Soooo, all four of us are in the living room this morning, and Cooper's watching Little Einsteins. Okay, okay, I was watching Little Einsteins, and Cooper was sitting with me.
Well, the episode was called "The Northern Night Light". They used music by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, specifically, "Flight of the Bumblebee", which is an outstanding piece and hard as hell to play (for you musicians out there or those of you that have had a music appreciation course).
Abbie joined us in watching the show, and if you've seen this episode, you know that Quincy, the talented little black boy, makes "Flight of the Bumblebee" into a silly song that goes something like, "Flub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a daaaa...Dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a dub a daaaa". Guess it makes more sense if you can actually hear it.
So Abbie says out of the blue, "So, figures they have the little black boy doing the silly song."
I was like, "huh?"
And she was like, "Because he can rap?"
Thank you to my wife for pointing out the political incorrectness, once again, of the Disney juggernaut!
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Friday, July 21, 2006
Thanks Mom
I remember my mother saying to me, “You’ll appreciate me for this one day. Just remember this when you have the choice to send me to a retirement home or take me in.” I of course always told her I would be sending her to a retirement home! Oh how now I wish I could eat most of my words I said as an annoying teenager. The last few days have been rough for me. We are packing the house and getting it ready to go on the market. That is stressful enough but add an infant and a toddler and we’ve been burning the candle at both ends. This morning I woke up and I actually felt drunk and dizzy because I was so tired. It took us over an hour just to cook Cooper’s food for the day and we barely had a moment to get the diaper bags ready or any food for us for our trip to Annapolis, MD. (Cooper is seeing an allergy specialist there.) We were running late speeding down the road when I realized that I had forgotten to put on a bra!! Yes my dear friends and family for the first time I can remember since I started wearing a bra I went without in public! Jim offered to turn around but I didn’t want to be late. As we are driving, mercifully Sullivan goes to sleep without the screaming fit he usually does in the car. What kid do you know that hates the car? (Every other car trip up until today has been a crying fit where Sullivan would cry hard and be so scared he would be bright red and have tears! An hour trip to the store turns into 3 because I have to keep stopping to soothe him.) I am trying to keep Cooper entertained with this purple caterpillar called Alphabet Pal. He’s screaming at me so I decide to use the mode where is makes the sounds of the letters of the alphabet to make dirty words. If I can hit all the legs in the right way it’s quite funny. This bores Cooper and he falls asleep and I breathe a sigh of relief I can finally take a nap myself. I close my eyes and start to relax. Just as I can feel sleep starting to take over I realize I have to pee. I have to pee so bad that I can’t sleep through it and I can’t ask Jim to stop because we are running late. So I sit up and will cars to get out of our way.
The doctor appointment was odd. Last week we loved the whole entire experience. This time the room was boiling hot, Cooper refused to sit down and take the treatment, we were asked to keep it down for the other sleeping patients. Cooper’s answer was to scream louder whereas before at least it was just loud laughter. We leave all sweaty, irritable, hungry and wouldn’t you know we get stuck in traffic. I feed Cooper and then finally make something for Jim and I. Unfortunately I spill most of it all over myself and the car. Who knows when I’ll have the chance to clean that up! At this point I’m starting to feel pretty sorry for myself. This past week I’ve been peed and pooped on more than I can count. I think it was just yesterday that Sullivan peed on me not once but twice and so badly that he soaked the couch, my pant leg, and yes my underwear. Jim came running as he heard me screaming, “nooooooooooo” and trying to deflect the pee with the wrong side of the diaper. I cried, I swear I couldn’t help it. Here I am again half dressed and covered in pee. I am so tired of being peed and pooped on. Cooper has thrown out all of our Tupperware lids so we have lots of dishes but no lids. Very annoying when you are in a hurry and all you need is one damn lid. If you can’t find something in our house it means Cooper has found it and either put it in a box or it’s in the trash can. I had that dreaded thought. I even said it out loud, “I hope these boys appreciate what we’ve gone through for them.” I say that and I know all the parents with older kids are probably shaking their heads knowing that I haven’t experienced anything yet. More than anything I find myself wanting to call my mom and apologize for not being more appreciative of all she went through to raise me. Thanks Mom I do appreciate all you’ve done for me!
The doctor appointment was odd. Last week we loved the whole entire experience. This time the room was boiling hot, Cooper refused to sit down and take the treatment, we were asked to keep it down for the other sleeping patients. Cooper’s answer was to scream louder whereas before at least it was just loud laughter. We leave all sweaty, irritable, hungry and wouldn’t you know we get stuck in traffic. I feed Cooper and then finally make something for Jim and I. Unfortunately I spill most of it all over myself and the car. Who knows when I’ll have the chance to clean that up! At this point I’m starting to feel pretty sorry for myself. This past week I’ve been peed and pooped on more than I can count. I think it was just yesterday that Sullivan peed on me not once but twice and so badly that he soaked the couch, my pant leg, and yes my underwear. Jim came running as he heard me screaming, “nooooooooooo” and trying to deflect the pee with the wrong side of the diaper. I cried, I swear I couldn’t help it. Here I am again half dressed and covered in pee. I am so tired of being peed and pooped on. Cooper has thrown out all of our Tupperware lids so we have lots of dishes but no lids. Very annoying when you are in a hurry and all you need is one damn lid. If you can’t find something in our house it means Cooper has found it and either put it in a box or it’s in the trash can. I had that dreaded thought. I even said it out loud, “I hope these boys appreciate what we’ve gone through for them.” I say that and I know all the parents with older kids are probably shaking their heads knowing that I haven’t experienced anything yet. More than anything I find myself wanting to call my mom and apologize for not being more appreciative of all she went through to raise me. Thanks Mom I do appreciate all you’ve done for me!
Friday, July 14, 2006
Play Dates
One of the things I regretted about my maternity leave with Cooper was that I didn't get out of the house enough. Granted it was winter time but I failed to realized those first few months were the months that he would sleep through anything! So this maternity leave with Sully I was determined to get out more and give Cooper lots of play date time since he was done with daycare. We got to spend lots of time with Katie and Emily and Cooper got to have a jam session with Stacy and her son Zach.
June Update
I really did write this post right at the end of June I just haven't had the chance to get the pictures together so it's a tad outdated.
...It is unbelievable that Sullivan is now over a month old and Cooper is now 18 months old! June has been the most amazing yet one of the most challenging months. It feels as if a lifetime has passed.
Most of Sully’s time has been spent doing what babies do- sleeping. I keep telling everyone what an easy baby Sullivan is but the midwives told me that I’m just a different mom. It’s so true. We don’t freak out over every little noise he makes. I don't make everyone whisper if he's sleeping and I'll actually put him down if he's sleeping. He can sleep through Cooper screaming and that is saying something. He makes adorable baby kisses and has this deep gaze. Several people have told us that he just looks at you and you can tell he has an old soul. When he graces you with a little smile it’s so precious. He’s holding his neck up pretty steadily now. He doesn’t feel like the completely little helpless baby anymore.
Did I mention that Cooper is 18 months old now and he’s throwing these wonderful temper tantrums? It’s not been easy, I mean I feel like we finally figured out how to handle the infant phase. I kinda thought we had this parenting thing down. I started to lose it last week, it just seemed like Cooper was figuring out how to throw these tantrums and he was getting what he wanted from us. I can’t tell you how awful it is to feel like we could now be a candidate for Supernanny! I called my dear friend Jamie and sobbing begged for advice. (She’s our child development specialist!) Thankfully Jamie talked me down from the ledge and reminded us that it’s Cooper’s job to test us right now. Very good to remember as he’s kicking us and throwing his head back without a care that we have hardwood floors with a nice resounding thunk! Just yesterday he decided to throw his food on the floor and when I told him that we didn’t throw our food on the floor please pick it up and put it back on the plate- he started to scream as if this was the most horrible thing in the world and thunked his head in the food and start throwing it at me! Needless to say I bought the Supernanny and Dr. Sears Discipline book. Should be a fun phase!
It’s not all been temper tantrums. Cooper has almost totally adjusted to Sullivan now. By adjusted I mean he no longer starts crying at the sight of Sully and will in fact sit next to Sully and pet his feet or head quite lovingly. As Jim has posted he will say “Baby” and point to Sully. We are careful not to say to him that he is now a big boy and take the fact that he is still very much a baby away. If I’m nursing Sully then Cooper will either sit next to me or pull my legs down and flop down on them and go for a ride. Great workout for my legs!
We’ve now taken to a morning walk. GiGi and Poppy gave us this awesome Chariot that allows the boys to ride side by side. The first couple of trips they both fussed a lot but now they even seem to look forward to it and Cooper yells “yaaaaaaaa” whenever we run across the street. This week the big ordeal has been Sullivan’s wayward arm. It flops over and whacks Cooper upside the head at every little bump. Cooper gets mad and screams which causes Sully’s to startle and whack Cooper again! So when the screaming didn’t work Cooper tried kicking the bottom of the sling causing Sullivan to get yet another whack! So now he just takes his forehead and pushes Sully’s arm away from him. Is it mean to laugh as it’s happening?
The wonderful rebounder!! Sullivan and Cooper couldn’t be more different. Cooper took the pacifier right away- Sully spit it out and looked at me almost as if I was insulting him. Cooper loved to be swaddled; Sully will fight until he can get his arms out to have his little fists on his chin. Stick Cooper in the sling and he was happy as a bug in a rug. Sully will scream during his fussy time (typically when Cooper is getting his bath) unless he’s really tired. You could put Cooper in the swing and within minutes he was knocked out for hours! Put Sully in the swing and you may get 30 minutes tops before he wants out of there. But the best thing ever is this little rebounder. We are so tight on space as it is, but I wanted one to start working out. I promised to keep it tucked away, but it has become the staple of our living room! I get my workouts, Cooper will use it to put all his toys on or play on, but best of all when the swaddling or nursing don’t calm Sullivan down we jump on the rebounder and within a few minutes he is gone! The best is when you are bouncing Sully and Cooper climbs on and sits between your legs as you bounce.
One of our favorite things to eat is homemade sauerkraut. This time Cooper decided to help out with the mashing part.
...It is unbelievable that Sullivan is now over a month old and Cooper is now 18 months old! June has been the most amazing yet one of the most challenging months. It feels as if a lifetime has passed.
Most of Sully’s time has been spent doing what babies do- sleeping. I keep telling everyone what an easy baby Sullivan is but the midwives told me that I’m just a different mom. It’s so true. We don’t freak out over every little noise he makes. I don't make everyone whisper if he's sleeping and I'll actually put him down if he's sleeping. He can sleep through Cooper screaming and that is saying something. He makes adorable baby kisses and has this deep gaze. Several people have told us that he just looks at you and you can tell he has an old soul. When he graces you with a little smile it’s so precious. He’s holding his neck up pretty steadily now. He doesn’t feel like the completely little helpless baby anymore.
Did I mention that Cooper is 18 months old now and he’s throwing these wonderful temper tantrums? It’s not been easy, I mean I feel like we finally figured out how to handle the infant phase. I kinda thought we had this parenting thing down. I started to lose it last week, it just seemed like Cooper was figuring out how to throw these tantrums and he was getting what he wanted from us. I can’t tell you how awful it is to feel like we could now be a candidate for Supernanny! I called my dear friend Jamie and sobbing begged for advice. (She’s our child development specialist!) Thankfully Jamie talked me down from the ledge and reminded us that it’s Cooper’s job to test us right now. Very good to remember as he’s kicking us and throwing his head back without a care that we have hardwood floors with a nice resounding thunk! Just yesterday he decided to throw his food on the floor and when I told him that we didn’t throw our food on the floor please pick it up and put it back on the plate- he started to scream as if this was the most horrible thing in the world and thunked his head in the food and start throwing it at me! Needless to say I bought the Supernanny and Dr. Sears Discipline book. Should be a fun phase!
It’s not all been temper tantrums. Cooper has almost totally adjusted to Sullivan now. By adjusted I mean he no longer starts crying at the sight of Sully and will in fact sit next to Sully and pet his feet or head quite lovingly. As Jim has posted he will say “Baby” and point to Sully. We are careful not to say to him that he is now a big boy and take the fact that he is still very much a baby away. If I’m nursing Sully then Cooper will either sit next to me or pull my legs down and flop down on them and go for a ride. Great workout for my legs!
We’ve now taken to a morning walk. GiGi and Poppy gave us this awesome Chariot that allows the boys to ride side by side. The first couple of trips they both fussed a lot but now they even seem to look forward to it and Cooper yells “yaaaaaaaa” whenever we run across the street. This week the big ordeal has been Sullivan’s wayward arm. It flops over and whacks Cooper upside the head at every little bump. Cooper gets mad and screams which causes Sully’s to startle and whack Cooper again! So when the screaming didn’t work Cooper tried kicking the bottom of the sling causing Sullivan to get yet another whack! So now he just takes his forehead and pushes Sully’s arm away from him. Is it mean to laugh as it’s happening?
The wonderful rebounder!! Sullivan and Cooper couldn’t be more different. Cooper took the pacifier right away- Sully spit it out and looked at me almost as if I was insulting him. Cooper loved to be swaddled; Sully will fight until he can get his arms out to have his little fists on his chin. Stick Cooper in the sling and he was happy as a bug in a rug. Sully will scream during his fussy time (typically when Cooper is getting his bath) unless he’s really tired. You could put Cooper in the swing and within minutes he was knocked out for hours! Put Sully in the swing and you may get 30 minutes tops before he wants out of there. But the best thing ever is this little rebounder. We are so tight on space as it is, but I wanted one to start working out. I promised to keep it tucked away, but it has become the staple of our living room! I get my workouts, Cooper will use it to put all his toys on or play on, but best of all when the swaddling or nursing don’t calm Sullivan down we jump on the rebounder and within a few minutes he is gone! The best is when you are bouncing Sully and Cooper climbs on and sits between your legs as you bounce.
One of our favorite things to eat is homemade sauerkraut. This time Cooper decided to help out with the mashing part.
Favorite toy of the month a $1.50 ball from CVS. Cooper will chase this ball all over the house. Even funnier he loves for you to bounce it so it will bounce off his belly or his forehead! Cackles galore with that fun game.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
When I Grow Up, I Want To Be Mediocre...
Sooo, Cooper and I are watching Playhouse Disney this morning, and we're watching Higglytown Heroes. Nothing spectualar about this show. The characters are all based on Russian Matryoshka nesting dolls and there are four main characters Eubie, Wayne, Twinkle, and Kip and their red squirrel friend Fran (who, incidentally, is voiced by the secretary from Ferris Bueller's Day Off..."quite a little bit", "you pinhead").
Our little nesting dolls explore their city and the people in it. Along the way, they meet "Higglytown heroes", the people in their community who make it a better place. These heroes have ranged from firefighters to dentists to police officers.
Nobly, the show "encourages involvement in the community, and means to inspire children to consider the importance of individuals who contribute to the world and make it better place." What a great idea...use a kids' show to espouse the importance of contributing to society.
Today, though, I was actually...how can I put it...flabbergasted by who the Higglytown hero was. Today, it was...
...the window washer!
That's right, this Disney show was promoting to our chillins out there that the noble career path to take is to be a window washer! Next thing you know, they're going to be promoting being a tent catcher. The writers must've been struggling for material.
Our little nesting dolls explore their city and the people in it. Along the way, they meet "Higglytown heroes", the people in their community who make it a better place. These heroes have ranged from firefighters to dentists to police officers.
Nobly, the show "encourages involvement in the community, and means to inspire children to consider the importance of individuals who contribute to the world and make it better place." What a great idea...use a kids' show to espouse the importance of contributing to society.
Today, though, I was actually...how can I put it...flabbergasted by who the Higglytown hero was. Today, it was...
...the window washer!
That's right, this Disney show was promoting to our chillins out there that the noble career path to take is to be a window washer! Next thing you know, they're going to be promoting being a tent catcher. The writers must've been struggling for material.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Guess Who
When Sullivan was born I would have sworn that he and Cooper were twins. They have the same red birthmark on the back of their necks, for a while Sully had the same red mark over his left eye that Cooper does. Their hair was the same and they had the exact same lips and chin and for sure the same Monihan nose!
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Superman
We were basically ignoring the weather warnings on the tv today getting ready to head out and run a few errands. I saw the clouds getting darker so decided to nurse Sully and leave after the storm came through. The wind started to kick in and then it was pouring. I saw our neighbor running in with his umbrella blown inside out. I thought man I feel sorry for anyone who has to go out in this! Jim was watching out the front door with Cooper and out of the corner of my eye I saw our new tent in the backyard lift off the ground and disappear! I screamed for Jim telling him our tent was blowing away.
I’m not exaggerating- he tore off his shirt, kicked off his shoes and threw his glasses on the couch and started down to the basement. I asked if he needed my help and he sheepishly came back up the stairs saying, “I don’t need your help- but I can’t see without my glasses.” Sully and I watched as Jim stood in the pouring rain pulling off the tent so the wind wouldn’t have anything to grab onto. Then as the lightning was striking right over head he finally came in and then the hail started. He came up the stairs soaked from head to toe and suddenly I just started giggling. He was my Superman- just with the glasses! As we were laughing about it afterwards Jim says, “I felt like a Higgley Town Hero!” Guess it’s all a matter of perspective!
I’m not exaggerating- he tore off his shirt, kicked off his shoes and threw his glasses on the couch and started down to the basement. I asked if he needed my help and he sheepishly came back up the stairs saying, “I don’t need your help- but I can’t see without my glasses.” Sully and I watched as Jim stood in the pouring rain pulling off the tent so the wind wouldn’t have anything to grab onto. Then as the lightning was striking right over head he finally came in and then the hail started. He came up the stairs soaked from head to toe and suddenly I just started giggling. He was my Superman- just with the glasses! As we were laughing about it afterwards Jim says, “I felt like a Higgley Town Hero!” Guess it’s all a matter of perspective!
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Babee
Mr. Cooper...how he's coming along.
Tonight, as Abbie and I were sitting on the couch with the boys, Cooper decided he wanted to sit on Abbie ...while she was holding Sullivan. He's done it before, but usually retreats after seeing the baby. Tonight, he didn't retreat. Instead, he moved closer, and gently touched Sully's head and nose. He patted Sully's head three times and said, "Babee"...three times. The first time could've been luck, the second a fluke, but the third tells us he can associate words with the appropriate object, person, or action.
Oh Cooper, its on now.
By the way, I didn't see Cooper do this, Abbie did. And she wants me to put this disclaimer here that she heard it and got excited about it and that I did jack shit about it.
Tonight, as Abbie and I were sitting on the couch with the boys, Cooper decided he wanted to sit on Abbie ...while she was holding Sullivan. He's done it before, but usually retreats after seeing the baby. Tonight, he didn't retreat. Instead, he moved closer, and gently touched Sully's head and nose. He patted Sully's head three times and said, "Babee"...three times. The first time could've been luck, the second a fluke, but the third tells us he can associate words with the appropriate object, person, or action.
Oh Cooper, its on now.
By the way, I didn't see Cooper do this, Abbie did. And she wants me to put this disclaimer here that she heard it and got excited about it and that I did jack shit about it.
GONE BANANAS!!!
Yesterday, I went shopping at Wegman's...our first real foray into shopping there since we almost always shop at Whole Foods. As is usually the case, I went with a list from Abbie. On this list was an assortment of fruits and veggies and the amount in parentheses after them. As I went through the list, I got avocados (2), mangoes (2), cauliflower (2), and bananas (5) among other items.
I got home, and hauled all of it into the house. Now, if you know me, you know I'm pretty lazy during the day, and when I have to haul in groceries, I try to do it in one trip. This trip was pretty heavy. Lots of groceries. But I did it.
We started to unload it - in the kitchen of course - and I started pulling out the bananas. Abbie looks at me, then the bananas, and asks me how many bananas I bought. I said I bought 5.
"Five bananas, not five bunches" she says.
Yup, I bought five bunches of bananas when all Abbie wanted was five freaking bananas. Looks like we're eating bananas, banana chips, banana shakes, banana ice cream, banana bread, peanut butter and banana, and anything else with bananas, because I bought enough to feed the National Zoo's monkey house.
Five bananas, indeed. Hmph.
I got home, and hauled all of it into the house. Now, if you know me, you know I'm pretty lazy during the day, and when I have to haul in groceries, I try to do it in one trip. This trip was pretty heavy. Lots of groceries. But I did it.
We started to unload it - in the kitchen of course - and I started pulling out the bananas. Abbie looks at me, then the bananas, and asks me how many bananas I bought. I said I bought 5.
"Five bananas, not five bunches" she says.
Yup, I bought five bunches of bananas when all Abbie wanted was five freaking bananas. Looks like we're eating bananas, banana chips, banana shakes, banana ice cream, banana bread, peanut butter and banana, and anything else with bananas, because I bought enough to feed the National Zoo's monkey house.
Five bananas, indeed. Hmph.
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