Hamilton Turns Four!

My little boy, despite my efforts to dissuade him, is growing up. Today he turned four. Four! Since it was his birthday, Alex and I were a lot less grumbily when he came into our room at 6-something. He announced, "It's my birthday!" I promptly started singing, but he told me "no." He insists that "Happy Birthday" is for blowing out candles. I made him a "4" shirt, which he told me he didn't want last night but this morning liked it and said, "Thank you, Mommy, for making me this cool shirt." As Alex says, never trust a tired kid's opinion.

We decorated the house a little last night and left wrapped presents on the table. I think Hamilton's feeling about them was pretty obvious:

He actually seemed much more into opening birthday presents than Christmas ones. Funny. He even let Beckett open one.

Trying to get his cute face and the shirt in one shot without him moving (take #34):

He selected "donuts" as his birthday breakfast. This would be the first of many blowing out of candles preceded by "Happy Birthday." Thanks to Auntie Karen, the boys had their awesome aprons to protect their clothes. Sprinkle donuts are kinda messy.

Sorry, no shot of me eating a french crueller while in my workout gear. Plausible deniability, baby.

After the gym, we met up with some friends at McDonald's--another Hamilton meal request. The next shots are me trying to get a decent photo of all the kids. Fail, but together, I think I got everyone in a decent, non-drunk photo.

The holiday season revealed Hamilton to be a great lover of egg nog. So, it only made sense that he get egg nog cupcakes for his birthday dessert.

Alex came home crazy early thanks to his hard work over the last couple days and the NYE holiday. This made it possible to got to dinner with the boys at a decent time, letting us discover that they are excellent dinner companions if we're not making them behave in a restaurant after a long wait and during their bedtime.

Once again, I'm trying to get a photo of my handsome boy:

Yes, The Cheesecake Factory. Selected by me, based on our having a gift card. On our way home, Hamilton asked, "Why did we go to a cheese store?" Then, he talked about all the desserts in the case, reflecting that the chocolate cake was even big for Willie the Giant.

When I take a bite or sip of something before giving it to Hamilton, I call it a "Mommy Tax." Here is Hamilton taking a "Hamilton Tax" of Alex's Diet Coke:

Hamilton got a cheese quesadilla, but rejected the side of guacamole. Thank goodness. I made Becks' sliders into guacamole burgers, and he gobbled his up just like his daddy:

Hamilton getting sung to! I get to be the mommy who does this! Love it!

Hamilton purposefully posed like this:

We returned home to sing two more "Happy Birthday's" over the cupcakes. I asked Hamilton what his favorite part of the day was, and he said, "Blowing out candles!"

It was really, truly a wonderful day. Thanks to everyone who was a part of it, either by celebrating with him, a phone call, or sending him such wonderful gifts. He's lucky boy. We're lucky too. :)

Today's Moments with the Boys

I've gotten worse and worse about recording moments with the boys on this blog. I blame Facebook. With the app on my phone, it's easy to write something funny they said or did there. Unfortunately, my Facebook statuses are not eventually making their way into a book, so...not good. I've wandered into the office tonight, worried I'd forget a couple funny things from today.

I spent a total of six selfish hours away from home today (crafting with friends, running with a buddy), so I think I'm even better able to see how cute my boys are today. Here's a few moments...

1. It took me extra long to leave for my run this afternoon because Beckett kept saying, "Bye, Bye, Mama!" and blowing kisses. I extended that parting to about 5 minutes. I could seriously eat that kid up. Don't even get me started on him in jammies.

2. When I came home from my run, I kissed Alex. Beckett, sitting nearby, leaned towards me with an "Mmmmm..." (you know that sound you make when your hugging or kissing your kids? or is it just me?). I laughed and kissed him. Then, he points to Alex and says, "Dada! Dada!" So, I kissed Alex again. Beckett then repeated, "Dada! Dada!" several times, occasionally asking for a kiss for himself. I soon carried Becks upstairs for a diaper change, and all the way up, he was trying to kiss me on the lips. I was laughing like crazy.

3. We got our Christmas tree tonight! While Alex was waiting in line to get the trunk trimmed off and tree bundled, I decided to pick up a few needed items in Home Depot. Hamilton wanted to go, but only if I took Beckett too. Therefore, it appears that mommy + 0 is less than Daddy, but Mommy + Beckett beats Daddy. Cool. Other than Beckett flipping out about being in a cart and Hamilton biting me while I was trying to listen to some Home Depot advice, we had a nice time. :) Seriously. Clearly, my time away gave me the patience of Job.

4. We left the tree bundled while we got it situated in the stand, but there was a netting piece that was making things difficult. Alex and I complained about not having scissors handy (as our hands were both busy holding the tree/screwing in the stand). Hamilton responded by getting one of his swords to cut off the pesky netting. "Here you go, Dad!"

5. We let the boys put some non-breakable ornaments on the tree, then sat back and soaked it all in: the tree, the lights, the Christmas music, the decorations slowly filling the room. Hamilton looked up at the tree and pronounced, "It looks really good." I laughed a little and agreed, then he jumped in my lap for a hug and an "I love you." Oh, Christmas Spirit....welcome to my home! Can you stay ALL year??

My Beckett

At around 9pm, I brought a sad, little Beckett downstairs. Before I'd reached the bottom, Alex pronounced, "He's got you wrapped around his little finger."

I was surprised, "What?! Really?? Do you think that's true? I had to bring him down because he wouldn't let me go---his little hands were hugging my neck tight whenever I tried to put him back in the crib."

Yeah, ok. Maybe Alex has a point. But looking at my cutie pie in his tight "mommy's little monster" jammies, I didn't really care.

Mom's aren't supposed to have favorites. And I don't. Honestly. Moms, rather, have different kids. My brother Travis once described it as having different cars. Sometimes you want to take the SUV out and other times it's a Porche kind of a day. But you love your whole fleet.

I'm not sure how to directly apply that car metaphor to my boys, but they are definitely different. And this leads to a post focusing on my littlest rascal, who does kind of have me wrapped around his finger.

• Beckett still lets me snuggle and squeeze him. Hamilton declared independence before they'd closed me up after the c-section.
• Beckett doesn't say too many words, so it's funny to me the words he does choose to use: hot dog, chocolate (to instruct me to make chocolate milk), pizza, baseball bat, mommy (for hamilton and me), me (usually accompanied by a raise of his hand), mine (important one for a younger brother), daddy, baa (the animal sound as well as the show i let him watch: "Shawn the Sheep" ), and block.
• His stand-up routine at dinner is to put his fork backwards in his mouth...just lets it hang there until I call him a "silly goose" whereupon his laughing mouth can't keep it in any longer.
• I let him sleep in our bed on occasion (like the occasions when he wakes up at an ungodly hour and I'm no mood for "tough love sleep training"). One time he was getting so frustrated with me. He finally grabbed my arm and jabbered something. I promptly let him snuggle in the crook of my arm, and he went right to sleep.
• He copies everything Hamilton does. This is alternately cute and maddening.
• He just learned how to hop. I credit a pumpkin patch bounce house.
• He loves shooting baskets and hitting baseballs. He even hits his bat on the ground before he gets ready for a pitch. That's the "cute" part of copying Hamilton.
• He automatically folds his arms when he sits down to eat. He's usually our reminder to pray.
• He gets knocked down by Hamilton a lot, which probably helps keep up my soft spot for him and thinking of him as "my baby."
• Beckett loves the "animal game." Before we'd even gotten to the game portion of FHE, he was crawling around the floor growling.
• The most common comment about Beckett is "he's such a sweet boy." :) Don't worry...he's got some "naughty" in him too to keep it interesting.
  
• He is really good at playing on his own: blocks, books, cars, train table...
• Beckett likes to dance.
• He is very ticklish. I am always happy to take advantage of this, so I can hear the cutest laugh ever. He doesn't mind much either--sometimes he'll walk up to me, tickling his tummy saying, "tickle! tickle!"

Who wouldn't be wrapped around his finger, right? :)

Beckett??

I'm not sure how or when it started, but Beckett insists on taking his naps in Hamilton's bed. I guess I should be happy, as it should make the crib-to-bed transition that much easier. And actually, to be honest, I think it's adorable and I kind of love being able to lie down next to him and read a story. Judging by his sweet giggles, he doesn't mind it much either.

The downside to this new nap routine is that sometimes he gets out of bed and wanders around the room, playing with toys or reading books. So, I have to check on him every 10 minutes or so to make sure the "sleeping" part of naptime is getting its due.

When I cracked open the door today, I didn't see him on the bed...couldn't see him anywhere actually, but I could hear the tell-tale breathing of a sleeping boy. After a couple scans of the room I found him. Can you?




When I picked him up to put him in the bed, I discovered that he was sleeping on top of the rocking horse "rocker" and using a soft ball as a cuddly pillow.

Funny, funny boy. Love him.

Out and About

Scrolling through iPhoto, I see so many great shots of the boys, so many fun memories. I thought I'd copied over a lot more, but it just did these 5. That'll have to do. It's 11:30, and I'm supposed to be at the track by 6am.

Sunday walk in PV:


These boots were made for...?

I made my Facebook buddies play "New Yorker caption contest" with that pic. Some of my favs:

• "Tex" gets burned by the Indian medicine man.
• ‎"There's a snake between my boots!"
• These boots were NOT made for walkin'!
• I told you, just shrink his head.

Awww, my little sand crab:

Halloween is definitely Hamilton's favorite holiday. He's been prepping for weeks. And, yes, he went to the store in this:

Craft stores are more manageable with hats. :) Seeing this picture, I kind of regret denying H a "good behavior" treat at the end. Yes, he was a little naughty. But seriously, shouldn't "cute" pay off somehow? FYI: The gun is in a holster, which is in his pocket.

Random Notes

I could write a book made up of everything I wish I remembered about these cute boys of mine. *sigh* So, here's some random stories, quotes, etc. before I forget them...

• Hamilton: "Cool shirt, Daddy. Kieran [his buddy], look at my dad's cool shirt!"
• Hamilton (after sampling some multi-vitamin water at Costco): "I think my body's turning into a temple!"
• Beckett is actually starting to say more words. This is very exciting. And sometimes surprising. The other day I asked, "Who wants some chocolate milk?" And he raised his little hand and said, "Me!"
• Beckett has been down to "sleep time only" pacifier use, but the other day I was stuck at home with no pacifier to be found. After a rough naptime, I decided, "Screw it. I'm not doing this again." And Day 1 of pacifier detox was born. It's mostly going ok. He's crying in the next room, but I'm cleverly ignoring it with the help of some Arcade Fire.
• Speaking of music, Hamilton and I are mad about Florence and the Machine.
  
• Beckett and Hamilton are in this amazing phase where they can just play and play in their room. I especially love hearing Hamilton's color commentary and dialogue as he plays with his cars, dinosaurs, and so on. You would think this would mean I'd be getting tons more done, but...alas...
• Hamilton started preschool last week. It's just 2 days a week for a couple hours, but it's going to be pretty perfect for him and me. Yea!
• Update: Beckett is still crying. I find it so sweet that by just standing over his crib, I can stop him. This also makes me tired. Am I bad that I left? I was just soooooo ready to "clock out" today.
  
• I saw myself holding Beckett the other day and was like, "Whoa! That is NOT a baby." Oh, I'm going to miss that snuggly Boo Boo Beckett. He is turning more and more "boy." And a recent weekend spent with Hamilton and his cousins Luke and Miles may have sped up the process.
• The other day at Ikea, I couldn't get Beckett to move along because he was too busy spinning around and dancing. No music, mind you. But there was a cute girl in a stroller. Am I in trouble here?
• Hamilton is maturing a bit as well. It's hard though because some days he's such a little helper, and other days....ARGH!!! I think the bad days are made worse by the fact I know he can be better. I really need to be more patient though. Add that to a long "mommy improvement" list.
• Beckett says "prayers."
• Still crying...
• Hamilton is loving a book from my own childhood, Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things that Go. I remember making up sub-plots about all the different animals, cars, etc. Hearing Hamilton do the same for about 30 minutes on a road trip was pretty awesome.
• Speaking of road trips, we have done a TON of driving in the last month or so. The boys have been so good. It's all music, books, and some toys. No DVDs. Proud of how well they've done.
• For the Primary newsletter, I was supposed to ask Hamilton what he did to keep his body healthy. Here's the conversation that followed:
  

H: Food!
Me: What else?
H: Drinks!
Me: Anything else to keep you healthy and strong?
H: Coffee!!

• Hamilton has loved going to a lot of baseball games this season. He has all the cheers down and has even been willing to wear a ball cap recently.

Oh...there's tons I'm forgetting. Maybe I'll add more after talking to Alex. Beckett's still crying. Do I go in or just move onto my dinner/Project Runway?

Hmmmmmm.....

If I had a videographer following me around today...

you would have seen some of the following scenes:

• Hamilton "diving" in the pool to get a ball over and over. This move kind of looks like he's drowning, so the first 30 minutes I spent a lot of time having mini panic attacks. He also kept trying to float on his back by himself. Proud of him :).
• Beckett making his daily show of "Why Mommy Shouldn't Trust Me with a Go-gurt."
• Me and the boys playing baseball at the park...it was non-contentious for 40 minutes. I'm not kidding!
• Hamilton hitting the ball straight up into the air and then hitting it again on the way down. It even got ooo's and ahhhh's from a couple passersby.
• Beckett pitching to Hamilton, and Hamilton being really sweet about it.
  
• Hamilton hitting a hard line drive straight into Beckett's leg. This then led to a clear example of what kind of parent I am: hug Beckett while simultaneously congratulating Hamilton on a good hit. "Run the bases! You didn't mean to hit him...he's ok!"
• Hamilton running those bases as if in a mirror world...they are apparently behind him. Hope that gets sorted out before t-ball.
• The boys eating a good dinner...hooray!
  
• Me and the little boys waiting for Alex on the porch.
• Beckett copying Alex's "chicken" impersonation.

I really, really wish I had more video of the boys. But two boys, two hands...it's just not always possible, especially when I'm pitching.

Today

Ahhhh...the neglected "Me and My Boys" blog. It's already served its purpose (Beckett's first year), but it's nice to have a place for pure Hamilton-Beckett content. And there's plenty of that content, as it is my life right now. However, tonight I'll just write down a couple things from today...

* It's been a long week. I keep thinking it's Friday. *Sigh* Instead of a few times a week of maxed patience, I've been feeling it hourly. This makes for not good parenting and an unhappy stay-at-home mom. While I was getting the boys ready for bed, I started wrestling around with them, tickling them, and giving them "airplane rides." We were all laughing. Beckett was extra cute trying to cut in on Hamilton's turn. In the midst of that moment, I thought, "When was the last time I did this?" Too long ago. Maybe there's a reason this week has been a little tougher? Add "tickle and wrestle often to keep everyone happy" to my ever growing list of ways to improve my parenting.

*We had an HOA meeting tonight at our house. The boys, of course, would not go to sleep in time, so an inconsolable Beckett got rescued from his crib to join the meeting. Hamilton, predictably, crept to the stairs to see what was going on. Unpredictably he came out with his Mickey Mouse ears. Quite clever of him because it is very, very difficult--nay, I would say, impossible--to be mad at a little boy in sleepers and Mickey ears. He finally made it down as well, passing out cookies to everyone before finally taking one for himself. After the meeting, bedtime STILL wasn't happening, and somehow we all ended up watching an episode of Pushing Daisies together. That was probably bad, but they talk so fast and cleverly on that show, I'm sure they didn't catch on much. They are--just now--finally asleep, and I am hoping against hope that tomorrow morning does not bring super cranky pants out of that room. Luckily, though, it is actually Friday tomorrow!

Happy Mother's Day!

I'm not (nor have I ever been) a huge fan of Mother's Day. It's always struck me as a bit trite and contrived. Plus, I usually worry about how it makes those without kids or without moms or with sub-par moms feel. However, this year felt a little different. Maybe a one-year-old Beckett tipped the scale into the holiday's favor. Or maybe I made a conscious decision to make it a good, fun day. In any case, it did in fact turn out to be a great day.

I got to snuggle Beckett and sleep in a little more before being awakened by Hamilton bringing me breakfast in bed, which he helped make, and a card. We miraculously hustled ourselves to church and arrived on time for Hamilton to participate in the Primary children singing the prelude music. This had been making me tear up since I was pregnant, so I really couldn't wait. Unfortunately, it looks like it will be another year of waiting for me because Hamilton burst into tears and returned to our seat before any singing took place. Glass half full perspective: I didn't cry during church. Thanks, bud!

Alex had to jet to this office as soon as church was over. Kind of a bummer, but I'd resolved to embrace the day as a true mother's day (i.e. no father). While Beckett took a nap, Hamilton and I made my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. It's the best, ask me and I will give it to you.

matching aprons...

I didn't realize how uptight I was about things until I had kids. Like, I thought it would be fun to bake with them, but I can't get over how they do everything "wrong." Yeah, I'm ridiculous. In honor of the day though, I let go a bit. Guess what? Cookies turned out, and we had fun.

The BEST part of making cookies...

Beckett even woke up in time to get in on the action...

Finished product, along with my awesome "cookie spatula."

Then, it was off for a walk on the Strand, where I promised Hamilton he could eat some cookies. Of course, while I was gathering everything for the walk, he managed to sneak one in the kitchen. How did I catch him? As I was walking downstairs, he yelled, "Don't come in the kitchen, Mommy!"

A nice passerby offered to take our picture. I happily accepted.

After a pleasant walk, featuring Hamilton running, sitting on the stroller, walking, standing on the stroller, and stopping to sit on benches, we made it to the pier. I think Hamilton could have spent all day there watching the surfers and scaring me to death by climbing the railings.

What I felt this day the most was that I need to be better about enjoying being a mom. Why shouldn't I? I do have the two best little guys around.

Overload

Hamilton and Beckett are in pretty cute phases right now. Phases that come with multiple "I have to remember that!" moments and routines each day. Unfortunately, keeping the boys alive and the house in reasonable order is making it impossible to remember and write down all those "unforgettable" memories. This is making me very sad and frustrated. So, I'm starting this post today, with the knowledge that I will add to it throughout the week, as I find my hurried post-it note list of moments and remember others. I tried asking Alex for help, but all he offered was, "If you were a better mom, you'd remember them." Thanks, Honey.

Beckett

• He is getting quite adept at crawling, realizing that my fingers are not available 24/7 to help him walk (he's working on confidence and Hamilton defense right now...he really CAN walk on his own).
• If I'm holding him and I open the fridge, he spits that pacifier out immediately...no matter how recently he's eaten or had a drink.
• He was really struggling with a nighttime fever for a few nights. It was rough waking up every hour or so while he struggled, but there were sweet moments too, like when the only way he'd stop crying and go to sleep was in Alex's and my bed while I lay next to him telling him "The Three Little Pigs."
• For the last 3 days, at approximately 11:30am, he loses it completely, screaming and crying until he gets put in his crib. We are, of course, always far from home when this starts.
• He's starting to push Hamilton away and retain control of his toys more. Good job, Beckett!
• Yesterday, he kept destroying Hamilton's train tracks. It felt like such a brother moment: Beckett thrilled about doing it, and Hamilton SO frustrated.
• He doesn't have "real" words yet, but his favorite communication is shaking his head no, as in "No, I don't want to eat that" and "No, I don't want to walk to Mommy. Just to Daddy." Yeah, Alex's is 2 for 2. Bummer.
  

Hamilton

• When I told him what the "real" name for his "peanut" was, he just laughed and said, "I don't think so!"
• To a random mom sitting on a bench at the park: "Things aren't going very well."
• "I have an excellent idea: we can count the clouds!"
• While Alex and I are having Beckett walk between us: "Pass him to me! Pass him to me!"
• Discoveries in the bathtub: Hey Mom, look at this! It tickles me!" Sometimes I think having boys is NOT so awesome.
• Hamilton was zoning out in the car after 7 hours at Disneyland. I asked him, "Are you tired, bud?" He responded, "No, I'm just hanging out." Later on the phone with Alex (bluetooth...we're law-abiding citizens), I said the boys were drifting off, and Hamilton immediately opened his eyes wide and sat up, "I'm not tired!" He was asleep less than 5 minutes later.
  

The Boys

• I had the best time pushing them in the swings yesterday. Hamilton kept alternating between wanting to be treated like a big kid "I want an 'underdog,' Mommy!" and like Beckett, so I was saying things like "I'm going to get you!" to him.
  

Random Pics

My last post was random pics by amateur photographer Hamilton. This post contains ones by his mom (also an amateur).

Some days I just think my boys dress awesome. It might seem egotistical since I'm the one that dresses them, but once they're in the clothes, it mostly feels like it was their choice and they are the ones that have to pull it off. I love Beckett's Puma jacket (actually got into a fight with Alex when I thought he'd ruined it) and his little Vans. All coming together, of course, with the best accessory: big blue eyes! Not a great photo of him though...way cuter in real life. :)

The boys were watching Mickey Mouse together (for the record, Beckett rarely watches TV), and I thought their little bums were adorable.


A colleague of Alex's gave us this cardboard rocket ship. So, so cool. Sad that the company that makes these and other similar items is out of business. We had a lot of fun in there (except for the 2 occasions it was used as an accidental outhouse).

Muscles! Hamilton wants to wear this shirt whenever he sees it. I'm continually amazed by how soon little boys are in fact little BOYS.
One day during lunch, Hamilton got trapped in his chair. Loving mother that I am, I took a few pictures first. I thought it was pretty funny and a good lesson, of course, about how you're supposed to eat and not play around.

Cheeseburger! Beckett is no longer accepting bite-sized food. He wants the real thing, the whole thing. Today he wouldn't eat pulled pork until it was in a bun with coleslaw.

Hamilton: A Photographer

We recently got a smaller camera...so I don't have to have our big, expensive one out and about. Hamilton discovered this camera the other day and has been enjoying doing some photography. Here are some of his shots.

This is one of me, taken with his direction, "Be angry!"


There are lots of feet/floor photos...
Bird's eye view of dinner...
A puzzle we did earlier in the day...
Took this picture right before he took the car away from Beckett...
Self-portraits in the bathroom mirror...
The camera is why I'm actually able to fold some laundry...yea!
Of course, Hamilton still tries to destroy my laundry piles (why?!?), so this is a picture of me saying, "Please! Don't mess up the clothes!"
Pretty sure Hamilton gets this view a lot...
This picture might be the result of his "jump zoom" shots (his term)...where he jump spins and then takes a picture when he lands. Already a visionary in the world of photography.
Hamilton took several shots of this toy before deciding that having the animals OUT was the better shot...

And the picture he'd been wanting to take since the beginning of his photo shoot: Daddy!