Like mother, like son

During the first two years of Harmon's life, Aimee often was bummed because everyone kept saying how he looks like his Daddy, or does things just like his Daddy did at the same age. Well, things have turned recently, and not only are more people saying Harmon looks more like his Mommy, he also is acting like her more and more every day. So, in honor of Mother's Day 2008, here is a list of the Top 10 ways Harmon is Mommy Jr.:

1. He loves chips and breadsticks. We figure he is at least 30 percent tortilla chip anyway, given his frequent trips to El Taco Loco when he was still in Mommy's bellly.

2. He constantly changes sleeping positions. Harmon is an octopus in his bed. His arms flail all over the place, and rarely does he end the night on his stomach. We often find his arms intertwined in his bed posts, and he has been known to completely switch ends of his bed during the night.

3. He is, in a word, orderly. Although the living room at the end of the day may show otherwise, Harmon loves order. He often lines his cars up in perfect rows, and if you accidentally kick one or nudge one out of place, hell hath no fury like jerking with Harmon's parking lot.

4. He appears to be a worrier. Mommy worries about everything, and often Harmon does the same. They share the same brown eyes, as well as the real estate above -- a wrinkled brow. He mostly is a very happy baby, but there are times he is, like Mommy, concerned.

5. His eyes are Mommy's. As mentioned in No. 4, Harmon shares the same big, brown eyes as Aimee. Early on, when Harmon looked like Daddy, ate like Daddy, played like Daddy, he always shared the eyes with Mommy.

6. He hates to be alone. Like, Mommy, Harmon needs human contact. If you leave to go to another room, he often is only seconds behind. And, two of his favorite phrases of late are, "Where Mommy go?" or "Where Daddy go?" Even if we have been there, literally, the entire time he has.

7. He is shy. Harmon talks a big game, but often when he gets around other people he clams up. He is better with kids his age, and women (that's my boy!).

8. He loves to swing. As Grandma can attest, Harmon loves to go to the park. And swing. And swing. He used to like to go down the slides more than swing, but lately it has been swing, swing, swing. Daddy can't do it because of his motion sickness.

9. He dances and sings. And sings. And sings. From an early age, Harmon has loved to sing and dance. He sings all kinds of songs, from lullabies to nursery rhymes, and often dances to the same songs. He also loves to sing and dance to commercials. An early favorite was 800-588-2300, Empire! Now it is freecreditreport.com.

10. Last, but certainly not least, he LOVES to read. He basically has been reading from the day he was born, but every night we read four books to him, and he often goes into his room alone to read books. Mommy reads lots of books, too. Daddy is another story. As Mommy says, Daddy has a hard time making it through a brochure.

So, while Harmon is a lot like his Daddy, as you can read from this list, his is Mommy's boy, too.

Baseball and Ozzie

So far, baseball season has not been fun for me. The Tigers started 0-7, which was stunning, and although they’ve recovered and are just three games out of first place right now, it’s still aggravating. For a team that was supposed to score five billion runs this year, they can be SO frustrating to watch. They just give away at bats – GOD! They did that this weekend against the Twins and it was awful. After sweeping the Yankees, they turn around and get swept by the TWINS – WTF. God, the Twins, annoying. I told Kevin I would rather lose EVERY game to the White Sox than lose to the Twins! I think I feel this way because I secretly love Ozzie Guillen. I should HATE him and the White Sox. They are a division rival and they totally own my Tigers but I just can’t hate them – because of Ozzie.

I love that he speaks his mind, no matter what anyone says, and I love that he’s so entertaining. There are so few personalities in baseball these days and I think I like him so much because he DOES have a personality. His latest rant is awesome and I must say that I agree with him. The White Sox won the World Series in 2005 yet they still are treated like dog shit in Chicago. The Cubs haven’t won a damn thing in a billion years yet they are the toast of the town each and every year. Baseball can be all kinds of confusing!

FYI – My favorite Ozzie sound byte – click on “AUDIO: Pssh Please!”

Llama drama

Harmon has this book called Llama, Llama, Red Pajama. The gist of it is that this little llama has some separation/bedtime anxiety and is upset because his llama mama leaves his bedroom. He calls her and, when he she doesn’t come right away, he has a fit. When she finally does come to him, she says the following:

“Please stop all this llama drama and be patient for your mama.”

Kevin and I reference “llama drama” AT LEAST 5,469 times each day. Lately, it seems there is SO MUCH llama drama in our lives – whether if be of the family variety or the work variety. And, frankly, I am SO TIRED of all this llama drama.

Who's Your Tiger?

"Who's Your Tiger?" is an advertising slogan for the Detroit Tigers but, since I can't choose just one (I love them all), I'll have to choose my own LITTLE tiger. This is Harmon at the park this past Tuesday.


After not wanting anything to do with his baseball cap for a while, he saw I was wearing one and asked where his was. He then found it and wore it for the next few hours. Then, yesterday when he was with my parents, he wore it all day long. I think he saw that Papa had one on too and I think he noticed it kept the sun out of his eyes. Whatever the reason, I hope he keeps wearing that cap - he looks so cute!

And, just to make myself SO sad (he's gotten SO big), here he is the LAST time he wore a cap - October 2006. This particular day was a bad one - the Tigers lost the AL Central on the last day of the season by losing to the freakin' Royals!


Lastly, here is the FIRST time (June 2006) he ever donned the Old English D! God, so damn cute! I want to eat him up (and I want him to be that age again)!

Booty hurt, booty hurt!

Harmon is never shy about telling anyone about his ailments. If he has even the smallest boo-boo on his hand, or other body parts, he will point to it and tell you all about it five times a day. So, when he told us a few times over the weekend that "my booty hurts," we thought maybe it was just raw or that he had a slight diaper rash. Well, on Saturday he developed a small boil near the top of his little crack, and it kept getting harder and more red. He obviously was agitated by it as the weekend went on. We called the doctor and he wanted to see Harmon. There are a lot of "bugs" going around, and they wanted to make sure it was not something serious, like the Super Bug. The boil was coming to a head, so with Aimee and I helping to hold him down (it felt like we were riding a bull), the doctor drained it last night. Harmon cried so hard, but overall was a good patient. We have to keep an eye on the incision over the next few days to make sure it is healing OK. After wiping his tears, Harmon warmed up to a fire truck sticker from the nurse, and was back to his usual self by the time we hit the parking lot. He told us, "My booty feels better," and "I want to go to the park." He crashed hard about 8 last night, and as of 7:15 this morning, he was was still sawing logs.

Go fly a kite

Yesterday my parents took Harmon to Kensington Metropark to go kite flying. My Mom bought him this awesome jelly fish kite last April but, because the weather seems to ALWAYS suck on Wednesdays, she never got to fly it with him. The weather yesterday, though, was perfect for kite flying – 70s and very breezy.

He must have had a good time because he crashed in the car on the way home. Unfortunately, it was a little early for him to go to bed so he played and then couldn’t fall back asleep. I think he tossed and turned in bed until 10 p.m. – he must have been thinking about kite flying.

His fun continues today because, when he gets home from school, his Grandpa and Grandma will be waiting for him. Kevin’s parents will be here for the weekend and they are SO excited to spend time with Harmon. While Kevin’s Dad was here in February, Kevin’s Mom hasn’t seen Harmon since Christmas. I’m thinking there are going to be plenty of walks and trips to the park this weekend so I hope the weather cooperates.

With the grandparents in town, Kevin and I will get a little bit of a break. We’re planning to go to dinner at bd’s Mongolian Grill tomorrow before heading over to the U-M baseball game. It’s supposed to be sunny and 70 degrees at game time – perfect baseball weather. We’re also hoping this weekend will bring us lots of SLEEP. Sleep is SO underrated!

29 months

Today, Harmon is 29 months old. Kevin and I best describe things as steady. He is growing and always learning something new but we haven’t had any major milestones in the past month.

Now that it’s finally getting warmer, his love affair with the park has blossomed again. We’ve gone almost every day this past week until today when it was in the 40s and rainy. He has such simple demands – swings and slides!

When we’re INSIDE the house, we continue to work on potty training. He is wearing the Pampers Feel ‘n Learn training pants a lot when we’re at home and I think he’s getting the hang of it. We’re also starting to transition him into his booster seat and out of his high chair for meals. He seems ready, especially after having breakfast on the bar stool with my Mom last Wednesday, And, speaking of eating, he has been eating (and sleeping) a ton lately so we suspect he’s going through yet another growth spurt.

School has been going well, with the exception of four of Harmon’s older classmates moving up to the next “grade.” We were a little sad as these four kids have been with Harmon since he started at Annie’s but he seems fine with it. He has AWESOME teachers and he’ll see his old friends again soon, I’m sure. One thing we love so much about Harmon’s school is the art and the music. I have a binder full of all his art work (I swear we bring something home each week) and we always can tell when he’s had music time as he sings all night after we pick him up. His class recently learned to sing “Happy Birthday” so we put him to work singing to my Dad earlier this month. He loves to sing and will just sit and sing several songs on his own, all the way through. I hope his love for music continues to grow.

In addition to music, he also LOVES numbers. When I picked him up from school on Thursday, the teacher told me he went potty so he got to choose a sticker. He told her he wanted a #6 sticker and then showed her which one it was. She said she was so impressed because she had NO IDEA he knew all of his numbers (it’s nice to hear when you’re doing something right). He has magnetic numbers on the fridge that he loves to play with and has a numbers puzzle that he does a few times each night. He also loves his “Here Come the 123s” CD/DVD and he counts everything he can get his hands on. He likes his letters too and knows them almost as well but he’s really into the numbers. A typical boy, I guess.

The numbers puzzle is just one of several puzzles that he’s into lately. He also has letters, shapes, emergency vehicles and animals and he loves to play with all of them each night. He’s still into his cars as well as his Lego’s – some things are timeless.

One thing that has been very sweet to watch is the development of Harmon’s relationship with Isabel. He notices her so much more now and, now that she knows he’s not going to hurt her, she’ll let him come up to her and pet her. If she’s in a really good mood, they’ll even have a game of chase. He’s very gentle with her and she seems happy to have the attention. He’ll even go so far as to give her some of his Kix or Cheerios when he’s having breakfast. Food is such a strong bond!

Lastly, we’ve noticed that Harmon LOVES to dwell on his “booboos” FOREVER. If he gets a bump or a scratch, he will milk it for weeks! He loves the attention that accompanies a booboo, whether it’s in the form of some TLC or just a little Neosporin!

Jonesing for the ‘cheese

A few weeks ago, my parents took Harmon to Chuck E. Cheese's when they were with him on Wednesday. Side note: my Dad has been coming with my Mom for about the last two months due to the American Axle strike. Because there are no axles, his GM plant can’t build trucks so they’ve been shut down. He’s been out longer because of this strike than he was because of his own strike last fall. Come on, American Axle!

ANYWAY, since they took him that first time, he wants to go EVERY TIME he's with them now. And, the majority of the time, he gets his way and they go. He IS their first grandchild so naturally they’ve got a soft spot for him.

Kevin and I are more than happy to let Nana and Papa handle the Chuck E. Cheese's duties – we HATE that place. It’s not so much that it’s loud and crazy. It’s simply that the pizza there is GOD AWFUL and we hate to blow our pizza allowance (we must limit ourselves, we could eat pizza every damn day) on Chuck E. Cheese's pizza. The ONLY saving grace for that place is that it serves Diet Coke.

Harmon does love it, though. I’m just hoping this love will fade so that, when it’s time, we don’t have to host any birthday parties there. There are so many OTHER cool places in Ann Arbor. Plus, I think I would feel bad making people eat that pizza (gag)!

Three parks and Ferry Field

We FINALLY had good weather this past weekend and we took full advantage of it. On Saturday, we went for a long walk to and through Arborland Mall (with stops at Toys R Us and Borders for Harmon) and then went to the park by our house – Sylvan Park – on the way home. The park was renovated recently and is much nicer (and I anticipate many stops there in the coming months). It was a gorgeous day and it was so nice to finally be out of the house.

Sunday was even nicer (albeit windy) and, again, we spent most of it outside. We started the day at Ferry Field and Harmon ran around on the infield of the track as well as the long jump lanes. There was a softball game going on as well as a random cook-out near the Academic Center so the place was pretty busy. After he was tired of simply RUNNING, we stopped by Burns Park (one of Harmon’s favorites) and the playground at Allen Elementary School. We then headed home, took another long walk that included a trip to Hiller’s to get some dinner to grill and then finished with another stop at Sylvan Park. After dinner and just a short time of playing, Harmon crashed hard around 8:30 p.m. All that fresh air over the weekend just knocked him out!

I keep checking the 10-day forecast to see if we have indeed turned the corner and I think we have. It was a LONG winter and we are more than happy to make up for it and take Harmon to as many parks as his little heart desires!

Potty in public

While Harmon’s doing pretty well with the potty training at home (and at Nana and Papa’s house), he had yet to go potty in public. We FINALLY coaxed him into going #1 at Twelve Oaks Mall after his haircut on March 15. And then, last week, while we were having dinner at Pizza House, he asked twice to go potty. I took him the first time and he again went #1. Kevin took him the second time and they were gone for literally five hours. When they returned, though, there was good news – he had gone #2. So, I think we’re taking another step in this whole potty training adventure. It’s hard to believe that the first time he went on his little potty chair was last August. It doesn’t seem like that much time has gone by but I do hope he’s fully trained by THIS August.

Opening Day 2008

Opening Day 2008 turned into a father-son day for Daddy and Harmon. Aimee was able to go to the real Opening Day at Comerica Park with Stacey, so that left the boys of the house to hang out. Harmon made it perfectly clear that he wanted to go to the Tigers' game, relaying his feelings just minutes after Aimee had left the driveway:

Harmon: "I want to go bye-bye."
Daddy: "Where?"
Harmon: "The baseball game. I am going to get my coat ..."

Well, we obviously did not end up going, but we had fun, nonetheless. After playing with cars and cards and noo-noos (Legos), Harmon took about an hour nap, waking up just before first pitch. After watching said first pitch, he jumped in the stroller and we walked to Subway to grab lunch. Harmon loved being outdoors again (seems like years). He saw all the birds out hunting worms (like the Robin in the Rain), and every large truck within three blocks ("Ohhhh, big fruck.") After returning home, we watched a few innings and Harmon made it clear where Mommy was, all day: "Mommy's at the baseball game."

After playing some more in the house, Harmon said many times that he wanted to go back outside. But the stroller was no longer an option. He wanted to walk, so we went to the renovated park down the street and took a long walk around the block. Save for the few times he fell down in the mud (he made it seem like an accident; I am not so sure :-)), he chugged his little legs the whole way.

When Aimee got home, it was still in the 50s, so we decided to walk and get some dinner at Noodles and Company. Food was good, but a bad decision. Rain had been threatening all day, and while we were ordering food, the skies opened up and we were five blocks from home with Harmon in his stroller and no umbrella.

We made it home wet, but OK, and after dinner, Harmon crashed hard from all of his walking. He has barely moved, but I am sure he is dreaming about his next baseball game.

No, no, no baby

Since we’ve been thinking about baby #2, we often ask Harmon’s opinion on the matter. Today, while he was on the potty, he and Kevin had the following conversation:

Kevin: Hey, Harmon, do you want a brother?

Harmon: No, no brother.

Kevin: What about a sister?

Harmon: No, no sister. I want a cat.

Priceless! We can’t have a cat because I’m allergic so it’s too bad for the little guy. In a follow-up to that conversation, it appears he would be happy with a puppy dog, a fish or a turtle so that’s a good thing. We do hope, however, that he’ll eventually be able to deal with a HUMAN!

Belated Easter blog entry

This year, for the first time since 2005, we stayed in Michigan for Easter. And, what a Michigan Easter it was – complete with six freakin’ inches of snow. Needless to say, with all that snow we decided NOT to take Harmon to the Domino's Petting Farm Easter Egg Hunt. A co-worker of mine took his son and said it was a TRUE hunt. Evidently, the eggs were dispersed before the snow fell so a lot of hunting had to be done to find them. Although Harmon didn’t get to attend the outdoor hunt, my parents and sister, Stacey, set up an indoor hunt in their family room. They hid a bunch of eggs with Matchbox cars in them and Harmon had an awesome time finding them and then opening them up. In addition to the hunt, they went a little overboard (as usual) with the bunny and the gifts. We held off a bit on the gifts in anticipation of him getting so much from everyone else. He got some Magna-Tiles, a new book that he loves, some new Keen sandals and some other spring/summer clothing. We thought about getting him a sandbox but decided to hold off on that for a while.

All in all, Easter was a good time. We had an awesome dinner at Nana and Papa’s house, including my Uncle Max’s awesome twice-baked potatoes. And, Harmon got to hang out with his second cousin, Trent. It’s all good as long as Trent doesn’t try to take Harmon’s cars.

Me time

After fighting off some big-time guilty feelings, I took last Thursday off (and sent Harmon to school) so I could watch some March Madness. As Kevin will attest, I’m not much one for “me time” but that day was NICE! I got up like a usual Thursday and did my part getting Harmon ready and out of the house and then, after he and Kevin left, I went back to sleep for another two hours. Once I woke up, I spent a WHOLE INTERRUPTED HOUR on the internets before getting in my time on the treadmill. I then ate a leisurely lunch and watched basketball for HOURS on the 50-inch plasma. Although I shouldn’t have been tired, I did fall asleep on the couch. I blame it on the couch – it’s just too comfortable. I did manage to do some laundry and get dinner started but, for the most part, it was a full day of “me time” and it was awesome!

Michigan football R.I.P.

I will miss going to Michigan football games with Aimee this fall. It was fun while it lasted, but I think we all knew this day would come. March 19, 2008, will go down in infamy as the day Michigan shut down its football program. No reason to go on, right? I mean, after all, the most wins and highest winning percentage in college football history have been wiped out by the words of an 18-year-old phenom, who, as is his right, wanted to play instead for "the University of Ohio State," wherever that is. I am sure the University of Michigan will survive as a great academic institution, and 20 years from now a father and son will walk by the ruins that are Michigan Stadium and Dad will say, "Son, I remember when they used to play football in there." They will then share coffee in the world's largest Starbucks. I am just sorry Harmon never got a chance to experience Michigan football. Coach Rod gave it a great run, but it is a shame he never got to coach a game here. Well, at least we go out with a 9-game winning streak over Penn State, and Notre Dame is back where it belongs as our little b---h. Ah, memories. We hardly knew ya, Blue!

Spring preview weekend?

Last Friday was a GORGEOUS day – the nicest one so far in 2008 – so Harmon and I headed for campus. We played outside on Ingalls Mall for a good long time before visiting Kevin at work. EVERYONE at Kevin’s work is in love with Harmon and he just eats it up. The floors in Kevin’s building are set up so that Harmon can do laps around all the cubes and he did just that, about 100 times.

Kevin was able to skip out a few minutes early and then we all went for a nice, long walk. We stopped along the way at Lexi’s Toybox and Borders (to get yet another book for Harmon) and ended the walk at Pizza House for dinner. It was a perfect way to start what I hope is spring, although there’s a wintry mix going on outside right now (damn).

On Saturday, we drove up to Novi to go to Twelve Oaks Mall as Harmon was due for a haircut. He can make it about 5-6 weeks before the hair starts to grow down over his ears. We LOVE his buzzcut but often wonder what he would look like with longer hair. I guess we’ll find out when he’s 16! He was a very good boy during his haircut – I think the frequency of his cuts is getting him used to the whole thing.

Sunday was relaxing – errands and lots of playing – and yesterday, Kevin and I switched schedules and really messed with Harmon’s mind. When Kevin was home with him in the morning, he asked him where I was and he replied “probably at work.” When I was home with him in the afternoon, reading in his room, he gave me a hug and said “I’m so glad you’re here, Mommy!” God, I love him so much I just want to eat him up!

28 months

The other day, someone at work asked me how old Harmon was and I said, “oh, he’ll be 28 months next week.” As it was coming out of my month, I thought I should probably just say he’s almost 2 1/2. I guess I’m still holding on to the baby inside. He’s definitely not a baby anymore, though.

He’s getting used to the potty routine and is excited about underwear. The last time we were at Target, we looked at the underwear and he loved the ones with Spiderman and Cars. He has some Mickey Mouse Clubhouse underwear that my Mom bought him for his birthday but I need to make sure he hasn’t outgrown them. He often asks for Backyardigans underwear but I don’t even know if those exist. I guess I should figure that out. ANYWAY, he’s going a lot at school and we’re noticing he’s just going #1 overnight so there is progress. We are, however, still waiting for him to go in a public place. Baby steps.

I have no clue how much he weighs (my guess is high 30s) but we did measure him last week and he was 36 ¼ inches tall. Still a big boy. Generally, he’s been well behaved. After introducing and using the time-out corner early in January, he hasn’t had to visit there in a while. His favorite word lately has been “no” and that’s kind of a bummer. We’re trying to get him to use it only when appropriate instead of ALL THE TIME!

He still loves his books. Actually, we just can’t believe how much he still loves his books. I recently re-organized the bookshelf in his bedroom to give him full access to all of his books. He’s been choosing a good variety to read during the day and at bedtime so he must like it. Instead of toys all the time, we usually get him books. Sometimes I feel like we live at Borders!

Lately, he’s said some pretty funny things. We took Kevin out to lunch last Friday and, while Kevin and I were talking, he grabs us both and yells, “no Mommy and Daddy talk!” If Kevin looks at him wrong or, God forbid, dances, Harmon protests with “no Daddy look” or “no Daddy dance.” Sentences just flow from his mouth and we never know what’s going to come out. We also have to be really careful because he repeats EVERYTHING.

He is DYING to get to the park so I’m hoping spring is on its way. And, since we’re staying in Michigan this year for Easter, we’re hoping it will be warm enough to take him to a local Easter egg hunt that has gotten rave reviews from my co-workers. If he doesn’t score anything at the hunt, he’ll still get some goodies. We got him some Magna-Tiles and probably will get him a sandbox to play in during the summer. I’m sure he’ll get spoiled by everyone else too.

One last thing, Harmon loves PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME!



Actually, we all love it and who knew it was a staple of Tampa Bay Rays’ baseball.

Out.

Harmon the lumberjack

On Saturday, when I was walking on the treadmill, I saw an ad for a new TV series on the History Channel, "Ax Men," about loggers in the Pacific Northwest. Ask Aimee, and she will tell you that I love these types of shows (reality/documentary). "Deadliest Catch" was a favorite, although I never made it through a full season. Anyway, I had planned to watch the premiere last night, but then realized I had already seen a show about lumberjacks. In fact, we see it every day. Or, to be more precise, we hear it every day. You see, Harmon is a big snorer just like his Daddy. He can saw logs with the best of them, and we often can hear him through the wall and closed door of his bedroom. We know it is not his fault, as his tonsils have been enlarged of late. On Sunday, we decided to take a family nap. We usually are able to do this one day per weekend. As we got Harmon snuggled up in our bed -- using the tried and true black panther method -- he immediately began to snore. And it was LOUD! We tried moving him on his back; same thing. One his side; still snoring. I guess we just get used to it after a while, but I really feel sorry for Aimee. She has had to deal with my snoring for seven years, and now Harmon is chiming in, as well.

We just totally ripped him off!

Back in the fall, I got this cool sweatshirt from Russell Crowe’s rugby team, the South Sydney Rabbitohs. I love Russell Crowe anyway so this wasn’t a stretch – especially after his September visit to the Big House. But, I got a little more interested in the whole rugby thing after watching the South Sydney Story documentary on TV (I’m ashamed to say it was on Versus).

Anyway, I ordered the sweatshirt and it arrived and I loved it and wore it non-stop. And then, just a few days later, ANOTHER one came. WTF? I wasn’t sure if we would get double-billed so I kept it in its original packaging with all receipts and tags attached so it would be ready to go back down under if necessary. But, months have come and gone and we’ve never been billed for the second sweatshirt. So, we think it’s kind of funny that we got over on Russell for a whole $82.22. As Beavis and Butthead would say, we just totally ripped him off!

ADDENDUM: The second sweatshirt still has the tags on it and still is in the original packaging. I would return it if it didn’t cost a million dollars to send it back to Australia. And, I have to ask, why should I have to pay for their merchandise fulfillment mistake? Maybe wearing the original sweatshirt around town is worth $82 of publicity.

Cartoons

In case Harmon asks me one day what his favorite cartoons were when he was little, I've got it covered. I’ve been meaning to document this, via blog, so here goes!

Before I start, though, one quick side note. Back when Kevin and I were kids, cartoons were only on Saturday mornings, not every damn day! And, we walked five miles - each way - to school, uphill, in 18 inches of snow ...

ANYWAY, right now, Harmon’s cartoon viewing falls into three tiers:

Tier One – Must-see toddler TV
Tier Two – Maintains a general interest
Tier Three – Likes it for a bit and then it quickly becomes background noise

Tier One contains Handy Manny and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. He can’t live without these and, thankfully, Kevin and I aren't annoyed by either of them so it all works out nicely. And, with Handy Manny, there’s the added bonus of Harmon picking up some Spanish, which we think is so important these days.

In Tier Two are Little Einsteins, My Friends Tigger & Pooh and the Backyardigans. He loves to name all the Little Einstein characters with our favorite being, as he says, Pency (it’s really Quincy). He likes the songs on Tigger & Pooh along with all the complimentary characters. On Monday afternoons, Kevin lets him watch the Backyardigans and he’s all excited for half of it and then … it’s on to cars AND the tube!

Tier Three includes Blues Clues, Wonder Pets and Yo Gabba Gabba. He likes each of these for about two minutes and then he finds something better to do. He will point out the paw-print clues and sing the Wonder Pets theme song and he loves some of the songs – like There’s a Party in my Tummy and Hold Still Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle – from Yo Gabba Gabba. But, if these cartoons suddenly were cancelled, I don’t think he would care at all.

Every so often, if Harmon gets up WAY earlier than usual (anytime before 7 a.m.), one of us will have to find Curious George or Clifford the Big Red Dog on Detroit Public TV. This is our emergency plan so we can get ready for work. He’s familiar with these cartoons but they don’t rock his world.

Two shows he doesn’t like, and frankly neither do we, are the Wiggles and the Doodlebops. Both shows freak the hell out of all of us. I don’t know if it’s grown-ass people dressing up or what but we’re not fans at all. We much prefer animation but, if grown-ass people in costumes ARE necessary, we prefer they be in FULL costumes instead of fruity outfits, wigs and face paint. Call us crazy!

Sound bytes

Harmon has been so funny lately. Here are some recent sound bytes from him:

Monday morning at breakfast, after looking at all of the Valentine’s Day cards posted on our card rack:

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Mommy!”

Last Friday at Target:

“Oh my gosh, careful, Mommy, don’t fall down!”


Last Sunday when I was putting on his puffy vest:

“HAPPY HALLOWEEN!”

NOTE: He hadn’t worn this vest since Halloween day (what a good memory).

Last week after I got out of the shower (please note I was fully covered by a huge towel):

“I see Mommy’s booty!”

Last week when Kevin brought me a brownie square after dinner:

“What’s that?” I answered chocolate and he then said, with hands placed softly at his chest, “Well I like chocolate!”

At totally random times, if he’s sad, he’ll say things like “Harmon is sad” or “Harmon is upset.” He also loves to say “I’ll go back to bed” if he’s not getting what he wants.

We never know what's going to come out of his mouth!

Valentine’s Day redux

Valentine’s Day was fun and Harmon finally had a holiday fall on one of his school days. So, he was able to give and receive treats. We put together small gift bags with cards, stickers and packages of mini M&Ms for Harmon’s 12 classmates. In exchange for what he gave, he received Valentine gifts from seven of his friends – with everything from cards to Play-Doh to mini tattoos.

Kevin and I exchanged a few small things. I got him a cool hoodie (in crisp green) from Gap and Harmon gave him a certificate to buy a new Nintendo Wii game. Kevin got me perfume, a dozen gorgeous peachy/orangey roses and a gift to be named later and Harmon got me a personalized $25 Starbucks card (note the message he put on it and note that it's orange – love that orange – in person). Speaking of Starbucks, and thanks to Kevin, every time we leave the house together Harmon says we’re going to Starbucks to get Mommy a Frappuccino!

Since he is spoiled beyond belief, we only got Harmon a few small things for Valentine’s Day. The best gift, though, was the “Here Come the 123s” CD/DVD from They Might Be Giants. We’ve seen a few of the “videos” between cartoons on the Disney Channel and he loves them so we thought we would get the whole CD/DVD. And, it is a total hit. He loves it so much and we like it too. Although it’s kids’ stuff, so many of the songs have great beats or catchy tunes and we find ourselves singing them all the time. Take “Zeroes” for example! I dare you NOT to sing it!

For dinner, we decided to eat at our favorite restaurant, Pizza House. It was a good time, mostly because Harmon was hungry as a horse. It’s nice to eat out when he’s like this, we don’t have to beg, pretend to cry or threaten him with the black panther to get him to eat!

The day ended with the nicest present of all – Harmon let me rock him to sleep. Usually, after we’re done reading, he just wants to go straight to bed. But, last Thursday, he let me hold him until he fell asleep just like when he was a baby. What a Valentine’s Day!

27 months

Today is Harmon’s 27-month birthday and, each month, it just gets more fun. It also gets more interesting as there’s always something new.

Recently, we moved him from the potty chair to the toilet and that seems to be going well. Just in case he tells us he has to go when we’re out, we bought a portable seat that folds nicely and fits in his diaper bag. We haven’t tried it yet but I suspect it will be an event when we do. As I mentioned here, he’s also making some potty progress at school so it’s good all around as far as the potty goes.

Speaking of school, since returning after the holiday break, his drop-offs have been great. As Kevin has noticed, he likes to walk up the stairs but then prefers that we carry him into the room. At this point, he gets down and is off on his way. One sad thing about school, though. Harmon’s lead teacher, Miss Deborah, has left. Harmon’s last day with her was last Thursday. He’s been with Miss Deborah almost the entire time he’s been at Annie’s as she assisted the lead teacher in his previous class. We all will miss her but we understand. She is a musician and wants to follow her dreams. Until she makes her next move, though, she will stop by Annie’s every other Thursday for music time with the kids. In Miss Deborah’s absence, Miss Laura – who Harmon just loves – will move into the lead teacher role.

At home, he’s really been into drawing on his Aqua Doodle lately. He asks us to draw lots of shapes, letters and numbers and then he tries to copy. He’s got the oval mastered! He also asks us to draw cars, dump trucks, garbage trucks, etc. but Kevin and I are both terrible at it. I hope he doesn’t try to copy those!

He continues to devour any book we buy him. His newest favorites are Bossy Bear (which was bought intentionally to teach a lesson), Walter the Farting Dog, Buzzy the Bumblebee and Have You Ever Seen a Moose Taking a Bath? If he sees a cute animal in these books, or in any of his books, he says “awwwww” and then gives the book a HUGE hug. It’s so sweet.

He still loves his cars and can’t go anywhere without at least one in each hand. He also continues to show his softer side with his love for his stuffed animals, especially his snow leopard.

Health-wise, he’s been fine with the exception of a day care cold here and there. We did take him to see the doctor last week as his tonsils – especially his right one – were enlarged. Since he had no other symptoms that were out of the ordinary, the doctor assumed he was just fighting something off which could cause the tonsils to swell. The doctor asked us if he snores and we said, oh my God, yes! As an aside, in church last week he fell asleep and was snoring SO loud. It was a little embarrassing. ANYWAY, the doctor said just to keep an eye on things and also told us that it’s very rare to remove tonsils these days. I was glad to hear that – I don’t think I could handle him having any kind of surgery at this point.

All in all, he is doing well and we are so blessed to have such a smart, happy and healthy 27-month old!

Potty at school

I meant to post this last week when it happened but totally forgot. Last Tuesday (Feb. 5), Harmon used the potty at school! It was the first time he's gone at school and we are so proud of him. Evidently, he was pretty proud of himself too because he talked about it all damn day (per his daily activities sheet at left).

He's been going at home on a semi-consistent basis since the Christmas break. I think he was hesitant to go at school because his teachers likely won't spend 45 minutes reading 20 books while he sits there (like we had been doing). Recently, though, we moved him from the potty to the real toilet (with the adapted seat) and cut out the books. He seems to go faster now and maybe that's why he went at school. Whatever the reason, we were glad there was some progress.

His teachers have told us that most of the kids in his class are using the potty consistently now and, while he's not there yet, this can only benefit him. We also need to keep in mind that he is THE youngest kid in his class so we just can't expect him to do what all the older kids are doing. As with most things, it will all come in time.

The power of persuasion

Most 2-year-olds get what they want. Some do it with just a smile; others cry for hours until they are satisfied. Harmon is a simple toddler. Don't get me wrong, he can charm the best of them with that smile, and he does throw a mean tantrum. But, Harmon usually gets what he wants -- simply by asking.

His favorite phrase of late is "How about (Mommy or Daddy) does ... (fill in the activity)." This morning while I was getting ready for work, Harmon wanted me to read him one of his new books. So, he went into his room, grabbed the book and then grabbed me by the finger, looked at me with those big brown eyes and softly asked, "How about Daddy reads this on the couch." So, off we went to the couch and took part in Harmon's favorite pastime -- reading.

Harmon's "How about ... " came about a month or so ago. While we were training him to sleep in his new toddler bed, he kept getting up -- sometimes four or five times per night. So, one night I decided to sit in the room and watch to make sure he did not get up. It worked, and now Harmon is down with having Daddy in the room as he drifts off to sleep. After we tuck him in, and he lays his little head down, the suggestion comes out like clockwork: "How about Daddy sits there."

The requests come in many other forms. When he wants to be held: "How about Mommy holds you" (see this entry for an explanation of his pronoun confusion), or when he wants to go play with his trains: "How about Mommy and Daddy go downstairs." You are a persuasive little fella, Harmon, but you don't have to ask us, "How about Mommy and Daddy love me always." You had us at "How about ... "

Scare tactics

Sometimes, with a two-year old, you just have to do what you have to do – even if you resort to scare tactics.

Early on, Harmon was deathly afraid of this bouncing Tigger that my parents have at their house. When you push him down, he yells “I’m gonna’ bounce” and then he starts bouncing. Harmon actually was OK until Tigger started bouncing toward him and then it was all over. He likes all other forms of Tigger – at Toys R Us and even on TV (damn Tigger and Pooh) – but this particular Tigger has always freaked him out. Over the weekend, we were at my parents’ house and we brought Tigger out again to see if things have gotten any better. Harmon is cordial now but they’re definitely not BFF!

Since he’s warming to Tigger a bit, we’ve had to introduce another big cat to scare him with – the black panther. One random day before the holidays, he was doing something I didn’t want him to do and I simply blurted “you don’t want the black panther to get you, do you?” Ever since then, it has stuck! For his birthday, he received “Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See?” and there is a black panther on a page of that book (scanned image above) to make it all the more real. When he gets to that page, it reads “black panther, black panther, what do you see?” and, instead of reading the proper response, Harmon says “I see Harmon’s legs!” Kevin and I die – we must tell him all too often that the panther is going to eat his legs!

We use the black panther a lot, mostly to get Harmon to eat. If he’s being a good boy, we’ll tell him the black panther is at Charlie’s house (Charlie is one of his friends from school). I recently found the cutest black panther stuffed animal and sent the link to Kevin. He said that getting Harmon a cute and cuddly black panther would make us lose our edge. Amen to that - the mythical black panther lives on!

In the car

A ride in the car with Harmon lately has been pretty interesting for the following three reasons:

1. As soon as we are on the move, he yanks off his hat and gloves and tosses them back over his shoulder into the “trunk” area. Of course, it takes us forever to find them – especially if it’s dark outside – and, thus, takes forever for us to re-bundle him and get him out of the car. He takes great pleasure in a really good toss and LOVES to tell us all about it.

2. If it’s dark outside, he absolutely HATES for us to turn on the interior lights. He frets “turn the light off” relentlessly until we oblige.

3. No matter where we’re going or what kind of mood he is in, he simply cannot handle Kevin EVER leaving the car. Even if he’s just getting gas and is IN PLAIN VIEW, Harmon has a meltdown (see photo for evidence) and cries “Daddy comes back” until he returns. Kevin claims he does something similar when I leave the car but it can’t possibly compare to what happens when Kevin leaves.

Clean chiclets

Today was Harmon’s first dentist appointment. Apparently, I missed the memo that his first appointment was supposed to take place at age one – I’m only a year behind.

We were OK with waiting because he only drinks milk and water (he’s never been a juice fan, other than a little cran-apple when he’s not feeling well) and he pretty much hates all sweets. He uses a straw sippy cup and never slept with his bottle or anything like that.

So, the outcome was a good one – he’s got clean chiclets. The exam, however, was a little rough. The hygienist used the polisher to clean his teeth – which he hated – and then she used a regular toothbrush for a quick fluoride treatment – which he hated even more. It’s funny that he hated the toothbrush part when we’ve been doing it twice a day since he sprouted those choppers! After a quick flossing, the dentist came in for a look. Everything was fine and she recommended keeping up the good work. He’ll go back again in six months, just like a grown up!

Pacing the halls

This video has been in the camera for a while, as you can tell. In it, Harmon shows off his early wheels.

Voice of Victor(y)

If there is one thing Harmon loves to do more than even reading, it is singing! Here, he sings the greatest fight song in the world.



He's been singing this song since last summer (with help from my cell phone ring tone) but this is the first time we've caught it on camera!

Harmon caught in bed with ...

... A BOOK! God, this kid loves books. So much so that he gets up in the total darkness of night and manages to locate his "counking book" and then falls asleep with it.

Tonight, Kevin thought he was asleep so he took the book out of his bed. Bad decision! He was NOT asleep so he starting crying for it and we gave it back to him. I swear he was snoring within seconds!

I'm glad he loves to read and this book has paid dividends. He's counting everything in sight and can count 1 to 20 in English and 1 to 10 in Spanish.

Reading is good.

27-game plan!

On Thursday, my sisters, parents and I sealed the deal on a 27-game plan for the 2008 Detroit Tigers’ season. With tickets selling like hotcakes, we weren’t hopeful that we would get ANYTHING when single-game tickets go on sale March 1. So, we decided to split up the 27 games between the four of us and then, if we want to go to any additional games, we’ll have to go it alone. We decided on the Saturday plan mostly because that day is the most convenient day for all of us and, now that Harmon is a little bit older, I’m not too worried about keeping him up late every once in a while.

Now that we’re “in,” we really can’t wait for the season to start! Go Tigers!

TigerFest 2008

We went to TigerFest on Saturday and it was a good time. It’s the first time I’ve been to TigerFest since 1999 and, needless to say, it was a little different. Saturday, there were lines for everything! In 1999, my friend and I walked right up (no lines) to get a photo with Bobby Higginson, the most popular Tiger at the time. My, how winning changes things! I told Kevin that while I love my team’s success, I hate the bandwagon jumpers that come out of nowhere to snatch up all the tickets and bog down all the events. All those people that were fans when the Tigers’ sucked should have a card to carry around that affords them extra privileges for all their time and trouble.

ANYWAY, we did the tour of the press box, suites, administrative offices, clubhouse and dugout and that was very cool. We also shopped all the merchandise (I couldn’t find this cool hat there – they were sold out – so I had to order it) and went through the kids’ areas. Harmon is still a bit too small to get it but, next year, it is on!

All the baseball this weekend got me so excited for the season and I’m hoping we can get to AT LEAST one game per month (not sure with the way tickets are selling). At any rate, as I sit here on a cold and snowy January day in Michigan, I can look forward to this (from the Major League Baseball web site):

February 14, 2008
First date injured players, pitchers and catchers may report to Spring Training

February 19, 2008
First date all players may report to Spring Training

February 26, 2008
Mandatory Spring Training reporting date for all players

Tigers' Baseball 2008 - I can't wait!

Harmon at 26 months

Two years and two months is where we are today. Harmon is doing great, adjusting back to the normal routine after doing almost nothing routine since Thanksgiving. Over the holiday break, he made great strides with the potty training. He’s now going at least once a day and sometimes as many as two or three times a day (he’s motivated by stickers). He’ll tell us “poopy butt’s in there” and then we know to get to the potty fast! As he gets better and better on the potty, we’ll transition him to the big toilet (we bought him an Elmo seat for the top of it) and then figure out how to get him to go in public. After that, we’ll tackle the overnight thing and then that whole standing up thing!

As much progress as there was on the potty, there was some regressing in the big boy bed department. Just as he was starting to go to sleep without getting out of bed, we spent five days in Peoria with him sleeping in an inflatable bed. When we got back home, we pretty much had to start all over again as he was getting out of bed four or five times before finally falling asleep. Now, after two weeks of the normal routine, he is doing well again. One step forward, two steps back, I guess.

OK, other things. He’s done great at day care this week, two straight drop offs without crying – we hope it stays that way. And, when we pick him up, we have a whole conversation with him about his friends and teachers and all that he did that day. We also finally got all his Geo Trax stuff set up. We needed more tracks and all surrounding Toys R Us stores were out of stock so we had to order them directly from Fisher-Price. They arrived Thursday and we got it all set up that night. He loves it. But, it’s a lot. I don’t think he’s going to be getting any other new toys anytime soon.

Like most two-year-olds, Harmon does some funny things. First, when we’re out and Kevin, God forbid, has to get out of the car to go in somewhere, Harmon acts like he’s going away to Egypt or something. He cries the entire time all while yelling “Daddy comes back!” It’s funny. Usually, I’ll have to turn on some Springsteen (specifically Magic or Livin’ in the Future) to settle him down. Speaking of the car, he’ll direct us to our respective chairs in the front and he gets confused when we switch.

He loves Isabel lately, and frequently asks to hold her. He’s even to the point where he’ll sometimes give her a little kiss on the head. He is very gentle with her and she seems not to hate it so much! I secretly think she loves it when he chases her!

In addition to the reading (my God, the reading), he now LOVES to look at all his old photo albums, especially the one that has photos of his first haircut and first birthday party. He also still loves music and he sings along more than ever. He has gotten more picky, though, and if he doesn’t like the song, he’ll say “no iff (this) one” or “no aff (that) one!”

When he’s sad or gets hurt, he’ll run to one of us and say “Mommy holds you” or “Daddy holds you.” We’ll always ask him “do you want Mommy or Daddy to hold you” so he just repeats us. He’ll figure out that pronoun thing eventually.

A few more quick things he says lately:

Helpacacopter (he has called helicopters “helpacas” for a while and now he’s trying to say it correctly but the old word won’t die easy).

Fool bus – “School” comes out “fool.”

How about (fill in the blank)? If he wants something, he’ll say “how about cars?” or, at lunch, for example, it’s “how about raisins?” It’s always how about something! But, almost all the time, he’ll say “please” first!

In the morning, he’ll say to his snow leopard stuffed animal, “Hi, snow leopard, what did you do today?”

I don't even know what to say

I ran across this photo today and remembered that I meant to post it. Around Halloween, Harmon's day care had a photographer come in to take dress-up pictures of all the kids. Obviously, this didn't go over too well with Harmon. Is it any wonder we didn't order multiple copies of these? Hilarious!

Peed on

Last night, right after Kevin stripped Harmon down for his bath, he ran away from us and ran into the den. When Kevin chased after him, he noticed that Harmon's split-second head start resulted in an excited pee on the computer. I'm not even kidding. Before last night, Harmon only had peed twice - once on Kevin (at the doctor's office) and once on my Mom. So, imagine our surprise when he opened up on the computer. I think even he was surprised. Kevin said he was looking down like WTF! While initially we were pissed (no pun intended), we laughed about it a ton today. I'm thinking the fact that the computer is OK had a lot to do with our laughter.

Belated Christmas vacation update

This week, Kevin and I reluctantly got back into the swing of things, returning to work after 17 glorious days off for the Christmas holiday. Kevin had to get back to it bright and early Monday, starting work at 7 a.m., and I had to abandon a snuggly nap with my boy to start my work day at 12:30 p.m. And, surprisingly, Harmon’s return to day care went very well.

It was awesome being off together that long and we took full advantage of it. We had no schedule, no routine. We slept in (Harmon woke up at 8 a.m. most days), took family naps, ate out, stayed up late and did fun things. We planned on doing some home repairs but that’s NO FUN when the other option is to play Kevin’s new Nintendo Wii for hours on end! We played out in the snow, took Harmon to a U-M basketball game and also to the Chelsea Treehouse. After spending parts of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family, we spent Dec. 26-30 with Kevin’s family in Peoria. He was spoiled rotten in both places!

We look forward to the holiday season all year long and then it’s gone in a flash and you’re back to the grind. Bring on the next vacation!

A rare win on New Year’s Day (and more U-M football)

The Michigan Wolverines beat a very heavily-favored Florida Gators’ team on New Year’s Day to win the Capitol One Bowl. It’s been a while since Michigan has won a bowl game on Jan. 1 (Jan. 1, 2003, also against the Florida Gators) so it’s hard to believe. It’s also hard to believe the fashion in which Michigan won – throwing the ball all over and scoring at will (and the defense played decent too). Why don’t we play like that ALL THE TIME – that is my frustrating question! But, the win was great and it got everyone excited to enter the Rich Rodriguez era.

Speaking of Coach Rod, he was on Jim Rome’s radio show on Tuesday and was surprisingly candid. With Lloyd at the helm over the past 13 years, Michigan fans have gotten used to no information whatsoever coming from the halls of Fort Schembechler. It seems, though, that Coach Rod will be different. For example, he spoke openly about Adrian Arrington, Ryan Mallett and Mario Manningham not returning to the team. Later in the night, he held an impromptu briefing with the media and, when asked about Ryan Mallett, he said the following:

“Don't care. He's not playing for Michigan. I'm concerned with who's playing for Michigan.”

He was totally channeling Bo – stressing that the team is more important than any one player. I was impressed with this and with his earlier radio appearance – something I didn’t think possible after watching Les Miles hoist the National Championship trophy the night before. Although Miles was my first choice, I’m starting to like Coach Rod!

As for Mallett, I am sad to see him go as I think he’ll turn out to be a good QB. And, I’m more than a little nervous about our QB situation next year, especially if all-world recruit Terrelle Pryor chooses scarlet and gray over maize and blue. But, in the end, Mallett being here wasn’t a fit for either side and it was best for all involved to just move on. It was nice to hear that he’ll always consider himself a Michigan Man, no matter what color jersey he eventually ends up wearing.

Making up for Novembers past

In the past, November has been a rough month for my side of the family. Both of my Dad’s parents died during November as did my Mom’s mother. I also was nearly a goner after getting t-boned by a Detroit city bus just before Thanksgiving in 1996. In the past few years, Kevin and I have tried to make up for all the past November pain. We were married Dec. 2, 2000 (almost November) and then Harmon was born Nov. 12, 2005. Then, this year, Simon arrived Nov. 25. I figure my family needs one more late fall event to ATTEMPT to balance things out!

All I want for Christmas

Harmon and Kevin had a killer Christmas (mine was good but will get better as I have some money from returns to spend). Kevin got the Nintendo Wii – which requires its own special blog entry – and Harmon got A TON of Geo Trax stuff (not to mention cool clothes, lots of cars and trucks, a mini basketball hoop, etc.). We still are in the process of setting up the Geo Trax toys but, at this point, he loves it. It is SO extensive, I fear it may take up all of the newly-finished basement!

Ballin'

Back on Dec. 22, we took Harmon to his first basketball game as the Michigan Wolverines hosted the UCLA Bruins. Despite the outcome, which we anticipated when we bought the tickets, Harmon had a great time! In addition to actually watching some of the game, he sang “Hail to the Victors” a ton and did the “Let’s Go Blue” chant a lot too. While we have football season tickets, he has yet to attend a game. We’ll just stick with baseball (which he attended last spring) and basketball until he’s a little older and can fully appreciate it.

Quick hits

Reverting
The last few days, Harmon has wandered into our bedroom early in the morning and we’ve pulled him into bed to go back to sleep with us. Usually, he falls right back asleep and is snoring in no time. And, he’s so cute and warm and snuggly that it’s hard to resist him. We don’t want him thinking he can do this every morning but it’s hard. All this reminds us of those early days when we all would sleep in and take naps together all the time.

Up there!
Our Christmas tree is in place and partially decorated (we SO need a SET of ornaments) and Harmon loves it. He wants the lights to be on all the time and he loves to point out the colors of said lights. He also, apparently, wants to climb up into the tree. Every day since we put the tree up, he walks up to it and says “up there!” I’m not sure what business he has up in that tree but he definitely wants up there for something.

Panic in salary report town
On Tuesday, the University released its list of highest paid employees. Kevin and I were talking about this and Kevin said the following:

“I wonder when the salary report is going to be released so we can all spend a day being pissed!”

Since we work at a public university, the salary report is available for all to see (in fact, the student newspaper has a link to it). It’s REAL nice to review that report and find out that a co-worker got a four percent raise when you were told EVERYONE is getting three percent and, because of budget concerns, there isn’t any room for bigger increases this year.

Good times!

E-bah

Most of this blog is dedicated to Harmon, so that our family and friends can read about our big boy as he grows into a little man. But, there is another "child" in our family who does not get as much run (thanks, Rome), but means so very much to us. It is hard to believe, but our little Netherland Dwarf rabbit, Isabel (or "E-bah" as Harmon calls her), has been with us for six years. SIX YEARS! There were times when we did not think she would make it this far (bladder stone surgery a few years ago was touch-and-go), but she has perserved and is healthy and happy as ever. We do have to help her along a little bit, as she gets her teeth trimmed every three weeks or so to help her eat, but our "older gal" (coined by the staff at Animal Kingdom Veterinary Hospital) is strong and happy. Evidence of this has come the last few nights when Isabel has been playing under the Christmas tree. Not sure if she is getting high on the pine needles, or is just happy to have a place to hide from Harmon, but she has been running around and rabbit-dancing like crazy. When we brought Isabel home in nothing but a cardboard box just after she was born, we promised never to take her for granted. Admittedly, it has been hard to care for Harmon during his first two years and make sure all of her needs are met, as well. But, every day when we peel back the blanket from her cage, she is happy to see us and, usually, begging for a dried cherry. She is still kicking and still gives us kisses any time we ask. We love you, Isabel. No matter what happens with our next child, you will always be our first "daughter."

ADDENDUM: As many "teenage" girls do from time to time, Isabel decided last night that she did not want to hang out with Mom and Dad. After Harmon went to bed, we took her downstairs while I wrapped presents and Aimee walked on the treadmill. After about 20 minutes, I realized I had not seen her in a while and Aimee did not see her come in the exercise room. Sure enough, I went upstairs and she had assumed her position under the Christmas tree. She can easily scale the 12 steps and even comes down them, with a little coaxing.

Pinball

Last night, we were chasing Harmon around the basement and it made me think of something that happened down there a few weeks ago. I was chasing him one night and he ran behind the couch. Since our couch doesn’t sit flush with the wall, there is a little “gap” and that is where he ran. He was running and screaming and yelling and his little head was bobbing like crazy. As he reached the “gap," his head hit the wall and then bounced off the wall and hit the couch. It looked like a freakin’ pinball! After making sure he was OK (he was totally fine), I could not stop laughing. And, every single time I think about it, I die over and over again.

R2 to A2

Yesterday, Michigan introduced its new football coach, Rich Rodriguez (with tie, inside a snow-covered Michigan Stadium). I think I’m still in shock (in a good way) as I didn’t see this coming. I knew he was a good coach but I figured he would never leave West Virginia – a place where he was born, raised, attended college, met his wife, had kids and coached for years. It’s ironic that Rodriguez gave up all those things to come to Michigan when Les Miles wanted nothing but to return to Michigan – the place where he did most of those same things (with the exception of being born and raised in Ohio).

I’m cautiously optimistic about this hire, although it’s no secret that Miles was my first choice. I like that Rodriguez is young and fiery and that he is an offensive genius, credited with inventing the spread offense. I like that he will bring a fresh perspective to a program that really needed it. I like that he will bring in his own coaches (maybe a special teams’ coach, pretty please, and maybe a new strength and conditioning coach too). I also am excited about what I will see on the field and, hell, if he can win at WV, it seems he can only do better with the talent and resources at Michigan.

However, there are things that worry me too. WV played in a weaker conference and had looser academic standards so adjustment will be an issue. Also, will Michigan’s personnel fit his offensive scheme? He has no ties to Michigan and that scares me a bit when it comes to the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry. Actually, the last coach that came from the “outside” was John Cooper and he proceeded to go 2-10-1 against Michigan (yikes). I worry that it’s TOO much change and Michigan will end up like Nebraska. I also worry that, if he does have success at Michigan, he will leave when a better opportunity (college or NFL) comes along. If he left his whole life back in WV, leaving Michigan won’t be a big deal at all. My last worry – does he really want to be at Michigan – came to realization today. I read that, at first, he told Michigan no before he said yes and that he left WV because of some issues with the athletic department (some changes he wanted that hadn’t been made yet). To me, this seems like taking your ball and going home but who knows.

Obviously, I love my alma mater (my son is named Harmon for Christ’s sake) and I want Rich Rodriguez to be a great coach that will take Michigan football to a whole new level. I truly hope this happens. But, if it doesn’t, I’ll look back on this info and forever be sad:

Gary also had some really interesting things to say about the Les Miles’ deal. He talks to Les regularly as the lead color guy for the SEC and he claims that Les would have "taken $100,000" to coach at Michigan. He went on to explain that Michigan didn't really want Les Miles and it was unfortunate that Miles didn't even get a change to alleviate Martin's concerns about him as a possible Head Coach at Michigan. Les wanted Michigan but Michigan didn't want Les, only time will tell if this was a bad decision by Michigan but always understand this … Les was the best man for the job. Les Miles was a Michigan man who left Ann Arbor to learn more, expand his recruiting base and add to the Schembechler tradition, too bad he wasn't given the chance to prove it.

Quoted from: http://gregghenson.typepad.com/gregg_hensoncom/

Two years and one month

It’s Dec. 12 already and Harmon is one month into his second year. His 25-month birthday was greeted with a second case of bronchiolitis (he had it the first time last January). Kevin spent almost all of Monday afternoon with him at the doctor’s office, where he received two breathing treatments. He was sucking wind so bad he could barely cough. But, since he came home with some antibiotics and oral steroids, he’s bounced back much quicker than before. He’s pretty much back to normal, with the exception of a coughing fit here or there.

Lost in the shopping and cookie baking and tree decorating is the fact that Harmon is doing awesome with the whole big boy bed thing. We haven’t had to chase him back into bed at night in almost a week (I hope I didn’t jinx it just now)!

Funny things lately:

Over the weekend (when I think he was starting to get sick), he was tugging at his ear pretty hard. He then came over to me and said “take it off.” I died.

When he’s leaving (or we’re leaving), he yells “see you later, alligator!”

Since I brought them upstairs with the Christmas decorations, we have to play Rudolph, Santa and the Abominable Snow Monster in succession to get him to EAT!

When Kevin shows him this mini Lions helmet I got when I interned there years ago, he yells “cornbread.” Kevin also taught him to say “must be the money” – which is one of many sound bytes from the sports radio station we listen to, WDFN.

Although he’s been taking baths for two years, he’s suddenly found it hilarious to take the cup we use to rinse his hair, fill it up and then dump it over his head. He laughs so hard.

We love to scare him, especially when we’re in the basement. We hide in the bedroom or the exercise room and them growl or jump out at him. He screams so loud, usually runs in place and then starts laughing.

We have videos from July we STILL haven’t uploaded but I did manage to upload two videos I recently shot with our digital camera – "Wait a minute" and "Not diez". Sorry for the darkness.

Lazy Sunday (well, and Saturday too)

Our weekend was extremely laid back, just what we needed before the big holiday rush. Since our Christmas shopping is done (I am, however, still working on the wrapping AND the cards), we didn’t need to hit the mall this weekend. On Saturday, we all stayed in our pajamas for a while and then Kevin and I napped when Harmon took his early afternoon nap. We then headed out to Buddy’s Pizza for dinner with hopes to catch the Wayne County LightFest afterward. I say HOPE because that’s all it was. Traffic was backed up FOR MILES and Harmon fell asleep anyway so, after waiting a half hour and moving only a block or so, we gave up. It was a good idea but would have been better on, say, a WEDNESDAY NIGHT!

Today, I swear to God we went to Target for the third day in a row and I thought Kevin was going to lose it! On Friday, we did our usual trip. Yesterday, I had to go replace a missing bag of scotch tape and gift tags that I needed for wrapping. Today, I realized there was more than I originally thought in that missing bag so I had to go back AGAIN and get a couple of things. Kevin said he felt like it was Groundhog Day! After Target, we went grocery shopping at Kroger (God, I HATE grocery shopping) and then picked out our Christmas tree on the way home.

Overall, we had a nice, relaxing weekend. The only blemish is that Harmon seems to be coming down with yet another day care cold. He’s been working on those two-year molars (they’re all partially through) so he’s had a bit of a runny nose but the crazy-ass coughing starting while we were inside Kroger. I hope this cold is a quick one because the little man wants to get outside and hunt for Santa (check out last year's version of the photo below - so little - I'm sad)!

Two-year update

This is LONG overdue but on Nov. 16, Harmon had his two-year appointment. He weighed 34 pounds and was 35 ¼ inches tall. Both stats were up there percentile-wise but were less than we thought. Maybe we’re just used to people thinking he’s three or four years old! He is doing great and the doctor had no real concerns. Because he responds so well to the nebulizer treatments when he has a cold, the doctor does want us to keep a close eye on things in case he’s asthmatic (not likely but something to think about).

Our appointment was with our new pediatrician, Dr. James Baker. He was great with Harmon and was full of information for us so it went very well. We do, however, miss our old pediatrician so much.

OK, on to what Harmon is up to these days. He is in love with cars, emergency vehicles (like fire trucks and ambulances) and construction equipment. He also continues his obsession with reading (which explains the vast amount of books he has) and lately has loved coloring. He still loves his stuffed animals and still pulls bats and balls out of his toy bins (I’m hoping this will pick up again in the spring). The biggest change in him has been the continued explosion of language.

He always asks us to play with his Legos by grabbing our hand (or saying “hand, hand”) and then dragging us to the living room all the while saying “beeld sumpin’ (or build something). He usually loves to build TOWERS!

He loves to say things like “wait a minute” or “oh my gosh/oh my goodness” when he is surprised about something (all the while making HUGE eyes).

Since the basement is done, he always wants to “go downstairs.” He loves it down there and he gets up and down those stairs pretty fast.

If he’s with one of us and wants to see the other, he will say “Go see Mama (Dada), go see her (him).” And, when he finds you, he gets SO excited. A related behavior is him yelling our names ridiculously loud in public places – you can hear him throughout the entire store!

When he’s stumped by a question, he says “um, um” before answering. If he remains stumped, he starts in with his roll call – naming any and all nearby family members.

And, the singing, my God, the singing. He has a medley he belts out which includes “Ba, Ba, Black Sheep,” “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” and “Itsy Bitsy Spider.” And now that it’s the Christmas season, he loves to sing “Jingle Bells,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Frosty the Snowman.”

Lastly, because of his love for Handy Manny (and some prodding from his Nana), he now does his numbers in Spanish from 1-10 (I especially love “siete”). I keep encouraging this not only because of my background but because speaking Spanish REALLY will benefit him in the future!

He does something new every day and all of it amazes us!

Nothin's gonna’ derail this Motown train

After this blockbuster trade, I hope Rod Allen’s quote about the Motown train not derailing are true. When I started hearing rumors about this yesterday morning, I figured it would never in a million years happen. But, last night, while we were eating dinner, my friend Alec called and I just knew he was calling about the Tigers. I ran to the computer and couldn’t believe what I was reading! I still don’t think it’s fully sunk in yet but, God, I am so freakin’ excited for baseball season to start!

I will say that it's always hard to trade away great, young prospects but they are called PROSPECTS for a reason. To get tried-and-true talent and have those new players not be that much older – what a wonderful deal! Dave Dombrowski, as usual, is a genius (and also is my hero). I wish he could take over the search for the next Michigan football coach!

With this deal done, the Tigers now look to be true contenders, right up there with the Yankees and the Red Sox. I hope more than anything that this deal is the final piece of the puzzle that will bring a World Series crown back to Motown!

Lucky number seven

Seven years ago right now, Kevin and I were at our wedding reception watching our guests play their own music and mix their own drinks. It was a wonderful day and I can’t believe we’ve been married for seven years! My sister just sent me this e-card, which is freakin' hilarious. It did, however, make me think about how far we’ve come. It hasn’t always been easy and we’ve had some dark times but we’ve held it together and I can see us being married for 70 years. We always said we would remember to truly celebrate days like today but that was before Harmon came along. Tonight, we just decided to have dinner at Cottage Inn – the place we had our rehearsal dinner – and it was perfect. Harmon was an angel and the food was awesome and it just made me think that, in the end, it’s not about big gifts and fancy dinners. It’s about being together and enjoying each other. Kevin, I love you so much. As I always tell you, you are my prince charming, the man that made all my dreams come true. I would marry you one thousand times over – HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!