Poor, poor dog

I know what you're all thinking. "That poor, poor dog." I tell you though, this dog is so starved for attention he'll take it any way he can get it, even if it means Scarlett wrapping her hands around his little neck in a desperate attempt to "dance" with him...an attempt that was fully encouraged - and maybe even suggested - by her father, might I add.

For those of you who know Link, I'm sure you've seen his "roll over" trick. For some reason, this 16 lb. dachshund must spin in a circle about 3-4 times immediately prior to dropping and officially "rolling over." For those of you who know Scarlett, I'm sure you've seen her new "crazy spinning" trick. For some reason, this 16 month old toddler enjoys spinning in a circle until she completely loses her balance and totally wipes out. Link,meet Scarlett. Scarlett - Link.

But "Mo" was thirsty!

Scarlett rarely gets to have sippy cups in the car. She usually winds up making a mess and both she and the car seat get soaked. This time, there was a third party involved in the incident.

This morning, just before we were about to walk out the door for daycare/work, Scarlett asked for juice. I pulled a Poland Springs water bottle out of the fridge thinking I could coerce her into one sip from the bottle, which would then be left behind in the house upon walking out of the door. Not so much. She shook her head and said "nooooo." I shut the fridge and she continued to ask for "juice." Then she pulled out the new trick. It's a true low blow. "Pees mama, pees" (this means "please"). My God...it gets me every time. How could it not? She got juice, and immediately replied with "Da du, mama." (This means "thank you"...and yes, she has got the manners thing down. It's quite impressive, if I do say so myself.) So Scarlett and her juice made their way to the car.

About 15 minutes later, we look back at Scarlett to see how she was doing with her juice. Of course, the cup is upside down in her lap and she had spilled some juice on herself and the seat. But wait..."Mo" (her stuffed Elmo doll) was also in her lap...and his face (particularly the mouth region) was SOAKED. After asking her what she was doing, Scarlett babbled this response (intelligible words in bold), "blip chet du blip terp MO terp blip JUICE (holds cup to his mouth) tup-tup-tup (thirst-quenching) AAAHHHHHH."

In short, duh mom...Mo was thirsty.

Pumpkin time!

Yesterday we met up with Val, Andrei, and Carson at Jones Family Farm in Shelton. Oh yeah...we went pumpkin picking. You may remember a similar post from last year when we brought Scarlett to this same farm for her first pumpkin patch experience ever. (If you need a refresher, click here.) It was a beautiful day outside. The leaves are just starting to change colors and it reminds me why I love to live in New England. (Although, ask me how much I love to live in New England in about 3 months when I'm complaining about the cold and the snow. The answer may be a little different. It may contain a couple words not suitable for toddler ears. But for now...I love New England.)

"Come on Mom...you're so embarrassing. We haven't even left the parking lot yet."

Scarlett immediately found the little red kid-sized barns that the farm put up. I don't remember these from last year, but that's probably because Scarlett was a blob then and couldn't even sit up by herself let alone play in a barn. (She also had an immensely large head for a four month old. If you haven't clicked on the link to last year's post, please do. You can't tell me that child's head wasn't huge)
Upon leaving the house, Joe told me that he thought Scarlett looked like a bum in this outfit. He said the dress looked like a bathrobe, her hair was all messed up, and her chucks were dirty. I thought she looked trendy...though I have also recently taken a liking to wearing white socks with my black Crocs - so who am I to say.I had no idea why this sign said "Uh-Oh" until Carson and Scarlett got behind it."Uh-Oh" is right. So...what else does one do in a pumpkin patch? They pick up pumpkins...or try to.

(Please note the grunt in the beginning of this video)


They go on Hayrides...
They sit on pumpkins...
and fall off of pumpkins.
They run around like maniacs...They pose...
and poop.
And overall...they have a great time in pumpkin patches!
After the pumpkin patch and naptime, we went over to Val and Andrei's to carve our pumpkins.


Carson and Scarlett did quite the job helping us out. Actually, I'm just being nice. They really did nothing but stir the guts around in the pumpkin, and the second Scarlett got guts on her hand she freaked out and went over to bang the spoon in Carson's slide instead. But it was really cute that they wanted to help.The end result...Ta-da!

Radhika turns 1!

Last Sunday, we all went to Radhika's first birthday party. There were so many people there that her parents, Jessica and Banhu, had to rent a whole hall to hold everyone! It was a lot of fun. There was tons of room to run around and play...and fight over balloons.

Scarlett's Godparents, Auntie Joyce and Uncle Dan were there too. Radhika is their niece.And you know who else was there? Balloons...tons of them. The party even had its own DJ! When cake cutting time came around, a special drummer came onto the stage. Everyone stared at him.Including Scarlett.
Then everyone watched Radhika take her first mouthful of cake.
MMMMmmmmm...

Yay Radhika! Happy birthday!

Day four of Val and Carson

Aww...Scarlett's days with Val and Carson have unfortunately come to an end. (Sob from Scarlett and sob from Joe and I.) Joe and I cannot thank Val enough for helping us out this week! Scarlett had a blast - the posts prove it. Click here to see Day 4. Watching them these past four days was so much fun. Our little blobs of babies have turned into rambunctious toddlers who run around and play with each other. (When did that happen?!) Scarlett is a lucky little girl to have a friend/fiancee like Carson. And Lauren is a lucky mom to have a friend/fellow mother like Val. Thanks again guys!

Days 2 and 3 with Bal and Car-key

I cannot believe how much Val is doing with these kids. I think she has done more with them in the past three days then Scarlett's regular provider has done with them in the past year! They've gone for walks everyday, they've colored, they've gone to Toddler Tunes! It's nuts! Scarlett is having so much fun with them that when I wake her up in the morning the first thing she says is "Car-key" (not kidding!). I'm also loving it because through Val's blog I get a peek into Scarlett's daily routine - something I've been completely unaware of with her regular daycare provider (I know it usually involves t.v. and not going outside regularly). Here are links to the past two days Scarlett has spent with Val and Carson. Be prepared to laugh.
Day 2 - click here
Day 3 - click here

Hangin' out with "Bal and Car-key"

Scarlett's daycare provider is on vacation all this week, so Val and Carson (or "Bal and Car-key," as she calls them) are taking care of Scarlett for us. I tell ya...it's going to be hard for her to go back to her regular provider - she is having so much fun with them! Val posted all about it on her blog. To see what these crazy kids have been up to, click here. And even better....there's more to come! All this fun stuff happened on their first day together! Yay full day playdates!

Sesame Street Live

Just so you're all aware...I just spent $128.85 on three 2nd row tickets to see Sesame Street Live: Elmo's Green Thumb. What happened to me?