"My friend Sarah"

Last weekend, my cousin Sarah came to spend the weekend with Manny and I. I say with Manny and I because Joe has been working some CRAZY hours lately and wasn't around very much.

I really appreciated Sarah helping me out, especially since I had both baby showers last weekend. Manny also loved having her around and having her undivided attention.


Joe was getting ready to go to work Sunday morning and Manny was talking up a storm to Joe. All of a sudden, Manny grabbed Joe's hand and said, "Daddy follow me, show you something". Joe followed Manny into the new office where Sarah was sleeping. Manny says, "Daddy, see my friend Sarah?". Sarah, of course was sleeping and oblivious to it all.

Happy Hanukkah

Manny's cousin Ben celebrates Hanukkah and sent Manny a present so that Manny could celebrate too.

This present was opened on Tuesday evening at sunset. Manny doesn't understand anything about Hanukkah, but was very happy to honor Ben and open a present.

A VERY excited Manny opened a HUGE truck that has even more cars inside of it. I cannot tell you how happy this present made Manny. It kept Manny entertained for almost an hour. I cannot thank Ben enough for this wonderful present!

Here's a picture of the truck:

"It's Banana Time"

About 10 minutes after I put Manny to bed tonight, I could hear him in the kitchen.




The next thing I knew, he came into the office and asked, "Manny have banana".




I replied, "No Manny, it is bedtime."




He said to me, "No Mama, it's banana time".




It was very difficult to keep a straight face.

Manny quotes

Here are some of the things Manny has been saying lately:

"One night, wake up...." This phrase could be followed by anything. "One night, wake up Manny watch Cars". "One night, wake up Manny go to library". It doesn't necessarily literally mean one night, it just means it happened.

Manny was playing with his Cars and I continued to hear him saying, "All that NOISE, NOISE, NOISE, NOISE". I was thinking where do I know that from? I asked Manny who says that? He laughs and says, "The Grinch, Mama on movie".

"Just One More Lego, Mama"

Yesterday I think I walked Manny back to his bedroom at least 10 times when it was time for his nap. Everytime he left his room he seemed to have a valid reason for leaving. Here are a few examples:

"Manny very thirsty, Mama, need a drink"
"Manny peed, need diaper change"
"Mama, Manny need just one more lego"

At this point, I brought the whole bucket of legos into his bedroom and just figured he would play for a while. I looked in his room about 10 minutes later and he was sound asleep....on top of the legos. If I wasn't so worried about the flash waking him up I would have taken his picture. It was so cute.

Thanksgiving

We spent this Thanksgiving at Governor's Restaurant. I know, I know, very exciting.

Joe had worked 110 hours in the last 5 days before Thanksgiving and was taking the day off, however, he had to stay in the area in case they needed him at the mill. So off to Governor's we went.

The food was really good, but it wasn't quite the same as hanging out with family and then getting leftovers to take home...I really miss the leftovers :).

One good thing about the meal was the YUMMY!! chocolate cake with peanutbutter frosting.

We also got to see Manny devour a plate of Thanksgiving food...turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and a whole bowl of cottage cheese. He said, "Manny like Thanksgiving food."

Visit with Uncle Phil

Uncle Phil had Veteren's Day off from school, so he came down to visit. Manny was so excited, he woke me up at 6:30 am saying,

"Mama, get up, Uncle here NOW."

I slowly opened my eyes and saw that it was still dark out and said, "Manny, there is NO WAY Uncle is here right now, it is still dark out".

Manny replied, "Yes, Mama. Uncle here now, GET UP, glasses on."

I struggled out of bed to start the day. P.S. Uncle did not get here until 9:30, a very reasonable time of day.

Remembering Gramp

Remembering Gramp everday, but especially today as I think about how he served our country during World War II

Manny's new clubhouse

Daddy and Manny have built themselves a clubhouse. I say that it is for both of them, because to be honest, sometimes they are about the same age (see previous Lego posts). It was actually somewhat warm one afternoon last week and Manny and I went out to play.

Better Late than never

Here are some pictures I took of Manny watching the jack-o-lantern. They didn't come out as cute as I thought they would, but I still like them.

While Mama's Away....

While I was at a baby shower today, Joe decided to take Manny to the grocery store to pick up some milk. He let Manny walk, something I NEVER do because it usually means a lot of walking and not a lot of grocery-getting. Well, anyway, what did I care, I wasn't there so I didn't have to chase him.

This is what they came home with: (Remember, they just went in for a gallon of milk)
*onion bagel
*one red apple
*one green apple
*a salad from the salad bar
*Baby bell cheese
*raspberries
*yogurt covered almonds
*jelly bellies

Hmmm....who do you think was doing the shopping?

"Same, Mama, the same socks"

So the other day, Manny and I were twins. He loved it.

Halloween 2007

Manny decided to be a pirate this year for Halloween. He thinks pirates say, "yay-ho, ho, ho" (a mix between Santa and a pirate).

We started the day going to Dexter to visit GG and have lunch with GG, Grandpa, Grammy, and Phyllis. Then we got to go to the school and see Uncle. GG told Manny that she didn't have any Halloween candy, Manny replied, "GG, no candy, GG have cookies". So he was all set.

After we visited in Dexter, we came home and had dinner with Daddy. No trick-or-treating this year, but we had a fun day anyway.

Comparing the two

Here is Makenzie's latest ultrasound picture compared with Manny. Manny is a couple of hours old in his picture.

We had to have a 3D ultrasound with Makenzie because this is the first picture we have seen of her face (28 weeks). She wouldn't look at the front and all we have seen is her profile.

Playing in the Leaves

We decided to play in the leaves this past weekend while Daddy was working on the club house.

Manny loved playing in the leaves and trying to throw them at Joe and I. It is funny that this year Manny loves the leaves and last year he didn't like them at all. What a difference a year makes.

56 Days Until Christmas...Manny thinks it is time to pick out presents...

In the newspaper this weekend was the Toys R Us Christmas toy ad. Manny LOVES looking at magazines, catalogues etc especially when they have toys in them. He even helped me out by pointing to EVERY toy that he wanted (which was just about everything).

WoooooHoooooo!!!

Some of you might find this post a little too much information, some (mostly those who are/have been parents yourselves) will be sooooo excited.....

Manny pooped in the potty!!!!!

We had just changed him into a fresh diaper (of course) and pajamas and he started showing the signs of having to have a "bowel movement" (some may like that term better :). We decided to ask him if he wanted to sit on the potty. He said, "yes, little potty". He sat down and that was that.

He (and Joe and I) were way too excited than anyone should be over bodily waste, but hey, it was the first time he has EVER used his potty that has been sitting in the bathroom for almost 9 months now.

All Figured Out

Last night, Joe, Manny and I were in the backyard doing some work on Manny's new club house. We were just talking (I can't even remember what we were talking about) and Manny says,

"Mama says no, Daddy says yes."

For not even 2 and a half years old, Manny pretty much has his parents all figured out.

What do you do on a day without a car?

Make Cookies!!

Yesterday my car was in the garage leaving Manny and I at home with no transportation, so we decided to make cookies.

Here are step-by-step directions for making cookies with Manny. *Disclaimer: Shirts are usually required, but when you have a two year old, you kind of pick and choose which battles you are going to tackle*

Step One: Bring your mixing bowl to the table:

Step Two: Dump the cookie mix into the bowl. Yes, I know we didn't make the cookies from "scratch" as GG would say, but hey I was trying to document the steps and measuring flour, sugar etc takes a lot of work.

Step Three: Stir the ingrediants together (so, we don't show the step of cracking the egg and adding the butter, but you get the idea)

Step Four: Roll out the dough

Step Five: Take multiple random samplings of the cookie dough for quality control purposes.

Step Six: Use the cookie cutters to make shapes in the dough. Notice I didn't say remove the cookies once the shapes are made, just keep pressing the cookie cutters into the dough at random intervals.

The cookie recipe said that the end result should be 2-3 dozen cookies. We ended up with 1 dozen...hmmm wonder what happend to all that cookie dough?

"Make 'em grow"

Manny has insisted on helping me clean the house. Not that I mind, but his idea of cleaning is spraying everything in sight and then unrolling a whole roll of paper towels.

I tried giving him a plain spray bottle (like you would use for plants or naughty animals), however, this was not authentic enough for him. So I rinsed out an old 409 bottle and filled it with water.

I found Manny in the kitchen spraying our pumpkins. I asked him if he was cleaning the pumpkins? He said, "no make 'em grow, like Rabbit". (He was talking about Rabbit from his Winnie the Pooh book)

"Garden grow pumpkins" he was so proud that he was growing pumpkins.

I'll love you Forever...or until Mama is sick of reading this book

Anyone ever read this book? It has a cute story....but it is SOOOO long! Manny insisted that I read it to him before his nap today (along with 16 other books) and I skipped a few pages.

Just as I had set down at the table to eat my corn chowder for lunch, I hear Manny laughing and coming towards me. He laughs and says, "Mama missed pages". He then proceeded to point out each page that I skipped. He then said, "Silly Mama".


At least he just thought I was being silly. Hmmm....

Girls VS Boys

Manny and I were enjoying a quiet ride home from Dexter on Tuesday just watching the changing leaves go by. Manny was in the back seat holding his "baby", who he has decided to name Kristian (his friend McKayla's little brother). Usually Manny falls asleep 2 minutes after we say goodbye, but apparently his 30 minute power nap at GG's was enough for him.

All of a sudden, Manny says, "Baby no penis". I asked him to repeat what he had just said. He did, and I had heard correctly. I looked back and he was looking up the dolls long nightgown and discovered that his baby did not have a penis.

Once I decided that 2 years old was old enough to learn the difference between boys and girls, I explained to Manny that boys have a penis and girls have a vagina. He went through a short list of people he knew (Mama, Daddy, Grammy, GG, Uncle) and correctly identified their reproductive organs.

Later when Daddy got home, I told Joe that he should ask Manny what boys have. Manny stood up and proudly said "boys have penis, girls have a gina".

Joe was quite impressed with his little smarty-pants.

Another Month, Another New Excuse....

As to why the family blog is so far behind. We really have been busy. We have been on the go for the last month and we have had company and a week of vacation with Joe. I know, I know, I use the same excuse every time. Wait until baby #2 is here and then I will have more creative excuses to use :)

Manny's vocabulary has certainly been increasing with every day that passes.

Joe tried to clean the popcorn crumbs off Manny's face before going into the store (of course with a wet thumb....I know, I know, I used to hate when my Mom would do that to me when I was little, but desperate times call for desperate measures). Manny wrenched his head out of the way saying, "NO Daddy! Gross!!".

The other day I asked Manny if he could open the door for me so that we could go outside onto the deck, he looked at me and said, "Oh, of course, Mama". I have no idea where he got that one from.



Cranberries = Cran-babies
Old Navy = Old Baby
When he wants to be picked up/held = "Hold You" (instead of hold me)
"Oh, Yes of course"
"I can't believe it"


My "favorite" of the moment is his demanding "now". This one has just started.
"Manny play with Cars, NOW!"
"Manny go outside, NOW!"
...yep, that's a fun one.

What happens when you give Manny stickers

Grammy gave Manny a sheet of smiley face stickers to take home. They didn't make it out of GG's living room:

How Much Should a Grown Man Spend on Legos?

Over the last two months, Joe has spent $185 on legos, "for Manny". I know that legos are expensive, however, our child is two years old and I find $185 spent on anything (short of an emergency room bill) is a bit excessive.





I brought this up to Joe last night, expressing my concern at the Ramos family supporting the lego industry all by ourselves.





Joe's reply? "He plays with them all the time"


Jen: "All 3 billion peices?"


Joe: "Well, if he only had 10 peices, then I couldn't play legos too"








AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHAAA!!!





Now we have our answer. Daddy just wants to play with legos. That is when I remembered that I had taken these pictures a couple of weeks ago:







Manny humoring Daddy and actually playing with the legos:




Manny getting out of Daddy's way so that Daddy can play:

What happens when Manny has some alone time

So, today I was busy getting ready to go do some errands and Manny was playing in his room. I hadn't heard anything from in a few minutes and when I was ready to go, I went in to get him.

I entered his room and saw that he has climbed up on his changing table and he was sitting with his back towards me. Okay, I thought, we will have to watch him more closely, because yes he got up there, but could he get down without falling? I don't care if he climbs up there as long as he doesn't go head-first into the floor.

As I got closer I saw that he was rubbing his hands together. He has climbed up there and opened up a brand new bottle of desitine and he had it ALL OVER HIMSELF. He looked at me an smiled, saying, "Mama, rub cream on hands."

What could I say at this point? I ran to get the camera:

As I got him changed and ready to go (again), he climbed up on the kitchen counter and covered himself in chalk (not 10 minutes after the desitine incident)...sorry no pictures of that adventure.

So as of 9:00am, Manny had worn three shirts and two pairs of pants.

Day Number Two

So for about the last year I have been lying to Manny's Pediatrician. He continues to ask if Manny has a pacifier. I continued to answer "no" mostly because I didn't feel like hearing a lecture from the Doctor about how bad a pacifier is.

I have tried many times to attempt to wean Manny from his pacifiers, but they didn't work. So we have only been using them at nap/bed time.

Yesterday I had an idea. We were driving to Walmart and I asked Manny if he wanted to give his pacifiers to Santa and Santa will give them to new babies. He sounded very excited, but I thought, hmmmm we will see what happens at nap time. He did ask for it, but I reminded him that we gave them to Santa and then he said, "for new babies" and then rolled over and went to sleep.

Yay! Wish us luck.

First Cheeseburger

Up until this point, Manny has detested meat of any kind. Hamburgers, steak, cheese burgers, ribs, chicken etc have all been put in the "gross" category by Manny.

Apparently, Manny is now a meat eater. On his second birthday, he decided to eat about half of a rotisserie chicken, so now he eats chicken. Today we met Daddy at McDonald's for lunch and Manny decided to eat his chicken nuggets and about half of a double cheeseburger.

He is so funny. He kept saying, "yum, good, mmmmm, yum".

Almost two months since my last post....

...Can you tell it is summer and we are super busy.

Manny has finally had all of his Birthday parties (yes that is plural, we had one for family, one for the playgroup and one with just the three of us on his actual Birthday).

We went to visit Josh and "TT" in Boston and Manny had so much fun. We visited the Museum of Science which Manny really enjoyed (he must have because I think we were there for 6+ hours :).

We haven't been able to go camping as much as we have liked because the weather has been really rainy and not really conducive to camping.

Now that summer is starting to slow down, I am going to try to post more often.

Fun with Josh and TT

Josh and TT came for an extended weekend visit and Manny had SO MUCH FUN!!!
It was like a huge vacation for him. Every morning he would wake up and instead of calling for myself or Joe, he would call, "Josh, TT c'mere". It was too cute.
Here are some pictures:

So...if anyone has a magic formula....

for getting desitin out of a navy blue construction-theme comforter, please let me know.

I went to get Manny from his afternoon nap and realized that he smelled a little like desitin. He promptly informed me "Poop". So I picked him up to put him on his changing table and noticed that the *last I checked* tube of desitin was now almost empty and squished into a small ball. hmmm....I thought I wonder why Manny smells like desitine.

I also look at the changing table and see various deposits of desitine. I ask Manny, "how did that happen?". He points to his bum and says, "cream, poop". So I look at the back of his pants and see several smeared white hand prints on his back pockets. hmmm...the story is unfolding.

Manny is standing on his changing table while I clean up desitin on the changing table. Manny starts pointing to his bed and saying, "uh-oh, uh-oh, mess". I slowly turn my head and look through squinted eyes. There is desitine all over one corner of his navy blue comforter. I ask him how that happend. He looks at me in all seriousness and says, "yuck, mess, hands". I fill in the rest of the sentence and repeat it back to him, "you wiped the desitin off your hands and on the blanket?" "uh-huh."

So, I changed his diaper and looked on the internet for the remedy most likely to really remove zinc oxide. I will let you know what I find out.