Happy New Year!

I can't believe I didn't make a holiday post yet, but with the festivities over, I think it's high time I post a recap of the boys' holiday happiness this year.

Logan was in his first Christmas play this year. He dressed in a little sheep costume, walked up the aisle, sat with the other sheep (including his "girlfriend" Emmy, an 8-year-old cougar, apparently), and waited for the play to be over. He was adorable, even if he didn't know "Away in a Manger," which the older kids sang at the end of the play. He can, however, sing "Jingle Bells" with gusto (except for the "one horse open sleigh" line-he kind of mumbles through that one.)

Auden was really into the demo (that's demolition, not demonstration) portion of Christmas this year, much to Logan's dismay, since he unwrapped many of Auden's gifts last year. No, Auden made up for last year's disinterest. He unwrapped gifts with a vengeance, and his favorite toys were these Russian-doll style nesting dinosaur figures and stacking cubes. Of course, he enjoyed the demo part of the stacking toys, too. Oh, and he loves this inflatable blue donkey (?) horse (?) bounce toy. It's strangely fitting for the holiday season, since that was Mary's ride and all.

We celebrated Christmas a couple of times with Eric's family and spent a few days with my family, rounded out Eric's vacation with a little stay-cay in Chicago, so we enjoyed a fun, yet restful winter break with family and friends we love. Who could ask for anything more? Oh, and speaking of restful, the boys slept in most days until 7:00, even close to 8:00 on some mornings. I've been trying to set my alarm earlier and earlier this week to try to get back in the swing of things, but the siren song of blessed silence always tempts me to sleep in. Next week is going to be brutal as we start our early wake-ups again.

This week I've been enjoying my time off with the boys while Eric has been going back to work. We've been playing with the new toys...and the old ones. Logan and Auden are starting ever so slowly to play together better. Auden yells "Go!" as the Hot Wheels shoot down the race track Logan got for Christmas. Logan shouts "Lane 5 won!" even though we have no idea which car was in lane 5. They're having little dance parties together with this little music-maker wand toy Auden got for Christmas.

Tomorrow, Logan and I are visiting a preschool I'd like him to go to next year. Hard to believe we're embarking on the school expedition already. Here's hoping we can make this work next year!

Loganism

As we pass the local cemetary on the way for a Holiday visit Logan says: "look, an airport!"

Logan says

Logan got out of the bath last night, and his fingers were all pruney. "Look at my hands, mom!" he says. "I'm as wrinkley as an old granny!" Seriously, where does he get this stuff?

Inconsolable!

Can someone tell me why Logan is crying inconsolably? He's a crazy psycho three year old that is starting to scare me.

Ok...now I know why. He woke up and had to go pee. Instead of verbalizing that, he cried hysterically and peed his pants. He woke up his brother, is still crying hysterically, and all hell has broken lose. I CAN"T STAND IT!

Wow. Logan had worked himself up into such a tizzy it was frightening. He couldn't breathe, was all snotty, and crying/begging/pleading for Mama. Mama had tried to calm him and it wasn't working, so I gave it a shot. I can take a lot, and try not to take it personally, but Daddy is not good enough in times like these. He did not want me, but I managed to get him to calm himself enough to breathe...then I let Mama do the quiet soothing. Makes me sad.

Toddler fun

Two small potatoes + two empty Oberweis bottles = several minutes of toddler fun. Just was watching Auden gingerly placing one potato on top of the bottle, then the other. After topping the bottles with potatoes, he knocked them off and started over again.

Better

Well, things have improved around here. Logan woke up Thursday morning and was feeling much better, though his appetite still doesn't seem totally up to snuff. Auden still has residuals of his sick belly flu, and I (Carly) seem to have a sinus infection or something, but we're generally on the mend. I think Eric, Auden, and I have a date with the doc in the coming week, since I can't seem to shake this annoying cough and Eric's health screening test came back with a low white blood cell count. It's probably a fluke, but with his family history, it's better to be safe than sorry.

Today, it's the series of Saturday rituals: doing laundry, buying groceries, cleaning up the disastrous house. We're planning on purchasing a real Christmas tree today as well. Since Eric and I have been married, we've been putting up an artificial one his parents kindly gave us. It was nice not to have to shell out the big bucks on one ourselves, but since his parents had used it for many years, it's looking a little on the shabby side. We always call it the Charlie Brown tree--the metal "trunk" and "limbs" are starting to show, and it leans to one side, but after some strategic twisting of leftover greenery and placing of ornaments, it actually looks quite nice. Well, this year, I thought we'd start a new tradition. Eric's family went to a tree farm and cut their own tree for many years. Never having done this with my own family, I thought it sounded fun, festive. And when our neighbors asked us if we wanted to join them on their tree-cutting expedition, I told her we'd gladly come along...

So, there we stood, freezing in a tree farm field. Eric wasn't convinced we'd buy one--he said he'd wait and see if a tree "spoke" to him. We were hoping a pine would "speak" to him, since the tree farm owners (tricky fellows) planted pines and firs rather randomly throughout their fields, and the firs were twice as much as the pines. Of course, we had neglected to take one of the brochures that explained how to tell the difference between a pine and fir. Before standing in a field with a bunch of them together, I would have sworn I could have told the difference. Anyway, the neighbors picked out their tree and cut it down. Luckily, they got the right one, and after standing out in the cold for what felt like a very long time, we came home treeless. But, we got free cider donuts out of the deal, and it was nice hanging out with our neighbors and their kids.

So, today we'll get our tree from the Shriner's tree lot, just like I did with my family when I was young...that is, if a tree "speaks" to Eric, I suppose.

Vomit Catching

So as my latest facebook post mentioned, I caught Logan's vomit in my bare hands today.

I got home from work and went to pick up Logan and Auden at Jen's house. As I walked in the door, Logan began to cry and seemed pretty miserable all curled up in a chair. I knew something was up. He felt hot and was not right. He sits up as we are about to go and projectile vomit begins to spew forth. I cup my hands out and he blows chunks of noodle into my outstretched palms. I felt terrible for him and yes, I too wanted to ralph. (Did I spell ralph, right?). Anyway, Logan must have some sort of bug. Yesterday, it was coming out of Auden's other end (six times according to Jen). T.M.I., I know.

Having children is all smiles, gumdrops, and rainbows, right? Wrong. It's worry, and handfuls of vomit, and an awful feeling in the pit of your stomach when you see them throwing up in the toilet. Hardly seems fair that the lil' ones need experience that. I guess it's part of being human: pain, discomfort, embarrassment and vomit. Anyway, I've always been pretty good at throwing up. Logan seems to be alright at it too. Like father, like son, I guess.

Staying home from school tomorrow with the boys. Perhaps I will have a "Daddy is Home" adventure to share on the blog.

Thanks, boys!

We got to sleep in until 7:50 this morning! A thanksgiving miracle! Thanks, boys. Although, Auden did disrupt our slumber twice in the night, so I suppose we can't have it all.

Spidah

We went to a really fun bug-themed party for my friend's four-year-old last weekend. We decorated bug jars, ate kid-friendly food, and then went on a bug hunt (the plastic variety) outside. The kids had a blast, and we enjoyed the cake (a dirt cake, of course) as well. Logan took his little treasures, the bugs, home in his decorated jar, and Auden has been fixated on them as well. He's especially interested in the spiders--big, florescent-colored doozies that would never appear in the natural world...well, if they did, I'd probably squeal to see one. You know it's a big deal when Auden adds a new word to his repertoire: "Spidah!" he says excitedly when he's fishing them out of the jar. Then, he plucks it up, puts the huge abdomen in his mouth, and bites down. Just like a scene from Fear Factor.

Logan is still being Mr. Bossypants lately. His new thing is explaining that he's "the boss," and if you displease him or say a bad word (which is "No," by the way), you will not be allowed to go to his birthday party. My response to his threats doesn't seem to phase him: "I've got news for you, kid. I throw your birthday parties. No mom, no party." It's really funny though, how your own words become twisted around and spit back out at you in the voice of a toddler who can't quite say his Rs or Ls yet.

We finally went to church this Sunday, after a four-month hiatus. The sermon was about the need to help anyone in need at any time, that life is a test to see just how kind you are, even when you're at your worst. I've failed that test a few times at least. I recall in particular the time when I passed a man sitting outside a restaurant, clearly mentally disturbed, homeless. My first instinct was to go buy him some food or ask if he needed some help, but we were headed to my folks' with the boys, in a hurry, and, frankly, the second thing that ran through my mind was to wonder how safe it would be to get involved in the situation. I probably should have gone with my first instinct, since my avoiding the situation rankled me...still rankles me. But that's the choice I made that day.

After the service, I took a couple of wish lists for needy families, as I have done for the past few Christmases. It's nice to be able to help. Still, I'd like to be more open to helping others when it's not as convenient or comfortable.

Surge of words

So, I'm probably going down in the books as the meanest mom ever, but I had to take Auden in to get his one-year shots today. I had already waited two months in hopes that this other doctor would open his practice nearby, but the recording on his phone and the message on his site says that it's not in the cards for us now. Because I didn't want to wait any longer, we took him to the other doc I'm not so keen on. Do those shots have to take forever? I swear, I don't remember them taking that long when Logan had his. Four shots--two on each thigh. Oh the crying, oh the tears. It hurt my heart, and to make matters worse, he was yelling, "Momma! Momma!" the whole time I was pinning his little arms and legs to the table. There should be some kind of law against making mothers hold their own children down for shots.

He bounced back though, much better than I did, and we all ate dinner together. Auden has been a little slow to pick up words of yet, but he's started saying "momma" pretty regularly. You must be careful what you wish for--any time he wants something now, it's "momma!" He also says "dada" and "uh-oh," though the two don't go together as often as you'd think. Tonight, he said "more," which sounded like "moe," when he wanted more pineapple slices at dinner, and he said "ball" when we were tossing the ball around after dinner. When we asked him where his mouth was, he opened wide and said "Ahh!" with a heaping mouthful of food. Pretty adorable.

Trick-or-treating was tonight, and Logan dressed up in his old-school Batman gear. Little Robin, Auden, stayed home with me to hand out candy, but he tried to swipe a Blow Pop every time the bowl came within striking distance. Logan made a pretty good haul and had fun going around to neighboring houses with his buddies from the block. But his trick came earlier today at Miss Dawn's. Apparently, he and his cousin Kaleb were playing on the playset in their back yard, and Kaleb told Logan he couldn't go down the slide. Not being one to accept the word "can't," Logan stated that if Kaleb didn't let him go, he would punch him in the face. Of course, Kaleb didn't think Logan would actually do it...nor would I, for that matter, but he did. My son balled up his fist and punched Kaleb right in the jaw. Where is he getting this stuff?! Maybe we should cool it on the superheroes for a while...or I should stop punching Eric in the face...maybe.

Yeah, Cards!

I just had to do it. Today, while running some errands, I paraded my boys around in their St. Louis Cardinals hats in honor of their World Game Series win. I did get a few snooty, disapproving looks from (I can only assume) Cubs fans here and there, but we were happy to represent.

On a sad note, we found out today that my parents had to put their dog, Bart, to sleep yesterday. I always joked that Bart was their midlife crisis furry baby, and I'm so sad for them and Greggie--Bart was a wonderful pal, and we're all so sad that he got so sick so suddenly, that he had to go like this. Hope you're enjoying an exciting romp in the great beyond, buddy. We'll miss you...

The Brute

Auden has become quite the scrappy young lad. He's always been pretty tough, considering his young age, 1 year and and 2 months now, but he's really going to extremes lately. He pushes people over, loves to engage in a game of tug-of-war with Logan and his blanket, purposely bangs his head into things, and smacks and slaps at anything with such force. He used to gently pat or stroke your face when you told him "gentle, Auden." Not now. He thinks it's amusing to whap anyone, anytime. When he's in his high chair, he rocks himself back and forth so forcefully, we're afraid he's going to give himself a concussion, since his head bangs the back of the chair. Miss Dawn has taken to putting him in the high chair because she's afraid he's going to hurt himself. Yesterday, he nearly turned himself over in the high chair at a restaurant because he pushed himself backward so hard. Seriously, this kid is crazy. I have never felt like tv shows reflect reality accurately until I saw the preview for "Up All Night," which shows a bleary-eyed couple trying to wrestle their child into submission and they attempt to affix a diaper to her. "I don't understand," the mom says. "When did she get stronger than me?!? " That's my life these days. My one-year-old is a brute.

Though he may have a tough-guy image all his own, Auden is also showing signs of being a momma's boy. He's saying Mama! now all of the time, especially around 11:00 when he wakes up for whatever reason. It's cute. Sometimes.

Logan and I had a quite amusing exchange around bedtime the other evening. He had to put on his underwear after his bath, and he said, "Mom, are these my panties?" "Uh, no, Logan. Those are your undies," I replied, thinking it's pretty silly that boys and girls even have different names for their underwear. You can tell he's around little girls for most of the day now. "Why? I like panties better." "They're just undies, Logan. Girls wear panties and boys wear undies." I couldn't ignore the fact that this sounded strikingly like another conversation I'd heard before in Kindergarten Cop."

Today at the park, Logan showed off his Spiderman skills. These swinging platforms are hanging from poles, and you have to step on the platform, then work your way onto the next one by grabbing onto the pole and bringing the platform closer to the one you're currently standing on. Logan couldn't quite read the pole attached to the other platform, so he tried "webbing" it. Pretty funny.

butterfly in the basement

Forgot to mention--so when we were in the basement playing tonight, Auden suddenly shouts "Oooo!" excitedly and hobbles toward the futon. I had no idea what he was going for, but then Logan started shouting excitedly too. A little white butterfly (probably a moth) had somehow gotten into our basement and was walking around on the couch cushion. Both of the boys were fixated on it, saying hello and wanting to touch it. Just wanted to remember that.

Naturally

Our evenings are always so short. But it was a nice one tonight. We had dinner, then went downstairs to play. Ended up running around the basement in circles. Then, when we grew too dizzy, we travelled around like various animals--we hopped like a bunny and a frog, slithered like a snake, lumbered and trumpeted like an elephant, scampered like a bear. Auden joined in, too, though I was really worried he was going to smack his little head into the toy or book shelves. He took a breather and then cut a rug to a tune on his keyboard. Usually, he does a little rhythmic squat and head bob, shaking his head "yes," his fluffy hair bobbing right along as well. Lately, though, he's started a new move--the open-armed spin. You know he's really into the music when he's spinning and bobbing his head.

Bedtime has been an ongoing challenge with Logan these days. He's in bed. He's out. He's in. He's out. And it's always such an interesting question, comment, or request that has drawn him from bed. He wants water. He needs to be covered up again. He wants to check on what we're doing.

Tonight, I put the boys to bed solo since Eric is out playing poker with some friends. I guess I was off my game. Logan and I put a puzzle together and read two stories after the boys had taken their bath and I had put Auden to bed. I commenced my nightly ritual of tidying up and was preparing to grade yet another stack of essays when I heard Logan get out of his bedroom.

"Mom! My teeth are already brown! You forgot to brush my teeth!" This proclamation was followed by a sigh of frustration and a frowny faced shoulder slump. See, one night Logan refused to let me brush his teeth, or to brush his own teeth, so I told him his teeth were brown and only brushing them would make them white again. The threat of pain and holes in his teeth didn't work, but brown teeth did, apparently...Is the lesson we take away from this that three-year-olds are just as vain as adults?

So we went to the bathroom, started to brush his teeth, when he started to complain about the toothpaste. He didn't want his, he wanted daddy's paste. And of course he had to spit every two seconds.

"Do you try to be annoying, or does it just come naturally?!" I spouted off in frustration.

Logan's matter-of-fact response: "It just comes naturally."

Sweet moments

Just wanted to post an update on things. Sorry in advance for the randomness, but I just wanted to put down some "bookmark moments," if you know what I mean.

I was driving home with the boys the other afternoon, and Logan was rather toasty in his car seat, the sun beating down on him. He said, "Hey, mom! The sun is following us home!...Does the sun love us?"

Yesterday, I was told that Logan didn't want to nap, but Miss Dawn told him to stay in his room and rest. When he finally came out of the room, there was yellow all over his face. She went into the room and found that not only did Logan not nap, but he had taken a marker (washable, thank goodness), and colored the walls, various dolls, and the carpet yellow. She said, "Logan, we need to talk about this." He replied, "No, Miss Dawn. I don't want to discuss this right now." Really?! She did make him feel remorseful, though, by making him apologize to the girls for trashing their bedroom. Apparently, he broke down in tears after his apology.

All four of Auden's molars and his last bottom incisor are coming in at the same time. He's surprisingly pleasant despite the ouchiness he must be feeling, but he's waking up more frequently at night. He always seems to wake up about 10-15 minutes before my alarm is set to go off. Infuriating. I'm wondering if Eric just naturally sleeps that soundly, or if he's playing possum.

Always the happy eater, Auden has finally learned to feed himself with a spoon. He takes in a big mouthful of yogurt and says, "Aahm!" with this self-satisfied grin.

My parents came in a couple of weekends ago, and we went to the orchard. Seems hard to believe we went there one year ago toting Auden in a Baby Bjorn. Now he's toddling around of his own volition--he even played in the corn silo. Logan tried so hard to ride their John Deere tricycles last year and couldn't reach the pedals. This year, he sped around the dusty circle track, effortlessly maneuvering around the smaller, slower kids.

We had some family pictures taken. Logan was running around like a maniac. Auden was crabby and crying, and he had a big red bug bite under his eye. The only time we had the boys sitting together, Logan wouldn't smile, only stuck his tongue out at the camera. It will be amazing if we have one picture that looks decent.

Eric's huge goldfish were on the brink of death a couple of weeks ago, but they fought back and only lost one member of their ranks to shock. I'm relieved we don't have to test the flushing capabilities of our toilet.

And yesterday Eric brought home a scooter from the '80s. It doesn't run. And it's hideous. I think our friend Adam said it best by quoting a line from Dumb and Dumber: "Just when I think you couldn't possibly be any dumber, you do a thing like this...and totally redeem yourself!!!

Kites Galore!

It felt like it should be a somber day today. It's the 10th anniversary of 9/11--hard to believe 10 years have passed. I've been listening to NPR, and since Friday, they've been playing interviews with people recalling where they were on Sept. 10, for instance, among other things. Most of my students were in kindergarten when it happened. Their memories are hazy, confused, some have no memories of it whatsoever. After all, most people's first instincts would be to shield children that young from the truth. I wonder how I would share the information with Logan if anything on that scale were to occur today.

We decided to spend at least some of the day in an all-American sort of way by enjoying ourselves at Kite Fest. A gentle breeze was blowing; the sun was hot. The perfect day to fly a kite. I tried to tell Logan a bit about what the day was about, since he was stunned by the ladder truck displaying an American flag.

We did a bit of kite-flying--mainly, Logan did--and Eric was able to have his kite repaired, which was nice. We also spent most of our time there watching the massive amounts of kites in the air. One kite was penguin-shaped, as large as a short school bus. Really. Who buys these things? Another was over 90 feet long and shaped like a trilobite. Again...who gets the idea to make a gigantic, rainbow-hued, trilobite-shaped kite? Anyhow, they sure did put on a show.

The sour tomato and sweet harmonica

Hello, Fall!

We've had quite a dramatic seasonal change here in the past few days. I spent most of last week sweltering in my non-air conditioned classroom, and carting the boys to a very warm cross country meet this Saturday, but by yesterday, there's a crisp chill in the air that smacks of tart autumn apples and hayrides. Of course, it's a little too soon for that yet, but we are all a little anxious for autumn to arrive. We enjoyed our day yesterday by riding to the playground and harvesting squash, tomatoes, and basil from our garden, which, at this point, looks like it could overtake our house. The pumpkins and butternut squash have already crawled across the span of our yard. Eric cooked about 10 squash and one ginormous pumpkin yesterday, which went into the freezer and into a delicious pumpkin soup that we enjoyed for dinner. We've given a few away to neighbors, but there are still many more just hanging out in a box in our kitchen and a few more ripening on the vine. Lesson learned: Take the seed packet's advice. When it tells you to "cull the plants," you really can stand to kill off a few of them after all.

Still, it's nice that the squash will last us quite a while--they keep pretty well. And they are fairly preservable, after all.

We've learned that Auden loves cherry tomatoes. I was cutting back the basil yesterday, and he eagerly picked a few of our orange cherry tomatoes off the vine. I was really concerned he would choke on them, so I tried to at least bite them in half for him. He didn't like that idea--he shrieked in protest and threw the remaining tomato on the ground in a fit of rage. So I let him take the next one, which he squished quite happily. And I discovered this weekend that he is not just gumming the food any longer--his top molars are both coming in. They are now very fine points on either side of his gums, which probably account for his wakeful nights of late, drooly face, and snotty nose. We played a lot of music this weekend, since I finally got around to finding out the names of the artists of those few random songs I've liked on the radio. Auden bobs his head up and down or does a saucy but smiley "no," twists his torso from side to side or bounces to the beat of the music. Such a joyful little boy.

Logan is still enjoying his weekly rotation. He gets to see Miss Dawn and learn new things, and then he gets to play all day over at Jen's. Dawn has been introducing Logan to letters of the week. M was the first week, and that one seems to have stuck the best. He excitedly points to the capital Ms in the stories we read--The He-Man book is his obsession of late. Boy, am I thrilled about that. B and H have been the letters that have followed and apparently leave much to Logan's imagination. He could care less what sounds they make or how they look. I was, however, able to spark some interest in the letter B by buying him a roll of Bubble Tape as a treat at the grocery store. They offer little shopping carts for kids to drive around so they can "help mommy," which Logan loves to do. Every once in a while, I let him try out his shopping skills, and he actually behaved really well. No near-collisions with other shoppers, and he walked beside my cart the entire time. So, I felt it appropriate that he get a bubble-gum treat, in honor of the week's letter, B (and in honor of his hopping up and down asking for the stuff!). We listed some of the B things we bought in the store, like bananas, berries, bread, and, of course, bubble gum. I threw him a curve ball and told him that avocados started with B, too. He fell for it. But, hey, he's learning. "Just about everything in that store starts with B! But some of it doesn't." So true.

Workin' 5 to 9!

Ok, so not exactly, but it feels like those are my hours these days. We're getting back into the swing of things here at the Hill household. I wake up at 5:00 so I can get ready before Auden starts crying and wants to be held until I put him in his car seat for the commute to Miss Dawn's or the walk to Jen's. Logan is becoming such a big boy now, thankfully, so I can pretty much throw an outfit at him and he'll put it on himself. I envy Eric, who can sleep in until close to 6:00 because he just has to roll out of bed and throw on some clothes and maybe shave.

Needless to say, returning to work has been a whirlwind of activity. And we've been given laptops, so now I have to keep track of this computer that I don't need and hope that it doesn't take a dive off of a desk or something on my watch. Or that I don't walk out of the office in haste on Friday afternoon and forget to take it with me. Thanks, IT director. Way to make everyone's lives so much easier. My kids look like they'll be a good this year, which is nice. And I've gotten over the whole getting misty thing when I drop off the boys. It's still pretty tough knowing that I'm missing quite a lot of their day though. So, if anyone knows of a part-time gig with flexible hours and decent pay that may open up this summer or fall, let me know. ha.

Auden did his first sign the other day. "More." Of course, since he eats like a madman. And he's dancing and clapping to any ditty you happen to sing or play. Logan just learned the letter M and was amazed to find it in a story we were reading last night. We just love them so much.

Yay, cake!

We had a great time at Auden's birthday party yesterday. Although it rained a bit, we managed to fit about 25 people in our house relatively comfortably, and Auden had a blast playing with all the kids and his new toys. Thanks to everyone for coming out, traveling from near and far! It was a wonderful day to celebrate our special little boy who has brought us so much joy and laughter!

Happy Birthday, Auden!

Our little boy is officially one year old today! It's hard to believe how quickly it has gone. But just to help it sink in, I looked through our archived photos last night. Yes, he's gone from that sleepy, cuddly, helpless little baby to an active, mischievous, walking toddler. As far as the walking goes, for the past two days, he's made great strides--literally--after regressing a bit. He was on two feet, albeit wobbly, for the majority of the day, so I think the walking thing is going to stick this time. Not only is he walking, he's also climbing. Stairs, chairs, whatever he can pull up on. And when you take him away from the object he's climbing for safety's sake, he wants to climb it all the more. The little rascal will go for it again, smiling at you the whole time. He's becoming quite the daredevil, and it shows.

He has a wonderful little bruise on the corner of his eye. He's been really crazily moody lately, I think thanks to his molars that are making their way through. I went to take him out of his crib the other day. He was crying and refusing to nap, and as I was walking past his door, he threw his head back suddenly, and he caught the corner of the door. A little bluish line started to develop immediately after he hit it. Though I tried to force some ice on it, he was in hysterics, so I gave up and resigned myself to the fact that he would have a shiner for his first birthday. Actually, it doesn't look as bad as I thought it would. It's kind of like smoky eyeshadow or something. On one eye.

Tonight, Auden tried to keep up with Logan as he ran laps around the basement floor. While he couldn't quite keep up with big brother, he had fun trying. Such laughter. And Logan's commentary of his running was another source of laughter. He was pumping his arms as he ran, and he shouted out something silly every time he passed by me: "See, mom. This is how I make my body strroonng! I'm really workin' my body! I'm getting lots of exercise! I'm a good runner, just like daddy. I just ran out of batteries." (That's when he stopped for two seconds or so to rest.)

This is my last week home with the boys and I am soooo in denial about going back to work full time. I'm telling myself that I'm just living in the moment, making the most of the time I have left with them as a stay-at-home-mom, but who am I kidding? Whatever I'm doing, it sure as heck isn't preparing for the first day of school like I used to. Yet, strangely, I feel ready for it. We'll see how I am next week. I'll probably be sweating, stomach in knots. But maybe not.

We're getting ready for Auden's party this weekend, and I'm working like crazy to keep the house clean. I feel a little like Sisyphus in that department. So I've decided to stop stressing about it so much. We picked a very easy menu for lunch and ordered cupcakes from Sweet Dreams (I get happy just thinking about them). So I have no reason to stress about it. That's what I keep telling myself, anyway.

The Closet People

Freaky! I just heard Logan whimpering/crying in his bedroom and so I went to get him. He was sitting upright in bed pointing to his closet like there was some sort of monster in there. He's crying again so I gotta go. Okay, I'm back. Potty was what he needed. Anyway, he wasn't saying anything...just pointing and crying. He's got my night issues it seems...minus the whole wetting the bed thing. So glad for his strong bladder...he takes after Carly in that department.
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It's good to be back home!

Well, I'm back!
I only had a half-day of the conference today, so the boys, who were angelic for Eric all week, were, of course crabby and clingy today, since I was home most of the day. But I'm really glad Eric had such a good time with them. It's uncanny how they just fall asleep when he's around.

We did have a great time in Chicago, and I was so happy to be able to spend more time with the boys and Eric, rather than go the distance yet another evening. Just wanted to jot a couple of things I didn't want to forget, though. My conference, which was really useful (thank goodness!), was right down the street from the old water tower in Chicago. Logan has been obsessed with this children's graphic "novel" about the Great Fire, and he got a chance to see it when they dropped me off Thursday morning. "Cool!" he said. Just so awesome for him to make those connections to what he's fascinated to read about and a real-life experience. Can't wait for that to happen more as he gets older.

Also, Auden started waving "hi" today. We walked to the park, and he waved to me while he was in the swing. He opens and closes his little fingers and smiles really big at his accomplishment. I cannot believe he's turning one next week!

A Week to Remember

It's been a great week here at the Hill household. I was a bit apprehensive about how this week was going to go since I'd be watching the boys all by my lonesome, but I have to say, it went extremely well. The boys have been napping, getting along, eating well, and playing nice for the most part. Cleaning up and keeping the house tidy has been annoying, but when is it not. Wednesday night I decided to book a hotel room downtown so Carly wouldn't have to make the long commute. So Wednesday day we went to the Brookfield Zoo with my uncle Jim and cousin Lauren...we saw kangaroos, the dolphin show, rode the slow trolley, and frolicked on the playground...a good time. And then we headed off to the Best Western Grant Park (and the boys napped while getting there...my nap timing has been impeccable this week). It was a decent room, and they had a pool which we all went in after a nice dinner at a Thai place around the corner. I found a free parking space for the evening and night in Chicago! Crazy they exist. The next day we dropped Carly off at the Water Tower after seeing Dick Butkus at Yolk, and the boys and I went to the beach near Navy Pier. They had a blast getting all sandy, but it was a bit too cool for the water that morning. We then cleaned up and napped back at the hotel, grabbed a quick lunch at the deli next door, and strollered it the Field Museum, which is free for me! The boys were impressed with the evolution exhibit and I got equally amazed and depressed by all the variety of species we have on planet earth, and by how we lose so many thousands per day/week or something. All the many extinctions reminded me or rebooting a computer. Anyhoo, we beat the traffic back to DeKalb by leaving around 2:15 and I played b-ball and bingo last night with some neighbors. It was a good couple of days and it's been a week to remember.

Carly has a week left of her stay-at-home adventure until she officially goes back to work full-time. This past year and this summer have flown by. Well, I think that's all I shall record in this blog post. Signing off.

Logan the Giant says:

Fee, Fi, Fo, Fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman. I smell him wife; I smell him!

Logan was chasing me (eric) around the house yesterday saying Fee, Fi, Fo, Fum, etc...and he was sorta biting me but not really. It's cool to see how reading to him has given him such a profound vocabulary. But seriously, exposing him to different books is really making him grow into quite the dynamic little boy. It's great to see him learning so much.

I had a really nice day yesterday with the two boys. Carly is downtown at an AP conference for the whole week and is leaving at 6:30 a.m. and getting back at 6:30 p.m. It's a lot of work! I don't know how she did it this past year. But so far, so good. Baby's crying so I gotta go.

Logan says:

"A tornado was going to get me. But when a tornado comes, you go in the house and down to the basement...Do tornadoes have teeth?"

So I was feeding Auden a little after five today. Eric had taken Logan out to play with the neighbors. The ice cream man drove down our block and the children started to make their way to it. Suddenly, a look of shock came over all of their faces and elbows and feet flew in the air. "What the...?" I thought. Eric came in the house, eyes wide, with Logan. "There's a tornado! Get in the basement!" So I toted the boys downstairs...Where was Eric? We waited a bit more. Logan and I had a conversation about tornadoes and teeth, or tornadoes having teeth...or not. Eric finally came in. He had been snapping photos, apparently along with the other neighbors. It was a funnel cloud, a spiraling vortex of terror that didn't touch down. Phew. Gotta love living in the midwest.

Funnel Clouds are cooler than funnel cake.

DeKalb was exciting today.

Choice phrases

So I've been a bit worried about Auden and his speech development. I flipped through one of those milestone charts (probably a mistake), and it says he should be addressing Eric and I by our proper names (dada, mama) by now. He's not. I mean, he says "dada" all the time, but he's looking at me when he says it, or he's just babbling. I had to check back through Logan's baby book to see where Logan was at this age: he was saying mama and dada, though I didn't specify if he was calling us by those names then.

Ok, so Auden might be a little behind. I'm not going to freak. Especially when I noticed today that he officially has a word he is saying and using appropriately: uh-oh. He dropped three things in about five minute's time while I was just sitting back and watching him today. Every time he dropped something: "uh-oh!" It was pretty funny. I guess that's his first word, officially. Hmmm. Not sure what to think about that...

Not to be outdone, Logan also rattled off a couple of amusing new lines while we were playing out in the sandbox today. He was working on making some sandcastles when he realized the sand wasn't wet enough, so I suggested we fill up a couple of buckets from his swimming pool (which had a good inch or two of water standing in it after our rainstorms) and dump them in the sandbox. "Ok, mom. I'm on it!" he replied and took off toward the pool. Where did he get that one? Pretty funny, anyway. And he's thought of a new, entertaining way to stall at bedtime: "Mom, I have a question for you..." Tonight he asked me how planes are made: wooden ones and jets. Then he asked how string cheese is made. A brief glimpse into the mind of my young son. What's important? Jets and string cheese.

More good news on Logan's speech front is that his stuttering has dissipated a bit over the past few days. I'm not sure if it's just one of those weird things that happen to young stutterers (the stuttering tends to become better and worse for no apparent reason sometimes) or if he's growing out of this thing altogether. Of course, I'm hoping for the latter, but we'll see!

H-O-T

That's the way it's been around here lately. HOT. In the upper 90s and even up to 100+ with the heat index. It's kind of funny. I feel like I'm used to hot weather and humidity, having grown up further south where it's about 10 degrees hotter than here on any given day. Yes, it's unpleasant and annoying to be cooped up inside when my work-free days are quickly flying by. But fortunately, we had a nice rain storm yesterday and last night, which gave us just a bit of a break from the stifling heat. So Eric and I, bored out of our minds, decided to go to Brookfield yesterday at 3PM. We're members this year, so we feel the need to make use of it, even though we arrived only two hours before closing. It ended up being a really nice trip. Few people were there. It wasn't that hot, and we got to stand under the misters as long as we wanted because, again, few people were there. Logan got to see all the critters he wanted, except for the elephants, who were chilling in the a/c or something. Still, it seems the true highlight of any zoo trip for Logan is the playground. He got to play on two of them, so all in all, it was a good trip to the zoo.

Photo update from the City Museum

Splashing good fun on the rooftop

Logan's first journey through a labyrinth

Smiling after a fearful journey through the airplane

Eric climbing through the corkscrew
Sliding!

These feet were made for walkin'

Holy moly! Auden took his first steps yesterday! Today, he's up to taking about six steps before crashing, but he's well on his way to bipedal propulsion! His face lights up with a big smile when we prop him up and send him on his short jaunt to the couch, daddy, grammy, or papa (visiting this weekend). Yay, Auden! Video to follow...

Beddy-bye

I remember reading this magazine article once that said you can shave a little stress out of our life by thinking about what part of your day is most hectic and finding ways to deal with that segment of time more effectively. Wise advice, I thought. And hands-down, I would have said bedtime was my most stressful part of the day. If everything isn't timed just right, and it seldom is, one of several things can go wrong: bath time can end in a screaming fit; story time can be interrupted by Auden attacking Logan because he's still too little to pay attention. Then there are the nights when Logan doesn't feel like going to sleep, so he'll play quietly in his room for an hour or so, and then make an appearance just to show you he's thumbing his nose at you and your bedtime enforcing. And Auden still doesn't seem to understand that he can, indeed, sleep more than four or five hours at a time.

Yeah, so all of that can be pretty annoying. But tonight, it was just kind of funny. And cute. Logan went to bed, but forty-five minutes later or so, he opened his door and announced, "Hey, mom! Look!" And with a dramatic wave of his arm ("Ta-da!"), he showed me the floor of his room, which he had turned into a giant Hot Wheels parking lot. It was a perfect cube of cars packed together in crazy configurations. "Wow," I said. "That took some doing."
"Yeah," he said proudly. "Now we've got to keep Mimi and Jackson away from it. Because they'd probably just wreck it."
"OK, we'll do that."
"Yeah."
And as I was tucking him in for the second time tonight, he had to give good-night kisses. My eyes, my nose, my chin, my cheeks, my ears--just like I give him good-night kisses sometimes when I'm being silly. He giggles like a madman. So did I. "I wuv you, mom," he said.

And about three hours after I put Auden to bed, he started to cry. I'm usually really annoyed when he does this, and lately, I've been letting him cry it out a bit, but since he's battling the same lousy cold I'm battling, I soothed him back to sleep without wondering what awful thing I must have done in a past life to deserve not one, but two boys with sleep issues. And as I laid him down in his crib, I had to smile because he's been doing this thing lately--he stretches himself out on his back and folds his arms up behind his head like he's some tiny Tom Sawyer or something. And I just think that's adorable. By the way, happy 11 months old tomorrow, little guy.

Fireworks R Fun!

Well, our Fourth of July festivities were quite different from last year's--in a good way. Last year, Eric and I had to pack up our folding chairs and our screaming two-year old out of the park just as the fireworks show began. Logan was not digging the loud booms. This year, we watched the fireworks peacefully in Alton, Logan shouting, "I love fireworks!" His favorites were red and green, by the way. Christmas in July or what have you. Auden experienced his first fireworks show just how Logan did: fast asleep. Maybe we'll skip the screaming in terror stage next year?!

We just couldn't get enough of being on the road, so the week we returned from Door Co., we spent a few days at home, packed up again, and spent a few days with my family. I wanted to make sure Eric got to experience the City Museum for himself this summer, so Logan, Eric, and I went while my mom watched Auden. Logan was much less timid than last time. He still loved the mini train ride, but he also climbed through some of the labyrinths, slid down some slides (including the ten-story one), rode the roof-top ferris wheel, and climbed through a plane suspended by lots of iron tunnels. The last two on the list even I was sweating about. He was really only nervous about the ferris wheel, as was I, frankly. It's on a roof for one, so my fear of heights was kicking in. And, secondly, it's creaky and, I'm sure, recycled from some second-rate carnival. So my fear of dying on a poorly maintained carnival ride was kicking in. Still, once we were up, Logan stopped crying, I stopped holding my breath, and we enjoyed it. Eric, who has serious thrill issues, had a blast.

Since it was really hot, we spent most of the rest of the weekend playing in the wading pool in my parents' backyard. Logan's favorite thing to do was take off from the far end of the yard, leap into the pool face-first, and run back to do it all over again...like fifty times. Auden liked to stay on the outside and lean over the edge of the inflated pool and splash or play with the toys. It was a nice time. Oh, and Eric decided to buzz his hair. Hey, it's summer. Whatevs. I took Logan to get a haircut, and he ended up with a buzz cut, too. Not my choice, but apparently the stylist decided to follow her bliss or something. Fortunately, he's still pretty cute and all.

We came back home. Eric constructed a potter's wheel from tree stumps, the motor from our old furnace, and other odds and ends. I guess the City Museum really inspired him. I may be seeking refuge for me and the boys in the coming weeks if he goes through with his plan of constructing his own kiln. According to YouTube videos, it's really easy, and you only need an oil drum and a propane tank. Awesome.

I'll post some pictures from the museum later, but hope you enjoy the cute pool pics for now.

Survived the Cinema

Well, we took Logan, Atalie, and Auden to see Cars 2 yesterday, and, as promised, here's a little update on how it went:

Atalie and Logan were so excited to see the show. They even sat quietly through the trailers--and we were there, thanks to Eric's panicky punctuality, twenty minutes early. Eeek. We all shared a heaping bucket of popcorn, and Logan really didn't make a peep except to let out a few of his loud "I'm tired/annoyed" sighs, and to ask Atalie for a plot and character update about midway through the show. Makes me curious as to how much of the movie he actually took in.

I was most concerned about taking Auden to the show, especially since we went to the 2:00 matinee, which is right at his nap time. I figured it would either work out great or horrendously. Luckily, it worked out great because, despite the loudness of the speakers (Why do they have to blast the sound so high these days? In the days before surround sound, I don't recall walking out of the theater worrying about having done some damage to my hearing.), Auden slept the majority of the movie away, and he remained quiet for the last 15 minutes or so when he woke up.

The kids really enjoyed the movie, so Eric and I had a hard time holding back our criticisms of it. If they had the same writers from the previous Cars, they must have been sapped of creativity for this one. The plot was pretty stupid. I don't want to get into it, but it involves an elaborate plot to increase the demand for oil (huh?). And even worse, there weren't any clever jokes--you know, the off-color ones made for adults that the kids just don't get yet. Anyway, it was a nice experience for the kiddos and they didn't embarrass me, so I say it was a successful venture over all.

Today, we were in the car and Eric and I were munching some candy, a bag of those chewy Sweetarts that we meant to sneak in with us yesterday. Logan soon got wise to what we were doing. "Hey, what are you eating!?"
"Oh, just some candy."
"I want some!"
So we gave him a few pieces, finished our handful, put the bag away, and then told him there wasn't any left, just to avoid the whole "Why can't I have more?" scenario.
"Are you sure there's no more?" He asked plaintively.
"Yep. We're all out."
"Let me see the bag."
"What?"
"Show me the bag of candy."
Eric and I looked at each other in disbelief. "You mean you don't trust that we are telling you the truth?"
"No."
Eric flashed him an empty fruit snack pouch.
"Hey, that's not the same bag!"
Outsmarted by our three-year-old, Eric showed him the bag.
"Hey! There's more candy in there!" He said with glee. Fortunately, he didn't hold a grudge and stopped asking for more candy after we gave him a couple more. I tell you, he's too clever for us sometimes.

Photo update

Here are some photos from the past few weeks:
The boys at the beach

That's Logan, showing off his "poo-poo prize."

Eric, one step closer to attaining his dream of owning a goat farm, tries his hand at milking a goat...I'm not sure, but the face he's making tells me he's revising that dream.

Logan with his new buddy.

Us, in front of the vacation house.

June's happenings

Lots has been happening around the Hill household the past few weeks! Auden is still on his way to walking. His balance is improving, and he really prefers to be helped around the house on his two feet, rather than crawling on his hands and knees. If he could talk I imagine he'd say something like: "That crawling stuff is so passe, mom." Today, he crawled all the way up our stairs, with dad following closely behind, just in case.

He continues to eat with a voracious appetite. Avocados, eggs, pear, banana, salmon, berries, yogurt...He likes just about anything you put in front of him. Except boiled whitefish, which we tried on vacation, and applesauce. Apparently the textures are just too weird. Oh, and he has a strong reaction to soda--he does this open-mouthed wince that is quite hilarious.

And Logan has finally graduated to pooping on the potty. Of course, he still thinks underwear are thinner, less absorbent diapers when it comes to dropping off a number two, so he's currently going commando until he gets a little more comfortable with the process. Still, I'm so relieved not to have to be cleaning up after diapers or underwear accidents.

And we survived a week-long vacation with the boys. Eric and I have decided that vacationing with two little ones really isn't much of a vacation. Their schedules are screwy, so you're constantly trying to prevent or deal with meltdowns. The upside is that they really love sleeping at home now. Even Logan is taking a nap, which is why I'm able to write this entry. Otherwise, the kids had a great time playing in the sand--Auden's first experience with a beach--and wading in the water. Logan (and Auden) got some experience trying to play gentle with their cousin Isabel. They were also great on the five-hour car ride for their grandparents (on the way there) and us. Why did we subject Grammy and Papa Hill to five hours in the car with the boys, you ask? Well, we had two, yes two, weddings to attend in Chicago the first weekend of the trip, so they took the boys to the vacation house. I purchased a new portable DVD player, which seems to have kept Logan sufficiently entertained. He earned an "A," according to Grammy Hill. Auden, uninterested in movies yet and unable to see the screen anyway, probably earned more like a "C." But he definitely had a stellar return trip--slept most of the way. The highlight of the trip was definitely The Farm, a petting zoo. Logan befriended a cute little lamb and many kids (baby goats, that is) and was excited to see the bunnies. Today, in fact, he told Eric that he wanted another baby. "Do you want a little sister or brother?" Eric asked, while I cringed. "No, a baby. I really want a baby bunny and I will name him Yellow." Sweet.

Our friends' weddings were wonderful, and it was great having a weekend to ourselves, catching up with many people we don't get to see often enough. Both ceremonies were touching, and we were so happy to see our friends, Kevin and John, Colleen and Thom, begin a new chapter in their lives.

So, we're busy doing laundry, cleaning a layer of cat fur off of virtually every surface of our house, and weeding our garden, which in our absence exploded into a mound of unruly vegetation--most of which is weeds, of course. Tomorrow, we're going to see Cars 2 with Logan, Auden, and Atalie, a friend's daughter. It will be Logan's first real movie theater experience, and, of course, Auden's, so we'll report back on how it goes...

Finally!

After a very long wait, Auden is saying "Ma!" I was in denial for a couple of days when he was sort of just getting the hang of the mmm sound, but it's progressed to a full-on "ma" that's loud and clear. I don't think it's a real word yet (meaning he probably isn't really calling me "ma," just making that sound), but he does say it in a whiny voice when he wants to be picked up--kind of a weird coincidence. Sure. Eric gets the cute, excited "dadada!" I get the sad, plaintive "ma."

Not to be outdone, Logan made a funny remark today:
"Hey mom, my tummy is talkin'."
"Really? What's it saying?"
"Hey, Logan. I want some food!"
Tee hee.

Weekend Wowzas

Well, thank goodness the world didn't end after all because we had a great time this week. The boys and I headed down to visit my folks and to help celebrate my dad's retirement. He's ending his teaching career this year--yay for him! I'm not sure I'll have the stamina to make it in education as long as he has--32 years--but he's been a wonderful example of the teacher I hope to be, who genuinely cares about his kids and their success, who doesn't rest on his laurels. Congratulations, dad.

We also went to the City Museum in St. Louis--one of the coolest places I've ever been. It's filled with sculptures and labyrinths constructed from the refuse of demolished buildings. Logan had a blast in the ball pits, which weren't filled with your typical small plastic balls, but bouncy playground balls. I was a little afraid to take him through the labyrinths. I was picturing him freaking out in the middle of the trip and having to back up, he crying hysterically, through the tunnel that is only big enough to fit one person at a time, while the other museum-goers would have to move back as well in order for him to escape. I'm looking forward to next time we're all in St. Louis. Eric, who couldn't go this time because of work, will love this place. I was really proud of myself, who's always the scaredy-cat. I actually slid down the three-story high slide, which was really fun.

And when I returned home, I was impressed to find Eric had done quite a lot around the house...in a good way! He put in a nice flower bed next to our patio, put together a small shed to house our lawn equipment since our garage was impassable from all of the stuff we've collected. He had mowed AND weed-whipped. What's more, the house was still pretty clean. Like I said, impressive!

Tonight we enjoyed a first treat from our garden: lettuce salads to accompany our pizza. The first night of the workweek, Eric always asks for pizza, so today we at least had something healthy to eat with it. I had forgotten the downside of harvesting your own lettuce though: you have to rinse every piece thoroughly! I found four teeny slugs on the leaves while I was washing the colander-full I had collected, and by the time the salads were ready to be eaten I was completely paranoid that I had missed one and would sink my teeth into it. Thankfully, that didn't happen...at least if it did, I'm none the wiser.

I'm hoping we'll have a decent crop of veggies this year. They've nearly been drowned with all of this rain we've been having, so everything looks kind of soggy and bedraggled thus far. Gardening with a nine-month old has proven challenging as well. Auden's favorite pastime is picking the heads off dandelions and popping them in his mouth. They must be delicious or the texture must be fascinating. Of course, he's also drawn to dirt. Eric's grandmother always had a saying that "you eat about a peck of dirt in your lifetime." Well, I think Auden will probably meet his allotment this summer if he keeps up at the rate he's going. Logan, on the other hand, is pretty hands-off while we're gardening. He's happy to play in his sandbox or dig for worms or rolly-polies. He even avoids crushing things we've planted...excepting that spirea he sat on while I was weeding. No worries though-it bounced back surprisingly well.

I'm Baaack

Well, I've taken a little break from blogging, as you can see. Sorry for the absence, in case you've been checking and wondering, "What the heck is taking so long for her to post an update?" The days have been chugging along, and I have new reason to take full advantage of them, since I'm going back to teaching full-time next year. I was missing the classroom, but tried to take another year off through an academic leave to pursue a master's in reading. Unfortunately, too few people applied for the cohort program I applied for, and it didn't go through. So, I'll be sad not to be home with the boys again next year, (except for those moments when Logan's once again testing boundaries, along with my sanity, and Auden is desperately struggling against a diaper change or blowing the spittiest raspberries imaginable right after he's had a mouth full of baby food) but we're excited that they'll be with Miss Dawn next year part-time and with a woman in the neighborhood for the other part. Logan will also get to do preschool at Dawn's, so I'm excited to see what he'll be learning next year.

We've been working out in the yard and garden whenever we can--a significant challenge it's been to find time to do that, since the weather's been so dodgy lately. Yesterday, we put in our 15 tomato plants. After last year's bumper crop, we vowed not to plant as many, but somehow we've done it again. (Sound familiar, Grandma Kop?) And this year, we added potatoes (yukon gold and sweet potatoes), sweet peas (which the rabbits have already decimated--time to plant another round and fence it in.), heirloom lettuce, butternut squash, banana peppers, and an heirloom variety of pumpkin. We'll see how it all comes out...Hopefully better than our yard, which looks great in strips. In case you didn't know, zebra stripes look really amazing on a lawn. Want to know how you can have some of your own? Borrow your neighbor's spreader and drop fertilizer on your yard, then take the turns a little wider than you should. Voila! We're thinking we might go for plaid next year...

As you know, Logan turned three last month, and so far, I'm thinking three is more trying than two. We've been dealing with serious melt-downs pretty frequently now. He's super crabby in the afternoon when he would usually nap. And you kind of have to pick your poison: If he does nap, your afternoon is a bit more peaceful, but you can bet that he will be awake until a little after 9PM when you want to be relaxing on the couch. Yesterday, we were supposed to play with a friend in Aurora, but he had fallen asleep in the car. When he woke up, he refused to get out of the car, despite the bribes I offered and the sweet pleadings of the girls he was supposed to play with. We ended up packing up and going home. And I enrolled him in swim lessons, but he screamed his head off the entire time because he didn't trust the instructors. Yes, threes have been tough so far. Thankfully, he's usually an angel when I'm not around...

Auden is really moving now. He crawls like a champ, but it's too funny because he goes like sixty while his head is down, trying to improve his aerodynamics or something. It's really amazing he doesn't bump into things more often. Logan and he love to have crawling races down the hall. It's so fun to hear the peals of laughter issuing from them both. And he's continuing to move on up--he'll walk a bit with you when you're holding on to his hands. Really clumsy steps, almost a march, but he's learning... And everything goes in the mouth. I'm forever searching the floor for stray bits of whatever snack Logan was eating or toy with small pieces he was playing with. Auden will crawl up to it, see if you're looking, and with a mischievous grin, he'll pop it in his mouth. Yes, he might hesitate a bit if you say "no," but you can bet his mouth is where it will end up. And it's really not fun to do the mouth sweep now that he has his four and a half very sharp new teeth, which he'll use to chomp down on your finger. My shoulder is his favorite chew toy these days, so he's been spending a lot more time on the floor, practicing his crawling skills. We're wondering how long before he's walking...

Easter Weekend

Hope everyone had a nice holiday! It was a rainy weekend with my family, but we made the most of it. Here are some of my favorite pics from the weekend...

Priceless

So, we've all been a little grumpy lately, what with feeling lousy and the crummy weather (today included). Trying to find something fun to do indoors, I brought out Logan's coloring books and play-dough to entertain him for a while. I was standing over him, looking at his artwork, while holding the baby. I wasn't really paying attention to what Auden was doing, but he reached over and grabbed a handful of Logan's hair and gave it a good tug. Logan yelped and then yelled at Auden. "Stop that, Baby Auden! We don't pull people's hair! It's not nice!" Then, he looked up at me and said, "Hey, mom, maybe we should get a new baby." I guess he liked Auden more when he was a bit more inert as a newborn. Too funny...

Bowling Firsts

Still sick with colds. Logan has been waking up about three or four times through the night, coughing, whining, sniffling. Last night was particularly memorable, as he woke up crying and screaming, "I can't bweathe! I got boogers in my nose!" He was panting by the time he got to our room. Seriously. He has a flair for the dramatic.

Auden, the one who infected us all, has been much better the past two nights, a trend that I hope continues. Not only is he not waking up hacking his poor little lungs out, but he's actually only waking up a couple of times in the night. I'm not sure if this welcome change is due to his being exhausted from fighting off this little bug, but I'm hoping it's a sign that he's finally learning to fall back asleep once he wakes himself up through the night.

The subject of my last post, which was cut short by Eric, is really what's gotten us down this week, in addition to our health woes. We were so ready for it to be nice outside, and then the Midwestern weather drops another string of lousy on us this weekend. Yesterday was beyond trying to pretend you could even go outside, with it being dark and rainy (and sleety), but we ventured out today for a bit to play with the neighbors. Then we went bowling. Logan's first game! They had these little velcro bowling shoes--how cute! And he did pretty well, thanks to the bumpers. He bowled a 71 on his first game, and even got a strike! Eric was embarrassed because halfway through the game, Logan was actually beating him. But, I was the winner of the game in the end, a rare occurrence, though the bumpers actually helped me big-time in one frame--I got a strike instead of the gutter ball it was bound to be. So, it was a nice family outing...but I'm not sure I'd want to spend Easter there. Yes, they were advertising for $1 games on Easter Day. So, I guess, if the Easter egg hunt is a flop, you can always hit the lanes.

Midwest weather woes

So Auden, Logan, and I are all sick with colds. Mom's in a lousy mood today. I'm really tired of wiping snot off of faces.

Happy Birthday, Logan!

Though it seems unbelievable, my little boy turned 3 the other day. He had a fun-filled day, which began with a small race car-themed party for his friends from the neighborhood, followed by a family get-together over at Grammy Sue and Papa Hill's. It was a beautiful day, and Logan thoroughly enjoyed himself: He had three (yes, three) pieces of cake at his party at our house, and one piece of Portillo's chocolate cake at his grandparents'. He got to spend time with most of his favorite people. He has enough bubbles to last him through summer, methinks, and he added some great Hot Wheels to his ever-growing collection.

Logan's birthday always seems to usher in spring for me, so I've been digging through spring and summer clothes, seeing what he can still wear, what was handed down to him from his cousins, and what he's handed down to his little brother. Auden sure has a beast of a wardrobe. For some reason, 18 months was a very good season for clothes for Logan. I really hope Auden will be into them before the summer is out.

Well, here are some pics from our neighborhood party. They include the cake I made (my first) for Logan's race car birthday and the aftermath of said cake.

Panic!

A while ago, Eric installed all new hardware in our household--and by hardware, here, I mean doorknobs and hinges. Why he felt this had to be done is kind of beyond me, but they do look much better than the old, discolored brass ones we had before. Anyway, all of the bedroom doors--including Logan's--have locks. At first, I thought maybe we should forego the locks, but my worries were assuaged by the fact that Logan knows how to unlock the doors really well. After today, I'm sure I want to forego the locks on the kids' doors.

Today, I put Logan down for his "nap" and started to put the baby down for his nap as well. Logan's naps have ben pretty inconsistent now that he's almost three, but I tell him he has to at least rest for an hour or so in his room, mainly so mommy can maintain her sanity. Well, Auden had just started to drift off, when I heard Logan screaming and crying in his room. Trying to figure out what he could have done, I brought sleepy Auden to the front of Logan's door. Great. It was locked. So, I had to get the little lock-picking thingie, and I wrestled with that for what felt like an eternity, trying to find that teeny little switch inside the door that disengages the lock. Meanwhile, Logan's still screaming his head off, saying, "Mom! I'm stuck!" He definitely wasn't at the door, so I knew he wasn't crying because he was stuck in his room. Besides, he knows how to unlock the door. No, he was certainly stuck somewhere in his room. I told him not to panic and tried to remain as calm as I could, but I was still befuddled as to what he had done to get himself stuck in his own bedroom. Finally, I was able to get the door unlocked, and I found that my son had wedged himself under his dresser. I pulled him out, and he was perfectly fine, but why he had wedged himself under his dresser was beyond me. Then I looked--he had somehow gotten several Hot Wheels cars waaay back there against the wall, and he was trying to reach to them. Anyway, disaster averted. Kid unstuck.

While Auden hasn't gotten himself stuck under anything yet, he is cutting yet another tooth--this time, his right upper incisor. So, he's pretty much continually crabby and will be for some time yet.

Logan says:

After trying to put Logan's shoes on him for about 20 minutes...

Mom: Logan, get over here--pronto--so we can get your shoes on!

Logan: I'll pronto you, mom!

Mom: Clearly, you don't know what "pronto" means.

Logan: Yeah I do. "Pronto" means you're irritated.

Well, true enough, since I usually say it when I am, in fact, irritated with Logan's dilly-dallying.

This has been a nice spring break--we went to the Shedd Aquarium on Wednesday and really lucked out with parking and beating the lunch-time rush. We arrived just when they were feeding the fish in the Caribbean Reef tank, too, which was pretty awesome, as all of the fish are pretty active then. Logan loved looking at all of the fish, but none of them held his attention for a particularly long time. Instead, we looked at one tank for a few seconds, then were prodded to go see more fish. The dolphin show did hold his attention--he clapped like crazy for the dolphins' jumps and the beluga's waving. He also really liked seeing the otters and playing in their yellow submarine and penguin play area. But we were glad to demystify the sharks for him. The last exhibit we saw was the coral reef, which was a pretty impressive display of rays and sharks, and coral, of course. After having seen Finding Nemo several times, Logan had developed a mild phobia of sharks, but he's no longer afraid of them after seeing what they're really like. He thought they were cool, and when we asked him what his favorite thing of the day was, he said he liked the dolphins and the sharks.

Say what?

We were driving along in the car, listening to the radio. "Soul Man" was on, and Logan was enjoying it, bobbing his head to the beat. Pretty soon, he asked a question: "Hey, Mom. Why is that guy soooo mad?" I nearly died laughing--"No, Logan, he's saying 'soul man.'" I don't think I'll ever have the same perception of that song again.

In other news, Eric is on spring break this week, and in two day's time, he has constructed a clubhouse for the boys, though Auden just mainly looks at it or sits on the floor of it if you plop him down. I'll admit, I had my reservations about Eric's building a clubhouse for our three year old, especially one that is off the ground (the clubhouse, not our three year old...well, not usually...), but Eric did a pretty good job. And Logan is super excited about it. When he wasn't outside playing in the backyard while Eric was working on the clubhouse, Logan was rapping on the windows facing the backyard, yelling, "Hey, Daddy! Is it done yet?!" He had his friends over today to check it out. They went tearing up the ladder, down the slide, then around the structure itself, then up the ladder again. And now we're wondering A) why the clubhouse had to be built so close to the garden and B) what we'll plant there that could withstand a constant battering of boys' feet... or if we'll even bother planting anything there at all.

Brudders