Arithmetic

This morning I told Will that the Badgers had won last night. He showed more enthusiasm than usual, getting out an upbeat "Good!" in the same vein as I say "Good!" when he has a dry diaper in the morning.

"The Badgers have won five games in a row now."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but before that they lost six games in a row."

"But what about before that?"

"Before that they won three in a row."

Will put his spoon down and furrowed his brow. "That would mean they've won ... eight games?"

Yes! Hoping it would have been more at this point, but that's another subject!

We really haven't done much work on addition or math, formally at least, so it's interesting to see him picking this up. Next week I'll have Will figuring out the Badgers' strength of schedule or Ratings Percentage Index ranking.

Hairless or headless?

Monday night I cut my hair for the first time with my new clippers, a model I picked up at Target carrying the tag "You can't mess this up!" I gave it a shot, and true enough I didn't mess it up, but it did come in shorter than expected.

Which is to say just about bald. I didn't mind, but the shortness alarmed Will. He said "Next time be careful Daddy, or you'll cut your head off." Pretty sure they would have put a warning on the box if that was possible.

In his brother's footsteps

Here's a video of Charlie after he found one of Will's toys tonight. Will got this walker from Grandma Linda when he was Charlie's age.

Just like Will, Charlie took off like a shot, doing his best Old Man with a Walker impression.

I think Charlie is going to do really well with it. Especially if we can get Will to stop "helping."



I've included a picture from mid-March 2005 of Will using the toy at Grandma's condo. Notice Will's awful haircut, courtesy of his mother, and one big reason Charlie went to the salon for his first trim.

Look Ma! One hand!

Charlie was born at 2:22 a.m. The maternity ward was incredibly quiet and just one nurse and our doctor were there to witness his arrival.

Our newborn son protested the turn of events with a small, sweet cry accompanied by a protruding lower lip. Scott and I were so enamored by his quiet demeanor that I proclaimed him my "mild child" to Will's "wild child."

Sometimes when he cried, we would start to giggle at the sheer gentleness of it.
At one point, I think Scott even declared it "cute."

Oh, my, how things change in 9 months.

Charlie recently unveiled a cry so angry, so loud and so forceful, I fear the neighbors may call the authorities. This blood-curdling yowl is released whenever we need to change a diaper or a bottle is not delivered at the speed of light.

Well, last night, I outsmarted our little screaming bundle of joy. I was able to feed him and change his diaper simultaneously. One hand held the bottle (he was unwilling to cooperate and hold it himself) and one hand unbuttoned pjs and changed the diaper.

Now, the first-time mom in me would have found all this incredibly unsanitary. But now: I. DON'T. CARE.

The sheer efficiency of the move makes any potential germs completely irrelevant.

I will do anything to avoid that barbaric cry that haunts my dreams ... to shelter my first-born son from this violent sound in the middle of the night ... to prevent a zombie-like husband with nerves like shredded cheddar.

I believe this is Charlie's revenge ... perhaps we shouldn't have found his gentle cry quite so comical.

Love in the Time of Candy

Four hours into a five-hour trip home from Michigan, we stopped for a potty break in Appleton.

Will, as is his habit these days, asked for a treat. He pointed to a display of Tootsie Rolls, Junior Mints and Dots and asked for one of them. I said , "No, you've had enough sweets today."

"How much is it?" he asked.

"Well, they're 3 for a $1.00."

"A dollar? That's not much."

It really wasn't. But I was determined to hold firm.

"Can I get it and give you money from my piggy bank?"

"No. I don't want you to have any more candy."

"How about these?" Combos for about $2.

"Will. No. You could get six Tootsie Rolls for that price!"

"Really? Wow! That's such a great deal!"

He was so impressed by the value of his dollar, I told him he could get them and save them for later.

We got in the van, Will skipping and holding his loot in this hands. He packed them
away in his secret compartment in the van and shouted, "I LOVE you Mommy!"

"I love you too Will!"

"Have you figured it out yet Mommy?"

"What?"

"Have you figured out yet that when you buy me treats, I say 'I love you?'"

Just as grandparents around the world have always suspected.

Crazy Hair Day

Found this one from Cabin Fever Week at daycare ... it was Crazy Hair Day.

Caught between the stairs and New York City

Will has developed the sort of fascination with New York City that is usually reserved for aspiring actors, models and writers.

So I wasn't surprised when he drew a picture of a New York City skyscraper...the surprise was really more that he drew it on the wall.

Scott, who is incredibly homesick for his family had this to say:

"On the wall? Like with pencil? That's awesome!"

Yeah, not so sure he would have thought it was so awesome if he didn't miss Will so much ... or if he knew it was markers, not pencil.

And, actually, I kind of thought it was awesome too. All the windows were smiley faces and he was just so proud when he rushed over and said, "Mommy! I made you a beautiful picture on the wall."

I was so happy that he'd actually taken an interest in drawing that I told him to just go ahead and finish it up ... after I discovered that washable markers actually deserve their name.

One more reason Crayola dominates the crayon and marker market.

Reaching new heights

Charlie has been flirting with the stairs the past few weeks. About a week ago, my mom, who has been here helping me while Scott is in Germany, found him sitting on the bottom stair.

Since no one had witnessed that first step, Charlie went ahead and climbed five more while we watched.

Here are a few pictures from Sunday, when Charlie did a re-enactment of his first climb.

Just for chuckles

Here are a few recent (but pre-haircut) pictures of Charlie. One of them really shows off his bottom two teeth. He's also got one tooth on top but it's hard to get a picture of it without putting your fingers in grave danger.

Before & After :: Charlie's first haircut

Charlie took another step toward big boyhood Friday when he got his first haircut. I took him to my hair-dresser Rachel (pictured with Charlie below). Will helped take some of the pictures ...