we have yet to share a lot of details about jack's christmas ... but here's one special gift that he received ... the gift that keeps on giving!
Those gentle eyes that quietly watched
14 years ago
Monday, January 19, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
weekend update, part 2
as the painting continued at jack's house ... so did the need to keep jack occupied and out from under foot.
so jack, mommy and nana headed out for breakfast at one of our favorite spots.
following some fine french pastries, we headed to the national building museum for some playtime in their "building zone" permanent exhibit.
unfortunately, we headed down during the rehearsal for the inaugural parade and were surprised to find almost every route to the museum closed down. we finally made it after a trip that took twice as long as it should have. however, the trip did afford us a chance to see police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, mobile medical units, and -- the highlight -- a number of pickup trucks in convoy formation, each towing about 12 port-a-johns. jack, the truck fanatic, was in heaven.
however, he was also not wholly disappointed when we arrived at our destination and he saw all the trucks and blocks there were to play with:
and building is fun ...
but knocking down is even better ...
and after all the knockdowns ...
so jack, mommy and nana headed out for breakfast at one of our favorite spots.
following some fine french pastries, we headed to the national building museum for some playtime in their "building zone" permanent exhibit.
unfortunately, we headed down during the rehearsal for the inaugural parade and were surprised to find almost every route to the museum closed down. we finally made it after a trip that took twice as long as it should have. however, the trip did afford us a chance to see police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, mobile medical units, and -- the highlight -- a number of pickup trucks in convoy formation, each towing about 12 port-a-johns. jack, the truck fanatic, was in heaven.
however, he was also not wholly disappointed when we arrived at our destination and he saw all the trucks and blocks there were to play with:
he enjoyed wearing the "gear" as well ...
can they build it?
yes, they can!
and building is fun ...
but knocking down is even better ...
and if jack had a hammer, he'd hammer in the morning ...
and all over this land
and after all the knockdowns ...
jack was tko'd!
we figured daddy could use a little more time to get the painting finished, so after our time at the museum, we haded across the street to burger king.
yeah, that's right. astute readers will realize that mommy took jack to hot donalds on saturday and then burger king on sunday. great maternal nurturing, right? well, we did get mac & cheese and apple fries at bk. and, hey, it's better than letting him ingest the paint at home, right??
when we did return home, we found daddy almost finished with the painting ... transforming jack's former nursery from mediterranean sky to kittery point green.
to reward this hard work and escape the few fumes there were ... we headed to a happy hour with our beach friends. jack has really begun to play with the kids and doesn't need his parents hovering over him. what a nice development.
and a nice -- and productive -- weekend!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
weekend update, part 1
our weekend was a busy one. so busy that ... here on wednesday ... it has been decided that it must be split into two parts to facilitate actually conveying it to our dear readers.
on saturday morning, jack, mommy and daddy headed out to the hospital where the baby will be born (and incidentally where jack was born as well). we had a "sibling's tour" of the hospital -- which included seeing a baby in the nursery and checking out a post-partum room like the one mommy will be in -- followed by some baby care activities.
after leaving the maternity floor, we headed past the cafeteria (where jack declared he would buy a cookie to bring to mommy when she is in the hospital) into a little room all stocked with baby dolls.
first the kids practiced swaddling and holding the babies. jack played the loving big brother with aplomb:
he and baby also enjoyed a snack -- that juice box (a rare treat) was gone in about 5.2 seconds flat:
and jack colored a picture to welcome our new baby:
finally, the kids all listened to a reading of "i'm a big sister" (there were 4 girls and 2 boys), which jack knows from our own readings of "i'm a big brother." he is very fond of quoting what babies can not eat ... "babies can't eat pizza or apples or ice cream." to which jack adds, "or hot chocolate, or warm chocolate, or chips ..." and this morning's addition "... or pancakes!"
as we headed home, an off-handed comment daddy made when we first arrived about jack needing a haircut bloomed into a full blown obsession for jack. he told us, "i need to go to the barber shop to make my hair not so crazy." 
after a nap (for both jack and mommy), we took a shopping trip to allow daddy more unfettered painting time and jack took the container store by storm with his charm. oh yeah, and his shrieking when mommy took away the roll of wrapping paper he was using as a sword.
a time-out in the container store, a return home, dinner, and bed all followed in short order.
on saturday morning, jack, mommy and daddy headed out to the hospital where the baby will be born (and incidentally where jack was born as well). we had a "sibling's tour" of the hospital -- which included seeing a baby in the nursery and checking out a post-partum room like the one mommy will be in -- followed by some baby care activities.
after leaving the maternity floor, we headed past the cafeteria (where jack declared he would buy a cookie to bring to mommy when she is in the hospital) into a little room all stocked with baby dolls.
first the kids practiced swaddling and holding the babies. jack played the loving big brother with aplomb:
he also diapered the baby like a pro:
and even got her snugly back into her jammies:
he and baby also enjoyed a snack -- that juice box (a rare treat) was gone in about 5.2 seconds flat:
and jack colored a picture to welcome our new baby:
finally, the kids all listened to a reading of "i'm a big sister" (there were 4 girls and 2 boys), which jack knows from our own readings of "i'm a big brother." he is very fond of quoting what babies can not eat ... "babies can't eat pizza or apples or ice cream." to which jack adds, "or hot chocolate, or warm chocolate, or chips ..." and this morning's addition "... or pancakes!"
as we headed home, an off-handed comment daddy made when we first arrived about jack needing a haircut bloomed into a full blown obsession for jack. he told us, "i need to go to the barber shop to make my hair not so crazy."
who were we to argue with that? so, while daddy headed to the hardware store to begin the project of painting the baby's nursery, mommy and jack headed up to the plaza and the barber shop for a trim (and several lollipops):
we arrived home to find daddy in the thick of taping, sanding and beginning to paint the trim. jack loves to help with painting projects. so mommy sagely lured him away the only way she knew how ... with a trip for lunch at mcdonalds!!
jack was thrilled to have a happy meal at "hot donald's" as it's known in our house
after a nap (for both jack and mommy), we took a shopping trip to allow daddy more unfettered painting time and jack took the container store by storm with his charm. oh yeah, and his shrieking when mommy took away the roll of wrapping paper he was using as a sword.
a time-out in the container store, a return home, dinner, and bed all followed in short order.
after all, we had to gear up for sunday ...
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
POLICE BLOTTER
Bethesda, MD. Tuesday, January 6, 2008. 7:04 p.m.
Authorities responded to reports of an "assault" on the second floor of a Bethesda home. Witnesses reported that the suspected assailant, Jack (2) had sprayed the victim, Floyd (8), a housecat, with a bottle of Febreeze fabric freshener. The suspect admitted to the spraying at the scene. The victim's sister Janice (8), wisely fled the area prior to the assault. When the suspect refused to relinquish the Febreeze bottle to authorities, he was sentenced to two minutes in "time-out" and was released on his own recognizance. The victim is reported in stable condition and, in fact, does smell a lot better.
Authorities responded to reports of an "assault" on the second floor of a Bethesda home. Witnesses reported that the suspected assailant, Jack (2) had sprayed the victim, Floyd (8), a housecat, with a bottle of Febreeze fabric freshener. The suspect admitted to the spraying at the scene. The victim's sister Janice (8), wisely fled the area prior to the assault. When the suspect refused to relinquish the Febreeze bottle to authorities, he was sentenced to two minutes in "time-out" and was released on his own recognizance. The victim is reported in stable condition and, in fact, does smell a lot better.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
out with the old, in with the new
it's been quite a while since our last post and we hope you, gentle reader, will forgive those of us at llvj who took an end-of-year hiatus.
rest assured that the time was full of blogworthy happenings, which we'll impart in the coming days.
but, a few highlights of our time include:
almost enough to carry us through until baby #2's arrival in three weeks.
and then we'll have plenty more to tell you, if only we can find the time to do it!
so happy new year and here's looking at you (looking at us)!
rest assured that the time was full of blogworthy happenings, which we'll impart in the coming days.
but, a few highlights of our time include:
- a visit to jack's house by santa, resulting in many presents
- a visit to jack's house by grandma and grandpa, resulting in many presents
- a visit to jack's house by nana and grandad, resulting in many presents
- a party in honor of the little girl in utero whom we call "baby ita," resulting in many presents
- a hot dog party with pals drew and liam (no presents here per se, but isn't a hot dog party a present in and of itself?)
- a successful move into jack's big boy room and big boy bed
- a trip to the zoo, resulting in a present from the woman at the information desk
- ... and of course much, much more
almost enough to carry us through until baby #2's arrival in three weeks.
and then we'll have plenty more to tell you, if only we can find the time to do it!
so happy new year and here's looking at you (looking at us)!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
year-end pediatric update
well, we certainly hope it's the year end pediatric update ...
jack was back to see dr. dana today for a check on his pneumonia.
as a parent, one hears the "p" word (which actually sounds more like an "n" word ... those tricky greeks!) and one tends to freak out a bit. but, pneumonia is sort of a catchall word and in our case, it seems, it was a very mild case.
the good news is that his lungs today sound "crystal clear" according to the good doctor, and jack can stop using the inhaler unless he has a major coughing fit.
he still has a bit of a juicy cough from time to time, but she said that is nothing much to worry about and that may last a while yet. overall she seemed very enthusiastic and pleased with jack's miraculous recovery.
antibiotics and nebulized bronchodilators are apparently magical things. thank goodness for modern medicine!
his ears are clear (save for the firetruck and dump truck she saw in each, much to jack's amusement) ... and overall he's much, much improved.
her prognosis? a merry christmas for us!
god bless us every one!
jack was back to see dr. dana today for a check on his pneumonia.
as a parent, one hears the "p" word (which actually sounds more like an "n" word ... those tricky greeks!) and one tends to freak out a bit. but, pneumonia is sort of a catchall word and in our case, it seems, it was a very mild case.
the good news is that his lungs today sound "crystal clear" according to the good doctor, and jack can stop using the inhaler unless he has a major coughing fit.
he still has a bit of a juicy cough from time to time, but she said that is nothing much to worry about and that may last a while yet. overall she seemed very enthusiastic and pleased with jack's miraculous recovery.
antibiotics and nebulized bronchodilators are apparently magical things. thank goodness for modern medicine!
his ears are clear (save for the firetruck and dump truck she saw in each, much to jack's amusement) ... and overall he's much, much improved.
her prognosis? a merry christmas for us!
god bless us every one!
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
lady with the baby
after two and-a-half years, we have pretty much settled into a morning routine. but, once in a while, our routine is out the window and our morning is thrown into chaos. this is usually when mommy has to be out the door pre-dawn for work. and such was the case on december 4th ...
at o'dark thirty, mommy headed to the white house to produce an interview with the president. all went well, and it was an interesting and very personal interview (if we do say so ourselves). you can watch it or you can just take our word for it.
as the seated portion of the interview wrapped up in the ground floor map room, we prepared to move on to a walking portion down the cross hall, one floor up, on the state floor.
as we began to assemble ourselves, the president turned to mommy and chuckled, "you're not pregnant, are you?" in response to his quip, mommy replied, "yes sir, just a little bit." he asked about her due date and mommy told him, "in about 7 weeks. the week after the inauguration, we'll inaugurate a new baby," and he seemed very pleased to hear it.
now all combobulated, we began to head up to the state floor. there is a smallish elevator and one very narrow set of stairs. mommy, following protocol, headed for the stairs and the president, first lady, respective press secretaries and the reporter headed into the elevator. suddenly, the president called out, "where's the lady with the baby?"
well, she was halfway up the staircase.
"tell her to get in!"
a lower-level aide relayed the message, to which mommy responded, "oh no, it's okay, i'm fine." the aide dutifully repeated, "oh, she says she's fine," only to be blasted by potus: "that's easy for you to say! have her get in."
well, when the president orders a command performance like that, there's no question -- you get in the elevator!
so mommy threaded her way (and her big belly) back down the narrow staircase, past the technicians behind her, all carrying cameras and equipment, to get into the elevator.
beat red with embarrassment, mommy thanked potus and flotus for the ride and they responded with polite inquires about jack (the prez declaring his name to be a good one) and the gender of the baby on-board (a.k.a. little miss herself).
the rest of the interview went off well, they wished us happy holidays, and we took a photo to commemorate the event.
think this is one for the baby book:
at o'dark thirty, mommy headed to the white house to produce an interview with the president. all went well, and it was an interesting and very personal interview (if we do say so ourselves). you can watch it or you can just take our word for it.
as the seated portion of the interview wrapped up in the ground floor map room, we prepared to move on to a walking portion down the cross hall, one floor up, on the state floor.
as we began to assemble ourselves, the president turned to mommy and chuckled, "you're not pregnant, are you?" in response to his quip, mommy replied, "yes sir, just a little bit." he asked about her due date and mommy told him, "in about 7 weeks. the week after the inauguration, we'll inaugurate a new baby," and he seemed very pleased to hear it.
now all combobulated, we began to head up to the state floor. there is a smallish elevator and one very narrow set of stairs. mommy, following protocol, headed for the stairs and the president, first lady, respective press secretaries and the reporter headed into the elevator. suddenly, the president called out, "where's the lady with the baby?"
well, she was halfway up the staircase.
"tell her to get in!"
a lower-level aide relayed the message, to which mommy responded, "oh no, it's okay, i'm fine." the aide dutifully repeated, "oh, she says she's fine," only to be blasted by potus: "that's easy for you to say! have her get in."
well, when the president orders a command performance like that, there's no question -- you get in the elevator!
so mommy threaded her way (and her big belly) back down the narrow staircase, past the technicians behind her, all carrying cameras and equipment, to get into the elevator.
beat red with embarrassment, mommy thanked potus and flotus for the ride and they responded with polite inquires about jack (the prez declaring his name to be a good one) and the gender of the baby on-board (a.k.a. little miss herself).
the rest of the interview went off well, they wished us happy holidays, and we took a photo to commemorate the event.
think this is one for the baby book:
Monday, December 22, 2008
weekend update
just a quick update ... maybe we can get back in the swing of actually doing a weekend update on a monday!
saturday found mommy and daddy with tons of holiday errands and projects left to do and not enough time to do them. so nana came over and took jack to the mall for another round of playtime and breakfast.
the two had a great time at the mall, playing, eating and waving (from afar) at santa. looks like this year there will be no up-close-and-personal with st. nick. but jack does enjoy telling mommy and daddy what he will tell santa he wants, and he does delight in looking for santa's elf each morning.
still catching up from some sleepless nights, jack took an epic (for him) 2+ hour nap, which consumed most of the rest of the day.
on sunday jack and daddy enjoyed some qt while mommy headed off to yoga and yet more christmas errands, before arriving home for lunch.
another nap ensued, but this one was shorter. good thing, because we were invited to a par-tay!
mommy's high school friends try to get together over the holidays when everyone is in town, and this year we reuned at our pal scott's suburban manse, about 30 minutes from our house.
jack enjoyed playing with avery (8), jake (5), kate (3), jonah (2.5) and kay taylor (1) and a good time was had by all. with a brood like this, however, no pictures were taken. it was all we could do to keep everyone (and when we say "everyone," we mostly just mean jack) under control.
when we turned the gathering into a birthday party for jonah's mommy (a.k.a. julie from high school) later in the night, it seemed that the evening was complete.
jack declared, "that party was really fun!" and said his favorite part was the birthday candles on the cake. daddy said his favorite part was that they had the redskins game on. mommy's favorite part was the mini-hotdogs in phyllo. and of course seeing her old pals ... yeah, that too.
jack *did* say it was a "really fun" party, didn't he?
saturday found mommy and daddy with tons of holiday errands and projects left to do and not enough time to do them. so nana came over and took jack to the mall for another round of playtime and breakfast.
the two had a great time at the mall, playing, eating and waving (from afar) at santa. looks like this year there will be no up-close-and-personal with st. nick. but jack does enjoy telling mommy and daddy what he will tell santa he wants, and he does delight in looking for santa's elf each morning.
still catching up from some sleepless nights, jack took an epic (for him) 2+ hour nap, which consumed most of the rest of the day.
on sunday jack and daddy enjoyed some qt while mommy headed off to yoga and yet more christmas errands, before arriving home for lunch.
another nap ensued, but this one was shorter. good thing, because we were invited to a par-tay!
mommy's high school friends try to get together over the holidays when everyone is in town, and this year we reuned at our pal scott's suburban manse, about 30 minutes from our house.
jack enjoyed playing with avery (8), jake (5), kate (3), jonah (2.5) and kay taylor (1) and a good time was had by all. with a brood like this, however, no pictures were taken. it was all we could do to keep everyone (and when we say "everyone," we mostly just mean jack) under control.
when we turned the gathering into a birthday party for jonah's mommy (a.k.a. julie from high school) later in the night, it seemed that the evening was complete.
jack declared, "that party was really fun!" and said his favorite part was the birthday candles on the cake. daddy said his favorite part was that they had the redskins game on. mommy's favorite part was the mini-hotdogs in phyllo. and of course seeing her old pals ... yeah, that too.
jack *did* say it was a "really fun" party, didn't he?
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
weekend update, sicko edition
as regular readers now know, most of last weekend was spent on the couch, with jack feeling
crummy, on account of the pneumonia and all.
but before he really went down for the count he had one last hurrah with to the mall for saturday morning breakfast with nana.
crummy, on account of the pneumonia and all.
but before he really went down for the count he had one last hurrah with to the mall for saturday morning breakfast with nana.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
pediatric update again
it seems like only a week ago, dear reader, that we were reminding you of the archane rules of the blog where pediatric update trumps weekend update. and we told you not to worry ... it doesn't happen often and your weekend update shouldn't be delayed going forward.
we also expressed the hope that it would be a while until jack again saw doctor dana.
unfortunately, here we are, once again preempting our (day-late) weekend update to bring you a pediatric update.
jack has been sick since thursday night of last week. he's had a cough and runny nose, plus a fever. over the weekend, he seemed to get worse and by saturday afternoon was feeling very listless. he didn't want to go outside or run around ... he only wanted to snuggle on the couch and watch tv. very much unlike him.
he simply kept repeating, in a very plaintive voice, "i'm not feelin' well." and when you asked him how he was feeling? "not so well." it was truly pathetic.
we thought it was likely a virus which would run its course, but when he woke up with a fever again this morning, we decided it was time to head to the doctor.
diagnosis?
pneumonia.
she thinks it is likely that jack's illness started with a virus like rsv and developed into a viral pneumonia with wheezing and some labored breathing. he also has some fluid in his ears but so far it has not developed into an ear infection. small graces.
so, jack has been given an antibiotic and a nebulizer with inhaler and will be back to see doctor dana in a week to check his progress. he's also on a probiotic to try to avoid the digestive problems that frequently accompany antibiotics ... 'cause the last thing he needs is a nasty diaper rash on top of the pneumonia.
but, jack is still staying upbeat. he got to pick out a new racer car from doctor dana's "treasure chest" and he also got a sticker with curious george putting a star on a christmas tree (wonder if it made him think of his baby sister). as we waited for our prescriptions to be ready, he also enjoyed "shake" at starbucks.
hopefully he's on the mend and will be back to his old self very soon.
we also expressed the hope that it would be a while until jack again saw doctor dana.
unfortunately, here we are, once again preempting our (day-late) weekend update to bring you a pediatric update.
jack has been sick since thursday night of last week. he's had a cough and runny nose, plus a fever. over the weekend, he seemed to get worse and by saturday afternoon was feeling very listless. he didn't want to go outside or run around ... he only wanted to snuggle on the couch and watch tv. very much unlike him.
he simply kept repeating, in a very plaintive voice, "i'm not feelin' well." and when you asked him how he was feeling? "not so well." it was truly pathetic.
we thought it was likely a virus which would run its course, but when he woke up with a fever again this morning, we decided it was time to head to the doctor.
diagnosis?
pneumonia.
she thinks it is likely that jack's illness started with a virus like rsv and developed into a viral pneumonia with wheezing and some labored breathing. he also has some fluid in his ears but so far it has not developed into an ear infection. small graces.
so, jack has been given an antibiotic and a nebulizer with inhaler and will be back to see doctor dana in a week to check his progress. he's also on a probiotic to try to avoid the digestive problems that frequently accompany antibiotics ... 'cause the last thing he needs is a nasty diaper rash on top of the pneumonia.
but, jack is still staying upbeat. he got to pick out a new racer car from doctor dana's "treasure chest" and he also got a sticker with curious george putting a star on a christmas tree (wonder if it made him think of his baby sister). as we waited for our prescriptions to be ready, he also enjoyed "shake" at starbucks.
hopefully he's on the mend and will be back to his old self very soon.
Friday, December 12, 2008
two and a half man
as we approach another weekend, we thought we'd close out the week with more details from last weekend.
sunday morning featured a trip to the mall to have jack's 30 month -- or 2 and a half year -- picture taken.
three weeks out from christmas this might seem like a kamikaze mission, but luckily mommy brought nana along to help manage the chaos.
jack was actually a trooper and did great ... posing as requested and smiling for the camera. unfortunately we're at the age where smiling on command results in a crazy, pained look but despite the "cheesiness" we ended up with several cute photos.
here is himself's official portrait:
we finished up our trip to the mall with the requisite bribes paid to jack ... a visit to starbucks for a vivanno smoothie (aka "shake") and a stop at ll bean to see the catfish pool.
not a half bad sunday morning!
sunday morning featured a trip to the mall to have jack's 30 month -- or 2 and a half year -- picture taken.
three weeks out from christmas this might seem like a kamikaze mission, but luckily mommy brought nana along to help manage the chaos.
jack was actually a trooper and did great ... posing as requested and smiling for the camera. unfortunately we're at the age where smiling on command results in a crazy, pained look but despite the "cheesiness" we ended up with several cute photos.
here is himself's official portrait:
we finished up our trip to the mall with the requisite bribes paid to jack ... a visit to starbucks for a vivanno smoothie (aka "shake") and a stop at ll bean to see the catfish pool.
not a half bad sunday morning!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
o tannenbaum, part zwei
more christmas fun ... we finally got the tree decorated last night! all of our ornaments are not on, but since we are still a little wary of jack keeping his hands off the tree, we thought this year might be a time to give some of the more precious ornaments a bit of a break.
jack loved decorating the tree and his unbridled enthusiasm really made it fun for us as well.
we also finally broke out our "elf on the shelf" which we received a couple years ago from aunt amy. this is the first time jack has been able to understand the concept and we are working on choosing a name for our elf. so far "brown" and "pink' were some suggestions that jack had. yeah, the elf gets those names and the baby gets "george and the sticker" ... what gives?!?
jack took a few pictures of the tree, which we include here so you can see it from his point of view
"the tree"
and a few from ours:
jack loved decorating the tree and his unbridled enthusiasm really made it fun for us as well.
we also finally broke out our "elf on the shelf" which we received a couple years ago from aunt amy. this is the first time jack has been able to understand the concept and we are working on choosing a name for our elf. so far "brown" and "pink' were some suggestions that jack had. yeah, the elf gets those names and the baby gets "george and the sticker" ... what gives?!?
jack took a few pictures of the tree, which we include here so you can see it from his point of view
"the tree"
"the lights"
and a few from ours:
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
o tannenbaum
we promised you a weekend update ... and while we don't have it ready in full, we thought we'd tell you about the part of our weekend which featured the annual purchase of our christmas tree.
in years past, we have simply gone to a nearby lot, picked out the nicest looking fraser fir and hurried back home. and usually we're much closer to christmas when we finally get the tree. this year we wanted to be on the early side ... but in these parts you don't want to be too early, lest you run afoul of the christmas tree laws ...
this year, harkening back to both of our childhoods, mommy and daddy packed up jack on saturday morning and headed out to our favorite farm to cut our own scotch pine.
despite the cold weather and the 30 minute drive, we were all in good spirits and enjoyed tromping around the fields to find our ideal tree.
when the perfect specimen (or, in this case, the "good enough" specimen) was located, we cut it down before dragging it back for needle shaking, netting and tying onto our car.
after the tree was secured, we also took some time up near the barns to visit the goats (the chickens, pigs and cow were inside because of the chilly air) and stop in the market for some hot apple cider and a 1/4 peck of the last apples of the season.
yes, it took longer ... took more labor ... and wasn't even much cheaper (especially when figuring in gas/mileage) -- but cutting down our tree this year definitely seemed worth it.
in years past, we have simply gone to a nearby lot, picked out the nicest looking fraser fir and hurried back home. and usually we're much closer to christmas when we finally get the tree. this year we wanted to be on the early side ... but in these parts you don't want to be too early, lest you run afoul of the christmas tree laws ...
this year, harkening back to both of our childhoods, mommy and daddy packed up jack on saturday morning and headed out to our favorite farm to cut our own scotch pine.
despite the cold weather and the 30 minute drive, we were all in good spirits and enjoyed tromping around the fields to find our ideal tree.
when the perfect specimen (or, in this case, the "good enough" specimen) was located, we cut it down before dragging it back for needle shaking, netting and tying onto our car.
after the tree was secured, we also took some time up near the barns to visit the goats (the chickens, pigs and cow were inside because of the chilly air) and stop in the market for some hot apple cider and a 1/4 peck of the last apples of the season.
yes, it took longer ... took more labor ... and wasn't even much cheaper (especially when figuring in gas/mileage) -- but cutting down our tree this year definitely seemed worth it.
Monday, December 8, 2008
pediatric update
our long-time readers will remember that, according to the byzantine rules of llvj, pediatric updates trump weekend updates.
and because our check-ups almost always happen on mondays -- the day our doctor holds "early" appointments starting at 8:15 -- you may consider this our semi-annual preemption of the weekend update.
now, of course, astute readers may point out that given our recent posting history, delaying the weekend update is slightly more than a "semi-annual" event (it's more in semi-weekly territory at this point). but, in any case ...
today is the pediatric update.
and, as jennifer warnes and joe cocker sang, who knows what tomorrow brings ... perhaps a weekend update (that last part is not an original lyric, fyi). but no promises.
the overall report is a good one. jack is a healthy boy, developing normally. doctor dana was very pleased with him. she also stated, that in her professional medical opinion, jack is extremely cute. in mommy's professional maternal opinion, well duh ... don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows ...
anyway, the first order of business was the stats. height and weight. he "officially" weighs 29.5 pounds, which represents a gain of about 2.5 pounds from last time. this puts him at about 45th percentile for weight at his age.
height is a slightly more tricky ... and apparently more subjective ... measurement. jack's "official" height as of his 30 month appointment is 33 inches. those eagle-eyed readers among you may be thinking, "well, wait a moment ... at the last appointment in may, wasn't he 34.5" tall?" and you'd be thinking correctly and clearly.
mommy wasn't thinking clearly when they gave her this measurement, because otherwise she would have pointed out -- he *shrunk*!!!
after coming to this realization, and upon talking to a nurse later on, we have concluded that probably neither measurement was wholly accurate. 33 inches would put jack at a meager 3rd percentile on the growth chart for his age and simply comparing him to other boys in his class, this just doesn't seem right. plus, given his parentage, we expect him to be at least 7-feet tall by adulthood.
after the "measuring" (and we use this term loosely), the doctor came in to see us. jack was not so interested in her, or in her talking to mommy and daddy, so he headed to the treasure chest. doctor dana told him he could select one toy and he said he wanted to find a truck. sadly, no truck was found, but he did bring in about 9 racer cars, a helicopter, and multiple pairs of sunglasses. so much for choosing one. we did, however, only leave with one.
today, our discussion focused on three d's:
discipline
dentist
diapers
the short-takes (respectively)?
consistent, logical and positive
sometime in the next year
sometime in the next year
we agreed that the next six months may be quite challenging for jack and so we would not push him on potty training. plus, in mommy's opinion, when dealing with a newborn, changing a few jack diapers a day sounds much easier than cleaning up accidents, changing wet clothes and scrubbing out underpants.
mommy's proposed pediatric dentist was met by an enthusiastic recommendation by doctor dana and so we will probably make an appointment with him for next spring.
and, with discipline, she encouraged us to keep up with time-outs and 1-2-3 magic, expanding them as jack grows older and can better understand things like logical consequences. her take was: the good news/bad news is that jack is bright and very verbal. so, his emotions sometimes can't keep up with his brain, causing him a lot of frustration and anger, which we see him express. and, as with most things in child-rearing, this too shall pass ... (in about 18 years!)
to round out her recommendations, she gave us a green light on switching from whole milk to 2% (but no skim for our skinny minnie!), a red light on peanuts and peanut butter (we'll wait until he's 3), and a yellow light on switching from his crib to a "big boy bed." that one she advises doing at your own risk ... and having some way to gate him into his room. we're certainly not above the doorknob locks.
at the very end, jack got a flu shot and was as brave as could be expected. daddy hugged him as mommy dried his tears and the nurse put on a tweety bird bandage. both the injury and insult was soon forgotten.
as much as we love doctor dana, we hope that we won't see her again for a while ... at least when it comes to jack. she is, however, looking forward to meeting her new patient in just over 7 weeks!
and because our check-ups almost always happen on mondays -- the day our doctor holds "early" appointments starting at 8:15 -- you may consider this our semi-annual preemption of the weekend update.
now, of course, astute readers may point out that given our recent posting history, delaying the weekend update is slightly more than a "semi-annual" event (it's more in semi-weekly territory at this point). but, in any case ...
today is the pediatric update.
and, as jennifer warnes and joe cocker sang, who knows what tomorrow brings ... perhaps a weekend update (that last part is not an original lyric, fyi). but no promises.
the overall report is a good one. jack is a healthy boy, developing normally. doctor dana was very pleased with him. she also stated, that in her professional medical opinion, jack is extremely cute. in mommy's professional maternal opinion, well duh ... don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows ...
anyway, the first order of business was the stats. height and weight. he "officially" weighs 29.5 pounds, which represents a gain of about 2.5 pounds from last time. this puts him at about 45th percentile for weight at his age.
height is a slightly more tricky ... and apparently more subjective ... measurement. jack's "official" height as of his 30 month appointment is 33 inches. those eagle-eyed readers among you may be thinking, "well, wait a moment ... at the last appointment in may, wasn't he 34.5" tall?" and you'd be thinking correctly and clearly.
mommy wasn't thinking clearly when they gave her this measurement, because otherwise she would have pointed out -- he *shrunk*!!!
after coming to this realization, and upon talking to a nurse later on, we have concluded that probably neither measurement was wholly accurate. 33 inches would put jack at a meager 3rd percentile on the growth chart for his age and simply comparing him to other boys in his class, this just doesn't seem right. plus, given his parentage, we expect him to be at least 7-feet tall by adulthood.
after the "measuring" (and we use this term loosely), the doctor came in to see us. jack was not so interested in her, or in her talking to mommy and daddy, so he headed to the treasure chest. doctor dana told him he could select one toy and he said he wanted to find a truck. sadly, no truck was found, but he did bring in about 9 racer cars, a helicopter, and multiple pairs of sunglasses. so much for choosing one. we did, however, only leave with one.
today, our discussion focused on three d's:
the short-takes (respectively)?
we agreed that the next six months may be quite challenging for jack and so we would not push him on potty training. plus, in mommy's opinion, when dealing with a newborn, changing a few jack diapers a day sounds much easier than cleaning up accidents, changing wet clothes and scrubbing out underpants.
mommy's proposed pediatric dentist was met by an enthusiastic recommendation by doctor dana and so we will probably make an appointment with him for next spring.
and, with discipline, she encouraged us to keep up with time-outs and 1-2-3 magic, expanding them as jack grows older and can better understand things like logical consequences. her take was: the good news/bad news is that jack is bright and very verbal. so, his emotions sometimes can't keep up with his brain, causing him a lot of frustration and anger, which we see him express. and, as with most things in child-rearing, this too shall pass ... (in about 18 years!)
to round out her recommendations, she gave us a green light on switching from whole milk to 2% (but no skim for our skinny minnie!), a red light on peanuts and peanut butter (we'll wait until he's 3), and a yellow light on switching from his crib to a "big boy bed." that one she advises doing at your own risk ... and having some way to gate him into his room. we're certainly not above the doorknob locks.
at the very end, jack got a flu shot and was as brave as could be expected. daddy hugged him as mommy dried his tears and the nurse put on a tweety bird bandage. both the injury and insult was soon forgotten.
as much as we love doctor dana, we hope that we won't see her again for a while ... at least when it comes to jack. she is, however, looking forward to meeting her new patient in just over 7 weeks!
Friday, December 5, 2008
name that baby
as the impending birth of our daughter (currently known as "ita") approaches, so do suggestions for names.
names are a tricky business because *everyone* seems to have an opinion.
in fact, just last night we received the following in the llvj emailbox:
so it got us back to thinking about what we should name our little girl. we decided to again ask jack.
so far, in suggesting names, he has repeatedly favored one ...
jack.
but today he had a new idea ...
"george and the sticker"
we think that's all the first name. which would make her full name george and the sticker jennings mershon???
umm ... well ... it's certainly unique.
zuma nesta and bronx mowgli aint got nothing on that.
names are a tricky business because *everyone* seems to have an opinion.
in fact, just last night we received the following in the llvj emailbox:
Babies Zuma Nesta Rock and Bronx Mowgli, you're in the minority. Most parents abandoned unusual names for their children, opting instead for traditional names, according to a U.S. survey.
The top boy's name for the year remained Aiden, followed by Jayden, Ethan and Jacob with classic names like Matthew, Jack, Michael, Alexander, Daniel and William all featuring in a list of the top 50 most popular names.
The list, compiled from thousands of baby name entries on the specialist baby website Babycenter.com, found that Emma replaced Sophia as the top girl's name followed by Isabella and Olivia with Sarah, Elizabeth and Anna also popular.
With the United States consumed by politics all year, presidential names also made a return, such as Madison, Taylor, Kennedy for girls and Jackson and Tyler for boys.
Linda Murray, editor-in-chief of babycenter.com, said there was a clear trend for people to choose more serious, old fashioned, classic names, reflecting the tougher times.
"Times have changed and people are taking the world more seriously, affected by what is going on the world," said Murray.
"Even before the economic crisis we've had high gas and food prices all year and people have struggled. Our nation is at war. We have conflict in the world. It is a serious time in American life and it is affecting decisions about naming children."
When parents were asked in the online survey what they wanted a name to represent, the most important qualities for boys were strength, kindness and compassion compared to strength and individuality last year.
For girls it was kindness, compassion, intelligence and strength compared to femininity and individuality last year.
so it got us back to thinking about what we should name our little girl. we decided to again ask jack.
so far, in suggesting names, he has repeatedly favored one ...
jack.
but today he had a new idea ...
"george and the sticker"
we think that's all the first name. which would make her full name george and the sticker jennings mershon???
umm ... well ... it's certainly unique.
zuma nesta and bronx mowgli aint got nothing on that.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
leaving
much of thanksgiving weekend, when not spent eating "feast" (as jack decided to call our thursday night repast and every leftover meal thereafter), was dedicated to doing a lot of work around the house ... not the least of which was raking up the remaining leaves for our final county leaf collection.
of course our resident "helper" was standing by to help daddy. sadly, his little rake from last season had broken, so he and mommy made an emergency trip to the hardware store for a new one.
and then ... the hijinks (err -- helping) began ...
i guess jack should have mentioned in his list that he was thankful for leaves ... and rakes.
of course our resident "helper" was standing by to help daddy. sadly, his little rake from last season had broken, so he and mommy made an emergency trip to the hardware store for a new one.
and then ... the hijinks (err -- helping) began ...
i guess jack should have mentioned in his list that he was thankful for leaves ... and rakes.
Monday, December 1, 2008
thankfulness
taking a page from our friends at merrilly yours ... mommy decided to make a list of what jack said he was thankful for this year.
he was not prompted for any specific answers, mommy simply asked jack, "anything else?" here's what he said:
he was not prompted for any specific answers, mommy simply asked jack, "anything else?" here's what he said:
- my friends
- mommy
- daddy
- jack
- the baby
- grandad
- nana
- grandma
- grandpa
- megan
- kathy
- trash
- mailbox
- newspaper
- nature walk
- washington, dc
- trash trucks
- zoo
i agree ... i'm thankful for pretty much all of these list items as well.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
if it's wrong ...
jack doesn't want to be right!
this post is sort of appropos of nothing, except this is something that happens practically every night ... in fact, happened just last night ... and is one of those things we're going to want to remember about him down the road.
as we've mentioned previously, jack (like his parents) is a tv-lover. he gets screen time in the morning and in the evening. "yi'l bit tv," as jack would say.
in the evenings, jack's show of choice is always "go diego go."
don't know who diego is?
he is a child animal scientist who ziplines around south america rescuing animals in a very non-darwinian way. mommy suspects, but does not have confirmation, that diego is chilean. he is also the cousin of dora the explorer.
don't know who dora is?
well, then may we suggest you come out from the rock under which you have been living ....
anyhoo, we love diego around these parts and have learned quite a bit about tapirs, pygmy marmosets and whale sharks, to name a few.
to reinforce the factoids taught during the story, the end of the show presents questions about the featured animal's capabilities and characteristics.
two possible solutions are given - the right answer and one clearly ridiculous answer, such as: "do tapirs have fur or feathers?"
for a while, jack answered very earnestly and, more often than not, correctly.
but somewhere along the line he realized he got more of a reaction and it was more fun to give the wrong answer.
so now, he will answer the question, with a mischevious and knowing look in his eye, and mommy and daddy, of course, oblige him by laughing and feigning shock at his answers.
jack has clearly decided, when it comes to diego's quizzes, if he is wrong, he doesn't want to be right...
this post is sort of appropos of nothing, except this is something that happens practically every night ... in fact, happened just last night ... and is one of those things we're going to want to remember about him down the road.
as we've mentioned previously, jack (like his parents) is a tv-lover. he gets screen time in the morning and in the evening. "yi'l bit tv," as jack would say.
in the evenings, jack's show of choice is always "go diego go."
don't know who diego is?
he is a child animal scientist who ziplines around south america rescuing animals in a very non-darwinian way. mommy suspects, but does not have confirmation, that diego is chilean. he is also the cousin of dora the explorer.
don't know who dora is?
well, then may we suggest you come out from the rock under which you have been living ....
anyhoo, we love diego around these parts and have learned quite a bit about tapirs, pygmy marmosets and whale sharks, to name a few.
to reinforce the factoids taught during the story, the end of the show presents questions about the featured animal's capabilities and characteristics.
two possible solutions are given - the right answer and one clearly ridiculous answer, such as: "do tapirs have fur or feathers?"
for a while, jack answered very earnestly and, more often than not, correctly.
but somewhere along the line he realized he got more of a reaction and it was more fun to give the wrong answer.
so now, he will answer the question, with a mischevious and knowing look in his eye, and mommy and daddy, of course, oblige him by laughing and feigning shock at his answers.
jack has clearly decided, when it comes to diego's quizzes, if he is wrong, he doesn't want to be right...
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
weekend update
we're back on track with our weekend updates ... albeit one day late.
and we hope that this was worth waiting for. but please, manage your expectations, people!
so, this weekend, we here at llvj did our part to spur the american economy. who needs tim geithner when you've got a charge card and an ikea!!
we started saturday by going to the scandinavian superstore for some bookcases. we were shopping for replacements for all the built-ins we left behind in our "dinky" apartment. ever since we started livin' la vida, we have had no place for our books. in fact, they're still in boxes nearly three years later! but, with the growth of our family and the impending foul weather, we've realized that the basement can no longer be a repository of junk. well, our junk anyway. kid junk is what we're clearing the way for, hence the need for ikea's storage solutions.
jack was a bit of a handful while we were there, so we took no photos. it was all we could do to make it through unscathed (and without knocking down displays). despite his mixed behavior, jack did score his first train tracks set and has been in love with it ever since.
after a restorative nap, we headed out for ... more shopping! our plan at present (for those who have been on the edge of their seats wondering) is to move jack into the guest room and move the baby into jack's current room. of course, this requires the purchase of a dresser for jack's "big boy room." so, we loaded into the car for a visit to local baby store great beginnings, where we selected a lovely highboy for our big boy. let's hope that a nice wood case piece eases the transition of being booted from your room.
if saturday was a day of shopping, sunday was a day of socializing (plus a little shopping). jack and mommy headed out early to the local plaza, leaving daddy to enjoy some peace, whilst we enjoyed some fine french breakfast items.
not to worry ... jack is not missing a tooth, he just has flaky crust on his incisor
afterward, we embarked on a massive pre-thanksgiving grocery shop, and jack was helpful for about 80% of it. the other 20% ... well ... don't ask.
we arrived back home just in time to ready ourselves for the first birthday party of jack's buddy, kay taylor. although the star of the party was reclusive, jack was all over the place -- enjoying the toys, the exotic cuisine, and (most of all) the cupcakes. before the cupcakes were served, jack repeatedly said, "i want to party!" in his book, i think this means singing and eating cupcakes.
"partying"
after another restorative (but way too short) nap, we readied ourselves for a happy hour with our beach friends. as per usual no photos were taken because the chaos could not be captured digitally. but grace, garrett, lucy, phia and jack enjoyed playing with toys and making their own marching band (killer recorder/kazoo section) while babies james and phoebe looked on.
we have a big four-day weekend coming up, so our next update should be a cornucopia utopia of jack-tion.
and we hope that this was worth waiting for. but please, manage your expectations, people!
so, this weekend, we here at llvj did our part to spur the american economy. who needs tim geithner when you've got a charge card and an ikea!!
we started saturday by going to the scandinavian superstore for some bookcases. we were shopping for replacements for all the built-ins we left behind in our "dinky" apartment. ever since we started livin' la vida, we have had no place for our books. in fact, they're still in boxes nearly three years later! but, with the growth of our family and the impending foul weather, we've realized that the basement can no longer be a repository of junk. well, our junk anyway. kid junk is what we're clearing the way for, hence the need for ikea's storage solutions.
jack was a bit of a handful while we were there, so we took no photos. it was all we could do to make it through unscathed (and without knocking down displays). despite his mixed behavior, jack did score his first train tracks set and has been in love with it ever since.
after a restorative nap, we headed out for ... more shopping! our plan at present (for those who have been on the edge of their seats wondering) is to move jack into the guest room and move the baby into jack's current room. of course, this requires the purchase of a dresser for jack's "big boy room." so, we loaded into the car for a visit to local baby store great beginnings, where we selected a lovely highboy for our big boy. let's hope that a nice wood case piece eases the transition of being booted from your room.
if saturday was a day of shopping, sunday was a day of socializing (plus a little shopping). jack and mommy headed out early to the local plaza, leaving daddy to enjoy some peace, whilst we enjoyed some fine french breakfast items.
not to worry ... jack is not missing a tooth, he just has flaky crust on his incisor
(photo credit: jack mershon)
afterward, we embarked on a massive pre-thanksgiving grocery shop, and jack was helpful for about 80% of it. the other 20% ... well ... don't ask.
we arrived back home just in time to ready ourselves for the first birthday party of jack's buddy, kay taylor. although the star of the party was reclusive, jack was all over the place -- enjoying the toys, the exotic cuisine, and (most of all) the cupcakes. before the cupcakes were served, jack repeatedly said, "i want to party!" in his book, i think this means singing and eating cupcakes.
"partying"
"eeww -- that does not taste like cupcake!"
after another restorative (but way too short) nap, we readied ourselves for a happy hour with our beach friends. as per usual no photos were taken because the chaos could not be captured digitally. but grace, garrett, lucy, phia and jack enjoyed playing with toys and making their own marching band (killer recorder/kazoo section) while babies james and phoebe looked on.
we have a big four-day weekend coming up, so our next update should be a cornucopia utopia of jack-tion.
Friday, November 21, 2008
(twenty)nine-and-a-half weeks
this has mainly been jack's blog since its inception almost two years ago, and admittedly the baby we refer to as "ita" does not get much play in its pages. it is called "livin' la vida jack" after all ... duh!
so here's a look at how she's growing (well, more accurately, how she's causing her poor mother to grow ... and grow ... and grow!) at 29.5 weeks.
we took a similar picture at the same point in jack's gestation, which we will dig out for comparison's sake. the doctor's office claims that mommy weighs less this time, but she sure doesn't feel any more svelte!
only 10 weeks to go ... we're all looking forward to her arrival!
so here's a look at how she's growing (well, more accurately, how she's causing her poor mother to grow ... and grow ... and grow!) at 29.5 weeks.
we took a similar picture at the same point in jack's gestation, which we will dig out for comparison's sake. the doctor's office claims that mommy weighs less this time, but she sure doesn't feel any more svelte!
only 10 weeks to go ... we're all looking forward to her arrival!
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