My Boys’ World: Life with Two Small Boys

Update: It's been a while

2009-04-10T23:58:00.003-04:00

My Lord, it's been a long time since I've updated this blog! Lot's has happened. We moved to Decatur, so we could register the boys in a better school district. This meant renting our house out, putting lots of stuff in storage and renting an apartment. It's small and dated, but it's in a great neighborhood with lots of parks and awesome schools. I'm so excited about it. The boys and I have been loving the nice days and the chance to get out and walk to parks that are full of children and fun things to do. We also have a great (not quite New York great, but almost) pizza joint on the corner. It's like Heaven!

In August Gary will be in pre-K, and Will is going to be in a Head Start program for 3 year olds in the same school with his brother. I'm not going to know how to behave with all those kid-free hours on my hands. I'll be busy, but it's going to feel like such a vacation not being on referee duty ALL DAMN DAY!

To update on the boys: Gary's speech is coming along nicely. He has a really great vocabulary, but he's still having issues with articulation. He will continue to get speech therapy in school. He has been self-correcting quite a bit lately, so he's aware that he's not pronouncing things correctly. That's a start. Will has added a few words or word approximations. Here's his list: Mama, boo!, go!, up, kirka (for circle), ba for ball. I'm still convinced he has apraxia of speech, but that hasn't been diagnosed yet. He has been given a diagnosis of PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified). It's too confusing for me to try to explain at this late hour. Google PDD-NOS if you're interested. Evidently, it's on the Autism Spectrum, but it isn't autism. Confusing, I know. Anyway, the diagnosis is ongoing. It could very well turn out to be wrong as we watch him grow and mature a little bit more. It is also entirely possible that a severe speech and language disorder along with some sensory integration problems are the crux of his problem, and that it's not anything close to autism. Next on the agenda for Will is a sedated ABR (Auditory Brainstem Response) test April 20 to rule out any sort of hearing deficit. After that he will be seeing a Developmental Pediatrician for a second evaluation and opinion. I'm hoping he can refer me to a speech and language pathologist with experience with PDD's for a speech evaluation.

I can handle whatever this turns out to be, but I want to know what exactly we're dealing with, so we can go about getting the appropriate therapies. Stay tuned for further updates.

We are going to the tiny but famous (childhood home of Oprah Winfrey) town of Kosciusko, MS for Easter. We'll be driving 6 hours tomorrow, staying in a hotel tomorrow night, visiting quickly Sunday with family and then driving back to Atlanta. Gary should be nice and tired to have to go into work on Monday. The boys and Ree Ree and I can sleep in.

Gary's Buddy

2008-11-25T23:38:00.003-05:00

I took this picture first thing this morning while Gary was drinking his "ya-ya" (that's toddler speak for Yoohoo, which is really chocolate soy milk) and watching Curious George. He had the whole couch to sit on, but he made Clara move over and make room for him. I guess he wanted to sit right next to her for warmth since our living room is like an ice box in the mornings. Funny thing is the boys can't walk on the new wood floors in their sock feet because they keep slipping and falling. It's either socks and shoes or cold feet. They usually opt for the cold feet.

Doesn't Clara look like the tolerant, dutiful dog that she is? She's the best.

December 1st Will has an appointment with a pediatric neurologist for an evaluation. Crossing my fingers that it's not a waste of time or that he doesn't recommend a bunch of tests that my insurance refuses to pay for. I can't wait for Obama to start kicking some you-know-what to get out country's healthcare system on track. I hope my vote wasn't wasted. I'm counting on him to come through for me.

My 36th Birthday Dinner

2008-11-25T00:20:00.003-05:00

Well, I've had another birthday. I'm not quite as old as I feel, but I'm closer. We (that would be myself, Gary, Little Gary, Will, Rick, Ree Ree and Grandma Betty) celebrated with dinner and cake. Mom cooked spaghetti with cole slaw and garlic toast. Yum! She was going to make me a caramel cake, but I didn't want to disappoint the boys by not getting the traditional transfat-filled birthday cake from the grocery store and vanilla ice cream. What's better than Crisco mixed with sugar? (Really, don't think about that one too long if you ever want to enjoy a birthday cake again.)

Neither my mom nor my mother-in-law would let me post pictures of them, so you have to take my word for it that they were here. Vanity knows no age limit I guess. Anyway, I had a nice birthday with my family, and here are some of the pictures.

William Everett

2008-11-24T23:50:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to share some cute pictures of Will sporting orange, his best color. He's trying so hard to talk, but we're not there yet. Sometimes we hear what we hope and want to believe is Mama and Dada (or Daddy). I've heard "ball" a few times--I think. Tonight he was playing with the telephone handset that's on the fax machine, and it sounded like he was saying "Hey". I told him to say, "Hey Ree Ree!", and I swear it sounded like he said "crazy". You know, come to think about it, the kid may be talking after all. (Sorry, Ree Ree!)

Anyway, he's beautiful and funny and full of life and energy, and he's so loving. He's perfect even if he never talks. His brother even loves him most of the time, as long as he stays away from his toys

Budding Artist

2008-11-14T16:56:00.007-05:00

Gary walked up with his Magnadoodle the other day and said, "Look, Mommy! A bird."

Can you see it?

Gary, the friendly lion, goes Trick-or-Treating.

2008-10-31T22:46:00.004-04:00

Little Gary got dressed up tonight as a lion, and we hit Uncle Rick's neighborhood for Trick-or-Treating. Boy, did he score! For the last 30 minutes or so of the night he had us carrying his pumpkin for him because it was too heavy.

He did well saying "Trick or Treat" and "Thank you", but he wasn't loving the houses with the scary decorations. Uncle Rick tried to encourage him to go to those doors, but he was having none of it.

Ree Ree got worn out from all the walking, but everyone had a good time, and we'll have plenty of candy around for a couple of weeks. Woo hoo! Happy Halloween!

Utter Cuteness

2008-10-29T22:57:00.002-04:00

I caught this picture of Gary tonight while he was watching "Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie". Wouldn't you love to recapture a 3-year-old's sense of wonder? He's blissful sitting there in his M&M-covered dinosaur pajamas watching Winnie the Pooh. These are the moments to remember.

Bubba Says "bite" . . . almost

2008-10-29T22:38:00.004-04:00

In our house, word approximations count as words. After big brother was sent off to bed for repeatedly trying to kill Will, we were sharing (I wasn't really getting much) a bowl of vanilla ice cream. It dawned on me that Will kept saying "bi-" and then opening his mouth. He was trying to say "bite"! Yeah! He did it consistently. I'd hold out a spoon of ice cream and wait, and he would finally say it. Then I'd say, "OK, you can have a bite. Here you go." He was digging this communication thing. I could just see it on his face. He was getting his point across with a word (well, almost a word).

Will is 28 1/2 months old, and we think we've heard Mama and Dada on occasion. Of course, that may just be wishful thinking. That's it. Asking for a bite over and over and over again with the same word approximation is progress in this house. Hot dog! When he learns to say "No!" and "Mine!" to his brother, I think I may just have to sit down and do the ugly cry, as Oprah says. I know we'll get there one day. That day can't here soon enough.

Gary's Halloween Costume

2008-10-29T22:24:00.003-04:00

Oh, boy! Gary gets to go trick-or-treating this year for the first time. He is so excited! Today we settled on a lion costume, and he's thrilled with having a tail. He keeps saying he's going to wag his tail.

I can't wait to see him with the nose and whiskers. He's going to be so cute. We're working on his roar. Ree Ree is going as a witch, and I'm going as the official "candy inspector". Lucky for me, this kid won't go near peanut butter, so I get to eat the Reese's Peanut Butter cups before Big Gary gets a chance. He's staying home on Bubba duty. No, Will isn't trick-or-treating this year. He gets to go when he learns to walk when I say "walk" instead of dropping to the ground like a 30 lb bag of potatoes. Maybe next year will be his year. He can share in the spoils.

Stay tuned for official Halloween night pictures. This is only a semi-dress rehearsal.

The Boys Get a Visit from the Aunts

2008-10-10T23:24:00.003-04:00

My mom's two sisters, Elaine and Gail, came to visit this past weekend. We've seen Gail recently, but the boys haven't seen Elaine in about two years I think. They had so much fun getting all that attention. Elaine came, of course, with new books for the boys, and Aunt Gail bought them toys while she was here. Gary got a real pair of binoculars which he loves and thinks are very cool. It really stinks that they live so far away. We all had such a good time visiting and playing. Plus, I got a break from bathtime for two nights!

Chocolate Cake

2008-09-26T22:12:00.005-04:00

"Huh? What? Something in my teeth? Where? Here? Did I get it?"

"Rec-tan-gle"

2008-09-22T20:52:00.002-04:00

Tonight Gary was running around and around the couch saying, "rec-tan-gle, rec-tan-gle". I'm always amazed by the random details and bits of information that manage to stick in his little head. He has to be told a dozen times not to throw matchbox cars or blow bubbles in his cereal bowl, but "rectangle" and "damn it!" he remembers.

Fun with the Sunday Paper

2008-09-21T21:20:00.005-04:00

Well, so much for reading the paper! At least I was able to salvage the coupons. Boys are like kittens. They can turn anything into a plaything.

Gary's First Trip to the State Fair

2008-09-21T21:07:00.005-04:00

Gary and I took Little Gary to the North Georgia State Fair today. Bubba stayed home with Ree Ree. He would have been too big of a handful, so he gets to wait until next year. Gary had so much fun feeding the animals and riding the rides. He loved driving the cars, so he did it three or four times. He also got to eat cotton candy for the first time, and he thought it was really cool.

The weather was gorgeous, so we enjoyed a comfortable day walking around taking in the sights. Next time we'll eat a funnel cake.

A Lesson in Manners

2008-09-16T23:48:00.005-04:00

Tonight I was hanging out with Gary in Ree Ree's room while he was eating a popsicle and Mom was getting ready for bed. When he finished his purple popsicle I asked for a kiss. Well, my darling, sweet boy leaned over to kiss me and burped in my face. Then, of course, he giggled. I laughed and said, "You're supposed to say 'Excuse me' when you burp." So he blessed me. OK, maybe he's a little confused. Then he grinned really big and said, "I pooped on Ree Ree." I knew he meant to say that he "pooted" on Ree Ree (during a diaper change), so I corrected him. He just laughed and said, "Oh yeah, pooted." (giggle giggle) Boys. I know there's more to come. I had two big brothers. Joy! Somebody hide the cigarette lighters. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, consider yourself lucky. Those of you who are redneck enough to know exactly what I'm talking about, please let that little trick die with you. Let's spare the next generation.)

Baby Squirrel

2008-09-15T23:57:00.003-04:00

Today Mom and Rick rescued a baby squirrel that was stranded in the middle of the street. They were on their way to Whole Foods for lunch, so Mom just tucked him into her shirt and took him in with her. He's a cute little fellow, probably 7 or 8 weeks old. Little Gary was thrilled to hold him and watch him suck from a bottle, and he just couldn't understand why the little guy wasn't eating the acorns he had given him. Rick has him at his house along with two cats and several dogs. I hope the little guy doesn't become someone's midnight snack. He is very sweet.

New Addiction

2008-09-15T00:37:00.003-04:00

I just want to say, "I LOVE FACEBOOK.COM!" (Yes, I realize I'm shouting.) If you haven't discovered facebook, then you need to. You will connect with all sorts of people that you had forgotten ever existed. You'll also connect with people you've thought about 1000 times over the years. I'm totally addicted.

Little Gary's Photography

2008-09-14T22:41:00.005-04:00

I didn't even know Gary had gotten ahold of my camera until I uploaded these today. I have about 20 random shots of toys and the ceiling and the stairs, but he also managed to get a couple decent pictures of Bubba. Pretty good, I think.

Gary Tries Steak and Likes it

2008-09-14T22:31:00.003-04:00

By some miracle, Gary managed to convince Little Gary to try his steak. The trick was letting him cut it with a "big knife". Well, he liked it, but he couldn't manage to chew it well enough to swallow it. Once he'd chewed it until it was just a flavorless lump he spit it out.

This is a big step for a child who, until now, has refused to eat beef of any sort and only eats chicken once in a blue moon. If it weren't for milk and cheese, he'd get no protein at all. I promised him that if he liked it I'd cook him one every day. My mom told me I was going to regret that promise when he's 16 and demanding steak every day. I guess I'll worry about that when the time comes.

Don't you wish you could get some sweet, sweet Bubba love?

2008-09-13T22:27:00.003-04:00

Will doesn't give kisses. Well, at least he won't kiss me. But today he was sitting in the recliner with me looking at my PARENTS magazine, and he kept kissing all the babies. I'd ask for a kiss and get a hug, but all the magazine babies got kisses. He gives excellent hugs though. When Bubba starts passing out the love, you just gotta get in line. It's some good stuff!

Double M's

2008-09-13T22:13:00.002-04:00

Yesterday Gary woke up with a cold, or at least I thought it was a cold. It seems to have disappeared now. Anyway, he went with me to the store to stock up on supplies: Ibuprofen, Vick's Vapor Rub, Benadryl, etc. He saw M&M's in the check-out line and asked for some. He was calling them "M's". I just casually told him that I would get him some M&M's--didn't want to be too obvious about correcting him. I was just hoping that he'd pick up on it. Well, he ate about half the bag, and I put the rest in my pocket. After I got him buckled into his car seat he told me he wanted his "double M's". It's so funny the things kids come up with. I was pretty impressed, though, because I don't remember explaining what "double" meant or even using the word. I don't know what's so tough about saying "M&M's". Maybe he just likes being unique.

Boys!

2008-09-03T14:16:00.002-04:00

I can't believe we haven't been to the ER yet. Just today Gary clobbered Bubba on the head with a big, wooden train and made a big knot rise up. Then he hit him in the leg with a piece of scrap wood that they play with in the sandbox. Then they were playing with a long piece of 3 inch PVC and Gary managed somehow to bust his lip and make it bleed. Then I turn around and see Will biting into a big chunk of dog crap, despite the fact that I had spent 10 minutes canvassing the yard picking it all up as I do everyday before playtime. Guess I missed some. Oh, I forgot to mention the bucketful of sand that Bubba swallowed. He's going to have a diaper rash for a week after all the butt exfoliating treatments he's going to be getting every time he fills his diaper. Oh, Lord, deliver me!

Bubba tries to say "Pop".

2008-08-31T23:07:00.003-04:00

I was blowing bubbles outside for the boys today. I kept saying "pop, pop, pop". A couple of times Bubba tried to say it, but it came out "bop". Still, that's progress. Up until now all we've heard is "bubble" that one time, "Mama" and "Dada" a few times (maybe not intentional labeling), and that's it. Trying to say "pop" is a big deal.

Donuts

2008-08-31T22:18:00.003-04:00

Just a quick entry to record something cute, by Mom-standards anyway. A little background information: Gary likes this cartoon called "Big Foot". It's about little monster trucks who go to school to learn how to do all the smashing and crashing and crushing and big truck tricks that they need to know how to do to be good monster trucks. One of the tricks that they do is spinning donuts in the mud.

Today Papa (Buddy) bought him a pack of powdered donuts. I don't think he's ever had them. At first he was mistakenly calling them "do-nots" as in "do not do that again". After we corrected him a few times he was pronouncing "donut" correctly. Then suddenly he got this look on his face. It was the kind of look where there should have been a light bulb floating above his head. He then said something that I didn't understand, and I asked him to repeat himself. Then he said "Monster trucks (then Gary turned in a circle) donuts." He was telling me that monster trucks do donuts, but he couldn't quite figure out which words to use, so the turning became his verb. I laughed and congratulated him on being so clever. I had never even noticed them talking about doing donuts on the show, but I guess he had filed it away. His 3 year old mind had made the connection between the literal and figurative uses of the word. Cool, huh?

Back to Diapers

2008-08-31T08:17:00.004-04:00

Well, Gary has lost his once exuberant interest in using the potty. Now when given the choice between big boy pants and diapers, he chooses diapers. Ugh! I don't know what to do. I don't want to put too much pressure on him about this. After all, it is his body, and he tends to resist doing things that he knows I really want him to do. I'm considering letting him deplete his supply of diapers and then just telling him, "We're all out of diapers. You'll have to wear your big boy pants now." It may work. The only problem with that plan is that Bubba is still in diapers, so Gary will know that I have some in the house. I thought about saying that Bubba's don't fit him. We'll see. Send good potty vibes my way, please.

(About the pictures, they aren't exactly current, just fitting.)

Isn't he dapper?

2008-08-30T00:25:00.003-04:00

Now that Gary sleeps under covers and knows how to pull them up over himself, he's been able to graduate from footed pajamas. Here are some pictures of him modeling his new PJ's in Ree Ree's bed. If you can't tell what's on them, it's bull frogs and bull dogs. Very cute!

He's sweeter than sugar!

"My Not a Big Boy"

2008-08-30T00:12:00.003-04:00

They aren't always in a big hurry to grow up.

That's something I'm figuring out lately. Today Bubba bit the devil out of Gary's back. He made a big blood blister. I loved on Gary and petted him and reminded him that Bubba can't express himself. I told him that he can't yet say "no" or "stop" or "mine" and that he would bite or hit if Gary didn't treat him nicely. Well, he didn't want to hear it. He just wanted me to hold him and put an ice pack his wound and love on him, poor little fellow. He put his arm around my neck and pulled me close to him and looked me straight in the eye and said, "My not a big boy." Translation: don't expect too much from me yet. I'm still little, and I'm trying to figure all of this out.

Point taken, Gary.

From now on I will just try to remind him when he's getting too close for comfort with Bubba and putting himself at risk for being bitten. Then it's up to him to release his brother from the leg-lock and save himself. That's all I can do.

Bubba Being Cute

2008-08-28T21:58:00.006-04:00

Just had to blog briefly and share these cute pictures. Will is spending more and more time without his pacifiers, so I've been able to get more smiling pictures lately. Now if we could just get rid of the paci rash on his upper lip.

Couldn't you just kiss him?

Poop, Poop and MORE POOP!

2008-08-22T15:59:00.003-04:00

I don't even know where to start. This morning Gary and Will were playing so nicely upstairs together. They were laughing and having a big, big time. Then my mom and I spot a big clump of something brown on the leather couch. OH GOD! Yep, it was poop! Right then I knew what my darling children had been up to. They were having a poop fest. I rounded the corner to look up the stairs, and oh dear Lord, there was poop everywhere. It was all the way up the stairs, on the landing, all over the boys' brand new comforters and sheets and all over Bubba! He had it up to both elbows, on his legs, on his face, everywhere. The worst part is it was Gary's poop! He had removed his diaper (yes, I said diaper) and crapped a big man-size crap right in the middle of his bedroom floor. I guess Bubba thought it was play dough. He went to town smearing it all over the place. I'm glad I had the presence of mind to take pictures. I just wish I had taken pictures of WIll. I was just in a hurry to get him into the tub.

Needless to say, diaper days are over for Gary except for sleeping. If he's big enough to pull a stunt like that, then he's big enough to put it into the potty. About 30 minutes after this incident he peed in the potty like a champ. Maybe the poop debacle was a blessing in disguise. I'm just glad I survived it, and it's over. Thank you to my brother-in-law for buying us a Bissell Green Machine. It made clean-up almost (I said almost) pleasant.

Gary Reading to Mommy

2008-08-19T21:57:00.009-04:00

Gary loves books about trucks, any kind of trucks. He likes garbage trucks, flat-bed trucks, dump trucks, monster trucks, fire trucks, cranes, buses--anything big with wheels. His three favorite books right now are I'M DIRTY (about a front-loader or "digger"), I STINK (about a garbage truck in NYC) and SMASH CRASH. Here are some pictures of him reading I'M DIRTY and I STINK to me one night before bed. He knows most of it by heart.

Do you remember when books were this exciting?

My Baby's Turning Two

2008-06-11T23:48:00.004-04:00

My goodness. Will is turning two on Friday. I can't believe it. It seems like yesterday that I was holding this brand new little squeaky baby trying to figure out how to get him to sleep on his back. Finally, I gave up on that and prayed that he wouldn't die because I let him sleep on his stomach. He didn't. He slept like a dream.

I can't believe my little baby is turning two. Last week we had a doctor's appointment, and he weighed 29 lbs and 7 ounces. Gary weighed 30 lbs on the dot. They are 17 months apart. Will measured 33 1/2 inches tall. I read somewhere once that you take a child's height on their 2nd birthday and double it, and you get their adult height. If that's true, then Will is going to be 5 ft 7 inches tall. He'll tower over both of his parents.

Bubba has been in speech therapy for 6 months now. We are getting more and more worried that he isn't talking. Today, though, he said "bubble" very cleary and only one time. We were blowing bubbles in the living room, and I guess I paused too long. He looked right at me and said "bubble". I tried and tried to get him to say it again, but he wouldn't. Still, I celebrated. He knew I was quite pleased.

Bubba's favorite activities right now include coloring (well, he likes holding onto the colors) and watching TV. That boy LOVES the TV. Gary was 18 months old before he would sit and watch anything at all. Will has been mesmerized by TV since the very beginning. And thank goodness for it! When he's being a nightmare about getting a diaper changed or getting his teeth brushed, all we have to do is turn on "Bob the Builder" or "Pocohontas" and he settles right down. Will also really loves to be in his swing outside. Sometimes he'll just climb up into it himself and sit there holding one of his big, chunky pieces of sidewalk chalk. He has it just in case he comes upon something that he might want to draw on.

Lately Will has really turned into a lover. He's always been very sweet, but these days he passes out the hugs to anyone who'll take one. He especially loves hugging his speech therapist, Joyce. He opens his arms really wide, lays his head on your shoulder, and squeezes tight. What's really sweet is you hear "ohhhhhh" while he's hugging you. Sometimes, we'll be sitting at the table eating dinner, and Bubba will just reach over for love, and if he can't reach you, he'll just lay his head on your hand or even on the table. If he can't love you directly, then he'll love something in close proximity to you. It doesn't matter if it's the table. He used to kiss, but he won't do that anymore.

Bubba, my sweet baby. I'm not ready for him to be a big boy yet. He needs to slow down.

PUBLISH POST

Looking Out the Front Window

2008-04-08T23:36:00.003-04:00

My mom is here visiting for a couple of weeks, and she's more nuts with her camera than I am. These are some cute pictures that she took of them from outside the window. We were having some work done on the road in front of our house, so there were front-loaders and dump trucks and pavers and all kinds of things that boys love. They were perched up on the back of the loveseat looking out at all the activity.

Gary Gets a Skuut!

2008-03-26T21:37:00.005-04:00

Here's Gary with his Skuut from Uncle Rick. Isn't it the cutest little thing you ever saw? Rick says it's cute enough to hug. I first saw this little balance bike on "Sesame Street" when Grover went to the Netherlands on vacation. People there ride bikes as their main means of transportation, so children learn very early. This bike allows them to learn to balance and coast first, and then they transition to a regular bicycle. They never use training wheels. The little girl on "Sesame Street" looked like she was having so much fun riding across fields and coasting down hills. I really hope Gary enjoys his as much.

The neat thing is the first one Rick got had a small defect in one of the tires--it wouldn't hold air. Well, he wasn't asked to send it back. The company just sent a new one. Now all we have to do is fix the tire, and Will will have one, too! They're going to have so much fun!

The Easter Bunny Came!

2008-03-23T21:08:00.003-04:00

Man, was the Easter Bunny generous this year! The boys got stuffed animals, puzzles, books, Bob the Builder machines, Thomas trains and lots and lots of candy. Gary had tons of fun making his little plastic eggs "hack" (hatch), and Will entertained himself for a long time trying to refill them. Of course, having a breakfast of chocolate and Peeps was the very best part of Easter.

It was so much fun shopping for the stuff that went into their baskets and putting them together last night. It felt like Christmas all over

again.

We didn't have any company, so there were no big meals cooked. The day was low-key and low-stress. We just played and made a big mess of the living room and took naps and ate chocolate. Great day! Even though he took a nice nap, Will was so sleepy by 6:30 that just the mere mention of bed sent him running for the gate at the bottom of the stairs. He was practically begging to be put into his crib. Poor guy rubbed his eyes the whole time he was getting his diaper changed and his pj's on. Gary, who hadn't eaten a real meal all day, decided at 7:00 that he wanted some of Dada's cereal (Lucky Charms) and some strawberries. He stayed up a little longer tonight eating and watching one last episode of "Bob the Builder" before heading upstairs for story time. His current favorite library books are "Dinosaur Train" and "Get to Work Trucks!" His new words today are "bar", as in candy bar (go figure), and "stop".

I wonder if they'll wake up tomorrow thinking they get to eat chocolate eggs and M&M's for breakfast again.

Oh Spring! Happy days are here again.

2008-03-17T23:23:00.005-04:00

Wow! It's been a long time since I've posted. Happy St. Patrick's Day for another half hour. (It's almost midnight.) I forgot to wear green today, but nobody pinched me.

Tomorrow is Gary's first day back at work since his injury back in December. He's had 3 1/2 months of being a stay-at-home-dad, and I think he's sick of it. I'm going to miss him, and I'm really going to miss getting to take a nap when the mood strikes, but I'm also looking forward to getting back into my routine with the boys. And it's SPRING! I'm so happy to be able to go outside again without layers and layers of clothes. Oh, and sandals! It's such a pain trying to hold two wiggly boys down long enough to put on sock and sneakers. Velcro sandals, here we come! And speaking of sandals, my 8 year old Birkenstocks desperately need to be retired this year. Now if only I could manage to scrounge up an extra $100 or so.

Little Gary is now going to preschool two mornings a week from 9-12. Neither one of us is used to it yet. He started at the end of February, and he still cries every time I drop him off. Each time I drive away I question whether I'm doing the right thing. He has the next 13+ years to be in school, so I wonder why I'm putting him through this now. Is the chance to interact with other kids his age important enough to his development and happiness to warrant all of the crying and anxiety? I don't know. Learning to talk and express himself is slow-going, so I haven't really been able to get his take on it yet. We're going to complete this year, which ends in May, and then spend the summer thinking about attending next year.

Both boys are in speech therapy. Will has an unofficial diagnosis of Apraxia of Speech--unofficial because he's not yet two years old. He still will only occasionally say "Mama" and nothing else, even though he's 21 months old. You can look at his sweet little face and see that's he's trying so hard to get some words out, but he just ends up kind of yelling at you. It's sad. I'm trying to be patient and hopeful.

Gary is coming along nicely. He's adding words to his vocabulary every day. We have a list written on a large piece of art paper taped to a door in our living room. It's "Gary's List of New Words." Today's additions were moon, sun and walk. He's so cute. When he's trying to say something by just making guttural noises with the inflections of speech I tell him to "use his words." His eyes will brighten and he'll say, "List?", like those are the words I mean for him to use. This morning he said, "B-O-D, Bob (as in Bob the Builder)." I couldn't help but laugh.

OK, it's almost midnight. I should scoot off to bed. Must dry my hair first, or I will wake up with a rat's nest on my head and will scare my children.

Bedtime Blues

2007-12-27T22:33:00.001-05:00

Bedtime and nap time at our house have been terrible for the past week. Up until then we could read a few books to the boys, put them in their beds, kiss them good night and walk out. They would play in their cribs and laugh and act silly until they would finally settle down and go to sleep. Well, Gary went to Louisiana for a week and a half with his grandmother where he got rocked to sleep for naps and went to bed with her at night. In short, he got spoiled. His homecoming gift to his little brother was a nasty cold. So, between Gary's new need for companionship while he drifts off into dreamland and Will's misery and snotty nose neither one wants to go to sleep the easy way. For the past week, Gary and I have been lying on the floor next to their cribs until they go to sleep. It works, but it takes a huge chunk out of our time to ourselves. Sometimes it takes an hour or longer for them to go to sleep. Ugh!

Christmas Morning 2007

2007-12-25T23:15:00.000-05:00

Christmas this year has been kind of a blur, but it was fun and memorable, and I have plenty of pictures to show for it. My husband, Gary, was injured at work December 3rd and has been home convalescing since then. He's the one who usually climbs through the scuttle hole into the attic to dig out the fake tree and the boxes and boxes of ornaments. He wasn't able to do it this year, so I waited until my brother was here to help me, and I went up there Christmas Eve. We got down a tiny 3 ft tree and a few ornaments and let the boys think that Santa put up the tree for us. Of course, for his labor he was paid the handsome wage of two pieces of fudge and a glass of milk.

We had a quiet, okay maybe not quiet, simple Christmas at home—our little family and my brother, Rick.

The boys woke up around 7 am. I sent my husband down to wake Uncle Rick whose job it was to video the boys seeing the gifts that Santa left. We played until we were famished, stopped to eat, and then opened more gifts. It was a fun day. I think Gary understood a little about Santa. We watched all the usual cartoon specials and read books about Santa and Rudolph and went to see Santa at the mall. Next year will be very cool. Hopefully he'll remember some of today and will be able to anticipate the stocking and the gifts and the festivities. Next year I will have this year's pictures to show him.

Will didn't understand any of the Santa business, but he understands toys. He was all over the place checking out all the cool stuff, mostly all his brother's cool stuff. He has a cold, so he was a little grumpier than usual. Poor thing. Thank God for photo editing. I had to erase snot from several pictures. YUCK!

An introduction to Will, my baby

2007-11-15T11:30:00.000-05:00

OK. My little one's name is William Everett, and he was born June 13, 2006. His older brother was only 17 months old at the time and still very much a baby himself. Suddenly we had two cribs and two babies in diapers. We were preparing two bottles, buying a double stroller and trading our sedan for a minivan. It was a different world. I remember thinking that life was challenging with one baby, and all of a sudden that seemed absurd. I soon was longing for those single-baby days when I could get a shower or talk on the phone while my little one napped. Not anymore! For the first 6 or 7 months of Will's life, the boys were on completely different napping schedules, so there was no rest for the weary. And I was very weary.

Oh, back to telling you about my adorable Bubba (very country, I know, but that is what his big brother calls him). We settled on his name before he was born, and I told my husband that I wanted to call him "Billy" after by dad if he was born with red hair (lots of red hair on that side of the family). Gary, my husband, didn't like the idea, but I think he was pretty confident that he didn't have to worry about Will being born with red hair as his is blonde and mine is dark brown. Well, Will is a carrot-top for sure. I was thrilled about his hair color, but I could tell right away that I wasn't going to have my way with his nickname. So, he's Will, well, when he's not Bubba. He started walking at 11 1/2 months and hasn't slowed down yet. He's always in 5th gear--moving fast and letting the world know he's here. He loves to yell and grunt, not in the obnoxious tantrum kind of way, just as a way of communicating. You know, like he's Leo DiCaprio standing on the bow of the Titanic yelling, "I'm king of the world!" That's Bubba. He's king of the world.

He weighs the exact same as his big brother to within a tenth of a pound, and he's almost as tall. He walks like a body builder whose thighs are too large, and sometimes he strikes a pose that looks just like a sumo wrestler getting ready to fight--feet spread far apart, hands on bent knees, look on his face that seems to say, "Here I come! Hope you're ready for me." He isn't talking yet except for the occasional "mama". That may be, in part, because of his fondness for his pacifier. I have started leaving it in the bed between waking in the morning and the afternoon nap. We'll see how it goes. When he wakes up from nap, there's no taking it from him without a fight, so I'm taking it slowly.

Let me say more about Will's beautiful physical attributes. He has an underbite, but it's adorable, at least until I start having to pay for braces. His eyes are huge blue saucers that suck you in and make you fall in love with him. He walks around with a permanent look of wonder on his face--eyebrows raised and mouth open. His uncle says he looks like W.C. Fields. I'm not in agreement.

Will is sweet and funny and loving and very inquisitive--all the makings for a perfect little boy.

An introduction to Will, my baby

2007-11-12T23:05:00.001-05:00

How about a short introduction to my boys? Gary was born January 18, 2005, so he is quickly approaching his 3rd birthday. He is smart and funny and quirky and loving and small and blonde and beautiful. You could swim in his big blue eyes. His hair is curly, and he twists it while he's drinking or falling asleep. As a result, unless he in just from the tub, his hair is usually big and wild. He awakes from his naps looking like he slept in pin curls. Normally, the first thing he says when he wakes up is, "Shhh, Bubba" or "Shhh, Dada." He assumes that he is the first one up, and someone else is sleeping and shouldn't be disturbed. Isn't he thoughtful? Next he will say either, "Dada home" or "Dada no(t) home." This is not a question. He says it matter-of-factly and then waits for me to confirm or contradict his guess. It will go something like this. Gary: "Dada home." Mommy: "Yep. He's downstairs eating cheese doodles. Let's go get one." or Gary: "Dada no(t) home.

Mommy: "Nope. He's still at work. Let's go eat his cheese doodles before he gets home." A quick word about no(t): Gary doesn't place ending sounds on most of his words, so I will try to help you out by filling in the gaps. This is a diary for me as much as it is a shared experience, and I want to remember the details. I'm running out of battery time, so I'll have to tell you more about Gary and all about Will, aka "Bubba", tomorrow.