Jamie Chew's Web Log: Vol. 1 No. 77

2007-03-27 20:36 (Kristen) Jamie slept the rest of the night without incident, and we all got up around 9:00 again. Jamie ate some ochazuke* for breakfast (I think that the umeboshi* (pickled plum) and green tea helped his stomach even further), and watched Anpanman for a bit. He is really into Anpanman, and the episodes that he is watching are all taped from Japanese television. This means that he is watching Japanese commercials too, which are pretty trippy. John got him to go out and help him to clean the car, which Jamie wanted to do as well as play with John, before we went to Browning for lunch. Ken wasn't there again, so I took the boys home after lunch. Jamie was kind of punky, and has had a runny nose all day. I'm not sure if it's allergies or a cold at this point, and will be keeping an eye on it. We took punky Jamie and alternately uber-sunny and uber-cranky Liam out for a walk in the beautiful weather, and picked up our caffeinated drinks at the Second Cup, but Jamie didn't fall asleep. He did enjoy playing with a boy named Jonah on the way home, however, spontaneously wanting to play with an age mate, despite not really knowing the boy. I think that socialization at kindergarten may not be too challenging on that level for him.

John went to see Dr. Ling, and I took the boys to The Gap to buy some clothes for me for a change. Both boys were very good, although Liam did need a nurse in the change room, and enjoyed the trip on the subway. We picked up milk on the way home, and John picked up soup with noodles at our favourite noodle shop on Spadina. Jamie ate some of his soup and most of his big dumpling, and Liam hoovered back a jar of food himself (as he hadn't eaten much today, possibly contributing to crankiness, I was pleased). We played at the school for a bit before coming home for baths. Liam is rolling about, and Jamie is watching (you guessed it) Anpanman. Liam likes to pull the DVDs off their low shelf under the television, and this annoys/distresses Jamie, who doesn't like the mess. Jamie has gotten very good at cleaning up after Liam, which is wonderful/dead amusing. I should add that Liam is sooo very close to crawling, it's almost painful to watch him.

2007-03-27 24:21 (John) Jamie was moaning in his sleep just now, and when I went to check on him he seemed congested and warm. I managed to take his axillary temperature without waking him up, and it was 38.5°C (101.3°F). His appetite seemed off today, and there was that vomiting last night which now seems suspicious in retrospect. I guess we'll keep him home from Hakobune tomorrow unless he really wants to go.

2007-03-28 10:10 (John) Jamie slept okay, but still has an axillary temperature of 37.4°C (99.3°F) and looks pale so he's staying home from Hakobune today.

2007-03-28 22:20 (Kristen) Jamie's fever was down over the course of the morning, but his nose is running and he has a bit of a cough. However, he was in good spirits, and ate some of my cereal (he insists on "sharing" all our food) and a bowl of fruit that John made for him. He watched a great deal of Anpanman in his pajamas on the couch, which is the privilege of whoever is sick. The pajamas on the couch part; the viewing choices are a personal preference.

I took Liam out with me to do some shopping at the Eaton Centre in the afternoon, and John took Jamie with him to do some grocery shopping, as it was a lovely day and Jamie was doing well. I don't know how their shopping trip went (John: it was fine, we went to the St. Lawrence Market and surprised all of Jamie's usual Saturday morning fans, then picked up some tofu in Kensington Market, and dropped some off for Nobuko), but Liam fell asleep on the subway and woke up when we got to the Eaton Centre. Both boys at this age were not all that mall positive, and they both hate hate hate change rooms. This is a big reason I have hardly bought any clothes for over three years. When I took Liam out of the stroller as he was starting to shriek at the Gap, he got lots and lots of attention from the sales staff, who thought he was The Cute, as they say. *They* got smiles and giggles. I got tired arms. I took him to the Bay, and the same thing happened. Sigh. He did have fun watching the fountain, and playing with a boy who was just a little younger than Jamie, who just loved playing peekaboo with Liam. So he seemed to have a good time.

John and Jamie met us at the Eaton Centre, and we drove home en famille*. Jamie was up for going out after dinner but I really wasn't, so it was a boring evening at home, which I don't think was the first choice of either boy. Liam was drooling like a fiend, and I ended up drugging him tonight, and Jamie as well, as his fever came back slightly in the evening (unsurprising). Jamie has begged to go to Hakobune tomorrow, and I'm inclined to let him.

2007-03-29 21:45 (Kristen) Jamie was feeling better this morning when he woke up, and so I took him and Liam to Hakobune. John helped us out the door, but we were still late. Jamie was delighted to be back at daycare, and waved goodbye quickly before going to play with his friends. Liam and I went to hang out at the Second Cup at the JCC, where he was charming as usual. We picked up Jamie, and he spent a good deal of time playing with Kai-kun before finally heading out the door and onto the subway.

We made it to the Second Cup, where we did some work in his workbooks, and met with John, who brought the stroller. I took the boys to the library and to Treasure Island before meeting up with John. We headed home, where the boys (well, Jamie really: Liam just watched) played with the neighbourhood kids (first swarm of the year!) while John went to Browning to cook some fish and asparagus for his parents, who were due to return late this afternoon. We raced over to meet them as they were unloading their taxi, and went inside to help unpack, make our "welcome home"s, and eat dinner. Nobuko and Tomoko came over as well, and played with both boys while the usual chaos went on. John and Jamie came home, while Liam and I went to my book club across the street before bed. We're now all home, and getting ready for a much-deserved rest.

2007-03-30 21:04 (Kristen) Liam had a more disturbed night than usual lately, and Jamie was all over the place on the bed, but I still managed to wake up in time to get everything ready for Hakobune. Liam didn't want to eat breakfast at breakfast time, but instead nursed and hung out at home until we went over to Browning for lunch. Then he hoovered back half a jar of pears and rice cereal. Ken was still not feeling well, so I took Liam out for a bit. He slept in the stroller for close to two hours, which is pretty good for lately. While he loves the backpack stroller, he hasn't been sleeping for long in it for one reason or another. A long nap was a very good thing. I took him back home to meet with Jamie and John, who came back from Hakobune exhausted. Jamie was so tired that he had to rest after laps around the church with Kai-kun, but didn't want to go out for a walk/nap. Instead, he stayed inside and watched endless rounds of Anpanman. I did try to get him to do other things occasionally, but he really was too tired to have much focus.

We went over to Browning for dinner, and Jamie ate some dinner. At one point I told him that he could leave the table after four more bites. Jamie then told me that he'd eaten them. John and I both said "No, you haven't," and I added, "We've been watching you." Jamie then threw up a hand and with a grumpy face said "Mummy don't watch!" Hah. We headed home early, with a pit stop at our neighbour Rob Callaghan's birthday party, but all the kids went home around the same time, us included. Liam was happy by and large, but he's starting to fuss and it's definitely time for bed.

(John) My mom came with us to Hakobune this morning for the first time, to meet the Sasakis, and so that I could take her shopping while Jamie was at the daycare. It's nice to have Tai-Tai back in our daily lives. Jamie and I were both exhausted in the afternoon - Jamie's still got some sort of virus - and we took turns just about passing out on the couch while rousing ourselves to sing the Anpanman theme song. At Browning, we watched a bit of Time Bandits with Daniel, and I played some Infotron with Jamie for the first time.

Liam can quite rapidly roll and spin, and we've started meeting parents whose kids went from rolling and spinning to walking and running, without crawling in between. Jamie certainly never really tried to crawl, but I'm not sure about Liam. He can lift his tummy off the floor by pushing his arms up, he can arch his back the wrong way and lift both his head and his feet up high and rock on his tummy, and he can also grab your clothes and pull himself to an upright (if precarious) position.

2007-03-31 24:15 (Kristen) A quick blog tonight, because Liam's not interested in having both of my hands occupied for long. He slept badly last night, and was deeply unhappy for much of today, as his new bottom tooth pokes its way through. I've drugged him twice, and it makes a real difference to his mood and personality, John and Jamie went shopping with Tai-Tai, and came back tired. Jamie rode his run bike to the corner store and back. Quiet evening. Good night.

(John) Kristen, Jamie and Liam have a cold. Jamie has the worst of it, but was well enough to go to the market. Liam's is compounded by his teething, and he ran enough of a fever today that Kristen medicated him. Kristen just seems a bit tired.

Jamie had a good time at the market, accompanying Tai-Tai on her first visit to the market since her return from Mexico. Nupur had saved him his samosas, despite unusually large crowds this weekend that saw her sell out of unreserved samosas much earlier in the day. He washed down his samosa with heroic quantities of mint chocolate chip ice cream, then ran and rode (in both sections of the shopping cart) around Loblaws as I tried to burn off the rest of his energy, but was still going strong when we eventually made it home. He helped me with some yardwork, and spotted the big yellow Tonka truck that I'd bought for him on sale last fall and stashed in the garage for a suitable occasion. It was pressed into service moving leaves, and speaks with a gruff version of Jamie's voice a la "Mighty Machines", while apparently my rake has to speak in a squeaky voice.

Liam won't stay asleep without company early in the evening, and he won't stay awake for too long without fussing. I took him out at one point to admire the traffic on Broadview Avenue, and was thankful that I've got two boys. I have no idea how to calm down a 7-month-old girl - do buses and trucks work for them too?

2007-04-01 23:43 (Kristen) We all woke up around 9 or 9:30, except for John, who slept even longer. It was easy with the dreary overcast day we had today to sleep in or just want to veg inside. However, that way lies disaster and Too Much Televisiopn, so we dragged Jamie out after lunch. John thought to go to Riverdale Farm, and Leslie, Peter, and Simon were free in the afternoon too (we had meant to get together in the morning, but I wasn't sure if I had a real cold or not--fighting one, for true, but not a fully blossomed one), so gelato plans were hatched.

Jamie had a good time as always at Riverdale Farm, and was the object of much admiration in his new fireman boots and raincoat. One little boy in particular (who must have been 18 months, if that) was so taken with them that he stopped dead to look at Jamie, and didn't move from his adoring spot for almost three minutes, despite his father's prodding. It was delightful. Jamie and I can now recite the entirety of Crossing, a book that Pat and Adam gave to him, which is an illustrated poem about a freight train. We did this many times today. I should also add that we have been discussing the difference between rhyme (which interests him greatly) and alliteration. He can tell identify one or the other sometimes, but had fun trying. He can pronounce "alliteration," which is pretty cool in and of itself.

After the farm, we went to meet Peter, Leslie, and Simon, and to go to La Paloma for gelato. Jamie walked there, and was carried back to the car outside Peter and Leslie's on his father's back. On the way we met our Scrabble friend Libero, and much gelato was consumed. Enough that Jamie fell asleep in the car on the way home at 5:35 (woe!). Dinner was at Pearls, and Liam had a good time. Jamie was unhappy to be awake, but was in fine form by the time we left. Liam fell asleep in the car on the way home (woe!), and both boys were not asleep before 11:30 PM. However, they sleep now, and Jamie is sawing small logs beside Liam and his small twigs.

2007-04-02 24:54 (Kristen) Liam likes to get his sleep in the morning, and hasn't been sleeping much otherwise. Jamie woke up a little before 9:00 this morning in a bit of a mood, and was tired all day. We weren't sure if he was feverish, so if he was it was a mild one, but he was so tired that he fell asleep in his stroller at the Second Cup after John took him to play ball in Withrow Park.

He spent his morning watching television in one form or another, and was quite punky by the time lunch rolled around. He nibbled but didn't really eat. I think that I have to take Jamie out in the mornings, because he'll spend the morning otherwise watching television, and doesn't run off enough energy to be hungry for lunch. Liam went for a walk with Ken but woke up as soon as he got into the Second Cup, and stayed awake more or less for the rest of the day. He wanted to sleep, but just couldn't do it. Your guess is as good as mine at this point, as no tooth has yet shown up. He vacillates back and forth between sunny and utterly miserable, and won't sleep for any length of time unless I am there. I seem to recall Jamie doing this, and I seem to recall not liking this phase much the last time either. He's not eating much either, in comparison to his days where he can guzzle most of a jar of baby food, and isn't interested in his favourites either. God only knows the problem.

Dinner was at Browning tonight, and John kept Jamie amused by playing Boggle with him. Jamie would shake the letters, and John would point out the words. Otherwise, Jamie played with his usual victims, and Liam monopolized Tom. It was a fine evening, and the kids were in bed at a relatively decent time. Liam is up again, however, and I may drug him so that we can get a night's sleep.

* For the benefit of Scrabble players, words that are not in the Scrabble dictionary are marked with an asterisk.

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