Kintropy In Action

The other night, Gabriel, Robert, and I went out for a late dinner at Red Robin. Gabriel and Robert were in the middle of some silly play with the triangle ad piece on the table. It was a spaceship or something. I started coloring the whale on Gabriel’s placemat with checkers. I showed it to Gabriel and called it the Checker-Backed Whale.

Gabriel smiled, and Robert looked thoughtful at it.

Gabriel and I have been playing a new card game called The Storybook Game by Fundex. It is a game where the players collaborate to make a story using cards to move the story.

So I said to Gabriel, "Once upon a time, there was a Checker-Backed Whale…. Your turn"

He cocked his head at me and said, "Once upon a time, there was a Checker-Backed Whale who went to the surface and met a seagull."

Ok, the idea of the game is to repeat what everyone else says; then add on.

I looked at Robert expectantly. He smirked:

Once upon a time, there was a Checker-Backed Whale who went to the surface and met a seagull. The whale said, "I’m bored."

The seagull said, "I know a game we can play on your back. Since it is checkered, let’s play chess."

The whale said, "Ok."

The seagull said, "Don’t move." They played chess.

So this went on for a while, and the whale felt dehydrated. "I would like to move," he said.

The seagull said, "You can’t. You will ruin the game."

So the whale sat there and died.

So the moral of the story is: there are more things to life then just playing games such as moving, eating and breathing."

All I could say after I laughed was, "Aesop has nothing on you, Robert."

--Mom

Posted by parents at 09:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm in that mood, That Mood.  I can see the end of my vacation just around the corner.  Two days remain.

And I still haven't won the lottery.

Well, we (Janette and I) haven't been writing much lately, but we have been out and about with the kids.  We've got some pictures to upload, stories to tell, etc..  But tonight I am brooding while I sample mp3s for my Back To Work soundtrack.  I'll enjoy being back once I'm there, but I really like the rather open schedule over the last 11 days.  Plus I've grown out my beard & mustache.

Ok, on that last one, Janette will be happy to see me go back to work (not a facial hair fan).  Hannah has found it interesting, I think.  She touches it, tries to kiss me, checks my face out again.  Gabriel, absorbed in his internal dialogue and video games, may not have noticed it yet.

But it all gets hacked off two days from now.  Sigh.

-- Dad

Posted by Dad at 10:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

As we mentioned a few times, Hannah loves music. A few months ago, a physical therapist sang the rhyme "Peas Porridge Hot" to Hannah.

I always end with an expression of "Ewww gross!" That use to start Hannah giggling; now, she still smiles.

Since that day, this song has usurped "Patty-Cake" as Hannah’s favorite clapping game. If I sing "Patty-Cake," she shakes her head "no." It is all about Peas Porridge now.

Well, in the past week, she has made a breakthrough. I have been trying to teach her to clap, then hit my hand with the words. She is starting to do it and laughs if I mess up the order. On the word "hot," we slap our right hands together. On the word "cold," we slap our left hands together. On "nine days old," we clap both hands together.

This is amazing to me. Gabriel never had patience for this kind of thing. She also mouths the words "hot, cold and old" as she plays with me. She then signs more song and grabs my hands and starts them clapping.

She amazes me everyday!

-Mom

Posted by parents at 07:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Janette, with that wonderful time-means-nothing-to-me sensibility, suggested we go for a mall stroll today.  Yesterday, everything was closed.  Today, it was time to stretch our legs.

I mentioned, in passing, that it might be busy today.  As a former product returns manager, I remember the day after Christmas all too well.

But we went anyway.

We took side streets to Washington Square.  I was convinced that the freeway would be bumper-to-bumper to our main suburban shopping destination.  We crawled across Murray, swung left at Scholl's Ferry, and... got stuck in traffic with everyone else who also thought:  hey, the freeway's going to be packed!  Let's take side streets!

But I digress.  We did stumble into a just opening disability-access parking space right outside Nordstrom.  We unpacked Hannah's chair, emergency bag, suction bag, feeding supply backback, and toiletry bag.  We rested.  Then we pulled Hannah and Gabriel out of the van and headed into the mall.

The mall was wall-to-wall people, but the merchants... the merchants were giving away Stuff.  As we traveled store-to-store, we found unannounced Discounts on used Wii games, buy 1 get many more free at a hair-clip store, and reduced price clearance product at Radio Shack.  Put a yellow "Used" or "Sale Price" sticker on something and just put it in my hands, people!  It's like years of vinyl record collector shows have seeped into my skin.  Two dollars off?  Sold, to the chump in the Disneyland t-shirt with slightly rabid look in his eyes.

We rested - this time, at Teavana.  Teavana is an attempt to Starbuck tea.  In a mall full of people, it was a quiet little oasis of unencumbered retail staff (probably working on where to send their resumes should the store fail).

Janette ordered tea at the counter (hers with sugar, mine with honey).  Gabriel spotted a kid a little younger than him also tethered to nearby parents.  They boy had a t-shirt lit literally with flashing lights.  He and this other little boy sat on the tile floor, criss-cross-applesauce, sharing their enthusiasm for all things Spiderman.  I watched Gabriel from a distance, unable to hear his words, but watching him patiently wait for the other boy to speak, chime in himself, laugh, smile, and repeat.  An instant friendship.

Meanwhile, Hannah was patiently signing for songs, and I complied.  We sang "I've Been Working On the Railroad," "Yesterday," "Help!","Tomorrow (from Annie)."  She got most of my songbook.  She smiled, signed for more, and sat contendedly.

A few minutes later, our teas were up.  Gabriel's new friend moved on.  Gabriel joined Hannah and me in song.  Janette and I juggled bags, who-would-do-what-with-hot-tea-in-hand, and our family faded back into the mall masses. 

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I grew up celebrating Christmas. It wasn’t the religious version; it was the full on Santa-centric holiday. It was fun. I got so excited and believed in the magic of Santa and his flying reindeer.

I am now Jewish. I must admit that giving up Christmas was not easy. When Gabriel was born, I realized I wouldn’t get to share that idea of magic in the world through him.

One of my friends who has been Jewish all her life explained to me that the excitement and wonder is still there. During Chanukah, a child never knows where a present will come from or when. It’s eight days of fun and surprises. That is how I pass on my winter excitement to my kids. The neat thing is I get all the credit for the gifts too.

My only concern remained that I keep Gabriel respectful of other people’s holidays. I didn’t want him ruining other children’s holidays by telling them that a certain person doesn’t exist. So, for the past few years I explained to him that when Santa fly’s over our neighborhood, he sees a giant six-pointed star over our house. That way he knows he doesn’t need to stop because Gabriel and Hannah get enough presents from their family that they don’t need anymore.

He accepted that.

This year he had more questions. So I told him the truth and explained that it is a game played by parents with their children. Only the parents should tell their kids that Santa is not a tangible being.

Tonight we were hanging out with family and my brother in-law and his son, who is three, celebrate Christmas. I did some of the traditional adult-to-child conversations with my nephew about getting to sleep and sleeping all night.

Gabriel, puzzled, leaned over and whispered to me, "We don’t tell J, right that Santa is not real."

"Yes, Gabriel" I whispered back, "we help Uncle K with his game."

Gabriel giggled.

--Mom

For those of you who expect a visit from the bearded gentleman.

"Merry Christmas!"  

Posted by parents at 10:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I finally broke down and loaded Hannah's MP3 player.  Yes, Hannah has a Playskool MP3 player.  She received it for Chanukah, and I was sure of three things when I first saw it:

1. Either while loading the software or trying to upload songs into the player, I would experience an aggravating, several-hours-to-diagnose technical issue.  Rule:  I always start these projects an hour before bedtime.  Inevitably, sleep is a casualty.
   
2. Once installed, I would need to find some music to load to Hannah's player.
3. Music?  I know just the thing!  It's buried somewhere deep in the music stacks.  Days later, a search party would be organized to find me.

Well, 1. wasn't too bad, actually.  The MP3 player doesn't play .wma files, but manages just fine with mp3 conversion.  2 & 3 - well, I only disappeared for a few hours altogether.

In the end, Hannah received her first MP3 mix.  The "playtime" song list starts with the Fraggle Rock theme and includes Laurie Berkner, Barenaked Ladies, Milkshake, They Might Be Giants, and others.  It ends with The Fantastic Leslie's version of "Movin' Right Along" from The Muppet Movie.  Sleeptime includes more Laurie Berkner, David Sylvian, Arcadia (okay, I had fun on this side), and many other slower, quieter songs.

After several hours of putting this together, I handed it off to Hannah who had recently awoken from a nap.  She quickly connected the play button to both "Start Singing" and "Skip Song."  No song-pause was safe from her thumping hand!  Fraggle Rock often got the boot.  Laurie Berkner's "Victor Vito" didn't have a chance with the quiet start to the song.  They Might Be Giants' "Birdhouse" got a full-play pass each time.  And "One Week" kinda grew on Hannah after the first pass or two.

So Hannah is enjoying her music (though, now, she sleeps - finally).  If you, too, grew up assembling mix tapes for every occassion, friend first-contacts, and dating tryouts, may I suggest:

Posted by Dad at 03:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Life with an equipment-supported child can make the simplest task complicated.

This week we had two nights unexpectedly uncovered for nursing care. The nurse for these shifts got sick, and there is a shortage this month, so that meant two nights in a row of Robert and I doing the night shift. I'm not complaining - it just causes stress on my body. My immune system crashed, and I’m dealing with pink eye and a throat infection.

I needed to go to the doctor. I called the doctor’s office and the only available appointment was 12:15. Luckily my in-laws have moved to town this would have been more complicated before. My father in-law came and picked me, Hannah and her equipment up.

We went to the office and were directed timely to an examination room. For some reason, the offices were out of strep testing kits, and they needed me to go downstairs to the lab. So my father in-law and I started packing up Hannah and the equipment.

"Oh, you two can stay up here," the aide said to my father in-law (who was carrying Hannah).

"Nope, he is not qualified to care for her," I said cheerily. My in-laws have still been settling and haven’t had the time to learn how to suction, vent, change a trach, or change a g-tube. All could be needed at a moment’s notice.

The women stared at me, confused. This is a medical professional; I assume she was an aide and not a nurse.

My father in-law and I started gathering bags containing the portable suction machine, back up trach, and g-tube supplies.

"You can leave your bags here."

I smiled "No, I can’t"

--Mom

Posted by parents at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

"How was school today, Hannah?"

Earlier this week, Janette had just picked me up from work for lunch.  She, Hannah, Hannah's nurse and I were headed home.  Hannah's face was glued to to the passenger window.  A soon-to-be-developed open field was rushing past.

"How was school today, Hannah?  What'd you do?"

She turned to me, briefly acknowledged me with a left shoulder shrug, and returned to the panorama outside.

I chuckled. 

"Well, today, Hannah..."  Hannah's nurse chimed in.  She started to walk me through Today's Activities At School.  I gently stopped her.

"I appreciate that.  I am curious about what Hannah did in class, but I want to give her a chance to answer first."

"Oh, okay."

I wasn't particularly looking to stomp on any toes, but we all have a problem of answering for Hannah (and sometimes, for Gabriel).  If I expect Hannah to engage socially, answer questions and such, I need to ask her the questions.  And give her more time to process and reply.

"Hannah?  Hannah?"

The field outside was merging into our latest strip mall.  Hannah turned slowly away and faced me.  "What?" she asked clearly.

"Did you have music today?"

She signed, "Yes."

"Did you play with your friends today?"

Hannah kicked her feet, glared at me for a second, and returned to the much more interesting view outside.

"Okay," I smiled.  I threw up my hands and admitted defeat.  She had shrugged, answered with a slightly testy "What," replied to my questions with the briefest, least informative answer possible.  Yep, all systems go:  she was communicating just fine for a nearly-four-year-old.

-- Dad

Posted by Dad at 09:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Since, the school bus punching incident. I had a heart to heart talk with the mom of J at the bus stop. She shared her frustrations on situations at school with me. I understood them.

It reminded Robert and me of the inability for public school to handle anyone slightly out of the common mold. We had the family over for diner. When the boys were engaged in a video game, we shared the information on person centered planning, Robert and I have been using, this concept, to address the school system about what we want for Hannah. We hoped it would help them get a way to start a better conversation going on with the school.

The four of us worked on Gabriel and J communicating with each other.

Hopefully the aggression towards Gabriel will stop.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I am nearing my 13-day holiday vacation.  I look forward to this time every year.  It holds so much promise:  downtime, sleep, family outings, more downtime, more sleep.  But, as usual, there are already signs of a vacation-opolypse on the horizon, including:

• The School Calendar:  What!  Gabriel's last day at school is this Friday?  He and I share the same vacation schedule?  He'll be home the entire time, constantly begging me to play his version of two player (him playing, me watching) on all his video games?
• Drip, drip, drip goes Hannah's nose.  We've avoided any major illnesses so far this season, and we just had an abdominal ultrasound to verify no unexpected cysts or abcesses are growing.  But her nose just started the drip.  And her heartbeat, while she is asleep, is climbing to her I-don't-feel-well heartrate.  Sigh.
• Schedules are afoot.  Janette tried to schedule something on my first day off.  I don't remember what it was.  I just gave her the Evil Eye.
• Max pass on the mind:  I'm thinking of buying a light rail pass to cover the vacation time.  That means, deep inside me, I am planning way to avoid using my new typewriter, avoid writing, by planning family outings.  Self-generated distraction.
• Fairness dictates that this is Janette's vacation as well.  She needs downtime, sleep, etc..  Not really a complaint, but an important consideration.

So I go into my vacation with high hopes, but a sense that the vacation is a mountain vista seen from the road.  I'll drive toward it, never seeming to gain on it.  Suddenly, I'll be there, driving up the mountain to the kids' mantra, "Are we there yet?"  We'll reach the summit together, look around, and then climb down the mountain all too soon.

-- Dad

Posted by Dad at 02:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning Gabriel came into Hannah’s room while she was still sleeping.

"Will you play Mario Galaxy with me?"

I try to be available for the kids. I will usually stop what I’m doing, such as leave the dishwasher half-empty and clean clothes unfolded to play with them upon request.

I look at him and at Hannah. Mario Galaxy is on the Wii and in our family room on the other sided of the house. "I can’t go that far from Hannah’s room." I was about to suggest a game on the computer in the room next store. He stopped me with a new request.

"How about Mario on the DS? We will turn off the sound so we don’t wake Hannah."

It sounded like a great solution even though I really just wanted to go back to sleep. We have two Nintendo DS-es in the house. They come with a built in wireless wi-fi connection so they can be networked and you can play the same game with one another in real time. In my wildest dreams as a child I don’t think I ever considered this possibility.

So we lay down on the floor next to each other cradling our DS-es. Our feet usually touch as we both stare at our own screens we have conversations and even work in teams to solve problems.

A modern mother and son bonding moment.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 01:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

"Gabriel, did you want to see my new typewriter?"

Gabriel was busy playing Lego Star Wars on the game cabinet.  "Uh, yeah.  Sure."  He paused his game and followed me to the office.

There she was, sitting on my desk, freshly unboxed:  an Olivetti MS 25 Premier Plus manual, portable typewriter.  She was my gift to myself this season.  I had decided a few weeks ago to use my upcoming, 13-day holiday vacation to write fiction, and the typewriter was key to my plans.

You see, years ago, after I left Amazon.com, Janette and I rented a cabin in the woods for a week.  I brought a typewriter with us for writing; Janette worked on writing and art.  It was a creative, working week for both of us.  After a few days of pure misery and delay, I sat down and started writing.  Using a typewriter, I couldn't back up and obssessively edit (as is my style).  Instead, I just typed.  By the time we left the cabin, I had a short story and good start on a novel-type-thing.

This is what I had in mind when I purchased the new typewriter.  Now I was sharing it with Gabriel.

"So this is Daddy's typewriter.  Please don't touch."

"I won't."  

Gabriel looked on as I inserted a piece of paper.  I turned the paper feed twice and pinned my single sheet in place with the paper guide.  I reaquainted myself with the unforgiving nature of a manual typewriter.  Hit the key.  Too light.  Extra space.  In high school, I trained on a manual and had a manual at home, but I had fallen out of practice.  By the end, I had "My son's name is Gabriel.  And his sister is Hannah.  XShe [ding - manual return] is very cute!"

"What do you think of my typewriter?" I asked.

"That's cool," he began, "but where's your new tie fighter?"

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 02:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

After I posted the blog on the bread to rule them all, Robert mentioned that I did not bring up something he found more interesting from that restaurant decision. 

I felt guilty leaving Hannah. She stared at us getting ready to go and said "Up, Up, Out!" Her unruly curls bobbed as she emphatically said this. Her chubby fingers gestured toward me.

I was struck by how big she has become. My brain paused and I actually felt a tear come to my eye.

So I stopped what I was doing and said "Hannah we are going to a restaurant."

She sighed and cocked her head at me as in to say "Never mind. Go without me." There wasn’t another peep out of her as she attacked her Babbling Bee.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 12:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Once in a while Robert, Gabriel and I go out to a restaurant for a meal.

We try to take Hannah out all the time, but she never behaves well at a restaurant. She is three and doesn’t want to sit still; she wants to move and since she doesn’t eat by mouth, she has no patience for us that do.

So once and a while, with Hannah in the good care of a nurse, the rest of us go out to enjoy a meal at a restaurant.

The other day we went to Romano’s Macaroni Grill. It is an Italian restaurant chain I adore. I can never get enough of their lobster ravioli. Anyway, they make this bread that has thyme in it. It is made fresh, with a generous thick crust and comes to the table almost immediately out of the oven. It is heaven and very easy to fill up on if one is not careful.

On this particular occasion, Gabriel was looking fondly at a chunk of bread in his hand and said, "This is great bread. It is the one bread to rule them all."

For you fellow geeks out there, yes, that is a reference to Lord of the Rings. It is part of a fun-word game that Robert and Gabriel play. You will have to ask Robert on more of the particulars.

Robert and I looked across the table, smiling in delight of our fellow nerdy child and his astute observation. We agree the bread tastes wonderful.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 12:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

December has snuck up on me. I blinked and it was here. Gabriel’s birthday and Chanukah started on the same day this year. I didn’t realize how close it was until thanksgiving and I realized I hadn’t sent any invitations out yet.

Since I’m an artist I have this little hang up of designing our invitations and holiday cards. I can’t simply buy one off the shelf. I also hadn’t bought anything for anyone yet. Then there is the bake-a-thon I do every year to give the neighbors, nurses and Robert’s coworkers.

So the past two weeks have been me trying to catch-up. Luckily for me I’m almost done. Gabriel’s party went well even though I didn’t make any custom games. My holiday shopping is done. I just have two December birthdays to take care of.

As for the baking I decided to go with simple cookie recipes this year. I don’t have the energy for more. I have started it and have two more types of cookies to do.

I forgot to mention that Gabriel and I started a four-week rock climbing class. It sounded fun when I signed up for it two months ago. It is but the timing has been problematic.

So here is something that will make you laugh. I started writing this entry two days ago but didn’t finish because in the midst of all this I decided to do a beginning reader pamphlet for Gabriel’s teacher as a holiday gift.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 12:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Better now & awake.  Found the chocolate popcorn my dad brought over earlier.  His niece sent it from Patsy's in Colorado.  It is the best chocolate popcorn in the world.  While the exercise infomercials fill the early morning tv airways, I get to indulge.  Yum.

Sugar rush, I greet you with open arms.  And my coffee is brewing nearby, too.

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 02:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's 2 am.  The alarm bleats me awake.  I moonwalk down the hall, waiting for my head to catch up with the concept that yes, we're awake now.

Janette meets me in the hallway.  I manage my typical crack-of-dawn nursing shift mumble, "How'd everything go?  What's the plan?"  Translation:  when did both kids go to sleep (envelop algerbra for how easy/hard will the night shift be - will they just sleep through it, I hope?)?

Janette knows this.  "Gabriel went to sleep about 11; Hannah, 12."

I've got both eyes mostly open now.  Janette is bouncy with energy.  I'm thinking one too many cans of Coke, but apparently this is the just-finishing-up-an-art-project bounce.  I've now made it to the office - adjacent to Hannah and Gabriel's room.  I sit down.  Sitting feels good.  Maybe my eyes can rest.

Janette follows me, dumping the medicine and toiletry status report.  Lots of words are coming out of her mouth.  Lots and lots.

"So, do I need to give her anything or is she set?" I ask, in summary.

"She's set until morning, and then I can..." Janette says.  Wow, lots more words, I think.  She's got lots of energy for 2am.

As Janette goes off to finish her project, I begin to blog as my wake up activity.  Now, I think, Janette has headed off to bed (to be woken in a brief four hours).  I am sipping apple juice and debating when to start the coffee flowing.

Thankfully, Hannah and Gabriel are still peacefully asleep.

-- Dad

Posted by Dad at 02:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

When we had Gabriel, the toy market was exploding with affordable electronic toys. I was snobbish about them. I moaned over the fact the little people suddenly had sound effects. To me, it was a great toy the way it was. Sound effects were for the children to make themselves. I would deliberately not put batteries in certain toys. If they didn’t have play value without a battery, I wasn’t going to buy it.

I wasn’t going to do licensed characters either.

Now it is six Chanukahs later.

Hannah who is three has not gotten far beyond the put-everything-in-her-mouth stage. We are working on actual playing with a toy. The ones she plays with involve buttons. If she can push it and it sings, she loves it.

Gabriel can swim in the amount of Star Wars Galactic Heroes collection I helped him build.

(Sigh)

I should have bought stock in Duracell. Both kids now have a collection of electronic licensed characters. To top the list today, I gave Hannah the toy I thought I would never buy. I remember one time shopping with Roberts’s parents in a toy store and finding them eyeing this particular toy. I told them, "Put your hands down and walk away from the toy."

Hannah is now the delighted owner of a Tickle Me Elmo. This new one is amazing. It rolls over, sits up, and even stands up. I found myself giggling along with her.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 09:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A couple of quick thank yous to blog carnivals that we both read regularly and participate in and a few blogs that have linked back to us recently:

This week's Carnival of Family Life:  hosted in Australia this issue.  I enjoy the breadth and sheer volume of parenting-oriented blogs featured each week in this Carnival, and this week's host has done an excellent job putting it all together.

Dr. Anonymous is this issue's host of Change of Shift.  We work regularly with medical professionals inside and outside the home, and I love reading through all the blogs here.   If you also enjoy the medical world, don't miss Terry's Counting Sheep:  often a really interesting tour of OR and other hospital locales from the viewpoint of an anesthesia nurse.

The latest Disability Blog Carnival is hosted by Penny Richards.  She did a great job of getting this latest issue up in a pinch, and she always finds new & interesting subjects & blogs by and about people that experience disabilities. 

Thanks to Terri Mauro's About.com mention of our NICU Glance blog.  We appreciate the resources she maintains and articles she writes for those families that experience disabilities.  Keep up the good work! 

Last, but not least, thanks to Auntie Steph for her Happy Birthday shout out to Gabriel.  Steph and I have been friends forever, and she maintains a great site & business & everything else about budgets and financial-kind-of-stuff-I-don't-understand.  

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 12:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

You know it's a bad sign when Gabriel is asleep, but everyone else in the house is still awake. 

I am writing just after midnight.  Mom is in bed, rezzing down with her new Nintendo DS game.  Hannah is trapped on the potty after a long day of tummy pain and constipation.  And I have just returned with stay-awake fuel from our nearby, open-24-hours Starbucks.

Earlier, Hannah's nurse arrived and mentioned that we were (still) out of acidopholus.  Acidopholus is a key partner in Hannah's daily routine.  Probably due to low muscle tone & just a generally uncooperative digestive track, Hannah needs a steady, low flow of acidopholus mixed into her food to stay comfortable. 

Mom has been mixing small amounts of prune juice into meals today to help her along, but the lack of acidopholus has been increasingly making its presence know in Hannah's discomfort throughout the day.  Plus I think Hannah's tummy has been starting to tip into the no-more-prune-juice-please, negative balance tonight.

I had wanted to get out tonight anyway, so I made the late-night grocery store circuit.  Haggen's - doesn't carry it.  Safeway - doesn't carry it (or doesn't know that they carry it.  Not quite sure on that one.  They were almost too busy stocking to be helpful.).  Rite Aid - ding, we have a winner!

Of course, the 24-hour Starbucks is just across the street.  And that's always a fun experience later at night.  Kind of like late-night Denny's runs in my youth.

So I am now home sipping my latte.  I've also brought back a mocha for Hannah's nurse.  

Hopefully, with acidopholus in the 2 am meal, Hannah's body will relax, and she can be more comfortable.  In the meantime, I'll blog off my caffene and embrace the idea that today is now Friday and that the weekend is promisingly close.

-- Dad

Posted by Dad at 12:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yes!  I just finished a game of Civilization 4 (a computer game for any novices out there); I won by getting to space first.  As soon as I won, a screen popped up to walk me through my civilizations' metrics compared to other civilizations in the game.  Metrics - I live for this (and actually produce them for a living).  Line graph - pretty.

And then, I notice a counter at the top.  It claims that I have spent over eight hours of game time pursuing my victory.  Eight hours!  I've lost eight hours!  I coulda woulda shoulda....  But I did win, you know....

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Today was crazy. Hannah, Gabriel, and I jumped from one thing to another. Chores, errands, Tae Kwon Doe, visitors, and then it was suddenly 5:30 PM. Robert gets off work around 6:00. We are a one car family, and we have been experiencing very unwalkable weather here in the Northwest. The kids and I were going to pick up Robert from work. Around 5:35, Hannah signed to use the bathroom. I got her on the chair and she started screaming with watery tears, trying to deal with some constipation. . I was rubbing her stomach and singing songs. Gabriel kept wandering in to ask me to do something for him.

At one point, I was trying to assemble a remote control car and sing to Hannah. I stopped that when I realized how silly that was. Gabriel didn’t need the car at that moment. He finally asked for a movie, and I had him sing to Hannah so I could go start it. Hannah just cared that someone kept singing.

I came back and handed him the remote. (I do love that this is all I have to do anymore.) And I started a song as soon as he finished. I realized that we would not make it in time to pick up Robert. I left Hannah screaming and grabbed the phone and went back to the bathroom.

I called Robert’s sister. She, his parents, and his brother moved to town recently, and it is amazing having some support so close. I called her. Hannah was screaming, and I believe Gabriel had come to ask me something else.

"Uh, K, can I ask you a favor?"

It was great; she was cheerful, "What?"

"Would you pick up Robert for me please?"

"Sure, is dinner taken care of?"

Ok, she just moved up to Saint. I was realizing I wasn’t going to be able to get dinner made in time. "I think we are ok. Actually, no, I haven’t had a chance to get started on it yet."

"I just bought a rotisserie chicken. Do you want me to bring it over?"

"That would be wonderful."

So she became our knight in shining armor. She rescued her brother and helped with my heavy lifting. She told me later that it was funny; it was just like those old Calgon commercials where the mother says, "Calgon take me away." She could hear all the chaos over the phone.

Thank you so much Auntie O’K!

--Mom

Posted by parents at 11:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I am always on the hunt for well-told (and, ideally, well-illustrated) Jewish-themed children's books.  It is not easy to find them.  Being a member of a 2% minority, I usually resign myself to the sacrificial B & N end cap.  It mysteriously appears two weeks before Passover and Chanukah, primarily because of their proximity to major Christian holidays, and disappears soon after.  

And usually I'm disappointed with what's there.  Outside of the internet and our local Judaica shop, I find it hard to find good books.  Most of the Jewish-themed children's book are descriptive and simple:

It is Chanukah.  We light candles.  Let's spin the dreidel.  "I had a little dreidel.  I made it out of clay."  Latkes, yum!  Bubbie and Zadie are visiting.  My, they are getting old.  Let's open presents!  Bubbie and Zadie didn't have video games like this when they were little!  Let's kick some video game....

Well, you get the idea. 

I was pleasantly surprised this year, however.  A new book, The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming - a Christmas story, was lurking on a non-Chanukah end cap (across from cookbooks, believe it or not).  The writer:  Lemony Snicket.  You or your kids may have read some other works from this prodigious (and mysteriously difficult to interview) writer.  Like those, this is wry, dry, well written, and often insightful.  Somehow in a short, 43 pages, Mr. Snicket manages to spin a completely new Chanukah fable that discusses the major themes of Chanukah, explores assimilation and secularization (a favorite topic at my childhood synagogue), and reminds us that latkes are pleasantly crispy and brown.

Both Gabriel and Hannah love the book.  The latke often screams (which Janette and I play up as we read); Mom and I pause and enjoy the deeper themes and humor.  If you want a great book that the kids will grow up with and understand better/enjoy more as they get older, I think this one is a keeper.

-- Dad

P.S.  No idea why both Janette and I did book reviews back to back.  Must be thinking of presents.  Books are one of our major ones every year.  We eat books for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Posted by Dad at 09:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I finished the book the Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. It was the third time I went to read it. It wasn’t that it didn’t catch my attention . The problems I had were more to do with the lack of tenderness the main character was experiencing. There was no nurturing. So I must have been pregnant the times I tried before.

This time it didn’t hit me as overly cruel.

Spoiler Alert--Read No Further--If you don't want plot points revealed 

I find it is a book about taking care of one another in the world. The main character’s motivation is pretty much she wants her friend back. Sure she has some great skills and dubious parentage but she is selfless in her selfishness. She risks everything to rescue her friend.

Sure there are other themes running through the book. One big theme that I believe that is causing a ruckus is the problems that can happen when individuals within an organized religion use their influence to generate power for themselves in the name of a religion. It also shows that it is not a good idea to experiment on human subjects just because it is possible, consequences should always be considered.

To sum up the themes are:

1. You are responcible for more then just yourself.
2. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
3. Just because something is possible doesn’t mean it is a good idea.

I am going to read the next two. I’m taking a detour to read the first Spiderwick novel. I’ve had it in my stack for over a year and it is coming out in a movie format too.

--Mom

PS. Hannah and I are reading the third Septimus Heap book Physik and Gabriel is working on See Otto books

Posted by parents at 11:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Hannah and I had a great weekend, I think.  She got video time and singing time.  We hung out together in the family room, watching football (and she argued with Mom when Mom tried to change the channel - good girl!).  We cuddled.  And she laughed like crazy when I tickled her.

Gabriel joined in, too, but the videogame cabinet seems to be a bigger destination to him than the Seahawks game (even though we beat Pop-Pop's team ;-). 

The funniest thing to Hannah, though, was riding piggyback through the house.  This is an older picture, but you'll get the idea.  I just got a kick out of her laughing and trying to peek down and around to find my face Sunday night.  She cracks me up. 

-- Dad 

Posted by Dad at 10:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Friday, Gabriel got off the bus he was whining and holding his bottom lip. "J punched me!"

I was the only parent to greet the bus. It is understood that I will escort the other two from our block to their doors. One of those two is J. I got us all out to the sidewalk and caught up to J who was trying not to meet my eye and walk ahead.

"J, did you punch Gabriel?"

J looked at me and frowned. Emotions crossed his face as he tightened his fists beside him in frustration and shrugged. He wouldn’t meet my eyes and his lower lip quivered "Yes, I punched Gabriel."

I was relieved he admitted it. It makes the conversation easier. I rose my voice. "Why did you hit Gabriel?"

"I was mad."

"You were mad." I paused and took a breath this raises so many red flags for me. "It is ok to be mad. But is never OK to hit someone when you’re mad. Do you understand?"

He nodded and frowned.

I repeated myself, "It is alright to be mad. If you’re mad, tell everyone you need a break for a couple minutes and back away from everyone. You do not hurt people when you are mad."

"I got it." The neighbor who was babysitting him was trying to smooth things over. She started with "Yeah, I know J’s got a problem with… She is right J."

I repeated my advice on how to handle anger as I was walking away. I added one caveat, "If you ever need to isolate yourself and the kids won’t let you, tell an adult about it."

As I walked away with Gabriel, I asked Gabriel if J felt left out. The problem is J is aggressive and has bulling tendencies, so the other three boys choose to ignore him a lot or don’t include him in their games. I understand how that could reach a breaking point. Gabriel shrugged, "I don’t know."

We got home. I called and left a message for J’s parents. When we got to talk, I told his Dad what I understood had happened and what I had said. He agreed. I also found out that indeed Gabriel had been ignoring J. I don’t think it was on purpose because he told me the story he was playing with the other boy A. Gabriel gets really focused sometimes, and you can talk to him, and he won’t notice you.

So, I’m going to try working on Gabriel’s manners. What J did was totally inappropriate. Gabriel doesn’t need to be J’s friend, but he needs to be polite and acknowledge him. We all live on the same block, so I’m trying to establish a dialog with J so that thing will go smoother in the future.

--Mom

Posted by parents at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)