The Boy & Sleep

Getting this boy to sleep is hard work now. Even though he knows he's supposed to sleep, he does everything BUT sleep. And that is why he ends up sleeping in these really weird positions (due to tiredness).

A clip of what he does 97% of the time in his room


Afternoon nap

I have seen my share of unique sleeping positions from Lucas, but last night's was by far the most interesting.


Who falls asleep like this?!


Daddy was convinced he was gonna fall any second


Nope, managed to turn the other way


Flip! One leg on the floor now...


Both feet on floor now, similar to nap


This is how he ended the night... in Mommy & Daddy's bed since he had another bad dream. Sigh...

Pumpkins And The Weekend

Time flies when you're taking care of two kids! I didn't realize that this past weekend was the last weekend before Halloween. We had just gone to one patch, and none as a family yet. Oh boy... good thing we made up for it this weekend!

 Faux Pumpkin Patch

Family Pumpkin Patch half day @ Uesugi Farms

 Homeboy insisted on riding the tractor

 ... as well as the train

 Two kids, just chillin'

 Lucas having a tea party and Char playing with cars

 Bookworms - nothing wrong with starting them young!

Crazy (haired) girl

After going to Spina Farms last year and Uesugi Farms this year, I'll have to say Uesugi takes the cake for the best patch in the South Bay. Perhaps we'll make the trek up to Livermore next year when the kids (mainly Char) are older. I heard that corn pit is pretty awesome!

Lu's Shinnanigans (Continued)

CLOSET FREAK:
While waiting for the kids to fall asleep, I'm usually on my MacBook in my room so I can hear whatever out-of-the-ordinary ruckus they're making. I heard a BOOM and quietly ran over to their room to see what's up. Char was still kicking around in the crib, but Lu... Lu was nowhere to be found! The gate was still locked (so he didn't manage to escape), but he wasn't in his bed. I saw a little opening in the closet and see him hiding in there with a sly smile on his face. Oh Lu...

BOSSY BOSSY:
"Mommy do!"
"Baby, play with this!"
"Shh! Baby, no cry. BABY! No cry... please!"
"Baby no touch. Here, baby touch this."

OOPS:
While Lu was eating his lunch, he accidentally dropped something and said "oops, my bad". I'm pretty sure he didn't pick this up from school... My bad... However, I'm pretty sure he picked up "oopsies" from school.

GROWN UPS COME BACK:
Separation anxiety randomly came back a week ago. In an attempt to make him understand that Mommy (or Daddy) will always come back for him, I've been singing "grown ups come back" (thank you Daniel Tiger). Since he repeats pretty much everything I've been saying (my bad), he's been singing along too. So every time I say "grown ups come back", he sings "grown ups come back. Mommy, Daddy always comes back". And in reply, I say yes. Always. Hopefully this helps him when he gets dropped off at school and at church. (btw, he's been doing better and better.)

NINE:
In an effort to make Lu take a hearty afternoon nap, I've been having him collect stickers after each nap. After five stickers, he gets a special prize in my jar of $1 toys. When he woke up from his nap yesterday, the first thing he said to me was "motorcycle!". I told him to count his stickers. He proudly and happily starts... 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8... *pause*... 9... The nine was a very dreaded nine as he realized he was one short of ten, which means he would have to be a good boy and take his nap the following day in order to get his well deserved 97 cents Hot Wheels motorcycle.

Another Website?!

Happy as can be!

I was notified three nights ago that there was another website dedicated to my children. (http://shinnkids.blogspot.com) #shinnkids was a hashtag that should've been TM-ed by me, now I have someone else using my hashtag in their blog! That someone happens to be the shinnkids father. Instead of happy and cute pictures of their Shinnanigans, this other website shows the not so glamorous side of raising young children. Beware, you've been warned! (And now you know which parent sees the glass half full and which sees it half empty!)

"First" CDM Together

Char's been to CDM a number of times. However, she's been asleep in her Ergo all those times we've gone. After a two month hiatus, baby girl is finally old enough to enjoy some of what CDM has to offer! (*note: We got membership for Lucas when he first started crawling at 9 months) I finally took Char into the baby room and although it didn't seem like she got a kick out of it (still a few weeks too young, I think), she was amused. Besides the 20 minute cat nap in the car before heading in, she was awake the entire time!

 First stop: fire truck!

 "Water" that changes colors? Awesome!

 Baby girl's almost standing

 Big bro used to get a kick out of this leaf blowing thing

 Blocks bigger than your head? Awesome!

 Lu's fave: H2O!

Snack time on the stroll out after a fun 2 hours at CDM

(Although they're only 19 months apart, their physical appearance shows otherwise since Char is super petite and Lu is pretty above average)

I guess it's time to make it a weekly thing again.

Fall Is Here!

After what seemed like an endless summer in hot SSJ, it's nice to have the weather cool down so the kids can wear layers and look cute in their jackets, which have just been collecting dust in their closet. This past Monday was the first time we went to a pumpkin patch this year. (Sorry for depriving you for so long, kiddos. Life has been busy.) Lucas had lots of fun with his Monday play date friends and it was a struggle getting him to go home.

 Our growing Monday play date gang

 These kids are very excited about this picture

These kids are too cool for school

Mommy & the kids (maybe Daddy should be Photoshopped in)

Showing off how strong he is by picking a "heavy" pumpkin

 My baby Pumpkin with her baby pumpkin at home

Did I mention I love Fall?! Pumpkin pie (Costco!). Pumpkin Spice Latte (McDonald's makes one that's comparable to Starbucks for half the price). Pumpkins everywhere! And jackets... I love jackets!

Never A Dull Moment

The last time I had a dull moment in life was probably sometime in 2010. And then Lucas was born in 2011... ever since then, life has been anything but predictable! The most unpredictable thing that happened this past week was Lucas's sudden separation (or maybe stranger) anxiety! He woke up one day and decided he didn't want to go anywhere without me. Aiii!!! He's also been waking up in the middle of the night with more bad dreams and sometimes cries/screams when we lock up the gate to sleep just because... Every night, I've been afraid to sleep because of the unknown. Who is going to cry in the middle of the night this time? Is anyone going to wake up at 6 just because? All I know is, our queen size bed is not big enough for the four of us!

 He spends 25% of his time sleeping in Mommy/Daddy's bed now

 Char in Cars bed

 Lu in Char's crib

 Would ONLY fall asleep in my arms during nap time... what are you, a NB?!

This Is Just A Test.

... now if only it were that simple. Since Saturday, homeboy has been testing his limits like no other! It all started when he figured out how to open the gate to let himself out of the room in the morning. He has also been doing things he know he's not supposed to do like pulling wet wipes out and putting lotion all over himself. Once we figured out how to lock him back in his room (by we, I mean Dan), he started wailing/screaming bloody murder. And that is when this crazy separation anxiety began! Keep in mind that this kid is Mr. Independent and usually doesn't care where Mommy or Daddy is. BUT, since this past Sunday, he won't go anywhere without us. On Tuesday, we had to pin him down to his car seat to get him to school while he was screaming "GO HOME!!!" the entire time while I was driving in traffic. He cried up a storm at church, which surprised all the volunteers since everyone knows this is out of character for him. He cries up a storm every time he's supposed to be sleeping. What happened to my perfect little boy?! Hello terrible twos...? Please leave ASAP, thank you!

The boy has been driving me insane! I've been getting headaches since I'm up thinking about how to help him change his behavior. I've been eating more sweets and have been super tired lately. HELP!

Last picture of us, happy! Pre Terrible 2s!

 Sunday afternoon: decided to skip his nap

 Sunday night: got desperate, let him sleep in our bed

 They only LOOK good in pictures...

It's 3:22 right now, he's STILL awake! He usually falls asleep around 1:30 - 2:00.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens... those things brought Maria Von Trapp joy, and here's what brings Lucas Shinn joy:

 

Cars

Cars (any shape, size, or form)

Special treats, in this case: froyo

Balls

Going to the park

His sister (or at least that's what Mommy wants to believe)

Being able to put on shoes (that aren't his)

 Last but not least, Mother!

Infinity

If you flip the infinity symbol 90 degrees, you will get the number eight, which is how old my baby girl turned today! Yikes! How did you get so old, baby girl?!

 No longer a baby...

 Kids are sporting Apple gear (to remind them where all their financial support comes from!)

 Daddy thinks both kids look like him...

 What a smile!

Why do Mommy's glasses look cuter on you?!

 My little hoodlum

Daddy's version of taking care of Char

It's becoming more and more apparent than Char's favorite person in the whole wide world is her big bro. She absolutely adores that guy! Unfortunately, Lucas does not really see that and only chooses to play with baby sis when he's in the mood.  

We're really hoping that Char wakes up one day and turns off her crazy stranger anxiety radar. She has gotten a tad bit better with people. I think the secret is that you have to make her smile in order for her to feel more comfortable around you. Makes sense, right? Though still as petite as ever (can still fit into 3-6 month clothing), she's a happy, growing girl. Good thing she has an older brother who always pushes her around (not purposefully), she's become small but mighty! Happy 8 months, Bebe!