Single Parent Update

The past week without Dan has been different (obviously). Joshua and I are missing him terribly and even though we have skyped every night, it still isn't the same! We are so ready to see him tomorrow! I am totally worn out from this week and admire all the single parents out there in the world! You guys are amazing!! I have enjoyed my week long mommy and me time, but to be honest; a girl's gotta have a break somewhere! While Daddy has been out of town working hard, Joshua and I have done a few things of our own which include, but aren't limited too:

Making homemade Popsicles! OK, fellow bloggers and blog readers, this has got to be the easiest and healthiest thing to do for your kids. I found the Popsicle containers at Target and I just filled them up with whatever flavor he likes, I have used apple juice and even added fresh fruit to the water. His favorite all is the lemonade pops! I took a lemon and squeezed the juice in the container and then added water and a pinch of sugar. Simple, easy and he loves them!

A haircut, which included a special spot in an airplane chair! He was a little scared at first, but the airplane wheel that turned slowly distracted him from the lady with the scissors. After it was all over, he didn't want to leave the chair...kids! Look how handsome he is!

He got a lollipop for being such a great customer! Yummy grape!

We also had a few of these, well Joshua did anyway. This is Joshua in the middle of a tantrum. Luckily he gets over these tantrums fast, but when he is having one he completely shuts down. We usually just let him work it out himself. Dan and I do not cater to tantrums. It is all part of the stage that we are in so I had to include it, because we at least have one of these a day...LOL

Like I said before this week could have been a lot worse. Thankfully Joshua is such a great kid and is very easy going. Tonight, I will be packing us up for a nice road trip to Dallas. Tomorrow evening we will leave for Dallas. Dan and Joshua will be going to stay with Dan's family for the weekend, while I will be going to a much needed Girl's Weekend!!! Oh yeah!!! I am super excited about this! Every year the girls of my family try get together just to hang out! NO BOYS ALLOWED!!! We eat, talk, go shopping, eat, hang out, eat...you know girl stuff! This year it is at my Aunt Kim's and Uncle Gene's house and I can't wait to see everyone! We always have so much fun when we get together. I love MY family!! I am so glad for Dan to be home tomorrow and for him to get to see his little man and I know we are READY to see him as well!

Single Parent for a Week

This weekend we just hung out as a family. Nothing too major happened. Just enjoyed being together and playing with our little man. Sunday night Dan left to go to Kingsville(it's near Corpus Christi) for the week. His job sent him down there to help out with a property that was falling behind and needed to be caught up by Friday. So, that leaves just me and Joshua for the week. It is going to be very interesting being a single parent for the week. To be honest I am a little nervous about going at this alone, but then I think of all the single parents out there that go at it alone every day of every week of every year and it makes my little week of being a single parent not so bad. Of course, it is only day one of my single parent week, so I really don't have anything to report, so I will have to update you guys in a few days. So far, last night was a success with Joshua sleeping through the night, not so much for me though, because I am having to get used to Dan not sleeping next to me; plus my mind was racing like crazy. I was glad that Joshua slept through the night because he did not do that this weekend. Joshua is going through some "terrible two's" here and there and this weekend was one of those times. I am praying they do not revisit him this week. Today, we did our usual morning routine as always and got to work on time. So all in all things are going swimmingly. I will update later. Hope everyone has a GREAT week!!!! Oh, and Daddy we love you and miss you already!!!!!!

Marmalade Skies and Sunshine Cookies

Yesterday, I had the privilege of spending the day with the 2 precious girls that I used to Nanny. They had been asking to spend the day with me, so my boss (their mom) and I set up a date. It was a great day, because I was able to get out of the office for the day and I was able to see and spend the day with the girls. We spent the morning checking on their webkinz(stuffed animals that you buy and play with online) and baking sunshine cookies. In the afternoon we went to a place called Marmalade Skies. This place is great! It has all kinds of arts and crafts for you to do. They do camps, classes and walk-ins. Rachel and Lauren love to do arts and crafts. When I was their nanny, we always were making fun and exciting things with whatever we could find. So, I figured this place would be great! I was right. The minute we walked in they were captured by all the cool artwork and crafts that was everywhere. As a walk-in you are able to choose from decoupage or mosaic art. They both chose to do mosaic. The process starts with choosing your item that you would like to make. They have choices from pencil boxes to serving trays. Once you have picked your item, you get to paint it, then you get to choose from a huge assortment of marbles, tiles, beads, sequence, etc to complete your masterpiece. The girls went nuts with their creativity. It was really fun to see and create with them. They left with some beautiful mosaic art pieces. I am pretty sure I will be making a trip back for myself to do some crafty things of my own. It was a great day! I came back to the office today and my boss, said that both were asking when they can have another play date with Ms. Alicia. Oh I miss hanging out with those girlies!

On a side note: recipe for Sunshine cookies (my niece McKenzie created the name):

1 box of any flavored cake mix

1/2 cup of cooking(vegetable or Canola) oil

2 eggs

Mix the 3 ingredients together (batter will be thick) spoon and bake @ 350 for 8 mins. Let them cool for about 5 minutes. ENJOY the softest cookies you will ever eat!!!

Down on the Farm

This past weekend we went to my grandparent's house for a visit. I always love going there, because I feel a sense of peace and tranquility. My grandparents live on acres and acres of beautiful land. Joshua loves to go and run in the wide open spaces. We usually have a big group of family that meet there for fun and fellowship, but this weekend was all about the Feldman's. It was great! We basically just hung out, ate home cooked food and had great conversation. The weather could not have been more perfect. It looked like it was going to rain all day Saturday which made it super nice temperature wise. It never actually rained, but we sure enjoyed the weather from the "tease". Joshua had his first experience feeding himself watermelon. He has had watermelon before and loved it, but has never dove into a slice all by himself. He loved it and it was a site to see. He actually ended up eating 2 slices of watermelon. WOW!! We checked out the cows and did a little bit of mowing. We also played games, which is always a fun little thing that we do towards the end of the night when we are with my grandparents. Sunday, we went to church and then to a little restaurant called the Longhorn Cafe. When I say little, I mean little! This place maybe could of held 30 people. It was nice and quaint! After lunch we came home and played a quick game of mexican train and then headed back home to Round Rock. I always hate to leave my grandparents and the awesome place that we call Cainan! I love going there to unwind! Below are some pictures from our weekend at the farm. Enjoy!

Joshua doing what he does best, RUNNING!!

There's that smile I love so much!

First slice of watermelon


How 'bout a little game of mexican train?

Watermelon slice # 2, a little bit bigger

Sorry, I just couldn't help myself with the watermelon photos, too cute!!!

Reading and smiling in the Joshua size chair

Giving sugar some love and scratches

He actually fell asleep while drawing in his book

He's Baaack!!!

We left Friday after work to go to my parent's house to get Joshua. Of course by the time we got there, he was fast asleep. Joshua had such a great time with my parents. Joshua's days were spent swimming, playing with the dogs, helping my mom clean the house and creating a game that involved counting to 3 and then running. My mom said that Joshua played this "game" all the time. In fact he came up with it himself somewhat. He showed us how to play his game on Sat. He stands at one end of the hall and raises his arm and waits for you to count 1, 2, 3, GO...then he lowers his arm and takes off running. It was very cute and he loved it. He also would sing the "clean up" song when he would help my mom clean. My mom said he would sing, "clean up, clean up"...yea he is definitely mine...haha! I had told my mom about Joshua testing his boundaries and how sometimes he will pitch a little fit if it didn't go his way, but she said she never saw that side of him, which I am glad. I am so glad that Joshua was able to go and be with my parent's. They love being with him and he loves every bit of it! Today, we were back into the swing of things, with us going to work and I have to say he looked a little lost...haha! Poor little guy wanted to be back running around and playing with his Grandbee and Papa Joe, but he kept the spirit alive with a nice game of 1, 2, 3, GO....through out the day.

A Joshless House

Yesterday afternoon we took Joshua and met his Grandbee and PapaJoe halfway so that he could stay with them for a few days. It is kind of bitter-sweet! I asked him if he was excited about going to stay with them and he answered "yea", which is his "yes"(we are working on it). My mom said he did quite well on the ride home and was busy telling them about his day that he had at school earlier in the day...lol! I feel lost, like my purpose is gone(not in a depressing sort of way, just the mommy-mode purpose). Back in Feb. when we went on our cruise and Joshua stayed with my parents it was different, because we had things to do and keep us busy. This week is totally different. Dan and I are working and have no big plans in the evenings. So, while I am enjoying my non-scheduled, non-cooking, not doing anything lifestyle right now it is still a bit awkward. The signs are all around that Joshua isn't there(besides the obvious), for example, there are not any toys to trip over, there is not a little person coming up to you and handing you the same book to read over and over again and I have gone almost 24 hrs without saying or hearing the word "No". I actually miss all these things! I know everyone is saying come on, use this time to have fun and relax; don't think about all those other things. We are, but we just miss this little guy! Dan and I are trying to enjoy this time that we have together while we can, even if it feels a bit lost without our little monkey. Last night, Dan and I played the Wii (Outdoor Challenge) until we thought we were going to kill over. It was fun and a great work out! Tonight, we are going to hang out in our pool and grill. I think Thursday night, is going to be date night and then Friday we get to see our little man! It is weird to think that this is what our life was like before Joshua came along, I don't really remember what it was like before him, but this week is giving me a little reminder and I know for certain that if I could, I would not want to go back to my life before Joshua, it just would seem incomplete. I know that Joshua is having a blast with his Grandbee and PapaJoe. I am so thankful that my parents offer to do this for us. This has been a tradition that they have done every summer with my brother and sister n law's kiddos and I am glad that Joshua finally gets to be a part of this great week!!!

July 4th Weekend!!

Our July 4th weekend was very relaxing and laid back. We just hung out together as a family. The county was on a burn ban, so we were not able to watch the annual fireworks show, but all in all it was a very relaxing weekend! I have posted a lot of pictures, so I will let them tell about our weekend! I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July!

Joshua sporting his July 4th shirt!

Playing with his little people's town(given to us when I was 3 mos preggo)

Homemade Popsicle! Loved it!

Having fun at the splash pad!

We had the splash pad all to ourselves!

Trying to dig for fossils at the Dinosaur Sand Park

Daddy and Joshua playing

Silly face Joshua!!!

Too Cute not to Blog About

I just realized that I haven't blogged in awhile. I guess, to be honest, I haven't really had too much to blog about(which is a good thing in our case), because that means that we have been low key and just hanging out. Just thought I would blog about some really cute things that Joshua has been doing lately. He has grown attached to his blanket, which he can only have for naps and bedtime. He has 1 favorite book that he likes to read over and over and over again. It's called I love you so... Dan and I read this book constantly to Joshua and Joshua has been getting pretty good at repeating words back to us. At the end of the book it says, "I love you, how much, so much, how much is so, Way Way more than you'll ever know". Well when it gets to the "how much is so part" Joshua will answer you with "way, way"! How precious is that? Melt my heart precious, that is how precious it is. We have been trying to get Joshua to say I love you, but he hasn't quite caught on to that just yet, but when we say I love you now, he says back "way,way". Seriously, how great it that...I will take that as I love you mommy and daddy! We have not got this on video yet, but we will and then I will post it. Joshua also goes to bed on his own. All we say is Joshua it is time for night, night and he gets up and walks into his room and climbs into his bed and looks at us like can you please kiss me and cover me up I am ready. Such a big boy. This little boy is at such a fun age, when you tell him good bye he will actually blow you a kiss and wave and say "Bye bye"! I love it! He is such a great kid! I just wanted to share some cute things that Joshua has been doing lately to melt our hearts! He is growing more and more every day and we love every second of it!!!