Ludwig Family Blog

A Conversation With Landis

2011-10-12T17:53:00.002-04:00

Landis started laughing across the living room from me, so I asked him, "Landis, what are you giggling about?"

"Monni, I just had the funniest thought in my mind. Do you want me to tell it to you?"

"Yes, please tell me."

"I just thought, what if I ate candy for breakfast? That is the funniest thought I ever had!"

2011-07-23T23:31:00.001-04:00

Landis quote of the day: "Monni, you know what would be a really not fun pillow? If they made pillows out of working fans. Instead of going to sleep, you would die horribly!"

Chalk writing

2011-03-18T20:28:00.003-04:00

Landis loves being outdoors, and lately, he has been very interested in writing. So we have been going outside most days to write and draw pictures with his sidewalk chalk! Today, Landis wanted to write the names of his two youngest uncles, Josh and Caleb. He still has a little bit of trouble with the orientation of his letters - he wrote his J and S backwards - but he is getting better and better at writing!

P.S. Caleb, now you have to update your blog!

2011-01-29T11:34:00.001-05:00

I have really weird brothers.

Flip!

2010-10-28T00:49:00.002-04:00

What am I going to do with my little wild thing?

Landis Bakes Banana Bread

2010-10-25T16:28:00.002-04:00

2010-10-20T23:16:00.002-04:00

Landis got to spend some time with his Uncle Paul this morning while I was volunteering. When I returned home, I asked him whether he had been good for Paul, and he claimed "Monni, I had the best behavior of all time!"

Peter and the Dragons

2010-09-13T12:22:00.006-04:00

By Landis Ludwig

Peter lives with his Monni and his sister. And he finds the eggs.

His Monni tells him to go get some wood. He goes to the trees and cuts some wood down from lots of trees. When he’s coming home, he sees a big Monni Dragon and a Daddy dragon and says, “Dragons, can we please live together?” And the dragons say yes, so he brings them home with him and his Monni says “Whoa!” And he tells her these dragons want to live with us together.

Then, the dragons want to play something with Peter, and Peter says “What do you want to play with me?” and they say Whoopsie-Bumpsie, but really hide-and-seek. In story 3, the dragons want to play something with him.

Then, in Chapter 4, the dragon makes so many eggs and they all pop out and the eggs crack all at one time. Then, the little tiny baby dragons play with each other. Peter plays hide and seek with them. First he got to hide, then every dragon hides. The dragons like playing hide-and-seek. They had never played it ever.

A pterodactyl flies right over their house and everybody in the house says “look!” so everybody in the house gets on the dragons and holds on tight and Peter gets the pterodactyl and everything in the house that closes and shuts, like the windows, they close them and they let the pterodactyl fly around their house. I just told you story 5, the one where they bring the pterodactyl and get it and let it fly around their house. The pterodactyl is also big and strong. The pterodactyl could land down on the floor of their house and it could get one of the people. Then the pterodactyl they find could go down and scwoop with his right hand and pick up Peter with only one wing. He was that big!

The End

2010-09-13T11:11:00.002-04:00

Landis just ran up and told me he wanted some Monni snuggles. I told him that I would snuggle him any time.

He thought about it for a minute and then said, "I want snuggles every all day and every all night!"

Landis' Important Job

2010-08-20T16:47:00.004-04:00

Landis told me today, "Monni, I need to go to work."

"Where do you work, Landis?" I asked him.

"Oh, I work outside. They call me when there is a problem with rainbows and I fix them."

My silly boy

2010-07-25T15:47:00.002-04:00

Landis took a long car drive with his uncle Paul today. Here is a conversation they had in the car...

Paul asked, "Landis, why are you so silly?"

Landis replied, "I will give you two reasons. Number One: I like being so silly. Number Two: I LOVE being so silly!"

Landis Quotes!

2010-07-20T22:03:00.003-04:00

"Aaron Scott, I literally dropped your shoe on the floor."

"Monni, watch! I can literally fly!"

At the beach, Landis had to sit with me in the sand for a short time out after running into the water without an adult accompanying him. He asked, "Can I go back into the water after my time out?" I told him that would be fine, as long as he went with a grown up. He pondered this, then replied, "On second thought, can I have my time out in the water?"

Good try, Landis!

2010-03-31T07:22:00.003-04:00

Landis, being the wild, active, crazy kid he is, has never been a big fan of bedtime. From early infancy, he would do everything in his power to keep from falling asleep. Lately, his strategies have evolved - he asks for just one more story, one more sip of water, one more hug, and tries to put off the inevitable for as long as possible. A few nights ago, he tried a different tactic.

I had just finished reading him a story and turned out the lights. He turned to look at me and proclaimed, "Monni, I don't need to go to bed anymore. I will be noc-turtle." (AKA nocturnal.)

"Landis," I asked, "won't you get tired if you don't sleep all night?"

"Don't worry, Monni," he reassured me. "I have a way to keep myself from getting tired- see!" With that, he jumped up and started spinning in circles on his bed. "Now I'm not tired!"

♥

2010-02-25T19:08:00.002-05:00

Here they are - the two cutest little boys ever!

Please ignore the nerf darts, dinosaurs and army men littering the floor.

Child Lock

2010-02-12T14:10:00.002-05:00

Our car has a child lock that can be used on the back doors of the car, so that the door cannot be opened from the inside. Since I don't quite trust Landis' impulse control, I use the child lock on the door next to his car seat. Sometimes, Aaron Scott or Josh or Caleb ride in the car with us, and sometimes their door is child locked as well. Lands has learned that the child means that the person in the back seat can't get out by themselves.

Landis usually doesn't nap, but it really helps him to be his usually happy self if he has a little bit of downtime after lunch. Today, I put him in his bed, read him a few books, told some stories and snuggled him for a few minutes. Then, I told him I needed to go to the kitchen to clean up from lunch. He was not happy with that idea, so he threw his arms around my neck, interlocked his fingers and said "You are child locked, Monni!"

2010-02-12T13:23:00.003-05:00

In the last few months, I've been more active in providing Landis activities for "homeschool preschool." We've been working on adding. He really enjoys playing on ixl.com as well as adding objects around the house.

Today at lunchtime, we were eating cauliflower. I finished mine and asked Landis if I could have a bite of his. That was fine with him. He looked up at me after I had finished the bite and said, "That makes 3 bites."

"What do you mean, Landis?"

He held up 3 fingers to show me. "I ate two bites, then you ate one bite. That makes 3 bites all together."

I think he understands!

Gainesville pics :)

2010-01-18T21:49:00.002-05:00

Landis and came up to Gainesville for the weekend. We had a blast today at a state park with Paul, Josh, Caleb and Scruffy!

We climbed the largest oak tree in Florida, took turns running around with Scruff and relaxed in a hammock.

It was a very fun day!

Kisses

2010-01-09T18:01:00.002-05:00

Landis and I were playing a silly game where I pretend I don't want any kisses and tickle him every time he gives me a kiss, and then he pretends he doesn't want any kisses and tickles me every time I give him a kiss.

After a while, Landis said, "Let's play a part of that game where we don't kiss anybody and we don't tickle anybody.

"OK," I agreed, and unsuspectingly snuggled up beside him.

*Muah* Landis kissed my cheek and ran, giggling, yelling behind him, "I tricked you, Monni!"

All Dressed Up

2009-12-18T21:41:00.002-05:00

... and ready to go shopping at Sam's Club?? Landis has the weirdest uncles!

Anatomy Lessons with Landis

2009-12-14T22:22:00.002-05:00

Landis: Paul are you a boy?

Paul: What do you mean, Landis?

Landis: Do you have a penis Paul?

Paul: Umm, yes.

Landis: I have a penis too. Monni is a girl. She does NOT have a penis. Nonni, are you a girl?

Nonni: Yes, I'm an old girl.

Landis: (Nodding head in agreement.) Paul, Nonni is an old girl. She does not have a penis either.

I almost died of laughter.

Old Family Picture

2009-12-14T10:58:00.004-05:00

Goat, Aaron Scott, Landis and me at Landis' first birthday! Landis and Aaron Scott have grown sooo much in just 2 years.

My new favorite Landis-ism

2009-12-02T15:13:00.001-05:00

Overalls = Rover-ralls

Dinosaurs!

2009-11-30T12:57:00.003-05:00

As I was making lunch today, I heard a strange series of growls, yells and yelps emerging from Landis' room. Concerned, I poked my head in and asked Landis what was going on.

"Deinonychus is eating a triceratops," he replied.

The terrible scene was playing out on his bed. The small plastic triceratops had fallen, and deinonychus was slashing with the huge claws on his feet, then bending down to take bite.

My little boy is dinosaur obsessed!

Birthday Party Pictures

2009-11-30T11:33:00.004-05:00

Landis had a great 3rd birthday party! He had so much fun with his big brother, uncles and friends.

We had the party at a local park, and Landis had a blast running around near the lake...

...and climbing trees with his friend Guinnevere!

Caleb had fun climbing too..

...so did Josh and Aaron Scott!

Landi's First Haircut!

2009-11-23T17:37:00.003-05:00

Before and after pictures.. He looks like such a big kid now!

Landis' New Friend

2009-11-11T11:49:00.002-05:00

Imaginary friend, that is...

Tonker is a girl who likes to go sailing with Landis on his sail boat. She has a green shirt and Landis has a green shirt that matches. She has a Monni and Daddy too. She likes to play with Landis. Her birthday is the same day as Landis' and she is very excited about it.

He is such an imaginative kid!

Landis Quote

2009-11-01T21:53:00.001-05:00

"Monni, will you get me a dinosaur book where all the dinosaurs don't die in the end?"

Poor boy. Extinction is a sad, sad thing!

Sweet Tooth

2009-10-22T12:44:00.002-04:00

Landis has apparently inherited my sweet tooth. Goat brought some candy home from work a few days ago. After dinner, we each had a piece, and I informed Landis that, in the interest of him being able to fall asleep at a reasonable hour, he could only have one piece of candy that night.

He looked up at me hopefully and asked, "Do you mean one at a time?"

Imaginary Friends

2009-10-22T12:37:00.004-04:00

Landis has been playing with imaginary friends recently. Today he is playing with "Violin." According to Landis, she "likes to sing and she can play guitar with her singing. She is a girl, and her skirt is red and her shirt is blue. She likes to play with me. She shares her candy with me and then she saves the rest of it. She is kind of like Anna but not."

He is certainly an imaginative little boy!

Homophones

2009-09-23T08:53:00.004-04:00

Today is laundry day and clothing choices were in short supply for Landis. I handed him a navy blue shirt to put on, and Landis asked if it was his motorcycle shirt, which is the same color.

"No, Landis," I said, "this is a plain shirt."

Landis finished putting the shirt on, looked down and then back at me, confused. "Monni," he asked, "where is the plane?"

2009-09-19T19:04:00.003-04:00

We are in Gainesville for the weekend! We just watched the game (Go Gators!!) and arrived back at my parents' house.

Landis wanted to play with Caleb's toys. Josh reminded him that he should ask before he played with them. Landis walked over to Caleb and said, "Caleb, your toys are nice. I like to play with them. I am going to play with them now."

Umm, Landis, that was not quite what we meant by "ask Caleb." Silly boy!

2009-09-17T15:57:00.003-04:00

Recently, Landis has been counting everything. Today, he told me he was going to give me three kisses. He held up his thumb, pointer finger and middle finger to show me, and counted the kisses out on his fingers.

He touched his middle finger, counted "one" and gave me a kiss.

He touched his pointer finger, counted "two" and gave me another kiss.

Then, he touched his thumb and said, "See, this finger is for a little kiss." After giving me one last little kiss, he ran off happily to play with his trains.

Reading Goggles

2009-09-15T14:28:00.002-04:00

Landis was given a tool set by his Ludwig grandparents for his second birthday. He loves to pretend to build and fix all sorts of things, and also finds other creative uses for the toys. For example, these safety goggles have become Landis' official reading goggles. Several times each day he runs out of his room to find me with his goggles in place and a book in his hands!

Awwww....

2009-09-14T15:14:00.002-04:00

Landis finished his lunch and ran over to my seat. He gave me a kiss, snuggled in my lap and said, "You always get me sandwiches. You are a good Monni."

What at sweet boy he is!

Big boy bed

2009-09-11T12:05:00.003-04:00

Landis got a new big boy bed! He loves it. He picked out his own sheets - Thomas the Tank Engine, of course! He loves to snuggle his Monni or Daddy in his new bed and get lots and lots of books read to him before bedtime. When Aaron Scott was here last weekend, they tried to have a sleepover in the big boy bed but they were both too excited to sleep!

I can't believe how fast my little boy is growing up. He gets bigger and more independent every day. It is so much fun to watch him grow and change!

shapes

2009-09-11T10:35:00.002-04:00

Landis has been very interested in learning his shapes recently. He also loves to eat a slice of peanut butter toast with his breakfast. Combining these two interests, I've come up with Landis' new favorite breakfast food - shape toast! Every morning, Landis requests that I cut his toast into a new shape. Triangles are the current favorite, but squares, rectangles, semi-circles, and this morning's choice, circles, are also options. Instead of dawdling as he sometimes used to, Landis happily chomps his shape toast up. It's made breakfast really fun!

Bookworm

2009-09-09T00:48:00.003-04:00

Landis and I got into a long discussion this evening about how libraries work. He's been to the library but hadn't ever really discussed how the library operates. We talked about it for a while, and Landis got more and more excited about the prospect of a never-ending supply of books. He looked up at me and said, "Wow!! That is SO COOL!"

We met our friends Natalie and Anna at the library last week for storytime. As I pulled into the parking lot, Landis told me, "Monni, I love the library. You know why? It has books and Anna!!"

Silly Landis Quote of the Day

2009-07-30T21:48:00.002-04:00

"I don't have a guitar at my house. That is sad. If I had a guitar at my house, that would be happy. You see how that works, Monni?"

Happy (belated) birthday, Josh!!

2009-07-26T09:54:00.000-04:00

Josh turned 13! He is now officially Landis' favorite teenage uncle (Paul turned 20 just a few days before Josh's birthday.)

We love you, Josh!!

Happy (belated) birthday, Paul!!

2009-07-26T09:42:00.002-04:00

Happy birthday, Paul! You are strange, but we love you - even when you are wearing a smelly camouflage suit!

Converation with Landis

2009-07-13T15:30:00.005-04:00

Landis: I heared a sound. You heared that sound, Monni?

Me: No, I didn't hear it.

Landis: It was a pop. Pop! Pop!

Me: Oh.

Landis: What was it?

Me: I don't know. I didn't hear it.

Landis: What was it?

Me: I don't know.

Landis: (much louder) WHAT WAS IT?

Me: I still don't know, Landis. It doesn't matter how loud you ask, or how many times. I didn't hear it, so I don't know what made the sound.

Landis: Please can you know?

Me: I'm sorry, Landis, I just don't know what it was.

Landis: I think it was a balloon popping. I heared it loud in my ear.

I thought it was so cute that he thought I would be able to tell him about the mysterious noise if he just said please. I still have no idea what he heard. There aren't any balloons in the house right now to get popped, so it can't be that. He was standing near the window when he heard it, so maybe the neighbor kids were playing with their paintball gun or something...

2009-07-12T15:49:00.003-04:00

Landis just called my parents' house to talk to his uncles and said "Hi, Caleb. Do you want to come to my house or not?" What happened to Caylo? His adorable mispronunciations are getting rarer and rarer - my little boy is growing up whether I'm ready or not!

This is Weird

2009-07-07T08:03:00.001-04:00

My little night owl boy has started going to bed at 8:30 pm happily and without protest. I never thought this would happen!

Landis Quote of the Day

2009-06-29T11:20:00.002-04:00

Landis and I were talking about one of his friends. He asked, "Does he have a brother?"

I told him that, yes, that friend does have a brother.

Landis thought about it for a little while and said sadly, "But he doesn't have a Josh."

Landis thinks every little boy should have a fun uncle Josh!

He can swim!!

2009-06-29T00:04:00.003-04:00

We went to the pool today, and Landis splashed around on the steps for a little while, then said to me, "Monni, go far, and I will swim to you all by myself."

I took a step or 2 back, and he motioned for me to go back further. So, I stepped about 4 feet away from the steps and he grinned, ducked his head under the water and swam to me!

I am so, so excited! He has been taking swimming lessons for a month and has been so close to swimming for the last week or 2, but I guess everything just clicked for him today. We spent the next 30 minutes with him swimming back and forth between me, Goat, Caleb, the steps and the wall. It was so much fun! He LOVES the water so much. I can't wait until tomorrow so I can take him to the pool again!!!

Swimming

2009-06-24T13:27:00.004-04:00

Landis has been taking swimming lessons for the past month. He loves his teacher, Miss Marie, and has learned to swim short distances. He has a lot of fun interacting with the other kids in his class, splashing, blowing bubbles, floating and playing.

Today was the last lesson of the month and the teacher arranged for underwater pictures of the kids to be taken. Landis' caption for this picture is: "This is Landi, swimming by his self!"

We are looking forward to taking lessons again in July!

Love

2009-06-24T02:07:00.002-04:00

Last week, Landis and I went to the swimming pool with our friends Jessica and Beni. We had a great time, and while we were there, Landis did what is quite possibly the sweetest thing any baby has ever done.

There is a big section of the pool with shallow water, so I let Landis run around while I sat in the water nearby. After a while, he ran up to me and threw himself into my arms. "Monni," he said, "I love you close." And he snuggled up in my arms.

He then leapt down, ran half way across the pool and yelled at the top of his lungs, "I love you far away!"

And then it was back to me. "I love you close!"

He is the sweetest boy anyone has ever had and I can't even begin to describe how very much I love him.

2009-06-19T11:02:00.002-04:00

When I came home from school yesterday, I noticed that Landis was no longer wearing his pants. I asked him whether he had had an accident, or just wanted to take them off. He told me, "I just wanted to take my pants off because I pee'd in them."

Leave it to Landis to find a third option!

2009-06-10T22:28:00.003-04:00

I was tossing Landis in the air earlier this evening. I told him it was fun to toss him. He told me, "I can toss myself by my own self" and jumped as high as he could, yelling "TOSS!!"

Landis-isms of the Day

2009-06-03T12:53:00.002-04:00

Landis, Caleb and I had to run some errands today. As I was driving to the grocery store, I asked the boys if there was anything they would like me to add to my list. Caleb requested milk and tomato soup so that we could make "Grandpa's Penne Pasta" (pasta with cheese and tomato soup.) Landis chirped in, "I want tomato soup! I do! I do!"

Caleb, amused by Landis' response, asked, "Landis, do you believe in fairies?"

Landis replied, "I believe in tomato soup!"

Silly boys!!!

We all knew it was coming...

2009-06-03T08:09:00.003-04:00

I'm surprised it took this long. Yesterday, was Landis' first (and hopefully only!) emergency room visit.

My little monkey boy tried to climb onto the top of the fridge and fell onto his head on the tile floor. After a panicked phone call to my wonderful Dad, we determined the criteria for taking him in to the ER instead of watching him carefully at home. (As an aside - it is so nice to have a father who is a pediatrician when you have an injury prone little toddler! Thank you Dad!!!) When Landis started vomiting repeatedly, we took him in. As scary as it was - he vomited, his speech was slurred and he was as miserable and iritable as I have ever seen him - everything turned out OK. Several hours and a CT scan later, it was determined that Landis had suffered a mild concussion, but would be just fine. Caleb was NOT happy to be back in a hospital. He has spent a lot of time with my Mom and Grandpa. But, he made it through.

We were instructed to check on Landis every 2 hours during the night to make sure he would wake easily, just in case. I think it really sunk in that he was just fine when, in the middle of the night, between checks, I coughed a little bit and Landis rolled over, opened his eyes and muttered sleepily, "Monni, I want you cover your mouth when you cough. Remember that, please." He then rolled over and fell back asleep. Clearly he was not having any problem waking up!

I heard Landis' side of a phone conversation with his Nonnie describing the ordeal. In Landis' words: "I bonked on the tile. It hurt. I saw some people and Monni and Daddy at the other* hosital-tal. Monni says, 'No more bonks on the tile.'"

*Not the same hospital that we went to to see Great Grandpa Duggan.

Big Update Post

2009-05-31T11:06:00.004-04:00

I've been neglecting this poor blog because we have been busy recently!

Goat is still working like crazy, making a valiant effort to do 6 people's jobs. In his spare time (Ha! What spare time?) he has managed to complete several computer and truck related projects, as well as taking over Monday and Wednesday evening Landis wrangling duties because...

I am back in school! My schooling was put on hold by the arrival of a certain 2 year old we all know and love, and I am finally going back. I'm taking classes at Brevard Community College - a speech class for the first half of the summer that meets Monday and Wednesday evening, then a Humanities class that meets Tuesday and Thursday evening for the rest of the summer. In the fall and spring, I plan to take a few last general ed requirements and several prerequisite courses so that I can begin the UCF education program in either the summer or fall semester of next year.

Speaking of school, Aaron Scott is out of school for the summer. He will be in 4th grade next year, and will be 9 years old in August. Time is flying by! He is an extremely fun and active boy. When he is here, we almost always end up spending a lot of time outside, running, jumping, riding bikes, going for walks, swimming etc. He has some exciting travel plans with his mom and stepdad this summer, and we hope to see a lot of him when he is not traveling.

Landis is also getting ridiculously big! He starts swimming lessons Monday morning, and I hope that he will be swimming by the end of the summer. He loves swimming at his Grandma and Papa's house, at the public pool and in the little kiddie pool in our yard. He has been really interested in learning about letters and their sounds recently, and enjoys playing on the Starfall website.

Josh had been visiting for the past week, which has been so much fun! We always enjoy having him around. We baked scones and a pie, went to the beach and pool, Goat took him target shooting, and now the guys are fishing. He has also been a huge help, keeping Landis occupied so I can get some projects done around the house. He even offered to mow the grass this weekend! We went to several garage sales yesterday and the best find was a 9 cube organizer similar to this one for $5! It fits perfectly in the boys' room.

Caleb is coming to visit next week and we are excited about spending some time with him. I am so fortunate to have 4 wonderful little brothers!

We are looking forward to going up to North Carolina to see Johnny and meet his girlfriend Andrea later this summer. It will be nice to have all of the siblings together.

It should be a fun summer!!!

"That Creeps Me Up"

2009-05-23T21:56:00.004-04:00

One of Landis' favorite toys is the shelf from one of our cabinets which we removed to store some tall items. He pretends that it is his stove, and cooks me lots of yummy "food." Yesterday, I decided to help his imagination along, so I drew spirals on it to look like burners. For a while, all was well.

Then, a few hours later, Landis ran over to me and said, "Monni, there are giant eyeballs on my stove. That makes me angry."

It took me a few minutes to realize that he meant the drawings of burners. I asked him why it made him angry. He replied, "I don't like those eyeballs, Monni. That creeps me up. "

Now that you mention it, Landis, giant eyeballs on a stove top are rather creepy...

More Conversations with Landis

2009-05-20T23:44:00.004-04:00

"Bye, Monni. I am driving to my school."

"Bye, Landi."

"You want a kiss, Monni?"

"Yes please."

"You want a hug, Monni?"

"Yes, I love your hugs."

"They are your favorite, Monni? I will give you more hugs. Now you say, 'Bye Landi.'"

"Bye, Landi."

"Bye, Monni. I will do lots of things in my school. You want to come wif me in my school?"

So He Does Listen to Me!

2009-05-18T23:06:00.002-04:00

Landis really enjoys "helping" me by sweeping the floors with his toy broom. Today, we had a conversation that we have had many times - but in reverse!

"Monni, I am going to sweep."

"OK, Landis. Thank you for sweeping.

"Monni, be careful. Don't step in my pile!"

"OK."

"Monni, you say 'Yes, Landi'"

"Yes, Landi."

"That is good."

Observations of a 2 year old

2009-05-18T16:07:00.001-04:00

"Monni, I don't fly. You don't fly too. But birds fly!"

My Long-Haired Hippie Boy

2009-05-14T14:12:00.006-04:00

Mom, avert your eyes.

Landis' hair is getting LONG. He was bald for the longest time, and with his blond hair he looked bald even after his hair began to grow. No more!

Now all I need is to find some masculine or at least gender neutral contraption to keep the hair out of his eyes. Somehow, as much as my husband likes long hair, I don't think he would go for ribbons and bows in his son's hair. There must be something out there. I can't be the only mom of a long haired little boy to ever experience this quandary...

Funny story - Landis went grocery shopping at the Downtown Produce Market with his Grandma and Papa the other day. (If you live in the area and haven't shopped there yet - go! Best store ever...) We do almost all of our meat, cheese and produce shopping there, and they know us by name. The cashier recognized Landis and was ooh-ing and aah-ing over him, and said, "Wow, his hair is getting so long, just like his Dad's." My poor father-in-law spent several years in the Air Force and is less than thrilled that his sons and grandson have long hair. He offers to take Landis for a haircut almost as often as my mom reminds us that it would be no problem at all to take care of Landis' tresses while she's outside cutting Josh and Caleb's hair. Goat and I found that conversation hysterical. Don't worry, Nonni and Grandpa - soon enough Landis will be in the teenage rebellious stage and decide to shave his head...

2009-05-14T10:31:00.003-04:00

As sometimes happens, Landis stumbled into our bed in the wee hours of the morning for some Monni and Daddy snuggles. We woke up a few hours later, and Landis was in the sweetest mood ever. I gave him a hug and a kiss and started to get up. He grabbed my hand and said "Monni, stay here. I love you too much!"

How could I resist? Landis and I snuggled for a few more minutes, then played with his stuffed animal, George, who had come to the big bed with Landis in the middle of the night. After a while, Landis was ready to jump out of bed and start his day. He has been in the best mood all morning long.

A few years ago, just before Landis turned 1, we went to the Florida La Leche League Conference. One of the speakers used the metaphor that everyone has a "cup" that needs to be filled every day with love and affection and attention, and that many times a child will misbehave to get attention - even negavive attention- if that cup is not filled with positive attention by their parents. He said one of the best things a parent could do to make the whole day better was to spend a little while in the morning filling up their child(ren)'s cup by giving them a few minutes of completely undivided attention.

I've definitely noticed that our days run smoother when Landis and I spend some time together fist things in the morning, before I start to get busy and distracted by making breakfast and washing dishes and folding laundry and checking email and writing grocery lists and all of the other busyness of day to day life. I think we may have to make morning snuggle time a regular part of our routine!

Aaron Scott, Actor

2009-05-13T11:40:00.003-04:00

We went to Aaron Scott's school play yesterday. It was great! The play was about the cheese from "The Farmer in the Dell" not wanting to stand alone. Aaron Scott played the farmer, and did a great job. It was a very cute play! They started out with the nursery rhyme, and then the chesse went to cheese town and the kids sang Aaron Scott's favorite song from the play. Eventually, the rat stood up for his friend the cheese and they all lived happily ever after. Goat and Landis were lucky enough to get the advance performance Friday night on the way back from his parents' house. Aaron Scott sang every single song in the truck.

After the play, Aaron Scott, Landis and Ethan had a great time running around and playing for a few minutes. Aaron Scott is such a great big brother. All of his younger siblings adore him - and I can't blame them! He is such a wonderful, fun boy, and I feel blessed to be part of his life.

2009-05-10T12:55:00.003-04:00

Landis is really into wishing recently. Today he told me, "I wish Aaron Scott had a truck with a trailer on, and a boat on the trailer. Then we can swim* in the river together."

*Landis has not yet figured out the swim/sail distinction. To him, if it moves in or on the water, it is swimming. He means they will sail together.

Or Not Or Yes?

2009-05-06T11:50:00.003-04:00

Landis has taken to using this phrase to end yes/no questions. Today, he called Goat and asked, "Daddy, do you want to go swimming with me, or not or yes?"

Going to the Hosital-tal

2009-05-05T16:48:00.004-04:00

It's fascionating to watch Landis play. It gives me an interesting window into his mind. Last month, Landis and I spent a few days in Gainesville with my parents and siblings while my Grandpa was in the hospital. Landis went to the hospital several times, and I explained that Great-Grandpa went the hospital when because he was sick, and that the doctors and nurses were helping him get better. Apparently it had more of an impression on him than I thought.

Today, Landis asked me to play with him. "Monni, get in the car!"

"Where is the car, Landi?" He indicated the couch, and I sat down on one of the cushions.

"Monni, that is Nonni's seat. This is Nonni's car."

So, I moved to a different seat. "Where are we going in Nonni's car?" I asked.

"We are going with Nonni to the hosital-tal."

"Oh! Who is at the hospital? Will we see your Great-Grandpa?"

"No, not Great-Ampa. We will see Josh."

"Oh no! What happened to Josh? Is he sick?"

Landis grabbed his foot, then pointed to his big toe. "Josh has bad ows on this toe. Somebody at the hosital-tal will help him get better."

2009-04-28T13:00:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, I talked to Goat on the phone while he was on the work. After I hung up, I told Landis who had called, and passed on an "I love you" from his Daddy. Landis, who is really interested in the different names, relationships and titles that one person can have, told me, "Daddy is not your Daddy, he is your husband." I told him that was right, and we discussed how Grandpa was my Daddy, and Nonni's husband, and Papa was Daddy's Daddy, and Grandma's husband. He was quiet for a moment, sorting through it all.

He was pretty sure he had it all figured out, but he just had one more question. "Monni, whose husband is Josh?"

Then we had to have a whole conversation about how kids don't have husbands or wives, but when they grow up they can get married and then they will have a spouse, and sometimes they will become parents. Landis was quite fascinated by the prospect of growing up and experiencing all of the different relationships he will have throughout his life.

As much as I loved having a snuggly, chubby, smiling baby and sometimes miss that stage in Landis' life, it is so much fun to have a curious little talking boy with a vivid imagination.

2009-04-27T21:54:00.003-04:00

Landis had a great time stacking up his blocks after dinner tonight. I walked by, and he informed me, "I am building a spaceship! You like it, Monni?"

I did like it! He had arranged a blanket into the body of the spaceship and made two "towers" at the front and back of the ship with blocks. He is such a fun and imaginative boy!

2009-04-24T20:57:00.004-04:00

Landis and Goat were having a conversation today. Landis asked a question, and whatever his Daddy replied, Landis would contradict him.

"What are you doing, Daddy?"

"I'm eating dinner."

"No, you aren't eating dinner."

Goat got fed up, and said, "Stop it, Landis. That is contradicting."

Landis' response? "That is not contradicting."

Daddy's Boy

2009-04-22T20:16:00.002-04:00

Landis idolizes his Daddy. Here is a conversation we had after dinner this evening.

"Monni, I am a Daddy."

"Oh, that is nice. Do you have a baby?"

"Yes. And I am a Daddy. I came home for lunch."

"I'm glad you came home. What would you like for lunch?"

"How 'bout a sammich?"

"OK, Landis, here it is." I handed him an imaginary sandwich, and pretended to eat my own sandwich.

"Now you can drop me off at work."

"Where is your work?"

"Outside. We can go together!"

Keeping the Pearly Whites Clean

2009-04-17T13:21:00.002-04:00

Here is a conversation Landis and I had after brushing his teeth last night:

"Landis, your teeth are so clean now!"

"But they might get dirty."

"That's okay, you can keep them clean by brushing when you wake up in the morning and before you go to sleep at night."

"And I won't eat dirt."

Yes, funny little boy of mine, not eating dirt will help you keep your little chompers from getting dirty.

2009-04-15T15:58:00.006-04:00

Over the last few weeks, I have found several good deals on frozen seafood, so we have been eating a lot of fish. Since I am incapable of cooking only enough food for 3 people, we have leftover fish in the fridge.

This afternoon, Landis asked for a snack, and I offered him leftovers. "What kind of fish would you like for your snack, salmon or mahi?"

He pondered for a moment, then replied, "Goldfish!"

2009-04-13T13:07:00.003-04:00

Landis has acquired an interest in knots and tying things. I gave him a piece of webbing and has been wandering around the house tying things up all day. He eventuall got bored with tying the inanimate objects in the house, and few minutes ago, he came over to me and started wrapping the webbing around the arm. He said,"I am tying you up now, Monni."

"Oh no, Landi. I will be stuck!"

"It will be OK, Monni. I will untie you up." He patted my hand reassuringly and continued to wrap the webbing around my arm until he decided I was adequately tied up, then he "untied me up."

He is such a funny little boy. Maybe he will be an Eagle Scout one day like his Daddy with his interest in knots. He will be good to have around on camping trips!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T11:07:00.001-04:00

Christ the Lord is risen today!

Hallelujah, He is risen indeed!!

Hoping everyone is having a wonderful Easter Sunday. We are going to head over to Goat's parents' house for Easter Seafood Fest 2009. Landis is looking forward to searching for eggs, especially after we told him that there would be CANDY inside! Should be a fun day.

Riding the Alligator

2009-03-26T14:52:00.004-04:00

Landis had a check up yesterday, and when we got to the doctor's office, he recognized the building. He got really excited, and told me, "Monni, alligator is here. We can ride alligator!"

I had no idea what he meant - there are no alligators at the doctor's office. We walked into the door and he ran up to the elevator and pushed the button to go up to the office on the 2nd floor. We got in and he said, "We are riding alligator!"

George Washington

2009-03-23T19:43:00.003-04:00

Meet Landis' comfort object, George Washington. This Fievel (from An American Tail) stuffed animal was mine when I was a child, and recently Landis has taken to carrying him wherever he goes. Because he has a long tail, Landis decided that he is a monkey. Thus, Fievel became (Curious) George.

Landis has been learning to differentiate between pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters, and I've been teaching him about the presidents whose faces appear on our coins. After we learned about the quarter, George gained a last name.

George Washington is nearly as tall as Landis, but that doesn't stop Landis from dragging him to and fro by his tail wherever he goes. George sleeps next to Landis at night, and has a prominent role in Landis' play during the day.

I didn't think Landis would ever pick a comfort object - for the first 2 years of his life, he didn't latch on to any of his toys or blankets. Apparently he was waiting for a little monkey/mouse named after our first president.

2009-03-23T14:58:00.003-04:00

My boy is so strange.

Landis just found one of my hairs on the floor. He brought it over and told me, "Some people have hair. Monni has hair. This hair is for you. It goes on yours head." He then proceeded to try to stick it back on.

2009-03-19T15:19:00.002-04:00

Landis is playing some strange game that involves him pretending to splash water on his face. I asked him what he was doing, and he responded, "I need to put more water in mine eyeball."

OK, baby boy, whatever you say!

2009-03-19T12:25:00.002-04:00

Landis is beginning to realize that Monni and Daddy have names other than Monni and Daddy. He is totally fascinated and trying to figure it all out. A conversation these days goes something like this: "Banana, please, Monni. Thank you, Erin Joy. This is good banana, Erin-Joy-Monni."

I'm sure he'll sort it out eventually. It's funny and cute, but also a reminder that my sweet little baby boy is growing up.

Sleeping Baby

2009-03-12T16:42:00.006-04:00

Type-Woke Walking Update

2009-03-12T16:40:00.002-04:00

Here is a video of Landis enjoying his new balance beam. :)

Future Engineer?

2009-03-11T23:26:00.003-04:00

Landis' new favorite question is "How it works?"

Fortunately for me, there's one simple answer to that question - "Go ask your Daddy!"

We let the engineers and future engineers sort these sort of questions out amongst themselves.

Snuggle Love

2009-03-09T15:25:00.004-04:00

Adorable Landis quote of the day ahead. As context, I tend to call Landis my however-he-is-acting love. E.g. my trouble love, goofy love, playful love, etc.

"I want to be Monni's snuggle love. You want to be Monni."

How could I ever hope to resist snuggling my sweet little snuggle love?

2009-03-09T15:18:00.004-04:00

Landis is feeling sick. He's managed to come down with a cough, runny nose, pink eye, ear infection, etc, etc all at once. We are heading to the doctor's office tomorrow morning.

This afternoon, he seemed to be doing a little bit better. I asked him how he was feeling. He shrugged and said, "Not feeling very well."

Poor little guy - but great job on the adverb/adjective distinction!

Nick-uh-rawg-uh-cuh

2009-03-09T15:13:00.004-04:00

My brother Paul is headed to Nicaragua (I've tried to replicate Landis' pronunciation above) for a mission trip with Love, Light and Melody. Please keep him in your prayers over the next week. :) We are looking forward to meeting him for lunch Sunday when he returns and hearing all about his amazing adventures!

Elbow Clock

2009-03-08T10:33:00.003-04:00

Landis is fascinated by his Daddy's wristwatch. Yesterday, he found a roll of tape and slipped it onto his arm. It was too loose around his wrist, so he moved it further up his arm and ran to tell us, "Monni, Daddy, this my elbow clock!"

2009-03-07T17:02:00.003-05:00

Landis was really excited about taking a trip to his Grandma and Papa's house with his Daddy one evening this week. That afternoon, excited and grinning, he told me all about his plans for the trip.

"Landi goes to Grandma and Papa's house. Play with toys. Play with Grandma. Play with Papa. Look at Papa's boat. Eat a cookie." Then his face fell, and he told me about the end of the trip in his saddest voice. "Have to say goodbye to Grandma and Papa. Give Grandma a kiss. Give Papa a kiss. Get in car, buckle seat. Go bye bye."

Don't be too sad, Landis. We will go to see your Grandma and Papa again soon.

Spring is Coming!

2009-03-02T12:20:00.002-05:00

My lime tree has little buds! They smell so good. I wonder if we will get some limes this year? I wasn't expecting the tree to produce for another year or two, but it would be a very welcome surprise! The lemon tree, on the other hand, is not doing well. I think the week of cold weather we had may have done it in.

Pictures to follow once I locate the camera...

Turkey Apple Sausages

2009-02-26T17:38:00.002-05:00

I found a great recipe for turkey apple sausages. Check out the recipe here. They were really good. We had the sausages and scrambled eggs for lunch/brunch today. I didn't think I liked sausage, but I like these ones!

2009-02-23T18:17:00.003-05:00

Landis usually wakes up from his naps happy, refreshed, and ready to play, but this afternoon he woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He kept fussing until I came and picked him up. We sat down on the couch together and he kept fussing until he found the best and most cuddly spot in my lap. Then he smiled, looked up at me and said, "That's perfect, right there." He stopped fussing and snuggled for a few minutes and then was ready to get up and play.

2009-02-22T21:43:00.003-05:00

Landis has a new obsession: type-woke walking (known to some of us as tightrope walking.) There is a picture in one of his books of a tightrope walker in a circus, and he has decided that he would like to emulate that illustration. We've been encouraging him to try walking in a straight line on the grout between rows of tiles, and are planning to set up a low balance beam in the back yard. It's nice that he is interested in activities that will improve his balance and coordination, and we feel pretty comfortable about his safety on the ground or only a few inches above it.

This evening, though, he decided to practice tightrope walking along the edge of the kitchen table, above the tiled floor. He just about scared me to death! He now knows that the table is off limits for his "type-woke walking" adventures. I'm amazed we've managed to stay away from the ER this long... Here's hoping that we make it another 2 years without an ER visit!

Landis' Bible Commentary

2009-02-22T21:05:00.004-05:00

Landis and I read the story of Samuel being called by God in his little toddler's Bible today. God keeps calling Samuel, but Samuel thinks that Eli, the priest, is the one who is calling and keeps waking him up. Finally, Eli tells Samuel that God is the one talking to him. After I finished reading, Landis said, "Look - this Samuel. It is night. Waked up. Samuel is tired. God is tired too."

Landis Quote of the Day

2009-02-21T23:13:00.003-05:00

"I'm not cute trouble, I'm just trouble!"

Landis Ludwig, Space Explorer

2009-02-14T09:25:00.004-05:00

Landis and I just read a book about Sam, a monkey who was sent up into space in a rocket in the 50s. Landis is inspired. He just told me, "Landis go up in rocket. Bring special monkey. Go to moon. Not see Monni and Daddy ever."

Landis, you have to at least come back for a visit!!

2009-02-12T09:43:00.003-05:00

Landis and I just finished tidying his room. I walked into the living room to grab a couple of toys that were on the floor there, but ran back to his room when I heard a crash. Landis had overturned a big bucket of toys. Exasperated, I asked him why he had done that when we had just put those toys away. He shrugged and said, "Monni, sometimes I make a mess."

Happy Birthday

2009-02-10T17:15:00.001-05:00

Caleb!!! We love you. Have fun being 9!

Adorable Figure of Speech

2009-02-10T17:14:00.003-05:00

When Landis sees someone mowing, edging, trimming, planting, or otherwise working in their yard, he says they are "lawning." He gets really excited when we take a walk on the weekend. "Monni, look! Neighbors all lawning!"

Landis the Artist

2009-02-10T13:22:00.003-05:00

Landis is coloring. To the uninitiated eye, it looks like a bunch of meaningless scribbles, but if you ask Landis, he will explain the scene to you. Here is his explanation of today's drawing.

"Landi draw Johnny, Caylo, Josh, Paul. See? Josh, Caylo, Paul, Johnny. Moon, stars are here. Color more stars. Color a cloud. Look at moon! Moon's light on, shine in sky. See? This Jesse Bear."

Negatives

2009-02-09T18:47:00.003-05:00

Landis has been figuring out the meaning of words like "no" and "don't" and "not" recently. He practices as often as he can. I asked him today to "Come over here to Monni."

"Okay. *points to self* Is not Monni. This Landis. That *points to me* not Landi. That Monni."

He does this at the zoo too. I say, "Look at that giraffe, Landis!"

And he says, "That is not rhinoceros. That is giraffe."

He's also obsessed with the word "only", though he hasn't quite grasped the meaning. We were grocery shopping a few days ago and passed a cart which contained a bag of dog food. He asked what it was, and I explained it was food for dogs, and not for little boys.

"Oh! Only dogs eat it. Only Landi doesn't eat it." While dog food is only good for dogs, not eating dog food is a pretty common trait for those of us over the age of 3 or 4. I explained that Monni and Daddy don't eat dog food, and, in fact, most people don't eat it either. We'll see when he figures "only" out.

It is so much fun having a talking little boy, and I am loving every minute of it!

2009-02-09T15:21:00.001-05:00

Landis cracks me up. I looked over and he has put his toy dinosaur into one of my my smelly, sweaty tennis shoes and is tenderly cradling both dinosaur and shoe. He saw me looking at him and said, "Look, Monni. I put my baby dinosaur in!"

Hopefully by the time he becomes a Daddy to a real baby he will have learned not to carry the poor kid around in stinky gym shoes. (Although if he hasn't figured it out, I'm sure a newborn or 2 could fit into Uncle Paul's shoes! :) )

Poor Landis

2009-02-04T11:07:00.006-05:00

He inherited all of my worst characteristics.

Here we have Landis "Not a Morning Person" Ludwig in his favorite shirt.

As he says: "Is my favorite. Josh got it for me! Has al'gators on it. Also helmets."

Everytime he wears it (and he wants to wear it every day, and gets up set when it needs to be washed) Landis wants to call Josh to thank him and have a chat about the Gators. Funny boy...

One time when Landis was about 6 months old I tried to wake him up in the morning before he was ready. I talked to him, gave him kisses and rubbed him back, but he didn't so much as move a muscle. I flipped him over onto his back. He didn't flinch. I grabbed his arms and pulled him into a sitting position. His eyes remained resolutely shut as he flopped forward back onto the bed. I took off his pajamas and dressed him. Nothing. Picked him up and popped him into a sling. He made a slight grunt, the only sign of life so far. Walked out to the car and put him in his carseat. He rested his head on the side of the seat and kept sleeping. Arrived at our destination, pulled him out of the carseat and back into the sling and started walking around. He woke up an hour later, when he was good and ready to be awake and not a moment sooner.

2009-02-04T10:11:00.003-05:00

I've been trying to teach Landis to be respectful of other people's belongings, and to think about the effects of his actions on others. Every time he plays with one of Goat's, Aaron Scott's or my things, we go through this conversation about how it is important to take care of other people's things and return them in the same condition they were in when they were borrowed, and how it makes people feel sad when their things are broken. Here is a conversation we had yesterday.

Landis: Monni, Monni, Monni! *tugs on my skirt* Orange, please.

Me: Okay, Landis.

Landis: Peel it, please.

Me: Of course, silly boy.

Landis: Monni no drop orange on floor. Monni break Landi's orange, make Landi too sad.

He made this ridiculously over exaggerated sad face, and I couldn't suppress a giggle as I assured him I would take good care of his orange and not drop it on the floor.

He got my sweet tooth...

2009-02-04T09:19:00.003-05:00

Me: What do you want for breakfast?

Landis: *noncommittal shrug*

Me: You can have cereal and fruit or eggs and toast.

Landis: OR Landis could have candy!

As the smell of regurgitated Goldfish wafted through the air

2009-01-29T20:09:00.006-05:00

I suddenly but irrevocably lost all desire to eat that deliciously cheesy snack food ever again.

In related news: Landis has a stomach bug. We've fallen into a pattern of about 18 hours of fitful, feverish sleep and intermittent vomiting, followed by 6 hours of relative good health and happiness. My poor little boy is miserable. He keeps crying as nausea overtakes him "No more! All done! All done!" I feel so powerless. There is nothing to do but keep him clean and well hydrated, and to just be present for him, physically and emotionally. Get better soon, sweet little Landi-love!