My darling boy, why do you torture me so?

How can such an angel face be such a rascal? I ask myself this a lot these days. For well over a month now, Ivan has been teething. He is getting his eye teeth and I vividly recall Victor dealing with the arrival of these bad boys; it was also a very nasty scene. For some reason, these particular teeth seem to be the most painful to emerge. Every night, this poor baby (and his poor mama) have been awoken almost on an hourly basis.  As a result, I believe sleep deprivation is causing me to have frequent headaches. 

During the day, he is often cranky and quick to whine, especially when I am trying to cook. The teething is also causing some ugly diaper rashes which are even painful to the eye. 

I often find myself wondering when this particular teething phase will pass. It seems to be going on and on and so far, only one tooth is visibly cutting through his gums. Lord, have mercy.

On a more positive note, when he is in a good mood (thanks, Motrin), he is absolutely delightful, constantly coming up with new silly ways to move his body and talk more and more. He calls Victor "doo doo" and is still obsessed with "orseys" (horses) and "gucks" (ducks) and is getting better and better at repeating much of what we say. It really is amazing to see how quickly he is learning to talk, although he still does his share of baby babble; like for some odd reason, he calls bananas "lallys." As much as this age can be a challenge, it is also such a fun time full of unbelievably adorable moments, and I can not get over how ridiculously fast he is growing and changing from a baby into a little boy.  Despite being exhausted, I am trying to savor and enjoy him as much as possible (at least during the daylight hours.) 

Out in the Cold

The Thrill of Spotting an Airplane.

This is one of my oldest and dearest friends, Christina's two year old boy, Matthew. Christina and I go way back to the summer after I graduated high school. We both worked at the local mall as market research interviewers and share some hilarious memories of all sorts of crazy people we met through that job. I'll save that for another time. 

Anyway, she is one of my only close friends who has also recently entered motherhood and because of this I feel we have an even stronger bond than before.  I love seeing her as a mom, and a great one at that, and watching her dear sweet boy's transformation from day one. It is so amazing to watch a newborn baby so quickly change into a child with such a colorful and budding personality. I just adore that little guy and love being his Aunt Wendy. He and my boys are already having so much fun together and we are just getting a glimpse of the havoc they will reap together in just a matter of a year or two.  

These photos were taken the other week when Christina and Matthew came over for a visit. We had been in the house all day due to the arctic temperatures outside. I think one (or maybe all?) of the boys were getting a bit restless so we decided that a walk would do us good. We bundled up for a loooong five block trek up the street to the local cafe and then back home again, where we stopped at the playground that is a block from our home. The reason it turned into such a long excursion is because both Matthew and Ivan did not want any part of sitting in their strollers. Instead, they took turns pushing the baby stroller and walking freestyle. And of course for an 18 month old, there are many, many distractions along the way. I was itching to take some pictures and the two younger kids were having so much fun going down the slide and generally just breathing "fresh" air that it turned out to be the perfect opportunity to click away. The eldest complained about his hands being "soooo cold" but I am glad we ventured out because it turned out to be an invigorating outing for us all.

The Sound of Silence.

It is two days after Christmas and all through the house, not a creature is stirring, not even a cat. 

Finally, I am a getting a moment's peace. Ivan is taking his now one nap of the day and Victor is with his pop and the rest of the Hitch crew at the Please Touch Museum. Don't remember the last time I was able to catch up on my thoughts. Looking back on the past several days,  I can say it was a really lovely Christmas. We have been spending tons of time with family, in fact, today we will be going to my aunt and uncle's house for yet one more day of holiday indulgence. I swear I have gained at least 10 pounds, but I refuse to get on the scale to check. 

Both boys were totally thrilled with what Santa brought them. For Vic, it was a dragon Christmas and for Ivan, horses. Some of the gifts are already lost or broken. Imagine that.

As for me, I am absolutely wasted. Feel like I have had a cold or have been fighting a cold for several months. Trying to take care of the boys and keep the house from looking like a pig sty with no energy makes me feel overwhelmed and sort of blue. I believe my fatigue is due partly to hormones, partly to all the holiday mayhem but also I think having no time to myself is having an affect on my whole outlook on life. In 2009, I need to have some sort of real Wendytime. I haven't figured out what that may be yet. Maybe some sort of exercise class, like yoga, or even more appealing at the moment, a weekly movie night with my girlfriends. I don't know. I just think I need to make more time for myself or else a cranky lady, who has been appearing from time to time and whom no one likes, including myself, will be here to stay.   

Believe.

Today was our annual "Christmas in the City" trip with my mom and my brother's family. We did the Reading Terminal holiday train display, Wanamaker's (Macy's) light show, the same one that I have many memories of seeing as a child, a stroll through Dicken's Village,  a visit and photo with S. Claus and then a final stop at the giant Christmas tree at City Hall. We spent the remainder of the day playing, eating, talking, laughing at my parent's place. It was loads of fun, but I am almost too tired to form a sentence. 

Regarding the picture, Ivan is clearly not wanting to be on Santa's lap but he enjoyed observing him from a distance and even gave a high five to the jolly ole' St. Nick. Victor was very serious and told Santa as soon as he got on his lap that he wanted some mythical beasts book and a paint your own dragon kit that he saw at Barnes and Nobles. Hope they are still there. He is holding up his favorite toys of the week, a yoda head space craft and a cut-out of a spider monkey (from Spy Kids 2).

Must. Sleep.

Doctor, Doctor, Give me the news...

A cross-eyed moment.

Important business to discuss on his cellular phone.

"How exactly do I go about removing these here spectacles?"

I realize these shots are out of focus but I love them just the same. Two typical expressions from one silly goose.

Preshool Drop-out

So, here it goes...

I officially pulled Victor out of his preschool this afternoon. When  I picked him up yesterday, I ended up having an informal conference with his teacher and I got the sense she was frustrated and no longer willing to deal with him. She said she really doesn't think Vic is getting anything out of this experience. He constantly craves their undivided attention, which they simply aren't able to give to him considering there are 17 other children in his class.  During the structured activities, he seems to do okay but whenever there is free time, he does nothing but cry and ask to go home. SO, I thought the best thing to do for everyone involved was take him out of there and try something different. It wasn't the right place for him. At first I was upset and emotional, but the more time I have to think about it (I didn't sleep a wink last night, so tired) the more I realize that it really isn't THAT big of a deal. Victor is an amazingly wonderful child. So what if he has an extremely hard time being away from home and specifically, me.  He is only four years old. It is our society that urges us to get our children away from the home at such a young age, and that is why I was feeling the pressure and stress to get him used to school right away. Many children are okay with this transition but he is obviously not developmentally ready.  It seems unfair to him (and me) that I force him to be without me when I am home and able to provide him a loving and safe place until he is ready, which I know will happen eventually. In the meantime, I am going to be looking into different classes and programs, ones that allow the parents to be present. We really are in no rush.  If I have to home school him for a while, then I am totally fine with that.