We are back!

Wow. I can't believe it is October already. The last month and a half has gone by really quickly! Dan and I just returned from our fabulous trip to Switzerland and Italy. The kids stayed with Evonne and Wendy which was a real relief! We saw all these people trying to push strollers down crooked cobblestone streets or carrying babies in slings through the Roman ruins. We were very grateful to just stroll on through - to eat dinner out without worrying about the growing mound of food scraps under the table - to sleep without a little voice saying "Mom! The first number on the clock says 7 so its time to get up!" OF course, after a few days every child we saw had an uncanny resemblance to K or A and we imagined what fun they were having at home.

Since we have been home, I am still a bit in limbo - adjusting to from moonlit gelato strolls to preschool pick up schedules. We are back in full swing. Kade starts AWANA's on Wednesday, he is in preschool 3 days a week now, and soccer will begin in a couple weeks, plus Mom's group, church on Sunday, Dan still busy with photography jobs - life is busy! I find myself a lot more content though than I was this time last year and that feels good. It seems this is an easy town to get familiar with again. People are friendly, neighbors are neighborly, etc.

It is definitively fall, that is for sure. It is mostly still green and the trees are still thick with leaves but many have started to curl slightly, their edges just turning that familiar yellow and red hue. The days have been sunny and bright since we have been back but there is a slight chill in the air and sweatshirts are definitely needed by night. Kade thinks about Halloween at least 3 times per day, if not more. He is bonkers over any holiday involving candy. He changes his costume plans almost as often. So far he has fancied himself to be superman, spiderman, a mummy, a vampire, batman and a "dirty guy" which is apparently literally a guy who is really messy and dirty. We plan to go costume shopping soon so we will see what the final pick is. Avram does not really get a choice - the poor kid is the king of hand me downs. He will be an adorable bee thanks to his cousin Andrew.

Avram is every busy although he has sweetened a bunch. He is now finally full of hugs and kisses - be them brief - I will take all I can get. He still hates having his diaper changed and acts like it is a major torture. He is in love with water. He likes to splash in it, take long baths, make a water mess, drink it, whatever. On the last day in Florida, my mom was shocked to find Avram in her shower with her - just standing there. What a nut.

Language explosion

All of a sudden, Avram's language is exploding. For quite a while, he has had this little language of his own. He walks around the house babbling away -gebee, bebbe, hebedebee, goobybabby, goojee... and so on. He has used some words consistantly - mama, dada, brahber (brother), bahbah (bottle), ball, kitty. In the last 3 days, he has suddenly added picaboo, oh-oh, bahbee (pacifier), doggy, hi, more and cheese. (hee hee) He gets this big toothy grin when he matches the right word for the moment - he is so proud of himself.

He really is still a wild little guy. For some reason, he can not eat anything messy without completely smearing it in his hair. He literally massages whatever it is into his face and scalp. Whenever he eats pasta sauce - his whole face is stained an orangy red for the rest of the day and his hair slowly turns stiffer and stiffer after eating yogurt. He can barely sit still for a second - he is always going and going. One positive note, is that he has suddenly become slightly more cuddly. He is usually way too busy to cuddle. The last few days he has curled up on my lap at least twice a day for at least 5 minutes. Yes, it is still only 5 minutes but that is lightyears compared to his usual. So I will cherish those moments and steal all the kisses I can on those pudgy cheeks!

Ruby stained fingers

This morning we all returned with ruby stained fingers. Driving South from our house, it literally takes 6 minutes or less to be surrounded by cornfields and rolling countryside. It is lovely. We drove the short 10 minutes to pick raspberries this morning.

Now our own raspberries are starting to grow well but it takes about 2-3 years to have them filled with berries. Although, our lawnmower broke about 10 days ago and the back property had not been mowed for about 10 days prior to that - as we walked back there yesterday in the tall grass, near the corner of our property - I noticed a little plant right by the fence that looked awefully similar to a raspberry cane. (mind you this is completely on the opposite side of the yard where we planted our raspberries) Looking closer, sure enough, there were a few tiny green raspberries - must be a fall bearing plant. As I started looking around, the whole area is filled with small raspberry plants! We will be sure to select them out this fall so they grow back thick and strong next year.

Back to this morning - we arrived at the raspberry orchard. They had about 10 very long rows of beautiful raspbery brambles, all tied up in perfect columns. Kade has become very good at selecting ripe raspberries - he carefully studies their color and gives them a gentle tug. If they slide right off the center cone, he knows they are ready. If they give resistance, he leaves them to ripen and if they crumble in his hand, he knows they are past their prime. Avram, on the otherhand, relies on only one sense to detect the ripeness of berries - taste. Berry goes in, if it tastes good, he eats it - if it tastes bad, he spits it out. Repeat. He plodded up and down the rows, bending here and there when a red berry caught his eye. By the end, of course, he was caked in dirt mixed with red raspberry juice and we all came home with ruby stained fingers - and raspberries - Yum!

Needed Vocabulary for a mother of a 4 year old

No!
Stop!
Don't do that!
Good job!
It's bedtime
Ok, we have to go now, can you put on your shoes?
careful...careful...
please go back to bed..
Be nice to your brother!
That was sweet.
Why did you do that??
Kade, it is TIME for bed.
I told you to put your shoes on 10 minutes ago!
I'm serious, really.
Please don't.
Time to go
Come on
Great work!
Hello, shoes??
I'm serious, it's getting really late, GO back to bed.
Thanks for putting your shoes on.


Repeat

Little Guy on Big Guy!

Circus World Museum Baraboo, WI

Peas and such

The other day, Kade and I sat at the kitchen table with a huge bowl of shelling peas that we had picked from the garden. His pea picking abilities have increased significantly this season. He has learned to look through the vines, spotting those peas who's shell bulges out from the fat peas within. He has even learned the delicate art of picking the peas while holding the vine, preventing the tendrills from detaching - which would lead to fallen vines. So we sat shelling them, each pea shell yielding with a snap, cracking open to reveal the peas within. We scraped each pea from it's pod, placing them into a small bowl. One thing that stood out was the fact that all of the peas varied in size. Some were large and fat, stretching their sheer skin. Others were small and ovoid. Yet, mixed together they will all be sweet and Delicious additions to stir fries, soups and salads.

It made me ponder the fact that so much of what we have done, to make life "simpler" has in fact made it so much less satisfying. How much easier would it be to just go to the store and buy a bag of frozen peas! - every pea uniform in size, not varying by more than a millimeter or 2. How much easier than digging the cold spring soil, turning in the sunken leaves, planting those tiny peas, driving in stakes, erecting a fence, watering, helping the tendrils curl in the right direction, watching the sweet flowers emerge, waiting until just the right pea length and fullness and finally picking the peas! And now - sitting here shelling all those peas - of all different sizes - starting from a huge bowl - left with a small cereal bowl of peas to be frozen and a huge pile of pods on the table. Those pods will be tossed into the compost pile, sweltering and breaking down all summer, awaiting to be returned to the garden this fall.

It is important to me that my children be connected to the food they eat - that they don't lose all idea of where food really comes from - i.e. not a grocery store! We are really enjoying our CSA, eating such a variety of healthful, organic foods. I recently heard an author discussing how organic food is so much harder to grow because the soil must be cared for exquisitely. Yet for conventional produce, the "dirt" is merely an anchor and a medium in which the plants are fed artificially. Yuck! Although, it is so obviously true.

Those peas - all different sizes - also makes me feel grateful for God's creations and the diversity of our species. Even my children - so similar deep down - deep enough to have almost identical genes - and yet so different in personality, size. How we can all be so different yet work so wonderfully together....

Summer is coming..

We are finally in shorts and tees again. It feels great. It has been a strange year weather-wise. There have been powerful storms moving across the plains and the midwest. We have nights where from complete calm, the rain suddenly pounds on the windows and brilliant cracks of lightening illuminate the sky. Sometimes, they are followed by a little voice saying "can I sleep with you?"

Kade just officially turned 4. He is exceedingly proud of that fact and is sure to mention it to everyone and anyone who will listen (back to that whole talking to strangers thing). He is planning for his party next week which he is equally excited about. We hit several different shops, perusing the party plates, decorations and hats. Left to him, there would be no budget and a very loose interpretation of the pirate theme (one with Superman, Spiderman, SpeedRacer and whatever else catches his eye mixed in).

Our garden is still growing. The peas are clinging tight to their trellises - a good thing too as the wind is tumultuous today. They are about 3 feet tall and are covered with sweetly fragrant tender white blossoms.

The last of the radishes were picked today. They are packing more of a bite now as the days turn warmer so it is good they are done.

In their place goes my first attempt at sweet corn, an extra-sweet bicolored variety. I have just one 11 foot row of sweet corn, if it goes well, maybe I will plant more next year. As done by my ancestors, pole variety green beans will grow between the corn, using the sturdy stalks as their trellis.

The tomatoes and peppers are still pretty small, around 18 inches or so but I did notice the first tight, yellow buds beginning to open on the tomatoes. The raspberries have finally come to life and everyday their serrated, deeply veined leaves spread wider. The potatoes are also doing well, their foliage thick and deep green. I am awaiting the emergence of my newest seeds - cucumbers, watermelon, cantaloupe and winter squash. Soon that half of the garden will be full of vines, reaching tendrils out in all directions, searching for sun and a bit of loose soil.

Avram has really picked up on his walking in the last week. He plods along with ever steadying steps. When Avram was first born, his tiny toes slender and long against his wide feet, it was hilariously obvious that there was a very large gap between his 1rst and 2nd toes. Fresh from the cramped space of his previous habitat, he would stretch every inch of himself - including that big space between his toes. It was the subject of many jokes (many of which referred to his future ability to tolerate flip-flops.) As he grew older, his toes chubbed up like the rest of him, quite narrowing that space. However, now that he is walking - it is back. In fact, it seems to be quite helpful. As he plants that fat little foot on the floor, those toes just spread right back out again providing a sturdy little base for his wobbly body.

It is amazing how much fun it is to watch them develop, even when you have seen it before in another child.

Growing! Growing!

Our garden is growing and so are our boys. Today, up went the last 11 foot section of fence to support the growing peas. They are about 4 inches tall and their thin, little tendrils are reaching up to grab onto some support. The radishes are also on their way. The new apple and plum trees are in full bloom now with sweet pale pink blossoms with their lovely scent. The yard is dotted with tulips, all a deep pink color at their absolute peak. The blossoms are huge and showy on their long, sturdy stems. Kade and I picked a ton of ruby red stemmed rhubarb yesterday.

Today, we picked up our first box of produce as members of a CSA. For those who are not familiar, it stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, we pay for a share of vegetables, fresh from the farm - all completely organic - delivered weekly to town where we pick it up. Kade was very excited to go pick up our firxt box. He really liked the idea of getting produce grown for us by a farmer. However, I think he misunderstood a little bit. Our pickup site is very close, less than 5 minutes away. When we arrived at the little blue house nestled in a typical neighborhood- he looked out the window and said "THIS is it??? This farmer doesn't even have cows!!" Hee hee. Apparently he thought we were going to the farm to get it. Never the less, our box was filled with the first bit of spring's bounty. It is still early so it is just the earliest of treats - -thick, fresh wild ramps, fat over-wintered parsnips, a big bag of fresh spinach, lovely chives and sorrel, rhubarb and sunchokes. Yum... I am already planning dinner tonight - Grilled New York Strip with a wild ramp - sorrel -mushroom sauce served with buttered roasted root vegetables - carrots, parsnips, sunchokes and potatoes. Deelish!

Speaking of deelish, Avram is now in love with all words that end with the sound "ee." They all sound vaguely familiar and takes a trained Mom or Dad ear to destinguish. He really loves to emphasize the "ee" sound and says that part in a quick high pitched voice. He walks around saying "dad-DEE" or "kit-TEE" or "dog-EE". The funniest one he says is "tase-TEE" (tasty) which now all food has become. He really stresses the "aye" sound on that one which makes it even funnier - he says "t-aaaye -STEE" What a cute little goof. He is currenlty on the mend from hand-foot and mouth disease. Poor kid was covered in spots! They are almost gone exept for the ones that were bad enough to scab over. Those few looked almost as bad as chicken pox! He is still a sweet little, tasty boy!

Ahh.. Spring

It has been so lovely outside lately. We spent the weekend hard at work in the yard and garden... trimming trees and bushes, raking out the flowerbeds as the cheery daffodils spring up to meet the new year. Kade and I dug a long trench in the deep black earth at the edge of our garden, next to the ruffling leaves of the returning rhubarb, and planted a row of freshly cut seed potatoes. Kade huddled over, carefully placing the potato chunks, cut side down, eyes pointing up evenly spaced along the trench. He plodded down the row in his bright yellow rubber boots with the potato slices tucked in the pocket of his sweatshirt. He examined the other end of the garden which contains three rows of peas and a row of radishes, peering down to be sure he couldn't see the trace of a new seedling. Our raspberry bramble is fully planted and we are awaiting the bare rooted canes to come alive. The tips of our apple and plum trees are fuzzy and pale, just waiting to burst forth with new leaves. The tulip greens are thick and strong and soon the bright, showy flowers should be brightening our yard.

It seems that the animals are enjoying the Spring as well. In addition to the usual plethora of bunnies and squirrels, the birds have been really active. They have been singing loudly, chattering and chirping away. Our yard is covered with chikadees, thrush, cardinals and robins. In the last week we have seen the mysterious red fox once. Two days ago, we looked up to see a large doe standing about 50 yards away in the greenspace, staring us down. She sat for a while, nervously deciding whether or not we were a threat and then she slowly ambled back over the ridge. This evening as we looked out the back window we saw a large tom turkey walking along the ridge, walking busily, poking out his head here and there with his long beard dangling below. He came back a few minutes later, seeming to be on some sort of important mission. It is great to see our yard coming alive.

Avram is taking more and more steps- he has gotten pretty adventerous. He is up to about 8 steps at a time. He has also been loving to spend time with us out in the garden - maybe a little too much. I have seen him on occasion dig in the dirt and then put his super dirty fingers in his mouth - dark, black dirt mixed with his drool running down his chin. Eww! And then - Kade and I were out gardening, Avram was next to us digging away in the dirt. I looked over, he was kneeling with a big smile on his face. He had a giant mound of packed, moist dirt weighed down in his little hands - the size of one of those extra large muffins - he smiled - looked right at me - and took a big bite off the top! Just like he was eating the big ol' muffin. The kid's a dirt freak! Kade was never like that! He never put anything weird in his mouth. I guess they are all different. Let's just hope these are boosting his immune system!

Birthday boy...2 small steps...

Our big one year old enjoying his birthday cake...

PRESS the arrows to play the 2 videos. (may take a few seconds to load)

Where Dreams Come True...

So I feel like I am playing catch up! We have had a really busy last couple weeks. We spent a great few days in Florida for Mom and Dad's 50th wedding anniversary. It was really nice and overall, a really great success. There was a big turnout and they looked really happy with it too.



We also spent a day at Disney World. When we left the house, it was raining... a lot. All, the way there, Kade was really worried that we would have to go home. Despite having the GPS in the car, we took a serious of wrong turns and each time Kade was equally concerned that we would not ever get to our final destination. Upon arriving, he was really anxious. His eyes got so wide upon entering the gate and he anxiously walked up to the first character he could find for a big hug. Soon after we arrived, the drips started to slow and stopped. The clouds literally parted and it turned into a really gorgeous, warm, sunny day. One benefit of the rain was that it apparently scared away a lot of people because the park was not that crowded.


Kade had such a blast. The first ride we rode was the "pirates of the carribean." He was a little freaked out. As he sat in the middle of Dan and I, he firmly held onto our hands, one on each side of him. He looked out quietly, taking it all in, occasionally flinching when a cannonball flew. When it was over, he was quite proud of himself. Since returning, he has told everyone he has met, sometimes more than once, about the ride. He really enjoyed all the rides. When he stepped off of the Peter Pan Ride, he said, with emphasis, "that was GREAT!" He really held on all day. While standing in line at the small world in the late afternoon, he felt a bit sleepy, resting his head on my shoulder. But, he kept getting new winds and lasted all the way until we left, after 10pm. He fell asleep in the stroller before we could even buy him his gift so it was a suprise the next morning. He just loved his new Captain Mickey Pirate, complete with pirate hat and compass.

He can't stop talking about disney, he loved it so much. He is already planning his return trip!

Family of Origin

We are getting ready to go to Florida in a few days for Mom and Dad's 50th wedding anniversary. I have been spending many hours looking at old pictures as Dan and I are preparing a pretty extensive photo slideshow for the party. It is not easy incorporating 50 years into 15 minutes! The end result, I can tell, will just be lovely and a great tribute.

Doing a project like this really puts you in a contemplative mood. I keep recalling a phrase. When we first moved here and I was lonely for familiarity, an older woman from church made the statement to me "I can tell your "family of origin" is very important to you." Indeed, it is, but I have thought a lot about that phrase and what it means. As I look at these pictures, they really are a life created by two people. Yes, there are other folks involved along the way but this whole, massive crew originated from just two people. So it makes me wonder when your definition of "family" shifts from what was, as she stated, "your family of origin" and becomes simply "your family", meaning you, your husband and your own kids. Not meaning that your extended family loses importance but rather that your frame of referance changes. I guess for me, I am still somewhere in the middle, still leaning toward the former. I have to wonder if being the youngest child, especially youngest by such a spread of years, makes that transition any harder, delaying it much longer. I have to think it probably does.

For now, I guess, I will continue where I am at.

I am sure the years, invlovment in the increasing complexity of my children's lives will eventually draw me in that direction. I am sure we are going to have a great time next week. It is especially nice that my whole "family of origin" will be there as my brother Loren and his family will be there. How nice! I think it has been almost 12 years since we were all together in one room. It will also be great to spend Easter together.

For the Love of Daddy

It really is amazing how the more time you spend with a kid - the harder it is for them to be apart. (at least until you are way out of sight and they have moved on to something more entertaining) Since Dan started watching the kids 3 days per week a few weeks ago, it is obvious to tell the kids are responding. Avram often looks at him with that baby love glow smile and cries when he walks out the door. Kade also doesn't want him to leave for more than a few minutes. They both love their Dad a lot.

Avram is cruising around the furniture very well now. He continues to let go sometimes and stands, wobbling for a second or two before he finds his grip again or falls, plump on his behind. He now says yet another B word "bath". As soon as we enter the kid's bathroom upstairs and the water starts to run, he gets really hyper. He crawls over to the tub, pulls himself up and literally jumps up and down. Over and over, he pounds on the side of the tub chanting "bath!! bath!! bath!! bath!!" until he gets plopped inside. He sits very well in the tub now, playing with the toys and grabbing the bubbles.

Kade is steadily learning to recognize more numbers and letters. He can't quite identify the letter with it's sound but he will get there. He is practicing writing his name. He still has not decided whether he is left or right handed which is kind of odd at this point, at almost 4 years old. He still seems to use them almost equally although he seems to have better fine control with his left. He uses his right hand often for gross motor skills and seems to kick with his right. I know true ambidexterity is extremely rare so he is probably "mixed deterity" which are people who can use one hand better for some tasks and the other hand better for other tasks. It will just be interesting to see which skills, particularly writing, is better with which.

We are getting ready to go back to Florida in a couple weeks. Kade is very excited to go to Disney World for the first time.

Back to reality

So the clock has started to tick again. We have been back home for about a week and we are finally catching up. We are very glad to report that Grandpa has been home for just over a week and is doing really well. I am a bit worried that he is almost a little too good! I don't want to see him overdo it.

Of course, our life is always going, going. We will be going to my brother Loren's house this weekend. Kade is excited to see some more of his cousins. Yesterday we were talking about going to see his cousin Seth which lead him back to discussing his recent stay at his cousin Wade's house. I told him that he might be staying at Wade's house for about 10 days later this year while we go to Italy. He thought about that for a moment. Initially he seemed excited but then realized that we would not be staying with him. He said he would miss us and "that is why that is not a good plan." He is so funny. What a goof.

Avram is really coming along in his mobility. He is now pulling up very well and can go from crawling to sitting to kneeling and back again. He is cruising around the furniture and often holds on with only one hand. Sometime, he actually lets go completely for a second before he realizes what he is doing. He has added one more word to his vocabulary so now he can say 4 words - Mama, Dada, Brother (bra-burr) and the new word, book. What a cutie!

I think I have lost my camera which is why there has not been many pics lately. When I get a chance Wed I need to search the toyboxes, couch cusions, etc. Here are a few HILARIOUS pics from Dan. Runway - here I come!

Good news!

My Dad did great. He came through the surgery like a champ! It was nerve wracking, sitting in that little room, having hardly slept the night before. It was such a relief when they called, the little white waiting room phone ringing, to tell us that the surgery was almost over. Even though I know all about this type of surgery, it still amazes me that humans have the capability to do such a thing.

We were taken to the ICU about two hours later to see him. He looked very peaceful as he slept in his anesthesia induced coma. It was next to impossible for me not to glance at every tube, IV line, central line, chest tube, foley catheter,etc and make mental notes of what was going in - or out of each one. We only stayed for a few minutes. He was able to be extubated within 6 hours of the surgery and was up in a chair an hour later which was amazing. After saying goodnight, I couldn't help but go back to squeeze his hand and tell him that I was really glad that I could be here for the surgery.

They moved him out of the ICU today to the cardiac step-down unit. He looked a lot better. He is even getting some of his fiestiness back! He even said that he thinks he feels better than when he went to the hospital. I hope it all continues to go well.

The Great Unknown

There are times in life when our superficial “busyness” of everyday just screeches to a halt – the day to day routine – preschool, soccer, work, etc. The sustenance of what is our lives can just fade away in an instant as other priorities come into focus. That is where I find myself right now, riding in the backseat of my parents car, no kids in sight, eerily reminiscent of years gone by on a trip I did not know I would be taking 5 days ago. We whiz down the usually clogged and congested highway, free of traffic at this still dark early hour on our way to Orlando Regional Hospital. My Mom drives and my Dad is freshly showered and shaven, I can smell the faint scent of his cologne from the front seat.

As a kid, it is so easy to see your parents as invincible and silently panic at the same time that they may not be. As life goes on, the invincibility starts to fade away and you begin to see time as it really is – how quickly it goes by, how life never quite stands still in the process. In a couple hours from now, my Dad will be lying on a table, his heart literally in someone else’s hands. I know the procedure and basically all the steps that will happen before, during and after the surgery. I don’t know if having this knowledge should be reassuring or terrifying; I guess it is a bit of both. When I see my Dad, he has always sort of been a Superman, a noble chief, an impenetrable force. Yet it seems that he has found his kryptonite.

Now we sit in the cardiac waiting room, dotted with men of a similar age. They are almost all donned in Velcro clad shoes and sweatpants, both of which my Dad would never dare to even think about wearing. We watch as they call his name, he walks off, stopping briefly to shine us a quick smile and a wave. We now enter the great unknown, the next 4 hours will feel like eternity while they harvest his vessels, open his chest – an amazing and horrific thought and carefully bypass the 4 blocked vessels supplying his heart. He won’t be able to lift more than 5 pounds for many weeks which makes Avram’s little 17 pound body seem enormous. It was so nice to see Kade climb up on his lap last night, giving him sweet hugs and kisses, watching him laugh at Avram’s antics.

If all goes as planned, we will be heading back home later this week. Hopefully, we will be hearing only good reports. I can’t stand to think that my kids might not have any Grandpa. They have already lost one and I want to be sure they remember this one. I know my Dad was not that thrilled (outwardly) that we came down. He can’t deny what a big deal this is, that we would put our life on hold. But I guess that is just the point – this is life. I would not be anywhere else. I am grateful to have the means and a job that allows me to travel. Even though I have chosen to live far that does not mean that I want to be distant.

So we will all hold our breath for the next few hours which really is the great unknown – how many twists will this road hold? Will it be smooth or bumpy? There is so much left for my Dad to do – travels, hunting, seeing graduations, weddings, even his own 50th anniversary. We can only put it in God’s hands now.

Sweeter than Sweet

This weekend Dan went to Las Vegas with about a dozen guys on an extended Bachelor's weekend for one of our old friends. He left on Thursday and he will be back tomorrow morning (monday). We have been doing suprisingly well without him, trying to stay busy. On Friday we went to the Children's museum with our neighbor Barb and her son, Joshua, who is 4. Kade had fun exploring the museum, playing with new toys. Avram just enjoyed watching all the kids running around. Afterwards, we went to get pizza slices on state street. Kade and Joshua ate their pizza while being very silly, of course. After sitting for a few minutes, the next booth was populated by a group of Madison police officers. They gave the kids some "junior officer" badge stickers which Kade wore for 2 days.

That night Kade and Avram went to my friend Catherine's house. They hung out with her 4 kids and husband while Catherine and I went out to dinner. She has three older daughters and one son, who is the same age as Kade. Her middle daughter is baby crazy and loved carrying Avram around, rocking him and giving him toys. When I got home, she was still carrying him around, keeping him busy. She sat down next to me with him. She glanced down at him and said to me with this cute voice, "Oh Lana" she said with a sigh, "he is just sweeter than sweet!" Of course, I have to agree. He really is. His hair has suddenly gotten so long and it is that fine and whispy sweet baby hair that curls when he is warm from the bath. He has learned to pull himself up on the furniture, grinning his 4 toothed grin, so proud of himself. Once there, he has to hold on for dear life and has not yet figured out how to get back down. So after he pulls up, he is happy for a while, exploring what is up on that coffee table but then he starts to bang his hands on the table and yell for me to get him down. If I don't come immediately, then he starts to wail. It is like a little cat who keeps climbing the tree higher and higher but finds himself too scared to come back down.

After church today, we will meet Catherine again as we are taking our sons to the Overture center downtown to see the play, "if you give a pig a party." Hopefully Kade will love it. Avram is going to hang out with the girls again. How nice! Kade will be happy to have his Dad back tomorrow. He has been sleeping with a picture of him on his pillow...

Our hot date!

So when you have two small children, there are not many Saturday nights spent away from home, taking your time, just enjoying each other's company. That's what we had last night, Kade and I. Dan had to get ready for a photoshoot today so he volunteered to stay home with Avram.

I took Kade down to campus, to hear a night of American Indian storytellers at the Wisconsin Union Theater. It is an annual event, hosted by the American Indian Studies program which is very strong at UW. In fact, the ability to attend cultural events like this is one of the big reasons we live here. Having my son identify himself as a Native person is extremely important to me, even if he is actually a big mix of races. So I had told Kade that we were going to go all by ourselves. He thought that was really cool. He told Dan he had to stay home because he was not an Indian. :)

On the drive there, Kade not used to being in the car alone with Mom, talked all the way there of course. He made a lot of interesting observations and as usual, wandered from one unrelated topic to another than found some odd way of connecting them. Like when he asked if Indian people ate Italian food? When told, yes, and they also eat Indian food he asked if bald people eat baldian food. What a nut! We reviewed the usual questions, like what tribe he is and what clan he is and why we are going to hear stories and why stories are only told in the winter.

We arrived and parked in the garage. Walking toward the Union on the theater side, the night air was rhythmically shook by the distant, deep bass of the drum. As we jumped up the slushy curb, we stopped to let Kade absorb the drumbeat before proceding inside. We sat frozen for just a moment, feet on the icy pavement, straining our ears but feeling the drum where it actually hits you, somewhere between your heart and stomach.

In the theater we found a seat toward the back and listened to storytellers from around the US. All were elders and told their stories in their Native tongue with translation. It was really cool. We did not stay for the last speaker, instead sneaking out to take a little walk around the union, hand in hand. We made our way downstairs to the main level, and I bought us some icecream. Kade picked his by the shade, of course. I was suprised to find out that he actually likes pistachio ice cream. We took our ice cream back upstairs, climbing the old marble steps, up away from the noisy clammer of college students and the live band playing in the rathskeller. We found some cozy chairs in one of the old, grand halls. It was relatively empty except for a few studiers. As we sat, we recalled the stories and talked about UW. I told him that I used to study in the very room we were sitting, which made him laugh. He asked if I could sign him up. I told him that he would have to go to kindergarden first.

With the last of the ice cream gone, we strolled back to the car. On the drive home we told each other how much we loved each other and what fun we had on our "hot date." I really relish times like this. Childhood is so, so fleeting and never again will he love me so outwardly as he does now. We have made some financially difficult decisions to stay home with our kids as much as we do but the rewards are immense! I can only hope to establish children with a strong foundation of love and security on which to become strong, successful adults.

After tucking him in bed, I laid with him, telling stories of our own and for once, I actually fell asleep right there in his little twin bed with him. On waking a couple hours later, I kissed his forehead and went off to my own bed. What a lovely night!

Watch out slopes! Here I come!

One of Kade's Christmas presents. He might need some practice!

Happy New Year?

So it is January and so technically, it is a new year, although it does not quite feel like it yet. Even though we spent the last few days filling grey bins with red ribbons, twinkly lights and colorful ornaments; even though our Christmas trees wait patiently at the curb for their less than cheery final destination; even though the TV is littered with commercials for exercise equipment for those short lived resolutions. Every indication is that it is New Year's but as I warm my 9 month old's chubby feet in my hands, damp and wrinkled from the bathtub, my New Years will be 3 months from now when he turns 1 year old!

It really does seem like our year began last April when we were blessed with our sweet dispositioned Avram. He was born the day before Easter, we had even gone to an Easter egg hunt that morning.


Shortly after he arrived, we sold our house in Chicago in just 6 short weeks when house after house was sitting on the idling real estate market. We managed to find a new house in Madison on just one trip, bought it and planned our move. We moved when Avram was just 2 months old and Dan and I both started new jobs! For me that meant, relicensing in another state, acquiring hospital privileges and learning a whole new clinic, 3 different hospitals and a whole medical system. Whew! Our lives really have been filled with tremendous blessings and equally tremendous stresses this "year". Each step was a true test of "give it to God," as he opened each door and traversed what seemed at times to be insurmountable odds.


As for Avram, what a wonderful baby to have when our lives were in such turmoil! He is the King of "go with the flow", even tempered, self reliant and always with a ready smile for anyone in sight. As things start to finally calm and we are finding our routines, he has developed a very strong mama attachment. He is at his rosy cheek happiest when slung on my hip. He does not really have stranger anxiety but definitely has the separation part. He seems to be fine after a few moments but it is often easier to pick up my little cling monkey than hear that very sad, remorseful wail!


So for the rest of our "year", I really don't have that much planned! We are still in recovery mode! Of course, we will be busy as usual and we will have some travels. We are looking forward to a trip to Virginia to see Dan's family later this month. We will also be heading back to Florida again in late March. We like to travel, however, after returning from our last trip, it finally felt like we were "home" when we walked into the house which was really nice.


Come April, when that baby digs in his cake with those short, fat fingers and scoops mounds of frosting into his mouth, we will also celebrate our new year! Kade and I will turn out our lovely large garden plot, the smell of damp soil around us. We will begin to transplant raspberry canes and strawberry runners. We will plant our cool weather seeds and watch the tiny pea tendrills reach up to grasp their trellis. Maybe we will even get some work done on our house!

Trouble!

And you thought I was kidding when I said he was into everything!







And for this nut- this is what he said out of the blue yesterday in the car on the way out to eat!

All I can say is that I guess he watches too many commercials! When we got to the restaurant he really wanted to say it to our waitor. We were hoping he had actually seen the Burger King commercial so he did not just think we had a bossy kid (even though we do :) ) He finally got up the courage to say it but then said it so quiet that no one heard him! What a goof!