This little capture from earlier today is a hoot! Let's just say it brings tears of joy to the mother's eyes to observe the love growing between the li'l rascals...and the bruises. The love seems to grow with the # of injuries...
Video: http://vimeo.com/18448472
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Christmas at home, and now we're back home
Can two places be home? Absolutely, yes! In fact, I think I felt more at home while we were away...my parents' dream house is indeed a dream house, spacious and oh so un-creaky and un-drafty compared to ye olde fixer upper. But more than that, it is filled with interesting and different toys, and plenty of adults chomping at the chance to spend time with my kids...can I hear a 'VACATION', ladies and gentlemen?!
The Big Problem: not sharing it with Dad. Choke. Like good practitioners of denial, we mostly managed to push the elephant in the room aside and enjoy the time together. I really want to be able to talk about Dad more now and then, but it's so much easier to pretend the problem isn't there and just write about the adorable, distracting children. Someday soon I will summon the ability to tell a few things about him and this experience. It was hard not to think of him over and over while being in his home...it's still so full of him.
Now a natural segue to the anatomy of a very generous Christmas...anyone who knows my mom knows she is a skilled and passionate shopper (in fact, I really think that she might be uniquely gifted in being some sort of personal shopper, but I digress)...and in the wake of losing my Dad and the fact that we were coming to her place for the holiday, I think she threw caution to the wind and spoiled my children rotten as a form of retail therapy! Between what we got the kids, her gifts, and also-highly-generous Mommo's, Daddo's, Granlily's, Aunt Debbie's, Aunt Karen's, and so on....hopefully they'll believe us next year when we have to tell them that Santa lost his suit in the stock market and the elves really had to cut back production. Hmm. The kids really had a blast opening up more packages than they knew to hope for. Lots of fun to watch both of them, but especially Owen enjoy the goodies.
One story I have to put down for the record...all the deciding about how to handle the concept of Santa at Christmas, etc. and what did hubby do but forget to pack the Santa gifts (the legos especially!) and bring them to NC! Ack!!! We both felt pretty ill on Christmas Eve when we realized what had happened. Santa left Owen a note that he'd accidentally delivered a couple of presents to his other house, and they'd be waiting when he got back. We thought it had all sort of gone right over his head, but a few days after Christmas Owen said, "Santa didn't bring me those legos anyway." Oh NO!! All the gifts, and that was the one thing he'd asked for! Well, he was still very excited to get them, and a pair of roller skates that had also been left when we got home :}
Well, I guess I already put up a bunch of Christmas morning pix come to think of it, so maybe this is all old news. The summary is that we had a GREAT time going home, and sharing it with Mom and Deb. It would be nice to think that Dad was able to catch a peek, but maybe that just isn't really as important as we tend to think it would be...whatever it is, we trust it's better than what's going on down here, and I'm thankful for that fact. When the story of the woman who had to deliver her baby in an NYC lobby during a blizzard and ended up losing the baby because the paramedics couldn't get thru the snow hit the news...well, that's just one desperately sad story among millions. I'm so glad that such a story isn't just OK, that it's not how things were supposed to be, and that this world isn't all there is.
We came back to a whole bunch of snow, and two of our oh-so-wonderful neighbors had plowed our drive and shoveled our path to the front door...now THAT's a Christmas gift. This was no small amount of snow. Owen and Reuel have already been sledding a couple of times ("Mommy, I LOVE to go FAST! I go all by MYSELF!"), he geared up in his ski getup and slid down the front yard slope a few times, and has shoveled alongside Daddy to his heart's content.
Some more photos that haven't gotten posted yet...
The pictures just reminded me...the boys ever since we've gotten home...SO MUCH FUN together. They've discovered wrestling. This will not be easy...I'm sure I will need to watch them like a hawk, but boy do they get each other giggling hysterically. Asher usually instigates and Owen answers the call. Asher will push Owen over from behind and laugh, and Owen will look startled for a moment, but once he realizes it was purposeful with a motive of fun, he jumps right in the game. Very cute...for now :)
The Big Problem: not sharing it with Dad. Choke. Like good practitioners of denial, we mostly managed to push the elephant in the room aside and enjoy the time together. I really want to be able to talk about Dad more now and then, but it's so much easier to pretend the problem isn't there and just write about the adorable, distracting children. Someday soon I will summon the ability to tell a few things about him and this experience. It was hard not to think of him over and over while being in his home...it's still so full of him.
Now a natural segue to the anatomy of a very generous Christmas...anyone who knows my mom knows she is a skilled and passionate shopper (in fact, I really think that she might be uniquely gifted in being some sort of personal shopper, but I digress)...and in the wake of losing my Dad and the fact that we were coming to her place for the holiday, I think she threw caution to the wind and spoiled my children rotten as a form of retail therapy! Between what we got the kids, her gifts, and also-highly-generous Mommo's, Daddo's, Granlily's, Aunt Debbie's, Aunt Karen's, and so on....hopefully they'll believe us next year when we have to tell them that Santa lost his suit in the stock market and the elves really had to cut back production. Hmm. The kids really had a blast opening up more packages than they knew to hope for. Lots of fun to watch both of them, but especially Owen enjoy the goodies.
One story I have to put down for the record...all the deciding about how to handle the concept of Santa at Christmas, etc. and what did hubby do but forget to pack the Santa gifts (the legos especially!) and bring them to NC! Ack!!! We both felt pretty ill on Christmas Eve when we realized what had happened. Santa left Owen a note that he'd accidentally delivered a couple of presents to his other house, and they'd be waiting when he got back. We thought it had all sort of gone right over his head, but a few days after Christmas Owen said, "Santa didn't bring me those legos anyway." Oh NO!! All the gifts, and that was the one thing he'd asked for! Well, he was still very excited to get them, and a pair of roller skates that had also been left when we got home :}
Well, I guess I already put up a bunch of Christmas morning pix come to think of it, so maybe this is all old news. The summary is that we had a GREAT time going home, and sharing it with Mom and Deb. It would be nice to think that Dad was able to catch a peek, but maybe that just isn't really as important as we tend to think it would be...whatever it is, we trust it's better than what's going on down here, and I'm thankful for that fact. When the story of the woman who had to deliver her baby in an NYC lobby during a blizzard and ended up losing the baby because the paramedics couldn't get thru the snow hit the news...well, that's just one desperately sad story among millions. I'm so glad that such a story isn't just OK, that it's not how things were supposed to be, and that this world isn't all there is.
We came back to a whole bunch of snow, and two of our oh-so-wonderful neighbors had plowed our drive and shoveled our path to the front door...now THAT's a Christmas gift. This was no small amount of snow. Owen and Reuel have already been sledding a couple of times ("Mommy, I LOVE to go FAST! I go all by MYSELF!"), he geared up in his ski getup and slid down the front yard slope a few times, and has shoveled alongside Daddy to his heart's content.
Some more photos that haven't gotten posted yet...
My attempt at fancy Christmas cookies for a cookie exchange:
Look at those brows...so Reuel!
The boy is SO ACTIVE. Just signed him up for afternoon gymnastics class starting soon...
Original painting from Granlily! For Owen's room!
More from the costume-box present:
Is that someone in distress I hear?
Owen has told me on numerous occasions that he can fly. He was not kidding. He really thought he could. He told me he could fly down the stairs, he just needed to flap his arms very hard, and I could not convince him otherwise. I put him on top of a dresser and told him to try flying and then stepped back and let nature take its course (it wasn't THAT high of a dresser). He flapped with all his might, jumped fearlessly with an I-told-you-so look in the eye, and then there was a pretty good thud. I figured it was better to let him convince himself than to find out he'd commenced experimentation on the stairs.
Nothing more captivating than Daddy blowing snow!
Made a giant gingerbread cookie today that didn't get finished at Nunu's house
Owen usually eats some dessert and then knows when he's done...leaves the rest on the plate.
Asher NEVER puts down a dessert when he's full. NEVER. I tried to take away the rest of his too-big cookie when he was absolutely chock-full, and he threw quite the tantrum and insisted on stuffing in every last morsel. Uh-oh!!!
The pictures just reminded me...the boys ever since we've gotten home...SO MUCH FUN together. They've discovered wrestling. This will not be easy...I'm sure I will need to watch them like a hawk, but boy do they get each other giggling hysterically. Asher usually instigates and Owen answers the call. Asher will push Owen over from behind and laugh, and Owen will look startled for a moment, but once he realizes it was purposeful with a motive of fun, he jumps right in the game. Very cute...for now :)
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Christmas 2010 in NC pictures
Finishing off what Santa left behind
When Nunu asked Owen what he wanted for Christmas a while back he apparently said, "I just want to be like my Daddy." So Nunu got him a sport coat. Asher, however, was the most interested in trying it on.
When Owen realized he had opened up a box of costumes, he started shedding his pj's immediately!
Whipped cream: taste it again, for the very first time.
Christmas dinner crowd
Snow! And lots of it! In North Carolina, of all things! And we're getting a blizzard back home, too, apparently. Owen was SO upset we didn't have his snow pants and boots. Plastic bags and saran wrap to the rescue.
And Reuel thought he was going on vacation...ha!
Christmas morning
Opening presents at Nunu's house!
Video: http://vimeo.com/18193175
Owen so-excited-he's-grunting about his stocking
Asher loves his pillow pet!
Owen with wax lips
Bouncing on Rody
Video: http://vimeo.com/18193175
Owen so-excited-he's-grunting about his stocking
Asher loves his pillow pet!
Owen with wax lips
Bouncing on Rody
Early Christmas
Video: http://vimeo.com/18192622
Owen opens his scooter
Asher enjoys new slippers
Asher and Owen fight for bouncing time
Owen opens his scooter
Asher enjoys new slippers
Asher and Owen fight for bouncing time
Thursday, December 23, 2010
NC!
We're in NC! Yippee! The sunlight here is yellow, not blue-gray-white...kind of nice :) Wonderful to see mom and Deb and kick back and play, play, play with the kids with no agenda.
Before we left town, we had a family Christmas back at home, which was awesome! Owen was spectacularly excited and has not stopped talking about his 'two wheel scooter' for big boys...at least until we got here and he found a new Carolina-side scooter from Nunu too! Yesterday I went on a walk with him around the neighborhood while he scooted along, and I could not keep up with him. He can really whizz around! I also got the boys an indoor trampoline with handle; there was no learning curve for them whatsoever. I'm hoping that takes the edge off the long indoor winter afternoons with two rambunctious boys back home.
Tomorrow Daddy arrives! Looking forward to it, we need a man around here! Just 'cause I don't mention my Dad much here doesn't mean we're not thinking about him. He's conspicuously missing from this party, and he would have thoroughly enjoyed hosting his grandkids and watching them enjoy themselves at his place. He's not really missing out though, is he? Last week in Sunday school one of the other teachers was asking the kids about their Christmas preparations at home, and if anyone was taking a trip, etc. A few kids were piping up and then I heard Owen say, "My gwampa died away and he lives in heaven with Jesus now." It's true!
Yesterday we took a little outing to a country pet store. Great! There was an emu, llamas, donkeys, chickens, goats, parrot, a lemur(!), ferrets, a marmoset, hedgehog, a ton of lizards, and the more normal assortment of pets, all really accessible for the kids to look at. Well, it wasn't busy and we asked if Owen could hold one of the puppies (I selfishly asked the clerk for the one *I* loved, despite the fact that Asher was fixated on a chihuahua puppy). She brought out the sweetest jack russell terrier puppy. He was so mild-tempered! He just saw in Owen's lap and enjoyed being petted, no nips or anything. Owen said, "Mommy I LOVE dis puppy. I weally, weally love him, and I don't like dat puppy over dere. He is TOO squeaky." (referring to the chihuahua yipping away) Folks, I am an emotional thinker when in the presence of young animals. (Ask Reuel how we acquired our pet rabbit.) I REALLY wanted to bring home that dog. It was only knowing my already-severe homemaking shortcomings (can I really add more chaos to my life right now? No, it is clear I cannot.) Do I know anything about this breed? (No, but how can a puppy this sweet not be a fit?) Will my husband possibly divorce me if I buy him right now? (No, but the disapproval might be worse to live with than that.) By an extremely tiny margin, my rational side won. And now the next day I can see clearly how close to the precipice I was. Too bad, because probably some wonderful boy-and-his-dog relationships were born of less-than-rational parental choices on the spur of the moment :) At least Owen and Asher will have a less insane mother this way and Reuel won't take away my credit card.
Before we left town, we had a family Christmas back at home, which was awesome! Owen was spectacularly excited and has not stopped talking about his 'two wheel scooter' for big boys...at least until we got here and he found a new Carolina-side scooter from Nunu too! Yesterday I went on a walk with him around the neighborhood while he scooted along, and I could not keep up with him. He can really whizz around! I also got the boys an indoor trampoline with handle; there was no learning curve for them whatsoever. I'm hoping that takes the edge off the long indoor winter afternoons with two rambunctious boys back home.
Tomorrow Daddy arrives! Looking forward to it, we need a man around here! Just 'cause I don't mention my Dad much here doesn't mean we're not thinking about him. He's conspicuously missing from this party, and he would have thoroughly enjoyed hosting his grandkids and watching them enjoy themselves at his place. He's not really missing out though, is he? Last week in Sunday school one of the other teachers was asking the kids about their Christmas preparations at home, and if anyone was taking a trip, etc. A few kids were piping up and then I heard Owen say, "My gwampa died away and he lives in heaven with Jesus now." It's true!
Yesterday we took a little outing to a country pet store. Great! There was an emu, llamas, donkeys, chickens, goats, parrot, a lemur(!), ferrets, a marmoset, hedgehog, a ton of lizards, and the more normal assortment of pets, all really accessible for the kids to look at. Well, it wasn't busy and we asked if Owen could hold one of the puppies (I selfishly asked the clerk for the one *I* loved, despite the fact that Asher was fixated on a chihuahua puppy). She brought out the sweetest jack russell terrier puppy. He was so mild-tempered! He just saw in Owen's lap and enjoyed being petted, no nips or anything. Owen said, "Mommy I LOVE dis puppy. I weally, weally love him, and I don't like dat puppy over dere. He is TOO squeaky." (referring to the chihuahua yipping away) Folks, I am an emotional thinker when in the presence of young animals. (Ask Reuel how we acquired our pet rabbit.) I REALLY wanted to bring home that dog. It was only knowing my already-severe homemaking shortcomings (can I really add more chaos to my life right now? No, it is clear I cannot.) Do I know anything about this breed? (No, but how can a puppy this sweet not be a fit?) Will my husband possibly divorce me if I buy him right now? (No, but the disapproval might be worse to live with than that.) By an extremely tiny margin, my rational side won. And now the next day I can see clearly how close to the precipice I was. Too bad, because probably some wonderful boy-and-his-dog relationships were born of less-than-rational parental choices on the spur of the moment :) At least Owen and Asher will have a less insane mother this way and Reuel won't take away my credit card.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Notavirus
I don't think Asher's run on diapers yesterday (pun intended) was a virus. It ended yesterday, and he just wasn't miserable like all the other folks I've heard complaining. Here's the hypothesis that hit me today: molasses. I was mixing up some gingerbread man dough early yesterday morning so that we could make cookies with friends who came for a playdate, and when I went to answer the door and finally made it back to the kitchen Asher had pushed the stepstool over to the mixer and showed me a brown mouth full of dough, and he was covered...who knows how much he ingested. Just an idea.
Today's one of those days...a GREAT one, and I just mull over the fact that there's no way I can preserve the joy exactly as it is. I suppose there will always be new joy, but I liked today's wonderfulness so much. Not just today, but every day, Asher is the sweetest thing on two legs. He is SO JOYFUL and loves life. OK, he whines with the best of them, but under that is a very flexible and giggly fellow...finally, I know what 'they' mean when they say ignore a tantrum. Asher gets over 'em fast. He is a food hound. I have rarely seen the like of his homing beacon on all things caloric (except perhaps my own...hmm). But bedtime is my favorite. He babbles away while we read some books and pray and sing, and then he happily lays down in his crib and babbles away up at me. His current routine is to say baba (blanket) and I drape it over him, he pats it on his tummy and giggles. Then he wants high fives. Lots of them. He holds up his hands and says, 'Hi!' and bats at mine as many times as I let him, laughing all the while. Then we blow kisses for a while, I snuggle up Mr. Moo Cow next to him, and as I walk away saying 'Night-night Asher' he is babbling about something and chuckling lightly about his jokes, or he mimics me and says 'Ni-ni' all the way til I close the door. What bliss! All the pains of parenthood are worth these moments (and even the mommy belly).
On another note, tonight as I was putting Owen to bed he was putting up various fusses and didn't want to be left alone. I had to get a little tough to gain compliance with the bedtime plan. As I'm trying to get out the door and saying, "Owen, that's enough. Let's have bedtime the easy way" with a stern-ish voice, Owen says, "Mommy, don't get short with me." Then, there is silence and an awkward grin on his lips and he waits and sees how that's going to go over. A pause from me as well, as I consider where on earth he has heard this (not from me...that's not one of my phrases). Then I say, "Where did you hear THAT??" and he just breaks up laughing and I do too. As I now head out the door for good he says, "But mommy, I really mean that. You shouldn't have a mean voice like that!" From the mouths of babes!
Off to make Christmas cookies for a party tomorrow.
Today's one of those days...a GREAT one, and I just mull over the fact that there's no way I can preserve the joy exactly as it is. I suppose there will always be new joy, but I liked today's wonderfulness so much. Not just today, but every day, Asher is the sweetest thing on two legs. He is SO JOYFUL and loves life. OK, he whines with the best of them, but under that is a very flexible and giggly fellow...finally, I know what 'they' mean when they say ignore a tantrum. Asher gets over 'em fast. He is a food hound. I have rarely seen the like of his homing beacon on all things caloric (except perhaps my own...hmm). But bedtime is my favorite. He babbles away while we read some books and pray and sing, and then he happily lays down in his crib and babbles away up at me. His current routine is to say baba (blanket) and I drape it over him, he pats it on his tummy and giggles. Then he wants high fives. Lots of them. He holds up his hands and says, 'Hi!' and bats at mine as many times as I let him, laughing all the while. Then we blow kisses for a while, I snuggle up Mr. Moo Cow next to him, and as I walk away saying 'Night-night Asher' he is babbling about something and chuckling lightly about his jokes, or he mimics me and says 'Ni-ni' all the way til I close the door. What bliss! All the pains of parenthood are worth these moments (and even the mommy belly).
On another note, tonight as I was putting Owen to bed he was putting up various fusses and didn't want to be left alone. I had to get a little tough to gain compliance with the bedtime plan. As I'm trying to get out the door and saying, "Owen, that's enough. Let's have bedtime the easy way" with a stern-ish voice, Owen says, "Mommy, don't get short with me." Then, there is silence and an awkward grin on his lips and he waits and sees how that's going to go over. A pause from me as well, as I consider where on earth he has heard this (not from me...that's not one of my phrases). Then I say, "Where did you hear THAT??" and he just breaks up laughing and I do too. As I now head out the door for good he says, "But mommy, I really mean that. You shouldn't have a mean voice like that!" From the mouths of babes!
Off to make Christmas cookies for a party tomorrow.
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