Guest Post: Camp Tante - Change of Venue

Camp Tante HQ

Long before the wedding invitations had even been sent for the Mason nuptials, I called dibs on Nugget duty.  My little shoebox apartment isn't exactly Nugget-friendly, so this edition of Camp Tante was shot on-location at the Heimer Haus.  Their weekend departure was a gift for me as I was very excited to spend an entire weekend one-on-one with my Nugget.   Our time together was lovely -- full of tickles, dancing, snuggles, picnics, dinner dates, hugs, kissies, bath time, games of chase, etc.  All of these activities usually involved Ben being either shirtless or pantsless - just as a toddler boy should be :)  After it being his third official word and then dropping completely out of his vocabulary, Ben is now saying "Tata" aka "Tante" on the regular.  Melt.  I also taught him to fist bump or "pound it" to try to add some variety to his high-five routine :)

Saturday morning, I opted to make "Pancakes! Pancakes!" He sat and attentively watched his chef of a Tante whip up his gourmet breakfast.  Once we were ready to eat, Ben was feeling underdressed so he BEGGED me to jazz up his wardrobe.

BB (Before Ben), I would often watch Anna and Luke while Jess and Ryan were out globe-trotting and Luke has never taken their absence well.  This trip was no excuse as he was again distraught - refusing to eat, barely leaving bed, etc.  Our concerned and compassionate Nugget could sense something was not right with his pal and was sure to give him extra love.

 

I had to distract him with movies this morning so that I could construct the above fort without THE DESTROYER following close behind and knocking down all my hard work.  You can see how long that lasted.

 The rest of Saturday involved us going to Wash Park for a picnic where we met up with one of my girlfriends, Ben was dying to join a game of men's rugby and he made many attempts to get "in! in!" someone else's bike trailer.  Then, Ben took me on a date to Illegal Pete's for dinner and we stopped at Barnes & Noble on the way home to replace his copies of Chicka and Goodnight Moon that he had ripped apart.  Naughty Nugget!  And, of course, no Camp Tante would be complete without FUDGESICLES!! Or "i meem" as Ben refers to it.

Sunday we went to brunch with a whole gaggle of my high school friends where Ben again opted for pancakes - "P!" as he calls them.  All the girls were just over the moon and many conversations were halted so we could watch the adorableness and hilarity that is the 2.5 year old Nugget.  On our way home, we made a stop for frozen yogurt with another girlfriend and then the rest of our day was low-key and we just lounged around the house.  

 

 

My sister is a Rock Star!!  She is always cruising around town with Ben, has herself together, finds time to exercise, makes real meals every night, etc.  This weekend really made me appreciate what a tough job she has and what a LUCKY boy the Nugget is to have her for a Mama.  By the end of the weekend, I was tired, my back hurt, I had had poop on my hands more times than is necessary, my nails were in disarray and I was looking forward to Jess and Ryan's return.  But when Monday morning came and I returned to work, I was sad to leave my little Nugget and missed him already :(