Soccer in the Snow

(I realize this is not a great photography moment, but I was trying to capture the view of the snowstorm through our front window...it kind of felt like looking into Narnia--just beautiful snow everywhere--no blue sky, no color except white and the black of the trees.)

Jack has developed a surprising love and gift for soccer; neither Eric nor I played, and neither of us have ever demonstrated soccer techinques to him, but Jack is actually quite good. He runs up and down the sidewalk dribbling the ball in a straight line; not bad for a 22-month-old! (And yes, I am aware that he is playing soccer with a basketball. He actually has a great freethrow-ish shot: he bends his knees and taps the ball on the ground a few times and then shoots the ball in a perfect arc, complete with the classic frozen hand positioning as the ball leaves his hands. Ok. That didn't really make sense. I'll have to try to get a picture of it so you'll understand what I so badly just tried to explain...)

Why, son?

I am currently working on a post about Jack as he is nearing his second birthday. But I couldn't resist posting this picture as a preview, and as an illustration of what we are facing these days. This lovely situation happens at nearly every meal, and I just don't understand it. Why, why why? I say through clinched teeth and fake smile every time. I have tried two approaches: first of all, the "don't give him attention" method, but he didn't seem to care that I didn't seem to care. So, next I tried the "sit with him and grab the bowl before he can dump it on his head" strategy. After my first few tries it began to feel like a game; Jack would hold his bowl tightly with both hands and just look at me, as if daring me to take it away from him. Then in one swift movement it was on his head, and he was laughing--at me, I'm sure of it. The few times that I have been successful at retrieving the bowl, he resorts to putting his dirty spoon or fork on his head and rubbing it all over. Or, if I am really smart and grab all the utensils at once, he just uses his hands. Rubs his sticky, gooey, carrot-covered hands through his hair repeatedly. I just don't get it.

I suppose it also wouldn't be the end of the world, except that peas, parmesan cheese, and black beans do not smell so great after a few hours. This means that he would preferrably be put in the bath and scrubbed down after each meal, to avoid such horrid smells. However, the start of this odd mealtime habit unfortunately coincided with a sudden and strong distaste for bathtime...so after getting frustrated by the dinner mess we then have to follow that up with a tantrum-ridden, kicking-screaming bash as we try to undress him, place him in the water, actually get water on his head (let alone soap!) to get him cleaned up. Imagine doing that three times a day. Did I mention I also have a three month old?

Fortunately, as of this week he has lost his bath phobia and instead now runs to the bath with great pleasure. But now we face a new problem: he actually likes the bath and so three baths a day is just a bit too much water for my conscience to waste, not to mention the loss of hot water that we experience in our house! So now we just rub his head down with a washcloth after his meal, and stick to one bath before bed. I have never known a toddler to bathe so often.

Stay tuned for more Jack news. Twenty-two months is quite an interesting age; while I love him dearly, I will certainly be glad when we have moved on from this particular stage. I'm pooped.

Sweet Things

Ellie's Valentine rose from Daddy. Or as Eric put it to me, "The rose is for Ellie, but the gesture is for you!" (I played around in Picasa with the lighting and coloring here, as my original shot didn't have very good lighting)

Jack "helped" me make cupcakes for Valentine's Day; he enjoyed watching the mixer blend the ingredients together, and he did a great job putting the baking cups in the cupcake pan, and taking them out, and putting them back in, and taking them out, .... When I handed this to him covered in batter he was a little unsure, but after whiffing the sugary smell he dove in and thoroughly enjoyed himself! Of course, he had no idea what awaited him at the end of this endeavor...

Jack really enjoyed the end result of all our hard labor... (He actually grabbed an un-iced cupcake off the pan before I could grab him and just took a huge bite off the top, followed by a resounging, "MMMMM!!!")

In case you can't read it, Jack's Valentine shirt says, "I enjoy ice cream, insightful cartoons, and long walks in the playground." Too cute to pass up (especially from the clearance rack)!

Tired of posing for the camera

Ellie's first Valentine's Day...already a sweetheart to us!

Aww...it wasn't planned, but that is actually Daddy's hand she's holding...

Recent Snowfall

The morning after: random items on our back porch...yes, the lid to that black can is flat--that's all snow!

This picture is taken from our front door, looking out on our front steps, sidewalk, and street.

"The Durbin Five"

This past week five noteworthy things occurred in the Durbin household that I decided were also blog-worthy. Here they are, in no particular order…

1) The local public library finally reopened—Our library has been under construction for the past year; they finally closed the entire place down in November in order to finish the inside renovation and rearranging. They reopened this past week, and with great anticipation Eric, Jack, Ellie and I made our first trip on Friday morning. It is beautiful. New furniture, large fireplaces, a huge winding staircase to the upper level, darling plush chairs for kids to sit on, a table with puzzles and other toys for the tots…the children’s area even has a short table (with tiny chairs!) with computers set up for games. Jack, of course, was immediately drawn to the computer with the Elmo game (it combines two of his loves: computers and Elmo—can’t beat that!). Just so you don’t think we are total nerds (even though deep down I know I am!), this reopening is a momentous event for us because it used to be a weekly thing to do, whether it was to check out new books, to return our (ahem) overdue books, to stock up on Sesame Street DVD’s, or just to let Jack have a place to run around and explore. As the winter months (and subsequent indoor play) have dragged on and on, we have missed having this outlet, and we are so very happy to have it back! I found myself saying over and over, “Oh! Books!”

2) Ellie learned to roll over—I realize this is a milestone that has occurred in most every child’s life, but it is still, nonetheless, exciting when it is your child. As exciting and cute as it is to find her on her back like a capsized beetle, flailing away and not sure what to do about it…it also means many interrupted naps and nighttime sleep. Oh well…at least I know Jack made it past this stage so I’m not too anxious about it.

3) We had a blizzard—You may have heard about us on the news for this one…it snowed here for almost 24 hours on Tuesday, and left us with over a foot of snow on the ground. It’s been beautiful, but also very, very cold, with temperatures close to or below zero all week. It snowed again last night, actually, and we woke up to about three additional inches. Jack has enjoyed it for the most part; he sure loves putting on his Buzz Lightyear boots! It’s funny to me when I stop and think about how absurd it is that we have so many accessories for each of us: hats, mittens/gloves, scarves, boots, warm coats, long johns, and a snowsuit for Jack…just to go outside. I guess that’s what happens when you grow up in the Midwest: spending 10 minutes just getting ready to go outdoors is normal.

4) I finished my first Sudoku puzzle—I discovered Sudoku in one of those in-flight magazines on our trip home from Boston last year, and then found another one in a newspaper a few months ago, and for the life of me I couldn’t complete it. I would get to the very last box and nothing would work right. It was driving me crazy. I finally purchased a book of Sudoku puzzles to give to my Dad, and as I was looking through it I discovered they had “helpful hints” at the beginning that gave some tips for how to attack them…and after reading this I finally, finally finished one—can I just tell you, internet friends, how amazing it felt?? I don’t know when I last felt that successful; it reminded me of my high school geometry class, when I would finally solve some big solution. Ahh, Sudoku…it does a stay-at-home-mom’s brain good. (Warning: while bringing immense satisfaction, these games are also addictive...I have neglected many household chores and other things on my to-do list as a result of my new Sudoku obsession...watch out!)

5) Eric and I went on a date sans children—After putting the kids down for bed on Friday night, Eric and I left the monitors with Rob and Janet and headed out for a Valentine’s dinner at Houlihan’s--our first date without kids since Ellie was born, and yes, it was heavenly! The food was delicious, and the conversation was much needed and good for my soul. At one point I half-sarcastically asked Eric, “So, what have you learned in our almost-five years of marriage?” Thankfully this question spurned much discussion and sharing and was immensely encouraging for both of us, I think. What a gift of an evening!

Ellie at Three Months

Ellie is three months old this week, and she is so big already! This is her new Bumbo seat, a gift from Aunt Kim. She loves it; it allows her to look around and watch everything, which keeps her quite happy! Look at that smile; that is what keeps us running these days. She's also begun to coo and might possibly have uttered her first laugh tonight, at Dadddy (of course!). What joy she and Jack bring to our lives each day!

Yes, we finally did it: the nursery now has TWO cribs in it. I know that we have two children, but there's something about seeing both of their beds in one room that really brings it home. The thing is, they haven't actually slept in the same room yet; Ellie has started to fuss during the night again so we have her in the pack n' play in our room for the time being. But here are a couple pictures of Jack and Ellie's room.

"Maybe Next Year..."

I guess even my cutie-pie son couldn't help the Bears win the Superbowl. What a sad, sad game.

Christmas in Chicago, 2006

Durbin-Whitaker-Bennett Family

See the child running loose in the background of this picture? Yes, that's my child. Jack thoroughly enjoyed running all over the front campus of Wheaton as we tested out the lighting for our family Christmas picture; I'm sure everyone else enjoyed watching me frantically run (something I have not done in quite a few years) after him as he headed toward the street.

Our traditional Whitaker Christmas meal: grilled salmon! Every year my dad comes up with some new, interesting way to marinate and/or cook salmon...this year's Island Teriyaki marinade was a real winner!

Blueberry-peach cobbler, two apple pies, all made completely from scratch by moi.

Jack and Mika watching Elmo. By the look on Jack's face, I'm not sure he's too happy to be sitting so close to his cousin...

...But he sure does like to dance for her!

Mikaila loved just about everything about Jack; all he had to do was walk across the room--didn't matter if he was grumping or cheerful--she would smile and squeal.

Jack and Papa's game: Jack throws the ball down the stairs to Papa, who throws it back up to Jack, who then makes this face and laughs gleefully.

Ooooo! Baby!!

Trying to get a picture of the three of them...took about four of us to hold Jack down long enough for this picture.

And they're done!

Uncle Jonathan and Ellie

One of Ellie's first almost-smiles.