Chase and Katie are here!

We are very happy to be hosting Katie and Chase this week and next!! Chase is absolutely adorable. By far the cuddliest baby I've ever met and so smitten with his Mommy. But that doesn't stop him from snuggling up to Phil and I ... and Tasha and Rob too! They visited tonight with Aislinn for a raucous evening of fun. Aislinn and Pip pretty much ignored us most of the night, running about upstairs and downstairs, chasing each other with stuffed dogs in their mouths, searching for and finding lovies, splashing illicitly in the tub when no one was watching, pretending to be monsters ... you get the point. They were in toddler heaven. Aislinn even gave me hope that perhaps she could teach Pip to use the potty (he gave it a college try and farted on it followed by a nice wiping, but alas no actual liquid or solid was deposited). Pip ended up going to bed at least 2 hours past his bedtime, bleary eyed and sated. Oh, he also had his first Chinese food, Chicken Lo Mein with cool kid chopsticks Aislinn let him borrow.

Vivian pooped out early but enjoyed the party while it lasted. Chase hung in there til the end, finally falling asleep with Mommy shortly after our guests left.

Here's Chase with Mommy yesterday:


And getting some quality "man" time with Phil tonight. (He wanted Jon, but was willing to settle for this veteran instead).

Crawling is for babies

FINALLY! Vivian is back to 100% and loving life again. It's like I traded in a cranky baby and got a happy smiling one in return! Just to prove it, she started crawling Monday (Jan 26th, just 3 days prior to her 8 month birthday) and already has decided that's not enough for her. This girl wants to walk!! So forget that crawling business and let's catch that Pip!!


Here's a video of her crawling on Monday:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLa1jx4PqS0


And then today she's pulling up on the ottoman. (oh, and she's hearty too, that fall at the end barely phased her!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kqp_q3rdNZo


Chase and Katie are visiting us this week and we are having a blast. We hope to get some pics of them to post soon.

Sink or swim

Today Pip and I went to Coco Key water resort in Danvers. It's quite a place. The Y was having a fund raiser so we heard about it and decided to go. Since Viv's still half-sick/half-recovered, we had to leave her at home and so subsequently Phil had to stay too. Poor Phil and Vivie. The good news is that Nicholas (Pip's friend from Mom's group) and his mom Susan agreed to come with us -- because I love company always.

Well, at any rate, I learned something very important about my little man. If he has to choose between sink or swim, gosh darnit he's gonna swim. Was learning this little tidbit scary. Yes. It was. Very.

Pip fast-walked into the resort because we had clearly established (through a repetitive pattern of me making him say "We don't run at Coco Key over and over again") rules against running. He had lots of fun splashing in the zero entry pool ... and then he spotted the sliding boards the the far end. He "sprint-waded" to the other end as the water got deeper and deeper. Luckily he found some steps and was able to extract himself from the pool. I held his hands up the steps to the slide, and then realized I wasn't allowed to go down with him. Too late. My child was hurtling himself down the slide. I had no choice. I turned and bolted back down the steps to meet him at the bottom. Felt like only seconds, but when I got back down there I saw my sweetie face down in the water, hands and feet paddling like mad, afloat, but going nowhere. All I remember is checking the pants, yep ... looked like Pip's trunks, and I grabbed him and yanked him out of the water. His eyes were wide open. He seemed scared but full of adrenaline too, trying to figure out what just happened. Susan saw it all from the top of the slide and said he went under from the force of the slide and then popped up and tried to swim, went under, and came back up again -- desperately paddling in the seconds it took me to get there. Wow. Scary ... but I'm glad my boy is a swimmer ... in the fight or flight sense of the word.

The rest of the day was (thankfully) more uneventful, although Pip got very tired and very cold after about and hour and a half and we called it quits. Sadly I got no pictures, but I did have some from earlier in the day when they both decided to try the teething biscuits I made:

Vivian is sick :(

Vivian was sent home from daycare today with a suspected case of RSV that was confirmed by the pedi. She was still all smiles and sweetness until the fever hit her and she needed some Tylenol. I had noticed her coughing (which she always seems to have a little) got worse over the past few days, but not enough to alarm me. I think this is early so it will probably get worse before it gets better.

Tonight Pip decided to lay low with his sick sister and they watched Veggie Tales. They were so mezmerized they didn't even realize they were touching (Pip normally shakes her off when she gets her paws on him!).

Here's a video of Viv moving about and watching TV. Pip is clearly in the zone:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCYBpwSGS4k

Museum of Science

Today we went to the Boston Museum of Science with Jenn and Daniel Parsons. It was our first museum experience and we were very excited! I think I was more excited than Pip, who wasn't exactly sure what a museum was. Phil & Dave were a bit sad, since they do not have off for MLK day and had to miss it.

Pip and Daniel remembered each other from previous outings and had great fun running all about (much like overstimulated chickens). The only effective method of herding them was to convince one to find the other. The gated Discovery Center (for kids under 5) was a hit for moms and toddlers alike. Vivian even got in on the action playing with the balls and trying to crawl about.

I'd say the highlights for Pip were the two-story ball contraption which lifted balls up and elevator and then made all sorts of noises and actions as the balls fell down the labyrinth, and the DINOSAUR. Pip warmed up to this big guy as they day went on, giving him a heartfelt goodbye by the end of the day.

Checking out a guinea pig:

Gum!

Today Pip had his first piece of gum! He's noticed for a while whenever I have a piece in my mouth and has always been curious. Today I decided to supervise giving him a piece and he did a great job! Here's some pics and a video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnhH9os9pmw

Later Pip and Vivian had their first prolonged period of true play. Vivian has been having tons of fun in her walker lately. As soon as you put her in it she lunges forward and propels herself across the floor. Pip witnessed a bit of this and decided to push her around. Both of them were thrilled! Here's a video and a pic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdZ0wZg5qbE

It's so much fun to see them interacting together a little more each day. Under the guise of feeding Viv, Pip also scarfs down tons of her puffs. Here he tries to get one into her mouth but Mr. Transformer Potato Head's arm is in the way.

The last development of the day was another feeble attempt by Mom and Dad to insert a wedge between Pip and his "soothie" (pacifier). Pip is only allowed to have it when he naps and sleeps at night. This morning when he woke up he told Phil he wanted to give it to his imaginary dinosaur that lives in the curtain of one of the windows in his room. Phil saw an opening and encouraged him to place it on the sill above the window. We were all excited because after school Pip said he was going to let the dinosaur use the soothie that night. Unfortunately he reneged on the plan during booktime and wanted it back. I gave it to him but was again encouraged when after books he wanted to give to the dinosaur. Back up on the sill it went. Songs went well ... but then he wanted it back. He was kinda on the fence and I deferred to Phil who went up to try and convince him to let the dinosaur have it overnight. That sneaky Pip. He spotted a backup soothie under his table and the game was up. So both Pip and the dinosaur are happily sucking away.

Kitchen dancing and walking (kinda of)

One of my favorite things about being a mom is spontaneous dancing. I've been trying to train Pip to embrace dancing and I think it's officially paid off. Yesterday we hiked up the radio in the kitchen and danced with abandon. Pip thinks dancing consists only of jumping and kinda of gets upset when I incorporate any other moves. He also likes to throw himself on the floor every five seconds and looks at me like, come on mom ... fall down. So after a few times throwing myself on the floor, I brought the mat down. He told everyone at school about our new dancing game and request it again tonight. Here's a video clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHcB9wVogpM

Vivian is working so hard at walking. She loves to push herself along in the walker. Here's a video of that too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djnigS7Qukg

Vivie also has some very cute outfits courtesy of Rhiannon, which make her look just plain adorable.

Here's Phil's morning report:

I held out until 7 before getting Pip, although I think there was activity in there for a while before that. I got a big hug and after a bit of protesting, Pip allowed me to get him dressed. Viv was already waking up by now, so we shuffled downstairs to get started on breakfast. Pip was intrigued by the coffee table which was pulled out to the couch. He wanted to eat his cereal and strawberries there, but was denied. This caused a significant pouting session that lasted for several minutes. In the end, a compromise was reached by pulling his table away from the wall about 1foot. He then ate his breakfast in peace while I got Viv ready. She was wide awake but surprisingly not too fussy. But once she got that bottle,she attacked it! Drank 4.5 oz and then was in a pleasant food coma for the rest of the morning. Pip watched some of the Disney cruise video and some Fireman Sam. As I brushed my teeth, he came upstairs and told me it was almost time for school. However, despite this apparent enthusiasm, he used his typical delay tactics for the rest of the morning, dragging out the departure for about 15 minutes. He was good at the drop off and even carried his own lunch from the car to his room. Viv was still in a good mood and might have been working on a poo as I left.

Happy Birthday to Natalie (and Pip!)

Jan 8th is a special day that always brings snow and ice cream cake to the Balas family. Well, this year, the snow was already here (although there were dubious reports of a few snow flurries to keep the streak alive). More reliably, a gaint Carvel ice cream cake was waiting for the birthday girl when she came home from work. I even listened to her comments from a week earlier and scrounged up some extra gel decorations. My "balloons" were somewhat crude, but they served the purpose of being a vehicle to get more yummy sugar goodness into the body.

Pip did a somewhat poor job of keeping the "secret" of the ice cream cake in the freezer. In the morning before Natalie left, he jumped up in bed and exclaimed "I put the ice cream cake in the fridge!" Nat asked who the cake was for, and of course he said "ME!" Luckily for Nat, Pip was willing to share his cake with her.

Everyone got some cake that evening, even Vivian. Pip ate his serving so quickly that he got brain freeze and was in great pain for a minute or two. But that didn't stop him from getting seconds.

Phil's friday report

Phil generally writes a report on the mornings he drops off the kids at daycare. I love these emails and usually file them away. I'm thinking, since he doesn't really post to the blog, maybe I'll start putting them up here in his name. Here's today's:

Perhaps the result of longer, deeper sleeps for Viv? She was awake and ready to go at 7, as you witnessed. Thanks for the bottle...I was struggling on finding a matching outfit and she was getting impatient with me. I know I'll regret it one day when I see the outfits she'll bewearing, but choosing clothes for her in the morning is stressful for a dad. Pip got up soon after you left too. We got him situated with breakfast (waffles) and entertainment. I showered with Viv in the swing. Pip was insistent on a dessert of cake, so he got a small piece with blue icing carefully removed. After all, I didn't want to be called out at the Y. We got off without too much difficulty...just some minor dragging of feet by Pip. Dropoff was good. Pip was in a very cheerful mood and was running about. He gave me a half-hearted, over-the-shoulder "Bye Dad!" which I quickly vetoed and got a proper hug before leaving.

Sleeping angels...

This entry might be very short as Viv and Pip are both sleeping and this never happens for very long. Viv has actually been down for 2 hours ... should I go check on her??? Are you crazy? Nope, this is what I hope for every day.

Perhaps all her hard work eating puffs is catching up with her. She's working hard to grab those little things with her fingers and pop them into her mouth. Here she is clearly not interested in the camera's distraction while she works.



Pip had a great morning with his friends, but before they arrived he played by himself with his trains.

Later, Pip, Nicholas, and Charlie taunted Sprout who was hiding behind the cat door. Charlie had bravely stuck his hand in just before I began shooting and Pip is trying to goad him into doing it AGAIN. At the end, a precious moment of disobedience. I am not sure if this link will work, the video is embedded in Facebook. I may have to upload to YouTube later. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=48218406455

Coasting

We're coasting here at the Balas house. Viv continues on her roll sleeping through the night. Well, she did wake once last night because she had scooted her head up into the corner of the crib and was upset at being cramped there. But she just needed a hug and to get settled back down in the crib. No biggie. Otherwise it was 12 straight hours.

Pip also has his first imaginary "friend" ... a dinosaur he is half afraid of, half excited about. He discovered it along the top of one of his window shades when he woke one morning a few days ago. It took me lifting him up to touch the shade to convince hi nothing was there. But he still kept talking about this dinosaur and pointing it out. He showed it to Phil the next day and me again the day later. He's growing accustomed to this little guy and we've decided it is a friendly, protective dinosaur.

I think that's the news from here.

Mom's Group

Today we were all very excited to see our Mom's Group friends. With the holidays we haven't seen our buds in almost 2 weeks. Pip was giddy with excitement all morning and played happily with Charlie, Nicholas, Jameson, and Lily all day. Viv "hung out" with Natalie, Carolina, and Conor. The only real sad moment was when they had to leave and Pip kept saying "I don't want my friends to leave!"

No playdate is complete at our house with a piano serenade (and without one of them throwing all the toys own the cat door before I can catch them, which also happened, but if I had witnessed it I would have stopped it!!)




There were several funny moments, but at one point a brave (or maybe just really had to go pee) Sprout emerged from hiding and made a run for the cat door to the basement. The kids were on high alert for her until she popped back out and they screamed with glee as she scrabbled desperately up the stairs. Luckily for her I had just re-hung the gate (Viv's not crawling, but she'll be before I know it) so the quad of kids were stopped short as she scampered under it to safety. Lily and Pip pulled themselves up onto the gate, yanked at it with their body weight and pled with "the kitty" to come back. Fat chance. For kicks I let them go up, knowing Sprout was a good hider. They found her under my bed and tried pleading again, but there would be a better chance of Bush admitting a mistake than her coming out at that point in time. Anyway, here's a pic of that.

Looking for Sprout:

Taunting Sprout:

Viv was thrilled to have all the folks here keeping her busy. She still didn't have great naps, but probably mustered 2 hour-longs during the day. In the afternoon I had fun playing with her on the floor while Pip watched Handy Manny. She was super cute trying to get all her toys and laughing when I raspberried her belly.

Watching Handy Manny:

Playing with Mommy and her toys:

At bedtime I convinced Pip to let me read him the new Pip Squeak books Tasha and Aislinn gave him for Christmas. They are so good about finding these Pip books for him! Pip loved them, especially the one where Pip Squeak cleans the house. Mopping! Vacuuming! AND SQUIRTING!! Pip was in heaven. I am sure the book will be requested frequently now.

Welcome 2009!

I wasn't going to post anything unless it was 3 nights in a row, but I can't help feeling like we've turned a corner here so here it is. Viv slept 2 nights in a row through the night and a third, last night, waking only once at 4:17am for a little milk. What a great beginning to 2009!! The two earlier nights she cried out once or twice but settled on her own before I could reach her room. She definitely seems to do well if she gets a full dinner at 6 and then a bottle before bed at 7ish. It can be tough to coordinate that timing, but we are aiming for it now that we've seen such results.

She also seems to have grown overnight. Maybe Santa sprinkled a little something on her presents. She seems both plumper and taller ... perhaps this spurt is indicative of an overall change in maturity. With the change she looks a bit comical in her baby sink tub, so tonight I decided it was time for the big bath and we plopped her in with Pip.

At first Pip rebuffed the idea of sharing his bath, explaining clearly to me that Vivie's bath was downstairs and this was his bath. But the little man can be convinced of anything reasonable and even he had to admit that she no longer fit in the sink. So he happily shuffled over in the tub and made room for her. Then he proceeded to squirt her incessantly with the Windex bottle (rinsed and filled only with water, toes only Pip!) which is his new favorite thing to do. He prefers actual Windex and will go out of his way to make messes so that when I tell him he needs to clean it up, he smiles broadly at having trapped me at my own game, and requests the "squirter" so that he can properly clean up his mess. Outsmarted again.

Just one other note before I go read in bed (little pleasures). I don't know if this will translate, but I will try. As Pip, Viv, and I were leaving Pip's classroom at school today, I thought I heard Pip say "Thank you" quietly to Nancy, one of our favorite teachers. I thought it was sweet of him to thank her but she hadn't heard, so I asked him to say thank you. He turned back, looked her right in the eye, and said, "Thank you for watching me today!" And with a flourish of a wave, he spun around in his flapped eared hat, fleece mittens, big puffy jacket, reached for my hand, and walked me out of the building. In our wake I could hear Nancy closing the classroom door, remarking on how precious a moment it was. Indeed.

Ok, just one more tale of the day. This one really is from Phil, but I haven't been able to convince him to blog himself, so I have to be his ghostwriter. One of my husband's many qualities is his ability to sing. You have to be extremely cute to get him to do it (or ply him with alcohol). It's smooth and soft and on pitch. He's got an entire arsenal of favorites and Pip quickly learned that this is Daddy's area of expertise. I'm allowed to sing to him when I put him to bed, but if I try to sing anything more advanced than ACBD, Baa Baa Black Sheep, or Twinkle Twinkle, he tells me "No, that's Daddy's song" and redirects me to one of the above-mentioned basics. Anyway, point is this evening Phil came down from putting Pip to bed and said Pip was cute as pie, requesting the "Taven" song. This, Phil smartly discerned was actually "Country Road" by John Denver, which Pip called the Taven song because of the part that goes "almost heaven", which when sung sort of strings as "almos taven". Phil told Pip the song was called Country Road and asked him to listen for the parts in the song when he said those words. Pip snuggled up in his two huge blankets (cuddler supreme) and chuckled all through the song whenever Phil got to the words "Country Road".