Home- Run, or Thanks, Really...

So every once in a while, someone hits a "home run" with a gift. And, with both kids' birthdays directly after Christmas, it isn't easy to do so.  We try to limit their Christmas gifts, and the tree comes down on December 28th, but still, there is not a whole lot of break between "look what I got for Christmas" and "look what I got for my birthday!" Okay, back to the point... this year,  Nana and Papa definitely hit a home run. This is it.

Seb got this fantastic Pirate Tent from Nana and Papa on January 4th. (I know, that is not his birthday, it is just how it worked out this year.) He has played in it every day since. And, if you look closely, you can see his quilt. The green and blue and white stripeys are his quilt. And the blue polka dots belong to one of his blankies. And there on the left by himself is a collection of stufties comprising of two dogs, one named Gryphon, and one named Laika (named after our ex neighbors dogs), as well as a much loved minky blanket that he doesn't sleep without (made by YaYa before he was born). All of this (crap) is in the tent because that is where, since January fourth, he has slept.
He is very proud of his tent, and as the sky darkens each evening, he anxiously asks, "Can I sleep in my Pirate Tent, mommy?" And when I say yes, he smiles a big goofy smile, and smugly informs his sister that yes, indeed, he will be sleeping in his Pirate Tent. When Dean arrives home, after he has eaten, Sebby says to him "I sleeping in my own very Pirate Tent cuz mommy says so" this is said with a mixture of defiance, hope and fear, and very quickly without any pausing for punctuation, because sometimes daddy uses one of his vetoes, and mommy goes along with daddy. So far, daddy has been okay with it, despite the fact that each night when it is bed time, daddy has to lie on the floor, and stick his head and shoulders through the little opening, tuck Seb in, and sing Freduh jack-es (Frere Jaques) Brother John, and Twinkle. And also despite the fact that when we go tuck in the kids before we go to bed, he has to literally lie down on the floor again, and crawl through through the teeny opening, and re arrange Sebby and make sure the blankies are on him. All this, just for that little grin. So, from Sebby, "fank you, Nana and Papa" and from Dean and I...
Well, thanks for the smiles. 

In case you were wondering...

So this is in case any of you were wondering why I am so weird. This is the guy who helped raise me.  I remember Saturday mornings were for playing with Dad. And it was fun... mostly. The beard burn thing REALLY sucked. He would grab our little faces in both of his hands, and rub his sandpapery cheeks all over our soft skin. Then he would use his pointy, dented chin. So not cool! He hasn't done that with our kids yet, although, he has duct taped Seb to the floor, and duct taped the kids hands together, and various other tortureful stuff. Now, as a parent, I get why it is so much fun to do stuff like that! He started the spinning with Maddy when she was about two and a half, and had to stop after she ended up with a big honkin' spot of carpet burn on her leg. He tried it with Seb the other day, and Maddy thought she would try it again. Seb's technique is pretty cool. He manages to keep his little body very stiff and straight, kind of flying super Seb. The kids sort of regard Papa as a portable, personal jungle gym/amusement park/friendly torturer. Just like I used to! 

PS, please don't call me, all concerned and worried for the kids. They love this stuff, they really do. Even the duct tape. Promise!

PPSS No small children or old Papa's were harmed in the filming of this video.

Why Little Brothers Are The Best or Major Blackmail Pics

Maddy and Sebby are three years and six days apart. And for them, it seems to be just about perfect. She LOVES having someone to boss around, and dress up, and he delights in tormenting her, and dressing up. So all around, it has worked out pretty well. They genuinely like playing together, which makes my job a lot easier. I can blog, or facebook, or cook while they play together, and if one wants to play something the other doesn't, it is simple. They just do what Maddy wants to do. Usually dress up, or playing "baby". My least favorite game because of the horrific noise that emanates from her mouth. (No, seriously. It sounds like someone is doing something really bad to some cats, that possibly involves electricity, and maybe a goat or two.) Luckily, Seb really likes being "father". They also do puzzles, play lego, and trains, so it is not like Seb's play is totally geared towards the feminine... but he is one of the few three year old boys I know who can name all the princesses, and their princes, and who uses the word bee-yoo-tee-full an awful lot. Oh, and he really likes playing with hair.  Here are a couple MAJOR blackmail shots...

Maddy in her favorite dress, Sebby in ... well... his. (sorry Dean, but it really is his favorite!)
Seb is wearing Maddy's favorite heart nightie in this one. Personally, I love his pose!

So here is to having a great little brother, and here is to hoping they always love each other as much as they do now. (Although, as I keep telling Maddy, she CAN'T marry Seb. At least not in Canada.)

Happy Birthday Maddy!

Today is January 4th, 2009, and our little girl turned SIX today. I can hardly believe it. I find myself reflecting back on her birth today, and all all the years in between. She is an amazing little kid who has spectacular impact on everyone who knows her. I know that she teaches me new stuff everyday, and I am constantly amazed at her intellect, and sensitivity. She is six now. Six. That is crazy! I always used to think it was so weird when adults would say things like "oh, I feel so old!" when I would tell them how old I was. Now I get it. But I don't feel old.  Just blessed. And a little exhausted. Happy Birthday, kiddo. Love you!

Maddy at her party, playing Freeze Dance.
Maddy at her party, giggling hysterically on the couch
A moment of reflection for her
Watching her friends play "pin the crown on the princess"
(strange) little princess pose.

A tribute to our Artist.

This post is dedicated to Maddy, and her evolution as Artist. She asks to draw, paint or color every single day. Her subject matter is not terribly diversified yet, mostly Ariel. Ariel in her dress, in the water, out of the water, near the water, with fins, with her necklace, and always with her shell bra. The bra that dominates our dining room walls. See, we use our kids art as, well... art. We have two walls in our house covered in kids art. Drawings, paintings, ceramics and other randomness.  They are my favorite walls in the house, a testament to my kids spirits, their love of color, their ideal people, and of course, the enduring Ariel-ness of Ariel. Here is one of me, dressed in an Ariel costume. 

Apparently, Ariel comes full-figured, too!... I LOVE this picture... it may be my favorite!

This next picture is one that she copied from a book, in early July, 2008. It looks EXACTLY like the picture in the book. Like incredibly like it. And we were thrilled to see it, not only because of it's exacting likeness, but because it has no shell bra. Red letter day, for sure. And, it is one of the only pictures she has ever copied. She prefers to use her imagination, and Disney's imagination.
This is one that we framed and hung on our wall. I am so glad we did, because we constantly get people asking us where we got it, or who the artist is. I like to think it is because people we know have great taste in art, not the opposite. Maddy made this one in August of 08 at a community center weeklong camp. The guy who came in and taught the kids (who Maddy subsequently decided to marry) was a "REAL ARTIST" named Jay. He is around 45 years old. 
This is Maddy's latest offering, drawn today, directly after the full-figured Ariel above. Maddy handed it to me, and I took a moment to enjoy the way the colors were put together, and the great swirls and lines. Maddy said "Mom, this is one of those, what do you call its, the ones no one knows what it is?" I said, "A tornado?" Duh. "No, mom. One of those pictures of art that nobody knows what it is? And they don't understand it?" I quickly straightened my face as I frantically wracked my brain. There is a small possibility I may have been at the pool hall the day  they covered renaissance painters in school. "Uh, do you mean impressionist?" Maddy thought for a sec..."No, no that's not it. Clara knows, why don't we call her?" (Clara?! Her six year old cousin? Thanks, Clara...) "Oh, do you mean 'abstract' sweetie?" "Yeah! That's it!! Thanks mom! Love you!" And off trots my little artist to create more masterpieces.