Music Cave

Forts are for daddies...

Mommies make Super Duper, Fanciful, Fantastical, Uber Groovy Music Caves.

Owen scored an invite.  Oliver was very happy to share his cave with his brother.  Have I mentioned how obsessed he is with his baby?  Yeah he loves the kid just a little bit I think.

And then there was a rock slide and the cave collapsed.  Gee, Oliver... I wonder how that happened.  Cave or not, sofa cushions on the floor make for lots of fun.

Thankful for... cuddles.

I never thought Oliver would be a cuddler.  He gave us lots of big open-mouthed kisses but never a hug. He never layed in bed with us.  Never put his head on our shoulders.  I felt horrible whenever he was hurt or upset because he found no comfort in my embrace... that killed me.

I swore I would "ruin" my next child to make up for Oliver's lack of cuddling. 

Well Oliver has totally become a little love bug.  I don't remember exactly when it happened.  But he turned into such a sweet little boy.  His hugs make your heart sing, and he's very generous with them.  Back in July we went to a birthday party where we knew only 3 people, but he hugged EVERYONE there.  Yeah they all fell in love with him... they didn't stand a chance... his hugs are so genuine and deep you can't help but fall head over heels for the boy.

With his little brother here Oliver has become even more effectionate and loving.  He gives the baby lots of hugs and kisses and rubs his head gently.  I think he even says "I love you" but it's not at all clear.  And when he sees cuddling going on without him, whether it's either Nate or I holding Owen, or even Nate and I hugging each other, he very sweetly joins in. 

And at 5 weeks Owen is totally "ruined" and loves to be cuddled, carried, and to co-sleep.  I love it!

Not the Mama!

Who remembers this?

I do.  Not only do I remember this show, I remember all the words to the baby's song ("I'm the baby gotta love me, big purple eyes, I'm very cuddly...") as well as his catch phrase: "Not the mama!"

I think this is what Oliver would say if he could sometimes.  The only difference is that when the baby dinosaur (did he have a name?) said it, it was because the person he was saying it to was not his mama, and therefor unacceptable. 

In Oliver's case, it would be because he wants anyone but his mama.  Sad.

A few nights ago I gave Oliver his bath before bed.  Usually Nate gives him his bath.  But I thought, "Hey, I'm not pregnant anymore, I can handle bath time.  HEY! I'll put on a bathing suit and get in the tub with him.  How fun! We'll splash and laugh.  HEY!!! I'll make it a bubble bath.  He's going to have a great time."

Well he didn't.  He was so weirded out.  He didn't want me in the tub with him.  And then he wouldn't sit in the water.  He had goosebumps because he was cold but would not get in the warm water.  And when I asked him if he wanted to say bye bye to the water he couldn't drain the tub fast enough!

And then last night Nate gave him a bath... and Oliver DEMANDED he get in the tub with him.  And they laughed.  And laughed and laughed and laughed.  And I was going to go take pictures (because that's what I do) but I guess I was a little to offended to get there in time before the novelty wore off for Oliver.

Sometimes I really think he doesn't like me.  Like when he cried if I came near him on the swing in yard... but anyone else could give him a push.  Or when he freaks out if I make the move to get him out of his car seat.  But since having Owen, I've been getting back to being Oliver's not-pregnant mommy.  I love being able to wrestle with him again, chase him, toss him up, and even clown-roll around the living room floor with him.

So I guess he doesn't always hate me.  I do get plenty of moments like this.... when no one else is around.

No Lions, 2 Tigers and a Bear... OMY

The boys got a visit from their Grandpa, Nana and Aunt Andrea on Sunday.  Unfortunately Baby Daddy Natey Poo was working and missed out on our lovely day.  We had some gorgeous fall weather, so we took a trip to Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport.



Oliver did really well.  He loves being a big boy and walking around.  He also loves his grandpa.  Put the two together and he had a great day!

He is at a great age for the zoo now.  He listens better when we let him walk, he follows our gaze and fingers so we can point things out to him, and he can identify animals now so he is impressed by seeing the real deal.

And, once again, Owen was there, too... he just didn't know it.

And Nana was there too...

 ...but she was behind the camera this time.  Which means Mommy is in pictures, proof to the boys in the future that I really did do things with them!

Daylight Save Me!

Remember when "fall back" was a good thing? "Yippee...an extra hour of sleep!"  I remember.  That was before life with kids. 

As we changed to clocks at bedtime Saturday night, I realized... no one changed Oliver's internal clock, let alone explained to him that 7AM is the new 6AM... and Mommy doesn't do 6AM with a smile.

So yeah... Sunday was pretty much the longest day ever.  It was a good day.  Just long.  It felt like bedtime would never come.  Luckily Oliver was good-mood-goofy tired, as opposed to bad-mood-mommy's-gonna-run-away tired.

For anyone who doesn't know what goofy-tired is (but really, anyone with kids knows)...this is what it looks like:

This was all on his own.  Climbed up there and decided blowing raspberries would be fun.  Once again, I am thankful for a camera within reach.  Seriously...how funny is that big mouth of his!

Thankful for... this little face!

Look what I caught going on in my arms...

I was watching Oliver do something or other and looked down to see Owen making these funny faces and gassy smiles.

Thank goodness my camera is always right next to me!

Halloween Part 2: Anniversary & Reality Checks

Monday was kind of special around here.  It marked 2 years of wedded bliss for Natey and I...AND... it was Owen's first halloween.

We kept things pretty chill.  Oliver had yakked twice the night before so we spent the day relaxing and keeping an eye on his behavior.  He seemed pretty normal.  Phew.  He was in a very helpful mood actually and helped feed the baby his second ever bottle (Nate gave him his first bottle the night before).

Oliver seemed to nap well that afternoon, but then he woke up whining... which is never good.  It usually means an antsy, hard to please, still tired mood.  So I brought him out to the couch, propped him on the pillows and cuddled him up with a blanket.  He loved it.  Too much.  If he forgot how comfortable he was and moved, he would get upset and need me to tuck him in again.

This made me nervous.  He was so not himself.  But I kept telling myself the mood was emotional, he must have had a nightmare and it through him off...not illness related (turns out the kid had a case of mud-butt on the way, gross!).  This mood was a serious threat to my perfectly laid plans.

I could only hope that Nate's arrival home would pep up our boy a little bit.  And it did.  A package from Mema and Pepere in NH helped too.  Oliver got an awesome Monster Mash sound book... he totally gets a kick out of it!  Owen got a giraffe... can you tell how super psyched he is with it?!

So here's what was SUPPOSED to happen. Well first of all, it was supposed to be warm. Not so much. Nate was supposed to get home early and we'd take Oliver trick or treating early, before it was too dark and too cold. He was going to love it, walking down the sidewalk like a big boy and going from house to house holding up his pumpkin bucket and saying "Cheek-chee" (trick or treat) and "Buh-bye." Then we were going to come home and hand out candy to adorable children in adorable costumes.

What did happen:

Oliver was mellow.  We were concerned.  It was getting colder and colder and apparently Halloween doesn't start around here until it's pitch black.  Doesn't anyone have young kids around here?  We couldn't wait that long to bring him out... but we also didn't want to be the only schmucks ringing doorbells at 5:30.  So right as we decided to stay in for the night and sit down to dinner the doorbell started ringing.  FINALLY!  It was only pitch black out!

Oliver had a BLAST running to the door when the bell rang and handing out candy.  He said trick or treat, thank you, and bye bye... a very friendly candy hander-outer.  Eventually he let us put on his batman PJs...his costume for the evening.

It turned out to be a great night...totally different than what we expected, but once again our toddler taught us a new way to appreciate and enjoy things on a simple scale.

And after Batman (and the stupid group of teens ringing our bell after the light was off at like 9:30...WITHOUT costumes! grrr) retired for the evening, Nate and I plopped down to watch a movie together.  He had stopped at a Red Box on the way home and surprised me with the new adaptation of Jane Eyre.  So not his cup of tea... just another example of how much he loves me and knows that hauntingly romantic movie would be perfect for Hallowedding Hallow-versary.  And of course being the old folks we are... we couldn't make it through the movie and had to resume it the next night.

(PS- I didn't love the movie...wanted to... but as always, book was MUCH better!)

This picture cracks me up.

Drinking out of a cup like a big boy, while sitting in a baby seat with the illusion of muscles and monkey socks....priceless.