A Day At The Park: Two Ways

My boys agree on most things when it comes to play at home, but the park is a whole different ballgame (which is why it's impossible to take them to the park when flying solo). 

I took my point-and-shoot camera along on a recent trip with Gamma Rita and the only two pictures I managed to get of the boys together were pre-park over an incredibly nutritious lunch:

– Turns out we is still lovin' it™, everyone!

And pretty much right before we left where they were miraculously smitten with the same aspect of the park at the same time. Lovely shot of the back of their heads, but you get the idea.

Welcome to a typical day at the park OP style! 

• • • • • • •

This is how the "Nate Way" typically unfolds – and by the way, this is not the same slide featured in the previous picture. This is the "Really Big Slide!" (just so you know): 

– "Really Big Slide" is what I imagine Heaven look like everyone!

I need to caveat this post right now by saying that although I spent an equal share of time with both of my boys at the park there are far less photos of Nate mainly due to the fact that we spent 90% of our time together in the exact same location.

And there's only so many photos you can take of a boy doing exactly this: 

– I could do 'dis all day. And usually I does!

Over and over and over again. What can I say? Nate really likes that slide!

Despite the park resembling an uninhabited wasteland* in all my photos for some reason, things were fairly hopping (busy park on a busy weekend) – and even though both of my boys are quite good at waiting their turn, I won't insult you by pretending they necessarily enjoy it. 

– I is waiting turn which I doesn't really mind that much, but I throws in 'dis
tragic look for effect anyway in case it endear someone to let me through
to front of line.

The other 5% of the time with Nate was spent dashing around trying out anything that could be climbed on: 

– Please note everything around me in focus. Is just me that is blur
for some reason.

Or anything worth riding: 

– Big or small, I rides them all!

And even though the general consensus has been that swings are stinkeroo since Seth lost interest (and anything your brother doesn't want to do is typically not worth doing of course), Gamma Rita managed to coax Nate back onto a swing:

After which it was game-on!** 

– OK. I admits it. Swing is fun.

• • • • • • •

The second half of our day at the park was spent doing things the "Seth Way" and it's probably best if I just let Seth narrate this: 

– Oh hi everyone. Is me, Seth. We is at park today and Nate doing it all wrong
so I shows you how it done right instead. There is a lot to see and do here and
I see and do all kinds of stuff, but everyone know first priority at park is to
impress the cuties. Right now I is gathering ingredients to make one of my
signature dishes. Everyone know the cuties dig a guy who know own way
around a kitchen.

– I has a few recipes I likes to make at park. Macaroni and cheese, grilled
cheese sandwiches and caesar salad are my go-to favorites. Today
we is making macaroni and cheese.

– I start by combining ingredients in handy bowl-type thing hidden under
play equipment. Is especially handy because 'dis secret recipe!

– So secret in fact that it important to take look around from time to time
to make sure no one peeking...

– ... before I add super-secret final touch. Turns out, rocks and twigs are what really
make 'dis recipe.

– And BAM! Is all done.

– I take moment to bask in own success but is fleeting. It take more than a
winning recipe and good looks to impress the cuties after all.

Mommy note: it doesn't take more than that smile and those baby blues to impress me. I could get lost in those eyes (and sometimes do). And yes, they really are that blue.

– Good thing I also has skills at vehicle maintenance. Oh sure, it obvious that
missing wheel is real problem, but taking time to look under hood anyway
make it seem like you really know what you is doing.

– Next I head over to "Really Big Slide" to see what all the fuss about.
I start to climb up to slide 'dis way but discover pretty quick there
no cuties over here so I cuts it short.

– I end up finding more cutie-friendly way to top of slide but when I arrive
it turn out I only find Nate and some big kids and exactly zero cuties.
"Really Big Slide" turn out to be stinkeroo!

– Thank goodness regular slide has plenty of cuties and even though you
not see any evidence of that here, me and my bucket was big hit!

You probably wondering about my bucket right now and why it such big hit
so I give you hint.

– Is not big hit because I using it to make more recipes.

– And it not big hit because I pose here and there to casually show off
a little leg (although 'dis big crowd pleaser also).

– Is big hit because it turn out caring about environment also popular
with the cuties!****

– To be perfectly honest though, I do 'dis part even if no cuties is looking.
Is just fun!

- L. 

*I have no idea how I managed to take pictures of my boys at an extremely popular park on a weekend afternoon and make it look like we were the sole inhabitants. It wasn't especially deliberate, but really... wow!

**I had Seth in hand when I took the swing pics of Nate. It was pretty close to leaving time and I had approximately 500 pics of Seth and a half dozen of Nate. Also, enjoying a swing is a rare beast ever since Seth declared swings stinkeroo*** and Nate took his word for it.

***In all fairness, Seth unexpectedly got sick on a swing last summer and hasn't been on one since.

****Actually, it's not. The part about the recipes/kitchen play, car maintenance and the "regular" slide all being popular with the cuties is quite true, but Seth is definitely on his own with park maintenance. Hunting for "little treasures" is an intrinsic part of going to the park with him however, and the highlight is definitely the trip to the respective bins where we sort things into "garbage" and "recycling".

• • • • • • • 

PS. In case you thought this was fresh material and wondered why the weather was so nice and everyone was looking so spry, these pics are actually from a couple or more weeks ago when the weather was still good and we were between summer colds.

The Things They Say: Top 5 Best & Worst

I recently added a new label called "the things they say", since none of the made-up conversations I've come up with over the past two years can even begin to hold a candle to the things my boys actually say these days. 

A couple of weeks ago I started a top 5 list of some of my favorites, as well as a top 5 list of some of my not-so-favorites. For some reason, the "Top 5 Worst" list came together more quickly than the "Top 5 Best", although I can say without a doubt that the #1 best saying of all time was the impetus for the list in the first place.

"Aloo shoes" and "I-dee-dee" are the relics of days gone by now. Ditto for "Leggy-bugs", "Chup-up", and "Pah-guts"*. The endless clamoring for "Reetins! Reetins! Reetins!" until we all thought we would lose our minds has long since been replaced by a simple request for raisins. Hum is now home.

And so it is now – for every ounce of posterity that's in it – I present my top picks for Best & Worst sayings that are currently in use:

The Worst:

By "worst", I mean the ones that drive me up a wall mainly due to the frequency with which they are used. Repetition might be a toddler's best friend, but I can tell you it's often a crazy-maker for Mommy. 

#5. "No singing!" 

– "No singing!" first appeared on the scene last winter anytime I would, you know, sing. It gave me a bit of a complex to be honest. I mean, while I wouldn't win any contests, I don't think my singing is that bad. I can carry a tune (at least most of the time), but I'll admit I felt heaps better when my boys started declaring "no singing!" around others as well.

Of course, at some point I recalled all the times I would sing them to sleep as babies when they were too young to object. Now I wonder if they only pretended to be asleep so I'd quit it with the singing already.

#4. "Piece of fuzz!" 

– "Piece of fuzz!" applies to actual pieces of fuzz, but also includes random things like clothing tags, loose threads and finely chopped food items/spices. Much like the dirt on the cheese crackers, my boys are semi-convinced I occasionally put fuzz in their food. Oy.

Originally, pieces of fuzz were met with a reaction similar to how one might react at the discovery of a spider on oneself – or at least how I would react to that particular discovery (read: general hysteria). Now they are simply pointed at while the discover-ee says "Piece of fuzz! Piece of fuzz! Piece of fuzz, Mommy!" on a loop until the offending fuzz has been removed.

#3. "Uh-oh! Va-va go!"

– Although my boys are well capable of saying "water" and will refer to bath water as "water" for example, water in their sippy cups has always been known as "va-va". And when said water in sippies is accidentally dropped (or more likely deliberately flung) the logical thing to say of course is, "Uh-oh! Va-va go!".

Unfortunately, things that "go" doesn't end at va-va – it's just the most popular and the original source of the "things that go" trend. Seth especially gets pretty worked up over things that "go". You can (sort of) see him in action here, but the hour was late and instead of doing his usual running litany he kept it simple for once with "Uh-oh! Stuff go!".

#2. "Kiss a bonk!" & "Itchy nose!"

"Kiss a bonk!" predates "Itchy nose!", but they are used to the same end – and although they can (and have been) used separately, these days you are more likely to hear them in succession, a la "Itchy nose and bonk!".

Very rarely do either have anything to do with an actual bonk or an itchy nose ("itchy" is how my boys refer to a runny nose in case you were wondering what that's about). On the contrary, "itchy nose and bonk" comes into play mostly in the following scenarios:

Brother steals your toy? Itchy nose and bonk!
Mommy says no more cookies? Itchy nose and bonk!
Time for bed? Itchy nose and bonk!

I'm sure you get the idea, and really it's sort of cute/funny the first 50 odd times you hear it in a day and grab a real tissue to wipe at an imaginary itchy nose while bestowing a kiss on an equally fake "bonk". After that though? Maybe not so much.

"Kiss a bonk" is pretty established at this point and typically a kiss on the top of the head gets the job done. That said, it's not completely out of the ordinary for those bonks to appear elsewhere. Some of my favorites have included, "Kiss the shirt!", "Kiss the sock!" and most famously, "Kiss the behind!".

#1. "I think so!"

Such an innocent sounding phrase, but it's place at the top of my least favorite sayings list is well-earned.

Every day without fail my boys pick a word du jour that is used to mean "general pandemonium time now!". Today's word was "washing machine" as an example – and it was trotted out liberally for such fun times as toy throwing, food flinging and making a rather spirited mess with sippy cups. Of course, all of the scenarios included the requisite shouting of "washing machine" – or worse, "MORE washing machine!" – followed by fits of giggles at Mommy losing her marbles and being forced to say ridiculous things like, "No more washing machine! I mean it!".

Tomorrow they will move on to a new word, and trust me when I say it won't matter in the least what that word is because by the end of the day I can guarantee it will be the most irksome word I've ever heard.

Except for "I think so!".

"I think so!" gets top billing since it was the first phrase my boys used to let me know it was, in fact, "general pandemonium time now" and they terrorized me with that particular saying for a solid week. In fact, "No more I think so's!" is still something the boys say – pretty much around about the time it's clear Mommy is about to lose it completely.

Want to see me twitch? Drop an "I think so!" into casual conversation. Fun!

• • • • • • • 

The Best: 

#5: "Oh my goodness boodness!" 

This is mostly a Nate-ism, but I've heard Seth use it too. It's used appropriately to express surprise. I have no idea what the boodness is about, but you can't have an "Oh my goodness!" without the "boodness" around here. Super-adorable, whatever it means.

#4. "It's a mystery!"

This one is mostly a Seth-ism, but Nate is certainly no stranger to the magical powers of "it's a mystery!".

"It's a mystery!" more or less translates to "I don't know" and often comes into play following an "Uh-oh! *Something* go!" incident when I'm not able to locate whatever it is that "went". Often my boys will steer me in the right direction when it comes to missing toys for example – and usually they aren't so much missing as hidden in some semi-unreachable place. Other times? Well, "it's a mystery!".

"It's a mystery" is always preceded by a thoughtful pause – the cuteness of which has a lot to do with it's magical properties. Keep in mind it diffuses even the worst of the "Uh-oh! *Something* go!" shenanigans in an instant. It also comes in handy in the following scenario:

Me: "Hey! How did water get all over the floor?"
N/S: *pause*... "It's a mystery!"

Clearly there isn't too much that's mysterious about that situation other than maybe which one of my boys was the perp, but I find myself cleaning up messes without question and having a bit of a giggle when they play the "mystery" card. See? Magical properties!

#3. "That's a machine, alright!" 

I covered this one over here. It's still very much a popular phrase and it still hasn't stopped making me laugh.

#2. "Nate and Seth are best friends!"

I'm sure I don't need to write a single word to tell you why this is on my list of favorites, other than to say my boys really are best friends and I love so much that they are. 

They are each Felix to the other's Oscar. 

• • • • • • • 

You're probably wondering how "Nate and Seth are best friends!" only made the #2 spot. I wrestled with it a little myself, but here's the thing: while Nate and Seth are best friends and I hope they always will be, there's probably a limited shelf life on them actually expressing that in so many words. At some point it will simply become an understood thing.

And much like the "Reetins!" of yore, all of these expressions that either make me laugh or want to tear my hair out will go by the wayside also. "It's a mystery" is probably not going to seem as cute when the boys are teenagers and I'm pretty sure they won't be asking me to wipe their noses or "kiss a bonk" anymore by that point either.

I can however, guarantee that the #1 spot on my favorites list will still be haunting at least one of my boys through his college years and beyond.

It's that good.

And since it's that good, I've decided it deserves a post all it's own.

Until next time then.

- L.

*Aloo shoes = blue shoes. I-dee-dee = ice cream. Leggy-bugs = ladybugs. Chup-up = Ketchup. Pah-guts** = Patty-cakes.

**I originally thought "Pah-guts!" was twin-speak for something to do with bedtime/saying goodnight, to the point I started saying "Goodnight... and pah-guts!" because it seemed suitable. It wasn't until we were reading Mother Goose one day and Nate pointed at the "Patty Cake" page and exclaimed "Pah-guts!" that the "mystery" was solved. That incident certainly gave me pause when it came to being definitive about declaring "Anasahnize!" and "Fore-stains!" as real examples of OP cryptophasia, but rest assured, the fore-stains et al are legit.

• • • • • • •

PS. Last October between the big Hallowe'en photo-shoot (courtesy of my dear friend Padrin) and the bath-time splish-splash pics, "Uncle P" took some random candid shots of me and my sweet boys just hanging out. They certainly weren't intended to be masterpieces, but they are without a doubt some of my favorite photos of my sons and I together. I've been hoarding them, but this seemed like an appropriate post to finally share since they are also very much some of my favorite things.

Working on my drum technique.

Excelling at my tickle technique.

When The Moon Hits Your Eye Like Your First BBQ...

...that's amore!

We brought our new toddler-friendly table and chairs out to the deck for the occasion. On the menu: BBQ chicken, caesar salad and garlic bread, followed by apple crisp and ice cream for dessert. Discerning toddler critic rating: 5 star dining establishment. 

– Oh hi everyone. Is me, Seth. We sitting outside to eat for first time at new chairs and table. 

– Is first BBQ also which not detail to leave out! "Barbeque" is fun word to say until actual BBQ show up. Then I stop talking because I is busy stuffing face with yummy chicken. Seth get busy doing fake-out with garlic bread, but I thinks you can tell I definitely savoring the flavors here. Maybe I grow up to be food critic someday. 

– I realizing for first time that we is unfettered at table while we is also outside. There is world of possibility out there if it weren't for that meddling Mommy who insist we sit at table while I reluctantly pluck at BBQ. 

– Meanwhile, I is thinking 'dis flavors like Mama used to make back in old Napoli*. Mwah! 

– Still, 'dis maybe good time to say, "have you seen my hair lately everyone?" while I show off the back. Is filling in nicely I think. Gamma Rita not know it yet, but Mommy say this going to be the summer of hippy hair love. Is going to get all kinds of out of control over here. 

– Er... what he said. Also lemon water is nice touch everyone.**

- L.

*Despite a very mixed heritage, "old Napoli" is not on our personal map and so I hope my comment is not offensive. Still, I think the only thing missing from our first outdoor dining experience was the music. 

**Lemon water was for the adults, but a good incentive for getting the boys to drink out of something other than a sippy cup. Nate especially loved it. Note to self: buy more lemons ASAP.

PS. Seth isn't joking around. The summer of the-letting-it-all-hang-out-hairstyle? It's on, everyone!

PPS. Filed under "funny things toddler say": a chorus of "more limits!" after a passing comment I made to the other adults present about my boys testing limits lately.

• • • • • • •

Dear Nate and Seth: Careful what you ask for my sons – much like a fine dessert, more limits can certainly be arranged if that's your preference. Don't tempt me.

Semi-seriously yours,

– Mommy

XOXOXOXO

My Ham-Fisted Hooligans (At Least They Show Well)

Six odd weeks or so ago, the boys and I had an opportunity for a brunch-time meet-up with our prenatal class alumni. It's the first time we'd seen (almost) everyone together in over a year and we had a great time (also, no camera malfunctions this time around!). It was amazing how much more time we – as parents – had to interact with each other at our recent get-together. Apparently a lot can happen in a year.

Of course, it helped that my guys had no issue whatsoever getting familiar with all the different books and toys. For example, Nate was just as comfortable reading upside down at someone else's house as he is at home:

Ditto for Seth, who got down to business "organizing" as many toys as he could find onto our hosts' coffee table: 

... before he commandeered his own private "boat" for story-time that is: 

Of course, there was at least one thing out of the ordinary and it's not the toddler-friendly table and chairs: 

Before I managed to fully articulate the phrase "oh, my boys don't know how to use a fork", Nate had said fork in hand and was using it like a pro. In hindsight, I think perhaps he was trying to impress the young lady. 

And yet, methinks the young lady was not especially impressed.

None of which mattered much at the time, of course, because Mommy was sure impressed! I couldn't wait to get home and dig our dusty forks out of hibernation for yet another stab at things (lousy pun intended).

Unfortunately, back again in our home environment with an absence of other people to consider, all bets were off. My attempt to reintroduce utensils resulted in tears and fork-flinging and then an epic bout of sadness until the forks finally disappeared. Suffice it to say, it didn't go well – at all. 

I put the forks away once more to gather dust and quietly feared my boys would still be eating their meals like ham-fisted hooligans come college. 

• • • • • • •

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago. I have no idea what possessed me to drag the forks out of hiding that particular day, but I suspect I was feeling unusually well rested and up for a challenge. And you know, it went over pretty well!

No flinging: 

No tears:

And even though Nate and Seth were blatantly goofing off at this point, definitely no sadness:

And so it is at last – ham-fisted hooligans though my boys may be – we sometimes use utensils now at the OP.

Sometimes.

- L.

PS. Since even the pics at the end are a few weeks old at this point, the black eye Seth is sporting is the same one featured here. 

Raise Your Hand

Really. Raise your hand if you didn't see this coming: 

Admittedly, I think there was a greater possibility of the sun not rising this morning so I'm 100% confident that zero hands were raised.

Less predictable though? Nate upping the ante at dinner tonight. I didn't bother taking pictures other than this one: 

And even though you can probably tell exactly what's going on here, it's still worth a peek at the new video on our YouTube™ channel featuring this evening's antics. When I say Nate upped the ante, I really mean it.

Enjoy!

- L.

Like Throwing Sand In My Eyes

I mentioned a few posts back that my boys have been taking extra pains this past week to keep me entertained and/or distracted.

And as much as the entertainment itself has been a distraction of sorts, that isn't exactly what I meant. What I really meant to imply, of course, was shenanigans.

I walked in on the last frame of this scenario a couple of mornings ago:

At which point I realized I will never live to see my seventies (much less ninety-nine) at the rate my boys are currently taking years off my life. This particular shenanigan must have cost me at least 6 months. 

And no, I did not stop to take pictures. How could I when Stern Mommy™ was right there, plucking toddlers off their precarious perches and shooing everyone out of the room?

I took the pictures much later that day after Stern Mommy™ had long since been replaced by Weary Mommy™ who gave up on removing Nate from the back of the couch after about the 8th time. Really, by that point it was fairly clear he had things well under control. Still, it made me miss the days when the simple act of standing was thrill enough.

*sigh*

- L.

"Mommy Is Little Bit Sad Right Now"

My boys are pretty quick with words lately – and while that's certainly been a lesson in watching what I say, more often than not it's been wonderful watching how fast they pick things up.

In the past couple of days they learned "Mommy is little bit sad right now", which is not entirely a bad thing I suppose. I think it's OK and even healthy that kids don't always see us at our best, but this is the first time they've seen Mommy being a "little bit sad" and I worried a little nonetheless. Despite knowing that it's a perfectly normal thing, I still wanted to keep that from them as much as possible. I'm not ready for them to know sad beyond their own hurts over a car their brother won't share.

Still, they knew.

And even though I'd like to think that "Mommy a little bit sad right now" is the reason they've pulled out a few extra stops over the past couple of days to keep me entertained and/or distracted, I suspect they're actually just having a bit of a free-for-all in their usual fashion.

Tonight's efforts originated earlier today when I did not have a camera handy. Fortunately, my guys re-enacted pretty much the entire thing when I did have my camera in hand tonight at bedtime...

– Oh hi everyone! Is us.
– We looks a little serious, but we do our best to cheer Mommy up in 3, 2, 1... 

– New HATS!!!
– Or as we would really say, "'ATS!!!" 

Nate

– "There are cats in 'dis hat!" 

Seth

– "Is dark outside. Turn off the lights!"

I'm going to have to stop making up stuff the boys say since the last two pics are the things they actually did say at the time and they're much better at the funny than their Mommy as it turns out.

- L.