I love concrete trucks!

Getting a new driveway put in has been the source of much excitement this week. Besides watching the big cement mixer pour its contents, Samson enjoyed "driving" "his" Bobcat and even trying out for an apprentice position with Austin Concrete Construction.

Already Two and a Half?

Gosh, we had our heads down for what seemed like a minute and we're already into the middle of Samson's second year. Where did the time go?

Here are some recent big boy pics from one of those candid photo deals at school. If anyone wants to order them, go to iclicksmiles.com before 03/24/2009, and enter school "prodigy" and student "59179".


Life seems on fast forward since Mama went back to work outside the home in November. The weekday routine is something like this:

• wake up at 6a (or 5ish if Samson decides to be an early bird)
• set Samson up with a cereal bar & milk in front of Noggin so that Mama can take a shower; Daddy reads news on his phone and waits for his turn
  
• everyone gets ready for school & work, which generally includes chasing Samson around the house for every stage of the diaper-PJs-clothes-socks-shoes-hair transformation
• we all exit the house together, Mama to the car & office by 7:30, Daddy & Samson in the truck to school & work by 8
  
• Mama picks up Samson after 4:30
• supper & playtime from around 5:30-7:30
• Samson's bath at 7:30, in bed by 8:15
• Mama & Daddy unwind until nodding off by 10

Weekends are much the same, except Samson doesn't go to school, the grown-ups usually aren't at the office, and there is nap-time from noonish to 3ish. Friday evenings still usually mean dinner & playdate with the Turners. If we're lucky, PawPaw (& sometimes Grandma) may drive over from Houston for a visit on Saturday. Just about every other weekend, we also have cousin Emilie (& sometimes Tyler) come to hangout with Samson while Mama & Daddy have a date night. Throw in the random kid birthday party or trip out of town to visit relatives, and that's pretty much our life for the past 6 months.


In February, Samson started going to a new school that is much closer to where we live & work. Mama was nervous about how he'd handle the transition, but it was virtually seamless. He loves his new school, teachers, and friends, and most days, he is actually unhappy to leave when boring ol' Mama or Daddy come to take him home. Mama & Daddy love the new place, too, especially because Samson loves it, but also because:

• it's cut our daily drive-time down by 90 minutes, several toll roads, and otherwise needless excursions to Cedar Park
  
• we don't have to make lunch since they serve great meals, even offering a daily vegetarian option (due to lots of Hindus & Buddhists at school)
  
• the kid to teacher ratio is much lower than our other school
  
• most of the teachers & staff have worked there for more than 5 years and love working with these kids
  

Today, we're going to a toddler friend's 3rd b-day birthday at one of those bounce-house places, so Mama and Daddy will be sure to get a good workout chasing Samson around, preventing certain peril to life & limb. Samson has become quite the fearless jumper, something he tests many times each day on all the furniture he can manage to climb.

Christmas morning treasures

Two Sams in a Wagon

Trail of Lights 2008

Birthday Gifts Keep On Giving

We had a laid-back 2nd birthday celebration for Samson at home back in early October, basically a toddler free-for-all in our big backyard with a bouncy house and lots of borrowed or Craigslist-found ride-on toys. Unlike the first year, we forgot to specify "no gifts, please," and our friends and family couldn't resist showering Samson with a gigantic mound of presents, most related to his favored theme of transportation.

Upon the advice of our more experienced parenting friends, we decided to stash the many gifts in the closet and parcel them out over time so as not to overwhelm Samson with too many new things and better allow him to enjoy each one on its own. This has worked out fabulously; 7 weeks later, we are still making our way to the bottom of the pile.

This morning's surprise is courtesy of the Turners. We just love the toys made by this British company, as they require no batteries, are totally friction-powered, have no annoying electronic sound effects, have a wide age-appropriate range of 1.5-5 years, and have minimal packaging to hack through & dispose of. The picture is from Mama's phone, so it's a little fuzzy. Still, you can see how much Samson is stretching out & morphing into a big boy:


Samson was due sometime between November 21st and 26th, so he's now officially 2 years old. His health and development are all on track, so we're actually no longer adjusting his age as is commonly done with preemies. This is one time that it feels pretty nice to graduate to "average."