Christmas Post

I know I know I know...everyone is tired of watching Eban dancing as I haven't updated the blog. First Nani came in for Thanksgiving and then it was the holiday time and then Jack started walking so it's been crazy for us. I think this is my excuse every time. I love being a mom more than I can express... The boys are napping so I'll take an hour to write and an hour to upload pictures - if I'm lucky if they sleep for two hours today. Here are some of my new favorite pictures from the month... In some of the pictures below, you can see Seamus and Eban "sleeping" on the couch. First of all, Seamus isn't allowed on the couch so when we came into the family room, we both saw Seamus laying there. Eban looked at me and asked if Seamus was sleeping. I said he wants to but he's not supposed to sleep ON the couch. So Eban got a blanket from the drawer and put it on him and got a blanket for himself so they could sleep together. It was so darn cute that I couldn't reprimand Seamus whatsoever.

The boys have been getting along tremendously well. It's fun to see them chase each other around the kitchen an into the dining room in a continuous circle and then laugh hysterically. This "game" has Seamus going crazy as he doesn't know which boy to protect as when one runs, he goes into protect mode. So there are sounds of giggling combined with fun woofs from a mastiff as he is also running after them to watch them. It's hysterical. Jack can now say two words together..."All Done." He says it every day with his tray of food and then Eban mimics him. In fact, they sometimes sleep together in the same room and you can hear Eban go over to Jack's crib and then hear them giggling on the baby monitor so that's fun to hear them interact when they think we aren't around...they really are good kids. Well, let's go back to Thanksgiving. Nani came in town and it was such a treat to have her with us again. Like any child coming home, she went out with friends to all hours of the evening and then came in quietly to sleep until the late morning. The boys gobbled up her time and loved every second with her. We did too! She volunteered with me at a restaurant called "Rosa Linda's Mexican Cafe" where they serve meals to families, seniors and others who wouldn't otherwise have a "Thanksgiving" meal. For several hours, we chopped celery, skinned potatoes and quartered potatoes. I was happy that she donated her time on her trip to give back and I hope my boys will learn how to give back once they are older. Thanksgiving was a blast at the Rehm's household. New "orphans" showed up here and there but there was also a good mix of the usual suspects. We brought all the pies as Ryan worked on making them from scratch. Everyone raved about his homemade key lime pie! We also found the first (of I'm sure is many) holiday traditions we'll have as a family. We went to the Brown Palace, a boutique hotel in Denver, for the lighting of the chandelier and to see Santa the day after Thanksgiving. The boys were enthralled by the lights, the smells, the trains and the overall festive occasion. Eban loved the large train that went through the gingerbread houses and the cookie decorating station. I loved the hot cocoa and seeing Santa - as Santa was kind enough to let me know that Jack went to the bathroom on him while he was sitting there. Jack didn't like Santa too much so the two seconds that he was there, he screamed his head off...well, he left Santa a gift in return. Eban was able to sled for the first time in the Rehm's back yard one weekend. We had to practice how to sled with him first (as seen in the pictures below) and then enjoy the wintry weather outside with Avery, Megan and Dennis. After the sledding, hot cocoa and cookies were had. It was a perfect kid evening...and I enjoyed some wine too while the big boys were watching one of the football games at an Irish bar in town. Here's a funny story: One early morning, around 3 or 4, Eban woke up and was yelling for "momma." So I went into his room and he tried every technique to "stay up" with me such as, "I have to go potty"...and then we would go to the bathroom together. And then he tried, "I want some juice" so I went downstairs and got him juice. I try to be quiet at these times so he'll want to go back to bed and he'll also realize that I don't want to engage with him. After two or three more attempts to get me to stay, I finally looked him in the eyes about an inch from his face and said, "Eban - go to sleep." He scrunhced up his nose and said, "MOMMA, YOU'RE STINKY!" Great...my kid noticed my horrific morning breath and now do I brush my teeth before going to see him or let him suffer the consequences of getting me up so early?? :)

Eban is also in a questioning phase. Instead of asking why all the time - he will ask, "What are you doing?" We get that question several times a day! Finally Christmas! I made Christmas cookies for the neighbors again this year. I heard another neighbor didn't want to give me any baked goods as my cookies were SO good that she was afraid her's would pale in comparison! I received more compliments on my mom's recipe for date balls - of all things! Finally, my culinary expertise is coming out! Christmas was so much fun this year as Eban knows who Santa is. He loved his stocking and the gifts under the tree. He was very helpful with opening every one's presents. He was very excited to open one of Seamus' gifts and he exclaimed, "SEAMUS YOU GOT DOG BONES FROM SANTA!" We were laughing so hard. Another fun event that happened this month was the fact that I was able to spend some quality time with my dad in the hospital as he thought he broke his ankle. It was a bad sprain but he stayed at our house to recover while we tried to help nurse his ankle back to health. He was still hobbling around on Christmas, but at least he was with us and not holed up in some room with his leg elevated in a sling!

A highlight of last week, besides Christmas, was the fact that we went on a train ride with Grandpa Morgan. We went on our light rail system, Denver's public train transportation system, and took a mini-trip from one of the stations to the last station on the southwest corridor. Eban LOVED it! Jack was a trooper during the trip, but Eban ate it up. We walked to a nearby shopping complex and then had lunch there and then got some "hot cocoa" for the return trip. In the movie The Polar Express there's a scene where all the kids get hot chocolate on the train so we gave him some and he was SO proud to have his hot chocolate. LUCKY SEAMUS
EBAN OFFERS A GIFT TO ME

BOO WITH JACK

BROTHERLY LOVE - OR STRANGULATION?

more video of eban's dancing skills...

Jack took his first steps and Eban can break dance!

Jack took his first steps yesterday. We were in the bedroom on the first floor and he took about three steps towards me and I couldn't believe it. He hasn't done it since...but he's about to get into everything now that he's learning how to use his two legs!

This weekend, it was SO cold out that Seamus' slingers turned into icicles as he waited to come back inside. I had a paper towel ready to wipe them and then they broke into a zillion pieces...couldn't believe they froze!

Eban and Avery had a dance party in our kitchen Friday night...we all thoroughly enjoyed it. Here's one video of many that we'll post when we find an extra 10 minutes or so...

More photos and videos...

Just read the post under this one to get caught up...Here are the additional pics and videos that accompany yesterday's blog.

I'm picking up inserting photos from a couple of days before Halloween when Jenell and her kids came over. Eban and Ella were instant friends...that was, of course,
after Eban saw her walk up and he scowled while saying "go away" and he slammed the door. It was a great first impression for Jenell and her kids. After those formalities, the eating, running around and snuggling ensued with the wee ones.

Jack and Jacob just hung out...not a lot of interaction with those two!

Then Grammie Kass came in and we went to the Boulder Campus of Microsoft for a Halloween party. They had hay rides and other goodies for the kids. Eban loved the horses! It was great to FINALLY see where Ryan works.


Then Halloween came...woo-hoo...CANDY. We heard a lot of those cheers on the 31st.

Here are just some random pics and a Grandma Patti pic...

"Let Go Jack" Video

Avery, Dennis and Eban Running

Eban at his first swim lesson

Dennis and Eban Jumping on Avery's Bed (Check out Dennis try to hug Eban when he thinks he hurt him...so sweet)

"P.U....I don't like that"

Yesterday, Eban made us laugh so hard!

He went to the garbage to throw something away and obviously, he's nose-level with the kitchen garbage can. As he was walking away from the garbage, he was shaking his head with a scrunched up face saying, "P.U....I don't like that." So I went over to the garbage and looked inside and Ryan had emptied a jar of pickled red peppers (or something pungent like that) and it was stinking up the garbage big time. We were laughing so hard as Eban was clearly unimpressed with the odoriferous garbage can.

Yesterday, he also had me in a state of shock. He was coloring with markers with Jack and he started stacking them so that they made one long marker. He then ran from the kiddie bench around saying "boom boom" or something like that. Then he happily looked at us and said "gun." Then he ran into the living room with the marker contraption. I couldn't even look at Ryan...we never use the word "gun" in our house, how could he even know that "guns" go boom boom...ugh. Disheartened - maybe - is the word I'm looking for...I don't know how to feel about this little, new fact.

On to better and more exciting news - it has been a GRANDMA galore/frenzy at our house this past month. That's a good excuse as to why the blog hasn't been updated as we've been spending quality time with every grandma. First Tutu came out for 12 days or so...then Grammie Kass and then Grandma Patti!
We also had our godson's second birthday party! Dennis finally turned two and the theme of his party was, of course, Halloween. Eban was a dinosaur and Jack was a puppy. Once we got there, Eban was off and running. He played nonstop with Avery and Dennis. They painted pumpkins, played with trucks, ate so many candy corn candies that I thought Eban was going to pop...and Jack was great too. He takes everything in with his wide eyes. Pretty soon, he'll be walking and causing trouble with Eban...I look forward to the day where they can play with one another and now accidentally hurt each other. The boys are definitely more interactive now. It's great to watch them play together and smile...yet it's terrifying to see Eban doing a run and flying jump over Jack and miscalculate the jump and land on his head and squash little Jack...I wish my legs moved faster...but I think this is going to happen for the rest of my life at this point!So let's go back a couple of week's to Tutu's visit. Tutu came in on a Saturday and we immediately left her with both kids so that we could go to a black-tie gala. It was one of the most fun events I have ever been to. It was the Booklover's Ball put on by the Denver Public Library to help them raise funds for new books, upgrades and to help literacy campaigns in Denver. It was fabulous. Most of the two tables we sat with dressed up like characters from the book Water for Elephants. The book revolves around a man and his life in the early 1920s in the circus. Amazingly enough, it was the last book I read before I learned that our tables would be dressing up in character. We didn't but most of the others we sat with did...and they were great! We even sat in the historical fiction part of the library. Anyway, Ryan left the next morning for a training class in California for a couple of days and then he had to fly up to Redmond, Washington, for a day...so he was the family's jet-setter.

Tutu and I played with the kids all week. We went to our first pumpkin patch and picked out pumpkins...it was great as it was a little mom and pop farm in Erie so I felt good about supporting the local farmers. We also picked out a spaghetti squash and another type of squash. Tutu also worked with Eban to make a pumpkin shaped pizza and he helped decorate it...well...it was more like she would shred the cheese and he happily put the cheese in his mouth rather than on the pizza.

Then Grammie Kass came in to Denver for the first time. She was able to participate in the crazy Halloween festivities at our house. We also had the Rehms and Jenell and her daughter, Ella, and her mom...so it was a house full of guests. Grammie held Jack the puppy the entire time until we realized we had strollers...Eban, Avery and Ella ran to every house saying trick or treat and couldn't wait to go to the next house. It was so darn cute to see them hold hands and yell at one another to hurry up. Seamus was better this year as he didn't try to eat any of the goblins that showed up at our door...he would bark but he wasn't scared like last year. Funny dog...

Then Grandma Patti came in! She finally saw Denver on this trip as all her other trips were confined to the house. We felt so bad when we learned that...so on the next trip, we promise to show you Denver, Patti - not just the zoo!!

And yesterday, Eban had his first swimming lesson...he did well laying on his back and floating around with Papa. He also worked on pulling himself out of the water to grab a toy on the deck. I hope next week the lesson gets harder...I may crash the lesson with Jack??

Other random updates:

1. Eban's voice is getting deeper and deeper and deeper. It's like a low baritone! Ryan said that his Uncle Donny had a voice like this as a baby. Maybe he got this voice from him???

2. Jack's laugh is simply contagious. He laughs hard with Eban and Eban only.
3. Seamus is such a good dog for us. We can't get over how neurotic he was in the beginning (even for three years) but he is more than superb with the boys. Check out the picture of Eban sitting on him while he's attempting to sleep and Eban was playing on the couch? CRAZY! :)

4. Seamus is so spoiled...he gets food every meal from the boys and he takes the food SO gently from them. He has become picky and he doesn't like Cheerios anymore...finicky, huh?

5. Ryan is almost done with his two classes this term from DU...he'll most likely get his master's next September...so we'll definitely celebrate that accomplishment!

6. Nani is coming for Thanksgiving! Yeah...she's coming in the Saturday before Thanksgiving and staying for a week.

7. Tell me why all kids pick their noses and find it funny??

Okay, I'm so tired and it's 10:30pm Tuesday night and I have so many other pictures to upload...and of course, videos...I'll do this later without the diatribe but at least you can see pics and read the stories now...