This morning

Well, I've been thinking about a friend of mine's post about her 2 year old's behavior, especially since they brought home #2 a few weeks ago. She described "walking on egg shells" to prevent tantrums over tiny things. I realized I am not only walking on egg shells, but running, leaping, cartwheeling and doing backbends on egg shells for the same reason. For instance this morning:
Seth what do you want for breakfast?
Kix
I go get Kix
NO RICE KRISPIES!
I go get Rice Krispies, and move to take away the Kix
NO BOTH!
I leave them both
Do you want a banana too?
NO BANANA
I go get a banana for the babies in their high chairs
WANT BANANA TOO
Ok do you want to hold it or should I cut it
CUT
I cut the banana on a plate and hand it to him.
NO HOLD IT HOLD IT HOLD IT
Well its already cut, so you have to eat it that way.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
proceeds to dump the bananas off the plate onto the table.
I take the banana away
WANT BANANA!!!!!
Will you leave it on the plate?
NO NO NO DONE EATING!
and he gets down.
Want to watch Bug's Life.
OK Ill put on Bug's Life.
I put it on
NO REGULAR GEORGE! (his term for the TV show as opposed to the movie)
No, you asked for bugs life and thats what I put on (keep in mind between all of this I'm feeding the babies)
TURN IT OFF
ok Ill turn it off.
About 3o seconds later... BUGS LIFE, BUGS LIFE on TV!
No, you asked me to turn it off.
Seth smacks me on the back
I pick him up and put him on the other side of the baby gate.
Screaming ensues, then he bangs his head on the floor and cries some more, yelling that he hurt his head (I struggle not to yell "DUH!" back at him.

Anyway, you get the point. All through this I'm fighting not just giving in on all points, get him a new banana, turn various shows on and off, but the reality is that wouldn't necessarily help, he would just keep asking for other things.

So now, in order for me to write this, he is watching Bug's Life, and eating MiniWheats (whole other story :) )

Which is why I will be celebrating one year survival, instead of one year birthdays in about a month.

Sorry Chris!

That's why they call him John

This is a photo from May 15, 1947, when my dad (John) was 11 mos old, with his older brother Lou, who was 4 1/2. I put some pictures of Davis (John) Outten below for you to compare. I wonder, did we name him that and so he looks like him, or did we know he would look like him, and so we named him that. Hmmmm.

Seth's first nature photography lesson

Seth and I went to the duck pond with the camera, and Seth took some pictures. The last one is the requisite child chasing ducks picture that I took. Seth took many pictures that I deleted, but I kept the feather pic, as I can't be sure whether he meant that one or not. :)

Someday...

I will get a portrait of Seth (without his dad restraining him)

Doin' the laundry

Yikes!

Can't believe I caught this on film, but here is Davis's new trick!!!

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Playin' in the Pum'kin Patch

Why wont they sleep?

I've been trying to picture a mama giraffe, (or any other species) spending hours rocking, singing shushing etc to get their babies to sleep. I really can't imagine it. Why do all other species sleep when they are tired? What is it about humans that makes them fight and fight and fight sleep? Whats wrong with a little relaxation, snuggling, lying around? I just want to know, why won't they sleep?

Just for comparison...

10 months old!

And as you can see below, Audrey is working on her riding skills, while Davis is not so much. But Davis stands. On his own. Pretty cool. (No pictures of that yet, you have to be ready to catch him, no hands for camera.)

Mr Incredible...

...the rabbit?

...or the tiger?

I...Will...Not...Let...Go...

Of this balloon!!!!! (Yes he is actually asleep, and no the balloon is not tied to him.)

Kids at Play

I love kid tubes.