Chautauqua County Fair

The duct tape on this kiddie coaster must mean that it is structurally sound, right?

Ahh.. the fair. Corn dogs. Cotton candy. Noise. People. Cows. And height requirements. A basic run-down of our day:

Matt: That ride! That one!

Me: No, son. You can't ride the "Hammer of Death."

Matt: That ride!

Me: No, son. You're not tall enough for the "KidFlayer."

Matt: Ride it! That one!

Me: Sorry buddy. You have to be 54" tall to ride the "NeckWringer."

We finally found a kiddie coaster that Matthew could ride (you had to be under 80 pounds to ride it, but at least 36 inches tall). Matthew absolutely loved the ride.

The carousel bored him, which gives me cause for concern. My TWO year old is such a thrill seeker that the carousel is now considered a lame ride. He had an absolute meltdown when we wouldn't let him ride things that would give most people whiplash.

We also saw the various animals at the fair (sheep freak Nolan out- who knew?) and had dinner. Corndogs are nutritious, right? Nolan couldn't hear a thing during the entire fair due to excessive background noise, so I'm glad we were able to use a few signs here and there. The lack of hearing is why I couldn't get his attention to look at the camera- he was in "la-la land," sucked into the visual feast that is the fair.

First Balloon

I love Wegmans. Great groceries, carts with cars on the front so the boys can pretend to drive, and BALLOONS! Matthew usually gets a balloon at the end of each shopping trip, and this time I decided to get a balloon for Nolan, too. Nolan was quite excited and kept staring up at his balloon in absolute awe. I can't believe that my little baby is really turning into a toddler.

Loving the Library

Since Matt has such a high energy level, I am always in search of new activities for the little guy. I looked on our library's website, and there is a summer program for toddlers. I packed both boys up and headed out to the library to check it out. I wasn't sure if Matthew would participate or not, but it turned out to be a hit!

Every week has a theme (can you guess what this week's theme was?) and three books are read during the hour. As the age group served is 18 months-36 months, there are lots of breaks for wiggles and finger plays and songs. At the end of the story session, there is a craft related to the books read. Matthew had a great time gluing feathers onto his chicken!

The very best part is that every week is devoted to teaching the kids a new sign. They do this as a "baby sign" type thing, but the librarian was very excited to see Nolan. She actually uses three stuffed kittens during the hour, and one of the kittens can't hear. I was thrilled beyond belief to find this sort of resource in our little town. Nolan, of course, is already ahead of most of those hearing kids with his sign knowledge. Matt was quite happy to show off all the signs he knows, too.

We will definitely be attending the library story hour on a regular basis. Both kids loved it, and the best thing of all: it is FREE!

Walking!

Collaborators

Now that Nolan is walking and starting to look and act more like a toddler, our lives have turned a bit chaotic. Matthew loves the fact that his little brother can help create mayhem.

Nolan will wait by the couch, and Matthew will seize the opportunity to throw all the cushions on the floor. This is done under the guise of "helping Nolan get on the couch." In reality, it is to provide Matthew with a landing pad for his incredible flying leaps off of the couch.

Nolan will wait by the screen door, and if I leave the room for even one second, Matthew will open the door and let him out. I often return to the family room to find both boys out on the deck!

Since Nolan is 11 months old today, here is a new list of his likes and dislikes.

Nolan likes:

• Toilet paper. The faster it comes off the roll, the better!
• Toilet water. YUCK. We need to buy the kid a water table!
• Putting things into containers, and taking them out again.
• Blueberries. I don't think he could ever get enough of them.
• Splashing in the tub.

Nolan dislikes:

• Separating from mommy.
• Pasta salad.
• Being carried for long periods of time- he wants DOWN!
• Long car rides. He doesn't like his rear-facing carseat and wants to be able to move around.

I have no idea what he weighs or how tall he is, since we lack a scale in our house. He goes in for his 1 year well-baby appointment in early September, so I will update then. I could buy a scale, but I'd almost rather NOT know what I weigh! For other statistics:

• He is walking more and more each day. He took his first steps on July 3, at 10 months old.
• He wears a size 3 diaper and size 12 month clothing.
• He waves bye-bye and claps.
• He signs "more" on a regular basis.
• He has attempted the signs for "ball," "all done," and "milk."
• He babbles "mamama," "dadada," "ldldldld," "bababa," and occasionally, "nanana."

I seriously can't believe we only have one month until his first birthday. These little guys grow up too fast!

Crayons..

For breakfast? Matthew has an entire set of play food (complete with play knife that really "cuts" the food in half), but far prefers cooking non-food items in his toy kitchen.

No one knows what he will choose to do as a career, but I'm pretty sure he won't make it as a chef!

Cook Forest

Nolan steals a straw from a juice box

Matt and his cousin catch tadpoles

Matthew, dirty and happy

We drove to Cook Forest on the 12th, and had a great time meeting up with Dennis's cousin and his family. If we decide to try camping with our little guys in the near future, it will be at this state park in Pennsylvania. It is only 1 1/2 hours away from our house and has a ton of amenities for the little guys. A stocked children's fishing pond (replete with tadpoles and mud), short hiking trails, and easy access to the shallow Clarion River for swimming.

As a side note, when your husband is sent to find a fishing pole for your two year old- make instructions specific! He returned from the store with a real, adult sized fishing pole. Imagine a 2 year old child equipped with a whip-like pole with a hook on the end. He had a great time, but the rest of us were frantically trying to cast the line as far away as possible so that he couldn't hook any of us! We finally took the hook off and just left the bobber on, since he just wanted to cast and reel the line back in ad infinitum.


Nolan was able to hang out on the grass and had a great time stealing bits of oreo cookie and crawling around with relative freedom. Matthew got absolutely filthy from the watermelon, mud, and oreo cookies he ate. This necessitated a quick dip in the river in a vain attempt to get some of the mud off. Mud from this region of Pennsylvania stains, and stains badly!


We will probably head back to Cook Forest later this year to camp, especially if we can get the rest of the family to join us! I have a feeling late summer/early fall would be gorgeous in this region, and Nolan should be walking well by then. Now we just need sleeping bags for the boys!

Tom Erlander Overlook

Turns out you can find really neat places when you explore your own backyard! We took a quick ride to Tom Erlander Overlook Park in Frewsburg today. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but we found a great place for Matthew to run free and a nice hiking trail. The weather was quite nice and we were able to get a lot of new vocabulary words in for Matthew: crab apples, trail blaze, mushrooms (of all different colors), fungus, pond, stream, creek.

We will definitely be returning in the fall!

First Carousel Ride

We took a trip to the Erie Zoo, where Nolan got to ride his first carousel and Matthew was finally able to ride the train. Matthew was in love with the zoo train, and Nolan was very unsure of the carousel. I'm not quite sure why, but being chased by a tiger with his brother on its back was a little unsettling for Nolan!

Next up: Tom Erlander Overview Park and Cook Forest!

Big Rocks

We decided to investigate Panama Rocks, a local geological wonder from when glaciers reigned over Western New York. We had a great time hiking among the big rocks and this place could be billed as "little boy heaven." Matthew loved climbing among the boulders and jumping over tree roots. Nolan fell asleep in my front-pack style carrier after a while, oblivious to the natural wonders. The best thing about hiking in the forest with really big rocks? Everyone takes a long nap after the hike!

First Time Ice Skating

We took Matthew ice skating on July 5th, and it was a definite success! He was not able to stand by himself on the ice (we didn't expect that would happen since he is 2 1/2), but was able to gain his balance on the floor and we soon had to admonish him for running in ice skates. We went around the rink time and time again, until we were all permanently bent at a 90 degree angle.

Next winter sport to try: skiing!