the new
December 31, 2007, 9:21 am
Another New Year’s Eve! These years just keep zipping by, and right about the time I get used to something it's gone and replaced by something new. Like Huck's naps. Gone, gone. But in their place is an early bed time at night, and that means nice long evenings for Mams and Paps.;)
Gone too are the days of Huck’s incredible attention span. He can still sit for a long time at the table with Play-Doh, coloring or cutting paper, but almost everything else gets approximately 2.3 minutes of his time. He’s even taking to saying “pause” when we’re reading to him, apparently needing a break. I blame the many wonderful toys he just received which have apparently blown his mind. Just yesterday I tried to interest him in his airplane and truck and instead he wanted to play with Daddy's old paint stirring stick.
;)
Also gone are some fixtures in our apartment. First our horrible closet doors, then our dreadful shower tiles. But most importantly, we're about to turn our one and only bedroom into Huck’s very own big boy bedroom where he will hopefully sleep in his very own big boy bed all by himself! (Our bed will be moved into a perfect sized nook off our living room -- you've got to be creative in these New York apartments.) Gone will be our Family Bed, which will take some getting used to. You can expect many future blogs on this subject, I'm sure.
;)
Gone for now are our days spent outside at playgrounds and parks, for like everyone else we're stuck inside where it's nice and warm. Already Huck and I are looking forward to the leaves, flowers and friends returning outside where time passes more quickly. But for now, there’s a whole lot more one-on-one quality time without as much distraction. And lots of Play-Doh.
;)
Thankfully, many things remain the same for us as 2007 comes to a close and the new year is almost here. We’re healthy, we’re happy, we’re safe in our little apartment with our little boy and our smelly dog. Huck still says “swee” for 3, sings and dances all day long, thinks that hiding under the same old blanket on the same old couch is the greatest game ever, and loves cuddling more than anything.
May 2008 bring more of the same. Happy New Year!
;)
[ 5 comments ] ( 35 views )
home for christmas
December 26, 2007, 3:21 pm
;)
We hope you're all having a very happy time celebrating Christmas and anticipating the new year. We three in New York are so exhausted from all the fun we've had that we're longing for some boredom and hunger.
Here are pictures from our fun Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, which all began with an emergency trip to the neighborhood Staples for our third digital camera since Huck was born. (On Sunday night our second camera fell out of my hand onto the hard floor and died immediately.)
So with new camera in hand, we jumped on the train and headed down to South Street Seaport to look at the boats and decorations, then to a playground at Madison Square Park which just happens to have the world's most fun red swing, followed by a family Christmas Eve service at Marble Collegiate Church on Fifth Avenue where Huck got to look at lambs up close, which made him nervously stick his fingers in his mouth. After the service we got back on the uptown train, had dinner at our favorite Indian restaurant, and then home to begin the hours of present-opening which is our tradition. We woke up Christmas morning, found some fun stuff Santa left for us, talked to family members far away, played with our many toys (including Daddy's amazing remote control helicopter from Uncle Nathan), and ended the fun-fest with Tiffany, Brian, Kadin, Kimberly, Mimi and Poppy for a big dinner!
Seriously, I'm not going to eat or drink anything for at least another week.
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
[ 5 comments ] ( 35 views )merry christmas!
December 24, 2007, 10:32 am
;)
;)
[ 4 comments ] ( 30 views )the world according to huck
December 22, 2007, 7:29 pm
;)
Watching Huck figure out the world around him is one of my favorite things, though half the time I’m confused by what he’s saying or doing. Like the other day we were cutting paper and gluing various pieces of paper onto other pieces of paper when suddenly I realized that he was using the strips of orange paper to act out a story from a favorite book, pretending to be "Henry" riding around on a "lightening bulb." And last week he was pretending to eat "ladybug outlets" moments after I caught him actually removing an outlet protector from the wall and plugging in his night-light. I gave him such a talking-to about the dangers of doing such a thing that I guess his response was to eat them. And turn them into ladybugs.
I’m not saying he makes a whole lot of sense. I just think he’s interesting.
About a month before Huck was born, Troy and I took a childcare class taught by a very aggressive woman with a thick New Jersey accent named Karen. Since that day Troy has imitated her to make me laugh, and part of our routine is that I ask Karen questions about taking care of my baby and she ridicules me with her horrible answers. The other evening at dinner Troy began doing Karen in front of Huck for the first time, and he joined me in laughter though he couldn’t possibly have understood what was so funny. I think he just enjoys watching his daddy entertain his mommy like that. Finally Huck had a question. “Karen, did you cry when Frosty the Snowman melted?” Without any hesitation Karen proceeded to answer Huck with a very loud, self absorbed, outrageous answer that had little to do with the famous snowman. Then I realized that Huck thought Troy was imitating the sweet, innocent little girl from the TV special, whose name is also Karen and who cries very sadly when Frosty melts. I’m afraid Huck is going to always think of his dad as being a terrible impersonator.
Last Christmas Huck was very into the Baby Jesus and loved acting out the nativity scene many times a day. This year he’s more interested in cookies, but as far as the Christmas story he really likes “Bethel-ham” and finds the little town in all kinds of places, like the snow piles along 181st Street. He also likes talking about Jesus being a rabbi and says he wants to be one someday. Still, he can’t resist some role play and will say things like, “So I’m Baby Jesus and you’re Mary and Max is our donkey and Daddy’s our cow.”
I’m sure this will change as the years go by, but for now Huck seems very non-materialistic. I keep talking about all the presents overflowing out from under our tree and wondering what Santa will put in his stocking, and only recently has he begun showing any interest at all in what's inside those pretty packages. When asked what he wants for Christmas all he ever says is “an old toy boat,” which unfortunately Santa promised he'd do his best to find. Quality time is what Huck craves more than anything, which is a pretty great reminder this time of year.
;)
[ 3 comments ] ( 22 views )
music together
December 18, 2007, 2:38 pm
;)
Yesterday was Huck's last music class, and for the first time in 12 weeks he actually smiled and participated a little bit. I think it's because he had both Troy and I there with him and it felt like a party. His wonderful teacher Donetta let the kids request their favorite songs from the semester which was hard for Huck because he has about 29 faves. When all the songs were sung and the instruments played and the parachute and scarves put away, he gave Donetta her Christmas card and pointed out that Molly was not on it because she died and also that we know four cats who have died. Merry Christmas!
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
[ 5 comments ] ( 35 views )very funny
December 16, 2007, 1:39 pm
;)
Sometimes Huck and I play “Make Me Laugh” and we’re terrible at it because we both find each other to be hilarious. It’s hard to keep a straight face around Huck when he’s not trying to be funny; it’s nearly impossible when he’s working it.
Things like this make me giggle everyday:
Huck's begun imitating Max the way we do, which means making him sound like a cross between a Chicago gangster and an aging Broadway diva who’s smoked too many cigarettes. The other day I asked Max if he wanted to take a walk and "he" told me, "No, I'll go out by myself," which was a clever effort on Huck's part to keep Mommy to himself.
Throughout the day Huck pretends to be a girl named Christy. (Troy's Sue and I'm Annie.) Christy’s real mom is named Andi and she lets her do things that other moms don’t let their kids do, like put Play-Doh on our nice cedar chest.
Here’s a typical mealtime routine that Huck invented:
Me: So how are you doing?
Huck: Not good.
Me: Oh, I’m so sorry. What’s wrong?
Huck: My throat hurts, but these chips make it feel better.
(repeat many, many times, change roles & food occasionally)
The other day Huck asked me, "What is it?" After much confusion and long blank stares he finally explained, "You know, the thing with numbers. What is it?" He just wanted to know what time it was. You know, the thing with numbers.
Troy lets Huck pee in the tub before his bath and lately he does it while singing a line from a song that goes, "Praaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaise the Lord" while doing a little shimmy down into a squat. There aren't too many moves more awkward than this one while urinating.
And last of all, when we leave or when people leave us he sings the goodbye song from music class in the most beautiful, heartfelt voice you ever heard. "Goodbye, so long, farewell my friends, good bye, so long, farewell. We'll see you soon again my friends, so goodbye, so long, farewell." It's a nice exit.
;)
[ 5 comments ] ( 39 views )loves the ladies
December 11, 2007, 8:36 pm
;)
Huck's a ladies’ man, and any lady who has spent time with him can tell you this is true. We had some friends over recently, and when it came time for his bath he asked all the females to sit in our tiny bathroom and watch him. He also asked them to play with him on our bed. Thankfully this time he did not request any clothing be removed.
While we were in Kansas he told his almost 17 year old cousin Megan that she had pretty hair and his three year old cousin Lily that he liked her dress. And a few days ago he very sweetly told Kadin’s grandma Mimi that she was wearing a nice sweater.
Either he is very straight or very, very gay.[ 5 comments ] ( 43 views )
one of a kind
December 4, 2007, 2:22 pm
;)
There are a few things about Huck that make him different from other two-and-a-half year olds. Like he's obsessed with oral hygiene and causes us to say absurd things like, “No, you may NOT brush your teeth again.” He insists on wearing his hood and gloves every time we go outside, and he loves to ride in the stroller and never gives me any sass when I put him in it, unlike all his friends whose screams can be heard from miles away.
I'm not complaining. I just think I'm missing out on some of the trauma of toddler rearing.
Our trauma is completely different. For instance, by a horrible twist of fate and awkward circumstance, Huck began our trip to Kansas by singing and clapping a fun song from music class that goes, “Platypus, platypus, looking weird!” Except that he very articulately substituted the word “penis” instead. Our airplane pilot was approximately four centimeters from us during this horribly embarrassing moment and he quickly looked away as if desperately trying to imagine something, anything, besides a penis looking weird.
Similarly, Huck refuses to believe that one of his favorite songs is called “Our God is an Awesome God” and instead sings, “Our God is an Awful God,” usually around people who would be disturbed by such lyrics. And this is the main thing that sets Huck apart from his peers: his strong religious conviction that presents itself everyday and night in song and dance. And prayer.
While we were in Kansas we thought we'd give the family a thrill by having Huck say grace before meals. By the end of our trip we'd created a monster whose prayer had become a ridiculous performance worthy of some kind of MTV award. We actually had to ban him from praying. Now that we're back in the comfort of our own home without a bunch of eyes on his every move, we're working to get Huck back to his less showy Christian toddler self who sings songs as written.
But like all the other kids his age, Huck's finding clever ways to get what he wants, which means imitating what the grown ups do to get what they want. This morning he was trying to get me out of bed and after much sleepy protest he finally said in a stern little voice: “Here's the deal, Mommy. I'm going to count to ten and then I want you to get out of bed and come play with us."
;)
;)
[ 7 comments ] ( 76 views )