The Max and Sam Show

Okay, okay. I know that almost everything I ever write about, and almost every picture I ever post pretty much always stars my adorable, lovable little boys. But, hey--they are just so entertaining and cute. At least I think so. I am pretty sure that I can't even really talk about anything else for longer than a couple of hours (at the most). I don't even think I could have a viable non-mom friendship right now because I just don't even know if there is a topic on earth as interesting as what my kids are up to, and I am sure that said non-mom friend would get justly bored. What can I say? I never knew that having kids would be this satisfying. I love life! (At least most of the time on most days and with the exception of around 5 pm on probably every weekday--at which point I pour myself a glass of vino and things typically start to get rosier.)

Max. What a wonderful, enjoyable little guy. Who will not ever hold still--especially when I am trying get him dressed, or lotion him, or give him a vitamin. Or pretty much anything. He so much as sees or hears that I am coming toward him with something to apply or ingest and he takes off on a sprint. And if I happen to catch him, he will fight and jump and wriggle away. This kid is pretty tough when he wants to be. Pisses me off sometimes. And then let me tell you about what a deceptive, conniving negotiator this little guy is--ALREADY! He is only 2 1/2, yet he can find loopholes in every thing I say or ask, and he has an uncanny knack for getting me to change my mind or give in to his pleas for "just one more time/just a few more minutes/just a little bit more." I am sure that these traits will prove very beneficial for him later in life, but at the present they serve to really complicate and irritate mine. Did I mention that he has also perfected the skill of procrastination? I take full responsibility of having passed this trait to him, but who knew that a little boy could methodically think of excuses so as to not have to go to bed. I mean I didn't know. I tell him bedtime is in 5 minutes, set a kitchen timer, and when there are like 3 seconds left, he looks at me with this adorable little serious face and says, "Mommy--I huhhhnngry. I want peanut butter sandwich, mommy. I huuhhnnnnngryy!" And then of course I can't send my beloved child off to bed starving--that is just not right. So, indeed he gets to eat and then another 20 minutes later we are finally back up stairs to begin our bedtime routine: brush teeth, pee (at which point he procrastinates a little further and states he needs to poop and will therefore kill another 5 minutes because I can't just not let him do that--what if he really needs to go?), read a book (or two, depending on how well he is able to negotiate), and then we turn out the lights and I have to lie down by him and tell him a couple more stories. This is followed by my favorite part: cuddling with him for 5-10 minutes (or 20, if he is really slick). And even after all of that, he will still think of ways to further put off sleep. What a sucker I am, every single night. Gotta just love this smart little boy.

Max and I actually reached a momentous milestone this week: I dropped him off at a summer camp and left him for 3 hours. I know--milestone (for me, anyway, since I was the only one crying when I dropped him off). He went to a "summer fun days" camp at My Gym which is this little gym where he takes weekly classes. So, he was somewhat comfortable with the setting and the teachers, but I have never taken him someplace and left him. Sure, I have left him at our house with a sitter numerous times, but never just dropped him off somewhere and driven away. Like I said, I cried. I guess it was just a big fat reminder of how big and grown-up and independent he is getting. If nothing else, at least it is great preparation for sending him off to preschool this fall (which he is super excited about and wants to start tomorrow).

RoboMax. The Maxbot. I forget the clever name Paul came up with for this crazy idea (which was obviously a Paul invention--he's just so much more creative than I).

Sam. My beautiful, big-blue-eyed, blonde baby. He already has all of the ladies smitten. I take him to the daycare at the YMCA about 4 times a week while I exercise and all of the girls who work there fight over who gets to hold him. At least I know he won't be left crying in a corner.

He is getting to be so much fun. And he is getting to be a lot more work. For instance, he is in to everything, can climb up anything, and wants to do whatever Max does. He is so much more of a handful than Max was at that age and is very determined and stubborn. Additionally, he is super smart. He can say "ma-ma" and "da-da" now and wave goodbye on command. He can even play Chopin on my piano.

He loves to play the piano and will crawl all the way into this room even when no one else is in there, pull himself up to reach the keys and start plunking away. But, he especially loves to perform when he has an audience.

The refrigerator is Sam's latest fascination. He will speed crawl for it anytime it is open; he wants to see what is inside so badly. I was cleaning it this week, and of course he took the opportunity to truly explore this curious apparatus full of cool and colorful things of varying shapes, smells and textures.

Not only has Sam totally shunned all things pureed or from a jar, he won't even let anyone else feed him. He wants to do it all by himself. If I try to put something in his mouth, he spits it out immediately. Then he will pick it back up with his chubby little fingers and, if he can get it into his mouth on his own, he will eat it. Needless to say he makes quite a mess this way, and the food that falls onto his lap or the floor is usually enough to feed a small army.

Look at this messy kid! He must have been really hungry this day as I started him off with some avocados and hummus on bread while I was making dinner, and he ate a ton of it. Then, when dinner was ready (a spaghetti-type dish with rice noodles and broccoli) he ate a ton of that.

I think he might be wearing more than he ate: look at the piece of tomato hanging from his ear, and I had to wipe sauce out of his eyes more than once.

Sammy just LOVES his daddy. Whenever daddy gets home from work, the gushing, joyous smile Sam gives him is truly heartwarming. If I happen to be holding Sam when Paul walks in, he will literally try to jump from my arms toward his daddy. It is such a perfect, amazing exchange.

And what a lucky little boy Sam is to have such a dedicated, hard-working father. Paul really is a terrific dad, doing more for and with his little boys than any other dad I know. Poopy diaper? No problem. Noses full of green, slimey and snotty boogers? Paul has it under control (and not everyone knows this, but Paul actually has a deep-seated apprehension for phlegm or any respiratory secretion). Bath time? Paul will handle it. (hmmm--what do they need me for? Maybe I will go on vacation.)

June is not only a month to celebrate our gratitude to Paul for all he does for us as a father, but it is also the month of his birthday. My friend Sara's husband's birthday is in June also, and we started to plan a combined birthday-night-out for them, complete with dinner and dancing at our favorite "cougar" bar. When he was informed of this, he told me point-blank that in no way was that going to be his birthday celebration. Instead, he opted to stay in, and I fixed him his favorite dinner--Jambalaya, and of course a chocolate-y birthday cake that I unfortunately overcooked. At least the frosting was good (the only part that Max will eat anyway).

Brothers...

It is so much fun to see them interact. Max can do something so random and Sam, who is always watching him, will crack up. No one can get Sam to laugh as hard or smile as big as Max can. They definitely do have their rivalrous moments, but they really are best pals.

Fun in the yard on a nice, sunny day.

Where to begin?

Where to begin... If only I had time to update more regularly I wouldn't have a plethora of photos and happenings about which to write and be left with the temptation to procrastinate. I hate to think about blogging as a chore, since I truly enjoy recording our memories. But in a sense I guess I am trying to make our everyday experiences more memorable. It is nice to have something to look back on and read about and remember so fondly, even something that at any given moment would seem ordinary. My boys are growing and changing so fast and in every day there are so many things that I don't want to forget... Even sometimes the things that I find a little tiring or a little burdensome at the moment--I just think about how fleeting these times are and suddenly they aren't so bad. For instance, I know I have complained a little about Sam not sleeping in his crib. Well, guess what? He sleeps in his crib now and I no longer get to cuddle and snuggle him all night long. And it literally happened over night. I wasn't even trying, and all of a sudden he is sleeping in his crib--all by himself, rarely even making a peep until 12 hours later. Score! Right? I don't think I was ready, but obviously he was. Unfortunately, this only happens during the night: he still refuses to sleep in his crib for naps. He will honestly only nap snuggled up to my boobs. Or in the carseat in the moving car. I have tried to get him to cry it out--several times. But after more than an hour my heart is too broken to continue and I give in before he does. It's definitely inconvenient and I don't know what to do. But, I keep reminding myself that it is temporary. Pretty soon he will not want to be snuggling and cuddling with me like that in the middle of the day at all, then I will be pining for this time right now.

A little development news: I took Sam in for his 9 month (holy cow!) checkup last week and we received some bad news. He still has a bilateral ear infection. I had taken him in a couple of weeks prior because I knew something was wrong, and they spotted the infection and put him on an antibiotic. Well, it didn't work. The doctor says they have been seeing numerous cases of resistant strains and the only thing that works is tubes in their ears. So, we will try one more round of antibiotics and go from there. The poor little guy. This is his fourth round of antibiotics in his 9 months of life (all during the last 5 months). Aside from that, everything is going great. He weighs 19 lbs 11 oz, and is 28 inches long. He has just sprouted his bottom two teeth (finally)! And, he is pulling up onto everything and crawling around so efficiently (and quickly).

Max had the opportunity once again to visit a horse farm for one of our play group activities. I don't even need to elaborate other than to say he had a blast. He wore his cute little cowboy hat and boots that cousin Brooks gave him and he was so stinkin adorable.

Here he is playing with a cat. This kid loves cats.

And he got to give the horses treats of carrots and apples, a task that he enjoyed so much that he got a little agitated when the snacks were all gone and he had nothing more to offer his equine friends.

Then, he got to ride a pony. Twice. This was the first time he had ridden such a small looking horse and he really liked it. He would have stayed on all day had he been able. Even with the helmet.

Another one of Max's pastimes is trying on my shoes. Or my lipstick and mascara. I typically try to keep the latter away from him out of fear that he will make a horrendous mess. But, I don't see any harm in letting him try on my shoes.

Hmmm. Which of these should I wear?

They go great with his "Run DMC" shirt, don't you think? (For my family who have no idea who Run DMC is: they were a famous hip-hop group during the 1980s--definitely Paul's influence here.) So I know that after that explanation my brother Jake is thinking that those shoes definitely go with a t-shirt whose logo depicts a hip-hop band. Just remember, Jake, that in the above pictures he is wearing a cowboy hat and boots. I am just trying to ensure that my kid is very well-rounded :)

But isn't he so stinking cute? I just love this amazing little guy. He is growing so much and getting smarter every day, and he is such a good boy. Most of the time. A while ago I asked my mom a question about our behavior (my siblings and I) back in the day when we were around Max's age. It was shortly after the Mother's Day from hell when it seemed like I wanted to be anywhere but with my extra crabby, whiney kids. I said something to her like: "Don't they know it's Mother's Day? Can't they just be really good or even kind of good on my day? Was I like this? Did I put you thru this?" And mom's response went something like: "No, you guys were so good and so sweet. You were good all the time." I thought she had to be lying, but she was serious. She said that while it was true we probably acted out and frustrated her from time to time, that, "You just really don't remember those things--all I remember is how much I loved it and how wonderful you each were." Wow. Those were really enlightening words. I needed to hear those then and I reflect back on them often. Max really is a good boy. In fact, while I may be a little biased, he is definitely better behaved and smarter than any other little kid, and he is really polite and considerate. He is an awesome kid. And while I definitely find myself yelling at him once in a while (or twice in a while--if not more), it is never anything major that would stand out in my mind for longer than a day. I know that I will always think back on these years with tears in my eyes because I am enjoying and loving them so much.

I have mentioned before how Max does not like to smile or hold still for the camera. I beg and plead and I get pictures like this:

But every once in a while if I am really lucky and really quick I can get pictures like this:

So Sammy has become a rather proficient crawler and wants to get and go everywhere (I can't even get him to sit still for pictures anymore). He can even scale the various obstacles and toys in his path when he really wants to get somewhere. Typically he wants to be anywhere Max is, and he will follow his older brother around as quickly as he can go on all fours. The other day we were in the playroom and he decided to crawl under the rocking horse. He looked so cute sitting under there that I couldn't resist a photo (or three or four).

During the month of May we PA Blanes got to enjoy the company of both the VT Blanes and the NY Blanes. It is nice to have family around! Mimi, Joey and Koa (the VT Blanes) came first. Of course, Max loved cuddling up to Mimi...

And Max and Sammy enjoyed playing with Koa

And Max still asks if he can talk to Joey on the phone, he misses her so!

We decided to take the boys to a kid-oriented amusement park in Lancaster called Dutch Wonderland. It had all kinds of fun little rides just for the kids.

Here is Max and daddy going on the sky ride.

This bulldozer ride was pretty lame (at least in terms of excitment), but Max loved the fact that he was sitting inside a bulldozer so he had to ride this one again and again and again.

But this one was fun--and we even got a little splash

This particular ride was the first and best in my opinion. The boys sat on it all by themselves (there was some random adult in the middle) and the thing darted up and down. I sense a little apprehension in this first picture--His face has that what did I just get myself into kind of look. But, Koa is sitting next to him--all will be okay.

But as the ride got going, his face erupted into a huge, delighted smile

and he and koa had to ride this ride like four more times. Fortunately, the park was dead the day we went and they didn't have to ever wait in line, they just had to go thru the motions. Koa and Max couldn't quite understand why they had to keep getting off, just to walk all the way back around and get back on. Confusing, I know.

Probably one of Max's most enjoyable moments of the outing was his introduction to...

fluffy, ooey-gooey stuff.

Yumity-yummy stuff. Max was like a junkie. He couldn't eat the cotton candy fast enough; he didn't say a word to anyone until that thing was gone.

Did you know that in the mid 18th-century before machines, cotton candy was an expensive splurge not widely available to the common population? Weird.

Honestly, any time Max looks at all of the pictures I took from their day at the amusement park, the only thing he talks about is how he wants more cotton candy.

Oh, the sticky little clings of dyed sugar on his chin. Don't ya wanna just kiss them off?

As he gazes at his treat, I think Max is pondering deeply about whether the humidity could be measured by how quickly the spun sugar shrivels into a coarse mess when it absorbs moisture. Hmmm...

It was a pretty muggy day, after all my genius boy (who has just transformed into a sticky, tired, sugared-up two-year-old who didn't get a nap today).

At the end of the day, we all decided that it was well spent and entirely worth it. I have to say that this was officially the first amusement park visit for me that didn't include a lot of thrill-inducing rides. I must be getting old...

The following week, we were graced with the presence of the NY Blanes. Of course you knew you would be making it into the book, right Uncle Muck and Auntie D? That's what Max affectionately calls Marc (Paul's brother) and Deleah, and the book is a hard-bound adaption of my blog. As Marc stated, I am a historian (I blame it on my mormon roots). He also pointed out, when he was browsing thru my book, that future generations are going to look in amazement at the simple life we live and the weird looking toys that Max has in so many pictures. That is bizarre to think about since I think our life is anything but simple, but when one really thinks about it, he is probably right.

Paul spent a lot of the time slaving over a hot grill. He made us some amazing grilled vegetable sandwiches for lunch, and for dinner he expertly grilled (on a cedar-plank) wild sockeye salmon to sheer perfection. Yummy, baby! Thanks!

Auntie D can blow the biggest and best bubbles in the world!

We all truly enjoyed their visit and are already talking about taking a trip to stay with them in NYC in the fall.