TACKLE!

Here's 12 seconds of football season at our place:

oooh!

Merry Christmas everyone! The word on the street is: ooooh!

This was Kaden's reaction to pretty much everything. Including the lights as we drove home on Christmas Eve... followed by "more?"

He likes the toys and clothes, but the big three excitements were: 1) Christmas lights 2) Wrapping Paper and 3) Coooo-kies

Have a peaceful weekend!

Good Morning, Santa's Workshop, how can we help you?

Ah. I know I SHOULD be sleeping, what with being sick and work in the morning and all... but there has been a perfect non-snow storm tonight. Kade was up a while there coughing... and my get-better meds have things like steroids and caffiene in them (!) which is great for my lungs to be healthy but not so much for the rest of me to sleep.... and then there's the shipping deadline to get presentes out to arrive BEFORE Christmas, which seems The Right Thing for relations. The gifties are wrapped, but not Fitting Neatly into the pre-selected mailing boxes. Now it's time to be imaginative. So yes, my brothers, your box o' gifts should arrive Christmas Eve. Friends and cousins? Not so much. Kade's been sleeping a bit, and my med buzz is wearing off. As soon as I stop coughing I will be asleep (maybe even at the keyboard- wouldn't that be nice for Jim to wake up to??).

And if you know me even a little, you'll remember I don't really send out cards until Christmas Eve at the earliest, just because it seems like a nice time for ME to be writing them out, as I'm overflowing with Holiday Joy and Good Will Tidings then. Until then, it's a bit stressful.

Though I am strangely NOT stressful right now. Steven Curtis Chapman is singing quietly in the corner and I am one of "those" who enjoy wrapping presents. Sometimes, when I can remember, I say some prayers for the people who will be opening the gifties. For their own holidays, and their belief in themselves, and our relationship, and their journey with God (however they understand or relate to the Diety). If there is no one else around, it is pretty peaceful for me--- one of the times I can "enter the moment" and "be present" and all that.

In fact, I know that tonight SOME of our friends and relations are snowed in. So some of those prayers were for a peaceful, holiday spirit sort of storm. And that all traveling will be safe, and flexible with their plans, and able to enjoy wherever they are (home or not). Which generally leads me to think of those without homes, especially in that type of weather, and I pray some for their safety and warmth and that they are shown kindness.

So with Christmas music playing, loved ones snowed in, and a Christmas mug of hot tea (well, lukewarm now!), this is Santa's workshop at it's best. We have 5 piles of wrapped presents waiting to be boxed and mailed. We have another 3 bags of presents on the floor for the locals. And we have at least one bag of presents to be returned (!) as we were a bit extravagent when buying for the wee one. While the numbers say we can give him all this, in reality he doesn't need it. And we don't need to be setting the expectation bar so high. In truth, while I'm very excited about this- his first "sorta understanding Christmas"- I am also looking forward to future Christmases, when we can make things together and decide together what sorts of activities and gifts make the holidays meaningful to us.

Utopian, I know. And perhaps that ideal will go the way of so many other parentings ideas I thought I held closely. But this year, Advent has been so. very. different. for me! Two years ago I was pregnant, and we were telling people at Christmastime, which added lots of excitement to the holiday. But still we had a lot of time to "be" in between the busy-ness. And I had a neat time reflecting on Mary being pregnant in the days/ weeks leading up to Christmas. Last year, Kade was a young enough and social enough baby to be toted along, wrapped up against me or passed around with others. So we did "the usual" and didn't notice much difference.

Then there's this year. We tried to do it all, the same as before. We've traveled, we partied. We've started decorating. We started making gifts. We started buying gifts. We even had ADDED to our work schedules (hosting a smashingly fantastic night program that was also extremely draining!). But the closer we got to Christmas, the more and more we've fallen behind with things.... so now I'm letting go. We might not have all the Christmas lights up, or the playroom done, or anything baked. I probably am NOT going to paint the porch, let alone lay a floor out there. I probably won't make those two crafty gift ideas I had (maybe for Valentine's Day?!).

We will host a wonderful party tomorrow to thank some wonderful people who teach the kiddos at church. After that... we'll shop online and wrap a bit with more store-bought (gasp) wrapping paper. We'll play with our boy and go on a date. And just like that, all is well again. My last quick prayer for the night is that each of you will also take a deep breath, hold onto your simplest meaningful joys and share a wonderful, peaceful Christmas Spirit this week...

And in the background, SCC sings: Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee Israel... Rejoice...

now on to my mailing boxes ;)

Tidbits, Snatches and other Phrases

Hi again! Are you feeling as overwhelmed with this whole time-won't-ever-stop-and-let-me-catch-my-breath? I hope it's not just me.

As I spin my wheels out of control, the boy keeps growing. And talking, oh my! That little man can TALK. In the past week, he's been jabbering away *more* than usual: in the car, on the phone, to the TV, to his monkey, to the couch... you get the idea. In the past two days, he's also started echo-ing the exact phrase and tone that Jim and I use, as we're talking to each other and not the little 2 foot person. Like after Jim sneezed and said "excuse me", we hear a little voice from the floor "scoose ME". Other examples...

When picking up a phone (real, toy, or imaginary) and putting it to his ear: 'lo!

To strangers at a restaurant or store: HI!

When he hears keys jangle: bye! bye! with a little wave.

When he sees pictures of food, even if he's never had it, like SHRIMP on a commercial: MMMMM.

Any type of football symbol: helmet, ball, player, crowd- this can be TV, radio or just a picture: TACK-ELLLLL!

tonight in the bath, I heard him using the same phrase over and over again as he placed letters on the wall. Then I realized he was saying: ready, set, go! (place letter) (repeat).

If other people are laughing, even if he doesn't know why: the laugh is mimicked.

Maybe we should call him our little mockingbird?

The lengths we go for coffee around here...

So! It turns out Kaden has grown an inch or so. I know this because he can now reach things on top of the kitchen counter. Like, say, a cup full of lukewarm coffee. You and I both know how this ends, but we still deserve the story.

I'm not facing him, but I hear the ceramic jingle on the counter and think "OH. NO. DONT. NOT. WAIT. STOP." Nothing actually comes out of my mouth, though, and as I turn around he is trying to grab the cup as it falls off the counter, tipping directly over his head. The poor thing looks like a cat that got drowned, with an equally unsure/shocked look on his face. I swipe his cheek to make sure the coffee wasn't hot, then relax and say "wow, bud, are you okay?"

He doesn't answer. He doesn't cry. He doesn't laugh. Instead, as a little stream of coffee runs off his nose, he sticks out his tounge, smacks his lips, and says MMMMMM. For the next 60 seconds, I am literally on the floor laughing while he repeats the process. Goofy kid. Must take after his mother*.


* Who, in her defense, has never dumped coffee all over her in an attempt to get a sip or two.

a friend's birthday

A birthday party in the park! Do weekends get any better than this?

Hey, are you driving this or am I?

Da, catch me if you can!

Why does Jim look more scared than Kaden?

I feel compelled to tell you that our little boy is also a little adventurer.

He has figured out how to climb.

You can see why we have more gray hairs now.

Wordless Wednesday: Halloween edition

Quick Takes

1- Kaden has a stuffy nose and low fever. Phone-a-nurse is a great feature from the dr office. But seriously, stop calling me "mom".

2- For a bit now, when Kaden was done with his bath, he would stand and pee on purpose into the water. His initiative. So we started asking, as the water drains, do you want to pee? At which point his face breaks into the cutest little grin as he says "peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee." Now imagine a tiny constipated little man- that's his pose. A few drops trickle out and his concentration look breaks into another huge grin and "peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" - this time with lots of clapping and squealing for joy. So tonight, when invited, he actually sat on the throne and peed. Wow. Not that we're pushing it- but man, anything to lighten the nighttime waterworks is a plus in my book.

3- I have halloween photos, but they're trapped in a cd since my computer has issues. i think we're getting professional help tomorrow. or at least the computer is!

I don't know what he wants...

...but he wants it bad.

At his 15 month checkup today, it turns out that he's
tall and skinny for his age.
Hmm.

And his father would like you to know

that he handles shots/needles/vax better than Mama K.

Hmmph.

Cantor Kade

One of the fun parts of my job is interacting with kids of different ages in groups... two weeks ago, we had a "toddler church tour" where the moms group brought in their mostly pre-schoolers and toddlers. We did a 20 minute intro to the space, including the "backstage" sacristy tour. Complete with a toy "Mass" play set (plush chalice, incense holder, etc) and vestment costumes. The highlight, of course, was when we went up on the altar to see things from the other side. The kids had a blast standing on stools to see above the altar, and practicing their ABC song in the cantor mic (see Kade below). Wish I had photo permissions because the other kids were even cuter.

And here's a sample of his ever-growing vocab:

Dear Friends,
Please pray for a friend of mine, her baby and the whole family. The babe is a 2 month old named Shane, and since birth he's had seizures. They're not sure what's wrong yet, and none of the different medications have done anything. His mom is understandedly beside herself. Please lift them all up in prayers tonight, and for a while. Thanks, K

One more "First"

So here I was, thinking that we were mostly out of "firsts" for a while... and then a very cool pkg from his godmother arrives: it's the 1st anniversary of his baptism this month!

hmm... a rubber band! oh, a very nice shell.

what do you mean by 'gentle touch'?

Mail? for me? wow!

get me out of here!

Mom, you get the kitchen, I'll sweep the hallway.

ps - you know I posted another so quickly because all those crying photos were bothering me!

there'd be days like this, my mama said

It's been brought to my attention that our blog has tons of photos of our boy- smiling. In fact, not one but TWO people have asked if he really smiles that much. The short answer- yes. The long sanctimonious answer- mostly, I tend to hold him when he's crying or upset instead of reaching for the camera. The long cold reality answer- mostly, I tend to show you the happier side of our lives on this blog! But not all days are good ones...

And the boy, does in fact, get discontented from time to time.

If we feed him green beans, for example. Or enter his personal space a bit too quickly.

Somedays, we're not sure why he's crying. Like last night's bedtime, which was eerily similar to his newborn days...

Of course, a good one minute time out is enough to reduce the strapping happy child to a bubbling blob o' tears. Oh, who are we kidding? 15 seconds of time out is enough for both him and his mama!

But we know... the sun will come out tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow... there'll be sun...

Lingering Memories...

On pure chance, we found a store in Sarasota that sells "IRN BRU"! It called for a mini-celebration (complete with hob knobs too).



Of course, all that celebrating tuckered us out...



Happy dreams, everyone! Lingering, daydreams or otherwise!

Yogurt is good for the skin...

inside your nose.

I hope.

some photos

WHO GAVE THIS BOY CHOCOLATE???

Oh, your friend shared....



"HELLO? GRANDMA? I MISS YOU!"

Winding down with Nana and Bananas (el mono)

Daddy's little helper!

Hi Thomas Door VannaClap Monkey Amen!

Well, hello there! It's been a while, hasn't it? We've been here, and doing normal things. Except for perhaps, being awfully reticent in most communicative forms. But you're not here for an essay on our responsibility to chat with our siblings, so let's get to the little guy, shall we?

Kade's personality is SO. MUCH. FUN. He is, as aptly put in a recent motherly poem, "22 pounds of pure joy." (Except he's officially only 20.5 lbs, but you get the idea.) (and yes, I actually met that deadline!) The wee world traveller is back at home, and not really in any routine, as he thinks perhaps one nap a day is plenty, but the parental units are refusing to consider this possibility. Hence the 7pm-nap-for-an-hour-then-wake-and-bath-and-sing-and-bedtime NEW routine happening this week...

What's really a lot of fun, though, is seeing and hearing him express himself verbally. We had worked on baby signs (oh so long ago) and the only thing that stuck so far is "more". It's used mostly for food. The kid takes after Jim's dad on this account, as he does not like others to eat alone. So it doesn't matter, for instance, if he ate his dinner at 5pm and JimDad sits down to eat at 6pm, there's Kaden with his "more" sign. If Nana or Ma try to take a bite or two of a little nightly fortification (aka 8pm brownies), he's there- putting one finger in the other palm: MORE. Was this the same babe we were worried wasn't eating enough? Good lord, what will the teenage years be like?

He has also started to RESPOND. To people, to toys, to the TV, to the windows... So a soundtrack of the last week would be something like this:

Kade walks into a room "HI" and flashes a big smile

... pushes a button on a Thomas book, listens to the train noise, then puts it down on the floor and yells "some-toddler-words-his-mom-can't-translate"

...bangs on the door when someone is, ah, "occupied" and yells NA! DA! MA! until he gets an answer

...when Wheel of Fortune is on, he pauses to watch, shouts out one or two syllables (BA), then claps with the crowd

... finds his birthday monkey, Bananas, and pushes its arm to hear "we love you kaden" and a bunch of his cousins' names. sometimes he just smiles, other times he repeats a name.

... when his "prayer bear" finishes its "now I lay me down to sleep", he echos the AMEN and then nods his head yes.

All this with mostly nonstop motion, as he loves to walk around and put things (like the remote) into other things (like the toliet). Or his sippy cup into the trash.... What will the next week bring?

F R E E D O M

If you're not familiar with the movie Braveheart, go watch it. We'll wait the 3 hours before moving on. Okay? Good. This will make so much more sense now:

We visited the Wm Wallace Memorial in Stirling. Nifty little place.

Nearby was Stirling Castle. We know a lot more about the various King James' now.



I thought this looked just like a play set!

Bonnie Adventures

Well, folks, we’re safe and sound if somewhat disconnected here on the British Isle. We’ve got limited cell minutes (gasp) and no internet at the flat (I’ll wait until you pick yourself up off the floor). Which means that the adventures we’re having aren’t translating into almost-real-time blog entries!

Actually, most of our adventures last week were related to finding some place or helping Kade adjust to the 5 hour time difference- neither of which actually photograph well. But then came the Ceilidh (Scottish traditional dance, versions in other celtic/british groups too).

We arrived a few minutes early. When the other students arrived en masse and saw Kade in his kilt... well, within about 20 seconds he was surrounded by gushing ladies and flashbulbs. I wish I had it on camera. He handled it well, pointing and babbling and signing autographs... then went to go talk to the band.

We did manage to visit the castle one afternoon. Very cool stuff, including legends about King David I... Can't you see how thrilled he is?

Delayed

It's 9.44 pm and we are in the airport instead of somewhere over the Atlantic.

The flight has been delayed- it's not taking off until 0015. That's 15 minutes AFTER midnight. That's about an hour before we were originally scheduled to land, if you're keeping track. Which means our delay is thisclose to being the same length as the actual trans-Atlantic flight.

I can hear the babe protesting Jim's attempts to get him to sleep. I'm 50 yards away, accessing the wi-fi. That sounds bad, but I was the one chasing the babe around the airport earlier, while Jim sat in one place and made calls. I still feel guilty.

And really, he's fighting so hard to stay awake (Kaden) (well, maybe Jim too)--- I wish I could communicate that really, there isn't anything interesting happening here little man. Save your wakefulness for bonnie Scotland.

Whenever we get there...

All sorts of family connections

Hey all-- we're having a bit o' technical difficulties here, so the party pics will have to wait another day. Or two, or four. So here's an everyday play shot:

ALSO-- lots of fun stuff happening this week. I got a call from a long lost cousin in California just to catch up... another cousin is preparing to move TO Chicago (as is a cool sister from church, in a completely unrelated move that also involves the Holy Land, apparently) as a friend of mine *just* moved out of the Windy City, a BFF from childhood is IN town but we're having trouble getting together as I'm trying to prepare to go on an "international vacation." Oh, and my brother is studying for a real estate test. And did I mention my next writing deadline is now less than 2 weeks away? Yeah, busy week.

Oh, and the wee one had his 1 yr checkup... all is well. No "comparisions" or percentages to give you, but the nurse and the doc were happy, the babe is happy, and we're happy too. Now, off to sleep a bit before the next day hits! Here's hoping I get you some pictures SOON :) Pray for all the changes in my familys' lives, please.... thanks!

Still celebrating...

These are just some smiling memories from last week's trip...



to tide you over until we post Saturday's party pics!



wow, he looks like a natural behind the wheel! a 12 and 3 hand position, awareness of the instruments...

Happy First Birthday!!

We're in PA on Kaden's actual birthday, which called for birthday pancakes. My Dad used to make these- I think for sleepovers and other special days. A first birthday qualifies :)

Big guy now!

He really DOES like pancakes!

The end of a three hour birthday nap (hurray)!

Of course, the good effects were probably cancelled out by the 10:30pm bedtime.

But hey, there's only ONE first birthday

-even when we spend 2 wks celebrating-

and we haven't had a meltdown.

yet.

Can it be ONE YEAR already?

Seriously, was it a year ago that Jim was on a mission trip and I was in labor?
A year ago that we looked longingly down at a Very Small bundle of Boy Joy?


And now -- a year later--- this is our bundle of joy:

A moving, grooving football star.

Who screeches more often than we like, but those smiles make up for it!

Technically, it's not a year until Friday. But we're traveling and all, and I might be spending all my online time on the FB farm instead of blogging. It is summer, after all.

HEY! If you're not making it to one of his birthday parties, will you PLEASE email me a photo of you & yours wishing him a happy first bday? This week? Thanks, you are the BEST relatives ;)

Kade in Motion

Proof that he sorta walks and kinda talks...

Fast Facts Friday

1) We've got some g-diapers: a washable cover with disposable insert pads. First use- peed out,because the size was too big. Second use, smaller size- all good. Third use, at night- peed out. Fourth use- all good. We're getting the hang of it.


2) I just heard about "soapnuts" - natural, dried shells of nuts that you can use (and reuse) to do laundry, because they have a natural soaping substance /coating on them. So I placed an order. We'll see how that goes next week.

3) I made this sign for Kaden's door, and I love how he squeals with joy when we point it out "What's that say? It's Kaaaaayyyden" Squee!


4) I'm not sure if this is a mug shot or a photo ID. It's still quite possibly the cutest passport photo I've ever seen.

5) When Kade babbles, sometimes it sounds like he's saying "Bradpittbradpittbradpitt." It's hysterical.

6) We went to the mall yesterday, all 3 of us, after work. One, two, THREE couples and one salesclerk stopped us to talk to Kaden. Stopped us, people. To smile at him. And he smiled back. Nana thinks maybe he'll be president someday...