It is a well know fact (in Woodruff family history) that Daddy got sick on the Scooby-Do roller coaster at Kings Dominion when he was 10 years old. I also got sick on one of the carnival rides that go around in a circle when I was about 6 years old. Daddy could never ride any rides that went in circles as a teenager or an adult.
So with Mommy carrying around the next baby and Connor just a wee bit too small to ride the kiddie rides by himself, Daddy found himself on a carousel (of course this goes in circles), an airplane ride that goes in circles (and up and down), and a boat ride that went in circles.
Here are some videos of Connor having fun at Busch Gardens. He really enjoyed some of the rides and even had an opportunity to ride one with his buddy Isaac. They had a blast.
What a fun time he had…he even cried a little bit when the park closed and we had to go home. We all had a great time and enjoyed some beautiful weather as well!
Unfortunately there is no sound on these video and they also turned out a little dark.
We went to Busch Gardens for the first time this evening. We went with our neighbors and their kids and a friend of theirs as well. We all had a great time!
Connor loved Elmo and the princess as well. We were so surprised. First he walked up and kind of looked at them and kept his distance. He didn’t know what to do. So Daddy suggested he give Elmo a high five and he did. Then he gave the princess a high five too. Then Daddy says, “Can you give Elmo a hug?” Next thing I know he was swallowed up by a furry red Elmo. Connor loved it!!!! Then he went over and hugged the princess, then back to Elmo and Connor squeezed harder, then back to the princess and hugged her, then back to Elmo and hugged again, then back to the princess and the back to Elmo, repeat another 3 or 4 times. This all was going on as others were waiting in line for their turn to hug and take a picture with Elmo. Daddy and Mommy snapped a couple of pics with Mommy’s cell phone and then Daddy had to pry Connor away from his new buddy Elmo.
What an amazing scene. Personally after the apprehension he had with Santa Claus this Christmas, I thought for sure he would be scared of Elmo and the other Sesame Street characters. Boy, was I wrong. Anyone know where I can buy an Elmo suit????
Mommy and Daddy had a wedding to shoot over the weekend in Nags Head and decided to turn it into a “get-away” weekend as well. So, Mimi and Grandpa (Connor calls him “PaPa”) had Connor since Saturday morning until Monday morning. They had an Easter cookout and Grandma attended along with Brenna, Gavin, Uncle Chad, Aunt Catherine, and Brenna/Gavin’s grandparents (Mr. Bill and Ms. Anne).
From all accounts he had a great time! The Easter Bunny visited Connor’s house on Saturday and then he came to Mimi and Grandpa’s house on Sunday. Brenna, Gavin, and Connor had an Easter Egg Hunt in the backyard as well.
First thing Mommy and Daddy noticed when we picked him up was that his hair had gotten lighter from the sun he got this weekend. Getting closer to the shade of blond I was when I was that age.
After getting home, Connor wanted to be a big boy and help us unload. So, he raced back and forth with Daddy unloading the vehicle from this weekend’s trip. On the 2nd trip back to the car, he fell and skinned his knee. Daddy and Mommy were waiting for a big scream but it never came! He was too worried about helping Daddy unload the vehicle. Right back to the truck and another bag went into the house. We did this for another 5-10 minutes. I got a quick glimpse of the knee and it didn’t look too bad. I was still a little shocked he didn’t cry, but I really think he was too much into unloading the car to realize that he had “hurt himself”. What a tough boy!!!!
We finally finished and boy was he mad that there was nothing else to unload. He stood by the door crying, “Help Daddy…help Daddy.” We closed the door and calmed him down. It was time to change his diaper and when I took his shorts off, he was able to see his “boo-boo” and then he started crying. Now understand this was AT LEAST 10 minutes later before you call Social Services on me. Yes, I am sure it was stinging but come on…it was not that bad. Mommy got the “first aid kit”, we cleaned it up and put a band-aid on it. Next thing I know, he is limping around the house. He spent 10 minutes helping me unload the car AFTER he skinned his knee. He was running and walking just fine then. But all of a sudden, he is now limping because of his “boo-boo”.
Here was a video of him “milking” this so that he could get a Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg. The video does not do it justice, but you get the idea…
Later, we went outside and he was doing just fine. He fell again and skinned the other knee but paid it no attention (he hasn’t seen that one yet). Guess we need to get him knee pads! As he was playing outside I said, “Show Mommy your boo-boo.” Next thing we notice, he limps over to Mommy and says “boo-boo”.
Guess he wishes he would have stayed at Mimi and Grandpa’s house — it is safer over there!
I’ve noticed in the past few months that Kuddles and Connor are becoming friends. Kuddles has been good with him and vice versa. Kuddles knows when to let Connor know when he has had enough (with a little fake bite). If you watch toward the end of this clip, Kuddles lets Connor know that he is getting a little too pesky. Connor also knows when he is getting a little to aggressive himself and will be cautious with Kuddles.
Anyways…I’ve seen each of them giving kisses to one another and at times Kuddles is real affection and continually brushes his head up against Connor as they are on the chair together.
Tonight they played for quite a while so I decided to flip on the video recorder on my phone and captured this.
Here is a pic Uncle Danny took on our way up to New Jersey.
Connor did pretty good for being in the car about 8 hours total. There was only one “meltdown” on the way up and one on the way home. Great job Connor!
This picture was on the way up to New Jersey and was soon after we left Richmond after picking up Uncle Danny.
Connor, Mommy, and I went for a walk yesterday evening. As we past by a blooming Bradford Pear tree, Mommy started to gag and become nauseated a bit. She said, “What is that smell?” Well we didn’t figure it out until we past a couple more Bradford Pear trees. So, on the way back we walked on the opposite side of the street of any blooming Bradford Pear trees so that Mommy wouldn’t get sick.
The only nausea Mommy had with Connor was when we attended a rehearsal dinner of a client and she smelled fried chicken. It seems as though Mommy has had a few more cases of nausea this go round, but again it has been mild and no actual vomiting…just gagging.
Heart rate was 160 at the ultrasound about a week ago.
Mommy is also much bigger (in the tummy) than she was with Connor at this point. We are not sure if she is “carrying any different”…but my money is on it being a girl.
Grandma, Uncle Danny, Daddy, and Connor all made the long ride up to New Jersey for Bucky’s (Daddy’s cousin) 40th birthday party. Mommy stayed home so she could rest, spend time with her Mom, and relax.
Connor was “attached” to Daddy’s hip all weekend. I couldn’t even go to the bathroom without Connor whining and crying for Daddy. All weekend it was “Hold Daddy”, “Daddy leg”, “Daddy”. Even “Grandma’s magic” didn’t work this weekend.
Here he is taking a nap with Daddy for 2 hours on Saturday…
Connor was so much out of his normal routine and didn’t recognize a lot of the faces around him that he wanted to be with Daddy the entire weekend. He had a great time with Jack and Callie. Jack (his 2nd cousin) is 5 years old and he and Jack had a blast. So much so that as Daddy, Connor, and Jack were walking to the beach Saturday night to look at the moon and the waves Jack asked, “Will Connor love me forever?” And I responded, “Of course so! Connor will love you FOREVER!” Jack was so good with him! Callie was great too. She played the big sister role and tried to hold and comfort Connor at times.
Connor hardly ate a thing all weekend and what he did eat was not nutritious at all. He did drink a lot of milk, so I was hoping that would keep his calorie intake high enough. Even on the ride home this afternoon, he didn’t want to eat much. We stopped at McDonald’s and got the old standby of French Fries, but he didn’t eat much of them.
Well after arriving home, he was still clinging to Daddy for the first couple of hours. Then it was dinner time and Mommy made us spaghetti. I didn’t expect him to eat and he was fussing as Mommy put dinner out. I told Mommy to leave him alone and not to worry about it. He asked, “Hold Daddy?” What he means is, “Daddy will you hold me?” I said no and then he went to his booster seat. We sat him at the table and the next 20 minutes made up for his “fasting” in NJ. Spaghetti, shredded cheese, and lots of pepperoni!
