A windy day

Just a short entry for the day:

Today Carson and I were playing outside. Carson wanted to ride his bike, but it was very windy out. A huge gust of wind came and Carson started screaming and crying, "Mommy, Mommy I am blowing away." He was really panicked so I picked him up and held him so we wouldn't get blown away. Mom to the rescue!

Coffee trouble

We took our entire family of 5 out on Sunday to do a little shopping. On our way home we stopped at the Starbucks in town and I got a grande caramel latte and Jason got a grande house blend black coffee. I was driving the van and Jason was sitting in the back seat with Carson to help keep him occupied. It was past nap time and Carson did not want to sit still and behave himself. He kept wanting to grab Jason's coffee to have a drink which obviously was irritating Jason. So my husband goes to take a sip of his very hot and completely full cup of coffee and gets a drip on his hand. He goes to lick it up and at the same time Carson kicks his foot and knocks the very hot and completely full cup of coffee out of Jason's hand, into his lap in which the lid pops off and spills all over Jason's lap. He stood the rest of the ride home with a look of anger and pain in his face. I was afraid he got burned from the spill. Taylor plugged his ears and said, "If you need to cuss go ahead I have my ears plugged." We got home and Carson immediately went to bed for a nap and Jason went to clean up and survey the damage from the spill. I went out to the van to soak up the remainder of the coffee from the seat cushion, but I think Jason's lap took the brunt of it. Jason ended up being okay besides being very upset at Carson. He had a talk with him about the situation and Carson felt remorseful and told his Daddy he was sorry.

Today Carson was telling my mom what happened yesterday. She asked if daddy was okay or if he had to go to the hospital. Carson replied, "he went to the hospital and had to get new legs."

On another note, today we had new carpet installed in our front room and it looks so awesome! While it was being installed Carson was next door at my parents house. When he came home he saw the carpet and says, "Wow, we got new carpet." He ran around in the room and started rolling around on it. I was going to try and add pictures, but so far it's not letting me. I'll try again later. Wednesday we are having the back room carpeted. Yeah!

Today's observations

Taylor and I were playing a card game of war, but we made it into our own version called physic war. One of us would first lay down our card and say a word then the other person would lay down their card and say the first word that came to mind. There were some that made sense and others that I have no clue where they came from. Taylor made me laugh on one in particular. I laid down my card and said Pina thinking Colada would be the next word to come out. But Taylor's reply was "butter". He thought I said "peanut". I like the word Pina Butter better!

On a different note, today Carson was coloring using Crayola's new Color Wonder markers at the coffee table. Luke was in his baby walker watching and wanting to grab the markers which made Carson mad. These markers are such a great invention because they only work on color wonder paper, nothing else, so there is no mess. Well, apparently there was a non-color wonder marker in with the others that I was not aware of. Guess how I found out? I went over to get Luke out of the way so Carson would stop getting mad and saw a big yellow marker streak from Luke's hairline down his forehead ending above his eye. Carson colored Luke's head!!!! I can't leave him alone for a second! Luckily the marker wasn't black and I was able to wipe it off Luke's head. Ugh!

We went out to dinner tonight at Strongbow's and after dinner we all had dessert. Carson got a scoop of chocolate ice cream. As he took a bite his response was, "this is delicious!" Guess he really enjoyed it. He told me he needed to go potty so we headed to the bathroom. As we entered the stall Carson noticed the seat to the toilet - it was black. His reply was, "I've never seen a black potty before - Wow!" It really impressed him. What a nut!

Our poor dog

We have a very sweet dog whose name is Sasha. She is the most laid back, gentle and lovable dog I've ever known. You wouldn't think so being that she's a mix breed of pit bull and boxer. We've had her since Taylor was a baby and she is excellent with kids especially around Carson. Sasha has put up with a lot from Carson and has never bit or nipped him. Sasha has her own chair in our house in which she spends 75% of her day sleeping in. Carson likes to sit with her or I should say ON her when she is in her chair. The dog doesn't seem to mind even when he stands up on her. Luke has a fascination with the dog too. He likes to pull himself up to a stand when she's in her chair and play with the dog's toenails. I have even seen Luke taste test the dog's tail and she just lays there puts up with it. Just this morning Sasha walked past me and had a chip clip clipped on her fur. Once again - she didn't seem to mind. We're very fortunate to have such a great dog!

We've got a smart one tonight!

Carson is so much smarter than I give him credit for. He proved that point last night. We've been practicing numbers, names, letters, etc lately. When I asked him his name of course he said "Carson". When I asked him his middle name he said, "papa." I was a little confused at first, but then I figured it out. Carson's name for my dad is "Papa" and my dad's first name is Lee. Carson's middle name is Lee so that makes sense now. Carson Papa (Lee). Next I wanted to practice our phone number which I have never practiced with Carson before. I said to Carson, "Let's learn our phone number. Repeat after me Carson, say 5 4 8." And do you know the next thing Carson said? Without saying the 5 4 8 he instantly finished our phone number saying the last four numbers. Jason and I just looked at each other in amazement and shock! How in the world did he know his phone number when I've never worked on it before with him? It was crazy. We've got a smart one tonight!

Occupation questions and answers

Today Carson wanted to eat a piece of bread. I know - really exciting, but that's what he was hungry for - a plain piece of bread! So he starts to climb the counter to get himself some bread and grabs an old loaf that I am sure had some mold growing on it. I took it from him and said, "You don't want to eat that bread, it has mold on it." So he asks if he can have a different piece of bread. I get out a piece of white bread and hand it to him. He looks at it and says, "This one doesn't have any moles on it." What a nut!

Yesterday I was having a conversation with Carson about different occupations and what people do. I was curious to see what he thought so here are a few of his replies.

• What does the president do?

Carson's answer: "He opens up a present."

• What does a fireman do?

Carson's answer: "He works really hard."

• What does a veterinarian do?

Carson's answer: "He pets stuff."

• What does Daddy do at work?

Carson's answer: "He writes stuff down."

• What do you want to be when you grow up?

Carson's answer: "A paint man."

• What does a nurse do?

Carson's answer: "They pick our noses." (I think he was getting silly at this point and possibly sick of me asking him too many questions!)

More Carson comments

I get such a kick out of Carson's comments at times. He can really crack me up. Today we were playing in the back room and had Carson's scooter out. I was being goofy and acting like I was sitting on it to ride it. Carson stopped me and said, "No Mom. When you grow up like a big boy, then you can play with it." He assumed the role of a parent and was talking to me like I was his child. Too funny!

Later that afternoon we had to leave to pick up our van that had some brake work done. When we walked in the door I looked over to the couch and saw our dog, Sasha, laying there looking at me with an extremely guilty face. I replied, "Shame on you Sasha - get off the couch! Bad dog!" Carson walked inside the house and asked what Sasha did so I told him that she was on the couch. He then asked in a concerned voice, "Is there poop on the couch now?" I sure hope not!

Are the ears turned on?

I had made chocolate chip cookies per Taylor's request and they were sitting on the counter cooling. I head to the laundry room to fold some clothes and Carson comes in a few minutes later with a huge chocolate smudge around his mouth. He asks, "Are the cookies ready yet Mom?" I reply, "Well from the looks of it Carson they seem to be!" So I head out to the kitchen to assess the damage and see his half eaten cookie on the table. I told him next time to ask me first if he can have a cookie before he takes one. Well sure enough his ears must have been turned off because a few minutes later I see him reaching for yet another cookie that he did not ask for. I run after him and take it from his hands and take a wet paper towel to begin clean up of the chocolate mess that was all over his face and hands. As I am cleaning him up I say, "Carson, you need to turn your ears on and listen to me." He looks down at his hands and responds, "I can't my hands are wet." So, after I dry his hands he looks at me with a sarcastic grin and those darn cute dimples then reaches up to his ear and twists it. They must be on now.

A day out with Carson

So yesterday I decided to take Carson and Luke with me to Merrillville to do a little shopping. Our first stop was Westfield shopping mall. The nice part about going to the mall on a weekday is that there are a lot of good parking spots and it is not crowded at all. We just about got blown away walking from the van to the mall entrance. The wind was so intense and SO cold! That pretty much determined the rest of our shopping day. I wasn't about to go from store to store taking the boys in and out of the van and trying to avoid being blown off our feet! On a regular day it's hard enough, but the wind really added the extra punch. So I went and had my ring cleaned and inspected like I am supposed to do every 6 months and that's when Carson decided he wanted to have his freedom and go where he was not supposed to. There is a reason they have doors between the jewelry cases and where customers are not supposed to go. Well, needless to say Carson decided to go into the employee only section and of course I had to run in after him. I wasn't about to deal with this type of behavior so I had to nip it in the bud immediately! I grabbed his arm and gave him a good swift swat on the butt and sternly told him he will not leave my side. Well, that was something he didn't want to hear because he instantly head butted me in the chest. I said to him, "Do not head-butt me!" I guess I should have called it something else because his response to that was, "No - you're a butt head!" Such a nice way to talk to his Mom! One of my favorite movies is Back to the Future and in that movie (which Carson has watched with me a few times) Biff says, "What are you lookin' at Butt Head?" Carson thought that was so funny and likes to occasionally use that phrase with his brother and me at times. Boys will be boys I suppose!

So after the mall episode I was feeling yucky and needed to eat. I decided to take the kids to Bakers Square for lunch - one of my favorite restaurants (and a place I used to work). Normally I don't attempt to do this type of thing by myself, but I decided to give it a try. It was 11:30 and the main lunch rush wouldn't arrive until we were about done. It really went quite well. Carson ate like he was starving and had never seen food before. I swear I feed my child! I told him since he ate all his lunch he could pick out a dessert. As he was looking through the different pictures of pie he came across one and asked, "Do they have cookies cake?" I looked at which pie he was referring to and it was the Oreo cookie pie. I like the name he gave it. So we had our dessert and I went to take a drink out of my very full glass of ice water and Carson replies, "Mom - don't get your nose wet!" That was too funny.

So all in all the day was pretty nice for a change. Not a whole lot of power struggles. Before it was time for his nap I was trying to get a program to play for Carson using our new TiVo. I pushed something wrong and ended up at some strange menu and Carson replied, "Uh-Oh! Now you did it. Now you're fired!" He must be the next Donald!

Mr. Independent a.k.a. Carson

Aren't kids supposed to slow down when they turn 3? I was so much looking forward to Carson getting out of the 2 year old stage, but so far the 3 year old stage is still at the same tiring pace. For instance, Carson has a fascination with climbing up on the counter to get whatever it is up there that I don't want him to have. Forget ever leaving a plate of cookies or anything tempting within Carson's reach because he will notice it in a second and be scaling the cabinets to get what he wants. Just the other day I was in the laundry room folding clothes and I left Carson while he was intently watching a TV show. I thought it was a safe time to leave him alone. Nope. A few minutes later I hear the sound of a pill bottle being rattled. I run out to the kitchen and there is Carson standing on the counter top in the cabinet where we keep our medicine. I need to have a lock and key for that cabinet I guess. He had the Tums container out and said he was going to eat his vitamins. Thankfully I got there in time before he actually ate any. Most of the other pills are all in child proof containers which he has not figured out how to open yet, but I know it won't be too long before he figures it out. A week or so before this episode I came into the kitchen to see Carson chugging my bottle of flavored coffee creamer and scooping spoonful loads of sugar into my half full mug of coffee. I really wonder what goes through his head at times.

The past few days the weather has been really nice so Carson has been able to play outside, but the problem is that he throws a complete fit when it's time to come inside. So the other day I told him that after his nap he could go back outside and play. So nap time is great - I get my hour to an hour and a half of sanity and peace (for the most part). Next thing I know the back door is wide open and Carson is not in his bed. I look outside and see a barefoot Carson running around the backyard kicking a ball. He took it upon himself to go outside when he was done napping. I guess I forgot to give him the specific details that he had to wait for mom or dad to go out with him. He is the most independent 3 year old I've ever met.

American Idol Comment

We watched Tuesday night's American Idol where the 8 girls sang. The first to perform was Paris Bennett. Carson sat and watched - which surprised me because he hasn't really been into the show too much lately. When Paris was finished Carson remarked, "Now she's a winner!" I like Paris, but she's not my favorite - apparently it's Carson's favorite. My pick is Katharine McPhee. She is darling and has got the best blues-jazz voice out of all the girls. For the guys I have to choose Taylor Hicks. He's got a great first name!!! Elliott is a very close 2nd though!

The Easter Talk

There are times when I really love having conversations with Carson. It's the times when he really gets thinking, asks questions and is very interested in what were talking about. This morning we were putting a puzzle together and I mentioned how it reminded me of Easter. It had spring time colors and flowers (even though it was the three little pigs). So that started a conversation about Easter. I asked him what he thought Easter was about. His response was, "the eggs." I continued to tell him that eggs are just one part of it, but the real reason is celebrating Jesus. That's why we dress up special that day and go to church. Then he asked, "Can I dress up?" I said, "Of course." He then asked, "Can I dress up as a pumpkin or a ghost?" His concept of dressing up is in costume! Not sure how well that would go over at church.

A shopping day to remember

I normally do not like to take Carson with me when I go shopping (hhhmmm - wonder why?!?!), but sometimes I have no other choice. In the past, I could get away with using my double stroller and force Carson to be restrained, but now that I have given him some freedom, the double stroller is a thing of the past. He wants to walk and refuses to be restrained whether it be in a stroller or a shopping cart. This has started to become a problem.

So I had some shopping to do yesterday and we started off late in the day - there's the first mistake. Carson feel asleep in the van on the way to the store. At that point I really should have turned around and gone home, but I really wanted and needed to get a few things. So I pull into Menards and get Luke strapped into the shopping cart and pick up a completely sound asleep (snoring and drooling!!) 35 pound boy. Once we get into the store Carson wakes up and instantly says, "Can we go play with the toys?" Luckily we did not see any toys, but while I was looking in another section Carson would not stop playing in the display of doors. He continued to open and try and close himself in them. I told him to stop or he was going to get his fingers chopped off. So, after numerous times of telling him to stop playing in the doors I finally had to physically go over to him, pick him up, and place him in the cart. All the while he is yelling and kicking and screaming, "Shut up Mom! You shut up!" I am sure I was getting all kinds of looks from other shoppers, but hey what are you going to do? My child was crabby and couldn't control himself and it really was probably my fault for expecting him to be good. So I find what I need very quickly after that and proceed to the check out while Carson is still yelling and crying about who knows what. The nice clerk at the check out line was playing on Carson's sadness and asked him what was the matter. Carson replied, "I chopped my fingers off in the doors." The look that lady gave me was priceless! I had to clarify for her and explain what I told Carson would happen if he hadn't stopped playing in the doors. I was so happy to get out of that store.

Later that night I took both Luke and Carson to Kohl's to find some new pictures to hang in our home. I found 4 of them and had to awkwardly carry the pictures while pushing Luke in the stroller and trying to keep Carson by me. Carson announces he has to go potty. Great timing! So we manage to get to the customer service area where the bathrooms are. I ask the lady if I can leave the pictures with her while we use the bathroom. No sooner do I start to set the pictures down, Carson runs off and enters the Men's bathroom! Oh my gosh - what in the world was I going to do? Luckily, a man and his son were heading into the bathroom so I asked him if he could get my son for me. He peeks in and says no one is in there so what do I do? I go and retrieve my son from the men's bathroom. I was more than embarrassed! Thankfully no one was in there! It could have been a lot worse. So after the potty experience we finish up in the store and we're heading out to the van. Carson is refusing to hold my hand so I pick him up by the waist and proceed to the van. This must have really ticked him off because he started up again yelling, "Damn it, Damn it, Damn it!!!" I swear he must have said it 10 - 20 times. I could not get him to stop! I was completely mortified. I have never heard him say that word before in my life! There was an elderly couple walking past us as this was happening and I can just imagine what a great parent they thought I was.

So that was our shopping day to remember. Hopefully our future outings will be more pleasant for all of us! Or I'll get smart and find a sitter!