November & December 2011

Now that I'm 3, I guess I figure I'm a bit too grown up to blog on my day to day events. But, here I am at my mom's request updating and enjoying myself. I'm sitting here thinking, "Mmm hmm....good times." These fun times continued right up until the end of the year. We were Blessed to have visitors, then be visitors ourselves with friends and relatives as we made our way to Grandma Laura's house for Christmas.

In school, we learned about Native Americans and we got to pick names for ourselves. Imagine my mom's questioning look when she picked me up from school with this label on my chest.

This was my contribution to our table for Thanksgiving--our center piece. My parents got tired of telling me it was for decoration only and they wouldn't be cooking it to eat. That reminds me, I have to ask where mom stored it for next year--it better be in a safe place!

Caught up in the Christmas cheer, we blasted some "Alvin & the Chipmunks" music (much to the chagrin of my dad) and started our tree decorating.

Next was the cookie-making part of the season. I forget how many batches we made but it was fun using my dinosaur & airplane cookie cutters.

Play break from I-40 on our trip to Grandma Laura's.

Speaking with Samliclaus about my good and not so good deeds.

Rounded out the year by helping my mom make some cards for friends and family. Hope your Holidays were good and merry. We had a good time with all my cousins, uncles, aunties and grandmas in Arizona and New Mexico. A'hee'hee!

October 2011

Yippee, it's October! Boy, I don't know where to begin because it's been such an exciting time! First of all, we went on a nice trip to celebrate with my dad's family. We had so much to do and so many people to see as we were part of a wedding, Baptism and it was also my 3rd birthday! I try my best to show that I am three years old with my fingers, but sometimes only two fingers show up. Mom says it's better than just one. (confused look)

I am running around telling anyone who will listen to me that we went on "two different" US Airways planes! I also am doing a lot of translating for people now that we're home as I tell them all the things I did in Swiss German. I got to practice speaking quite a bit with my Opa, Grosi, Gotti and all the wonderful family members we got to see.

Now that I am 3, I am in the stage where I ask, "Why?" Sometimes I throw my mom off and ask, "Why not?" at times she thinks it does not make sense. For example:
Me: "Mom, when are we going to have yogurt with daddy?"
Mom: "We have to call him first."
Me: "Why not?"
Mom: "That doesn't make sense Alex, maybe asking plain, 'Why' or 'How come' might work better."
Me: (She's going to regret telling me that, as that's all I'm going to be asking til I get finite explanations.)

This month also marks other important dates in our lives. My parents were married this month. I suggested they celebrate this day by me singing "Happy Birthday" and them having balloons. I don't know what an anniversary is, so this seemed the best way to celebrate. It also marks when my Grandpa Harrison passed away. Sometimes I feel like I know him by my mom telling me stories, but I cannot remember meeting him. He sounds fun like my Opa and daddy.

When we returned from our trip we were already attending Halloween gatherings. My mom put together my costume from things we already had at home, and it looks like this will be my outfit for the remaining parties. As long as I don't have to wear the "specs" the whole time, I think it will be fine.

I seriously could go on and on and on but I'll share some pictures with you instead, and if you want to come visit, I'm sure we could arrange a slide show. I have so much to tell you!

Isn't my birthday cake cool? It's a choo-choo train. Thanks Melanie!

Playing around...

Mary gave me this "Chocolate cow cake" and I ate the eyes and part of the hind first. Was yummy!

Gondola ride--had my map in hand and was ready to explore.

More cowbell?

Happy Halloween!

September!

Here we are, well into September! It has been a wonderful month of small and big beginnings and celebrations. To begin with, I started going to school--preschool! As my mom said, "Like anything new, it will take time to get used to it." The first day was a bit hard, but once I learned the name of my teacher, I stuck by her until I found a really interesting toy, and before I realized it, it was time to go home with mommy.
Other cool things taking place this month are lots of birthdays:
Happy Birthday, Daddy!
Happy Birthday, KJ!
Happy Birthday, Kara!
We had a good time celebrating my dad's birthday. We had yummy chocolate cake and sang to him every time we had a slice. I think he was touched by my singing to him, but maybe a little embarrassed, too. Either way, I had fun and plan to sing that birthday song a lot more.
That reminds me--we're also starting the "Big 3" birthday party celebrations. My play buddies and myself are all about to turn 3, so we've been busy looking our calendar and it's filling up with parties!
As the month has progressed, we started to have cooler days, so for the remaining warm ones, we took full advantage and got out the water toys. I managed to have lots of fun in the water, and in the mud. I believe my mom quoted me as saying, "Mom, mud makes me happy." She tried to look happy for me, but I could see the worry in her eyes.
I'm also doing better with my sister. I even try to help read some of my favorite books to her while mom and dad do things like make breakfast or dinner. I still get a little excited and scream or yell songs, and of course, it still startles her. When will she learn I just can't control my excitement sometimes?!
Anyway, I hope you have a good rest of the month. Take care!

That's me all ready for my first day of preschool.

That's me telling my mom to frame my first official piece of preschool art work. (She will, too!)

Keeping my sister distracted and teaching her about trucks while mom and dad make breakfast.

Playing outside on a beautiful summer-like day in the water...and mud.

Enjoying time with my new whale of a friend in the jumping house.

August 2011

First, I apologize. I keep running behind with this blogging business. Soon it's going to be September!
Second, Happy Birthday,Guetti Harley!
Third, Happy Birthday, Tisha!
Now, I hope you are having a good month. Our summer has been on the cool side weather-wise, but now it seems to be playing catch-up and we're having some really warm days. I don't mind though. You know why? Because, on really hot afternoons my mom doesn't want to cook and we get to sit on the front porch and eat cold cereal for dinner. I think that's one of my favorite things because we sit outside and I can yell, "Hello!" to people walking by, or comment on cars & trucks driving by, too.
Our August got started off on a cool note as we went to Seattle to attend a wedding. It was so much fun. I was so excited to ride in the airplane, on a light rail, a bus and even a ferry. There were so many interesting things to see and the people were so, so nice. Thanks, Seattle!
These days I am a big sponge absorbing whatever information I can on trains, planes, dinosaurs and, more recently, rockets and space shuttles. I ask to go to the library often as I can borrow 1 DVD of my choice, and as many books as my mom is willing to carry. There's so much to learn and I try to explain what I learn at the end of the day to my dad. Sometimes he looks at my mom as if to say, "What's this kid on anyway, he hasn't stopped talking since I walked in and he's so excited I can't understand half of what he's telling me?!" Mom just smiles as if to say, "Welcome to my world," and then she tells him what I've been saying.
I'm learning more Swiss German as well but forget to answer my dad in Swiss German, but rather revert to English. Sometimes I get all the languages confused and often ask my mom, "Is this Spanish?" She finds this interesting.
I'm also quite busy learning about being a big brother as well. I learned when my sister cries that you can get her to quiet down sometimes by talking really softly to her and asking her questions like, "Awww, what's wrong with the baby?" I really want to pick her up and hold her like my parents do, but I think she's almost half my weight by now and that's a bit too heavy for me to carry easily. I guess I just have to get bigger.

Taking in the scenery from the light rail.

Enjoying the sunset & view with daddy.

Mapping out where to go next...

At Aiki Beach loving the water and all the rocks I can throw...

Quick check-up on my baby tiger.

I...am...a...r-o-b-o-t.

May-July 2011

Yeah, yeah, I know...but, I have a good excuse! I'm a big brother now and boy is it a lot of work! It's got our whole house in a "tizzy" (G-ma Laura's word) and we're gradually adjusting to everything.
It's a lot of work being a big brother--there's lots to be aware of when you have a baby in the house. For example, you should try not to poke the baby's eyes because they will need them to see. Another thing I've learned is babies don't like it when you jump on the floor right near them when they sleep.
I was very excited to become a big brother and when my sister, Lily, came it took awhile for me to really believe I had a sister and not a little brother. My parents chose to wait to see what they were having, so my dad said I had a 50-50 chance of guessing correctly. It also took me awhile to call her by her name and not our cousin's name who was born a month earlier. By now, though, I think I've gotten it all down.
Prior to her arrival, we had some good adventures. I'll tell you about them when you see the pictures. Meanwhile, I hope you are enjoying your summer. I am!

That's me enjoying the view of the "zeppelin" nearby. I got a cool eraser from the Goodyear folks when we visited.

I finally got to meet my new sibling and see where mom and dad were hiding out while I entertained our guests at home.

Dad and I still keep our special time together. Here I am enjoying some flights coming into the local airport. I have to be careful of my ears because they are loud, so I plug them when a big plane takes off or lands.

Checking to make sure she's still there and not playing when she should be napping.

Helping dad put a chair together--I love using tools.

Got all my beach gear out to play with the sand but am "working" on the lawn in the backyard.

Another hard day of "work" in the backyard. Dirt + Sweat = Bath time for Alex

April 2011

Happy April to you. This month is my grandma Laura's birthday. Happy Birthday, Grandma! This month, I also got a new cousin in Switzerland. Yay, someone to play with when we go visit! Another thing that happened this month was we celebrated a wedding in our family. I was a ring bearer and got to carry the wedding bands for my uncle. It was fun until the actual ceremony started and I saw all the people. I did carry the rings all the way to the front, but I also held on to my dad's hand the entire way. So, I guess you could say, dad and I were the ring bearers.
It was fun seeing our family in New Mexico and getting time to spend with my cousins. We've also been working on some things around the house, but we try to make time for playing. This month was also Easter so I got a chance to hunt for some eggs with some friends. I have a lot of questions about the Easter Bunny, but for now I'm content with opening the remaining eggs to see what goodies were left inside.
I'm still full of questions for my parents and pretty much any adult who will give me the time of day. I am always asking, "What's that do's?" That way I can find out what it's called and how it's used. My mom says I sometimes ask that question all day long. We both agree that's my job for now.
I'm also preparing to be a big brother and lately I've been pretty adamant about my time with daddy and mommy. I want my dad to hold me all the time even though I can very well walk on my own. It's just nice to take a load off sometimes, you know? It's an exciting time.
The weather has been really warm lately, so we've gotten to play outside quite a bit and even get into the water at the pool or at the beach. I love playing in the water--especially when daddy comes with me to splash around. I hope it's warming up nicely where you are, too.

Back seat driver recommending the "fast" route to daddy.

Sporting my new Chucks with the tux at the wedding. Those are my favorite shoes.

Carefully putting eggs into my basket. I found so many!

Getting the room ready and helping my parents do some of the painting.

Having fun at a local play place with the pots and water.

March 2011

Happy March to you! I hope it's warming up where you are. Here, we've had a lot of rain this month and in the last couple of days it's gotten really sunny and beautifully warm. That's good because that's how I feel with my health. I'm feeling so much better these days and hope it continues. One of the things I won't miss is having to blow my nose, although I did have some fun with the tissue. (See picture below.) I recently started to brush my teeth with "Kids" toothpaste so I have to learn to spit out the foamy stuff and not swallow it. I have to admit, I enjoy spitting waaay more than blowing my nose.
Being sick off and on, plus having rainy weather led to quite a bit of time inside the house. Did I also mention we had to stay around the house anyway because there were some people helping to get our bathroom fixed up? Yeah, so, being inside all those hours allowed me to help with some of the cooking, baking, lots of naps, and playing with my "baby."
On a couple of occasions--when we all were feeling better--we got to go out. One of the places we got to go was to visit the Swiss Club for some fondue. I had a blast swirling around my bread in the delicious cheese fondue. I also got to start to learn to ride my scooter. It's a lot of work to get the helmet on, but it's been fun practicing.
So, here are some pictures from those adventures. Have a good one.
P.S. Happy Birthday, Grossi!

I told my mom I was going to get a tissue to blow my nose. It kept unrolling and unrolling and was so fun...until I got caught using more than my nose needed.

That's me putting an egg wash on my first rolled out zopf.

Doesn't that look so fun?! Swirl, swirl, swirl...

I take my job looking after my baby seriously and asked my mom to make a "pouch" so I could always keep the baby near me while I played and did stuff around the house. It's good practice for when I become a big brother.

Enjoying the nice day and testing out my scooter.

Feb. 2011

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you had a good time with your Valentines. I don't know what this day is really about, just that I gave out little cards to friends and some family, and I had the best time signing my name. The other cool part of this day was all the candy I got to eat. At this last parent class we had, there were two big bins of chocolate and peanut butter cups right within my reach. In total, I am not sure how many I ate, but with other parents checking with my mom if it was okay, she had already counted up to 6 pieces. Needless to say, I was wired on the drive home and running in circles when I should have been going to bed. Ahhh, Happy Valentine's Day indeed!
Things got a little hairy this month with me getting sick a couple of times, but they are all better now. I learned that when you get sick you have to cover your mouth when you cough and you can't go out as easily to play with friends. So, my mom and I did the best we could at home and did some straightening out in the back yard. When I got to feeling better we went to a local exhibit about Noah's Ark.
I'm learning a lot and talking a lot as well. I still ask a lot of questions because I want to know the name of things and how they are used. We had some nice, clear and starry nights lately and my dad has been showing me Orion. The other night I was excited to see it and yelled out, "Look, it's Oh-Rhino!" You get what I was trying to say, right? There's just so much to learn, and often things are harder to pronounce when you first try it. I'm enjoying myself though. Have a good rest of your month, Valentines.

Even though I wasn't feeling too well, I felt like being outside and decided my car needed a cleaning.

Watering our thirsty grass.

More yard work.

Feeling better and checking out a zebra at the Noah's Ark Exhibit.

We were asked to help "clean up" after the animals at the exhibit and that was me cleaning up after a zebra and putting its pretend poop in a box.

January 2011

Happy New Year, friends and family! We hope your year is off to a wonderful start. Ours is going just fine. The holidays were so wonderful. My parents and I feel like I've been opening presents since my birthday in October. Some presents arrived early, some a bit late, then it was time for Advent, then Christmas, and then some more presents that arrived a bit after Christmas again. Some days I catch myself asking my parents if I can open a "pakli" (small package) out of habit. :)
The month has been nice with us visiting some friends and using the BBQ whenever we get a chance. I can now saw "barbecue" and no longer say "barbecute." I'm also still quite full of questions. Besides asking what peoples' names are, I also ask, "What's this for?" or "What's this called?" Sometimes I ask these things as a way to make conversation, even though I already know what it is. My parents are catching on and ask me back the same question, "Alex, what IS that?"
Lately, we've been waking up to sunny, sunny weather. It's been so beautiful and we've been outside every chance we get. This included a recent trip to the beach where I got to play in a small tidepool my dad made me. It was so warm and full of mud. I had a blast!
Take care!

One of the packages I opened a bit late came from my grandpa Wilson. He gave me my first horse. I asked my mom what his name was but she said I would have to think of one for him. So, this is a picture of me and "Ted." He's a fast, nice horse.

Stretching our legs a bit before we get on the road to see friends. I love crunching leaves.

Playing blissfully in the mud at the beach!