Early Christmas

Vaughn woke up this morning to a new "TRUU" in the den, thanks to Nene and Pop-Pop. He had a blast getting in and out of the cab, honking the horn, pushing it (when it ran out of gas, of course) and lowering the back gate to climb in the bed. The truck did NOT come assembled and the process of putting it together was excruciatingly painful for Mommy and Daddy!! However, its presence thwarted Vaughn's new morning behaviors -- refusing to eat, only sitting in Mommy's lap for a full 50 minutes of Sesame Street and throwing tantrums when Mommy has to get ready for work. So, Mommy and Daddy can get over the "pain" of assembling the truck.

Florida

We all went to Florida with Daddy for his recruiting trip (lucky him!!) We stayed in Ellenton and also spent time in Sarasota and Bradenton. It was nice to be in the warm sunshine in December. We found a fun playground/park in Sarasota, walked over the Sarasota Bay via the John Ringling Bridge, visited St. Armand's Circle, dined seaside, participated in and lost the nightly sunset competition at The Sandbar (participants guessed the exact time of the sunset and the closest person received a free bottle of champagne!!)

Look -- airplane!

We have been busy, sick, in Virginia, sick, working, in Florida, sick, etc. We had our first parent/teacher conference today (yes, for a 20-month-old!) Vaughn received gold stars across the board for his development, behavior and listening skills. He is a cautious-instigator, meaning that he likes to observe until he feels comfortable. Once he does he will rally the troops and engage all of his classmates in mischievous activities. He has gotten bored with some of his "bad habits" and thankfully laid them to rest. We are anxiously awaiting the next phase of the pre-terrible-twos!

GG and Vaughn

Vaughn with his Great-Grandmother.

Virginia Beach

Heather and Vaughn drove to Virginia Beach last weekend. We drove right into an off-shore hurricane. The waves of the Chesapeake Bay were so high, they were hitting the bottom of the bridge as we drove across it from the Eastern Shore. However, once the hurricane passed, the weather was beautiful. We were even able to go onto the beach to watch the surfers.

Halloween

Terhune Orchard

We visited Terhune Orchard while Grandma Judi (Nene) and Grandpa Lance (Pop Pop) were here. We saw horses, goats, chickens and a donkey. Vaughn rode on a tractor and peace-protested when we tried to take him off. There was even a corn maze (isn't that redundant?)

Backyard and at the park

dinner plate

When left alone for just a few minutes...

Visit from the Fosters

Last weekend our friends Meg, Andrew and Maeve came to visit. We played with toys, watched the soccer team beat Columbia and celebrated Mommy's birthday. It was fun to see Vaughn and Maeve together (there is a 10-month age difference).

Mischievous Man

Vaughn is up to his usual tricks at daycare. The teachers have put up the "Vaughn gate" at the entrance to the bathroom. Not only was he grabbing the toilet paper and running with it, but he was recruiting innocent classmates to conspire with him. When reprimanded for his behavior, Vaughn laughed! (This must come from Daddy's side of the family).

He also tried to escape while en route to the playground. The children have to line up at the door and hold hands to go outside. Once out the door, they have to walk down a driveway to get to the entrance to the playground. Vaughn waited until he got outside, let go of his playmate's hand and made a run for the street! (NOT a main road, don't worry). And, again, smirked when he was "caught" (he loves to be chased!!)

Not much has changed...

October 2007 (age 18 months) and June 2006 (age 3 months)

Reading

Favorite book: 'Snail, Where are You?' (Thanks Sagals!)

Down the steps

He must have learned this at school...

Grounds for Sculpture

We visited Grounds for Sculpture with our friends Sylvie, Suzanne and Jonathan. Vaughn was not as interested in the sculptures as he was the stream. There was a waterfall and a bridge overlooking 'Monet's Garden'. Vaughn would have plunged into the water had Mommy not been holding onto both hands. He was dipping his toes into the water from the bridge.

18 months

Vaughn turned 18 months on Tuesday. We visited "G" and "GG" in Virginia last weekend. We also got to see our friends Meg and Maeve.

Vaughn had a stomach bug when we got home...not fun for anyone! (Special thanks to Daddy for doing TWO loads of laundry at 10 pm after arriving home on the red-eye from California at 6 am and playing in a golf tournament all afternoon!) Expect the unexpected :)

He is clearly not feeling well in this picture -- taken on a camera phone on the way home from the doctor's office. He has been out of daycare for 3 days, but we anticipate that he will go back tomorrow. When asked if he misses his friend Nicholas, he nods his head 'yes'. According to the teachers whenever music starts playing, Vaughn and Nicholas immediately stop what they are doing and start dancing.

Dinner time

The first 3 weeks of daycare have been an adventure. Vaughn brought home two daycare diseases and gave them to Mommy (which is why there have not been any posts since his first day!) Thankfully, everyone is on the mend now.

Vaughn has been labeled as 'mischievous' by his teachers. While all of his classmates were gathered around a teacher singing a song, Vaughn was trying to take the broom from another teacher who was trying to clean. The teachers showed me the barricade of chairs they have to stack in the bathroom doorway...in honor of Vaughn. He goes into the bathroom and plays with the soap dispenser. When told 'No' he smirks.

We were also informed that he is 'hitting' the other children. Actually, we think it is more of an affectionate tap (because he does the same thing to the dog), but he is a very strong child. Something else to work on!!

Drama King

One of Vaughn's teachers commented that he is "so dramatic". Mommy informed her that Vaughn's Daddy was a drama major in college. She replied, "Well that explains a lot! The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree!"

Applesauce

Who needs a spoon?? Without a doubt Vaughn learned this technique from his Daddy. Every morning Arron feeds Vaughn cereal and yogurt. If Vaughn doesn't finish the yogurt, Arron "drinks" what is left in the container.

1st day of school!

Daddy was appointed as the dropper-offer for Vaughn this morning at daycare. Vaughn surprised us all! He clung to Daddy's leg for about 30 seconds and then walked into his room, picked up 2 toy cars and shared one with Miss Rose. Daddy took that opportunity to leave.

Mommy picked up Vaughn in the afternoon. He looked right at her as she walked in the room, yelled 'Da-Da' (which is his generic term to address all adults) and then ran to the other side of the room. The teachers said he was so good all day. However, he was not interested in eating lunch or drinking milk.

He ate graham crackers all the way home and then consumed 30 ounces of milk in 3 hours! We are now in the market for a dairy cow...Unfortunately, Mommy neglected to bring home the sacred Sleepy Giraffe, which is spending the night in Vaughn's cubby at school. Sleepy #2 did not arrive via UPS today and the poor attempts at substitutes were (not suprisingly) shunned.

Bath time

The bath water has been drawn...I know he's around here somewhere...Vaughn, where are you??

Marlin and Vaughn

Marlin manages to smile (briefly) for yet another pose with Vaughn. Marlin likes to retreat outside for a break from the little ball of energy that attacks him so often. Unfortunately, Marlin has an intestinal worm (another one...) that he picked up from the "wildlife" in our backyard. A trip to the vet has Marlin on the mend! (And, Vaughn climbed onto the animal scale while we were at the vet and weighs 24 lbs. 8 oz.)

Dancing to Dave Matthews

Mom, did you put mousse in my hair??

I can do it myself, thank you very much!

Vaughn attempts to feed himself applesauce. Most of it ended up on his face/clothes, the tray and the floor.

Marlin & Wesley

Uncle Wes came to visit Marlin for a long weekend with Grandma Ginny. Marlin senses that his best buddy is about to drive back to Virginia :(