There’s more than corn in Indiana….

I love Indiana….I love a whole lot about it and missed it desperately when Craig and I were living in Massachusetts.   Well…..I missed our families desperately while we were living in MA….therefore I missed IN.  But I grew up with the view of a sunset over a corn field from my bedroom window and when we moved back to IN was very happy to be surrounded by corn again.  When we moved back Craig and I went to take some pics of ourselves in the middle of a cornfield for our “blog” which was really just a website with pics posted and to do something with the final pic for invitations to our we just moved open house.  These were taken in 2003 but tonight I was looking through some pics and came across them…don’t we look so young and youthful….we were in our mid-twenties then!   If I remember correctly, we had the camera on a timer for some, used the remote for some, and the intent was not to get the white step-stool in the pic, we were going to edit them later – we just needed to be high enough to get the corn and landscape in the background.

Autie Ka – get your lips ready!

I was downloading some pics today to take in and get printed out….I am really behind – they are all saved on the computer but the photo albums stop at this past Christmas……soooooooo, my goal is to be caught up by this Christmas with getting them in to be printed off and stuck in albums in order.   I came across this pic today and think it is the cutest.  It is of Tyler planting a wet one on my sister Kim last January.  Oh, he loves her sooooo much!!!  We can’t wait to see you this Friday Auntie Ka for the big Vera sale!!!  Get your lips ready….he’s been saving up some kisses for you!

These boots are made for walkin’….

….and that’s just what he did….so I went in to Once Upon a Child to look @ some Halloween costumes – I love that store because it’s like one giant garage sale……but the prices are more expensive, anywho, I went in to see what costumes they had – success there – Tyler will either be Super Tyler or a little dinosaur/monster, but they had some winter boots out and I had to look because I have his sled from last year (yes, I was the crazy mom pulling her 10 month old around the addition and yard in a sled last year when it actually did snow, but I am a firm believer, no matter how long the prep work takes of getting us all bundled up and ready, it is great for us both to get outside if even for a bit)….so I have the sled, I have a snow suit which I am very proud of – it is a very nice warm one I found for 50 cents @ a garage sale, and I just needed boots. I saw some @ Once Upon a Child and thought I would just look through them real quick before I checked out, and I found some Bob the Builder ones that looked like they have never ever been worn in the right size….and for sure the right price, $3.50 – SOLD! Needless to say – he is quite attached to them already – it was a huge tear-fest when we made him take them off!

You can just see…..

…the wheels in his head turning……

“Ah yes……this is a much easier way to get up on the couch….why didn’t I figure this out sooner!!!”

Trying to grow teeth stinks!!!

We have been a little off kilter the past week as the I teeth have reared their ugly heads!!! They have been there, awaiting gum breakthrough but for seriously like the past 2 months, have just been hanging out under the gums….until about a week or so ago. Hello drool, hello little sleep, hello diaper rash, hello crabby-patty grumpasourous Tyler. UGH!

Really overall, I know I have nothing to complain about – he has done really really well with his teeth and usually is not too crabby with teething – but just doesn’t sleep – it’s not that he is up and crying in the middle of the night – he is just up not sleeping – which means neither am I – so it could be waaaayyyyyyy worse. It just throws our normal off, which is fine, but just that, not our normal. And when your normal is really pretty good, the not normal, which isn’t terrible, but just not fun, is stinky…..if that makes any sense @ all.

So this morning we were up @ an early 6:30 (definitely NOT our normal – 8-9 is our normal!). He had finally gotten to sleep last night around 11:30 (normal 9:30), I finally fell asleep around 1am, we were up @ 1:15am and then again @ 2am and then wakey wakey @ 6:30. Seriously?!? OK, I’m up early which is probably good today cause I have stuff I need to get done this morning for our church’s Fall Festival for the community around our church. We play, have breakfast, play, I get ready and by 9:30 we are delivering letters/invitations to businesses in the area our church is inviting them to come and get involved in the Fall Festival. As I am delivering these letters talking to people, etc. , about the last 20 minutes we are doing this the meltdown is slowly ensuing. I start walking faster from place to place knowing it is just around the corner now and praying that I can just finish what I need to since we are already out and about and I have just a few more businesses to run into. Drool is everywhere – the Tylenol and Motrin are both sitting @ home on the counter doing me no good there! OK, last stop, I am talking to this guy @ Penn Station and then the tipping point comes – this huge cry from Tyler erupts and doesn’t stop, big tears, very loud, more drool, flailing, look of horror on guy @ Penn Station’s face – it’s pretty clear from his look he neither has children nor now ever wants them.

I take my little peanut outside and try and calm him down which is not working well. I buckle him into his carseat (more flailing and louder crying) knowing that if I can just get him home, medicate, and snuggle him, all will be better! So we arrive home, still crying (both of us now) and I bring us inside, turn on the Price is Right (he loves the wheel!!!), give him Motrin, and we snuggle up on the floor in front of the Price is Right with blankies and pillows. Fast asleep fell Tyler and then I had some chocolate…which always seems to make everything better!

Our little Guitar Hero….

Recently Tyler has become capitol OBSESSED with guitars.  We don’t even own one.  It all started when I was looking for a song for him online @ the computer and he happened to be sitting on my lap.  The site that came up with the song was You Tube and it included the music video.  So we watched the video and listened to the song and then I was looking for some of Third Day’s new songs @ the same site because they recently released their new album.   So we found Call My Name by Third Day and in the video they are playing their guitars .  Tyler started moving his right hand up and down like he was strumming a guitar…..and there a guitar hero was born.

He keeps pulling me upstairs to the computer strumming the air because he wants to see the video with them playing the guitars….he has a block that has a violin on the side but looks much like a guitar and he carries it around with him strumming the air….@ church after a song was done he did his sign for “more” until the worship team started playing their guitars again and was completely transfixed with watching them play their guitars…..when there is not a guitar around, object that looks like a guitar, mention of a guitar, or music on or even mention of music, the boy comes up to me strumming the air!  OBSESSED!

So yesterday we found a sweet looking little guitar for our little musician…it was crazy excitement in the Malmloff household last night!!!  Tour dates have not been released yet but we’ll keep you posted 

All around the house…

My friend Jen found this idea while looking @ some other blogs. She did it on hers and it looked kinda fun. She explained it like this: “The premise is this, take picture of these 10 house-hold items but there is no primping or preparing allowed (it was really hard not to ’stage’ things). The pictures of the items are to be taken as they are at that were moment.” So here is how it is @ our house….

The Fridge

The Closet

This is our “front” closet….well, we live in a condo so it is the only closet besides the one’s in the 2 bedrooms. It houses our coats, my many many fleece jackets, the vacuum, extra folding chair and TV trays (which I don’t know when the last time we used TV trays was….perhaps I can pitch them?).

The Kitchen Sink

Please excuse the clean dishes which are air drying in the little drying rack and counter. I refuse to hand dry dishes that the air will dry perfectly fine….I’d rather spend that time playing with my son! Oh, and also the dead plant in the back, plants and I don’t do well together!!!

The Toilet

Favorite Pair of Shoes

My favorite summer pair (I love flip-flops!) and winter pair (clogs with furry stuff inside – very warm!!!).

What are the kids doing?!?

Shhhhhh….he’s sleeping! Sweet dreams little Tyler!!!

Favorite Room

This is our “family room” area – It’s a condo – it’s not like there are that many “rooms” – but I LOVE this area. During the day when the blinds and curtains are open it is so bright and sunny and you can see all the trees outside and I love our couch – it’s a sectional which I hunted and hunted and hunted for when we bought our condo about 5 years ago – It is so cumfy and Tyler will tell you it is super for jumping on!

Laundry pile

This is truly it! Mostly empty baskets on the washer – just a few dishtowels and washcloths that need done – aside from some clothes in the hamper – but I wasn’t going to take a picture of the outside of the hamper – Craig is trying to fall asleep and if I went in to take a picture of the hamper now, he’d ask why – and I didn’t feel like explaining that “It is for the blog” because then I would get that look – the look like you either need to find a friend or a hobby look. But I promise – right now all clothes are in the hamper – not falling out or around the hamper as they typically are

Self portrait

I was hard pressed to find a picture of just myself aside from my nursing school picture with the cap and all which there was no way I was going to post! These are the only “portrait” like pictures I think we have in our house – They are of Craig and I. We took them about 5 years ago here @ our hose with the camera & the camera remote ourselves because I couldn’t find any pictures or artwork that I really liked to hang in our family room area. I love these. It is like a story about us in pictures. I keep wanting to change out the pics with black and whites of Tyler or the 3 of us – but I just love these so much and I already have a little collection of black and whites of Tyler in another area.

Dream Vacation

Our last BIG trip before Tyler was a cruise. One of the stops was Barbados. We had so much fun that day. We took a dune buggy tour around the island on all these dirt paths and got to drive through puddles and up and down hills and down to the beach. In the afternoon we just lounged around on the beach. We had so much fun that day – and met some really nice people from the island. I would love to go back some day and spend more than just 1 day there!

So what’s all around your house?

I know this is silly….

….I mean I am 30 years old, and I am posting a crayon drawing that I drew of Sponge Bob, seriously, I either need a hobby or more friends.  But I have to say, I’m a little proud of it…I know, it doesn’t take much to excite me!   But it was cute because on Friday evening I was getting ready for work ( I was going in @ 7pm) and I had put on my sponge bob square pants scrub top (I work with the pediatric population).   I had put Tyler @ the table to color and was waiting for Craig to get home from work so I could leave for work.  So there we were, coloring and Tyler  points to sponge bob on my scrub top and says, “bob bob”  for “sponge bob”.  He has never even seen him on TV, but @ my mom’s house, there is a stuffed sponge bob that used to be my sister’s and he likes to play with him.   He was fascinated with all the little “bob bobs” on my scrub top so I drew one for him.

I love to color with Tyler, I love the smell of Crayola  crayons and especially like to use the brand new crayons with the pointy end for whatever reason!  I love that I have Tyler because it gives me the excuse to do things like this (and fingerprint, and play in the sandbox, swing, play in the rain, jump on the bed or couch, build forts, blow bubbles, build mud pies, splash in the pool, eat with your fingers and all those things that are so much fun but you kinda feel funny about doing them without a child by your side.   So maybe this silly little sponge bob sketch will serve as a reminder for you to get in touch with your inner child today.   If so, let me know what you did!

Music to a Mother’s ear….

The other morning Tyler was finishing breakfast (2 pancakes and fruit….the boy can eat!!!) and I was rinsing off some dishes in the sink.  My back was to him as he was sitting @ the table finishing his pancakes with syrup.  It was all quiet, just the sound of me turning the water @ the sink on and off and then his little eating noises.   Then out of the quietness I hear this so sweet, quiet little gentle and innocent “mommy” slip out from between his little lips.   I turned around to him and said “yes, honey?” and there he was turned toward me holding out his empty sippy cup for me to take.  Oh, to grab the remote of life and hit pause or re-play or for goodness sake, where is the record button?!?!?  It’s not that he hadn’t said “mommy” before in it’s entirety, about a week ago he started saying it fully instead of just “ma” or “mom” or some variation of that and when he started saying it for like 2 days that’s all he said all day, he just walked around going “mommy…mommy…mommy…” and when he really wanted me it was “mommy…mommy….MOMMY“.   But the voice in which he said it, his little boy voice, not baby or toddler voice caught me by surprise and melted my heart into a bowl of melted liquid jell-o.  The day had just started yet it was complete.

97 cent FUN….”Um-pough”

Playdough – Tyler was calling it “um-pough”. Why is it the cheapest stuff is the stuff that keeps kids the most entertained?!?! Not that he has alot of crazy expensive toys, but take sticks for instance – they are free, he just goes around outside and collects sticks, plays with them, “draws” in the sand or rocks, studies them, carries them, tastes them from time to time, gives them to me to carry, etc, etc. Same with rocks – the boy loves rocks! So our 1 cup of play dough was 97 cents and that will keep him quite entertained!  He’s played with it before but this time we made lots of mini-balls and he just sorted, squished, rolled, and yes, threw until his heart’s content. It only made it into his mouth twice which I thought was pretty good…and before you think I’m a bad mom – I didn’t let him keep throwing it.