Magic Moments

Aiden was up bright and early this morning and decided it was good weather for taking a drive through the country. So.... he gassed up his cozy coupe.... .....And away he went! The whole package....the babes just dig his handsome good looks and his smokin' hot wheels! :)

I've heard it be hold that an elephant never forgets....and neither does Aiden. :) On Sunday Tom, Aiden, and I went to rent a movie and make a stop at our favorite ice cream shop. Unfortunately the ice cream shop was closed so we had to settle for a cone at McDonald's. We really played up how fun it was to get ice cream (for Aiden's sake) and he even got to get his own cone. Too bad I don't have pictures, but he thought it was very cool and thoroughly enjoyed his treat. Fast forward to last night when I had to go back to McDonald's to return the movie. Aiden and I pulled into the McDonald's parking lot and before I even turned off the car I hear Aiden yelling from the back seat, "I ceeeeeemmmm!!!! I ceeeeeeemmmm!!" How on earth did he remember that McDonald's was were we got the ice cream? I had to drag Aiden inside to return the movie and all the while he is yelling, "I ceeeemmmm!" It was very cute but I felt like the bad mama of ...

Happy 15 month Birthday, Aiden! I can't believe you have been a part of our lives for that long! I remember you as a tiny little newborn and that seems like just yesterday. Now you are walkin' and talkin' up a storm. You seem like such a big boy, but you will always be my Aiden baby! You bring us so much joy! I'm so blessed to be your mama! He wouldn't sit still for a picture, so here is a video of my busy and silly boy. 15 months from Jenny Kuphal on Vimeo . I haven't brought him in for a 15 month check (and I don't know if I will...it seems silly to keep bringing my healthy baby to the doctor) so I don't have any weight or height stats for you, but he sure is developing! His vocab is vast...especially for a 15 month old. Today he pointed to and said "chameleon!" What a crazy kid. Also, he's starting to string words together. So far I've heard, "Bonk. Head. OWWW!" "Pappy coming!" and of course "Mo...

Being a mama is hard sometimes. It seems especially hard when the dada is working what seems like ALL. THE. TIME. With dada gone mama feels like a single parent and starts to wear thin. But, I must remember my mantra! I am a gentle mama...I won't ever hit Aiden and I don't really like traditional timeouts (but have used them a few times). I won't let him cry it out EVER. PERIOD. Discipline and child rearing in our house are about setting up our kids for success and helping them through situations with instructions and grace. That said....while I give lots of grace to Aiden, I do loose my patience sometimes. That sometimes, lately, has seemed like every night around bedtime. With Tom gone Aiden I chum around all day together. I love it. He's growing into my little companion. We play with toys and read books and today as I was cleaning the bathroom my sweet little Aiden picked up a rag and was wiping the wall. It was so sweet. But, Aiden is a spirited child ...

Trying to keep a toddler entertained is no easy job. Sometimes I just need 5 minutes to fold laundry (without Aiden "helping" by putting folded clothes back into the basket) and I try desperately to think of something creative for Aiden to do. Today (thanks to Mikelene who sent some home with us) Aiden played with goo and it lasted for about 10 minutes. Surprisingly enough, this was enough time for me to throw some dishes in the dishwasher. I think he had fun and he didn't even try to eat it. Untitled from Jenny Kuphal on Vimeo .

I know this is long, but please read it! Call and urge your Senators to support S.J. Res. 16 and oppose ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child: You can also call your representative and tell them to support H.J. Res. 42, the Parental Rights Amendment. It's really easy and it's not scary...I just did it. (for MN readers Amy Klobuchar's # is 1-888-224-9043 ) When calling, ask for a response to your call. Tell them you want a letter from your senator stating their opinion on this issue and what they are doing to ensure that your opinion is being heard. Congress has been very busy lately with health care reform and cap and trade. Soon, however, the Senators and Representatives will be heading back to their districts for a month away from D.C. Before they leave, we want to remind them to protect our parental rights. That’s why we have designated today, tomorrow, and Thursday (July 21-23) as Congressional Blitz Days. ...

Aiden is really into Animals lately. It seems like he is always walking around the house babbling about a puppy or a bunny or a duck. He knows SO MANY animals...although he's a bit confused (or stubborn) lately. He can say and identify horse, cow, goat, giraffe, and zebra. However, anything that has a hoof he calls a camel. I don't know why....I think he thinks it's fun to say camel and even though I've expalined that camel's have humps (and shown him pictures and a Little People camel) he still calls cows camels unless you prompt him several times. Then he usually responds with "moo!" And, even though he knows bird, chick, and duck, almost all the time anything with a beak he calls a duck. He LOVES to say, or scream, the word duck. He's a silly kid. Most of this evening we played Noah's ark. This consists of walking the animals to the ark and taking them in and out of the boat. He puts Noah in the boat for a "night-night" and ...

Yesterday I spotted a turkey feasting on my unpicked raspberries. GRR!! Today is the day....I've got to get them picked....I'm sure Aiden will be a big help. :)

Home Sweet Home Whew! I LOVE living in this house and I LOVE the country (although I could do without screeching animals in the night). But, this house does take a bit more work to keep up than our little apartment did. I could have our apartment scrubbed in 2 hours flat....here I'm learning I probably can't clean and scrub everything in one day--especially while chasing Aiden around. And, living in the country makes things a bit dirtier a bit quicker and I'm having to relinquish my OCD when it comes to having a perfectly clean floor 24/7. To add to it, Tom and I are trying our hand at a few home improvement projects-mostly painting- and that takes awhile. I'm learning to pace myself. In the past I probably would have just not slept until all was settled, but now I'm learning that I can't go until I drop since I have Aiden and can't afford to be cashed out all the next day. I'm trying to do just a couple things per week and my goal is by Fall to ...

We had a very fun time at the zoo today! Aiden loved the monkeys and the "seebas" (zebras). We also saw sea lions and seals do their tricks, lions and tigers napping in the grass, and giraffs! After the zoo Aiden got an ice cream cone and we played outside when we got home and took a walk on our trails. It was such a fun day and the best part was that Dada was with us the whole time! Listen and hear Aiden yelling "monkey! monkey!"

We have a really fun day planned but the day hasn't started out that well so I'm hoping it will improve. Tom isn't working today so the plan is to have lunch with a friend and then take Aiden to the zoo. Hopefully the day starts looking up.... Last night Tom and I both woke up to a really loud noise. We didn't know what it was but we were both too tired to find out. Thus, we prayed that no one was breaking in and went back to sleep. This morning I found out what the noise was. Aiden and I went into the bathroom and after Aiden sliped and fell I noticed that the whole floor was covered in something. At first I thought it had rained in, but I shut the windows so that wasn't it. Then I discovered that a brand new bottle of laundry soap (liquid) had fallen from the top of the dryer (we have a stackable so it's really tall) and broken open. The whole bottle of soap leaked all over the bathroom floor. It was a horrible, sudsy mess to clean up. It took 10 t...

The 4th of July at my Pappy and Grandpa's Cabi (that's what I call the cabin!) was so fun! Let me show you what I did! I played on the beach a lot Ally liked to play with me! I couldn't go a whole week without getting into trouble I love the jet ski...but mama only lets me sit on it. I can't go on rides. Mama is no fun! I don't know why mama and Auntie May got to ride and I didn't Just standing on the Jet ski (I call it the keee!) was only kind of fun Everyone, even great grandma, got to ride except for me. The big kids decorated the pontoon boat for the boat parade. They got 3rd place. My mama wouldn't let me go on the boat parade. She thinks I'm still a baby, but I'm not! Mama and Marme and Me Abby, Aiden, and Audrey Diggin' on the beach I'm an All American Hunk! The whole gang! Me and my boys! The girls....mama did everyone's hair in braids for the 4th of July carnival and fireworks (which I didn't get to go to cause mama mad...

Aiden: "Cacker, cacker, CACKER!!!" (this means cracker.) Mama: "Aiden are you hungry?" Aiden: "No!" Mama: "Would you like a cracker?" Aiden: "NO!!!" Mama: "Aiden, how are you?" Aiden:"no" Mama: "Aiden, did you have fun playing with Emery today?" Aiden: "NO!" Mama: "Are you ready to go home to Aiden's house?" Aiden: "NO, no, NO!!" Mama: "Are you having fun with Cecily?" (Clearly he was having TONS of fun with Cecily and pretending to drive the golf cart) Aiden: "NO!" Mama: "It's tubby time and then night night time." Aiden: "NOOOOO!" Mama: "Aiden, would you like to play on the beach?" Aiden: "NO!" Mama: "Would you like a cookie?" Aiden: "No!" Mama: "Would you like to do whatever you want for the rest of your life?" Aiden: "NOooo!" For a boy who has a vast vocab, he has on...

They don't call him Baby Cute Bottoms for nothin'! More July 4th pictures to come so stay tuned....

I had a date tonight with my #1 little man. It was an impromtu date, but special nonetheless. We've had a little dilemma as of late as last week our fridge quit working. The new fridge was delivered today, but in the meantime I didn't want to grocery shop since I had no fridge. So, combine very few groceries with people working on the kitchen around supper time and that led to Aiden and I going out. We were just going to hit up Panera, but I wanted to relax a little and I figured that I would spend at Panera the same amount as I would spend at Olive Garden but have a nicer meal. So, Aiden and I went out to Olive Garden for dinner. We had salad (Aiden just ate the croutons, he thought they were crackers), bread sticks, and pizza (Aiden calls it patsie). I actually got to sit and rest and drink a couple cups of tea while Aiden happily ate his pizza and flirted with everyone who walked by. Our waitress thought I was strange as she walked up to the table as asked (with a v...

I'm super tired. I actually found myself nodding off briefly at work today. These last two weeks have been non-stop! There is a reason I'm so tired. I unpacked our last box today! Well, almost the last box. I have two huge tubs of "decor" that I haven't put up yet, but that is the fun part and that is all I have left. There is still much to do in terms of painting and I know I'll probably re-organize a few times until everything feels like it's in it's proper place, but all that will come in time. Rome wasn't built in a day, so they say. We had a great 4th! I'll post pictures tomorrow, but the long weekend was wonderful. Aiden went to bed long before fireworks time, but he has years to stay up to ohhh and ahhh over the display. Tom and I laid out on our dock snuggled with pillows and blankets and watched the fireworks show put on over our lake. It was great! Anyway, I 'll save the rest of the 4th of July story for tomorrow. I...