vacuum

So my son likes to vacuum. This rather unhealthy obsession with the vacuum started several months ago when Matthew found an empty cardboard roll that was the inside of a roll of wrapping paper and began pretending it was a vacuum cleaner. We thought it was really cute and imaginative of him, so we applauded his creativity and encouraged the play.
Within a few days, he started visiting our vacuum cleaner that we keep in the utility room. He would periodically stop playing and run in the back room and point at the vacuum and laugh. Everytime we would vacuum, he would just laugh and smile and chase the vacuum, then he began to want to hold the vacuum, and eventually we just gave in and let him actually vacuum.
Now he can say vacuum like "va-youm". He says it a lot.
For Christmas, Santa (My mother) gave him the best present any little boy could ask for. His very own shiny new candy apple red dirt devil pretend vacuum cleaner with upright and hand-held options and a detachable hose for cleaning those hard to reach areas.
It makes noise and everything.
So there we all were Christmas morning sitting around the tree, I, as always, with my trusty video camera on and running to tape Matthew's reaction to all the presents Santa had left for him. He was timid and tentative at first and shyly walked up to the tree, looking at the toys. He gasped several times asking "what's that" pointing at the toys. Then he saw it...
He grabbed that vacuum so fast saying "va youm, va youm" All day long. Va youm.
We tried to show him the rest of his toys. He scoffed at them.
After 2 hours of Va youm, he did attend to the etch a sketch for 3 minutes with his right hand refusing to relinquish his trusty va youm with the other.
This is still happening.
I called my mother Christmas afternoon to tell her what she has done. She laughed.
I put Matthew on the phone with her so she could hear the constant "va youm". She laughed some more.
He is really cute with his va youm and now I'll have black mail pictures for the rest of his life.

Visit with Santa Claus (AKA terror at Moorestown Mall)

Today we went to the mall to see Santa. Matthew was dressed so cute in his red Christmas sweater and William in a Christmas onsie with polar bears on the feet. While in line, Matthew was smiling, saying Ho Ho Ho, and everyone was happy. When it was our turn, I placed William on Santa's lap, William has begun to smile in the past few days so he gave Santa a big grin, Matthew was boldly walking up to Santa with no reservation. I, armed with video camera, watched with delight as my children were to take their first Santa picture. Then it happened, a total Santa meltdown. Matthew got close enough to Santa to realize he is not a benevolent old man who eats cookies and drinks milk, but is in fact a large, scary, horrible creature that eats small children. Matthew lost it. Screaming and running and hiding behind Chris' leg. I, still armed with video camera, watched helplessly as all the other parents in line shielded their children from Matthew's horror in fear their children would also realize they were about to be eaten by Santa.
We finally got Matthew on the poor man's lap for all of 3 seconds while the lady took the picture. Needless to say, the picture is hysterical. Matthew is just screaming and William is staring at him making the funniest face like "what's wrong with you" and the Santa is NOT smiling.

You'd think our terrorizing the Moorestown mall would have ended there, but oh no, the Howell's do it up right.
Matthew then went to toss coins into the fountain, which is conveniently located right next to the Santa display which was great so Matthew could keep an eye on the shifty Santa.
Matthew began by tossing coins then sticking his hand in the water, then his whole arm, then began splashing the water all over the floor. On attempts to remove him from the fountain, he began hitting and screaming, throwing himself on the floor, and attempting to heave himself into the fountain. Being the excellent mother I am, all I could do was laugh, especially when I noticed the 2 security guards who had been undoubtedly called to stop the small child from jumping into the fountain. They were laughing at me. Chris and I just sat there and laughed. Jackie, Chris' mother, walked away clearly not wanting to be seen with us and Aunt Dolly sort of stood there not knowing what to do.
Nope, still not over.
We finally got to the exit of the mall with Matthew just having a total meltdown and I gave him a French fry from the Arby's bag that was to be for his dinner. This appeased him momentarily until I tried to put his soaking wet arm into his jacket. He again began to cry but this time when he cried, mushed up half eaten French fry all fell out of his mouth all over the mall floor.
Chris just picked him up and carried him sort of like a football out of the mall. I followed with William in the stroller, who had begun to cry also. Jackie had already left and Dolly followed a good distance behind me.
The picture from the Santa is proudly hanging on my fridge to remind me to shoot myself before taking my kids to the mall ever again.

First snow of the year

This year, Matthew is old enough to understand snow. The first snow of the year occurred December 8. Matthew kept calling it "oh no" and running to the window to look at it, we did not get to see it fall since it snowed in the middle of the night. Chris scooped some up and tried to get Matthew to touch it, but no go.

The second snow fell during the day and Matthew got to walk around in the falling "oh no". At first he wouldn't even walk through it, but he got brave and started playing in it. We had a good time. I can't wait until we get enough to build a snowman.

William slept through the whole process :)

New Orleans to New Jersey

We decided to move away from New Orleans about a year after Hurricane Katrina. Since both of us lived in New Orleans basically all of our lives, this decision was very difficult, but the economy was not improving and we had to go. We searched many cities and decided between the Philadelphia area and Charlotte. Obviously, we ended up in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.

The transition to the North has been filled with many challenges, but overall it is nice.
The biggest hurdle is the winter. We had never really seen snow much less drive and operate in it.

The first time the ground froze, we couldn't get the car into the garage, we just spun the tires in the driveway. The neighbors had to come out and stop us from pouring water on the ground in an attempt to melt the ice under the tires.

I truly did not understand cold weather until living up here, just as I'm sure the people up here do not understand New Orleans heat. We're adjusting.

How we met

I was working at a hospital in New Orleans doing outpatient therapy. One day, I had a very difficult patient, one I almost had to call security on. I kept having to interrupt my team leader, who is also an outpatient OT, for assistance with my patient. I commented to her that her patient, who had surgery to repair an old shoulder injury, was very cute. Well, she told him. He left his phone number for me. I had no intention of calling him, but my friends urged me, and after several glasses of wine, I called him. We had a delightful conversation and decided to go on a date the following week as I was leaving for an adventure filled vacation to Costa Rica the next day (thanks to my friend Kim. I wanted to lounge on the beach in Cancun, but Kim wanted to drive across Costa Rica and stay in a hotel on a volcano and be chased by cattle).

Anyway...

On our date, we went to eat at an Italian restaurant, but ended up only drinking wine and talking for 2 hours. The waitress was not pleased. Then we went to have drinks at a restaurant on Lake Pontchartrain, and he kissed me.

After that, we were basically together everyday. 3 months later, we went to Disney World and at sunset, sitting at the American Pavilion in Epcot, Chris asked me to marry him. I said yes, and a mere 20 months and one Clavicle fracture later, we were married.

Getting started

OK, I am totally new to this blogging this, so bear with me while I learn :)