Anyway, onto the Colin news.
Probably the biggest change we had this month was Colin moving into a toddler bed. My sister was in town (referred to as "auntie" going forward) and as expected, Colin's FOMO (fear of missing out) surfaced. I put Colin down in his crib to sleep, and went on a walk with Maggie and auntie and when we got back, Colin was out & downstairs with Chris. Apparently he just ninja-ed his way out and made his way downstairs. I was worried he had actually fallen out, so I put him back in the crib to see if he would do it again, and sure enough! Colin hoisted one leg up and over, swung the other leg around and lowered himself to the ground like a Navy Seal. Needless to say that weekend quickly became hectic, trying to get a new bed set up & take down the crib but Colin let us know it was time and auntie was a huge help! We put a baby gate up for the time being - I don't think either of us are ready for him to free roam at night (nor do we think he'd understand that he has to stay in his room!). It is still an adjustment period as I think he gets scared at times, but we're working through it slowly but surely and before you know it the gate will be off (likely because he He-manned it off the door frame).
He also got a little reading corner & new bookshelf out of the deal - one that he can't climb or be crushed under.
We headed to Grand Rapids over Easter weekend to get a second car! Since we have been married (and a little before) we have been a one car family, but we really needed a second car if I was going to stay at home with Colin. We ended up getting a Toyota Camry, and it is a great car; Chris really seems to enjoy it and it drives really smooth. We stayed the night at a hotel in GR with a indoor splash pad, and I bet you can imagine who really enjoyed that! Colin was running all around, laughing and having a great time. It was totally worth the extra $15 to stay at that hotel!
We drove home Easter Sunday, and before we left I hid 24 eggs round the house and put his basket on the table. I stuffed the plastic eggs with Cadbury creme eggs, Peeps and stickers. Colin seemed really into finding the eggs until he realized some of them had sweet treats inside - after that he only cared about it if there was chocolate eggs inside!
My first week without work I admittedly went a little overboard with our activities. It was just such a great feeling to not only have no work stress or time constraints, but to finally have a car where we could just go out and explore! Our adventures that week are below:
Linear Bike Path + picnic
The zoo:
Arboretum:
The morning we went to the arboretum, I noticed that Colin was scratching and rubbing his eye quite a bit. I had been cleaning so I called Poison Control and followed their instructions in case he got some cleaning solution in his eye. As we were leaving the arboretum I noticed his eye was red, and he would cry when he rubbed it. After his nap, he was really hurting so I took him to the doctor - poor baby had a huge scratch on his cornea! So he had round the clock Tylenol for 2-3 days (to take the pain away & keep him from messing with it) and eye drops. Just for a moment imagine administering eye drops to a 21 month old. I had to harness pretzel positions from yoga to hold his legs, arms and body down while still having two free hands to pry his eyelid open and drop in the medicine! Needless to say I'm thrilled he's not only healed, but that I don't have to put drops in his little eyes anymore!
We have had some other types of fun too - my goal is to have lunch with him outside at least once a week and take him the playground twice a week.
The weather in Michigan isn't always peachy so we do have to find ways to entertain ourselves inside still, which usually is some form of arts & crafts.
Colin still plays with his friends outside when they get home from school, and we still go on little walks with his new bucket to see what kind of treasures (hint: mostly rocks & pine cones) he can find.
Now that the weather is warming up, the big kids have their bikes out riding around the neighborhood, so you know Colin has to keep up! He also likes trying out other kids' rides, you know, to see how they handle.
My parents came up the weekend of Earth Day, so we headed over to a nature center in Kalamazoo (same one we went to for the maple syrup festival!) for some fun. They surely didn't disappoint - they had all kinds of crafts and indoor activities for the kids, and this time it was warm enough to do some walking outside. Colin had a great time and it was a chore to keep him awake on the ride home!
We even got a little tree and planted it in our woods in the backyard. There were very strict instructions on how it needed to be planted, which I really tried to follow, but we checked on it this afternoon and the poor thing had died.
We signed Colin up for a mini Montessori program with other kids his age - it is an hour every Thursday evening. The organizer sets up little activity stations and really encourages parents to let their kids learn and interact with the activities but also with the other kids. There is also reading and singing/dancing, which Colin loves! I really love the Montessori approach to learning, so hopefully we can afford to send him to preschool there when he's just under three!
I've also been taking advantage of the free programs the library offers to young children. Thursday morning we went to a music class, with singing and dancing and instruments. It was for preschoolers, so I wasn't sure if Colin would be able to participate (mostly because he can't speak as well as 3 year olds) but wouldn't you know, he did amazing! He followed along with the hand motions, and played ring around the rosie - it was great! And free! Even another participant commented on how well he did for being so young - proud mom moment! They have four more sessions so we'll definitely be going to those!
Well that's a wrap for this month! May is going to be extremely busy for us so lots to report on next blog!
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