About 1 Year Later

I have realized that we have been Iowa homeowners for over a year now. This weekend will mark Joel's arrival here 1 year ago. Time has flown. I just finished painting the trim on the front of the house. We hung shutters recently too. I decided to take compare what our house looks like now as compared to a year ago. It certainly isn't as dramatic as our house in Bozeman, but I think it looks better.

September 2008:July 2009:

Though it is hard to see in the pictures, the trees have been pruned a lot, there are more flowers, and the grass is a whole lot happier, thicker, greener and just plain nice. Wally has also grown a little over the year.

I finally got some pictures of Wally on his trike. He loves it! He has gotten really good at pedaling, steering, stopping and backing up (as he demonstrates in the video). He is also good about staying near the house and on the sidewalks with it.

Thanks Grandma and Papa!

South Dakota Part I: The Daughenbaugh Gang.

Before I get into our trip to South Dakota, I will share a few pictures of Iowa. Our garden in crazy huge! The tomatoes are taller than I am. We have eaten many cherry tomatoes already. We also had fresh corn on the cob last night. Iowa corn!

There is a cool fungus growing on our tree right out of our back door. You don't see that in Montana!

Wally is a great traveler, still. He helped me pick out a "long road trip toy" the day before we left...a fishing pole. That was hours of fun on both drives. I also found him a magnetic mix and match animal puzzle book. I still don't know how he does it, and with being in the middle (or end) of potty training.

We had a great time with Jason, Katie, Reder and Ruby (and of course Grandma and Papa). We all went to Storybook Island. What a wonderful place! Wally was obsessed with the train. He wanted to just stand by the tunnel and wait for it to drive through. Only a baby goat was able to entice him away, but not for long. Luckily, this was just the first of the fun rides Wally got while in SD. Why Wally and I will never grow up: Wally brought her swimming pool to share with the boys. Wally sure thought it was great! Watch out Ruby!!! I think Ruby is going to be more like Wally than Reder. She seems to have no fear, and certainly no issues with being messy and dirty. Wally loved looking through Papa's binoculars. He spent lots of time looking at the trees and birds. We also went to the Reptile Gardens. It was a big hit, especially for Ruby. She was so facinated by all of the animals...and who would have guessed that they all make an oinking sound?!?! The giant tortoises were really cool. Their necks were so soft and they loved to be rubbed under their chins like cats and dogs. The oldest was 128! How do they know that? We also made ice cream in a bag. So cold, so fun, and so yummy! Well, Baby Ruby is still just plain cute. I really think she should have come home with us. She looks more like us and acts more like Wally...I think she was meant to be ours!
We all managed to make it to town to visit my Grandma. She was playing the piano when we got there. It was so special to hear her play again. Wally was great with all of the residents. He wasn't scared or anything (until the camera came out). Wally and Reder thought it was neat when Great Grandma played "Happy Birthday." Later in the week, we got Great Grandma out to the ranch. Wally remembered her as the "piano Grandma." She played the harmonica for him at the ranch. Always a treat! Jason, Katie, Joel, and I went to lunch while Grandma and Grandpa were supposed to rest. It was fun hanging out with them. I sure miss them! We ate at an old firehouse, hence the fire hats. Wally keeps asking, "Where Reder is?" Though they don't see eachother often, there is definitely a special connection between them. We hope we can all get together again soon.

Fourth of July Fun

We had a great 4th of July. What fun it is to have a kid! Despite down pouring rain, we went to the parade in Coralville. It is a huge parade and lasted 1.5 hours, despite the marching bands not marching, and probably other floats not appearing due to the rain. It seriously did not stop raining at all during the whole parade! They tossed lots of candy and goodies, most of which landed in the gushing water on the side of the street. We managed to save a good deal of it. Luckily, rain in Iowa doesn't mean cold. It was only in the low 60s, but that doesn't feel so cold here. Flipflops are a perfect fit for Iowa.

Wally and I tried to huddle under an umbrella, while waving and catching candy. We were both pretty soaked, but happy!

There would be short breaks in the parade, and Wally would get so excited when he saw it coming again...hence the song and dance.

During nap time, Joel decided to take a self-portrait to show that our corn is a bit taller than "knee-high by the 4th of July,"

After naptime, we set off a few smoke bombs, a monster truck, some fountains and a few sparklers. I think Wally takes after me... he loved all of them!

Joel then worked on his parenting skills and locked Wally in the new dog kennel. Wally seemed to think it was fun.
We finished out a perfect day by going downtown to watch fireworks. We first decided to go to a park on the hill to avoid crowds, but then started worrying that we wouldn't be able to see them. So, we packed up, and walked downtown.

It was a great fireworks show. The picture below is pretty bad, but it kinda shows what we got to watch. We were right by the Pentacrest (the old Iowa capital building) and the fireworks were being set off on the other side. It was rather patriotic feeling seeing the flags on top of the gold dome. They also had music playing which added to it. Wally thought it was great. He still talks about the fireworks..."Boom!"

Fountain Fun

It was really hot one weekend recently (It has actually been cool lately - 60s and 70s!). So, we went downtown to let Wally play in the fountains. He had a great time playing with all of the other kids and getting nice and wet. He was disappointed when the water was turned off because a thunderstorm arrived. Joel and I love how diverse Iowa City is. It is a great environment to raise kids.

Belly dancing

He learned how to do this all by himself!

Out of order.

Somehow my most recent blog (Mud) ended up out of order. It is below potty training. Sorry!

A visit with Gramma Kathy and Papa Murr

We were lucky enough to have Gramma Kathy and Papa Murr visit us for a few days at the end of June. They were finishing up a 2 week road trip that hit Texas, Tennessee, and many places in between. Wally thought it was so cool that they drove their "house car" (RV) to his house! Gator, their puppy, was also here. Wally thought he was pretty fun.

Joel had to work the whole time they were here, but Kathy and Wally allowed me to tag around with them. We went to the Children's Museum, which is always a hit. Wally did some shopping...

Some fishing...

Some farming (note the paparazzi that seemed to follow him all week)...

Some race car detailing...

Some dancing...

Gramma did some canoeing...Wally jumped overboard before I could snap the picture.

Another morning, Wally, Gramma, Gator, and I took a hike. It was hot...even at 9:30am in the shade!

Wally is intrigued with the vines in Iowa and tries to play Tarzan (sorry for the sidewaysness of the video)...

For our last night with Gramma Kathy, we went to Dairy Queen for "special ice cream." Wally sure loved his ice cream cone.

Potty Training

Hi All. We officially started potty training on Monday. Over the weekend, we got Wally a potty seat that just sits down on normal toilet seats, but has a smaller hole and therefore support for his legs. Having Elmo, Big Bird, and Cookie Monster on it doesn't hurt either. He was quite excited about it, so on Monday when he made a little tinkle tinkle, Wally and I went "Big Kid" shopping.


Believe it or not, he has out grown his car seat. So, we bought him a big kid booster chair. It seems so strange to go from a car seat that has to be installed so tightly that even the strongest man can't giggle it and the kid has to be strapped so tightly that they can't move at all, to a booster chair that doesn't attach to the car at all and only uses the car's seatbelt. Hmm... Wally seems happy, and it is much easier. He crawls in and I can buckle him from the front seat.

Wally got to pick out some big boy underwear...he chose dinosaurs. I picked out some pull-ups that supposedly get cold when they get wet. I figured that might be good for Wally so that he might become more aware of when he pees...I haven't noticed that he notices the cold though...maybe subconsciously he is noticing. Plus, how cold can warm pee get?

To top it all off, before we went shopping, we boxed up Wally's "baby stuff" off of his changing table and moved the changing table to the spare room. We got rid of the diaper genie too. Well, there was a big empty space in Wally's Big Boy room, so we needed to go buy a special big boy toy to put there instead. We finally settled on a matchbox car track thingy. He thinks its pretty cool.

So, how is potty training going? Well, let's say that I have been doing a lot of praying for patience. Wally will sit on the potty without too much of a battle (and a little candy bribery), but actually peeing is a different story. We will sit on the potty for a good 15 minutes reading books and singing songs, and the minute he gets off...pee all over the floor. However, this morning, we reached a much needed milestone for both of us...peepee in the potty! So far, he has peed 3 times in the potty today (granted once was just a tinkle and then a puddle a couple minutes later on the carpet). He gets so excited, and so do I. Pretty sure he will get potty trained someday, but I know that it won't be as easy as it was with Reder. Wish us luck! You all might be getting phone calls from Wally about him peeing on the potty. Just pretend you are as excited as I am! Wally had to call Daddy at work after pee #3.

I'll keep everyone updated on my son's bodily fluids, and will try to post some pictures soon...there's just so much laundry to do and carpet to clean!

Story for Gramma Kathy: Joel had a softball game last night. The whole time we were there, Wally kept saying, "Candy Mommy?" and heading to the concession stand. Thanks Gramma! He stopped once I told him that when Gramma comes back, she will by him more. Guess you better come back! We did stop for "special ice cream" on the way home.