Father's day/ Mom's b'day

Kylan is having a great summer. He just started swim classes at the YMCA and he LOVES jumping into the water (with mom/dad there to catch him.) Right now we are trying to teach him to blow bubbles. He is VERY close.

Kylan also enjoys his pool and the sprinkler. He doesn't like it when the sprinkler gets him though--he only likes to put his hands in it. (When the sprinkler gets him he cries--I think it just surprises him.) Ky also enjoys the hose. It was so funny, the first time he picked it up and tried to get a drink from it, it squirted him in the face. That caught him by surprise. Since then he has learned to be more careful.

Kylan has also discovered the raspberry bush in the backyard. When we go out, he will run over to it and pick off the ripe berries and eat them. And when he can't find anymore berries, he will eat the leaves--though we stop him before he gets too many.

For Father's day/Mom's B'day we went to the beach (Lake Mendota) and had a picnic. It was a very nice and relaxing day. Ky was a little more interested in his surroundings to eat though--so he spent more time running around than relaxing. He played in the water and the sand (and tried to eat the sand many MANY times.) SIDENOTE--YUCK! you would think that after one mouthfull of sand he would learn that sand is pretty disgusting and sticks in your mouth and is icky-crunchy--Not my boy. YUCK! The boy eats everything....

The weekend following Father's day we went to Milwaukee to visit with Rob's folks. We had a nice lunch with Nana & Gma Jan and then went to Grandpa's and Gma Debi's for more bir thday fun. (The pic above with Ky and Graham crackers and a hammer--is of him helping us make a pie crust for Grandpa.) There Ky got to swim in the pool and of course drank lots of pool water --YUCK! But he had lots of fun. We also went strawberry picking--but Ky did not enjoy that very much since he was stuck in the backpack.

Okay my turn to blog about myself. So This year --as mentioned before has been a bad car year. I didn't even mention the Flat tire I got last month. Well on June 14th I was rearended by a guy who attempted to run--but thanks to a good samaritan, was chased down. Anyways turns out it was a 20 year old kid (I know--i just dated myself) who was driving mommy & daddy's car and had a suspended license. There turned out to be no damage--but the kid should not have been driving in the first place--and since there was no damage no one really cared. The police officer simply gave the boy a ticket for driving with a suspended license (oooh...do you really think that stopped him from driving ....) and because he did eventually return to the scene of the crime (after endangering other lives). So here is the thing...I wanted more to happen--so I hope it did. I wrote a letter to Mommy & Daddy and I also informed his insurance of everything that happened (and don't get me started on the insurance thing--that was another huge mess.) So anyway--below is the letter to Mommy & daddy--and hopefully they took some action. But who knows. (Next week will be a blog on Ky's first camping trip!)

Mr. & Mrs. XXXX,

I am writing in regards to your son, Alan. Last week I was in a car accident with him. Your truck, a blue and white Ford F-150, was involved. I was not sure if you were going to hear about this accident, which is why I am writing. As a parent, I know that I would want to know about my child’s actions--if they were driving MY vehicle which was covered by MY insurance.

Last Thursday (June 14), I was sitting at a traffic light at the Cottage Grove/Stoughton road exit waiting to make a left turn. Alan was behind me and there was a car in front of me also waiting to turn left. When the light turned green, the car in front of me turned left. I then moved into the intersection and stopped, yielding to an oncoming car going straight. It was then that I heard squealing tires and was struck by Alan. My car was pushed forward several feet.
As most people in an accident, I was in shock. I quickly turned to check that my 12 month old son in the back seat was okay. This was when I realized Alan was leaving the scene of the accident. He did not pull up to check that I was okay—in fact he didn’t even glance at me. He quickly pulled around my car and sped off. I did at this point look at his license plate which is now forever engrained in my mind-- XXX XXX.

At this point, I can only tell you what happened through several other witnesses. I was more concerned about my child and getting out of the intersection. I pulled over to a nearby parking lot, checked my baby and called my husband.

During this time a witness (who happened to be the oncoming car I yielded for), chased down Alan who was speeding away. The witness was able to get him to pull over and come back. During this time, Alan sped through the YMCA turnaround. My coworker (I work at the YMCA), was in that turnaround unloading her children at the time he sped through. She was concerned about her children’s safety as well as other families who were also present.

Alan did come back several minutes later to my car along with the witness who chased him. At the time, I was too concerned about my child and car to care much about Alan’s presence. He obviously did not care about me or my child’s safety or he would have checked on us sooner. I did get his information at this point of time. I asked to see his driver’s license, he said he forgot his wallet and had no identification. There was no visible damage to my car or the truck, so we left it at that.

Once I got to the YMCA, I called the police to report the accident. They were going to mail me a self-report to fill out. My coworker (who had been unloading the children in the Y turnaround when Alan came zooming through) also called the police on her own and they sent an officer out since he endangered lives by recklessly racing through the YMCA turn around.

Due to Alan’s irresponsible driving and endangering the lives of the public, the officer further investigated the accident to discover that he was driving with a suspended license. He should have never been on the road. Meaning—this would have never happened if he had obeyed the law. I know he was cited and ticketed for driving with a suspended license and warned for reckless driving.

The primary reason I wanted to write this letter isn’t because Alan hit me (accidents happen.) It was his actions following the accident and the fact that he had a suspended license and should not have been driving to begin with. My personal belief as well as the witnesses was that he intended to leave and not return. Alan may or may not agree with that, but his actions say otherwise.

I also wanted to point out that insurance follows the vehicle in the accident NOT the driver. Therefore, if there are any problems with my car or medical expenses, the claim gets filed on your insurance, as owners of the vehicle in the accident. Honestly, this angers me—because it is Alan’s fault any of this happened—not to mention his lack of sensitivity in the incident--and I would rather have it reflect on his insurance record.

I wanted to make sure you knew all of this, just in case Alan is still driving YOUR truck illegally with a SUSPENDED license. I would also like to point out that Madison has a wonderful bus transportation system that cheaply and effectively gets you where you need to go on a timely basis. It also covers the entire city. I have traveled on it many times and have been impressed. There is no reason Alan should be on the road at this time.

I don’t know you, but I hope you appreciate this letter and have a talk with Alan and reclaim your vehicle or have it put in his name (before he gets YOU in trouble.) As a parent, I know that I would want to be aware of my child’s actions—especially when they are putting my good name at stake by his/her careless actions. If you would like to contact me about any details my phone number is XXX-XXX-XXXX. As far as the other witnesses, I will give you their information only if you request it and they are okay with me providing their numbers to you. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jessica Schnake

The Birthday Party

Ky's b'day went very well. Uncle Adam and Aunt Liz actually drove from Indy on Saturday and were able to spend a lot of prebirthday time with him. He had a great time with them and they helped prepare all the birthday stuff including make the cake. Thank you so much for all your help Liz and Adam! It would not have gone nearly as smoothly without your help.

In honor of Kylan we made a banana cake (banana being his favorite food.) And what loves bananas--monkeys of course--thus inspired the monkey cake with yummy chocolate cream cheese icing. Thus also inspired the Curious George birthday outfit. It was a monkey of a time!We also made a mini cake with whipped cream for Kylan ( a little healthier and a little more fun for him to eat.)

The day of his party Kylan was awesome! He did great. WE were a bit concerned with the large crowd of people coming over, but he took it all in stride. So let's get to the good part--the cake!

So we sang happy b'day-Ky just seemed a bit mystified by the ritual chanting. Then we placed him in his chair with the big cake in front of him. He slowly poked at it and played with the frosting. He did not seem to understand that it was food. Eventually somebody stepped in and helped by giving him a fingerfull of frosting. Then Ky was like--"Hey this is good!" and hopped to it. (the pics above pretty much tell this story.) He even shared some cake with Dad and cousin Devan. (We've raised such a fine boy!)

Ky was pretty good with opening presents on his own--though slow. Good thing Devan was there to help him out He got some pretty neat things like clothes, a pool and accessories, bath toys, a hammer/ball set, and a talking bear.

We gave Ky a bubble lawn mower the next day as a present. He loved it..well until he realized that it would not support his weight--thus the crying baby on the ground. He has since learned not to put all his weight on it--and once again loves it. (I had to put these pics in because they are hilarious and just show his personality. He gets really mad and throws tantrums when things don't work the way he wants them to.)

Alas, my baby is one--and now officially a toddler. I like this age. He interacts and does so much more with us now. Did I mention that Kylan can say please..well not really, but we taught him to ask instead of cry for things he wants. So now if he sees something that he wants he points at it and says "BA". And if you ask him to say please, he will say "BA". OOOhh a couple more milestones to quickly add--

Ky will grab your/his mouth/nose if you ask him --where is Mama's/Ky's Nose/mouth? (He is so smart.)

He has also officially learned to stand up on his own without grabbing on to anything. Before he would always crawl to something and use it to stand up, but now he will stand up on his own.

And have I mentioned my little boy hugs! I know I have, but I just have to reiterate...he will run up to you, wrap his arms around your legs and go "AHHHH" and look up at you with the biggest smile. Gotta love this little guy.

More to come soon!

The Big ONE!

On Birthday morning, Ky was greeted by mom and dad with a birthday song. He seemed pretty please about that--especially since dad was able to take the morning off of work. We then got ourselves ready to head to the zoo. Before the trip, we turned his carseat around--so he faces forward. It was funny putting him in. It was clear that he knew something was different--but wasn't quite sure what it was right away.

The Madison zoo is very cool. We had a fun time (except for all the kids on field trips) looking at all the animals. Ky especially enjoyed the animals that moved. If they didn't move, he wasn't very interested. I think his favorite animals were the Bears. The bears were pacing, and one even decided to take a dip in the pool. The only thing Kylan did not like so much was the big fish. We had him walking on the ground by the aquariums and when he saw the giant fish he ran to daddy's arms and insisted on being picked up.

After the zoo, we decided to give Ella's Deli a second try (See feb blog entry). They have a lot of neat gadgets and games to keep kids occupied so we thought it would be fun for Kylan. Plus we figured there shouldn't be too much of a lunch rush. We were right, there were not many people there---however we still waited 45 min to get our food. And we ordered simple items that do not need to be cooked, just merely assembled and heated. Yeah--I don't think we will be returnng anytime soon. We ordered a kid's meal for Kylan--that was too small for him. He ate it--then ate part of mine and Rob's food. Prior to arriving, we had considered getting some ice cream for the b'day boy--but dad had to get to work, and I think we were all a little irritated by the experience.

After Ky's mid day nap he spent his time playing in the driveway. We grilled and ate outside--which he loves. He loves to see other people walking--the neighbor kids playing--and cars driving.

Oh-yeah and there was a brief visit to the doctor. (Ky remind me to tell you about this later--I won't put it here--that way I can save you the embarrassment of everyone knowing.)

All in all it was a very nice day. Stay tuned for the next blog--Ky's first b'day party!

prebirthday blog

It's June 6th. The night I went into the hospital. I just tucked the wee one to bed. His bedtime story tonight was of the day he was born. Can you believe that my little guy is turning one!? Rob says, "Can you believe we have been parents for a year?!" Wow!

So--these pics are from Memorial day weekend. We spent Sunday with Nana and Grandma Jan. Ky was able to persuade G'ma Jan to go down the slide. I think she was a bit scared. (By the way did I mention in the last blog that Ky has just learned how to go down the slide on his own? He figured out that he has to scoot his butt.) After the slide, he then went on the merry go round a bit and the tried out a canoe ride. Unfortunately he didn't get very far--since it was anchored to the ground. Ky loves the park, we go at least once a week---often two to three times.

On Monday--we went to a chocolate festival in Burlington WI. We were rather excited however quickly disappointed once we arrived. It was basically a lousy excuse for a carnival. There was only one tent with chocolate--and even some of that was disappointing. We paid for free samples--and went to a cheesecake place that served us a marshmallow dipped in Hershey's syrup--talk about unreal. Anyway they did have a finger painting tent with chocolate pudding--so we took Ky. He loved putting his fingers in the pudding--but did not understand the whole "painting"part. Then when Dad tried to show him (and took the pudding away to do that) --Ky had a meltdown. The picture above shows him in one of his tantrums. Yes an in action tantrum. He is a boy that knows what he wants and will cry when he doesn't get it.

After the tantrum we left. No point in dealing with that any further.

The other pics are of Ky at his table eating. Dad was very impressed by Ky's maturity and wanted some pics. Ever since we started working at the Y--I have always placed Ky at the table for snack time. It is so funny--because at the Y his eyes just peer over the table. If I haven't mentioned this before--Ky is food motivated. He will not move if he has food in front of him. Therefore I never have to worry about him falling out of a chair. So he has been sitting in big chairs at snack time for 2.5 months now.

Well I need to head to bed. Tomorrow is the BIG day. Rob took the morning off and we are taking Kylan for his first trip to the zoo. It should be a lot of fun. The big birthday party is Sunday--I will update with birthday pics shortly after that.