The Crawling Adventures of Henry

Henry gets into all sorts of trouble, lately. Gleefully dumping toys all over the floor, he yells in triumph.

Here he is a few days ago, crawling away from me with one sock and no pants.

He was headed over to investigate one of my shopping bags. Apparently, the tissue paper was delicious.

He's only been alive for a few months, but Henry has the same curiosity as any man about what is inside those pink striped bags. He had to dump it out.

Emptying kitchen cabinets is another hobby of little Henry's. We have a baby-safe cabinet set up just for him and Nick.

The world is full of new things to explore and new messes to make. At least that is the way Henry sees it.

"I am kind of dirty, and I decided I need to have a bath."

One of Nick's birthday presents this year was a set of finger paint soap for the bathtub. He has been asking us for a bath ever since. I told him it was almost time for bed, and here's what he said. "Mommy, I am kind of dirty, and I decided I need to have a bath."

Greg immediately chimed in with, "Nick, you took a shower this morning." Then he said to me, "You know why he's asking for a bath, right? It's those finger paints for the tub." He was right.

I was up for some fun times, though, and I told my boy he could have a bath anyway. "With paint?," he asked? "Yes, Nick," I said. "With paint." Nick and I started out with the red paint, and my bathroom looked like the shower scene from Psycho. Things looked better once I took out the blue paint.

Finger painting is very fun, and Nick is not afraid to get dirty.

We experimented with mixing colors and writing letters with the paint. I made an N and an H, and then Nick made an O. What a mess!

We decided painting time was over when soap got into Nick's eyes. The funny part is, once I got the soap out, he wanted to scrub the paint off the walls himself with the washcloth. I think he enjoyed that as much as the painting, for some reason.  :)

What I Should Be Doing. . .

What I Should Be Doing:

1. Working on the 4+ loads of laundry piling up. Between the three onesies Henry has been through today, and all of the wet man panties and shorts Nick has gone through, I really need to get started on this.

2. Editing my 30 page chapter, which is due by Sunday at the latest. I'm way behind.

3. Making sure that I got all of the oatmeal clumps cleaned up after breakfast this morning. The sheer scope of the sticky oatmeal disaster was enormous. That stuff is like glue, not to mention the blueberries that Nick somehow squished.

4. Cleaning the breast pump for the umpteenth time today.

5. Making a grocery list. We're out of everything.

6. Weeding my garden. Enough said about that.

7. Doing my monthly budget and paying bills.

8. Deciding how to make a healthy dinner tonight out of leftover smorgasbord.

9. Finishing addressing the birth announcements. I'm way behind on that.


What I Am Actually Doing:

1. Helping Nick build a garage for all of his cars.

2. Cuddling with Henry. He seems to have some kind of tummy irritation, and he kept us up all night, making sad faces. Poor guy. The only thing that calms him is skin to skin contact.



Doesn't it look like he's waving at you?






































3. Taking a nap. Right. Now. Yawn.

Wordless Wednesday

I just realized. . .

That I never once got my child dressed this weekend. He did, however, wear four different pairs of pajamas.

He also trashed the entire house. Twice. . . no, thrice. I love the picture below because it shows the destruction in progress. I wonder if this is cabin fever?

Nick also decided to call his daddy on the phone. He probably would have succeeded in calling someone for real, if my phone didn't have a lock function. So if you ever get a weird call from me, it might just be that Nick figured out how to unlock my cell phone. He's already figured out how to pull my purse down from the counter, unscrew my lip gloss, apply it, and smear it on the floor. That's also how he got my phone.

Yes, I know he has chocolate on his face. I wiped it after I took this video. He'd snuck a cookie from the counter without me noticing, and it'd smeared everywhere. I only noticed when he turned around while I was taking videos. Nicholas has a thing for chocolate. I think his little brother must, too, because I've been craving on the chocolate really hard lately.



Christmas Post #4: Santa Came Late

Since we spent Christmas Eve night and all of Christmas Eve day at my mother-in-law's house, Santa decided to hold off on leaving presents until the night of the 25th. Since Nick cannot read a calendar yet, no harm done.  ; )   He was pretty excited when he came downstairs to find what Santa had left him.

Santa noticed that Nick loves building with his Mega Bloks, which I picked up from http://www.napervilleyardsales.com/ last year for $7. So he brought Nick a whole new box of Mega Bloks, plus a table for building. He was duly impressed.

Nick also got a neat train puzzle that, when completed, makes train noises. Plus, Santa brought him a stamp set with vehicles and colored pencils, so that Nick can stamp his own airplanes and fire trucks and then color them in. Or, he can get ink everywhere and smear it on the furniture. Either way, he'll have fun.

I have decided that next year, (from Santa at least) Nick will get one thing to play with, one thing to wear, and one thing to read. I'm sure Santa will agree that this is for the best. My boy is already spoiled silly by presents from all of his grandparents and various other relatives. I cannot imagine the intense level of toys that will hit my home once I have two little boys at various stages of development.  I can imagine, however, that it will be great fun.   : )  It's a very good thing I'm not afraid of messes.

 



And So It Begins. . .

What, you say? What begins? Well, the joys of potty training. Last weekend Greg and I bought Nick his own little potty. He's been talking about using the potty for awhile, but I don't really believe in pushing kids into potty training too early. (Even though my mother insists I was potty trained at 18 months.)

However, since Nicholas is now two, I figured it wouldn't hurt to get him confortable with the idea of using a potty. He became incredibly excited when we were in the Target and he saw the potties. The store had conveniently put them on the bottom shelf, easily accessible to toddlers. So Nick tried sitting on each of them, insisting, "I go poopy on the potty!" Here's what we decided on:

We chose this model for ease of cleaning rather than style. The fancy ones with the buttons and sound effects were cute in the store, but I could imagine them being rather gross to clean out. This one had fewer crevices. Plus, Nick liked it. He kept pointing to it in the back of the cart as we shopped, exclaiming, "That's my potty!" to anyone who walked past. We figured he was enthusiastic enough to at least give it a try.

I do have more experience than your average mom in this challenging endeavor called potty training. You see, I supported myself through most of my high school and college years by working in daycare centers. I even spent an entire summer working in the "2s" room, along with another adult plus sixteen two-year-olds. Our goals were 1.) to potty train them, 2.) to prevent them from biting one another, and 3.) to try to get them to take afternoon naps. Sound easy? Let's just say they were like a game of whack-a-mole: you get most of them to take a nap, and then somebody pees on the floor. As you're cleaning up that mess, somebody bites somebody else and the resulting cries wake up three more children, one of whom has a dirty diaper. While you're cleaning up that stinky mess, the other two bite one another, leading to more crying, and, ultimately, more peeing on the floor. I remember spending a lot of time with bleach water, and even more time writing up "biting reports." There is a very good reason I did not even consider having children before age 30. Anyhow, whenever I get frustrated with Nick, I just remember that summer and try to think of what it would be like with fifteen more of him. Then I smile and give my boy a hug.

Anyhow, back to our ill-fated first potty training attempt. I should warn sensitive readers that this is not a story to read while eating a snack. In fact, if you are at all grossed out by potty-type talk, please just stop reading right here.

***Warning*** Gross but funny story ahead

From my considerable potty training experience, I did learn that for very young little boys, they need to connect the dots and figure out when they are peeing. You have to be lucky enough to catch them peeing and get some in the potty. Then a lightbulb goes on and they start to get what to do (hopefully). We started out by giving Nick a nice big cup of orange juice. We hardly ever give Nick juice of any kind, but since we all have colds I figured the Vitamin C would be good for us. Over the course of about an hour, Nick drank about 14 ounces of orange juice. He told us "I go potty!" so Greg took him into the bathroom and showed him how to sit on his new potty.

Nicholas was super-excited about the potty, though he didn't really want to sit on it much. He was more interested in pulling out the bowl, touching the froggy's eyes, and even wearing it like a hat. I suggested to Greg that perhaps we should just leave Nick sans diaper for awhile, and try to catch him peeing. Nick certainly was happy enough wandering around naked, and we have hardwood floors. I decided that after all of that orange juice, something was sure to happen soon.

Fast forward about an hour. Not only has no pee decided to appear, Nick has determined that the potty is the greatest toy ever. He especially likes to sit on it with one foot in the bowl, and put toys into it. Since it was nearly dinnertime, we were about ready to give up and put the diaper back on. Then comes the gross part.

I'm sure you've guessed it by now. #2. All over the floor in a giant pile, about a foot from the potty. Nick announced immediately afterward, "I go poopy!" Never have I seen such a look of horror on my husband's face. Indeed, the look on his face alone made me start laughing hysterically as we tried to stop Nick from spreading it around the living room. Greg cleaned up the worst of the mess as I scrubbed Nick the tub. I laughed the entire time, because, at that point, what else can you do? It was my own fault for leaving the diaper off for so long. My daycare experience served me well after that, when I remembered how to make a 10:1 bleach water solution to sanitize both the floor and the potty.

As for Nick, he didn't seem to care at all about the mess he had made. But he was really, really ticked off when I had to wrestle him into a diaper after his bath. Nick wanted naked time to go on forever. He never did pee, at least not that night. However, when Greg woke him up this morning, he had soaked through his pajamas, blankets, and sheets. My boy must have a super bladder to have held it that long.

We'll try again this week, but I am not in a hurry. I know that this process can take a long time, and I will make it into a power struggle if we try to push it too soon. A power struggle with a two-year-old is one that will definitely be lost. Nick is still excited about his potty, so we'll go slowly and try periodically as our patience allows. Most importantly, I know I have to keep a sense of humor about the whole thing.

Semi-Naughty Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies and a Cookie Thief

In our little family, chocolate is the ultimate food. Even Nick loves all kinds of chocolate--even the darkest chocolate. But my husband noticed yesterday that his dress pants were a little bit tight. I've been trying to eat healthier as well.

I believe in treating myself, though just in small portions. I suppose I could also call these compromise cookies, since they're slightly healthier without tasting like "diet food." For me, lowering sugar and raising the amount of fiber are dietary goals. This recipe is a combination of several I found online, with a few of my own twists. The whole wheat flour and flaxseed give these cookies some fiber, and I've lowered the sugar somewhat. Don't worry, though, these cookies are very chocolatey. Enjoy!

Semi-Naughty Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Start out by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the following in a metal bowl:


• 1 cup butter, well softened (It's okay if a little of the butter melts--it'll make the cookies chewier.)
• ¾ cup sugar
• ¾ cup baking splenda

Then combine the dry ingredients in a very large bowl:
• 2 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 2 cups of oats (I used the old-fashioned kind.)
• 1 cup semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

In yet another bowl, mix together:
• 2-3 T of ground flax seed
• 7 T of water
• 2 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1 egg

Add the liquid mixture to the butter mixture. Stir.

Pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl with the dry ingredients, and mix it all together. Above you can see what the dough looks like. Be careful not to overmix; that'll make your cookies tough. I used my hands to form small circles with the dough, and then I flattened them on the cookie sheet. These cookies don’t spread much while they bake, so it's okay to put them close together.

Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes. Then you can eat them, and if you only have a few, they're not too bad for you, either.  ;) 

Nick absolutely loved these cookies. I gave him one, and then another, and he just went bonkers, shouting "Cookie!" and stomping his little feet. I bet Greg will do the same when he gets home.




Do you think my boy likes chocolate? 

Yummy cookies. . .  mmmm

Acting His Age

Yesterday we went to a wedding. It was my cousin Amy's wedding, and it was at the Copernicus Center on the Northwest side of Chicago. The ceremony and reception were lovely, and we would have had a delightful time, if we'd left Nick with a babysitter. The food was phenomenal, especially the rice and the peppers. But we didn't get much time to enjoy anything. I knew my relatives would want to meet Nick, since many of them haven't seen him at all. My dad's side of the family is wonderful, and I don't get to see them very often. So I'm glad we brought him, but by the time we left, I was so tired I fell asleep in the car.

I don't have a lot of cute pictures from last night, and the reason is that Greg and I spent the entire time at the wedding and reception chasing and quieting a very active toddler. I managed to snap a few quick pictures at dinner, but that's about it.

I've tried not to be one of those parents who complains incessantly about their child's behavior. I think that children pick up on that, and live up to your poor expectations. Rather, I try to find the humor in situations where my son causes trouble, because I know that he's usually just acting his age. I also have a pretty good idea of what so-called "normal" behavior is for kids at different ages, because of my many years of working in day care centers. My kid has an easygoing temperment, and he's been great at eating, sleeping, and even following directions, at least most of the time. In the baby lottery, we hit the jackpot.

But Nick is still only 20 months old, and asking him to sit still and be quiet is just more than he can handle. Greg and I are still learning to deal with the embarrassment of public temper tantrums and such. There were plenty of other families with children. For some reason, though, our child was by far the loudest and the most obnoxious at this event. In retrospect, it's kind of funny, and I want to remember all of the cute/annoying/obnoxious/hilarious things he did. Here's how our evening went.

Problem #1: The rule of toddlers is that if you give them a bath and dress them in fancy clothes, they will inevitably get dirty. We arrived at the wedding just in time to realize two things: 1. Nick had filled his diaper to the brim, and 2. There was no changing table in the restroom. So we started our evening out in the 90 degree heat in our fancy clothes, wrestling with Nick in the back seat of the car, trying to change his diaper.

Problem #2: Nick loves music. This ceremony had some great classical music, played live by two musicians who were very good. However, any time they stopped playing the music, Nick would shout "Uh-oh!" very loudly. We stuck a binky in his mouth, but he'd just take it out and yell every single time the music stopped.

Problem #3: Nick has learned to talk. This is a wonderful thing, but we haven't figured out yet how to make him stop when it's quiet time. Such as when a wedding ceremony is in progress. The Copernicus Center's Theatre has a lovely ceiling that looks like the night sky, and Nick kept randomly pointing to things and naming them. Loudly. As in, "Sky!" or "Moon!" So the minister would be reading a solemn prayer, and Nick would suddenly pull out his binky and should, "Clock!" (There was a clock in the theatre, too.) Only he doesn't say it like that. He tends to leave out the "l" sound. Sigh.

Problem #4: Toddlers don't sit still. He had to be taken out of the ceremony because he started screaming to be let down. Greg had to run up the aisle and take him to play outside, and he missed the second half of the ceremony.

Problem #5: While we were upstairs having appetizers, Nick ran around stealing food from plates, smashing crackers into the carpeting, trying to drink out of people's glasses, and playing with toothpicks. He reminded me of that guy at the college parties, you know, the one who walks around finishing everyone's abandoned drinks. At one point, he tried to throw broccoli from the balcony and steal stuff from someone's purse. You'd think, "Well, why didn't you just carry him?" Yup, tried that. He screamed every time we picked him up for most of the evening.



Problem #6: We neglected to bring either the stroller or the booster seat. There were no high chairs either, so Nick had no restraint other than our arms. Thus the chocolate smears all over Greg's sleeve. I wish I'd taken a picture of Nick in his suit, post dinner. It was quite hilarious. But Nick still out ate most of the people at our table. He loved the food.  :)

For much of the evening, Nick screamed whenever we wanted him to sit with us. Greg and I ended up taking turns chasing him as he walked around. At one point, while Greg was getting his dinner, I was watching Nick and he ran away from me, right into the men's room. I had to recruit a nearby male to go and retrieve him. Nick thought the entire thing was hilarious.

We left pretty early, but still about an hour after Nick's bedtime. Honestly, we were afraid of what would happen if we stayed any later. Nick was as well-behaved as he could be, for a toddler at a wedding. Something tells me that later on, we'll look back on this night and smile.

More Birthday Traditions and an Ice Cream Mess

In my husband's family, it is customary to take the birthday girl or boy out to dinner to celebrate. Hey, if you're getting another year older, you might as well have a nice meal, a naughty dessert, and some company for commiseration. They also do this for mother's and father's day, and for any special event that seems important enough to warrant a meal. I actually really like this tradition, because it means we get to go out to eat a lot. I've even started spreading this tradition around by taking my family members out to dinner to celebrate their bithdays.

My mother-in-law took us out to celebrate my birthday, which was very nice of her. I chose Meson Sabika, which is my all time favorite restaurant. Check out this picture, though. The waitress took it, so I guess I can't blame it on my bad photography skills. Sarah and Nick look great, but the rest of us are making some very interesting facial expressions. I do not like the way I'm squinting in this picture, but it's the only one we have with all of us in it. I'm not sure what type of face Greg was making, or whether it was intentional or not. I suppose it must be hard to get five people all smiling nicely at the same time.

One of the reasons I love Meson Sabika so much is the beautiful building and grounds. Nick enjoys throwing mulch into the koi ponds and attempting to go swimming. I love the gorgeous flowers and the historic building. Nick attempted to drink the oddly green water from the pretty fountain. Greg attempted to block him from doing so. . . Ah, such is an evening out as parents.

Here's another classic facial expression from my sexy husband.  : )

This time at Meson Sabika, the waitress asked us if Nick would like his own bowl of ice cream, and we actually agreed. (!) He ate almost all of it himself, with a spoon.  We were very proud. Then, when most of the ice cream was melted. . . Well, see for yourself what he did. Don't worry, we forgave him, even though Greg did have to strip him down to his diaper, because he got ice cream on all of his clothes. His little tummy and legs were very, very sticky.

Brown Rice and Beans with Chicken Sausage

Nick loves to eat beans, whether they’re chickpeas or green beans or black beans. Last week, I made rice and beans for dinner, and boy, did he make a mess! This picture was taken after we took his bib off, if you can believe it.

This recipe is a favorite of his, and we make it quite often because it makes an insane amount of leftovers. Greg originally came up with the idea, although his version is more simple. Decently lowfat and healthy, this recipe provides fiber, protein, and vegetables. It’s also absolutely delicious, and it is quite cheap because I always make it when I have vegetables that are getting past their prime. For some reason, I never seem to get tired of this recipe. Enjoy!

Brown Rice and Beans with Chicken Sausage*


-3 T olive oil (or more, as needed)
-5 cloves of garlic, minced
-1 or 2 onions
-2 sweet peppers, chopped into little pieces
-5 cloves of garlic
-A couple of handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped
-8 to 10 mushrooms, chopped into tiny pieces
-2 cans of stewed tomatoes, not drained
-2 cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
-6 Chicken Sausages, sliced (We use Chicken-Apple-Gouda Sausage from Costco)
-At least 1 t each of red pepper and garlic powder (or more)
-2 C Brown Rice
-Tons of parmesan cheese to pour on top

*Disclaimer--I do not typically measure when I cook. However, I've made this recipe with multiple variations of the above ingredients and it always turns out yummy.

1. Heat up the olive oil on medium heat, and add in the garlic, onions, and peppers. They take the longest to cook. Make sure you don't burn the garlic.

2. At the same time, cook the brown rice according to the directions on the bag. I usually make about 2 cups so that I have lots of leftovers.

3. Start tossing in the spinach, one handful at a time. You might need to add more olive oil, if it looks too dry. It should look like this.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Add in the mushrooms, the spices, and the two cans of tomatoes. Let it simmer for awhile (15 minutes, perhaps), stirring frequently. You're going to let some of the tomatoey liquid boil off. Taste it to make sure you have enough spices added. I often add more red pepper if I'm in a particularly spicy mood. It will look something like this.
 

4. Add in the beans (drained!) and the chicken sausage. Cook for another 15 minutes on medium heat, or until the mixture is somewhat thick. Serve over the brown rice, and dump as much parmesan as you'd like on top. The finished dinner looks something like this (pardon the bad photograph). I usually serve this recipe with broccoli, a half slice of bread with butter, and a glass of milk. Enjoy!

Greg's Birthday Celebration

Today was Greg's 36th Birthday. It was a great day. We started out by having brunch at Meson Sabika this morning with Greg's dad and stepmom. It's funny how families have different birthday traditions. In Greg's family, there are cards but no actual presents, just a very nice meal. I like that tradition, especially when it involves tapas. Ever since I stayed in Spain for a month back in 2004, I've jumped at any chance to eat my favorite foods, like gambas al ajillo, and calamari a ala plancha, and champinones. (shrimp with garlic, grilled calamari, and stuffed mushrooms). We ate until we burst, and everything was delicious. Nick especially loved the fresh fruit, the shrimp, and the rice pudding. Oh, and he got a real kick out of the cup they gave him with the straw.

Ever since Nick was born, I've been using pictures of him to make my own cards for people. Basically, I take a picture of Nick and stick a hat and some props on him. It only takes a few minutes, and my family and friends really seem to appreciate a personalized card with a special message from Nick. There will come a point when he's old enough to forbid me to use his pictures in such a way. Not yet, though.  :)

Nick and I got Greg some new jeans, several very nice bottles of wine (A nice Pinot Noir and a few bottles of Australian Chardonnay), a new watch, and an ice cream cake. Can you see the excitement on both of their faces when they saw the ice cream cake?

I think Greg ended up with a pretty good birthday weekend. Friday, we went out with his mom and sister to Hugo's Frog Bar in Naperville. The food was superb, but they didn't seat us until 7:30 for a 7 pm reservation. Also, they didn't have a changing table. Of course, Nick had a dirty diaper. That's just Murphy's Law. Nick's Aunt Sarah and I were going to walk down to the Border's to change him, but Greg grabbed Nick and said he'd take care of it. I'm not sure what kind of miracle he finagled, but Nick got a clean diaper.

I think the funniest part of the day was when Nick got to demolish the ice cream cake. It was only a tiny piece, but boy, did he make a mess. Then daddy gave Nick a nice bubble bath, to get the chocolate out of his ears. Nice way to end a birthday celebration.

So why does Nick need a bath every night, anyway?

I have had quite an eventful evening. Nick has been as active as a monkey on speed, and I am therefore pretty exhausted. He seems to have gone from crawling to outright jogging in just a few weeks. Plus, I just spent the last twenty minutes cleaning up baby pee from all over the bathroom.  After cleaning a dirty diaper, I set Nick down on the bathroom floor while I ran him a bath. He has no control over that thing. It's like a fire hose on the loose. He managed to spray the floor, the cabinets, the clean towels, my socks, the rug, and the toilet seat cover. In hindsight, it was pretty funny, though I wasn't laughing. Nick was definitely laughing, though. He delighted in watching me crawl around cleaning up the mess.

Nick has had a lot of baths this week. Every day, in fact. Normally I wouldn't give a child a bath each day during the dead of winter, but there was no other choice. Suffice it to say that lately, my illustrious son has taken it upon himself to smear something or other into his hair every night, necessitating a bath. Tonight it was strawberries and creamed spinach. There just isn't a simple way to get that out of a baby's hair without a bath. But Nick really loves baths, so perhaps the food smearing is just a way to get an extra one.

I shouldn't say he was energetic all evening. When we first got home, he wanted to snuggle, and I sat down on the floor to play with him. Nick kept bringing me books and sitting down in my lap. Tonight he listened to five (yes, really!) books in a row. He especially likes the board books where he can turn the pages. He has an ABC book with a mirror on the "Y" page (for you), and he gets so excited when that page is coming up. In my opinion, sitting still for five books is pretty darned good for a 1-year-old. I think he would've sat for more if I hadn't had to get him his dinner.

These pictures were from last weekend at the DuPage Children's Museum. He really liked it there, because it was all hands-on. I took these pictures with the camera function on the videocamera, so that's why the quality is so poor. My regular camera has officially been mailed to Nikon, and until then, borrowed cameras or the videocamera are my only options. The wait to see if they'll honor their warranty is on. . .

Is there anything cuter, or messier. . .

than a baby eating spaghetti? I had to pull out the camera today at lunchtime, because Greg made the most delicious whole wheat linguine with a marinara cream sauce, sweet peppers, and garlic. Nick obviously enjoyed it, too, but the whole experience required 30 minutes of floor and highchair cleanup as well as a bath for Nick and a fresh outfit for me. He actually finished a pretty large serving, peppers and all. He even picked through the spaghetti to eat the vegetable chunks first. But boy, was it hard to clean out the sauce from inside his ears. I believe in letting kids eat the same foods as mommy and daddy, even if they are messy. I've spent a lot of time taking care of other people's children, both in daycare centers and as a teacher, and one thing I have decided is that kids live up to the expectations you set for them. Our expectation is that Nick will eat with us. I do not want to prepare separate meals for my kid. I hope that when he gets older and pickier, I can be strong and stick to my guns on this one. So far it has been pretty easy, because I have an easygoing child who loves to eat just about anything. We'll see what happens later on, when he gets older and more stubborn.

Above you can see Nicholas showing the world how much he likes this particular strand of linguine.

I finally knew he was done when he started flinging pieces of pasta at me. Then I knew it was time to start running a bath for my little messy man.