she got it from her mama

when luke was born, people right away started mentioning how much he looked like his dad. looks are notable from day one, but as luke gets older its becoming pretty apparent that he and justin have very similar personalities too. like justin, luke is reflective, observant, mechanical, mellow (with a firey temper), crazy about dinosaurs, and will watch the same movies over and over (and over) again. sometimes when i watch luke i feel like i'm looking at a clone of justin! people always give credit to justin for luke's good looks, and i've always felt like my genes must have gotten lost somewhere in there.

while i was pregnant with shannon, i was secretly kind of afraid that i would have another baby who looked exactly like justin and i wouldn't get any credit for how she'd look. it would add insult to injury if my daughter ended up looking nothing like me! (i must make a note here to point out that i think my husband is very handsome, and i'm thrilled that my son takes after him, i only mean that i'd like my kids to vaguely resemble me.) so of course i was totally excited when shannon came out looking so much like me. she seems to be getting some of my personality too, though i don't think she's nearly as difficult as a baby as i was, according to some of the horror stories i've heard.

i think you'll find the similarities pretty striking.

trial and error

yesterday was a day of trial and error, though i feel like most of my tries ended up in errors.

first trial: i took luke (shannon in tow) to a tiny tots playgroup program over in the richmond district. we missed the first two weeks because of illness and... oversight? anyway it was the best set up i've seen in a while: first they have free play with a bunch of cars, tricycles, rockers, you name it, in this enormous gym. the parents/grandparents/gaurdians all just sit and watch for half an hour while the kids burn off steam. luke loved it; during that time he finally figured out how to pedal a tricycle for the first time. he does fine when there isn't any structure... unfortunately for him there was plenty of structure to follow.

next the teacher lead them in a couple of little "organized" games which mainly consisted of a lot of running back and forth across the gym. it was really impressive to see the teacher, a large, middle aged guy, with so much stamina and enthusiasm with these little kids. after that the kids had a simple little craft time which consisted of paper, glue, and crayons, followed by a snack. then lastly they had some music and dancing time. it was great!

except that luke was completely uninterested in anything but free time. no joke, every new task made him cry. not just whimper, full on break down and cry. he would not join in the organized games, he would watch and point and get excited and as soon as i suggested joining he'd start pouting. the art project i had to force him to join in and once he did he actually didn't mind it. the dancing: forget about it. he loves music and once in a while he'd crack a smile when he recognized the song. but join in? no way. in fact, at one point i went with him to play ring-around-the-rosie, and a little girl took his hand, he started wailing and shouting "ow ow ow." the little girl, who was probably about 4 looked at me and said "why is he crying?" "i have no idea" i said.

2 1/2 year old... i'm so ready for this too to pass. my main consolation for that behavior is that it was his first time there and hopefully he won't be so resistant next time. but i'm not holding my breath. luke is the mayor of rigidtown.

second trial: feeding shannon her first solids. i thought she'd be really interested in this since she's always grabbing at our plates and watching us eat really intently. she was just not that into the rice cereal i offered her. granted the stuff tastes like paste and is about the same consistancy (yes i did try it. no not paste, the cereal) so i can hardly blame her, but i was surprised at her lack of enthusiasm. we'll try again today.



third trial: making shannon cry it out at her regular 4 am wake up time. normally its too hard for me to let her cry, she sounds so heartbroken, so i give in after about 5 minutes and just feed her. but her pediatrician said there is no reason for her to be waking up at that point (especially since i fed her only 6 hours earlier) and that it sounds like she is just developing a comfort habbit. i suspected as much, but its so hard to just let her cry. i was resigned to try last night. she put up a major fight- she cried for nearly an hour. its so obvious she's waiting for me to come get her, she cries one loud wail, and then waits about 5-10 seconds for my response. when i don't respond she cries out one more time than waits. that went on from 4 till 5 am. but she did go back to sleep for an hour. at 6 she woke up to feed again, and this time i gave in. most likely we're going to have to go through this again for a couple of nights. her doc said it could take three or four nights to break the habit. as rough as it was to go through, its really worth it in the long run. the 4 am feedings were killing me.

starting out

lately i've realized that i really regret not documenting luke's first couple of years in more detail. i don't think i realized just how fast time flies when you have little ones, and how much they can change in just a brief period of time. so i guess starting at some point is better than not doing it at all. my hope is that through this blog, people who do not see my kids very often (and even some who do) will be able to connect in some way, in the experience of raising them and enjoy watching them grow, develop, and change. i also just really enjoy writing, and don't have a lot of opportunity for it these days, so this will be a chance for me to indulge in a favorite pass time. forgive me in advanced- i've noticed that this blog doesn't really offer spell check, so it may be painful for those of you who are especially particular in that regard, sins im stil a horibl speler.
i'm starting out with some new pictures of the kids, i'm pressed for time at the moment, and i'll go back in time and add some older pictures soon.
enjoy!