Lincoln and "Monica"...

So Scott was emptying out our old entertainment center yesterday and inside was an old harmonica of mine. No, I have never played the harmonica, and frankly, I don't quite remember where I acquired one. Nonetheless, Scott gave it to Lincoln and said "here, go have Mommy show you." So Lincoln brought the harmonica over to me and I proceeded to blow into it and watched as my son's face lit up with a huge smile followed by an excited laugh! He then took the harmonica from me and blew into it, so excited he made music. Then he even more enjoyed the fact that he could blow into it or suck air from it and it still made music! Yes, I'm referring it to music instead of noise, because coming from Lincoln, it was music to our ears. :) He loves the harmonica, which he affectionately refers to as "MONICA". :) He even had to take 'Monica' to bed with him last night. (that just sounds awful saying that regarding my 2 1/2 year old, hahahaha). I told Scott we were probably going to be awakened to hearing him playing that over the baby monitor! So about midnight last night, Lincoln came into bed with me, (Scott was still awake researching TV's), and he had "Monica" with him. I was falling back asleep when I heard Lincoln give two puffs into that harmonica, to which I had to say, "no hunny, it's night night time." :) Today, we ventured up to Cedar Rapids to look at TV stands. While in the car Lincoln says "my Monica, where's my Monica"? Oops, we should've known better than to forget "Monica". Well when we got home this evening, he found his "Monica". Whew...

Carousel Rider...

Whenever we go to the mall, Lincoln loves to ride the big carousel. I'm always the picture taker, because I get dizzy on the mall carousel. It seems like it goes a bit faster than the theme park ones. So, Daddy gets the honor of taking our little man on. Here are a few pictures to enjoy. The first is from today 3-21-10 riding the Easter bunny, just in time for Easter!! The second was from 12-12-09 riding Rudolph, just in time for Christmas!!

BICYCLE! BICYCLE!

"I want to ride my bicycle

I want to ride my bike

I want to ride my bicycle

I want to ride it where I like"

In case some of you have no idea or rather, don't know what the above lyrics are, they're from the song "Bicycle Race" made famous by the historic band Queen. :)

Yes, it is true, Lincoln now has his 1st bicycle!! We purchased the adorable light blue/navy blue/orange Huffy "rock it" bike at Walmart last night and even bought a little something extra, a noisy horn to put on it for Lincoln to squeak. :) He looks like such a big boy on it! He's very excited, to say the least. He can't wait to use it outside, which, I'm guessing will be some time today, since we already have a helmet for him. We will have to work with him a little though (well, Daddy will because Mommy's back can't handle it) because he did get a little frustrated using his new bike at the store because he often tries to back pedal and well, on kids' bikes, back pedaling is braking. He doesn't like that it brakes because to him that is stopping and he wants to go go go! Thank goodness Mother Nature has turned a corner and we have plenty of time to get him acclimated to his new toy. :) Here's some photos to enjoy. :)

On another note, Happy Daylight Savings! (Change those smoke detector batteries!) Even 'losing' an hour of sleep, we gained more daylight during the day, which I love! Especially now that temperatures outside are comfortable, that means more outside time for Lincoln! Every birthday Lincoln has had thus far (only 2 :) ) I've thought about getting a climber/swingset for his birthday. I think this may be the year, as he is able to go on them at the park by himself. So, I am in research mode to find one I like that he will hopefully be able to grow with. He turns 3 on May 1st! *Mommy tear. :(

Think Spring because it has sprung!

Finally out with winter and out with the snow!!! Remember this week is time to change the clocks and smoke detector batteries! I have to say, spring thus far is scaring me a bit, we've had lots of rain already, hopefully not a sign that it will rain all spring. I can't however complain about the temperature outside, it is so nice. :) The other day it was 60 degrees, so I decided to take Lincoln to the park. He LOVES going to the park because he loves slides. :) Here's a little photo to enjoy of our little man his first time at the park this season. :)

From "Pacifiers to Potty"

Hi everyone! Sorry I'm kind of bad about updating on here. Also, it's been so long since I put the layout on here, I can't remember how I did it and I want to change it! (Katie, I may be calling you. :) ) Anyway for updates...let's see:

I no longer am working at Pediatric Center. It didn't end up being a good fit for me, so I am looking for other jobs, but I do miss it often.

Lincoln is a chatterbox these days. Sometimes I just crack up at the things he says. For example, recently the dogs sgot haircuts. The other day we were in the kitchen and he squatted down to Ozzy and said "you look handsome, new haircut". Scott and I started cracking up because we say that a lot to the dogs in the first few days after they get haircuts. It was so cute. Lincoln is always quick to want to get home to "see Ozzy & Jack", he loves his dogs. However, we are currently battling with Lincoln because he is tormenting the dogs by throwing things at them and smacking them. It gets very frustrating because he doesn't quit doing it. Any suggestions??

Our most recent venture with Lincoln is FINALLY getting rid of his pacifier. He affectionately refers to it as "pappy". On February 11th Lincoln had his very 1st dentist appointment. The dentist informed me that Lincoln has an 'open bite'. Basically, your top teeth should normally overlap your bottom teeth when you clench them together. Well, Lincoln has a open gap when he clenches his teeth. The dentist said that is from the pacifier. He did inform me that the 'damage was done' earlier when his teeth were coming in. Ooops! Well, for several months, he has only been allowed to use it at nap/bedtime and that is it. However, he hasn't been using it at all at daycare during naps! So, we decided since he didn't need it there, he certainly didn't need it at home, especially knowing about the open bite. So, Lincoln's dentist suggested an idea to us to get rid of the pacifier. We tried the clipping the nipple of one a long time ago, but he still sucked on it! So I knew that wasn't an option. So here's what we did. We ventured down to our mall to "Build a Bear Workshop". We picked out a cute puppy and when going to get it stuffed, Lincoln handed his "pappy" to the lady to be put into his new puppy, who we named "PAPPY".

He seemed to handle it well at the time, but come naptime, he was an emotional wreck. He was grabbing at the back of the puppy to try to get the pacifier out, it was heartbreaking. I got to thinking about it and I bet the way a smoker feels when they quit cold turkey is how my 2 1/2 year old was feeling. It was his comfort, his security, and even worse, he didn't have the choice to quit, it was taken away from him. :( But it had to be done, it affected his teeth. It's been a battle at nap/bedtime, but the amount of time he cries for it is getting shorter. He sleeps with "Pappy the Puppy" now.

In other news, we are slowly in the process of potty training, thankfully, they work with him at school too. He loves his stand up potty from Aunt Melissa and Uncle Adam. The "Peter Potty Urinal" (target.com) can be kept on the adjustable height stand or mounted to the wall, and even has a flusher. :)

As we are all ready for spring and the ending of snow, we're also excited about the upcoming wedding of Scott's sister Melissa and her fiance Adam. They will be married April 17th in San Diego, CA. Lincoln is the ringbearer. :) It will be nice to be in the warm weather, as it has been a long winter.