Forever Young - Documenting the life of Gary and Denise - and family

Laci says....

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 08:37:48 -0500

Sometimes Laci cracks us up with the cute things that she says. The other day Laci said to me "Mommy can I have a tissue, my nose is leaking out". I had to laugh out loud because although I completely understood what she needed, I had never in my life heard it put into those words. Then today while at the doctors office even the doctor found the humor in Laci's explanation. As we were waiting in the doctors office the nurse did an initial exam of Laci, which included swabbing her throat (the reason why we were there). The nurse told Laci to "say AAHH" and as Laci complied the nurse unexpectedly did the throat swab. Laci was not at all pleased with this surprise, she showed her disgust but she did not say a word. So later when the doctor came in and was doing her own exam, she too asked Laci to "say AAHH". Laci still vividly remembering her last experience with saying AAHH, replied to the doctor "No Thank You, the other lady already looked in there" as Laci leaned as far back away from the doctor as she could.

Halloween 2008

Sat, 01 Nov 2008 14:21:21 -0400

Halloween was great fun and thankfully I was able to keep the concept of halloween a secret until the week it occurred. Laci knows all about halloween and she gets very excited but waiting more than a week would be torture for her. Daniel had no preconceived notion of what to expect at "Halloween" he just decided early on his costume. Laci was a kitty cat for the second year in a row and she looked very cute. Daniel was a lion and had spent the preceding few weeks perfecting his roar. They were both adorable as they set out on their journey Halloween night. To my surprise they managed to hit about 90% of our neighborhood and Laci could have kept going all night. Daniel was beginning to tire and our pumpkins were full so we headed home. As it turns out Daniel kept his costume on the entire time and was very happy in it, Laci had been waiting to wear her costume and she was happy to meow. We had a great Halloween and we wil be eating candy untill Easter, but it was lot's of fun.

Yub You

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:29:49 -0400

Today as Daniel and I sat on the couch together, he did something very sweet. Daniel climbed into my arms and maneuvered himself into a cradle position. Then he looked up at me, grinned and said "Mommy I Yub You". It was so sweet and it made me feel great. Daniel is such a sweet boy.

Computer Junkie

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 09:53:58 -0400

This morning Daniel caught daddy completely off guard. Daniel came down the stairs (after waking up), went to the computer in the playroom, turned the power on, opened the start menu button, and chose his website. When the browser did not connect properly, Daniel closed the window, started it again and then maximized the window. Daddy was to say the least impressed. Daniel learned all of these steps by watching mommy show Laci do them just one time. Daniel is growing up so fast and is growing into a computer junkie, LOL. Very impressive! Daniel spends much of his day on the computer, with little assistance.

I Draw 2

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 13:29:42 -0400

This afternoon, Daniel went to the toy room and began to play quietly on his own. After a few minutes, Daniel called out to me, "Mommy I draw 2, I draw 2." Having no idea what he was talking about I went to see what Daniel was so excited about. Daniel had his magnadoodle and showed me what he had done. Daniel in fact, had drawn the number 2. It was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it was unmistakably a 2 none-the-less. We were very proud of Daniel and he was quite pleased with himself.

Strange Concoctions

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:27:55 -0400

Over the years, I (mommy) have been know to put together some interesting food choices. Examples of such being Bagel w/ cream cheese sprinkled with a sprinkiling of potato chips on top, chocolate frosty with french fries, peanutbutter & butter sandwich, pizza dipped in catalina dressing, ice cream and potato chips; and the list goes on. Oddly, the thought of these things during my pregnancies turned my stomach, so no none of these choices were pregnancy enduced. Although what could you expect when my uncle was the creator of the peanutbutter-butter & syrup sandwich. It seems as though I have now passed along these wonderful traits along to the children as well. Laci will often each just ketchup on the spoon after finishing her meal, she also likes fish sticks dipped in ketchup and strawberries dipped into ketchup. Daniel on the other hand loves his black olives with ranch dressing, pizza dipped in ranch or catalina

First Day Of Kindergarten

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:11:34 -0400

Today was Laci's first day of kindergarten and she was so excited. Laci has always wanted to be like the "big kids" and now she finally was. Laci has also had a great desire to ride a school bus for several years now and today she would get her chance. Last night when I put Laci to bed, I could tell that she was very excited about going to school. We picked out her outfit, set her alarm clock and discussed what she would need to do when she woke up. Apparently Laci had a hard time going to sleep because at 4:00am she came and asked to sleep in bed with mommy and daddy. We accommodated Laci because we knew she needed her sleep, especially today. Laci did go to sleep and woke again shortly before 7:00am raring to go. Needless to say, time would not pass fast enough for Laci this morning, she was ready to go. As we left our house to go to the bus stop, Laci could hardly contain herself. Thankfully it is a short walk because Laci wanted to run. Laci was ecstatic to see all of the other kids from the neighborhood that she knew, waiting for the same bus that she was going to get on. Of course there were kids and parents at the bus stop, that we did not know, so Laci made sure to introduce herself and inform every one that she was going to kindergarten today! Then Laci began to sing and chat with anticipation. Laci got a little nervous when she saw the bus come over the hill, but not nervous enough to disway her at all from getting on it. It took a while to get on the bus as there were a lot of children and kindergarten kids had assigned seats close to the bus driver. I know that Laci will do fine, even though I could see that she was nervous. Yes, mommy cried as the bus drove away, my baby went to school today and I will miss her. I look forward to her return to hear all about her day.

Practice Day

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 12:59:22 -0400

Today Laci had a practice day at school. Laci went to school with mommy and daddy, to get familiar with what will be her new routine. Laci met her teacher and took great pride in "helping" the teacher hang the last of her posters on the door. Laci was very excited to be at school and she was the first one in her classroom. After mommy and daddy left Laci with her teacher, we went to the auditorium for parent information. When we returned to the classroom a short time later, we learned that Laci had become the welcoming commity, which was no surprise if you know Laci. After the teacher greeted each child that entered the room that day, Laci then announced to the child "Hi, I'm Laci, I'm 5 years old, What is your name" all the while with her hand outstretched to shake with the other child. Laci could not have been happier that she got to sit on a real school bus and talk about bus safety. Laci did a few class activi

OH MY GOD

Sat, 30 Aug 2008 11:38:41 -0400

Today Daniel learned a new phrase "Oh My God". This morning as we were driving around in the van, Daniel played his Leapster. A short time later, Daniel began to cry and I asked him what was wrong. Daniel told me "I hurt" and cried some more. As I tried to figure out what was hurting him (while driving), he vomited, and the obvious question was answered. The first words to me uttered by mommy were "OH MY GOD" because I was not expecting that reaction and we were at least 15 minutes away from home. Needless to say we got home as quickly as humanly possible. The rest of that day and the many more to follow, Daniel shared with others the new phrase that he had learned. Any time something happened Daniel would repeat "Oh My God", it was at this point that I was glad that this was the phrase I had uttered; as anything of the four letter word variety would have not been as easy to ignore. Daniel's use of the phrase did cease in repetition as time passed, but I can easily say that we both had a learning experience.

Can I have Feathers

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:59:04 -0400

The other day Laci came to me and asked "Can I have feathers for my birthday, so I can fly?". I found this question extremely odd. I told Laci that she could have feathers for her birthday but asked how they would make her fly. Laci told me that she would put them on her arms and flap her arms up and down to fly. I explained to her that feathers on her arms would not make her fly but she seemed convinced otherwise. Daddy (standing near me) heard this conversation too and was as puzzled as I was. He quickly checked the television to see if perhaps that is where this thought originated, however the current program did not seem to imply the solution. Laci has asked this question a few more times and I am just curious what brought this on.

Mommy's Note Update

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:14:58 -0400

Current list of cuteness

Daniel's Word	Translation
Boo	Blue
Ya Yo	Yellow
B Wack	Black
Oinge	Orange

Big Dan the Potty Man

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 21:30:47 -0400

This evening Daniel made us so proud, he got on the potty and made pee pee. Yesterday evening as Daniel sat on the potty trying to produce, I was quick with the M&M's reward when he was successful. So tonight as we went into the bathroom he was ready. As I undressed Daniel he went straight to the potty, climbed up onto it, sat down and began to pee pee. mommy was so proud of him and he was very proud of himself. Yes, the M&M reward was close at hand, so that made it all worth wild. Way to go Dan!

Child Logic

Sun, 08 Jun 2008 18:20:09 -0400

This evening as Laci was talking on the phone to her Papa, I got a chance to hear her mind in action. Laci really wants a real kitty cat and we have been explaining to her that she is just not old enough yet to be responsible for a pet. Mommy and daddy explained to Laci that when she is 6 years old that we will have a new discussion about getting a pet cat. While on the phone, papa was telling Laci all about the cat's at his house and Laci was hanging on every detail. Then she told papa "mommy and daddy say I have to be 6yrs old before I can have a cat. Wow, you have 6 cats! How old are you?!" Mommy burst with laughter at how Laci had put those details together.

Laci has also decided that she wants a battery operated motorcycle to ride for her birthday (just like our 5yr old neighbor has). Mommy and daddy already told Laci no on that subject so Laci decided that she would discuss it with papa. Again Laci talked to papa on the phone and asked him for a motorcycle for her birthday. As I could only hear Laci's side of the conversation I have to guess at what papa told her. Laci replied to papa with "It's too dangerous? I have to be 12 years old before I get a motorcycle? Okay papa I think you are right, ..... Papa when I am 12 years old you will by me a motorcycle then?!!!!"

Bead.... What Bead?

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 20:08:39 -0400

Earlier this week Daniel came to me sniffling as though he needed to blow his nose. We got a tissue and he did blow his nose. To my extreme surprise half of a pink Mardi Gras bead popped out into the tissue. Words can not describe the expression on my face or the next few thoughts that went through my head. There did not appear to be any remaining bead particles in his nose, so I was relieved that the worst was over. I immediately went in search of the necklace and trashed it. Today however Daniel caught us by surprise yet again. As I finished dressing Daniel, I stood him up and he sneezed. Low and behold the other half of that pink Mardi Gras bead came flying out of his nostril and hit me in the arm. As I realized what had just happened, I was in shock yet again. I guess it never bothered him and he managed to get it out on his own. I inspected his nose yet again and I am confident that he is now bead free.

You Don't Say

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 16:51:05 -0400

Daniel has really began to talk more lately. He has been taking advantage of the fact that Laci does a lot of talking and letting her speak for him. He also got used to getting what he wanted just by pointing. More recently Daniel has been required to verbalize what he wants. So today he let us know in sentences on two different occasions, exactly what he wanted. Daniel said "I want crackers" and "Me want bread". We are very proud of Daniel.