Thursday, January 31, 2008

Don't Forget the Lyrics


The time has come.


We may have to ask Eli, at certain times, to stop singing. I have so anticipated his love for music, and celebrated each new sign that he will have a passion for it. I never thought about the times when it would be inconvenient. I've readied myself for long recitals, the loud unending ruckus of him someday learning to play the drums, pleading requests for concert tickets...but I wasn't ready for this.


Messing with his naptime?


He is starting to skip naps. And not in the typical two year old fashion. Sure, he sometimes protests laying down. But several times over the past two weeks, it's been a new problem.


Singing.


At the top of his lungs.


The other day, in the baby monitor, I heard the quiet rustle of him shifting in his bed. The "plink plink" of him playing with his binkie. And then,


"Haaaaaa lay luuuuuu yaaaaaaah!'


Quiet for a few minutes.


"Dis is how we know what love is- Jesus Christ lay down his wife."


Yikes!! Not only his he not sleeping, his theology is a little off. That's supposed to be Jesus Christ laid down his life."


This went on for 45 minutes. Silence broken by new ideas of songs that couldn't be contained. I went upstairs and told him it was time to go night night.


He was quiet. And then,


"Haaaaa laaay luuuuuyaaaaaaah"


I smiled and enjoyed the sweet melody. He can always catch up on sleep, right? Yep, because this is just too precious. The other day, he sang this version of Come Thou Fount.


"Come dow fount of evwee bleseen, tune my howt to seen dy gwace. Sweet dreams mercy, never ceaseem call for soms of loudest pwaise."


Monday, January 21, 2008

Old Friends


I'm not sure of when this legend becomes reality. I heard my parents talk about "old friends" when I was growing up. I figured I'd have some someday. When I was a grown up. You know, old.


There have been several reminders this past year that I am, officially, a grown up. I plucked my first three gray hairs this year. I am part of a mom's group. I have a grocery list on my fridge. I've worn the latest fads the last time they were fads.


And I have old friends. Wonderful, beautiful, you-always-feel-comfortable, old friends. I am blessed.


I got to see Cheryl this past week, visiting from Minneapolis. The hours were precious. Julie, Cheryl and I managed a few complete sentences among all the chaos that 6 kids can create. It occurred to me, when we lined up our kiddos on the couch (minus Beckett, who was snoozin') that maybe our kids will become old friends too.


At the very least, they'll grow up hearing us talk each other, and will aspire to have and be an "old friends" too.


two months old!



Beckett is two months old today, and all smiles!
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Thursday, January 17, 2008

Quotables

I LOVE that Eli can talk. When he was first learning words and phrases, it felt like we were handing him a "script." We still do, when it comes to asking for things politely, learning to share, expressing gratitude, etc.

But at almost 2 1/2, it is sheer delight to hear him creates his own questions, statements, requests, and observations. These are just a few spontaneous, unprompted quotes.

Yesterday, after his nap- " I need to put some pants on. My knees are FREEZIN'!"

Sunday night, in his high chair- "Daddy's a good daddy." Then he closed his eyes and said, "Thank you God for Daddy. Amen."

Today, in the car- "Holy canoli, that's a BIIIG man!"(Referring to a bronze statue in the park).

"Is Beckett cute? He's a good baby. I can pet him!"

We had a few "dum dum" lollipops in a bowl on top the fridge left from Halloween. We gave one to Eli, and he was hooked. So one morning, he asked for one, and we told him he could have one after his nap. He tried, in his own creative way, to negotiate.

Eli: "Eli can have a lollipop."
Me: "Yes, you can have a lollipop after your nap."
Eli: "Eli can look at them."
Me: "Yes, can you see the bag?"
Eli: "Mama can put the bowl miiiight (right) here." (He's pointing to a spot on the kitchen floor.)
Me: "No, we're not going to get the bowl down right now."
Eli: "I can put it might here in my hands like this" (Holding his cupped hands together, arms extended.)
Me: "We're going to leave the bowl up there."
Silent pause...
Eli: "Daddy can come in the kitchen and stand miiight here." ( Pointing to the same spot on the kitchen floor.)

I'm sure I'm forgetting plenty, but something tells me there are many more to come, so stay tuned!

Owners Manual

My old Ford Escort did this funny thing where once every six months to a year, it just wouldn't start. Turn the key, and there was nothing. The first time, I tried to jump it...nothing. I don't remember what made me look in the owner's manual. Common sense tells me, even now, that the problem is way beyond anything in the appendix. But sure enough, there was an entry about this funny little problem with some emergency shut off switch that can get tripped accidentally. I turns off the flow of fuel to the engine, so that the car doesn't blow up in a accident. So, somewhere in the trunk, I flipped this switch that, until then, I didn't even know existed, and voila!- problem solved.

Funny, quirky, inconvenient, counterintuitive, but totally managable and even downright logical once you know what to look for.

Kinda like parenting sometimes.

So here are some things I would include in a baby/toddler owners manual.

- Put babies and kids down to sleep before they are tired.
- Pee when you have time, because when you really have to go, you probably won't have time.
- Drink when you're not thirsty....same reason.
- Lights will always be red when you have a crying baby in the back seat.
- Babies hands can get really stinky from being all balled up 24/7. Clean them with a wipe when you change their diaper.
- Pack a back up diaper bag and just leave it in the trunk of your car, for those times when you thought you had two more diapers in the bag. (thanks liberty!)
- The first 10 days of nursing is totally inconvenient, very confining, and even painful. After that, it's the most convenient, allows tons of freedom, and it hurts NOT to nurse.
- Even though we spend most of our life trying to keep our weight down, there's some sort of pride associated with babies/toddlers gaining weight. If you don't believe me, just ask a mom what "percentile" their child is in.
- Toddlers like to put things in holes. (Noses, trash cans, outlets, drains, cups, you name it.)
- If you put a baby in overalls, the straps usually scrunch up around their ears or in their mouth.
- Babies can grunt and move like a wild animal when they are about two inches away from their next meal.
- I think binkie and pacifier manufacturers secretly created a self destruct feature. Nothing else explains why the approximately 50 binkies we have purchased in the last two years have evaporated into thin air.
- To a parent, that first smile, when a baby is falling asleep and has a little gas, is just as beautiful as if it were a "real smile".

And then a few weeks later, the "real smile" is even better.

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Bacon and Other Birthday Treasures


Does this make you smile?
Me neither.
But it's a sign of my true love and affection for my wonderful husband. He's turning 33 on January 8th and this is what I'm giving him.
Beef. And Pork. And Chicken. And Bacon.
All he can eat, courtesy of Bacana Brazil.
I organized a dinner there for Joel and 22 of his closest guy friends. The responses to the evite were hilarious, and a great reminder of the sense of humor they all share. That, and an elevated cholesterol level.
Which reminds me of one my favorite Joel quotes for 2007. He asked me, in all seriousness, "Do you ever just ponder bacon?"
Nope, can't say that I do. But I sure do love my husband.
Happy Birthday babe!