Time at the Farm: Post 1

Brycen and Mom went home the last week of June to visit Grandpa and Grandma Fara at the farm.  It seemed like a long ride in the car and Brycen didn't take much of a nap. We stopped in Audubon to meet Albert the Bull. Friday was hot so our stay was short, but it was sure fun! There is a park by Albert and Brycen couldn't resist asking to "pweese, pweese, pweese" play on each of the different toys at the park. 

We went to a wedding reception on Friday night in Denison.  We didn't get home in time to make the wedding, so we met at the church. As we were walking to the growing crowd outside the Catholic Church in Manila, he started wining for me to carry him.  as we got closer he put his Head on my shoulder, i asked him what he was doing, and he replied he was being shy, i asked why. And his Response was because there were people there. While at the church, he didn't talk to anyone nor did he leave Mom's hip.  Oofta! We sat by Grandpa and Grandma at the reception and Brycen finally started warming up to our friends. He got a kick out of Dick Musfeldt's whistling talents, and REALLY enjoyed the pink punch served at the reception.  He enjoyed the chocolate cake and the frosting even more!!

On Saturday, we had fun outside with Uncle Eric and Grandpa in the morning while Grandma was at work. Brycen liked Grandma's fish pond/fountain.  He found a strainer laying around and liked to snag the empty snail shells floating on the top.  After Grandma returned home, we went to Harlan to drop off a Wedding Shower gift forRachel Burton. Afterwards, Grandma needed to get some cat food and she got Brycen a horse figurine that he named "horsie." 

After an afternoon nap, Katie came over and had a great time with Brycen. He completely unpacked the basement closet and started to "carpet farm" all over the basement. Grandpa and Grandma Fara have many, many toys that are right up the alley for a two year old boy.  Brycen rode the tricycle, played with the train, tractors, cars, animals, and train whistle.  Katie, Grandma, Brycen and mom went to church at St. Paul's Lutheran in Irwin and Brycen did well in the service and seemed to enjoy the children's sermon. 

we capped off the night with more fun with the kittens, cows, Pearl, and lots of hay bales. He liked sleeping in the big bed at their house and  brought along Hoppy, Elmo, Charlie, and George. 

A people pleaser

Brycen is such a "people pleaser" in many ways.  He quickly picks up on what type of mood someone is in.  We always seem to have such a fun time being goofy and happy.  Last night, Burke had to work late so Brycen, Otis & I had supper out on the patio.  The weather was amazing and it was the perfect night for it!

He got to play with the neighbor girls for about an hour outside before coming in to have supper fresh off the grill.  His favorite part of the cheese burger was the cheese & the pickles.

Here's a picture of Brycen showing his true personality. Enjoy!

A Day at Gramps & Grandma Blanchard's House

Monday, Brycen was lucky enough to spend the entire day with Grandma Blanchard!  I asked her to write some of the fun things they did together down and here they are:

Hi Sharon,   Just a quick note about our day.

Brycen never made a PEEP all night long. 

Brycen woke up about 6:30 and immediately went looking for the horses.   We played a little while and ate breakfast with gramps. He had a piece of toast and some cereal.  Then we got dressed and went to town to water the hanging baskets on Main Street.  He got to ride on a golf cart from the park to Main Street.  I had him flip the switch that turned on the motor that pumped the water thru a watering wand.  He did a great job and was very good about sitting in the seat.  Lots of people came by to talk to us, and at first he was a little bit quiet, but then he would usually start jabbering to them.   We had 18 baskets to water and each one took a couple minutes.  We saw at least 5 trains while we were uptown, so he got to SEE them up close, and HEAR them.   When we were less than a block away, the train's whistle was super loud and scared him BRIEFLY.   We took the golf cart back to the park and then drove across the park to the playground.  There was a 3 year old girl, Madeline, and a 5 year old boy, Gabe, playing there with their mother, Bee Kaplan.  The kids played together nicely and we stayed about a half hour or so.  Brycen especially like the rocking animals.  Then we drove up to the library, went in and picked out a couple puzzles and several books.   Caillou  and Berenstain Bears.  He refused to tell Kristi how old he was...although he did tell Bob Yilek earlier.  On the way home we saw a big truck cutting down a tree, and then we stopped to look at four horses in a small pasture.  We didn't go up to the fence, but watched them from the road.  When we got home we stayed outside and fed grass to the horses.  They didn't like the asparagus or the garden lettuce we tried to feed them, so we just kept pulling out grass.  When we went inside we went down in the basement and Brycen played with play-doh and Dan's Bumper to Bumper cars and trucks.  We lined them up, and crashed them, and talked about how some of them were alike and how they were different. 

We had leftover pizza, salad,  and applesauce for lunch.  Then we read about 4 books and Brycen took a nap for about 2 hours.  When he woke up I heard his little voice saying, "Grandma, Grandma."     After nap we had a little juice and a little snack, and some milk.  He played with playdoh some more, and some of his toys.  Then we went back outside to hang up some laundry and the horses came back, so we fed them more grass and petted them.   Brycen kept talking about how SHY the brown horse was.  Finally we came inside and got ready to go to the pool.
I wasn't sure how he would react to the BP pool, but I wanted to try it out and see if he liked it.   

There were several people there I knew with their grandkids, or kids.   We walked into the water and Brycen was excited to try to get Grandma wet.   He crawled into the TRAIN and slid down the mini slide (inside the train) a couple times.  I "caught him"  as he came out the end.   But, his favorite thing to do was to hit at or try to smash the 4  "water spouts."   He just giggled and laughed and tried to splash me.  Several other kids were very nice to Brycen and played with him, or gave him hugs.   We walked over into the deeper water and he kicked his feet, put his face in the water and blew bubbles, but the whistle blew and we had to get out for 10 min.   So when we got back in the water, he wanted to play in the shallow end, and we stayed there until we left.  We were there about an hour altogether, and he didn't want to leave.   He "made friends" with several kids about his age or a little older/younger, and one boy, Ty,  who was about 9, was especially happy to play with him.

When we got home from the pool he looked for the horses and of course, they came again.  I think they recognize his little voice!

Then on the way home to Swisher Brycen spotted lots of cows, horses, etc. and he SANG all kinds of songs.  He giggled and laughed and entertained us! 

I forgot...he went potty 3 times (pooped 2 times) on his potty.  Had one BM in his diaper in the afternoon while we were outside.  (my fault)  He was such a good helper and a good eater and we had a great time....probably the best day I've had in years & years!   I loved it!

Thanks for letting me have him for the day.   

You can certainly tell he has a wonderful Mommy!  (& Daddy).    

Brycen helping Gramps fill up the bird feeder

Father's Day Weekend

Our family had an absolutely wonderful Father's Day weekend!  Saturday morning started off with a nice long bike ride from Ely to Cedar Rapids.  It's the first time this summer we've taken the time to ride this trail. Brycen had a great time riding along.  We saw birds, horses, rabbits and other bikers on the trail.  The cool morning was just the perfect temperature for riding bikes.

 

Saturday night we had our friends Cody & Angie and their two kids, Mason & Avery over for some fun.  The boys had fun riding their bikes on the driveway, playing with bubbles, playing catch with a baseball and a Frisbee all before suppertime.  The weather was perfect for being outside playing in t-shirts and shorts. After they left, Brycen got to push his bedtime by about an hour.  He played with the neighbor girls on their trampoline and by the crick that goes through our backyards.  He sure adores our neighbors and has fun with them!

The Daddy long leg spider we saw on Father's Day after a walk to pick flowers

Sunday was Father's Day!  Brycen made a great impression by delivering freshly made chocolate chip muffins and his card to Dad in bed.  Dad also got to sleep in a little bit... a treat!  We went to church and Brycen was a good boy again.  Besides the lack of whispering, he feels right at home.  When we got home, Brycen & I went for a walk to pick some flowers in the ditch up the road for Dad.  

After nap time, we loaded up the fishing gear and hit the road to Hannen Lake for a little fishing fun.  Brycen was very interested in the worms (naturally) but did very well fishing.  We were there for just about 2 hours and he's learning patience a little bit at a time.  We were unsuccessful with catching any fish, but watched the dragonflys, kids swimming at the beach, the occasional turtle pop its head up, and a few fish that were jumping out of the water.  

After our fishing fun, we took the short drive down the road to Gramps & Grandma Blanchard's house for supper.  Brycen immediately noticed that the horses were up close to the house and before much was said, he was running outside to feed them some grass.  We ate outside on the deck for supper and Brycen roamed the yard, helping Gramps fill the bird feeders, pick a few ripe cherries off the tree, and play with the dirt in Grandma's garden.  By the time bath time came around, he'd had a full day of being a busy little boy outside.  

Brycen got to stay the night at their house and spend Monday with Grandma Blanchard.  

Brycen's first time fishing.  

Checking out the night crawlers

Visiting Dad at the lot

Brycen is listening to Dad's music in the ear bud.  Pretty cool!

Thursday night, Burke was working on laying insulation board in the basement at the lot and Brycen & I stopped by after supper to visit him.  Brycen has had a lot of fun so far around the construction at the lot and I took a video of him goofing off making lots of "explosion" sound effects.  He's been making a lot of sound effects lately and it's partly because his imagination is starting to run WILD!

We're hoping to have the concrete poured any day now so we can finally move forward with the building process.

Here's the video:

Taking care of Tiger

Our neighbors have been on vacation for the past week in Colorado so Brycen & I have been in charge of taking care of their house while they were gone for a week.  We've been collecting their mail and feeding both their cat and their beta fish.  Tiger is a very skiddish cat, unlike the common cuddly, always-in-your-face house cats.

We've had a good time going over and feeding the fish, (Brycen would do well taking care of a fish) but Tiger has yet to be seen when Brycen is there.  Is this a sign that Tiger doesn't like Brycen?

They came home late on Thursday and he had a great time doing "tiger chores." We're really going to miss our great neighbors and friends!

Because a little bug went... Kachoo!

A few weeks ago, I was going through my cedar chest to see if I could find my softball glove and ended up packing up a few boxes of the contents.  I ran across about 8 books I had kept from my parent's house (sorry Mom & Dad) that were my favorites when I was little.  I have wonderful memories of my Dad reading to me at night and sharing his love of the Dr. Seuss books and many others.

A few books were beyond Brycen and will be saved for a later date, but I was so excited to read Brycen some of the books from my childhood.  A few that I immediately read the next night were "Because a little bug went Kachoo," "The Spooky Old Tree," and "Miss Gator's School house."  I had already purchased "Otto" for Brycen at Christmas time so I kept that one with the stash.  (That is why you're unable to find the Otto book at home Dad!)

Brycen has recently fell in love with the Bernstein Bears books and the Spooky Old Tree was a big hit with him. The three little bears, one with a light, one with a stick, and one with a rope.  His favorite parts are when the bears have the shivers!

Another favorite right now is "Because a little bug went Kachoo."  He is strong into the questioning phase of life with many why, when, where, what does that mean conversations and this book is the cure!  Every part of the book is a chain reaction to something so he asks why once, maybe, but the story tells all of the answers.  :)  A little relief to all the questions.

Brycen just loves books and it's incredible to see how quickly he picks up on the story and can tell you all about it.  He just recently started "reading" to us at home, too.  He will tell you what he remembers about the story based on the pictures.  He will also point out very small details on the book that mean nothing to the story but grab his attention.

His imagination has really been growing.  As I put him to bed last night he told me that he saw a shadow moving and that it was a monster.  I attempted to shut his curtains to create a completely dark room and told him there are no monsters.  I'm not sure where the monsters came from, but I hope he grows out of it quickly!

When Brycen grows up...

Last night Brycen and I went to yet another in-home daycare, ran some errands, and made our way home.  He got to play outside for a little bit, but was disappointed when he had to come in for supper... food is way down low on the totem pole when the weather is nice to be outside.

As we were finishing up supper, Brycen asked if we could call somebody on my phone.  I asked who... suggesting Grandpa & Grandma Fara, Gramps & Grandmpa Blanchard, Uncle Ross... who?  His response was (Great) Grandpa & Donna.  It must have been a "God-incidence" because we haven't spoken to Grandpa Dave & Donna in a while.  For some reason, it was meant that we called them.  Brycen was shy at first on the phone, (surprise, surprise!) but had a good conversation with them.

At one point Donna asked what Brycen had been up to or something that prompted him to say the words, "I'm going to shoot baskets when I grow up."  Clear as day... I'd never heard him say that.  I laughed and asked if he was going to play football... nope.  I asked if he was going to be a wrestler and wrestle when he grew up... nope.  Apparently Brycen will be shooting baskets when he grows up.  For a 27 month old to say that it really shocked me.

We all know that his Mama will enjoy it because I love shooting baskets!

Happy Monday!

A quick "Happy Monday" to everyone out there.  Here's a smile and a wave from one of the most handsome little boys...

Happy dance

Recently Brycen has been doing slightly better with potty training.  He goes at home after meals and before going to bed. Here is a video of him telling Daddy about going and he does his happy dance.

Everything needs to match

Ever since Brycen was about a year old, he's been involved in choosing his attire each morning.  There have been many times where he has worn his favorite royal blue socks, his orange basketball shirt (that's terribly stretched out) or other favorites.  There have been many memorable mornings where he does NOT want to wear certain items of clothing... such as jeans, his church pants, or hooded sweatshirts.  His desire to wear his pajamas turned into a "pajama day" at Jean's house a few months ago.

Most recently in the last few weeks, he has been matching his outfit based on color and won't wear anything unless it matches... or you convince him (some how) that it goes well together.  

- A few weeks ago, we were shopping and I ran into a store while Brycen and Burke stayed in the car. When I returned, Brycen told me how the exterior color of the building for the store matched Daddy's hair (burnt orange color).  

- On our drive to Walford, we pass a red barn and three horses.  Brycen had to point out that the black and the brown horse don't match.  

There are many other examples I could think of if I took more time, but it's interesting to see how he processes his surroundings by what "belongs" and how things go together.  

Coupon

I forgot to tell the story about the coupon.  The other weekend when we were running errands and needed to get a new toner. While in the car I told Burke that I had a coupon for the toner from Rapid Refill.  Brycen perked up and said, "coupon mom? You have a coupon? Can I have it? Can I eat it?"  Burke and I shared quite a laugh and responded that he could not eat a coupon. It was the that Burke realized that Brycen thought we had said "crouton" instead. Ha! By the way, we did let him see the coupon and he attempted to nibble on the corner of the post card coupon. 

Wrapping up the week

Just some quick funny stories from this week: 

Thursday, I picked Brycen up from Jean's house and he was telling me a story about how the squirrel was being naughty. Now some of the details I know that I will get a little wrong, but I'll do my best recalling the conversation.  Apparently, a squirrel was in a tree in her back yard and nibbled off some branches. They were piled up and Brycen & Jean noticed them. Jean asked Brycen what they were going to do about the bad squirrel and he responded that it needed a time out. She asked where would the squirrel sit during the time out and his response was on the steps of the deck. Jean then asked if Brycen thought that the squirrel would sit still and he replied no, and the conversation continued on from there. 

Another story from Jeans house was from Monday at lunch. Brycen isn't a very picky water, yet doesn't eat everything either. He had finished his lunch and asked Jean for more of something. (Surprise, surprise) when she told him he'd probably had enough and made a comment about him being a little piggy... He burst out a "oink, oink, oink" that had everyone laughing. 

Wednesday morning Brycen must have been sleepy. Burke always goes in to say bye before going into work. When I went into his room he was quiet rather than his welcoming "good morning mama!" I turned on his dim light and he groaned and moaned. I sat down in the floor to ask if he slept well only to have tell me he wanted to go back to sleep! Ha! I wish he would do this on the weekend!

Finding a new Daycare

We've known for a little while now that Jean will be retiring in August.  Our journey with her has been nothing short of a blessing and she and Phil have become members of our family. 

With everything going on, this task to find someone else has been on the back burner for a while.  We've been in the hunt for another in home daycare provider in the last two weeks. Brycen and I have been to five different homes in an attempt to find someone that will be a good fit. We've seen a few real bad options out there, some that might do alright, and one that were leaning towards. 

I've come to the conclusion that Jean is irreplaceable and one of a kind. We've been blessed with a woman that cares for these babes like they are her own and truly loves them. She has invested so much time into instilling good habits and values in Brycen. He has been given so much care, attention, and education in the last two years. 

As I am writing this, I realize that he has been going to her for exactly two years.   There is absolutely nothing I would change. It's a mere coincidence that we found her. We already put a payment in at another in home to reserve a spot when a Facebook friend who already had daycare arrangements posted a message about helping out a friend in need of a provider. Jean's daughter-in-law (Kim) and mother of one of the girls that goes to her commented that Jean might be taking another infant. Right when I saw it, I messages Kim to get more details and that lead me to Jean.

She's spoiled Brycen, Burke, and myself to the point that we know we will never have it as good as we do now. 

We will all cherish the next two months before she retires and continue to pray that we can get a provider that is half as good as she is. All good things must come to an end and we are do blessed to have had her and Phil a part of our life's journey.

Welcome, June!

We had a fun Sunday that started off with church. (He was much quieter this week AND we had an organist!)  He made friends with a little boy named Charlie, a grandson of Larry & Lauri Tow who must have been about six months old.  Brycen had a good time handing him books and asking him questions, and even giving him a hug during the service.  

Putting on sunscreen before playing outside

After church we stopped at the lot where Daddy was busy working on leveling off the gravel in preparation to pour the basement.  Then we stopped at the grocery store to restock the cupboards and was home just in time for lunch and nap time.

Watching Brad build a fire of all the sticks/twigs in the yard.  

After nap time we played and played and played.  We had fun with the neighbors, trimmed some trees, picked some strawberries, and played a little catch, too.  Overall, the weather was slightly chilly but sunny... not the typical June weather but we'll take it after all of the rain!

Sunday night, Brycen and Mom put together some home-made pizza. We put Canadian bacon on for meat and chopped up the olives, red onion, and green peppers for toppings... yum!  It was delicious.  Brycen loves to help... and loves to eat the olives.

Brycen (and Mom) finished a can of black olives while making home-made pizza!

Visit from Uncle Perry & Erika

Saturday, we started off with a morning full of errands in Cedar Rapids. Brycen used his charm on a lady who worked at Randy's Carpets. She won him over when she let him play with a small toy semi truck. We were there for an hour and a half and he had a fun time roaming the store and picking out colors for flooring. 

After we for home from Cedar Rapids, Uncle Perry and Erika  were at our house visiting from Madison. He was in town for the Lady A concert at  the US cellular Center.  

We took a stroll to Amana and stopped at the Smoke Shop and the Brewery.  There was a band playing at the brewery and we had a fun time just taking in the sun and good tunes for a little while.  Afterwards we stopped in Walford to take a look at the lot with Perry & Erika.  They have the walls poured and plumbing done but are waiting for some dry weather to pour the basement.

Later on, we had supper at our house and Grandma and Gramps came too.  Erika brought some poka-dotted cake with chocolate frosting that Brycen completely devoured.  We played and played that evening.  He had a great time showing them how he shoots a doe (deer) on an iPad game.  He also had fun with his i-Spy books, too.  

On Sunday morning, the first thing Brycen asked (even before saying good morning) was if Uncle Perry was at his house.  He sure enjoyed the visit!