Seven thangs

Brett loves holding on to the tags on his blankies, stuffies, etc while he sucks his thumb. This is a different kind of tag.

Rob and Erin tagged me, and I agonized -- I usually hate stuff like this; the pressure to be truthful and clever at the same time is too much -- I thought I would take the opportunity pause and think about where I am in my life (BTW, Randy did one too, but he won't let me post it).

7 things I want to do before I die
win a million dollars
jump out of an airplane
perform on stage
pay off a mortgage
go to Alaska
gallop
walk on the moon

7 things I cannot do
get really angry without crying
see the images in those stupid magic eye pictures
give up control completely
a backflip
build a roller coaster
appreciate really good scotch
leave the bed unmade

7 things that attract me to the opposite sex
smile
brains
upper body
sense of humour
generosity
confidence
interest in me

7 things I say most often
oy!
uh-oh
oh crap
can I just check my email?
can you tell me with words and not whining?
no
you are so clever

7 celebrity crushes
Wesley Snipes
Paul Rudd
Shakira
Mark Ruffalo
Andrew Dan-Jumbo
Jamie Oliver
Gina Gershon

7 people I want to do this (in my comments if you don't blog)
Cindy
Wendy
Tracey
Tana
Dawn M
Dawn McV
Richard

Camping pic

Forgot to post this when it happened, so I thought I'd share now:

"Yes Brett, that's what a bear looks like. Now don't touch."
(Near Bragg Creek, Thanksgiving weekend)

New daycare for Brett

We decided to get Brett into a group situation now instead of waiting until we're both working. First of all, it'll be easier to get him back into it slowly, but it also gives us time on our own to focus on work stuff. And we're worried that he's becoming a little too shy of new people, spending all his time with us lately.

So this morning Brett went to a "day home" (what small daycares in someone's house are called here) at Wendy's house, not far from where we live. We got there at 9 and I stayed for almost an hour, long enough to do the paperwork, help with snack, and to see that Brett was comfortable. We picked him up at noon and were told proudly that he fed treats to the dog, petted the cats (there are two) and ate a big spaghetti lunch. He asked for me a few times but let Wendy cuddle and comfort him.

I'm so happy he was ok. It's quite different from his daycare in New West (he hasn't forgotten you guys!) -- smaller, for one thing -- and it seems like it was such a long time ago. But he was ok with the other kids and obviously felt comfortable with Wendy. Whew!

Shameless request for validation

Hello? Hello? Anyone there?

I see so few comments that I often wonder if anyone is really reading this. Do I need to be more controversial? Contentious? Interesting (oh gawd -- you're not bored are you!)? Post more often? Less? More pix? Fewer? Ask more questions? Solicit advice? Get more friends?

I have it set so that anyone can comment; you should be able to log in as "anonymous" if you'd rather not say who you are.

I'm feeling a bit lonely since I've been having email problems too -- seems like days go by with nothing new in my In box.

OK. Done whining. Hope to hear from you soon.

Not too bad

Hey! We got our first bill from the town. Only $18.44 -- not bad. It covers water, sewage, garbage etc.

Oh. It's only for the month of September.

We moved in on the 19th.

Oh.

"I'm twoooo!"

October 16, 2003. The Red Sox got knocked out of the World Series, and Brett Albert Martindale appeared in our lives. In October 2004 the Red Sox won the World Series, and Baby Brett made our lives just as happy every day.

In two short years, Brett (like most babies), has accomplished a lot:

• he can run, walk on tip-toes, and take giant steps; he can jump and not fall down, but only when holding something like my hand
• he can now walk up and down stairs holding the wall or railing on only one side
  
• he can feed himself pretty well using a dessert fork or teaspoon, even if he often needs help getting the last few noodles and drops of soup
• Brett chooses to sit in a proper chair, often without the booster, rather than his highchair (LeeAnn: you may have a highchair sooner than you think)
• he can throw and kick a ball or other toy with obvious relish (now we just have to teach him that Mommy's flower pots are most definitely not toys)
• he can stack blocks and Duplo with ease; shape sorters and puzzles are almost too easy for him
• Brett can count up to 40; recognizes 100, 200, etc; and has memorized our house number and Jennifer's house number (when he's tired and wants to home he starts asking "two-two-eight?")
• he has a huge vocabulary; the most esoteric words for a child his age have to be "appetizer," (which he shouts gleefully as he leaps -- teeth bared -- into a full-frontal assault) and "vanilla," (which, when paired with "flip," means he wants us to toss him onto his bed upside down)
• he knows the alphabet (can name all the letters and their sounds, and put the letters in the correct order) and can spell over a dozen words (he recognizes words when he sees them, and can put letters in the right order to spell them); fave words at the moment: mom, dad, appetizer (see above), cookie, all the characters on Dora the Explorer, water, soup, noodle
• he loves to sing the alphabet song with Baba or Grandma on the phone

Birthday party report

We kept Brett pretty busy all day on his birthday. We started with a new ABC puzzle (thanks Size Small Daycare friends!) and breakfast. Then we bundled up and went for a hike to the big cowboy and horse overlooking town. After that we took our cold, tired boy home for a snack and his big present: his new easel (see pic below). It was tough to pry him away from all the letters and numbers, but he needed a nap so down he finally went.

After his nap, Brett played with balloons while Daddy convinced Mommy that the birthday boy really really wanted french fries for his birthday dinner. One fast food feed later and we were ready for our guests.

Aside: Am I the only one who remembers a candle for good luck (or to grow on?) on birthday cake? I lit three candles for Brett to blow out and everyone asked why.

Anyway, Brett proudly blew out his candles (we had practiced) and we all sang Happy Birthday. (I was too busy holding the fire out of Brett's reach but not out of blowing distance to get any pix.) Most of us ate our cake with forks, but Brett got right in there with his hands (if you look carefully at the picture, you can see icing all over his fingers). After cake and fruit, Brett opened more presents and then ran around with Jennifer, playing with them. By the end of the evening they were both so tired they could hardly talk, but Brett did manage to say "Jenna-fer!" for the first time (instead of Jenna). I'd say the birthday was a complete success!

Happy birthday Brett!

Brett was thrilled with his birthday gift from Mommy and Daddy.

And in a couple of hours, his friend Jennifer is coming over for birthday cake, along with her parents Bill and Suzanne and her grandparents Gwen and Nels.

Celeb sighting

Randy got his hair cut yesterday and heard from the stylist that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie had been in the cafe across the street the day before. Pretty sure they've never been to New West.....

Attention: Milestone approaching

In case you've been wondering, I am planning to post a list of all the cool stuff Brett can do in time for his second birthday. While you're waiting, here's a cute story about making cookies.

I decided it would be fun to get Brett's help making oatmeal cookies after dinner tonight. I brought the big bowl, measuring implements and ingredients to the kitchen table. He stood on a chair and politely looked at the recipe as I explained what it was. The real fun began when I started measuring. His index finger went into every cup: the flour, oatmeal, sugar and baking soda were all poked. He tried to smell the cinnamon but blew out instead of in and got some on his shirt. He got excited about the yellowness of the egg, and the sweetness of the corn syrup. He helped himself to the dried cranberries, raisins and chocolate chips I "accidentally" dropped beside the bowl. He even flattened a few balls of dough and put them on the tray. The real fun though, was when he realized he could pick individual chocolate chips out of the bowl of dough. He's not that dexterous, but he did manage to eat quite a few as I tried to work around him. I could've asked him to stop, I guess. But it was so funny watching him try to pick mini chips out of this big bowl of dough. And he was so happy with each one he grabbed: "caw-co chip, Mommy!"

I put the cookies in the oven while he dragged Daddy upstairs for a few rounds of "Ah-ba-ceeees" (on the computer lately). He didn't seem all that thrilled when they came out of the oven, or when I offered him a warm one to eat. I shrugged, knowing that he'll be happy to eat them tomorrow.

He had a bath and his usual bedtime routine. As I was saying night-nights with him, he suddenly sat up, made the sign for thank you and said quietly "tank-oo cookie Mama."

What a nice child I have.

Kid pix

Some random pix from the past coupla weeks:
Brett showing off the socks our old neighbour Kristen made him last winter -- they're perfect to wear around the house!










As promised, Brett and Jennifer playing together.
L: after running and flopping and his bed.
R: Kissing themselves in the mirror. After Jennifer changed him into his pajamas. (Don't ask.)













Showing off his teeth after eating beets from Suzanne's garden.