Tuesday, November 30, 2010

I have to tell...

I'm sorry sweetheart, I have to tell. This story is just too funny to keep off the internet. And you're only two years old. You're not old enough to be embarrassed.

So, last night HE was sitting in the bottom of the shower after it was turned off, umm, investigating himself. The shower is separate from the tub, and has one of those old-fashioned circular drains in the center.
"Look Mommy!" he said. "Digger!" So I looked, and sure enough he had, umm, manipulated himself into the back-and-forth bend of a construction shovel and was pretending to dig up the drain holes.
"Well, yes" I laughed, "Little tiny digger."
"Lit-tle ti-ny BIG DIGGER!" he agreed gleefully, sending me to the kitchen in paroxysms of laughter to share with Daddy.
When I came back it was obvious, umm, something else was going on.
"Look Mommy! Elephant!"

At least I didn't say your name.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

The sundering of the twins

Given the choice the boys will always choose to be together, so it's hard to get alone time with one of them. We've decided to make this a deliberate habit and today was the first day. Vanh was convinced to go shopping with Daddy while Max stayed home with Mommy. The idea is not that we are doing anything special; it's just a chance to get to know each child as an individual.

Max and I spent time unpacking some Christmas decorations



and then some painting.

I kept asking him who the paintings were for (hoping to get cheap and easy Christmas presents, I'm no fool); he kept replying, "for Vanh."

I noticed that I got a lot more snuggle time than usual. Max came over for a good long cuddle at least three times in just over an hour, which is more than I would usually get in a week.

When Vanh came home he was excited to give Max his gift (fruit candy) but asked twice for his turn for "painting". Next week sweetie!

One last photo - the boys were fascinated with these singing mice from their stockings last year - great to see they still love them!

(PS to B - What can I say, they went to bed early!)

Stylin' Saturday #13

Oh the negotiations. We've come a long way from week #1. They don't have a lot of matching stuff so it's neat to see how they dig through the drawer to find it, then convince each other to wear it. They really like to match. Max knows he owns "orange pants" and Vanh asks to see his jeans before he selects a pair "no Pooh".

No matter what they are doing they always drop everything to race upstairs when I tell them it's time to pick their own clothes. Certain events suggest this may have more to do with the desire to get first choice of the sweaters, or the fear that brother will get to pick both outfits, than any actual eagerness to be stylin' and/ or compliant.

As you can see from this first picture this eagerness does not extend to being photographed in said outfits...

... but they know the drill...


...and how to thwart it.

"Time to jump!"

"Time to run!"

Their outfits were improved by the addition of Daddy's sneakers...

... and again by their snowsuits.

Hope Santa brings a drum kit


Oh, and yes we do have little red and blue dots all over the back of the kitchen door, thank you for asking.

Favourite books

In preparation for Christmas decorations we're trying to cull some of the clutter, so I had the boys sort through their shelf of "paper books" (as opposed to board books which don't have to be kept up high) and select their favourites to keep downstairs for now. Here are the books they chose:

"Wheels on the Bus" is over to the right, and the ones you can't see are "When it Rains, it Rains" and a Dora book.

For fun I flipped to video and asked them to read. If you are a teacher familiar with Balanced Literacy, you may recognize the similarities to the guided reading technique. Admittedly it is usually done with the same book. I do this with my students and find it amazing how children can tune everyone else out and read out loud to themselves! Of course, it is a little more relevant when the "students" are actually "reading"...

Friday, November 26, 2010

Here comes Santa Claus

The boys were apparently a little traumatized by the Santa Claus parade, which started late and required a lot more clothing of its audience than we had on. When I mentioned Santa the next day Max responded with "No Santa. No blankets." and later, "No Santa bring toys."

We were really hoping for more success with the "picture with Santa" this year. Thinking a little preparation might do the trick, my parents brought them to the mall to see Santa's set-up before Santa arrived, so they could practise walking up the step and sitting in Santa's chair. Once Santa got there they forgot everything and clung to their grandparents in terror, although they did admit later that "Santa said Hi Max," but reminded me again, "No Santa bring toys."

Vanh was lamenting the end of the Halloween candy and mentioned there was “no more white chocolate,” so I asked if he wanted Santa Claus to bring him some. The following conversation ensued:
Vanh: Santa bring brown chocolate Vanh Max
Max: Santa bring brown chocolate Savannah
Vanh: No Santa bring brown chocolate Savannah.
Max: Santa bring brown chocolate Savannah.
Vanh: No no no Santa bring brown chocolate Savannah! Santa bring brown chocolate Max Vanh!
Max: Santa bring toys. Max, Vanh, Savannah.
Vanh: No Santa Savannah. Santa Max Vanh.

At least he included his brother.

To make up for the lack of Santa photos, here are a few others:

At the Experimental Farm. The sign says, "Please do not touch the buck. He is strong and could hurt you."


So nice to have flowers at the end of November! Thank you neighbour.


At the Aviation Museum with Meme & Gumpy.


Hmmm, I wonder where I can find a Santa who sits in a plane...

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Friday, November 19, 2010

28 months old

Happy two-and-a-third birthday!


See you in a few weeks Teo!

Monday, November 15, 2010

Big changes

Tonight I tucked in Max with 1 big bear, 1 little tiny bear(his words) and a mother kangaroo with twins. Vanh had 2 blue bears named Two, 1 bear named Frog, and a bunny rabbit.

You have to understand, up until two days ago the boys wanted nothing to do with stuffed animals. They would sleep with books and the occasional truck, but anything remotely cuddly and soft would be tossed immediately. I didn't talk about it much because so many dear friends and family had given them stuffed toys, but they really had no interest. When we took everything out of their room once they moved out of cribs, we didn't bother with the stuffies, and they remained untouched.

But now - the teddy bears are slowly moving in to our lives. They sit at the breakfast table and get fed. They have naps and are told they are loved. They jump on the bed, and are told to go to sleep. And they get tucked in at night by a mommy who is completely besotted with her little boys.

PS No this is not a hint for Christmas - we have more than enough thank you!

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Friday, November 12, 2010

Referraliversary

Two years ago today we found out we were parents and saw photos of our children for the first time.

Click here to see what you said.

Click here for memories of that day.

Click here for more memories of referral day.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Stylin' Saturday #10

Yes we remembered, and they did a great job, Vanh wore baseballs and Max a dinosaur shirt with pants the exact same shade of red. Sorry for the lack of photos.