Vrooom

Today was low key. We ran an errand this evening and then stayed in to see if any trick-or-treaters would show up. I put our pumpkin on our doorstep and turned on our porch light. But no one showed!

That's okay, me and the little buddy had fun anyway.

Picture is of Nico sitting in a laundry basket vrooming his tractor around. He was making the typical "Vrooooom" noise, that's why his lips are pursed.

Daddy Time

Most every morning, Guy is still awake when Nico gets up. So we go into his room and sing his wake up song (which he bounces to while continuing to lie down), get him dressed, and then Guy and Nico watch an episode of Shaun the Sheep while I make breakfast. That's the first picture.

The second picture is of Guy and Nico sharing some cupcakes that I made today. Nico ate two and a half of them!

Nico's fever was gone this morning, he is just dealing with a runny nose and some coughing.

Mild Day

Beautiful, mild day today. 68 degrees, a bit of a warm wind, perfect day for the zoo!

Nico ended the day with a fever and some sneezing/coughing and a runny nose. Do you think it's because he enjoys licking the playground equipment whenever we go to the park?

Doubling Up

Nico drinking his milk and water at the same time.

Meatloaf and Halloween Party

"But if you bake the carrot into a meatloaf, then I will eat it! A lot of it."

We went to a Halloween party today. Guess who Nico dressed up as.

Veggie Eater

"Mom, I really don't want to eat this carrot!"

All Sorts of Things

Nico is definitely feeling better. He is eating much more and his energy level has returned to normal. This means that we needed to get out of the house more to burn off some energy! Yesterday I didn't read the signs very well so we stuck around the house a bit too much, and it was evident in his sleeping last night. He was up every few hours and woke up for the day an hour earlier than usual. This usually happens when he hasn't been active enough during the day.

We went to the zoo this afternoon after his nap (picture is him climbing up the giraffe slide at the zoo). It is getting colder outside so we tend to do things outdoors in the afternoon instead of the early morning.

Then this evening we went to play with the train at Barnes and Noble after buying some groceries.

His appetite is high for avocados. He has eaten two avocados today. I mix up mashed avocado with parmesan cheese, mustard, and a cut up chicken pancake, put it in a bowl, and he shoves big spoonfuls of it into his mouth. He has also been drinking "juice", which is an apple cider vinegar drink that has added grape juice to it. He loves those.

Oh and check out the picture I added to the VBS entry!

Walk in the Rain

Nico all dressed up to go for a walk in the rain.

Markers

Nico drew all over his arms with a brown marker today. I am grateful that it was so easy to wash off!

Feeling Better

I definitely think Nico is on the mend. He asked to eat EGGS today and also ate an entire avocado. That was a long "7-10 days" for HF&M disease.

Here he is towing a bus behind his new tow truck that Gma Salisbury brought him.

Preparation and more illness

Preparing for Daddy's return by changing the sheets.

Both Nico and I were sick tonight! What is going on in this house, hmm?

Low key

Another low key day, playing inside, hoping that Nico will feel better!

Pumpkin Patch

Another shot of the same park, but in the morning. Lighting is different.

This afternoon, Guy left for PA and then Nico and I went to the pumpkin patch. Picture of us on the hay ride. He wasn't feeling very well, and I shouldn't have kept him out for so long. He got sick again tonight.

I think I've surmised that Nico has Hand Food and Mouth Disease. He was exposed to it a few weeks ago, and it can cause a general icky feeling for 7-10 days. He has the sores on his mouth, and he keeps getting sick!

Another recovery day

Nico was sick again a few nights ago. Record breaking amount of illness in this house the past few months! I am making some changes in Nico's diet to help support his immune system, we'll see if it helps! He brought his garbage truck into the living room (he had just finished filling it with every one of his micro machines), and placed it next to the iPad so he could watch Shaun the Sheep while playing and drinking his soda.

Sleepy and Park Time

When I came home from my chiropractor appointment, I found Guy and Nico snuggled on the couch. Guy was actually asleep and didn't wake up when I opened the door or when I took this picture. Poor sleepy boy.

Also a shot of Memorial Park. We went there twice today. The second time we went, we ran into one of my mommy friends that I met a few weeks ago. It was cool to run into her again! She is a digital artist with a studio downtown. http://redbeanrobot.com

Samples

At the market this morning, I gave Nico a sample of gluten free bread. They were arranged neatly onto toothpicks. He ate it right away and asked for another. So, one more. But this one he held onto. He didn't eat it until we got home. He switched hands with it so I could buckle him into his carseat, and also while taking him out. After getting home, in it went to his mouth and he promptly asked for more. Good thing I bought two loaves of it!

Preparation

This evening Nico and I prepared for Guy's birthday tomorrow by making him a pumpkin pie and also making him a card. One from each of us. Nico really enjoys dumping things into bowls with spoons, so he enjoyed dumping the sugar and other spices into the mixing bowl for the pumpkin pie. Every morning he also helps me start laundry by dumping the detergent into the washer for me. He is a good helper.

The picture is from this morning. We went to the Botanical Garden with Allicia and Evie (and Liz and Miles were there too). We got in free because their pass allows one guest. All of the scarecrows are up, and the weather was mild and pleasant. We had a lot of fun. Allicia shared some of Evie's cheese with Nico.

Parks

Two parks today. Old park and Memorial park. Memorial park is a relatively new one we've been going to. It's a few streets down from the Co-op. It was a perfect temperature today, and lots of orange leaves on the trees and sun.

Bobbing for Legos

A few pictures today, since I couldn't choose. I was all set to just post the first one, but then this evening another photo op presented itself.

The first one is while we were on a walk. Nico wouldn't nap today at his normal time, so we went on a long walk to pick up something from my homeopath. She works in our neighborhood, so it wasn't too far. And he took a nap afterward.

The second picture is Nico bobbing for legos in his lego tub. He never actually caught any with his mouth, but he did have a few good laughs after falling in a few times.

Car Sorting

Nico sorting cars in his room.

The Grandpa and Grandma Show

The boys went up to the cabin today for a Soup Party.

After they got home we Facetimed with Grandpa and Grandma Russell.

Halftone

New app on the iPad makes pictures self explanatory.

Eating Pancakes

Nico eating his pancakes. I made him some special almond flour ones. Spread with peanut butter and topped with syrup. And some raw COW'S milk this time.

Shoes

In Daddy's shoes.

Grilled Cheese

Nico eating a grilled cheese sandwich for the first time, while watching Go Diego Go.

Nursery

Nico on the big wheels in the church nursery.

Bruce's Birthday Party

Today we went to Bruce's birthday party at Municipal park. Here is Nico sharing some dried apples with his cousin Rory.

Update

Nico got sick again a few nights ago! Not sure what's going on with the little buddy, he's had a long string of illnesses this past month.

Yesterday when he was longing to go outside, but still pretty weak, we went to the zoo and I trucked him around in the stroller. He was happy to stay there. We fed the goats from the stroller and went up the stairs in the stroller. The only 2 reasons he got out were for the brief walk among the penguin statues and so that he could sit in the jeep for a little bit.

Today we saw Evie and Allicia, and played with their new train table! This afternoon we went to the park.

Hat

Wearing my hat at Old Park.

Lining up Cars

Nico lining up cars this morning.

Overcast With a Hat

Nico insisted on wearing his hat today. I asked him if he wanted to go to the park and he said "Da" (Yes). Then he did the "pop-pop" thing with his lips to indicate that he wanted to go to the Fish Park. The Fish Park is right next to Municipal Park, so we went to both.

Boxin'

Nico crawled into this box with the iPad while I was washing dishes this morning.

We are still battling illness! He woke up with a barking cough this morning, but after some homeopathy and a few minutes of steam-time in the bathroom, he is already sounding better. I'm updating the blog for today at 9:30 in the morning! But I know if I don't do it now that I will forget this evening.

Street Fair

Went to the street fair briefly today. At first Guy was holding Nico and then holding my hand with his free hand. Nico saw that we were holding hands and asked to get down to hold Guy's other hand. For a kid who does not like his hand held, Nico really enjoyed it this time!

Chicken Sandwich

Eating a chicken sandwich, made with chicken pancakes as the bread (chicken and eggs mixed in a food processor, then fried into pancakes) and avocado, cheese, and mustard inside. Yum! He approved.

Reading a Book

Pancakes

Nico had Guy-esque pancakes for the first time today, and maple syrup for the first time as well! Guy-esque pancakes include pancake, peanut butter, and syrup. Nico loved it! We topped him off with some goat's milk.

Train

Went to Barnes and Noble tonight and Nico played with the toy train while I read a book about gardening. We ran into the little boy Miles that Nico played with once. Him and his mom (Liz) and dad were also there.

Recovery

Today was a lot of sitting around watching Shaun the Sheep on Netflix. Nico seems to be recovering quickly from his illness. He had a pretty restless night last night but is doing much better today. He was able to eat part of a banana this morning and then graduated to goat's milk and avocados and chicken stock and then tonight he had some dried apples and fresh peaches.

Despite the illness, he actually wanted to go for two walks today. The first one was meager, but the second one was quite long and he actually walked most of the way around the block!

Fishy fishy

Went to the Fish Park this evening. In one of the viewing windows there was a large dead fish on the bottom of the tank, with crawdads crawling all over it!

Later tonight Nico spiked a fever and got sick once :( Poor buddy

p.s. the scrape on his cheek is from a tumble in the church nursery on Sunday

Walks and more Walks

Today we hung out with Evie and Allicia.
And went for walks.

Meatball

Nico hanging with Meatball on our front porch.

Guy took Nico to the zoo today for some father/son time.

Trip to the Cabin

The boys went on a trip to the cabin this afternoon, for a Labor Day BBQ.

Helicopter

We all went downtown this evening to get some coffee beans from Dawson Taylor. While walking along, a man on a bench handed Nico a toy helicopter, saying that he found it on the bench and that he should probably have it. Nico really liked the helicopter. He held onto and showed it to everyone who seemed interested.

On the way back to the car we also stopped to play the "public piano" on 8th street. Nico enjoyed that.

Then we went to the greenbelt with the intent of letting Nico ride his Strider bike, but he was so intent on holding his helicopter that he only stayed on the bike for a few minutes.

We had gone for a Strider ride earlier in the day, though, and he has started SITTING on the bike instead of just walking with it. He prefers sitting on the bar of the bike, not on the seat. It looks pretty uncomfortable, but I'm sure he'll get the hang of it soon.

OH, and Guy fixed the car stereo by removing the pennies Nico had shoved into it!

Late Night Walk, and Bath

It was 8:30 PM before I realized we hadn't gone for a walk at ALL today! So I took Nico outside really quick and we walked down the street and back. We could hear the crickets and Nico seemed really excited that it was getting darker and he was very talkative and excited the whole time. He tried to say "dark" when I said it. And he says crickets like "Kih-Kuh" or sometimes "Guh  Guh".

Then we came home and I gave him a bath. He played with his new wind up toy frog from Grandma Salisbury. It kicks in the water!

Oh and I should mention last night. Nico had a very late night last night and had trouble falling asleep. He asked for milk and so I gave him some, but he wanted to keep the bottle in his crib with him like he does with his water bottle. I put the milk bottle right next to him, tucked him in, then silently grabbed the milk bottle on my way out. Just after closing the door he starts crying. I go back in and he asks for milk again. I get him milk and after 5 more minutes of snuggles I put him back into the crib. This time he holds onto the milk, propped up on his elbows, until I leave the room and close the door.

About 15 minutes later I went back in there and took it from his crib to put back in the fridge. He was asleep by then.

Zoo, Slobber

Today we went to the zoo. I wanted to get in to see the butterflies one last time before they are gone. Their last day is next Monday. This morning was cool, so the butterflies weren't fluttering around everywhere, but that also meant that the butterflies were perched on everything, so we spent a long time looking at all the butterflies perched on twigs and trunks and flowers.

Lately, whenever Nico wakes up from his nap, his sheets are soaked. But not from urine, from slobber! At first I thought it was his water tipping over, but in the mornings after a full night of sleep his sheets are never wet, even if his water is tipped over. It happens only after nap time!

In the picture you can see that his sheets are soaked and his hair is also wet. The wetness went down his shirt, too. You can also see Nico's new bear, Bud.

Mall and New Things

Nico and I went to the mall today with Grandma Salisbury. She bought Nico a new pair of shoes and a snuggly bear from Build-A-Bear. We named the black bear "Bud". It was a lot of fun!

This evening we went to the Fish Park and then took a brief walk on the greenbelt. Nico spent time trying to walk just on the white lines. We even went down to the water and tried to touch it. He said he wanted to touch it but I think he was a bit shy about it, because he never made a move toward it!

Nico has also been drinking a lot of raw goat's milk. We have his own little sippy cup for milk and he asks for it by signing. He's gone through about a quart of it in 3 days. That's a lot compared to the last time we had goat's milk!