C'mon Spring!

We were at my parents' house for Easter morning. Colin got up early and hunted for candy and money filled eggs, then got to open presents from the Easter bunny. If these photos seem a little forced, it is because they were - neither one wanted to participate.

Our baby is no longer a newborn! Blair has officially reached the 3 month mark, which qualifies her as an infant now! And as can be expected, Blair and Colin didn't disappoint this month when it came time for the photos!

I love winter, but my goodness am I ready for spring. Around this time of year you get tastes of the warmer weather, then it snows. It is tough but strengthens the mind! I try to keep a fun balance of indoor and outdoor activities:

The library had a wildlife expert come by to teach about and show kids animals. It was not great, because a) it was over Spring Break (read: buttload of kids) and b) too much talking and not enough touching (there's a dirty joke there but this is a family blog!). Someone just couldn't stay still so we ended up just killing time in the playroom instead.

I was out on a walk with Blair, and found a little toy lizard in the road. I brought it back to Colin and he fell in love. He named it Soupy, and I'm still unsure whether he knows Soupy is pretend. Nevertheless, Soupy has been Colin's pet and confidant this month, and has had some adventures in our house that most lizards never get to experience.

Colin received a grow-your-own-seed kit from Auntie the Easter bunny and we decided to plant them so they had enough time to sprout before we transfer them outside. We have since put the beans in pots, and are waiting a few more days to plant the rest of the seedlings so they don't get killed by any frost.

 

Each month, a dance studio by our house offers a 5 & under dance party. It was $5 for 90min and I'm always willing to let him try anything. It turned out to be the best $5 I've spent in awhile! The teacher was so enthusiastic, and did a great job of not letting it get boring; they shut off the lights for a disco party, had a bubble machine and my favorite - a parachute! It was a blast watching Colin and to see how much fun he was having...Blair on the other hand, seemed unimpressed 😂

 

Open gyms are over for the spring & summer, so I've been trying to find more activities to keep Colin busy on nasty days. We found an indoor soccer open play - it is okay...usually there aren't many kids and it is very cold, but Colin never seems bothered and always has a fun time!

We went to the bouncy house, which we've gone to before, but this trip Colin was especially excited because it was Spring Break and there were tons of kids! I had to remind him about "stranger danger."

And superhero day at SkyZone - Superman dropped by for a quick minute.

Grandpa Doug came up to help us fix some landscaping and plant some shrubs. Colin and Blair were both so well behaved on our outings to the nursery and Home Depot. And Colin was always around to pick up any insider tricks for hammering, drilling, sawing and...fixing dishwashers.

Uncle Josh came for a visit this month too!! It sure was great to see him, and Colin has so much fun with him. They played outside a lot, and did some grilling (notice who seems uninterested) and shared some stories over a couple cold ones. Always a fun time with Uncle Josh!

Colin is still obsessed with Blair, but I think that little miss is starting to get annoyed by him! She still watches him and finds him amusing, but every now and then she will push him away and sometimes scream if she isn't in the mood. I think it is partly because she's a little more physically aware - Blair can move herself around, and can grab and play with toys herself so she doesn't need him to entertain her all the time. But, nevertheless he persists towards that little smile or giggle from his baby sister, and he is never too far away.

  He did this to himself with tape, then decide to decorate baby sister. She is not amused.

Colin continues to be a worthy adversary for me. Lately it seems there's no middle ground with him - he's either happy and high energy or throwing fits with high energy. He really tests my patience and makes me question whether or not I'm doing right by him. Am I too hard on him? Am I not hard enough on him? Am I killing his wild spirit? Is he going to internalize and grow up to be a serial killer? It is tough for me to keep calm with him when he's acting out but I try to act as though other people are watching me parent. Seems silly, but it works when you pretend other people are judging you! I try to remember the sweet moments when he's acting like a maniac.

Colin is very creative and always manages to find ways to occupy his time. I think its an only/older child trait, since they go for years without a playmate. He makes me laugh with his goofy yet sweet personality and I never know what he's going to do next (like strip naked and streak through our backyard).

I'm failing in keeping up with the weekly science experiment, but the one we did this month hopefully made up for lost time. It was so easy and awesome - you just fill a shallow pan with milk, add drops of food coloring, then dip a Qtip with dish soap on the end into the pan. The result is an interactive tie dye experiment on surface tension!

Here are lots of other ways Colin stays busy! From cooking to crafting to sports - he is Renaissance Man! He does it all!

 And Blair. My sweet, precious, even keel, so-good-I-feel-guilty-about-it baby girl. She is an efficient eater, she falls asleep by herself in the crib, she is happy and is perfectly content (most of the time) to just chill in your lap. I tell Colin all the time he needs to be thankful for how easygoing she is; she never protests about going places and just hanging out so Colin can have fun and get some energy out. And to be fair, Colin was the same in that regard and still is; if you say you're going to the grocery store he'll ask to go too. In a nutshell, Blair is Chris and Colin is me.

I was singing to her like Scuttles from the "Little Mermaid" here - she does not like it.

Blair is starting to discover all sorts of new things she can do with her hands and feet! She has mastered grabbing things when she's on her back (still working on perfecting it when she's sitting up) and loves playing with and sucking on her hands. She also loves grabbing and putting things in her mouth, especially anything that crinkles. I gave her a cleaned out potato chip bag and she wouldn't trade that for a million dollars. She rolled from front to back and is working on back to front (that pesky arm!!) and we're working on sitting up. How life will change when I have two mobile children.

We have fun. We have great days and we have bad days. It isn't easy but I wouldn't trade it for anything. We make sacrifices so I can stay home with them and teach them and watch them grow, and I'm thankful everyday I have that opportunity, even on the hard days.