Favorite Phrase Friday - Bits and Pieces Now

I made a list of words late last year. A short list of the sweet words that Harrison started using regularly as he began to carve out his position in language.

I realized some of those sweet little cute-isms have already given way to proper pronunciations. It leaves my proud of his accomplishments and sad that this boy is growing SO FAST.

We were walking to the car from an elevator, Harrison stopped in the threshold of the elevator for a moment. I turned and watched him.

"Will it close, mommy?"

"When you step out it will close."

He waits for a moment and I wonder what he thinks about. Then he runs toward me.

"Thank you elevator!"

Then he adds, "The elevator says, Thank you too, Harrison."

I comment on the nice manners of the elevator...but I also realize that Harrison no longer says "Up-vador"

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"Um. Sure."

One day I ask, "Would you like me to carry you downstairs?"

He responds, "Ummm. Sure."

Another day - "Do you want to go to Disneyland?"

"Um. sure, Mommy!"

And he had to think about that?

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"Next-later"
[Love this one!]

The last few days Harrison has tried out a new phrase which is really his acknowledgment of another time or after.

Big Brother was leaving with his mom the other night and Harrison, after hugs and goodbyes, yelled out,

"But I love you Big Brother! See you next-later!"

We'll watch a movie or show and Harrison will ask for another one, when I tell him that we can watch it at a different time, he responds,

"Maybe we can watch this next-later?"

or

"Hey! How 'bout we watch this one next-later!"

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I NEEEEED You!

I have had my parenting challenges over the last month, Harrison has reared his stubborn, defiant side; yet in the same breath he will plead " I NEED you Mommy!"

I often think about that some-day when he will no longer say, "I need you."

It will come far too quickly, I'm sure.

When I think of that I often stop my work, my dishes, my laundry - and take the moment he needs - to hold him and tell him I love him.

It's fleeting. It really is fleeting.

The Post That Never Was...

Edited Friday - Midnight.

Something went awry here. Don't know what it was. Maybe that large piece of furniture I was trapped under...

I couldn't even find this in my list of posts at first, but I know it published. Curiouser and Curiouser.

I'll be back next week for Best Shot Monday over at Slurping Life. Join us then - won't you?

Fav Phrase Friday - He's a Sponge - With a Sense of Humor the Size of Springfield

It's not like a year ago when Harrison would pick up a word or phrase and use it for a week at a time until the better word came along. Now he just talks incessantly and if I don't jot something down it's gone in a flash!

But there are those classic moments that stand out.

Like last weekend.

It started in the car, Harrison, the G.I.D and I went to the Aquarium, on the way we stopped at a light and Harrison (in his best Lisa Simpson voice - I found out later) said,

"Are we here yet? Are we here yet?"

Surprised, the GID asked me, "Where did he learn that??" I shrugged.
He turned and responded to Harrison "Not yet, we have to get on the Freeway..."

Harrison interupted, (in his best Homer Simpson voice -and it's good)

"No, No, NO, NOO!"

Then it dawned on me... I told the GID that we had heard part of a commercial on the radio the week before. I didn't know what it was.

Shortly after that, as if the radio gods were listening in on our conversation, the commercial came on the radio again.

It's the Simpson's ride opening at Universal Studios Hollywood!



We burst into laughter - realizing how Harrison put it together. At three years old, he understood the joke of a short radio spot enough to try it out on his daddy.

And of course, once we laughed, he had to imitate the radio spot a few hundred more times with that cute little cheeky grin of his saying "Are we here yet, no,no, NOOO!"

Laughter is just the reception that 3-year-olds enjoy receiving.

We shouldn't be too surprised, after all several months ago [before he turned 3] we were all lying in bed one morning, getting over colds, when he sat up and said, "I'm sick. [pause] Nice to meet you."

Now that's a great way to start the day!


He's going to be an entertainer. [sigh]

He's Gone and Done It! - Theme Thursday

What has he done now, You ask?

He has made the conscious choice NOT to nap any longer.

"Mom, I'm not sleepy. I don't NEED to take a nappy."

Period.

And did you notice something?

He didn't call me "Mommy" or "Mama"...

No.

He has taken to calling me "Mom"!

What??
Does he really think he's a tween? Seriously, don't answer that.


So what happens when he doesn't take a nap?

He wants to play non-stop with ME. It's the NON-STOP part that is causing a riff in my universe. We can play for a good couple hours and where I am done and need a break, he's got a little more pushing me down to do, or "falling into the water and-you-cry-and-save-me" to do , or "pitch the ball just 10 more times, mom", or "you be the big mean robot and I be the good robot" to do, or - well you got the point.

Non-stop, people.

Work is not finished.

Laundry is not finished.

I can't seem to plan meals.

MY down time is not accomplished. Yes, I tell him that even mommy takes a rest.

He IS - Non-stop.

In the dictionary there is a picture of Harrison next to the phrase - Non-Stop.

It's no longer about trains or planes.


He puts the Energizer Bunny to shame!

In the encyclopedia - he's there...

Charles A. Lindbergh (American aviator)

American aviator, one of the best-known figures in aeronautical history, remembered for the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic, from New York to Paris, on May 20–21, 1927.

Sir John William Alcock (British aviator)
Aviator who, with his fellow British aviator Arthur Brown, made the first nonstop transatlantic flight.

Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones

At midday on March 20, 1999, they became the first balloonists ever to travel nonstop around the world. [Hot-air balloons photo credit : Jim Larsen]

Harrison Pierce

Toddler moving at non-stop pace while no longer taking naps. [And the look on his face shows it.]

What do I want?
A vacation.


Dang, I love that boy. (Anybody want him for a week?)

Wordless Wednesday

There is more than one way to clean a shower ... and a child!

Click on the image for larger view.

Check out more Wordless Wednesday pictures here and here.

BSM - Step Over Buzz Lightyear - There's a New Ride in Town!

On Thursday we made a rather late impromptu trip to Disneyland. The last time we did that the weather was similar -overcast and almost cool at home but at Disneyland it's usually HOT! Not that day, that day we got rained out! We were soaked. I was dressed for heat and FREEZING!
This time I remembered to check the weather.

Yup, expect hot.

Then we saw it...

It was beyond hot.

But despite the heat, we headed over to California Adventure and braved the crowds to try out the new Toy Story Midway Mania ride.

We got there in time for most people to take a lunch break... So we only had a 45 minute wait.

Did I mention it was HOT? This would be my best shot. Those eyes - (and that's straight out of camera) how can I NOT give this child everything he asks for when he gives me those eyes? Well, let me just say he has another look he occasionally flashes that gets him NOTHING - but a time out to think about his actions, that is. (PS if you click in the picture you can see a reflection of me in his eyes as I'm taking the picture of him.)

But I digress.

Mr. Potato Head posing for picture moments.

The ride was so much fun! Harrison had no problem keeping his 3-d glasses on as he blasted targets with his zapper. It's so easy to keep pulling the cord even a 3-year-old can do it! Rather then go through the details of the ride, here are a couple of my not-so-great pictures and a link to the opening day of Toy Story Midway Mania. Check it out for some rare "inside" pictures of the attraction.

Yeah, we definitely LOVED it. It was a perfect blend of spinning around and blasting at targets - I felt like I was a kid for a moment and I wanted to go running back around and get right back in line to do it again!

[Not only would it NOT happen in that heat, but when we came out of the attraction, the line had grown extensively!]
Yes, we have a new favorite ride and it's headed up be a cowboy named Woody - but after some lunch and a bottle of refreshing water, Harrison said, "Let's ride Buzz Lightyear, Mommy!"


Across the plaza we marched - to Disneyland, Buzz Lightyear was waiting.


Head over to Tracey's to see more sunny pictures!

Summertime and the Livin' is Easy

On Wednesday evening our home group met at the beach for a potluck and bonfire. It was a beautiful evening with many new friends, the air was crisp, the sky beautiful and the music mixed with the glow of the dancing flames just cemented a perfect first bonfire experience for Harrison. It had been a long-time for me, too; it was truly a peaceful evening.

This is my Best Shot Monday.

For a moment it took me back in time to when I was small when my parents took me on picnics with our extended family to a rocky, green creek in the hills of South Dakota; or (at Harrison's age) spending the afternoons on the clear, blue waters and white sand of Florida's golf coast. I only hope that we will have many more evenings like this and that they will be sweet memories woven into Harrison's mind and heart forever.


We've spent plenty of days on the beach, but this was the first time we watched the sun go down and stayed on the cool sand until long after bedtime dark.


At the end of the evening tired kids sat in the sand gazing out into the darkness broken only by glowing dots of bonfires spotting the beach and listening to calming rhythms of ocean waves invisibly crashing against the shoreline.

We go home - with sand in our hair, the smell of a campfire in our nostrils and drop peacefully into our beds hoping that "tomorrow" will greet us with as much goodness as this day did.

Head over to Mother May I for more of the Best this weekend.

Happy Father's Day to the Guy I Dig - a.k.a. Daddy!

The G.I.D. has been a father for almost 18 years now. He has gleaned a lot of experience through those years. Being a father can be so incredibly rewarding and yet very humbling, as always everything is mirrored back to you. I know he wouldn't trade his experiences for the world. And I wouldn't want anyone else to raise these two boys. God had His perfect plan for this family.

For a while there were only the two of them.

Then I came along...

And the two became three again.
And then, by the grace of God, we became four...

Harrison is as different from Big Brother as night and day! Although Harrison's energy could power a city block for a week, he has reminded the G.I.D. of the Pure Joy of childhood wonder - yet again. Yes it's true, the G.I.D. is older, wiser, more tired and Blessed.

He is a father.

Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from him.

Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.

Blessed is the man
whose quiver is full of them.

Psalm 127:3-5

Happy Father's Day to all you dads!

Wordless Wednesday - Come in Obi-Wan, Can You Hear Me?

Not the best pictures but the expressions on his face are classic! I wonder what he was thinking he heard?

He couldn't get enough of that police radio, he had a second go-round.
He did break into some Star Wars dialog. Are you surprised?

click in the picture larger view.

Check out more Wordless Wednesday pictures here and here.

Knobs, Buttons, Pedals and Radios - A Boy's Dream

We went to the City Yard Open House on Saturday, it is a boy's dream.

It's a mom's nightmare.

Why?

Because the boy wants to get in and hang out on any given machine or truck for as long as he possibly can.

he needs to step in the pedals...

Push the buttons and pull the levers...

Pretend to drive. Even talk on the radio to an imaginary friend...

The problem?


Every other boy has the same dream and they wait in line for their chance to sit on the same vehicle, pull the same lever, step on the same pedal.

But alas, there is time, we're in no rush to be anywhere, we take our time to see it all and revisit the favorite places...

Like the police motorcycles...

And the trash trucks with no lines of kids waiting at the end of the day.

Stick around long enough and the city yard vehicles are yours for the taking!

We finally leave 3 hours later content with kettle corn in hand.

A good day for a boy.

He's Back!...

Harrison received some Star Wars action figures for his birthday, the most important being - Darth Vader, Anakin Skywalker and the Storm Troopers.
He took a storm trooper and Anakin with him to our Easter visit at his God Parent's house. When we got home Anakin was missing. I knew that he had left him in the car, but still - he vanished.

Being given over to the dark side for so long , I am not surprised that Anakin made a break for it when he saw his chance, he was left alone in the car, out of the sight of one newly turned 3-year-old. After all, his character, toy or not, is not one to embrace the rough, sticky hands of a toddler...
We called Harrison's God parents, we searched the car, we checked and double-checked; just last week I searched the car again to no avail. Over the last couple months, he slowly stopped asking about Anakin and focused on other things (like Speed Racer cars from Mcdonald's)

Then that Guy I Dig came home from work yesterday and said, "Harrison, I have a surprise for you!" He opened his hand to reveal Anakin, who's try for a permanent escape from Mighty Toddlers Hands had been thwarted. His hiding place DEEP in the depths of the back seat cushions was revealed when the GID pulled the seats flat to put equipment in the back.

Anakin is with his fellow action figures where he belongs and once again there is peace in this toddler's universe.

Harrison is a Big Brother!

No, we didn't have a baby.

But we got home from our Thomas Train event on Thursday to find that 3 of our butterflies have emerged! We fed them and Harrison gently welcomed them to the world.

While I was looking around for our instructions on how to feed them, Harrison was gently talking to them,

"Hi little butterfies, my name is Harrison."

We gave them some cut up oranges to start feeding on.

"Ticka, ticka, ticka ticka..."

He pretended to tickle as he wiggled his fingers in front of the butterfly house.

"Ohhh, you're cute!"

Be very careful, mommy don't disurb them.

I told him to be very careful and not bump the butterfly house so that we don't disturb them. Then, as only I can do, I bumped into the buffet and the butterflies fluttered about. Shortly after I was reprimanded by the newly self-proclaimed big brother to 3 little butterflies.

We have two more to go, then we'll set them free outside.

Peep Peep! There's a New Train in Town!,

In lieu of Favorite Phrase Friday I'm bring highlights from our big day yesterday! For all those with Thomas the Tank Engine loving toddlers, Thomas Town opened up at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia. California yesterday and we were there!

We got an invitation for a VERY special event...
On our way!

We received a gift bag with a cool shirt, hat, whistle and red 'kerchief. [Harrison wanted nothing to to with the handkerchief...but he couldn't get the shirt on fast enough!]

After an opening ceremony and ribbon cutting, invited guests rushed in to ride Thomas the train ride or Percy the roller coaster...

Harrison opted for the gift shop first.

But soon he was in line for Thomas! Peep Peep!

A catered lunch was waiting for us after our adventure; and well-needed water (it hit 90 degrees!)
A couple highlights from Thomas. For more Thomas Town pictures click here.


Taking a moment with a buddy to soak it all in.

A happy day indeed!!

After riding Thomas and Percy, we headed over the Bugs Bunny World for more theme park fun and a frosted lemonade. What does Harrison think - he gave it a BIG thumbs up.

So take the family and head to Magic Mountain, Thomas is in town to stay and he wants you to come visit him and all his engine friends. If you're hot, visit Cranky's water play area; just what your child needs on a hot summer day!

And you just may run into us up there!

Have a great weekend!