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!