touch a truck event

What an amazing event and fun-filled day! Baltimore Washington Medical Center filled a parking lot with nearly every type of vehicle and then let the kids hop in and try them out! As you can imagine Tyler thought he had died and gone to heaven. We tested out a police cruiser, fire truck, garbage truck, concrete mixer, ambulance, airport runway snow plow, tow truck, coach bus, UPS freight truck, mail delivery truck, military vehicles, mobile command unit, and a State Police helicopter that landed on the nearby helipad!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

domestic diva

 

 

storage solutions

uh oh

Jenna's turn! Tyler used to say this phrase nonstop as a little one and now Jenna has picked it up. So cute!

seeing stars

Tyler and I decided to put glow-in-the-dark stars on his bedroom ceiling this weekend. I really wanted him to have a say, so he picked out the locations as I popped them up. But my boy likes to be even more involved and asked to put them up himself, which is a bit difficult given the location! But we managed -- I put him on my shoulders and stood on my toes so that he could reach. He loved it and was so proud of the results!

fever

Jenna woke from her Friday afternoon nap with a fever, which has lasted through today. Thankfully it seems to have subsided and we avoided any throw up or major illness. She's a trouper!

air & space museum, chantilly, virginia

 

 

 

 

 

 

more words

Driving to daycare in the morning we talk about animals and the noises they make. Tyler and I got her to say "ruff, ruff" for a doggy!

Later that day she added, "please" and "stop that." The later happened as she played with Daddy during bath time and it sounded more like, sta dat.

bubble

Another word for Jenna: BUBBLE!

corner

Jenna experienced her stay in the corner. I was dropping her at daycare and she wasn't happy with Mommy about something and started hitting me. After telling her to stop twice, I put her down and told her to stand in the corner of Ms. Debbie's foyer. She went right over and did it. After a minute I asked her if she was ready to come out and stop hitting and she nodded yes. My baby!!!

pumpkin pickin'

This was our fourth annual trip to our favorite farm on Earth -- the Triadelphia Lake View Farm. After a week of rain, we decided to get out in the fresh air and enjoy the clear skies while hunting for our perfect pumpkins and gourds.

This time last year Jenna was in a baby carrier and now she walked the rows of pumpkins with reckless abandon. And this year we were happy to be joined by the Kayes who are about to celebrate Baby Ryan's first Halloween. Maybe this will become a tradition for their family as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

balloon lovers

life

Tyler to Daddy: "You are ruining my life!"

moment in time

Happy Tyler. Cross Jenna.

 

bubble wrap!

Need I say more? A big hit in the Campbell house.

 

 

 

engineer?

Tyler's new colloquialisms

Tyler says the darnedest things (what kid doesn't?). Here are a few of his latest ones:
1) I'm just joking with you! (after saying something silly)
2) How 'bout three? (after offering him one toy to take along with him)
3) He's gaining on us! (regarding Daddy walking the trash down the driveway while me and the kids are backing down the driveway in the car to leave)

big boy underwear

After having no accidents for a full week at daycare while wearing pull ups, Tyler got the green light from Ms. Debbie to start wearing big boy underwear to daycare this week. Total SUCCESS on his first day. Even during nap time!!

Now we just need to work on when it is and isn't appropriate to show his big boy underwear: he showed two neighbors his cool undies within the span of our one-block walk. :) But he's proud and so are we, so flasher Tyler it is!

fashion bug

Jenna Bear is starting to show preferences for certain outfits, shoes and accessories. Once she started wearing her shoes each day, it became a bit difficult to take them off once inside the house! I bought her a chunky plastic jeweled necklace for dress up, except now she seems to like to wear it more often and even takes turns passing it back and forth between her neck and Tyler's.

Now this morning Alex mistakenly put on Jenna's fall jacket thinking it was her raincoat. Realizing that it was really raining and it would be better to switch coats, he met some serious resistance. Jenna wailed because she really wanted to wear her tan and pink coat with the flowers rather than her, dare I say, drab navy and white raincoat. Apparently this was very traumatic. And once home from daycare she insisted on putting on her flowered coat even while in the house. Anything for fashion!

PB&J

Both of my kids love their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Tyler likes to pick out cookie cutters that I use to make his sandwich into a particular shape (a teddy bear in this instance) and Jenna just gobbles them up no matter the shape.

 

happy birthday to Xavier!

My childhood friend's son turned one year old already! We joined them in celebrating the occasion at their house in Rockville. Tyler and Jenna both had a great time in the ball pit, but after asking Tyler what his favorite thing about the party was, he declared, "the cupcakes!"

 

 

passing on the green one

Tyler skipped the green one for a car ride today (very unusual). And did it once more. Could he be growing out of his security blanket??

potty training

Tyler has been peeing and pooping on the potty for the better part of this year. But I need to qualify that statement: while fully capable of going on the potty, he hasn't been potty trained. He still fights us occasionally and chooses not to go on the potty at times. He is just so stubborn and does not want to stop playing to perform the duty. And frankly, potty training is not something I'm all that urgent about instituting (call me lazy). I have had numerous other moms tell me how Tyler is right on track with other little boys they know his age. But that is little consolation when Tyler looks like a 5-year old (he's very tall folks)!

We have tried numerous options to entice, coax and demand him to use the potty (candy each time he used the potty, aim for the cheerios as a game, put him in big boy underwear and let him pee himself if unsuccessful) and all have had mixed results. But just lately Tyler has seemed to WANT to pee and poop on the potty. We've had dry pull ups for almost a week now including three poops on the potty at daycare yesterday. Our daycare provider said that we could start sending him in undies this week. Fingers crossed that my headstrong son will keep up the effort!

looking up

Jenna is really taking notice of all the things moving overhead. She likes to point out the trees, birds and airplanes. She now mimics the airplane noises we make, "Kkkkuhshhh."

peekabanister

Jenna loves to peek through the banister and giggle!