Author: suburbandaddy

Happy Birthday Thing 3

Thing 3 turned two years old today!? The day began with him sleeping in until 7:15, which was the best birthday gift to SuburbanMommy and Daddy we could have asked for.

After that, it was a day filled with fun and celebrations tantrums and time-outs.? At two years old, his brothers were more excited about the prospects of a birthday.? We didn’t plan a party because we’re having a combined Thing 2 / Thing 3 birthday party next week.? Well, it’s really Thing 2’s party and Thing 3 gets to be there.? He doesn’t know the difference at his age.

I wish I could say, based on his behavior today, that today was the beginning of the terrible two’s.? Technically, they start today because he is now that age.? But, in fact, he has been in the terrible two’s since he was 9 months old.

After a day of seemingly non-stop tantrums (some mine), we had a makeshift party with a few cupcakes.? These pictures say it all.

This is when we presented the cupcake with a candle, and sang happy birthday.? He was not the least bit interested.? Actually, he was mad because we paused the Backyardigans on the TV.

Happy Birthday To You

This is the scene after blowing out the candle. You can’t see it here but he was having a tantrum in the next room.?? Have you ever seen a kid run away from a chocolate frosted cupcake?? Not to worry about wasted food, SuburbanDaddy will be eating his cupcake later.

Un-birthday

Now here are a couple of birthday professionals.? Thing 1 and Thing 2 had no problem picking up the slack.? Maybe Thing 3 will get the hang of it next year.

Birthday Pros

I Am Shocked

I am in total shock right now.?? Thing 3 is reading quietly in his crib.? Thing 1 and Thing 2 are playing nicely together upstairs.? They are playing games and doing puzzles together.? They aren’t fighting.? They are using indoor voices.

I am in the office downstairs, enjoying some quiet time on the computer.? I think I can see a faint light at the end of the tunnel.? Where I actually get some time to myself before they go to bed, instead of being too tired to do anything except go to sleep myself.

I expect this calm to be short lived.? I can already hear the voices are past the indoor voice level.? And now there is an argument over the rules in the Spiderman Yahtzee game.? Oh well.? At least I can dream.

iPhones and Kids – Color Now

The iPhone is a great investment if you have kids.? Forget about all the cool features you’ll want for yourself.? Your kids will want it more.? And all the games available will come in handy when you need to keep your kids occupied and quiet for an extended period of time.

There are some really great games for kids.? Thing 1 likes to play Checkers.? Thing 2 likes Sound Box, where you press a button to hear a “whiney dog” or a “cuckoo clock” sound.? I won’t let Thing 3 touch my iPhone because, well, that will be the last time it works.? Best of all, most of these basic games are free or almost free.

Color NowToday I had Thing 1 and Thing 2 try Color Now.? Color Now is a unique application that takes coloring books to the digital era.? Kids and kids-at-heart will be able to add color to artistic images using a vibrant palate of paints.? Once they?re finished, they can save their finished masterpiece and use it as wallpaper on their iPhone, print it or send it to friends via email.? There are 12 images to choose from.?? The image here is one example.

The concept is good enough. But I have to say it didn’t translate well to the small iPhone screen and would probably work better as a full desktop application.? Thing 2 had trouble selecting the colors and shapes on the screen.? At 4 years old, he can’t quite get the hang of the iPhone reverse pinch zoom.? Thing 1 was able to manuever better but he said it wasn’t a game “because there was no winner at the end.”? He’s very competitive.

Laundry Made A Little Easier

Let’s face it — laundry has to be one of the all-time worst chores.? It’s never ending and as soon as you think you’ve caught up, it’s time to do another load.

Laundry BasketThat’s why I agreed to try out a new product called Purex Complete 3-in-1 Laundry Sheets.? Any product that claims to improve the laundry process I had to see for myself.? It’s a detergent, softener, and anti-static all in one? sheet.? You put into the washer and the detergent part gets washed off with the water.? Then transfer with the clothes to the dryer and it’s a regular dryer sheet.

I was a little skeptical at first.? It’s not like doing laundry with a separate detergent + dryer sheet is all that difficult.? Do we really need an all-in-one?

I did a couple loads and it lived up to it’s promise.? Clothes were clean, soft, and static free.? The end result was no better than what I usually get, and we’re probably not going to make a switch just yet.? But I can see the benefits to the all-in-one concept.? These would be great in a college dorm, when travelling with the kids, or whenever space is limited.

Adding It Up

Toddlers can be attached to the strangest objects.? Thing 2 had Mustache Guy and Mister Dragon.

Thing 3 has cycled through several stuffed animals as his comfort objects.? First it was the monkey, then Pablo from Backyardigans.? Stuffed animals I can understand as comfort objects.? They are soft and cute.

But his latest object doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.? He has become very attached to a calculator.? He sleeps with it.? He reaches for it as soon as he wakes, and walks around the house with it in his hand.

I’ve seen him laying on the ground and pushing the buttons with a very serious look on his face.? What exactly is he calculating?? I have a few ideas.

Maybe he is adding up all the times he has cried so far today.? Believe me, he needs a calculator for that, it’s a very high number.

Or maybe he is adding up the amount of milk he’ll drink in the next 16 years.? If he maintains his current pace, that works out to $541,935.? More or less.

Or how about the number of rounds of golf his Daddy will play this year.? Oh wait, you don’t need a calculator to count those.? Just a couple of fingers.