Santa!

This will be quick--but I think Matt finally gets the concept of Santa! (3 Christmas movies later). He is excited to meet him and tell him what he wants. We will be going to the mall later.
Sean is at drill today, and he is going to finally check out! His time is up--6 years have passed! Not much more to say on that front really. I think he is pretty happy he is going to be out, and no more possibility of deployment!
Meanwhile, Matt and I are enjoying a day to ourselves. We were going to go hiking in the Santa Rosa Plateau and see the vernal pools, but I woke up with a sore throat and runny nose, and Matt woke up coughing. It will be cold up in the plateau so probably not the best idea (I am very disappointed--thanks badly-timed cold!)
So, that's where Santa comes in. Might as well get it out of the way, and maybe do a little non-Matt gift shopping while there.
We have also decided to do a small celebration on Matt's birthday, but do a real party around January 10th. We don't have any $ for a good party this month thanks to the giving season, and the only day we'd have it on is currently taken by another (surprise) bday party for another person. The date/time/place will be set after Sean gets back and we find out if he has to go back to drill next month to finish checking out.
Speaking of checking out...we will probably relax at the library a bit today too.
Gotta go! Time to start the big day!

Happy Halloween and Extra Hour!

We had a very fun Halloween! Matt was so good trick or treating! He went up to the houses by himself and said "Trick or treat!" and "Thank you!". Everyone thought he was so cute in his garden gnome costume and he got lots of candy and compliments. He absolutely refused to go anywhere near the "scary" houses, which is a change from last year when he didn't care. One time he reached into a candy bowl and it was one of those trick ones that makes the figurine inside attack your hand. He was pretty upset and that was the end of trick-or-treating. It kind of reminds me of the time a man dressed as a lifeless scarecrow jumped out at Andy and scared him so badly he didn't go trick or treating for a long time.
Anyway, now the real battle is the candy at home. Being the age he is he will do a hunger strike for candy if he thinks there's any way he'll get it in lieu of a meal.
We also went to Disneyland on Thursday which was fun. It was all Halloween themed--and the haunted mansion and the fireworks were the best. Matt had a lot of fun meeting Tigger and Pooh. Pictures will come later; I don't feel like digging out my camera right now.
Nothing much has changed around here. I'm still grooming dogs and Sean is still delivering pizzas! At least we have a well groomed and well fed household!
Well, it's time to go get ready for work. Just a little update--sorry it's not more frequent! Check out my twitter for more current happenings.
Oh yes, and Daylight Savings rocks in the fall!

Sweet!

So I have been on a cooking binge lately. Just a combo of being bored, pretty much broke and too hot to go do anything outside. Plus it makes Matt sooo happy to "help" me, and it is very cute.
Still the same old stuff going on here, nothing to update. Oh, I made turnips last night (sliced them and lightly fried them in olive oil and rosemary), and they were really yummy! So that's one new thing--I like turnips. Oh, the fast-paced life!


Here's Mr. Perfect decorating some sugar cookies with an icing writer his Grammy sent him :-)

Learning from the master..

See Mom? See my cookie??

SEE MOM??!

I made these 2 nights ago. Know what they are? Sean didn't.

They're cupcakes!!! Yellow cake on top and deviled food cake in the middle. Topped with only the finest icing mustard, ketchup and lettuce! They were fun to make, although now I have all these middle parts of cupcake I don't know what to do with.

Matt was sick on Wednesday. He laid around for most of the day on the couch. He is all better now though!

In fact he was so much better he went bowling for the 1st time yesterday :-)


He had so much fun! He had to use the ramp though because he was unceremoniously dropping it on the ground hard instead of placing it and rolling it.

And he insisted on carrying his ball by himself!

Look at it go! Wheee!!

Gotta go now--Sean just fixed the kia brakes and I am taking it for a test drive :-)

Boredom leads to wonderful things

There hasn't been much to report lately. Just been working a lot, and stuck indoors because of the heat wave. Matt is becoming a good swimmer due to all the time at the pool. Even though there's nothing big to report, I figured it was time for some audio/visual updates!

Here's Matt fingerpainting. Here he is trying to make an imprint of his hand-you can see it where the papers meet.

Here he is trying out his new skates! He loves them! Been too hot for them lately, but for a few days there he was getting really good.

Yesterday it was a particularly dreary day. It was really humid with flash flood warnings and thunder and lightning. It didn't actually rain exactly where we were, but it rained in other parts of the town. We were so bored, so we gathered up some boxes and set up a bowling alley. Matt loved it--but I'll let you see for yourself.

Today is looking like it will be a better day. Sean left for a job fair in San Diego, so it's just Matt and I all day! While I was cleaning he kept telling me he was drawing a car, and I finally went to look. Usually it's scribbles with not much form, but to my surprise he was deliberately drawing! Not sure when that switch flipped on, but here he is drawing a car!

Yes, I know it's abstract, but he is off to a good start! He can also build cars, tanks and airplanes out of legos. He seems to have a very good idea of how things fit together in 3d modeling. We have a toy I got as a gift from my friend's daughter a few years back. It is a bunch of hexagonal nuts on a magnetic base. You can model them into whatever, but of course their magnetic attraction disappears when they are off the base. Matt thinks that's awesome. He surprised me by building a dinosaur, without help. He very carefully made the body, the head, the arms and the legs-all in the correct places. It's one thing to stack a few rectangular blocks and call it a car (or cross two for an airplane), and another thing to model a creature. He definitely has a natural aptitude for that type of stuff so I am eager to see if it develops into anything significant!
Right now, however, it is time for his nap. I hope you enjoy the pictures and video!

Same old stuff

Sean came home on monday, but besides that nothing much new is happening. We went to the beach and really made out with seashells. Matt wants to give one to his friend Kaelyn, who we're seeing today. How cute! No more pictures right now, but just figured I'd update. No luck on the house search yet!

Well That's Just Beachy!

Matt and I had an awesome time at the beach yesterday! We collected seashells,
walked the pier, played in the surf,
looked at crabs in the rocks we were climbing, played in the sand
and had ice cream. Matt keeps talking about it! We may go back next week with the dogs.

Here's a video of him being super cute!

Ugh I sound so naggy but it was only because I wanted him to show off for the camera--we really did have a nice relaxing time.

Oh Matt...

Gee he really does fit in with the Holloway side sometimes. Apparently his new thing is to wake up quietly (so we don't wake up) and go to his window (that faces the walkway). He then bangs on it and yells "LET ME OUT!!!!!!" to all the passerby.
Sigh...

Baby Book

Just dug out Matt's baby book, and am going to complete it as much as possible tonight. It goes through his 5th year, so I can only do so much :-P I am also revamping and updating my Picasa, so check it out! It may take me a while to upload and organize, so if it looks the same right now, don't despair!
My life has very much stabilized, so that's why there aren't many posts and pictures lately. It's way too hot to do many outdoor activities besides swimming. Matt is getting used to the water--he still won't swim but LOVES going underwater. Him and I go under together and I can see him looking back at me and grinning. So weird! He holds his breath well, but I don't let him do it more than a second because it freaks me out a little. Of course he says "Again! Again!"

He also seems to have a crush on Kai-Lan, a character from a kid's show called "Ni-Hao, Kai-Lan"

He runs up to the tv and gives her a kiss, and just about had a stroke when he saw a Kai-Lan doll in Target yesterday. I talked him down from the $15 doll to a $7 playset, and Mai ate Kai-Lan the very next day. A twist of irony there as a common racist stereotype is that Asians like to eat dog...and my dog eats Asians. How odd.
Anyway! I imagine Matt was not very thrilled to see his girlfriend eaten, but I was at work, so I don't know. Kai-Lan's friend Tolee survived with a few severe bites and missing an ear.

Tomorrow or Thursday we are going to take Matt bowling for the first time, and I will make sure to take my camera. I am still mad at myself for forgetting the camera on 4th of July! Speaking of Independence Day...
Matt LOVED the 4th! He got his face painted for the first time (he wanted stars, and got a moon, stars and a rocket). He sat very still for it. He absolutely loved the food, all the kids running around, and of course the fireworks! He really liked the fireworks. He also liked my friend Kim's 1 year old, named Vivian. As soon as he saw her he started giggling and spinning around and falling down. He would look at her, smile and laugh, spin and fall. Repeat. He really likes girls! He gets all silly. It also helps that I think she looks a little like Kai-Lan.
Well, that's about it for now. I think Picasa bit off a bit more than it can chew with my...gulp...3,395 photos to upload! But it's worth it! I can print out "real" pictures from Picasa (and pick them up at Walgreens), have a backup in case my computer acts weird, and also to let you all get to know Matt a little better! I hope everyone's holiday went awesome and I will post later! Off to filling out the baby book!

Humdrum....

Not much going on over here. Going to try to find a house to rent next month because our lease is up at the end of August. Sean got offered an interview for a job from an old buddy at Plasticsurgery.com and then we found out Sean lost his phone. We looked high and low for it, but no luck. It sucks because my phone is actually broken and I was planning on replacing it but looks like it's broken phone land for me still! He thinks he put it on the roof of the car yesterday and drove away.
I am trying to diet! Never done it before because I always felt being vegetarian was plenty of food sacrifice for me. But its just gotten ridiculous. My eating habits were all weird and were contributing to me being about the same weight I was 9 months pregnant--scary! For instance I would eat nothing until 12 or so, then eat a huuuge lunch, then snack/eat small things from about 8-11. Instead now I eat a good breakfast, drink a shake thingie for lunch and eat a light dinner, then don't eat after 6. It's definitely hard, but not as hard as I thought it would be. I know the key is to do something not too drastic, something I can keep up with indefinitely. And exercise of course is a key component.
Sooo..told you there's not much going on except boring day to day stuff. I am enjoying my morning before Matt wakes up.
Ahh..the magic words. I hear him now. Gotta run!

My Birthday, Seaworld and the Zoo!

But before we get started on an undeniably cute picture-fest, I have something to say! I got bit in the face by a dog yesterday (a lab mix) and it hurts really bad! Luckily he was old and his teeth were dull so I just have a yucky bruise. But since hopefully everyone feels sorry for me I decided the only thing that would make me feel better is to post these flattering pictures of people I love! Hopefully it'll brighten your day too.



Oh ok I feel sorta bad so here's one of me too.

Right after I got all 4 wisdom teeth pulled--fun!

Anyway--First I will start with my birthday! Sean and I went to Knott's Berry Farm! Sadly Sean hurt his back on the first ride we went on (Ghostrider, a wooden roller coaster), and had to sit out the heavy-duty coasters for the rest of the day. The day was still wonderful though--we had an awesome time and I had the best birthday I'd had for years!

Here's one of the only pictures we took. We got an "official" picture, but it's not digital.

Here's Matt at Seaworld at the tide pool. He liked it a lot! I think the manta rays sorta creeped him out though.

These guys creeped ME out. They're mooray eels, and they just stare...and stare...

A ha! Dad's distracted--finally! What's in here? Something expensive? My toddler senses are tingling...

Last week, I took Matt to the zoo. We had a lot of fun! I like our mommy-son days--gotta enjoy them while they last!

Matt and a hippo. The hippo is also adept at posing as you may be able to see.

There was this peacock wandering around the elephant exhibit, and Matt was very interested. He hasn't seen many birds up close and took this opportunity to get close and personal (under my careful supervision of course).
But just when he was getting too close, with a big WOOSH the bird opened it's feathers and turned toward Matt.

He did not like that. At all. But no one was hurt and I was able to get some stunning pictures!

Matt races the cheetah. Ready...set...banana! Gotcha!

Also, it's spring...sorta..and all the ducklings were out!

Matt liked looking at the ducklings a lot. I think they remind him of Ming Ming from Wonder Pets (one of his favorite shows)

Cute!
Anyway, it's time for his nap! We are taking it easy today because tomorrow is Sean's birthday and we're going to Disneyland!

Wierd Baby

So, I guess Matt just started a new phase. After 2 years of wanting to sleep in his own bed in his own room with no exceptions ever, he has decided he wants to sleep with us. He woke up at 4 this morning and slept in our bed until 8. It was nice, since he's older (last time we co-slept he was 4 months old), he can share covers and doesn't move as much. He also woke me up by giving me a big, gentle hug and a tender kiss and said "morning mom". So I'm not complaining, it was sooo cute! And he is now sleeping in our bed because he refused to nap in his room. But it's so weird. Why would he all of a sudden want to sleep with us? Any ideas?

Rainy Day

I've pretty much given up on this blog--I stopped having things to really write about and wasn't really doing anything fun or interesting. But, I feel like it's time for an update!
There's so much and so little to report...Hmm...
Matt's talking a whole bunch now, his vocabulary is huge! He is making the tenuous leap from phrases to sentences which is taking a long time but he's almost there! He finally talks on the phone (at least to me), so next time I call maybe you can talk to Matt! His talking skills are right on target for his age and gender(almost 2 1/2 now!), although it seems like everyone else's toddlers talk a lot more! What he lacks in language skills he makes up for by far in comprehension. He can name most shapes and colors now and follow any command that's within his ability. And he wants to! He puts his dishes away without asking, can get me a specific item of clothing if I describe it, and many other cool things. I am learning more about his emerging personality--what used to be directionless energy is now forming itself into a purpose. He wants to be busy all the time and wants to help all the time. In turn I try to keep him busy with activities and trips. He is now very affectionate (yay years of forced affection is paying off!) and says sorry, please and thank you regularly. Anyway!
In March I got a settlement check from Petsmart and used it to buy a disneyland pass, so Matt had his 1st Disneyland trip on March 23rd.

Here's him looking apprehensive near the entrance. I didn't get any "iconic" Disneyland shots because he was running around too much.

Here's Matt doing something at Tarzan's tree house, or as I like to call it, the stair ride. You go up several fights of stairs, look at faux survival gear, then go back down the stairs on the opposite side into a play place for kids.

Don't I just fit in? Because you know I'm sweet as honey! Maybe honey with a few bees left in...

Here he is at the end of the night. He didn't take a nap that day...not that you can tell...

We had a great Easter. Here's some pictures and videos! (Hey, gotta make up for lost posts!)


Matt helping to dye the eggs...

Matt watches intently to make sure nothing happens to the precious eggs.

Scrunchie face!!!


Easter morning. Looks like someone awakened the green eyed monster...both of them!

Matt looks for eggs--and a rare shot of all 3 of us in a picture!

Easter Morning


And Matt having a blast hunting for the candy filled eggs.

Dana came to visit us in late January, so here's some pictures of us! For those who don't know, she's my best friend from Monterey and also Matt's aunt!

There's always one...






Yay for tilting head pictures!

And just a couple random pictures. Matt likes holding our pet snake named Jaena. He understands he has to be gentle and move very slowly.


We went to the Renfaire April 18th, but didn't really get many pictures, so here's the best one.
His Grammy Jean made Matt's outfit--you can't see but it has a gold lion embroidered on the front.

I think that about covers the things I have pictures for! I will hopefully be going to Knotts Berry Farm for my birthday, and Disneyland for Sean's. Been saving up for it! Joey is living with us again because we just weren't making it by ourselves. The kia is finally fixed and has been running for about 2 months now. We're looking at renting a house when our lease is up, something we couldn't do last year for financial reasons.
Sean is now back to working at Pizza Hut, after months of job searching for a "real" job with no luck. I am currently trying to get him a position at PetSmart. If he's going to work retail, he might as well do it in a fun laid back company that pays well!
Right now we're having a thunder and lightning storm, and I am enjoying the noises. I didn't realize we were due for one, so Matt and I got dressed this morning and went to the park. This park features a nice tall...metal...climbing structure! Sadly for him we had to leave right after we got there. I told him I don't like fried baby and he seemed to understand (ok, well he didn't struggle when we left so I take that as acquiescence).
Going to go enjoy the rest of Matt's nap now while I can. Yes, he still naps and it's wonderful!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! Got us talking last night about what our goals for this year are, and we came to the conclusion that if we're going to be poor and working retail that we should at least do it for a good cause. Sean is thinking of going back to school and getting his bachelors, which I am all for. Heck, we're already so deep in debt that there's no way to pay it back, and these days a bachelors seems to be a basic requirement. That way Sean can earn money working at Pizza Hut and from the G.I. bill, all while working toward a better goal. My college is out of the question--I don't get the G.I. bill and I make far more working at PetSmart than I could through any federal funding. Basically if Sean goes to college, the family benefits; and if I go, the family is done for! Plus I am not sure I want to go to college for a specific career like Sean. I'd rather go to study what I am interested in and if it leads to a job, great.
Well anyway, Matt is destroying the house, so I gotta go! (We took down Christmas decorations last night so the house was finally neat and clean--until Matt woke up.)