Home Depot

When Ian was very little we joked that he would grow up thinking that we lived at the Home Depot.

He knows the difference between Home Depot and Lowes, and has his favorite parts of the store. The tractors (lawn mowers), any set of stairs that say "employee only," the refrigerator section where he can open and close all the doors, and the shower section where he can hide in the various showers and door displays.

Yesterday when we went to buy some more moulding, we found that they already had Christmas stuff out. Officially our first sight of Christmas in the stores. Not as bad as it could be I guess -- Fall officially started 6 days ago so at least it is not still summer.

Ian had a lot of fun. It was raining and we geared him up in his cowboy rain boots and his fire fighter rain coat. He had a great time splashing in the parking lot puddles and running around the outdoor section (which actually still had Halloween stuff).

After the Home Depot run we hit McDonald's that has an indoor play gym. There was a little girl birthday party going on and... wow. Our future spread out before us in ear piercing shrieks. Girls are LOUD!

The pictures here are the first ones that show his new haircut. I took him to SnipIts and he did really good. The brows were lowered and the chin wrinkled in distress, but he didn't cry or freak out. I wish I had a shot of him in the barber's chair. He was adorable.

Next time I think I will ask them to keep it a little long on the top. He looks great with it short... but so old! Where is my baby boy?

Mad About Color

Today's wish list item is the Custom Knit Funky Newborn Munchkins Hat Stocking Cap red and white stripes with cord and tassel from Mad About Color on Etsy.com.

I had a very strong desire to purchase one of these for Teddy in advance. Only a picture that Gwyn sent -- of Nic and her on the beach -- reminded me that they live in a sunny piece of California that probably never requires warm knit hats.

Luckily, I live in New England. A popular comedian once said that we have four seasons here: "Almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction." Perfect hat weather. And Evie will be just over a month old at Christmas, perfect this hat weather.

Actually, the entire Mad About Color shop reads to me like Temptation.com. As I mentioned before, my mom and my Aunt both have the amazing knitting skills to turn out pieces of clothing like artwork. Me... not so much. But I have been bred with a love and appreciation for this kind of work and for anyone who can create it.

And when I can place it on my baby (my own work of art) and display him or her for the day care ladies to coo over -- even better!

Many thanks to Joanne for allowing me to post about the items in her shop -- and many MANY congratulations on her new baby grandson.

Fleece on Earth

I have another item for the wish list, and again it's been something I've had my eyes on for years. This time it is the Fleece on Earth striped wish cap and matching star sweater.

The wish cap has a tassel on it with letter beads. You can spell out the baby's name, or any other meaningful word you choose.

I am very fortunate to have members of my family who enjoy knitting and do it very well. My Mom made Ian the most beautiful sweaters and booties and my Aunt Jan made him an amazing bunny cap that was the envy of everyone who saw it.

Unfortunately, I lack something -- time, skill, patience, something -- and I have been unable to make anything but a few mangled lengths of yarn that vaguely resemble scarves. My wallet, on the other hand, has the ability to magically make beautiful things appear on my doorstep with the simple click of the buy button. 'Those who can, make. Those who can't, purchase.'

A wish cap with Evelyn's name on it is definitely in our future. The sweater is a little bit expensive... but I am talking myself into it.

Baby Legs

Next item up for the wish list is Baby Legs!

I found this amazing website and bought some for Sophia on her first Christmas. They are so cute, I am drooling over the opportunity to get some for my little girl!

The only question now is... what color?

I love just about all of them, but I have to admit -- I am a total sucker for the rainbow ones. They are so bright and cheerful.

When I revisited the site recently I realized that they now have a line called "Modish." These don't appeal to me very much but they underscore a recent fashion trend. Brown, pinks, polka dots, and paisley are back. You cannot look at little girl clothes without seeing these colors, and scrap booking materials are covered with them.

Creative Memories actually has a paisley paper punch so that you can punch out your own paisley-shaped pieces of brown and pink paper. I even considered getting one. Which shows you how seductive new fashions can be... even paisley ones.

While I've seen some very cute clothes in these colors (baby legs included) they are just not my thing. I am trying very hard to let this stretch of fashion time pass me by without having too many polka dots invade my wardrobe or photographs.

But Baby Legs leg warmers... these I am really looking forward to. Many thanks to Sam and the Baby Legs team for allowing me to post about them here!

Fathers and sons

Sometimes I think about all the issues that kids have with their parents. Everyone seems to have parent baggage. Misunderstandings, frustrations, hurt, self-doubt. I look at Ian and wonder when it will hit us. Puberty? Or are we sowing the seeds even now?

But then... I look at him again. The way he curls up against me and sleeps. The way he plays with JD. And smiles. And laughs. And who cares about puberty? He is our happy heart now.

He loves to do all the things that JD and I do. He sits on my lap and runs my LotRO characters around, and he plays Rockband with JD. He TOTALLY has the Lars from Metallica thing going. Whenever he plays the drums he sticks his tongue out and looks so serious.

He doesn't quite get the strumming concept but he does understand that if he hits it right he can "break the colors" on the Rockband screen.

I haven't figured out how I feel about raising a gamer, but I suppose it is inevitable. Hopefully some of the writing and engineering love gets passed on as well.

On the Edge, by Ilona Andrews

One of my newest favorite paranormal/urban fantasy authors is Ilona Andrews. I got sucked into her Kate Daniels series and now she is coming out with what will hopefully become a new series (though at the moment the plan is only for two books). First book up: On the Edge.

Andrews is one of those authors I am really pushing JD to read. The paranormal, fantasy, and horror elements are very strong. The romance elements are understated, serving mainly to ramp up the emotional intensity of the characters. Every time JD acts as Game Master for a World of Darkness campaign I realize all over again how much he would LOVE these books.

To promo the new release the authors are running a contest. To enter I need to post this lovely image on my blog:



Chick with a shotgun. I can't wait to read it! The prize is a Sony eReader... very sweet. (Mom, if I win, this one is for you!)

On their website Andrews is also running a promo and the grand prize is to be in their beta reader's group for the next year. Wow! To enter this contest I have to show proof of pre-order. I hope this will do:

Either one of those prizes would be amazing. I am looking forward to On the Edge. The snippets that Andrews regularly posts on their website already have me emotionally invested in the characters. Especially the two little boys (as I am a bit preoccupied by boy child rearing myself these days).

IF you are interested, you can visit the Ilona Andrews website at http://www.ilona-andrews.com/ Navigate to the Kate Daniels section and you should be able to find excerpts for each of the books. The excerpt for the first book is what hooked me and wow, the rest of the book definitely lives up to the first chapter. And they just keep getting better!

Sleeping like the dead

Over the past month my pregnancy-related snoring has really hit extreme levels (much worse than my non-pregnancy snoring). JD and I have been taking turns sleeping on the couch.

Last night it was my turn to take the couch and it was really quite comfortable until about 4:30 am when the little boy stumbled in and climbed on top of me. Apparently he has decided that his baby sister makes a good pillow. Urg.

Eventually, in the way shared by both children and cats, he ended up with the whole couch and I ended up with the floor. It was time for me to get up anyway so I puttered around quietly, doing my morning routine. Not a twitch out of Ian the whole time. JD got up and also began his, much louder, puttering. Still no twitching.

He was dead to the world.

One of his fingers twitched a little when I took these pictures, but other than that... wow. I am a pretty sound sleeper but this kid has me beat. We dread the day we are trying to get his teenage butt out of bed and onto the high school bus. I told JD we are investing in a fire hose.