TravelingMel

I've been taking a lot of pictures, as always, but haven't gotten around to posting any. So here you go.

Big H found some tunnels and tents at a garage sale and we have been loving them ever since. We use them inside and out, but you know that. They are a great distraction when things start getting a little out of control. Not that that ever happens.

Baby duck, Jesse and Anders in the tunnel.

Giving Finn a lesson in tunnelology.

The boys got bubbles in their daycare Valentine's Day bags. Since the weather had been pretty warm, we figured it was time to get out and blow bubbles. Since I am the only one who can reliably blow bubbles I didn't get pictures of the actual bubbles. I figure most of you are here to see the kids, dogs or scenery anyway. Or maybe to steal a glance at my super hot husband. (You're out of luck on that account. This is a Henry-free post. Sorry.)

Looking cute while waiting for mom to open the bubbles.

"So that's how you do it."

After chasing bubbles for a bit, we went looking for trains. We walked near the tracks, but didn't see any locomotives. Luckily there were rocks and sticks. Anders liked looking down the ground squirrel holes and imagining them sleeping down there.

Looking for trains, finding sticks.

Dousing for ground squirrels.

Finding tracks in the mud.

Then it was time for home and lunch. After some indoor play the boys were more than ready for their naps. Or was it me that was more than ready for their naps? Hard to recall.

Tuckered out after a morning of tunnels, bubbles, and trainspotting.

Fast forward a few days.

We like a good game of hide and go seek around here. Anders LOVES it. He is so excited about being found that he usually announces his location while we are looking for him. Good thing because he and Finn come up with some challenging hiding spots.

Look closely. You'll never guess where Finn is hiding.

There he is!

Anders has found an equally challenging spot to hide.

There he is!

Fast forward again...

I used to use scavenger hunts when I worked in environmental education. They are appealing to kids because they feel like a treasure hunt. And they are a treasure hunt. They are appealing to outdoor educators because they get kids to tune in to their surroundings. They can also be a good way to introduce a topic.

Debi at Go Explore Nature recently posted about a scavenger hunt they did. The list she linked to was perfect for us, so we printed it out and went on our own scavenger hunt.

We found a smooth rock. Cross it off the list!

Yeah! There are ducks here, too.

Finding a rock naturally leads to throwing rocks into the creek.

Finn takes a moment to enjoy his surroundings. I love how he crosses his legs when he sits.

Berries. Also on the scavenger hunt list.

Throwing rocks in the creek naturally leads to playing in the playground.

Throwing rocks from the bridge, of course.

Tuckered out after a morning outside.

So now you are pretty much caught up.

More pictures on my Flickr page.

Today the boys pretty much refused to nap. They were in their respective rooms (correction, Finn was in the portable crib in OUR room and Anders was in their room), they were in their respective beds, but there was no sleeping.

I could have gotten frustrated and tried to force it, but I decided to roll with it instead. I grabbed our always-packed-and-ready-to-go Chico bag with one hand, stuffed Finn under the other arm, told Anders to boot up, and headed out the door for an afternoon at Chico.

As you may recall, the boys WERE NOT TIRED. They refused to sleep. They had more energy than a hopped-up clown. Until we got in the car. Finn promptly fell asleep and started snoring. Anders was able to keep up a constant monologue.

We got to Chico (about a 25 minute drive), I took Finn out of the carseat, Anders hopped out, we walked through the Grille, past the pool and into the changing room. I set Finn down and here's what he looked like.

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We need some advice on getting Finn to sleep through the night. Or at least part of the night. A few hours in a row would make me very happy.

We've tried:
Nursing him to sleep

Bottling him to sleep

Letting him cry (he is extremely persistent and will cry for hours...that persistence will serve him well later in life, but right now it just makes him (and H and I) tired.)

Letting him cry and going in every 10 minutes to reassure him

Crying (me, not him)

Pleading

Giving him a pacifier

Letting him sleep in our bed

Making him sleep in his own bed

He seems to go to sleep pretty easily around 7 or 7:30, but then wakes up when I come to bed. He'd probably do better in his own room, but that's not an option.

A gentleman at the local convenience store said, "I don't know if it is right or not, but I gave my babies whiskey in their bottles." So, there is that idea, but I prefer to steer clear of drugging or boozing up the baby for now.

Leave your suggestions in the comment section. If your suggestion gets our baby to sleep you will get a big prize!!!

More 1 handed blogging...

The weekend before last we went up to White Sulfur Springs for a little family vacation. In the end there was a lot of crying and we ended up leaving early, but here are some pics from before things went bad.

First stop was breakfast in Clyde Park. Yummy. Greasy.

Outside the tavern.

We took a dirt road to a ghost town. The road was covered with snakes. It was impossible to totally avoid running over them. Poor little snakes.

A little bit about the ghost town.

We assumed this did not apply to us.

Hug break.

Throwing rocks.

Best seat in (Castle) town.

The current residents of Castle Town.

The Harrison men.

Watching cows.

Enjoying the hot spring-fed pool at the Spa Hotel in White Sulfur Springs.

Finn sits out the swimming during this round. He went in the pool the night before.

I'm sitting at the table trying to finish an article on planning and designing a garden. Here's what I am dealing with:

Henry is trying to talk me into getting a malt to appease his guilt. I give in and agree to eat some Ben and Jerry's.

Then he slurps said malt in my ear.

Sllllluuuuurrrrrrrppppppppppp...the blessing and curse of living behind Mark's In-N-Out.

He is correcting my grammar as I type.

There are strange noises coming from Anders' room (an hour after he has been put to bed). On the first visit I discover him sitting silently holding the plastic guard that keeps him from biting the crib. There is another one on the floor.

A few minutes later I hear the blinds rattling. He must have heard me coming the second time and hit the deck. As I walked in the room (with the camera) he stands up and pretends he has been sleeping all along.

"What, me? I've been sleeping this whole time. I'm just getting up now."

"No, that's not a smirk, I'm just glad to see you."

"I'll just lay down now and I'm sure I'll doze right off..."

Now I'm blogging instead of writing for money. I guess I only have myself to blame for that one.