"Thank You, Santa Claus!"

The boys really understood Santa Claus this year. Apart from the holiday shows about sharing and giving and family togetherness, they truly understood that if they were good all year that Santa would bring them gifts. I know they are not getting the religious side of the holiday, but growing up in my household, Christmas always meant a time to be with those you love and share in making each other happy at the coldest time of the year. I think that Christmas is the one holiday that can transcend faith and be a time for everyone around the world.

Jack and Ben wrote letters for Santa and left him a cookie with milk. I ate it. We also tracked Santa on the NORAD website as he went from Africa to Europe to Canada and was hitting Central America when they went to sleep. We wrapped everything last night and the boys went NUTS with excitement this morning.

Now its time to let them play while we prepare for family to arrive this afternoon for a delicious meal.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good day!

Jack & Ben's Hannukah Karaoke

The Boys These Days

Jack's Birthday

Jack's Swim Lesson

Jack had his first formal swim lesson yesterday. I got to stay home and hang with Ben while Taylor took Jack. She said he did a fantastic job. He jumped, he kicked, he boogie boarded, and he was not afraid! Good job to my big guy!

Jack's Jet Plane

Jack was very proud of the toy/model jet he painted and built last week. As you can see from the photos below, he was very focused on his creation.

We stopped by Michael's today and they had about 12 similar wood model kits, each only a dollar. Looks like Jack has some craft time coming up! I knew he should have been one of Santa's elves!

Failure to Update

Blog posting has fallen by the wayside in 2010. What with those newfangled cellular telephones and The Facebooks, there doesn't seem to be quite the need to post redundant information on here as well. But, since Taylor has done the majority of the Facebooking, I figured I should be more vigilant on this blog.

Jack

Jack has been having trouble sleeping lately. He has off days and good days. We went through a patch where he was getting up every single night at least three times. Mostly crying and not going back to sleep himself. We keep saying we will let him cry it out the next night, but my instincts kick in while half awake and I go to check on him anyway. It becomes very frustrating and difficult to not get mad at him at 4am when he is screaming that his blanket does not work. It does seem to relate to how much sleep he gets during naptime and also whether he has too much to drink close to bed time. He does go potty right before bed, but if you had a cup of milk or juice you would have a full bladder at midnight as well.

Ben

Ben's language has grown to the point that you can have conversations with him. He has several sentences that he uses to communicate what he needs. It is really cool to watch him mimic his brother's mannerisms. Ben also has been posing in funny ways to get us to laugh. But, he still screams like a nightmare. They are nonstop and run the length of the day. It is almost unbearable. We have been trying to use the idea of Inside Voice, but he does not seem to quite get it. When he isn't screaming, he is a delight. But, when he does scream, it makes you want to scream as well.

Overall

Things are going well and we are on track for Jack to begin Preschool in October. The Illinois law states that children who go to the same private preschool and kindergarten are eligible to enter 1st grade without needing to attend public kindergaten. We would still need to test him for early entry since he is 24 days past the cutoff for Illinois. We are very confident he will get in.

Bensplosion!

Ben's 2nd Birthday

Ben had a great birthday. Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate with us at Pump It Up. It seemed everyone had a great time. Ben may have been a little too young for it, or maybe it was too early in the morning. But, lessons learned for next year.

Sunday, his actual birthday, we spent going to the park, getting a toy at the mall, having a nice lunch out, and then playing with the brand new water table which you can see was a big smash.

I cannot believe how fast these kids change and grow. Ben's language is growing exponentially and Jack is a little man already. It is only a matter of time before they are bigger, taller, and stronger than us.

Thank you, Mom-Moms!

Memorial Day with The Buzzards

We spent the Saturday before Memorial Day having fun with Jacob and Eloise (and EJ and Tim, too). The boys enjoyed running and playing and having a great time. Eloise is a cutie pie!

We also played with water guns outside. The boys loved that too!

Jackhawk & Mommy's Birthday

Pop-Pop & The Zoo

Jack is Iron Man!

Jack fulfilled his goal of pooping on the potty three times (intentionally). His reward was this Iron Man costume which he treats like it was the real thing. We are very proud of him.

Monkey Joe's

Jack attended the birthday party for his friend Matty from daycare. It was Jack's first birthday for a school friend. He was a little standoffish until he recognized his friends and then he ran and jumped and enjoyed cake. It was nice seeing him within the circle of friends.

Banji vs Gojira

Thats a Good Photo

Skinned Knees

Summer is almost here and the boys are itching to be outside as much as possible. This is evident by the sweaty heads, skinned knees, and bruised shins. These boys like to play rough, fall, cry, and repeat. Luckily the weather is beginning to cooperate, so the fun can begin. We have a busy Summer planned. Lets hope we get to most of this stuff, on top of Ben's birthday party.

• Wiggle World at Great America/Six Flags
• Water Park (Elgin)
• Bike rides through Elgin bike trail
• Cantigny or Botanic Gardens
• Starved Rock
• Children's Museum
• Aquarium
• Millennium Park
• Thomas
• 4th of July Fireworks
• Carnival
• Navy Pier
• Brookfield Zoo
• Lincoln Park Zoo

Ben Words Explode

Ben is now adding new words almost daily. There are too many to list on here and I am sure I will forget some, but he has added at least a dozen or more since my last post!

The #1 Prize

Jack chose his prize for completing his responsibility chart this week. Well, actually he did not complete the No Whining or No Hitting requirements, but the fact that he peed in the potty every time every day for a week was worth a big prize. And, as with everything he has picked for the last few months, it was something Iron Man related. At this point I believe the Iron Man toy total is at 11. I wish he was old enough to actually watch the movie!

Ben Says

Ben says:

Yes
No
Don't want this
What's this?
Why sad?
Indeed ("deed")
Banana ("nana")
Ma ma (food)
Mama
Mommy
Daddy
Pop-Pop
Grannie ("gah-nee")
Done
Ba Ba (his blanket)
Bye
Night Night

Vomit

Ben has thrown up 3 times in the past 3 weeks. He had a 103 degree fever over the weekend. He has been very irritable. Our ENT said it was a sinus infection and gave him zithromax to knock out the bacteria, but he still has a cough and runny nose. Today was the best day in a while, but now Jack has green eye discharge and lots of boogers.

Allergies seem to be a big possibility. I just hope we can figure it out with minimal suffering to these boys.

Photoless

I haven't taken a photo of the boys in over a week. I feel guilty.

Trip to Florida 2010

Sorry for the delay in posting these!

Super Hero Squad

Right now the boys enjoy the educational preschool type shows you find on PBS Sprout and Disney Channel. Jack also has started to get into superheroes. But, most of the superhero shows are too dark for kids his age. I recorded a couple of the new Batman cartoon but they are too scary for him. Jack has been playing with the Super Hero Squad toys which look like very cartoon versions of all the Marvel characters. Turns out they recently made a show out of it. It reminds me a lot of the old 80s cartoons like He-Man, Thundercats, G.I. Joe, etc. Jack really likes it.

It is very weird seeing my little guys so interested in a show that I would have liked at their age as well. Surreal.

Black Iron Man

Jack wanted an Iron Man toy while we were in Florida. But, he wanted the Red Iron Man for himself and the Black Iron Man (aka War Machine) for Ben.

Granny was happy to oblige.

We went to Target and they both found an Iron Man toy they liked. When we got back to the house, Jack realized they were both RED. He was upset.

"Where is Black Iron Man? Ben needs Black Iron Man because I am Red Iron Man!"

The next day Granny went to another Target and got two smaller action figures for the boys. One was Silver Iron Man and the other was Crimson Dynamo. Both were not sufficiently Black Iron Man.

A couple days later we hit another Target and found the Super Hero Squad mini toys. It was a two pack of (Red) Iron Man and War Machine. Excuse me, Black Iron Man.

This was okay for Jack. We eventually found a bigger Black Iron Man which Jack still wants. I think the closer we get to the movie release of Iron Man 2 the more toy options there will be.

Bensplosion!

Something happens when we go on vacation. The boys always return with something new up their sleeves. This time Ben came back with dozens of new words. And sentences. Ben is now fond of saying "Don't want that" or "I want this." It is very cool to see him with developed language. I have a sneaking suspicision the don't and no phrases will become his go to answers. Sigh.

The vacation was very good. The boys had a great time. I will post photos soon.

Planet 51

Jack has moved past Meatballs, which he still asks for almost daily, and is now obsessed with the movie Planet 51.

It is a far inferior movie to Meatballs, but both boys like it.

After 100 viewings, I am sure I will like it too. Or want to break the DVD.

Cloudy X 100

Jack is OBSESSED with the movie Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

Since it hit DVD on 1/5, he has watched it at least 50 times and asks for it DAILY. Ben even can quote some of the funny moments in the movie. Sometimes as soon as it ends, Jack wants to watch it again.

The worst part is, I have not gotten tired of it.

After it got a horrid review on At the Movies, I had little hope for it. But, if you are a fan of the current SNL cast, you will like it. The humor is definitely aimed at adults as well as kids. I find myself finding hidden jokes each successive time I see the movie. It cracks me up and we all quote dialogue around the house like inside jokes.

I have a feeling this will be played multiple times on the drive down to Florida next week.

Profound

9:15am - Jack had to poop and he asked if I could take him to the potty, which I did. He sat and said he was almost ready and then he went. He was very proud. We wiped and washed hands and he was very proud of himself.

10am - Watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, their new favorite movie.

12pm - Jack said he had to go potty again. We went and sat on the toilet. He asked for a magazine. He flipped through US Weekly to an article about the women on The Bachelor, who Jack said were all "fat."

He only had gas, so we flushed and washed hands. While washing hands, Jack asked why Flint's mom died (the mother from Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs). I said because she got very sick and sometimes when you get sick you don't get better because there is not enough medicine. Jack asked if that meant she was alone. I told him she was not alone because her family was there with her. I promised him if he ever gets sick that Mommy and I will be there to take care of him. He said OK.

12:30pm - Eating corndogs.

Smooshi/Soosee

Jack recently tried saying sushi and it came out sounding like the title of this post. Just a random observation. Speaking of which, here is some of the latest about the two Maidy boys.

Jack:

He is very verbal these day, more than ever before. He asks tons of questions and some of them are very deeply layered. It is very cool watching him grow up like this. Sometimes I forget that he is only 3 years old. I will have to post some of the amazing things he says so that anyone reading this knows what I mean. He has taken to telling me that I am his best friend and he loves me very much. He also says this to Taylor, Ben, and Sam.

The best example I can think of came last night:

"Jack, you know tomorrow is the Valentine's Party at daycare, right?"

"Party? It is not my birthday."

"I know, it is a party for Valentine's Day"

"It...is....not...my....birthday....I said!"

"I know Jack, it is a party to share Valentine's cards and show everyone how much you love them."

"Oh...(exasperated groan)....I'm busy."

-----
Ben

Ben is a big kid. He also has a terrible temper. He is constantly swiping and scratching Jack. Jack does not retaliate, which is good. Ben also screams. He will yell and it is impossible to tell if he is happy or mad. He will also let loose a tirade of yells and crying if he is not fed promptly at each meal time. It can be very, very frustrating.

Below is a somewhat comprehensive list of Ben's words these days:
Banana
Yes
No
Bye
Thank You (more of a sound than a word, but he knows what it means"
Notebook
And Beyond
Mama
Dada
Fish

I am sure I am missing some. He needs to communicate more and I am sure it will alleviate a lot of his frustration and anger. I hope.

New URL

I decided to change the address for this blog. I know it is something simple, but peanut2006 just didn't fit this blog anymore. The address is now http://banjifudge.blogspot.com, which is exactly who this blog is about. Please update your favorites and/or links.

Jack the Chef

Jack helped Taylor make pizza last night and it was really good! He enjoys making food so much that I think he may be a little chef when he grows up. Or maybe not.

The time between getting home from daycare to dinner is usually a wildcard. No matter how good of a mood the boys are in, Ben tends to get cranky as his hunger grows. Jack can be plied with helping make dinner or a little milk and a TV show, but Ben cannot wait. Even if you give him a snack, he will not relent until the full meal is ready.

The only solution? Rough-housing.

If I take the boys into the room and wrestle around, throw them in the air, tickle them senseless, and just all around do boy stuff, they are fine. They laugh and giggle and have a great time and usually it can hold them off until dinner is served.

I don't know what Taylor would do if I was making dinner because she cannot lift 70 pounds of kid even though they would love her to do it. I would walk in and find her passed out from just trying.

It is fun that they are substantial enough and old enough that we can play roughly. Of course there are limits to how rough you can toss them or tickle them, but they are not babies anymore and I love smiling along with them.

Heavyweights

We weighed Jack and Ben last night on the home scale. Jack is 36 lbs and Ben is 35 lbs.

Wow.

Looking online, Jack is in the 90% range for 3-4 year olds and Ben is in the 95%+ range. He is big, but all of the websites I visited said that percentiles do not mean anything negative unless they fluctuate severely or if they are not in proportion to height and head circumference, which Ben's are.

Even so, he is over a year younger than Jack and only 1 pound lighter.

Lets hope Ben slows down soon...or Jack speeds up.

Don't Stare at the Sun

I actually had to tell Jack not to stare at the Sun this morning. He got upset and asked why. I told him because he will go blind. So, he turned and looked again.

Back to Boca

We decided to take another trip to visit my family in Florida. After weighing the options, we are driving again. Even though Ben still flies for free, it is way to expensive to fly. As it stands right now we are driving straight through again, but we are keeping the option open to stop for the night if necessary.

The trip last time was a bit stressful if only because Ben was smaller and had more restrictions of eating and moving about. While we will need more stops for them to stretch their legs, I think this trip will be a lot better. Also, since we are going earlier in the year, we hope Jack does not have another heat/allergic reaction on the way down.

The best part of this trip will be that we do not need the massive stroller, the walker, the extra toys, the two kinds of milk, the child specific snacks, etc. We are also making sure that no dress up occasions will be planned so that this will strictly be a shorts and t shirt type of vacation.

Knowing this is coming in just 2 months makes the bitter cold outside seem a little more bearable.

Stuffed Peppers

Jack's picky eating has gotten somewhat better over the past week. Since he was sent to bed without dinner his appetite has gotten better. He even tried a brand new recipe which he tends to sometimes hesitate with.

I made stuffed bell peppers for dinner. I looked at recipes online for the basics but essentially made it my own as I prepared it. They look fancy but they were incredibly easy to make. Now that I know they taste good, we can try different filling ingredients.

Jack was not interested at first. Right now if he sees things mixed together he picks out the offending vegetables or seasonings and eats the bare bones meat and rice. But, as soon as he saw the "bowl" was edible he was intrigued. While he did not actually eat the pepper itself, he did have a fair helping of the inside.

I think that next time, with some minor tweaks, the dish will taste even better.

Chucky Cheese

The Jerks

Sometimes it is hard to remember that they are only little kids.
Sometimes you get very mad and have to bite your tongue because they don't know any better.

Ben has an ear infection and has been very cranky. He also has a short fuse when it comes to mealtime and if he is not fed promptly he screams and whines and cries. As soon as he eats, he is fine.

Jack has entered a picky phase. He does not eat for very minute reasons and will forgo some of his favorite foods for no apparent reason. These are common 3 year old things to do.

But they are very frustrating and annoying.

Today, stepping back, the boys were pretty good overall.

Ben screamed when he wanted lunch.
Jack was very picky about lunch.
Jack would not stay down for his nap.

3 issues in an eight hour day. Not too bad. They seem worse in the thick of it because I have lots of work to do and they can get very loud.

After they go to bed and I think back I am sure I will realize it was rough but not Armageddon.

Sometimes it is easier to think they are pissy little men rather than tiny little kids.