Sam

 What happened? All of the sudden we turned around and Sam was a KID!

A dirty, stinky, hilarious kid.

He is talking so much more now and has a lot to say about animals, super heroes and all of his friends. Sam starts pre-school in 2 weeks and is very excited to meet his teacher and peers.

He loves to pretend. One day he'll be a dog, another day he'll be The Hulk. One morning he was pretending to be giraffe and a more quiet day has never been had :)

Sammy is so particular about everything. If you ask him what he wants for dinner, it will be different every night. "Popcorn Shrimp. Green Pasta. Soup. Cheeseburger with no pickles, please!"

Last week I took him to Toys R Us where he was promised a toy for filling out his chore chart. He had his heart set on a deer stuffed animal that he had seen at the children's museum. Toys R Us didn't have one so I told him he could pick out anything else.

"No Mommy, I want a deer."

We tried 3 other stores to no avail. We were forced to order one online and he had to patiently wait 7 days for his deer to come. He asked about it every morning and when the package finally arrived he was thrilled. Sam named his new toy "Forest." What kind of kid is given an entire toy store to chose from and chooses to wait a week for a stuffed animal? This kid.

Sammy is one of a kind! He is so sweet, loves to cuddle, is very clean and organized and really does love to be out and about learning new things. We are so proud of him. I can't wait for him to start school and come home with new knowledge. I think he'll be an ideal student.

I managed to get my camera out today and take the above pics of Sam. I have been meaning to do this for a while, but life is busy and cameras are heavy after multiple photo sessions each week. So glad I captured these though!

Oh, and Doris is always very interested in my camera. I don't know if it's the "click" or the reflection but she would not leave me alone today while I snapped away at Sam. She's a photo bomber!

Jetty Island

I love Jetty Island. 

LOVE. IT.

Luckily my boy enjoys it too because we will spending a lot of time out there this summer. 

A Date to the Zoo

What is more fun than a trip to the zoo?

It was just Sam and I and it was perfect. We got to spend ALL DAY there and took our time checking out and learning about different animals. 

Sam signed to the gorilla and she actually seemed very entertained by him

 Then we fed the giraffes. Sam was in heaven and asked the zookeeper a lot of questions. They were very impressed with his curiosity. 

I could not have asked for a better day with my favorite little boy.

Out of the Crib

Sam has been upgraded to a twin bed. After finding him sleeping on the floor the last few weeks, we realized he had outgrown the toddler mattress. So we took apart the crib/daybed and moved things around in his room to fit his "big boy bed."

He's pretty excited about it.

This morning I went in to check on him and he was just laying in bed, awake, with a big grin.

Wish I could say I was as happy about his rapid rate of growth.

King Tut

Last night Matt and I took a date night to the King Tutankhamen exhibit at the Pacific Science Center. 

It was awesome. 

I have always been very intrigued by Ancient Egypt, so it was a great opportunity for me to view some of the artifacts. Although I will say, there were a few things that I was hoping to see, that were not on display such as one of King Tut's sarcophagus', the book of the dead and more canopic jars.

 I guess Ill have to go to Egypt :)

I was surprised that they allowed photography, but I was disappointed that I only had my point and shoot. If we go again (not likely since it's pricey) Ill bring my REAL camera.

 Beautiful hieroglyphics.

 This is the conopic jar that held King Tut's stomach.

 Walking like an Egyptian.

 Matty checking out the replica of Tut's mummy.

Sam's Butterflies

Sam got a butterfly kit for his birthday. Right away we ordered the caterpillars and waited for our bug delivery.

They finally arrived in the mail and Sammy was ecstatic. He was pretty put out when I told him that we couldn't handle the little bugs.

We started with 5 caterpillars. They grew at a rapid pace and then 2 managed to make themselves into perfect little cocoons.

Another caterpillar became a lovely little chrysalis but it fell from the top and I assumed it was dead. The other two caterpillars didn't live to finish their metamorphosis.

Last week 3 butterflies appeared in the kit. It was so exciting! The two that made it to the roof were perfectly formed and beautiful Painted Lady Butterflies.

The one that managed a cocoon but was on the bottom came out looking pretty weak and deformed. We hoped that its wings would straighten out, but it never happened.

Yesterday we released our butterfly friends. The first one took a few crash landings into the grass but soon figured out the ways of flight and took off.

 The second one flew around Sam and I for a few minutes before landing on a bush and taking a little rest. But soon enough, she too disapeared into the woods.

The third, our "special" butterfly, tried her hardest to fly with bent wings, but never made it off the ground. I didn't have the heart to leave her out in wild world, so she is living out her life protected in my enclosed strawberry patch.

We had so much fun we are going to order some more. What a fun way to teach Sammy about metamorphosis!

Sam, the 3 year old.

Sammy has changed a lot in the last month.

For example, our calm, relaxed, quiet child has become very excitable, crazy and loud.

Oh. So. Loud.

He has become a true boy overnight. He's jumping off of couches, running around the house and getting into trouble. Sam's into wrestling, swords, superheros and speed. Wounds and scars are collecting on his extremities as I type.

I'm not going to complain too much since we have had it pretty easy for 3 great years. But what a change it has been for us!

I look at all the challenges we have on a daily basis and say to myself, "wow, he's growing up."

I try my hardest to stay away from yelling, "Who are you and what have you done to my boy!", but I'll admit, those words are uttered occasionally.

And, although they are now amidst tackling and pointy elbows to the boob, I still get lots of hugs and kisses. I think I can make it through any crazy changes as long as they are around.

The Zoo with Uncle Cory

My little brother Cory is pretty much non-existent during the winter months. He works and lives up at Snoqualmie Pass while the snow is falling and doesn't come down the mountain until its closed.

So when we do get together, it's a lot of fun.

I had some work in Tacoma this week so we made a trip out of it and hung out at the Zoo together

The sun was shining and it felt so good!

 Sam as a "kermit bab."

 Feeding the goats.

 Sam thinks Cory is pretty cool. :)

 Pretty Peacock.

 Sam and the Walrus. "He says, Coo coo ca choo!"

 Sam loved "mapping" out our trip. He would say "Okay, next is the penguins!"

 Trick stroller.

Bye, bye binkies.

I got this great idea from a friend on Facebook (thank you Lisa!) to take your addicted child's binkies to Build a Bear and sew the pacifiers into the animal.

Genius!

This allows them to still "sleep" with their binks but forces them to lose the habit. Sam had a great time picking out his new friend and even helped put his binkies inside.

"Bye, green binkie! Bye, big binkie! Bye, little binkie!"

I was VERY impressed with how willing he was to say goodbye to the binks. This kid is about as addicted as you can get to something. We would catch him multiple times a day sneaking into his room to "take drags" of his binkies (since they weren't allowed out of his room.). It was so funny, but so pathetic.

Sam and his new puppy aptly named, Binkie.

I was very concerned with getting rid of the pacifier for my own sake. Sam has been an awesome sleeper, never fighting bed time and even putting himself down for naps. It's been so nice.

But last night went better than expected for his first sleep without a binkie. He played around in his room for about an hour and I had to go in there a couple of times to remind him to stay in bed. But soon he fell quiet. When I checked on him he was passed out with Binkie Puppy and blanket in hand.

Success!

A 3 year old.

Sam's 3rd birthday is next week. I can't believe it. He's grown up so much, so fast.

We are planning his birthday party for this weekend. When I asked him what kind of party he wanted he said "A lizard and lady bug party."

So, we're doing our best to make those requests come true.

I may be more excited for the party than he is :)

He had his 3 year exam done today and his stats show lots of 3's! Perfect.

3 feet tall.

30 pounds.

3 years old.

Oh, and did I mention he's SUPER STRONG!

The cure for boredom in our house is....

 JUMPING ON THE BED!!

Egg dying

Wednesday we got together with our neighbors and colored Easter eggs. Sam and Katelyn had a blast and it was nice to sit around and catch up with friends.

Sam's eggs.

Katelyn and her eggs.

Sam, so proud of his work.