Puppy Love

Although Leif and Scout are best buddies now, it did not start out that way. When Leif was born, Scout was indifferent to this tiny human who cried all the time and stole his comfy sleeping spot between mom and dad. Then, when Leif began to crawl, Scout's indifference evolved into disdain. Not only had this kid kicked him out of his bed, but he was now able to move and liked to hang out underneath the table, where from Scout's perspective, is the ideal spot to snatch some stray snacks. Of course, Leif soon also discovered Scout's bowl of food, and as much as I am sure it killed him, Scout would simply back away and wait for someone to come get the little nuisance. As Leif began to encroach upon more of Scout's territory, his frustration became more visible. Typically, he would just roll his eyes (I swear he would), groan, get up and move, but one time, he growled. Thankfully, Mr. Level-Headed was here because the mama bear in me almost reared her ugly head and had that dog skinned alive and made into a rug, but like I said, Mr. Level-Headed was there and firmly told Scout that was not allowed with all of his alpha-male authority. Truthfully, though, it did scare me and I began to watch their interactions very closely.

Thankfully, things quickly began to change right around the same time Leif started solids. Scout, being the opportunistic pooch that he is, finally realized that this mini tyrant who had been driving him crazy over the past couple of months did, in fact, serve a useful purpose. As more and more food found its way to the floor from the highchair, Scout's affection and tolerance for Leif blossomed. With each handful of goldfish crackers that Leif would kindly share and with each flick of his peanut butter toast onto the floor, Scout fell in love. Now, Scout spends his days following Leif around, sitting anxiously at his feet, and allowing him to poke and prod him to his heart's content just for a portion of the yummy remnants of food that Leif leaves in his wake. In fact, Leif is keenly aware of how dependent their relationship is on food and will now request that I feed Scout with him. The other morning as I broke off a piece of banana and gave it to Leif, he looked at me, pointed to Scout and said:

Dout? (Scout in baby language)

Yes, that is Scout.

Dout!

Oh, you want me to give him some banana. No way!

To which Leif responded by tossing his banana onto the floor and requesting another one for himself . . . tee hee!

Smart kid, but I think the puppy might be even smarter.

And now for the photo evidence because, in all honesty, is there anything cuter than babies and puppies?

I think not.

The Long-Awaited Reconcilation

The boys woke up at the crack of dawn this morning. It was 5:45 am. Mr. Level-Headed was in the shower, and I was sleeping lightly amidst all my pillows and blankets. Then out of the blue I heard a sharp, piercing cackle, followed up by an eruption of giggles.

Ugh! The boys are up.

Don't get me wrong; I love my boys, but they did not settle until 10:30 pm last night, and let's face it, there is only so much one mama can take. So, who is the culprit behind all of this madness? Well, that would be none other than Elliot. He has been off his rocker for about two weeks now. He is not sleeping, he is agitated, and his emotions are on one long, and wild roller coaster. We can't seem to pinpoint what is going on, but from past experience, we think it is the change in season. School is coming to a close, soccer season is starting, and the days are longer. The change in routine that comes about with each season change seems to really mess his little system up, and so we just have to wait it out. We just have to help him get through it, and we just have to try our best not to throttle him.

It is going to be a very long day.

Pray for me.

Anyhoo . . .

Enough with my whiny rant. It is Tuesday! I am officially 17 weeks today, and I visit the doctor today to hear the always adorable Thing 4's heartbeat. Oh, and after last night, when all three of my children were blatantly ignoring me and not cooperating one bit as I was trying to get them all to settle down for the evening, I texted Mr. Level-Headed one last time for the day to tell him that Thing 4 is officially my favourite offspring. You see Thing 4, amidst all of the hullabaloo his siblings were kicking up,far exceeded the expectations of his/her obligatory bedtime nudges and gave me a whomping fourteen kicks in forty five minutes. This is new record for Thing 4, and quite out of the ordinary for such a young fetus, but what can I say, we make active kids.

Anyhoo . . . again . . .

Sheesh! I can't seem to remain focused this morning. What I really wanted to blog about today is my precious puppy Scout and is adorable new fur cut.

Look at that face!

And how cute is that bum?

His cuteness factor has shot up like 100% ever since he got shaved, and he knows it too. Oh, he has become so obnoxious (in a cute way of course). No one can sit down without Scout jumping right up on top of them, putting his face right up to theirs, and begging for some loving with his pleading puppy dog eyes. 

Who could resist a face like that?

And I am pleased to announce with all that fur gone, Scout's odour has become far less offensive to the pregnant me and we have reconcilliated our differences. It's good to have my best buddy back!

He also makes the best pillow for my growing baby bump.

Scout, I think it is fair to say that you are officially my second favourite offspring . . . tee hee!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Siblings

I love watching my kids interact with one another because, at times, they can be so close, while at other times, they can't get far enough away from one another.  

It reminds me of my own siblings . . .

Can I have a big shout out to the Skov sibs? I love you guys!

Anyhoo, when we are on vacation, our kids get along amazingly well.  Mr. Level-Headed and I always comment on how well we all travel together.  But really, why would they fight?  Everyone is getting what they want, and there are no restrictions placed upon them.  You want to drink pop and eat pizza all week?  Go for it!   You want to stay up late watching movies in your bed?  Go for it!  Vacation is a blast!!

But, then you come home, and oh, reality can be so very harsh.  All of a sudden you are expected to go to bed on time, wake up early, do school work, do your chores, and eat colourful foods . . .

and I am not talking about this stuff . . . 

which was sadly disappointing when we finally got into it.  :(

No, I am talking about broccoli, carrots, peppers, mushrooms . . . mmm . . . real food!  So, it should be no surprise to me that the kids were a little surly this week.  What a shock to their little systems!  Especially the boys, and one boy in particular, who seems to need a vacation from his vacation.  Elliot has not slept all week.  He is up till 1:30 - 2:30 am and then wakes every hour or two afterwards.  Help me!!

Anyhoo, I digress.  So, where was I?  Right, surly kids.  So, the boys can not even be in the same room with one another without hitting, calling names, and, generally, just making life miserable for one another.  All I hear all day long is I hate you!  You are such a moron!  What an idiot!  Last night, Avery claimed he could not possibly sit down to eat supper because having Elliot sit across from him was making his stomach sick. 

Aaaaahhhhhh!

But, before I lost my cool or began weeping because my children are heading down the path of Cain and Abel, or Nephi and Laman and Lemuel (Book of Mormon characters and a very interesting portrayal of sibling rivalry . . . you should read it some time!), I remembered times with my own sisters and brother.  We were the best of friends and the worst of enemies.  This is what siblings do.  Siblings are"safe" people.  The people you can lash insults at or pummel with your fists when you are feeling at your wit's end, and then in the next breath, they are the ones you are hugging, laughing with and sharing some of the best times of your life with.  

Awww . . . 

And this is true for my own kids!  Even though I spent the entire week asking the boys to stop harassing one another or beating one another up, there were many moments like these, where they just couldn't get enough of each other:

 No worries . . . right?

You may be wondering where Zoe was in all this fighting and loving.  Well, Zoe was busy with her own life, and we didn't see much of her.  She came home and jumped right back into the world of studying for tests, volleyball games, soccer try-outs, and getting ready for her first church dance, which she is over-the-moon excited for because kids from all over Nova Scotia, PEI, Maine, and New Brunswick will be there.  They are going to have a blast!!

Here is the dress we bought for her, while we were down in Florida:

Gorgeous . . . right?

So, of course, we then had to go shoe shopping:

And since these shoes were on "Buy One Get One Half Off", and the mama liked the yellow ones and Zoe liked the red ones, we figured we might as well buy them both and share them!  I LOVE having a teenage daughter!!!

Ooh!  I really hope I did not ruin her grand entrance tonight?  Surely, your First Dance dress is not like your wedding dress?  I may be in trouble, folks . . . again.

Since Zoe was busy all week, she really didn't get into the fighting matches too much,  but she was at the brunt of some light-hearted brotherly teasing!  With the dance coming up, the boys are quite concerned that Zoe will find her one true love . . . tee hee!  Elliot has informed her all week that any boy that wants to marry her has to first go through daddy, then him, then Avery, and then her grandfathers.  And according to Elliot, it won't be pretty (as he punches his fist into his palm) . . . tee hee!  Poor Zoe!  This sends her into a fit of rage.

I am NOT going to meet the man I will marry at the dance.  I am only fourteen.

But, mommy met daddy at fifteen.

Stop right there!  Man, that comparison hit me like a ton of bricks.

Zoe is not going to meet the man she will marry at the dance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am such a hypocrite . . . tee hee!

Anyhoo, that's how our week went down.  There was tears, there was fights, there was teasing, but there was also a whole lot of love.  

I am so happy to be home!

And our furry family member was glad to have us home too!

I  guess he prefers the People Park to the Puppy Park.  It must have been the company and all the fun toys.

Have a great weekend!!

Guess Who

Today, we are going to play a little game of Guess Who.

Oh, come one!  This will be fun; I promise!

Are you ready?

First up is this furless critter:

You got it!  It's Scouty. 

Yesterday, Scout got his annual shaving.  Sorry, Pam, I know this is not what a Duck Toller is supposed to look like, but I am not diligent enough each Spring to work out all of his winter coat, and why bother when a good shaving is all that it takes.  Oh, and I should also mention that his smooth exterior becomes such a novelty to the two-legged members of the household that he gets lots of additional loving:

I guess our rule of not allowing the dog to be on the furniture has been temporarily lifted . . . tee hee!

Are you ready for another one?

Guess who this little critter is in the pretty white bonnet:

Now, he has grown a beard.

You got it!  It's Avery! 

How about this critter? He kind of looks like Papa Smurf:

You're right; it's Elliot!  You guys are good at this game.

Bubble bath is the best!  The boys were having so much fun they didn't even realize they were also getting clean in the meantime.  What a sneaky mama I am! 

This was a particularly special time for my boys because they have not been able to use bubble bath since they were itty bitty.  They would always get infections from it.  But, the other day my close friend, Melissa, was making her own bubble bath (Yes, I did say making her own.  The girl is amazing!!),and she let us try some.  It is awesome, and it didn't bother my boys' sensitive skin! Hooray!!  Oh,and check out those bubbles!  This is with only 3 teaspoons of her powder.  It really is the best (and so is she) so please check out Melissa's shop, The Hampton Soap Co.,  at the Kingston Market each Saturday.  You will not be disappointed!

Well, that brings us to the end of our game. 

Sorry!

Okay, okay, okay . . . I will give you just one more.  This one is tricky.

Is it a pig?  Is it a super hero?  No, it's  . . . .

Elliot!

Ya gotta love big sisters.

Have a great day everyone and try to fill it with lots of shenanigans.  I know we will!

 

Random Observations

I am happy to announce that after my "fall" on Tuesday night, I am back to my old cheery self.  No emphasis on old, please.  It just took a quiet day at home with very little running around to rejuvenate my mind and body from the insanity of my weekend.  With a refreshed spirit, I was able to enjoy my kids and spend some one-on-one time with each of them.  Even my big orange baby!

Isn't he precious!  He is currently in desperate need of a good grooming, though.

I love afternoons like yesterday!  The sun was shining, the boys horseback riding lessons were cancelled, and suddenly an entire afternoon was opened up. 

Avery decided that since it was sunny, he wanted to go for a swim.  When Avery wants to do something, he does it!  I can give him a million logical reasons why something should not be done, but he needs to find out on his own.  So, even though I told him that the river is still frigid cold because it was only a month ago that it was frozen solid, he put on his swim trunks and we headed to the shoreline.  As soon as his tootsies touched the water, he decided that perhaps swimming should wait for another day.  Of course he did not acknowledge that I was right, and I, being the mature adult, did NOT tell him "I told you so!".

Instead, he played along the rocks asking me questions the entire time.

Look at all the bug bites on his chest.  The bugs LOVE him!

One of the things I love about Avery is that he is an observer.  He notices everything!!  Like the time he explained that Grammie Skov has the best smile in the entire world because her smile is so huge that her cheeks scrunch up and almost cover her eyes.  The funny thing is that it is true, and even though I have spent more time on this earth with my mom than he has, he took the time to "see" her and to note what makes her so special.  I wish I could be more like that!  It truly is a gift!
Anyhoo, back to our question and answer period.  So, as you can imagine, some of Avery's questions are pretty tough to answer, and he forces you to really think about things.

Avery: "Mom, does water go on forever?"
Me: "What do you mean?"
Avery: "Does this river touch the entire world?"
Me: "Well, it does connect to the Bay of Fundy, which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean, which is connected to all the other oceans in the world. So, yeah, it does go on forever!"

Phew!  I managed to answer that one, but the next one I flubbed up a bit so please leave a comment on this post if you have the answer.

Avery: "The world spins right, mom?"
Me: "Yes."
Avery: "Why can't we feel it?"
Me: "Because we are so tiny and this world is so HUGE compared to us that we do not realize it is moving."
Avery: "Does it move fast or slow?"
Me: "I think slowly because if not we would see a million different sunrises and sunsets in a day. But we may have to ask daddy, though because I am really not sure."

Help!  Does anyone out there no the answer.  He was not impressed that I did not know, and later became convinced that while sitting on a particular rock that he could feel the earth moving.

He then moved on to fraternal and paternal twins, and was wondering why one group looks alike and the other does not.  As soon as I started to explain that moms have eggs, he broke into laughter and took off.  I guess he figured that I know nothing.  People are  not born from eggs, crazy lady!

Once Avery left me, I spent sometime watching Scout.  For him, the water was just the right temperature and he had no intentions of leaving just yet.  Scout is very funny!  He is a quirky dog, and one of the funniest things he does is dig up the rocks in the water and take them out. His first summer, Derrick would take him and the kids down to the river.  The kids always whined that our beach was too rocky so while they were all playing around, Derrick would pick up the rocks and throw them to the side.  He was convinced that if we did this that overtime, a LONG period of time mind you, we would eventually have a sandy beach.  Well, he has given up on that dream because the river's current seems to dump all the rocks on our beach. It's just the way it is.  Scout, on the other hand, has not given up, and whenever he is finished with swimming, he gets straight down to business.

He truly is a working dog!

I gave the kids until 4pm to do whatever they wanted and then we hit the books. I can't wait until school is over and we no longer have homework to do. I say we because my boys need to be continually kept on task and prodded along.  It is exhausting, and one of us usually throws a temper tantrum somewhere along the line.  Aah!  Sweet mommy and son bonding time! But, yesterday, was different. In fact, I was shocked at how cooperative they both were, and even more shocked when Elliot, after I announced that we had to work on his persuasive writing skills because the provincial exam is next week, did not storm the house in a fit of rage.  Not that he has ever done that when it comes to homework . . . ha, ha!  As we sat together and worked our way through the reasons why he wants a dirt bike, I noticed that he really did not need me that much.  He was spelling words on his own and he was able to come up with coherent sentences that logically outlined his reasoning behind wanting a death machine (my words, not his).  I was taken back for a moment.  Although this was definitely a proud mama moment for me because hallelujah he is actually learning something, I was sad because all of a sudden my little boy had a become an independent writer. 

Flash forward to suppertime.

After a lively dinner conversation, which will take up a whole other blog entry sometime, Elliot, who had cleared his plate, got up with plate in hand and said, "Mom, that was a great!  Can I go outside now?".

Stop the presses!

Who are you and what have you done with my son?

I was utterly flabbergasted!  Elliot is my pickiest eater, and mealtime always involves whining with some acrobatic maneuver, whether it be hanging upside down on the chair or teetering on the edge of his chair with just his tippy toes.  Trust me, the boy does not like mealtime.  So, when did he grow up and become this mature homework-doing, meal-eating, clean-up-after-myself kind of kid?

Well, my best guess is that it happened sometime overnight.

I guess there really is something to this double-digit thing!

Later in the evening, we all curled up to watch the finale of American Idol.  After "observant" Avery commented that he could almost see the girls' "private parts" because their dresses were so short and Elliot became fixated on the fact that Steve Tyler was caught smoking, Derrick and I figured it was probably time to put the boys to bed.  Ah, good, wholesome family viewing.  Thanks, again, cable TV! Thank heavens the boys were not up to see Lady Ga Ga's performance.  It was kind of getting hot and heavy with her and that guy on the rock.  Yikes!

In the end, it was just Zoe and I who stuck it out.  Although all that I learned about Zoe this particular evening was that she loves the white sneaker look (I can't go there), J Lo's pant suit and Scotty, I did have a chance to reflect upon our time together on Monday night at coaches' training for soccer.  This summer, Zoe is going to become a coach for our soccer club, and she is going to do a fantastic job!  I was such a proud mama the other night when she lead a group of adult women through a series of drills that you could use with the young kids.  She was so confident!  And she knew her stuff!  This girl truly amazes me each and every day. 

 I will be proud to pass my little ones over to her this summer.  She is going to have a blast with them!

Here is Zoe with a couple of the other youth who will be coaching this summer.  They are a great bunch of kids!

There you have it!  Aren't my kids awesome!  I am so grateful that I took the opportunity yesterday to rest.  The world we live in is so busy and and filled with so many distractions that we have to make a conscious effort to say, "I'm done!" and to step off the crazy train for awhile.   If we don't, then life becomes one garbled mess of varied experiences and sensations, which will eventually lose their meaning if we allow them to simply slip through our consciousness without reflection.  Luckily for me, I was able to reconnect after a quiet morning with just me and my thoughts, and by the time that big, yellow bus pulled up at the end of my driveway, I was prepared to truly "see" the people, and the big orange fella, that I share my life with.

Just a note of caution, when flinging one's self off the crazy train, one must tuck and roll. Always tuck and roll!

Tee hee!