Genius

Samuel's vocabulary is constantly expanding, and usually he uses words and phrases appropriately. Somewhere though, he picked up the word "genius" but we don't think he knows what it means. The first time he used it was towards Marc, when Samuel was furious with him "no no no Daddy, you're a genius". He used it towards me the next day when I almost ran through a stop sign at the Ikea parking lot, I hadn't seen it and when I did I braked quite suddenly. Samuel called out from the back seat "Mami is a genius".

Instead of "yes" he now says an enthusiastic yet pensive "oh yes" to answer many questions.

And he also says "Oh my gosh".

We assume he picked these up from school. At home, he picked up a phrase he uses a bit too often and too appropriately for my taste. Picture an angry, frustrated almost 3 year old throwing his jacket on the ground saying "no, no, no Mami, no coat, damn it", or he'll say it when he gets frustrated while dressing himself, and especially when he's over tired (he's transitioning away from his nap, especially during the week). I take small comfort that of all the bad words, this phrase is not quite as bad as the others he could have picked up along the way.

Rainy Saturday

It was a typically rainy, fall day today. Samuel continued to succeed with his potty training. He also showed true to his urban roots when he refused to get into the van to go get ice cream this afternoon. He only wanted to walk! It took some work but we did convince him to get into his car seat and we took the three kids to a mall down the street (Bayview Village, for those in Toronto). Samuel enjoyed his "yellow" ice cream (orange sherbet) and asked that we clean up each drop that fell on the ground as we walked around the mall. Renee and Matthew had a lovely day. Renee is holding her torso up really well during tummy time. She also figured out how to roll over from sitting propped up on pillows. Matthew held a rattle for quite while and is completely fascinated by hands - his own and other's.





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My aunt Emma died last night, at her home in the sitting room outside her bedroom where she spent a great deal of time and were we used to spend time with her - as a kid, I remember many nights of watching TV and eating dinner with her there - a special treat generally not allowed at home. In an earlier post I described her as ageless, she was indeed full of life and always active. She took all sorts of classes from Shakespeare to pottery, traveled, enjoyed food. She was a strong woman with a strong character and openly expressed her views. Her home was always open to us and we spent tons of time swimming there as kids and staying there when we visited Mexico, she even hosted one of Andy's birthday parties. She always had special treats for us - from a bottle of coke to a special chocolate from her pantry. She cared deeply for her family and I always felt loved in her presence. Upon hearing her diagnosis of leukemia last month, she decided she would beat the disease and travel to meet "los Gemelos" (the twins). But that wasn't meant to be. Instead, Matthew and Renee will get to know her through stories we will tell them and Renee (whose namesake was my grandmother, Emma's sister) will one day get to play with and then wear the many gifts of jewelery that Emma gave me through the years.

We have batteries!

So here are a few recent pics:

My mom with Renee and Ruth, Marc's mom with Matthew

My Baby (grandmother) with Renee and Matthew, wearing sweaters she made them, on Rosh Hashanna

They smile all the time now, but capturing both smiles on film is tough
(credit goes to my dad)

My mom took all three kids (plus Samuel's "twins") to the play yard down the street - a brave woman to be sure.
Ellen - thanks for the stroller

Tia Emma

My great-aunt Emma is very sick and will likely leave us soon. She's my great aunt by title and it's also a perfect descriptor for her - she is Great Aunt by being my mom's mom's sister, but even without that she would still be a great aunt. My mom is in Mexico with her and her family. It's hard to believe. Emma always seemed an ageless person, full of energy, love and laughter. I'm so glad that she and Samuel met. Here are a few pictures that we'll always cherish.

Update (part II)

Matthew and Renee are interacting in a really special way. They almost always hold hands while nursing and when I put them down in their crib during the day, most of the time, Renee end up grabbing hold of Matthew's ear. When one fusses, he or she will often calm down when I hold them so they can see each other. They are also at the age when they prefer not to be let alone and can sometimes be calmed by me talking to them.

Marc and I are doing well and adjusting to our new life in Toronto, which is much different from the single life we had last time we lived here. As much as I am adjusting to life in Toronto though, I still haven't really recognized that I'm not going back to DC. And I think the same holds true for Marc and Samuel. It's hard to believe that only 6 months ago we lived in Georgetown! How life has changed. But any doubts I have about our move are put aside when I see how much joy my parents are deriving from their grandchildren and vice versa.

My days go by quickly and are not as hard as I thought they might be. As Matthew and Renee get older and can be in bouncy seats and other equipment for longer stretches of time, it's easier for me to be home alone with them all day. I usually go out one a day to a close by shopping mall or grocery store. The last few weeks though have been filled with Jewish holidays and Samuel's school has been closed, so my mom, Andy and my nephew have also been home from school 1-2 days each week. Next week will be the first week I have all 5 days on my own since we arrived and I'm already starting to make plans - a breastfeeding clinic one day, grocery shopping another, and winter coat shopping another.

Did I mention we had flurries today and that it's below freezing tonight?? Samuel had the shock of his life with the weather today. The temperature dropped while he was at the play yard down the street and all he could say on his way home was "Frio Mami, mucho frio" (cold mommy, very cold), with red cheeks and a runny nose. Not sure how we'll fare in February.

Still no camera,so no pictures but I may be able to download a few pics from my parent's or sister's camera soon. Or maybe I should plan an outing to buy a new re-charger?

Update on the Kids

No pictures (can't find the recharger for the camera - it's either unpacked or in one of the few boxes that remain packed), but lots of updates.

First - Samuel. We decided it was time to really start potty training so we asked my sister Andy to help us out. As a Montessori teacher and mother of a 5 year old boy, she was the perfect candidate for the job. We took advantage of school being closed for all the Jewish holidays and Canadian Thanksgiving to have lots of days at home to use underwear and sit on the potty. We started last weekend and today, Samuel actually asked Marc to take him to go to the bathroom at a restaurant right as lunch was arriving - that's right he asked to go to the bathroom instead of eating french fries! He had no accidents today and went pee each time we sat him on the potty. Quite the accomplishment. He's also deciding whether or not he needs his nap - the fact that we need him to take a nap seems to not be part of his decision making. He's adjusted well to his new school and has declared that his teachers are his friends. He seems to think that he'll be gong back to DC and often talks about his friends (Eamon, David, Connor and Zoe especially), old daycare and asks when Berta, our housekeeper is coming.

Matthew smiles huge smiles all the time. He loves Samuel's old baby pastimes of "bouncy" and "wrestle" with Marc. He has gone back to sleeping through the night, or at least until 4 am or so, but isn't very keen on napping during the day. He holds his head up when we carry him and during tummy time.

Renee talks non-stop, to people, lights, trees, whatever and whoever. She's super strong and pushes off our laps, the bathtub, the sling, anywhere she can get traction. She can roll to the side although she's not rolling over yet thankfully - I'm not ready for mobility. She sleeps like a "normal" 3 month old and still wakes up to eat . . . speaking of which I need to go.

Holding Hands While Nursing

Para la Tia Emma

Emma - aqui te mando fotos, grandes besos y abrazos y mucha fuerza.

Los Primos Grandes Desayunando

Serie de Fotos - Matthew y Renee con Eduardo (quien esta entreteniendo a quien?)

We arrived . . .

. . . in 5 pieces (Marc, Samuel, Matthew, Renee and me, and my parents who came to help us move and travel). And of course, 200+ boxes and a minivan. Ugh!

I'll post pictures when I have a chance, but so far so good. It's cold - Samuel put on 3 jackets this morning and refused to take them off at school. In truth it's not that cold, it's in the 50-60s/teens but that's a big difference from where we were in DC. We have a lot to unpack and it's hard to do when nursing twins and with Rosh Hashana festivities to attend, and I have a cold. Our house is great, with lots of light especially in the kids rooms. And it's less than a mile to IKEA, with their $0.99 breakfast which cost us $260 the other day once we added the things we bought while we were there (all things we needed, or realized we needed when we saw them!)

I miss the people in DC and I still can't quite believe that I won't be at the next Moms Night Out or Second Sunday, or that I won't be going to work with the same fantastic people. Through our farewells, I really realized just how many good, dear friends we've left behind and how many people we established roots with. I know will be back to visit and see everyone again, but not for a while, at least not until Matthew and Renee have other food sources.