Bells, Whistles and Chit-Chat

Handel's Messiah, original manuscript. Image via Wikipedia,

This morning when we woke up there was a misty fog all over our neighborhood. Even though it is December we are really still having late fall weather. I left Michigan years ago now but I still expect winter once December begins and seeing my lawn for so long and leaving the house in a hoodie seem really out of place, however handy. The leaves are all down now, except for a few stubborn clusters of oak leaves and the shriveled bits of Japanese maple leaves that cling so long. The neighbors are all starting to wrap up the raking and I'm trying to remember to get the gutters cleaned.

The boys and I are doing bits here and there to get ready for Christmas. We've been making paper chains to decorate all our doorways room-to-room in the house, we had a gingerbread house party with friends and we're  all stocked up on flour and sugar in preparation for the big mess of cookies we plan to start churning out.

Nib is a small wordy man these days. We went to a Messiah sing-a-long last night and he was a little too vocal to be in the auditorium during the solos so I ducked in and out with him; when the nice loud, grand choruses were being sung we'd appear at the back and then as soon as they ended we'd adjourn to the lobby while A and big brothers stayed in their seats inside. During our many intermissions we had a long word tour together. He walked around the lobby telling me all the words he knows: "Tree." (pointing to the Christmas tree), "Fah-er" (pointing to the irises in a Van Gogh print on the wall), "Wah-er" (indicating the fountain), "Tree." (the potted ficus near the door) etc..etc..etc. Such fun to hear a recitation of his current vocab list and see his earnest insistence about being taken seriously. Watching a human learn to speak is great fun.

Related articles

• Tree? Check. Vatican Gears up for Christmas (abcnews.go.com)
• Gingerbread House Frenzy (rubellesandmoon.wordpress.com)
• Making Teacher Gifts (outofsickdays.com)
• There's no Christmas like snow Christmas (wheresmyrubyslippers.wordpress.com)

The Nib Review

 Time for a little expose on my smallest son. He's almost sixteen months old, and still a cheery-hearted boy who is often a balm for my over-scheduled soul. When life is falling apart at the seams I frequently feel like he is the bright spot and I love his relational little self to pieces.

Nib Likes:

• Giving kisses. (so lovely, this stage!)
• Mornings. He's a glowing, chattering, cheery boy in the mornings...all mornings...starting at least by 7:30 AM but often 5 AM.
• Sweet corn. He got my Williams family corn obsession gene and will easily polish off a whole ear alone, two if he's allowed. 
• Dried fruit. He loves cranberries, cherries, blueberries, prunes, dates and anything else you let him try.
• Music. He's a dancer and a singer this one and he loves a good round of plunking notes out on the piano. Any repetitive noise can be danced to and sung along with if you're enough of a music lover: car alarms, nervous toe taps, squeaky hinges and the noise from a bowl of eggs being beaten with a fork.
• Nursing. He's still cutting the very last of his teeth so I'm being an indulgent and comforting mommy but the end of milk is in sight. I am feeling like I need to stop soon. Trying to enjoy every last bit before the end.
• Story books. He brings stories to A and I, often particular favorites (a board book picture dictionary or The Little Train are some of his loves)
• Sword fighting with his brothers. (all sticks become swords!)
• Babies. Babies need kisses and Nib is happy to oblige, along with kind pats on the head.
• Greeting people. He waves wildly and yells "HI! HI!" to passing strangers on the other side of the street when he's behind our closed living room window. Love the ardor he has about this new skill.
• The phrase "Uh oh!" Such an exciting thing to say, use it as often as possible.
• Plucking treats off the fruit table. Such delight! Take as many bites as you like and then chuck it....unless Mommy catches you!
• Helping empty the dishwasher. This is his particular chore. He loves to hand me silverware so I can put it away and also enjoys pushing "Start" when it has all been re-loaded.
• Eating. He is hungry far more often than three times a day right now. I feel like he wants to eat constantly. Handily his appetite is pretty broad and he self-feeds pretty neatly.

Nib Dislikes:

•  Cherry tomatoes. He loves the way they look and almost always wants to try one but they always come right back out with lots of spitting and a repulsed face. More Sungolds for me. :)
• Sharing. Nobody smaller than him? You can tell. He's sweet but a bit assuming as far as being the center of attention goes. Kid needs a few younger babies in his life.
• Being left out. He's really learned to be part of the pack and it drives him crazy to have his big brothers do things he can't...and it is four shades of terrible when they go away and he can't come. 
• Being in his car seat. The car seat shrieking stage was a little late in coming for this kid but it has definitely made it's appearance now. He is tolerant on short jaunts but on long car rides he has begun to assert his own, piercing will. 
• Being told no. He wants to be picked up when he orders it, to be read to on demand and to be given any snack he hauls out of the pantry. Limits are not cool. The next thing he plans to do is be two years old.
• Having his hair washed. He doesn't put up the wild fuss that his big brother Dee does but he doesn't like this part of bath time very well and complains about it until I finish and leave him to paddle in peace.
• Being carried or stuck in the cart at the grocery store. I still make him refrain because it is just too much for me to handle but he sure would love to be free to run down all the aisles in joyous, unrestricted glee. 
• The end of ice cream. Okay, maybe I'm stretching with this one, it might properly belong on the "Likes" list but he does put up a pouty-lipped royal fuss when his much enjoyed ramekin of ice cream is scratched-out-all-the-corners-empty and not one more drop can be coaxed out.
• Wearing socks or shoes in the car. Think you'll be efficient and appropriate and make sure I'm full dressed when I am buckled into the car before we head to the library. Ha! Think again, Mommy. No dice. Those suckers get shucked as fast as you can turn the engine over.
• Latched or locked doors. Nothing drives him batty faster than trying to open a door and finding it fast. He hates that!

And that's about the size of it. At the moment he's still a very mellow little person who is just starting to show us what thrills and frustrates him. I can't wait to see more of him unfold. He is a lovely little man and I am curious about what else the world will show him about himself, nothing left to do but wait some more and see!

The Handsome 8th Month

Nib, our little big-man is 8 months old! 

 He continues to be sunny and easy-going although he's starting to "mature" into a more opinionated fellow: he'll go to most anyone's arms for a grinning visit but he requires a strong right shoulder pin these days to keep him on the changing table while you reach for a wipe.

  We are starting to think about how we'll celebrate his birthday (Oh wow does it sound good to have May be looming!!!!) and are happy to see him blooming and opening and becoming his own, shining, little person.

He says "Dada!" clearly and proudly, cruising on furniture incessantly, eats most anything besides cow's milk, honey and citrus and is the triumphant owner of seven teeth. He dances, he sword-fights (thank you older brothers) and his favorite food is ice-cream. Ladies, he'll be available in about 18 years for bids...until then, swoon chicas, swoon. This one's a winner.

Half Way Around The Sun

Nib is six months old. Halfway around the sun for the first time in his external life.

He's getting super big lately, I feel like he's made of silly putty, he keeps stretching. Sometimes it seems like he's longer every single time I pick him up. I noticed yesterday when I sat down to nurse him that he's clearly to that funny stage where they are developmentally still "baby" but they're so large that doing the baby stuff is getting a little cumbersome: he fills every inch of the changing table, his legs kick and flop well out of my arms during nursing sessions  and he is starting to look a little out-sized in his backwards carseat position. He's living in the stage of Almost/Not Quite.

He has three teeth now, his two front bottom rabbit teeth and one side tooth on the top left. I think more are on the way. He's drooling buckets, cramming everything into his mouth and gnawing persistently on his own raw hands. He's bitten me a few times now while nursing but nothing hard enough or mean spirited enough yet that I am tempted to wean him instantly. He's a good natured early tooth boy.

Such fun. So, I thought I'd maiden voyage and add Nib to the tradition of Like and Dislike lists and see what I could catalog for him at the very new age of just 6 months of life. Here's what I've got:

Likes:

• Peek-a-boo
• Slow braised beef (all fall apart tender). He sucked down about a half a cup of it the other night at dinner and fell asleep, slurping his last fistful, propped up on the tray of his highchair. Super cute.
• Ice cream (his first food and one of his favorites)
• Big brother Ru's antics, specially performed to make him smile
• A good crust of bread for chewing
• Splashing in the bath
• Balloons, both to hold onto and to watch
• Kicking his feet...he kicks while sitting on the floor, just to see his little booties wiggle. 
• People. Nib will go into anyone's arms and grin at every charming granny that coos in his direction. He's such fun to go places with, people love him.
• The rustle of paper, he is into ripping it at the moment

Dislikes:

• Having his feet tucked into pajamas...he kicks and peddles the first one out, squawking loudly, while you try to wrestle the second in. It's very exciting.
• Canned, baby food carrots. He makes the most terrific faces about just one spoonful. 
• Being bored. 
• Swallowing solid, bits of things. He gags and panics quite a bit still. 
• Having his face wiped off
• Wearing socks. He can pull those suckers off faster than you would believe.
• Opening his mouth to show off his teeth.
• Going quickly down the stairs in someone's arms...you can feel him shudder and tighten his grip at every step. 
• Having cool things taken from him. He howls indignantly if I take back my shoe to put it on my foot after he's found it on the shoe rack and decided to consider it his personal treasure.
• Sleeping in. He's his mama's boy. He talks loudly and cheerfully if we're slow to rise, until I cave and get up with him.

Beautiful Diversions

Nib is discovering knobs and buttons and switches. He's very interested in pulling on things and putting them in his mouth and yanking them off of whatever they're attached to. It just looks like he's working the Etch-A-Sketch here, but really, he's just trying to pry off one of the knobs. Hey...diversion, is diversion...intended by the designer or no!

Here's a stack of fabulous links for you to enjoy. This is the pile that I couldn't keep suppressed. So much good stuff out there in the interweb!

• This fabulous song is stuck in my head.
• This couch is a brilliant, brilliant use of thrift store embroidery finds. Am so tempted to copy it. Do I dare to try?
• Have you tried halvah? Its my new naughty snack craving. Think sesame instead of peanut butterfinger. Completely addictive.
• Our Indian corn will probly come down very soon and when it does, I am considering making one of these, seasonal beauties.Seems like just the thing to wear when visiting the friends and relations.
• This fabulous scene gets my very largest vote for touching video of the week. 600 opera singers dressed casually and masqueraded as crowd members and surprised all the staff and shoppers in a Philadelphia Macy's with a live rendition of The Messiah. I cried. Super moving.
• I love this list of things to do when bored. There are about 57 that I wanna run right out and try instantly. (Lots of them would make fun dates too!)
• And speaking of list-ology, this list is a genius compilation too. Words are so great.
• And isn't this a brilliant, helpful tool? You know...for when we get all spellbound by the brilliant diversion of the interweb?

So, that's my current round-up of inspiration for the time being. Got anything that you're dying to share because its so genius?

Autumn Magic

We went off to pick some pumpkins....

And we found....

....just the perfect collection.

There were hay rides and...

...blue skies and gold leaves everywhere we looked.

I picked some Sweet Annie for drying in a bundle in the kitchen. Smell so good!

Nib just looked up the entire time. So much pretty foliage overhead!

There were a few leaf fights.

  

Curiously the leaves on our own trees in our yard have yet to really turn or start dropping in earnest. It was kind of fun to drive out to this farm and enjoy a preview of fall leaf play. 

Some very, very happy sheep.

I love this boy.

There was a gorgeous blushing sky on the way home.

 We put the pumpkins on the front and back steps, the back door ones are for the more timid family members who are afraid of pumpkin smashers and the front step clan are the folks who are so unabashed about their celebratory fall spirit that they really believe the neighborhood and yea, the world will be good to them. The glass is half full and half empty at our house.

And this morning we baked another apple cake

I love the things they make out of Tinker Toys. So glad I picked them up at that yard sale.

Can you believe he's about to cut through is first two teeth? Such a sweet soul.

Testing the cake (which is already half gone)

 It is nice and moist. Plenty of apples, lovely sweet and shattery crust on top, but still, I dunno...I think I want it to be more spiced and a darker color. Maybe I need brown sugar in it or some whole wheat flour or something. Still searching, but feeling closer than ever.....

And my trash table is done! Well....sort of done.

 I ran out of paint before I could get the wooden edge along the top painted and the leg paint is a bit weak, but I was so anxious to use it that I think I'm just going to let it ride for a while. Its living in the sunroom, giving a boost to several houseplants who couldn't reach the light well. I love the silvery metallic top and have to admit that I stole the idea of painting it a metallic silver from my sister Foxy. What can I say? She has good taste! I am considering getting some kind of decorative wooden feet at Home Depot to screw in and raise it up. Its a bit low, too high to be coffee table material, but too low for pulling a chair up.

Three Months and Counting!!

Our little Nib is three whole months old now. He's working hard at rolling over anytime he finds himself on a flat surface, grabbing my skirt if I sweep past within fingertip range, and putting everything (including his whole fist) in his mouth non-stop. He's a super social little guy, loves people and smiles easily. We've finally started getting those first few giggles from him which are unspeakably delightful although I  feel like I'm still waiting for a full out belly laugh chortle session. He's still extremely mellow...in bed at night and around the house during the day he's as non-invasive as I can imagine a baby being. I'm still not sure exactly where he came from.

In addition to Nib's third monthiversary, we also had one last trip to the farm today with our visiting cousins. Penny and the girls have been really, really fun to have as house guests and I have to say that even though there are a million things I wish we could have had time for, having Penny here when I moved was an amazing sanity saver. I owe her about a million times over now for the late night parenting talks, photo sessions, babysitting swaps, endless box unpacking, manic meal making and a host of other memorable lifesavers. I have no idea how I would have pulled off the move without her. I feel like a total wimp for being that weak on my own but, as I mentioned recently....it takes a village, right?

Is there anything cuter than very small people in the lush grass next a New England stone wall? 

I'm not sure.