Whoa!

Sorry, I'm still left with a broken camera and our old 3.1 "mega"pixel Kodak EasyShare has been with me in Panama for the past week. Basically, still no new pics of our Little Man. However, today was full of fun surprises.

It all happened this afternoon when we got home from school. I again had to chase him around the inside of my car to get him out. He was quite amused. When I finally got him out he made a beeline for his still-filled swimming pool and well you can imagine what came next - floop! Right into his swimming pool fully dressed ; ) At that point, why make him get out? He just stood there laughing at himself. Then he got out, walked up the stairs to the back deck and waited to go inside. Once inside I read the letter we received from his school. To my surprise he was being promoted to not the next class but to the class beyond that! Whoo-hoo! He is set to begin in Class #5 on Tuesday, September 2nd and we need to meet his new teachers. The letter stated that it was due to development and the secretary explained to me that the teachers discuss and decide which students move up at the beginning of each school year. I was so proud but at the same time concerned. What if they made a mistake and he's suppose to be in Class #4? I just want to make sure that he's where he is suppose to be and that it's best for his development. I'm going to confirm with his teachers tomorrow morning.

Lastly, tonight after dinner Ric wanted to go down to the park. No big deal. Since Tato had been stripped out of his soggy clothing since the pool incident, and just finished dinner, I needed to take him upstairs for a bit freshening up. When we were done, we walked out of his room to find Ric standing at the top of the stairs ready for some park fun.
Tato took one look at him and said "Night, night."
Ric: No, we're suppose to go to the park first.
Tato: Night, night.
Ric: Isn't it too early?
Me: Um, he's telling us what he wants, so I say it's time for night, night.
Tato (to Ric): Bye-bye. Night, night.
Ric: Ok : (
I walked back into his room and what did Tato do? He pointed to his curtains. He wanted them shut. I closed the first ones then he turned and pointed to the others. I was snuggling with him for a bit but he kept leaning towards his crib. Talk about knowing what you want and going for it! Hmm, Class #5 is starting to seem right on the money.

By 7:00p all I could think of was WHOA!

TGIF

Missed Photo Op

AUGUST 3 - I can't believe that I didn't have time to grab the camera. We were in Sturgis this weekend for my 15-year High School Reunion - eek! This morning I had to leave early to catch a flight out of Detroit for my business meeting in DC. As I was loading up my car, Ric put Mateo on his tricycle. And for THE VERY FIRST TIME TATO PEDALED ALL BY HIMSELF! I'm not talking one or two pushes of the pedals. I'm talking making his way across the driveway on his own chubby man power. It was SO exciting. I really did almost shed a tear. Lolo, Lola, and Tita Jojo were also there to witness the momentous occasion. I just can't stop smiling : )

Excuse Me Driver...?

July 30 - When we got home today, I unbuckled him, and away he went. He would not allow me to get him out of the car. He slid down to the floor of the back seat and sat behind the driver's seat (I was on the other side)bv. I decided this is a good opportunity to unload the car. When I checked on him, I found that he had climbed over the console and into the driver's seat. With melted Peppermint Patty on his face he had a blast pretending he was driving. He even went as far as honking the horn - twice (sorry Carl), pushing the button to turn on the stereo, then turning the knob to change the volume. He also had fun turning the knobs to adjust the A/C, trying to turn the steering wheel AND he even tried to adjust the rearview mirror. It was all SO ADORABLE! The last picture was of him letting out a big, "Oooo Wooowwww!"

Morning Routine

July 29 - This is what it's like when we're getting ready for the day.

Big Bite

July 29 - Accident Report: A classmate BIT MyTato today! I couldn't believe it! Miss Janice said it was completely unprovoked, but before anyone could react, this little vampire clamped down on Tato's shoulder. They followed procedure to ensure that Tato wasn't bleeding, etc. Uh, OK, but who is this dracula? Apparently, this is an ongoing issue and now his parents are in big trouble with Sister Joyce. Ooh, you're gonna get it now! No one likes to be called into the Principal's office, especially when the principal is a nun! Miss Janice said that Tato is such a nice boy that he waves and says "bye-bye" to each parent as they drop off their child ; ) That sounds about right to me.

Big Pig

July 28 - Last night while I was doing the ironing, I decided to adorn one of Tato's plain white t-shirts with an iron-on. I had a few sheets of iron-on transfer paper in the office, so I picked this clip art of a cute big-headed pig and voila! Quite cute if I do say so myself. Oh, and I know what you're thinking. What's up with the baby toupe? Yes, he's probably due for his first haircut.

Picnic in the Park

July 26 - Since Ric is down in Mississippi on business for a week, we met Lolo, Lola, and the Griffs at the PAASM Summer Picnic at Ramona Park in Kalamazoo. PAASM is the Philippine American Association of Southwest Michigan. Tato indulged in some yummy pansit and brownies. Nice combo, huh? But his ultimate all-time favorite thing in the world was there - an Uber Playground! I mean, this playground had stuff I've never seen before. That being said, the only thing he wanted to do was to go up and down the slides. Over and over and over and over and over, etc... again! I'm still not completely healed from my bike fall last Saturday and after chasing, lifting, and carrying Tato around today, the healing process has certainly taken several steps back. Ouch! However, it was all totally worth it to see his chubby face light up with shear happiness ; )

Going for Walk

I ran to the top of the stairs to grab the camera and when I got back down, I found Tato walking Mr. around the house on his leash. He knew exactly what to do.
Today was hot and sunny, so not only did we have lots of sunscreen on, but also a hat and sunglasses. Safety first!

When we got home, I closed up his wagon for the day, but apparently he wasn't ready to head inside. He climbed right back in and chilled out with a box of raisins and his sippy. I eventually had to drag him into the house because it was just way too hot to stay outside any longer.
July 24 - This was his attempt to put the sunglasses on by himself.
Oh, so close : )

Clase de Espanol

July 22 - Tonight Mateo's Bilingual Fun Class was full of wonderful surprises. When it was time to put the toys away, he stood up and helped put them away. So cute. When we said "adios" to the toys, he proudly shouted, "bye-bye!" and waved. OMG! He knows that "adios" means "bye-bye?" When I told him "sientete" he sat down - every time! When we were doing an exercise with colors, Senora Jennifer asked him what color he had in his hand and he loudly and proundly announced, "VERDE!" Her eyes just popped out of her head with astonishment. I was totally speechless and quite the proud Mama. I'm beyond thrilled with how well and how quickly he's picking up Spanish. After class Senora Jennifer commended him for doing so well this evening. In the words of Mateo, Ooh, Wowwww! (Sorry that the tildes and accents are missing.) At home when we ask him "quieres mas?" he uses sign language for "more." Muy bien Tato.

Biketime Bonding

This is Tato's hot little Chariot.

We love it and still can't believe how lucky we were to have found one at REI's Garage Sale. We took his helmet off for the last mile home because it was SO hot out, plus his Chariot has an aluminum roll cage, like racecars. So cool!

My new bike is to the far right. I love it!

Big hugs to Ric for buying and building it up for me.

P.S. 'bout time!

Ric informed me right before my maiden voyage that everyone falls when they first use clip-in pedals. I swore that no matter what kind of rites of passage cyclists have, I will NOT fall! Would you guess? I freakin' fell! Ric called out too late that he wanted to take the left fork in the dirt road and to avoid hitting Tato's pod, I jerked my handle bars - too far.

I scraped my right leg, took two huge chunks out of my right palm, and jammed my handlebars into my left chest - Ugh! I seriously thought I broke a rib or two. I opened my eyes to Ric standing over me, asking me if I want him to call an ambulance. Mateo was getting upset, so Ric had to position him so that he could see me, albeit lying on the ground. I am happy to say that I'm healing quickly and quite nicely. (Pictures were post clean-up, so all blood was washed away.)

Teething Pains?

As it turns out, Mateo's fevers weren't a symptom of his teething, but a symptom of a virus. We didn't find out until Tuesday afternoon when he came home with his face and back covered in a red rash. So Wednesday morning Ric took him to the doctor, who diagnosed him with Fifths Disease / Roseola. It's a "common" childhood virus that is fairly harmless. He really had the toddler ickies for about 5-6 days. It really was pitiful to witness. Although, I did enjoy all the cuddling. Happily, he's back to his usual jovial self : )

STILL Got The Ickies

Still too weak to walk, he crawls.
Trying hard to sit up, but...
...nope.
Contemplating his next move...
...Ah-ha! He crawls over to his cool new toy. Yes, he literally played in this position. He would push the buttons to get the toy to play music and move. It was so entertaining that he fell asleep! I checked on him when the music stopped and found him in this position just sound asleep. Poor Little Man was so beat down that I carried him upstairs for some R&R in his crib.

The Fever Broke

Yay! His fever finally broke long enough for him to enjoy some of the beautiful summer sun. Although he was avoiding that sprinkler off in the distance like it was the plague.

The Ickies Continue...

If you need me, I'll be right here.
Did you say something?

Oh so pitiful.
Day 2 of feeling icky. He woke up with a fever and didn't even have enough strength to walk, so we spent the morning in bed waiting for the Tylenol to kick in. My guess is that all of this has something to do with his molars were coming in. Hmm...?

The Ickies Begin...

Mama, I'm not feeling too hot...
Blah Ugh! I can barely keep my eyes open.
JULY 4th - This evening Mateo starting feeling icky.

Poor Little Man seemed miserable, but was such a trooper

to go out to Klinger Lake to watch some fireworks.

We hope you all had a fun, safe, and healthy 4th of July.