Archive for 2009
I Think This May Not Be A Good Thing
Mobile boys. I think that’s all I have to say to elicit fear in most parent’s minds. I offer video proof of their impending world domination:
Terrifying.
And no, I have no idea what prompted Andy to mimic a cow chewing cud. But it’s pretty funny.
I forsee much video in the near future, as my super spiffy Flip video camera came today, and it’s great fun. The video editing software it comes with is so unbelievably easy to use. Lots and lots of video montages await.
Things I Saw Tonight
Here is a quick list of things I saw at and after the Prodigy/Crystal Method show tonight:
- A guy wearing nothing but a speedo and suspenders.
- A guy in a gorilla suit.
- Many gorillas in man suits.
- Waldo.
- Numerous sweaty, topless males sliding past me… yet not one topless female.
- Fans in lingerie.
- Only one guy (that I saw, at least) wearing those stupid shutter shade sunglasses.
- Checkerboard suspenders. This was not a ska show.
- Me wearing my orange jeans.
- The opening DJs, Hyperfunk and Dig-Dug, tear it up. The following DJ, Kaskade… not so much.
- Some dude constantly playing with his iPhone sitting a few seats away from me between Crystal Method and Prodigy, somehow amazed that I was playing a Nintendo DS.
- The Prodigy not play an encore.
- Small dots of tree sap all over my clean car.
- A traffic control officer smack a car with their orange light wand for not stopping at a stop sign.
Tuesday Twin Photos
It’s been three weeks from the last set of photos, I know you’re all clamouring for more… So here are 26 new photos of the boys, including their great-grandparents, swinging at the park and eating watermelon.
[Print versions archived. Contact us if you want them.]
Luckily They Have A Short Attention Span
So, our big cross-country journey sans small boys went off without a hitch. The boys stayed perfectly on schedule and were spoiled with attention from grandma and great-grandparents. This morning, I left them playing on the floor while I made their breakfast and I got a look like “Where do you think you’re going missy?” Sorry buds, you’re on your own now.
The thing I was most worried about was either them totally being confused why we were suddenly not there anymore or completly forgetting who we were. I know, how can I be worred about both things happening–they’re total opposites, but that’s how I roll. Worrywart central. However, a good friend said “They won’t know how much they missed you until you get back,” and I think those were wise and true words.
A few newsworthy developments:
1) The lower right incisor is both visible and very sharp in both boys.
2) We set a new record in bib usage yesterday–12. That’s pretty darn impressive when their mouths are oh so small.
3) We actually made it into the zoo, instead of just the parking lot. The boys couldn’t give a fig about the animals (although that may have had more to do with the fact they couldn’t see many of them), but we stayed about 2.5 hours with no major meltdowns. Andy demanded a ride in the Ergo carrier, and both fell asleep as we walked out. I bought us a membership, so I guess we’re going back.
4) Adam and I indulged our inner Gil Grissom (from CSI) and did a DNA test on the boys. The number one question that I get is if they’re identical, and it was always weird to say “Well, we don’t know,” which then turns into a long conversation about how twins appear. Well, now I can just say identical and be done with it. Hooray. And this again proves I am consistently a winner in the medical lottery. Nothing is never “normal” for me!
“I Claim This Mouth in the Name of Incisor”
Ok, ok, I know. I said they were teething, like, I don’t know, two months ago. And still no teeth. However, two days ago, one broke ground in Andy’s mouth. And when I say “broke ground,” that’s exactly what I mean. There’s like a little crevasse that feels wicked sharp when you rub his gums, but I can’t see an actual tooth. That may have more to do with the fact that the boys love to stick their tongues out, and looking at their lower gums is pretty much impossible. I hope that little tooth pops out soon, because hell hath no fury like a teething infant. Or two.
Also, we have a long list of things the boys love:
1) Food. Most food. Especially foods mixed together (like peaches and avocado)
2) Toys that make noise. Especially the Oball Rattle. They fight over that one. Full on tug of war, if you can believe it
3) Feet. Their own feet in particular, but brother’s feet work almost as well. Feet that have little animals on them are most appealing. See Also: Pulling socks off feet
4) Drooling. Well, I assume they like it because they do it constantly. We’re talking 4 bibs a day, and that doesn’t include the sheet changes at nap time
5) Pulling mom’s hair
6) Drooling in mom’s hair, or if she’s not careful, drooling in mom’s eye
7) Flying. See above
8) Rowing a boat, gently and in a stream. They don’t go very far, but it’s a good workout
9) Party in My Tummy (Watch at your own risk. The boys haven’t actually seen this, but they love the song. Banana wants to go to the party in their tummies, but not so much applesauce).
10) Looking wildly around for something to stick in their mouth, but then acting surprised that it’s there
As you can see, 6 month olds are complex and misunderstood creatures. Or something.
Saturday Photoday
To make up for the lack of posted photos recently, we’ve stuck 40 photos up from between April 11th and today. Included are three separate solid feedings, some random stuff and a short-lived “real” photo shoot from today.
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4488 Hours Old
We had our 6 month appointment today (a week late, but whatever). Babies are in fine shape and hitting all of their milestones right on time. Shots were fast and only elicited a 10 second cry. We gave them a little Tylenol before leaving, so between the fact they’re drugged and the appointment was right when they should have been napping, they are now totally conked out.
Stats:
Andy–17 lbs 15 oz (50-75%) and 26.75 inches (50-75%) and incidentally has one of the roundest heads the doctor has ever seen. His head size is 45 cm (75-90%)
Will–19 lbs 4.5 oz (75-90%) and 27.5 inches (75-90%). Head size is 45.2 cm (75-90%)
Adam asked if they were eating a lot and developed a pig nose, if that meant they had caught the swine flu. The doctor laughed. But it sounds like the general population has lost it’s mind, and the the doctor says they’ve been just overrun with freaked out parents, and the hospital keeps sending emails to the various offices, pleading them to NOT send any more patients to the emergency room. I’m constantly reminded how much the 24 news stations are possibly ruining this country.
…And One Fell Out
No, no worries. No falling around here. It’s from a nursery rhyme that I was desperately trying to remember the words too, because what kind of stupid nursery rhyme would it be if the only words were:
There were ten in a bed and the little one said,
“Roll over, roll over.”
So they all rolled over and one fell out.
Except those ARE the only words. Well, I mean you keep repeating until you get down to one. I felt better that actually remembered the right ones, but again…what a stupid song. It makes no sense. Ten whats?
Anyway, a couple of “milestones,” one actually related. Andy is now a rolling machine and as of yesterday can roll from back to front as well as front to back. He looks quite proud of himself whilst doing it too. He hasn’t actually linked rolls together, but once he figures out he can move around doing that, I’m sure we’ll be in heaps of trouble.
Will is becoming a pro at the sippy cup. He can hold it and drink, for at least a minute or two, all on his own. Andy hasn’t had as much practice, as the sippy cup is the fun toy Will plays with while Andy takes his sweet time finishing his bottle.
Both are also sitting up, pretty much unassisted for short periods. If I put them on the changing pad (which has inclined edges), they both can sit and play with toys for a couple of minutes. The floor is a tad harder, because they sort of list to one side and then fall over. Until they get tired, and all they want to do is kick out, which sends them flying backwards. They’ve been testing my reflexes!
Their 6 month appointment is on Friday, so I’m looking forward to hearing the stats. I may have to be buying some pricey car seats sooner that I had hoped.
Nostalgia
I took the boys to Babies R Us yesterday to pick up some things, namely diapers (Sorry Planet Earth, not such a good Earth Day present…). We walked thorough the clothing area on the way to check out, and walked right past the display of premie clothes. I did a double take as we passed by.
There is just no way, no way at all that these two boys ever fit into those little, tiny pajamas. And not only fit into them, actually swam in them, to the point where I questioned if the tag was even accurate. These two moose sized children who sit up and roll over and eat squash, that they were once so tiny, they fit in doll clothes, it makes my heart hurt a little. They were too small for their car seats and we had to prop them up with a probably unsafe number of hospital blankets. And now, they are dangerously close to needing big boy car seats—the ones that fit up to 65 pounds.
I was looking through the pictures from their first two weeks. I scarcely recognized them. They look so small, so fragile. Their faces seemed so, I don’t know, gaunt. Their skin looks thin and their fingers so tiny. And yet, they’re in there. I look closely, and it is their eyes, their noses, their little dimples. You can see what they have now become, they just needed to fill in, to stretch out.
But that scares me, because I look at them now, and I cannot see 6 more months down the road. It is totally beyond my imagination to think of them waving…..standing……talking. I know that little boys are hiding in these baby boys. I’m just having a hard time letting go of what they are now.
Weekend Wrapup
It’s been a week and the internet demands fresh content. First a couple random updates, then some book reviews. Because this is my blog, and “I do what I want!”
- I finally started drums on Guitar Hero: Metallica. Pretty fun, though my thumb threatens to blister every session now. Preventative taping will commence, but the hockey tape I have is kinda sticky on the outside too.
- The boys have branched out from squash to sweet potatoes and avocado. So far so good. And messy.
- Frickin’ Sharks.
- Still playing Unreal World, a wilderness survival rouge-like. Yes, I’m weird.
- Future Sailors by The Mighty Boosh. Too bad Adult Swim is butchering the episodes, and they started on season 3 for some reason.
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
I’ve been meaning to read this ever since the A&E miniseries came out last year. I DVR’d it and have been sitting on it for months. Well, I finally got around to it, and the verdict is: okay. I wasn’t aware that it was written in 1969, though that didn’t necessarily detract from it. Actually, I thought the science held up fairly well, 40 years on. It read smoothly and kept my interest, but here are my gripes:
- It seemed that a full third of the book was descriptions of scientific tests and the machines that ran them. It wasn’t boring, but it wasn’t exactly gripping, either.
- The ending was… anti-climactic. ‘Nuff said without spoilers.
Now I can finally watch the 4 hour miniseries and see what they did with it.
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
While poking around on that internet thing, I came across a message board thread where people were talking about which books had a profound influence on them as kids or teens. I noticed that A Wizard of Earthsea came up on many people’s lists, so I snagged it from the library. It is apparently an acclaimed novel and frequently compared to the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Well, I was underwhelmed to say the least. The writing seemed flat and just not that interesting. The story itself was fine as a whole, but I guess I wasn’t hooked by her writing style. I will not be reading anything else by her voluntarily. I do not care what happens to Ged going forward.
Bonus Review: Just After Sunset by Stephen King
I finally finished this Christmas present recently as well. Some really good stories in this collection, I highly recommend it, if you like Stephen King’s style. Inlcuded is “N.”, which was made into a comic book and a downloadable narrated comic book-like video series. Overall a great read!