A.B. Kagledom

It turned out to be a very productive, expensive, and developmentally aggressive weekend. First off, we are the proud owners of eight new tires, four new funky rims, and we have proper alignment. Oh yes, we do. And I'm almost the owner of a new laptop - purchased online - so I can update this site and check email from home without needing to give this thing 5 minutes to respond to every action I take. Why the big splurge? Necessity.

Perhaps it would be best to start with Simon's weekend and end with Adlai's...

Simon had a pretty crappy weekend. Friday we attended his end of school party, the house of his friends Connor and Neil (around the corner) went up for sale, he found out Calvin won't be going to his preschool anymore and that Teacher Laura won't be his teacher. Soccer ended. By Friday afternoon Simon was in emotional collapse. He was tired and mean and mean and very very mean. Saturday was much of the same. Here he is, on Saturday, trying to crawl back into the "egg" from whence he came:

We took him around the block a few times and he introduced himself to every neighbor in sight and, at the park and the Farmer's Market, he asked every person around if they would play with him. Clearly he feels he needs to make new friends - it's a shame neither kids nor adults respond well to a four year old walking up to them and asking if they will play.

Today he was somewhat better. He'll have school every weekday morning starting this Thursday and, I imagine, will be less lonely. On the bright side, swimming was ending yesterday and we couldn't find an opening in his class so that would have been yet another end. However, he unexpectedly graduated to the next level so we managed to capture the last slot open for Fall.

Adlai had a pretty amazing weekend. He started out by learning how to clap, he pulled himself into a stand for the first time (and fell from the stand and bumped his head for the first time), learned how to give "high fives" and chose his political party.

Here he is standing (before the fall):

Here he is, being given the option between a red elephant and a blue donkey:

The end.

Continue reading "Kagledom Weekend Report" »

Posted by kagledom at 08:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Adlai learned to clap yesterday. At first I thought it was unintentional but now he does it when you ask!

Posted by kagledom at 07:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Posted by kagledom at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Posted by kagledom at 08:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

So Operation More Sleep isn't really working out. Put Adlai to bed two and a half hours later than usual and he sleeps for an hour more in the morning - to 5:30 instead of 4:30, mind you, but an overall loss of an hour and a half. I think we'll give it one more night and then go back to putting him to bed at 6:30 pm. This experiment has, however, caused me to think about how much sleep he needs/gets overall. Simon needs between 11 and 12 hours a night to function properly. Adlai only gets about 10 hours at night and spends roughly 2 hours a day napping. So really, the total amount of sleep they get is the same. Sort of an interesting reality check: Simon was a good napper and a bad night sleeper. Adlai is a bad napper but a relatively good night sleeper.

This past weekend we spent some time at a Las Madres 2007 Group carnival. It was hot and the average age of the kids seemed to be about 10 months. And it isn't that 10 month olds aren't terribly exciting human beings but, um, carnival games for 10 month olds? Maybe you see where I'm going. Let's just say it was a very age-appropriate experience. Adlai and Simon both enjoyed a half hour of story time with a Children's Librarian and then we left.

Speaking of story time, Adlai, like his brother, loves books. His favorites include anything with pictures of babies, Boynton books, and his animal sounds book. He always falls into a fit of hysterics when we make the sound of a pig. Snorting is very very funny. He will crawl over to listen to a story and paw at the pictures and stare intently at the words and, if given the chance, chew on the covers. Yum.

I probably also should mention that Adlai is very very cute. I'm not sure his cute behavior gets captured enough in these parts but holy cow is the kid adorable. He's very big into facial expressions - going from serious to inquisitive and then to disbelief and right into scared and then back to angry before he gets the joke and starts to laugh. He also is a big hugger and, if tired, will let us know by laying his head down on us or the Boppy. You can almost hear him say "Look guys, I'm tired. Snuggle me then put me to bed. Please?"

Posted by kagledom at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Grammy was here for a couple of days and we explained that she was in for a rude awakening (literally). Adlai always wakes up between 4 and 5 am and Simon wakes up between 5 and 6 (unless we can keep Adlai quiet - not an easy task). And then something fairly incredible happened. THEY SLEPT IN.

Well, the truth is, Adlai was up for several hours in the middle of the night crying Thursday/Friday. We couldn't calm him down until administering Tylenol so we assume it was tooth number two - coming in next to tooth number one (bottom front). Last night he didn't fall asleep until 9 pm (usual bedtime is 6:30) waking up at 5:30 for a snack, falling right back to sleep, and waking again at 7:30.

Those two paragraphs really don't deliver the magnitude of this event so I will now yell. WE SLEPT IN FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE SOME TIME LAST YEAR OR MAYBE EVEN THE YEAR BEFORE. (Simon was up earlier but has learned to entertain himself in his room for as long as humanly possible -30 minutes or so- before coming out. He also sleeps longer than Adlai.)

It was nice.

Tonight we put them to bed an hour later to see if we can have a repeat performance.

In other Adlai news, he is suddenly obsessed with climbing up on things and has been trying to straighten his legs a bit - clearly trying to stand. He's much better at sitting back on both knees than sitting on his tush which seems like a difficult (even backward) way of going about things. This evening he identified and then crawled over to the only uncovered outlet in the living area. He's been pretty darn cranky these past few days but a cranky Adlai is still very easy to deal with. He doesn't know how to push our buttons and we hope to keep him that was as long as humanly possible.

Posted by kagledom at 07:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by kagledom at 02:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

is on its way in.

Posted by kagledom at 06:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm going to be selfish and try to make this a quick update. The boys are asleep and there are things to clean and there is free time to be had.

Saturday we hosted high tea for a fairly large group of our preschooler friends, their siblings, and parents. As you can imagine (if you have been to our small home) there was a bit of chaos but we all seemed to have a good time - especially after we let all the kids loose in the backyard high on sugar. Darienne took some great photos. I hijacked the ones of our boys and posted them on Flickr. Here's a beautiful one of Adlai getting a boo from Matthew...

Today we had a lot of errands to take care of - lowering the crib being one of the more important line items. Adlai started pulling himself up on things this week and now sits back on his knees and holds on to support items with only one hand. We also bought him some whole milk yogurt in an attempt to add some fat to his pre-bedtime diet. For the past week he has been waking more and eating more and it seems impossible to keep him satiated. In the wee ours of this morning he nursed for 45 minutes and then drank nearly 8 ounces of milk and then nursed again. The process took about 2 hours. We'd like some sleep - eventually.

Today wasn't all work - Simon's friend Connor came by for a visit and the boys painted themselves with chalk after swinging themselves silly. Sorry, I didn't get a good photo of the chalk boys but I did capture little Adlai staring out the window wishing he could play with Simon and Simon wishing he could play with Adlai...

More photos on Flickr! (As always.) Good night.

Posted by kagledom at 06:32 PM | Permalink

The last day of July, 2008. A day we shall remember and celebrate as the first time Adlai crawled on all fours from his bedroom, across the hallway, and into the bathroom (to be close to Simon). And, the day Simon spent all day in underpants (in school and out) without a single accident. (Our wake up call early this morning: "I have to PEEEEE!")

Posted by kagledom at 06:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Simon went to the dentist for the first time this morning. We put off this adventure a long time for obvious reasons (most of them having to do with screaming and restraints). He was fine. He grinds his teeth (we knew this), he has some bunching and will probably need braces, and he has a slight overbite. He now asks if his snacks have sugar before making a selection - nothing like the fear of loud and scary dental equipment to make a kid eat healthier.

And today was Adlai's hundredth bath...

Ok, you've got me, I have no idea how many baths Adlai has had up to this point. He was just being particularly cute.

Posted by kagledom at 06:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Simon made it through an entire day at school in underwear without a single accident. This was also his first day wearing underwear at school.

And now he will have cake.

And if he can continue this pattern at home, we're going to plan some exciting trips to Southern California theme parks.

Posted by kagledom at 02:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Minor yet important events over the past week:

Adlai now crawls to the person he wants to be with and will go to great lengths to follow Simon. He started giving me boos/raspberries last week. He moved up to size 12 month clothes but all pants fall right off of his tiny hiney. He is very good at hugging. We expect a tooth to come in any time now since he isn't sleeping well but, hey, we've been thinking this for months. He has increased his milk intake over the past few days by 8 ounces a day but we're not holding out for pudge rather, he'll probably just be four feet tall by next week. He is very serious about swimming - is relaxed and seems to enjoy it but he rarely smiles while in the pool. The exception to this rule is when the teacher (a young woman) smiles at him and then he goes all ga ga. He likes to splash water a lot but is very unhappy about being splashed. He hasn't connected that he is constantly splashing himself. In fact, the best part of being in the pool with him is watching the splashing battle between Adlai the splasher and Adlai the splashee - happy! angry. happy! angry...

Posted by kagledom at 07:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I finally feel comfortable spending the extra money for adorable clothes from more expensive kids stores. Simon wears out his cheap clothes in a half a season while his Gap and Gymboree items are in excellent shape even after they are outgrown. Shopping for boy clothes can be fun when you allow yourself to spend just a wee bit more!

Watch out Fall, Simon's going to look stunning (yet comfortable and age appropriate). And, a few years from now, Adlai will look just as stunning in the same attire.

Posted by kagledom at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's been a busy weekend in Kagledom. Friday afternoon Adlai decided to crawl on all fours - at least four or five small knees forward - before he decided that that wasn't an efficient enough mode of transportation. He now crawls one or two knees forward and then pushes himself up on to his toes and holds himself there and tries to move forward before lowering himself down and army crawling across the room. He also has started sitting for a minute or so - until he turns and loses his balance. He even ate a few Cheerios this weekend after getting them into his mouth. Another small event was the move up to size 3 diapers - not because his bum has grown (it hasn't) but because, at any given time, he contains an unexpectedly large quantity of urine. I had to change his diaper, his outfit, and his bedding three times in the middle of a single night, which made it clear to us that more diaper is necessary even if he is swimming in the things because he is so thin.

This was also a big weekend for Simon. Saturday, he impressed his swim teacher with his willingness to emerge his face in the water while blowing bubbles after a jump into the pool. And today was "Potty Scotty Day" the long awaited "toilet training in one day" approach that I had read about. Since we waited for the doll, Scotty, to arrive for two weeks, Simon had plenty of time to be excited about the big event and, by the weekend, was wearing underwear and holding his urine for hours at a time. By this morning it was clear that all I was going to be able to use out of the book was the idea that he should practice running to the toilet to simulate what to do in the event of an emergency. I also learned a couple of things about his reluctance: 1. he hates the loud flush of toilets, and 2. he is really pleased with his new soft underwear and does not like the "character" underwear we had been purchasing (it itches).

When I told Simon he was toilet trained this evening he was very pleased. Tomorrow Matthew will take him to Ikea to play in the big kids area. We expect that there will be a number of frustrating accidents in the coming weeks/months but at least an end is in sight. He is looking forward to visiting Lego Land as soon as the accidents subside.

Late this afternoon Simon and I listened to "Ye Olde Time Band" play old tunes in the park. Simon has been wanting to play the trombone for a while now so he was very pleased to see the instruments. This band is apparently a big draw for the local seniors who came out in large numbers. One very fit ninety-plus year old man was dancing solo to the music using dance moves from before my time. Simon wanted to dance so I suggested lightheartedly that he dance with the man and (this is how I know that Simon is the greatest kid ever) he got up and walked over and danced with the man for thirty minutes - in front of all of the seniors and the band. The man taught Simon some moves and, when he wasn't moving enough, Simon danced in a circle around him. And while a lot of kids might have thought the man looked a little frail and scary, after we left Simon asked if we could invite the man over to play and to dance and maybe he'd like "to marry that man" for being so nice.

Posted by kagledom at 07:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

So I've read, one of the absolute worst things you can do to a child is compare him with his sibling. It is, however, helpful to take a look down memory lane to find out what to expect. Unfortunately, a look at Simon's seven month blog indicates that Simon and Adlai are on very different time tables. By the time he was Adlai's age, Simon was not only crawling on all fours but standing without support for a second or two, cruising, squatting from a stand, and sitting. He also had two teeth. And, instead of being worried, I think Adlai's more typical schedule for locomotion is probably a wonderful sign that he won't be quite as active.

Second time parenting is so much less worrisome than the first time around.

Posted by kagledom at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last night...

Simon woke up from the heat at midnight. He was comforted and went back to sleep with the fan on.
Adlai woke up at 2 am. He had urinated through his diaper, PJs, and bedding and was hungry.
Adlai woke up at 4 am. He had urinated through his diaper, PJs, and bedding and was hungry.
Adlai wouldn't go back to sleep until 6:30 am at which time Simon woke up for the day.

This is just an example of why not much is being said here these days.

New for Adlai: he thinks drinking water out of a cup is fun and hilarious and he chases after Simon which looks fun and hilarious

Status Report for Adlai...
Teeth: no sign
Sitting: getting better but still not stable
Crawling: he will put one knee forward but seems afraid to move the second knee (when on all fours, he crawls fine on his stomach)

Posted by kagledom at 07:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It was a very full weekend in Kagledom. It all started Saturday morning at our local coffee shop where we had breakfast with friends. Some other friends (from Chicago) joined in as well and we all came back to our place for an Eyeball Party to celebrate Matthew's new 20/15 20/30 vision. Once all of our kids tired of playing outside on the play set we took them to lunch and headed over to Rancho San Antonio for a hike and to learn about Letterboxing (a friend's hobby). The hike was actually planned for the morning but by the time we arrived it was probably 2 pm and hot. Luckily Simon was so pleased with the company of the other kids that he didn't seem to notice his discomfort - until we got him home and he was exhausted and difficult the rest of the evening.

the eyeball cake, also contacts and solution that were soon discarded

the kids and the eyeball cake

And then the boys woke up at the crack of dawn (as usual) so I decided to give Matthew and his eyes more rest by removing them from the house at 6:30 am (the boys not his eyes). We took a walk over to the bagel shop where Simon and I tried to entice Adlai to at least touch the bagel to his mouth, but no luck. He looked at us like we were crazy. And then we walked over to Cuesta park and spent an hour being the only three people in the world (or so it seemed). Later in the morning Matthew and I took the boys to Redwood City for a game of mini-golf with Cindi and Mike followed by a slow lunch. Simon was super tired again in the afternoon which led to his being annoying as heck in the car (where are we? are we there yet? are we going home? what street are we on? but where are we? are we there yet?) but ended the evening on a high note by using the toilet for *all* of his various toileting needs.

And then? I put Adlai down in his crib completely awake and he DID NOT CRY before passing out. To celebrate, Matthew went out to see the next movie playing at the theater. Maybe next weekend I'll see the same one and it will be sorta kinda like we had a date.

Posted by kagledom at 06:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Matthew and Simon went out to see a play in the park last night which left Adlai and I enough time to do the seven month Boppy photo shoot before his bedtime. However, when it came time to take the photos, I realized the camera was tucked away in the diaper bag which was tucked away with Matthew. Adlai and I found ourselves in a very sticky situation: how could we NOT take Boppy photos on his monthaversary? Taking them a day late just wouldn't do. And what about the Boppy video? Luckily, Moto gave me a new RAZR2 (T-mobile - there are four versions, one for each carrier, and this one is my favorite) so Adlai and I gave the camera and video camera applications a go. The month was saved by Moto.

Here is this month's Boppy Photo collection and here is the video:

New things for Adlai:

He discovered how to use his tongue yesterday and has been sticking it out and licking his lips and laughing when we do the same. Also, we gave him some Cheerios and he had no clue what to do with them. Simon stuck one in Adlai's mouth when we weren't looking (to help!) but he didn't seem to enjoy the experience. He isn't interested in finger foods quite yet.

Posted by kagledom at 08:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)