Wednesday, January 28, 2009
First Snow of the year!
Well, I wished for snow, and that's what we got! The kids were fascinated watching the snow come down and couldn't wait to get outside. So, we started the routine of getting all bundled up and about 2 hours later, we made it outside.
Low and behold, they stayed out there for FIVE minutes...seriously....
It was actually their very first time in the snow - last year we got trace amounts and they were not walking so we didn't go out and play in it. Apparently snow is not high on their "fun" list (yet). So back inside we went. I did snap a few photos just to document the occasion. Most of the photos show Cole frowning - he really did not enjoy the experience. Maybe if it was better "snowman" snow, it would have been more fun.
There's always next year.
Low and behold, they stayed out there for FIVE minutes...seriously....
It was actually their very first time in the snow - last year we got trace amounts and they were not walking so we didn't go out and play in it. Apparently snow is not high on their "fun" list (yet). So back inside we went. I did snap a few photos just to document the occasion. Most of the photos show Cole frowning - he really did not enjoy the experience. Maybe if it was better "snowman" snow, it would have been more fun.
There's always next year.
Blessing in disguise
Why would I be upset about the surprise purchase of a new 46" flat screen tv? I guess there really is a benefit to it that I failed to see when I was notified that the delivery truck would arrive momentarily....
The large box makes a great pretend bus (or train, or airplane, or car, or...)! It's amazing what one can do with a little utility knife. This ought to keep them busy for a few hours while we're cooped up on this snowy/icy day!
P.S. - Thank GOD we have a new tv for the super bowl, right?
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Ode to preemies
A friend sent this to me. It's a lighter version of a preemie parents experience. As serious and hard as preemie parenting is, it's nice to find a lighter side sometimes.
Jefferey's Poem
By Garrison Keillor
When I first saw you, kid, you were tiny and thin,
And slimy and red and your head was mushed in,
I say to your mother, "He looks kind of sloppy,
And two pounds four ounces ain't big for a crappie."
But something about you, the look in your eyes,
Said you fully intended to grow to full size,
They slapped your backside and you let out a cry,
And I said, "We will keep him, at least we shall try."
Some babies are born in nine months, by the clock,
Some babies are born, and they sit up and talk,
Some babies are born, and no doctor is there.
Some babies are born, on a wing and a prayer.
Poor little fetus, as big as your hand,
Poor little fish thrown up on dry land,
Who came in April, though he had til July,
Too small to live and too precious to die.
They shipped you downstairs to the big Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit's computerized cradle
And attached you to wires and stuck you with tubes
Monitored closely by digital cubes.
And thanks to the latest neonatal therapeusis
And regular basting with greases from gooses
And hot chicken soup intravenously fed
You did not fade away, you grew up instead.
We'll always remember those months that you spent
With tubes in your head in the oxygen tent
And the mask on your face with the wires attached,
Sweet little boy who was only half-hatched.
I'm sure you'll grow up to mature and extend,
To six feet six inches and become a tight end,
But I'll always remember each doctor and nurse in
The NICU who helped make you a person,
The kid who crash landed, who was carried away,
Who survived it, this bundle we bring home today.
Jefferey's Poem
By Garrison Keillor
When I first saw you, kid, you were tiny and thin,
And slimy and red and your head was mushed in,
I say to your mother, "He looks kind of sloppy,
And two pounds four ounces ain't big for a crappie."
But something about you, the look in your eyes,
Said you fully intended to grow to full size,
They slapped your backside and you let out a cry,
And I said, "We will keep him, at least we shall try."
Some babies are born in nine months, by the clock,
Some babies are born, and they sit up and talk,
Some babies are born, and no doctor is there.
Some babies are born, on a wing and a prayer.
Poor little fetus, as big as your hand,
Poor little fish thrown up on dry land,
Who came in April, though he had til July,
Too small to live and too precious to die.
They shipped you downstairs to the big Neonatal
Intensive Care Unit's computerized cradle
And attached you to wires and stuck you with tubes
Monitored closely by digital cubes.
And thanks to the latest neonatal therapeusis
And regular basting with greases from gooses
And hot chicken soup intravenously fed
You did not fade away, you grew up instead.
We'll always remember those months that you spent
With tubes in your head in the oxygen tent
And the mask on your face with the wires attached,
Sweet little boy who was only half-hatched.
I'm sure you'll grow up to mature and extend,
To six feet six inches and become a tight end,
But I'll always remember each doctor and nurse in
The NICU who helped make you a person,
The kid who crash landed, who was carried away,
Who survived it, this bundle we bring home today.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
History in the making...
Dear JD & Cole (my sweet, naive, young American boys),
Today is an incredibly historic day for our country. Today is the Inauguration day of our 44th President of the United States, whom happens to be the first African American president ever to serve in the white house. Someday when you're older, you'll be reading about this in your history books - and thinking back that you were only 2 years old when this happened. Hopefully by that time, racial tensions of every kind will be long gone. You may not understand by that time why it was such an important time in history - since you will be so far removed from the days when equality was far from acceptable. It is my wish that our world continues to be more accepting of people, more tolerant of people's choices and less materialistic.
This milestone is huge for our country. Your "Mimi" is from a generation that remembers the hatred & violence that was legally inflicted on the black people of America - and this behavior was accepted, and expected, by that generation. We've come such a long way since then - and today is such a historic day in our country's life and our lives, for this reason.
Although you guys are too young now to understand any of this, our nation and world are forever changed by the election of our newest president. Although Obama wasn't my first choice for president, he IS my president now, and I vow to support him and our nation as we squander through a very rough time of economic downturn and worldly turmoil. He's got a tough road ahead to bring us back to where we need to be. This world is full of hatred, particularly for our country. Since September 11, 2001, that horrific day, we have been fighting the war on terror, which will continue.
I hope with all of my heart that our country can pull together and blur the bi-partisan lines to bring our nation back to it's core values. We are a divided nation now - worse than it has ever been in my lifetime. I am hopeful that our new president can help us all measure up to the challenge he delivered today:
"For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the fire fighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task. "
I am not alone in saying that I vow to be hopeful for our nation and do my part, to better our world for the sake of you and your children, and grandchildren. Politics are not my forte - and I don't profess to know much of anything about politics. But I do know which values I profess, and those that I will try to instill in you as you grow older. This historic day is a great place to start. As I watched parts of the festivities today, I wished that you were a bit older and could appreciate what has happened.
Love,
Mommy
Today is an incredibly historic day for our country. Today is the Inauguration day of our 44th President of the United States, whom happens to be the first African American president ever to serve in the white house. Someday when you're older, you'll be reading about this in your history books - and thinking back that you were only 2 years old when this happened. Hopefully by that time, racial tensions of every kind will be long gone. You may not understand by that time why it was such an important time in history - since you will be so far removed from the days when equality was far from acceptable. It is my wish that our world continues to be more accepting of people, more tolerant of people's choices and less materialistic.
This milestone is huge for our country. Your "Mimi" is from a generation that remembers the hatred & violence that was legally inflicted on the black people of America - and this behavior was accepted, and expected, by that generation. We've come such a long way since then - and today is such a historic day in our country's life and our lives, for this reason.
Although you guys are too young now to understand any of this, our nation and world are forever changed by the election of our newest president. Although Obama wasn't my first choice for president, he IS my president now, and I vow to support him and our nation as we squander through a very rough time of economic downturn and worldly turmoil. He's got a tough road ahead to bring us back to where we need to be. This world is full of hatred, particularly for our country. Since September 11, 2001, that horrific day, we have been fighting the war on terror, which will continue.
I hope with all of my heart that our country can pull together and blur the bi-partisan lines to bring our nation back to it's core values. We are a divided nation now - worse than it has ever been in my lifetime. I am hopeful that our new president can help us all measure up to the challenge he delivered today:
"For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the fire fighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task. "
I am not alone in saying that I vow to be hopeful for our nation and do my part, to better our world for the sake of you and your children, and grandchildren. Politics are not my forte - and I don't profess to know much of anything about politics. But I do know which values I profess, and those that I will try to instill in you as you grow older. This historic day is a great place to start. As I watched parts of the festivities today, I wished that you were a bit older and could appreciate what has happened.
Love,
Mommy
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Breakfast with Penguins
...or "Pengy" as we call him around here. The kids are learning about hibernation at school and the teachers asked that on Friday we send the boys in with a bear or penguin to share with the class. So, we got Pengy #1 & Pengy #2 ready for school, and fed them a nutritious breakfast...who knew penguins liked waffles and fruit?
I am fascinated by their exploding imaginations! I love seeing and hearing the role play; sometimes it makes me laugh (most of the time) and sometimes it makes me cry because they are growing up so quickly. The things they are retaining and imitating now are just amazing.On another note, I have had an infant swing sitting in my living room for a couple of weeks that was making it's way up to the hospital to be donated to an expectant friend. In the meantime, the boys were absolutely fascinated with it and wanted to play with it any chance they could. Obviously, one would think that they are a bit large for an infant swing - and logically, why would they be interested in playing with it anyway? (Probably because I told them they could NOT play with it). Anyway, one morning I came down the stairs to see Cole lounging out in it, swinging back and forth, singing winkow, winkow witto sta (twinkle, twinkle little star). Funny thing is, he sort of fit in it, the little peanut that he is!
I've gotta add these photos too - we are a sports family, if you haven't figured that out. And we endorse several different sports teams around here. JD & Cole have quite the sports attire - including Terps, Redskins, Navy, Orioles, Syracuse & Colorado U. For the sake of our Colorado Family, you'll enjoy these! Go Buffs!
And lastly, for those of you who still might be intrigued by my new adventure with Shop To Earn, here's a great article that came out today...it's the new buzz. Are you sure you don't want to know more???
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
My work is cut out for me....
I'm trying to start out the year on the right foot and be healthy again - working out and eating right. Isn't that just about everyone's new years resolution? So far so good - been to the gym consistently for a week now - that's better than I can say for the last 12 months!My motivation is of course, to be healthy. But more importantly, some girls, that I call friends, convinced me that it was a good idea to sign up for the Iron Girl mini-triathalon (Columbia, MD) this year. In a dazed (or crazed?) moment, I agreed and already paid my 100 bucks. I'm in now. Even though it's in August, that will surely be here before we know it....it's a .62mi Swim, 17.5mi Bike & 3.4mi Run. The running I will do fine with, except for the fact that it's the last event and I'm sure I'll be exhausted by then. But I can honestly say, the last time I swam with any purpose was about 20 years ago on the swim team in our neighborhood. And it's probably been about that long since I biked with any purpose - and at that time, it was simply to get myself to swim team practice.
Sooooooo, I've got my work cut out for me. There's nothing like a lofty goal like this to keep me motivated. With the Annapolis Women's Zooma 10K race at the end of May, I'll know by then if I'm up for the task. Time will tell...in the meantime, I need all of the help I can get!
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