Jersey Christmas

We flew out to Philadelphia on Christmas Eve day, leaving Samantha at her favorite kennel, and leaving Odin safely in the care of our good friend Terrance (given Odin’s recent surgery and healing wounds). The flight was a piece of cake as it was the first time we purchased eaw his own ticket now that he’s 2. He just sat in his seat reading books. mtw’s family bought us a rental car as our Christmas gift so that we could drive to Brick from the airport. It was great to see everybody and to spend time together, especially given that it was eaw’s first Christmas with us. Christmas Eve included a delicious lasagna dinner ala SueAnn, followed by a Christmas Eve service at their Lutheran congregation. eaw was on his best behavior at the service, singing along to the carols and hymns he knew (“Silent… “ni;” holy… “ni”). SueAnn and Jon were very hospitable in housing us, especially given the fact that they are also housing jyw and his girlfriend. It was fun for us to be there, and hopefully not too stressful for them! Thanks for everything!

The weekend included much family time: Christmas night at SueAnn’s with many gifts and good cheer; feeding the birds by the water: an evening out with most of the siblings that ended late night at tmw’s new pad with jd; an outing with cousin mj and aunt cc to make a build a bear (which eaw loves!); a surprise birthday party hosted by tmw for jd’s 30th; a visit to jkw and aw’s new apartment right on the beach; and much good food and good time. There was never a shortage of uncles, aunts, grandparents, and activity. eaw LOVED being with his family, especially all the free-spirited uncles. Our first morning back in C’bus, he woke up asking for “jah” and “cici.” Here’s a pictorial of our Jersey Christmas:

Merpy Birthmas

Given that we will be in New Jersey for Christmas Day, we made special arrangements with Santa to visit us today, on eaw’s 2nd birthday. It was really fun to have our own holiday while the rest of the world was still caught up in the pre-holiday frenzy. It was truly an amazing experience to witness the power of the mind over matter. For us, everything slowed down – it felt like Christmas Day – special, private, spiritual, connected, rejuvenating, and hopeful. Makes me wonder why we don’t assign that kind-of power to “regular” days more often.

The day started with cinnamon rolls much to eaw’s delight and mtw’s belly’s later remorse (I tried to tell him he didn’t have to eat the whole thing). Next, eaw helped mom make a birthday cake – he’s a great helper in the kitchen. I will not lie, eaw chased down the cinnamon roll with cake batter. All rules are ignored on Merpy Birthmas.

Following the sugar load, we prompted eaw into the front room to discover the offerings from St. Nick. He was thrilled, and sweet – running from toy to toy, opening the gifts from friends and family, all the while yelling “tenku” “tenku” “tenku.” Favorite gifts included a rocking horse that neighs (a second hand find by mdw), a Thomas the train activity book from the Tolks, and a cookie set to accompany Grandma and Grandpa’s birthday kitchen set. The site of the Christmas morning aftermath was fully satisfactory. It was a lovely morning. The rest of the day was spent walking the dogs, listening to music, playing in eaw’s room, reading books, and napping.

The evening brought more celebration as we treated ourselves to a family dinner at a nearby Ichiban steakhouse. eaw loved the show of our very talented chef. The flames and flying knives were fully entertaining and the food was delicious. We had been worried that the restaurant wouldn’t be a good fit for a 2 year old, but it was a tremendous success. As per tradition, the evening ended with cake and candles and more sugar consumption. Good thing, New Year’s is just around the corner – we can resolve and remedy the poor (but celebratory) nutritional intake. Merby Birthmas to all and to all a good night!

Happy Birthday EAW!

Darling, charming eaw - we are so glad you were born, and we are so honestly thrilled to celebrate your life today and all days. You are much loved. Today, we offer you the moon and the sky - the whole sky.

Once ... I heard a bird, an absorbed, ecstatic bird, eloquently telling its child: "Fly away, soar high: a few bread crumbs will suffice you, but the sky you need ... the whole sky." -Said Aql (Lebanon)

Not a creature was stirring...

Pre-birthday celebrations

On Friday, eaw had his last day of school before a holiday break at both his morning daycare and his afternoon toddler language class. Given that his birthday is on the following Monday, we had to complete some early celebrations. For the morning class, eaw shared banana cake cupcakes with orange frosting (thank you g'ma Louise - your legacy lives on) with his peers. His teacher said the cupcakes were both a surprise and a hit. As the kids licked the frosting, expecting the usual sugar frosting, their eyes popped open and their lips puckered as they registered the tart orange flavor. Still, they were won over by the delicious flavor combination. eaw loves the banana cake, and asked for one the next day for breakfast (he is truly his mother's son:) For the afternoon class, where there are multiple food allergies, mdw and eaw prepared jello jiggler stars. eaw was very good at stirring the hot jello. mtw commented that the stars were the most "mom" thing completed to date. Even another mom commented to mdw, "look at you with your stars - doing the mom thing." It was the most rewarding feedback mdw has received in a while.

Keep Your Distance

Last Monday, G'ma D joined eaw and mdw for a holiday party sponsored by the early intervention program that has supported us so much. It was a great party, and both g'ma and mdw were touched by the incredible diversity and goodwill that was present at the party. eaw enjoyed pizza and juice, face painting (he chose a Christmas tree), cookie-making (especially the purple frosting), and viewing Santa from afar (still a bit terrified of the bearded fellow). He did NOT enjoy the life size characters that were roaming around the party. He had a hyper-awareness of the exact whereabouts of each character and remained fully anxious if one of them was within a 10 foot radius of our location (notice him nervously pointing out a nearby character to G'ma). As we left the party, we were given a gift bag that included a beautiful hand-made quilt, a stuffed animal, and a farmer in the dell toy that is one of eaw's favorites. We feel grateful to be celebrated and treated with such warmth and generosity.

Grandma D visits!

We had a lovely visit from grandma D. She was able to "squeeze" us in between meetings New Orleans and Washington D.C., and we were so glad for her visit. She creates beautiful environments, whether tangible or intangible, wherever she goes. mdw particularly enjoyed a morning at a local furniture store where mom upgraded mdw's choices for furnishing the new living room. mdw would have gone for her default sporty-casual, but cmd brought her typical style and flair to the occasion, suggesting an eclectic ensemble that feels like creative expression. Thanks mom for your generosity of time, resources, talent, and laughter. We can't wait to have you back in the new living room.

eaw loved (LOVED) playing with grandma. Part of her visit was to celebrate his birthday a bit early since we will be east of the Mississippi for his 2nd birthday and Christmas. Grandma and Grandpa D bought eaw a fantastic wood kitchen set, which mdw and mom set out to assemble while eaw was at daycare. Four hours, 23 steps, and a gazillion parts later, we finished the assembly. Tah- Dah:
The best part, of course, was eaw's sincere thrill and satisfaction with the new gift. The pictorial series shows it all. Thanks G'ma and G'pa !

Winter Wonderland

We are busy celebrating the holiday season, finding magic in the mundane and creating memories and traditions for ourselves as a new family. I'm not going to lie, as trite as it is, I am finding the joy of Christmas again through the eyes of my son. I even got a little teary at the end of "Elmo's Christmas Countdown," ( a gift from grandma D) not because of the content per se, but because of the excitement and thrill in eaw's dancing and clapping. I know he doesn't "get it" yet, and mtw and I are still debating how we want to structure the whole Christmas scenario, but it sure is fun. Last Thursday, we ventured out into the freezing cold to find a tree. Again, we struggled with the environmental costs and impact of a live vs. an artificial tree, but talked ourselves into the real thing as this was our first holiday with eaw and in a new home. Yikes, I guess that sort-of justification leads to a global environmental crisis. Nonetheless, we found a gorgeous frasier fir that smells like heaven. Since we are a little house poor, we bought an extra big one to take up the extra space in our living room. mtw's friend, Terrence, came over to help us decorate. It's a great tree!

Later in the week, we visited the "Festival of Lights" at Alum Creek during grandma D's visit and enjoyed some beautiful and some rather odd Christmas lights. For example this depiction of a hottie nurse, and Santa giving a shot to a deer in the buttox. The festival also included a very over commercialized Santa's shop that sold snowmen in boots with shotguns, among other holiday items. Still, eaw loved the lights and enjoyed looking at Santa through the window at the store (the line was WAY too long to wait for a moment with the man who is still a little bit terrifying to eaw). Other holiday highlights include a visit to the Franklin conservatory where eaw enjoyed a holiday train exhibit and gingerbread competition. On Thursday evening , mtw and I enjoyed our first school performance. eaw's daycare sponsored a holiday concert that included adorable songs and sweet performances by the children. The program began with the children entering the darkened room carrying candles. It was so beautiful and so hopeful. eaw stood in his spot and participated with some gestures and smiles. His big moment was singing the "wish" during the lyric of "We wish you a Merry Christmas," although I thought his portrayal of a spinning dreidel was spot on! Here's a shot from the after -party:

THE DONUT - a pictorial expose

Guitar Hero, Snowfall, and COSI

We all slept in today, after a very busy week and many late nights. mdw had a successful premiere of a new work she created on OSU students this week. The content of the piece was the Guitar Hero phenomenon so the entire creation, rehearsal, and performance process was truly enjoyable. There was definitely craft involved, but there was also some serious play. mdw collaborated on the piece with mtw’s friend Clifton who plays with the Blue Man Group in NYC – he performed live electric guitar in the piece. Clifton stayed at our house during the week, so there were many late nights catching up and laughing. It was good to have him here. There were also many late nights for eaw as his parents overlooked the fact that they would both be obligated to the rehearsals and performances all week, and forgot to get a babysitter. He came along every evening and was a trooper, flirting with the tech crew, performers, and patrons – he seems very comfortable in his own skin and loves to watch the dancers perform. Still, he was very tired and slept in until 9am today – unheard of from him! We had pancakes for breakfast, and enjoyed watching the first true snow fall of the season. Later in the day, we headed to COSI (a dynamic hands-on science center) for an event with the COFLAC group (Central Ohio Families with Latin American Children). COSI has an amazing open playroom for children under five, and eaw was thrilled with the outing, running from station to station. Favorite stops were the water play area, and the indoor treehouse. Just like the visit to the farm in October, it was good to be with families that resembled ours – to share stories, to exchange ideas about how to keep our children’s culture of origin in their lives, and to engage with peers for eaw.