Thursday, March 31, 2016
Darby 49/52 v2
Easter was a big hit with Darby this year. She loved the pretty treats the Easter Bunny brought her, enjoyed searching for eggs in the yard, and seemed pleased with the apricot glazed ham that Mama smoked for dinner. Darby was a very sweet sharer, dolling out jelly beans and chocolate bunny pieces to her brother (from her basket), and she made it a loving day for all of us.
52 : 4 (part 5)
This year for Easter we continued our tradition of visiting the Academy of Sciences, and also added a stop at the de Young for the Oscar de la Renta exhibit and a nice picnic in Golden Gate Park. While Ewan loved the egg hunt, and the basket of goodies, the picnic seems to have really made an impression as he has told us how fun the picnic was over and over since!
Thursday, March 24, 2016
52 : 3 (part 5)
Turning 4 meant a visit to the dentist and the doctor, lucky boy! No cavities and a clean bill of health for our growing kid... 44.5 inches (99%) and 47.6 pounds (98%) specifically, which is the size of the average American 6 year old! When asked to draw a picture for the doctor her drew Kylo Ren and signed his name with pride.
Darby 48/52 v2
23 months! Darby is definitely on an independent streak - "I do it," "Darby walk," "This outfit now," and so on. She is communicating a lot with 4, 5, and 6 word sentences. Her latest skill is counting things and we have heard her get up to 4, which may sound a lot like a certain 4-letter word starting with F and therefore makes us laugh hysterically.
Darby continues to be guided by her belly and can get down right hangry, but always turns it around quickly once she gets some food. Favorite foods are ever-changing, but she does seem to be loving berries while her cheese infatuation persists. Darby is the first to start an epic dance party and seems to have a hankering for pop music that her Daddy is hoping will go away quickly. The song "Baby Shark" is still her favorite and is a sure fire way to calm her if she is upset, and is also a great distraction if her hair needs brushing.
1 month to go until she is 2... every day we ponder how unreal it is that she is so big because at the same time we can't recall life with out her!
Darby continues to be guided by her belly and can get down right hangry, but always turns it around quickly once she gets some food. Favorite foods are ever-changing, but she does seem to be loving berries while her cheese infatuation persists. Darby is the first to start an epic dance party and seems to have a hankering for pop music that her Daddy is hoping will go away quickly. The song "Baby Shark" is still her favorite and is a sure fire way to calm her if she is upset, and is also a great distraction if her hair needs brushing.
1 month to go until she is 2... every day we ponder how unreal it is that she is so big because at the same time we can't recall life with out her!
 |
| Darby Moira - 1 Year 11 Months |
Sunday, March 20, 2016
#EwanMcDTurns4
In our family birthday celebrations do not last a day, or even a weekend, we do it right and things seem to extend beyond even a week... with the big FOUR for Ewan things were no different and we documented the fun with his special hashtag, #EwanMcDTurns4.
After his classroom birthday party, commemorated in post 52 of his fourth year, Ewan had his special date with us, which was supposed to be just us and him per tradition, but he insisted that his baby Darby join us for Zootopia in 3D and pizza at The Old Spaghetti Factory. The next day we left for Anaheim so Ewan could spend his actual birthday (and the day before) at Disneyland (per his request instead of a party) where he got trained to be a Jedi, ate a ton of treats, and had a generally amazing time. And when we made our way home the celebration did not end, he got to fill up a shopping cart at the toy store for his "friends" at the hospital and celebrated with his Auntie with bowling, stories, and lunch.
All in all I would say that Ewan's 4th birthday was a big success and that our boy loved every bit of celebrating!
After his classroom birthday party, commemorated in post 52 of his fourth year, Ewan had his special date with us, which was supposed to be just us and him per tradition, but he insisted that his baby Darby join us for Zootopia in 3D and pizza at The Old Spaghetti Factory. The next day we left for Anaheim so Ewan could spend his actual birthday (and the day before) at Disneyland (per his request instead of a party) where he got trained to be a Jedi, ate a ton of treats, and had a generally amazing time. And when we made our way home the celebration did not end, he got to fill up a shopping cart at the toy store for his "friends" at the hospital and celebrated with his Auntie with bowling, stories, and lunch.
All in all I would say that Ewan's 4th birthday was a big success and that our boy loved every bit of celebrating!
Thursday, March 17, 2016
52 : 2 (part 5)
St. Paddy's Day in our home requires green, plus corned beef and cabbage. The fancy "on this day" feature in Facebook provided us a reminder this year of Ewan's 1st St. Paddy's day, which is quite the juxtaposition to his 5th!
Darby 47/52 v2
Since Darby was born she has barely been sick, but she got taken down by a bug at school this week, which resulted in two quiet days at home with Daddy. We knew she was feeling better when she ran for her rain boots and then begged for some cheese and yogurt (always the dairy).
Saturday, March 12, 2016
4 Year Old Ewan!
This kid. He feels all the feelings, pushes all the buttons, requests all the cuddles, and keeps life real. Ewan asks every question that pops in to his mind, some typical and some downright philosophical. He is kind, and generous, and is the love of our lives. Ewan will forever have the title of our favorite boy.
 |
| EP @ 4 Years! |
Thursday, March 10, 2016
52 : 1 (part 5)
While this will surely be a redundant post to one we do for Ewan's birthday it is definitely justified given the immense highlight that this experience was for Ewan during his first week of his fifth year... the experience of being trained as a Jedi that is. The requirement is that you be 4 to participate, and we cheated a little bit by taking him the day before his birthday, but when they asked him his age he did not skip a beat (we had not prepped him), he threw his hand up and said "4!" He then proceeded to orientation, got his robe, meet new friends, and ultimately performed in the center of Tomorrowland in front of tons of people for about 30-minutes. Ewan was so adorable, so engaged, and we were just SO proud of him!
Darby 46/52 v2
This week Darby got to celebrate her brother's birthday at the happiest place on earth. She had so much fun and is definitely becoming a Disney lover... like the rest of us! Her favorite ride was Dumbo and when she got to pick a treat at the store she went straight for a small dumbo stuffie.
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
A letter to my son on this the day of his fourth birthday...
Dear Ewan -
You are simply the sweetest. Since you have been able to express emotion we have been delighted at your sweetness, proud of your empathy, and a little fearful of the jadedness that typically comes with age. I watch you many days, but very much on birthdays, and hold my breath a bit in hopes that I will see sure signs of your big heart. This year, your 4th year, you continued to feel all the feelings and have continued to thrive in connecting with people... little people and big people, but I would say most of all your baby Darby who you pledge to marry one day, you don't recognize others as potential future partners and I feel ZERO need to burst this bubble yet.
I am often stopped by the parents of your friends (I have even received emails), by your teachers, and even by your sister's teachers, because people want to discuss what a sweet boy you are. I am so pleased that this year you continued to be a Mama's Boy, do not feel bad for your Dad for a minute because baby Darby is firmly on his team. I love that you still want to cuddle with me, ask to sleep with me, request time with me, and that you miss me when I am gone. The bond we have is one that I never imagined and I say little prayers all the time that we will have an adult version of this when you are big.
Speaking of when you grow up, you are very keen on "being big like Daddy" and I often promise you that you will be bigger and that you have plenty of time. You are so ready to be big, but dread going to college because we will not be there with you. In your mind you will be a Marlin (3/4 class), a Bat Ray (4/5 class), in kindergarten, and then off to college. Like time in general, school is an odd thing for you, and when I pause to reassure you that you have a ton of time until college, and that when it comes you will be dying to go, I am also convincing myself (in my head) that I will someday be ready for the reality of a Ewan-less home. You make us all better and you make our home our favorite place.
In terms of your likes and dislikes you are still in the camp of eating/drinking pizza, mac and cheese, orange chicken, yogurt, cheese, milk, lemonade, popcorn, ritz crackers (you can't be tricked by others), and donuts for every/any meal... this year you have been good about exploring new proteins and drinking more water, which both feel like wins. You are doing very well at school: you can count in to your thirties, write pretty much anything in capital letters, have amazing story retention, enjoy all the sports activities the teachers can muster, embrace science very naturally since you are so curious, and art is your go to free choice activity, you have never seen a roll of tape or a pair of scissors that you do not like. You have played little bits of video games with your Dad and are nearing being better than me at some, we limit this time but indulge occasionally, for bonding you understand. I would still call going to movies your favorite pastime and when asked where you want to go you frequently answer Disneyland, which we loved doing for your birthday this year. You also often request Hawaii and are excited to visit Mexico this summer... We love that you enjoy travel and are a little jealous that your passport currently has more stamps in it than ours did when we were 25 years old.
We know this next year will be full of adventures and we can't wait to see them all through your eyes. Ewan, you are truly our world and you make it a happier place everyday.
We love you SO SO SO SO BIG!
Mama
You are simply the sweetest. Since you have been able to express emotion we have been delighted at your sweetness, proud of your empathy, and a little fearful of the jadedness that typically comes with age. I watch you many days, but very much on birthdays, and hold my breath a bit in hopes that I will see sure signs of your big heart. This year, your 4th year, you continued to feel all the feelings and have continued to thrive in connecting with people... little people and big people, but I would say most of all your baby Darby who you pledge to marry one day, you don't recognize others as potential future partners and I feel ZERO need to burst this bubble yet.
I am often stopped by the parents of your friends (I have even received emails), by your teachers, and even by your sister's teachers, because people want to discuss what a sweet boy you are. I am so pleased that this year you continued to be a Mama's Boy, do not feel bad for your Dad for a minute because baby Darby is firmly on his team. I love that you still want to cuddle with me, ask to sleep with me, request time with me, and that you miss me when I am gone. The bond we have is one that I never imagined and I say little prayers all the time that we will have an adult version of this when you are big.
Speaking of when you grow up, you are very keen on "being big like Daddy" and I often promise you that you will be bigger and that you have plenty of time. You are so ready to be big, but dread going to college because we will not be there with you. In your mind you will be a Marlin (3/4 class), a Bat Ray (4/5 class), in kindergarten, and then off to college. Like time in general, school is an odd thing for you, and when I pause to reassure you that you have a ton of time until college, and that when it comes you will be dying to go, I am also convincing myself (in my head) that I will someday be ready for the reality of a Ewan-less home. You make us all better and you make our home our favorite place.
In terms of your likes and dislikes you are still in the camp of eating/drinking pizza, mac and cheese, orange chicken, yogurt, cheese, milk, lemonade, popcorn, ritz crackers (you can't be tricked by others), and donuts for every/any meal... this year you have been good about exploring new proteins and drinking more water, which both feel like wins. You are doing very well at school: you can count in to your thirties, write pretty much anything in capital letters, have amazing story retention, enjoy all the sports activities the teachers can muster, embrace science very naturally since you are so curious, and art is your go to free choice activity, you have never seen a roll of tape or a pair of scissors that you do not like. You have played little bits of video games with your Dad and are nearing being better than me at some, we limit this time but indulge occasionally, for bonding you understand. I would still call going to movies your favorite pastime and when asked where you want to go you frequently answer Disneyland, which we loved doing for your birthday this year. You also often request Hawaii and are excited to visit Mexico this summer... We love that you enjoy travel and are a little jealous that your passport currently has more stamps in it than ours did when we were 25 years old.
We know this next year will be full of adventures and we can't wait to see them all through your eyes. Ewan, you are truly our world and you make it a happier place everyday.
We love you SO SO SO SO BIG!
Mama
 |
| Waiting for Midway Madness on his 4th! |
Thursday, March 3, 2016
52 : 52 (part 4)
It is hard to believe that Ewan has been with us for 208 weeks. He joined our family at 3:33pm 208 weeks ago today... While he has 4 more days of 3 the celebration began with a "Secret Pizza Party" (his favorite book about his favorite food) party with his school friends. We celebrated with pizza cupcakes, story time, and a copy of the book for each of his friends.
Darby 45/52 v2
This past weekend Ewan begged to go bowling and we were a little worried about how to deliver on that request AND manage Darby if we all went. In the end we decided to make it a family date and when Darby saw there were shoes to be worn she was all in... her Daddy helped her with the ball throwing part!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)