Preschool 2013

No Tears, No Tears, No Tears, YaaaaaaaaayYYY!  I love how first day of school photos have some how morphed into the new way to display creative skills (or lack there of in my case!)  I misjudged where to start the P in preschool on my sign and now I have to live with the shame forever =)  Ha, ha

The most important thing is Kolton had a really good day.  I was a little nervous because I have to help him unpack and hang up his bag...water, snack, folder.  At his school last year I just handed him over at the door without ever entering the room.  And usually walked away to the sound of his wails.  So, I definitely thought there would be a scene as I tried to leave.  Nope, K became interested in a puzzle and I quickly exited doing a happy dance.  It was an abbreviated day (only 1.5 hours) but still enough time for me to go get my nails done!

Thursday will be a real test to see if we can get there by 8:00.  His teacher told me its honestly fine to bring him up until 9:00.  But I don't want to fall down that slippery slope, I think it'll be good for us both to get going earlier.

Countdown

One week from today Kolton will start preschool Tues & Thurs mornings.  There is a part of me that finds it hard to believe we actually have 4 years of preschool to go before he'll start kindergarten.  Maybe its all of the "first day" photos I saw on Facebook today.  I don't mean to be a whiner, especially since September is childhood cancer awareness month.  But running errands with K Puppy (his current favorite nickname) is quite the spectacle.  He demands to be carried so I ultimately end up balancing him on my right arm while I push the cart.  Since the grocery store is only 5 minutes away my trips aren't very organized.  So there is always something I need.  Once school starts I'm hoping to avoid taking Kolton into stores completely.  I wonder how long I'll last?

Summer Wind Down

Colonial Williamsburg

I think its kind of funny that the end of summer is some how supposed to signify the end of fun.  Of course a change of season is always a little exciting too.  In a couple of weeks Kolton will be in preschool Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 8-12.  I plan on grocery shopping on Tuesdays and doing something for myself (mani/pedi, shopping, etc) on Thursdays.  Yay!

So as summer winds down here is what we've been up to....

Kolton regularly requests to sleep in "mama bed".  Most of the time he gets rambunctious and proceeds to bounce all around so I've been hesitant to constantly give in to his requests.  However on this day he went to sleep right away and napped for 3 hours.  If he's good, I'll let him watch TV for 15 minutes before transferring him to his crib.  I'm going to wait to tackle his own big boy bed until he turns 3. I think of this as a nice little warm up.

Shopping!  I really do love the outdoor malls here.  I'll remember this summer as the summer of the hat. He gets so many compliments everywhere we go!

Soaking in the last days of the pool.  It kind of sucks that it closes after labor day.  It doesn't look like we are going to make it to the beach this year and I'm honestly OK with that.  Having the pool just steps from our front door has been so great I can't imagine packing up, sitting in traffic and all the other hassle just to sit and play in the sand.  

Proof that they actually will run down and fall asleep eventually!  Last weekend Kolton didn't nap both Sat and Sun.  (That was my bad because I missed his 1-1:30 window both days)  This was the result Sun night at 6:30.  Did you notice in both sleeping pictures that Kolton's hand is down his shirt?  Yup, he still rubs his nipple to soothe; love him!

This afternoon was his last Early Intervention therapy session.  Kolton's vocabulary continues to grow every day.  He is still going to receive speech services through the public school system but I'm no longer really worried like I once was.  I think his therapist is going to miss him!  And even though I've had my differences with her I actually think we could be friends.  We talked about getting together sometime and I hope we do.  Today was also his 2.5 year doctor appointment.  He sat up on the exam table all by himself and looked like such a big boy.  Suddenly time is flying by!

Gone Baby Gone

Lately its become increasingly more obvious that the baby days are OVER.  Its a little hard to comprehend even though I also know that a lot of 2.5 year olds are even more advanced than Kolton.  I still use the same little hooded towels that I've had since he was a new born.  Every night after his bath I hold him up so he can look at himself in the mirror.  Its getting harder to remember the infant he once was.  I never made a photo book of his first year even though hundreds of photos are downloaded into  Shutterfly.  Looking back through them, some I don't even remember taking.

And on a side note; you know what feeds the soul?  Time away with great friends!  I was luck enough to spend the weekend in DC with some of my besties.  We mostly ate and slept...we were in bed relatively early and slept in late.  I cannot even begin to say how refreshed I feel.  Throw in a facial, lunch, shopping, and of course a little champagne and it was the recipe for an absolutely perfect weekend!

Me, Anna, Cindy, (Steph is taking the photo!)

Feet Off

This is one of Kolton's more annoying habits lately.  The slouching, the feet up, Aaaaaah!!  The booster seat just isn't ideal. But I'm also not sure what else to do given the height of the table.  I'm hesitant to put him in timeout in the middle of trying to get him to eat.  Although, the timeouts have proven to be very effective.  He even put himself in timeout this week after gouging Mike's eyes.

Kolton's other most annoying habit....running around saying things are "on" or "off".  I'm really trying to have patience because at least he's talking!  But He says those two words about 100 times a day; maybe more!

Tuckered Out

Wow! What a weekend!  Saturday we visited a small water park for a birthday party.  There was a toddler pool with teeny, tiny, water slides.  The pure joy on Kolton's face is something I hope I never forget.  He LOVED every minute.  In the photo he just got done devouring a cup cake.  The morning festivities resulted in a 3.5 hour nap when we got home.

This morning we headed to our little community pool. But the big event of the day was Kolton's first baseball game.  They have a minor league in Richmond called the Flying Squirrels.  I made the executive decision that Kolton didn't need to nap since the game started right in the middle of his snoozy time.  BIG MISTAKE!  He was not at all interested in the game.  Mike and I took turns running around with him while the other hung out and relaxed at the seats.  We didn't stay for the entire game but I'm still glad we went.  Only, this time when we got home we were treated to the most hyperactive child we had ever seen. He didn't tucker out until 8:30.  Isn't this what summer is all about!?!

Aloha

Kristin and Alec got Kolton this adorable Hawaiian shirt on their honeymoon.  

I'm totally freaked out to drive anywhere and risk damaging the new ride.  Have I mentioned I'm a terrible driver?  I figure I'm about due for some sort of minor accident and it would be just my luck.  Today it rained buckets on and off.  Both times I was on the road and couldn't wait to get home so I could breathe.  

Can you believe its August?  I'm already starting to freak out about Halloween and Christmas.