Christmas 2012

I didn't wake up at my parents house for the first time in 32 years on Christmas morning.  We did our own little family thing at 6:00 AM then headed over to my parents for breakfast and gift opening.  We hosted Boris' family in the evening.  Santa brought Ben such a nice fire house that he didn't get past the first few gifts.  There are still presents unopened waiting patiently under our tree.  Everyone was SO generous towards Ben and Kate.  They both got many beautiful things from a doll house to a homemade robot pillow (and everything in between).  It was a busy few days full of many wonderful memories, not a lot of time for picture taking...

Ben and Kate

“Good morning sweetie”, he sings as he stands on full tippy-toe and reaches between the bars of the crib to touch her soft, wispy hair.  Ben is an incredible big brother.  Sometimes it amazes me how adaptable small children are.  When I was pregnant with Kate, Ben and I would snuggle on the couch and I would talk about my growing belly.  I would tell him that there was a baby inside and that she was growing a little bit bigger with each passing day.  When it was time, she would come out and join our family.  As a two year old, he could not possibly understand the magnitude of how his world was about to change.  But when it did, other than a few rough days where the answer to every question was met with an angry “NO!” he adapted beautifully.  He loved Kate from the moment they met.  He has never shown an ounce of jealously, which is remarkable considering how much “time” she takes away from him.  He’s not always the gentlest big brother (what two year old little boy is?) but his love for her is steadfast.  He loves to hold her, pat her head and give her kisses.  He loves explaining things to her as he plays.  “Baby Kate, my front loader truck is moving the rocks!”  His enthusiasm for her never waivers.

I always say that Kate looks at Ben the same way a 13 year old girl looks at a 13 year old boy.  She’s smitten by him.  At her first immunization appointment, I remember the public health nurse commenting on how closely she was watching his every move.  She’s been fixated on him since day one.  Watching, learning, trying to engage him whenever she can.  Kate rarely laughs at anyone other than Ben.  Just last night she erupted into a fit of giggles when he splashed her in the bath.  It’s as if they have this understanding of each other and it’s nothing short of amazing to watch their relationship grow.

We are lucky that Ben was so accepting of Kate when she arrived and that she is in such awe of him.  I can only hope that their relationship grows throughout the years in the same way that it began.  With love, respect and devotion to one another.

To the outside world we all grow old.  But not to brothers and sisters.  We know each other as we always were.  We know each others’ hearts.  We share private family jokes.  We remember family feuds and secrets, family grief’s and joys.  We live outside the touch of time.

-       Clara Ortega

"Jingle Bells" Ben Style

Long River

When Boris got home last night and saw Ben’s painting, he remarked on how good it was and joked about taking it to work to hang in his office.  As a side note, Boris is a very talented painter.  I, on the other hand, am still drawing stick people at a kindergarten level.  After Ben went to bed, I asked Boris if he was serious about hanging the painting in his office.  Because let’s be honest, sometimes we say things to our children that we don’t really mean.  Not to be cruel or dishonest but to make them feel good about their accomplishments.  I have to admit, I liked Ben’s painting too, even though my original plan was for him to add many layers.  As it sat in the kitchen afterward to dry, I felt a little sad that it would morph into something else, that some of the little details I liked would disappear under different colors of paint.  I love the little black dots he added with his finger in the lower left hand corner and the glob of paint left behind when he realized I was filming him.  

This morning we talked about keeping his painting as is and he thought it was a good idea.  We also talked about how an artist usually names their painting.  I suggested “Long River” and he agreed.  If you listen carefully to his words in the video, he says, “Look at this long river.”  We will resume our layered painting project for Ben’s bedroom as soon as I go out and buy a new canvas.  

Ben's Canvas Painting - Day One

Ben has a large piece of "dead space" on one of the walls in his bedroom.  I've been trying to figure out how to spruce it up for awhile now.  I decided to go out and buy a large canvas (18X24) for him to paint so he can make a piece of art for his bedroom.  He started his painting today.  I chose the colors and the paint brushes and he did the rest.  Every day we're going to add a new layer until it feels complete.  

Here’s a little painting video of Ben as well:

My Handsome Little Man

This photo shoot started off a little rocky and then I whipped out some chocolate and Ben's mood quickly changed.  I can't believe my little man is going to be three in a few weeks.  Three!  How does that even happen?

Siblings - December 2012

I'll look back on this with fondness, right?

All I wanted was a nice picture of my two children together in their Christmas outfits.  I didn’t even expect them to smile.  Just the two of them, looking in the same general direction, for a second.  For some reason, Ben has an aversion to the camera right now.  He gets highly emotional every time I bring it out.  And Kate, poor Kate.  She had no idea what was going on.  Her brother was having a full on meltdown (which always makes her cry too) and I was behind the camera waving a puppet around like an idiot.  No wonder she looks terrified and confused.  

The truth is, this is a fairly accurate representation of what it’s like to have a two year old and a baby.  We live in blissful chaos.  Most of the time things run smoothly.  But not a day goes by without some sort of incident.  Some are predictable.   Like every time I have to stuff two kids into winter clothing and into the car.  Nine times out of ten, at least one of them is going to cry.  And then other times, I’m completely blindsided.  Happy one minute, on the floor in tears the next.  When you have children, every moment of your day is unpredictable.  Having one child turns life upside down.  Having two is even more frantic.  But in the end, through all the exhaustion and chaos there is more love and laughter in my life than I have ever experienced before.  These two little beings were meant for Boris and I, idiosyncrasies and all.  I love them more than words can describe, even through moments like these...