Before & After

Just yesterday the large dirt patch in our side yard looked like this:

Today, thanks to an early birthday gift from our daycare providers (aka my mom and dad) it looks like this:

This is The Willowdale from Toys R Us. Complete with a little one-bedroom condo.

It has a neat little picnic area where snacks of the Goldfish variety can be enjoyed.

Some pretty cool swinging options:

And let's not forget the most important, most fun part - the curly slide!

Thanks Grandma and Pop Pop!!

Wordless Wednesday: Playground Fun

Shadow Box

Hey, who's that skinny kid walking next to me??

Friday Flashback

January 2009.

He fell asleep while jumping like a maniac in his Rain Forest Jumperoo.

Because he didn't want to nap.

Because he was just as stubborn about napping at 4 months old as he is now at almost 2.

Banana. 

Tommee Tippee Explora Sippy Cup Review

Like many other toddler moms, I have been on a search for a truly leak proof sippy cup for Ish. And not only for daytime shenanigans - Ish likes to take a sippy of water to bed and I can't tell you how many times I've walked in to check on him at night only to discover that his sippy leaked and he's sleeping on wet sheets. Even when I thought for sure I had tightened the lid enough.

I have tried different brands and different spout styles with no luck. Well - our search is over. We have discovered the Tommee Tippee Explora cup and we're not turning back! Finally, a sippy cup that lives up to the hype.

The Explora has a pretty neat little drinking spout that Ish got comfortable with quite quickly. I was able to capture his first sip from the new cup (sorry for the diaper-only shot here, but we're not very formal when reviewing sippies).

You can see the intrigue on Ish's face in this shot. He drank an entire sippy's worth of water and kept asking me for more. When he likes something, he likes something!

I'm a firm believer in staying hydrated, so I kept refilling the cup for him (not the best decision right before bedtime, but I'm a sucker for this kid, especially when he says "peas").

I'm throwing in this shot because it's cute - and you can get a pretty good look at the drinking spout.

Besides the fact that my kid likes this sippy, it has a lot of cool features that mean more to me than him (which is a good thing) - it has an insulated base to keep drinks cool, it's BPA free and the internal valve system lets Ish sip as much as he wants with ease while keeping it's leak-proof integrity. It's also dishwasher and microwave safe (not sure I would ever have the need to microwave anything in it, but hey, never say never!).

I shook, rattled, threw this cup around - not a drop of water came out. Ish takes it to bed with no issues. We even took it with us when we traveled to the lake last weekend and it took a beating in the car like a champ (Ish throws pretty hard for a little guy).

The Explora is a Stage 5 cup, recommended for ages 24 months + (if your child has mastered a standard sippy cup they should really have no issues adjusting to this spout).

Check out the Explora on the Tommee Tippee site here.

You can also find them on Facebook and on Twitter.

You can buy these cups (and other Tommee products) at Babies R Us and Toys R Us.

Thank you to the wonderful people at Tommee Tippee for allowing us to review this product - you have some new fans here at the Ish house!


Disclaimer: While I was given the product to review by Tommee Tippee, the opinions in this post are 100% mine (and Ish's!). We were not compensated in any way for our review.

Wordless Wednesday: New Buddies

Country Boy

Matt had some family business to take care of in New Hampshire this weekend, so we decided to throw Ish in the car (in his pjs) on Friday night and spend the weekend visiting with family.
It was a long drive - so I'm happy Thomas and Friends could come along.
Once we got to the lake house, Ish surveyed his surroundings. He came to the conclusion that the lake is MUCH bigger than the bathtub.
There were dogs to chase and annoy there - I mean run with and pet, dogs to run with and pet. This is Aunt Sally's dog Smoky.
Ish LOVED the playground - he got in some good practice sliding.
And he was thrilled to swing with all his cousins. Ish is the blur in the middle.
We attempted another self-portrait while at the lake - and except for the fact that Matt's head is half cut off, I think it's pretty good! Sad that my standards are so low for self-portraits.
Matt and Ish took lots of walks.
And Thomas, Percy and Trevor got some fresh air too.
Ish had a blast hanging out with all his cousins - he even semi-cooperated when we asked for pictures.
He got to torture Pluto with Thomas. Play with - I mean play with Pluto and Thomas.
And we got a decent shot of the two of us together - that rarely happens!
So, even though we spent more time in the car then at the lake, we had a lot of fun. And we can't wait to get up there again!