition, but by the end the tantrums were much shorter. I hope he was realizing that they weren't getting him any where and that he wasn't going to win the battle.
You hear about these families where the kids are all so passive, we have some friends with kids like these. From the very beginning they sleep, eat, and behave well...and then there's Noah! He is the greatest baby ever, always giving kisses, and ready to play, but he is so strong willed. I know that this will be beneficial later in life as we hope he is as stubborn about making good life choices. But, for now, we are very tired and praying that this phase will go as quickly as it came on! I can't wait until he is older and can understand what the consequences are for his actions, I am also excited for things like time outs!

Fun in the Boat!

This last weekend my Mom came to visit and Noah and Jack were SO excited to have their Nana here. I told her that she can come any time because first of all, we love her, of course! And also because she cooks, cleans, and takes care of Noah and Jack, it's a great break for me! The first thing she does when she gets here is puts comet in the sink. I only use natural cleaning products and they don't bleach things clean the way comet does. Josh even will ask sometimes when she's coming because the sink could use some comet! I explain to him that the sink is very clean, but just not bleached...I've given up...I just let her comet away!

We did get out in the boat on Sunday. Josh has really been wanting to go for a while and we thought it might be our last chance for the year. We found a sandy spot on the River and stopped to let Jack play frisbee and for Noah to walk around. Right when we got out of the boat Noah was walking just in the water and got going way too fast. We were all making sure that Jack didn't go to far and then we heard Noah crying. We look down and he is face down floating in the water, with his life jacket on, thank goodness! He just cried for a few seconds and felt a lot better when he got warmed up, I guess the swim lessons are paying off! His clothes were so wet that he had to wear Nana's jacket the whole way back and it looked a lot more like a dress on him than a jacket.

Our trip to Stehekin

We had been hearing how great this place is called Stehekin. It's on the far end of Lake Chelan about fifty miles away from the town of Chelan. You can only get to it by boat or small plane. Josh looked into it and decided that he really wanted to go. We called everywhere there to see if you could have dogs and not one cabin would let you bring them. We love bringing Jack and because we've been away from home so much this summer he has had to stay home with housesitters most of the time. We found out that our only alternative was camping...permit camping...not Park type camping. Right there I was a little nervous, but they said that there was a bathroom, so we decided to try it out. We are really not campers, by the way. We'll go for a couple of nights in a camp ground, but we (or I!) like showers and not staying too long.
Well, so we get to 25 mile creek park where we launch the boat. From there its about a thirty mile boat ride which would take a little over an hour. We load Jack, Noah, and all of our camping things into the boat and go to take off and the boat won't start. Come to find out, Noah had pushed buttons last time we went for a ride and the battery is dead. I joked to Josh that maybe it was Jesus giving us a subtle hint to go home! He didn't agree so we jumped the battery and off we went. Josh then decided that he was going to tell me how to drive the whole way. I told him that he was more than welcome to drive, but he just wanted to tell me how to do it. If you know him at all this was very out of character for him to be so snappy. It usually takes a while for him to get that way, but it was immediate and I couldn't seem to do anything right the whole way. I usually have far less patience then him, so I think I got a taste of my own medicine!
We then get to Stehekin and go talk to the park ranger about getting the boat docking and camping permits. She then proceeds to tell me all about how you need to put all of your food and anything else away with a scent in bear proof boxes. I of course ask her about bears and she tells us that half of people staying there see them! I am NOT comfortable with bears, especially with a baby and a wuss of a dog. She tells me how harmless they are, but I was not buying it.
Things just get better from there! The camp site is on a rocky hill looking over a road. There isn't any grass, just dirt and rocks. So, while Josh is getting the boat unloaded Noah, in a matter of five minutes is covered in dirt from head to toe. Also, there are bugs (ants and mosquitoes) everywhere. Like crawling up your legs bad. We noticed a restaurant when we pulled in and so Josh told us to go have lunch and that he would set everything up. We go have lunch and come back and Josh is just sitting there because the tent had a broken pole. I asked why he didn't come to join us...he later told me that he needed a break (I'm assuming that meant from me!)
At this point I was ready to head home, but I could tell that Josh wanted to try a little longer, so we agreed to stay one night and to head home the next day. We put Jack and Noah to bed that night (on that uneven, rocky ground,) they both had cushions and Josh and I slept on the ground as there wasn't anyway our air mattress would work there. Every time we would wake up Noah would be sleeping on Jack's bed spooning him or laying on top of him. We have the best dog EVER, which we knew before, but this trip confirms it. Jack didn't sleep well at all, but Noah sure did with his brother!
The next morning we woke up and walked the two miles to the bakery. This bakery was a big reason why I agreed to go in the first place. It was in Martha Stewart and it looked so cute. On the way I was bit by about 30 mosquitoes and Josh and Noah didn't get one! It was worth it though, they had the best cinnamon rolls, Jack even had some, he deserved it after his rough night. We then walked another two miles to Rainbow Falls, looked at that and caught the shuttle home. We were so thankful that they let you bring dogs on, there was no way that ours was going to make it back another four miles! We got back and left right away with out any more problems.
Stehekin was a really cute place and I would love to go back, in a cabin. We were SO glad to get home! The highlight for both boys was when we got back to our car and Noah had an ice cream bar and Jack got a popsicle!

Trip to the Orondo Cider Works

Today we went to the Orondo Cider Works with the kids from school. It was so much fun for Noah! He got to have cider, watch them make donuts (and then eat them, of course!) and go on a tractor ride through the orchards. (I was a little nervous about him being up close and personal with the pesticides, but I knew that Josh would think I was nuts if I said anything, as would everyone else, so I kept it to myself!) He just loves all of the kids and they pay constant attention to him, so he has had a great time being a working baby. He also loves riding on the school bus, I think its because he doesn't have to be in a car seat....who wouldn't love that! We only have three more days of work, yea! It has been a really good experience for all of us, especially Noah. He is the most flexible child EVER now and he has made a lot of good friends. But still, it will be nice to be finished! Josh starts school again on the 25 and he will be very busy throughout this year. I'm going to substitute teach a little, but hopefully I won't get many calls at the very beginning of the year!
This last picture is of Noah eating yogurt. I call it yogurt heaven because it's whole milk and vanilla and it tastes a lot more like ice cream than yogurt. But, he loves it and he especially loves feeding it to himself, which is messy as you can tell!

Our trip to Mexico and everything else that has been going on

I have been a terrible blogger lately...I knew this would happen! We went to Mazatlan, Mexico for eight days at the beginning of the month. My Dad, his wife, my sister Sue Ann, my brother Sam, and the three of us all went. We had so much fun! Noah loved swimming in the pool with his Uncle, the two of them kept Josh busy, but they had a lot of fun. We couldn't believe that Sam went para-sailing, I think he wanted to because Josh did, but we were very proud of him!
We found this great place for dinner. My Dad heard about it from one of his friends and so we thought we would try it. It was VERY local (a little too local for my taste...right away anyway!) It ended up being great food a lot of fun for the kids, so we went twice and ended up there on our last night. It was one of our favorite places.
I would have to say though that Senor Frog's was Noah's favorite. He loves music and shaking his booty and that is a great place for it! There was a lot of loud music and a lot of girls, so he had a great time. Sam also had a ton of fun there dancing with all of the kids. There is a mantel there that I took this picture of Sam and Noah on. When we were young and my cousins and I went there, we have a picture of all of us on the mantel, so that was fun to get one of them.
I think that Noah's favorite part of Mexico was the girls. He just loves them! Anytime we would go into a restaurant, elevator, bus, etc. Noah was immediately scoping out the girls and waving and blowing kisses to them. He made such good friends with someone who worked in the restaurant at the hotel that she would just come over and grab him and continue working with him on her hip. He LOVED all of the attention. Here is a picture of one of his many new girlfriends at Senor Frog's. We were really hoping that he wouldn't have as many girl problems as his Dad, but I think that we are in trouble!












The other big exciting thing for us is our zucchini! We started a small garden in our back yard, not having a clue what we were doing. I don't think that we really planned on it working out, but so far it is! Before we left for Mexico there were a few green tomatoes on our plant and nothing else. But, when we came back we had a bunch of huge zucchini's! We were so excited (this just shows you how exciting life is in East Wenatchee!) We had to take a picture with Noah and I am sharing it with all of you...oh and I made bread!
Other than that we have been working a little bit at a summer program through the school district. Noah gets to come with Josh and I, so its nice for all of us to be together. We do this three days a week and then we get two days off before Josh heads over to Tacoma for school. He is getting most of the classes finished and after this month he only has three more to go! I think that we will all be very glad when he's finished...especially him!