Category Archives: The Thade Show

Aug 10

Mommy is not the IHOP

This Summer I have been one determined Mommy to help Thade eat and enjoy new foods, and try to lose his picky eating ways. Every night at dinner time Thade will ask “what is for dinner?” No matter what I say he will promptly add ” I don’t like it.” That is when I started saying “Mommy isn’t the IHOP, we are all having the same dinner!” That always gets a giggle from Thade.

I used to cave in and give in to the two weeks of nothing but grilled cheese sandwiches… But after Dylan came along and all of those extra dishes started to pile up, I decided no more extra menu items,we will be all be having the same. It has helped out, Thade still turns up his nose at many items, but he is giving new foods (including fruits and veggies) an honest try.

I take a little extra time and present Thade’s plate in a fun way, with kid sized portions. It also helps that Dylan will eat just about anything that you put on his plate, so Thade has to try the food too.

We are making great progress with our picky eater, and I’m happy that he is trying plenty of new foods. I know one day the picky eating won’t be a problem, the new problem will be attempting to keep the fridge stocked with two teenage boys in the house.

Aug 9

Preschool Let’s Go!

Last night we signed up Thade  for Preschool, and it looks like it is going to be a great school year.This will be his first year at Preschool and he is so excited. He even ran into a few of his friends at sign up. We brought Dylan along too, and he had a blast getting to play and run around the classroom.

Thade can’t wait to start school, and today we started a count down on the calendar. I’m thinking of a few fun activities that we can do before the school year begins. Thade can’t wait!

Jul 31

Sneaking Off To the Park

The weather is amazing this morning, 77 and cloudy. It was a prefect morning to surprise the kids with a trip to the park. We haven’t been to the park since Day Camp ended, the weather has just been too stinking hot. We were taking Dad back to work, and I decided to drive past the house, and head towards their favorite playground.

Thade was a little worried that we didn’t stop off at our house, but he was really happy when he realized where we were going. We drove down the big hill, and stopped at Thade’s favorite play area. It has a larger Playground for the big kids, and a mini play ground for the little ones. Both Dylan and Thade could play safely and have fun.

The park also has a lot of Ducks and Geese that beg to be fed. They are so cute, and Dylan wasn’t too scared of the big honking geese begging for treats. He kept saying, ” Oh, mom, duck”! Thade didn’t get too close though, he kept his distance from the honking geese. Maybe next time we’ll bring along some treats for the ducks and geese.

Once the boys were tired from all of the running around we headed back up the hill to visit the Bird and Rabbit Display. The park has a display of Midwest Birds and Turkeys. Thade liked the Chickens the best. The park also has several Rabbit hutches with adorable bunnies. I love rabbits, and wish I could free them from their cages and take them all home with me. Dylan loved the bunnies, and kept saying “Oh, mom, duck!” I tried to get him to say “bunny”, but all he could say was duck. Thade kept asking the bunnies to make sure and visit him for Easter, and don’t forget to bring chocolate and Easter eggs.

It was a fun morning, and a great outing for the boys. I’m glad that we took advantage of the cooler weather, it is going to be 110 tomorrow! We have VBS later today, and Thade is ready to go. I hope that Dylan does well too.

Jul 29

A Little Story About Thade…

Today is Thade’s half birthday! My brother and I have celebrated our half birthday’s for as long as I can remember, and I was looking at the calendar and sure enough today is Thade’s. I’ll bake his favorite cookies, and sing him “Happy Half- Birthday”, and I know he’ll ask for presents and a party.

Seeing just how much my little guy has grown up in the past four years blows my mind. He has come so far and learned so many amazing things, and he gives the best hugs on the planet. He is an amazing big brother, and a fantastic helper too.

I think about just how much we went through to get to where we are today. Four and a half years ago, we were nervous and painfully waiting through 20 + hours of labor for Thade to make his arrival. We were so happy when he was finally here, and we were finally parents. Thade was such a sweet baby, but at just four weeks of age he became very sick. Continue reading »

Jul 23

With a Little Help from the Wiggles

Chances are if you have a toddler or grandchild (or not) you’ve probably heard of the Wiggles. Both of my kids are really into the Wiggles at the moment, and Thade and I have been watching their videos on You Tube. Well they have this great song all about making “Fruit Salad”, and just how yummy it is. Thade isn’t much of a fruit or veggie eater, but I thought that maybe with a little help from the Wiggles, he just might give it a try…

We watched the video a few (dozen) times, and I picked up all of the ingredients at the store. I did my best Wiggle impersonation as I cut up the cantaloupe, and Thade happily stirred in the Red Grapes. We placed our Wiggles Fruit Salad in the fridge, and waited until dinner time.

When dinner finally rolled around I got out our fruit salad, and sang the song one more time. Dylan dove into his fruit salad (every bite was in teeny tiny pieces), he loves his fruits and veggies. Thade wasn’t buying it, and told me just how yucky the fruit salad was, but he would eat the bananas. Oh well, I’ll give it another try, and maybe with a little more Wiggles motivation, Thade will eventually like it.

Do you have any tips or tricks that get your child or grandchild to eat their fruits and veggies?