Well visit

On a normal day, a well visit to the doctor can be pretty taxing on the wee ones. That is, at least until the coming years when they know they will get a lollipop (AKA sucker to an Ohioan) and a Spiderman sticker when all's said and done. However, Amelia's visit to the doctor today was fairly atypical in most respects. She was a little nervous, but realized soon after most of her fears were unfounded. Instead of the normal slew of 6 vaccinations or so, today they only had to give her one, we didn't have to wait very long for the doctor, dad remembered to bring some snacks, and she had her good buddy Fred there providing emotional support. It doesn't get much better than that, well, except for when it's finally over. What's more, we even made it home exactly for nap time this afternoon.

Today we bid one of the remaining two a very merry Christmas farewell, as Fred begins his vacation today. Have a wonderful holiday celebration with your family, Fred. We will miss you.

A merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.



Until next year.

December 20

It's only been a couple years since I moved out of Florida and yet I've come to recognize 38 degrees and sunny as a beautiful day. It's funny how quickly your perspective changes on these things when it's not 80 degrees every day of December. In my book, it's a welcome trade off to deal with the chillness of Ohio winter in exchange for the oppressive heat of the Florida summer.

We decided to take a walk down to the library in celebration of the slightly unfreezing temperature in order to pick some books and return some due ones. Fred picked out a book about a gorilla escaping from the zoo...the train from Spain was late today as the ape pulled the brake and made an escape...actually it was a different title about 70% less annoying than that one. Amelia wanted to get a book by Eric Carle about animal motion because it looked yummy (It doesn't matter for what reason she loves books, just as long as she loves them). I obliged both requests and headed back home with our fine literature.

December 19

Christmas is coming and the goose is getting is getting fat, that's all I have to say about that.

Today we bid Zach a merry Christmas farewell as his vacation has henceforth begun. He will be happily spending the holiday with parents and grandparents whom I would like to wish a merry Christmas as well. Have a great time Zach, we'll miss you. BTW, thank you guys for the awesome frosty the snowman coffee mug. I have been needing a replacement mug every since my favorite mug, the "Handicup" Erin got me two Christmases ago, was broken in a tragic magic mishap. Elijah was swinging his Harry Potter wand next to our console table chanting some incantations and, as I was would like to understand it, made the mug and contents magically levitate off the table and onto the floor. The fact that it was done using magic almost made the whole thing worth while, but I do miss the mug. I suppose for a kitchen item to be used almost every day for the last two years is a pretty good run. They should all be so lucky.

It's been a great day for all of us. Fred and Amelia seem especially ecstatic today with grins from ear to ear. The Christmas bug bites at an early age and I'm thinking he's got a couple more aficionados to add to his list. There's no Krampus in this house.

Every so often we will have one of the cats on a brave streak hopping the baby gate for some attention from the little ones. It is such a rare and special treat for the kids, often not so much for the cat. Today, Tiki Tavi decided she'd give the gauntlet a try. Surprisingly, all three kids were quite gentle with her. We're lucky to have such a patient and gentle cat. She's taken quite a few hair pulls and tail tugs and not even made a peep. Most of the time I'd have to shoo her away for her own protection, but she'd always find her way back. I guess she knew that eventually the kids would start to understand what gentle means too and when they did, she'd gain three friends for life. Hey, it worked in her relationship with Elijah and Cordy, so it must be a universal truth.

Babes in Toyland

Elijah, the elder, is toy crazy. Every new store we venture into has at least one new toy he hadn't seen before, which he wishes to add to his wish list. He has changed his mind more times in a week than a central Ohio weatherman. Santa just can't keep up and is running low on white out.

Since both of our minds are on toys for the moment, I thought it might be fun to do a comparison to see which toy of Christmas past or future might best resemble each of the Mr. Steve Daycare three.

Some toys have incredible determination and a mind of their own and then there are others that sit in a box. Fred is definitely not the latter of the two. Fred would best be likened to a toy that appeared on my 7th year wish list. The LJN Rough Rider's 4 by 4 battery operated monster truck. So long as Fred is awake he is always moving in whatever direction he wants to go. It doesn't matter which obstacles are in his way, he'll just climb right over them with his four wheel (leg) drive. But even better than the Rough Rider 4X4 which freezes like a Galapagos tortoise as soon as you flip it over, Fred is far better adapted to all terrains whether backwards or forwards. Clearly, Fred would win in any off roading contest were the Rough Rider ever foolish enough to challenge him to one.

There are toys you love right out of the box, and none more than G.I. Joe Zachary. The resemblance you will notice first and foremost is that both are always smiling (You would never know it from any of my pictures so far, as he tends to get a little shy when the camera's on him). He's got the handsome and trustworthy look of someone you would happily lend you're car keys to...well, in about eighteen years or so. In addition, much like the freshly assembled GI Joe, whose joints are not quite broken in and loose, Zachary stands as stiffly as an Easter Island moai. He'd rather stand than sit any day of the week. I'm guessing that he will be like Elijah and go right to walking without messing around with that whole crawling thing...all the good stuff is on the higher up shelves anyway.


Amelia's alter ego toy is a little more slippery. So slippery in fact, that she's nearly impossible to hold, much like the Hasbro Swirl Motion Water Snake. You know, those balloons that squirm out of your hands onto the floor when you try to pick them up. That's Amelia. She never wants to cuddle with her dad or mom and would rather be exploring around the house. No matter how you hold her, she will continue to struggle until you set her down. Then she's off to go laugh with Elijah whose usually yelling, "Roar, Amelia, Roar!" and not using his inside voice. Santa is watching, always.

Oh yeah...that and she's a little bit squishy.

December 17th

As the night of yule approaches faster than Blitzen with a nitrous kit it's becoming near impossible to conceal the fact that I haven't yet fully prepared my Christmas bestowal. The family and I are frantically putting together many batches of assorted delicious Christmas cookies to give to our loved ones, one of which required a special expedition to the store for supplies today. The three of us bundled up (Fred is off today enjoying some quality time with his dad) and ventured out braving the fiercely cold winds and fiercely eager Christmas shoppers (I've since forgotten what it's like to stress about the holidays and trying to find that "perfect gift" for everyone...this is one of the only benefits of having neither a jobby job nor a disposable income).

During the outing, both tots took the shortest nap in the history of babykind and decided that it would be sufficient enough to face the remainder of the day. Anyone who knows babies knows that it is pointless to argue with them, so I just went with the flow and employed their assistance in making rum balls upon our return. Sure I may have violated several baby labor laws, but hey, if Santa can have his elves, why can't I have mine? *










*This is what is often referred to within literary circles as satire evident mainly in the fact that every single ingredient in a rum ball is a huge no no for babies even in a full haz-mat positive pressure suit. In addition, Mr. Steve stands firm on his position of discouraging elven labor exploitation.

When the elves lead, the Santas will follow.

December 14

Against my wife's advice, I have decided to post one of my favorite pictures so far. To the untrained eye, it appears that my daughter has Zach in a strangle hold and is about eat his head, but in fact this actually shows the moment before Amelia tenderly gave Zach a kiss on the forehead. She has become extremely gentle with him and very affectionate. It's very cute to see, so I wanted to share.



And a couple more for your viewing pleasure...








Weather dot com is saying we have a pretty good chance of getting some white stuff and maybe even pink and green stuff coming our way this weekend. Stay warm and stay safe.

December 13

Yo soy el mariachi del casa de Steve. I had a dream many years ago to live the high life of a rock and roll star. Today that dream was shared with three more newly converted fans named Zach, Fred, and Amelia. The afternoon was spent crooning away whilst strumming my acoustic guitar to several eclectic hits of yore. Fred especially enjoyed the blues style singing apparently as he almost leaped clear out of the excersaucer in delight. Amelia, my little groupy, sat criss cross applesauce with her arm on my leg just smiling away. Zach stared unwavering with his hands clasped in constant applause, although I think I may have heard him laugh once or twice. I can't really blame him, some of those notes I just plain missed. As exciting as it all was, no one was ready for an afternoon nap today, but even rock stars know, you gotta get your naps between gigs when you can get 'em.

Sometime silence can rock, too.

December 12

We have arrived upon the threshold of several important milestones among the Mr. Steve Day care triumvirate. Fred has discovered a newfound determination to join the rest of us in the ranks of featherless bipeds (save for my sister in law Erin who is currently a triped, but her ankle will heal and she'll be off those crutches in no time). This morning I have witnessed Fred taking several unassisted steps from the couch to the Leap table and furthermore he seems to be self aware of the action...**side note** Fred has taken a couple steps previously but did not realize he was not holding onto anything, so him actually TRYING to take an unassisted step is a pretty big, um, step. Still, I have yet to catch this on video, but I will keep trying.

Zach, to his dismay, remains a no-ped for the time being, however, is on the cusp of a transition of tremendous significance as well. He had been pondering that day when I accidentally laid him on his back for nap time and how it wasn't very groovy to him. Of these thoughts sprung the revelation that if any dolt in the future should happen to put him on his back for nap time, he could simply kick up a leg and correct the problem himself. Now, if only he could just get that elbow up and over, the world of nap time would be his oyster. I've assured him that in the meantime I will do my best to honor his preferences. Groovy.

I didn't really have a milestone in mind for Amelia when I started writing, so let me just go ahead and make something up on the spot. Season four of the hit Fox TV show "So You Think You Can Dance" is in the auditioning phase right now. Across the country, the scouts are searching high and low for the very best of the best dancers in America. I can tell them right now that they needn't look any further. Just having been on her feet barely a month now, Amelia is already presenting some of the finest dance moves that put the most talented breakers, waltzers, and crunkers to shame. Of course she may need props for the first few weeks (ex. couches, coffee tables, excersaucers, etc.), but once she can stand up on her own, there will be no stopping her.

Day care trade secrets- December 11

I know it's been a long time coming, but I'm sure a few of you have pondered the nagging question, "How does this guy juggle meeting the needs of three infants and keep them smiling all day long?"

Without divulging all of my trade secrets, let's just suffice to say that the task is not unlike a game of chess. Sure the playing field is not exactly level when the game begins, but the principle is one and the same. Lets just say that Amelia, Fred, and Zach are several of the stronger pieces, such as queens, or they could be compared with a special type of rook which can make all the moves that a queen makes, but are masculine...very masculine. Now imagine that Mr. Steve is a pawn. A powerless, small, and limited in mobility pawn. You might say that this would be impossible to thwart an onslaught of this magnitude, however pawns can be very useful in protecting just one single space that would otherwise result in a check mate. We will liken the check mate in this instance to "the great meltdown" where all three babies are simultaneously crying so loud that it startles them and makes them cry even louder, ad infinitum.

The move Mr. Pawn makes can be something as simple as a well timed bottle of milk or a "Hot Kid" brand honey cracker, but the key is making sure that I arrive at that space before they do. If perchance Mr. Pawn is ever caught slipping and does not see the check mate before it happens, well, pawns can also transmogrify into something greater if all else fails by moving into the last space at the opposite end of the board. In this case metamorphosing into a tech genius who is able to load a Baby Einstein DVD into the player and press play. Just five minutes of Baby Einstein in emergency situations magically restarts the entire game, much like the mulligan in the game of golf...but we'll reserve that metaphor for another day. Fortunately I've only had two days where the DVD was necessary, so right now I will knock on wood and give thanks to me lucky charms.

. . .

Zach is finally getting used to all the attention he's getting from Amelia (Fred has since diverted his sights to other things like our new glass fireplace screen we installed over the weekend. What can I say, he appreciates quality craftsmanship.). Whereas any other day Amelia would get a wide eyed look of horror from Zach as she clings to the side of the excersaucer and dances, instead, today she got a big smile. It looked like the start of a beautiful friendship.

When Fred and Zach wake up from their morning nap (Amelia was the short napper today, she will not win the longest morning nap prize today) we are going to try to get outside for a walk. Sure it's raining out there right now, but it is supposed to get up to a sweltering 57 degrees (F) and I don't want to miss out on that. I'll try to post some pics if we are successful.

December 10th

As quickly as the snow descended upon us, it has left us almost entirely with the great weekend melt. The once proud snowmen standing in our front yard are all but a handful of oversized random snowballs. Blankets of white have been replaced with blankets of wet. Much like the story of the famed snowman Frosty, however, we had a blast while it lasted.

It's full house again today (Friday there was only Fred and Amelia, as Zach had some shots to attend to. I'm sure he was as brave as he could be and only cried as long as he absolutely had to). All three clans are represented. It's as pure a symbiosis as any you would find in Nature, with Fred and Amelia perfectly content with ogling Zach and of course Zach perfectly content with ogling his motion activated light up star triggered by Fred and Amelia hanging onto the sides of his pack n' play. I'm not even sure I'm a necessary component of this entire equation...well, aside from the meal preparation, naptime coordination, diaper updates, comfort hugs, Christmas carols, and vaudeville dancing.

Over the weekend I purchased a new (to me) changing table from Craigslist.com (best website ever) for the downstairs making it much more convenient to change any one of hundred or so diapers I attend to in a day. Upon the first couple of uses I was convinced that the table had magical properties. Instead of the usual wrestling match I get from the two older babies, I got full cooperation and stillness. Amazing, yes? I thought so...until I realized that the only reason that they were not struggling was because the table is positioned across from our Christmas tree in full lighted splendor. If the tree continues to elicit this kind of behavior, I may be convinced to leave it up year round.

Hope weekends were great all around yet not slighted by the inevitable greatness of this week.

December 6, 2007

Nothing surpasses the beauty of freshly fallen snow. Now surely some would argue that it only remains beautiful until you must venture out into it. In my experience, however, focusing only on the beautiful aspect of a potentially negative thing is the best way to keep it from ruining your day, month, or season.

That being said, the four of us still have not ventured out into the winter wonderland to frolic in the snow. Something about the temperature being 8 degrees this morning pretty much made up my mind that today was going to be a stay inside kind of day.

It appears Fred has found himself a new friend in our gray cat, Hagbard, who has taken a liking to him. Hagbard comes to visit Fred next to the railing of the stairs and will sit there while Fred talks to him. I'm pretty sure Fred is trying to convince Hagbard to come over the railing and play with him. Hagbard is not sure that he wants to rush into the relationship that quickly.

Both Fred and Amelia have not lost any fascination with Zach. This morning while Zach was in the excersaucer, the two elder babies were hanging onto the sides and trying to show him the various features of the Evenflo Smartsteps 3000, like the dialing phone with a chew toy where the antennae should be. I could see that all the commotion was starting to turn Zach into excersauce so I put down the support legs to keep it from rocking anymore and found some other things to divert their attention away. A good time was had by all.

December 4, 2007

Since it appears that we have overcome the first day jitters (both for little Zach and Mr. Steve) evident in the fact that Zach was comfortable enough to take a 3 hour and 45 minute nap this morning breaking the previous record of 3 hours fifteen minutes held by a previous Mr. Steve's daycare student, Elijah Bernard (I'll have to break the bad news to him when he gets home from kindergarten), I have decided that proper introductions are in order.

Firstly we have my "full time" student Miss Amelia Avery. She's the one with the charming smile made doubly so by her dimpled right cheek. She'll be quite sad to know that Grammy has left for Florida while she was taking her afternoon nap but had a great visit and will see her in a couple weeks for Christmas. She loves dancing while playing the piano, sweet potatoes, her big brother and hiking. She is also happy to be gaining her first two bottom teeth while her brother just lost his. A bit of a funny coincidence for you to ponder.

Secondly we have Weihan, better known to some as Fred and others as 婴儿 (if google translator serves me correctly). He is best known for his ability to eat mass quantities at meal time and has the strength of a Clydesdale to show for it. Fred loves talking to us all(he's currently trying to teach us Mandarin but we're at somewhat at a disadvantage being of new world European tongue. (Fortunately he has the patience to match his superior power)), he loves to throw balls which leads me to conclude he will make a fine pitcher one day for the Boston Red Sox, and loves to sing along with Christmas carols.

Last but not least is our newest student, Zach. He's the smiley cuddly little guy with the bright eyes and wispy hair. His favorite things to do are snuggling (unlike a couple other babies I know who would rather crawl around and explore. Enjoy it while it lasts, guys), playing in the excersaucer and jumping in the jumpy chair. He's got incredible lift for a four month old and I could easily see him being a point guard for the Boston Celtics in a few short years. He'll be the first individual to go straight to the NBA directly from graduating elementary school.

December 3, 2007

What an exciting day... not just because it is Monday, because my mom is in town from Florida, nor is it because of the slight inkling of snow trickling down from above. No, something of a much greater significance has transpired today that will surely change the dynamic of Mr. Steve's day care for a long time to come. Mr. Zachary Mongold has joined our gang of three and is adapting quite nicely to the group. Fred and Amelia are very curious to say the least. They both seem to be very interested in playing with him although I'm not quite sure it's the soft and cuddly kind of playing that I would like to see, but at least they are learning to be gentle nonetheless. As a precaution, I'm making sure little Zach is just out of grabbing distance of their curious little hands until they can get a little more used to him being around. Fred and Amelia have been trying to say "Baby" all morning just in case my mom or I weren't quite sure what kind of creature Zach is. They are very considerate and informative that way.

Napping was a little bit of a challenge for Zach at his 9:00 nap time, but I think it was mainly my fault. Instead of laying him on his stomach like he prefers, I errantly laid him on his back (old habits are hard to break). Zach let me know in so many words that this was not the correct way, advised me that he was no longer in the mood for a nap, and to try again in an hour. I duly noted his point and complied as such. It appears we are now back on track and I'm all the wiser.

Fred has been telling us all about his Florida trip and making Amelia, Zach, and I quite jealous. He went on in great detail about how he wore shorts the whole time in eighty degree weather and that he hadn't had that much fun in as long as he could remember. He really seems to be talking and smiling a lot more today than he usually does. Perhaps he's trying to get to know Zach and my mom a little better, too?

Wow, it's almost three o'clock. Where did the day go?

Hope you are all having respectively great days. See you soon.

Steve

November 27-28

Sorry there was no blog yesterday. Sometimes it seems I have those days when I try to get a couple things done at nap time and a minute later I've got one of the two in the high chair for mealtime again. C'est la vie.

We spent yesterday looking at the Christmas tree (set up in the office, you'll notice, to keep young hands from trying to scale it) and singing Christmas tunes. Amazingly neither Amelia nor Fred had any negative criticisms of my singing.

We got outside briefly to swing on the swing in the backyard. Fred really seems to enjoy being in the swing but we got pretty cold pretty quick and had to come back inside to thaw out. I got some great pictures before we did, though.

Fred napped for about an hour each nap and ate like a champ, of course.

He has been sleeping this morning for about an hour and a half.

Today we are listening to some jazz classics and awaiting the arrival of Ryan and Zachary (the baby who will be staying here starting next week) so that Zach can get acclimated to our home.

Hope you are having a great day.

November 26, 2007

Well, not really too much to report on today. We opted not to venture out for baby laptime on account of the cold and rainy weather but we've been having a lot of fun here, nonetheless. Fred seems to be quite happy and well rested after the long weekend and it appears he must have picked up a new trick in the meantime (see pics below). He showed me how much of a big boy he is by holding his own sippy cup to drink milk at morning feeding time. He napped for about an hour this morning and has been asleep for the last forty minutes or so (1:54 right now). That's one of the nice things about the rainy weather, it's great for sleeping.

Hope your respective days are going well. We'll see you at quiting time.

November 21, 2007

Michael and Olivia,

I have set up this blog as a place I can post pictures and videos for you guys to look at. This way I can give you updates as to what we do in our day and how things are going.

Fred is having a great day today and is really enjoying spending time with Elijah and Nadine's family. Fred is definitely a people person and loves having the additional company.

He ate all of his oranges and drank very well for his morning feeding. He really seems to enjoy drinking from the sippy cup. He had a messy diaper after that, so hopefully he will be a little more regular from here on out.

We transfered his Pack N' Play up to our bedroom for his naps today as it is a little quieter and darker. This seems to have been a good move since he slept for two hours in the morning and an hour and a half in the afternoon.

These are a couple of pictures I have been meaning to post for a while, so they are not the most recent but thought you would enjoy them nonetheless.






Hope you three have a wonderful and long thanksgiving weekend.

Steve