Target Shopping Trip

The shopping cart at Target did not have a seatbelt today. While I was talking to an employee Alex made himself comfortable. He tossed his boots in the back of the shopping cart and sprawled out in the front. When I turned back around he kept saying "Beeby beeby". A little later he took it a step further by getting rid of his socks too. I promise I wasn't in there that long.

Mr. Helper

Alex has become quite the worker bee since we moved to Boise. He has to be in the middle of any kind of housekeeping/cooking project that goes on in the Wissenbach house. It has gotten so out of control that whenever there is a hint of something getting started he screams, runs and pounces to get over to the action fast enough and to make it very clear that he will be the one running the show. Here are just a few of the tasks that he controls.

1. Mix any recipe up with spatula or hand mixer
2. Make smoothies with the Blendtec (includes putting all ingredients in blender and turning it on)
3. Feed Whitney her ibuprofen or vitamins one by one
4. Do the dishes
5. Sweep and vacuum up crumbs
6. Feed Jax
And much more.

I felt like his latest dishwasher loading was a great success. He did this with no assistance.

Baby Jax

Alex loves Whitney's dog named Jax. One of Alex's favorite past times is to sit on the couch with Acky and hold Jax like a baby. Alex talks about Jax all the time and I guess while we were in Inkom for Thanksgiving he missed Jax. Alex would lay down on the floor at Paige's and would wait for Paige to come pick him up and wanted to be held like a baby and called baby Jax.

This is Acky, Alex, and Jax.

New Friend

Alex loves Acky. From the second he wakes up to the time he goes to bed he is either with Acky, asking where Acky is or being distracted by me to give Acky a break. Whitney is so good to Alex. He is very demanding of her time and loves to help her with everything. She patiently loves him and finds a way for him to be apart of whatever she is doing whether it is making bread, walking Jax, or putting on makeup. We are so lucky to have this time to spend with Whitney and her family.

Fall Time in Boise

Jackie

While at Winco, we saw one of Whitney's friends named Jackie. Whitney said hi and as Jackie walked off Alex yelled out with perfect pronunciation "Bye Jackie".

Halloween part 2

Alex dressed up as a cowboy this year and loves his new boots he got out of the deal. I put eye liner on his face for the beard and mustache and while I was putting it on Alex kept smiling at himself in the mirror. I walked around the block with him to go trick or treating. There was a small group of about 5 girls that were right behind us so when we would get to a door they were there the same time. Alex quickly realized that if he was not at the head of the pack he would not be able to ring the door bell and knock so at every house he would race ahead of the group of girls so he could be first and if it looked liked one of the girls was going to win Alex would start barking orders.

At a few of the houses Alex invited himself right into the entry way and turned to greet the other trick or treaters and helped pass out candy like he was running the show. After the other kids had moved onto the next house Alex would stay and visit for a few seconds with the home owner about their dog, a statue outside the front door, or any other thing that caught his eye by the door. I would have to call his name from the street so that the person at the door could shut the door. At this point Alex would realize the group of girls was fast approaching the next house so he would zoom past them in an effort to beat them. This went on the entire block.


Once home, Alex shed his chaps, gun belt, and hat and took over Brent's (Whitney's son) job of answering the door and handing out candy. The second the doorbell rang he would fly off the couch, swing the front door open, and say hi and chat to the kids while passing out the candy. No way he was going to pass up this great opportunity of meeting and greeting people and being in charge.

Halloween part 1

Alex had quite the Halloween this year. On Friday I took him to Adam's work and we trick or treated from cubicle to cubicle. I took Alex down to the buildings spook alley. There was a cage with bones in it that were glowing and shaking. Alex walked up to it and started rattling the cage bars. He was not impressed.

This afternoon I took Alex to Paul's (Whitney's husband) office building and let Alex trick or treat. They also had a haunted room. When we went in, there was a witch in the corner sitting in a rocking chair. It wasn't moving at all and I had just convinced myself that it was fake when all of a sudden it popped up out of the chair and made a "boo" sound. I think Alex jumped and shook 3 times. His first reaction seemed to be "you scared me" the next was "ahhh you are alive" and the next shake was "what the heck are you?" I didn't want Alex to go away mad or scared so I picked him up took him over to the witch and told him to get the witches nose (which was fake and huge). Alex reached down and gave that witch a very big poke with his pointer finger and started ranting about something that could have been interpreted as "Don't you even think about doing that to me again!"

Acky

Adam started his new job with Deloitte and Touche in Boise a couple weeks ago. I stayed with Alex in Inkom for a little bit. Now we are all moved up to Boise. We are living with Adam's aunt Whitney and her family while we are in this transition phase. On the drive from Inkom to Boise we kept talking about Whitney and the family's dog named Jax to get Alex jazzed about meeting everyone. When we arrived at their house we introduced Alex to Whitney and said to him, "Can you say Whitney?" and Alex replied, "Acky". So Whitney is Acky now.

Winter

This is what we woke up to this morning. I am not ready for snow yet!

Ridiculous G's

Alex is stuck in the "G" phase, still:
gome - come
Gacob - Jacob
geese - cheese
guggets - nuggets
guk - milk
gacko - tractor
guy - outside
Gay gown - Fay down

Fay

Big Alex's dog "Fay" is living at Paige's house right now. She likes to jump and bark when you come home so you are continually yelling "Fay, get down". Little Alex did not like Fay getting right up in his grill and pouncing on him every time he stepped foot outside the door. So Alex quickly picked up on what to say. Unfortunately his words are not too clear, so when he yells, it comes out as "Gay gown!". He is not going to let that dog get the best of him.

Juice Yes?

Tonight we went with Paige to Bisharat's. As we were making our way to the checkout line we passed the large bottles of gatorade that were right at Alex's eye level. He turned to Paige and said, "Juice yes?" with an excited look. Then continued to say "Pees" while rubbing his chest to sign please. This combination of a jumbled question and being polite is Alex's new way of asking for something.

Road Trip

Paige flew to D.C. to meet up with us so that she could ride in the car back with us to Idaho. She helped drive, kept up interesting conversations, and most importantly entertained Alex. We left Boston on Saturday September 3rd and drove to D.C. We left D.C. on Tuesday morning. We stopped in Louisville Kentucky to go to Churchhill Downs where the Kentucky Derby is. From there we drove straight through to Inkom. We got home Wednesday night about 9pm. It was about 40 hours of driving from D.C. We stopped only for food, gas, and bathroom breaks. Alex had a few complete meltdowns which resulted in all of us getting out of the car while Alex sat in his car seat screaming. A couple times we had to get treats out to eat outside of the car to entice Alex to settle down. But all together Alex was a trooper. We bought a DVD player from Costco and he watched Curious George, Yogi Bear, and Elmo a lot of the time and it was a LIFESAVER!

D.C. Cats

We left Boston last Saturday September 3rd. We drove to D.C. to visit some of Adam's family, Patrese, Tenney, and Jens, for a few days and to see some sites. Jens has two cats named Jersey and Jade. Alex loved the cats. He woke up in the middle of the night one night needing to use the bathroom. On the way out of the bathroom he saw one of the cats. Alex started meowing loudly and signing cat over and over again. I had to remind him that everyone was still sleeping! Jersey likes to climb up above the fridge to sit on top of the cupboards. Alex loved getting up there to look in her eyes.

Visitors

My dad came on Wednesday with Greg and Jacob to visit us and Boston before we move. We woke up early, stayed up late, and loved every minute.



We have taken them to Lexington, Concord, and many of our Boston favorite hotspots. Alex has loved having company and the extra attention.

Farewell EY

Adam's friends from EY had a farewell party for him at a yacht club house. It was so nice to talk and say our goodbyes. Adam is really going to miss his EY team. He has made some great lifetime friends.

Boise

About a week ago Adam applied for a couple of accounting jobs in California and Idaho. Within a few days he had heard back from them and had job offers. We decided to take the job offer in Boise Idaho He is suppose to start September 19th. This has happened a lot faster than expected and although we are leaving Boston sooner than we originally thought we ever would we are very excited to be heading back "home".

Memory

After a little pestering from Adam I finally got the game "Memory" for Alex. We only play with about six matches and by the end of the game we realize why the game is for ages 3+. Alex gets so excited to play it but by the time we have it set up we have to keep reminding him to stay on task. He is learning how to take turns in the game and that not every card is a match. His favorite part is organizing all the cards to put back in the box. When Alex goes to bed Adam and I have been setting up the whole game to play together. For now we are the ones enjoying it the most and it is actually very fun.

Cheese and Crackers

Cheese and saltine crackers are a common snack for Alex in the afternoon. I have taught him how to stack the cheese on top of the cracker to be able to eat it together. But today I was out of the normal block cheese that I could slice so I gave alex a cheese stick and saltines. This is what he came up with.

Finding Nemo

Alex got "Finding Nemo" as a Christmas present but until about a month ago he has not really been interested in watching much TV. He now will watch little snippets here and there in between playing. Last week I thought I would give "Finding Nemo" a try and see if Alex would be interested in watching it. HUGE mistake. I about lost my sanity. For those who are not familiar with the movie it starts right off the bat with a large family of fish all being eaten by a shark except for the daddy and one baby, Nemo. Alex came running to the bathroom saying "Mama" over and over again in a worried, winey voice. He was not calling for me, he was asking where the mama fish was. He would not stop repeating it again and again even after I told him that "she is just gone now".

One of the other parts he got worked up about is when Nemo gets stuck in a water filter. Click here to see Alex's background with things getting stuck. He was completely beside him self saying "guck" over and over in the same worried, winey voice. There were plenty of other parts that got him all ruffled up but when Nemo got stuck in the water filter I finally turned it off before I went crazy. I had just endured atleast a 1/2 hour of Alex whining non stop about "mama," "guck," and various other things in the movie.

Now whenever the word fish is mentioned Alex scrunches up his face as he always does when someone is stuck and says "Guck, guck, guck." He doesn't stop until you look at him, scrunch your face, and nod in approval, "Yeah, he's stuck alright . . ."

I think for now we will be sticking to "Baby Signing Time".

Geese

Adam took Alex to the rez last weekend and there were geese all over the grassy part. They walked around chasing the geese for a while and when they got to where the geese were relieving themselves all over the place, Adam stopped and pointed to the poop and explained that the geese were pooping on the grass and that is was "yucky" and that they didn't want to step in it. Every time we talk about the "beach" now Alex says "Beach, beach. Geese, Geese. Ucky, ucky (scrunched face). Poop, poop. Ucky (scrunched face)." It just so happens that his vocabulary lends itself to being able to re-hash this story in as much Alex detail as possible. So naturally he takes every chance he gets to tell the long version of the story.

Birthday

My good friend Ellen helped to make my 26th birthday a special one. She brought over delicious pizza and some wonderful banana split flavored icecream to share. For more details click here to read her post about the evening. Then on Friday night Ellen came over and watched Alex so that Adam and I could go out to dinner and a movie. I am lucky to have such a wonderful friend. Thanks Ellen!

The "Rez"

There is a large reservoir by our place that has a smaller quarantined area that the town of Arlington fills up with reservoir water every year during the summer for the residents of Arlington to swim in. There is sand and it gradually gets deeper. Alex and I went yesterday and got summer passes. It is like a beach so I always refer to it as the beach when I am talking to Alex. But everyone around here calls it the "rez".

Alex was very excited to get some new flip flops today to wear on our adventures to the rez. When we got in the car after buying them Alex wanted to hold the flip flops. But that wasn't enough, during our 10 minute drive home Alex whined until I took the tag and string that attached the two sandals together off and by the time we arrived home Alex had taken both of his shoes and one sock off and was trying to get one of the flip flops on. The minute we walked in the door, he wanted the flip flops on even though it was well past lunch time. He jumped off my lap after I put them on him, he looked at his feet, and with a huge smile on his face he started running back and forth between the dishwasher and the desk in the living room (only about 15 feet). He ate his lunch in them and then I made him take them off for nap time otherwise I am sure he would have slept in them!

Day Off

Adam had the day off today for the 4th of July weekend. I was insistant that we not spend the day at home. We headed out early for Wingaersheek Beach. Alex was a little skeptical when Adam first took him in the water. Alex just kept saying "Mama". When I met up with them in the water and told Alex that all was fine and coaxed him a little he finally let his guard down and ended up loving it. There were rocks to climb on and warm water baths that had collected around the rocks. The sand was white, the water was clear, and it was just beautiful. Alex especially loved throwing rocks and picking up twigs from the water. He cried when it was time to go.

Airplanes

Alex spotted an airplane after church today. Since we live close to Logan Airport we always see lots of airplanes close to the ground. Alex doesn't miss a one and always wants to make sure Adam or I see them too.

Towing

My brothers have a tow truck that Alex played with a lot while we were in Idaho. Whenever anyone else played with it he got mad and claimed it as his. Now that we are home Alex has been hooking up anything that has some kind of a bumper to tow or push it.

Happy Father's Day

Focusing

We started teaching Alex a few words in sign language last May 2010, about when he turned 1, out of pure necessity. He got to the point where he was screaming about everything. It was so loud, frustrating, and exhausting. We started with "more" so he would stop screaming for food. We taught him "milk" so he would stop screaming for milk in his high chair. Then we taught him "all done" so he would stop screaming when he was done eating. We also taught him "please" so he would stop screaming when he needed help with something while playing. He was honestly screaming about everything.

Then last fall one of my good friends told me about "Baby Sign Time". I started checking it out at the library for Alex. He didn't show much interest at first but started to watch little clips here and there in between his playing. He picked up on a lot of signs. I turned on "Baby Sign Time" today for the first time since February. Alex was completely captivated. He looks mad in this picture but really he is just focusing on the tv . . . and he may be glaring at the children on the Baby Sign Time video a little bit. Sign language for Alex has been so wonderful.

Before and After

Alex started to look a little mangey due to his hair getting on the long side. His side burns were below his earlobes and the back of his hair was past the collar of his shirts, which means he would not pass as a BYU student.

We prefer the buzz cuts around here.

Idaho Highlight

One of the main highlights for Alex from our trip to Idaho is when Paige got stuck in the mud while driving the Rhino. I say "highlight" because Alex cannot stop thinking and talking about it. However I do not think it is the kind of highlight Alex remembers with fondness. It was pure and utter torture for him.

Paige, Alex, and I were riding in the Rhino together to go check on the cows. It had been raining a lot the last few days so there was mud and puddles of water every where. Behind and to the right of the barn was a huge puddle and the road was thick mud. Paige thought she could squeeze between the two tractors parked right in the middle of the road out to the field but she couldn't so she thought she would try backing up a bit and get turned around. Well my side of the Rhino started to slide and sink closer to the water puddle. I decided to hop out with Alex, who was helping Paige drive, so that Paige would have less weight in the Rhino. Then there was a wire fence hindering her progress so I had to hold it out of the way while Paige continued to turn around. All the while, Alex was trying to smile and laugh to keep the pressure low but really he was about to cry out of fear for Mammie's safety.

By the time it was all over there were tire marks all through the mud, a huge mess on the side walk, our shoes were caked with mud, and Alex was a ball of emotions and completely worked up. He just kept repeating "guck" for stuck, over and over again. As we finished our stay in Idaho whenever Alex saw Paige he would say "i-thoo" for water, in a worried voice and whenever he saw even the smallest puddle he would say "Ang-ee" for Mammie. Now that we are back in Boston he still looks at any water outside (raindrops, puddles, lakes, streams, etc.) with a worried glance and cannot help but mention "Ang-ee," "guck," and "i-thoo."

Love you.

While we were in Idaho Paige kept prompting Alex to say "love you" whenever he was leaving, going to bed, or getting off the phone from talking to Adam. He says it more like "uv u."

I also have to prompt Alex to say hi and bye to people at the grocery store so that he doesn't grunt at them. Today when we were at Market Basket the man bagging out groceries was talking to Alex and as we left I told Alex to say bye. He turned to the man and said "bye bye, uv u." It was great.

On our way home

On our way back to Boston we had a layover in Chicago. I kept reminding Alex that when we got on the plane it was going to be bedtime hoping to prepare his mind. By the time we flew out of Chicago it was 10pm. We seated ourselves on the plane and after take off I said to Alex "Okay, time for bed." Well that hit a "routine" button for him and he immediately stood up on his seat, tightly folded his arms arond his upper, upper body, tucked his chin and looked at me like he always does when it is time for prayer.

Now I would like to say that after this he fell immediately to sleep but this was not the case. After a couple more trips to the airplane's disgusting bathroom, a book, a number of seat up and downs between mine and his, and an hour later, he finally curled up into a ball on his seat, asked for his blanket, and fell asleep.

Pudding with a fork

We visited my Grandpa and Grandma Sims for lunch. My grandma gave Alex a pudding fun pack to eat in the car on the way home but did not have a plastic spoon to send with it so she gave him a plastic fork. Alex was doing pretty well eating the thick pudding with the fork. But by the time we got home Alex could no longer get the last little drippings of pudding with the fork tongs so he had turned the fork around and was using the top of the handle as a spoon. It was great to see how resourceful he can be. . . when dessert is on the line.

Tractors

Alex really took to the "acko," better known as tractors, this time around in Idaho.



First he loved lining up the play tractors in the backyard and pushing them around in the dirt. Some of these are my dad's from when he was little.



Then he took over Randall's position in the Rhino's driver seat.



Next he realized Greg and Jacob needed help backing up the lawn mower and trailer.



Finally by the end of our stay he had moved up to one of the big dogs. On this versatile, the tires are atleast twice as tall as Alex.

Poncho

This picture was taken last time we were in Idaho, in February. We call the horse Poncho.

Today Alex asked if he could have a cracker, so I went to the cupboard and got him a Saltine. He ate it and then asked for another one. After giving him another one I went about my business. A few minutes later I looked over at Alex and he was trying to give Poncho a bite of his Saltine.

Happy Birthday

Alex turned 2 today. It is hard to believe it is already time for that. We had a party at my parent's house. Paige helped him prep for blowing out the candles so after we sang Happy Birthday to him he only had to try once to get both of the candles out. He was very excited that his practice paid off.




photos by Mindy McNabb

Mark

Mark is leaving for his mission on June 8th. He is going to Guatemala. I am very happy for him. He and Jacob brought the horses by the house for Alex to see. He loved them and was so excited to get on one, he couldn't stop laughing.

Austin and Amy

My sister Amy got married to Austin Corry today in the Logan, Utah temple. She looked beautiful and the day was wonderful.








photos by Bev McNabb

Bees

Paige just got two bee boxes. Alex was so fascinated and wanted to reach down and grab one. "Bees" is his new word.

Bedtime

We have been staying at Paige's since we got to Idaho. Paige started a new routine for Alex that he loves. He takes a bath before he goes to bed.



But instead of drying off with a towel and putting on his pajamas, Paige lets him get in her bed and turns on Curious George for him to watch while he air dries under the covers. I skipped this new step last night due to time and Alex had to be talked down.

The Egg Process

Alex loves being in charge of the eggs. First he collects them. Currently the chickens are laying them in three different locations, in the coop, in the back of a trailer,

and next to a rabbit cage between two bales of straw.



Then he brings them inside to wash them.

He gets his stool, puts it up to the sink, and scrubs the eggs clean with a scratchy pad.

Next he dries them and puts them in the cartons.



And finally he either stows them in the fridge or delivers them to Papa and Nana.

Grandma Sims

We celebrated my Grandma Sims' 83rd birthday today. She loves to be involved and knowing what is going on with all her grandchildren. She and my grandpa have 2 daughters, 15 grandchildren, 8 great-granchildren with 2 more on the way. They used to live in Arizona where my grandma retired from teaching High School English. She is very smart, happy, and friendly. She loves to shop for new clothes for everyone, is a wonderful cook, and enjoys being apart of organizing projects (weddings, parties, Amy's classroom, Relief Society, etc.) My grandparents now live in Pocatello and they are always fun and pleasant to be around. I miss living close to them.

"Chores"

Alex assisted Anna with "chores" this morning. They had to check on the pigs up in the old barn to make sure they had food, water, and straw. They then checked on the sheep in the new barn.

Alex was skeptical about touching the pigs



But he had no problem grabbing hold of the sheep. He loved their ears.

Back in Idaho

Alex and I are back in Idaho. When we were here in February, "Bapa" was the only name he knew and could say. We have been practicing names in Boston in preparation for this trip so we will have to see how it goes. When we walked into my parents' house todayAlex ran straight to my dad and said "Bapa," like he had been waiting to see him for months.

More Words

Alex's vocabulary is continuing to grow but you still need a little time with him to understand what he is talking about. Here are a few more frequently used words.

bip = chip (emphasis on the "p")
bope = grape
bup = up (emphasis on the "p")
butch = stuck (emphasis on the "b")
ee-gee-gee = strawberries
geek = sink
gees = cheese
i-thoo = water (a couple weeks ago he was saying "nano")
nana = banana
poach = poke/ouch
yis = yes
no = phone
no = more
no = no

He misses Dain

About a month ago Alex started becoming obsessed with airplanes. He could hear them when we were at home, in the car, or out jogging. This morning Alex was running around the living room and down the hall with his arms stretched out and making airplane sounds. Dain played airplane with him while he was here and Alex was trying to relive it today. Alex misses his new found friend.