Deep and Awesome Thoughts by Jeremy

The following are snippets of the genius that I go cranium to cranium with on a daily basis.  Enjoy.


Upon seeing a group of cross-country runners from the local high school out running on the busy street during practice:

Jeremy:  Mommy, what are those people doing?

Me:  Running.  They are cross-country runners.  (proceed to explain what cross-country running is.)  Mommy was in cross-country when she was in school.  *smiles proudly*

Jeremy:  *in summation*  Oh, probably to get away from all the cars.


Out of the blue, and no idea where he heard the term:

Jeremy:  Mommy, what's a Sergeant?

Me:  A Sergeant?

Jeremy:  Yeah, what's a Sergeant?

Me:  Well, a Sergeant is a rank structure in the military, like the Army, Navy, Marines, or Air Force--and even in para-military organizations like the police....  *realizes that I'm using words way over his head*  A Sergeant is a person who is in charge....

Jeremy:  ....And decides things?

Me:  And decides things.  He also takes care of all those who work for him....

Jeremy:  ....Like you work for me!  *beams proudly*

Me:  Yeah, like I work for you.

Jeremy:  And Daddy works for me too, but not Emma, she's too little.


Upon seeing a fire truck race past us, lights and sirens on:

Jeremy:  Oh, a fire truck!  It's going to an emergency!  A fire....  I hope it's our house that's on fire!

Me:  Oh no, Jeremy.  We don't want our house to be on fire.

Jeremy:  Why not?

Me:  Fire is destructive.  It would destroy all of our toys, clothes, food, everything.

Jeremy:  *horrified gasp*  And my blankie!  It would destroy my blankie!!  *fake sniffle*

Me:  That's right, it would destroy your blankie.  So we don't want a fire at our house.

Jeremy:  Yeah....  I hope another house is on fire then!

This is what cool looks like.

And yes, these were all the conversations that burned in my brain from just today.

Just Because I Have My Computer AND A Few Minutes To Myself

And just for clarification, "a few minutes to myself" means that I've been working on this dang post since July 16th.  sigh.....


Emma is in that period of baby-hood where things are rapidly changing.  Every few hours she is doing something that she wasn't before.

Like parlor tricks...

...painting with her food...

...flying airplanes...

...even winning staring contests against ferocious panda bears.

Emma, or "Bubbles" as I prefer to call her, isn't talking yet, but she's working hard on "Jeremy" I think.  When he's around, she flaps her arms (presumably to fly to him) and says "Eggy, Eggy, Eggy, Eggy".  She only says that when Jeremy is in the room.  Emma is thoroughly fascinated with him.  Jeremy can do no wrong and is always the funniest person in the room.  Despite being the disciplinarian, I'm inclined to agree.  :)

Jeremy in turn appears to have endless love for Emma.  He is very protective of her.  He reminds me not to forget her before we leave the house.  He doesn't let her touch any of his toys because she's "not three years old yet".  He lets me know that her crying means she needs more toys.  He is teaching her to share by taking her toys.  He ceremoniously announces the color of her poop to me.  He keeps her company in the crib, looking down on her and talking to her.  He shows her how to put food in her mouth by eating her Mum Mums and Puffs--show by doing, that's my motto.  He loves to help bathe her, and is the self-proclaimed Rinser of the Soap.

Sitting happy in her bath.

Rinsing.

Suddenly it's not as fun when Jeremy is "bathing" her.  Is he done yet?

He insists that she sits in his room while he plays with his trains--I'm assuming so that she can get schooled up on all the names and how to play.  At her latest Well-Baby Check-Up, he cried when she got shots because she was "getting hurt".   All in all, he has taken to his role as Big Brother and ran with it.

Jeremy and Emma are very much alike.  In fact, I like to say that they are twins--just three years apart.  Emma is on par with his growth curve, she appears to have little interest in being on the belly like him, she started on solids pretty early like him, she sleeps well like he did at that age, she is very gregarious like him, she has strong legs and loves to stand.

One month later.....

Emma not only loves to stand, but loves to be "walking".  She is using Jeremy's old activity table as well as his walker--and she is dangerous.  Nothing appears to be out of her reach.  And she is fast.

Sadly, there is so much more that I want to put on here, but if I try and make it perfect I'll never be able to click on "Publish Post".  So, as a promise to myself to post more often, I'll leave you with this: two teeth, underwear, food, helpy-helper, Disney nights, Don't Wake Daddy, and night time entourages.

With Great Responsibility Comes Great Headaches

Jeremy has recently been on an "I can do it all by myself!" kick, as well as a "How can I help you?" one too.

Some of it is impressive.

He has recently become very obsessed about brushing his teeth, washing his hands, and soaping up his body in the shower--"all by myself!!"

He demands to help around the house--dishes, setting the table, starting the laundry, and cooking are all fair game.  If you try to blow him off, he will demand, "I need a real job!!"

He is still fighting full-blown potty training, but when he gets the inclination to pee in the potty, it is announced with great fanfare that he will, "do it all by myself!!"

Some of it is a bit sad.  He has moments of being too much of Big Boy.

The other night, in a follow-up to a full blown tantrum, he got himself ready for bed--by himself.  I walked into his room and he had turned on his bedtime CD, turned on his night light, turned off his room light, and crawled into bed with the covers up.  I walked in to the extremely overtired cry of, "I don't need you, I can go to sleep by myself!!"  I tried to appeal to his cuddly sense with no avail, so I kissed him and walked out, but not before telling him that I loved him.

I come back about fifteen minutes later to check on him and he is sniffling.  I ask him if he is okay.  He is.  I then comment that it may be harder to put himself to sleep than he thought.  His reply?  "I made you leave and then you come back when I called you.  You get into my bed and sleep with me, and that will make you feel good, right?"  Yes, yes it will.

And some of his new found independence is just plain aggravating.  I will assume that I am the smothering one since I'm the brunt of the following on a near hourly basis; Daddy gets some of it too:

"I don't need you".
"You don't belong in the house, you belong in the trash".
"I need a new Mommy and a new house.  You can't come with me.  Sorry".

He will throw all those at me, walk away for about twenty minutes, and then come back to me, sweet and needy again.  Crazy.  I'm proud that he is wanting to test the waters of independence, and I'm genuinely happy that he is full of so much spunk (read: hard-headed, strong-willed, ready to go head-to-head with us when he wants to), but wow....  Even Emma looks like she is just shaking her head during these episodes.

Taking A Cue From Preschool Television

Jeremy and I watch a lot of television. This is not a confession. This is not a shameful admission. This is not supposed to be a dirty little secret. It is a fact. He loves cartoons; I love cartoons. We love the characters, the dancing, the songs, the silliness, and the learning.

I will say that I don't just plop him in front of the television and let him drool for the next few hours. I watch what he watches and will explain to him the math, word and other concepts to him. Usually, the television is merely something that plays in the background. He'll play with his trains and cars, sometimes mimicking the story line. Sometimes he'll watch and participate. Cartoons like Word World, Super Why, Blue's Clues and currently Team Umizoomi really grab his attention.

I already work with Jeremy at home on his letters, numbers and other skills. But since I am currently home on bonding leave, I wanted to amp it up some. For the last few days I've been getting ideas from online sites that talk about homeschooling preschool. Of course, homeschooling requires preparation, supplies, time, preparation, time, preparation, and oh--time and preparation. Lacking in the time and preparation department, I instead tried out some things on the fly. ("On the fly" means I came up with the following ideas while taking a shower).

First, I took a cue from Blue's Clues. I took three index cards and made paw prints with Jeremy's dot paints. While they dried I came up with a puzzle of sorts. Kind of. It was hardly inspired, and it didn't take up a half hour. Also, there was no Joe or Steve acting surprised that there was a clue at every turn.

I put one clue on a piece of paper, one on a pile of mail (envelopes with stamps) and one on his toy mailbox. I had to direct him to the clues and do the actual drawing in his "handy dandy notebook", but he explained what to draw (a rectangle, another rectangle [with stamps] and a mailbox). Then, I asked him what you would do with a piece of paper, a stamped envelope and a mailbox.

Clue

Clue

Clue

He finally got that you'd mail a letter, which led into our next activity.

I grabbed five leftover envelopes from his Christmas cards. On one I placed one Thomas sticker in the upper right hand corner, then on the back wrote One and 1. I continued the sequence for the other four up to Five. I would have gone higher than Five, but I ran out of stickers. Referencing a recent episode of Team Umizoomi that he kept talking about, I explained to Jeremy that I was a mailbox. I would tell him that I needed an envelope with a certain amount of stamps. If he gave me the wrong envelope, it would go into the the dreaded "Do Not Deliver Box". He understood the concept and we played a few times, me throwing out random numbers. Each success was met with a silly mailbox dance. We then put the envelopes in sequential order, using both the written sides and the sticker sides.

Front of envelopes

Back of envelopes

I had Jeremy tell me how many "stamps" were on each envelope.  He easily identified One through Four.  When he got to this particular envelope he answered "Five, Four, Three, Two, One".  

Both of those activities were easy for him, but I wasn't sure really where to start. A lot of sites talk about what I refer to as the Sesame Street approach--a letter and number at a time. However, I'm thinking that we can actually do a lot more than that as long as I keep it game-ish.  

Speaking of games, Jeremy then wanted to play Candy Land (he beat me without cheating), Chutes and Ladders (while I had to guide him here and there, he still beat me without any actual cheating), and some pretend games that he made up on the fly himself.

On top of all this, today was also Serious Potty Training Day.  

To say that I tired Jeremy out is an understatement. A whole hour before his normal bedtime he told me that he wanted to go to bed. One book later (he chose The Night Before Christmas: "See, and Santa will bring me ALL my trains!") he was unconscious. I was too, next to him, but then again I've been surviving on Nap in a Can (AKA Lo-Carb Monsters) for several weeks now.  

I think I need to look into activities that really challenge him. I will also start incorporating more science type activities, a la Curious George, another current favorite of his.  

The Green Green Grass

I have a job. 


No, I don't have just a job, I have a career. A career that for over nine years has allowed me to mostly work in assignments that were considered hard, elite, or just plain cool. A career that has paid well--nay, extremely well. 


I have a career that I love most days. Granted, it's in vogue to gripe about work. Just peek at any Facebook page and you'll see moaning and groaning status updates about work, going to work and being at work. I've even participated from time to time. But random gripes aside, I love my work.


I have a stable career, and I should be ever so grateful that unlike so many others, I don't have to worry about pink slips, unemployment lines, or pinching pennies to the point that my family's quality of life suffers.


I have a career which I really truly believe allows me to make a difference in the lives of others.


I have a career in which I am a contributing member of my family financially. All things being equal, I match my husband's paycheck dollar for dollar.


I should be so damn grateful and proud.


And yet...


Yet I find myself longing to make but mere pennies or work in an occupation where I was completely expendable.  I find myself longing for that simply so that I could justify quitting and staying at home with Jeremy and Emma. So many friends and family seem to be doing the SAHM thing that I wonder more and more, "If they can do it, why can't I?"


Unfortunately, it just is not in the cards.  I am currently contributing half of our total income. Plus--I think there is something about showing Jeremy and Emma how Mommy and Daddy work for everything they have, and work damn hard at that.  I know that they won't grow up any worse for the wear just because we happen to be a dual income family.  And I hope that Jeremy and Emma will make smarter decisions as they grow up knowing that both Mommy and Daddy work careers that require honesty, integrity, dedication, a modicum of personal sacrifice and sense of selflessness. 


There's also the pride knowing that Jeremy is already learning what Mommy and Daddy do for a living, and he finds it worthy of his admiration and therefore imitation.

First lesson, commandeering vehicles.

Second lesson, starting a black and white.

Third lesson, plain clothes investigations and interrogations.

Interrogating Brobee.

And yet still, here I am looking over the fence at the green green grass.

New Year, New Chaos

One baby is easy.  Two is easy as well, as long as Mommy and Daddy don't intend on showering, sleeping or eating with any relative consistency.  Suffice it to say, the logistics of juggling two children takes some thought and pre-planning.  With that said, the addition of Emma is warmly welcomed.

I must say--I thought we were a perfect family when Jeremy was born.  He was and still is an awesome kid.  He has been my lil' buddy for the last three years and more importantly has been my world.  Tom and I deliberately tried for a second because we both wanted to.  However, it wasn't until I heard her tiny screams at 12:15 on New Years Eve that I suddenly realized Emma was the missing link of our family.  I know that a parent can love multiple children equally, but I truly had no idea that the fierce strength of that love was so equal too.  The love I feel for them is so awesome and at the same time so dang scary.

Our adjustment to be being parents of a second newborn has, in my opinion, been much easier than I expected.  The whole "been there, done that" definitely seems to ring true.  All the fear, doubt and complete shock that accompanied Jeremy's arrival seem to still be but distant memories this time around.  A nurse at the hospital warned us that when we got home with Emma we would have to hit the ground running, and we definitely did. Unbeknownst to us, the biggest challenge has actually been Jeremy.

Poor Jeremy.  He is jealous, confused, angry, and so dang lovable all at the same time.  Not only is he in the throes of the Trying Threes, but he is learning--albeit extremely reluctantly--that Mommy has to share her attention with Emma now.  It's actually sad for both of us.  I wish there were two of me so that Jeremy was never wanting.  But everyone assures us that he'll grow up none the worse for having a little sister, so I'm desperately holding onto that promised comfort during his frequent meltdowns--meltdowns that include the heart crushing words, "I don't like you Mommy".  He's thrown out the, "I don't like you Daddy" too, but I think that Daddy is better able to see it for what it is than I am, which is a little boy acting out.

So we press on.  Double the children, double the drama.  Emma isn't able to be very dramatic right now, so maybe Jeremy is just handling her share too.

NEW!

Freshly cleaned up.

Our very first family photo.

Jeremy getting introduced to Emma outside of the scary sterile hospital.

Hello, Clarisse....

Emma in her bedside crib....

....And her bunk mate.

How does one take a shower with two kiddos while Hubby is away at work?  In this house I  have to get Emma fed and sleepy enough to knock out listening to Pandora in the bedside sleeper. Then I have to get Jeremy placated with juice, food and cartoons.  Lastly, I have to kiss the living room good-bye as it will be destroyed by Jeremy in the time it takes to shower.  

Prologue

This blog is being started in 2011, but a whole heck of a lot has happened previously to get us here.  Allow me to catch you up with a quick recap:

January 1999

Tom and I started dating. 

 

July 31, 2004

Tom and I were married on the deck of the Queen Mary.

November 12, 2007 (6:28 pm to be exact)

Jeremy turned "us" into a family.

December 31, 2010  (12:15 pm to be exact yet once again)

Emma made our family feel complete.

Phew!  Caught up now?