More Tricks than Treats

 

And enjoying Gramma’s Pumpkin Cake for breakfast!

On the Brink

Life is about to get a lot better.  Elio is already using his “office” (aka exersaucer), and we are very, very close to moving him into his suspendable high chair.  (This Phil & Ted contraption that will hang off the island in the kitchen.)  He won’t be eating anything yet, but he will be a much bigger part of the conversation.

He’s also about to move from the Bjorn to the Ergo.

And from 4oz to 6oz bottles.

And we’re going to install the second seat on the stroller.

And we’re going to expand the Stokke crib.  (Right now his head and feet are pressed into the rails!)

Next stop:  college.

Life Goes On

The days are all blending together, but I’d like to document how we’re spending them because I’m sure even a year from now we won’t remember the funny (or irritating) details of juggling a 2 1/2 year old, a 3 month old, a now-crochety dog plus a job search, household responsibilities (including finishing renovations, hello no heat!), and all of the other silly projects/events I task myself with.

Very unusual behavior for us, both boys are now awake by 6AM.  Elio is like clockwork.  Caleb is a little less predictable.  Sometimes I can get in another 20 minutes if I hand Elio over to Dave and snooze until I hear Caleb call for me from upstairs.  Elio is all smiles and energy from 6-7AM, so part of me really, really, really wants to stay awake… and then my eyes close and I somehow fall asleep with the guilt of being a terrible mother and missing out on my baby’s happy time.  Oh well!

Back to the baby.  Elio is doing well with sitting up on his own, and he’s particularly strong at this hour in the morning.  If I sit him up in view of the glowing red numbers off the GIANT digital clock (Dave this bought for me because he was tired of me being blind sans contacts and asking for the time– it’s designed for very old people and rather unfashionable, but it does the job), he’s content to sit and stare for up to 20 minutes.  Not sure what is so fascinating about the clock, but I’m not complaining.

He also has a lot to say at this hour.  Caleb was a very tough crowd as a baby, but Elio smiles away the minute you make eye contact.  (Perhaps because he’s neglected compared to the attention Caleb received??)  Caleb also didn’t babble & sing too much.  I thought I had a good sense of baby sounds, but Elio has proven otherwise.  He makes all kinds of cute noises that make me want to have 8 more kids.  (Kidding.)

So, anyway, Dave whisks Elio away for their time in the living room and I desperately try to get a few more z’s before I hear “Mommy Ommy!” from upstairs.  I have convinced Caleb that “cuddletime” is a fun game to play before getting out of bed.  It requires Mommy to lay down under the covers and close her eyes.  Here is where I get 20 more minutes at best until Caleb announces “Mommy!  All done sleeping! Wake up, Mommy!”.

So now it’s about 6:45AM and the dog has come to… ready for a walk.  Caleb & I make our way downstairs where we join Elio while Dave takes Lola out.  Caleb eats a very leisurely breakfast buffet in his PJs while I make him lunch.  He’s heavy on the carbs at breakfast so he has a no-carb lunch.  (His teachers say they now eat similar to Caleb- that I’ve given them lots of good carb-free lunch ideas.)  At breakfast he’ll eat up to 4 pieces of raisin bread… or a few waffles… or pancakes.  Or all of the above.  Yesterday he had a mini-bagel, toast, yogurt and Z-bar.  Maybe he’s carbo-loading for the big walk/run/scoot to school.

Elio sits in his bouncy chair watching us while we make idle chatter.  Again, if you happen to look his way he’s all smiles and giggles.  Until around 7:45AM.  Then he’s a fussy baby.  He’s ready for his 8AM catnap.  Thankfully he dozes right off and I can then return to Caleb- time for face washing, teeth brushing and clothes on.  About 8:20 Caleb and Dave head out to school and I jump in the shower and clean the kitchen, in anticipation of Elio waking up at 9AM.

Skipping ahead to the dinner/bedtime hour…

Caleb is now napping at school, but he still requires a much earlier bedtime than we’ve ever known.  Dinner is at 5:30PM at best.  (Sadly Dave and I sometimes eat two dinners- one with Caleb and a second at 8:30.  This can’t be good!) Tub follows at 6:15/6:30.  Elio was napping from 5-6 which was very convenient, but he’s since dropped that nap.  Unfortunately, due to some cruel joke nature has played on us, both boys need to be put to bed at the EXACT same time.  This isn’t bad when there are two adults, but when Dave is travelling it’s quite a skill to be in two places at the same time!  When Dave is home, he gives Caleb his bath while I nurse Elio.  Then I read Caleb his stories while Dave ensures Elio is asleep or cleans the kitchen.  We tag each other in and out on the stairs.

When Dave isn’t home, I’m precariously breastfeeding on the edge of the tub.  And Caleb often is so dry by the time I can get him out of the tub after draining the water that he doesn’t even need a towel.  (Environmentally thoughtful, right?)  Elio then nurses all through story time (also a challenge given that I’m trying to lay down with Caleb AND hold a book).  Elio passes out at some point so I quickly run him downstairs to our crib and return to Caleb to talk about his day and sing a song.  Whew.

Hopefully someone else has walked the dog.  : )

Beatles or Stones?

A couple of weeks ago we had dinner with friends at their home.  They had a guitar, just Caleb’s size.  Little did we know we had a budding rock star.

Happy Birthday, Pumpkins!

Caleb, Alexa & I carved eight pumpkins on Tuesday after school.  Yep, EIGHT.  Don’t know what I was thinking.  I really wanted to fill our top step and even eight barely did it.  There was a lot of seed removal.  Caleb got tired of it after #4, although up until then he was a great “de-seeder”.  We ended up doing an assembly line- I cleaned ‘em out and Alexa carved them.  Caleb directed.  Of course.

We didn’t get to actually move them outside and light them until last night.  Because candles were involved Caleb sang Happy Birthday to each pumpkin.  He also kissed each one goodnight.  I updated the blog header with a not-so-very-clear picture of Caleb on the steps.  Couldn’t resist because it was semi-festive.  Here are some better ones.

Spooky

I was tempted to teach Caleb a lesson about crime in the city and leave the pumpkins out overnight (our neighbors were vandalized- this is a rough ‘hood!), but then I thought he was probably a little young to start feeling insecure about his surroundings.  And it would break my heart if anything did happen to our hard work!  So they go out in the early evening and come in to “stay warm” around 10PM. Swing by and admire our handiwork some evening!

And Finally Pictures!

Uncle Josh hooked me up with a device to unload our old digital camera, so I’m finally able to post the first day of school pictures.  Thanks, Josh!

And then the aftermath–

Elio’s First Red Sox Game

Thanks to Uncle Chris, Elio made it to Fenway at 12 weeks of age… 4 weeks older than his brother.  As a consolation it was a playoff game.

Here he is cheering (?) on the Sox.  Unfortunately they still lost…

ABC Serenade

We discovered recently that Caleb can sing the Alphabet song from start to finish.   Every morning after breakfast Caleb entertains Elio who is usually waiting patiently in his bouncy chair.  This morning Caleb opted to sing his ABCs.

Porcupine!

Today we made porcupines in art class!

Lola’s Worst Nightmare

Caleb got some new wheels for school.