Cats

As I sit here I feel a prickling behind my eyes. It grows and intensifies and they start to fill up. No, I am not about to cry - it's allergies. I never had allergies before and am not too happy to have started them now. They first arrived with little Walter for some reason and, although they have lessened in intensity in the few months since they began (I no longer attempt to gouge my eyes out with a grapefruit spoon at every opportunity and now only consider it from time to time), I have a feeling they are here to stay. Hmm. Yet another reason to dislike having my husband's cats around. Score one more for my Mom's rules during my childhood. Now I know why there were no (shedding) pets allowed in the house. Except now that my brother has (temporarily) moved back into Mom's, his dog has moved in with him. The thought of my mother growing softer while I start to emulate her previous strictness is somewhat disconcerting. Maybe I shouldn't think about it too much...

Chunky Monkey

In a monkey suit...

Faces

My crazy kid at times enjoys taping himself with my webcam. The following video is the result of one session. Audio is optional for this one because the only thing audible is James and myself in the background discussing various things we've explained to Logan and whether or not they were warranted at his age... Riveting, I know! Recently I have neglected writing here because I have started a twitter and have been exploring (I think the word is trolling or something?) some of the other social media sites available these days (and probably for the last eon, but only recently in my universe). I originally had decided against having anything to do with twitter but recently having been exposed to it I decided that maybe it was a good exercise for me to try to make interesting statements with a limited word count. I think it's today's equivalent of the heroic couplet. Or something. I would totally follow Alexander Pope on twitter. Also crazy that I had to go back and add Pope's christian name to clarify that I wasn't referring to the Catholic Pope. Also it's nice that I only have a few friends on it and so most of my tweets are written for an abstract idea of an audience. Anyway I know it's a good practice for me because there hasn't been a tweet I've written that I haven't wanted to go over the word-limit and had to work to reduce the wordiness or re-think the content. No one wants to have the verbal runs if one can help it, right? Well maybe back when one was paid per word but that's a whole other kettle of fish.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes...

I know that life is about change but I more often expect the changes or events to come gradually with larger ones growing on the horizon until by the time they have arrived they are familiar enough not to seem as large. However, today I have heard of two fairly large changes that have happened to two people who, although not within my immediate circle of family and friends, are close enough to me that I feel as though their events somehow affect my life (which they don't, really, beyond my thinking about them). I am not alone in thinking these two events to be newsworthy - both were reported on. So not only was I surprised by them, I somehow get that little sense of being famous by association that sometimes comes with these things. In the first case I heard (a couple days after the fact) that my cousin and her boyfriend had been in a head-on collision in Quebec. They have both been released from hospital with minor injuries but it sounds as though the woman in the other vehicle is in more serious condition. Here is a link to that story: http://urgence07.ca/?p=9331 I am just so thankful that it ended better than it could have. Accidents happen and they usually come with no warning (or they likely wouldn't happen at all). I mentioned above that I have an expectation of life that most of the events in it will come to me with prior warning but this is a large reminder to me that it isn't always the case. As to the second news-worthy friend-related happening I definitely had caught glimpses of it on the horizon but had no idea of its magnitude or proximity. Being involved in Augustine College I certainly have been privileged to meet a variety of interesting and often borderline famous (within a fairly limited circle, however) people. I also meet some nice people who I never would have thought I would hear about in the news. Imagine my surprise when listening to CBC I heard that Andrew Bennet (a member of the latter camp) had been picked to be the head of the newly-formed federal office of religious freedom! Here's an article on that: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/augustine-college-prof-to-head-harper-governments-new-office-of-religious-freedom/article8806344/ I suppose it has more to do with the fact that, although previously the Dean and professor at the College, when I originally met AndyB he was part of our circle rather than that of our elders. What, you mean someone close to my age has become what's known as successful? How is that possible? Anyway once the surprise wore off it makes a lot of sense and I am truly pleased for him. I think whoever made that decision chose extremely well. And I'm only slightly jealous. Really. Oh, well these pictures are just here to remind me that I have two awesome boys. And that's something...right?

Walters

Lately Logan has been calling Walter 'Walters'. I wasn't sure if he was just confusing the genative with the nominative case but then I've noticed him adding an 's' to the end of several other words. These might in their turn be explained as a confusion of the possessive or plural form except that one of these words is 'kitchens' and I know of no house or time in which we could speak of there being more than one. It reminds me of Mr Collins' words: "I say 'staircases' because there are several, and each - in its way - very fine!" But this is all to say that he has not picked up the final 's' from hearing us use it so it has me wondering why this has developed. I'm sure there is some linguistic explanation. In any case it's pretty cute and I doubt it will in any way impede his linguistic development or relationship with his brother so I'll just enjoy it while it's here and remember it when it's gone.

LBD

Aah! Why didn't I stumble upon this closer to the beginning? The Lizzie Bennet Diaries - yet another modern day take of P&P but so different. How is it different? I really don't know how to describe it so you'd just better go look at it yourself. I'm not even part of twitter or some of the other platforms used but the idea is amazing and would have been fun to follow everything as it unfolded (not that it's fully finished yet). But then perhaps I would have bemoaned the wait for new info and episodes. Never happy, I guess :)

lighting the corners of my mind

Yesterday James was home most of the day (going out to work in the evening instead) so we had a cosy home day. We didn't do much but at the end of the day I thought back through the memories and realized that there were some lovely moments scattered through the day. I also realized from some of the things Logan is now doing and interested in that his age is similar to what mine was in some of my earliest memories. Not that what we've done before isn't important but it made me realize in a slightly different way that this is Logan's and Walter's lives and childhoods beginning, not just my life and parenthood continuing. It also made me realize Logan's much more a kid than a baby now. He took the couch cushions off and made a fort with his stuffed animals and I thought: of course. No one has to show children how to do it or tell them that it'll be fun - they apparently know innately.

We went to the science museum another day this week and spent the majority of the time on, around, and looking at the trains. Not that I'm surprised, they are pretty awesome! Apparently when Mom would take us as children the trains were our favourite part, too. Even Walter was fascinated. Whether or not these are Logan's earliest memories, I am certainly enjoying all the various things we've been able to do recently.

I love watching James with Logan. Even the smallest activities they do together are lovely to watch: having his Dad cut his hair again (in this house, cutting hair is a guy thing), using the scroll saw to cut out the shape of a rocket ship in wood and painting it together, cleaning up spilled milk (with no crying) and then mopping the floor excessively because it's fun to run it up and down the hallway (with the mop, of course). Even the way they interact while James gets Logan's supper or a snack ready is heartwarming. I saw a sign with the following saying: the only thing better than having you as my husband is our children having you as their dad. Okay, I usually avoid the sappy but this one applies so well to the dynamic at this time. It's just good for me to remember that I don't have to be the primary parent - there doesn't have to be a primary parent. We both contribute different and similar aspects as parents to this family and it's so interesting to see these dynamics play out.

And the day of little memories was finally complete when I curled up with my boys and read a good book to them. There are tough aspects to parenting and days I want to scream but then days like these go a long way to make the bad parts fade and disappear. Oh, and smiles like these don't hurt, either.

PJ boys

Getting them both to look at the same time can be difficult...

but the results are usually fun whether the do or not.

Walter Laughed!

While he was falling asleep on my lap this morning he laughed three times! I've seen babies smile or suck their tongues while falling asleep but I have never witnessed this before. It's the first laughter I've heard from him and was so natural and adorable.

Okay, that's my best birthday present. Ever. He is the sunniest baby I've ever met.

Development

I realize that it's been a while since I've written about the latest developments of my boys. I think the last update of this kind I wrote right before giving birth (I think the day of). So here are a few things that the boys are doing now that are enough to melt any heart (at least in my opinion) and that I will appreciate remembering in the future.

Logan is a wonderful big brother. He has very little problem with sharing his blankies with Walter - even voluntarily removing some from his bed to give to Walter in case Walter's feeling cold. There have been a few times when he's asked Walter to share the blankie, too, but I don't mind giving it up and getting another one for Walter because sharing ought to be a two-way street. I'm really happy that I have so many receiving blankets so there are plenty to go 'round. Logan's speaking so much more the past few months. He is still only forming simple sentences but his vocabulary is extensive. At times he fills in the articles and other extraneous words with a repeating sound that he places between the nouns and verbs. So the string is structured as a sentence but only with the necessary words pronounced. For the past month or so (at least, perhaps longer) Logan counts saying: "one...three...nine...ten...". He knows other numbers, recognizes the numerals 1, 4, 5, and calls the 3 'eight' (a similar shape) but always returns to this when counting to himself. He also knows and can name most of the colours, the basic shapes, a few letters, and can almost spell his name.

Walter is such a sociable baby. I saw his first smile only a week or two after his birth and within a month he was defying convention by smiling at people (especially his daddy) and cooing quickly followed (along with aspirated sounds that are freakishly close to 'hi'). I have a sneaking suspicion that he is an extrovert. The few times we have been out with piles of people he has been happy and alert (not to mention charming) the entire time. Not that he isn't happy, alert, and charming when it's just us at home but it's a little unusual for a baby to be quite so consistently content in a crowd. He's growing extremely quickly and I've had to pack away a couple boxes of clothes that he's outgrown (half of which before he had a chance to wear them). He's just over fourteen pounds and turned two months yesterday. But he's not just chubby - part of the reason he's outgrown these clothes is because they don't fit length-wise. Although he's fairly hefty, he's also fairly strong and has held his own head up from the start - no mean feat with the size of his cheeks and chins (although perhaps the chins help support the head and the cheeks act as ballast...).

I love comparing the two and I'm not worried about either losing by comparison. They are different and I love them differently. As Mom said, we love each child with our whole heart but not the same way. They are different and it would be impossible to love them exactly the same. Love doesn't follow the rules of mathematics.

Cheese

Boys

Wendell Berry on discrimination

“Condemnation by category is the lowest form of hatred, for it is cold-hearted and abstract, lacking even the courage of a personal hatred” - Wendell Berry

The quote was taken from the following article: http://abpnews.com/culture/social-issues/item/8130-wendell-berry-expounds-on-gay-marriage#.UPWd-x1LUg2 I am not hoping to raise this issue here but have found, as usual, that his argument is balanced, fresh, and compelling.

These pictures are completely unrelated to this post but I have a problem with blogger in that they do not show my paragraph breaks so the only way I have found to break up the text is to insert an image. I'm sure there is some way to get around this but I haven't found it yet. Hence the pictures.

My stars

I have a feeling that this is just the start of my boys being a pair one way or another.

Isn't it fun?

Chubs

I didn't really realize just how large my boy was getting until a day or two ago we visited a newborn (just over a month younger than he) who is half his weight! He was born over a pound heavier than she and with larger head, feet, and hands so with what he's gained in the past month he looks like a real bruiser beside the teeny girl. I don't have any pictures from the meeting but here's a recent one of the start of some rolls...

Snowy Day

It's 2013! I believe that's the first time I've written the date this year. Despite ringing the year in in memorable style, it'll take a few more times of writing it down for it to sink in that we're in a new year. James took our big boy out to play in the snow and watch the machines remove the snowbanks from our street. They were out there at least three hours today and, miraculously, the baby slept the whole time. So I was able to clear a lot of the papers off the table/desk. Hopefully this means it will be easier to get necessary things accomplished in the coming days and weeks. I was also able to get a few pictures of some of their fun while I brought them out some water part-way through. And here are a few of the few pictures I took...

Oh, and here's one of some of the action from inside the house:

Smiles

Here are a couple recent pictures of my boys:

two little heart-melters

Day of Days

Merry Christmas! Why am I posting at this time on Christmas morning, you ask? Because I am awake and my boys are all still sleeping. Judging from past sleep-in days they may not wake up until around eleven. Do I wake them prematurely? I think at this point in time I am the most excited about Christmas. Our two-year-old hasn't experienced the season enough for anticipation to cause wakefulness and my husband has worked quite a bit with the huge snow storm we had recently. It's lovely to have snow on Christmas but it's also quite nice to have a husband. I think I'll let them sleep. It'll be my gift to them...

Wal-E's here!

And he's been here for two weeks already. I'm definitely behind in updating but I do believe he's part of the reason I'm a little behind in some matters. He's already gained over a pound beyond his birth-weight and is doing a bit more looking around in between all the sleeping and eating. In a way I'm in no hurry to get to the next milestone but at the same time I can't wait to discover his personality because we've had so much fun with our first one! Anyway enough of my writing, here are a few of the (multiple) pictures we have of him: