Harriet the Spy, Ramona the Pest, Eleanor the Obedient

I'm currently on a quest to introduce Cameron to some of my childhood heroines -- we've finished "Harriet the Spy" and have moved on to Beverly Cleary's Ramona series. As we listen to the stories on CD, I feel transported back to my childhood. I think the reason I loved these little girls so much was because they are everything I was not. Unlike Harriet and Ramona, I was a shy, quiet rule-follower. I never got in trouble . . . well, there was that one time in second grade when Mrs. Seivert gave the WHOLE class a red dot for talking in line. That was SO unfair. . . but I digress. Harriet and Ramona are clever and adventurous and daring. I think Harriet and Ramona may have been the subconscious inspiration for a heroine of my own creation, Eleanor, but I've been unable to keep Eleanor away from the straight and narrow.

Eleanor arrived on the scene while we were a "waiting family" hoping to adopt. We spent countless hour talking to Cameron about adoption, reading children's books about adoption, imagining with him what it would be like to be a big brother. As Cameron is our biological child, we wanted to make sure he understood adoption and that he viewed it as a wonderful way to become a family. I realized we had been too successful, however, when at age 3 he crawled up into my lap and said, "Tell me about when I was adopted." When I reminded him that he had grown in my belly, he burst into tears and sobbed, "But I wanted to be adopted!" Without much planning, I created the character of Eleanor, who happened to be a little girl the same age as Cameron. As luck would have it, Eleanor was ALSO a biological child whose parents were trying to adopt. Cameron LOVED Eleanor and it became a nightly routine for me to tell an Eleanor story. Even after Matthew's arrival, Eleanor came in handy as she adjusted to having a crying, pooping, parent-hogging little sister.

Listening to "Ramona the Pest" today, though, I realized that times have changed since Cleary was writing. Ramona arrives late for kindergarten. Why? Because her mother had left her home alone with instructions to walk to school (ALONE!) at a quarter past eight. Unable to tell time, Ramona did not leave the house until 8:25 am. There is NO chance I'm leaving Eleanor home alone in kindergarten! Not to mention that the adoptive sibling of course means that Eleanor's family is visited by a social worker, who would probably be less than impressed by Eleanor's parents if they were to leave her unattended. It looks like Cameron will have to get his fill of adventure from Ramona and Harriet. Eleanor will never be given the opportunity to be anything but a goody two-shoes like her creator!

Spelling test

Cameron and I enjoy playing a game in which I write a word on his Magnadoodle and he tries to read it. Examples might be ZOO, BOOK, or CAR. Today, Cameron decided to turn things around. "I'LL write the word, Mommy, and you read it!" he said. He concentrated carefully then turned the board to face me where I saw "GT.A" written clear as day. Hmmm. I considered the possibilities and then hazarded a guess. "Goat?" I said. Cameron looked heartily amused by my ineptitude and replied merrily, "No, Mommy! G-T-point-A. See? It says 'tortellini'!"

My sweet little mischief maker

From the time I woke up, I knew that David was going to be working late and I needed a game plan. If you are going to be on your own with two small boys from dawn until dark, you've got to find a way to make the hours pass with as little drama as possible! Cameron practiced writing him name, signed a few Valentine cards, built with blocks and of course went to school.

After school, I felt like a model parent as we worked on a project. You see, I recently decided that I needed to teach Cameron more about caring for others and I came across the Make a Child Smile website. Together, we chose to make Aidan smile by making him a card. Cameron was so sweet as he colored a picture of a Power Ranger, glued it on construction paper and painstakingly wrote his name and Aidan's. Then, he dictated a note to Aidan, insisting that it was only right that we invite Aidan to our house! Yep, I thought, patting myself on the back. I've got this mama thing TOTALLY under control. I am successfully teaching my child to be a kind, caring individual. Go me!

With Aidan's card addressed and stamped, I made some dinner and then Cameron and I whipped up a batch of pudding. I snapped some photos of my boys together, then sat Cameron at the table with his pudding. I explained that I would be putting Matthew to bed and needed him to be a big boy. He was to eat his snack and play quietly until I was done with Matthew. Giving my ego yet another boost, Cameron behaved liked an angel until I was finished with Matthew's bed time routine. Wow, I congratulated myself. Look at that. I can handle two kids at bedtime like a regular pro now! Super Nanny, watch out! Then, I saw this.

How many little boys were eating a bed time snack? One. How many empty bowls of pudding on the table? Two. Hmmm. When confronted with the evidence, Cameron looked sheepish and said, "Wellllll, I really wanted it. AND, I didn't think you'd KNOW!" *sigh* I guess I have to face the awful truth. I'm not a perfect parent . . . but how boring would the blog be if I was?

You think THAT'S impressive? Watch THIS!

So, your parents are inexplicably thrilled by your baby brother's newfound ability to roll, eat food, sit up and sleep. What gives? You can do ALL of those things, and no one is cooing over you! Think, Cameron, think. What can you do to get some attention? Ah-HA! Scare the pants off your parents by taking flying leaps from chair to couch!

Look Ma! No hands!

With breathtaking speed, Matthew is knocking out milestones left and right! A few days ago I thought to myself, "I wonder when Matthew will be able to sit unassisted?" Just for fun, I sat him up with the Boppy pillow behind him. "Wow," my internal dialogue continued. "He's really sitting nicely!" I gently edged the Boppy away and, to my utter astonishment, Matthew sat there by himself. He had a casual look of confidence, as if he'd been sitting for months and I just hadn't noticed. For those of you who have been sitting upright for a while, you may have forgotten how this skill revolutionized your world. Suddenly, Matthew can play with toys that are too heavy for him to lift and play with laying down. He can watch Cameron put on a Superhero show. He can glance around to identify the source of the sound. He can reach for objects. It's awesome. Here is the newly upright doing his thing.

In other big, BIG news, Matthew is sleeping for several hours at a stretch! In desperation, I found a used Amby Sleep Hammock on Ebay, bid like my life depended on it and then stalked the UPS guy for a week. Gosh, would I feel like a fool if after all that the sleep hammock didn't make a difference! Thankfully, Matthew loves the hammock and has slept longer and longer each night he's been in it! So sleep-deprived have I been that when I got TWO four hour shifts of sleep in a row, I awoke feeling as refreshed and relaxed as if I had just had a day at the spa. I have avoided taking photos of Matthew in the hammock, as I live in constant fear of returning to his tortuous hourly awakenings, but I did snap this one.

We were treated to a visit from Grandpa Frank and Grandma Linda this weekend, so they were able to actually witness all these monumentous accomplishments!

Mmm, mmm mush

While I am generally a proponent of delaying solids until 6 months, Matthew had been making it increasingly clear that he was ready for more than a liquid diet. Grabbing anything headed for my mouth, staring longingly at my morning oatmeal, drooling through our meals . . . finally we got the hint. So, last night, Matthew sampled some mmm mmm good rice cereal. He was enthusiastic, impatiently grasping at the spoon and glaring at me when he gagged himself in his zeal. He gobbled down a tablespoon and then gave an appreciative pfft, spewing mush all over me and his face. It does make for a cute photo, though, so I can't complain! Cameron, who was vehemently anti-cereal as an infant, was no less disgusted by the stuff today. I tormented him by repeatedly suggesting that he might want me to whip up a bowl for him which was met with anxious cries of "Noooo, Mommy! I don't want to eat that!" He was greatly amused though by Matthew's excitement over the soupy stuff. Afterwards, Cameron requested that I take a photo of him with his little brother to commemorate this grand event. Reflecting the solemnity of the occasion, Cameron kept a straight face while giving Matthew rabbit ears.
Tune in next time for more of Matthew's awe-inspiring feats!

More time flies

In a previous post, I compared this photo of Matthew, taken in November 2007, with a photo of him in the same swing as a newborn. Now here's the latest of Matthew in the same swing! So, I realize he isn't the first baby to do so but, WOW, he's growing!
I think that at every phase of your child's life it seems unimaginable that they will continue to grow and change and yet . . . they do! I remember looking at newborn Cameron, thinking that it just didn't seem possible that that floppy little head and skinny little body would ever be a boy instead of a baby. But he did! And despite the evidence before me, it is so hard to imagine Matthew, my BABY, growing to be as big as Cameron is. Although from this photo, it appears that Matthew is thinking that while Cameron is bigger, Matthew is far more mature!