Fun day outside

After a long stretch of really hot, crappy days, today was cool and enjoyable. The sun was out, there was a nice breeze... And a thousand reasons why we needed to be outside all day. Right after breakfast, Cam, Jordan and I hopped outside to enjoy the treehouse. Buzz Lightyear and Woody were major players in the day. They were part of many of Cam's stories. I got to be Woody a few times, but Jordan kept grabbing Woody and chewing on his cowboy hat, and although Cam and I thought it was funny, he kept that toy away from her as best he could.

We also visited the "jungle" and the "waterfall" (which is really a water fountain). That always makes Cam's day. For most of the trip, he claimed to be the leader of the group, telling us where to go and make sure he was in front of the line as we looked at plants and flowers. He and his dad enjoyed staring at the water fountain and getting sprayed by the water that was carried by the wind.

We visited the grocery store, we picked up some pizza and we all took a nice afternoon nap, but the rest of the time was spent outside. Cam even ate his dinner in his treehouse. The night ended with Cam actually wanting to go to bed. I'm not sure what that was all about. But he clearly used up a lot of energy enjoying this day. (And he didn't even ask to watch movies much!)

Slammed door

Cam had a chance to get the last car in his Cars movie collection. All he had to do was turn off the tantrums and treat me with respect. When he couldn't do that, I told him he'd have to earn it for another week. That led to an all out tantrum that included a door slam.

A door slam?

Isn't that the most teenager thing you can think of?

So yes. Today Cam completed his first true step towards life as a teenager. He slammed the door. The great thing? He calmed himself down behind that door. When I had the baby put to bed for the night, he was on his floor, reading a book. He came downstairs when I told him dinner was ready. We didn't have anymore tantrums and we stopped talking about that car.

Maybe he'll be able to earn it next Monday. Only time will tell.

I don't know if I'm doing the right thing. But threatening to take things away doesn't work. So I'm trying to give him opportunities to earn things. I think it's a more positive light on modifying his behavior. I'm not reading any books about how to raise a boy the proper way. I'm just trying to find ways to be positive and reward the good things he does and try to not make a big deal about the negative stuff he does. I haven't found the right way to make this work yet. But we had a pleasant night time. We had fun at dinner. He and I had a nice talk as he got ready for bed. He even told me he loved me before he went to sleep. So hopefully I'm figuring out a system that is at least bringing out the good kid in Cam.

Earning stuff

Cam worked very hard today to earn things. First he earned a new bubble blower -- it's just like the bubble blower he named "Bubbly Bubbly" last year when we were in Maine. To earn this, he cleaned up his room... And he did a really good job. The only thing I had to do was help him get the books into his shelf... Since that's kind of hard. He picked up all the toys, clothes and books. I keep walking into that room and smiling because it looks so good. He also earned some sandbox toys by picking up things in the basement. He earned some smiles from Jordan when he danced around and acted silly for her. He earned some hugs from me when he quietly watched a movie while I mowed the lawn and took a shower.

He did try to scam me into scratching his back before bed time. I told him he could earn those scratched if he does a good job sleeping tonight.

We had a friend of mine bring by her sister-in-law and her niece and nephew to play. Cam kept talking about them all day. Just before bed he told me that he missed them and hoped they'd come back to play. It was very sweet.

Oh -- That picture. Cam, Jordan and I made a quick stop at the store to pick up some AAA batteries for Cam's transitor radio. He wore it on his pants for the rest of the day and he was very proud... As you can see in his pose. That's the radio just above his right hand.

Home again, home again

Cam is home... He's been here a little more than 24 hours. And things are back to normal. I can't think at times because Cam is so loud. He is already treating me with the same smart mouth and attitude as if I never was away from him.

But he is listening to me... And he is SO happy to be around his sister. And he's so happy to know that I missed him terribly. He was especially amused when his Grandma read him my last blog posting about how the house was quiet.

I took Cam and Jordan to a swim party today. It was hotter than hell outside... But Cam had a blast in the pool while Jordan and I socialized out under really huge umbrellas that protected us from the sun. Cameron had so much fun and it was great to give him a chance to hang out with all of his friends from school after he'd been away from them for two whole weeks. Of course I think he left his brand new sunglasses that you can see him wearing in this picture at the pool. Dang it. He's going to notice that tomorrow. I'm amazed I remembered to bring both kids home after the party since it was so hot and muggy out. Anyway. He looked really cool with his new glasses and hat his Grandma and Poppy got him.

Cam challenged the heck out of me before his nap and bedtime... but he's sleeping and hopefully he'll sleep late enough for Mommy to feel rested as well!

It's quiet here

With Cam out of town, my home is very quiet. I sleep later. I read books. And it's too quiet. Don't get me wrong, hanging out with Jordan on my own is great... But she goes to bed really early and she wakes up late. And I miss the way Cam talks about everything and plays and makes up amazing stories and adventures and challenges my every move. I can't wait for him to come home!!

"I'm sad I'm leaving Maine"

Cam didn't want to go home when we left Maine yesterday. And on the whole, he was an incredible helper as he traveled home. It was just the three of us... And he was such a trooper when we had to wait to go potty after we dropped off the rental car, got our bags checked and went through security. He was so sweet when people would walk over and see Jordan. Imagine Cam talking with a very matter-of-fact tone:

"That's my sister Jordan. I'm Cameron. We went to Maine. But now we're going home to Missouri."

I also learned a new way of measuring "coolness" among boys. We were walking to security when the boy ahead of us in line had a "Cars" movie backpack. Cam had to compliment the boy on his bag. I'd say this boy was 7 years old at the most. Cam was so thrilled, he had to pull out his Leapster and show him his "Cars" game cartridge. Then the boy says: "I have a Game Boy" and pulls put ten or so game cartriges. Cam was ohhhing and awwwing and I had to stop him from pulling out his games.

Now he's off on another adventure (Or as he pronounces "E-venture): He's spending most of the week at his Grandma and Poppy's house. He talked to me on the phone today and sounded very excited and happy. I miss him already.

Mommy, you made me mad.

Wow.
Originally uploaded by NerdyMom.

Oh darling Cameron. If 4 years old is a peek into what you will be like when you are a teenager, I better start stocking up on valium now. Because I don't know how I'll stay composed when you are like this and taller than me. Today was obvious that Cam is behind on his sleep and in an environment where he knows he can push his limits. In between being adorable -- See the attached picture... Cam was horrible. We had fun and got to go on a cruise around some of the islands. Cam had never been on a boat before! So this was a big deal to him. But when he was told to follow directions, he'd throw a grunty fit, start calling us names or just stomp around and say no. I won't have it. His dad won't have it. We have to find a good solution to resolve the rude and disrespectful behavior because I really hate spanking.

Isn't vacation time fun?

We did have fun today. We really did. The ferry trip was great. We had fun playing and he really enjoyed a new toy for his Leapster. He and I giggled and were silly. But it was a rough day overall for him. I look forward to getting his world a little more under control in a week or so. In the meantime, we're in deep with this bad attitude problem.

Ups and downs of Maine life

Cam is having so much fun... But all of this one-on-one stuff is leading him to some of his very bad habits. When he's unhappy with us, he grunts... Like he's constipated. Uh! And if he's really mad, he'll call me a baby. "You're a baby mommy." Today he took it up another notch: "You're a baby pee pee." I told him he had to take his mouth to the bathroom since that's where those words belong.

Anyway. He's enjoying the rocks and the water and getting his grandparents and uncle to read books to him. He's digging art projects that I brought... And he even helped his uncle with a couple of projects... You can see it here.

He's also so dang funny when he opens his mouth. He notices every last detail and asks the most amazing questions. But my favorite today was when I was playing one of my favorite playlists off my iPod in the rental car. Cam heard what he calls his "favorite song: "Passionate Kisses" by Lucinda Williams. He asked me: "How did that song get in this car?" He was thrilled when I explained that I brought the music with us on our vacation.

He had a great time last night with the fireworks for the 4th of July. He was impatient and exhausted by the time the 10pm show started on the island. So he was tired today... Tired enough to take a 3 and a half hour nap. And when we put him to bed tonight, he actually went to bed. Which is a great idea. I think I'll give that a try.

"It's a beautiful day!"

Cam woke up and looked outside our massive glass window to the ocean view and was so happy. The sky was blue, the ocean was blue... And he loved it. It was a wonderful start to the day. All was well until he realized that he didn't get to choose which Little Einsteins episode to watch. We don't have Tivo in Maine. He didn't want to watch "Tall Totem Tale." He wanted something different. This spiraled into whining and then crying... And since he was already crying and whining, I allowed the insanity to take a step deeper into madness and I turned off the television. We shouldn't watch TV anyway. It's too nice out. But I had this desire to take a nap on the couch and thought a 20 minute show wouldn't hurt. Well. When I turned off the TV, it set the day's theme of crying, whining and pushing every button in the book that gets Mommy angry.

Almost every outburst happened while the baby was sleeping -- so I was extra sensitive about it. No fun.

In between his whining and mind games, he had a ball. He went down to the cove a number of times to play and climb and throw rocks. He even met another 4 year old who is in town through Wednesday named Spencer. They played a bit and showed off their ability at pratt falls. Cam was not happy when I told him it was time to go and take his yearly rock pictures. The rock pictures started 4 years ago. And we keep putting Cam on the same piece of rock every year. This is his 5th time on the rock for the picture. It's amazing how big he's gotten in so little time. Cam is also getting really comfortable at climbing the rocks. The only part that he's nervous about is the climbing down part.

On to level TWO!

I am thrilled to announce that after taking swimming for six months, Cam has moved out of level one! We celebrated with ice cream we were so proud. He starts level two in a couple of weeks. Randy says Cam is really starting to get comfortable with the water. He even jumped into the deep end yesterday!! Woo hoo!! I guess going to class twice a week is actually making a difference.

Scamming and swimming

Cam has been taking a swim class twice a week these last few weeks. I'm happy to say that this week is the first time he's started taking little risks in the pool and MAN is he proud. He has another class tonight, I'll let you know how tonight's class goes.

Last night we had a babysitter while Randy and I went to an outdoor concert. Cam did a new scam: doddle and after you're in bed, sneak down and spook the babysitter... and run back upstairs. By the time she got up to him in his room, Cam was sitting in his bed grinning. Stinker.

He also scammed his way into watching an episode of Power Rangers... which is a bit too violent for my tastes. But Cam couldn't stop talking about it. Obviously, he's at a phase where he'll tell you EVERYTHING.

Look what God made!

A couple of days ago, Randy was driving Cam home from the pool when he noticed how the sun was setting and making a wonderful set of colors in the sky. Cam yelled out: "Look what God made!" When he got home, he ran in to tell me all about it as well. Very sweet kid moment. He's been asking me about God a lot lately. I told him that God was in his heart. So one day he was eating and he asked if when he swallowed his food if it was going to his heart so he could feed God. I told him his food goes to his tummy, but love goes to his heart and help feed God. He's a bit confused about that. But we'll just keep going to church and hopefully he'll start piecing things together in his own way.

A couple of funny things

So, the kids in Cam's class are already talking about Kindergarten... And it's still a year away! He asked me a couple of days ago if he will have to go to a new school for Kindergarten. I said yes. Then he asked me if we'd had to move our house. I said no. Then he asked if I was going to have to work a different job. Once again, I said no. Kindergarten is obviously this vague anomoly that no one is quite sure about. And boy is Can focused on this fact already.

Yesterday I was driving when Cam asked if I had both hands on the wheel. I did. We were stopped at a light, so I turned around and said: "I have both hands on the wheel. Do you know how to drive?" Cam says no... And then tells me to turn because the left turn light had turned green. Ah, that kid.

What a day!

Cam had a super fun day. He woke up kind of early... but played for a while so Mommy and Daddy could sleep longer. Then we went to the local kid pool -- an outdoor wading pool with slides and spraying water. Cam had a ton of fun. We also stopped by a nearby jungle gym.

After he took a nap (and Mommy took one too), we met up with his friend Camryn and her family to see the new Cars movie!!! HOORAY. Cam has been talking about this movie for almost a year. He's been looking forward to June for the last few months just because he knew Cars was coming out this month. He is so funny. He had a blast. It was a really wonderful movie and I think it was worth the wait.

After the movie, Cam got to play with Camryn. And even though it rained, the two of them hit the new treehouse/swing set. They had so much fun... Especially after Camryn discovered that if you slide down our very wet slide, you can also slide down the mud in the grass. She was covered in mud, Cam was covered in mud. They had a quick bath before they could have dinner -- that's how messy they were.

Anyway. They had a blast. Randy and I were thrilled to have friends over. It's really amazing when we actually do something social. It isn't hard to do. But for some reason, it just doesn't happen enough.

Honesty is the best policy

Cam's teacher told me an interesting story yesterday. When he was playing in the playground at school, his teacher told him to stop throwing the pieces of tires that cover the play area. She said that if he did it again, he'd have to sit next to her for a while in time out. Ten minutes later, Cam came up to her and said: "Ms. Carole, I threw the black stuff again. I have to sit next to you." She was very proud of him for telling the truth -- Since she never saw him throw the black stuff.

Go Cam!

Success... Except for Daddy's Back

Cameron and his Dad actually did sleep in the treehouse. At one point in the middle of the night, Cam said he was cold and crawled into Randy's sleeping bag. He actually fell back asleep. In the morning, Randy and Cam were getting up when Cam noticed a pool of drool on Randy's sleeping pad (the thin buffer between himself and the hard wood floor of the treehouse). Cam actually apologized for drooling. Very cute.

The funniest thing happened the next night. I had to get up in the middle of the night to feed the baby. I ended up falling asleep in the bed in Jordan's room... But around 4 in the morning I woke up to find Cam sleeping next to me. I asked him what he was doing and he said he wanted to sleep next to me... He has never done that before. Any other time he's cuddled up with a parent in bed, he just made that an opportunity to talk. The camp out showed Cam how cool it is to cuddle. Very cute.

But I made him go back to bed. There's no way he would have gotten a good night's sleep if he stayed with me. He ended up sleeping until 8am. That's really late for him.

Asleep in a tree

Right now, Cameron is trying to fall asleep in his tree house. It's a camping under the stars night for he and Randy. Daddy is already conked out. Cam has come inside two times to go to the bathroom. I told him that if he needs to come in again, he'll have to go to bed in his bedroom.

We'll see how it all goes. The grandparents are sleeping in the bedrooms that fit two people. Randy and Cam are outside and I'm sleeping in Jordan's room just in case Cam needs to come in and sleep in his bed.

A New Tree House!!

Cameron is the luckiest boy in town. His Daddy and Poppy built this! It's a tree house swing-set! There's a slide, a ladder and a swing on each side: One for Cam and one for Jordan. Under the cool platform that's built around a tree in our backyard -- A sandbox! Cameron arrived home from school to find it ready for him! And he LOVED it!

He said it's cool, cool, cool and he even said it's "perfect." Of course we were so excited to see him so excited.

I snapped a bunch of pictures and even a little video on my phone... Since that's what was in my hand when we got out of the car after a long day at school/work. He was thrilled. He played right before dinner and then went back out to play before bed. He rolled balls down the slide, he played catch with me up on the tree house and down with Daddy on the ground. He sat on his swing, he rode the swing like a super hero... He was so busy and happy. Right before he had to go in for bed, Cameron told me that when Jordan gets bigger, she can swing on his swing. What a great sharer.

Another busy week

I've noticed I'm just not posting as much as usual these days. Now that I'm also teaching a class along with my normal work load and Jordan's many appointments, blogging is getting a little less attention. Heck, I haven't updated my Flickr site in a couple of weeks!

Anyway. Cam had a busy week... It ended with a field trip to a local honey farm. He got a chance to make a beeswax candle. We burned it today as we at a yummy grilled meal that Daddy made. Cam was very excited to burn the candle as part of a "special" dinner. We grilled Cam up a corn on the cob... But once again, he wouldn't risk eating that yummy treat. He also won't eat pizza. Or drink juice. He turned down a juice box yesterday when we were all at a friend's house for an informal party.

This morning, Cam threw a minor fit when I told him he couldn't watch a show. He had to play outside. The good news: Once he was outside, he wanted to stay outside for most of the day -- even if it was hot and sticky. I took him to the hardware story, the local farmer's market and even to the grocery store. He was good most of the time. We played hide and seek... And baseball and other silly games outside through the day. Heck. We even got him to clean up his disaster of toys in the basement. We can see some of the floor!

So overall. I'd say we're doing okay in the Cam department here. We're still working on the emotional outbursts. But most of the time, we can get him breathing and calming himself down.

Elmo, Cookie Monster and Boogie Time

Cam had a great weekend. He had a chance to eat lunch with Cookie Monster and Rosita from Sesame Street. He also had a chance to see Elmo's Coloring Book -- A very cool big arena show full of pre-school songs and dance and colors and a lot of commercialism at every turn. When we got to the event, Cam had a chance to walk in holding Cookie Monster's hand. It was very sweet. At the end of the show when everyone was about to live happily every after and singing a final song, Cam boogies in the silliest and sweetest and uncoordinated way. I wish I had a video camera at the time. I only got a picture of the moment.

We also had a lot of fun going on a walk while Cam rode his bike. He's really getting good at balancing on that bike. It's awesome to watch him gain more and more confidence. We also went to church. He threw a fit during a prayer. But during the children's church portion, Jordan kept grabbing at Cam's back and rubbing on his face. He looked over at her, smiles and said: "She knows how to tickle!" It was awesome.

He got a ball!

Cam and I went to see the Cards in the new Busch Stadium. I won't go into a ton of details, but I gassed Cam up with a crazy amount of sugar, we giggled, we cheered an dhe asked if we were going home often But in the endm he told he had the greatest time EVER! That's because I scored a game ball from an outfielder for Cam. He was so excited, he slept with the ball that night.

One other funny story, before he went to bed that night, he told me he couldn't go to bed yet, he "had to play Jim Edmonds." Then he proceeded to roll the ball on the floor and say: "Get the ball Jim Edmonds!! Okay! I got it!"

Very funny.

It's my birthday and Cam can cry if he wants to.

Yeah. So Cam was thrilled it was my birthday today. In the middle of almost every bite of breakfast, he looked up at me and said: "Happy Birthday Mommy." It was kind of strange. Anyway. When I went to school later in the day, a couple of teachers asked me if it was my birthday. Apparently Cam was telling everyone he saw about it.

So when Randy and I picked him up from school, Cam was really, really excited. He asked if we were going to my birthday party. He just assumed we were going to make the same big deal about my birthday like we do for him. I would have loved it. But that wasn't in the works. So when I told Cam we weren't having a party, he was disappointed. Then he asked if we were having birthday cake. And I told him were weren't. That's when he lost it. He wanted to eat Mommy's birthday cake. And he just kept crying and crying. Once I finally got him to calm down about that issue, he wanted to get dinner from Burger King. I didn't think he needed that kind of food, especially after the fit he had just thrown. So I knew if I just flat out told him "no," he'd throw a fit again. So I just decided to not drive by the restaurant. The moment I drove by the exit that would have taken us to the Burger Kind, Cam lost it. He actually knew which exit goes to Burger King. My son has a better map of the Columbia area in his head than half of our reporters.

I can't say the tantrums made this a good birthday. Randy did end up getting me a birthday cake. I think Cam was more excited about it than I was. Cam asked Randy if he made the cake. Randy said yes (even though it came from a grocery store). Then Cam asked if Randy went to work, went home to bake the cake, then returned to work and then picked Cam up from school. He had to understand how Randy could have even been able to bake that cake for Mommy. Funny kid. He had to logically figure out how Randy could have baked my cake... And still gone to work.

Hey Am-Bruce!

My friend Ambrose is driving across the country. We were lucky enough to have him stay the night here last night. He's spending this year as a clown for a travling Cirque de Soleil show... and he is as funny as I remember he was back at Syracuse University. Cameron LOVED him... Even though he kept forgetting to call Ambrose the right name. He kept saying: Am-Bruce. So here's the basic conversation that had me rolling on the floor everytime Cam would try to get Ambrose's attention:

Cam: Hey Am-Bruce!

Ambrose: It's Ambrose

Cam: Hey Am-BROH-SS!

Ambrose: Gimme five! (hand slap)

Cam: Ha ha ha! Hey Am-BROH-SS!!

Ambrose: You said it right! Gimme five! (hand slap)

Cam: Noooo! Hey Am-BROH-SS!!!

Ambrose: Yeah buddy! Give me five! (hand slap)

Cam was so flustered that Ambrose wouldn't just say: What? And Cam couldn't figure how to get out of the cycle of high fives. I was on the floor laughing so hard watching Cam's confused face.

Cam went to school before Ambrose was up and ready to go this morning. Cam kept wanting to wake him. He was so thrilled to have a "new friend." Ambrose actually stopped by Cam's classroom to say goodbye when I dropped Jordan off for her school day. You should have seen Cam's face light up when he saw my tall, skinny, large-haired friend walk into this room full of short 4-year-olds.

Busy day

Cam's Grandma and Poppy surprised him with a visit yesterday. They got to play with him today -- in between his busy day. First, he had to wake his grandparents up and play with them. I am grateful for the extra sleep. Then he had swim lessons. Right after that, he had to eat lunch and get a nap before his next event. Of course, he fell asleep 10 minutes before I had to wake him up to get dressed to the The Jungle Book on stage at a location on campus.

Cam was not well rested.

So we get to the show. He saw a few people he knew and we met up with Shanley and her Mom. They were engaged and ready when the show started... But it was acted by a bunch of kids who worked really hard... But the pacing was pretty slow. Keeping 4 year olds engaged when they can barely hear the action through the cries and whines of children was not easy. But Cam LOVED the experience after he got to talk to a few of the actors on the stage after the show.

We ran around together on campus for a little while and I got him a scoop of ice cream. He showed all kinds of reasons why he hadn't slept enough, but we had fun.

Dad and Mom got to go out to eat tonight. We even went to a movie. It was nice. I have no idea how night time when with the grandparents, but I do know that everyone is asleep since we got home.

Good sharing

Cam hopped into the car with Randy this morning on their way to the dentist's office. Cam asked Randy if my "old car" was his "new car." Randy said yes -- since he's driving my car now that we have the mini-van. Cam said: "Mom is such a great sharer!"

What a sweetie.

Funny things

So... Cam continues to say funny things.

Last week as we drove up to the TV station, he said: "The tower is hurting the sky!" If you haven't seen the station, the transmission tower is right next to the building -- and yes, it is very tall.

Yesterday morning, Cam told Randy: "Mommy has pointy legs." Randy asked him what he meant and Cam said: "Sometimes, when I wear shorts, her legs feel pointy." Meaning, I haven't shaved enough for my son's liking.

I'm starting to figure out the trend

So Cameron has been a huge challenge lately and I'm trying to figure out how to put a stop to it. He's a smart kid. And my theory behind the smart thing is we can communicate our way out of this annoying funk. But talking him through his insanity during a tantrum is impossible. So the only way is to catch him before he spins out of control... And I don't always have the energy to put a stop to it.

So then I have to figure out why he's doing this. Here's my theory -- He thinks he's always gotten what he wanted. It's not true. But for some reason, he thinks the tantrum system will work. So I created a system where he has to earn TV time. If he throws a tantrum, he doesn't get TV time. That worked for a while, but he doesn't seem to care anymore. So I have to find a new way to encourage him to be good. You know; I don't even care if he isn't good as long as he doesn't continue this defying authority and screaming junk. I keep hearing 4 years old is a preview into the teenage years. If that is true, we're going to have ugly teenage years.

Meatballs

He threw a tantrum for an hour and a half over meatballs. He didn't like them... Even though he hadn't even tried them. He wanted meatballs you find in spagetti-ohs. I was a mean Mommy. He stuck his tongue out. He screamed and ranted. He was in time out, he was almost going to have to go to bed at 5:45 in the evening. I actually walked out of the house and into the garage just to restrain myself.

He's sleeping now. I pray he will get enough rest so we can have a better day tomorrow.

12 hours wasn't enough

So... Yesterday we went to church and Earth Day because Cam was acting much more human. But even though he had 12 hours of sleep, he was MOODY. This picture tells it all.

In church, I had to take him out of the sanctuary to get him to calm down. At Earth Day, he decided to pout for a while after throwing a tantrum.

Good news. After his nap, he only threw a MONSTER tantrum. It was so bad, I took him outside to let him scream it out in the fresh air. That fresh air eventually did what I wanted it to do... Get him to want to play. We drew with chalk, made up fantastic stories under a tree and ran around in the grass. He considered taking his shirt off, but he told me he didn't want anyone to laugh at him. How he became modest and concerned about what people think about him, I'll never know. But from there on, he was a sweetheart. And he continued it through today. Thank goodness.

Poor guy

What a bummer. Cam woke up in the middle of the night last night with the croup -- the barking cough that makes you feel so bad for your kid. He has a cold that is a bit uncomfortable for him. So when we woke up this morning, I assessed the situation and decided that he could still go to swim class and a swimming birthday party. We may have pushed it with the birthday party.

He continued to cough through the day. No barking. But unhappy coughing. He took a good nap and I decided the party was a go. He had a ball. But in the end, he wasn't hungry for dinner. He wanted to go to bed. So my boy actually went to bed 15 minutes before his sister.

That's a sick little boy. Poor buddy.

Really good

Cam's teachers told me today that he's been amazingly good at school. He's listening and not throwing big tantrums. Today he listened really well while the rest of his friends were crazy. They think he's doing better because of the consistency of me returning to work. I really don't know why. It could be because he's growing up. That's very possible.

"I love my new van"

Cam loves his new van. Someone told him it was his Mom's van... And he disagreed. Someone else told him she liked his new car... He had to remind her that it was a VAN! Funny kid.

Not only does he like the van, it's become this awesome play place while we're visiting his grandparents. It is a jungle gym. It is a cool place to buckle up. It's a really awesome place to pretend it's rocket from Little Einsteins and go on a mission. The wonderful thing is Cam's "cousins" Lindsay and Hunter played along with him and enjoyed the trip on "rocket." Good thing Cam and Lindsay buckled up, just like the characters do.

It's fun to watch him boss them around... And they are so kind enough to listen to his demands. He's a lucky little boy to have so many people who care enough to play with him... Even when he's bossy. It's really great to watch him running around outside being silly.

A great day

Cam decided that today was the greatest day ever. He got to play outside, help wash cars, dye Easter eggs and ride his bike. He climbed around in the minivan and he and I pretended we were the Little Einsteins.

Anyway. He decided that we have "the greatest van," he was having "the greatest day" and he was SO happy he got to color those eggs.

He's so funny.

I did forget to mention on Wednesday that as we drove up to his grandparents house to visit them he said: "They'll be so happy to see me!!!"

They were. He was right.

A fish tale

Cam got to go fishing for the first time ever... He got to throw a line out on a pond at his Great Uncle Larry's house. And can you believe, Cam was the only person to catch a fish.

Did they have a camera with them? No.

SO I grabbed the video camera and asked him about the experience when he returned from the pond. I'll post it on the site once I edit it. I asked him what happened. He told me he caught a fish... and it was THIS big (he held his arms out wide). The men in our family were quick to teach him how to tell a fish tale.

We also took a big step into the family transportation world: We got a minivan today. Yup. A minivan. The vehicle Randy and I promised each other we wouldn't get before we got married 8 years ago. But it's everything we need and I think we're going to take more road trips because of it. I'm also a much more credible Mommy with a minivan. Because having 2 kids isn't enough credibility. ;-)

A Triple!

Randy just called me on the phone... He's at a T-ball class with Cam. The boy just hit a TRIPLE!! How cool is that? The teacher had to show Cam where first base was, but after that, he ran to third base!

I'm so proud.

I'm so bummed Randy doesn't have a camera there!!

Yesterday was so great...

Why was today insane. Cameron lost it for hours today. We couldn't get him to calm down over a toy that aggravated him... So he screamed and screamed and lost the toy. He ate lunch and then Randy had to fight with him for 2 hours to take a nap. I think the boy is finally asleep. I was out of the house for a couple of hours.

I got my hair cut for the first time in almost 5 months. Oy. I think I had it cut too short. The good news: Hair grows.

This is why I love Spring

Imagine this scenario: "Mommy, I want to go back outside! Please! Come outside and play with me!" I think I've dreamt of that type of scenario for years. It seemed to be a rare occurance. But the power of a beautiful Spring day took over... And the boy wanted to play. His new backyard tent seems to help encourage the outside time as well.

Cam started the day helping Dad volunteer to clean up a park. They climbed up a "mountain" and even found a bowling ball! Wow. They went straight to swim class. Randy thinks the new teacher is much better than the old one. I'm happy about that. Not to mention, Suzanne from school was in a different class at the same time. Very exciting.

After nap, Cam wanted to watch a movie... But then I had to beat my head on a wall to get him to grab his shoes so we could go outside and play (and eat a snack in his new tent). What did it take to get the boy outside: Daddy arriving with his new bike. So Cam went out and tested out his new bike again. It was awesome. He finally sat down on the bike seat for the first time. We're hoping to figure out ways to help him feel safe and brave. If Randy rides his bike a bunch, it will happen. Cam and I played in the backyard for a while... And as you can see, Randy came out and played with us for a while too.

To top off the day, Cam got to hang out with a babysitter so Randy and I could have our anniversary date (a movie and a late dinner). The babysitter said Cam was really good. He didn't play her at all. I'm guessing that means my boy is growing up.

Or he was just so exhausted from enjoying a perfect Spring day.

Birthday bash finally ends

After three days and many, many hours of preparation, travel and party exhaustion... We held our final party for Cameron. We had one more Little Einstein's bash at his school today. The kids had fun, I annoyed the teachers by handing out blowing noise makers (sorry!) and I actually had three kids thank me (Camryn, Nathan and Samantha)!!! Cameron had a lot of fun... A lot.

Later in the evening, I took him home along with Jordan for dinner. He played outside in his new tent house, blew bubbles and we played with his dying balloons. At one point I corrected his verb tense in something he told me... He says: "You teach me a lot of things." I asked him if he liked that... and he said yes. I hope he really meant that.

:-)

Cam had a heck of a birthday... I'm so lucky to have such an amazing kid for 4 years. I have learned so much from him... From patience to unbelievable love. Not to mention really good hugs (Which he shared with his friends today at school.)

4 Years Old!!!

My goodness. My boy is getting so darn old. And he had a heck of a day. He woke up VERY early. His body is very ready for daylight savings to kick in tonight. Fortunately, his Grandma and Poppy were here to wake up with him and enjoy his company. I got up with the baby... And by the time I got down to see the big boy, he was hopping excited about opening gifts and having a party. By the time Randy got up, Cam got to open two gifts: A new backyard play tent (and it's huge and awesome) and a new set of kid-sized golf clubs. Those two gifts helped Cam stay busy running around outside all morning long.

By the way, God gave him the most perfect day outside. It was in the 70's and sunny. A slight breeze made it just perfect to enjoy the day outside.

After nap (and I have no idea how I talked him into to a nap... And he could only rest for an hour, he was so excited) he finally got to open the rest of his presents. He has new movies, cool Incredibles clothes, new T-ball gear, magnetix, a fire truck, clock, a bunch of Buzz Lightyear stuff... the list goes on. Another very cool gift he opened near the end of the day: A new bike that will help him learn how to ride a bike without training wheels. It's hard to explain and I'll post more about it another time.

Anyway. I worry about the excess... Cam got so much stuff. He said thank you... He soaked in the joy of gift opening. He got a little whiny. He wanted and wanted and wanted. But what do you expect when you're 4 and you're living the good life with so many family and friends who want to give you things. I actually really restrained myself this year on the gifts. I did spend many, many hours preparing for his party - including decorations for our home, at Chuck-E-Cheese's and his party that is planned at his school on Monday. He wanted a Little Einstein's party... And they don't make pre-made decorations. So I got crafty and made decorations myself. I also found a few things on eBay to help me.

So we did the Chuck-E-Cheese thing. It is a silly place. Cam got a little birthday cake and a song sang to him. But the coolest thing? His friend Eric came to the party. They had a blast togther. It was so great to see them happy and playing. His Mom and I got them to pose for a cool picture that looks like a sketch. I included it here because it is so sweet.

After the crummy pizza and insane children (we had 8 kids at the party), we all returned to our house to let the kids play outside, the adults ate real pizza (Shakespeare's!!) and the kids ate birthday cake (the big people ate some eventually).

I'm exhausted. Cam was exhausted. I think all the kids who came to the party were exhausted. There was a lot of running... Not a lot of crying or injuries. It was fun to see the kids having a ball. I also feel like my hard work was worth it. My kid and my friends' kids had a lot of fun. That's why we do this, right?

No fun to be Cam

Big guy threw up on a regular basis between 4am and 7am. I've got him sucking on a little pedialyte popsicle. At the same time, he's terrible at blowing his nose... He rubs instead. So the skin under his nose is a mess. Poor guy. He's really mad he can't eat and drink yet. The pedialyte is a test run through for liquids.

No fun.

But here's some fun. I found a way to upload Cam's reaction to Santa for Christmas 2004:


If that doesn't work, you can visit the YouTube website if you'd like.

Technology testing

So since I'm so obsessed with Flickr, I thought I'd test YouTube. Here is a little video I shot from my camera when the boy was a itty bitty baby. I had hoped to post last year's Maine video, but it's 2 minutes too long to qualify for YouTube. Bummer.



I hope that works. IF it doesn't, you can view it from the YouTube site

Cam wouldn't take a nap this afternoon. I'm annoyed. I told him he'd have to go to bed after dinner if he didn't take a nap. And like everything else we agree upon... He'll throw a fit later when I make him go to bed early. But that's just how things are going to be today.

9 days

Cameron is counting down to his birthday. When we figured out there were 9 days left, he gasped in excitement.

I spent the day making party bags for his birthday at school, finding primary color table cloths and plates... I even ordered the big cake for his party. I'm planning two parties -- one for close friends at a very cheesy pizza playland and one at school. I'm putting together a Little Einsteins party... Our first birthday that requires I become a bit creative since Disney has decided not to really oversell the Little Einsteins product -- They see more money in Baby Einstein products. Anyway. I'm going to bake my own cupcakes this year. Last year I struggled with rice krispie treats in the shape of stars. I will never use a cookie cutter on rice krispie treats again. That was hard work.

Anyway. Cam was sent home sick from school today. He spiked a fever... and it continues to spike. He's on the Motrin-Tylenol-Motrin treatment to keep it down. His teachers thought he was strangely good at school today -- It's because he was sick. Poor buddy.

So on my final day of maternity leave, I'll have both kids with me. I think I'll just enjoy my children and relish my new life.

That was insane

Cameron lost control this morning. Complete control. He left for school kicking and screaming... I'm afraid to call Randy to find out if he was kicking and screaming the entire way in the car.

I'm trying to figure out how to prevent it from happening again. Cam woke up sometime after 6am... Way too early. Of course he was complaining that he was hungry. Apparently he thinks that's the only thing he can say to actually get us to move in the morning. I told him to get dressed if he was hungry. But he cried instead. All the pounding and crying woke up the baby.

So I took care of the baby. Cam said he was hungry. I told him to get dressed. So he cried more.

This pattern continued until about 7:25. He and Randy have to leave the house at 7:30. He hadn't eaten breakfast and totally fell out when he discovered he had to eat his breakfast in the car.

It was all around ugly and stressful.

Plus, he already lost two of the three "dots" on his board to get the chance to watch TV. That's going to go over really well tonight.

My big ham

Cam is a ham. And this visit to his Uncle's house is proof that my boy is one heck of a performer. Yesterday and today, he's been really into performing. I don't mean throwing fits (which is a performance in its own way). I mean getting up on a "stage" and performing. The first thing he did was get up on a patio table and perform for anyone. Later, he grabbed his Wiggles guitar and microphone and just danced and sang to his heart's delight. Amazing to watch and it just brings a smile to your face... Even if you've heard the songs so often that you want to scream. His joy in performing is so worth the constant Wiggles songs.

The TV time board is going pretty well... Tonight, Cam was getting really tired, so it wasn't really working. But I'll give it a little more time before I decide we need to try ANOTHER type of behavior modification plan. (I like that instead of bribery system)

Busy day

Cam got to be in a really big St. Patty's Day parade. That included 2 hours of playing in the staging area and walking around 2 miles. He was tired, very tired. Luckily, he took a nap! Later this afternoon, he started dancing on a table outside. Classic picture. Classic.

Trying to do it different

I tend to use threats a lot when Cameron acts up. I know this isn't the way to go. I know I have to break that habit. I'm not sure when I started the threats. But I know it has to stop. So I've come up with a reward system. Today Cam came home from school with this on the door in the kitchen: Cam's TV Time board. He was intrigued and excited that he had already earned the "Get Dressed" dot. If he earns three dots in a day, he gets to watch a show. The other dots: "No tantrums" and "Eat dinner."

So we gave it a run today. Cam didn't throw any tantrums and he considered eating a pea at dinner, but didn't. So he came one dot shy of getting to watch a show. We're getting there.

Now, at bed time, he threw a doozy... But I think it was more because he needed to be asleep and I waited too long to get him to bed.

One other development in the world of Cam. He's starting to stand and pee. I know everyone wants to know that. But consider this one. I noticed he was in the bathroom this evening and decided things were too quiet behind the closed door. So after he tells me he's cleaning up... I find him using the hand towel to dry up his inability to aim properly. And it made me wonder if he's done that before. Ewwwwwww.

Warning: Gross topic

So you know we've had problems with Cam flooding the toilet. That problem has gotten better. So I'm encouraging Cam to use the bathroom and clean up on his own.

Today that could have been a mistake.

I heard him up there... And I realized a little too late that he was too quiet in that bathroom. So I go in and ask him what he's doing. "I'm cleaning up." Well, it turns out he was cleaning up water he used to clean his butt. Yeah. Toilet water. Disgusting bacteria-filled toilet water. I puked a little in my mouth and asked him to wash his hands thoroughly. I started scrubbing the bathroom, scrubbed my hands and started the bath for Cam to disinfect.

Gross. Gross. Gross.

But he was very sweet after the bath. He wanted to play hide and seek in his towel. Instead, he threw the towel on top of his head and said: "I'm Little White Riding Hood." For some reason I thought that was a darn good joke for someone who is almost 4.

We read Dr. Seuss' "ABC" book and Eric Carle's "The Very Busy Spider." Both books left us with a good book buzz. You know, that smile you wear on your face when you close the book. We felt warm and happy. Putting Cam to bed was a peaceful event after that.

By the way. I'm working on coming up with an award system where Cam has to earn his right to watch TV. Randy thinks I've been too hard on him by just taking the TV away and there needs to be more purpose to it than just saying NO to TV. Today we actually got Cam to eat some of the dinner I made by holding TV over his head. Next step: vegetables for watching The Wiggles. It may be the only way a green bean will pass through his lips.

(That picture at the top was taken in the last hour before we headed to the airport during our Florida trip. I just got it into my computer tonight because Cam dropped my camera on the cement that day. I finally found a USB cord that fit my computer and allowed me to download the remaining trip photos... Most of the pictures were of Cam being cute out at my parent's pool and near their new, cool water fountain in the lake.)

A mouse

There is a mouse in our house. I saw it run out of our pantry and I screamed.... Which was a horrible example to my son. Now he's sitting on the chair in the kitchen telling me he's afraid of mice.

I'm such a bad example.

TV hiatus

I've had it. Yup. I'd had it with Cam's whining and crying because he wants to watch TV. We're going on another TV hiatus. We did this sometime when he was 2. I'm doing it again. I'm sick and tired of listening to Cam freaking out about TV.

Tonight was the topper. Jordan and I picked him up from school and we decided we'd go to Burger Kind for dinner and to play in the indoor playground. Can I just say how brave he was during this trip? It was amazing. He climbed to the top, he went into the helicopter and rocket. He even climbed through a mesh tunnel. He still won't go down the slides and got a little freaked out as he climbed back down the "stairs" of the playground. But he did it. He did it many times and I never had to climb in and rescue him. That was pretty great to watch. Not to mention, his friend Nathan and Nathan's brother Matthew happened to be there at the same time so they all got to play together.

So we went home, I put the baby to bed while Cam played in the bathroom. (You don't want to know... but the good news is he didn't flood the toilet) It was obvious that Cam was getting tired, but I promised him that we'd bake cookies. So after Jordan went down, we threw dough on a cookie sheet and shoved it in the oven. We talked and waited. Then he gobbled down some cookies (my tummy is still upset, so I couldn't eat any).

That's when I announced it was time for bed. And it was. But Cam freaked out because he didn't get to watch his show. He wanted to watch the Wiggles. All out freak-out. I told him it was time to go to bed, we could watch it tomorrow. He kept freaking out. I said that if he continued to freak out, he would lose his chance to watch the show tomorrow. He freaked out more. I've had it. We're going to keep busy in other ways. He can play with Leapster, that's as close as he's getting to TV. I realize Randy will be annoyed with this, but I'm tired of the TV freak outs.

Cam is a wreck. It took a very dramatic reading of The Cat in the Hat to pull him out of his new TV hiatus funk. I'm willing to put in the effort to live a non-TV life with the boy. It will require more PlayDoh and finger painting time. I don't see much wrong with that.

Mommy and Cam time

This morning, Cam woke up an hour before Jordan. What the heck?

Anyway. I took Cam to school on my way to teach a class on campus. I decided to pick him up early from school since I didn't want to go back and forth between the house. So that gave Cam and I the chance to play outside while the baby took a nap. We had a ball. We played basketball -- and it's so great to see him hit the shots on his 5 foot basketball hoop. (Randy put it higher since Cam is growing so much) We hit the baseball... Jumped around... Played with bubbles... And the best part: Cam pulled two chairs together and we made it into a flying ladybug. We both sat facing each other making up stories and songs and laughing at the dogs. I just sat there looking at my happy guy knowing how lucky I am that we have this time together. I took pictures and then we giggled at the pictures. It was a nice time to be a Mom.

Right now he's playing with his Leapster -- learning about letters and getting really good at playing the games. We're excited to pick out the books we're going to read tonight. There's a book reading exercise going on at school and Cam is really into it. The funny thing is they get a free pizza at the end. Cam doesn't like pizza. Hopefully this will be our first step towards him eating pizza.

Only time will tell.

"Are you doing okay?"

I wasn't feeling great yesterday. I was actually pretty miserable. And poor Cam had to deal with me and my misery.

He was so sweet. Every once and a while he'd check on me: "Mommy, are you doing okay?"

Today I'm feeling human again. But Cam wouldn't hear it. When I told him I was feeling better, he said: "No, you're still sick." I guess he likes taking care of me.

A good end to it all

The last thing Cam said before he went to bed tonight: "I'm sorry I yelled at you Mommy."

Wow.

I told him I was sorry too and I hope we can both do better tomorrow.

I broke a plate

Cam had his last swim class for this session. It continues next month. He's going to have to stay in level one for at least one more session... he missed two classes and he's still pretty nervous in the water. But he's amazingly brave from where he started a month and a half ago. Anyway. When we came back, Jordan was hungry, Cam was hungry. I was hungry. So I tried to get some PB&J made before I fed the baby. Then Cam started wigging out because I wouldn't let him watch a movie. I mean really wigging out -- Screaming, thrashing. I sent him to his room. I was so upset, I threw the knife down into the plate with my sandwich and broke a chunk off the plate. I'm such a bad parent. I don't know why this small human who only weight 41 pounds can evoke so much emotion in me. He knows my buttons that's for sure.

He's been sent to his room twice today. The second time he threw toys all over the place and I made him clean it up before he could come out. He did apologize: "Sorry I made my room messy."

But we're having a great day. Really.

The Men's Room

Cameron doesn't like going to the bathroom in the women's bathroom. He gets upset when he has to go potty with me. So today I took him to the Bread Co. (aka Panera) where I was meeting with students for an independent class meeting. Near the end of our talk, Cam had to go potty. He demanded to go to the men's room and he'd be okay. A mom walked by me and said her 9 year old would be willing to help.

So the 9 year old walks in after Cam and promptly walks out and asks me how old Cam was. Then he asked me how old I was. Then he told me that when I turned 60 my ankles would grow.

Huh?

Anyway. Cam was in that bathroom and he was taking a while. That's when I realized he didn't just pee in the men's room. I heard the toilet paper rolling and rolling.. And I was afraid he was going to clog the toilet. It's a problem he's caused at our house a number of times recently. Anyway. I ended up going into the men's bathroom to help him clean up. It kind of defeated the whole purpose of letting him go into the men's room on his own. Oh well.

Cam went to another meeting on campus with Jordan and I... He got to play with Lily. The two of them danced and sang in the convergence lab. Very amusing to me and to a few students. Cam didn't get to school until it was lunch time... Good thing he ate a huge cinnamon roll because they were eating pizza and corn: Two foods he doesn't like.

I just got him to bed. He lost his tent this morning. He decided to wake up around 4 this morning and proceeded to walk in and out of our room a number of times. I didn't wake up to it, but Randy did. He pretended to stay asleep. I don't have proof, but I think he woke the baby from walking into her room too many times. I got up to take care of her, then Cam went into Randy and cried that he needed a lullaby. He didn't get one before he went to bed that night. That's when I told him the tent was gone if he got out of bed again.

So he stayed in bed and cried my name for a good 20 minutes. When he screamed "MOMMY!!!!" That's when I walked in and took the tent away. He went to bed tonight without the tent. I told him he doesn't get it back unless he doesn't wake me up until it says 7 on his clock.

I pray that works.

Just when I thought I was a good parent...

Today was the only day that wasn't overly scheduled this week, so Jordan and I went shopping. I picked up the two out of three presents we planned to give Cam for his birthday: The Lady and the Tramp and a Wiggles plate set. Randy just has to pick out a baseball mit and we're done.

So when I got home, I put it all in a bag and pit it on the stairs.

Jordan and I took a nap. When I got up, we headed to a nearby garden... It was an amazing day and I was excited to get outside with the baby. I called Randy and suggested he grab Cam and have dinner at the garden. A little family time outside. Great idea! Not long after Cam and Rabdy got there and we had settled sown into our family time... Cam said he needed to go potty. So Randy and Cam drove away. Jordan and I walked home. During the walk I was feeling like a good parent. I played with the baby outside... My family had outside time together. Bur when I got home I realized I messed up:

Cam found his presents on the stairs.

I was so excited to go outside, I forgot to put that stuff away. I had to tell Cam the movie was for his birthday and he's have to wait. That was ugly. Now that he's calmed down... He keeps saying: "I'm so excited I got the Lady and the Tramp movie." I stink. This kid doesn't forget a thing... So his birthday won't be much of a surprise. I'm not a very good parent today.

Strange illness

Cam woke up this morning with a tummy ache. He walked into Jordan's room just as I was putting her back down to sleep around 6:50 this morning. We walked into the bathroom and he started puking. He kept puking until around noon. When he woke up from his nap, it was like he was never sick.

It was so warm outside today. So after I ran around with Jordan for most of the day, we got to enjoy the backyard with Cameron and Randy. It was really nice. Jordan just enjoyed the air in my arms. Cameron was running around, hittng the baseball and begging Randy to run him around the backyard in his wagon. It was a peaceful family time.

Cameron spent the rest of the night begging for food: "But I'm very really hungry." We tried our hardest to keep his diet bland and basic for the rest of the day. He just kept begging for non-safe foods. So he was upset a lot leading up to his bath time. But once he hit that water and pretended to swim, it was a peaceful bed time. He seriously relaxes when I sing his lullaby every night. It warms my heart every time I hear him sigh after a song.

Stop scratching

Cameron is a good kid... And remembers everything I tell him. My legs are covered with wierd bug bites since the trip to Florida. I can't stop scratching... But Cameron always reminds me: "Scratching makes it worse Mommy." I'm glad he's there to help me.

We had a big fall out tonight. He cried about everything when we got home from school. Add in a crying baby and my brain was starting to ooze out of my ears. So I told Cameron that if he didn't get his act together, he was going to bed. And when he didn't get his act together, I took him by the hand, stripped him down and put his pajamas on him... All under duress. He was out of control upset, to the point where I thought he could throw up. I'm not exactly sure what got him off the ceiling, but he came down and ate peaches for dinner. Yeah. He ate peaches for dinner. It was the only thing on his dinner plate that he wanted to eat. I wasn't going to argue about that. His dinner was also his dessert.

By the way. After he calmed down, Cam sat at the table and told me he was angry. He couldn't really explain why. Then he sat with his arms crossed and told me he was pouting. Then he told me he didn't want to have any friends because he was mad. I have no idea what that means.

Getting back to normal

Cameron is getting his life back to normal since we returned from Florida. He isn't fighting sleep as much... He went to school on Friday and had a ball. He went to swim lessons yesterday and Randy says he saw incredible progress in Cameron. That's exciting.

Cam is still a little clingy to me after this trip. He wants me putting him down for naps and bedtime at night. He wants me to be with him where ever he is in the house or when we are out of the house. I think he'll calm down. It's nice to know he still loves me so much. But it's tough to give him everything he wants when I have a baby who needs to cling to me as well.

Anyway... I have a ton of extra pictures of Cameron and Jordan... But right before we left Florida, Cam grabbed my camera and dropped it on the ground. It caused a failure on my picture card and I can't get it to transfer. I'm a little stressed since I just spent a bunch of money to buy that new card just before Christmas. Not to mention, there's a bunch of fantastic pictures on that card that can't seem to transfer. AHHHH! Hopefully I'll come up with a solution and I can post the great pictures soon.

Lion Country Safari Insanity

We survived the big trip to Lion Country Safari. We got out of the house a little later than we planned... Which probably sealed our doom at the end of the day. Anyway, we headed out and Cameron was ready. He wanted to see all the characters from the movie "Mdadagascar." He survived the 40 minute drive with many "are we there yet" type questions. He did NOT want to go potty before we went into the park. But after threatening to go home, he was more willing to comply.

So we got in and Cameron really wanted to find a hyena. They don't have any there but I didn't have the heart to tell him. But when we started getting close to animals he recognized, Cameron was pretty darn excited. The coolest part was the zebras, ostriches and the rhinos. The rhinos got really close to the car and made for some pretty cool pictures. Cameron kept telling me when to take a picture. (Take a picture now Mommy!!)

After the drive-through safari, we went into the "park" part of Lion Country Safari. We at lunch and Cameron tormented little birds. Then we got to ride on some very cool rides. And that's when Cameron got VERY brave. He wanted to ride a ferris wheel! He had no thoughts of danger, he just wanted to get up and ride on it. So he and his Grandpa had a very cool ferris wheel ride... The picture proves it.

But after that ride, it was obvious we needed to get the tired boy off to home. We bribed him with ice cream and that was fun to see. The only problem: He doesn't know how to eat an ice cream cone. He was digging the ice cream out of the cone with his fingers because he wouldn't actually eat the cone. It was very messy. My mom spent a good portion of the evening cleaning up the disaster on his shirt.

Going home, Cam kept saying how tired he was... But it was a struggle to get him down for a late nap. When he woke from it, he was a monster. He threw massive fits if he didn't get his way -- and many of his issues were totally irrational. It's understandable. He was "on" for most of the day. He never had down time and that late nap was just too late. I was beffuddled trying to keep him relatively calm. So eventually after a good bath and a story from his new Bob the Builder book, he went to bed under a cloud of fire. When he woke up this morning he told me: "I had a really good nap Mommy." I think he's ready to go home. He has his new Lion Country Safari t-shirt on and jaguar socks. He can't wait to show those off.

Beach boy

Cam loved his second trip to the beach. He didn't like the hot sand. So most of the time we stood near the water or under our tent digging for "treasures." Of course the best treasure he found was a top to some kind of food. He actually wanted to take it home.

Cam is such a trooper. This isn't the easiest of trips for him... He doesn't visit Florida that often and he's clearly not in his widest comfort zone. Every day he eases up a little more. But for some reason, he won't go on walks with his Grandma or Grandpa... He barely goes for walks with me. He adores the backyard pool, but deals with me telling him to slow down and keep his feet on the ground when he dunks a toy into the water. We like marching to the lake and looking at the new fountain that flows behind my parents' house. But when he gets really mad at me over something, he tells me: "I want to go home to Missouri."

We'll be there soon enough. We leave on Thursday and should get home in time for dinner. Daddy is going to pick us up and I can't wait to see him. I'm sure Cameron can't wait as well. Tomorrow's trip to Lion Country Safari should be very exciting. I think it's a great way to cap off our big Florida vacation.

Florida Fun!

Cameron is enjoying our time in Florida. It's so cool to hear him say: "It's a beautiful day, let's go outside!." I wish he'd say that more often at home.

Here's a couple of funny stories:
When we got into Florida, we were driving to my parent's house when he looked outside and saw palm trees: "Look! I see beach trees!"
When we got to the gate of my parent's development he says: "We're in Florida now!" (As if we weren't in Florida until we hit that gate)
This morning he told me his friend Camryn was coming to Florida tomorrow so he can have a Camryn day. I don't think he liked it when I told him that wasn't going to happen.

Cam got to go to the beach with his Grandpa over the weekend. My Mom, Jordan and I took him to the park yesterday. I'm hoping we can go to the beach today or tomorrow... But today is surprisingly foggy, so I'm not sure what kind of weather we're going to get today. We're planning a big trip to a cool natural safari-type zoo on Wednesday. Cameron enjoyed visiting it last year, and I think this year he'll love it even more. You get to go on "safari" and see animals in their own environment. It's called Lion Country Safari. My dad is even taking a day off from work to take Cam. I think we'll have fun. It will be interesting with Jordan... But hey, everything is more interesting with two kids.

We had a few troubles when we first got here in the sleep department, but we've finally got a system. Cam is back to taking naps and going to bed at a good time. (Thank goodness) It was a struggle, but we're back on track.

Cameron is being fantastic here. He hasn't had any problems with different bathrooms and he's been a little more open-minded about food. Because I'm stubborn. He's eaten peaches, apple sauce and a piece of an apple since we've been here. It's more than most days. I consider it all a success.

Slightly stressful Valentine's love

For the last 2 weeks, I've tried to get Cameron to work with me as we prepared our big Valentine's Day cards for all 19 of his classmates. I didn't want to push him, but I thought it would be a great opportunity to get him to practice writing his name... Or at least his nickname: Cam.
So today, we had to get serious... We had 10 left and they had to get done before tomorrow. He was pretty good until we had 2 left. He started handing out the cards he'd already signed (and it's so cool to see him finally starting to try and write his name)... He gave one to Jordan, three to me and I think he tried to keep one for himself. Anyway. I couldn't get him to sign two of them and he didn't want me to do it for him. Then he wanted to eat the candy... But he hadn't even had dinner yet. So tension was growing and I just wanted this project over. Once he finally signed the cards, it got easier. We put each card in the envelope bag and stuck various sugary yummies in each bag. Then I bribed him to eat dinner with 2 hershey's kisses. Remember a time in your life when you only needed 2 tiny pieces of chocolate to do something?

Hmmm. I don't either.

A generous guy

Cam had an interesting week... It started with him puking and miserable. He was diagnosed with walking pneumonia... Put on antibiotics and told he could go back to school whenever. I let him stay home for a day to catch up on sleep.

The next day he went to school and came back telling me he had been "generous" at school. Apparently they're learning about being police and respectful. It's amazing to see him being extra polite at home. The lessons are working. Then I found out after talking to his teacher that he's really doing great in school since the kids were broken down into small groups. He's listening and sharing better than ever.

We're proud of Mr. Generous. So after swim lessons and a nap, Cam got to see the new Curious George movie with Dad. He even got to sit next to a friend from school at the movie. According to Daddy, Cam ate about a pound of popcorn. Not surprising: He didn't eat dinner tonight.
Last night I had a special moment with Cam. Jordan was tired and Randy was still at work. So Cam and I took Jordan to her room. I started feeding her and Cam read books to Jordan. When she was close to asleep, we turned the lights low and I asked Cam to be quiet. He quietly paged through books and patiently waited. It was peaceful and comforting to have my two kids together in that room at that moment. Very cool. Cameron is a fantastic, doting big brother.

Oh no! An ear infection.

Cameron had a rough night last night... He woke up a couple of times complaining about stupid stuff. And I wasn't in the mood to deal with it. He went to swim lessons and had a great time. But when he came back, he wasn't even interested in lunch. He actually ASKED to take a nap. That wasn't right. So I took his temperature. He seemed okay. But a few hours later, he woke up with a raging 102.1 temperature. I took him to the nearby urgent care -- he has an ear infection. It isn't a big one. The doctor thinks the infection is pretty early and antibiotics will beat that down. As for Cam's cough, he thinks Cam should use an inhaler. We have some left over from his many health problems before his adenoids were taken out. So I'll drag that out to help Cam during his next coughing fit.

So after we drugged him up and convinced him to eat a little dinner, Cam was very open to going to bed tonight. Hopefully he'll feel more comfortable tonight. And I'm feeling good about deciding to get him to the doctor the moment that fever started. I'm learning some things from experience -- Don't delay when you have a gut feeling that there's an ear infection. Or you won't get any sleep at night.

I think one of the hardest things for Cam was explaining to him why I wouldn't let him near the baby until he feels better. But the wonderful thing about this kid, is he understood. He was just disappointed.

This new life

I was thinking about the new life we're living now that Cameron is a big brother. It's incredible how another human can change someone so much in so many little, almost unnoticed ways.

I had noticed the bathroom thing. He's getting up in the middle of the night when he needs to. He still is... It's been a month and he just does it. We never asked him, he just does it. When he wants to, he gets dressed all by himself. Sometimes he does it quick enough to not hear me pester him to hurry up. He doesn't complain when we get him to rush so he can leave for school with Daddy instead of Mommy. He can play by himself if he needs to... He makes up stories and pretends in fabulous ways.

Tonight, he was singing songs for me... It was so cool. When we were getting ready for bed, he broke into a song I had no idea he knew... And we ended singing: "I love you!" and pointed at each other through the mirror. It was cool.

When I hold Cameron's hand, it feels so wide and sturdy. I know it's because I hold Jordan's petite hand so often these days.

Cam still really enjoys my lullabies. I stroke his head when I sing to him, and he smiles this content smile... Like he really knows how much I love him... Even after all the arguments and fights. Tonight, we didn't fight about his dinner. He just didn't eat it. He understood he wouldn't get dessert and just dealt with it. That's another sign of his growth -- He's starting to accept the consequences of his decisions.

I miss my baby Cam. I'm so proud of my big boy.

Fun day

Cameron had a ball today. It was teddy bear picnic day at school. Cam got to wear pajamas to school and bring a teddy bear. They even got to watch Goldilocks and the Three Bears. He was very happy. To make the day even better... His Poppy and Grandma picked him up from school (They arrived today with Moma Dot and Daddy Jr). And the day continued to totally rock because it was so warm outside, we got to play and run around.

To make my day great... Cameron actually ate a barbecue sandwich... He didn't eat all of it. But it was great to see him take bites of something without crying or complaining. That was big.

A big owie

Cam woke up around 3am this morning crying: "Owieee!!" His ear was hurting... And I decided it's swim ear. He hurt on Monday during nap time at school. I put in swim drops into his ear and everything seemed okay until early this morning. Fortunately, the doctor's office was willing to listen to my analysis of the situation and prescribe him ear drops without him having to come in. How great is that?

Anyway. This morning, I asked Cam how his ear was feeling and he said it was okay. But later he told me his voice changed, he could hear it in his ear. Clearly, it was clogged up. Poor buddy. So he can't take swim lessons again until his ear gets better. I'm sad about that for him. But Randy said he may work with Cam later next week so he doesn't fall behind. Poor guy.

Swim lesson!

Cam started swim lessons today! I'm so proud of him. Randy says Cam was very brave... He really liked using a kick board and took risks he's never taken in a pool before. I'm thrilled. And from talking to Cam, he's proud of himself.

Big birthday weekend

Cam got to go to brthday parties on Saturday and Sunday. A swim party on Saturday and a standard run around and eat sugar party on Sunday. Randy took Cam to the pool party while I shopped for Sunday's party. I took Cam and Jordan to the party on Sunday. Cam was pretty good this weekend... His desire to fight control continues. He cried through almost all of church today. That was rough. But we're hanging in there. The best part of tonight: Cam and I sat together and listened to a fun CD that has a lyric book. Then later, during dinner... Cam, Randy and I made up songs together. It was cool.

Tantrum Central

I realize Cam has a lot to deal with these days. There's a new baby and there's a lot of focus on her... And not Cam. But all he's been doing is throwing fits. I swear, he cried more than Jordan today. I'm tired and I know my patience is low... So is Randy's. I feel terrible about it. But if he had his way, Cam would have spent the entire day watching movies. He is testing the hell out of us... I just wish that testing would not include so much crying.

Beyond the tantrums... Cam is picking up an amusing sense of humor. When we were at church today, he spoke out in the middle of the children's sermon and made the congregation laugh. He turns to the crowd and says: "Don't laugh at me." But you know he loved it. He also told his friend Camryn's parents that he plans to teach Jordan how to be funny. I think he'll be very good at that.

Space Grandma

Cameron had breakfast with his Grandma Lee one more time this morning before she left for home. She went downstairs with curlers in her hair. Cameron told her she looked like a Space Grandma. She went up and took it off. He thought she looked much better without the curlers.

He was also very persuasive when he was asking for his breakfast... He asked for milk, cheerios, yogurt... and an ice cream sandwich. It's like he thought he could sneak that in. Nice try kid.

More proof he's a big boy

For the last 3 nights, Cam has made it through the final step of potty training. He actually wakes up on his own to go potty in the middle of the night. Incredible. Randy was going up to take Cam to the bathroom a few nights ago when he found the boy was already there. No accidents since then. I realize I just cursed us by posting about this development. Oh well.

Some Christmas Tidbits

I just looked at the blog and realized I never wrote a thing about Cam's Christmas. I was uncomfortable and soon after the holiday, I went into labor. So, who knew.

Cameron had his entire closest family members visiting our house: Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Jon, Grandma and Poppy, Moma Dot and Daddy Junior and Uncle Barry. And the boy was PILED with gifts (as you can see in the picture). The amazing thing is he recognized and enjoyed each gift. He even enjoyed his clothing gifts. He never opened a gift and just threw it to the side. He thanked everyone, gave out hugs and admired everything. Gift opening took FOREVER! But we weren't going to stop him from being respectful.

The gift of the year: The Buzz Lightyear rocket toy that Cam has asked for since this summer. It's a smash hit. He still plays with it obsessively. He has a huge imagination and comes up with all kinds of adventures for Buzz and a little alien toy.

Oh. And the day before Christmas Eve, Cam was on a local variety show to celebrate the holidays. He was a camera hog and ended up upstaging the hosts of the show a few times. By the end of the show, the hosts even knew his name and called on him to give him a chance to talk. The boy ain't shy.

Wow. He needs to go to school.

Cameron has been out of school for more than a week. He's been consumed with family time and nothing is normal. And if he tells me NO over a stupid thing one more time... I think I'm going to lose it.

Here's the funny part.

Cameron's tantrums are loud, violent and upsetting (to him and I try to not let it bother me). Jordan doesn't react. Not one bit. Her brother doesn't phase her. It's amazing. Cam's going to have to work harder to get to her.

"I like being a big btother"

That's what Cam told me yesterday -- our first full day home with Jordan.

He's learning how to balance my attentions. I can't play hard, physical games. His tackle hugs hurt my newly renewed feeding abilities. Plus, he's been surrounded by all kinds of family members. We aren't in any kind of normal life pattern.

We return to school on Tuesday. That should help.

Where is the baby coming out?

Yeah. Cameron is starting ask very specific questions about the female body and how Jordan will arrive. Yesterday he learned the fact that I don't have a penis. Yeah. He asked, I told him I don't have one and that girls don't have one. He's been begging for me to show him. And I wouldn't dare. So we're in the middle of some very challenging questions for a Mommy and her 3 year old.

I'm hoping he moves past this phase. I'm thinking the actual arrival of Jordan will be the only way to really clear Cam's mind about this topic. Yikes!

Singing tunes and playing the piano

There's this new show on Disney... Maybe it isn't new. But we discovered it recently. It's called Little Einsteins. We TiVo it every day so Cam can watch it when he gets home. It's based on a classical song... just a piece of it and a piece of art... and the characters have an adventure of some sort. Cameron really picks up on the songs and he's learning words like allegro and staccato.

Pretty cool.

By the way... Cameron is moving into this phase where he thinks he can ignore us. It leads to some ugly scenarios. He also doesn't like it when I laugh around him. He says: "Don't laugh at me. I don't like that." And then he hides. He's also tried to totally screw up our sleep in the last couple of weeks. He gets out of bed, says he's scared, asks to sleep with us and cuddle... It's not like we've allowed him to sleep with us EVER. But we've let him jump in a little before the time when we wake up (or I wake up)... I started it when I was exhausted in the first trimester of pregnancy. But for some reason, he's tried to take it beyond that. I can't. I won't. And we're all tired.

So the addition of Cam's wake ups, my pregnant wake ups... and I'm a little closer to feeling the reality of when Jordan gets here. Sleep will be really screwed up then.

...And movies

Cameron finally got a chance to see Santa over the weekend. He was very focused during his time with Santa and told him all the things he wants: two movies and a Buzz Lightyear rocket. Very cute.

So tonight Randy was helping Cameron go back to bed after his latest excuse as to why he wasn't in bed. I always sing a lullaby -- it's sweet and I never change the way I sing it. But Randy sings a lullaby with a different song to it. Tonight he sang something about being good so Santa can bring him toys. And Cam chimed in with a tune and added: "...And movies!"

That boy just doesn't forget what he wants.

Giggle crack

You know, watching Cam watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" is like crack... You can't stop, you want more. Every time Snoopy did something funny, Cam would break into the deepest and most fantastic giggle. You have to stop what you're doing to eat it up and enjoy the moment. It's wonderful.

By the way... There's a new challenge since the addition of the night light. Now he's afraid of the shadow the night light is casting on his ceiling fan. So he's sleeping with his sheet over his head. That imagination of his is in overdrive.