The (Wo)man Behind the Curtain

It’s official. Seamus can open doors. Not just the lever ones (which he mastered about as soon as he could reach them), but the round twisty knob ones. Two of these have “safety knobs” (the door to the basement and the door to the garage). Unfortuantely, the rest don’t.

Each morning I begin my daily commute from the bedroom to the kitchen to the dining room to the home office, which assuming there’s no traffic, can last anywhere from 30 seconds to 45 minutes. Sometimes I go unnoticed and other times I need to conduct what seems like a rendition of “So Long, Farewell” from the Sound of Music so that Seamus is happy and satisfied. Sometimes he says, “Bye bye mommy;” other time he cries his eyes out.

This morning there were several road blocks as Seamus shook his Diego yogurt drink all over the floor just as I was planning my (no longer) swift exit. I quickly cleaned it up, redirected him to a cheese stick and then made my escape. No sooner was I seated comfortably in my chair scanning my email did I hear, “Open the door, please, mommy.” (Actual words – yes he’s speaking complete sentences with manners to boot.) Figuring if I just keep silent as I usually do, Mimi (= Mint = au pair), will redirect him to another activity. No such luck…a quick twist of the knob was followed by a squinty eyed grin and a “Hiiiiiii.” A request “Spiderman Song, please?” ensued. This is the latest fave (the retro 1960s version) which we play on You Tube and then have to repeat on the iPod in the car for about 30 times before we can move onto “Puff the Magic Dragon.” If anyone needs to know the Spiderman lyrics, please feel free to give me a call.

Death of a Flatscreen

The death of our flatscreen TV in the living room has been a Godsend.  Each night prior to its final days I would reprimand myself for turning it on knowing that it sucks me in for hours.  "Turn it off!" I tell myself over and over only to wake up at 3am to some random late night infomercial which I end up watching and actually considering.

Anyway, Seamus and I have now returned to normal eating habits instead of "TV" dinners while Thomas plays in the "ring of independence" (the activity ring/exersaucer that some people dub the "ring of neglect").  We sat down to a civilized meal of nothing special that mom whipped up at the end of a long workday and we chatted about nothing and everything.  It was then that I got my first unprompted "I love you, mommy."  My heart melted as I beamed from ear to ear.  I, of course, returned the adoration...I love my boys!

Mmmm Delicious!

Thomas succeeded after his third attempt at eating "real" food (if you want to call rehydrated rice flakes food).  I know... I am a bit eager in this department; in fact I'm not really sure if I just want to see their reaction (like the amusement one has while watching their dog eat peanut butter) or are keen to get a pic of them smothered in food. Anyhoo, we attempted his first introduction to table food two weeks ago a couple of days after his four month birthday.  He promptly "thrusted" the food out of his mouth, which according to the user manual ("What to Expect the First Year") is a sign that they're not ready for food. 

The next weekend I decided to give it another whirl. Exit rice mush, insert baby foot (much more appetizing).  This past Friday we gave it another whirl and voila ... he swallowed it down (third time's a charm).  He's quickly getting the hang of it ... and seems to enjoy it.  

DAS MINE!

It is pretty interesting from a sociological/evolutionary perspective that a child not even two years old can most emphatically claim ownership of any and everything. Seamus has recently and increasingly learned to stake his claim on all things in the house, exhibiting his survival of the fittest or hoarding for himself caveman like behavior.  Even things that are clearly not his fall prey to his proclamations...like the eyeglasses that are perched upon my nose or the shirt I am presently wearing or the pacifier that Thomas is currently sucking that is not even big enough to appease Seamus' two year old mouth.

[Slight digression/tangent - Seamus now walks around with three different pacifiers, which he affectionately calls "binkas," from which he chooses at any particular moment to replace with the next one in line. He hands you the "binka" and says, "no binka!" (my enthusiasm increases momentarily as I think this may be the moment he graduates from binkydom), and is then quickly followed by "more binka?" Also, because he is so attached to them, he now possesses a gap where his front teeth should have decended, but that is for another post. I vow that on his 2nd birthday he will quit his oral fixation cold turkey.]

He screams out: "Das MINE!" which is followed by a minor struggle back and forth between mom and son with whatever he's grabbed onto like a pit bull. I, of course, am holding back my laughter and Thomas is quietly observing (or taking note for later usage).

Most of the time these are short-lived exclamations as I am now very adept at redirecting him to another "thing" that I or Thomas no longer need/want. 

Thankfully, Thomas has not received any blows or bops to the head nor yanks to the arms from Seamus' snatching so it seems under control...for the time being.

Smoothie!

In an effort to not waste any food, I've taken to freezing bags of fruit that are on the brink of succumbing to fruit fly infestation (okay not quite that far but you get the point).  As the frozen bags begin to pile up, I initiate a week of eating nothing but frozen fruit smoothies for breakfast.  They are not as enticing as the cold mornings loom closer...another reason for the liquid breakfast movement.

Seamus enjoys them too and having mastered the art of drinking from a cup (albeit not too cleanly) he gets to partake in a sort of morning "ice cream" delight.  He finishes the drink with an "Mmmm.  Delicious!" which just makes your heart skip a beat. :)

All Aboard!

This past weekend marks the first time that Seamus and Thomas rode a real "choo choo train" (okay, the NYC subway doesn't count in this case).  The antique steam engine travels 30 minutes to, well, pretty much nowhere and 30 minutes back, but it is nonetheless a thrilling experience for Seamus and thus a lot of fun for his parents.

I thought for sure that Thomas would start freaking out by the loud and increasingly annoying whistle that seemed to toot every five feet, but he sat there and enjoyed the ride, happy as a clam.

I feel bad for the people that live in the houses that line the tracks considering they have to bear witness to that annoyance/tourist trap.  No beautiful view of the Connecticut River is worth that constant sound pollution.  I'd most definitely join the NRA (that's National Rifle Association for you foreigners) if I lived there.

Despite my cynicism it was a very cool experience for the kids assuming they remember it.  My mom later reminded me that she took us on the same ride years before (which I had not remembered).

Thomas' Christening!

 

On Sunday, August 23, Thomas became a full-fledged Catholic!  Despite the oppressive heat and humidity, family and friends braved the Sunday I-95 traffic to travel multiple hours (each way) to celebrate the occasion.  The ceremony was at St. Patrick Church in Mystic, CT followed by a lunch at chez O'Rourke.  Not a peep was made out of Thomas during the entire ceremony.  What a good boy even in his long dress (okay, I admit this is the only day I get to pretend I have daughters and can put them in a beautiful smocked dress.)

Thank you everyone for coming and making it a special day!  Especially those that traveled several hours to and from our house for the day.  Thank you to Godfather Sean and Godmother Missy, who did everything in her power to not getting sick on Thomas despite the migraine she dealt with all morning on her birthday no less. Not only did she trek up to the house for the event, but she made it down in record time to catch a flight the same day to London for a day-long meeting.  Rock star!

A most special thank you to Vovo (FYI - that's Portuguese for "grandmother") Helen for helping me prepare the food, table, arranging beautiful bouquets and a lot of the preparation in the weeks beforehand -- planting flowers, trees, weeding, (doing an assortment of other things I didn't know needed done) and generally getting the house in tip-top condition.  

Dinosaur Roar!

As Halloween is just around the corner, I tried to ensure that I am not leaving things, like buying costumes, until the last minute.  I ordered a T-Rex costume for Seamus in keeping with his current interests (this is not to say that his costume last year - a skunk - was in keeping with anything except maybe smelly diapers).

Despite the sour mug he was thrilled to get into the costume, throw his hands in the air (think attack pose) and stomp around the living room roaring like a dinosaur akin to Where the Wild Things Are.  In addition, we've been reading (almost nightly) a book given to us by Noella Lansen (Ella's Grandmother) called Dinosaur Roar.  It goes something like this: "Dinosaur roar, dinosaur squeak...dinosaur fierce, dinosaur meek... (you get the picture)" As I read it, I inflect my voice to bring to life the verb/adjective... So Seamus has taken to mimicking my voice as well. I wish I could include an audio of this, but you'll just have to use your imagination.  So he romps around roaring "Dinosaur roar!" followed by him squeaking "Dinosaur squeak!" There's really nothing more entertaining than hearing your children learn new words...

Thomas on the other hand has reached another important milestone -- grabbing his toes -- which is a ton of fun (for him).  If you aren't aware...this is a big one, proving that he is gaining control of his digits (both hands and toes)!  He is a pure delight of a child.  He silently admires and observes every move his older brother makes and squeals with delight most of the time.  We thought Seamus was a good baby, but Thomas is even more contented. He's even been sleeping for at least six hours a night (now if I could capitalize on this and get to bed at a reasonable hour all would be well).

Initial Post

Welcome to the O'Rourke Offspring blog...my first attempt at blogging. While I'd like to be able to have started this way back before Seamus was born to properly chronicle their lives from the start, I didn't. Oh well.  No time like the present.

As the blog description notes, I will attempt to provide frequent and entertaining stories about Seamus and Thomas so that you can get a glimpse into their daily lives that are so enjoyable to watch as a parent. Again, I think they are worthy of mention and I am the closest thing we have to a family historian.  (If I am not funny, witty or entertaining, then I apologize in advance.)