Another toy recall -- Thanks, China!

On the same day Joshua receives his Thomas the Tank replacement trains, we learn of a new recall involving 80+ products. http://www.service.mattel.com/ Ok, we've all known about lead paint being a problem for a long time now. Lead paint should not be an issue! If the paint has lead....don't use it!!!

After visiting the Mattel website, I've learned that since our toys were purchased before May 1, 2007 they are not affected by this recall. But honestly that doesn't make me feel better. I've lost a lot of confidence in toy manufactures over the last few months. Yesterday, Joshua saw me open the package from the Thomas people and, of course, immediately wanted to play with the new trains. I hesitated before I gave them to him. I guess we can only keep our fingers crossed that the toys we're told are safe, are actually safe.

How much is that doggy in the window?

Tonight we took a family outing to Willow Bend Mall. And as it turns out, my son loves window shopping as much as I do. We spent about 20 minutes in front of this window talking to the animals. We said hi to the Doggie, Elephant, Mama Octopus, Baby Octopus, Duckie, Giraffe, etc. It really was so cute, Jeff and I couldn't bear to tear him away from his new friends. But I did...seriously 20 minutes was about all Daddy and I could take.

So, after we said goodbye to the animals, we played for a little while in the play area. Willow Bend has one of the best play areas and Joshua really loves it. It's set up like a table top at breakfast. There is a plate with steak and eggs, chili peppers, toast, grapefruit, spoon & fork....you get the idea. And it's all soft for the kids to climb and jump on. It's a great indoor air-conditioned place to play when we've had enough of the park. I put together a little video of Joshua playing tonight (using Windows Movie Maker---my new obsession.)

A New Playroom for Joshua

Joshua has a new playroom. It's actually just the back bedroom that we've made into a playroom by clearing it out and putting all his toys in there. He really seems to like having his space. Before the playroom, his toys were basically in his bedroom and the living room. And the living room was mainly where he played. Now I have my living room back (horray!) and Joshua has his own space to hang out. Win-Win.

A Night at the Zoo

Last night we packed up and headed to the Dallas Zoo which is one of Joshua's favorite places on Earth! Every time we go he seems to have new favorite animals. This night it was the Giraffes. Their enclosure has an outside part and inside part. The giraffes spend most of the time inside and we had a great view of them though the window. Joshua loved the up close view and loved watching them eat dinner. He also loved the giant tortoises. There were about 5 or 6 of them and they were really active. It really was fun to watch. Usually the turtles are just sitting like rocks, so this really was a treat.

A new blog!

In the words of Grover, HEEEELLOOOO EVERYBODEEEEEEEEE!!!!

I love Blogs! I'm addicted. I spend more time than I'd like to admit reading them, so I've decided to start my own blog. It's time to start spending that time recording my family's life.

One thing I've learned during my short two years as a mother is that nothing stays the same for long. Just as soon as things become routine something happens to change it up! For example, my son has spent the last two nights in his BIG BOY BED! In fact, he's napping as I type this. It's been an adjustment for him, but he's handling it like a pro. "No more baby," he's been saying. I think he likes the autonomy that comes with a bed versus a crib. It's been a little more work for me and Daddy, but it's so cute to watch him make another move toward little kid world and away from baby world. sniff, sniff.