Tyson Likes his Christmas Present

Of course, I didn't get a picture of his previous round. His grouping was a *little* less spectacular.

Wait For It...

That's right! It's a disposable recycling bin!

Son of a Knitter

"That's a Y Mommy. Y is for Yarn."

Eating My Hat

I discovered a great game this summer with my Dad. You pick up a Williams & Sonoma catalogue and commence mocking the absurdly specific and expensive tools they have. Take Exhibit A : really? A 100$ hot chocolate maker? Have you people never heard of a microwave? Or a cooktop? However, much to my chagrin, I have found a thoroughly superfluous 'cook's tool' that I want: the potato glove. I know, I know. I am not normal.

Hawks attack Cows....who knew?

To go along with his deep and abiding interest in communication is Cayden's new obsession with telling stories. Whenever JD or I are telling a story to each other in his presence he asks what we're talking about and listens carefully to our explanation. So obviously this has led to him telling us his stories.

Another First

Saturday, 5 December 2009.

The Emergence of Testosterone

This week has seen a significant shift in the imaginative play in our household. For many weeks, we have been little kitty and mommy kitty. We talk in high voices and giggle and are very cute. Now we are seeing increasing occurrences of dinosaurs. Little dinosaurs roar and yell and stomp. They do not giggle, they spit. Happily, they still like to snuggle with mommy dinosaurs ("snuggle" = a little dinosoar crawling sweetly into my lap, then sudden flailing and roaring while the mommy dinosaur rapidly ejects the baby dinosaur in a futile attempt to avoid injury).

You have to draw a line somewhere

C: (snatches at my nose) I got your nose!
J:  (continuing game) I got your ear!
C: I got your nose!
J: I got your other ear!
C: I got your nose!
J: (snatches at the top of Cayden's head) I got your free will!
C: No, Mommy. Don't take my free will. Put my free will back!

Tiny Post

Not an extensive holiday photo post, I know.

A very difficult puzzle. Although it doesn't look it.

Waiting for the Orange Line.

Priorities

"Mommy, we love ourselves. We love each other. And that's our coffee."

Fashion Cayden Strikes Again

"Mommy, I want those pants. The camo pants. (picks desert-camoflogue pants up out of laundry). But I don't see the camels though. Mommy do you see the camels?"

Sprayberries and Swine Flu

Cayden came down with a nasty fever 102/ 103F on Friday, and pretty much didn't leave our side for 14 hours. The next morning we settled him onto the couch with some Thomas movies and he stayed there, dozing in and out of consciousness for the whole day on Saturday. We managed to keep him hydrated and by Sunday morning his fever broke. I don't think it was actually swine flu, because that seems to be much more virulent, but Ty and I were worried enough about it on Friday night to bring him into our bed and exile ourselves to a fitful night. Sounds like a stressful weekend, but it turns out that when our whiney two year old is in a fever delirium, he becomes a delightful, charming, and snuggly little boy. Happily/ sadly he is back to whining and crying for such dire offenses as offering to make him breakfast, so I think the flu-danger has passed.

Hi Res Berry

It seems that in every photo I have of my kid lately he's wearing his Lightning McQueen jacket. Grandpa Spray and Grandma Ellen have a knack for clothing that he loves to death.

Fashion Cayden

I think Nascar jackets and too short sweater pants could take off...

Scariest Vegetable Ever

One of the joys of belonging to a CSA is trying to figure out what to do with mystery vegetables. Exhibit A: the celeriac root.

We're Steam Trains

I snuck up on Tons O'Fun yesterday and filmed some pretty exciting train action.

Working with Cayden in my lap

J (reading aloud while typing): all information in the nervous system
C: nervous system
J: is made available through transduction
C: transduction
C: I said transduction. I'm goood at saying transduction
C: Now can we look at cars mommy kitty?

Overheard from the Kitchen: episode 2

C (in living room playing): God Dammit! god dammit, god dammit.
C (comes into kitchen and looks at me): Um, yeah (I kid you not, he said, "Ummm, yeah"). I dropped something on my foot and said god dammit.
J: Do you want boo-boo kitty?
C: Um, yeah.

Overheard While Making Breakfast

Thomas the Train (via C): Emily, should we be rascally?
Emily the Train (via C): Why should be be rascally?
Thomas: Because it's fun!
Emily: Okay
C: Whoah! Thomas and Emily are being rascally!!!
Thomas and Emily (presumably being danced around the couch): rascal, rascal, rascal, rascal, rascal...

Raising Children with Tyson

J: Cayden, why are you upset?
C (whining/ upset): Daddy is going to sit on me.
J: Honey, when Daddy says things like that he is teasing. Daddy is not really going to sit on you.
C (escalating into a loud whine): Yes he iiiiisssss!
J (walks into kitchen): Ty, he thinks you are actually going to sit on him
T: That is awesome.

Surrender

I've watched Toku move kitty beds two times this afternoon. Apparently he has given up and is letting Alia sleep on his face.

The Big Phat Spider

Apparently he's learned how to sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" at school. Who knew?

Fire Trucks

Last weekend we tripped up to Yale to see some good friends who were in New Haven for the weekend. Cayden got to see his pal Ian and we took them to a fire station for the afternoon activity. A great time was had by all.



Bonus Extra video of Cayden driving the Fire Truck in question.

So Cute and So Stinky

For the second morning in a row, I was woken at 5:20 a.m. by a softly whispered, "Mommy? Can I come in?". This is shortly followed by Cayden, complete with bedtime paraphernalia, snuggling up to me and removing all the body heat I worked so hard to generate. This morning he told me, "I have my lobster AND Mr. Chocolate". After tucking the sundry visitors into the covers and snuggling up to my dozing little boy I thought to myself, "This is awesome, but it really is time to wash that bear".

Changing of the Guard

J: Do you want Mr. Chocolate for bedtime?
C: No, just my nighttime lobster
J: Okay, hop in bed
C: hops in bed, lays down, then frantically pops his head up
C: Mommy! Mommy! I forgot my bedtime penguin! I forgot! I forgot the bedtime penguin!

Will Mr. Chocolate stay permanently relegated to the foot of the bed? Or *gasp* be moved to the closet? Just who will win the snuggle-buddy battle: bedtime-penguin or nighttime-lobster? All these questions and more will be answered in the next episode of Bedtime for Bonzo...

Saying Goodbye to Karl

We took a bonzai trip to Detroit last weekend because our friend Karl died of skin cancer the week before. He was a remarkable man, and it was a heart breaking weekend. But, in the bizarre way of funerals, it was also fun. We got to hug stocky, and experience the loving insanity that is the stockhausen family. Ty spent a while (attempting to) help Stocky get Karl's bike running, which is the cause of the blue cloud in the above photo. We got to cry and laugh and witness. The one good that comes out of these experiences is the renewed perspective shift . Which is my long winded way of telling you, our friends and family, we love you all.

Chocolate on the move

Quote of the Day

C: Mommy I want a different song
J: Do you want some Ella Fitzgerald
C: Yeah
J: launches into "Black Coffee"
C: less than 20 seconds later: Mommy where did the elephant go?

The Boo-Boo Kitty

Our dear friend Kendra once told me about the Boo-Boo Bear, a magical bear-shaped ice pack that can comfort children's wounds and stem the tide of bandaid requests for barely bumped body parts. We have been looking for a similar item for a while, and at target this weekend we found this:

Astonishingly Cayden bumped his knee that very afternoon. I gave him the boo-boo kitty, and it was love at first sight. He spent 5 minutes fixing Percy's hurt wheel and Emily's sore tender. I was running around the downstairs getting us ready to go to the Great Allentown Fair when Cayden comes into the kitchen holding his boo-boo kitty and looks at me with a confused/ anxious expression. "Mommy, I just, I need....... gets down on all fours and whacks his head on the floor....Mommy I bumped my head!....proceeds to apply ice pack to own forehead"

I'll be honest, I doubt breaking into hysterical laughter was the ideal parenting move, but there was nothing else I could do.

The Brick Wall at the End of the Tunnel

We have started the potty training saga, which mostly consists of changing his clothing as often as we changed his diapers. He does look mighty cute in dinosaur undies though.

Don't Smile Me!

I'm not sure where he got his aversion to being filmed but he doesn't like it too much anymore.

Final Kitchen Video

Alrighty. The kitchen is done. I've spent the last couple of days working at a snail's pace on the finishing touches. Molding, trim, plinth, outlet covers... you know, the really annoying stuff that nobody enjoys.

In order to complete all of it I had to jury-rig my compressor so that I had a working brad gun (see first frame of the video). Unfortunately that involved disabling the safety mechanism that shuts a compressor off when it reaches maximum capacity. So as a nod to safety precautions I placed the compressor between my brick house and my neighbor's brick house and hoped that should it explode it would not send shrapnel through anyone's window and inadvertently decapitate anyone in the area. I also kept a pretty close eye on the gauges.

So there you have it. Next project: underground squash court.

Discovering Physics

Cayden is shouting into the box making echoes. Really he is revelling in the ability to shout without anybody telling him to use his indoor voice.

Find of the day

I love summer bug season.

Beach Tour '09

Since last Friday Cayden and Daddy have been here in RI whooping it up and hitting the ocean. I'll give a full report when I get back but here are a couple of preliminary photos.

Cayden hard at work at Horseneck Beach in MA.

Cayden and Vavo

The Boston kids and Sor after the Revs embarrassed themselves at Gillette.

The camera was LASHED to the boat for this self-timed shot.

Wok being luxuriously recreational.

Pretty pretty backsplash

Orange Agate is a drool-worthy wood

Kevin and Erin delivered Abby to us over the weekend, and Kevvy helped Ty finish out the opening in our wall. Turns out two unsupervised boys will spend much more on finish wood than I ever would. I am glad they did because I LOVE it.

Backsplash and Outlet Covers

Ok, the latest installment in my Kitchen Video series. Enjoy.

Dishwashers RULE

All the counters are down, the sink is in, the plumbing is set, and the dishwasher is running. Let me reiterate, The Dishwasher Is Running. Yeah baby.

Counter Space

With the electrical connections to the range and cooktop made (Thank You Dad!!) I installed the West and South counters and will be tacking them down today.

East Side

Alrighty, the East Side of the Kitchen is pretty much installed. Still needs some final electrical connections but most of the grunt work is done over there.

Sexy Hardware

The latest in sexy Ikea hardware....

Cabinetry Day 2

The battle continues...

The Defurminator

Isn't he charming?

C: Mommy, what you doing?
J: I'm getting ready for work.
C: Mommy, what you doing?
J: I'm making myself look gorgeous.
C: Noooo! Mommy not look gooorgeous.

Cork Floors: Check

This weekend was a strange mix of old and new. Jordanna and I listened to NPR, demo'd a kitchen, had impromptu plumbing sessions, repaired some frightening construction, and installed a floor. For us this is like an extended date. It took us back to the heady days of Tucson remodeling and Yuri Gagarin. And then all of a sudden Cayden would come running through the construction zone trailing Nana or PopPop and we would remember that we actually live in PA and have a kid.

In point of fact, we would have gotten NOTHING done this weekend if JD's parents hadn't driven up Friday night to watch Cayden all weekend. They entertained him solidly from Friday evening till about 7pm on Sunday. I think I spent a total of 2 hours with my kid this weekend. That being said, we tore out our kitchen and began the remodel in earnest. As the pictures below will attest to.

Post cabinet demo, during the floor leveling

Tim chillin in the makeshift kitchen

For some reason our shopvac wasn't working very well...

JD's job was to trowel out adhesive, my job was to cut and lay tile

The finished product

Cementitious floor filler rocks

Photo Update

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Alrighty then, two posts in 20 minutes, I'm the man. Here's a random photo dump. Enjoy.

Flash and Sor on the 7th hole fairway.

Christening the new Woodchuck glass.

He VERY seriously reads his Car and Driver at the table.

Mommy reads to Cayden on the potty.

Moblie Suit XM-05

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Once upon a time, while on our honeymoon in Japan, I came across something that had enough pictures on the packaging that I could identify what it was. So I bought it immediately. This may sound silly to the traveler who has not experienced Japan but I assure you that after buying a "sandwich" consisting of spaghetti in a hogie roll you learn to purchase with discrimination.

Turns out it was a very cool snap together model of a Gundam Mobile Suit. I never really got into the whole "Gundam" thing (name someone who has, I dare you) but I like models and even more specifically models that do not require glue. So I bought the model in question, shipped it home to America at great personal cost that far exceeded its worth on Ebay, and finally got around last night to assembling the poor thing.

Here then is the assembling of the Mobile Suit XM in more detail than anyone really cares about.

The extruded plastic is really very impressive.

Unless you can read Kanji/Hiragana/Katakana you're an illiterate model builder.

Bilaterally symmetrical.

Torso before...

... torso after.

For some reason my model doesn't look as cool as the picture on the box. Go figure.

Shipping

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As many of you probably know I do not work for the better part of the summer and consider my 9 weeks of vacation barely adequate to recover from the spiritual expenditure of teaching High School Science. That being said, my mission for the next 2 months will be to remodel our kitchen. We have already remodeled a kitchen once and so it's not quite as daunting a task as it may appear. I'll be "updating" the base cabinets, wall cabinets, lighting, electrical, flooring, counter-tops, oven, cooktop, dishwasher, and sink. About 75% of the kitchen is in the basement right now tagged and ready to be assembled and installed. Some things are still in flux though and we're still ordering some materials.

For example, last week Jordanna ordered 5 backsplash tiles of beaten tin from Florida. Each one cost $13 so without shipping the tiles cost $65. When we got the bill it came to a total of $215 and Jordanna went ballistic. She stormed into the living room and swore that we would be calling our credit card company, canceling payment of the order, and reporting them to the Better Business Bureau for fleecing us on shipping.

Apparently when she called them they apologized for any misunderstanding and checked our shipping order carefully. That's when it was discovered that the tiles were in fact not scheduled to be shipped to Pennsylvania but instead to Palau. A small island nation in the South Pacific Ocean.

I'd love to say that the story ends there and we rerouted our tiles to PA instead of PW, but that's just not the case. After being informed of the development of our tiles' world tour I took it upon myself to investigate and then adopt the flag of Palau as the official flag of our remodel.

Because it really should be your flag if you live on an island in the middle of the Ocean.

Houdini

When I distractedly told the kid it was fine for him to get in the kitty box, I never dreamed he would actually fit...

Dinner Time

J: what are you grinning at?
C: Thomas and Percy and Bertie and Recycling Car

The Ups and Downs of Two

Cayden and I have been engaged in epic battles lately. One minute we are making up silly games and laughing our head off, the next he is slapping me and crying. Don't get me wrong, he is a ridiculously well behaved and easy to reason with two year old. We are terrified at the idea of taking on another child, because we haven't accumulated enough good karma to win the lottery twice. Its just that two is, quite literally, an insane age. You can see his emotions and thoughts accumulating inside his head until they need to explode. On a good day, the explosion is laughter and goofiness. On a bad day Mommy has to remind herself NOT TO HIT THE BABY BACK.

Last night at dinner Cayden was playing peek-a-boo with his blanket, throwing it over his head, then tearing if off and laughing hysterically. After about 5 iterations of this behavior, he yanks off the blanket, giggles and says, "I a little funny. Cayden is a little funny". If you want to know what me snorting pizza through my nose looks like, you should join us for dinner sometime.

May Fair

Grandpa Spray comes for a visit.

"I not a baby anymore, I a big boy"

Progress

Ty is taking the kid to RI to see friends and family, and while I was in the shower this morning I had a nightmare vision of the two of them getting in a car accident and dying. As I stood contemplating this unlikely but awful scenario, I realized how much better I am. A year ago, a mental trip that ended in either of them dying would have induced a panic attack so bad that I would be struggling to breathe and on the verge of throwing up. I don't think that post-partum anxiety/ depression ever completely goes away. I had an anxious nature before having a child, and I will never stop worrying about Cayden or fearing for him. But, I have reached a place where the panic and fear no longer rule my life. A lot of you have given me so much love and support as our family worked through this. So, thanks. It helped.

Two of These Things

I'm not really sure why these two things go together in my head but I'd been saving the picture of Tevez for a couple of days till inspiration struck me. Lo and behold whilst researching the history of the Pontiac Firebird Trans-am (valid...I assure you) I came across this beauty of a vehicle and all I could think of was...Carlos Tevez.

If you have a person-vehicle pairing that really speaks to you I'd love to see it.

Ikea... toddler heaven

So the prodigal son turned two on April 18th and has been working hard over the last several months to emotionally prepare us for the onslaught. I thought I would share some of the choicer incidents:

The scene... a cluttered dinner table at 6:30 p.m. Cayden has finished all the food I made and the couple pretzels I gave him.

C: More?
J: More what?
C: More pretzels.
J (looking for a please): How do we ask?
C (pointing imperiously to the kitchen): Mommy, GO GET THE PRETZELS!


The scene... a hectic morning around 7 a.m. as I attempt to get my son dressed in our living room

J: Cayden can I put on your pants please?
C: No pants! No pants!
J: All right, you can eat breakfast without pants. But you have to put them on before we go to school. (stands up and walks to kitchen to make said breakfast)
C: Pants! Pants!
J: If you really want your pants on, stand up and bring them to me in the kitchen. Then I will believe you and put your pants on.
C (stands up and brings his pants into the kitchen)
J (puts pants on Cayden)
C (falls to the floor and starts writhing): TAKE IT OFF!!!! TAKE IT OFF!!!!!

Following In His Cousins' Footsteps

We pulled out the train track Cayden's cousins bequeathed him for the first time today. An hour later Tyson found this on the table.