Jacob's worst fears are confirmed

Some mornings after he goes to school we do just sit around and watch TV for a while. (Underoos optional.)













Ah to be three again, eh Jacob?

Want to play?

And now it's time for another exciting round of "Can you see the baby in this picture?"!!!

Prepare yourselves because this round incorporates the eye-trickery of stripes.














Did you see him?



I love this game...and this baby.

*This stripey day happened by accident. Benjamin's wearing a new onesie Grandma G got him and I'm wearing one of the two things summer things that fit me right now...a knit skirt. And it's hot in Chicago right now so summer stuff is my only option. Sigh.

Noon times with Nico

One of my favorite parts of this past year has been the time between dropping Jacob off at school and putting Nicholas down for nap. The rush of getting to school on time (and the frustration of Jacob's regular complaints about his "socks hurting" or his insatiable desire to wear basketball shorts in February) is gone. We've given Jacob a zillion hugs and kisses (Jacob and Nico usually share a rather soulful embrace as well) and then three become two. Not that Jacob's a drag or anything, but it's sort of freeing. Nico and I mosey back to the car and then it just feels like we can do anything.

Sometimes we go to the park or to the playroom in our building. Sometimes we run to the grocery store. Or we just come home and play. Or, when I'm feeling tired from the morning, we'll relax with a show. Whatever it is it's just the two of us. These have been such sweet times. I remember when my big sister went to school and it was just my mom and me. It was special. A time to talk with mom, to enjoy being her main focus and to have that darn Jana off my back! Kidding. But, I hope Nicholas has felt that as well. I surely have.

He's a delightful boy. A great conversationalist and so observant. When we come home and play he's quick to tell me long, involved stories and then say, "you see?" with his little hands turning palms upward and his shoulders shrugging. He's the kind of kid you like to have sitting in the cart to talk with about which apple is his favorite. Plus, since he turned two his sentences are shockingly perfect and spoken in the highest of high voices. Matt and I sorta think he's missing vocal chords it's so high.

These pictures are from one of our recent noon times together. He or I said the emotion and then he acted it out for the picture.

Angry













Silly













I can't remember, but I'll label it "cute" after the fact.













Angry again.













Spooky. Huh? Note the scratch on his cheek. I offered to put a band-aid on it and he said he needed to see it in the mirror. He came back and said he didn't want the band-aid because, "it's just jelly".













And happy.













Oh Nico, life is going to change. But it's going to be great. I promise. I love you, man.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

So, so, so, so, so, so cold.

So we bundle,


















and we blow dry.

Oh Blogger, Where Art Thou?

I'm straightening my couch cushions. It just keeps me too busy to blog.














I wonder who's messing them up!?! Hmmmm.

We all need a happy place

And trust me, Nico's found his. I find him like this at his most peaceful moments.

And like this at his most victorious!














He's a winner, through and through, that kid.

One Leg at a Time

My cares and worries are all over now that Jacob puts his own pants on.






































Well, almost over.

Nicholas

I love you.































A lot.

Even when the house is covered in bags of clothes to be sorted and stored. Now that's real love.

Did you know Obama has dish?

He does.















He also has a whole bunch of police barriers blocking his home from traffic. There are always a few squad cars stationed outside. I wonder what life is like on the "Obama beat". The officers always seem to be enjoying a good chuckle, so things can't be that bad.















Obama also works out in the small private gym of an apartment complex we actually considered living in. It's a small, moderately ghetto gym (like a lot of Hyde Park), but because it's such a lame gym inside the apartment complex it's always close to empty. A friend actually met him there.

Whatever we all think politically...don't you think it's cool that Barack Obama and I live on the same street only 5 blocks apart?

Baby Steps

No, Nicholas isn't walking, I'm just finally exercising my blog muscles again. Gotta start slow so's not to strain myself.

This has been a busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy time. (No exaggeration!) It's also been very good and exciting. But let me stress the all-consuming busy-ness of it all. Such busy-ness is not to my liking. But we've also been busy due to my huge desire to enjoy the great outdoors before the dreaded humidity/mosquito combination comes to town. So the park and our driveway have been almost as big a part of our life as Home Depot. Almost.

Jacob is working to understand pedaling. A surprisingly challenging skill!



















Nicholas is enjoying finding rocks, dirt, and leaf debris and trying to shove it in his mouth before I get it. Darn you, pincer grasp! Darn you to heck!














And we're all trying to eek all of the fun out of our long, flat driveway for as long as we can. (And yes, Jacob's lawnmower does blow bubbles.)

Boys

I love having boys. Despite the fact that I feel like I'm flinching all of the time...














...I, Robyn, am very happy with boys. I have one sister and about a kajillion girl cousins, so the ways of boys (see above) were totally new to me. They are funny and smart and often very exasperating (see above). Match boy-ness with Jacob's personality and you get moments like the following.

Mornings right after Matt leaves are either magical or horrible. This particular morning Jacob really outdid himself.

First, he put a visor on Nicholas like a toga.



























And then ran around the room laughing and screaming and falling down.














Who knew that could be so much fun!

What does this mean?

I mean seriously. I'm at a loss. He wasn't crying or laughing when I snapped these pics.




























Lost.

Any ideas?

Thankfully I think I get what this face is telling me...and I like it.

My favorite day

Okay, maybe not my favorite day ever. But my favorite day in the last month happened last week. Nicholas is a good napper and a good sleeper. Jacob pretty much blows him out of the park though. Solid night's sleep and a solid 2-3 hour nap every day. He rocks and I am very fortunate.

So I usually put Jacob down for his one nap before I put Nicholas down for his second nap and end up getting Nicholas before Jacob is even awake. I don't mind it, but some days I would love to have their afternoon naps coincide a bit more. Last week it happened. It happened so well that I had to go get those boys up once 4 o'clock hit. I loved going into their rooms (that are right next to each other) and seeing them both deeply asleep and looking so comfy. Sigh.

This is how I feel

Anyone else?

I also feel a lot like these guys.

Two gags for the price of one task

1. Jacob pulls all of the toys off of the fireplace and puts them on the floor (along with the other toy debris) all around Nicholas. He then says, "Where'd he go, Mo-mmy?". Can you see him? It sort of reminds me of something.


















2. Since the fireplace is nicely cleaned off...why not?




































Way to stick that landing J.J.!

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

Oh so long ago my boys were worlds apart.














Jacob viewed Nicholas as BO-RING.














And Nicholas thought Jacob was a menace.














They've both done a lot of growing up in the last seven months and I'd like to show you some of their recent interactions.

Playing trains.
































Struggling to tear Nicholas away from a favorite toy.














Fixin' stuff at the work bench.














Pushing Nicholas away from the work bench.














Nicholas giving up while Jacob plays on.














"Parallel play". Jacob loves his trains on the table and Nicholas loves his train leavings and any other toy litter under the table. What could be more parallel?


















Playing "Where's Nico?". This is by far our most favorite activity. Nicholas is a great crawler and can get anywhere. He has found a particular delight (as seen above) in getting under things. "Where's Nico?" basically consists of Jacob thinking Nicholas is in a funny place and then yelling "Where's Nico" until they both dissolve in giggles. Awe-some.