Monday, March 22, 2010
The call for Nana!
For a boy who has very few words Turner has a way of communicating that is irritating if not effective. He points and grunts and shrieks and usually gets what he wants, eventually. Lately, he will call for nana. A nana, by logic, we thought was a banana but after enough bananas were thrown to the floor to gather apes we figured it must be something else. You may think he was asking for a grandmother, but since both of his grandmothers are Mom-Mom we quickly crossed that off the list of possibilties. The only thing that seemed to bring a smile to his face and a silencing to the shrieking was a pretzel. So, we thought, nana meant pretzel. And, we would respond to such a calling with a rod for each hand. As it turns out, however, I think we are only part right. I now think nana actually means snack, which is not such a bad derivative of the word, afterall. He will call for nana, and though he still loves pretzels most, he is also happy when he hand him yogurt melts (another favorite) or any other snack that is in his sight.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Snow Blow Me a Kiss!
We were amidst the snowiest winter in Philadelphia's history. Week 2 of February and we had already had over 70 inches of the white stuff with a large percentage coming that past week. The weekend prior it had snowed about a foot and a half over night. At the time, it was the most snow we had seen in years, giving us the feel of a Winter Wonderland as the once naked tree branches glistened from their just frozen frosting. The snow was light and fluffy and though kids could still play in it, clean up was not so bad, not that I had anything to do with clearing our driveway. A few days later there was a blizzard that made the one prior look weak. We had so much snow that now, nearly five weeks later and many days with spring like temperatures there is still some snow remaining! Early in March now, it is possible we could still get more.
While all of this snow was falling from the sky. While Chase and Ryder were making snow angels and Todd was inhaling a mix of oil and gas emitting from the snow blower, Turner began blowing kisses. He does this. He will hit a milestone quietly thinking no one will notice. But we do! He blows kisses now. Sort of. He can, He has. But, he doesn't. In a fashion that reminds me of Ryder, Turner has a tendency to do something new, and then not do it again for some time. Months from now he will perform all of his tricks but for now he just gives us glimpses of what he is capable of.
While all of this snow was falling from the sky. While Chase and Ryder were making snow angels and Todd was inhaling a mix of oil and gas emitting from the snow blower, Turner began blowing kisses. He does this. He will hit a milestone quietly thinking no one will notice. But we do! He blows kisses now. Sort of. He can, He has. But, he doesn't. In a fashion that reminds me of Ryder, Turner has a tendency to do something new, and then not do it again for some time. Months from now he will perform all of his tricks but for now he just gives us glimpses of what he is capable of.
The Boots Look Navy...
I bought two pair of purple boots. I have three sons, yet I bought two pair of purple boots. We had zero pair of snow boots and since we are amidst the snowiest winter in history, we needed snow boots. Grateful for the last minute, since it is the only time I get anything accomplished, I needed boots on Tuesday for Wednesday's pending blizzard. At the shoe store there were exactly two pair in the size I needed. Both pair were purple. Well, really they are navy boots. Navy boots with a lavender strip across the top. But, as a mom to boys it was hard to not see it as purple. But, they needed boots! My choices at that moment were either I buy them purple boots or they needed to wear the fire chief rain boots to play in the snow that they have worn all the times before. All the times before, however, were not not blizzards. They were not even blizzards if you combine them together into one snow storm. Wearing rain boots in a flurry with a dusting is ok, wearing them when the snow comes to your knees is another whole story. So, I bought the boots. The purple boots. I n some light, or in no light, it looks silver, or light blue. Or maybe it doesn't. Todd was not appalled by the boots, he was surprised I described them as purple. The boys did not notice. All Ryder saw was the red lining inside and he was happy. When they wear them, their snow pants cover the purple and they just look navy. But, I know. I know that I have three sons and two pair of purple boots.
But, at least they got to play in the snow.
(and, just for the record...our boys so prefer the beach!)
Friday, February 26, 2010
Baseball Mom
I started playing softball when I was 7 years old. My very best friend in my seven year old world, Alyssa, convinced me to play the game much to the satisfaction of my athletic father. Our team wore golden yellow uniform t-shirts, with BRONCOS written in Black. My jersey number was 11, the first of only two times I ever wore a number other than 8. I do not remember anything else about my first year of ball other than these details, but it was the beginning of the11 year stint of my softball career.
I have tons of memories of playing ball, most fond, though not all. When I was ten, I started playing 12-under travel ball. My coaches were a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. McCue, and they became the fundamental molders of my skills. The basics, the knowledge, the foundation...and a lot of McDonald's drive thru's. Of course, for those of you who have seen me play a field position, their credibility could be shot, as I had a wandering eye to the boys on the ball field next door and a wandering mind to the poetry in the wind. But intellectually, I know the fundamental basics of the game from the skills to the strategy.
So now Chase and Ryder have discovered the joys of baseball. Typical of three year olds, this new fondness comes along with an obsession that begins as their eyes open at 7am. "Mommy, I want to play baseball," words I always wanted to hear, now come to me at an irritating octave located somewhere on the pitch scale between "whine" and "excited shriek."
So we play! Indoors! In the sunroom with wiffle balls when we are batting and when throwing, the soft hardball Pop-Pop bought each of them while still in the NICU! And, they each have to use the ball with their own name on it. God forbid I should toss the Ryder ball at Chase, that would be a sure act of betrayal.
Ryder is interested in playing but not more so than he is interested in being Spiderman or jamming on his guitar. Usually, when he plays, he is dressed in what he calls his Benny outfit. Benny is the main character in the baseball movie Sandlot, a favorite of his, and when he dresses like Benny baseball is his game. He seems to enjoy playing, the way he enjoys everything, but has a three year old attention span and is checking out the trains, or cars, or kitchen around him, reminding me very much of myself.
Chase focuses well beyond his years, as we would expect. Fiercely concentrating on every word and every action convinced that each and every day he gets a little bit better. He wants to play! He wants to be good! And, he is. For a three year old! He can throw hard and straight. He can hit hard and straight. We are working on his fielding, which is less than stellar. He looks like a ball player and he believes he is a ball player. He likes the way it sounds when the ball hits the bat! I love it!
I love baseball. I am glad my boys do too! I hope the continue to. I hope they become real ball players. OOH, I hope to be a baseball mom.
I have tons of memories of playing ball, most fond, though not all. When I was ten, I started playing 12-under travel ball. My coaches were a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. McCue, and they became the fundamental molders of my skills. The basics, the knowledge, the foundation...and a lot of McDonald's drive thru's. Of course, for those of you who have seen me play a field position, their credibility could be shot, as I had a wandering eye to the boys on the ball field next door and a wandering mind to the poetry in the wind. But intellectually, I know the fundamental basics of the game from the skills to the strategy.
So now Chase and Ryder have discovered the joys of baseball. Typical of three year olds, this new fondness comes along with an obsession that begins as their eyes open at 7am. "Mommy, I want to play baseball," words I always wanted to hear, now come to me at an irritating octave located somewhere on the pitch scale between "whine" and "excited shriek."
So we play! Indoors! In the sunroom with wiffle balls when we are batting and when throwing, the soft hardball Pop-Pop bought each of them while still in the NICU! And, they each have to use the ball with their own name on it. God forbid I should toss the Ryder ball at Chase, that would be a sure act of betrayal.
Ryder is interested in playing but not more so than he is interested in being Spiderman or jamming on his guitar. Usually, when he plays, he is dressed in what he calls his Benny outfit. Benny is the main character in the baseball movie Sandlot, a favorite of his, and when he dresses like Benny baseball is his game. He seems to enjoy playing, the way he enjoys everything, but has a three year old attention span and is checking out the trains, or cars, or kitchen around him, reminding me very much of myself.
Chase focuses well beyond his years, as we would expect. Fiercely concentrating on every word and every action convinced that each and every day he gets a little bit better. He wants to play! He wants to be good! And, he is. For a three year old! He can throw hard and straight. He can hit hard and straight. We are working on his fielding, which is less than stellar. He looks like a ball player and he believes he is a ball player. He likes the way it sounds when the ball hits the bat! I love it!
I love baseball. I am glad my boys do too! I hope the continue to. I hope they become real ball players. OOH, I hope to be a baseball mom.
ALL ABOUT ME!!
The boys do a lot of wonderful projects at school. Unfortunately, most of them will never be seen beyond our eyes, but some things are worth documenting. Like this:
This is an All About Me! book. The boys made it in school last month. The whole book cracks me up particularly Chase's desire to be a tie maker when he grows up. Ryder, perhaps confusing himself with Chase, thinks he has black hair, and something about Chase's legs makes him very happy. We just do not know what. If I had to guess I would say his line of thinking had to do with running fast but we will never know. Just in case you can't see the pictures above here is what it says after the initial hand and foot print:
Ryder's answers are in Red, Chase's are in Blue:
I am (3) (3) years old
I have (brown) (black) hair
I weigh (32) (31) pounds
I am (38 1/2) (37 1/4) inches
My favorite food is (cantelope and apples) (apples)
when I grow up I want to be (a tie maker) (spiderman)
I feel happy when (my legs) (I am playing with toys)
I feel sad when (Ellie came to my house to build blocks and she knocked them down a long time ago) (Chase pushes me over)
To The Shoes!
He's passionate. He loves deeply and loyally. He is three!
Ryder has a way of falling in love. He has fallen in love with his guitar, Neil Young, his "Benny" Pants, Spiderman, his Victorino t-shirt, and his blue and green striped sneakers. He loves, obsesses over, each of these things deeply, as if they are the very best things in this whole entire world, with wide eyes and huge smiles. He does not fall out of love with one as a new obsession enters his world, he just adds it to the list.
This post here is dedicated to his shoes!
In September of 2008 I bought the boys new sneakers. They were good sneakers, suitable for running, jumping, climbing, etc. but they were also, what I would consider, their dress shoes. Their school shoes. They were the shoes they would wear most of the time, or so I thought, and therefore I felt a second pair of cheap, crappy sneaks for them to run through puddles with and to wear to the playground was absolutely necessary.
I found two pair that suited my style, edgy and different, yet affordable. In fact, they were $6 each. A red, white and blue pair from the GAP and a green and blue pair from OLD NAVY. I brought them home to show the boys and within seconds Ryder claimed his pair and he never took them off. Occasionally, he'd wear the brown and black Skechers I had picked out for him, and of course in the Summer he barely wore shoes at all, but literally for the last 17 months I had a hard time begging the shoes off of his feet. 17 months. The shoes are older than Turner.
I figured they were too small, but when I asked Ryder he said they fit him fine and that he liked them. "They are so comfortable," he would add. It's important to note here that he also wore them on the wrong feet. Always. He knew they were wrong, he knows his left from his right and is fully capable of dressing himself. I would tell him, Todd would tell him, Chase would tell him. But, he did not care. "I like them that way," he would say, sternly reminding us he has an opinion and he is flexing it. Sometimes I would try to change them and he would kick his feet just enough to get me off of his shoes. His green shoes!!
So, he wore them, left on right, right on left, for months. And months. And months.
In September of 2009 I bought the boys new shoes, again, before school started. Ryder's are still new. Worn only several times in the last 6 months because usually he had to wear his "green shoes."
About six months ago the boys discovered the movie "The Sandlot" which opened their hearts and mind to the great sport of baseball. The main character in the movie, Benny, apparently wears shoes that remind Ryder of his black Converse high tops. Converse are adorable, and I love them on the boys, but they are near impossible to put on which meant that I never planned on owning a pair after the first pair I had bought. But, they are now Ryder's Benny shoes (to go along with the Benny jeans which I still have no idea why they were coined that.) But, Ryder wanted to wear his Benny shoes a little more often which gave me an opportunity I could not pass up. I threw away his green shoes.
Everyone told me just to do it then tell Ryder we could not find them when he asked for them. But, jewish guilt #999 set in so I told Ryder all about it.
"Ry, buddy, it's time to throw away your shoes. They don't fit. I want you to say goodbye!" This wasn't out of nowhere I had warned him for months that, eventually, I was going to get rid of the shoes. He looked at me. He looked at the shoes. Looked at me again, "OK." He looked at the shoes, "Bye, green shoes," then back at me, "Can I still wear my Benny shoes?"
It was that easy, it happened that simply. Maybe he does not love as deeply as I thought? Maybe the timing was just right. Amazingly, the Converse are not too hard to put on now that he is older and he can even do it himself. And, more amazingly, he chooses to wear them on the correct feet.
I looked at the shoes before I threw them out to the curb. I laughed. I like old, worn in things too. I almost could not blame the little dude. The soles were worn flat, the once navy blue was now a faded denim, the size, I should not admit, was a size and a half too small, and from looking at them it was hard to tell which shoe belonged on what foot because it was so worn in to the opposite foot. I wanted to save them as a memento, but then he would have worn them. Instead, I took a few pictures and posted them here. Ryder will look back at these pictures and laugh, maybe. Or cry. Or both.
Ryder has a way of falling in love. He has fallen in love with his guitar, Neil Young, his "Benny" Pants, Spiderman, his Victorino t-shirt, and his blue and green striped sneakers. He loves, obsesses over, each of these things deeply, as if they are the very best things in this whole entire world, with wide eyes and huge smiles. He does not fall out of love with one as a new obsession enters his world, he just adds it to the list.
This post here is dedicated to his shoes!
In September of 2008 I bought the boys new sneakers. They were good sneakers, suitable for running, jumping, climbing, etc. but they were also, what I would consider, their dress shoes. Their school shoes. They were the shoes they would wear most of the time, or so I thought, and therefore I felt a second pair of cheap, crappy sneaks for them to run through puddles with and to wear to the playground was absolutely necessary.
I found two pair that suited my style, edgy and different, yet affordable. In fact, they were $6 each. A red, white and blue pair from the GAP and a green and blue pair from OLD NAVY. I brought them home to show the boys and within seconds Ryder claimed his pair and he never took them off. Occasionally, he'd wear the brown and black Skechers I had picked out for him, and of course in the Summer he barely wore shoes at all, but literally for the last 17 months I had a hard time begging the shoes off of his feet. 17 months. The shoes are older than Turner.
I figured they were too small, but when I asked Ryder he said they fit him fine and that he liked them. "They are so comfortable," he would add. It's important to note here that he also wore them on the wrong feet. Always. He knew they were wrong, he knows his left from his right and is fully capable of dressing himself. I would tell him, Todd would tell him, Chase would tell him. But, he did not care. "I like them that way," he would say, sternly reminding us he has an opinion and he is flexing it. Sometimes I would try to change them and he would kick his feet just enough to get me off of his shoes. His green shoes!!
So, he wore them, left on right, right on left, for months. And months. And months.
In September of 2009 I bought the boys new shoes, again, before school started. Ryder's are still new. Worn only several times in the last 6 months because usually he had to wear his "green shoes."
About six months ago the boys discovered the movie "The Sandlot" which opened their hearts and mind to the great sport of baseball. The main character in the movie, Benny, apparently wears shoes that remind Ryder of his black Converse high tops. Converse are adorable, and I love them on the boys, but they are near impossible to put on which meant that I never planned on owning a pair after the first pair I had bought. But, they are now Ryder's Benny shoes (to go along with the Benny jeans which I still have no idea why they were coined that.) But, Ryder wanted to wear his Benny shoes a little more often which gave me an opportunity I could not pass up. I threw away his green shoes.
Everyone told me just to do it then tell Ryder we could not find them when he asked for them. But, jewish guilt #999 set in so I told Ryder all about it.
"Ry, buddy, it's time to throw away your shoes. They don't fit. I want you to say goodbye!" This wasn't out of nowhere I had warned him for months that, eventually, I was going to get rid of the shoes. He looked at me. He looked at the shoes. Looked at me again, "OK." He looked at the shoes, "Bye, green shoes," then back at me, "Can I still wear my Benny shoes?"
It was that easy, it happened that simply. Maybe he does not love as deeply as I thought? Maybe the timing was just right. Amazingly, the Converse are not too hard to put on now that he is older and he can even do it himself. And, more amazingly, he chooses to wear them on the correct feet.
I looked at the shoes before I threw them out to the curb. I laughed. I like old, worn in things too. I almost could not blame the little dude. The soles were worn flat, the once navy blue was now a faded denim, the size, I should not admit, was a size and a half too small, and from looking at them it was hard to tell which shoe belonged on what foot because it was so worn in to the opposite foot. I wanted to save them as a memento, but then he would have worn them. Instead, I took a few pictures and posted them here. Ryder will look back at these pictures and laugh, maybe. Or cry. Or both.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
RYDER'S SHABBAT
Shabbat rock star Ryder
Shabbat Star being silly
He was supposed to be the Shabbat Star near Turner's birthday, a fact we had pointed out to him many times since Chase's Shabbat back in October, but that we week he got sick and we had to postpone his special day. Although he was disappointed he handled it like a champ and just said "I want to be Shabbat rock star when I feel better!"
His rescheduled date came and he was very excited. At one point, Ryder had asked me if he could wear his suit when he was Shabbat Star. Though it would have been adorable, it seemed like a little much for pre-school. Instead, I found him a cool sports jacket that he could wear with jeans. Since Ryder thinks dressing up is almost as cool as Spiderman his eyes widened the minute he tried it on.
When he got dressed the morning of he looked in a full length mirror did a silly dance that reminded me of his "I've gotta pee dance" (wait, maybe it was?) and giddily shouted "I look so handsome!"
He requested munchkins as his snack and a surprising "The Backyardigans and the Beanstalk," a book I had no idea he liked so much, as his story. Off to school we went.
As always, it was nice to be a part of their classroom for the small amount of time. Ryder's favorite part was blowing out the Shabbat candles. Chase seemed excited, and understanding, that it was his brother's day until he threw a bit of a fit when he thought he could not go on the Bimah with Ryder. But, brothers will be brothers, and in the end these two brothers love each other so, and Ryder allowed Chase to come to the Bimah with him! It wasn't until the end, when Ryder had to put his vegetable in the pot for the chicken soup song, that I decided to interject. I calmly said, "Chase, it's Ryder's day, You already had your special turn." He agreed and I got a nod from their teacher so apparently I did the right thing. Ryder went back to the Bimah to deposit his veggie without a fight!
I love watching the boys getting excited about things and love watching them amongst their friends in school so I am very excited for next Shabbat, when they are actually Shabbat stars together!
The star of the day
the star and his mommy
the proud big brother
silly again
Daddy and his big boys
brothers sharing the responsibility
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