Jamie Chew's Web Log: Vol. 2 No. 39

2008-06-03 22:44 (Kristen) Liam and I slept in this morning, and were barely aware when John and Jamie headed out the door. The weather was grey and dark, and Liam would have slept until 10:00, I am sure, if I hadn't woken him up at 9:30. He was happy and chirpy in the morning, helping me to put some plants into a larger container (and moving one of those plants when I wasn't looking to a better place, in his opinion). He went out with John when it was time to get Jamie, and they went grocery shopping while I went out with Jamie, Jake, and his mom and brother to our last day of skating. Jamie was very hungry, and had a good lunch, but came off the ice halfway through complaining of a sore foot. I retied his skate, and sent him back onto the ice in time for free play (sticks and balls). Jake and Graham had been horsing around, spending most of their time flat on the ice, and I don't think that Jamie thought that it was fun for him. He hates falling down. He has more fun when he is interacting with someone else, and having other people to hit pucks with and kick balls around on the ice helped him to perk up while Jake and Graham were occupied. We went to Jake's afterwards, and it was a pleasant afternoon. John and Liam arrived to get us at 4:00, and Liam woke up then. (John: he wouldn't fall asleep in the car, or at Loblaws, but had no trouble doing so once I put him in the big stroller and started walking down Broadview.) Jamie was tired enough that he fell asleep in the stroller by the time we got home, but woke up when John carried him inside.

I had completely forgotten that we had arrangements to go out for dinner at Yamato to celebrate John's birthday with his parents and his aunts. Jamie loves Yamato, and was delighted. (John: I took along my new lens, and let Jamie take some of today's photos.) Liam stuffed himself, but I was only able to keep him in his seat in the crowded restaurant by reading books to him (John's aunts brought him a new book that kept him amused for a long time). I ended up, by the end of the meal, taking the kids out onto the patio for running about and play so that the dinner could wind down nicely. We went back in for a little ice cream, but Liam was not interested and wanted to go back outside as soon as possible. Both kids were very tired and awfully spun by the time we left at 8:10, and we couldn't get home fast enough to put them to bed. Liam did not want his teeth flossed, and was acting very very fatigued, and started to cry when I did his teeth. He cried and cried, I picked him up to console him, and he threw up across the back of my neck and into my hair before I got him over the sink for thre rest. I have no idea at this point if he's sick, overate, or choked on his tears. We cleaned up, and I put him to bed right away. He nursed to sleep without incident, and has not woken up yet. Jamie went to bed a while later, after his bath, and fell asleep without too much difficulty.

2008-06-04 14:20 (Kristen) Liam woke up in the middle of the night, chirpy and ready to play, but somehow our exhausted failure to rise to the challenge convinced him to go back to sleep. There was a power failure in the middle of the night, and we had been woken up by the sound of our computer backup system beeping at us. That likely was what woke Liam up, although John says that he had a dream in which Liam was playing with a toy that beeped. He kept telling Liam to stip, and eventually Liam did, and then John realized that the beeping was the backup system. I have no idea how long John was up fixing this and that, poor guy. It was another grey morning, and our room is rather dark with the drapes, so Liam slept in until almost ten.

Liam was in a fine mood, if not particularly hungry, and it was a short morning before it was time to leave and get Jamie from school. I should add, here, that John took Liam to Loblaws yesterday, which was notable for Liam saying "Frog! Frog!" at a picture of a frog on a juice box, and for his long story about two corn chips. John tells me that Liam was in the back seat with two corn chip fragments: one, the larger, was the 'happy' corn chip, and the smaller one was the grumpy corn chip. The larger one would pursue the grumpy one, which was hiding, and make it play until the smaller one got grumpy enough to go and hide again, occasioning the happy big corn chip to chase it again. We boggle at this.

We did a little more grocery shopping and an errand or two after dropping Jamie off, and then I put Liam into the stroller for a walk through the Annex and (one thought hopefully) a nap. He did fall asleep for about 45 minutes, which was more than I was expecting. John took him to Hakobune and I walked down after them, sleepy and in need of the brisk wind to stay awake. When I arrived, we told the children that it was time to go. Liam, oddly, was the one who was more disinterested in leaving. He was occupied with a toy, and I told him it was time to leave. He looked at me, and kept playing. I told him that I was going to leave, bye-bye, which usually makes him leap towards me like iron filings to a supermagnet. Not today: he gave me his evil grin and waved "bye-bye" to me. Then he gave Mrs Sasaki a hug goodbye, and bowed when it was time to go! I was, again, somewhat thunderstruck but more than pleased.

Jamie was tired, but in good spirits. He did his Japanese homework and some Jackman work with me. He had a gentle introduction to subtraction, which he understands as numbers but less well as a word problem. John took the boys to Browning for some play while I made dinner, and then Jamie wolfed said dinner in two seconds flat. He played with Gary for the rest of the evening, while I cleaned up and played with Liam (alternating). Jamie fell asleep around 9:00 with little difficulty, but Liam required much more convincing, finally falling asleep at 9:45.

2008-06-05 24:17 (Kristen) Liam slept in this morning again, but was up in time to leave with the rest of us for Jackman. I took him with me shopping on the Danforth, and he enjoyed his brief time in Treasure Island as I bought presents for Jake (whose birthday party is on Saturday). I picked up a Very Hungry Caterpillar sticker book for Liam, and a Lego Racer for Jamie. Jamie and I had a good time putting it together tonight, and he is looking forward to racing Jake's (we bought Jake one too) after Jake's party.

Ken took Liam for his walk this afternoon, and John took Jamie to Hakobune. Jamie and John arrived home a little time after we did, and Jamie vanished into the basement with Gary as soon as he could. Liam was insistent that we read books and do other things, and has been a little more time intensive than usual. He managed to get into the craft box by standing on the Brio train roundhouse, and dropped a plastic container of finger paint onto the floor, cracking it. He scampered off, and I cleaned up the paint with less than good grace. Later, John came downstairs and asked me why Liam kept signing to clean his hands, and why was his bottom sticky? Finger paint. Again, I dealt with it but not with as good a grace as I could have. I have not found any trace of where he might have sat, but will keep looking: the colour is florescent yellow, and can't be *that* hard to spot...sigh.

I should say, in Liam's defence, that he seems to be teething again, with a vengeance. He normally doesn't thrill to having his teeth flossed, but we can usually turn it into a game. For the last three nights, he has become hysterical whenever I've tried to floss his teeth, and no amount of jollying will snap him out of it. This goes for brushing too, and he's never objected to that (or, at least, not in a very long time). Hysteria, including sobs with hitches, and shrieks, and ten minutes of sucking up by yours truly. There is a large lump on his bottom right gum, and he has woken up, hysterical and unconsolable, three times tonight. I finally drugged him and took him out to the front porch to snap him out of it and convince him to come back to bed. John leaves tomorrow for Albuquerque: what good timing!

2008-06-06 25:11 (Kristen) John left for Albuquerque today. He's playing in an invitational Scrabble tournament there as part of his birthday present this year, and had to be up quite early to make it to the airport. We opened a video chat connection when I got up while he was at the airport so that he could tell Liam that he was going on a plane, and say good morning to both boys. Jamie was a little slow but otherwise helpful getting out the door, and we took him to Jackman. I dropped Liam off at Hakobune, grateful for the quiet but strong presence of Blue Elephant, as Liam didn't cry at all when I left (but would have if Blue Elephant hadn't made a timely appearance). I was told later that Liam was great, and that he found the stash of Anpanman and similar books today. I think that he kept making people read to him all morning! He's a real bookworm right now, and everyone now knows Liam's urgent, Stitch-like grunts as he taps furiously on whatever it is he wants to read.

I picked up Jamie at Jackman, and we got a lift from John's parents to the pizzaria near the daycare as it was Friday, and therefore pizza day. Jamie gave me a long list of acceptable foods for each day of the week (samosas on Mondays and Tuesdays, pizza sandwiches on Thursdays...) but I told him that he'd have to tell me again when I could write it down. I dropped off Jamie, picked up Liam, and ate pizza with Liam in Goforth Hall. Liam kept playing with Jamie's shoes, and would have had his life complete if only Jamie was eating with us too. I took him for a walk in the heavy heat, but he woke himself up after only 40 minutes with a coughing fit. We walked slowly back to Hakobune, and played in the daycare with Jamie and his friends until it was time to go and find bubble tea with Kakeru-kun, Julie-chan, and their moms and sibling. I took the kids home for a little rest before going to Browning, and Jamie and I did his latest game from Jackman. It was a subtraction game that he'd chosen, and he can now (using his fingers quickly) subtract numbers from 1 to 10 (i.e., 7-3, 8-4, 10-5) with a good understanding of which number is taken away from what number. Yay!

We headed over to Browning, and had a good time. We got home a little late, and Liam was almost hysterical with fatigue. I drugged him with a little cold medication (acitaminaphine) and Advil for teeth (ibuprofin), but to no avaiol. He's woken up at least four times, coughing, and I think that we're just going to have to wait this one out. Sigh. Jamie had a very hard time falling asleep, however, as he is too wound up and excited about Jake's birthday party tomorrow.

2008-06-07 22:27 (Kristen) Jamie woke up at 7:15, asked if it was morning, and said that he was going to get up. He then fell back asleep and needed to be carried out of bed and to the bathroom at 8:07. Liam was wide awake, and was cheesed when his brother got to go off in Junko's car and he didn't. He wants to go to school already. We hung out and did some chores, before going to the Danforth and heading off to get Jamie. At Nisshu Gakkuin, we met up with Harry's mom and Harry, and had a lovely pizza lunch with them. Liam was having a hard time falling asleep, and almost (but not quite) fell asleep between Lawrence and Eglinton stations. It was too noisy, however, and didn't fall asleep until after we'd been to the library and picked up a small present for Jake's brother Charlie (whose birthday is also being celebrated today) at Treasure Island. Jamie really wanted a Knex Undersea Creatures toy, and I told him that he had $15 in allowance and that he could use that. I really thought that he'd change his mond, but he insisted and now has $4 left in his "account." He has been playing with them at home, so he seems to know his own mind about it.

We stopped at the Second Cup for a rest and a drink, as Liam had fallen asleep and the heat was fierce. Jamie and I read some books, and chatted before we headed home. First, however, we had to have a discussion of whose way was the fastest, and why was I taking Jamie home the longest way, Mummy? Once we were on Jackman, however, he acknowledged that my way was, in fact, the fastest (oh! this is the fastest way), and apologized. He doubts me constantly, which can be a little trying on occasion, but has the good grace to recognize when I'm right. /smug. We got home a little afte four, and Liam woke up around that time. Then it was time to get ready for Jake's party, which has had Jamie so excited. Once we got there (Charlie W's dad gave us a lift with Charlie and his brother), we saw that the place was a real gymnasium with springy floors, trampolines, and foam pits. Jamie really was unsure of the whole thing, but a coach took Jamie and two other kids (including Liam) around to make them more comfortable. By the end of the hour-long circuit, Jamie was utterly enthralled by the place and had to be pried out of the gym. Liam loved the place too, but I think that his favourite was the foam pit. Jamie keeps talking about the trampolines, but liked the deep foam pit too. Jamie grilled me on when we could come back, and I may have to sign him up for classes if he keeps up this level of enthusiasm.

Despite the exercise, it took the boys a long time to fall asleep (residual excitement?). Hopefully they'll sleep well tonight. I turned the air conditioner on in the morning, and have turned the bedroom one off for the night. The house is nice and cool compared to the muggy outdoors, and stays nice and cool until sunrise.

2008-06-08 22:02 (Kristen) This morning we were up around 9:00, but only after I got up at 6:45 to turn on the air conditioner and close the blinds behind the curtains. Ah: much better. We were a little slow off the mark, and didn't eat breakfast until after 10:00. Jamie was a little frustrated with me, I think, and started agitating early to go and play with Gary. As I knew that this was his only day off with Ayami, I stalled and stalled, making Jamie even more cross with me. LIam only wanted to watch television, and I was trying to get the housework done (not even extra housework: just the essentials). It was a raucous morning, as Jamie chose not to listen, and to act up in other ways until he finally was allowed to play with Gary for half and hour before we left to go on a playdate. Liam wasn't hungry at all, and just picked at whatever I put in front of him. That would have been all right but that he was hungry, so I had a crabby little boy on my hands too. Not as bad as later on in the day, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

I baked muffins in the morning, which made Jamie happy as I had been promising to make them since the middle of the week. He wasn't all that interested in helping beyond stirring the dry ingredients together. After lunch and his time with Gary, I took Liam and Jamie to the Second Cup to a playdate with Graham, the son of a fellow editor who has just moved into the neighbourhood. Graham had been at a pirate party earlier in the day, and was a good match for Jamie's untrammelled goofiness. Liam, unfortunately, could not be convinced to sleep as long as Jamie was around, and so spent his time chasing the big boys around an showing surprising agility on the playground equipment. We played out in the crushing heat, with occasional forays into the Big Carrot for drinks, until around 3:45. Then we walked home, looking for shady trees to walk under. Jamie went straight downstairs, and I didn't see him for about two and a half hours. I had to clean the main floor in anticipation of John's parents' arrival for dinner (his mom cooks, I host), and Liam melted down, seriously, at least twice. I finally found a snack that he liked, and that brightened his mood up considerably. Thank. God.

Dinner went nicely, and the boys had fun playing together for short periods after the meal. Liam was very clumsy, and Jamie was pretty tired too, and so I popped them into the bath and into bed by 8:45. Liam crashed out instantly, and Jamie was asleep by 9:05.

2008-06-09 24:04 (Kristen) I didn't think about it until late last night, but I realized that a part reason for yesterday's schenadigans was that both boys were missing John. They're usually difficult on the third day of any of his absences. That makes me feel somewhat better about it.

We got up a little late, but managed to make it to school on time. I took Liam home for a calm morning doing this and that (he's really into the Magic Schoolbus, and I wonder what he's getting out of it) before going for lunch at Browning. Liam ate a bit and wanted to play Wii a lot, but he only got a little in before it was time for his walk. He slept for two hours in the heat, with a little sunblock on and a towel and cool cloth beneath him. Child tans like no one's business, but it was a very high UV day today. He was a little cranky when he woke up, but soon calmed down with a little food and liquid. Jamie had a playdate with Sabine, including lunch, so I didn't see him again until around 3:00. I met up with him, Sabine, and Sabine's nanny, Jennes, at Jackman School. Jamie was trying out Sabine's bike, and seemed to be interested in it. We're getting him an old bike of Daniel and Ross's to try out, and I hope that he enjoys it too. He's getting more interested in things like that, and it's a good source of exercise and confidence building for him. He was hot and tired, so we went home to cool off, watch some more Magic Schoolbus, watch a storm, and do some Jackman work.

John landed at 3:50 or so, but his flight was kept on the tarmac for an hour and fifteen minutes while thunderstorms moved over the airport. They won't unload planes when there's a storm, as they've lost groundcrew that way. Tami picked John up and took him home while Ken and I made salmon dinner. The kids were utterly delighted to see their dad, and Jamie gave John a kiss and said, "Papa, I missed you." Liam also gave John a huge hug when he saw him. John brought Jamie back some plastic reptiles (including salamanders, about which we are currently reading a library book) and gave Liam a lovely stuffed jackrabbit. We pretty much called who wanted what. I received a lovely necklace with bronze leaves and blue coral blueberries. Wow! The rest of the night was spent looking at John's pictures (Liam was *very* insistent that John keep showing him the photos of his host's cat), naming Liam's jackrabbit (Jamie decided upon Stomp), and otherwise having a good time. We headed home, with Tom and Daniel's help, and put the kids to bed. I should add that Liam insisted upon John taking a picture of Stomp, and then taking his own picture of Stomp, and came up with a sign for 'rabbit' (hand above head for 'ear,' which we'd shown him before, and adding in the sign for 'cat,' which is a hand simulating whiskers). He loves stuffed animals more than Jamie did at this age.

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

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