Cruz's Room

Since my post of Mila's nursery just days before she was born, I've had the itch to capture her big brother's nest and document some of my favorite parts of his little upstairs nook.  His room is easily my favorite place in our house and I had dreams of tucking little babies in their beds in that room when we bought our house in 2008 --- long before we had babies to tuck in.  I dreamed of filling that built-in book shelf with books that would become favorites, arranging stuffed animals on quilted beds, hanging lights from the window, and filling the walls with homemade masterpieces.  The slanted ceilings and dormer window gave the room so much character and it reminded me of Peter Pan - a room with so much potential for magic. 

Fast forward six years later and the room is just that.  A vast collection of treasured books are arranged by color, almost spilling off the built-in book shelves.  Colorful pictures of monsters, rocket ships, and aliens fill the light blue walls.  Drawers are stuffed with pirate and police costumes.  Plastic tubs are filled with our favorite toys - wooden blocks, paint supplies, and race cars, and a custom window seat has become home to Curious George, Pet the Cat, and Lightning McQueen.  It's Cruz's very own special space, a perfect palette of who our boy is and what he loves. 

1. While we should try to frequent the library more often, if there's one 'toy' or gift I'm okay with Cruz getting a lot of, it's books.  I treasure each story, each adventure they take us on.
2. Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar, was the inspiration for his room.  Lots of color, lots of art, lots of things to explore.
3. Mila's newborn pictures - we sang her the Itsy Bitsy Spider from the window seat.
4. Beau built Cruz a wonderful window seat with a big drawer on the bottom for toys and blankets.  It also serves as a perfect home to Cruz's furry friends -- his monkey from Grandma Kelly, George, and his gator friend, straight from the bayou in New Orleans 
5. Cruz as the hungry caterpillar himself, Halloween 2011, and his piggy bank from Uncle Taylor and Katie
6. Apple art and my DIY chalk and magnet board - one of my favorite DIYs to date
7. More furry friends and a growing art collection.  Nothing makes a boy and his dad prouder than displaying their artwork for all to see
8. Cruz's street sign from his Sesame Street birthday party.
9. More furry friends
10. And more books, including Cruz's year photo books from Shutterfly
11. An Eric Carle print with a wooden pallet frame, made from scrap wood straight from our backyard
12. More art.  Some of my favorites.
13. I bought some white frames from Ikea (I should buy stock) and used spray adhesive to stick fabric right to the glass.  Pop it back in the frame and use double-stick tape to interchange art pieces.
14. Nemo the fish just living in his yellow submarine
15. One of my favorite books.  It's the best big brother book I've found.  

 

14/52

"a portrait of each of my children, once each week, in 2014"

Cruz: We started swimming lessons this week.  He was so excited all day and could hardly wait to get his feet wet (literally).  Then, about ten minutes before his first lesson ended, he accidentally went off a step into water deeper than him.  The lifeguard grabbed him after a second, but he came up terrified!  Thankfully, he was excited to go back for day 2 and stayed where he could touch. :)

Mila: Another smile under her farm mat. Between this and her swing, she can stay pretty occupied for quite some time.  We also started reading a lot more this week and she loves to sit on my lap and  listen like a big girl.  I have a feeling she's going to be a reader, too, she already seems so receptive.  

Going Camping (And Other Cruz Projects)

Friday night, we went camping.  We spread a couple of sleeping bags out on the floor, stuffed a backpack with pajamas and a few camping essentials, grilled hot dogs and roasted marshmallows by the fireplace, and transformed a typical movie night into a new adventure for our little explorer.  As we trudge through the remaining days of this long winter, I've found it is so important to shake things up from time to time and add a bit of a spark to an otherwise typical night.  Although Cruz has never been camping for real, all it took was a couple of sleeping bags and a new battery-operated lantern to transform his world for a night.  It's the amazing thing about a little person's imagination - sprinkle it with just a little water and it will flourish beyond your wildest dreams.

We got cozy under sleeping bags and read Curious George Goes Camping.  Explored Cruz's room for treasures to "pack" in his backpack.  Had a carpet picnic of hot dogs and fruit and roasted s'mores for dessert.  Huddled next to the fire and watched Frozen.  It was simple, it was cozy, and it was the perfect way to bring a little of the outside in on another cold night.  I told Cruz that maybe one day this summer we'd go camping outside - he said that would be silly.

In addition to our little camping adventure, we did a few other crafts during Spring Break week that were easy, fun, and educational for the Cruz Man.  With the strange mix of weather we've been having, I thought it would be fun to create a weather map for Cruz to learn and practice his meteorology skills as we transition from one season to the next.  I used a paper plate and a clothespin for the arrow, hung it from the picture window, and Cruz gives us the forecast every morning.  So far, we've had it all --- rain, sun, clouds, and snow, sometimes all in one week!  

Because I discovered that neither child had a single green shirt to wear on St. Patty's Day (Cruz wore some green Tow Mater undies instead), we decided to focus on the leprechaun's rainbow to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  Cruz helped me arrange a rainbow of fruits for breakfast and afterwards, we did a paint project that used wine corks as stamps.  We talked about colors and rainbows and Cruz loved stamping.  The best part (thanks to our abundant supply of wine corks) was that there were no brushes to wash and a quick cleanup afterwards.

    

 
With the new baby in January, and a long winter break and maternity leave in the middle of a long winter, I'll admit it was a challenge keeping Cruz busy and limiting screen time around here.  He's pretty good at playing on his own, but I also made it a point to find the time for simple, special projects for the two of us to do together.  I've included a few tips that helped us beat the winter blues and keep things exciting around here...

1.  Involve them in the day-to-days.  While I try to introduce a few new and fun craft projects every month, it's also important to remember that Cruz sometimes has even more fun helping me with the simple, routine tasks of the day.  The other night, I filled the sink with suds while Mila bathed on the other side, gave Cruz a sponge and a few plastic dishes, and he washed dishes beside me while I washed his sister.  Lately, while I prepare dinner, Cruz walks around with a little notebook and a pen, "taking orders" and assisting as my sous chef.  It's not only fun for them, but keeps them close and allows for lots of dynamic conversations!

2.  Plan ahead.  Every couple of months or so, I go through my Pinterest board and make a written list of fun, age appropriate, and most importantly, doable crafts that Cruz would like to do.  I keep the list in a shoebox next to our craft supply corner of our basement.  Every few weeks, I choose a couple of crafts and put all the supplies I would need into the shoebox.  Then, everything is ready to go on a whim when we feel like doing a project.  

3.  Make the ordinary extraordinary.  It's amazing what two sleeping bags and s'mores by the fire will do to a simple movie night.  This time where we can our transform our living room into Yosemite is so temporary and someday, I want him to remember these simple nights as some of his favorites.      

The History of Superheroes (Cruz Confessionals Part 5)

And I thought there was only Superman and Batman!  I am being introduced to all things superheroes from a little boy who seems to memorize every fact and detail about them and a daddy who is quite excited about his son's newest obsession.  If I had a choice, I'd delay the superhero squaddies until our little squaddie was a bit older, but I'm learning I don't always have a choice in that matter!  They picked out this superhero encyclopedia at Barnes and Noble last weekend and every night, we read a story out of that before we read a story out of his children's Bible.  Many of those stories are more violent than the superhero ones!  So far, Cruz seems to think the superheroes get the bad guys by throwing apples at them, so I'd say we're in good shape for the time being!

We checked out some books from the library on our date a couple weeks ago, and Cruz has asked to read one in particular, "Meet the Villains of Villainville" every night since.  He has the entire book memorized and I wanted to get it on camera before we sent it back.  Isn't it amazing what these little minds can absorb?  I've read it as many times as he has and as you can see in the clip, I have a long ways to go before it's memorized!

 

this weekend, we...

...had coffee in our pajamas at our newest coffee shop in town.  We've been waiting for the right opportunity to check out Sidecar Coffee and a free slate Saturday just seemed right.  We've been steering away from eating out lately as Mila isn't too keen on her carseat and I think that made Saturday morning all the more sweet.  Or maybe it was the cinnamon roll, the peanut butter cookie, or my vanilla chai that did it...
 

...we let Mila soak in the sun on the wooden bench beside us, passed around our breakfast sandwich and pastries, and got Cruz his very own "warm" chocolate topped with whipped cream and sprinkles.  He felt like a big shot drinking it like a big kid and his behavior matched.  His bedhead and whipped cream mustache told me otherwise. :)

...felt a boost of energy, all thanks to the fresh air and much needed sunshine.  Mila took a nice long mid-morning nap and while Beau and Cruz worked on the yard, I got my groove on in the kitchen.  Another batch of clean banana cookies and my first stab at homemade granola.  Green "Hulk Juice" for lunch followed with superhero literature before nap.

...visited the playground for the first time since last fall.  Cruz ran full speed around the perimeter, repeating the phrase, "this is awesome!"  He and Beau played superheros (go figure), while Wonder Woman and her sidekick watched from the swings.  The swings put Mila girl to sleep and I daydreamed about watching her grow on picnic blankets under oak trees at the park.

...we practiced baseball swings and grilled pork chops, opened windows and cleaned the pantry to make room for summer staples.  We took baths and watched movies before bedtime, sunbathed on the porch and paced around the house waiting for Cruz to wake up from nap, and added lemon slices to our water just because.  And by the time we tucked our kiddies into bed on Sunday night, we felt like spring.  I had nearly forgotten.