My favourite things

Cousins in the snow -Monica, Cale, Aly, Ava

A bit about Cale's favourite things at two years old:

Favourite toys: lego, cars, musical instruments. He still doesn't have an 'attachment item' (besides his mama) although he is starting to sleep with his stuffed dinosaur

Favourite books: Anything by Dr. Seuss (Green Eggs and Ham and Cat and the Hat are current favs)

Favourite band: The Beatles (Hello Goodbye is his current favorite, along with I want to hold your hand, She Loves You and Love me Do.) He is also a big David Myles and Alan Jeffries fan!

Favourite show: We don't really watch tv, but he loooves to watch Caillou episodes on Youtube.

Favourite fruit: bananas

Favourite veggie: asparagus and carrots (especially in the juicer with apples and oranges)

Favourite supper: pasta or homemade pizza

Longest sentence: about a month ago he came out with a 10 word sentence - 'I really need some more grapes right now please, dad.' Our mouths were both hanging open by the end of it!

Sleeping through the night? No. I'll write a whole post on this soon, because things have gotten a bit out of hand. Let's just say daytime is pure joy with this little boy, but nighttime is another story. Good thing he is so darn cute!

Hey dad!

Two

Birthday present from Mama and Dada

Caleb's birthday weekend was jam-packed with fun. In two short days we managed to squeeze in friends, museums, barnyards, body painting, balloons, cupcakes, candles...I shouldn't really be surprised that he couldn't fathom taking a nap in the midst of all the excitement. I really wanted him to have a special birthday to show him just how wonderful we think he is. Here is our weekend in photos.

Bullfrog at the Natural History Museum

Sprinkles.
This was actually my first time ever making cupcakes, and it wasn't the easiest task with my non-electric hand mixer! The consistency wasn't exactly 'light and fluffy' when I put them in the oven. I was relieved this morning, however, after I gave Cale a sample and he exclaimed "I love it"! It's great that being a mom is forcing me to learn some essential life skills, like baking!

Birthday party pals (L-R: Liam, Caleb, Gus, Daniel and Elwin)

Joy.

I didn't stop him. One parenting trick I've learned is that painting with toddlers is best done right before bath time!

Candles in his bedtime snack. He will likely be disappointed tomorrow when he learns that being two doesn't actually mean that you get candles with every meal.

Imagine

"I'm Kyle"

In one week, Cale will officially be a toddler. The big 0-2! When I look back on the changes over the past two years, it is nothing short of astounding. His new favorite game is pretending to be someone else - "I'm Daddy", "I'm Kyle (while he plays bass)" or "I'm Lydia". He proudly declared over dinner last week "I'm Ringo!" and started playing the air drums. We finished our meal as the Beatles. I love that we are starting to get these little glimpses into his imagination.

His memory also amazes me. You can practically see his brain growing as he takes in all that we tell him, and he will often recall something from a conversation that we had the day before. One night this week we were talking about marriage - mommy is married to daddy, Grammie is married to Grampy.... His first words the next morning were "Thanks so much, dad, for giving mommy that ring!". Too adorable.

Working mom blues

I love that toddlers can play happily on their own!

Last week was one of the toughest I've faced as a working mom. It was a really hectic week in the office, with lots of deadlines and meetings scheduled. I knew the week was off to a rough start when Caleb had to stay home and recover from a flu he'd had over the weekend. I wasn't too concerned, however, because I knew Alan was finally coming home on Tuesday after 3 weeks of touring in Australia.

Tuesday - as I'm about to head to the airport, I receive an email saying Alan's flight was delayed until that evening. Immediately after, I get a call from daycare saying Caleb has a rash on his mouth that is spreading and he needs to see a doctor. Great. I leave work early to pick him up. Tuesday night Alan arrives, jetlagged and tired after 3 days of travel to get home. His only wish was to take off his shoes.

Wednesday - we both take Cale to the doctor - diagnosis: impetigo, a contagious skin condition. All I knew about impetigo was the stories I'd heard of all 5 Jeffries kids catching it when they were young. After searching the web, I read that it is more common with kids in unhealthy living conditions. I immediately flashed to the recent lack of Caleb's baths and wondered if his new fear had contributed to his condition (not true, in fact -phew!). We were told to keep him home for the rest of the week. Alan happily agreed to watch him for the next couple of days, despite his exhaustion. Alan was in bed at 5 pm.

Thursday - goes by without much issue, but Thursday night Alan becomes violently ill with the flu. We still hadn't had a chance to catch up since his return.

Friday- I stay home with not only one, but two sick boys. I scramble to write emails, make phone calls and attempt to keep Caleb occupied while Alan sleeps. But, at the end of the day, I somehow had everything crossed off on my 'to do' list, and I allowed myself to cuddle up on the couch with Caleb and watch Beatles videos on repeat.

My solution to our bathroom ceiling hole. Cover it with a happy family picture. This really helped to calm his fears of the dreaded drips.

I must say the thought of moving back to Fredericton crossed my mind several times last week. So many hands available to help out at anytime of the night or day seems like a dream come true. But don't get too excited yet, folks! We are hoping it will happen in the next couple of years, but it looks like our next move will be somewhere a little more exotic - Jamaica - but more on that to come next time!

Overcoming fears

Once again a happy little boy!

Cale and I returned home after a wonderful holiday to find a large hole in our bathroom ceiling. We had reported a leak to our landlord before heading to Fredericton, and the plumber had come to investigate while we were gone. During Caleb's bath on our first night home, the leak began again and this time the drops landed right on his head. Not surprisingly, this scared him quite a bit and we cut the bath short due to tears.

Prior to this, I had been a bit hesitant to use the word 'scared' with Caleb. I guess I was worried that he would start being scared of lots of things and thought I could somehow postpone this emotion for awhile. Over Christmas, however, I read a great book - The Happiest Toddler on the Block. I had asked for this, since I really enjoyed the Happiest Baby on the Block book, and thought I could learn some more tips on how to raise a respectful, confident and happy toddler. The book emphasizes the importance of helping toddlers express a range of emotions, and shares some tips on helping them overcome fears. This turned out to be very useful information for me, as on our second night home, Caleb absolutely refused to go anywhere near the bath tub. He was scared of the drips and the hole in the ceiling. He clung to me harder than he ever has before, and as big tears rolled off his cheeks, I suggested skipping bathtime that night.

The next night was the same thing, but now I was encouraging him to talk about it. 'I'm scared of drops' he'd say, and although the rational part of me wanted to just say there was nothing to be afraid of, I really tried to sympathize with him. 'I know you are scared of the drops. That wasn't nice being dripped on, was it?'. I tried to tell him that the problem was fixed and there would be no more drips, but he still wasn't going anywhere near the tub.

The next day, I tried a new approach. First off, I pinned a towel to the ceiling to cover the hole ('mommy fix it')...but I knew that wouldn't be quite enough. So I told Caleb that we needed to do some 'magic' to make sure there would be no more drips. We entered the bathroom together and loudly cast our spell on the ceiling 'Hocus Pocus! Abracadabra! NO MORE DRIPS!'. Cale really liked this, and asked to go to the bathroom and do 'hocus pocus' several times that day. Thankfully, last night his confidence had returned and he happily played in the tub. I did get in with him, as one last security measure, but tonight I know he'll be fine on his own. He is still talking a lot about the ceiling, the drips and how mama fixed it, but his fear has passed.

Lessons I've learned from this - take baby steps and don't just brush away fears as being no big deal. They are very real and scary to your toddler. Talk about emotions, and don't shy away from using the word scared. It helps when your little one has the words to explain how they feel. And when all else fails, cast some magic spells! I'm sure I'll be using these tricks for years to come.

So this is Christmas

Milk and cookies for Santa

We had not one, not two, but three Christmas celebrations this year! The first was on the 23rd, as out little family of 3 before Alan headed to Australia the following day. Cale and I then drove to Fredericton for the Sprague and Jeffries family celebrations. We had an amazing time. Here are some highlights of our holiday week.

White Christmas and pinecone eyebrows!

Sitting on Santa's knee

Christmas Eve excitement!

New guitar

Gifts with Cousin Monica and Aunt Kathy

Matching hats

Boxing day sliding with Grammie!

Christmas cheers

With only one week to go until the big day, I thought I should share some of Caleb's words of celebration.

Weaned!

Well, I didn't know when it would happen, but after 22 months, Caleb is finally weaned. It came to an end very gradually, and now that it has been well over 2 weeks since I last nursed, I think I can officially say that we are through. Weaning, however, didn’t directly translate into better sleep like I was hoping it might, and he does still occaissionally ask to 'touch them', which I hear is very normal! It does still feel like a big step towards independence (although I don’t think he’ll be ready to move out anytime soon!)

Wearing mom's homemade 'ugly Christmas sweater' (staff party theme). Caleb has never been so impressed with one of my outfits!

Watching Caleb grow has become one of the biggest pleasures of my entire life. Each day I'm blown away by how much more he understands and says. For awhile, talking with him was like a continuous game of 'I Spy' - we would point and say the name of everything we saw. Now he's moved beyond just the basic nouns and we are actually having conversations. He uses full sentences and understands concepts like next, other, I, later, tomorrow, hurry...which leads to Caleb's quote of the week 'Mom, I need a Kleenex QUICK!'. It is also quite hilarious when he uses words and sayings that he hears Alan and I say, like his new favorite 'what's happening?' or when he calls out to Alan 'Come here, honey! (or usually just hon), since he also loves to abbreviate - Linda is now Lin, Nina is Neen and the other night he picked up the telephone to call Santa Claus and said 'Hi San!!

He is also learning how to manipulate us, especially at bedtime. When he is all tucked in and the lights are off, he will inevitably pull out ‘Caleb need potty, mom! Pajamas off, diaper off!’ or ‘I need some water’, or if he is really desperate not to go to sleep he’ll try to trick us into thinking it is morning by saying ‘breakfast time’ or ‘not dark out anymore’. You’ll have to do better than that, Caleb!!

Making Christmas wrapping paper

Christmas Spirit

Felt ornaments

This year we are taking Christmas by storm. It seems that once you have a child who is old enough to know who Santa Claus is, you need to fully embrace the holiday season and that is what we have done this year. I've been getting craft inspiration from Pinterest (www.pinterest.com - visit this site if you haven't already) and whipping up Christmas decorations and gifts. Caleb has learned tons of Christmas songs at school so we are constantly singing carols, and several times a day he will call out 'Happy New Year', 'Merry Christmas' and his favourite by far - 'Happy Birthday' ! And I must say, it feels quite nice to be told it's your birthday every single day!

Homemade snow globes!

We topped off our Christmas cheer today by bringing home our very first Christmas tree. My work is selling organic trees and wreaths and since I've been helping out with the campaign, they gave me a little one to take home. Since Alan will be spending Christmas on tour in Australia (amazing), we are going to have our own family Christmas on the 23rd before he goes. Caleb won't know what hit him when he gets not one, but two Christmas celebrations. Three if you count both the Sprague and Jeffries family Christmases in Fredericton. We've got another 3 weeks of celebrating to do before the big day, and we are soaking up every minute of the holiday fun!

Time to decorate the tree!

Pedal car restoration

We've been waiting for this weekend. For months, Alan and I had been hearing all about a major project that my dad and our good friend Eric had been working on - the restoration of a 1930's pedal car. My dad found the car for sale in an old garage in Zealand and it was just like one that he had when he was a kid. The car needed a lot of work - paint job, new tires, new apolstery, and more. After 8 months and many hours, the car was finally ready to be unveiled!

Before

After! (this photo also shows what happens when you ask a one year old to smile for a photo)

We revealed the car to Cale at Eric's house on Friday night, just before a bunch of musicians showed up for a Grasse Circle jam. Caleb was so impressed with his new car, that he drove it tirelessly around Eric's house that evening and continued to drive it all weekend.

Love at first sight!

Thanks so much Greggy and Eric! Caleb will have some wonderful memories in his new car...if only we can get it home!! I think dad and Eric may be more attached to their little project than they are letting on. It stayed in Fredericton this weekend because apparently there is a bit more work to be done, like pinstriping!!

My dad as a child in his push pedal car!

Saying 'I love you'

Caleb's new words of the week are 'I love you'. It is incredibly heartwarming to hear 'I love you, mom.' coming out of his mouth. He'll say it as he runs past (as he no longer walks), he'll say it in the car, he'll sing it in a song, and last night at dinner it became a full on lovefest. Cale was saying, 'I love you, dad....I love you, mom' on repeat. Alan and I were smiling at each other, feeling content in the moment and lucky to have such a sweet little boy. The moment quickly lost some of it's sentimental value, however, when Caleb said with complete sincerity, 'I love you, spoon.' Followed by 'I love you, fork. I loooove you, pillow.' I guess love is a bit of a difficult concept for a one year old, but I'm still happy to be at least as important to him as his precious cutlery.

Early mornings

First school photo!

I seem to remember a time when setting the clocks back in the Fall meant an extra hour of sleep. These days it means that we've somehow lost an hour and have been waking up ridiculously early for the past couple of days. I'm talking in the 4 am hour. Today we made it until 5:30, which somehow seemed like a much more reasonable time to wake up. We got off to a good start when Caleb asked for a bowl of cereal and I said yes, he then patted me on the back and said 'good mom'! I laughed out loud and actually did feel like quite a good mom indeed!

Overall things are improving on the sleep front. He's adjusted to being in a bed instead of a crib and Alan's magic fingers are able to get him to sleep quite easily most nights. He still wakes up once in the night, but most times he'll fall back asleep after we pat him for a few minutes. Not all the time, but most of the time. We have also made progress on the weaning front. I've only nursed him 3 times this week. The first few days were a bit of a battle, but this morning he didn't make any indication of wanting to nurse, so I'm starting to have hope that he may actually be weaned before he is 7!!!

I discovered a great parenting tip this week. You can easily remove crayon markings on the wall with toothpaste! Who knew?!! I'm beginning to realize that for all the amazing, wonderful things a child learns, the parent is always learning something new, too.