Tractor pullin' days and hot (chocolate) nights

Forgot the camera so no pictures of it, but Collin had a blast at his first tractor pull. We went to the indoor tractor pull at the DuQuoin fairgrounds on Friday night while Collin had his very first sleepover at aunty Jen and uncle Patrick's house. He did great and had a very fun time! We went back to the pull on Saturday and took Collin with us. He LOVED every bit of it, and by the end of the day, he had a favorite tractor. If you ask him, he will say "My favorite tractor is Little Angry". Yep, that's the actual name of the tractor. He has been asking constantly when he can go back and see more tractors. It's a good thing, because that's about all we do every weekend in the summer!

Collin loves hot chocolate, so we have had a cup before bed the past couple of nights. He's such a sweets lover! He also loves Playdoh and I HATE it-too messy. He has been asking to play with it and I broke it out tonight while I was making supper. He just about blew a gasket when I told him I was getting it out. He loves to put the Playdoh in the tube and squeeze out long shapes, then cut it with the plastic scissors.

This evening after supper, I was doing dishes and Collin brought in his tractor with a wagon attached. He said "I'm getting yummy food in my wagon for me and daddy." I asked, "Oh, really?" He said "yep", and proceeded to open a kitchen drawer and get out a small peanut butter egg for daddy, and a large Hershey bar for himself and put them in his wagon. I took a picture of him driving his tractor to deliver his "yummy food" to daddy. Daddy allowed him to have one square of the chocolate bar and he was satisfied with that.

We had a busy, but very fun weekend. No school tomorrow, which is good, but Collin goes for more shots in the morning. He has caught on to what goes on at the doctor's office and starts asking why we are there as soon as we pull into the parking lot. I just hope he doesn't get too anxious while we wait. I am sure a new choo-choo will fix any ouchies caused by the shots. Just call me "sucker"!

What Collin is doing now: playing his new Thomas computer games with daddy and looking pretty sleepy.

WHY? & Meet Bill and Dennis

Our son discovered this word over the past weekend. Now all we hear is "why, mommy?" "but why, daddy?", "why, why. why"? I remember my nieces going through the "why" phase around 3 years old and how annoying I thought it was at the time. Then, I could leave when I got tired of all the "whys" or ran out of good answers for them. Now, I have to endure the "whys" for now. I am just thankful he's able to ask for what he wants and needs so plainly. I've had several people lately ask me if he speaks any English. I have to laugh when they ask me that. They underestimate the power of a young mind. ALL he speaks is English. Once in a while he will attempt to say something in English that we don't understand, but the attempt is there, and we do our best to encourage him to explain further or show us clues as to what he is trying to tell us. There are also a few words and phrases that he says in English that only Erik or I can understand, but these are becoming less and less.

Collin's preschool teacher commented today that he brought his "why" word to school with him this morning. He had lots of "whys" for her when he was supposed to sit down and color his letter page for the week. Apparently, after a lengthy discussion, he was finally satisfied with one of her answers and said "okay!" and proceeded to color his page.

You may be wondering who Bill and Dennis are. They are not new neighbors, although we do have a neighbor named Bill, but he doesn't live with Dennis-ha! Bill and Dennis are Collin's new choo choos from Kiki (Kristen) and Matt (see picture). He has had these trains in his hands since he got them on Saturday night. They even go to bed with Collin. We don't allow them in bed. He keeps them on his dresser while he sleeps. In the morning he takes them back into the living room. Since they are new, they don't have to stay on the floor all day with the other choo choos, oh no..they get prime spots on the couch until Collin comes home to play with them. This is the normal routine. When he gets a new train, Bill and Dennis will go down to the floor with the other minion choo choos. Bill and Dennis traveled to church with us on Sunday-they had to stay in the van, of course. They also made an appearance at an open house we went to on Sunday afternoon. You would think a cuddly stuffed animal would be more soft to carry around and love, but this kid's got his own ideas!

We signed Collin up for 4 year old preschool this past Sunday. He will be going all day next year, which I worry a little bit about, but deep down I know he will be fine and love it. His teacher is great so I don't worry about that end of it. 4 years old seems so little to be going all day already, but I know other parents who have said their kids have gone and they were glad they did. It prepared them even more for kindergarten. I was worried about there only being a few who would choose the all day option, but apparently 16 of the 20 preschoolers will be going all day, with the possibility of 2 more choosing the all day option, so that is great for interaction. The best part will be having him in the same building with me all of the time!

What Collin is doing now: watching his favorite Diego show while holding Bill and Dennis, of course!

Party hard!

Collin's first Valentine party was yesterday at preschool. It was a pajama and hot chocolate party, and I hear the 3 and 4 year olds partied pretty hard! A little birdie told me that Collin had TWO cups of hot chocolate and some popcorn. He loves his sweets, just like his mommy! The preschool teacher also shared some information with the preschoolers about Chinese New Year, which begins on Valentine's Day. The celebration lasts for 15 days. She hung some lanters in the classroom, which were from my shower, and she read the students a book about Chinese New Year. The table in which the children ate was covered with a red Chinese paper tablecloth that I had picked up at a party store. As you can see in the picture, Collin wore his red (which means "good luck" in China) pajamas that we bought on Shamian Island when we were in China. He looked very handsome and received lots of compliments. How perfect for Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year to be on the same day this year. It provided a wonderful opportunity to incorporate some Chinese culture into our American holiday.

Collin also got to party today (Saturday) at his classmate, Quintin's, 5th birthday party. It was held at our local community center's gym, and the kids had a blast. There was a ton of food and the big attraction was the jumpy house! Collin was right in with all of the other kids, bouncing around until his belly hurt, and taking his turn at the Darth Vadar pinata.

Tonight, Collin is going to play at his mamaw and pawpaw's house, but we plan to get some Chinese food first to celebrate the New Year. Collin has not been in our Chinese restaurant yet, so I am looking forward to his reaction.

Something funny Collin said: I mentioned to Collin that I had to go potty. I guess I didn't get to the bathroom fast enough for him because he said very sternly, "Mommy you better go potty so you no pee pee your pants and have to change them!"

What Collin is doing now: playing with his firetruck because daddy just got a fire call and is off in his firetruck.

LIFE IS GREAT!