Toddler Tales Weeks 3: Expect the Unexpected

This week, we got back to the regular routine and enjoyed some down-time as we recovered from our vacation.  During a summer that has been unusually cold, we were surprised this week by some unordinary weather in the opposite direction on the thermometer.  The week's weather was quite warm, so much of our time was spent either taking advantage of the opportunity to play in the water or taking advantage of the coolness of our new playroom!

Video: Asher's mad walking skills

Video: Asher's Megaphone?

Vampire Baby.

On Wednesday, Asher & I spent some time at the park with some other moms and kids from IBC.  When we got back home, we were hot and sweaty so I figured Asher would enjoy some water time before lunch.  Since he can walk now, he is not really excited about sitting in the pool.  He enjoys the water, but will go in and out of the pool while exploring the rest of the yard.  For this reason (& the fact that he has recently discovered the hose and thinks it is pretty awesome), I thought he would enjoy the sprinkler.  He would be able to cool down and still walk around.  I got the sprinkler out and set it in the back yard, while holding Asher.  As soon as I turned it on, he immediately wanted me to put him down.  I did and he went straight for it.  One blast of the sprinkler though, and all of his initial interest was gone.  He was wet and ticked!  I thought he would think it was fun, but he apparently thought it was torturous.  As soon as he got hit with the cool water, he tried to get away (crying & screaming), but he couldn't go far enough away fast enough to get out of the spray, which made him even more upset.  I went off to rescue him, but not before taking a couple of photos...

Since, Asher obviously wasn't going to enjoy the sprinkler on his own (while I safely supervised from a lawn chair in a dry location), I decided to see if he would enjoy it with some company.  I scooped him up and we ran through the sprinkler together.  This time (as long as I stayed in the misting zone and not the area of direct spray) he thought it was quite enjoyable!!  ...and I throughly enjoyed making a fun memory with my little guy!

On Thursday, I got an unexpected email from Asher's daycare lady, Christina.  She said that the power had gone out at her home, and since it was a very uncomfortable temperature outside (almost 100 degrees), the inside of her house was becoming too uncomfortable as well to stay there with the kids.  Thus, she was requesting my permission to take Asher to McDonald's to play in the play place for a while.  I agreed and off they went.  I'm told that despite taking a bit of a digger, Asher had a good time and got to enjoy a yogurt treat.

Asher & Christina's daughter Katelyn at McDonalds

On Saturday, Asher surprised me yet again.  Since it was another hot day, I decided that we would use the Zoku Pop maker that Rob had given me for Christmas to make smoothie pops to enjoy for snack time.  I blended up some frozen mixed berries, yogurt, juice and a banana and then froze them, thinking that Asher was going to find the treat amazing.  He did like the flavor, but he surprised me by crying the entire time we tried to eat them.  I am not sure if it was the fact that he wanted to hold the pop, or that when he did hold it it was too cold to hang on to, but he was VERY unhappy about something!

Asher & I with our pops.

Asher & I get our first taste

Messy Baby.

Emma enjoyed the rest of Asher's pop for him!

After the pop treat disaster, Asher got an immediate bath and then went straight to jammies, since bedtime was only a couple of hours away.  We spent a bit more time playing outside (driving his new truck up and down the street's sidewalks & helping daddy fix up the truck to sell.), had some dinner and then put the little guy to bed.  Since Eric had surprised me earlier this week by finally putting some For Sale signs in the truck window, I surprised him today with a Date Night idea for after Asher was asleep...

...I told Eric my idea (to have a "Drive-In" movie night in the back of the truck), but warned him that if he was up for it, it would require some work on his part.  I offered to get the baby in bed and then grab some blankets and make some popcorn, if he would park the truck, bring the laptop (or our TV if he was more ambitious) outside and then go and pick up a Redbox movie for us.  When Asher was asleep and I got back downstairs, I had two last surprises for the week.  1: Eric had gone all out with the Drive-In idea and gone to work to borrow the projector, giving us a truly drive-in quality!  2: Eric had rented Safe Haven...which is a chick flick I've wanted to see...but I usually have to watch those on my own or when Mom's in town! :)  It was a great evening and honestly probably one of the best dates we've had in the 12 years we've been together.  Nothing like a quiet night, snuggled up with my man, under the stars, surrounded by lightning bugs, munching on popcorn and watching a good movie while my little man snores away in his crib!  :)  ...sometimes the unexpected can be painful/nasty, but this week, it was welcome and chalked full of memories!