Sam's September Highlights

Bruce and I may have been busy packing and planning, but Sam still managed to squeeze in a little fun over the last month or so. Here are some highlights.



First ride on the birthday bike.


Fun times tailgating at Tar Heel Town.


Inked up with Ramses.


God bless America. Otherwise known as a particularly lucrative trip to Trader Joes (they show Sam lots of love at the checkout and give him stickers).


Balloon animal at the law school's annual alumni weekend festivities. I went to work, and Sam went to play. We are obviously turning him into a Tar Heel fan, when in reality we are just taking advantage of free children's activities in close proximity to the house.


Celebrating his inauguration into the Clean Plate Club.


Up a tree.

On Turning Three

I just read a tweet the other day that made me laugh -- because it's true.

That's pretty much sums up my reaction to Sam's recent birthday. I haven't had time to post about his awesome parties -- at home and at school -- because we also thought it would be a good idea to move three days before Sam turned three. The dust is starting to settle, though, so I'm hoping to get back to a regular blogging schedule now.

I'm still pulling together a birthday post for Sam -- to memorialize who he is at this point. But for now, here are some birthday party photos. I was pretty busy partying, so these photos are terrible. And we got no video. I hope Sam has a good memory.

Shots from the party at home.






 
A belated shout-out to Jed and Macon, seen here waiting for the firetruck to pull up. Jed is the one wearing the swimsuit and fire boots.







Shots from the party at school, which happened exactly two days after we moved. The party included leftover fireman hats from the first party; angry bird cupcakes, which were the only cupcake available in bulk at HT with no prior notice; Pirate Booty (a request from Sam); and a Thomas the Train balloon, which was an impulse/guilt purchase because I was pulling together such a crappy party. Bottom line: Sam LOVED it. Like three-year-olds care about themes.

Another note from school

 

When Sam first started his new class, he got a sweet note sent home with him everyday. Lately, the notes are coming less frequently, and I have to wonder if it's because many of them would read like this one.

"Welcome back! My friends were excited to see me today. Today we went to yoga but I did not seem to be very interested in participating. I laid or sat on my yoga towel and preferred to watch my friends and our teacher, Mr. Brian. My teachers were very appreciative of the fact that I stayed quiet and didn't distract my friends, so they were OK with that choice."

Today is yoga day again, so we'll see if Sam is more interested in joining in. At drop-off today I encouraged him to participate, and his teacher, Ms. Cindy, said, "That's Sam. He just sort of does his own thing." Is the honeymoon over?

 

Next Stop: American Idol

Greensboro Children's Museum

Last weekend Sam spent Saturday with Mama Jane at the Greensboro Children's Museum. Here, he offers his critical* review of the experience.


 There was a real firetruck!


That I got to drive!

 
And a CB radio!

 
There was a police car!


And a train!

 
With real windows!


And a real engine!


And I could pump water into it!


There was a news studio (please note the boy wearing the baseball helmet and flapping his arms wildly)!


And I gave a very accurate weather report!


There was a mail truck!


There was a doctor's office!


And I listened to Mama Jane's heart beat!


Finally, I capped off my visit by giving a moving performance on the drums!

*The exclamation points do not accurately reflect Sam's true excitement at the museum. Technically, his remarks should have also been written in all caps. 

Daily School Report

Sam 

8-21-12 

Today I had yoga class. We learned several new positions, such as the snake and downward dog. We also practiced lying down in sleeping pose while listening to relaxing music and smelling rose scent. Today during center time, my teachers had to talk to me about knocking down my friends' buildings in Blocks because I thought it was very fun but they did not think it was funny. We talked about how we ask our friends, "Can I play with you?" if we want to play with them. During storytime we read Green Eggs and Ham, and I liked that book because there was a character with my name.

Water Balloon Olympics

The neighborhood celebrated the end of the Olympics by holding our own set of games. Using water balloons. Sam loves water balloons but prefers to hold onto his rather than throw them and get wet. Here he is hanging with the big kids during the games. We still have a water balloon at the house that he carefully brought back on his trike. A good half mile trip.