Elijah
Some missionaries spoke at the church we attended today. The second talk was about being a Gospel-Sharing Home. I was listening, because I was interpreting the talk to myself (which always makes me feel like an idiot, which is why I don't do it more often). I hadn't really given it a ton of thought, though, other than thinking that he gave a good story about his conversion. It struck me as one of those "Yes, yes. I should be doing missionary work, I get it" type of talks.
Sacrament meeting ended and before Elijah left for Primary he said, "Mom, I want to go over to the Jasper's house." The Jasper's are our neighbors. They're the cutest elderly people in the world, and they're great neighbors. But I wasn't making the connection to the sudden interest in talking about them. I asked Elijah to continue. "I want to read the Book of Mormon with them." What a cute, diligent boy. I asked him which part of the Book of Mormon he wanted to read with them and he said, "I don't know. I think I'll just start at the beginning." And with that he walked to class.
I listened to the talk. I was even paying attention. But Elijah was listening with an open heart.
For as rambunctious as that little boy is, he sure teaches us a lot about living the Gospel. His heart is nearly always in the right place. Have I told you about him and Rick? They've always had a strong connection, ever since Elijah was born. During Rick's prolonged hospital stay, Elijah was the one always reminding us to pray for Rick. In fact, I think he still includes him in his prayers, even though Rick is now home and doing "fine."
Here's what gets me, though. Since Rick has been home, Elijah has gone over to see him nearly every day. EVERY DAY. How many times have I personally been over? Three times, maybe, in the last month or so. Elijah goes over and talks to him, who knows about what. He checks his legs to see if Rick is increasing his muscle mass. He's so concerned. You can just tell that that little boy understands that he almost lost his favorite great Uncle, and he now is determined to take care of him.
It's just amazing to me. I have all those adult concerns. What if I don't have the right thing to say? Well, I can't go over anyway, cause I'm busy. He doesn't need me to go see him, he's fine. All those kinds of things go through my head. But Elijah just goes over. As Rick put it, "it's precious."
Teancom
And then there's Tank. The other day I asked him to help me do something. I forget what it was, but it wasn't a big thing. I'm used to the "I don't want to!" reaction that I get from some unnamed others, so I was shocked when after I told him thank you he said thank you right back. I asked, "For what?" He said, "For letting me help. I like to help." Aww.
Miciah
Honestly, Miciah has been getting on my nerves lately. She has lots more homework this year, and I think it stresses her out a little, and we all know that I'm already stressed out. Some days are fine, but other days aren't so fine. Then Rob and I are together over the weekends and I start back over at Monday feeling alright again.
But Miciah's awesome. She's still zany and likes being around us and her little brothers. She loves babies, particularly the nearly-toddler age, and wants to help take care of them all she can. She's writing a book for school and she's way excited about it. She's reading Harry Potter so much that she stays up til ridiculous hours and then is grouchy the next day and blames us for not getting her homework done (go figure that one out). Still, she's reading up a storm and acing Math tests and loving school. It's great.
Plus, she's hilarious. Even when she's mad, all I have to do is make a silly face at her and she's giggling and then making me giggle. She has so much positive energy.
Love those kids.
(Oh! And love that husband, too. In 2 weeks he has his first "professional" Great Thackeroni gig. Though, he's not going to let them pay him except with a piece of birthday cake. I've talked with Rob about this Great Thackeroni thing. He always downplays the compliments he recieves, but I tell him he shouldn't. Rob has a gift. Clearly it's not magic. That's obvious. It's making people happy. Making people smile. And he can do it in so many ways! He can sing, he's got zany accents he can pull out, fake magic he can perform. Know what I would do if given a stage and 10 minutes to make people happy? Fail miserably, that's what I would do. And THAT'S what people see. Rob has a gift that most of the rest of us don't. It's awesome.)
Showing posts with label Teancom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teancom. Show all posts
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
Natural Empathy
A few days ago Tank was upset about something and chose to express his frustration by telling me that he hates me. This doesn't really bother me. If the words come from a child who is biologically connected to me (as they often do), then I'm indifferent to them. My response ranges from "Thank you for telling me" to "I know" to "Well, I actually don't like you very much right now, either."
However, in Tank's case, for the last several months he's been telling me that he hates me over and over and over. My typical Respond by Not Responding doesn't work with that. I have to at least remove him to a different location because I don't need to be verbally abused, as fun as it is. I tell him that I don't like it when he tells me mean things like that, and then I send him to his room for a time-out.
It's all a very calm affair. And that's not even a lie. It's easy to be calm while disciplining Tank because he reacts so quickly to even the slightest amount of emotion. It means I don't have to fly off the handle to get his attention (as I used to with a certain older sister of his). If I yell at him, he sobs. If I even yell NEAR him, he sobs. And not a manipulative sob, either. A break-your-heart, I'm-a-horrible-person-for-yelling-at-him sob.
In this particular instance a few days ago, we were in the car headed to the library. I forget the ins and outs, but he wasn't reacting well to something I had told him (along the lines of "You can only get 2 movies, not 3"), and he started showing me his angry face. He pulled out some poutiness, and I was unmoved. He broke into the "I hate you"s. I told him that we could just go home if he was going to be mean, and then he didn't talk to me at all.
We got to the library and I held his hand and led him to a bench outside. We sat down and Tank stared at the ground. I tried explaining, all over again, that I really don't like it when he says that he hates me, mainly because I know he doesn't. "We're buddies," I said. "It hurts my feelings when you tell me that," I lied. I figured it was worth the lie if it would help him understand why we don't say mean things. Then I tried turning it around on him. "How would you feel if I told you that I hate you?"
And this is where Tank broke down. He started crying and fell into my arms and hugged me tight. I talked to him about how it doesn't feel good, that he wouldn't like it if I said that. Then we wrapped up the little chat, I helped him wipe his nose, and we walked into the library as buddies. And as we walked I was once again amazed at this little person who was born with natural empathy, something I lack. What a good kid.
It was really driven home the next day when he was talking about not wanting something. He kept on the 'I don't want' thing so long that I casually said, as I tend to do when a word is repeated for too long, "Well, maybe I don't want you." He stopped and looked at me. He re-stated his position and softened his words. And then I felt really pathetic when he said, "You want me now, don't you?"
Yes, Tank. Yes, I do.
However, in Tank's case, for the last several months he's been telling me that he hates me over and over and over. My typical Respond by Not Responding doesn't work with that. I have to at least remove him to a different location because I don't need to be verbally abused, as fun as it is. I tell him that I don't like it when he tells me mean things like that, and then I send him to his room for a time-out.
It's all a very calm affair. And that's not even a lie. It's easy to be calm while disciplining Tank because he reacts so quickly to even the slightest amount of emotion. It means I don't have to fly off the handle to get his attention (as I used to with a certain older sister of his). If I yell at him, he sobs. If I even yell NEAR him, he sobs. And not a manipulative sob, either. A break-your-heart, I'm-a-horrible-person-for-yelling-at-him sob.
In this particular instance a few days ago, we were in the car headed to the library. I forget the ins and outs, but he wasn't reacting well to something I had told him (along the lines of "You can only get 2 movies, not 3"), and he started showing me his angry face. He pulled out some poutiness, and I was unmoved. He broke into the "I hate you"s. I told him that we could just go home if he was going to be mean, and then he didn't talk to me at all.
We got to the library and I held his hand and led him to a bench outside. We sat down and Tank stared at the ground. I tried explaining, all over again, that I really don't like it when he says that he hates me, mainly because I know he doesn't. "We're buddies," I said. "It hurts my feelings when you tell me that," I lied. I figured it was worth the lie if it would help him understand why we don't say mean things. Then I tried turning it around on him. "How would you feel if I told you that I hate you?"
And this is where Tank broke down. He started crying and fell into my arms and hugged me tight. I talked to him about how it doesn't feel good, that he wouldn't like it if I said that. Then we wrapped up the little chat, I helped him wipe his nose, and we walked into the library as buddies. And as we walked I was once again amazed at this little person who was born with natural empathy, something I lack. What a good kid.
It was really driven home the next day when he was talking about not wanting something. He kept on the 'I don't want' thing so long that I casually said, as I tend to do when a word is repeated for too long, "Well, maybe I don't want you." He stopped and looked at me. He re-stated his position and softened his words. And then I felt really pathetic when he said, "You want me now, don't you?"
Yes, Tank. Yes, I do.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Transformers
My youngest son is obsessed with Transformers. He loves Optimus Prime and Bumble Bee and hates the evil Decipticons. He picked out Transformers underwear. He asks for Transformers fruit snacks.
But he's never seen a single Transformers anything. Not the movies. Not an old cartoon. Not a new cartoon. Nothing.
Still, he loves them. I don't understand why there should be such a draw when he's never seen a Transformers show.
This is some of the feedback he's given me lately about me not letting him watch the first Transformers movie, which we own:
"I hate this house."
"I wish WE [the kids] were allowed to watch the movie and YOU [the parents] weren't."
"I hate you."
This is apparently a huge issue for Tank.
Yesterday he was on a long drive with Rob and they listened to the entire Transformers score. Not the soundtrack with lame songs including words, but the instrumental pieces. You know, reason #2 to watch the movie (follows, of course, reason #1, which is Peter Cullen's Optimus Prime voice; and is followed in turn by reason #3, which is robots fighting robots. There are no more reasons). Tank was super into it. While listening to one song he said, "This one sounds sad," and it was Bumblebee Captured. Another one was Optimus vs. Megatron. Near the end he said, "Ooh, it sounds like Optimus just won." Perceptive.
Today, while telling me about the songs, he said, "Mom, you know which one is the best?" Trying to guess his favorite song, I said, "Umm, Arrival to Earth?" He looked at me like I was stupid and said, "Noooo, the best TRANSFORMER." I giggled. "Oh! That's Optimus." He nodded sagely.
All of this is to say 2 things:
1 - I don't feel bad not letting my 5-year-old son watch Transformers.
2 - I've decided to let my 5-year-old son watch Transformers.
I mean, really, what are my objections?
It's violent. Our kids have watched all 3 Lord of the Rings movies. Check on violence.
It's a little racy. Umm, he's 5. Is he even going to really notice? That engine scene passes quickly, and movie #1 keeps it pretty veiled. (But that's a HELL NO for movie #2, for sure. We don't own that one for a reason. Actually many reasons, but mainly that it was just a sucky movie.)
So tonight we're going to have a special mom-dad-Tank date night and watch Transformers. (The other kids are with Grandma and Grandpa. They've also never seen Transformers. Actually, I take that back. I think their uncle let them watch it with him. They weren't impressed with the movie.) Don't be concerned for my eternal welfare. I promise that if I'm going to Hell, it's for many, many other reasons.
On a related note, these days Tank is also really into chomping ice.
But he's never seen a single Transformers anything. Not the movies. Not an old cartoon. Not a new cartoon. Nothing.
Still, he loves them. I don't understand why there should be such a draw when he's never seen a Transformers show.
This is some of the feedback he's given me lately about me not letting him watch the first Transformers movie, which we own:
"I hate this house."
"I wish WE [the kids] were allowed to watch the movie and YOU [the parents] weren't."
"I hate you."
This is apparently a huge issue for Tank.
Yesterday he was on a long drive with Rob and they listened to the entire Transformers score. Not the soundtrack with lame songs including words, but the instrumental pieces. You know, reason #2 to watch the movie (follows, of course, reason #1, which is Peter Cullen's Optimus Prime voice; and is followed in turn by reason #3, which is robots fighting robots. There are no more reasons). Tank was super into it. While listening to one song he said, "This one sounds sad," and it was Bumblebee Captured. Another one was Optimus vs. Megatron. Near the end he said, "Ooh, it sounds like Optimus just won." Perceptive.
Today, while telling me about the songs, he said, "Mom, you know which one is the best?" Trying to guess his favorite song, I said, "Umm, Arrival to Earth?" He looked at me like I was stupid and said, "Noooo, the best TRANSFORMER." I giggled. "Oh! That's Optimus." He nodded sagely.
All of this is to say 2 things:
1 - I don't feel bad not letting my 5-year-old son watch Transformers.
2 - I've decided to let my 5-year-old son watch Transformers.
I mean, really, what are my objections?
It's violent. Our kids have watched all 3 Lord of the Rings movies. Check on violence.
It's a little racy. Umm, he's 5. Is he even going to really notice? That engine scene passes quickly, and movie #1 keeps it pretty veiled. (But that's a HELL NO for movie #2, for sure. We don't own that one for a reason. Actually many reasons, but mainly that it was just a sucky movie.)
So tonight we're going to have a special mom-dad-Tank date night and watch Transformers. (The other kids are with Grandma and Grandpa. They've also never seen Transformers. Actually, I take that back. I think their uncle let them watch it with him. They weren't impressed with the movie.) Don't be concerned for my eternal welfare. I promise that if I'm going to Hell, it's for many, many other reasons.
On a related note, these days Tank is also really into chomping ice.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Other Stories
On to the other stories.
Is it a Whale or a Dolphin?
We went to a graduation party at a park on the Ohio River. I'd never been to the park before, but I'll definitely go again. It was wooded all the way down to the river, and the Kentucky side of the river was all wooded, so it had a nice Traveled Back in Time feeling. 1850's Americana. Where's Huck Finn's raft when you need it?
The kids had a great time walking along the river bank and touching the (nasty-looking) water. There were several fisherman along the bank, and the kids were enjoying talking to them. Especially Tank. He wanted to know all about what they were fishing for. Fortunately, the fisherman was pleasantly chatty and this end of the conversation happened, as reported by the 12-year-old who was present:
Tank: Do you think you'll catch a whale or a dolphin?
Fisherman: I think I'll catch a fish.
Tank: I think you'll catch a dolphin.
We have since shortened it to "Is it a whale or a dolphin?"
Teancom's Fear of Babies
We brought dinner over to a family who recently had a baby. When we went, the baby was about a week old. SO cute and SO little. (I forget that they come so little. It's always a pleasant surprise to see such a new human.) Tank wanted to come, and I thought it was so he could see his friend's little sister. I thought that was a cute sentiment.
We entered the house and I set down the 9x13 and then stood by the couch, oogling at the adorable baby. Where was Tank? Cowering behind my legs. There was another adult there, a stranger to Tank, and I thought maybe Tank was scared of her. He does things like that sometimes. But no, it was the baby.
I did everything I could think of to make him look at the baby. I held him. He turned away. I turned his face toward her. He covered his eyes. I tried to uncover his eyes. He clung to my neck like a frightened monkey. I put him down and tried holding the baby myself. He buried his face between my legs. I knelt down and put the baby right next to him. He turned his back.
Whatever. It was funny that he thought this little baby was so threatening. It wasn't even OUR baby!
Later I asked him why he wouldn't look at the baby. He said, "I just didn't want to."
Fights During Sacrament Meeting
Church is relatively non-eventful these days. At least kid-wise. I teach Gospel Doctrine, and that can be exciting or stressful or whatever, but the kids are pretty tame. Tank still doesn't like going to class, but that's old hat now.
It came as a surprise, then, when I started getting annoyed at Elijah before we were more than 10 minutes into sacrament meeting. Elijah had a stuffy nose and when he gets one he snorts and plays with his nose, and it's obnoxious. Especially when everyone's trying to be quiet and reverent. (Yes, I know he's only 7.)
I sent him to the bathroom to blow his nose. I assume he did that, but you never know. He came back and immediately was back to snorting and blowing and nastiness. Then the sacrament started. You know, when everyone is trying to be really, really quiet. I was starting to get really, really annoyed. Usually around this point in the Escalating Annoyance Process (EAP), I turn to Rob to try to help. This was no exception. I asked Rob to take Elijah to the bathroom to help him blow his nose. Rob pointed out that Elijah had already done that and normally there's not much to be done anyway. I glared at Rob. And then I continued being really, really annoyed. Another notch up on the EAP.
I'm not claiming that I was rational beyond this point. I asked Elijah to sit somewhere else. I told Rob that, fine, I would sit somewhere else. Rob said, "There's a time and a place to take care of things and in the middle of the sacrament is not the time. I'll take care of it after it's over." I was livid. I was glaring at Rob on one side and Elijah on the other.
And then Elijah snorted again and this time there was nastiness all down his face. I turned slowly, dramatically, and looked at Rob like, "Oh, I will kill you." Without a word he got up and took Elijah to the bathroom. What was I thinking right then? "I TOLD you!" and "NOW it's a good time to take him to the bathroom!" and "GLAD we weren't DISRUPTIVE or anything!"
Rob was gone for what seemed a very long time. I spent the rest of the meeting calming down. Rob and Elijah re-joined us for the very end of the meeting. Turns out Rob had taken Elijah home and let him take some cold medicine. What a good daddy he is.
After I said the final "Amen," I turned to Rob and said an almost-calm, "I'm sorry." He hugged me and I hugged him back.
We've had some difficult sacrament meetings, but this was the first time that I'd had a whispered argument with my husband through the most reverent part of it. Awesome.
Elijah and the Book of Mormon
But those moments are worth it. I'm not saying they're good moments, or that I'd like to repeat them. But they're worth it when I realize that my children are learning something. That they're growing in the Gospel.
Last week Elijah asked if he could get on Google. I asked him why. He said he wanted to look up who wrote the Book of Mormon. I said, "Elijah, you know that." We then had a short discussion about how Joseph Smith translated it, but that ancient prophets had written different sections of the Book of Mormon.
(Plus, googling the Book of Mormon might not be something I want my 7-year-old doing. You never know what hits you're going to get.)
A few minutes later I found him on Google. He'd typed in something like, "Did Joseph Smith have helpers or did he do it himself?" And the page he was reading was a scholarly-type article about Joseph Smith and the translating process, complete with bullet points. I scanned it to make sure it wasn't anti-Mormon, and then I left Elijah alone.
I came to me when he was done and said, "Mom, did you read that article?" I told him I had. "Wasn't it interesting?" I smiled. "Yes, it was."
Elijah asked how he could learn more about church history and about Joseph Smith. Then he answered his own question by saying, "Oh, I know. I could read Joseph Smith History." I told him that was a good idea. He said, "Yeah, but it's really long." I told him that was true. He has since read most of it.
Elijah is our child who is interested in the Gospel. He wants the Priesthood because he wants to have the power of God. He reads the Book of Mormon from time to time. And he asks us how he can know that the Book of Mormon is true. Actually, that one was funny. He asked Rob how he could know if things are true. And then to clarify, he said, "You know, like if Google doesn't know."
Oh, the mighty Google.
His Sunday School teacher taught him the scripture, "And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." He made this piece of artwork to go along with it:
Love that Elijah.
I'm glad we have moments like that amidst all the crazy moments, or even all the normal moments. Helps remind me that it's all worth it. It's all worth it.
Is it a Whale or a Dolphin?
We went to a graduation party at a park on the Ohio River. I'd never been to the park before, but I'll definitely go again. It was wooded all the way down to the river, and the Kentucky side of the river was all wooded, so it had a nice Traveled Back in Time feeling. 1850's Americana. Where's Huck Finn's raft when you need it?
The kids had a great time walking along the river bank and touching the (nasty-looking) water. There were several fisherman along the bank, and the kids were enjoying talking to them. Especially Tank. He wanted to know all about what they were fishing for. Fortunately, the fisherman was pleasantly chatty and this end of the conversation happened, as reported by the 12-year-old who was present:
Tank: Do you think you'll catch a whale or a dolphin?
Fisherman: I think I'll catch a fish.
Tank: I think you'll catch a dolphin.
We have since shortened it to "Is it a whale or a dolphin?"
Teancom's Fear of Babies
We brought dinner over to a family who recently had a baby. When we went, the baby was about a week old. SO cute and SO little. (I forget that they come so little. It's always a pleasant surprise to see such a new human.) Tank wanted to come, and I thought it was so he could see his friend's little sister. I thought that was a cute sentiment.
We entered the house and I set down the 9x13 and then stood by the couch, oogling at the adorable baby. Where was Tank? Cowering behind my legs. There was another adult there, a stranger to Tank, and I thought maybe Tank was scared of her. He does things like that sometimes. But no, it was the baby.
I did everything I could think of to make him look at the baby. I held him. He turned away. I turned his face toward her. He covered his eyes. I tried to uncover his eyes. He clung to my neck like a frightened monkey. I put him down and tried holding the baby myself. He buried his face between my legs. I knelt down and put the baby right next to him. He turned his back.
Whatever. It was funny that he thought this little baby was so threatening. It wasn't even OUR baby!
Later I asked him why he wouldn't look at the baby. He said, "I just didn't want to."
Fights During Sacrament Meeting
Church is relatively non-eventful these days. At least kid-wise. I teach Gospel Doctrine, and that can be exciting or stressful or whatever, but the kids are pretty tame. Tank still doesn't like going to class, but that's old hat now.
It came as a surprise, then, when I started getting annoyed at Elijah before we were more than 10 minutes into sacrament meeting. Elijah had a stuffy nose and when he gets one he snorts and plays with his nose, and it's obnoxious. Especially when everyone's trying to be quiet and reverent. (Yes, I know he's only 7.)
I sent him to the bathroom to blow his nose. I assume he did that, but you never know. He came back and immediately was back to snorting and blowing and nastiness. Then the sacrament started. You know, when everyone is trying to be really, really quiet. I was starting to get really, really annoyed. Usually around this point in the Escalating Annoyance Process (EAP), I turn to Rob to try to help. This was no exception. I asked Rob to take Elijah to the bathroom to help him blow his nose. Rob pointed out that Elijah had already done that and normally there's not much to be done anyway. I glared at Rob. And then I continued being really, really annoyed. Another notch up on the EAP.
I'm not claiming that I was rational beyond this point. I asked Elijah to sit somewhere else. I told Rob that, fine, I would sit somewhere else. Rob said, "There's a time and a place to take care of things and in the middle of the sacrament is not the time. I'll take care of it after it's over." I was livid. I was glaring at Rob on one side and Elijah on the other.
And then Elijah snorted again and this time there was nastiness all down his face. I turned slowly, dramatically, and looked at Rob like, "Oh, I will kill you." Without a word he got up and took Elijah to the bathroom. What was I thinking right then? "I TOLD you!" and "NOW it's a good time to take him to the bathroom!" and "GLAD we weren't DISRUPTIVE or anything!"
Rob was gone for what seemed a very long time. I spent the rest of the meeting calming down. Rob and Elijah re-joined us for the very end of the meeting. Turns out Rob had taken Elijah home and let him take some cold medicine. What a good daddy he is.
After I said the final "Amen," I turned to Rob and said an almost-calm, "I'm sorry." He hugged me and I hugged him back.
We've had some difficult sacrament meetings, but this was the first time that I'd had a whispered argument with my husband through the most reverent part of it. Awesome.
Elijah and the Book of Mormon
But those moments are worth it. I'm not saying they're good moments, or that I'd like to repeat them. But they're worth it when I realize that my children are learning something. That they're growing in the Gospel.
Last week Elijah asked if he could get on Google. I asked him why. He said he wanted to look up who wrote the Book of Mormon. I said, "Elijah, you know that." We then had a short discussion about how Joseph Smith translated it, but that ancient prophets had written different sections of the Book of Mormon.
(Plus, googling the Book of Mormon might not be something I want my 7-year-old doing. You never know what hits you're going to get.)
A few minutes later I found him on Google. He'd typed in something like, "Did Joseph Smith have helpers or did he do it himself?" And the page he was reading was a scholarly-type article about Joseph Smith and the translating process, complete with bullet points. I scanned it to make sure it wasn't anti-Mormon, and then I left Elijah alone.
I came to me when he was done and said, "Mom, did you read that article?" I told him I had. "Wasn't it interesting?" I smiled. "Yes, it was."
Elijah asked how he could learn more about church history and about Joseph Smith. Then he answered his own question by saying, "Oh, I know. I could read Joseph Smith History." I told him that was a good idea. He said, "Yeah, but it's really long." I told him that was true. He has since read most of it.
Elijah is our child who is interested in the Gospel. He wants the Priesthood because he wants to have the power of God. He reads the Book of Mormon from time to time. And he asks us how he can know that the Book of Mormon is true. Actually, that one was funny. He asked Rob how he could know if things are true. And then to clarify, he said, "You know, like if Google doesn't know."
Oh, the mighty Google.
His Sunday School teacher taught him the scripture, "And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." He made this piece of artwork to go along with it:
I'm glad we have moments like that amidst all the crazy moments, or even all the normal moments. Helps remind me that it's all worth it. It's all worth it.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
A Bedtime Story
We were coming home, all 5 of us in the car. It was bedtime, and I have a thing about arriving home around bedtime: before we get out of the car, I always explain what I expect of the kids when we get inside the house. They're pros at it now. The talk usually goes like this:
Me: "Okay. What's going to happen as soon as we get home?"
Them: "Get our pajamas on and go to bed."
Me: "Excellent."
This time Rob was with us, so the talk was a little different. Rob promised them fun things if they got their pajamas on super fast. The first person would get a piggyback ride to bed. Second place was getting a zurbit (sp?). The kids, for some reason, didn't know what a zurbit was, so they were excited about it (in case you use different language, a zurbit is also called a raspberry. You know, the blowing on the tummy thing. Tickles like crazy). And third prize was a hug. Not as cool as a piggyback ride, but still alright.
When we got home Teancom and I were the first out of the car. While the other 3 were fiddling with something in the car, I walked with Tank into the house, hand in hand. In a normal conversational tone, he said, "I know I'm going to be last." I half-smiled to myself and then asked, "How do you know?" "I'm always last."
There was complete acceptance in Tank's voice, which surprised me. He wasn't anxious about losing. He wasn't depressed about it. He knew what was going to happen, and he was okay with it. I tried to cheer him up about it. "Well, you'll get a hug!" He wasn't buying it. "I don't want a hug. I want a piggyback ride to bed." I looked back at the car, with all 3 of the others still occupied, and saw my moment to be a conspirator. "Well, how about I help you and you'll be done first?!" "Yeah!"
We rushed into the house. I practically ran into his room to get his pajamas while Tank ripped off his coat and shoes. His clothes were off in a jiffy and I pulled the pajamas onto him. "Now, go!" Tank ran into the living room as the others were walking into the house and proudly announced, "I'm done!"
They were shocked. Tank, the boy who always loses without minding, had won the contest before they had even started. Miciah and Elijah took off running, trying to secure 2nd place, and Miciah came out the winner by a matter of seconds. Elijah cried. Turns out they all really wanted that piggyback ride.
The happy ending was that Rob gave all 3 of the kids any and all of the prizes that they wanted. Miciah and Elijah wanted the zurbits, but after seeing what it was, Tank wasn't interested. They all got hugs, and then they all got piggyback rides.
Though I didn't get any of those prizes, come to think of it. I didn't get my pajamas on fast, either. So I guess it's all fair.
Me: "Okay. What's going to happen as soon as we get home?"
Them: "Get our pajamas on and go to bed."
Me: "Excellent."
This time Rob was with us, so the talk was a little different. Rob promised them fun things if they got their pajamas on super fast. The first person would get a piggyback ride to bed. Second place was getting a zurbit (sp?). The kids, for some reason, didn't know what a zurbit was, so they were excited about it (in case you use different language, a zurbit is also called a raspberry. You know, the blowing on the tummy thing. Tickles like crazy). And third prize was a hug. Not as cool as a piggyback ride, but still alright.
When we got home Teancom and I were the first out of the car. While the other 3 were fiddling with something in the car, I walked with Tank into the house, hand in hand. In a normal conversational tone, he said, "I know I'm going to be last." I half-smiled to myself and then asked, "How do you know?" "I'm always last."
There was complete acceptance in Tank's voice, which surprised me. He wasn't anxious about losing. He wasn't depressed about it. He knew what was going to happen, and he was okay with it. I tried to cheer him up about it. "Well, you'll get a hug!" He wasn't buying it. "I don't want a hug. I want a piggyback ride to bed." I looked back at the car, with all 3 of the others still occupied, and saw my moment to be a conspirator. "Well, how about I help you and you'll be done first?!" "Yeah!"
We rushed into the house. I practically ran into his room to get his pajamas while Tank ripped off his coat and shoes. His clothes were off in a jiffy and I pulled the pajamas onto him. "Now, go!" Tank ran into the living room as the others were walking into the house and proudly announced, "I'm done!"
They were shocked. Tank, the boy who always loses without minding, had won the contest before they had even started. Miciah and Elijah took off running, trying to secure 2nd place, and Miciah came out the winner by a matter of seconds. Elijah cried. Turns out they all really wanted that piggyback ride.
The happy ending was that Rob gave all 3 of the kids any and all of the prizes that they wanted. Miciah and Elijah wanted the zurbits, but after seeing what it was, Tank wasn't interested. They all got hugs, and then they all got piggyback rides.
Though I didn't get any of those prizes, come to think of it. I didn't get my pajamas on fast, either. So I guess it's all fair.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Today's Update
From Rob
Since it's all said and done, I guess I'll write about it. Back in the Fall Rob applied for a dream job - a tenure-track professorship at a small liberal arts college about 20 minutes from our house. The biology department there is a close-knit group of delightful people, and we were both really hopeful about Rob's chances.
In December he got a phone interview (which ended up being a face-to-face interview, which was fine by Rob), and then in early January he got the Real interview, which was 6 hours worth of presenting, meeting people, etc. He met with the Dean of the department, the President of the college, and the entire department. It was pretty intense, but again everyone was really nice.
The next week Rob heard back. There were 2 positions open, and Rob was in the top 3. After much debate, they chose the other 2. So, happy 3rd place to Rob!
No crying for us, though. Strangely, we weren't sad about it at all. I mean, it was disappointing, and it would have been a great job. But after Rob went and interviewed, all the anxiety went away. He felt really good about the interview, he felt like he showed them who he is and what he's about, and there's really not much else you can ask for in an interview process. On top of that, Rob has a great job right now, things are stable, his boss is a goddess, and we're happy.
Also, it was Rob's birthday on Wednesday. And he shaved off his beard. Those were unrelated events.
From Tamra
As of 2 days ago, I officially own the van sitting in my driveway. So I guess I can't say it's my parents' van any more. It's a 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan. It's served my parents well for all this time, and the odometer proves it: 377,000 miles. Did you even know that number existed?! It's awesome. I want to walk around saying to people, "Guess how many miles my van has on it."
We intend to use it lightly. As I see it, the van's put in good time and deserves a rest period before the end comes. We're hoping that it lasts a year or two, and I think that's reasonable if we don't stress it out. It's really nice to be able to go to the store during the day, to the museum with Tank, etc. Hurray!
And I would insert another picture of it, but it's still covered in snow, and do you really need a picture of our van? No. You'll live.
From Miciah
She's still being Miciah. She reads and reads and reads, till all hours of the night. She's still doing piano and likes it when she's not whining about practicing. In general, though, her whining has gotten much better. She's a delightful 9-year-old and I have a good time with her. It's amazing how not yelling at someone every day really changes your relationship with that person. The tension that's always been there between us is less and less every day. We'll sit next to each other and just make each other laugh. It's lovely!
Miciah is still acing school with little effort. She was accepted into her school's gifted program for language arts starting next year. I think it means they'll actually try to challenge her, which is good. When I explained to her what the program was supposed to be like, to see if she wanted to do it, she said, "Language arts is so easy." Yes, sweetie, that's why they want to put you in an advanced class. Miciah also gets lots of comments from her teachers about how nice and respectful she is, which is something we expect from her. She's a great kid.
From Elijah
Elijah is crazy hyper most nights, and I'm counting down the days till good weather. He gets worse as he gets more tired, and by 8:00 it's almost intolerable. One night I told Tank and Elijah they had to go to bed. Tank said, "How come Miciah gets to stay up?" "Because Miciah doesn't get crazy when she's tired." Tank thought about that and then said, "But she gets whiny." Good point.
Elijah is a softie. We're only 1 movie away from finishing the Star Wars "saga," and he's still sad for Darth Vader. All through movies 4 and 5, while Vader was doing horrible things to people, Elijah was saying things like, "But he's still good, right?" No! He's not! Rob did tell him that there is some sort of happy ending for him, just so Elijah wouldn't freak out.
Elijah is also the kid who reminds us to read scriptures at night. If I suggest (because I'm lazy sometimes) that we just skip it, Elijah gets upset. He loves to read the verses, and he's getting pretty good. Scriptures are great, cause there are lots of big words to challenge new readers, but also lots of repetition to give them confidence. If they can't read anything else, they can always get "and it came to pass."
And a good Elijah story. Rob was gone and I was putting the kids to bed, but I was also really, really grumpy for no reason. So I told Elijah to go to bed and I'd be in to tuck him in "in a second." I needed some time to sit on the couch and just breathe before I went in there. You know, enjoy the silence for a few moments. As Elijah was walking to his room, and I was reassuring him that I'd be in "in a second," he said, "Does a second mean a minute to a parent?" Hmm. Apparently the answer to that is yes.
From Teancom
Tank's accomplishment for the week: Playing at the museum for 3 hours! We've had a museum membership for the majority of the time we've lived here. It's a great place for the kids, and they've loved it. Except for Tank in the last few months. We'd go and he'd throw a fit the entire time (I think I wrote about it). SO frustrating. So we decided that when the pass came up for renewal, we wouldn't do it. What's the point, if he's just going to throw fits the whole time?
On Saturday we took all 3 of the kids, and I was surprised by the fact that all 3 of them were really into it. I kinda thought that Miciah and Elijah were getting too old for the Children's Museum. Apparently not. So I told them that I'd give it a couple tries with Tank, see if he liked it better now. And he played happily. No fits, even when we left.
While we were there he asked me to crawl through the Woods area with him. There are tunnels and ladders and a slide. It's pretty great. I told him that I'd play for 10 minutes and then he needed to play on his own. He thought that was acceptable. So I took my coat, my purse, and my library copy of The Autobiography of Mark Twain. The tome probably weighs like 75 pounds. It was comical, I noted, as I shimmied back and forth through a climbing tunnel, pushing my book ahead of my body at every turn. Rob laughed at me when I told him the story and said, "Why didn't you just leave it on the bench?" What?! Leave a book behind? "What if someone took it?" Rob just looked at me. "Right. Cause it's a hot seller right now." Fine.
From Cleo
Our cat is about to be my brother's cat. Keith asked if he could take her up to his apartment in Dayton, and I happily agreed. Cleo still hasn't forgiven us for getting a dog. She stays in the basement all day long and therefore gets zero attention. Miciah was pretty sad when we told her, cause of all of us, she likes Cleo the best. Miciah's room is downstairs, and she cuddles with Cleo every night. Miciah cried for a while, but I explained that Cleo really would be happier at Keith's place. Miciah agreed, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. I suggested that she make something to help her remember Cleo. She took pictures and did a scrapbook page, and she's been happier ever since.
From Kui
Love my dog. We're still working with her, teaching her who's boss. We'd had her a few months before I felt like she really "got it" that we're in charge. She's barking less and behaving better in general, so we're making progress with her. She's a very compliant dog, and she was super well trained before we even got her. We're just fine tuning it. ... Love how cuddly she is. Love, love my dog.
And that's all of us. Happy almost February!
Since it's all said and done, I guess I'll write about it. Back in the Fall Rob applied for a dream job - a tenure-track professorship at a small liberal arts college about 20 minutes from our house. The biology department there is a close-knit group of delightful people, and we were both really hopeful about Rob's chances.
In December he got a phone interview (which ended up being a face-to-face interview, which was fine by Rob), and then in early January he got the Real interview, which was 6 hours worth of presenting, meeting people, etc. He met with the Dean of the department, the President of the college, and the entire department. It was pretty intense, but again everyone was really nice.
The next week Rob heard back. There were 2 positions open, and Rob was in the top 3. After much debate, they chose the other 2. So, happy 3rd place to Rob!
No crying for us, though. Strangely, we weren't sad about it at all. I mean, it was disappointing, and it would have been a great job. But after Rob went and interviewed, all the anxiety went away. He felt really good about the interview, he felt like he showed them who he is and what he's about, and there's really not much else you can ask for in an interview process. On top of that, Rob has a great job right now, things are stable, his boss is a goddess, and we're happy.
Also, it was Rob's birthday on Wednesday. And he shaved off his beard. Those were unrelated events.
From Tamra
As of 2 days ago, I officially own the van sitting in my driveway. So I guess I can't say it's my parents' van any more. It's a 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan. It's served my parents well for all this time, and the odometer proves it: 377,000 miles. Did you even know that number existed?! It's awesome. I want to walk around saying to people, "Guess how many miles my van has on it."
We intend to use it lightly. As I see it, the van's put in good time and deserves a rest period before the end comes. We're hoping that it lasts a year or two, and I think that's reasonable if we don't stress it out. It's really nice to be able to go to the store during the day, to the museum with Tank, etc. Hurray!
And I would insert another picture of it, but it's still covered in snow, and do you really need a picture of our van? No. You'll live.
From Miciah
She's still being Miciah. She reads and reads and reads, till all hours of the night. She's still doing piano and likes it when she's not whining about practicing. In general, though, her whining has gotten much better. She's a delightful 9-year-old and I have a good time with her. It's amazing how not yelling at someone every day really changes your relationship with that person. The tension that's always been there between us is less and less every day. We'll sit next to each other and just make each other laugh. It's lovely!
Miciah is still acing school with little effort. She was accepted into her school's gifted program for language arts starting next year. I think it means they'll actually try to challenge her, which is good. When I explained to her what the program was supposed to be like, to see if she wanted to do it, she said, "Language arts is so easy." Yes, sweetie, that's why they want to put you in an advanced class. Miciah also gets lots of comments from her teachers about how nice and respectful she is, which is something we expect from her. She's a great kid.
From Elijah
Elijah is crazy hyper most nights, and I'm counting down the days till good weather. He gets worse as he gets more tired, and by 8:00 it's almost intolerable. One night I told Tank and Elijah they had to go to bed. Tank said, "How come Miciah gets to stay up?" "Because Miciah doesn't get crazy when she's tired." Tank thought about that and then said, "But she gets whiny." Good point.
Elijah is a softie. We're only 1 movie away from finishing the Star Wars "saga," and he's still sad for Darth Vader. All through movies 4 and 5, while Vader was doing horrible things to people, Elijah was saying things like, "But he's still good, right?" No! He's not! Rob did tell him that there is some sort of happy ending for him, just so Elijah wouldn't freak out.
Elijah is also the kid who reminds us to read scriptures at night. If I suggest (because I'm lazy sometimes) that we just skip it, Elijah gets upset. He loves to read the verses, and he's getting pretty good. Scriptures are great, cause there are lots of big words to challenge new readers, but also lots of repetition to give them confidence. If they can't read anything else, they can always get "and it came to pass."
And a good Elijah story. Rob was gone and I was putting the kids to bed, but I was also really, really grumpy for no reason. So I told Elijah to go to bed and I'd be in to tuck him in "in a second." I needed some time to sit on the couch and just breathe before I went in there. You know, enjoy the silence for a few moments. As Elijah was walking to his room, and I was reassuring him that I'd be in "in a second," he said, "Does a second mean a minute to a parent?" Hmm. Apparently the answer to that is yes.
From Teancom
Tank's accomplishment for the week: Playing at the museum for 3 hours! We've had a museum membership for the majority of the time we've lived here. It's a great place for the kids, and they've loved it. Except for Tank in the last few months. We'd go and he'd throw a fit the entire time (I think I wrote about it). SO frustrating. So we decided that when the pass came up for renewal, we wouldn't do it. What's the point, if he's just going to throw fits the whole time?
On Saturday we took all 3 of the kids, and I was surprised by the fact that all 3 of them were really into it. I kinda thought that Miciah and Elijah were getting too old for the Children's Museum. Apparently not. So I told them that I'd give it a couple tries with Tank, see if he liked it better now. And he played happily. No fits, even when we left.
While we were there he asked me to crawl through the Woods area with him. There are tunnels and ladders and a slide. It's pretty great. I told him that I'd play for 10 minutes and then he needed to play on his own. He thought that was acceptable. So I took my coat, my purse, and my library copy of The Autobiography of Mark Twain. The tome probably weighs like 75 pounds. It was comical, I noted, as I shimmied back and forth through a climbing tunnel, pushing my book ahead of my body at every turn. Rob laughed at me when I told him the story and said, "Why didn't you just leave it on the bench?" What?! Leave a book behind? "What if someone took it?" Rob just looked at me. "Right. Cause it's a hot seller right now." Fine.
From Cleo
Our cat is about to be my brother's cat. Keith asked if he could take her up to his apartment in Dayton, and I happily agreed. Cleo still hasn't forgiven us for getting a dog. She stays in the basement all day long and therefore gets zero attention. Miciah was pretty sad when we told her, cause of all of us, she likes Cleo the best. Miciah's room is downstairs, and she cuddles with Cleo every night. Miciah cried for a while, but I explained that Cleo really would be happier at Keith's place. Miciah agreed, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. I suggested that she make something to help her remember Cleo. She took pictures and did a scrapbook page, and she's been happier ever since.
From Kui
Love my dog. We're still working with her, teaching her who's boss. We'd had her a few months before I felt like she really "got it" that we're in charge. She's barking less and behaving better in general, so we're making progress with her. She's a very compliant dog, and she was super well trained before we even got her. We're just fine tuning it. ... Love how cuddly she is. Love, love my dog.
And that's all of us. Happy almost February!
Monday, January 10, 2011
A Brand New Teancom for 2011
 |
| Teancom, way back when |
Teancom: Version 2011!
* He says prayers without help.
* He sits still and listens when we read scriptures and say family prayer. No bouncing, kicking, or whining.
* He goes to church without a fight. Sits quietly through Sacrament Meeting. Doesn't lay on the floor throwing a fit.
* He loves his Sunday School teacher and goes to Primary without crying. When I realized a few weeks ago that Tank was getting a new teacher at the start of the year, I almost cried. 2010 was a long, long year in Primary for Tank and he was just starting to not hate his teacher (who's an adorable and amazing person, by the way. It's not like she's a deadbeat). The first day with his new 2011 teacher, Bro. V., I went to pick Tank up and asked Bro. V. how Tank did. To my complete surprise, he said Tank did great. I didn't believe him. Tank has since told us that he LIKES church. What?! Where did THAT come from?
* Tank tells us that he's excited for school in the Fall. It still scares him a little, but he's starting to see that there could be advantages.
* He's showing interest in letters and writing. He can now tell me the name and sound of most of the letters of the alphabet, and he shows great pride in getting them right. Last week he wrote his name for the first time.
* He eats dinner. Doesn't even throw a fit about it.
* He doesn't throw a fit when I tell him that he has to eat his food at the table.
* When he's frustrated, he comes up with solutions to his problems. He might throw a small fit, but then he'll realize that's pointless and start proposing compromises.
* He's also now grown out of cuddling with me every morning. That may or may not be an "improvement," but it is a sign that he's growing up. In fact, in general, we cuddle about a fourth as much as we were cuddling even a few months ago. He still wants to be near me sometimes, but often he'll just want to come sit BY me instead of on my lap. Honestly, I miss my Teancom cuddle time, but I also know that it's wonderful that he's maturing. I don't want him to stay little forever.
It now seems entirely possible to me that he'll eventually be a 5-year-old. Just last month I was thinking to myself that I couldn't imagine Teancom being 5 and taking steps towards independence. In so many ways he was refusing to grow up, and I was starting to worry that he wouldn't be ready for school or life in general. But I can see it now. I can imagine him getting on a bus that will take him to school. I can imagine him sitting at school all day without crying. I can imagine him actually eating lunch. I can imagine him insisting to walk instead of being carried. And it's a beautiful, wonderful vision.
But he'll always be my Baby Cakes.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Look at Christmas!
Today I asked Tank if he likes his name. I'm not insecure about the name we picked out for our son, I'm just curious. At what point in his life will he realize that his name is "strange"? (And yes, this is connected to the title of this post. Wait for it.) And when he does realize it, will he hate his name or love it or will it not matter because it's his name?
So I asked him if he likes his name. He said, "Not very much." I asked him, if he could pick any name he wanted, what he would choose. He thought about it and said, "I want my name to be 'Look at the Christmas lights.' " I suggested that Look at the Christmas lights might be a touch long. So he said, "Okay. How about just 'Look at Christmas.' "
So there it is. Tank's new name is Look at Christmas.
(But it's a secret. So you don't know anything about it.)
So I asked him if he likes his name. He said, "Not very much." I asked him, if he could pick any name he wanted, what he would choose. He thought about it and said, "I want my name to be 'Look at the Christmas lights.' " I suggested that Look at the Christmas lights might be a touch long. So he said, "Okay. How about just 'Look at Christmas.' "
So there it is. Tank's new name is Look at Christmas.
(But it's a secret. So you don't know anything about it.)
Friday, October 22, 2010
What Kind of Dad Will Teancom Be?
This conversation took place yesterday.
Teancom (standing on a box): Look, Mom! I'm so tall!
Me: That's crazy.
Teancom: That's crazy? But you're that tall.
Me: Yep. You know that some day you'll be even taller than I am?
Teancom: Yeah, when I'm a dad.
Me: Well, probably before that. ... I hope some day you'll be a dad.
Teancom: Yeah. I'll be a nice dad.
Me: You will?
Teancom: Yeah. I'll be so nice. I'll play with them. I'll play the wii with them. I'll yell at them. And I'll give them spankings.
Me: Giving spankings is nice?
Teancom: No. Giving spankings isn't good. You shouldn't give spankings, Mom. It's bad. My teacher said so.
Me: She did?
Teancom: Yeah. My teacher at church said so.
Me: She didn't say that spankings were bad.
Teancom: Yes, she did.
Me: No, she didn't.
Teancom: Well, I told her that.
Teancom (standing on a box): Look, Mom! I'm so tall!
Me: That's crazy.
Teancom: That's crazy? But you're that tall.
Me: Yep. You know that some day you'll be even taller than I am?
Teancom: Yeah, when I'm a dad.
Me: Well, probably before that. ... I hope some day you'll be a dad.
Teancom: Yeah. I'll be a nice dad.
Me: You will?
Teancom: Yeah. I'll be so nice. I'll play with them. I'll play the wii with them. I'll yell at them. And I'll give them spankings.
Me: Giving spankings is nice?
Teancom: No. Giving spankings isn't good. You shouldn't give spankings, Mom. It's bad. My teacher said so.
Me: She did?
Teancom: Yeah. My teacher at church said so.
Me: She didn't say that spankings were bad.
Teancom: Yes, she did.
Me: No, she didn't.
Teancom: Well, I told her that.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Teancom, the Biologist
He was sitting there, playing in the dirt. For maybe half an hour. It was obvious that he wasn't making dirt piles. In fact, I'm not sure it can be called PLAYING at all. He was sitting in the dirt, observing. Sometimes he'd reach down and pluck a piece of grass, or find something else fascinating. I could tell he was focused on the things he was finding. I smiled as I thought about my budding biologist.
Teancom isn't the most active child there is. Some days he moves slightly more than a rock does. I remember this on the days when he only eats a few Saltine crackers, and then I feel a little better about my mothering skills. He doesn't need a ton of calories brought in if he's not expending much energy.
Teancom also likes to watch movies. If I let him, he would watch movies all day. I know this because one day I decided to let him, as an experiment. He watched TV from 8:30 a.m., when the older kids left for school, until 4:00 p.m., when they got back. I think he might have turned it off for half an hour to eat some Saltines. On normal days, when I tell him to turn off the TV, he still just lays there, watching nothing. He holds his blanket and sucks his fingers. Sometimes for hours.
So I devise play dates and activities so that he won't just lay there.
But there are some huge pros to his less active behavior:
1 - He doesn't make messes. At all. Ever.
2 - He's generally easily entertained. Just give him a blanket and floor space, and he's good.
And then come the real pros. The valuable long-term ones.
He's very observant. It's a gift he has. I've learned to not question what he tells me. If he says he saw a snake, it was a snake. If he says that the movie has a whale shark in it, then it does. If he says, "That's a female cardinal," and then gives me the reasons why, then it's actually a female cardinal.
He actually loves watching birds and knows the names of every local bird that I know the name of. I'm a poor teacher for bird watching. But what gets me is that he doesn't forget. He'll know not only the names, but how many there are, and their positions. He'll spot birds that I didn't notice. It's neat to see how excited he gets by watching nature.
I often talk to Rob about this (in fact, I'm sure I've mentioned it on this blog before), because it's fascinating to see how Tank's mind works, to see what kind of information he holds onto. One of his favorite movie series is Planet Earth, or "Cave-es" as he calls it. He'll watch them and say, for example, "Mom, what is that thing again? ... Oh, yeah. It's a vampire octopus." Sure enough. Rob will say, "He reminds me of me." Really? I mean, I was a "smart kid," too, scientific-minded, but I don't remember enjoying nature shows as a 4-year-old.
So when we went to Miciah's soccer game the other day, it didn't surprise me at all when he sat quietly in the dirt, observing. He walked back towards me, and there was my hero shot. I saw him winning science fairs in junior high. I saw him eventually earning a PhD, like his father. And I saw myself, 50 years old, watching from the stands as the Dean hands him his diploma, and thinking back on this moment with the dirt. I would say, then, "I knew from the beginning that he was going to be a Biologist. He's just always had this gift."
He sat on my lap and I said, "Did you have fun in the dirt?"
"Yeah."
"Was something in the dirt?"
"Yeah. Ants."
Instantly I thought of Henry David Thoreau. Not only was my child going to one day be a Biologist, he had the makings of a Thoreau! I probed further. "What were you doing with the ants?"
"I tore their butts off." He did the actions, his fingers pinching and pulling.
I paused. "Why?"
"I wanted them to die. So I tore off their butts. And then their legs wiggled like this."
I smiled at the imagery. "Oh."
My dreamy images deflated. I wasn't holding a mini-Thoreau in my lap, I was holding a normal 4-year-old boy. And that's just as it should be.
Teancom isn't the most active child there is. Some days he moves slightly more than a rock does. I remember this on the days when he only eats a few Saltine crackers, and then I feel a little better about my mothering skills. He doesn't need a ton of calories brought in if he's not expending much energy.
Teancom also likes to watch movies. If I let him, he would watch movies all day. I know this because one day I decided to let him, as an experiment. He watched TV from 8:30 a.m., when the older kids left for school, until 4:00 p.m., when they got back. I think he might have turned it off for half an hour to eat some Saltines. On normal days, when I tell him to turn off the TV, he still just lays there, watching nothing. He holds his blanket and sucks his fingers. Sometimes for hours.
So I devise play dates and activities so that he won't just lay there.
But there are some huge pros to his less active behavior:
1 - He doesn't make messes. At all. Ever.
2 - He's generally easily entertained. Just give him a blanket and floor space, and he's good.
And then come the real pros. The valuable long-term ones.
He's very observant. It's a gift he has. I've learned to not question what he tells me. If he says he saw a snake, it was a snake. If he says that the movie has a whale shark in it, then it does. If he says, "That's a female cardinal," and then gives me the reasons why, then it's actually a female cardinal.
He actually loves watching birds and knows the names of every local bird that I know the name of. I'm a poor teacher for bird watching. But what gets me is that he doesn't forget. He'll know not only the names, but how many there are, and their positions. He'll spot birds that I didn't notice. It's neat to see how excited he gets by watching nature.
I often talk to Rob about this (in fact, I'm sure I've mentioned it on this blog before), because it's fascinating to see how Tank's mind works, to see what kind of information he holds onto. One of his favorite movie series is Planet Earth, or "Cave-es" as he calls it. He'll watch them and say, for example, "Mom, what is that thing again? ... Oh, yeah. It's a vampire octopus." Sure enough. Rob will say, "He reminds me of me." Really? I mean, I was a "smart kid," too, scientific-minded, but I don't remember enjoying nature shows as a 4-year-old.
So when we went to Miciah's soccer game the other day, it didn't surprise me at all when he sat quietly in the dirt, observing. He walked back towards me, and there was my hero shot. I saw him winning science fairs in junior high. I saw him eventually earning a PhD, like his father. And I saw myself, 50 years old, watching from the stands as the Dean hands him his diploma, and thinking back on this moment with the dirt. I would say, then, "I knew from the beginning that he was going to be a Biologist. He's just always had this gift."
He sat on my lap and I said, "Did you have fun in the dirt?"
"Yeah."
"Was something in the dirt?"
"Yeah. Ants."
Instantly I thought of Henry David Thoreau. Not only was my child going to one day be a Biologist, he had the makings of a Thoreau! I probed further. "What were you doing with the ants?"
"I tore their butts off." He did the actions, his fingers pinching and pulling.
I paused. "Why?"
"I wanted them to die. So I tore off their butts. And then their legs wiggled like this."
I smiled at the imagery. "Oh."
My dreamy images deflated. I wasn't holding a mini-Thoreau in my lap, I was holding a normal 4-year-old boy. And that's just as it should be.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Tank is 4
So, Tank had a birthday. We celebrated by ... Okay, we didn't really celebrate. We sang him Happy Birthday a few times. That's something. Lamest mom ever right here.
But Tank's two biggest cheerleaders are in California right now. (Yes, Rob and I are his cheerleaders, too, but we're SO not as fun. See previous paragraph.) And Rob is working crazy long hours.
So I made him a cake. THE cake. (If you've never had Chocolate Applesauce Chocolate Chip Cake, let me know. I will make you a cake. A full 9 x 13. Just for you.) And we went and ate lunch with Rob at work. We had salad because Tank loves it (actually because we had some spinach that was going to go bad if we didn't use it), and then we shared the cake with Rob's co-workers.
Tank spent the majority of the time scowling at anyone who tried to look at him / touch him / talk to him. For instance, this is how it went between Tank and Casper (Rob's boss's husband, who works next door (they have separate but sort of not separate lab space)):
Casper: Hey, buddy!
Tank looks away.
Casper: It's your birthday, huh?
Tank scowls at the wall.
Casper: Can I have some of your birthday pie? It looks really good.
Tank, now looking at Casper: It's CAKE.
Casper, with humor: Sorry. Cake. I'm Dutch, I don't know the difference. It's all tasty, though.
Tank turns and looks back at the wall.
Casper: Are you going to have a party with your friends today?
Tank doesn't respond.
Casper tried REALLY hard. Props to the man.
The best scowling of the day was on the elevator. It was me and Tank and 3 men who looked all to be in their 40's or 50's. Tank turned and glanced at each of them and then scowled and looked away. I said, "Sorry, he's not very social." Nearest Guy to Us said, "Neither am I." Then I said, "He likes to scowl at people." Nearest Guy to Us said, "So do I." Awesome.
Later that evening Tank did have some fun because I invited myself over to dinner at a friend's house. 2nd week in a row, except THIS time I brought dinner with me. I told them it was Tank's birthday, and they made brownies for him and put 4 little candles in his piece and we all sang Happy Birthday and Tank loved it. Then we played games and generally over-stayed our welcome, cause we had nothing to be home for anyway. ... Everyone needs friends like them.
I DID buy him a gift: $2.50 worth of gummy worms. Who's the best mom ever?! (His real birthday gift was his bike. We bought that months ago.)
And that was his birthday. Tonight we're camping in our backyard, and a friend is joining us, so that'll be sort of like a party. We're awesome like that.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Tank Does What?
In this next post, actor Teancom Thacker will play an only child...
With the other 2 children gone, Tank is a vastly different creature. I think it's interesting, the changes, so I wanted to make a note of them.
1 - He's talking a ton. Like, he doesn't stop talking. He tells me stories about movies and books. He tells me stories about the birds he sees. He comments about the texture of the grass. He tells me what he wants to do, or not do. ... It's fascinating to hear what he has to say.
2 - He's about 1/4 as cuddly. He will lean against me when we're watching a movie together (which we do about once a day), but that's about it. He doesn't come in to cuddle with me in the mornings. He doesn't ask to sit on my lap every 20 minutes. ... It's kinda weird, really. But it's fine. I don't miss it as much as I thought I might.
3 - He walks everywhere by himself! (This may be an offshoot of the less cuddly thing, but it's noteworthy enough to be worthy of it's own note.) To demonstrate how different this is, I'll tell you about yesterday. Tank wanted to go to the Tree House and then take a hike. It's a short hike. Maybe 1/2 mile. I came home and told Rob that we did that hike and he said, "How far did he walk by himself?" "All of it." Rob just stared at me and then said, "Really?" Yep. Not once did Tank say, "I'm tired!" or "My legs hurt!" Not once did he beg to be carried or fall down on the ground to show how desperately he needed to be carried. Weird, right?
4 - He hasn't been sucking on his fingers. This is perhaps the most bizarre of all the changes. Tank ALWAYS sucks his fingers. Now he's only sucking on them when he's going to bed, and occasionally when he's watching a movie. But when we're driving in the car, he's playing with toys and/or talking to me. When he's watching a show, he's also playing with toys. When he's sitting on the couch, he's ... just sitting there. It's bizarre.
5 - He saves whining for special occasions. And a related corollary (you guys are loving my word choices, I know): he's reasoning through things, and offering lots of alternative solutions. "We can't do this, but can we do this instead?" It's wonderful.
6 - He's being doing independent sorts of things. He hasn't once asked for help putting on his clothes after going to the bathroom. He gets out food for himself. And he doesn't gripe about me asking him to help set the table or clear off the table. Who is this strange child?
So, there you go: Tank as an only child.
(Lest you all think this is a walk in the park all the time, the drawback is that Tank misses his siblings. A lot. For instance, we went on a hike because he thought his brother and sister were also going on a hike that day. ... The drawback for me personally? ... Even though having only 1 child around is less chaotic, and I haven't yelled at anyone or anything for almost 2 weeks now, and I finish the day with emotional reserves, ... I really miss my kids. They are mine and I love them and I want them around. Who needs emotional reserves?)
With the other 2 children gone, Tank is a vastly different creature. I think it's interesting, the changes, so I wanted to make a note of them.
1 - He's talking a ton. Like, he doesn't stop talking. He tells me stories about movies and books. He tells me stories about the birds he sees. He comments about the texture of the grass. He tells me what he wants to do, or not do. ... It's fascinating to hear what he has to say.
2 - He's about 1/4 as cuddly. He will lean against me when we're watching a movie together (which we do about once a day), but that's about it. He doesn't come in to cuddle with me in the mornings. He doesn't ask to sit on my lap every 20 minutes. ... It's kinda weird, really. But it's fine. I don't miss it as much as I thought I might.
3 - He walks everywhere by himself! (This may be an offshoot of the less cuddly thing, but it's noteworthy enough to be worthy of it's own note.) To demonstrate how different this is, I'll tell you about yesterday. Tank wanted to go to the Tree House and then take a hike. It's a short hike. Maybe 1/2 mile. I came home and told Rob that we did that hike and he said, "How far did he walk by himself?" "All of it." Rob just stared at me and then said, "Really?" Yep. Not once did Tank say, "I'm tired!" or "My legs hurt!" Not once did he beg to be carried or fall down on the ground to show how desperately he needed to be carried. Weird, right?
4 - He hasn't been sucking on his fingers. This is perhaps the most bizarre of all the changes. Tank ALWAYS sucks his fingers. Now he's only sucking on them when he's going to bed, and occasionally when he's watching a movie. But when we're driving in the car, he's playing with toys and/or talking to me. When he's watching a show, he's also playing with toys. When he's sitting on the couch, he's ... just sitting there. It's bizarre.
5 - He saves whining for special occasions. And a related corollary (you guys are loving my word choices, I know): he's reasoning through things, and offering lots of alternative solutions. "We can't do this, but can we do this instead?" It's wonderful.
6 - He's being doing independent sorts of things. He hasn't once asked for help putting on his clothes after going to the bathroom. He gets out food for himself. And he doesn't gripe about me asking him to help set the table or clear off the table. Who is this strange child?
So, there you go: Tank as an only child.
(Lest you all think this is a walk in the park all the time, the drawback is that Tank misses his siblings. A lot. For instance, we went on a hike because he thought his brother and sister were also going on a hike that day. ... The drawback for me personally? ... Even though having only 1 child around is less chaotic, and I haven't yelled at anyone or anything for almost 2 weeks now, and I finish the day with emotional reserves, ... I really miss my kids. They are mine and I love them and I want them around. Who needs emotional reserves?)
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Crackers and a Movie
Before I move on to posting about our hugely fun Memorial Day weekend, I wanted to document a lovely recurring family event. I'll describe the one from this morning, as it is very much like every other time. (To be noted: Elijah and Miciah were both at school, so it was just Tank and me.)
Tank: Start the movie again, Mom.
Me: No.
Tank groans loudly and thrashes around on the floor.
Me: You've watched enough TV, Tank.
Tank: Well, get me some crackers, then.
Me: Okay, but you have to eat them at the table.
Tank: NOOO! Start the movie and then eat the crackers!
Me: No. I already said no movie.
Tank continues to whine and thrash around on the floor, but doesn't say anything for several minutes. Then...
Tank: Fine! I won't do anything, then!
Tank walks to his room.
Half an hour later I realize he's gone and find him like this:
Totally asleep.
I bring the crackers to the computer desk and eat half the box while typing up a blog post.
Tank: Start the movie again, Mom.
Me: No.
Tank groans loudly and thrashes around on the floor.
Me: You've watched enough TV, Tank.
Tank: Well, get me some crackers, then.
Me: Okay, but you have to eat them at the table.
Tank: NOOO! Start the movie and then eat the crackers!
Me: No. I already said no movie.
Tank continues to whine and thrash around on the floor, but doesn't say anything for several minutes. Then...
Tank: Fine! I won't do anything, then!
Tank walks to his room.
Half an hour later I realize he's gone and find him like this:
Totally asleep.
I bring the crackers to the computer desk and eat half the box while typing up a blog post.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
The Best Part of Waking Up ...
I was cuddling in bed with Rob this morning when Tank opened the door. His feet pat-patted across the floor and then stopped. I opened my eyes to see him looking at me, his chin just above the top of the bed. "Good morning, Tank!" I said. He gave me his just-woke-up smile, which is sweeter than the smile he has at any other time of the day.
Then he said, "Mom, there wasn't any candy under my pillow."
"Oh, that's right. I promised you candy if you were good last night, huh?"
Tank nodded with an exaggerated slowness. Then he exchanged his super-sad face for his super-cute face and said, "So, can you give me a piece of candy? A orange Jolly Rancher, cause it tastes like oranges!"
Rob still had his arms around me, and didn't want to get out of bed yet. So I said, "You can have a piece of candy. Go ahead and get one."
Tank skipped out of the room and closed the door behind him and Rob and I chuckled to each other. But it wasn't over. Tank returned a few minutes later with an orange Jolly Rancher in his hand and said, "Here, Mom! It's a piece of candy!" I smiled and said, "That's great, Tank!" Then Tank said, "NOW can you put it under my pillow? Come on!"
So I got out of bed, walked into his room, Tank handed me the Jolly Rancher, and I put it under his pillow. "There you go," I said. He said, "Thank you," and I turned to leave. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him lift up his pillow, and with excitement and a hint of surprise, he said, "Ooh! A piece of candy!"
I haven't remembered to put the candy under his pillow for months (though candy isn't a nightly promise). With morning interaction like that, what's my incentive?
Then he said, "Mom, there wasn't any candy under my pillow."
"Oh, that's right. I promised you candy if you were good last night, huh?"
Tank nodded with an exaggerated slowness. Then he exchanged his super-sad face for his super-cute face and said, "So, can you give me a piece of candy? A orange Jolly Rancher, cause it tastes like oranges!"
Rob still had his arms around me, and didn't want to get out of bed yet. So I said, "You can have a piece of candy. Go ahead and get one."
Tank skipped out of the room and closed the door behind him and Rob and I chuckled to each other. But it wasn't over. Tank returned a few minutes later with an orange Jolly Rancher in his hand and said, "Here, Mom! It's a piece of candy!" I smiled and said, "That's great, Tank!" Then Tank said, "NOW can you put it under my pillow? Come on!"
So I got out of bed, walked into his room, Tank handed me the Jolly Rancher, and I put it under his pillow. "There you go," I said. He said, "Thank you," and I turned to leave. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him lift up his pillow, and with excitement and a hint of surprise, he said, "Ooh! A piece of candy!"
I haven't remembered to put the candy under his pillow for months (though candy isn't a nightly promise). With morning interaction like that, what's my incentive?
Thursday, May 20, 2010
The Answer to the Riddle that is Tank
Tank got a sliver in his finger. This is not a story worth telling, so I'll spare you any "I have to tell you this awesome story about my kid" details, because that just gets into Gag Me Territory.
What WAS interesting is that I have figured out why Tank has to hold his ear with one hand while he's sucking his fingers on the other hand. How did I figure it out? He told me. Rob was taking the sliver out of his finger, and I was holding Tank's other hand, just in case he tried to grab at the sliver-finger. It became obvious that Tank wasn't going to grab at his finger, and he said, "I want to suck on my fingers." No problem. I let go of the hand I was holding and told him to go ahead. After a few seconds of sucking on his fingers, he said that he was having trouble because he needed to check if his ears were cold.
Did you catch that? That's why he has to hold his ear: To check if his ears are cold. That's the cutest, most ridiculous thing I've heard EVER (possibly).
The funny thing, to me, was that he wouldn't suck on his fingers at all if he couldn't grab his ear also. What a weird child.
Also, he's phenomenally cute and tells me, out of the blue, that he loves me and gives me hugs that make me want to melt into his tiny arms. (And here we are in Gag Me Territory, once again. Welcome back.)
Also, he's over-the-top whiny lately. So whiny that multiple times a day we just put him in his bed instead of listening to him scream while kicking and thrashing on the floor. Right in front of us. (There you go. Back from Gag Me Territory: Reality Land reached.) ... Someday this phase will pass.
What WAS interesting is that I have figured out why Tank has to hold his ear with one hand while he's sucking his fingers on the other hand. How did I figure it out? He told me. Rob was taking the sliver out of his finger, and I was holding Tank's other hand, just in case he tried to grab at the sliver-finger. It became obvious that Tank wasn't going to grab at his finger, and he said, "I want to suck on my fingers." No problem. I let go of the hand I was holding and told him to go ahead. After a few seconds of sucking on his fingers, he said that he was having trouble because he needed to check if his ears were cold.
Did you catch that? That's why he has to hold his ear: To check if his ears are cold. That's the cutest, most ridiculous thing I've heard EVER (possibly).
The funny thing, to me, was that he wouldn't suck on his fingers at all if he couldn't grab his ear also. What a weird child.
Also, he's phenomenally cute and tells me, out of the blue, that he loves me and gives me hugs that make me want to melt into his tiny arms. (And here we are in Gag Me Territory, once again. Welcome back.)
Also, he's over-the-top whiny lately. So whiny that multiple times a day we just put him in his bed instead of listening to him scream while kicking and thrashing on the floor. Right in front of us. (There you go. Back from Gag Me Territory: Reality Land reached.) ... Someday this phase will pass.
Friday, February 19, 2010
5 Examples of Why Tank is Adorable
Example 1:
I was carrying about 15 library books and 2 movies to the car, so I asked him if he could help carry 4 movies. Of course he was willing. When we were almost to the car, and the movies were slipping out of his hands, he said, "I wish you could hold my hand."
What 3-year-old WANTS to hold his mom's hand across the parking lot?
Example 2:
Dinner time. Tank was pretty adamant about wanting the end piece of the loaf of bread (homemade bread, even. I know. But, seriously, this bread is addicting). So I gave it to him. Then Elijah was sad because HE didn't get the end piece. I tried to talk Elijah out of wanting it, but he was unconvinced. So I said, "Tank, do you think that you could switch pieces of bread with Elijah?"
And without missing a beat he said, "Oh, sure!" and handed over his coveted end piece.
Example 3:
Miciah wanted me to watch the latest Tinkerbell movie with her, but I was exhausted from staying up too late watching the Olympics. So I told her I needed to take a nap. She said, "But I want SOMEone to watch a movie with me!" Tank was watching Elijah play Zelda on the computer. I suggested that Miciah ask Tank to watch with her, even though he'd seen it with her a few days before. She asked him and Tank said, "Oh, sure!" and immediately sat down next to her to watch.
Example 4:
Tank is clingy at church, and loves to monopolize my attention. Fortunately the other kids are old enough that this arrangement works. Often about the time I'm thinking that Tank should be getting big enough to sit next to me instead of on my lap, he'll hook his arm around my neck and say, "You're the best mom ever." And then I melt.
Example 5:
Tank loves to cuddle and he always lets me smother him with hugs and kisses. It's wonderful. And while holding him tight I usually initiate a conversation like this:
Me: Will you be my baby cakes forever?
Tank: Yeah.
I eat it up. (You would, too.)
(The downside to this kid is that he's so cute and easygoing that he's spoiled. It is his life goal to watch 3 movies a day while cuddling on my lap and eating fruit snacks. He's an aspiring couch potato! ... I often have to make him scream because he doesn't want lunch, he wants candy/crackers/chips, and he doesn't want to sit at the table to eat lunch anyway. What's wrong with a sandwich every now and then, I ask you?!)
I was carrying about 15 library books and 2 movies to the car, so I asked him if he could help carry 4 movies. Of course he was willing. When we were almost to the car, and the movies were slipping out of his hands, he said, "I wish you could hold my hand."
What 3-year-old WANTS to hold his mom's hand across the parking lot?
Example 2:
Dinner time. Tank was pretty adamant about wanting the end piece of the loaf of bread (homemade bread, even. I know. But, seriously, this bread is addicting). So I gave it to him. Then Elijah was sad because HE didn't get the end piece. I tried to talk Elijah out of wanting it, but he was unconvinced. So I said, "Tank, do you think that you could switch pieces of bread with Elijah?"
And without missing a beat he said, "Oh, sure!" and handed over his coveted end piece.
Example 3:
Miciah wanted me to watch the latest Tinkerbell movie with her, but I was exhausted from staying up too late watching the Olympics. So I told her I needed to take a nap. She said, "But I want SOMEone to watch a movie with me!" Tank was watching Elijah play Zelda on the computer. I suggested that Miciah ask Tank to watch with her, even though he'd seen it with her a few days before. She asked him and Tank said, "Oh, sure!" and immediately sat down next to her to watch.
Example 4:
Tank is clingy at church, and loves to monopolize my attention. Fortunately the other kids are old enough that this arrangement works. Often about the time I'm thinking that Tank should be getting big enough to sit next to me instead of on my lap, he'll hook his arm around my neck and say, "You're the best mom ever." And then I melt.
Example 5:
Tank loves to cuddle and he always lets me smother him with hugs and kisses. It's wonderful. And while holding him tight I usually initiate a conversation like this:
Me: Will you be my baby cakes forever?
Tank: Yeah.
I eat it up. (You would, too.)
(The downside to this kid is that he's so cute and easygoing that he's spoiled. It is his life goal to watch 3 movies a day while cuddling on my lap and eating fruit snacks. He's an aspiring couch potato! ... I often have to make him scream because he doesn't want lunch, he wants candy/crackers/chips, and he doesn't want to sit at the table to eat lunch anyway. What's wrong with a sandwich every now and then, I ask you?!)
Monday, December 7, 2009
Teancom
Getting the Mail
Teancom decided to go get the mail. Remember there is snow on the ground. He decided to wear a long-sleeved shirt (not a sweatshirt, mind), boots, and underwear that was inside-out. When he came back inside he said, "That was cold." Ya think?
A Toddler Check-Up
Earlier today he checked my nose, like a doctor would do, with his itty-bitty play flashlight. He said, "What do you have up your nose?" I thought of answering, "Little hairs and boogers," but thought I'd wait to see what he said was up there. After examining my nostrils he said, "You have a kiger and a wion up there." I laughed. This is the game that the doctor played with him last time we went, and he loved it. I think he had a tiger and a dog in his ears, and he would have had more if she would have checked as many times as he wanted her to.
Then he checked my ears, eyes, mouth, shirt sleeves, pant legs, hair, and socks, just to see if anything was inside any of those. He got done and looked disappointed as he said, "You don't have anyfing up your anyfings."
Teancom decided to go get the mail. Remember there is snow on the ground. He decided to wear a long-sleeved shirt (not a sweatshirt, mind), boots, and underwear that was inside-out. When he came back inside he said, "That was cold." Ya think?
A Toddler Check-Up
Earlier today he checked my nose, like a doctor would do, with his itty-bitty play flashlight. He said, "What do you have up your nose?" I thought of answering, "Little hairs and boogers," but thought I'd wait to see what he said was up there. After examining my nostrils he said, "You have a kiger and a wion up there." I laughed. This is the game that the doctor played with him last time we went, and he loved it. I think he had a tiger and a dog in his ears, and he would have had more if she would have checked as many times as he wanted her to.
Then he checked my ears, eyes, mouth, shirt sleeves, pant legs, hair, and socks, just to see if anything was inside any of those. He got done and looked disappointed as he said, "You don't have anyfing up your anyfings."
Thursday, September 28, 2006
More Random Pictures
Here's a cute picture of Rob and Teancom after Rob got him to go to sleep by letting him suck on his finger. So there's also a picture of Rob's pruny pinky, cause we think it's funny. Tank won't take a binky really, but he'll try to suck off your finger. 
And here's also a picture of the hardwood floor in our dining room after we tore up the carpet.
Randomness, here we come! Maybe later I'll tell you about what I found out about the Wiggles from their homepage. That'll be a real journey into the pointless.
Tamra
And here's also a picture of the hardwood floor in our dining room after we tore up the carpet.
Randomness, here we come! Maybe later I'll tell you about what I found out about the Wiggles from their homepage. That'll be a real journey into the pointless.
Tamra
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Life at its Smelliest
Well, this update will be short-ish (nothing I write is short, I know). I only have 10-minute blocks of time these days, it feels like. Welcome to life from now on! :)
Teancom is doing great. We took him in for his 1 week visit and he weighed 2 oz. above his birth weight and was another 1/2 an inch longer. Amazing how fast they grow when they're this little. He is still a wonderful baby and we have fun with him. He eats every 3 hours now and sleeps about as long. Though his longest sleeping periods are during the day (hence why I am doing e-mail right now), go figure. Elijah seems to have figured the whole baby brother thing out. He took a while to transition and for a week plus he was FUSSY. It drove me crazy cause Elijah is just not a fussy kid. He threw a fit on a car ride home and cried the whole time. He has never done that in his life. Really. So it's nice to have Elijah back to his old self. Like today: He was a little fussy and so I asked if he wanted to take a nap. He said yes, grabbed his binky, went to his room, shut the door, laid in bed, tucked himself in, and went to sleep. That's my Elijah.
It was fun having Mom and Dad T in town. Plus, while they were here we had the baby blessing on Sunday, V's b-day. A TON of family and it was great. And now Miciah is loving having her favorite uncle in town to play with for a week. She is wearing him out and he'll need a long nap after getting back to Utah. :) But we are appreciating the continued help.
Miciah goes in for a doc's appt. tomorrow and I am hoping to get word from the doctor about what the "rash" on her neck is. She's had it for 3 months or more and it's spreading. Doesn't seem to really bother her, but it's time to get rid of it. It's been suggested to me that they are warts, but whatever they are, it's time for them to go away.
Elijah went in for a doc's appt. last week for his pre-op physical. He's healthy and happy and life is good. The surgery is Monday, the 14th. Rob's Mom offered to come down to help and I originally thought that wouldn't be necessary, but I am ready to take her up on that offer. :) Though I am ready to be on my own. People have been in town helping for over 2 weeks and by the time we're on our own it'll be over 3 weeks. My body is feeling great and all the pain is gone. I was even able to play in my garden yesterday with no ill effects. Though after cleaning essentially our whole house yesterday night, Rob and I crashed in bed. I don't remember the last time I saw Rob with circles under his eyes. He laid down in bed and in 2.7 seconds was asleep. We wore ourselves out.
And the reason we cleaned almost our whole house yesterday is 2-fold. There was meatloaf grease on the floor in the kitchen that the kids had tracked all down the stairs. Yuck. Miciah got our her mop and helped me clean it up. Then she mopped up the front porch, too. What a good girl! The second reason is much more aweful and not so easy to clean up. Two nights ago we noticed a smell in our room. I thought it was the clothes basket and maybe there was something mildewy in there. Not the case. So I tore the whole room apart looking for the source of the smell. I took out everything washable and searched through every drawer in the dresser. No luck. It was driving me crazy. We finally thought it was behind the bookcase. So we took off all the books (after smelling each one) and took the bookshelf down. It wasn't the bookshelf or the floor beneath it. So the end to this sad story is that the smell is coming from inside our wall about 3 feet up, right behind the bookshelf. We figure a mouse died in there or something. Eww. So the room is still smelly and that's dang unfortunate. But the rest of the room is clean!
Pronouncing Teancom's Name, part 2
And the last e-mail I sent about the pronunciation of Teancom's name got Rob and I to talking. We pronounce his name differently, apparently. The difference is slight and I doubt most people will notice. I hardly notice. I pronounce the 'a' in the name like the 'a' in 'tank.' Rob says the 'a' like the 'a' in 'and.' Whatever. Most other people just call him Tank, so I guess it doesn't matter. :)
Okay, I'll write more later if there's more to write. Oh, when D was here, we put her measurement on the wall for how tall she is. She is 3 inches taller than Miciah, who has grown an inch in the last 3 months. Just FYI.
Tamra and family
Teancom is doing great. We took him in for his 1 week visit and he weighed 2 oz. above his birth weight and was another 1/2 an inch longer. Amazing how fast they grow when they're this little. He is still a wonderful baby and we have fun with him. He eats every 3 hours now and sleeps about as long. Though his longest sleeping periods are during the day (hence why I am doing e-mail right now), go figure. Elijah seems to have figured the whole baby brother thing out. He took a while to transition and for a week plus he was FUSSY. It drove me crazy cause Elijah is just not a fussy kid. He threw a fit on a car ride home and cried the whole time. He has never done that in his life. Really. So it's nice to have Elijah back to his old self. Like today: He was a little fussy and so I asked if he wanted to take a nap. He said yes, grabbed his binky, went to his room, shut the door, laid in bed, tucked himself in, and went to sleep. That's my Elijah.
It was fun having Mom and Dad T in town. Plus, while they were here we had the baby blessing on Sunday, V's b-day. A TON of family and it was great. And now Miciah is loving having her favorite uncle in town to play with for a week. She is wearing him out and he'll need a long nap after getting back to Utah. :) But we are appreciating the continued help.
Miciah goes in for a doc's appt. tomorrow and I am hoping to get word from the doctor about what the "rash" on her neck is. She's had it for 3 months or more and it's spreading. Doesn't seem to really bother her, but it's time to get rid of it. It's been suggested to me that they are warts, but whatever they are, it's time for them to go away.
Elijah went in for a doc's appt. last week for his pre-op physical. He's healthy and happy and life is good. The surgery is Monday, the 14th. Rob's Mom offered to come down to help and I originally thought that wouldn't be necessary, but I am ready to take her up on that offer. :) Though I am ready to be on my own. People have been in town helping for over 2 weeks and by the time we're on our own it'll be over 3 weeks. My body is feeling great and all the pain is gone. I was even able to play in my garden yesterday with no ill effects. Though after cleaning essentially our whole house yesterday night, Rob and I crashed in bed. I don't remember the last time I saw Rob with circles under his eyes. He laid down in bed and in 2.7 seconds was asleep. We wore ourselves out.
And the reason we cleaned almost our whole house yesterday is 2-fold. There was meatloaf grease on the floor in the kitchen that the kids had tracked all down the stairs. Yuck. Miciah got our her mop and helped me clean it up. Then she mopped up the front porch, too. What a good girl! The second reason is much more aweful and not so easy to clean up. Two nights ago we noticed a smell in our room. I thought it was the clothes basket and maybe there was something mildewy in there. Not the case. So I tore the whole room apart looking for the source of the smell. I took out everything washable and searched through every drawer in the dresser. No luck. It was driving me crazy. We finally thought it was behind the bookcase. So we took off all the books (after smelling each one) and took the bookshelf down. It wasn't the bookshelf or the floor beneath it. So the end to this sad story is that the smell is coming from inside our wall about 3 feet up, right behind the bookshelf. We figure a mouse died in there or something. Eww. So the room is still smelly and that's dang unfortunate. But the rest of the room is clean!
Pronouncing Teancom's Name, part 2
And the last e-mail I sent about the pronunciation of Teancom's name got Rob and I to talking. We pronounce his name differently, apparently. The difference is slight and I doubt most people will notice. I hardly notice. I pronounce the 'a' in the name like the 'a' in 'tank.' Rob says the 'a' like the 'a' in 'and.' Whatever. Most other people just call him Tank, so I guess it doesn't matter. :)
Okay, I'll write more later if there's more to write. Oh, when D was here, we put her measurement on the wall for how tall she is. She is 3 inches taller than Miciah, who has grown an inch in the last 3 months. Just FYI.
Tamra and family
Friday, July 28, 2006
Answers to the Matching Game
Okay, here are the answers:
1 Tamra Suzanne, C) 7 lbs. 11 oz. 19 inches
2 Robert Irwin, A) 8 lbs. 2 oz. 21 inches
3 Elijah Ruben, D) 7 lbs. 5 oz. 19.5 inches
4 Robert Teancom, B) 7 lbs. 12 oz. 19.75 inches
5 Miciah Lynn, E) 6 lbs. 12 oz. 16.5 inches
And the winners:
My Dad got all the information correct, plus corrected my length. I was 20 inches, not 19 (I asked my Mom to get the length and my Dad actually looked it up). So he gets the prize for knowing more than I do. ... Though, to be fair, his first guess on my information was Miciah's info., so I guess he gets half a prize.
Most of the rest got the pictures right and didn't try the information, but the pictures were the fun part anyway.
The person who got it all right is someone who has never met Rob or my kids: Martina. She lives in Switzerland and even had to convert the weights and lengths! Way to go, Martina!
Okay, so thanks for putting up with my game. I thought it would be fun. Funny enough, I was my mother's smallest child at 7 lbs. 11 oz., and Teancom is my biggest child at 7 lbs. 12 oz. Rob was the biggest of us all and Miciah pulls in as the runt (not me, as quite a few of you thought).
1 Tamra Suzanne, C) 7 lbs. 11 oz. 19 inches
2 Robert Irwin, A) 8 lbs. 2 oz. 21 inches
3 Elijah Ruben, D) 7 lbs. 5 oz. 19.5 inches
4 Robert Teancom, B) 7 lbs. 12 oz. 19.75 inches
5 Miciah Lynn, E) 6 lbs. 12 oz. 16.5 inches
And the winners:
My Dad got all the information correct, plus corrected my length. I was 20 inches, not 19 (I asked my Mom to get the length and my Dad actually looked it up). So he gets the prize for knowing more than I do. ... Though, to be fair, his first guess on my information was Miciah's info., so I guess he gets half a prize.
Most of the rest got the pictures right and didn't try the information, but the pictures were the fun part anyway.
The person who got it all right is someone who has never met Rob or my kids: Martina. She lives in Switzerland and even had to convert the weights and lengths! Way to go, Martina!
Okay, so thanks for putting up with my game. I thought it would be fun. Funny enough, I was my mother's smallest child at 7 lbs. 11 oz., and Teancom is my biggest child at 7 lbs. 12 oz. Rob was the biggest of us all and Miciah pulls in as the runt (not me, as quite a few of you thought).
Recovery
I'll attach a few more pictures of Teancom and the family. It's nice to have him home and have us back together. I feel really good, but I am so tired. I feel like at this point I shouldn't be so tired, but then I think about how I'm recovering from major surgery. And then my Mom will point out that I'm never getting more than 3 hours of sleep at a whack. Oh yeah. :) The other two kids have been able to stay in routine pretty well, and that's a blessing. I am hoping to get back to capable pretty fast, but every day I do something that reminds me that I'm just not healed. Yesterday I vacuumed half a room. It hurt. This morning, without thinking, I scooped up Elijah to put him in a time-out. I'm still feeling that one.
Pictures
As you can see, Teancom is pretty dark, like Miciah and Rob. We kept thinking he is darker than Miciah was, but I think it's pretty comparable. He has a little more hair than Ciah did, but it's all around the sides. It hangs over his ears. Rob says he has male pattern baldness already. Great. :) But it's cute. So we have 2 dark children and 1 bright white one. We'll see as they get older what they'll look like.
Pronouncing Teancom's Name
A lot of people have asked how to pronounce Teancom's name. I'm not very good at pronunciation stuff, so bear with me (I don't know which sound is the long a and which is the short, etc., so I'll just describe it as best I can). It is 3 syllables with the emphasis on the second syllable. The sounds are:
Tee-An (like the sound in tank)-come. In fact, if you just put 'ank' from 'tank' in the middle there, it'd be really dang close. Cause it's almost like I say the 'k' in 'ank', but not really. I dunno. I should just figure out how to do pronunciations. :) But hopefully that'll get people close enough to saying his name. Or just Tank. It works.
The Car Accident that Wasn't
Fun information that isn't news, but thankfully isn't: Rob almost wrecked the car this morning. It's been raining pretty steady for the last day or so. Rob was on the on-ramp to get on the freeway when he lost traction and spun the car 180 degrees before coming to a stop. He says he didn't go off the road, and thankfully he didn't, cause he says he came pretty close to hitting one of those metal telephone poles. Yikes! We are grateful he is safe and sound, and that our car is, too.
And that's the closest we get to news here. We've all been taking it easy with lots of downtime. Hope all is going well for everyone!
Tamra and family
P.S. Oh! And I included a picture of my uterus on top of my belly. You can see the "heart-shape" of my uterus. My doctors thought that was pretty neat. Weird.
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