Renaissance Festival

About 9 to 10 years ago I went to the Renaissance Festival in Hammond and loved it.  I have been wanting to go back for YEARS and finally got to go again.   Personally, I had a great time walking around, checking out the sites and taking pictures.  I know my Mom and Sister did also but my Dad and Kevin wasn't so thrilled about it.  Maybe it was being called My Lord every 10 minutes made them uncomfortable!  :)  I think it was too much walking for my dad and for Kevin, if there is not New Orlean's restaurant styled food out there then he is pretty much disappointed.   I just think this festival is so nicely set up with all the costumes and role playing.  The only thing I really disagree with is that they charge extra for certain things like to see the torture chamber or to play games.  I mean it cost $14 dollars to get in!  That won't stop me from going again in a year or two.  Especially when Peyton is a little older.  I really think he would love it. 

Thanksgiving 2009

We had a very lovely and relaxing Thanksgiving in Wiggins with family!  Peyton and all the other kiddos for almost two hours collected pecans from all of the pecan trees out in the 20 acres of land behind Kevin's family's home...... then played for another hour in their huge treehouse.  I would love to have that treehouse in my back yard!  :)  Then we had a wonderful Thanksgiving feast.   After dinner and before desert and coffee, we went out to the farm to spend some time with the horses and to see if Peyton wanted to ride Peaches.  We tried to get Peyton to ride some of the horses, but he wouldn't have any part of that!   He loved petting them, but that was about it.  I will try again next year! 

First Advent Calendar

Peyton got today his first Advent Calendar from his Auntie Dawn and Uncle Brian.  What is it?  Well, I had to look it up at first.  When first asked if Peyton ever had one, I thought it was something from Avent that sells bottles and baby supplies.  Not the same Advent!  LOL! Actually, it is a German traditional calendar.  (For those who do not know, Kevin's mom is German so I get to celebrate many German Christmas traditions, which I love and know Peyton will love.)  Kevin and his sister Dawn use to get one from their grandmother (Mutti) every year for Christmas.  So I know it brings back many wonderful childhood memories! It is a Calendar that has a piece of chocolate behind each day until Christmas Eve.  What a wonderful tradition!  I have a feeling now that Peyton and future Baby Breen will be having a Advent Calendar every year from now on.   Now, I just have to keep Daddy from eating the chocolate.  :)

Zoo with the Grandparents Crew

Today we headed over to the zoo with Mimi and Pawpaw (or Poppa).  I got to see if we are going to change it to Poppa since that is what Peyton is insisting on calling my dad!  :)  The day started off beautiful, but right after lunch it got really cloudy and chilly.  But that didn't stop us from having a great time.  Peyton is really loving the zoo now and practically didn't use the stroller at all.   We had one tired, worn out little boy by the end of the day.  But he enjoyed every minute of spending time with Mimi and Poppa looking at the animals and running around all over the place.  His Poppa even got him to go on the Merri-go-round...and he loved it!!!  I couldn't even get him to sit on the horse much less ride it.  Oh well...I guess Poppa  has a way to get Peyton to try new things! 

Peyton going down the slide with hair sticking up from the static electricity (so funny)

On the Merri-go-round with Poppa...and lovin' it!

Chloe and Bryce's Birthday Party

Today we went to Chloe and Bryce's 2nd birthday party at the merry-go-round in Lafreniere Park.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous to be outside for a party!!  The theme of the party was pirates and princesses.  GREAT!!  Peyton got to wear his Halloween costume again!  I lucked out this year with my choice!!  :)  And Peyton even agreed to go on the merry-go-round.  Well, not the horse, but he did sit on the chair with me.  Maybe next time he will try out the horse.  We had a great time hanging out with all our friends playing on the playground and eating cake!  I hope Chloe and Bryce had a wonderful, wonderful birthday!!!

Destrehan Plantation Festival

Today we went to the Destrehan Plantation Festival.  This is one of my favorite festivals.  I restocked on my wonderful soy candles and five pepper jellies.   Peyton had such a good time running around the oaks trees and playing with his Mimi and Nanny.  Pawpaw had to miss out today because he wasn't feeling good.  And...of course I had a chance to shoot some pictures of Angela with some of the beautiful scenery  around the plantation. 

Accomplished, Learned, and Learned to Dislike

Today I am 22 months and I think, no...I know, I am a big boy now.  Mommy cannot believe how big I've gotten.  Did she really expect me to stay a baby forever???   Nope, not me.  I like to think of myself as the "little man" of the house.   I have accomplished, learned, and learned to dislike many things in my short 22 months of life and I would like to record them so Mommy won't forget.  So here I go:

• I know all my alphabets.  Yep, just point to them and I can tell you what letter it is.  Numbers still confuse my though.  But I do know number 2 and number 9.
• I can say some small sentences such as:  Where's Daddy? (or Zack or Mommy), Get down, I love you, Bless you, Daddy's home, No Zack,  Go outside,  and Sit down.
• All the words I LOVE to say are: Oh no, Uh oh, eat, choo-choo, wee-wee (for wheels), stop, Mommy, Daddy, Mimi and Pawpaw (more like pop pa), Grammy (more like Mammy)  & Grand Dad (more like gra dad), Zack, moon, bear, up, down, bite, no no, snack, juice, light, fan, apple, truck (more like uck), Elmo, duck, Cheers, eyes, nose, ears, tongue (more like unge), teeth, Nanny, cookie (more like ookie), nite-nite, nu-nu, bath, ahh-choo, candy, and beep-beep.
• I can point to and name certain parts of my body such as: teeth, eyes, ears, hair, belly button, teeth, tongue, mouth, nose and toes.
• I love to play hide-n-seek with my Daddy.
• I love to be outside and never tire of it.
• I can point out all of the Disney characters by name.
• I don't like time out and it hurts my feelings so much when Mommy or Daddy put me in the corner. 
• I dislike anything berry such as strawberries, blueberries, etc.  I am a melon guy!
• I totally adore my grandparents!
• For right now, Mommy is the only one that is allowed to put me to bed.
• I hate to sleep unless I am so tired I can't keep my eyes open.
• Bath time is a special time with my Daddy.  Mommy has the priviledge sometimes.
• I LOVE trucks and choo-choos.  Can't have enough trucks and choo-choos.
• I call everything in the sky the moon: airplanes, birds, clouds, sun, and the moon itself.
• My favorite show is Thomas, The Useful Engine.
• I love walking around the block 10 times pulling my wagon with Mommy.
• Zack is my best friend and I love sharing my snacks with him.
• I love my nu-nus at bedtime with one in my mouth and one in each hand.  It relaxes me.  I don't know what I am going to do when Mommy decides it is time for me to give them up!
• I am shy with some people and totally outgoing with others. 
• I am now telling Mommy and Daddy when I have a messy diaper by saying "poo-poo".  Mommy said something about it getting close to potty-training.  I really don't know what she means by that.
• I love playing in dirt.
• I hate diaper changes.
• I love our family walks and bike rides.
• I like to eat pretty much anything Mommy cooks.  Except chicken...sometimes I don't like her chicken.
• I run away when asked for a kiss...but sometimes I surprise you by walking up and planting a nice big one just for the heck of it. 
• I still sleep in my crib and don't climb out when I am ready to get up.  I prefer Mommy or Daddy coming to get me.  I don't want to fall and hurt myself to my Mommy's relief.  
• I love to take all of Mommy's nicely clean, folded laundry and throw it everywhere.  I wonder why Mommy doesn't find that funny also.
• I love to jump and run all over Mommy and Daddy's bed.  I know Mommy is waiting for the day I fall off.
• I love to take things that I know Mommy and Daddy does not want me to have and run away with it laughing. 
• I sometimes torture Zack by pulling his tail.
• I love sleeping with my stuff animal which I call Bear.
• I sometimes can be really, really grumpy when I wake up. 
• I hate playing by myself.  So I constantly try to get Mommy and Daddy, or whoever is willing to play with me by pulling them to my playroom.
• I hate when Mommy is on the computer or telephone.  I want all of her attention.
• I kiss the phone bye-bye to whoever I am talking to.
• I love candy.
• I love to act silly by making faces.
• I always look away when Mommy takes my picture.  Personally, I think she takes way too many of me, and
• I love to wait by the window for Daddy to come home from work and scream in excitement when I see him walking up.

Bully Me Today Please

Today as Kevin was leaving he asked me what I was doing today.  I told him nothing really and he said why don't I go to City Park since it was such a beautiful day.  I thought that was a great idea because I have a photo shoot Saturday and I wanted to check my hotspots.   So Peyton and I headed over to City Park.

After feeding the ducks, we started walking around and then headed back to the playground. 

My poor baby must have had a "Bully Me Today Please" sign on his forehead because I think I have told a total of 3 kids to chill out with my baby.   The first kid was a toddler himself who decided that he wanted Peyton to move from the wheel Peyton was playing with almost knocking my him down the steps.  I sternly told the kid "hey, no pushing"!  The kid listened and moved away from Peyton, but I looked around for the mother.  Shouldn't she be the one telling her kid not to push others?  Where was the mother of this toddler boy?  Who knows.  But Peyton, being the kid that he is .....who doesn't know the meaning of hitting or pushing others (yet)  got his feelings hurt and ran to me crying.   Okay, I said, let's go to Storyland. 

So, we get to Storyland and of course Peyton loved it.  We must have played there for almost two hours.  So about halfway through, a little girl who was also a toddler decided that she wanted Peyton to do something or go somewhere (don't know which it was) and proceeded to drag him in that direction.  Peyton was just looking at her with this "what the hell are you doing" look on his face.  Before I could say anything, the little girl's father (thank goodness) told her to leave Peyton alone. 

Then when we were almost through the walk, Peyton went to the last playhouse and there was a four year old little girl and a five year old little boy in there.  When they saw Peyton going up the stairs, the little girl screamed to Peyton for him to go away and that he wasn't allowed in the house.  Then the little boy screamed the same thing and he threw a rock in Peyton's direction.  NOW, I am mad!!!  I walk over to them and told them that the playhouse was for every little boy and girl and they are not to scream or throw rocks at a baby and if they did it again, I was going to look for their mother.  They nodded in agreement and went on their way.  Peyton then decided he didn't want to go in the house.  Me, being me, made him go in.  Only because....well, I don't want my child to be a bully, but he is not going to be a whimp either. 

As we were going in the little boy and girl was climbing down the stairs out of the playhouse and told Peyton not to mess up the chairs.  I didn't know what they were talking about but told them to go play, thinking that they probably would not return before Peyton moved on to something else.  About a minute later, the little boy and girl came back and saw that Peyton did indeed move the chairs in the house and  they started screaming at Peyton "what did I tell you". 

My goodness!  (once again I look around for the parents)  Do parents really not keep an eye on their kids these days?  I told them that they better stop or I was going to ask them to leave the playhouse.  They looked at me and said okay.  So after about 10 minutes of all three of them playing really nice in the playhouse, I told Peyton it was time to leave because I had to change his diaper.  The little girl looked at me and asked

"He is that little where he is still in diapers?"

I said  "Yes, he is still a baby and that is why I asked you not to scream at him.  He doesn't understand why you are screaming at him"

She said "My brother just turned two".

I responded "Well Peyton is not even two yet.  You still think your brother is a baby right?"

She nods yes.   Then she says

"Well my brother is a baby and I can push him around"     Damn, is she in her own way telling me I am overreacting?   :)  So I respond.

"Well Peyton is not your brother and you have to be nice to other people's baby".   

She nods again and off she goes.   Once again, shouldn't it be her mother telling her this? 

Oh, well.....Peyton and I had a great time this morning in the wonderful weather despite the bullying.  I just have to get use to toddler behaviors.  Man, am I not use to it yet.  I am so busy trying to teach Peyton not to hit,  push or bully I forget about it happening to him.   

The joys and worries of motherhood!!!

Sushi and HORROR

Today a good friend of mine, Kim, went with me to eat sushi at one of my favorite restaurants, Kyoto II, then headed over to the theater to watch the talked about movie Paranormal Activity.  Kim (finding out four or five years later) is excited to know that I am a horror freak like she is.  She couldn't find anyone to go with her to watch this scary movie and posted on her Facebook that she was hoping to find someone to go with.  Uh, hello....here I am....I wanna go!  So we went.  I think we both were a little disappointed with the movie.  It wasn't scary as we thought!   When the movie ended we looked at each other and asked "that's it?" What the heck was all the hype about??!!!  Very disappointing,  but hey at least the company and sushi was wonderful.  :) Hopefully we can try again and find a movie that will keep us on the edge of our seats. 

While we were at the movies, Peyton got to spend some quality time with his Grammy outside in the beautiful weather.

Kim and I waiting for the movie to begin

First Night Away

Peyton spent his first night away from home.  It was a night I was dreading as it got closer and closer.  Not because I didn't think he would be okay!  It was more of a me thing.  I was afraid I would freak out from waking up from my sleep to look over at the moniter like I do every night...then having to remember that he wasn't in the house!  :-)   But because the Monday night Saints game started at 7:30 p.m., I had no choice but to break the ice.

I dropped him off yesterday at his Mimi and Pawpaw's house around 2:00 p.m.  Peyton loves being by both of  his grandparents house.  Once he is there he tends to forget about Kevin and I.  So after chasing Peyton all over the yard trying to at least get one kiss and hug goodbye, I headed home to start to get ready for Saints game.

The Saints game was awesome as usual!  We won against the The Falcons, 35-27.   That makes us 7-0! 

This morning it was super nice getting up late!  :-).  I think the ice is well broken!  HA!  I lounged around all morning, cleaned up in the afternoon, then went to pick up Peyton.   Mimi told me that Peyton did really well for his first night away from home.  He slept through the night and was up at 6:15 a.m. to have breakfast.  Then he went outside was played all day.  

Of course Peyton didn't want to leave.  So after telling him that we were  going home to see Daddy and Zack, he agreed that he was ready to leave.  When we got home I had to start dinner and Peyton got very upset that I wouldn't let him go outside (after being outside all day).  I did explain to him I had to get dinner ready, but......he wouldn't accept that.  So he had a tantrum until Daddy came home.  We decided to have Daddy take Peyton outside a little while I was getting dinner on the table.  When it was time to come in, our course we got the tantrum again.  He refused to sit at the table to eat, so Kevin and I ate while he was having his fits at the door downstairs.   Oh, well, I guess Peyton has to get use to the word "no" again! :-)  So after Kevin and I ate, we brought Peyton's food downstairs, turned on his favorite show and fed him between fits.  He was starving because he would stop his fits long enough to take a bite, swallow, then start up again.  After a while he calmed down enough to get a bath then play with Daddy and I until bedtime.  I think my little man was extremely tired and hungry.  And having to snap back into his routine after being out of it was almost two days was a little rough for him.  But it was worth it and now I have no problem leaving him overnight with one of his grandparents.

I thinking now maybe a weekend vacation....just Kevin and I.   Yeah!

Peyton at Mimi and Pawpaw's house forgetting about Mommy!

Downtown New Orleans was a GREAT BIG PARTY!