Category Archives: Happenings

Time Out for the Reids

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We certainly had a Sorenson-filled summer, with my family visiting for the Fourth, my brother getting married, and my sister being in town for so many weeks. Lots of play time for those little cousins, and plenty of visiting with family.

So it’s certainly time for some one-on-one with the Reids! Just three days and we’ll be on our way for some Grandma Peggy and Papa Paul time out in Utah.

I have some house updates to post but I am just so excited for our upcoming weekend. Before all the fun, of course, I have to manage a 23-month-old on my lap for three hours. I admit I’m not looking forward to that all that much.

Red Day

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I met another mother who has a child Paul’s age and I was shocked to hear him recognizing colors. So I decided to start emphasizing colors. We had a red day the other day. Paul wore a red shirt, he ate on his red plate, we went to the barn (which is red), and he played on the red slide.

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See full set on flickr.

And here’s the life-action shot:

I’m not sure our “Red Day” made a difference in my son knowing the color red, but it was fun.

Paul’s Unusual Words

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If Paul’s toys aren’t working he turns them over and brings them to me, saying “battery.” Do most one-year-olds understand that concept and know that word?

I shouldn’t be surprised that Paul says “laundry” when he sees clothes. After all, I collect, wash, dry, fold and put away five loads a week. And yet, it’s always so cute to see him go after a random shirt and put in in the laundry, saying “laundry” over and over again.

Do most one-year-olds know how to say “salt” and “pepper“? I don’t think Paul realizes what they really taste like, but he certainly likes to put both salt and pepper on his food and asks for it by name. It doesn’t matter which foods. I blame this on Ryan, who is never satisfied with my seasonings. I admit: dinner usually tastes better after Ryan adds more salt and pepper. I can’t say the same for Paul’s seasoning.

Paul doesn’t say “Kangaroo” but he recognizes one. And yet, he doesn’t know a zebra or an Elephant. Why is this? Does he have an innate sense that he was born where kangaroos are native? Or have we just read and watched enough Winnie-the-Pooh that Kanga is familiar now?

And then there are the cute words he says. The diphthong for “mail” is so cute in a one-year-old’s mouth, and he loves to go to the mailbox with me most days. And then there is the most challenge fruit ever: “banana.” It normally comes out as bi-ya-a or bi-yi-a. The strange sound is impossible to capture in print. It’s just plain cute. And “cook“? It’s adorable to me that he loves to cook already. It’s become a favorite word. I plan on nurturing that.

Mom’s Moment in the Spotlight

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My mom is a winner!

I mean, I already knew that, but now she’s been recognized as such. She wrote an essay about what the Naperville Municipal Band means to Naperville. As the winner of the essay contest, she earned the opportunity to direct the band at the last concert of the season! Here are the video of the event.

An introduction to my mom, and the story of the baton.

Kay from the band reads Mom’s winning essay, and Mom walks onstage. (I apologize for the unsteadiness; Paul was trying to run away, onto the stage.)

And then Mom directs the band in the Washington Post March. (Paul keeps saying “Grandma! Grandma!” through a lot of it.)

Congratulations, Mom! I’m so proud and happy for you.

Bye Bye Curls!

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It was time. The curls, while adorable, were beginning to look like a mullet. Or a girl’s long curly locks. Since Paul will be two in just two months, it was definitely time for him to get his first haircut.

The Before Pictures

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I’d say Paul doesn’t care how long his hair is, except he does definitely care. It gets so snarly that he cries out when I try to comb it. There is no reason for a little boy to have to yell “Chopsticks!” while getting his hair combed. It was definitely time.

The Haircut

100_3815-3< 100_3817-3Paul was very interested in what the guy was doing. In fact, he thought this whole thing was a lot of fun! Paul held one of the very large combs as his hair was cut.

My son’s baby-hood came to an end with all those lovely, whispy baby-locks on the floor!

Now he looks like a little boy.

I’ll post some “After” pictures later, maybe tonight or tomorrow.

Six Months Already

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Six months ago, we closed on our new house. We moved in shortly thereafter. Now that we’re settled, it really about time I share the pictures of the inside. In fact, I can’t believe it’s already been six months.

Since January 29, we had the wood floors refinished, completely replaced the roof, and moved in. We have all the framed artwork that we own up on the walls. The wonderful thing is there are so many walls that we still have space left for more!

Note: Wow, this post ended up long. No hard feelings if you don’t want to read it all. 🙂

Since Ryan is back to traveling starting this week, I’d determined to get back on a regular schedule of cleaning the house. No more excuses, despite the summer weather. My goal is that every Thursday I spend the entire day getting the house ready for his return, including:

  • sweeping (which should be a daily task) and mopping the hardwood floors
  • cleaning the bathrooms, including the counters, mirrors, floors, toilets, and tubs/showers
  • scrubbing the kitchen counters and emptying the sink, including the microwave
  • dusting the living, family room, and bedroom
  • vacuuming all the carpet (there isn’t very much of it)
  • cleaning my office desk (I tend to pile things on it; this isn’t really for Ryan’s sake but rather for my own)

I started this morning, entertained Visiting Teachers for an hour, and was done by 3 p.m. (including taking 1 1/2 hours of Paul’s nap time).  Paul was very “helpful” when he’s awake. In addition to regular cleaning, I want to do one other major or minor house project a week.

Expensive House Projects

If I consider how much money we spent on floors, a new roof, and moving, certainly I could get a lot more basic house maintenance done in the next six months too!

  • A new water softener (very urgent; my hands are chapped)
  • Repaint the garage door (it was paint balled this week, and the bright orange paint won’t come off)
  • A new dryer (ours is slowly dying, so the next six months will probably bring this needed appliance)
  • Repaint all trim on house exterior (optional, I suppose, but it’s looking bad)
  • Re-seal and repaint the house exterior (optional, I hope)

A Tour of My House

Entry

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I’m pretty happy with the main entry to my house. I love it, in fact. Do you think the entryway needs a little console table under the picture of Christ? Maybe I’d put one to the side under the other picture in the hall (not pictured here). Except, I don’t want it to become a place to set things. Not cool. I just like the look of console tables. This is a dream, not a project.

Powder Room

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I love the long counter in here! Project: This bathroom needs a photo or picture over the toilet. What kind of a picture does one put in a bathroom? Does the picture of Christ on the counter look odd?

Living Room

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This room is so comfortable. It’s a non-play room, so I feel I can keep it clean and tidy for more than an afternoon. A few weeks ago, we finally put up our three picture shelves. Project: I need to get extended family pictures and frames to put on the shelf.

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I love this book case, and it works for now. Dream: A larger, taller case with glass doors.

Dining Room

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When the extra leaf is in the table, it makes this room very crowded. We only eat here when we have company though, so it’s okay, I guess. Except we never want to take out the leaf.

  • Project: I need something appropriate for that large, long shelf. It can’t weight too much, and it’s a bit high, so I can’t decide what would look nice at that level.
  • Project: New light fixture. This one has two light bulbs broken inside it, and we can’t get them out. Looks rather tacky.

Kitchen

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I love my kitchen. It’s probably my favorite room, just because it’s so comfortable. When it’s clean, I just get goosebumps as I walk in to it. I love the granite countertops.

  • Project: Rearrange drawers so more of the utensils can be put away. I don’t like having so many utensils on the counter, but I do like having them accessible when I need them! I actually have three drawers empty, but they are the drawers by the glass cabinets — not a useful spot when I’m in the middle of cooking.
  • Project: Get our knives sharpened. (I’m reading a book about it right now, so I’m already working on this project.)
  • Dream: Find a better home for the ice cream maker and bread maker. It’s too bad, but they don’t fit in any cabinets. And they’re heavy.
  • Project: Eat one meal a week on my china. I have it, I should use it, fancy meal or not!

Family Room

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I like this room too. I like the pillows I found for the couch, and that table is actually a chest for hiding Paul’s toys.

  • Project: Set up keyboards (they were disconnected a few weeks ago).
  • Project: Do something nice on the mantle. I had family pictures there, but now I think I’m going to move them to the other room.
  • Project: Reorganize DVDs in binders (these are in the drawer of the cabinet.)
  • Dream: Add a shelf to the cabinet in this room. It was a TV cabinet that we got used. I’ve tried to affix a shelf inside the top half, but I can’t. Alas.

Master Bedroom/Bathroom

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I like this room too. Really, I just love my house overall.

  • Project: We have a large armoire that we got used. The doors have come off (the holes are stripped), so I need to sand them, fill them, and re-drill the holes. This will be a big project, I think.
  • Project: Recalk master shower. It’s not bad, yet, but every week when I clean it, I think that’s what it really needs: more caulking.
  • Project: Do the ironing. (We keep the ironing board set up in our room.)

My Office

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I don’t have any project in here, other than getting pictures on the wall (a very low priority). When we first moved in, I had my books in alphabetical order (fiction) and Dewey Decimal order (nonfiction). I’m a geek. Needless to say, it didn’t last long with Paul to help reorganize it.

I didn’t really know how cluttered my bookshelves are until I take pictures of them! It looks pretty messy.

Ryan’s Office

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Ryan’s office is quite and lonely when he’s gone, especially since he’d been working from home for so long. Paul likes to sit in the chair in the corner and read his books. If there are any projects for this room, I don’t know about them!

Paul’s room looks the same as in his tour a few months ago. Other projects include more pictures on the walls, especially in the hall, and recaulk the tub in the hall. Fun, fun, fun!

Okay, I know that was more than you wanted to know. But now I feel really good about the prospects for the coming six months! We’ll see how much we get done.

(Oh wait, I forgot the yard! For another day….)

Random Picture of a Happy Boy

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If that picture (just a random snapshot) doesn’t capture the essence of this little boy, I don’t know what will.

Paul loves to say “Happy.” I know it’s going to be a good morning when I go in to get him and he says “Happy! Happy!” He also learned the sign for “awake” via Signing Time and he likes to say that too in the morning or just after a nap. As if his happy noises weren’t enough of a clue.

He also has taken to saying “Yes” whenever I ask a question. It’s always a very deliberate answer, and now the “s” is very distinct.

“Do you want to wear shorts today?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want raisins in your oatmeal?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want me to wash your hands?”

“Yes.”

I’m glad it’s the positive word instead of the negative word. I’m not looking forward to that day…

Daddy has begun traveling again, after working from home for almost two months. Monday Paul spent a lot of time looking for Daddy: in his office, in the bedroom, in the closets. By today, he’s figured out that Daddy went to work by taking an airplane. When he mentions Daddy, I say he’s at work, and Paul acts like an airplane. It’s so sad to see how much he misses Daddy! But we’re glad Daddy will be home Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

Paul likes airplanes. Probably not as much as he still loves trains, but airplanes we see outside everyday. We also pass the train station on our way to church every week, which always gets him happy as well.

Paul sits on the toilet about five times a day. It is a new fun game that I don’t mind encouraging. Sometimes he’s successful. Success always startles him.

Anyway, I have been horrible about pictures this month. My sister and her kids came this week and I didn’t even take a single picture. Here’s my official commitment to be better in August!

P.S. I am debating cutting off the curls in August….Stay tuned!

A Busy Holiday Weekend + Thoughts on America

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We had a busy holiday weekend, although it was very nice.

I was going to write thoughtful post about what it means to me to have freedom and to be in this country, but it didn’t happen with all that was going on. So here are my more abbreviated thoughts.

This was the first forth of July that we’ve been in the USA in three years. I didn’t think I missed it, but in some respects I did. Not for the fireworks — I don’t care about those — but because it’s nice to reflect on past years: where I was, what I doing, and who I was with.

This year, I also spent some time reading an annotated version of the U.S. Constitution, which really got me in to a patriotic mood. I felt so strongly as I read that this constitution was inspired: not because it creates the only “perfect” or “free” country, but simply because it is so appropriate. The constitution and the government grows and changes with the years. It provides opportunity in the future, not just today. It’s a miraculous document.

On Thursday, we drove down to Naperville early in the afternoon and spent the afternoon with family, visiting with my parents and my grandma. Then we went to the band shell for a very patriotic concert. There was a lot of talking, but they finally got to the 1812 overture, with cannons and all. Paul was very tired by the time the cannons came and they scared him a bit, but he still had fun.

On Friday, we got a very late start. We hadn’t gotten home until midnight the night before, so we were exhausted. But Ryan had the day off from work; he spent the day mowing the lawn and then barbecuing a rack of ribs. Huge. I cleaned the house and got ready for our first holiday barbecue. Some friends from the ward came over and we had a busy afternoon and evening with them and their five children.

Saturday morning, we met Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Frank and Elizabeth’s family at the Illinois Railway Museum for a day of looking at the trains.  This is a place for serious train buffs. But Paul loved it and so did Grandma, since she recognized trains from her childhood days in downtown Chicago. Unfortunately, it was raining, so we didn’t stay long, and especially not for the parade of trains. (I suspect that was a bit too much for us anyway.) The museum is nice and close and Ryan looks forward to returning on a day when there isn’t a train parade and it’s not raining so he can get pictures of more trains. Paul loves trains, so I imagine he’d love to return to see them again. I haven’t actually gone through my pictures yet, so I may have something to show from that at a later time.

Then Mom and Dad and Grandma came to our home. We reheated the barbecue and ate and ate again. Then we played cards for a while. When Frank and Elizabeth got there, we had another round of barbecue. The rain had stopped so we ate outside, at least until the mosquitoes got us. The kids played and we visited until we couldn’t keep our eyes open anymore!

In all, it was a long, busy weekend! Sunday we took it easy, thank goodness. It was fun, but maybe three big events in one weekend is a bit much.

As I said, I haven’t gone through all the pictures, but here’s one winner: Paul with his great-grandmother.

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Hot Sunshine

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It is hot!

We haven’t had a summer at all since December 2007 until February 2008. That was hot, but it was dry, Melbourne heat. Our swamp cooler died for a few days and we were sorry in the 35+ Celsius days.

This Chicago weather is a completely different story: sweltering humidity in the low 90s in June! I’m not looking forward to this August. I don’t like being out in the sun at all, especially since I’ve already developed skin conditions. (Let’s just say I really don’t want skin cancer before I’m 40!) So, I’m all about the A/C, inside, all summer.

Paul, of course, being a toddler, seems oblivious to the miserable weather and loves to run around, play at the park, go for walks, and otherwise be hot in the sunshine. He’s learned that he must wear his hat; if he takes it off, we go inside. And he’s pretty good about sun block. He helps me put it on my nose. (I don’t think he realizes it looks just as silly on his nose!)

But we’re surviving. Last Saturday was another wonderful day, albeit a hot one. By the evening, we were ready for something different, so we made some egg salad sandwiches and a salad, packed it all in a picnic basket, and drove the local state park for a picnic. Paul loved running around in the large, open, muddy space, and we were glad to do something a little bit different. By 7 p.m., it was actually rather pleasant!

Next time, though, we should remember the mosquito repellent. Ouch!