Ice Cream You Scream

Tomorrow morning Sam will be undergoing the Ear, Nose & Throat Triple Play - ear tubes in, adenoids and tonsils out. I took him to the grocery store today and we loaded up on popsicles, ice cream, juice, otter pops and other cold, liquid treats.

I let him stand in the freezer aisle, door wide open, and told him to pick out popsicles and ice cream. He warily asked if he could have the red, white and blue rocket ships and was shocked and awed to watch me put them in the cart. "What else, Buddy?, I asked as I lifted frozen fruit bars from his icy fingers. "Anything else in there look good to you, Sam?"

He looked up, grabbed his arms around me, snuggled his little face into my belly and kissed my hand over and over again, proclaiming his undying love for me and frozen dairy products.

I'd be lying if we both didn't consider it one of our best days ever at the grocery store. Tomorrow. Yeah, that probably won't be so fun for either of us. But at least we'll have ice cream.

He Be Nimble, He Be Quick

Max got to be in his first school play today: an all-kindergarten rockband tribute to Mother Goose. I loved watching him let his little light shine as he poured himself into the nimble and quick character. I could see him react to the audience's cheers and delight in the joy of performance. Given how much he loved the whole experience, I have a feeling that we'll be watching this boy on stage for a long time.





Ka-Chow Max!

Rainbow Connections

I've missed posting some really important moments of the past six months on this blog. I've finally resolved a highly irritating issue that I was having with photo organization on my computer, and going back and re-dating/sorting everything is just way too boring and overwhelming for someone who has no Virgo compulsion for order, nor uninterrupted time for such detail-oriented tasks.

So instead of linear/chronological order, here's a reflection of the absent months of 2009-2010 in Rainbow Order (ROYGBIV).

Today I'm seeing life through rose [red] colored glasses:


Like the reddish curls of Sam's hair.
These curls continually melt my heart and bring smiles to my crankiest days. They are as much an expression of Sam's buoyant personality as his light-up-the-sky smile, twinkling eyes, and precocious vocabulary. It's just that we get to admire this feature quietly, from behind his face; making him pretty much 360 degrees of precious, 365 days a year.

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"Look at me! My flying!"
Little red airplane at Train Town in Sonoma, CA
February 2010

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Spokane International Airport, September 2009

If anyone ever asked me to summarize my two children in one photo, I would probably reference this shot. I snapped it while while I was talking on my phone as we were waiting for some friends to pick us up at the airport. Tired of sitting still, Max cleverly set up an obstacle course out of car seats and luggage. Max is giving his body what it needed - movement - without running away or complaining (believe me, he's done both of those things plenty of times, too). But here he jumped, swerved, spun and ran about a mile, all within about a 10 foot radius. Sam, who was also tired of traveling and was well, just tired in general, joined right in on Max's action and appointed himself as supervisor/cheerleader. Like most of us watching, Sam enjoyed and admired Max's unique energy and entertainment style.

My Mom bought that little red suitcase for Max when he was about 10 months old. She thought it would be perfect for him on overnight trips to visit the grandparents. Okay, so she gave it to me, but I think we both knew for whom is was really intended. And she was right, he loves traveling with it all over the country, but especially going to visit Bubbi and Grandpa.

Sunday Night Bath

Who ever knew the poetry of bath time could be so sweet?

But my don't like dogs

In honor of Sam's birth nearly four years ago, my parents purchased and planted a beautiful little tree in our front yard. It's a lovely dogwood that comes into bloom each year right before his birthday, and Sam proudly refers to it as his "Dog Tree".

As if we didn't need enough reminders that this little guy's birthday is coming upon us shortly, the dogwood began blooming this week. It's gorgeous and delicate and abundant with fiery color. Sam loves to come out and look at it and point at the opening blossoms.

In addition to the wonders of a bloom that coincides with one's birth EVERY year, Sam also is quick to recognize the irony. Without any measure of irritation, Sam easily explains to us all that the tree is his, "but...my don't like dogs."

At least he appreciates the tree. We'll work on dogs later.

Happy Earth Day

My blogging has been dormant for the Winter, but with Spring in full swing, I intend to get some more posts of my little seedlings sprouting.

The boys are growing, blossoming, digging in roots and stretching their boundaries. Spring will always remind me of the beautiful season of their births, and how much richer my life is with their presence.

Bursting from the slow, dark days of Winter, we are a flurry of activity around here. Everything seems to get crammed into this time of year - sports, birthdays, school plays, science fairs, bike-a-thons and other endless requests for our limited free time. This morning we enjoyed acknowledging Spring and Earth Day with the simple act of planting seeds together.

Jack Be Little pumpkins, Marigolds, Sunflowers, green gourds, and summer squash made a new perch behind our kitchen sink. I'm also pretty sure that Sam planted a few errant globules of oatmeal left on the table from his breakfast. He's hoping for a bumper crop this summer.