Standing and Even Dancing

Lately, Henry has been pulling up on everything and doing that little shuffle-sideways-walk that looks so cute and makes us all aware of how quickly he is going to be walking.

Here he is pulling up on the screen door.

You might notice our new screen door. Actually, we just had a handyman out to fix all of the wood on our front door area. Check out how bad it was last year. $2200 just to get a new door, screen door, and replace all of the rotted wood. Ahh, the joys of home ownership. Anyway, we're loving the new door. Henry spends half of his days looking out (or in, in this case).

We also had this handyman build a special wood thingie (she said with her highly technical vocabulary) to hold a gate securely. Henry can now dance with joy, and we can let him, without worrying about him climbing the stairs.

For some reason, he loves to wiggle his butt and shake the bars of the gate. I've caught him doing this (gleefully, each time) at least four times in the last two days. 

Nicholas is Three Today!

Three years ago today I was in the hospital after becoming a mother for the first time. Today I was in the Target, letting that same little boy pick out a toy. I left Henry at home with Grandma Toni and took Nick out for some one-on-one time with Mommy. I was feeling rather sentimental and wanted Nick all to myself. Since I'm a little bit nuts, I let our three-year-old chose what we'd have for dinner. He chose macaroni and cheese with cupcakes for dessert.

We had Panera's macaroni and cheese for dinner, and Nick picked his own cupcake from a large selection. He chose the one with the cookie on top, because my son is an intelligent little man. It's actually a gingerbread cupcake. A few weeks back there was a Groupon for cupcakes from Cuddle Cupcakes. I took full advantage of that offer. The cupcakes are amazing!

Nick's favorite thing to do with me? Hands down, making cookies tops his list. I wanted to bring some homemade cookies to daycare tomorrow so all of the kids there could celebrate with Nick. We made sugar cookies shaped like cars, and Nick (while in the Target) picked out his own sprinkles. He helped me roll out the dough, cut the cookies, and apply the sprinkles. However, about two seconds after this photo was taken, Nick ruined one of the sheets of cookies. He turned on the water, you see, and soaked them. "I was just washing my hands, Mommy!," he insisted. Anyhow, we still ended up with lots of decent, non-soaked car cookies. It's easy to tell which ones Nick made. 

My favorite part of the evening was just talking with Nick. He had some interesting things to say. Let's listen to the interview:

For some reason, he wouldn't say his age. Whenever I asked Nick his age, both in the morning and at night, all he would say is "I'm Nick." Now, this isn't because he doesn't understand age. We've been talking about turning three for some time, and Nick has been able to count to three (with meaning) for months now. I think he's being stubborn and refusing to say what we want him to say. A strong personality can be rough, but this kid won't give in to peer pressure easily. I'm very proud of him, regardless.

Perhaps that's a good attitude to have about age. If someone asks me, "How old are you, Melissa?," I might be better off if I simply answered, "I'm Melissa." My son seems to have better self-esteem than most, so this method is working for him. 

I hope Nick's third year is full of happiness, learning experiences, and plenty of playing. I never imagined three years ago that I could have such a complex and yet wonderful son.

Bacon!

Nick loves bacon. Whenever he smells it he goes crazy. Point in case:

Not sure if you can totally understand Nick-ese, so I'll explain. Nick was yelling out the window to the boys playing across the way. (Who, by the way, couldn't hear him because the window was closed.) He was saying, "The bacon is for Nick. You can't have my bacon!" Then he was demanding that I give him bacon NOW, even though I was still cooking it. That's when I grabbed my camera, because I thought he was being pretty cute. 

Things have been pretty nuts around here, but I figured I'd take a few minutes and tell you about one funny event in a nice, relaxing Saturday morning.  :)

A Rather Serious Fellow

I think I've said that Henry can be a rather serious fellow, at least on camera. I have such a hard time getting Henry to smile and laugh on camera. Off-camera, he's a regular ham. But it is very rare that I'm able to capture a grin. I did get a nice one yesterday, though.

 

I tried to get Henry to giggle for me on camera all day today, with no real luck. It was pretty funny, because he'd be laughing and smiling and looking all adorable, but as soon as that camera came out, this is the look I would get:

We even tried having Greg fly him around and talk to him while I used my camera to videotape. Still cute, but not as adorable as when Henry starts laughing.

Up to Rockton

I definitely have more to post about our Milwaukee trip, and I also have lots of other posts to catch up on soon. But I figured that today I would give an update on what my little family did last weekend.

First of all, we went up to Rockton last weekend to visit with Greg's dad and stepmom. We went to the Beloit Farmers' Market, which was the best farmers markets I've seen. The prices were very reasonable, the produce fresh, and this market was huge compared to some of the small ones in Illinois. I think there must be a markup on produce in the suburbs for some reason.

Nick loved the big doggies he saw. He seems to be more gentle with the giant dogs. Probably because they're bigger than him!

It was a relaxing weekend with superb weather. Nick especially loved sitting on the porch. In the picture above he is with his Grandpa Jay (Greg's dad). We had a yummy lunch on Saturday at this great bakery. I tried to take Nick's picture with Greg but he wouldn't sit still. My boy has SO much energy lately.

We had a good weekend. Nick entertained us in the car by singing, at the top of his lungs, for quite a bit of the trip.

My Day with Henry

Henry and I had a whole day to ourselves today, and it was lovely. We had some serious bonding time, and some even more serious napping time. I'm not usually a good (or even decent) photographer, but I love this photo I snapped of Henry while I was chatting with him this afternoon.

I love newborns, because they're so tiny and yet so perfect. For some reason, I didn't take many videos of Nick when he was this tiny. I want to make sure we get plenty of videos of Henry in action. Babies grow and change so fast, and I want to remember him like this. Especially the adorable baby toes.

Greg and Grandma Toni took Nick to the zoo all day, so Henry and I had lots of cuddle time. He is very responsive to touch, and he wants to be against my skin all the time. I've been using my baby sling constantly, because I don't have to put Henry down every time I have to use my hands. Also, he absolutely loves being all snuggled up. After all, this time last week he was squished inside of me. Hard to believe.

I've been loving my new Nook--it was the perfect gift for someone who has to spend a lot of time sitting in a chair nursing and pumping. One of the first books I bought is called Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain, by David Eagleman. I heard about this book on NPR a few weeks ago, and was pretty sure I'd enjoy it. It's about neuroscience and human behavior, and how the two are linked in so many ways. (I know, I'm all about the light summer reading.) I've been reading a chapter or so every feeding, and I finished it today. This book was a fascinating read, and I loved using the Nook because I can read with only one hand when the other one is, ahem, occupied by holding a tiny little head.

I found it really cool to think about how much of our behavior is, in many ways, a result of what goes on inside of our brains. I loved his idea of discovering brain exercises to do that might rehabilitate criminals. The author took some very complex stuff and made it understandable. I think I'm going to have to buy more books by this author.

For being less than a week out from surgery, I feel like I've been pretty productive. I'm being careful, but trying to move around and get things done. Besides hanging out with Henry, I also made some whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread in my bread machine (with baby in the sling), and had a two-hour afternoon nap. We sat out on the screened in porch and took in the fresh air for a few hours. I love this weather--it has been warm but not hot, just perfect weather for having the windows open. Henry took a nap with our cat, Molly this evening. She loves Henry so far, because he can't chase her yet!

Reflections on Becoming a Mommy of Two Boys

Lately I've been thinking a lot about how things will change once I have two boys. On June 9th, I am having a baby, and Nick will no longer be an only child. Nick has doted upon since he was born, and we have about a million pictures of him. To tell you the truth, I have a folder of videos and pictures from every month, and during an average month I might take 200-600 pictures, most of which feature him.

The pictures in this post are from the one sunny day we had last week, when I took Nick to the park to run off some energy. He was desperate to get out in the sunshine, and headed straight for the slides.

I took a ton of pictures of Nick at the park, as usual. For example, I probably have several hundred pictures of Nick playing at various area parks. (See also here, here, and here, and here, and here.)  Will I be too busy to reflect on my boys once there are two of them? I guess I'm not so worried about the first few months, but once this new baby starts crawling, I think I may be in some trouble, with two little boys to chase.

I've said before that I blog mostly for myself, so that I won't forget what life was like as a mom of young children. I'm under no illusions that my life is terribly fascinating, but it is my life, and this is how I express myself. Some days I have to force myself to sit down and go through pictures and write, but I'm always glad that I did. I love being able to go back and remember things when Nick first started to crawl, videos of some of his first words, and pictures of making St. Patrick's Day Cookies together.

My worries, of course, aren't just about keeping up with photographs and blogging. I've been thinking about how I'll spend quality time with each of my children. I think I'm going to have to plan time alone with each boy regularly, so they each feel appreciated and special. This will get more complicated, because I may be working as many as three jobs at a time, in addition to being a mother. (I work full-time as a teacher, I will be teaching graduate school as an adjunct instructor, and I do freelance writing projects. Oh, and I'm tutoring this summer.) I have to say, though, that I feel like my working life makes me a better, more fulfilled parent. I'm lucky enough to enjoy my work, even though it makes me frazzled sometimes.

I am definitely looking forward to the birth of this child, despite my stress levels. This little boy was very wanted, and I know he's going to be a great addition to our family. I think Nick will make a great big brother, and we're working on getting him ready. I'll write more about our plan later this week.

On a whinier note, there are also the not-so-fun parts of being 38 weeks pregnant that I'll be glad to leave behind. Frankly, I'm just about done being pregnant. I just checked the weather forecast, and temps will be in the 90s this week. I work in a school with no air conditioning, so I'm a little concerned about how I'll be feeling. I was pretty miserable today.

No matter what, though, very soon I'll have two children. The thought of that makes me scared but also excited. Kind of like standing at the top of a very tall slide, getting ready to take the plunge.

Nick, at least, has me to hold his hand while he comes down.   : )

All About Bikes. . . and Trikes

It all started with Nick reading a story about a bike at daycare. Nick was especially interested, and our babysitter, who believes in the Montessori approach, went with it and brought out activities having to do with bikes. The kids put together diagrams of a bicycle, colored them, and learned to name the parts. My boy was totally into it. See the picture he made?

Bikes are his latest obsession. He can point to and name the pedals, wheels, tires, handlebars, and even the horn.

When we went to Costco on Friday, of course they had out their display of bicycles--adult bicycles. "Mommy, I want to ride that bike." Then, later in our shopping trip, "Mommy, I want that bike!" I told Nick that he had his own bike at home in the basement. Actually it's a tricycle, but he got all excited. Greg brought it up into the living room and he's been sitting on it constantly. Greg brought it outside all three days this weekend and let him ride around the block, again and again. . . and again.

Nick mostly just sits on the trike or scoots a little with his feet, as you can see. Greg pushes him when they're outside. But he knows that this is a big kid bike, so he's excited everytime he sees it. I'm not sure how long it'll be before he's able to reach the pedals properly.








































He also started climbing on the seat of his tricycle to get things. Last night, he used it to get onto the kitchen table, grab a handful of kitty food, and fling it across the floor. "Here kitty, you eat it!" So the trike started Nick on a pattern of climbing. He climbed a lot Friday night, and even sat on our cocktail table for awhile. We had to tell him, "No stand on bike!" repeatedly.

This Boy is Well-Loved

Here are the promised pictures from Nick's visit with my mom, stepdad, sister, and grandma. Nick had a ball and loved all of the attention. He knows all of his relatives by name and he even knows how they like to play. Auntie Mandy likes to tickle him, and Grandma Linda likes to read with him. Gigi likes to sing with him--in this case they sang "The wheels on the bus."

Nick knows that he can play pinball with his Grandpa Ray, and that Grandma Linda will let him make biscuits and eat "cookie bears" anytime he wants. (I'm talking about those chocolate graham cookies--my mom keeps them at her house just for him.) Nick sometimes chooses to eat them with a spoon.

Nick even knows how to play blocks with different people. With me, he wants to make houses for his little animals, but with Grandma, he likes to build with squishy blocks. Plus, also chew on them.

Grandma Linda also makes a delicious dark chocolate bundt cake. Nick really loved that. I'm going to have to get her recipe. Anything with dark chocolate is a craving of mine lately.

Grandma Linda also likes to play Wii with Nick. He loves the balance board, and even requests to stand on it when he visits. Chewing on the Wii mote is even more fun. I think he was playing a game where you're a penguin and try to catch fish and not fall off of your iceberg. Nick got to visit his grandma and grandpa again this week, and he exhausted them with all of his energy.

We don't have any sort of video gaming system at our house, so this is very special for Nick. Also tasty, apparently.







Singing his ABCs with Piano Accompaniment

On Saturday we took Nick to my mom and stepdad's house for a visit. I'll write more about that tomorrow, but for now, here's a video of Nick showing off his ABC skills. He loved playing the piano and singing with his Auntie Mandy. I believe he sings the whole song twice thorugh, although I didn't get every bit on video.

I'm thinking I'll probably have to sign this boy up for piano lessons at some point. He can play for quite a long time without getting bored.

I just realized. . .

That I never once got my child dressed this weekend. He did, however, wear four different pairs of pajamas.

He also trashed the entire house. Twice. . . no, thrice. I love the picture below because it shows the destruction in progress. I wonder if this is cabin fever?

Nick also decided to call his daddy on the phone. He probably would have succeeded in calling someone for real, if my phone didn't have a lock function. So if you ever get a weird call from me, it might just be that Nick figured out how to unlock my cell phone. He's already figured out how to pull my purse down from the counter, unscrew my lip gloss, apply it, and smear it on the floor. That's also how he got my phone.

Yes, I know he has chocolate on his face. I wiped it after I took this video. He'd snuck a cookie from the counter without me noticing, and it'd smeared everywhere. I only noticed when he turned around while I was taking videos. Nicholas has a thing for chocolate. I think his little brother must, too, because I've been craving on the chocolate really hard lately.



Nick Sings "Happy Birthday" to Daddy!

Today was Greg's 37th birthday. We celebrated tonight with his mom and sister by going to Meson Sabika in Naperville. He was only marginally more well behaved today at the restaurant. He still has a minor case of the crabbies. Thankfully, though, the employees were kind enough to sit us in an empty section, so that we weren't quite as embarrassed by the throwing of crayons and the random loud noises that this toddler has been emitting lately.

Yes, that's Nick doing the finger trick thing with his plastic straw. Going out to dinner for birthdays is kind of a tradition in Greg's family. A tradition, I might add, that I really like. We were out really late, and I am exhausted. My tummy, however, is very satisfied. I think this baby loves tapas as much as I do. I think Greg enjoyed himself despite the misbehaving toddler, and that is the most important thing, since it is his birthday. He certainly devoured his cream puffs with ice cream and chocolate sauce.  :)

Here's a little clip I got of Nick singing "Happy Birthday" to his daddy. He kept singing, on and off, for a good half hour. Hey, at least he wasn't screaming.






Happy Birthday Greg!

"I See Fishies!" Or, A Visit to the Shedd Aquarium

To celebrate the first day of 2011, Greg and I decided to take Nick to the Shedd Aquarium. Nick has never been before, mostly because every time we go downtown the line looks really long (out the door!), and we've never been brave enough to wait. I love going downtown, but the cost is often frustrating, so we don't go all that often. For this trip, parking cost $19.

Our hope was that since it was New Year's Day, everyone would be at home sleeping it off, and the lines would be more manageable. We still had to wait about 40 minutes, but at least our waiting was inside. Nick kept saying, "Fishies?" When we finally got to the counter, we were astonished at the prices. Now, the good news is that I got in for free, because I'm a public school teacher. Nick was also free because he's under 3. But Greg, alone, cost $37 with tax for admission plus the show. What will we do when we have two children over three? Urgh.

The aquarium itself was pretty cool, and Nick loved interacting with other children any chance he got. I have to work with him on his waving, though. If he says "Hi!" to another child, and they don't respond, he keeps repeating it and waving his hand in their face until they react. Oh, well. At least he likes to play with other kids.

I think Nick's very favorite thing at Shedd was the wave tank, which was pretty awesome. He kept asking for it to go "Again!" It was the only time he sat for more than thirty seconds the whole day.  :)

Despite the expense, I will say that the upstairs eatery at the aquarium (Soundings Cafe) is ten times nicer than most museum cafes. The food was well-made and they bring it to your table. They advertise organic, locally grown ingredients, and if that is true then I guess the price was worth it. The tables had a great view of the lake, too. Nick loved his pickle the best.

The show was really neat, as well, but this is when Nick started misbehaving. It was a Christmas themed show, and I think this was the last weekend it was running. There were lots of other kids his age there, and all of them sat quietly in their parents' laps. Not my boy. He kept moving around and climbing down to sit with another family that had a very cute little girl. Nick can be a big flirt. He loved the show, though, especially when Santa came flying out in a little boat that landed on the water. When Santa went away, Nick yelled, "Santa! Where Santa? Want Santa!"

After the show, there was a big hubub about Nick not wanting to stay in the stroller or  hold someone's hand. Our kid is very high-energy, and both of us worry sometimes about him not listening.

I know that it is normal for a two-year-old to be defiant, but it was frustrating seeing all of the other kids his age walking contentedly with their parents while our child kept trying to run away. It's all about being more stubborn than your kid, though, and eventually Greg and I convinced him that he'd have to pick: hold hand or stroller. He did better after that little power struggle. Especially when we found the Polar Play area where little kids can climb and play, pretending to be penguins.

We ended up staying at the aquarium the whole day and not leaving until after 5 p.m. (We wanted to get our money's worth, you see.) Despite Nick's misbehavior, it was a very fun day, and Nick thoroughly enjoyed himself. When we went out this morning, he asked me, "We go see fishies?"

I had to tell him, "Not for awhile, baby." Especially considering the price of admission.  But I'm glad we went, even though my feet were killing me the next two days. Many of my pictures turned out kind of blurry because of: (1.) the constantly moving two-year-old, and (2.) the poor lighting. But Greg got some pretty good video of Nick talking about the fishies.

If you've got plenty of dough, I'd highly recommend the Shedd Aquarium if you've got little kids.

He Screams For. . .

Some kids scream for ice cream. Others scream for cake. Actually, our kid screams for both of those things. But check out what he's screaming for in the video below:

Yup. Avocado. My boy screams for "Cado!" Greg made a delicious brunch for us on Saturday--Juevos Rancheros, with chorizo sausage and beans and, of course, yummy avocado. That was Nick's favorite part. I believe he ate nearly an entire avocado.

As for the volume? We're working on that. Nick's going through a phase lately where he yells every request. Hopefully it isn't a very long phase.

A Little Slice of Nick

Today was my last day of summer school, and I'm pretty tired. So here's just a little slice of Nick to make you smile. He sure made me smile.  :)

This video is of Nick, pre-cast, from last week. Grandma Toni was visiting us and Nick kept climbing in the laundry basket, doing his happy dance. I thought it was pretty cute, and I wanted to share. A laundry basket is, for him, the best toy on earth.

All By Himself!

He can do it! My little boy is growing up. He climbed up the stairs, sat down on the slide, and went down by himself (after watching a little girl do it first). Nick loves to go to the park, and he even has a special name for it. He points when he sees a park and says, "Whee!" As in the noise he makes when he goes down the slide.

Here's a list of some other things Nick can now do by himself. He's learned all of this in the last two months. When I sat down to make this list, I was more than a little surprised.  I'm quite proud, as well, but I think I understand now why I've been a little tired lately after a day spent with Nicholas!

Nick's "All By Himself List." He can. . .

1. Climb onto the couch.
2. Climb out of the bathtub.
3. Eat with a spoon (depending on the food).
4. Get into his Cozy Coupe, shut the door, and honk the horn.
5. Ask me to read him a story. (He says it "Stoodee," or sometimes, "Pees Stoodee," and even once "Pees Uppees Stoodee," as in "Please, up, story")
6. Drink from a full sized cup with a straw. Even when it's a frappucino.
7. Take off his diaper. (When he's not wearing pants over the diaper.)
8. Turn on the tv manually by standing on his tiptoes. (And turn it off, and change the mode. And change the channel. And turn up the volume. And turn it on again.)
9. Pick strawberries and flowers.
10. Ride the seesaw, if it's a short see saw.
11. Get in and out of the pool.
12. Unzip my purse, grab the wallet, undo the snap, and empty everything onto the floor.
13. Remove the batteries from the tv remote.
14. Climb on the couch, grab the remote from the end table, remove the batteries, and throw them behind the couch.

That's my boy.  :)

My Little Mall Rat

Nick is such a good sport. Today he was out all day and was an absolute doll. I dragged him hither and yon and then back to hither, but he kept in a decent mood anyway. Greg and I do this funny thing on days that I tutor--I go up and tutor from 8-10 and then Greg delivers Nick and all of his paraphernalia to me in a parking lot. Then I go to my school and do some volunteer tutoring. Yes, I'm a little bit crazy. But if I didn't love teaching, I certainly wouldn't be in this line of work.

It is pretty cool to see some of my ELL students coming in voluntarily to read with me. It's almost as if they like school, which I think is awesome. I like that I'm making a difference, so I feel good about what I'm doing even though it's not paid work. I am rather attached to my students, and I'm excited to see them working so hard over the summer. We give the kids these paper books that they can take home and keep. What's great is that some of the kids are reading the books over and over again. These books are sometimes the only ones in their houses. After tutoring, a few of them stay and play with Nick. One of my fourth graders was carrying him all around the room, talking to him and listening to him babble. I think Nick really got a kick out of listening to the big kids read. It was pretty cute because he kept babbling. "What is he saying?," one of my students asked. As if I know. :)

Today I had plans to meet an old friend at Meson Sabika for dinner at 5, so I had three hours to kill and a baby to entertain. Hmmm, what to do? I decided to walk around the mall, hoping that Nick would take a nap. He did, at least for an hour or so, and I got the opportunity to shop clearance racks a little bit and get some exercise. So long as the stroller kept moving, he kept sleeping. I walked the entire mall (both levels) twice. But then he decided that he didn't want to stay in the stroller anymore. I know he's a little bit small, but I took him to the kids play area with the soft floor. I figured he could at least sit on the floor for awhile and stretch his legs. At first, he wasn't sure what to do.

He just sat on the floor and watched the big kids run around. I was sitting right next to him so he wouldn't get run over. He liked watching the big kids, and this little girl kept looking at him and smiling. Nick smiled back, as he already knows how to flirt effectively at 8 months. How come I didn't master flirting until my post-graduate years? Although I guess he doesn't have to worry about pimples or whether his pants make him look fat. He's not wearing any pants, so it doesn't matter.

The soft gushy floor was pretty cool. I need to get some of that stuff to put under Nick's baby cage so that he stops bonking his head. Then he discovered the little tunnel. He really liked that. He kept trying to touch the walls, and he flapped his arms and bounced up and down. I ended up staying in the children's play area for 45 minutes--far longer than planned. But Nick was having fun watching all the kids playing. I think he is jealous of the ones who can crawl and climb and walk. Below is a short video of him happily playing in the tunnel.

I still had time to kill, and Nick and I arrived early at the restaurant. But Mr. Nicholas did NOT want to sit in his car seat anymore, so I let him sit in the driver's seat, which he loved. He bounced up and down on the seat and tried to grab the steering wheel. I told him, "Not for another sixteen years or so, buddy."

As I'm sure you can imagine, Nick once again loved the tapas. Today he ate duck for the first time, and seemed to like it just fine. Meson Sabika serves it with apples and mushrooms in this divine sauce. Nick kept grabbing for my fork, and he ate some tilapia as well as a bite of sauteed vegetables. Here you can see him trying a tiny bite of a chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce.



Here he is with raspberry sauce all over his face. Nick was pretty pleased with himself. For a baby, he does a great job in restaurants. My friend said she enjoyed meeting him. It was funny, because she watched him when I ran to the bathroom, and that's when he caused trouble. While I was gone (all of two minutes), he dumped over my water glass, dropped his cookie, and screamed. I guess this little man knows when to seize his opportunities.