On Being Samuel; On Being Brennan

Time has flown by since the last time I was able to blog and my children have changed in so many ways. I really have no idea where to start and where to end so I am going attempt to summarize "who" my two boys are right now. Of course this is how I see them and isn't all encompassing of the very nature of who they are, but maybe someday I will look back at this entry and be able to have a glimpse back into the past, into their childhood.

On being Samuel: This little man is very observant to what is going on around him. We will be sitting at the kitchen table in the morning, the sounds of National Public Radio in the background, Brennan making his hmmmyummhummmmm sounds as he eats, and Samuel commenting every once in a while about something he just heard on the radio. You can sit and watch him listening. He does this when we listen to music also. Yes he likes the music and loves to dance and act goofy, but he is also listening to the words. This has made for some wonderful and interesting conversations.

Samuel from a very young age has loved to read. We go to the library once a week and get a huge bag full of books. These books are read and re-read for a whole week and long before the week is up, he is ready for some new books. His latest obsessions have been about outer space, astronauts, rockets, dinosaurs, dragons and knights in shining armor. The swing set has become a space ship with which we travel to the moon and bounce around in our space suits because of zero gravity. The cushions or mama, or tati have become the fire breathing dragon and Samuel is the knight in shining armor that defeats us with his sword. The blow up ball pit that he got from his Aunt Nikki and Uncle Dave for his birthday becomes the satellite that is going through a meteor shower. He has a great imagination and loves to play, but he really loves to have his mama or tati to play with him, especially since his sister Lola has gone back home to live with her mom. He really misses her. He was also worried that he was going to have to leave also. We would be out in public and I would walk a little ways away and he would yell, "Mama don't leave me!" We are blessed though because we have been able to have Lola spend the night already since she went home and she is hopefully going to be coming for a visit again soon.

"Mama where not saving the earth!" This is one of Samuel's frequent sayings as of late. Scott and I have been trying to teach him about things that are healthy for the environment and those that are not. As a result, he sometimes is more conscientious about saving the earth than we are. Our latest goal, while the weather is still nice, is to ride our bikes as often as we can instead of taking the car. We will ride to the grocery store or to central park and the post office. Yet, when we are in the car Samuel will remind us that we are not saving the earth. Scott has tried to explain to him that sometimes people have to drive. Also, in the kitchen in the morning he will remind me not to turn the light on because we don't need it and then we will be saving the earth. I find that throughout the day, even when Samuel is not there with me, there is a small voice in my head every time I am about to turn a light on or do something else, saying, "We are not saving the earth!"

Now being 3 years old, Samuel loves to talk and talk and talk. He will talk to anyone who will listen. However, he also notices if someone is NOT listening. Anytime we are in a public place with children playing he attempts to make friends with them. I feel so sorry for him when they are older kids who just ignore him. One time we were playing at a park and he was so upset when two boys told him he couldn't do something because he wasn't big enough. He ran and told Scott and Scott says yes you are big. Samuel takes off running and yelling at the boys saying, "I am big, I am big." It was sweet, but sad also. Along with loving to talk comes learning new words and phrases and sayings. He gets a big laugh out of different sayings and we get big laughs out of his language mistakes. The other day, we were outside playing when Samuel said, "here's a weasel!" as he was trying to pull up a weed! You can also imagine being a child he says some things that are pretty hilarious. I'm sure he is going to kill me for sharing this one day, but a few months back he was sitting on the potty and yelled out somewhat distressed. I asked him what was the matter and he said, "There's something wrong with my penis. It's cracking." TEE HEE!

Samuel is also a wonderful big brother. As Samuel gets older and so does Brennan, I can see their brother bond growing everyday. He is definitely the big brother, the protector. Anytime, Brennan is walking away from us when we are outside or somewhere other than home, Samuel is quick to run after him and grab him saying no no Brenny. That is what Samuel calls Brennan, Brenny. In our yard we have a pear tree and this summer there where lots of Yellow Hornets eating the pears. While we were playing outside, Brennan started going over to where there were lots of hornets and before Scott or I could even get to him Samuel was there stopping him and calling out to us. Along with being a protector though, Samuel loves to wrestle and thinks that Brennan should be able to wrestle now also. We have to remind him that he is still little and not yet ready for wrestling. All in all he is a wonderful big brother, loving and attentive.

On being Brennan: I'll start with the facts. Brennan now has 6 teeth, his hair is getting pretty curly, in the back especially, he took his first steps at 9 months old, he started really walking at 10 months old, and he loves to eat. He also just started waving bye, bye and "talking" on the phone is another new favorite.

Brennan is very independent. He will play and walk or should I say run around the house and be very content for a long time. Things he enjoys doing include: sweeping, playing with bowls and plastic containers in the cabinet, getting into the kitchen drawer (which is baby proofed by the way) and pulling out measuring cups and spoons, running from room to room starting in Samuel's room and going through the house to our room and then back again, he loves anything that his big brother Samuel is doing (as one can imagine this causes trouble from time to time), he enjoys putting plastic shapes in the corresponding holes, he likes to throw his food off his tray when he is done, screaming is one of his new found tricks (yikes, the ears), when I'm folding laundry he likes to try and unfold what I've already folded (it's a game we play and he loves it) and he enjoys trying to get into the bathroom every chance he gets in order to pull my hairdryer out and play with it.

At the beginning I wrote that Brennan is independent, which can be very beneficial; however, it does come with some negative aspects. Brennan's Independence can also rear an ugly head in the form of stubbornness. If you scold him, take something away, take him inside before HE is ready to go in, or heaven forbid you do not get him out of his highchair when he is ready, well he sure can throw a "fit" for a one year old. He will rear back if you are holding him or he will throw himself on the floor and scream. He also does not like getting his diaper changed. I think we have another exhibitionist on our hands because he also likes to take off his diaper. He has discovered that the cloth diapers are pretty easy to take off since they have Velcro sides. Yet, with all this said he is a wonderful little boy.

There are times when he will come and grab onto my leg and hug me, or if I'm on the floor folding laundry he will come up on my lap for a minute and then go. The love he has for his big brother is very evident. Blowing on his belly or grabbing onto him and holding on are just a few ways he shows his big brother some love. Also, when I hold him he will put his hand down the collar of my shirt for comfort. Sorry Brenny baby, I'm sure that might embarrass you someday. I can't imagine our family without Brennan in it...it's amazing to think it's only been a year.

My boys. Ahh so sweet are these words in my mouth. It is hard to believe that one day they will be grown men with wives and children of their own. I pray that they will forever be "my boys," no matter how grown up they become.