The Holiday Spirit

Keller makes his first wish in the wishing well...Hmm, I wonder what he wished for??  Of course a week later when I gave him coins to drop in the Salvation Army bucket, he refused to give them up.  He must know the difference between the brown wishing pennies and the silver coins that he gets to put in his piggy bank.  

Taking time to stop and smell the (fake) poinsettas...

I think it was the last weekend of November that we stuck Keller in a Christmas sweater and headed out to see Gillette Castle in all of its' holiday splendor:)  (Ulterior motive--to get a holiday card picture?  But mostly to have a family day:)  Although I've lived in CT my whole life, I'd never been there before.  It was a nice trip, although by the top floor, Keller had a bit of a tantrum, being "done" with the museum...luckily there was a toy train going around and around the Christmas tree in the next room so he was able to pull himself together a little:)  

And more photo-shoot opportunities...

How humiliating...

You want a smile...I got a smile for you alright!!!

Okay, okay...enough with the pictures already!!!

My favorite one of the season...

Dictionaries, Naps, Me, and Food

I've been meaning to write a catch up post on things around here, but the days just fly by it seems.  My priority now is to "record" Keller's crazy increase in talking over the past month...simply amazing to me!  He went from the basics of "nana"--banana, dada, and Bobo, and "buh"-book, to then pointing and calling everything "dat"...It was kind of odd that he went from having some words to then not naming anything, then all of the sudden he was like a word explosion!  While he doesn't quite have "nana" back, he has so many other words going on, it's okay:)  Here's a rundown of what comes to mind:

up

buh  (book)

oh-raaaange (orange...but really a clementine...loves these little things)

bli-bli-bli  (blueberry, also refers to raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and cherries)

ca-kah  (cracker)

cooo-kee  (cookie...can be used interchangeable with cracker...even points in books to "cookies" and names them)

man--(snowman, gingerbread man, and nutcracker man)

teeee  (tree)

bur  (bird)

duh  (duck...in fact, while shopping in a big antique center, he was quietly riding along in his stroller and all of the sudden after turning down a new aisle he starts screaming, "Duh, duh, duh!! and pointing straight down the aisle to these two big wooden ducks...very cute)

bah  (sheep)

nee nee (ie. neigh, neigh...for horse)

moo  (cow)

bok (block)

ha-ha (hot)

bwwww (brrrrr...for cold)

doh-geeee  (doggy)

ki-kah  (kitty cat)

squeak squeak (he makes the noise---mouse)

bah-by (bye-bye)

nah-night

hah  (hat)

beebee (baby)

blib-blib (boobie:) yeah, we joked earlier on that if you can ask for it, your too old for it, but alas...a couple more months through flu season and we'll be done...)

Mah--meeee (my favorite for now at least...took awhile, but he finally says it)

Da-da

owt (out--says this when we go in to get him from his crib or when he's done in the high chair)

tee-tah  (tick-tock, for clock or watch)

 

And how can I forget his favorite:  MORE... and he says it with a Long Island accent, like Mow-ah...this goes mostly for food since I would always say "more" to him when I gave him more of whatever.  He says this when he's hungry, too, or he'll say "oh-range" and point in his mouth.  After one of us says, "Are you hungry?" to him, he'll respond, "Huh--geee"---he definitely emphasizes the second syllable, especially if it's an "eeee" kind of syllable:)  

He seems to love new words and learning to use words to get what he wants and has even put two words together...Mow-ah crah-kuh...or sometimes he'll say "Peeees" (please)...it's neat to watch him try to figure out what to say---sometimes it's more, sometimes it's the food name, sometimes it's please and yes sometimes it's still that "ehhhhhh, ehhhhhh, ehhhhh" whine...ugh!  We are under strict orders in this household not to feed him when he whines...which makes sense, especially since we know he knows the words now.  

Then there's his receptive language which has impressed us for awhile now (because we just think he's this little baby when really he's a big boy now...what do we know!!?)  He'll point to his eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, ears (both), head, elbow, legs, hands/fingers, toes/feet, chin, beard.  And he's good at responding to "Get Mommy the _____" or "Give the _______ to Daddy."  And I'll stop there, I've just been meaning to get all of this in writing since there's no "baby book"---

Napping update.  Mommy got gypped.  I can't help but feel that way a little.  I have a delightful, healthy, happy, kind-spirited little boy who only sleeps 1/2 hour in the morning and 1/2 hour in the afternoon (not always).  I keep thinking and hoping, but I really just need to accept this and move on.  I do really feel like I have time issues because of this, but I guess rather than "fretting" I should just figure out ways around it, and just get used to getting more done with him literally under my heals...

Me Time.  I desperately need this.  I think that is why I brought up the nap thing.  I think my plan is going to be to join a gym again.  He's old enough now where I'm not as worried about him swapping germs in the daycare room for an hour here and there...I need that feeling of independence for a little bit, and probably more importantly, I need the exercise.  Exercise has always been an important part of my life and over the past year plus, it's been totally on the back burner.  I need it to help me feel good about me---it's my shut my brain off time--and it's good for you.

Eating Better.  I've been reading the book "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan and it has really reminded me of what I've been struggling with for awhile now...He says eat food, not too much, and mostly plants.  By Eat Food, he means the real food that people used to eat, not the processed pre-packaged crap that us westerners have come to regard as food.  I've been struggling with feeling like I eat crap everytime I eat "fake chicken" or whatever other meat-replacement we eat around here.  Especially in thinking about raising Keller and teaching him about food and food choices, I don't want to feed him crap and so why should I be willing to put it into my body on a regular basis?  This author also spends a lot of time explaining what a disservice it was to our diet once the food industry started breaking food down into individual nutrition components--meaning refine the crap out of your bread so it's pure and white and fluffy, but then "enrich it" by adding back some iron, niacin, etc. (that was in the whole wheat flour in the first place)--because he claims that the benefits of "enriched" foods are far less than when we consume the whole food in its natural form.  Makes complete and total sense, yet why is it so hard to follow this diet...Let's see, I'd actually have to plan ahead and Cook, which I'm very bad at and don't really enjoy at all...that's what it comes down to mostly for me.  But that's no excuse.  So I told Travis that our New Year's Resolution in this house needs to be to eat more veggies (although we probably eat plenty more than mainstream America--still, we need to eat a bigger variety and really we tend to only eat our veggies at dinner...)  Are we getting our minimum requirement of 5 fruits and veggies a day?  Are you?  So many benefits to doing this, really there's no excuses...So more fruits and veggies for us AND whole wheat pasta "most" of the time...we were doing good with that for awhile but somehow slipped back into the plain old white pasta...at the very least we should give the protein "enriched" one a whirl...

And so there it is ladies and gentlemen.  An update.  While my baby boy sleeps on his daddy--for at least an hour I might add--sleeps good and long ON someone, but...

The shoveling is done thanks to the neighbors for helping and post-nap and lunch, we'll hit the snow with our new (used) sled!!

  

Dear Bo,

I write you this letter because I just don't know how else to get my message across to you.  I have talked to you privately, quietly, and yes, even yelled about it.  I have escorted you to your crate, I have pointed you angrily in the direction of your crate, and yes, even spanked your rear or nose on occasion.  And still, we have the same problem.  

I understand that it is your unending and faithful desire to protect us and keep us safe from the predators out there in the wild (family neighborhood).  I truly appreciate your commitment to us, your adopted family.  However, I believe we are suffering from a bit of a misunderstanding as to what true danger might be.  Allow me to run through some scenarios to help clear things up.  

To begin.  The man who backs his truck into the driveway directly adjacent to ours is our friendly neighbor, Barney.  He lives in that white house next door.  He comes and goes from his house every day, as does his daughter Memorie and his grandson, Phillip.  They are good people.  We like them.  Barney makes us wine and while the wine might not be very yummy, it is still a kind and neighborly gesture for him to bring us some when he makes it.  We do not need to be protected from our next door neighbors.  They mean us no harm.  And frankly, your barking at them makes me feel terrible that they have to put up with us, yes us, because we are all one family whose behaviors all impact each other, each and every time you bark at them for simply carrying on their daily activities.  Please leave Barney and his kind family alone.

The next major topic shall be that of community helpers, namely, the mail delivery person.  I understand it can be a bit distressing that we have several mail carriers who are responsible for our mail delivery, however, these community helpers walk through the neighborhood every day, rain or shine, and bring us our mail.  I know they come so close to our house, even so far us up our front steps to our mailbox beside the door, however, this is their job.  Daddy and I WANT them to bring us our mail.  If you continue to charge the front door with ferocious barking followed by a body-slam into the door itself, they just might decide to deny us our delivery privileges.  This would be bad and would surely put you into the dog house, perhaps the dog house where we got you from...remember that one?  No ottoman to sleep on.  No heat vent directly into your crate.  Sure, also no little boy pulling your ears, lying on you, and stealing your toys, but also, no little boy handing you forbidden people food and certainly no delicious high chair to clean up after dinner.  Please do not continue to bark at the mail carriers.  Not when they are across the street delivering mail, next door, delivering mail, and not when they bring us our mail.  They give you treats.  They want to be your friend.  Please embrace them and their friendly white mail truck when it is parked across the street.  (Also note, this pertains too to the UPS delivery man and his big brown noisy truck...we LOVE to get packages!  You should too!  No more barking at these good kind people.)

Also to note, our home is located in the midst of a neighborhood filled with houses and there are people that live in all of those houses.  People go into their houses and come out.  Cars come and go.  And yes, in some of those house live other DOGS, too!  Just like you!  Some are big like you, some are medium, and some are small and cute.  And just like when we put your collar and leash on you and take you outside to walk down to the park or through the neighborhood, other dogs and their mommies and daddies do this too.  It's okay!  They probably just have to go make a poop or peepee down at the park just like you do.  They are not trying to steal your food or harm your pack.  They just need to go to the bathroom.  Please please let them and their masters pass the house in peace.  This also pertains to school kids who must walk past our house to get to their homes and families.  A big black dog like you can be rather intimidating.  Please only bark when someone is trying to climb in a window or break the lock on one of the doors.  In that case only is it okay to bark and yes, even attack!  But please first make sure it is not your father or myself climbing in the window because we locked ourselves out!  That's happened a few times, yes (and come to think of it, I don't recall a peep out of you...hmmmmm, perhaps we'll have to work on that one).  

I guess the driving force which finally persuaded me to write this letter to you is my exhaustion.  Yes, I'm awfully sleepy.  I sure could have used a nice long nap this morning.  I know, I know, he woke you up too this morning at 4:45, with all that racket coming from his room that kept going and going and going.  I'm not sure what that was all about but since I didn't get to go back to sleep after that, I was looking so forward to his nap which went off without a hitch beginning at 9:40.  While I put the groceries away for the next 10 minutes, my head hit my pillow by 9:50 which likely would have afforded me an approximate 50 minute nap.  Unfortunately, I was startled awake not 20 minutes later by a sudden burst of barking coming from the front of the house.  Was that you?  Don't answer that.  We both know the correct answer.  The worst part about this sudden barking is not so much that you awoke your tired mommy, but more importantly that you awoke your baby boy.  And so, now 2:41 in the afternoon, both he and I are miserable and exhausted, one of us refuses to sleep and the other wants nothing more than to crawl into bed and stare at the backs of her eyelids, and stop hearing the whining and crying that occur when a certain baby boy we both know and love is exhausted.  If this incident was an isolated one which occurred for your sincere fear for the survival of our family and species (yours and/or mine) it might be more forgivable, however this sudden barking during naptime seems to becoming more prevalent.  It needs to stop.  Seriously.  

And so as I finish composing this letter, you are locked in your cage away from any windows or door and Keller is in his cage (I mean crib) too, screaming his head off because he is just oh so tired but just won't sleep.  Perhaps he is afraid of being awakened abruptly again?  Or perhaps I'm being just a little too hard on you.  But really, I just wish you would cut the barking thing out, I'd accept half the amount as a compromise.  Please consider this plead.

Now I will dig some toothpicks out of the cabinet to hold my eyelids open, put the crying baby into the car and drive around in circles so he sleeps, which by the way is undesirable  because while the boy gets to address his much needed sleep needs, the mommy does not, which makes it only harder to handle the barking and contributes to a momma who is too tired to walk her doggy to the park.  Think about that.

I hope my next letter can be a bit friendlier and upbeat.  

Sincerely,

The Tired Mommy