Today's Toby

I knew I looked good, but I didn't know I looked THIS good. Wait, I think this might be fashionable AND practical. I can't believe my own brilliance...  

Mom, can you bury me in books?  

Sometimes your toys are so cool that waiting to play with them until after you've gotten dressed is simply not an option.  

...only with cheeseburgers. Yesterday, Toby told me he wanted a cheeseburger. This from the kid who has never had a cheeseburger and won't try pasta. I changed the topic and we went about our day. Until bedtime...when the question came up, "hey, what happened to my cheeseburger?"  So today, as promised, we went to McDonald's and procured said cheeseburger (which I was sure he wouldn't even take a bite of). And then he proceeded to eat the whole darn thing (except the pickles).  Well played kid, well played.   

  Toby decided this ladder at the playground needed a fresh coat of paint. Fortunately, when you're painting with water and sticks you can leave off at any time without actually finishing the job.

 The current favorite is Octonauts.   Weekends mean we can watch as a family. It does get exciting, but trying to mock excitement for the sake of the photo doesn't always pan out.

  I know what you're thinking. "Did I miss Cars (1): the play?" No, you did not. But when your favorite car (Denise) does not appear until Cars 2, why not just jump to the good stuff.

 Winter trips to the playground are best with a pretend fire and Mommy's scarf to help stay warm.

Toby has recently told us he needs more songs before falling asleep.  Here's Cotton and Toby's rendition of Lullaby of Birdland recorded before a recent nap.   Jason · Birdland.m4a

Thanks to Mommy's very creative verse, reading practice has extended into bathtime. Toby has great fun reading mom's funny stories then erasing so the wall is ready for  the next night.  

Toby picks the silliest books to read.  

When your bed gets an upgrade... It's nice to have everyone over to celebrate.   

I can't believe I'm actually holding an MP3 player! I thought the last one of these died in 2012. These single-use devices are so cute.  

When your best friend is a bear, you do everything you can to make him feel like one of the family. Including wearing bear slippers.   

  Riding his "bicycle". To Kansas. Like you do.

 Friday Night meant a dance party before bed. To see the video at the end of the post, click on the subject line if you're getting this via e-mail.   First, Toby danced with Slumbers: Then Mommy and Toby:  Daddy was then dancing with Slumbers, but also had to be the photographer,  so here's more of Mommy with Toby: And then he was back to Slumbers:                                                       

Still can't go many places at the moment, but once we can, we plan to be ready. Toby has been telling us that he was born in New Mexico and grew up in Kansas. Fortunately, it didn't come in our passport interview because that story definitely doesn't match what we put on the passport application.   

If you're willing to bundle up, you get the playground all to yourself. Finally!   

For the moment, we are Toby's favorite playmates. So when we are both busy (for whatever the reason, and for whatever the duration) it can be exasperating.  "How long can it possibly take to get cereal!" "Holy smokes, you guys are slow. There's playing to do. I'm going to be another year older before you're done."  

He told me it was time for him to go to sleep and that I was keeping him awake. I have my suspicions...

Maybe if I use these things from higher up I'll be able to see Kansas.   

The Leaf Restaurant had it's grand opening today. I'm not sure about their business model (they didn't charge us for anything), but perhaps we got special treatment since we know the chef.  

 Who needs a trampoline when you've got a crib? If you're getting this post by email click on the post title to view the video. I promise he doesn't live in a dungeon - dark winter days make it hard to get bright videos.

Apparently the Car Castle is only for parking, not sales. Pretty swanky parking, though.  

Okay, Dad - our search for state license plates needs to be taken up a notch.  It's been too long since we've found a new one.  Let's do it.  

A few days after the snow a couple weeks ago, Toby and I ventured to Yellowstone Playground. It was more like a skating rink than we thought, but it was good to be able to give the seal a hug.