Ladies and Gentlemen, Jon Stewart...

I love it when Jon digs up old footage to show how pundits contradict themselves. Especially when he's gunnin' for Fox News.



The scary thing is that Fox News has the highest ratings of any TV news program.

SAHD

So that is the unfortunate acronym for my current occupation. It sounds depressing but it is anything but! I am diggin' staying home with the kids. Granted it is exhausting and testing but it is worth every moment. The biggest challenge so far is getting out of the house. It is easy to cloister ourselves and never leave the safe zone but we get a little stir crazy. It helps now that Ian is comfortable using other bathrooms and will stay dry all day.

We have been going on adventures this week. Last Thursday we went to the Modern Wing of the Art Institute to visit the Ryan Education Center. This turned out to be just a big romper room. They had Caldecott honored artwork on the wall, floor puzzles depicting major works of art, a big bookshelf, and lots of blocks. They had a monitor running a program that morphed from one painted face to another and half a dozen computers. The consoles were nice with flat screen monitors, and a roller ball and a big round button built into the table acting for the mouse (no keyboard). They had a mask making game and a 'match the right bust to the right classical painting' game. These were definitely geared towards older kids.

After we had our fill there we went out to millennium park and walked the gardens and the sculpture park. We went over the Nichols Bridgeway that connected the gardens to the sculpture terrace on the roof of the Modern Wing. Ian thought it was grand! It crosses over Monroe with great views of the lake and downtown. When I figure out how to download photos from my phone I'll post the pics.
For Ian's birthday we went to the Shedd Aquarium. Ian's favorites were the small sharks and the turtles (he knows the difference between turtles and tortoises and will tell you about it). After we had our fill of aquafriends we took a walk along the lake and through Grant Park down to E's office where we had hot cocoa and then went out for pizza!

p.s. One of the frustrating things is Ian's refusal to pull up his pants after he uses the bathroom. He knows how but he'll shuffle about until he falls or his pants come off rather than appease me. Where does this stubbornness come from?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, IAN!!

My little boy is growing up. Last night we took a walk together after dinner. It was a warm fall evening and the star (we do live in Chicago, you can't see many) was out. Ian and I walked around and looked at all the halloween decorations and picked fall leaves. It felt really special to be out with my birthday boy at night. He was just as excited to be outside in the dark too. It's nice that he really participates in social interaction now. What a great kid I have (two!) and how grateful I am to be a Mom.

Teeth!

As I was writing that post yesterday, about how Noa was going to have a tooth in a week or two, he probably already had it in. Yesterday Aaron informed me that his right tooth had busted through the gums and that the left was going to be right behind it. I remember, with Ian, that this first year just seemed to go by so slow. We were so focused on his every breath. Now with Noa, we are so busy, that I can be focused on life and look up and he has teeth! The time goes so fast. My Mom and Dad are coming to visit today, Ian will be 3 on Tuesday and his party is next weekend. There is always so much to do that time just whizzes by. Next thing you know it will be Christmas and Noa will be sitting up, rolling over, and eating! I have to remind myself to stop and enjoy it while it lasts...

Busy, But Happy

Life is good for us in Chicago. My job is going much better. Ian's journey on the potty train is almost over. The budget is actually working (there was definitely a fear that we would not be able to make ends meet with two chillins'). So we are penniless but happy. And not so penniless either. We are gradually paying off the credit cards, so things are good. Now if only the car would last a year more... (at least) and Noa is helping with that as he absolutely hates riding in the car or in a carseat - hard to tell. We are grateful that we live in a city that has such good public transportation. If we lived in GR, this would be hell. Ian is really excited about his upcoming birthday. I'm not so excited about mine... 41... why does time have to pass for me to grow wiser and more content? I guess the good news is that I am a little bit more wise than last year and just a wee bit more content.

Noa's first little point of a tooth receded as his gums swelled up and teeth started moving some more. So where I think the speck of a tooth first appeared on the left side, his first tooth will be on the right. He is definitely teething now and I can see the whole ridge of the right tooth just below the surface. I think it'll be out in the air in a week or two. The boys go to the doctor on the 21st - Ian for his 3 year, Noa for his 4 month. Ian will get a H1N1 shot as well as a seasonal flu shot and I will get a H1N1 for Noa. We have kept up a minimal bit of nursing just so I can (hopefully) pass antibodies to him.

Getting Bigger!

IMG_2867, originally uploaded by Elizabeth Stek.