I have seen the enemy

And he is red. And ticklish. That's right, it's Elmo. My child is addicted to Elmo.
It all started innocently enough--a shirt with Elmo on it; a Sesame Street book. Then I made the fatal mistake--I rented an Elmo video. I might as well have fed him crack. I just figured I could let him watch a short video during the time I got Harry up and changed and fed. Makes sense, right? But it backfired on me. I thought it would give me a little peace and quiet and keep Brice busy so he wouldn't feel ignored and jealous. But the child wants to watch Elmo ALL THE TIME now. "Elmo, Elmo, Elmo, Elmo." He doesn't say "mama" or "dada," but he says "Elmo."
So, this past week we decided to just go cold turkey. We put away the video and have not played it once. He stills asks for him all day long. He occasionally throws tantrums and cries and yells out for him. He brings me the remote and points to the TV. Poor kid. I really thought I could let him watch a little bit and that would satisfy him. Who knew?

We saw it coming

This afternoon we put the boys down for a nap. Harry sleeping? Check! Brice? Not so much. He was talking and yelling and jumping up and down, but Seth ignored his pleas and hopped in the shower. I took off on errands. After Seth got out, he peeked in Brice's room and saw a flash of movement as Brice dove into the corner of his crib to pretend he was sleeping. That's not so unusual. What Seth saw when he leaned in was: Brice was naked from the waist down.
Uh-Oh
Seth quickly prioritized while assessing the situation. There can be only one reason Brice would disrobe. That's right. A #2. Seth got Brice up, re-diapered him, put him in a zip up onesie then pulled the crib away from the wall to find missing diaper and pj bottoms. Seems Brice took off his diaper and bottom and shoved them under his bumper and against the wall. Mercifully, he's been having little pellet, rabbit-like poos. So, it wasn't too difficult or disgusting to clean up. But still, it's kinda foul, don't you think?

Oh, the marathon!!!

I love love love the Chicago marathon. I'm not a runner, but there is nothing more moving to me than watching people run a marathon. I started going years back when my friend Rhessa ran her first. I got up early, took the el downtown, got a venti something or other from Starbucks, and elbowed my way to the fence near the finish line. Then I stood there and cried for two hours. I thought I was going to cheer her on, which I did. But I wasn't at all prepared for the emotion that swept over me--again and again--as I watched people run the last stretch of the marathon. Runners were laughing, crying, walking, limping. Even falling down. And then someone else, who didn't appear to know them, would stop running, give up their time, and help the person up, then accompany them to the finish line. I know i'm sentimental, but does it get any better than that?
This past Sunday was the marathon. The halfway point was half a block from our place, so we loaded up the boys and headed over. There were (before these pics were taken) tons of folks lined up, cheering, holding signs, ringing cow bells (love that). The cops that were there to provide security were clapping and yelling and cheering everyone on. Seth and I stood and watched and yelled. Brice clapped and waved and even got to give a high five to one of the runners. Harry was calm and happy and sucked on the Bjorn for an hour. Everytime I watch a marathon, I always entertain the thought of running, say, a 5k. Maybe this will be the year!!

Colic (and family) Update

I think it's over. I really do. It's been lessening the past week and haven't had any raging for the past few days. Ahhh.... AND, he's no longer sleeping in his carseat. He's a big boy now, sleeping in his pack and play (inside his changing pad; keeps him cozy). He's still swaddled, but that's not a big deal. We can even put him down drowsy and he'll fall asleep. This may not seem like a big deal, but believe me. It is. Today, he's napping on a schedule. Wow.
I originally started this blog thinking it would be primarily a place to keep family updated on the boys. And it is. But I also thought i'd write about what was going on with ME and SETH. What we were doing, thinking, eating, reading. It's not that i've not had the time, it's that we've not done anything for the past four months. We've gone out to eat once without the boys (thanks Christa!!). I've not read a single book. I've cooked, like, three meals. I've cried 5 out of 7 days a week. We've not been back to housegroup yet. We have started back to church. But that's it, really. If we'd known how HARD this would have been, and we could have gotten a guarantee we'd still have Harry, we would have waited to have the second. Brice is a strong-willed child who did not take well to sharing me. We've been negotiating tantrums, flailing about trying to discipline him in ways that would not break his spirit, all while listening to Harry rage in the background. It's been a hard four months. But I think things are turning. I do. I feel it. Brice isn't changing; he's becoming harder, in fact. But I have more energy for him now. More patience. And Harry is getting so much easier (and quieter!!). I think we made it.

CIO, baby, CIO

If you know what CIO means, you feel my pain. CIO is short hand for "cry it out" a much maligned version of sleep training--you know, when you teach your baby to fall asleep without being fed, bounced, rocked, etc. Basically, you get the child all gussied up for bed, fed, kissed and then set him down and wave good bye. I've heard parents say that this version rips their hearts out. I suggest they move further away from the door. Kidding. But seriously. We waited until Brice was four months old to start with him and he took to it like a dream. He slept in his bassinet instead of his carseat. A few days of crying and he was out. He was on a regular schedule immediately, didn't need to be swaddled; he turned into a dream child. It also coincided with his colic ending. Needless to say, the sun rose on my world right around four months.
We are nearing the four month mark with Harry. I planned on waiting until four months to start sleep training, but I sense i'll be moving it up. Mainly b/c my back cannot take the endless bending over, picking up the car seat, bouncing the car seat, bending over to swaddle, etc. I've been trying to get him to sleep for the past two hours. Four times i've had to go in, get him, feed him, rewrap him, bounce him, and do it again. Oi!!! So he started screaming AGAIN and I left him. I just let him cry. There must be a reason they don't have memories that go this far back. And miraculously, he fell asleep. This is good. Naps are the hardest to manage. Oh, this is good. I'll keep you posted. But for now, my new mantra is: CIO baby!! ( mommy loves you)