Monday, December 27, 2004

A Merry Mikro Christmas

At 21 months, Mikro still doesn't understand Christmas, but he does understand new toys...



He was spoiled rotten by mama & daddy, and the grandparents.



I gave him a wooden workbench set (which I'm making him wait another couple of months to open), a wooden kitchen stuff set (tea pot, frying pan, spatula, eggs sunny side up), a cool town with track for cars and monorail and stuff (which seems to have an electrical problem), several sets of those fisher price see thru blocks with stuff in them, a train set (also not opened yet, because he's too overwhelmed with all the rest), the "pit stop" patterned rug that he's sitting on in the photo, and probably other stuff I've forgotten.



Grandma Maria got him an electronic toy, several outfits, and cash... The insane contingent (my parents, Gramma Betty and Grampa Bob) got him all sorts of cars, trucks, trains, construction vehicles, Little People, an outfit and a savings bond.



My brother the lawyer/electric guitarist got him a very cool electronic upright piano with stool and microphone, which the Boy somehow instinctively understands.



Most surprisingly, he had the attention span to really play with his toys, and only got distracted by the packing material later.



He had a fun, but exhausting, afternoon. By evening, we had crazy overstimulated toddler to contend with...



Luckily, he settled down and played quietly, then took a nap.



It was a quiet day (except for toy noise). We watched Christmas movies and I wore my pajamas all day long. Kev made pasta with pesto sauce for dinner and we had way too many Hershey's lisses for dessert... Called all the relatives after dinner. Watched the boy dismantle the living room...

Friday, December 24, 2004

Merry Christmas to All, and to All a Good Night!

Merry Christmas, Blessed Yule, Happy Holidays to all!



May 2005 bring you joy!

Thursday, December 23, 2004

Off Color Holiday Funny

This is Rated R for language, but it almost made me pee my pants laughing. A bit of rude cartoon social commentary on the secularization of Christmas...

Neurotically Yours Cartoon: No Christmas For You!"

My tree is still not up. It's sitting in a box in the attic, waiting for Kev to go get it. I am deathly afraid of falling, and the pull down ladder is on the rickety side, so I am waiting...

Monday, December 20, 2004

Mikro-isms

Mikro is not exceptionally verbal. He has some words, but he babbles constantly in what seems like a language Kevin and I do not understand. He points, he grabs, he pulls up my shirt, and he growls. We try to get him to repeat words, but he's not real interested. The words he does have, he uses correctly, in context, and sometimes in new and surprising but proper ways. He says: mama, dada, baby, dog, car, this ("siss"), back (as in throw the ball back), dizzy ("deezee")(when he spins around), yum yum (yogurt), nay nay (boobie), numi numi (boobie) and mina mina me (boobie NOW!), and, of course, NO!

Today as he was boobie-ing on the couch, the cat jumped up and tried to get my attention. I figured, maybe this is an opportunity to teach Mikro to say "kitty" (which we have tried before, without any success.) So I pet Titan and say enthusiastically "Kitty! Look, Mikro, this is the kitty!" Mikro watches the cat, gets an evil gleam in his eye, pops off, and lunges for the kitty, who is quicker. So Titan high tails it, and Mikro smiles at me and says, clear as a bell, "Meow, meow!"

Of course, he still won't say "kitty"...

Friday, December 10, 2004

Tis the season or just call me The Grinch

But I'm not particularly jolly. I've done about two thirds of theholiday shopping, but I have yet to write out a single card.

First, the happy. Here's my (if I ever actually get them done) Christmas card photo of MIkro at 20 months old:



Life seems horribly complicated at the moment, with changes being made to all possible forms of insurance, hub being hugely stressed out at the job (and at home)and his pressure relief valve of the moment being yelling at me, a battle royale with two doctors' office over their bookkeeping snafus, a sick cat, a badly behaved dog, a sometimes cranky boy who has gained eight teeth in the past two months and has discovered the word "no", a messy house I daren't decorate, and a partridge in a pear tree...

All in all, not a particularly happy or inspiring time here.

And opening a box of stuff I ordered online for gifts and finding it to be nothing like what was pictured on the web site from which I ordered (considerably cheaper and shabbier construction than depicted) just iced my grouchy cake.