Close Quarters

Spending several weeks on vacations have made the boys closer than ever.  They have always been pals but have become more inseparable because they have had to share close quarters with each other.  Once returning home they decided to continue this closeness and share a bedroom together.  This required a couple of changes to happen, we had to move Colby's full bed downstairs to the guest room and move the furniture in Lincoln's room into Colby's room.  They were, and are, ecstatic with the changes and seem to have no regrets about the decision.

As with any big move, respecting each other's space becomes a factor. For example, Colby has always called out to check  if he can get out of his room in the morning (even with a clock in his room) or called out to us in the night if he needs to use the bathroom (which he has been told he can just go). I was concerned that with his brother in the room with him he would continue to do this and wake Lincoln up even though I had made it very clear that he does not need to call out in the night.

We are two nights into this experiment and so far things have gone well.  Bedtimes have gone alright, Tom and I expected the talking and giggling and the boys finally fell asleep fairly quickly. The first morning I woke up to Colby in my face saying "Mom, do you think it's alright to flush the toilet or do you think it will wake Lincoln up?" I was quite startled but very proud (and tired) all at the same time.  And then last night, again being very startled at first hearing someone in the hallway, Colby got out of his room to use the bathroom.  After telling him for a year he finally does these things on his own so as not to disturb his brother.  He's such a good kid that in the future when he smacks Lincoln in the night to wake him up I'll have a hard time believing his brother but that's what being brothers is all about.

S'mores

Please excuse my absence for the last few weeks. As always the summer is spent relaxing...which means packing, cooking and doing laundry to go away on vacation. I did this in back to back weeks, it was lovely and wonderful but it took its toll on me and the boys.  I could have posted much sooner but Tom and I have started to watch the show Game of Thrones on demand and we are binge watchers so that has also weighed heavily on my absence.  My apologies, so without further ado, let me continue to fill you in on my life....

For the past three years a great group of friends have decided to vacation together.  Of course fabulous times are always had by all but what really caught my attention this year when I downloaded the pictures was the growth in the boys.  They look the same and yet the have grown so much.  The first year we went on vacation Lincoln still had his pacifier and we stuck him in a chair so as not to get too close to the flames when we did s'mores.



2012

2012

And the next year Lincoln upgraded his seat to a tricycle! Colby continued to rock the sideways bite is his own style. 

2013

2013

And this past year we let the kids have a bit more freedom, even getting a good laugh when Tom's marshmallows caught on fire! Again, the changes are subtle but they are maturing into amazing little men.

2014

2014

2014

Vacationing with great friends is a perk to the summer and having wonderful photos to look back on remind me of what fabulous summers the boys and I have.  I'm not ready to let go of summer yet so don't get any ideas New England!

Cousin Love

Happy belated 4th of July.  I hope you and you families had long, wonderful weekends. Tom, the kids and I loaded up the big tan van and headed to Maine with plans to see a wide range of family.

*I did not bring my camera to Maine. I could say that I wanted to really be in the moments and take them all it but the truth is I just forgot it. 

We set up home base at my parents house and had a great dinner Thursday night in and old mill in my hometown that was renovated into a restaurant. It was great to start the trip out with a quiet family dinner, just the 4 of us, for an easy transition into the busy weekend. We, like most of New England, had a rainy 4th but were still able to visit with almost all of Tom's extended family.  It's great to catch up with cousins that we don't see enough of.  Even trapped inside from the rain the kids enjoyed each other's company and the cousins got a chance to laugh together and tell some old stories. The following morning we celebrated the baptism of two of the cousins children (2nd cousins I think, I get so confused with the correct terminology) It was windy from the storm passing out but lovely and was nice to celebrate with the two beautiful little girls. 

The following day, Sunday, we headed out to visit some of my cousins that were vacationing in Maine. Another cousin (and her family) my Aunt, and my sister got the opportunity to all catch up, spend time with one another and see all of our children together. It had been too long since we had seen each other, I hadn't even met one cousin's husband (who was super nice & sweet).  Colby & Lincoln hit it off immediately with their 2nd cousins (or whatever relation they are) and ran around and acted as if parents did not exist. It was wonderful.

2nd Cousins enjoying birthday cupcakes
Photo from my phone (only one I took)
 

I was grateful to get such a great visit in with everyone.  We left and headed for home from there.  The entire car ride home I reminisced about all the great memories I have had with my cousins; 4th of July's in DC, skiing at Sunday River, hot summers on Sebago lake, holding my first baby, Sarah, in my arms, weddings and all the times in the middle.  It was great to make more memories with all of our cousins with promises made to not go as long the next time.

ABC's

It's summertime! Glorious, warm and lazy days have arrived.  We are taking the days in stride, sleeping late, eating fresh fruits and vegetables (from other people's gardens), having water fights and relaxing as much as possible. This is what summer is all about, right? For the most part yes. Colby starts kindergarten in the fall and to help keep what he has learned in preschool fresh in his mind I attempt to make fun activities for him to encourage this. Granted, I'm no homeschool expert, we do our fair share of counting rocks and worms but sometimes nothing beats old fashion flash cards with the ABC's on them.

Flashcards, clothespins and twine hung from the living room across the kitchen was all that was needed to make an ABC adventure.  (Oh, and a dog we were dog sitting for too) I'm sure the clothespins help some motor skills too but I was just looking to prolong the activity and make it fun for both Colby and Lincoln.  If they had a question or got stuck they ran down the hall to Lincoln's room to see the stickers of letters on his bedroom wall.

Colby confidently hung his letters in a row and was quite proud of himself.  Lincoln, like any younger brother, had to do it himself after Colby had completed it. They celebrated each others completion like a victory in a sporting event, running around, clapping and giving pretend trophies. I never said my boys weren't hambones!   It was fun for all and consumed a good morning but tomorrow we will probably put the flashcards away and have a good old water fight! It is summer after all!

The Worst Check-up Ever...

Katie R.

Want to feel like a better parent?  Read this.  I think this may rank as one of the worst check-ups ever, primarily because it's the appointment that will never end.  Seriously it's been a week of constant reminders and there is no end in sight.

Let's start from the beginning.  First, Wes went to drs appointment after a morning at camp and no nap. Worst scheduling my a mother ever.  Then, Andrew went to Daddy's office while Wes went to the doctor, and being daddy's boy that went over like a lead balloon. So we started out the appointment crying.  

Then he refused to get on the scale.  Throwing himself around, crying, screaming and basically doing anything to mortify me.  Eventually, I had to get weighed with him and then put him down to be weighed.  Awesome.  I basically trapped him against the wall to get his height and then the poor nurse fled the room as fast as her feet would take her.

A knock on the door and I look up to see a nurse holding a book for Wes to which he promptly screams "no".  I look again and the nurse is someone I had a drink with the previous weekend and this was the first time she has met my child.  Amazing first impression.

She leaves and the doctor then takes a 1/2 hour to get in the room.  This is how he finds Wes.  Yes he is eating a snack under the chair at the hospital.  Quite possibly the dirtiest place on earth.  He wasn't crying and I didn't care.  (please note the shorts int he photo, those come into play later).  And yes he has on a pink pull-up because we had to borrow it from a friend before the appointment

Wes did not cry for the doctor but he was as defiant as he could be.  He refused to talk but when he did, he ensured that he said something that would make me want to crawl in a hole.  For example, when Dr. Sam asked if he could say over 100 words I said yes and then Wes said "Dr. Sam do you want to play construction vehicles games on Mommy's iphone".  When Dr. Sam asked Wes if he could look in his ear to see what is there Wes said "there is poop in there".  When Dr. Sam said can you name body parts Wes said "just my stinky toes".

Finally when we could take no more the appointment came to a close.  Dr. Sam is amazing and funny and happy the whole time.  I can't get out the door fast enough and Dr. Sam says "By the way I think we are neighbors"  Oh My God.  Sure enough he and his wife moved in about 4 houses from us.  He probably is putting up a for sale sign right now.

As we pulled out of the parking garage this happened.  At 4 o'clock of course the worst time of the day.

It's over right?  Oh not so fast.  I get home and the phone rings.  Remember the shorts that were on the floor, apparently we left them there.  I say no problem my husband works there he can pick them up tomorrow.  

Did that happen?  Of course not.  Look what came in the mail today.

Not only do we probably need to find a new dr we can probably never take a walk in our neighborhood.

See don't you feel like a good parent?

Trip to the ER

It was going to happen eventually, the fall, the scream and the cut that means we are taking our first trip to the emergency room.

We were visiting family at the beach and had just come in from a great day in the sun.  Tom went to put the beach toys away and I marched the boys straight to the shower to hose off.  I stepped in first to get the water on and then I told Colby to come in and he took one step, slipped and hit chin first on the shower floor. I scooped him up and covered his chin immediately. Amazingly their wasn't much blood but when I finally looked I saw that the cut was deep.  I called to Tom and he instantly agreed we needed to go to the emergency room. We left Lincoln with his grandfather and a sandy Colby, Mom and Dad headed for the closest ER.  Luckily we were in Maine and I knew the location of the closest ER so we weren't driving blind following a gps to the nearest facility. I now will proceed with the bragging portion of this blog.  After the initial scream and cry of the fall/cut Colby did not cry at all. The entire car ride he sat with his wet facecloth held to his chin and then once arriving at the ER he answered questions the nurses and doctors asked him without hesitation.  In the picture above he has a cotton ball with lidocaine on it to numb the cut. We had to sit there for about twenty minutes to make sure that it had kicked in.  We told Colby he would need stiches and he seemed alright about it. (Thank you Doc McStuffins from Disney) The doctor was wonderful (she has two kids the same age as Colby and Lincoln) and knew how to handle the situation.  As she kept him talking she shoved the needle all around his cut. He mentioned that it stung a little but he wasn't bothered with her continuing to shove the needle in. Then she proceeded to stich up his little chin. 4 stiches latter and he was up for ice cream so off we headed to the nearest scoop shop for a treat for my little rock star. He could have asked for the moon and I would have promised it to him but all he wanted was some ice cream. 

Weeks later and the stiches have dissolved and all that remains is a little scar and a story to tell the rest of his life.  He was so brave! Tom and I couldn't be prouder and happier to have that under our belts.

Merry Christmas

We are fortunate to have wonderful friends and family. So fortunate that the boys get treated quite well at Christmas time and at their birthdays (which both fall somewhat close to Christmas).  Because the toys tend to build up, I have, for the past two years put toys away unwrapped but unopened.  The boys are usually overwhelmed with everything and don't realize I've stashed them away.

Fast forward six months and Colby and Lincoln have finished their preschool programs for the year and the summer is upon us. That means a lot of together time looking for things to do.  I went to the stash and pulled out a gem.  Several sets of legos and lego sheets to build roads/towns/houses on.  They would have loved playing with it at Christmastime but to pull it out as an end of year treat just made the day/week!

Lots and lots of little legos to step on but the joy and hours it consumes makes it worth the pain in the feet!  I still have a few more things packed away that will be perfect for a rainy summer day.