monotony

days keep passing here in the land of hook and the wigglers. we are busy busy busy. but sometimes i feel like we don’t do much. many days we get out for at least a bit. others we stay in and build things with blocks. or push toys up to furniture and then climb up on to it. or run wildly about. and throw all of our toys out of whatever area we are playing in. and then eat fruit. and toast. and apple sauce. and take naps. overall it is a riot and i find myself laughing and smiling much of the day. we learn new signs. and the babies continue to play with each other and near one another. the connection between them is palpable and quite incredible to see. hook has quickly morphed into an amazing reader. he consumes nearly any book he can get his hands on. and draws pictures and writes stories nearly daily. it is all amazing to bear witness to. last weekend he started snowboard lessons. he loves it. and it is super cute to watch. looking forward to getting the wigglers on skis in the next year or two as well.

i wish i had more to say. but really the days fly by. and i am continuously amazed by how all of the children change and grow. life is good around these parts.

i love love

and no i am not talking about valentine’s day. i mean sure that was lovely. hook thinks any “holiday” is superb and really one that involves chocolate and cute little cards exchanged in class can’t be all that bad right?! and he still wants us to be his valentine. at school he decorated us a cookie. and made each of us n less than three cards. very sweet. and since we are aware that the days of him wanting us to be his valentine are fleeting we appreciate it while we can. the wigglers were indifferent. and i spent hours working on a little book for m. generally v-day passes without much of a glance from either of us. but for some reason (i blame p.interest and it’s ability to lull me into a false belief that i too can be crafty). m made me a sweet card. and we ate tasty thai. and all was well. but back to the subject at hand. love. my kids love each other. all of them. both magoo and cindy lou who are enamored with their big brother. enamored. and they have this love for one another that melts my heart. literally. they hug. and kiss. magoo will walk up to hook and hug him. or kiss his sister on her head as she is sitting there. he stops nursing sometimes and looks up at me. laughs. and asks for a kiss. a big open mouthed sloppy kiss that only a baby can deliver. and he has started to hug. like really hug. squeezing you and all. and cindy lou. she hugs. and rests her head on you. and once in a while she will give you a kiss.  when she feels like it. but more often than not this is reserved for magoo. if i am changing their diapers on the floor she tackles him. hugging and laughing. all the while. the connection between them is palpable. amazing. energizing. in a way i am envious of it. that relationship cannot be forced. or created. it is real. and natural. and utterly adorable. on occasion they will hold hands. in their stroller. or while playing. and they babble back and forth. sometimes even grunting at one another. like little cave people. across the room. it all makes me smile. they love love. and so do i.

part of my valentine for m

a whole lot of baby making going on

but not here. seems like quite a few of the ladies out in blogland – as well as some i actually would know if i bumped into them – are either in the family way or making a concerted effort to get there. all of which i think is incredible. and amazing. i remember that desire. the impulse. the stress of it all. i will admit to be slightly envious. but only slightly. around these parts i feel like i have my hands relatively full. what with a seven year old who does not stop talking and two nearly fourteen month olds who rarely stop moving it is safe to say my days are just packed. m and i have discussed having more children. on many an occasion actually. mostly in passing. often after one of our brood has done something undeniably adorable. or we throw out name suggestions to one another like we need to have somethin waiting in the queue just in case. though as we all know it isn’t like one of us might just end up pregnant unexpectedly. coming from a family of five children m thinks two more would be ideal. i usually counter that one more would be a lovely addition. with less of the madness. i loved being pregnant. i mean it was terrifying at nearly every juncture. since it took so long to get pregnant i was consumed by a fear that i would not be able to stay pregnant. but i did. and it was incredible. i felt confident in my body in a way i never have before. and i grew two of the most amazing little humans ever. even with all of the attendant madness of newborns. and twins. and newborn twins at that. i would do it again in a second. but alas these days both m and i find ourselves thinking our family is complete. five is a good number. we have been so fortunate to have three beautiful healthy children. and that seems pretty incredible.

it was about day five of vacation that i think we both looked at one another over a lunch that included screaming by both wigglers. crying. vomiting. three dirty diapers. a spilled beverage. a missing shoe. food smeared down the front of a shirt. and two wardrobe changes. and concluded that three kids is definitely enough. in fact some times it is even more than enough. of course any decisions made under such duress are never truly valid but for now it appears we have a consensus. i am excited for everyone embarking on their journeys to have a baby. or another baby. or two. i hope you all get exactly what you desire. i will be sitting here on the sidelines surrounded by my phenomenal family. cheering you all on.

and we are back…

7 days. 2 plane rides. 2 hotels. 3 kids. 6 days of being on our feet for 12+ hours. innumerable fantastic memories.

to indulge both m and hook’s obsession with a certain young wizard we hit up uni.versal for the first two days before heading over to hang with the large rodent and his crew at all four of the parks. it was amazing. and exhausting. and exhilarating. and fun. and trying. and incredible. i went in with a bit of trepidation. mostly about sleeping. and traveling. but it all worked out. as i knew it would. we just rolled with it. hook loves to travel. and he was honestly surprised with the trip. and grateful. and in awe. and at times frustrating. but so very excited. and happy. the wigglers were accommodating. napping in the stroller. and somewhat adapting to sleeping in small cribs and/or pac n plays. or at least kinda sleeping in bed with us in the case of cindy lou. the babies were able to go swimming. and run amok in the hotel rooms happily throwing tissues everywhere and standing on the luggage. hook got bolder as the days went on and started to love roller coasters. m and i just rolled with the punches. adjusted plans as needed. and enjoyed our kids. we managed to get trapped on the it’s a small world ride by a technical malfunction. magoo was less than amused. but it was quite comical. cindy lou happily shrieked and clapped through country bear jamboree. and i attempted to keep magoo quite by bfing him. most days someone lost a shoe. or in one case even a shirt. hook dropped his wand (it broke a little) and completely melted down. all of the kids ran around in fountains that randomly shot water from the ground laughing and getting soaked. while a crowd of nearly 30 people gathered around to watch. m and i overindulged. in food. and booze. and spending. but it was all completely worth it. i can’t really say what my favorite part of our trip was. it all fits together. so many highs. and very few lows. all together it paints a pretty amazing picture.

and we have returned. the mouse clearly had it’s way with us. evidenced by the plague that is now running rampant through our house. but luckily it held off until our return. or at least close to it. and it’s just another story we can tell when we look back on our vacation in years to come.

 

Tags: 13 months, vacation

perhaps i failed to mention…

in some sleep deprived state months ago i booked us all on a trip to d.isney. well really d.isney and uni.versal. it was one of those pie in the sky ideas. knowing hook is at a perfect age for it. and his entire world has been flipped upside down. and it’s damn cold in mn in the winter. and honestly not really considering the whole the wigglers will be 13 month old thing. 13 month olds who don’t sit still. and want to run. and jump. and play. all the darn time. so i am a bit trepidatious as i sit here less than a week out. have i mentioned the wigglers have never slept in anything besides there cribs since they were about 3 months old…. oh right. that is the real concern. sleep. i enjoy it. m needs it. hook loves it. so hopefully we will all get some. the plan is two days at uni.versal. staying on site. pretty much just to see the h.arry p.otter stuff. and whatever else is close by. and then a solid 4 days taking in the mouse. while lodging in a pirate themed room. oh yeah. and the boy doesn’t know. at all. the wigglers do but well they aren’t talking. it should be amazing. and memorable. and i have no doubt i will have stories to tell upon our return.

oh and look at the time

it just keeps moving forward. the wigglers have already witnessed the advent of their 13th month here. and they are well immersed in their nascent toddler-ness. there are so very many things i love about this age. and some that i am not quite as fond of… cindy lou hugs magoo. constantly. at times even tackling him to do so. and if you ask for a hug nine out of ten times she will oblige. the baby girl is obsessed with rubbing or whacking her head into things. not entirely fun when she head butts you but oh so sweet when she comes up and rubs her head on your leg. your arm. or your head. oh and her giggles. pure magic. i want to bottle them up and save them forever. because i am relatively sure no one could hear those giggles and not melt into a smile. she also loves to lay on her belly or her back and play with things or look at books. for the fleeting two minutes that count as attention for a 13 month old. but all the same i like it. and magoo. he is a handful. but not in a bad way. he has started pushing his sister out of the way with a quick shove. not really a fan of that. though it is somewhat comical to witness. magoo tries to repeat words. or sign for things much of the time. he says buh (book) and da (dog) over and over. while frantically pointing. the boy is a bit intense. and persistent. he shakes his head no when he goes near something he knows he is not supposed to. and you can almost see him trying to stop himself. self-control is hard. and i imagine it is super hard when you are just over a year old and everything. i mean EVERYTHING. is new to you. but he actually is pretty good about listening. unlike a little girl who shall remain nameless. magoo blows kisses. and will run into your arms. he wants to be around people all the time. and has started screaming or rather screeching at times to get his way. we are not fans and are doing our darndest to try to not give in. and to curb his um, over enthusiasm at times. both my wigglers line up at the baby gate frantically signing “eat” when i ask if they are hungry. and again when i ask if they are ready for a nap. (judge all you want for the gates but really with two i see no other way short of tethering them to the wall. or duct tape. hmm…. ). they lap the coffee table in rapid succession. often dragging a “bike” or pushing a coz.y coupe with them. magoo pushes cindy lou around in the car. and they both love to push it up to a couch. or a table. and then climb out the window on to the furniture. there are so many -sometimes even too many – things going on with them at once. i love the mornings when we walk (or drive when sub zero) hook to the bus stop and they have breakfast and then i sit down with a cup of coffee and watch them play together. and laugh. and smile. and just explore the world around them. i feel so very fortunate to be able to bear witness to their days.

the time it goes so fast. too fast.

resolve

i generally do not make new years resolutions. maybe because it is too touted by the media as the thing to do. and it is evidenced by the overwhelming number of people at the gym. and the sales on crummy processed frozen meals. and offers for reduced prices on all the things that might just possibly improve your life. it’s all too much for me. too contrived. and commercialized. yet I still like to believe that we get a chance to start over. or at a minimum attempt to improve our lives in one way or another. perhaps not a clean slate but one where the chalk marks have been brushed aside. i could not have asked for a more magical 2011. sure there were difficulties. trials. tribulations. things that I wish had gone differently. or that I had reacted to differently. but all in all when I add up the sum total we definitely came out on top. three incredible, awe inspiring, healthy, adorable, fun, and loving children. a strong and loving relationship. our health. financial stability. and happiness. there was not a single day in the past year where I doubted the love within my family. so a new year brings with it the offer of a change. an opportunity. a chance to make things a little better. and I intend to embrace that chance. and do whatever I can to ensure our continued path of happiness and good fortune. by laughing more. and smiling more. and doing my best to live in the moment. a happy new year indeed.

precipice

here we sit on the edge. Our feet hanging over. contemplating the jump. the past year has been amazing. Incredible. Indescribable. Exhausting. and exhilarating. it has all gone too fast. my children – all three of them – have grown and changed in amazing and remarkable ways. I am anxious for a new year. looking forward to all it has to bring. and hesitant at the same time. we have plans. ideas. intentions. and hopes for what the next 365 days will yield. of course there is no way to know what is on the horizon. but I am looking forward to it. and ready to embrace it. hoping for the best. for my family. and yours.

merry merry

this week

we sumo wrestled in the doctors office

we had apple sauce yogurt with a spoon

or we smeared it everywhere

i forgot i was making coffee. twice.

we chatted with the cat

and we rode around in our car with a pink sock monkey

being one is kinda fun!