Guess who's back... back again.

We made it back home to Kansas and we want to let everyone know what a nice time we had out on the east coast with our family and friends. Upon our arrival here, we were greeted by a lovely foot of snow in our driveway, plus all the stuff kicked up by the plow at the end of the driveway. Even my four wheel drive couldn't get over that! Let's just say that I got a much needed workout clearing the snow so Brian can go to work tomorrow... Check back in the coming days for a long update about our holiday trip to New York (plus pictures!).

Christmas 2009

Christopher would like everyone to know that he had a wonderful Christmas today and that his mom will update the blog upon our return to Kansas (if we can get through the snow that will most certainly be covering our driveway). He also wants you all to know how cool it is to stay in your pajamas for over 24 hours... and then go back to bed in them. What a life.

A Hip Hop Holiday

And here is the dynamic duo in action... the best yet!

A Little Boy's First Haircut

A new milestone was reached today on our little boy's 17 month birthday. We took Christopher to Shear Madness to get his hair cut. I have been saying for a while that when his hair started getting into his eyes, we would take CJ to get a trim and the time had now come. (Plus we want him to look super handsome for all his east coast family come next week). Anyway, this place specializes in children's haircuts so when you walk in, there are toys everywhere! Of course all the toys have price tags on them so you can bribe your kid and say, "If you do a good job, we'll buy you one of these _______." Christopher needed no bribing, although he did need some coaxing. The "chairs" are actually little cars that the kids sit in and they face a TV in order to distract as needed. Lollipops are also available upon request. Chris was very serious the entire time, as you can see above. We had a nice girl named Jamie cut his hair and she started by just spritzing him with some water so he was nice and slick. Then she began on the back, those beautiful little curls! (Sniffle, sniffle).

But fear not! Those first curls are forever saved in a little baggie. When she first started cutting the back (by his neck) he raised his shoulders because he is really ticklish back there. He did a wonderful job and was okay sitting there as he was being spiffed up. But then... the evil, electric hair trimmer came out! Here was his initial reaction to that piece of machinery:

And then, here is what happened next:

But the tears only lasted a short time and Christopher was good after he realizes the haircut was done and he looked fabulous (plus a little soothing from the good old pacifier). Being the new parent suckers that we are, they talked us into getting the "Baby's First Haircut" package ($14.95!!!) where they give you a certificate with before and after pictures as well as signatures of all those present and a small baggie with his first little curl enclosed. When we got home, Christopher was all smiles and loved showing off his new do to Kasey Moe. We are very proud of our big boy on this big day!

Three tales

STORY 1:
Last night was the annual Jeff and Kay Christmas extravaganza at our neighbor's home. We brought Christopher to the party last year and it was pretty easy to manage him because you could just plop him down and have him sit anywhere. This year was a bit more of a workout for us. Because Kay's stairs are not blocked off, we had to constantly chase after CJ to make sure he didn't take a nice dive down to the bottom floor of the house. Kay also goes all out with her beautiful Christmas decorations which Christopher likes to admire with his hands. Therefore, I think I repeated the phrases "gentle hands" and "no touch" a thousand times! If, for some reason, our little man disappeared for a minute, we only needed to go into Kay's kitchen where there are lots of ovens, dishwashers and microwaves to look at. The boy is happy in a kitchen which I hope makes his future wife happy as well. All in all we had a great time at the soiree and we are so thankful for our wonderful neighbors and the nice people who live in our neighborhood.

STORY 2:
Christopher is 17 months old today. Holy cow!

STORY 3:
Whenever I put Christopher down for a nap, he sits up and watches me walk out of the room. Right before I close the door, I send him a kiss by kissing my hands and blowing it over to him. This morning, as Daddy was leaving for work, we walked over to the door to say goodbye. Christopher gave his Daddy a wave and then put his hand up to his mouth and "kissed" him goodbye. I know... AWWWWWW! So stinkin' cute!

Last day of Kindermusik

Okay, folks. What are we going to do? Today was the last day of Kindermusik for the fall/winter semester. Now we have to wait almost a full month until we get to sing and dance and run around like crazy with other kids in a setting where nothing can get broken or damaged. Ugh! I can't, I mean, Christopher can't wait that long! It has now been almost a full year since we've been going to Kindermusik and it has been so much fun for both of us. Part of the reason it is so awesome is Christopher's teacher, Ms. Heather (pictured above with CJ who absolutely loves her but was totally ready to get in the car and go home today when I took this). He has become so comfortable with her now and always giggles and flirts when he sees her. Fortunately for her, but not so much for us, Ms. Heather is pregnant and will not be teaching our class next semester. Hopefully we will get to see her when a sub is needed and we wish her and the baby the best! Anyway, class was fun as usual today. There is a song called "Pig Jig" that is a sort of variation of "This Little Piggy." When we did the song today, Chris ran around to a bunch of the moms and their babies and pointed to their toes. It was so cute! Then he stood in the middle of the circle, squatted down and pointed to his own toes... At least we have our multiple Kindermusik playlists to keep us dancing over the holidays. And we will be looking forward to when we start up again mid January!

Must be Santa

Instead of waiting on line for three hours at the mall, our neighborhood moms got together and hired a Santa Claus to visit our children at one of the neighbor's homes. And let me tell you, this was no mall Santa. This guy may have been the real deal! Now last year, Christopher was so easy to just hand off to Santa. There was no fuss and we got some great pictures. For the past few weeks, Christopher has been very fussy and overwhelmed in large group situations so when I saw in the evite that there would be 45 people at this event, the dread began. I thought for sure he would be "that kid" that was screaming and fussing the whole time. Once again, my boy proved me wrong. We were at the house for 15 minutes before Santa came in, bells and all. I was holding Chris at the time and he immediately did the "put me down" lean and ran over to Santa, pointing to him and laughing. Later, when we put Chris on the jolly old man's lap, he was a little cautious but as soon as he saw the Hot Wheels car Santa was handing him, they were best friends. And he got a candy cane on top of it! After Santa visited with all the children, he was in the kitchen (possibly grabbing an adult beverage?) and CJ went right up to him and gave him the signal for "pick me up." Can you believe it? Here are some pictures from their visit.


Yesterday, we went to Petsmart to get some items and there was a Santa there who was taking pictures with dogs. As soon as we walked in, Christopher ran directly to the big, furry black dog that was with Santa and started petting him. Then he went right up to Santa and started "petting" his beard. Maybe he thinks Santa's beard is a fluffy white dog? Anyway, that should have been a sign unto me that he would be okay with today's Santa... The rest of the party was so fun and Chris was going up to practically every mom in the kitchen, asking to be picked up (sound familiar Grandpa Woglom?). He was in heaven because this kitchen had three, count 'em, three ovens and a microwave. Wow. To top it all off, his favorite babysitter, Kay, was there to see all the kiddos and we got a picture of the two of them. It was a great afternoon!

Havin' Fun with Applesauce!

A boy, a spoon, and some applesauce...

Lights Please

Last night, Christopher took part in a holiday tradition that has spanned the generations. He sat right down on the couch with Mommy, Daddy, and Kasey and watched his very first "Charlie Brown Christmas." It is something I never miss and I hope that Chris enjoys it as much as we do. The special itself is only half an hour and our little man sat quite comfortably with us the whole time. He did relocate to different parts of the couch, testing out each individual cushion. But he was satisfied to hang with his parents.
I also have a tradition of watching "Charlie Brown Christmas" with my friend, Lauren. We always laugh at the end when all the kids gather around the tree and sing "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" because we think it's funny when they stick their faces up in the air and sing "do do do do do do do do." Well, apparently Christopher has inherited his mother's sense of humor because he thought that was pretty funny as well! To make the evening complete, as we went into CJ's room to get him ready for bed, we looked out the window and there was a perfect coating of snow on the ground. It doesn't get much better than that! (Except for the 45 mile per hour winds and sub-zero temperatures at 3 in the morning).

Car pics

As promised...

Vrrrrooooom

It will come as no surprise that Christopher (110% boy) loves things with wheels that go vrrrooooom! When the weather was warmer, we would play outside in the morning and CJ would be fascinated by all the vehicles that drove by our house. Cars, trucks, buses... you name it. He especially loves school buses and garbage trucks. Last week, at Borders, we came across this little school bus that, when you back it up and let it go, will go flying across the hardwood floors.
And as if that wasn't cool enough, Brian's boss gave Christopher a Hess racing car for Christmas! Now, I had a Hess truck when I was little and it had lights and all that cool stuff. But times have changed and this race car not only lights up, but it also beeps and has two different revving engine sounds that are really loud. And to top it all off, there is another little car inside the big car that lights up and really flies across the floor. Christopher is a very happy boy with his new vehicles!

(For some unknown reason, the blog doesn't want to upload the rest of the pictures of CJ playing with his car so I will add them later on when blogspot regains its sanity.)

Spinning!

So Christopher has discovered a new form of entertainment for himself. It's known as "spinning in circles until he falls down." For some reason, he decided that today would be the day he busted this move out. We were listening to an older Kindermusik playlist and there is a song that has spoken directions about what to do. One part of the song goes, "Side, side, round and around." When the round and around part came on, he just started turning and turning and when he stopped, he totally lost his balance and went sideways into the floor. He was okay though and started cracking up! Apparently, he continued spinning while Mommy was spinning at the gym (first time in two years=ouch!) and Daddy was very nervous because Chris would lose his balance and practically crash into furniture. It's really funny to watch him crack up but we'll have to put a helmet on him or something to prevent head injuries. Ah, boys... Speaking of boys, Christopher is going over to Tristan's house today while his parents get a baby free lunch out. Thank you Dan and Mary!

Through the generations

Some toys are timeless. We have been very fortunate that Grammy saved several classic toys that belonged to me when I was a little girl. (Also, I wasn't a very girly girl when I was little so Chris doesn't have to inherit anything pink!). These toys have made it all the way out to Kansas from New Jersey and now that Chris is getting so big, he is beginning to use them. Since we brought this Playskool desk out for Tristan on Monday, Christopher has been very interested in using the letters inside. More than anything, he likes to hold them in his hand. Little man seems to be partial to the orange and blue letters (hopefully not a sign that he will also like the Mets... or the Islanders). Every once in a while, he will use the chalk to draw a line on the front of the desk, but that is the extent of his writing. Anyway, it's really fun to see him use this desk which, upon close examination, has "KARIN T." written on the front in crayon. The cool thing about the desk is it has also been used by many other children, like Ally and Julia, and I think maybe Nicholas and Natalie. Now it is onto another generation in little CJ Wogs.

To the moon!!!

Just a quick little story... Anytime we read a book that has a picture of the moon in it, Christopher points and laughs--hence the current popularity of "Goodnight Moon" for him. (Some of you will be happy to know that even though I have the same book in French--"Bonsoir Lune"-- Christopher still prefers the English version). Anyway, we were outside the other night at dusk and the full moon was out so clearly in the sky. When I pointed it out to Christopher a huge smile came across his face. As I was holding him, he motioned for me to put him down on the driveway. When I did, he started running... right for the moon! He would stop every few steps, check to make sure it was still there, and continue on. I had to stop him before he made it to the street, mind you. Later on we discussed that no matter how much he runs, he won't be able to get to the moon. He'll have to be an astronaut someday to get there!

A Little Monkey Bizness

This morning we headed out to a fun indoor play gym called Little Monkey Bizness to meet a couple friends from Kindermusik (Emily and Aidan). After napping in the car, Christopher was ready to go and let me tell you, this place was like kiddie heaven! There were climbing toys, rope swings, slides, cars, and even a disco ball over a dance floor. It was not very busy when we first got there so CJ was totally fine, having a blast. He even climbed up a set of stairs and went down a slide all by himself! But then, true to form, Christopher started melting down after the crowds arrived. I reminded him that I didn't pay $7.50 to stand around and hold him while he cried but he didn't really pay much attention. It was pretty busy and he was fussing, even when I caved in and gave him the pacifier. He did that for about 30 minutes and then got brave enough to venture off and explore. But he always came back to check in with Mommy (aww, still my little baby). We played for a good two hours there and Mommy had fun chatting with Emily's and Aidan's respective moms. (Adult talk=always good). Good times!

The boys

Well, I received a bonus child at my doorstep this morning! Actually, Dan and Mary needed someone to watch Tristan today so we happily accepted and Christopher has had so much fun with the "big boy." (Frankly, I think he needed a break from all his little girl friends that he plays with!). Tristan is almost three years old and it reminds me of when I used to teach preschool because he can talk to me and he plays in a completely different way than CJ does. In the picture above, he is sitting at a Playskool desk that was mine when I was little. He is drawing letters with chalk and telling me each one he draws. So cool! We had a fun morning and I even got Chris to take a morning nap, although I'm sure he would have preferred to play more with his friend. Tristan and I played downstairs until Chris got up. After snack, we all went over the the cul-de-sac behind our house and ran around like crazy while Miss Kay and I looked on. Then it was back home for lunch and a little bit of "Cars" (the movie). As I write this, I have two peacefully sleeping boys in their respective rooms and all is well. Here are more pictures of Tristan...

Rock Chalk and Christmas Trees

I had to double check the calendar today because I could have sworn it was April 28th, not November 28th. The Wogloms (Kansas and New York) ventured west to Lawrence to walk around a wonderful little town that also happens to be home to the University of Kansas. The weather was so nice, I broke out my sandals one more time. We strolled around town and window shopped a bit before going to the Free State Brewery for lunch. Christopher had so much to look at the whole time and he was very well-behaved. He enjoyed some chicken fingers and a wide variety of fresh fruit. On the way back to the car, we walked past numerous stores carrying Kansas Jayhawk merchandise, none of which we purchased. No Rock Chalk Jayhawk stuff for us. (Oh, for those of you not from Kansas, i.e. everyone reading this, "Rock chalk Jayhawk" is the cheer for the Kansas sports teams. After asking multiple alum here what it means, I still can't get a straight answer. You'll have to google it.). On our way back home, we stopped at a playground in Lawrence where Chris played on the swings and repeatedly went down his first enclosed slide. It was very cool!

While our little man was taking his afternoon nap, it was time to bust out the Christmas decorations. For the third year in a row, we set up our pre-lit tree in the living room. Let me just say how much I love the pre-lit three. It is in three sections and takes all of 5 minutes to put together. Then I hung the ornaments which took another ten minutes. All totaled I think my holiday decorating took me a half an hour. Brian contributed by bringing the tree up from the basement. He was very proud of his manly muscles.
The best, though, was when Chris got up from his nap and got a good look at the Christmas tree.

He inspected the tree very seriously to make sure I put everything in the correct place. And believe it or not, the tree is still standing and all the ornaments are accounted for. We'll see what tomorrow brings! Christopher also played with a fabulous toy we received several years ago that sings and dances (Grammy, you will know which toy I'm talking about).
Kasey was excited (as usual) about the holiday decorating rituals of her owners.
All in all, we had a wonderful day and a wonderful weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Woglom! But fear not, east coasters. The Kansas Wogloms will be home in three weeks! Until then, here is a picture to remind you of how cute we all are.

Tofuky and other yummy things

Yes, this is how exciting Christopher's Thanksgiving was this year. He just couldn't believe how much food he was going to get to eat this year, unlike last year when solids were not in the picture yet. First, Chris is super excited that Grandma and Grandpa Woglom are out here to visit him and he has had a ton of fun playing with them both. Yesterday, he spent much of the day on the couch but, as mentioned in an earlier post, such couch potato-ness wears him out. The boy gets more exercise on the couch than most people get doing an Ironman! Here is is with Daddy and Grandma.
Christopher is not the only one getting exercise these days. Grandpa Woglom has done his share of weightlifting this trip as CJ enjoys being held by someone taller than Mommy and Daddy. But more than that, he loves that Grandpa will stand with him in front of the microwave and press the buttons for hours on end! In fact, Grandpa has moved up in the ranks of "who Chris wants to hold him" as he repeatedly fussed to be picked up last night as we awaited dinner. It was refreshing for me to get a break from being whined to for once!
We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with the Wogloms and our friends, Dan and Mary, came over too with Tristan and the two doggies. It was a wonderful time for everyone and we are just amazed at how much Tristan is growing up every day! Here are the boys playing with Tristan's cars:

We had lots of good food (thanks in much part to Grandma's cooking), and Mommy spent this first Thanksgiving as a vegetarian chowing down on a scrumptious Tofurky roast. (Mmmmm, just like the real thing). And after a good night's sleep, Christopher woke in the morning and realized he had to check his messages on his Blackberry. The boy is totally connected.

A Masterpiece

What you are looking at in the picture above is Christopher's first official work of art. He told me he calls it "Blustery Day." It was, in fact, a blustery, rainy day out this morning so we didn't get to play outside like we usually do. Mommy had to get creative in order to entertain our little growing boy. Yesterday, we picked up these funky toddler crayons at Target...
... and Christopher got to work first thing after breakfast. I know you're probably thinking that these are some crazy looking crayons. Apparently they are supposed to be easier for little hands to grip but if I had to do it all over again, I would just get regular crayons. Well, they are cute anyway. I initially had to show Chris what to do with them but once he saw the squiggly lines, he went to town on the piece of paper! After five minutes, though, he decided it would be much more fun to put in and take out the little crayons from they're plastic holder. He did that about 15 times in a row and then was done. That must just be his "process." Anyway, here is a close up of the artiste's creation.

The CD player

Dear CD player,

Why did you choose to stop working right before Christopher's morning nap? Don't you know that we've been playing music on you before every single morning and afternoon nap for the past 13 months? You couldn't wait until some random other time to break, like when we just play Tom Chapin CDs in the middle of the day so I can run out and get a new one of you? Why? Oh why?

Sincerely,

Mommy



Dear Mommy,

You bought me at Wal-Mart for $19.99. What did you expect?

Sincerely,

The CD player

Hail to the... Victors?

As I mentioned yesterday, we watched the Ohio State-Michigan game from the comfort for our own living room, which was probably good considering the poor showing of our favorite college football team. I have to admit that we weren't surprised by the outcome, but we are forever hopeful. Christopher got to sit on the couch, one of his new favorite places to be, to watch the game. But fear not! This little boy will not be a couch potato in the traditional sense. No, when Chris is on the couch, it is like an all out workout... for everyone involved. First, we move the coffee table so as to avoid head injuries. Then we warn Kasey about what is coming and she usually relocates to another part of the house, far far away. Finally, I position myself on one end and Brian sits on the other end of the couch in order to catch our little man wherever he decides to land. And then little buds goes to work, jumping, bouncing, rolling and crawling all over the place. It's a good thing we got a sectional. Yesterday, he insisted on slowly diving (I emphasize slowly) headfirst over the edge of the couch. Mind you, this is all done with us holding onto him but he was still enjoying it thoroughly. Here are some more pics of Chris watching the game. The first one happened when Michigan fumbled, resulting in an Ohio State touchdown. Notice the look on his face.
Next, we have Christopher in mid-roll... trust me, he loves this.
Michigan must have done something good here to make Chris smile.
And finally, here we are trying to take a picture of ourselves while I am holding a very heavy camera with one hand.