Pees in the Potty

Quick update regarding Lex's progress (or I should say lack of). He still hasn't managed to get that tractor. We managed one pee the first night the tractor was introduced to him, but we haven't had much progress. He did pee tonight, but it was only after he announced to everyone that he pooped in his diaper.

Tractor Tippin'

We have started the Pee Challenge tonight. Mad Dog and I are going to start working with Lex to get him potty trained. He has his moments when he is focused and even gets excited about it. He loves stickers and the sticker chart worked for a while, but we need to get a little bit more hardcore.

Tonight I broke out one of two Chore Charts  Magnetic Boards put out by The Board Dudes (I had picked one up for Gabrielle this summer) that I bought. We sat Lex down and explained to him if he pees or poops in the potty he will get a star, one start equals a stick. If he pees/poops 3 times in the potty he will earn 3 stars which equals a Tractor. Mad Dog picked up one today so Lex could keep his eye on the prize. Mad Dog actually purchased 2 tractors so if Lex earns his he also earns one for Loki. He sat on the toilet immediately and went! He earn his first star and sticker. He has been in the bathroom 2 additional times trying since that first pee, hoping to win his Tractor before bed.

We then put the ultimate prize on the playing field. FRANK!  He has to do 3 days of peeing and poopin' in the potty for Frank. We hope this will motivate him and keep him going. We know he can do it. He's excited and we think motivated. He seems to think Loki is ready and that being the gentlemen he is, he offers for Loki to go to first. We think once Gigi gets here, he will see her using the bathroom (making the HUGE production she does for privacy) and that will make him want to do it even more. We can only hope.

We'll keep you posted!

Portrait of a Little Man

I love photography. For the most part I usually carry my camera with me at all times, taking photos when I can. This might be why Lex has taken to shooting photos as well.

For his 3rd Birthday this year my Mom bought Lex a Fisher Price Kids Tough Digital Camera. He loves it, carrying it with him in his Leapster Messenger Bag everywhere. You'll find him in the back seat of the car snapping away at who knows what. This is rather helpful since he tends to leave my camera alone when he has his own around, often taking photos of things I am shooting and then branching off on his own. Of course giving a kid a digital camera is brilliant in comparison to when we were kids and had those 110 cameras. You remember you would take a picture and have to advance the film, and then beg your parents to develop 24 "pictures" which the majority of them were made up of photos of your feet, thumb or just plain black. We had plenty of photographs of the family dog when my brother Kevin had his first camera. I think my Dad just started losing the rolls to get out of paying for a lot of the same thing.

I'm not saying that Lex is Ansel Adams or the next Annie Leibovitz, or any of the amazing photographers our there today but he is trying. He is very proud of his work and I am very proud too. I am thinking of doing a large photo collage of his work, just the randomness of his point of view I think it would be interesting. I am very happy to say both Lex and Loki are both showing huge signs of creativity, both artistically and imaginatively. I'm excited about this because of my creative nature. I hope they will embrace my love for art and images. We will see.

What is to follow are some of the photos from Lex's last upload. I have selected these because I like them for different reasons. I will say that Lex loves taking self-portraits, I find a lot of the photos in his uploads are him trying to take pictures of himself. They are either his face or his feet (since in the car he looks at them a lot). I don't think he has figure out he can shoot into a mirror yet, stand back when that happens. I hope you enjoy!

Nuclear Beans

The Lunch-box (it's actually a diner we go to in Worcester called Corner Lunch, which I call The Lunch-box)

Going Home

Little Sister

Momma

Self-Portrait

Bend It Like Lex

I feel that Mad Dog and I are very fortunate. We are lucky enough to enjoy life, without much struggle though there are things we just can't swing at times. One thing that is very important to both of us is that we don't let thing prevent the kids from experiencing new things. Lex has been lucky enough to do things in his short life that some people don't experience until they are in their 20's (or never depending how sheltered their life is).

That leads me to another thought - we don't feel become a parent is the end of the line for us (which I know some Parents feel). We have never felt that once we had Lex (and now Loki) that our life was put on hold. Things might have to be done slightly differently, things many be cut slightly short or special arrangements might have to be made, but regardless of any of those things we don't stop doing the things we love to do because of the kids. This includes road trips to comic book conventions (6 hours away), going to impromptu concerts and book signings. What we do is, we make the kids apart of the experience.

As I previously stated, this has lead to experience that the kids might remember and might not (because of their young age), but they are included nonetheless. Okay, so where is this blog post going? Recently I was lucky to win tickets to a New England Revolution game in work. With Mad Dog working that night, I thought I would take Lex on a Momma-Lex Date. The tickets were for the Fidelity Club House at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough. I know taking a 3 year old to Clubhouse seats at a soccer game, seems like a bad idea (don't think I didn't think the same thing when we were in the thick of things).

We dropped Loki off at my Mom's, where she got to have dinner and playtime with Nana Sandy, Nona and Papa Stuart.  Lex and I took off for Gillette, arriving just before the start of the game. Lex was very excited, though he thought he was going to get to play soccer not just watch it, a concept that was a little difficult to explain to him. I haven't been to a Revolution game in like 6 years or so - I didn't remember it being so crowded. After entering the stadium we walked through, Lex explaining to me that he didn't want anything to eat and me trying to find where we needed to go. He finally decided that he was hungry and wanted chicken and fries. We grabbed food and asked where we should head for the clubhouse.

After walking 18 miles back in the other direction and showing our tickets to just about every guard/staff in the stadium, moving through about a million check points before being let into the Clubhouse. Lex pulled me along extremely excited to get to our seats, until I opened the door leading from the clubhouse to our seats. Looking down he got scared to walk out without holding my hand. We took our time walking down to our seats and tried to settle in. Lex didn't like his seat, probably because stadium seats flip up like those at a movie theater and kids always feel they are not able to weigh it down enough. He opted to sit on the step next to him and put his food on the seat with me holding the seat down. The sun was in our eyes making it hard for us to see the game at time. Lex flirted with the girls behind us, some of which work for the same company I do (I didn't know them). The sun really bothered him, and he wanted to go inside which we did. Sitting at the tall bar tables his finished off his chicken and fries before running off the play video games with another little boy. A little Guitar Hero before leaving. We made it a whole 45 minutes!

Leaving we made plans to stop at Target to pick up some ice cream for everyone at Nana's. While at Target I picked up a Soccer ball for us to play with today at the park. Which is exactly what we did this morning. Taking our new soccer ball to Elm Park and playing as a family. Lex is actually pretty good and I think if we work with him he'll get better.

BTW - The final score was Revolution 0, Earthquakes 0

Lex: The Man, The Myth, The Legend

This post is about all things Lex. Things you might know, things you think you know and things you really don't need to know.

Lex, if you didn't know, full name is Alexander John, but his nickname is Lex (NOT Alex or A.J. or anything else you think of unless you're Uncle Kevin and you remember to call him "Tapeworm".) His namesake is Lex Luthor, DC Comic's super Villain. This middle name is in honor of my Father, John Fletcher.

Lex was born February 21st, and was two weeks early. Being early we were not completely ready for him because of this on our way home from the hospital Lex got his first visit to Target, which was the start of his love affair with the big red bullseye. In the big picture he is "the middle child" with an older sister, Gabrielle and a little sister, Loki flanking him, though most of the year he is just a big brother. He loves Cars, superheroes and to occasionally wear Momma's high heels (our very own little Eddie Izzard). He has two Godfathers, his Uncles Sean and Kevin. Sean will tell you he is his favorite, but if you ask Lex he'll tell you more often than not Sean is "bad" and he "owie me".

Bedtime is a very long ritual for Lex and makes us wonder of he isn't a little OCD at times. He has a tiny scar on his chin (his Harrison Ford scar) that he got in Maine when he fell in Papa Stuart's cabin. He loves trains, running to the window when even he hears one and blaming them for waking him up at night. He hides from the sounds of Fireworks, shaking in fear and hates to watch them not matter how far away we are.  He is amazing at swordplay on Wii Sports Resort, knocking his opponents off with authority. He no longer calls Ihop "Pancake's House" (Momma is sad), but now calls it "The Egg House" or "Bacon House" depending on his mood.

He has met The Barenaked Ladies, been held up to the DC Nation by Senior Vice-President and Executive Editor of DC Comics, Dan Didio,  and has comics signed by some of the big hitters of the comic book industry. He has camped in Maine, been to Baltimore for the weekend, checked out D.C. and played in Disney for a week. Lex has badges from his Lowe's Build and Grow events which he attends with Mad Dog. He has taken gymnastics and can tumble with the best of them. He like to have Loki lay down with him to watch movies, even though Loki doesn't feel the same way all the time.

He picks his nose. Likes chocolate donuts and loves to cook. Helping in the kitchen is one of his favorite things to do. He likes going to Nona's house and loves having Gram-ma visit. Lex is very sensitive and thoughtful, knowing  enough at his young age to take a moment as ask if someone is sad. He love the library, and is confident to go up the Librarian and ask for what kind of book he wants. He is learning to draw, making strives in his portraits (which Mad Dog is happy about, he does like that modern art crap). Lex has a knack for jigsaw puzzles, which started at a young age. Though he asks for help, if left to his own devices he can work through a puzzle without any assistance.

On our weekly visits to Target, he must say hello the the change room clerk after getting a drink of water from the water fountain. We think he has a crush on Katherine, a little girl at daycare. He talks about her all the time  and even plays make-believe with an invisible Katherine when she isn't around. It's very sweet. He told me that Katherine's brother Nick is Loki's boyfriend (don't tell Mad Dog).

To finish this profile off, I am going to have a little Q&A with the man himself.

Me: Lex, what is your favorite color?
Lex: Blue. Blue....Me like Red too.
Me:  You like Red too?
Lex: Yeah, and  Purple too.
Me: You like a lot of colors huh?
Lex: Yeah.
Me: What is your favorite food?
Lex: Cheese!
Me:  Cheese (which means Mac & Cheese)?
Lex: Yeah, and Beanies (Baked Beans) too. ...Bread. Me like Bread too.
Me: Okay. What do you like to play?
Lex (running off to the living room): I'm gonna drink my cocoa.
Me: okay bye.
Lex (from the other room): Me like cookies too.

You'll Think of Me and Wonder Where I Am These Days

In my post Little Rock 'n' Roll Heart I talked about my love of music and the diversity of my playlists on my Ipod. When Lex, Loki and I are in the car, I try to get them to listen to different things, since there is honestly only so many times I can listen to Real Gone by Sheryl Crow (not that it's not an amazing driving song).
Lex is the only one who currently protests the playlists that don't involve the songs he wants to listen to, but I usually get my way by justifying the song is for me or Loki. Because of this there are songs that now are forever linked with people in our lives. Currently Loki's songs consist of: You Are My Sunshine by Norman Blake from the Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack and Hey Soul Sister by Train and of course Eric Clapton's I've Got a Rock 'n' Roll Heart. Lex's songs are Real Gone by the before mentioned Sheryl Crow and Life is a Highway by Rascal Flatts from the Disney Cars soundtrack and Mambo Italiano by Rosemary Clooney.

Today driving home I put on my Ipod to calm Loki from cry (Lex and I still don't know what was up with her). After playing Hey Soul Sister for her, I put the Ipod on Shuffle. This of course cause much protest from Lex who wanted to listen to Hey Baby by No Doubt. After a few songs he got distracted and didn't care what was playing. The next song was End of the Line by The Traveling Wilburys. Lex asked who's song was that. I explained it was Papa John's song, which is completely true since the only reason the song is on my Ipod because it complete reminds me of my Dad. I went on to explain him that it was the song for my Daddy, who is in heaven. Lex thought for a moment and then asked, "You miss him?" I said yes I did. He is very sweet and a sensitive kid (he takes after Mad Dog.) By this time the song ended. I started to move on to find a new song (skipping over the audio books that get shuffled into my playlist). He asked "All right again?" The song has "all right" in the chorus. I said "Do you want to hear it again?" He said yes. I clicked back and found the song. With the start of the chorus he started to sing "Alllllrighht". It was great.
I think the song will from now on be know as Papa John's and Lex's song. Well at least to me it will be.

Hearing Voices

One of the things I hope my children truly inherited from me is my imagination. As a child I found myself escaping into it from the boredom of everyday life. I had imaginary friends, places to escape to and adventures.

I have already found this spark in Lex. Today I listened to him playing in the other room with invisible versions of this daycare friends. He was playing with his little friend, Catherine. I think he was pretending they were playing Batman. He was telling Catherine that Loki was Robin. They had been captured by the Joker and were trapped in the new tent the kids got this weekend. It was very cute to listen to him. He was getting very into it. I like the thought that he has this spark in him. It helps him play by himself and be creative.

Mini Date Night

He doesn't have a job. Never pays for anything. Don't have a job and lives with this parents. Most girls would say this wasn't the ideal date, but he does have his good qualities. He is adorable. Very sweet and sensitive. A good cook and like to draw. He also loves to cuddle and play video game. He's not a many of many words, but each one counts.

Tonight I had a date with this mystery man. No it's not my Mad Dog. It's my little Lex. Tonight was Momma and Lex date night. We started out picking up dinner on the run. A little Burger King in the car while driving home. After changing close and grabbing some snacks we headed off for our "surprise". Though he didn't know it we were heading out for an evening at the Theatre. We had tickets for opening night of Curious George Live at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester.

The tickets were a surprise Birthday Gift for Lex from Mad Dog and I . I didn't tell him where we were going until we were a block from the theatre, which is a good thing because for the next half hour I had to hear "Where is George? George there?" a thousand times. We parked across the street from the theatre in the parking garage and walked over to the theatre with the other parents and kids. We we got inside, we of course had to get something - you know something that lights up and will break withing a week of purchasing it. Spending way more than I had planned to spend, I picked up 2 t-shirt (one for Lex and one for Miss Loki) and a light up spinning thing for Lex. We found our seats, which I selected at time of purchase. I picked seats further in the theatre this time (last time we sat in way back) and on the end. We had a little wait, but Lex was good about it. Which is more than I can say for some of the other children around us.

The show finally started, and things were exciting to start with. We watched naming all the characters we knew. Looking for Hundley, the Doorman, the Man in the Yellow Hat, Gnocchi and of course George! Lex sat on my lap, and we watches as the plot unfolded and then Lex said it, "Momma, we go home." I honestly don't see the point in pushing my luck and ruining a great night, so we packed up. Once in the lobby, Lex asked if we could see George again. I explained to him, we couldn't keep going in and out. If we went back in we had to sit and watch quietly or we could leave and go home. He wanted to go back in. We did, finding our seats and settling down for a little longer, before he said it again. I told him we couldn't come back if we left. He said okay, he wanted to go home. Finding ourselves in the lobby once again, we put on our coats and got ready to head home. Before leaving I picked up a Program for him - I know it will last ten times longer then the light up flashy thing.

We found the car and headed home. Once a home he had an ice cream cone and cuddled on the couch with me. We watched a little of Disney Cars before turning into the bedroom. We are cuddling under his Cars blanket and playing his Leapster. We're both getting sleepy. I think it's time to kiss my date goodnight and turn in.

Gordan Ramsey Watch Out!

Can you tell I'm home with the kids for the day? I usually blog more when I'm home all day with them. Today was a fun day. We started our day out with running errands at Target. The shopping trip came to an end with a wonderful Target Supports Education Event for Read Across America. They had staff members reading Dr. Seuss books to kids, coloring/activity sheets and goody bags full of treats. Lex and Loki listened to the Cat in the Hat and Lex signed Dr. Seuss's Birthday Card with my help. From there we moved onto Stop and Shop, where we did a little divide and conquer. Mad Dog with the kids and me shopping for the odds and ends we didn't pick up at Target.

The rest of the day was full of play, naps and a little cooking. For Lex's third Birthday we thought we would foster his love of cooking. He is always asking to help, from getting ingredients to mixing the batter to whatever I'm making. He usually runs to get his Home Depot apron when he ready to cook. Because of all of this, I hunted far and wide and found an apron set made in just his size. We bought a container with a handle and place the apron set, complete with wooden spoon, rolling pin, oven mitt, hot pad, tea towel, apron and chef hat.  I also picked up a DK cook book called Cook It Together, a small set of measuring spoons, spatulas and a whisk. He love it. Keeping it in the kitchen so he is ready at a moments notice.

I had planned to ask him to pick a recipe out of the cookbook for us to make today before we went grocery shopping, but in all the craziness that didn't happen. After nap I picked out a recipe and started pulling together the ingredients while Lex played in the living room. Corn Fritters was our first attempt. I chopped up the scallions, separated the egg white/yoke and got everything laid out. Lex prepared by putting on his apron, his hat and he insisted on wearing the oven mitt. We mixed the ingredients, counting the spoonfuls and what each ingredient was. He did very well. Got a little excited mixing things, but it all stayed in the bowl. After finishing the mix, he put the dirty dishes in the sink and put away his apron while I cooked on the stove top.

The final product was very yummy. Lex, Loki and I had them for dinner this evening and saved a few for Mad Dog when he comes home. I think its something I'm going to make time and time again with him. I even dated the bottom of the page of the cookbook, with the date and that it was our first recipe. Something to remember it all by. I think later I might make a cookbook for the recipes we make as a family and the pictures I take of the food and process. I also am going to make Loki a cooking kit, so when she gets older she can get in on the fun.

I think it's one of the most important things I can teach them. I don't want them growing up thinking things come from a box and that the microwave is the only way to cook. I learned a lot from my Grandmother's Kitchen when I was a kid from both my Grandmother and Great-Grandmother. I still remember the smells of that kitchen. I still cook some of the recipes from my childhood. More importantly I find it important that the learn to eat right and eat fresh. I know treats are treats, but they need to learn how to enjoy food. I don't want it to a something the turn to when their bored or upset. I want them to enjoy it for the tastes, the memories it can create and the excitement of trying new things. My Little Chef has started on his way and hopefully down a road of "Good Eats".

His Name is Lex

There is a little man in my life that has touched my heart and frustrated me all at the same time. From the moment we found out I was pregnant we knew that he was going to be our Little Man. We can't say how, but we knew he was going to be boy. We projected a personality on to this little life, and he has not only lived up to that personality, but he has surpassed it finding his own wonderful ways to amaze us.

Three years ago, I found myself checking into the hospital with Mad Dog with my Mom, brother (Kevin) and Grandmother on their way from Eastern Massachusetts. A day early I was working, preparing for my Zombie Survival seminar I was teaching with a friend at work. At that morning appointment the Doctor said I was ready to go. I was dilated and it could happen anytime. I was two weeks early and just had my baby shower the 3 days before. We weren't ready, and I wasn't ready to leave work. So, the long walks and spicy food would have to wait.

The rush of work that day was intense, and I'm surprise even now that I didn't go into labor there. Power Point presentation, display set-ups and nerves made up the day. That evening we had the most successful non-author event at Barnes & Noble Enfield.  More than 50 people showed and we were surrounded. My partner in crime, Steve and I talked the talk. We got a lot of laughs and even provoked some serious discussion. In another words - We rocked it, to the point where people stayed and asked us questions (even the sicko who asked about "tapping" a zombie - Eww!). It was an amazing feeling and a relief. I had made it through the even with my water. I was told at the end of the night, "Okay, you can go give birth now!" and I did (for the most part).

The next morning I woke at 7ish, thought I felt something and went back to sleep. Ten minutes later I woke up again. Went back to sleep. Ten minutes after that I woke again. Third time is the charm. I thought to myself "maybe I should call someone". I called Mad Dog at work and they called me back 5 minutes later. They (Mad Dog and their Cafe Manager, Sheri) thought I should take a hot shower, to see if this was real and not a false alarm. I took a shower and things continued. Mad Dog rushed home (a whole 5 minutes from BN Holyoke) and we headed to the hospital.

At 5:46 PM that day Lex was born. He was 7 lbs 11 ounces and 20 inches long. Mad Dog welcomed him into the world by saying "Welcome to the human race!" He was so small, and he relied completely on Mad Dog and I. Now, three years later - he is his own person, he doesn't need us for much of anything. He is sedative, telling us when a cartoon character in a movie is sad. He is head strong going back to things time and time again when he can't do it, or he is told not to. He is loving, giving hugs and kisses even to his little sister Loki. He has an imagination and walks that line between reality and the imaginary world like I did as a child. He loves to learn, from cooking to drawing, from science to history (even at age 3) he finds wonder in everything we do. He loves to travel and meet new people (to a fault sometimes). In his three short years, he has attended book signings, CD signings, comic book conventions and flown to Disney land. He has meet the likes of the Barenaked Ladies, Art Baltazar, Jim Lee, Adam Hughes, Mark Waid, Amanda Connor, and had Dan Didio (VP of DC Comics) hold him up to the DC Nation.

I look at him and I see some of my childhood. I see the things missing from it too. My Father, who I know is watching him from afar. My Uncle Jerry, who would see the mischievousness of my Father and myself in him. I see the wonder in all he does. I have hopes for him. He is my Little Chef, my Little Artist and even Little Superhero. He knows how to touch me, and when to let me see myself in him. He knows when He needs to be independent and when he needs to ask for help. He has found his personality and wears it like a t-shirt. You take him or leave him. For those who leave him, they are missing out on a wonder. For those who take him to heart they are better for it and so is he. He knows his family and they know him. He is my Little Monkey, my Little Man, but most of all he is Lex.

Hero in Training

Mad Dog and I don't make any excuses for ourselves, we are comic book geeks. Our son Alexander was named, so he could be called Lex after Lex Luthor and if Mad Dog had his way he might have been called Hal. Because of this there was no surprise when Lex's third word was Batman (Momma, Dadda and yes Batman!). Amazingly he is just learning his colors (to say them), but can rattle off the names of the Justice League with out thinking twice. 


Tonight while we were putting Lex to bed, he picked as one of his three bedtime books an early reader book called Wonder Woman's Book of Myths. It's part of the DK Readers series, which I believe we own the collection of DC Superhero books. For a little more back ground Lex has watched the old Adam West Batman movie and even a little of Superman The Movie, but as far as we know has never seen anything of Wonder Woman the television show which feature Linda Carter. Our son who amazes us every single day, points to Wonder Woman and then walks to the middle of his room and (I am not lying about this) starts to spin like Linda Carter did in the series to change from Diana Prince into Wonder Woman. He even kind of posed at the end of his spin.

Mad Dog and I just looked at each other shocked. I asked Mad Dog if he ...and before I could finish Mad Dog said he had no idea where this came from. We went on with the book, and he would name other Heroes as we turned the pages, acting out their actions (like Aquaman swimming). I asked him what Wonder Woman does again. He stopped went to the middle of the room and did the spin once again. We're not really sure if we should be proud or scared. He on the other hand was very proud of himself. We can only hope that Loki is as enthusiastic about learning her heroes as Lex. For know we're just going to believe it's in the blood and all our geekness has been pasted on.

Puppy Boy

I no longer have a son, but a puppy. Lex is playing puppy right now. He is down on the floor on all fours and fetching a ball which he keeps asking me to throw. He barks as he crawls across the floor to retrieve it. Loki is finding it very funny. I can't say I don't blame her. I told her she should get in on this, but she would rather watch him. This is a big difference from about an half hour ago, when I couldn't get him to wait 5 minutes for pudding to set up.


I know I'm lucky that both Lex and Loki know how to amuse themselves unlike other children out there. For the most part he can keep himself busy if he needs to, playing cars and superheroes. Recently we have seen the spark of imagination I was hoping he and Loki would inherit from me. I don't know how much an imagination Mad Dog had as a kid, but I had a huge one. When I was very little, I didn't have many if any kids to play with when I was at my Grandmother's. I had to make up my own fun. Lex has started to tell us there are monsters or dinosaurs in the kitchen and now the puppy play. Should make things interesting as he is able to communicate more and more.


He always amazes me. Like tonight I was completely expecting him to not eat dinner. Tonight I cut come corn off a cob, which we picked up at the farm yesterday. Cooked it up with a bit of butter spray and then set it aside. I heated up my griddle and put on some turkey bacon, before chopping up some scallions. I then mixed up a little pancake mix (yes, from a box). I added the corn, scallions, salt, pepper, chili powder to the mix. When the bacon was done, I chopped that up and added that too. I then cooked the corn cakes on the griddle. Once cooked I served them with a little Corn and Black Bean Salsa which we had picked up at Target. Lex ate it up. He loved the black beans in the salsa and didn't think twice about the pancakes. When he finished I made him pudding for a treat. 


We're about to get baths done and then bed time. We'll see if Lex is back or if I'm giving a bath to the little puppy that found it's way into the apartment. 


(A side note on bath time: I don't recommend giving a bath to two children (age 2 1/2 and 10 months) when you are alone. Especially if said children get excited about bath time and feed off each other's excitement.)  

HEY LADY!

After a long work day most people like to decompress in their car, listening the music or just the rumble of the road as they find there way from work to home. Personally I would have to say that sounds nice to me. Listening to some music on my Ipod, a podcast or even a book would be nice, but sadly 3 days out of my commute week are not like that. Rather I have Jerry Lewis in my back seat.

Yes, I have found that when Lex gets into my car he turns into Jerry Lewis. He finds that pitch in voice that Lewis gets when he says "HEY LADY!" To add to the volume and antics he sings, and does everything in his power to make Loki giggle even try to shove a Dunkin Donuts straw up her nose. Something she complete encourages him in doing, by belly laughing so hard that I don't think she can breath.

Today to try to control the noise level in the car, I engaged Lex in conversation. Something I usually do by asking him his body parts, which he points to and repeats (I recommend sticking with what you know). But today I start telling Gigi and him about what was going to go on in the next few days. Part of this being that we are going to attend a cook out of good friends of ours. I explained that Lex would see Miles, our friends 4 year old son, in which

Lex calmly replied "Oh!" Trying to work on his volcabuary I tried to get him to repeat "Miles". I did get something, but it wasn't really close. We moved on to other friends he has met before - like Steve, which he repeated as "Teve". Then Blue, which came out "Bew" - works for me. I tried Sage, which was mumbled but attempted. Gretchen - he just ignored me. I then said Himmer, that became "Immer". Moving on to Michael. I got back "Daddy!"

"No, not Dadda. This is a different Michael." I explained.

"Me. Two Dadda!" he proudly announced trying to hold up 2 fingers.

"No. One Dadda! Michael is Miles Dadda!"

"Two Dadda!"

This turned into an Abbott and Costello routine. Again trying to control the volume in the car as well as redirect him, I told him Marny had a baby in her belly (you think I would learn!) "Momma- Baby!"

"No, Lex. Momma doesn't have a baby in her belly. Marny does."

Another 4 rounds of "Who's has a baby in their belly?" with a 2 year old. Lex of

course playing the straight man. There is no winning this, but I go on trying just the same.

We get home and make it up to bed time. I'm helping Lex get into his pajamas, while Mad Dog sits waiting for story time to start. Because Lex is giving me a bit of a hard time, Mad Dog trying to distract him. Lex points to him and says "No Dadda!"

Mad Dog makes some comment to him, and Lex responds with "No. Me. Two Dadda!"

Breaking News: Bolt is Back!

This will be a very quick little post to thank our dear friend Patrick for sending Bolt back into our lives. He arrived today, and is sleeping peacefully at the foot of Lex's bed with his other dear friends (Chew, the Wookiee, Hannibal, the Sheep and Richard Parker, the Tiger). Sad to say that Ace, the little black Lab, was once again voted off the bed and exiled to the table with the books and other superheros. We don't know why this happened, but Lex made the case off just before turning in. Otherwise we had a peacefully night, with not too many tears.

So, once again thank you Patrick and the kind soul that found Bolt and knew enough that it was apart of Mad Dog's litter! Bolt, we're glad to have you back.