Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Mom's Birthday!

A year go, she was attending classes at Mt. Sinai Hospital and practicing various prescribed parental techniques on plastic dolls and bracing for the big day with touchy-feely videos and xeroxed handouts.

A year later, she spends her day slinging thirty-plus pounds of trouble up and down stairs, has concocted the precise measurements for creating downtown Toronto's most succulent rice cereal, can plow a stroller through a crowd of tourists like an Arctic icebreaker, and regards two hours of uninterrupted sleep-and-or-Facebook time a luxury (stuff the instructor didn't tell her).
Today is Mom's birthday--or "Lidia", as she was known in her past life--and we couldn't be more proud of her. The boys are healthy, active, and getting into more and more hazardous situations on a daily basis--proof that she's doing everything right. I wish I could be around more to screw it all up...but that's what evenings and weekends (and the odd well-timed "sick day") are for. Happy Birthday, New Mom (can't you just smell the burnt-toast breakfasts?)



Monday, September 28, 2009

Seriously, Carter, Try The Thumb...



Gotta Stand For Something...


...didn't think it'd be quite this soon...








Playmate Needed

With Nathaniel resting up, Carter was in desperate need of a temporary playmate. Fortunately, one was conveniently close by...

No Pacifiers Allowed!

Nathaniel has developed a unique quirk--he can't stand the sight of Carter sucking on his pacifier. Within seconds, he's snatching it out of his brother's mouth! The thumb's been a tough sell on Carter, but if this charade keeps up, he won't have any choice...

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Nathaniel's Bad Bug

There aren't many scenarios in this universe that can make you feel more helpless and ineffectual than a sick baby: 1) they can't tell you what's wrong and 2) unlike adults, you just can't dope them up on pain medication and send them to la-la-land until the symptoms clear.

On Wednesday Lidia suspected that Nathaniel was developing a fever, and on Thursday, his temperature shot above 39, prompting Lidia to rush him to Dr. P’s practice, where he was administered some medication (we’ll spare the details) to get his temperature down, and blood and urine samples were taken for some better-safe-than-sorry lab work.

Dr. P advised us to stop giving him formula temporarily, and replace it with chicken broth and Pedialyte (sort of an infant Gatorade), and prescribed an anti-nauseant. The little guy, who already had to deal with a steroid shot when he developed a cold this past winter, clearly wasn't thrilled with the change in diet and routine, but within the day we thought were all out of the proverbial woods.

But that night, his temperature went up to another severe level, so Lidia took him to Sick Kids Hospital, where doctors thankfully saw him right away, and after giving him some Motrin, instructed us to restore his formula, keep up the hydration supplement, and slug it out until about Sunday.

The next day, Friday, the lab results came back and Dr. P called to inform us Nathaniel had developed a urinary tract infection, which explained his painful cries overnight. She called in a prescription for us, which we're to administer twice daily for 10 days, much to his protests. He had another difficult night, but his temperature wasn’t as severe and the medication was a big help.

We decided to ease off on the social engagements all weekend and hole up indoors until we were positively sure he was on the mend. No one can say with absolute certainty where the bug sprouted from—Nathaniel had been to Surrey Place and the Niagara Street school the previous week but I could easily have picked it up from the workplace or the convenience store door handle and carried it home. Throughout Saturday, Nathaniel was a bit logy, but still alert and playful (his brother more than made up for it!!!). His appetite was hearty and best of all--he slept through the night. And Carter seems to have come through the drama without so much as a sniffle.

By Sunday, it was like as if it'd never happened...although the bags under our eyes were evidence to the contrary. Nathaniel was ready to make up for lost time and we were more than happy to muster up the strength for a long-overdue play day…even the cats got in on the action!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Neighbourhood Watch

Each night, before bed time, we take Carter and Nathaniel out to the front step to inspect the street and meet up with the neighbours. Now that it's mid-September, the temps are dropping, the light's vanishing earlier, and tonight, the regulars were nowhere to be found (even Merlin!), but the boys had fun all the same...


Friday, September 18, 2009

Dr. P Sez...

It's been awhile since Dr. P gave the boyos the once-over...suffice to say, she was amazed by their growth and progress.


Nathaniel now weighs in at 16lbs, 15 oz, and Carter's holding steady at 15 lbs, 14oz. She confirmed that Carter's got two bottom teeth coming in, and has approved an expansion of their current diet. The daily menu will now incorporate those timeless staples: Arrowroot cookies, non-salted crackers, toast, and meat! (well, the baby-food variants, at least: namely, chicken, lamb, and beef...).

Dr. P suggest we occassionally offer them a little something off of our own plates once in awhile just to expand their horizons (but I'll hold off on cajun calamari and spicy jerk chicken)...which might be just the thing to distract Carter from Minnie and Maggie's cat food...

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Too Cool For School...

Shelly's Drop-In Centre has started up again with the school year back in session, and because I'm still off for the week to galavant around The Toronto International Film Festival, I took a break from screenings so that I could sit in and see first-hand what trouble a couple of 9-month old hellions could attract...

With the school being so close, we didn't have to bother with assembling the stroller, etc., which was pretty sweet compared to yesterday's parking ordeal at Surrey...
Surprisingly, the building isn't wheelchair accessible, meaning there's no ramp for the stroller, which makes it more than a little difficult for Lidia and the other moms to get the kids up the stairs to the first floor classroom...


It was a capacity crowd, to be sure--the "baby section" of the room was packed like a Queen Street car at dinner hour. The boys got to play with some cool toys and made a new friend in Laetetia (13 months) before Shelly urged everyone to join in the circle for sing-a-long fun.


There was much clapping and yukking about, but despite the shrieking noise level from about a dozen-plus toddlers, Carter managed to fall asleep, and Nathaniel held out just a little bit longer. After 90 energetic minutes, it was clearly time for naps so we slipped out and rushed them home to their room.