Halloween 2011

My Dear Noah,

Halloween this year was so much fun with you and your brother!  You guys were adorable together and had tons of fun going from house to house cashing in on all that candy!  You did such a great job saying thank you (even when you got chocolate that you knew you didn't want...but I did!) and walking (because Dad had a talk with you guys before we went and told you not to run!).  You could've gone all night!

Here's to the next holiday!

Love you,

Mom

21 Questions

Dear Noah,

I asked you these 21 questions tonight and here are your adorable (and somewhat disturbing) answers : )

1.  What is something Mommy always says to you?
     "I love you."
2.  What makes Mommy happy?
     "When Max and me don't fight."
3.  What makes Mommy sad?
     "When Max and me fight."
4.  How does Mommy make you laugh?
     "When you read funny words in books."
5.  What was Mommy like as a child?
     "Were you naughty?
6.  How old is Mommy?
     "35"
7.  How tall is Mommy?
    "31"
8.  What is Mommy's favorite thing to do?
    "Eat chocolate."
9.  What does Mommy do when you're not around?
    "Do work all the time."
10. If Mommy becomes famous, what will it be for?
     "Usually bad guys get famous for doing something naughty. Stealing a bank."
11. What is Mommy really good at?
      "Eating chocolate."
12. What is Mommy not very good at?
      "Not eating chocolate."
13. What does Mommy do for her job?
      "Work at people's house with fabric."
14. What is Mommy's favorite food?
      "Chocolate."
15. What makes you proud of Mommy?
      "Let me play games. And when you win races."
16. If Mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be?
      "Chocolate man or a beautiful princess."
17. What do you and Mommy do together?
      "Work."
18. How are you and Mommy the same?
      "We both like candy a lot."
19. How are you and Mommy different?
      "Mom likes eating better and I like drinking better."
20. How do you know Mommy loves you?
      "Sometimes you're really nice and you make us food."
21. Where is Mommy's favorite place to go?
      "Going to get pizza and the candy store."


I'll do this again with you in a year and see if some of your impressions of me have changed (hopefully I won't be so obsessed with food and chocolate!)!!!!

Love you,
Piggy Mommy

"I'm only 4 1/2 and I can ride a bike without training wheels"!

Mr. Noah,

So, you did it!  You can ride your bike without training wheels and you are SO proud of yourself (and so are we!)!  We went away this weekend on a little family trip to The Cowboy Cabin in Marthasville, MO where we taught you how to ride on the Katy Trail.  I got a glimpse of how we will be together when I'm teaching you how to drive (let's just say maybe your Dad will always be the one to teach you these kinds of things!).  Anyway, you stuck with it and pulled it off on the first day!  Then, on day 2 when we went back, you were on a roll and we hardly had to touch you.  Everytime someone would pass by you would sing, "I'm only 4 1/2 and I can ride a bike without training wheels".... Normally I would've pulled you aside and explained that we don't want to brag, yadha, yadha, but I let you have your moment this time!



You love school this year!  Your teachers are Ms Angie and Ms Patty and your favorite spot is the writing center!  Everyday when I pick you up I am greeted with your arms full of papers and drawings for me and Dad.  You are very into letters and writing too.  It's such a fun time for learning with you!

With the purchase of my iphone, you've also become quite the gamer.  It's a hard thing for me to accept because on one hand I hate it....it worries me (of course).  I worry that you're social skills will decline due to excessive video gaming, I worry that you'll lose your imagination, I worry that you'll learn violent behavior, the list goes on.  Then, on the other hand, I see how you use your brain and are able to solve mazes and puzzles and learn letters and numbers!  You are so persistent and can focus on something for a good amount of time and if channeled the right way, that is a great skill!  You and Dad love to play Kung Fu Panda and Angry Birds together...and some Cookie game.

You definitely love your Mamma!  You noticed the other day that you and I have a lot of things in common...we both like: the color red, hotdogs, beautiful music, not much frosting, and decorating! When I picked you up from school I had on some regular clothes (not workout clothes for a change) and my hair and makeup were done (very uncommon occurrences for me!) and you said, "wow, beautiful!" out loud in front of the teachers....so sweet!  You told me you loved me more than 1,000 suckers and more than Christmas!  That's a lot for a kid!!! It's those moments I think we must be doing something right!

Cowboy Cabin Adventure

Picinic at Cowboy Cabin

At ER supporting Max



Mario and Luigi for Halloween

 Love you,

Mom

My Big Kid!

My Dear Noah,

You are SO big....on so many levels, height, weight, maturity (well, you are a boy, so sometimes the maturity is lacking!), helpfulness, brains, and sweetness! So much has happened since I last wrote to you that it's going to be way too hard to catch up, so I'll just start with where we are now and hope to write more often!

Since November (my last letter) you have turned 4! With that has come a whole new guy. You have become more social and interested in friends. Your best friend is Alex White and your brother! You and Alex love superheros and enjoy going to each other's house for playdates.

You played baseball this summer and Dad was the pitcher! It was such a special time for the two of you and you really improved from the beginning of the season to the end. Your friend and classmate, James, was on your team and his Dad was the coach. You loved playing, but I think you loved the end of the game the most....your team picked a superhero saying in the huddle at the end of every game and you always got snacks...that was a highlight! Max and I loved coming to cheer you on! You also insisted on hitting with a bat that was too heavy and too long for you because it was the one you got from Gramma and Papa for your birthday! I swear you could've hit some out of the park if you'd only use a smaller, lighter one, but you persevered and were always able to get a hit using the heavy one! So sentimental!

You also love to swim and are able to swim without floaties this season! You love to dive down with your goggles and get superheros on the bottom of the pool and are able to hold your breath longer and longer each day! You are determined and brave this summer and it's been fun to watch you explore new things.

Another skill you are showing interest in is reading and writing! I love this eagerness to learn that you have and hope you never lose that! You can write all of our names and recognize several words when trying to read. I print off worksheets for you a couple times a week and you get so excited to do them! I'm proud of you!

You are so helpful with Max. He and you have started sleeping together in your bed every night and there will be times in the middle of the night I hear you finding his lovie for him! You are always looking out for him and teaching him how to do things (like unbuckle his seat belt!).

Daddy buzzed you and Max's hair this summer and you guys look more and more alike! It also makes you look so much older....which leaves me with a pang in my heart every now and then. However, you have been randomly hugging and kissing me lately which relieves that pang a little! You did tell me you would always love me, even when I get mad or yell and even when you go to college and then become a dad someday!

The most current "issue" is your obsession with where your food comes from. You ask me at EVERY meal if the meat your eating is from an animal. And, you've made it very clear that you WILL NOT eat it if it has...so, I've been telling you "no", but think I have to start telling you the truth because you are too smart and will not let this go. You have told me that it's ok for us to eat eggs that don't have baby chicks in them, but not any other animal, even if it died on it's own. No fish, no animals, because it "makes you so sad and we might not ever be seeing those animals again". So sensitive! We'll see where this leads us.....

One thing we are working on (and you've been doing much better with) is not rolling your eyes when I'm telling you something you don't want to hear. And, not scrunching your eyes up and glaring at us if we are scolding you or telling you "no" about something....ATTITUDE!

All in all, I love you so much and am very proud of who you are becoming!

Love,

Mommy