Another vow broken

Well, it's happened again.

I have broken another Mom Vow.

Like I said, before I became a mother, I would never:

* give my child a binky off the dirty floor/ eat anything off the floor

* let my child have a runny snotty nose

* go out of the house unless they were properly dressed, in a coordinating outfit of course

* drink pop, which in all fairness this one was mostly broken via grandparents/ aunts/ uncles

* eat food from my child's plate or anything that had been in their mouth

* have a binky past the age of 1, which for the most part we stick to this one--there have been a few emergencies and exceptions though

* cry loudly in public, specifically church

* buy my child something to shut them up while I'm in public

And the list went on................

Since becoming a REAL mom, I have realized that some of my Mom Vows were somewhat unrealistic and I have been willing to accept that, however, there have still been times where I simply have to draw the Mom Vow Line. Wednesday morning, after Dr. Jekyll/ Mr. Hyde visited the night before was another low moment in my history as a mother.

I will openly admit to breaking yet another one of my Mom Vows ......................................(as I hang my head in shame)

I was trying to get ready in the morning and Quincy was constantly in my hair. I couldn't get anything done. After much frustration I finally took him by the hand, walked with him to the family room, found the remote, and turned on the TV.

***Gasp***

Even in the moment I still couldn't believe I was committing such an ugly Mom Vow crime against myself, but I will admit it felt good. In fact, I was able to get ready in 15 minutes verses having to pry Quincy off my legs every 5 minutes.

Now, I don't hold anything against those mother's who openly admit to letting their children watch hours of TV a day. That is purely their choice as a parent. The main problem I have with kids watching TV, is WHAT they are watching.

Whatever happened to all those wholesome good cartoons like:

Those were classic children's cartoons. Since then, kid TV seems to have grown up WAAAaaaYYY too much. The girls are flirting boys, there is far more violence, the pure fact that the cartoons reflect a certain image in which boys and girls are supposed to imitate simply disgusts me. This is why I Mom Vowed not to plop my kid in front of the TV. I will also add, that I give props to PBS for still showing wholesome and educational programs. Some of the shows on these channels I will permit Quincy to watch. But at the young tender age of 2 years old is it necessary to sit him in front of the tube for an hour? I think not. I would much rather him use his imagination, read, construct, or be active.

But we're not all perfect at permitting our kids to do these things all the time, which is why for 15 minutes I willingly admit to getting some relief from those rotten, non-educational, no-good cartoon shows.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Since our move to Vancouver, WA. Quincy has done relatively well with all the new changes....that was until last Tuesday.

Our child went from being Dr. Jekyll: giving hugs, saying "I love you", giving sweet kisses, rubbing our shoulders, sharing his toys, and saying "please" and "thank you"............to Mr. Hyde at bedtime.

It was like night and day. Suddenly after announcing that it was time for bed, like we do each night, he freaked. It was like a flip switched and he became a totally different person. He was screaming, yelling, flailing his body around, hitting and so on. I began to wonder what about this particular night was so different from the previous one.

As I ran through our activities from the previous night I concluded that indeed, there was nothing significantly different about this night from the last and it was just one of those 'terrible twos' moments you hear about.

Not only has Quincy learned how to sucessfully climb out of his crib in the last 3 months (which has resulted in us leaving the front of it off), but he has also learned how to open the bedroom door. Fun times here, let me tell you.

Those good old days of locking him up in the crib prision and knowing that he was safe are long gone. Now he has discovered freedom, and it hasn't always been pretty. Like Tuesday night for example.

After trying everything................being nice, then stern, then trying to reason with him, then threatening him with discipline..............nothing was working. Finally we put him in his room to which he responded by hopping out of his crib and tearing all of his toys off his shelves and heaving them onto the floor.

I finally resorted into sitting with him in his room. I figured he was tired by this time and he would be out cold soon. Boy oh boy was I wrong! I sat by his crib for an HOUR... during which he would closely keep a one eye watch on me, despite being able to barely hold one eyelid open! I finally concluded that it was ridiculous for me to sit there....plus I was entirely exhausted at this point, which happened to be a 12:30AM, and left to go to bed.

He protested by crying and running straight for me to the door. I said goodnight and stood by the door holding it shut (seeing as how he's smartened up). After another half hour of doing this, to no avail, I marched into our bedroom grabbed his binky and came back to shove it in his mouth.

The kid was beside himself and I was running out of paitence. Part of me considered that it would be easy to let him sleep with with us or possibly sleep in his room, but the wiser part thought that might have more serious long term consequences. Finally around 4:00AM he went to sleep. We were both exhuasted from our long night. Since then, it has been better....................there was just that one moment we experienced both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

I hope to NEVER see them again.

Our little pianist

Since moving over here Quincy has really taken a liking to playing the piano. I say the word 'playing' pretty loosely because it's more like gently pounding on the keys. However, after watching Uncle Scott and Grammie play he has since learned to play softly on the keys. Any time that either one of them are at the piano you can be sure to see Quincy hurrying over to sit right next to them and play along.

It's pretty cute watching him because he tries to hold his fingers on the keys, mimicking whoever is playing with him. On this day he happened to have some piano snacks, shredded wheat cereal, which had to be within hands reach while he was playing his music. Because anyone who plays piano knows that all that playing works up quite the appetite.

I like this picture above because you can tell he's seeking approval from his fellow pianists. Also note the shredded wheat at various locations.

Holding your fingers just right is oh-so important! You can tell he's soaking it up by watching Grammie hold hers on the keys.

And lastly, this picture is funny because he was watching Uncle Scott and Grammie look at the sheet music and so he was intently staring at his sheet of music.... playing just the right notes of course.

All this hustle and bustle............

..................has worn out my boys.

Quincy's new toys

Tyler got a new i-phone recently, which just so happens to be his latest toy.....


Because Tyler got an i-phone, Quincy inherited Tyler's old phone. It still works and Quincy feels mighty important pressing keys and watching the screen change... it's like he's actually using it. I caught him on the family room floor like this the other day:

Two years old and texting already....

Quincy's other new toy that he got for his Birthday from Grammie and Grandpa Loren is a blue lava lamp. He LOVES it, in fact I think the most appropriate word is OBSESSED with it. Every night and before nap time we turn on the lava lamp and he watches the blue globs go up and down until he falls asleep.

The move...

The move to Washington was pretty exhausting for Tyler and I. We did manage to somehow survive it though... and we couldn't be happier to finally be here. Quincy, however, couldn't have been more thrilled that he got to ride in the big white truck with Dad. Somehow I only managed to have one picture from our moving process.... I think I was too pooped to think about taking any others.

So here is Quincy showing his enthusiasm:

Making memories......

As parents we try to encourage nice behavior from our son... such as hugging, kissing, sharing, asking please, and saying thank you.

We never quite know how Quincy will react to babies. On the one hand, he's extremely curious and wants to get a closer look, but on the other he wants the baby to move aside so he can have center stage. This was mostly his reaction to Jakoby. He didn't quite know what to do with him, but was brave enough to try a few things to bring them closer together...

Bonding cousin activity #1: Relaxing on a blanket.

Bonding activity #2: Chewing on fingers together.

Bonding cousin activity #3: Giving smoochy kisses to your pal.


It's not easy to become buddies overnight with your cousin, especially when you don't see him that often, but it makes it easier when he looks cute like this:

Quincy sure had fun spending time with his cousin Jakoby. He is excited to see him again at Christmas.

A little be-lated, but important none the less.............

Dear Quincy: August 15, 2009

It is hard to believe that our sweet little baby that we brought home from the hospital has just turned 2 years old! You are so full of energy. We are constantly amazed at how smart you are. You are now speaking in full sentences, have learned all your ABC's, and claim to know how to count to 20. (We love hearing you count.... especially because it goes 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9,10,13,14, 16,19....20!!)You like to snuggle with mom and dad, but only when you are tired. The phrase "Mine!" is becoming one of your favorites. You love to read, and your sense of adventure is never ending. You have also taken to asking, or rather telling, us when you want just "one" cookie or treat. You have even learned to hold up 1 finger while you ask, but you never mean just one cookie or treat. You are stubborn as ever, especially with your new found sense of power since turning 2 years old-- this however, was expected, you've been stubborn since day one. Despite being a little hard headed you are loving... you love to sing songs, play make believe, and other games. You will make an excellent brother. Just today you told us you wanted to hold baby Pipa, which of course made us smile. You never stop trying to make us laugh.... and I suppose you get that from your Dad. We look forward to watching you grow up over the next several years and cannot wait to see you succeed....... because we know all that strong-willed determination is going to pay off in your future.

We love you Quincy.
Love Mom and Dad

The morning of Quincy's birthday I woke him up by singing Happy Birthday, to which he responded with a sleepy smile and rubbed his eyes. For breakfast we had omelets and french toast.

Despite being a little sleepy at first he brightened up real quick.

After breakfast Quincy insisted on going outside to help Grandpa Kent bail hay.... and since it was his Birthday we couldn't refuse. It was a little chilly and so we had to bundle him up; doesn't he look thrilled?

Later that evening we had the usual Birthday festivities. I didn't go all out making a special cake this year..... so we opted for a small Walmart cake for Quincy:

At home Quincy loves to blow out candles so we made sure to put extra candles on his cake this year. He was a little reluctant at first, but soon caught on to what he was supposed to be doing.

After one time of blowing out his candles... it was all he wanted to do.............

It took us a while to convince him that he had more exciting activities to take part in, like opening presents......................

We got him a Nike Air Jordan hoodie....

And he also got some treats from Grandma and Grandpa...

But by far his favorite presents were his tractors that he got...

He even talked about his tractors in his sleep that night... it was pretty funny.



All in all, Quincy had a wonderful Birthday despite celebrating in the middle of our moving process. It was so nice to be able to spend it with all of the Howard side of the family before we moved. Thank you to everyone for being there to support. :o)

Bonding with Nanny

Nanny (Quincy's Great Grandma on my mom's side) was just dying to get Quincy to snuggle up with her. Those of you who know Quincy know that recently he's not much of a snuggler. Although one of the nights when was just tired enough, and willing to be bribed with some ABC gum from Nanny, that he allowed her to snuggle him.

Of course we had to get evidence of it.

A little stop along the way...

On our drive to Portland we made a pit stop at Multanomah Falls. It's been a long time since I've actually been up to the falls. We might have considered walking to the top, but with Quincy we settled for just half way to the bridge. Although these pictures don't really do the falls justice, it was still beautiful.

Despite arriving to the falls at 9:30AM, there was already a crowd of people there to take in the scenery.

I can't wait to move back to the PNW.... everything is so green and beautiful. I am also looking forward to being able to go on lots of hikes and be out in nature (not desert).

Okay, now this picture I have to preface by saying it was a LONG LONG LONG trip! (Notice we all look haggard and tired.) We left at 4:00AM, figuring we'd beat the mid-day heat in the car and Quincy would sleep most the way. Nope! Quincy was up at 1:00AM that night and kept Tyler awake most of the night. He ended up going to sleep in our bed and we all woke up at 3:30AM VERY exhausted. We thought this stop at Multanomah Falls would help break up that last little bit, but we were all too tired to really appreciate it.

Notice Quincy 'taking in the view'..... really I think he's looking like he has no clue where he is.

Perhaps our next visit to Multanomah Falls will be a more pleasent one! :o)

Funny Man

Quincy found these sunglasses at Grammie and Grandpa Loren's house.... for some reason we thought he looked pretty funny in them.


What do you think?

Living a Chaotic Life

Lately our house is a shipwreck.... or perhaps by now I should say the ship has not only wrecked, but rather sunk. We are moving to Vancouver, WA. in a short 11 days. Things around our house have been slightly crazy as you could imagine. I don't think that Quincy really knows what's going on yet.... although he has thoroughly enjoyed playing with all the boxes.

Quincy playing with his new friends, the boxes.

(If only our moving process looked something more like the picture above!)

Quincy showing me his master box-stacking skills.

(Wouldn't it be funny if our boxes were labeled like this?)

The past 3 weeks have been a sort of whirl wind for us. We went from Tyler having no prospects of finding a job any time soon, to him getting a few phone calls to set up some interviews, to us driving to Portland so he could go to the interviews, to him receiving a job offer for JP Morgan Chase, to our final decision that he will be working at KEY Bank. It has been quite the process. We feel very blessed through this whole process and we know that God has been gently guiding us to where we need to be. Both of us feel good about his decision to choose KEY Bank and we are excited to move on to this new stage of our lives.

We will be living in boxes for a little while longer, as my parent's have offered to let us stay with them until we get settled. It is nice that we don't have to be rushed to find a place to live in as soon as we make the move. I will try and keep you all updated the next few weeks as to how things are going.