MiniMarr

Pete’s had a great St. Patrick’s Day weekend!  We went to a parade yesterday, which he loved.  There were endless fire trucks, police cars and boats.  There was great music, lots of dancing and it was just a fun day. Pete watched most of the action atop Dada’s shoulders.  It was pretty cute watching him dance and exclaim “another one” every time he saw a fire truck or police car.  He was tuckered out by the end, and almost fall asleep in my arms.

Pete’s a lucky little Irishman and got some new St. Paddy’s Day clothes from ShayKay’s parents, Una and Padraig.  We love them!  He wore one of his new shirts to school on Friday and got so many compliments.  The scally cap is from Ireland too (a gift from Shay and Kris when they were there for Christmas) but he likes throwing it off his head more than he likes wearing it.  He looks so cute in it though, and I can’t wait for him to like wearing it.

We went to an Irish pub this afternoon to watch some Irish step dancing.  Pete loved it.  Every time the kids finished, he would say “again! again!”.  He danced to the Irish music and had such rosy red cheeks – if I didn’t know better, I’d swear he’d been drinking!  He even scored this green hat:

From our mischievous little leprechaun to yours, Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

 

 

Pete and I went for a walk this afternoon.  He thoughtfully put a pair of Pat’s old ski goggles in the stroller and off we went.  We walked at Pete pace up the hill and then he decided to put the goggles on and rest for a minute:

He wore the goggles the rest of the walk and waved at everyone he saw.  I was smiling to myself the whole time.  He just might be one of the funniest people I know.

Pete had a major change to his routine this week.  I started a new job as a school nurse, which meant that Pete started school too!  He is still lucky enough to be watched by his grandparents two days a week, but will now go to school three days a week.  We looked at several schools in our area, but all loved one the best. We’ve had several play dates there and talked a lot about this new chapter in our lives, so his first day wasn’t a total surprise to him. He’s so easygoing and really enjoyed being with the other kids.  On his last play date before he started, he didn’t want to leave and kept asking to “play kids?” … so that helped make us both feel better, as we agonized over the decision on whether to give up my 24 hour/week job in the hospital to start working five days a week.  We ultimately decided that working shorter days and having weekends, holidays and summers off would be better for our whole family.

 

 

It was incredibly difficult to leave him that first day.  He was so excited to be there playing until he realized that Pat and I would be leaving.  Then the tears started.  The teachers promised us he would be okay, and I stood in the hallway until he stopped crying (crying myself, of course).  The school has webcams in every classroom, so we were able to check in on him all day.  His teachers also called with updates to let us know how he was doing.  He was a little tearful at times, but overall had a great first day and I know he’s going to love it.  We lucked out this week too because I had my first snow day today and got to stay home and snuggle with my buddy all day instead!

 

Pete and I have both been sick, which made for a very long week. We’re finally on the mend and feeling better, but Pete woke up crying in the middle of the night on Friday.  I usually give it a few minutes to see if he’ll settle back down but then I heard a “hug, Mama?” so I went in to check on him.  He stood up for a hug and wanted to snuggle.  As we rocked in the glider, he looked into my eyes and said “I love you Mama”.  I melted.  And then cried.  Those words from his little lips might just be the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard.  As he drifted off to sleep in my arms (a very rare occurrence) I felt like the luckiest person in the world.  Because of him, I am.

Thanksgiving came and went in a blur this year.  I can’t believe it’s almost December already … Pete and I talked a lot about who he was going to see on Thanksgiving this year.  He was very excited to see his Nana, Bumpa, Lizzie, Aunt Maureen (Aunt Mo-Mo) and Nana Quinn.  Over the summer, Nana Quinn taught Pete to say “giddy-up!” when he sat on his rocking horse. So the day before Thanksgiving, he asked me if giddy up was going to be there.  And now that’s what he calls Nana Quinn.  Sometimes, he calls her Q, which is equally adorable.  We sing songs at night about all the people that love him, and without fail, when I mention Nana Quinn now, he stops, smiles at me and says “giddy up”.  It’s pretty cute.  They have a special bond and I love it.

We in the Marr house are thankful a lot; our families and friends especially, but most certainly for Pete.  He has changed our lives so much and I am forever thankful that I get to be his mom.

Pete is officially a toddler.  It’s scary that he is no longer considered an infant, let alone a baby.  I cannot believe that he is 18 (almost 19) months old already!  As much as I miss Pete being a baby, he is at such a fun age now.  He talks all the time and one of my favorite things is listening to him wake up in the morning.  His eyes pop open and he instantly starts talking (usually about dump trucks, school buses, fire trucks or ambulances – he is such a boy) in his sweet little voice until he calls for Mama or Dada to come get him.  He is a mischievous little guy sometimes and I found him like this after a nap the other day:

Pete is sweet, funny, and such a happy guy.  He is always saying hi to people and his voice is so cute but can be so loud at times.  He tends to repeats himself until he gets what he wants and a common occurrence is at the grocery store when he sees someone he wants to talk to and says “hi. hi. Hi. HI. HI. HHHIII” until said person acknowledges him.  Then he usually gives them a big smile and a wave and moves on to his next target.  He loves the ladies and is such a flirt.  He also loves to look at pictures of himself and watch videos of himself on our phones.  I take full advantage of this because it’s guaranteed cuddle time, which I cannot get enough of.

Pete’s been a busy guy and learns so much every day; he’s like a sponge.  He hears something once and then it seems to be committed to memory.  He knows all his body parts but is particularly fond of belly buttons.  Kris and I were watching an infomercial for an exercise video the other day and when the trainer patted someone’s pudgy stomach, Pete yelled “ding dong!” and then laughed like crazy.  He cracks me up.

Pete loves to mimic other people, he loves to be in on the joke and he loves, loves, loves Bailey.  They are best buds and we are so lucky that she is so tolerant of him.  I love watching them together and am so happy that we have a Bailey for him to grow up with.

Pete is a huge fan of bath time and asks for a bath at least three times a day.  We limit him to just one, but he spends as much time as possible splashing, swimming and playing with his toys.  Then it’s pajamas “jam-jams”, books and cuddle time.  Pete’s so affectionate and I’m trying to savor every minute of it, because I know it won’t last.  When he’s hurt, scared (or getting in trouble), he opens his big blue eyes as wide as can be and asks for a hug.  It’s impossible to resist, and I am pretty sure he knows it.  Luckily for all of us, we’re happy to oblige!

I am writing this almost a month after Halloween, but I figured better late than never.  Pete was Cookie Monster for his second Halloween.  We celebrated over the weekend by going to Spooky Zoo at Roger Williams Park with the Farrells and Rocks.  The kids wore their costumes, got to see all the animals at the zoo and go trick-or-treating.

Pete had a love/hate relationship with his costume.  He would see it and ask to give it a hug, but the minute we tried to put it on, he would start crying and say “off, off” and  “all done, all done”.  He wouldn’t like it for a few minutes and then would settle out and be just fine. Our Halloween night adventures were very short-lived.

And then all is good again:

Pete’s grown quite a bit since his Yoda days last year: