The Statute of Limitations has Passed...

....and it is now all right to joke about the fact that I "let" Tai fall down the stairs yesterday.   He appears to be fine and it has been nearly 24 hours, so joke away.

Interestingly enough, *every* time I am pregnant, Tai falls down the basement stairs.  Last time, it was our old, un-carpeted stairs with a cement floor at the bottom.  Luckily, he was protected by the fact that he was still in-utero.  This time, I could not protect him, but at least everything was carpeted.  

I guess maybe I should stop getting pregnant.

The Big Boy Bed Chronicles

April 14th (night #1): Tai happily climbed into bed and slept soundly all night.  He was discovered at 7am the next morning, sitting up in bed, chatting away to himself.

April 15th (night#2): An exhausted Tai skipped bath time and went right to bed after dinner.  He was next heard from at 6:30am, sitting on the top step of the stool at the foot of his bed.

April 16th (night #3): Iwas suddenly woken at 4am by the sound of my bedroom door latching shut.  While my half-asleep brain was trying to figure out how a cat (or dog) could possibly manage that feat, Tai toddled over to my bedside.  Nuk in mouth and sippy cup in hand, he calmly announced something like, "I got out of my big boy bed."  When I offered to help him get settled back in, he became upset and insisted on sleeping with us.  After 10 minutes of trying to coax him back into his bed, I gave up and snuggled him in between me and Minh.  He fell right back asleep while I lay there worrying that I'd just set a very bad precedent.

My keen powers of observation tell me that he seems to be waking earlier and moving farther from the bed each night.  Surely tonight we will find him watching TV in the living room at 2am. 

Scene from Arizona Pizza Company

Tonight the three of us met up for dinner at the Hampshire Mall and this is the conversation that occurred at the table:

Tai: I want dessert.
Kathy: Well, let's eat dinner first, OK?
Tai: Daddy, you want dessert?
Minh: Maybe. But I want to eat some pizza first. Let's look at the menu, OK?
Tai (desperately trying to gain an ally): Mama, you want dessert?
Kathy: Not right now, I want my dinner first.

Waitress: Hello, how are you all tonight?
Tai (directly to waitress): Can we have ice cream?
Kathy: Let's have pizza first and then we'll see.
Tai (ignoring Kathy and speaking only to waitress): I want dessert.

In the end, after everyone had eaten some pizza, we did order one dessert to split three ways. The newest addition to Tai's ever-expanding vocabulary? "cheesecake."

Mini-Vacation Mini-Post

Here's a bullet-list recap of our weekend get-away.....

• Talking about work over dinner is better than talking about the kid, right?

• Mass MoCA is worth the drive.

• I was asked "when are you due?" and "is this your first?" about 14 times. And all 14 times I resisted the urge to say "I'm not pregnant" just to see their faces turn red.

• When I answered "June 1st" to the due-date question I shocked one woman because of how "tiny" I am and I shocked a man the next day who said "woah, don't you think you might go earlier than that?"

• I only almost made us jump in the car and drive back to (sick) Tai once.

• No matter how tasty the food, it's hard to make up for a one hour wait for a table and grouchy service.

• When cooked with enough butter, salt, and cheese, grits are actually really yummy.

• When in doubt of what to do next, buy stuff for your kid(s). (Carter's Outlet, oh yeah!)

• The smell of freshly finished wood floors lingers for a *very* long time.

Renovation Haiku #3

Painting is finished.

Carpeting in on Monday.

Bathroom done today.

Big Time Nesting

Lately, nesting = shopping.  

This past weekend we ordered Tai's Big Boy Bed (and dresser) and it should be arriving sometime in mid-April.  The best part about this new furniture is that it's called the "Morgan Captain's Bed".   How could we resist buying our son a bed that's practically named after a rum? Tai knows we've ordered it and is excited about the idea.  He also knows this means he's moving into the study, which is now called "Tai's New Room", or sometimes "Tai's Big Boy Room".

 

And, since our renovation to make our living room larger accidentally included making our existing couches no longer fit, we've also been shopping for a new living room set.  Oh, fun.  Minh stumbled upon this unusual piece online.  

My initial reaction was pure horror.  

He then spent a few weeks trying to win folks over to his side by showing them the picture online, but to little avail.  Some of them were polite in their criticisms of it.  Others told him it was plain old Fugly.  But I agreed to go see it in person and give it a chance.

And maybe it's better once you meet it?  Or maybe I'm just ready to be done looking and buy something?  Not sure, but we're very close to purchasing this "2 piece sectional" as well as this ottoman that actually slides in to make this couch even more like a giant bed.  They fit together like Pangea.  It's either really tacky or really cool.  

Then, since the occasional guest needs someplace to sit that will allow them to actually keep their feet planted on the floor, we figured we've sit two of these in front of the bay window.  They swivel, which will undoubtedly delight Tai to no end.

Finally, we'd like to get this for in between the swivel chairs.  As Tai pointed out this morning you can put toys inside it and you can put your snacks on it.

 

R&F's sales tactics being what they are (aggressive) this entire order is already entered into their computers.  All we have to do is call them up and say "go" and arrange a delivery date.  So yesterday Minh made life-size paper cut-outs of all this stuff and laid it out on our living room floor.  Now all we need to do it stare at it for a few days and decide what to do....      

(Next phase of nesting = clearing out the study.)

Mom of The Year Award

Yesterday I was trying to rush Tai out of the house for a dog walk, while he was interviewing the flooring guy about each tool in our living room. Finally, I had everything ready: the dog, the leash, the stroller, jackets, clogs, hats and mittens. I asked Minh to take Tai out to the stroller while I dealt with the dog. As they reached the bottom of the steps into the garage I heard Tai calmly announce, "I walking in my socks."

Yes, I had neglected to put shoes on his feet.

Renovation Haiku #2

Bulkhead tomorrow.

Sheetrock makes rooms feel smaller.

Painting starts next week.

Weekend Quotations

Some notable quotes uttered during our weekend of taking care of Tai and his good buddy, Natasha:

T: "My penis huuuuuuurts!!"

N: "I hurt my tushy."

N (on phone to her parents): "I hit Tai. I had time-out."

K, to N: "Say, 'sorry, Tai' "

T: "Sorry"

K or M: "Who wants to...."

T & N: "Me!" "No, Me!" "No, Meee!" "No, MEEEEEE!"

T to N, or N to T: "I still using that!" (often in reference to a toy that was lying 15 feet away on the floor)

T: "Waaaaaaaaahhhh!"

N: "What's wrong, Tai?"

T: "Tasha, you have pink medicine on your bib."

K & M (nearly constantly): "Who wants to go potty?" "Who's turn is it to go pee?" "It's time to use the potty." "Who wants to try to poop?" "Do you want to use the red potty or the ducky potty?"

Stranger in restaurant: "Are they twins?"

K (out loud and smiling): "No, no. He's ours, but we're just babysitting her."

K (internally and horrified): "Oh my god, no! I can't imagine how anyone survives with twins!"

M: "I'm ready."

K: "For what?"

M: "A vasectomy."

He's Officially Too Smart for Me.

This morning, while getting dressed for school, Tai asked to watch some specific TV shows that are not on until about 10:30am.  I told him no and explained that:

(1) It was time to go to school,

(2) Those shows were not on at the moment anyway, and 

(3) We only watch those shows when we stay home sick from school.

After only the briefest moment of consideration, Tai announced, "I not feeling well.  I sick".

Get-away Booked

Thanks to everyone who offered advice on this topic.  We are indeed taking our friends up on their offer to watch Tai for an entire weekend (I hope they know what they signed up for!) and have a grown-up weekend to ourselves.  It's a hectic time at home right now and maybe not the best time to take off, but I figured we'd better do it before spring because who's ever gonna volunteer to watch two kids all weekend?

We're headed to Lenox, MA for two nights at a B&B in early April.  Hopefully this will help me get over my reluctance to stay in B&Bs (I've always been a large-anonymous-corporate-hotel kind of gal).  I loathe the idea of having to sit at a large table and eat breakfast with people I don't know and, possibly, even have to make small talk.  Ugh.

But I am whole-heartedly looking forward to this trip -- especially since the B&B has already sent us an extensive list of places to eat and things to do.  Is it April yet?

Renovation Update (and my kid is soooo cute!)

The fireplace is long gone, the playroom is all framed, and the plumbing is roughed in.  Before long, we should have a very large hole in our kitchen floor as well.

Buttons has been temporarily shipped off to Hadley, MA to sleep on exotic dog beds, harass different kitties, and take walks with her buddy Arrow.  Poor Smudgie cowers under the futon all day long.  He actually took off mid-breakfast this morning when the contractors arrived, not to emerge from the study until they leave.  Nibbles sleeps on the futon all day and doesn't give a shit about any of it.   

Each morning Tai looks out the front window in anticipation of the arrival of two pickup trucks.  And when the contractors enter the house he greets them with an enthusiastic "Hi Don! Hi Kenny!"  and, occasionally, an "I'm Tai!" (as if they don't know by now).  He then tries to pepper them with questions about what they are doing and the tools they are carrying, but they are too fast for him.  By the time he gets out, "Don, why you have..." Don is already halfway down the basement stairs.

Each afternoon we inspect the progress that has been made.  Tai is beside himself with this new development of Being Allowed in The Basement.  He's either going to be a contractor or a gymnast, for sure -- he's very much into examining the tools and walking along piles of 2x4s.  If he tries to stick the landing, we'll know which path he's chosen.  And yesterday afternoon he decided that his orange plastic slinky is actually a measuring tape.  He repeatedly held it up to the plywood wall where the fireplace used to be and announced, "I measuring playroom!!"  The game of "measuring" every inch of the house then lasted a good 30 minutes.

Practically our own Branch of the Public Library

As part of our preparation for construction, Tai and I organized the books and toys in his room this past weekend--and promptly realized that his bookshelf is full beyond capacity.  The books pictured below are just the ones in his room.  He has others scattered around the house and some of the very babyish ones are already set aside for his sister. 

Looks like we're gonna need a bigger shelf soon.  Since many of these were gifts and hand-me-downs, let me make a public plea.  Please, no more books for Tai.  At least not until we get some nice big shelves set up in the playroom.  I smell a trip to IKEA.....

Renovation Haiku

contractor chosen.

the big day is next thursday.

basement purging time.

Bravery Bribery

Saturday I took Tai to a local Butterfly Conservatory.  That morning I told him where we were going and he was so excited.  Five minutes into the 35 minute car ride he stated that we were "almost there" (which is clearly the first step toward the dreaded "are we there yet?" phase of life).

Walking into the place, he stopped to show me each and every picture of a butterfly.  On the sign out front, hanging in the cafe, on the coffee mugs in the gift shop, etc.  After happily looking at the frogs and birds and lizards in tanks that they (inexplicably) display just before you enter the butterfly room, we entered the main conservatory.  Instantly, thousands of angry butterflies attacked us with their razor sharp teeth.  Wait, actually I think 2 fluttered over and landed on my sleeve.  

Tai flipped out.

I've seen an adverse reaction to the butterfly room once before (you know who you are, Lee) but this was much worse.  "Up! up! uppy up!" he demanded the safety of my arms.  But even that wasn't enough to calm him down.  "I don't want it! I don't want it!" he exclaimed and his cheeks turned pink and the tears welled up in his eyes.

So we retreated to the safety of the room with the frogs, birds, and lizards contained behind glass.  We spent the next 30 minutes viewing those creatures, having a snack, and talking about how gentle the butterflies were and how he needed to be brave and go see for himself (I had paid $10 admission and was going to see some butterflies, dammit!)  He was not really buying it--each time I went near the door to the conservatory he bucked in my arms.

Finally, I decided to try good old fashioned bribery and asked him if he wanted some "Butterfly Bravery Beads" (they sell cheap Mardi Gras beads in the gift shop for $1).  A long time fan of sparkle, he, of course, wanted some beads.  So I managed to convince him that all we needed to do was go in and briefly say goodbye to the butterflies and then we could get some beads.  He totally bought it.  Sucker.

Once I got him in there, I kept moving constantly so no butterflies would land on us.  In the end, we were able to spend a good 20 minutes in there and he almost enjoyed himself, though he would not leave the safety of my very sore arms and he did flinch anytime a butterfly got too close.

He happily wore his beads all the way home. 

Let There be Food

I can't really cook, even on a good day. And I'm fine with that because Minh can (and usually does). Lately, I can barely even throw four things in a lunchbag for Tai. Let's blame the pregnancy? Or the recent illnesses being passed around the household? Whatever the reason, I can't really think more than about 20 minutes ahead of the present moment.

So when 5pm rolled around today and we suddenly realized we had no plans for dinner, I suggested making "breakfast" but Minh was not feeling it. So we decided that I'd heat up some something frozen from Trader Joe's while Minh and Tai read books. (Gone are the days of me doing anything in the kitchen without Tai pawing at my thighs asking to be picked up to "see stove" or "see something in sink"). So, knowing I only had 10-15 minutes before Tai grew tired of reading with Daddy, I grabbed an assortment of items from the freezer and started warming them all up.

Without really thinking.

So tonight we dined on Mushroom Risotto, Creamed Spinach, and Mini Tacos. Blech. Each one was pretty good, but the combination of the three is just bizarre enough to turn your stomach. Right now our insides are wholeheartedly asking, "WTF?"

So after Tai went to bed Minh got into one of his cleaning/nesting zones. On top of throwing out a bunch of clutter and re-organizing a closet he took an inventory of the fridge and freezer, looked up recipes online, made a shopping list, and headed out to Big Y. He has "real" meals planned for us for the next FOUR days. Four days? Will we even be living here in four days? What will the world be like in four days? I just can't picture anything so distant in the future.

But, apparently, there will be food.

Pick a Theme, Will Ya?

The other day Tai must have been going a little stir-crazy from being cooped up in the house because he decided to (concurrently):

(a) wear his baby doll on his back "in the ergo"
(b) wear his cowboy hat (who says cowboys don't tote their babies on their backs?)
(c) play his little Asian drum (a-la Karate Kid Part II)
(d) fix all manner of things around the house with his toy hammer

This kid does it all, man. He does it all.

Bits & Pieces

We had the Big Exciting Ultrasound yesterday and learned that this baby has all the right parts in all the right places, including a vagina that looks (to me) like a foot. But I guess that is normal.

So, yeah, it's a girl.

First (and Last?) Getaway

Even though in my pre-motherhood days I scoffed at couples who waited until their child was over a year old before getting away for a night or two alone, here I sit with a two-year old son, having never left him with anyone overnight. Well, I've left him with Minh and Minh has left him with me, but we've never gone away together and left him with a third party.

So it's about damn time. We figure we need to hurry up and do this before the second one comes and we end up waiting two more years!

And we happen to have these wonderful friends (who happen to read this blog) who have offered to let Tai stay with them for a night or two while we escape. Their daughter is Tai's age and they go to "school" together, which means that (a) Tai will have a great time and (b) Tai will actually serve as entertainment for their daughter. I'm confident that the adults will be able to just sit back and relax while the kids play. They also have similar a parenting philosophy to us, and perhaps can even whip Tai's attitude into shape while we're gone.

So the plan is this: we dump our kid on them for a weekend and go away somewhere to relax. Then, a bit down the road, the dump their kid on us and do the same. A pretty sweet deal, really. Now we just need to iron out the details.

First and foremost, Minh and I need a place to go. I don't really want to drive more than an hour or two and we don't need all that much in the way of entertainment. A couple of nice restaurants, a comfy hotel bed (and no one to wake us up at 6am), maybe a movie theater or museum or some nice places to shop? Normally we are the outdoorsy type, but I'm guessing this trip will be sometime between now and April. And we're not skiers. Suggestions?.....Leave me a comment.

It Must Be Instinct...

How do kids know what to do with meat on a stick?  It must be some primal code written into our DNA.  We're born seeking out warmth, and milk, and meat on a stick.

The other night I set down a chicken satay skewer in front of Tai and prepared to explain to him that it is chicken that can be eaten right off the skewer.  I thought I might even have to demonstrate so he'd know it was food and not a toy.  But before I could even open my mouth he picked it up and started gnawing on it.  In fact, the boy who is not a huge fan of chicken these days ate THREE chicken skewers, presumably because it is so fun to bite meat off of a stick.