All Weekend Long...

It's a Mommy and me weekend as Mike is off playing in New Orleans for Mardi Gras. Yeah, 11 guys down there for 4 days...yikes.

We've been busy; swimming lessons, a hip new haircut, coffee with newly-pregnant Angela and now a nap. But, the best part is yet to come - thanks to Christie, we decided to do a "While You Were Out" for Mike. Well, okay, nothing major but minor redecorating in the dining room and kitchen. I can't wait for it all to come together this evening after E goes to sleep!

And of course the Oscars tomorrow night!

Little Dolphin

Yes, that is Ethan learning to swim before he can walk.....Ruiz men don't always do things in the correct order.....With that being said, welcome to my very first blog post. Considering my primary ipod is a gen 1 shuffle, this should not come as a surprise to anyone.

So you are looking at week three of 'Water Babies.' It is a great class we enrolled Ethan in held at a St. Paul elementary school. Where are weeks one and two, you ask? Well E was sick with his 1st ear infection for week one, and Mom and Dad (ok, Dad....) was late for week two so we had all of 6 minutes in the pool. (along with doing things out of order, Ruiz men also run late....)

The class is 30 minutes of getting acclimated to the pool - splashing with feet, splashing with arms. Floating on your back, playing with toys - all intermingled with songs such as 'Ring around the Rosie,' 'Wheels on the Bus,' and some other song we don't know the words to (because we missed weeks one and two....'

Although timid at first, the little big man did great. Phelps - he's coming for you....sans bong, of course...

Dad and Ethan waiting for their turn in the pool. Dad is trying to convince himself that chlorine will take care of things that should not be in the pool....

Ethan and his toy of choice....a red ball - no surprises there. If you can zoom in, you will see Ethan's hair is wet - yes - we survived dunking - several times - much to Mom's dismay....

Tidbits

I’ve been on hiatus from the blog as we try to get back into a groove here now that we're all healthy and I am done traveling for a bit.

January was full of lots of changes and new things for Ethan (and us). It is amazing how expressive he is becoming and we love how you can see his little mind at work. I left mid-month for a long faraway trip and mid-week, Mike sprung it on me that not only was he going to take away Ethan's night time bottle, he was going to switch over to a sippy cup for the morning. Yikes. I was panicked. Was he crazy? Doing this on his own? Okay. Well, it worked and by the time I got home, I was able to do this:

Packing up those bottles and all the parts and throwing away the brushes was great! He has taken on a new love for the sippy cup. And while this is easier, it's also a tangible sign that he is no longer a baby. Kinda makes me sad. But, as you can see, it's going well!

Also new to our family this month was Ethan's transition into his new toddler room at daycare. He was ready, it was time, but this one was hard on me. He's already made lots of new friends, and I know the additional stimulation of being around older children, going outside during the day and a more intensive lesson plan are all good for him. And the socialization and activity is really good for his development.

Ethan's latest thing is an obsession with the phone. Our home phone, our cell phones, our blackberrys, his play phones -- he loves them all. And, he holds them to his ear and tilts his head. It is adorable. When they ring, he says "ut-oh!" Kinda sounds like hello, but I'm not so sure...