An Artist is Born

Colin has had a recent breakthrough with his communication skills.
You may remember many months ago he was well on his way to talking - learning new words and saying them frequently - as well as babbling in his very own dialectic form of Toddlerese.
Then it virtually stopped .

He decided to use a handful of words and sound effects (his preferred choice ) to get across his meaning- and that's it . He refused to use the words i know he already learned - lovely little words like 'flower' and 'squirrel' and 'owl' . Instead when prompted - either while reading together or seeing something on the Telly or in the great outdoors - he would give a resounding " NOOOO" with a sly smile and an utter look of defiance in his brow.

It was as if he was afraid to make a mistake. If he couldn't say it perfectly ( to his own satisfaction - we would always clap no matter how close he got ) he wouldn't even bother trying to say a word. Oh , no ! Was this an early sign of perfectionism ?
It does run in the family ...


Sigh . This was frustrating but i took it as a sign of typical Toddler independence and since he understood nearly all we said to him ( and each other , it seems ) i backed off.

Since mothers are doomed to compare their offspring to others ( yes, even when you KNOW better ) i would think to myself , " well , he's ahead of so & so who is still basically grunting and he is behind you know who who knows all of the names for construction and transportation vehicles . So what ? He makes himself understood and is smart as a whip . He knows how to unlock doors and get himself a snack - what else does he need right now ? So we waited.
and waited. "Nooooooo. " ; )

Well , Mama seems to have offered the proper incentive. He has been enjoying drawing lately so i went out and got him the 64 piece set of Crayola's with the pencil sharpener ( yes he has figured out how to use the sharpener already, see? NOT dumb .)
So i decided to try something.

Me : " Look Collie , NEW crayons , do you like them ."
Him : "Umm Hmm" ( emphatically a Yes)
Me: Ok , Can you say CRAYONS and Mama will give them to you.
Him : NOOOOOOOOO. ; )
Me : Just say Cray- ons . Cray - ons , see ? Just like this - Cray - ons.
Him : CWAAAAYYY - OOONNNSSS.
Me : YES !!!!
He got his crayons and went to town.

So there you have it . A new word.
And many more have followed .
He has been saying new words in rapid -fire succession ever since.

So , who says you shouldn't bribe your kids ?

Summertime

Well , i am out of mourning and have moved on to the new freedom weaning has given me and my son. We are keeping busy with all kinds of fun summer activities and since i haven't posted in awhile i will share some new photos here.

i hope all of you are enjoying the sun's rays and these hazy, lazy, crazy days of summer with your friends and families...

Of Cabbages and Kings

"The time has come," the Walrus said,

"to speak of many things.
Of shoes -- and ships -- and sealing wax --
of cabbages and kings."

-Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass

Today is the day my son and i have changed in an irrevocable way.
We are no longer nursing.

This week i have begun the long-awaited , yet not-quite-ready for process ( for both of us )
of weaning off of the breast.
Sigh.
This fills me with so many conflicting , yet necessary and i imagine quite un-extraordinary feelings . I am sure all breastfeeding mothers go through a similar contradiction of emotions - feeling on the precipice of a new freedom , a return to the concept of "my body" , the joy of watching your baby grow and develop beyond complete and total dependence into a little person all of his own . A King of a land yet to be conquered , one of his own imagination and the wide world beyond the safety and comfort of your warm breast.
Yet you have nourished him , comforted him , eased his pain and healed his ills , all the while keeping him warm and close- as close as possible without actually being in your womb , where his tiny and tenuous life began. It felt right. It felt good and it comforted you , too.
Now it is all changing and although it is time and it is going sweetly and not painlessly , it is going. Forever.
There is a bittersweet sadness that fills its place and the tears well up in my eyes as i feel the milk leave my body , never to return . I hold my son and cradle him as he whimpers and sighs - resigned that "Mama's milk is all gone" .
My love grows exponentially to fill the gap- but does he feel it ? Will he remember this day in his bones ? I will . I know it is the 'right' thing and the right time , as we have tried before , several times with very little success and this time Colin told me it was time. He showed me signs and i started to offer other comforts in place of nursing. He accepted , a bit begrudgingly but accepted nonetheless and we eased into it , together. He cried , i cried and then we found each other again , in a new way. He is sleeping as i write this - the third time without a "nite-nite " nursing and he is breathing easily and heavily in slumber . My heart still feels heavy.
It isn't as easy as i wanted it to be.
I have cabbage leaves in my bra ( an old folk remedy that sounds and feels ridiculous , yet works) to stop engorgement and soothe the pain. I cut fresh sage and mint from my herb garden for tea to help dry up the milk and i am feasting on cabbage , sorrel and parsley soup to aid in the process as well .
I have done everything i can do now i must let time heal the rest and let go , just a little .
Sleep well , my petit chou prince. I still love you so.

Colin Turns Two- March 29, 2008

Cheese and Dumplings

It has been awhile since my last post as the cold weather does its best to get a stranglehold grip on my psyche. I am in uber-hibernation mode these days , barely venturing out of the house lest i frost-bite Buggle's beautiful rosy cheeks into frozen lady apples.

It has been bitter cold here and i leave the house to go to my yoga class on Sunday mornings ( my 'church' ) and to do a bit of grocery shopping- that's it . We while away the long Winter days playing games of hide and seek under the heavy blankets and 'let's cuddle and read a story' - my sneaky ways of keeping warm amidst the chill. That baby boy generates heat like a lilliputian furnace and i am no fool - i keep him close on the blustery days.

We watch the hours pass like snowflakes - which are decidedly absent from our Virginian landscape - always on the forecast but never arriving , it seems.
We keep busy putting stickers on the dog , dancing to various drumbeats- real and imagined- with our Uggs on and having tea and a mid-day snack with Winnie the Pooh ( the old one , not that horrid new version on the Dismay channel ) or Beatrix Potter - Bug's current favorite.

He repeatedly REPEATEDLY requests 'Ummies and Caw Caw" ( like the French word for Duck Canard -dangerous if mis-pronounced ) which loosely translated means - 'Tom Kitten and Jemima Puddle Duck" Over and Over and Over , as an almost-two year old is wont to do. I find myself willingly donning my inner thespian's cap and reciting along with the characters word for word. What else is a mama to do ?

At least it isn't Barney . The Great Purple One and his frighteningly annoying entourage of pod children are officially banned at our house.
Mean , i know , but really , there are limits if one wants to remain sane in the dead of Winter.


For a mean recipe to beat the Winter Doldrums visit Sunday Dinner ( it involves Dumplings )

Meme , you're it .

Ok , so i was needing a good fire-starter to finally update my flagging blog entries here on Hysteria Lane - i mean it has been a COLD winter and i have really been hibernating these past few weeks ( and months) - Well , Fleur from Frangible Pie tagged me with a Meme entitled
" 7 Weird Things about me " . What ? Just 7 ? You mean i have to narrow down all the weirdness that my persnality and my life encompasses into 7 measly things ? Ha - for anyone that knows me they are really laughing at how my lazy self is going to have to work hard on this one .
But , i digress .
Onto the Weird....

7 Weird Things about Moi

(This first one is inspired by a similar Buddha-nature spirit who confessed to an unnatural love of mice and their well-being. )

1.) i once saved a mouse from impending doom while working for Nutri-System in the eighties (when they were all the rage ) I saw him- the mouse in question (as did numerous waiting clients ) race across the waiting room floor one evening around closing time . We kept many boxes of that horrid freeze-dried and vacuum -sealed food product on our shelves and i am sure he thought he was living at the Ratz-Carlton !
Anyhoo , i was ordered by my superiors to trap and kill the little bugger PRONTO -
but i just couldn't do it. After having him leave happy trails for a few excruciating days of deliberation i finally got a have-a-heart trap and promptly caught him , releasing him in the woods nearby.
A recent enjoyable viewing of Ratatouille and several Beatrix Potter videos with my son reminds me just WHY his Mommy is so weird. His little face is so in awe of all animals these days. He has a very gentle and sweet nature , not unlike a mouse.
Mice, in my humble opinion are small , maligned creatures who , yes , even as vermin , still have a place in this world - granted not in my kitchen or in a place of business.
So, go in Peace mice , i bid you well. You are VERY lucky i don't have cats anymore( due to death and my husband's unfortunate allergies.) Frida was a devoted Mouser.
Lucky for them , Lula the chihuahua is deathly afraid of mice . She poses zero threat unless you want to count the shaky growling and puffing noise that emanates from her tiny quaking frame upon sighting any small moving critter.

2. ) I enjoy munching on raw potatoes and salt.

3.) I have several dozen nick-names for my son ( like i have for all of my pets )and he responds to all of them .
He will not, however, respond if i call him 'chair' or ' le auto-bus' .

4. ) i love to sniff my dog's 'stink ears' they smell like a mix between mice ( there's that weird affection for mice again ) and chocolate - hence my nickname for her - 'Chocolate Mouse'

5.) i frequently buy books , films and CD's that i already own - out there somewhere.
They are either packed away , lost or sometimes i just forget i already have them.

6.) For someone who rarely has the opportunity or the wardrobe to accompany them anymore- i love garter belts , pantyhose and stockings, retro corseted girdles etc . under suits and demure clothing. yes , they are all uncomfortable. but i like it.
Throwback to the Fifties, anyone ??

7.) i rarely change out of my pajamas before 4:00 in the afternoon ( unless i am leaving the house which really only happens a few days a week ) I have gone outside to get the mail in full pj regalia more than once. My son frequently has 'pajama day ' with his weirdo Mama.

Well, that's seven.

See ? I am out of time already and i was just getting warmed up.

Egads - what WILL the neighbors think now ?

Thanks Fleur for exposing me .
Now i taunt Zen , Lipby, and Hazmat to the same fate .
Make me laugh , i dare you.

A New Friend

I don't know who Colin likes better his ' Big Car' or ' Teddy ' but they pretty much get equal play these days. Teddy was a gift from Grammy and Grampy and the truck is from his birthday last year.

His other current favorites are his wooden 'Too-Tooey' (Brio train set) , his play kitchen and his 'Ummies' (stuffed cats ). He misses the 'stars' ( Christmas Tree) and looks for the 'Moonie' every night before bed. He has Croup , Mama's surgery , molars and the wee beginnings of toilet training under his belt now and is no worse for the wear (yet), although Mama & Dada are a little rough around the edges these days.

(outfit above knitted by Bug's great-grandmother who is 99 years young )

Mr Buggles takes it all in stride in his toddler -sized UGGS and is looking forward to turning 2 in a few short months so he can say "NO" with even more precision and confidence.

Stay tuned for more pics and Bugdates soon...