MEMORIES

2003 - FALL

Our weekly routine was altered when Brandon became a preschooler. They are now with me on Mondays and Fridays and I've found those days in between allow just enough time for me to regroup in preparation for our next day together. They are both inquisitive and will use their ingenuity to solve problems including accessing juice in the refrigerator, crackers in the cupboard and candy on the kitchen counter.

With the change to cooler weather, some outdoor items have come indoors. The most popular is their picnic table which also serves as a mini-jungle gym. Brandon likes to be a dog and uses it as his house. To Sophia it's a mountain to be climbed.

In early October Brett stopped to spend the night on his way to a bike race in Canada. He had his bike with him, so he, Jeff, a friend traveling with Brett, and Brandon took a short ride through the complex before the "big guys" went for a longer, tougher ride.

Brandon's now experimenting with riding while holding on with only one hand, and is even "popping (mini) wheelies." He's also able to balance on the scooter he got this summer. One of his favorite activities is to ride the scooter down the slope of the neighbor's driveway and turn into the lane.

I hold my breath, fearing a "wipeout", but he negotiates the 90-degree turn flawlessly every time. Occasionally he will take a spill on the bike or scooter and once he assures himself he's not mortally injured, will, in a nonchalant voice, diagnose what caused the mishap. Generally he shrugs and declares, "I turned too sharp." He has no fear but he's learning to be cautious.

NOVEMBER

The weather was beautiful the first of November, so the party was held outdoors. While guests ate their cake and ice cream, Dawn encouraged Sophia to dig into her "smash" cake (made especially for the child's first birthday) and then helped Sophia open presents.

Entertaining Brandon and Sophia, or at a minimum, keeping them out of troublesome situations, requires advance planning and lots of luck. Child-size cardboard boxes kept them occupied off and on for several days. Brandon immediately set about decorating his and then moved in.

Sophia had a box like Brandon's, but found that what fits in one box may not fit into another.

There's something incredibly interesting to them about a two-seater airplane. Sophia sits in front because she insists upon standing if Brandon "drives" from first seat, and Brandon said, "That's dangerous."

Brandon likes to build and Sophia prefers to look at books. Her favorite has textures she likes to feel, the most popular being a puppy with fur.

Copyright ©2003-2004 Kitty Park

2003 - SUMMER

IT'S JULY...

I think the heat of summer arrived on the day of the summer solstice, June 21. We had a rainy spring which meant it was also very cloudy. And cool. The good thing was that trees and flowers bloomed prolifically without human intervention. The downside was that two days of sunshine(and therefore no rain) meant the blooming plants got a little snitty. Leave to run errands in the morning, smiling at the garden color on your way out, and return to find those same plants wilted to a near lifeless green puddle. So you grab the hose and give them a drink, hoping they'll revive in time to soak up the rain that you see approaching on the horizon.

Brandon and Sophia are growing so fast. Feed them, love them, bathe them and the days are as routine as they can be with little people. Brandon spent a good part of July down at Nana and Pap's, playing in the pool and being spoiled. In return, he entertained them with his imagination. Joined by cousins who had extended stays as well, Nana said that as visits grew longer, bed times became earlier and earlier, moving from a summer shut-eye time of 10:00 for the kids to 8:00 for everyone!

While Brandon socialized, Sophia stayed home and taught herself to climb stairs. That little girl is headstrong. Although the technique of descending stairs was demonstrated several times (belly down, feet first), she persists in going head first, thank you very much. Doing the bear crawl, Sophia moves as fast on all fours as we adults do on two feet.

Sophia will actually hold her bottle now if someone else won't. We've tried introducing the dripless sippy cup, but if she's thirsty, she lets us know to quit fooling around. As for food, we know when she's full. Rather than turn her head to refuse a bite, she blows raspberries, spraying orange or green blobs on whomever holds the spoon. She's demonstrated interest in what the "real food" eaters are dining on and amuses us with her facial expressions as she feels texture and tastes flavor. She likes green beans but regards peas as tiny orbs to be gleefully scattered from her tray.

Sophia has four teeth with a fifth nearly through. She bites. We know she understands some words, and she recognizes some of the sign language we've introduced. When we sign "bottle," she grins. We think she's saying "baba" (bottle) as well as dada and mama. Of course that could also just be our own wishful thinking!

It's become a tradition every July to take Brandon (and now Sophia) to the island to take pictures in the blooming crown vetch. With all the rain this year, we nearly missed our opportunity. Of course, Brandon's still impatient with posing and our photo sessions interfered with Sophia's nap time. However, we did get some pictures to continue the photo history.

MINI-REUNION

Brett came north in mid-July to compete in both International Cycling Classic's Superweek in Wisconsin and Wendy's Classic in Columbus, Ohio. Dawn and I drove to Columbus with Sophia and Brandon to watch Thursday's and Friday's evening races. Although he didn't finish the race Thursday, Brett was in the money on Friday. Brandon was a sponge as he watched Brett prepare for the races, warming up on a trainer, a device that enables the rider to pedal against resistance without going anywhere. Once back home, Brandon elevated the training wheels of his bike so that he could emulate Uncle Brett. Within days, he requested that his training wheels be removed so he could race like Uncle Brett.

Racing like Uncle Brett

SEPTEMBER SONG...

We marked the end of summer with a trip to the zoo and now Brandon has begun preschool. The first day was traumatic but eventually he settled in. The second day was less troubling for him, but there may be a need for a larger refrigerator as artwork will be plentiful.

Sophia has eight teeth and is walking. She still doesn't sign like Brandon did. Her sign for "up" as in get-me-out-of-this-highchair is to raise her arms over her head. When she wants down, she uses the same motion to slide through her carrier's grip. She is not a child of indecision nor is she easily distracted from gaining access to items dangerous to toddlers.

2003 - WINTER INTO SPRING

JANUARY

The holidays are past and a new year lies ahead. I look forward to watching Brandon as he makes the transition from toddler into a charming little boy. With my cameras close by, I hope to occasionally capture Brandon and Sophia in memorable moments.

BRANDON'S THIRD BIRTHDAY - JANUARY 4

Sophia weighed a pound more than Brandon when she was born, 9 pounds, 7 ounces, as opposed to Brandon's 8 pounds, 8 ounces. After two months, the difference has disappeared and their weights and lengths are just about the same. These are pictures of them taken in the same clothes on the same blanket at the same age. Only their faces are different, and not remarkably so.

Brandon at Two Months

Sophia at Two Months

FEBRUARY

Time passes so quickly. Sophia's now three months old and Brandon has graduated to big boy's underwear. Sophia continues to voice her disgruntlement at slow service when she's hungry; Brandon's learned the magic of asking "please?" If one 'please' doesn't work, he'll string together several, each one more pleading and loud than the one before.

Brandon continues to oversee Sophia's care and instructs adult caretakers to feed her if she's crying or, if she's just eaten, burp her or give her the pacifier. Brandon has also been known to demand that we take her to another room if her noisy fussiness interferes with his own quiet time. It appears they're developing a relationship as well. There have been some instances where Brandon's attention and voice can silence her crying when parental efforts fail.

MARCH

April is just around the corner. Brandon enjoys listening to music and likes to perform as well. He'll often hold an imaginary microphone as he dances and sings, mostly for his own entertainment, although we may watch as long as we remain silent. He also finds instruments interesting. Recently he cleared out the cupboard where I store cooking utensils and carried the dutch oven and lid to the family room. The din of banging on the Lincoln Logs container and kettle lid while seated on the pot led him to request earmuffs. I found a pair, but he complained that he wanted blue, not red, and insisted that we go to the store to buy some. We didn't, and I was threatened with a spanking.

Sophia now turns from her belly to her back, often during the night. Thus, to the need for Dawn to rise during the wee hours to feed Sophia has now been added the necessity to respond to the sound of Sophia wailing to be returned to her stomach.

Brett lives to race. It's his passion. And sometimes it's his nemesis. My custom has been to visit him in Orlando in March, shortly after the spring racing season begins, so I can be a spectator at local events. This year when I arrived he was already off the bike and recuperating from a nasty wreck. The picture below was taken 10 days after the accident. As soon as he can turn the pedals again, he'll be astride "Apollo," the new bike built for him by his team's sponsor, Olympus.

Brett, 10 days post-wreck

Can sit in the saddle, can't pedal

APRIL

Brandon still can't be bothered to stop playing to have his picture taken. See- ing the camera, he turns away saying, "Not now, Grand- ma, later." This day I got lucky. The weather was warm enough to take a walk out- doors. I promised we'd go out if I could take a picture (or two or three).

Brandon asked if he could feed Sophia. Why say no? When I finish the task, she has cereal from hairline to chin, ear to ear and slathered on both hands. Brandon could do no worse. In fact, he did better than I do. She opened her mouth wide, didn't blow bubbles with the overflow and allowed him to wipe her face periodically. Sibling symbiosis.

JUNE

The sound you just heard was time flying by. May has come and gone. Brandon and Sophia are maneuvering to establish their hierarchy. Whatever Sophia's playing with, Brandon wants whether it's his toy or hers. As long as she can get an item from her hand into her mouth, Sophia's not fussy about the object, although Brandon's brightly colored toy cars are a favorite.

It's been interesting to compare the developmental differences of the two. Brandon held his bottle from the time he was six months old; at nearly eight months, Sophia expects you to do it while she twiddles her hair. Brandon walked at eleven months and then learned to crawl; Sophia turns fluidly from belly to back, and just as easily flips back again. She's been sitting alone since mid-May and has now taken some cautionary hand/knees moves. She's just learning to pull up, but doesn't realize that letting go means falling down.

Sophia found her voice and uses it when she's frustrated, hungry or just unhappy with her current situation. While the pitch hasn't broken glass yet, her use of it gets immediate attention. We've begun using sign language as we did with Brandon: "eat," "more," "bottle." Hopefully she gains some control of her hands quickly and will sign her demands rather than scream.

Last weekend the family went down to Matt's folks to celebrate Father's Day. When it was time to return home, Brandon announced he was staying. Daily reports from Nana and Pappap's indicate the child is having the time of his life, as are Matt's mom and dad. Dawn and Matt have called to check on Brandon, and Dawn said when she asked to talk to him, he responded (via Nana) that he was busy and would talk to her later.

As I recall the story, evidently Nana cajoled Brandon into talking by offering a reward: talk to Mommy, get a cookie. He took the phone, explained to Dawn that he wanted her to stop talking and be quiet for just a minute while he put the phone down. In the quiet, Dawn heard Nana ask Brandon where he was going. "To get my cookie," he replied. He returned shortly, cookie in hand, to resume the conversation.