Spy Camp

I am reading Harry potter!

she grows

Ruby,

Mom took you for your 12 mo checkup today. You took two poke-pokes in each thigh as well as a blood draw from the right forearm and held up well. You're officially 30 inches tall and 22 pounds, both around the 75th %ile.

Love,
Dad

Hellion

Dinner faces

Happy siblings sharing a moment and offering a peek into dinner time and how to wear your food.

Tire swing

Dylan,
You were patient as Dad figured out the logistics of hanging an old tire from the avocado tree, helpful when it came time to get working, and thrilled with the results.

I love you little girl

Ruby,

I told you tonight during your bedtime routine that I love you. The sound of the words "I love you, Little Girl" had a quality of rareness that made me realize I haven't actually said it out loud to you often enough.

"I love you Ruby"
"I love you Ruby"
"I love you Ruby"

I said, as if making up for lost audibles. And for posterity I write it to you here: I love you, my beautiful, wondrous, ambitious, uncompromising little girl.

I have no idea how to raise you, but I have a sense you will be sure to let me know.


Dad

Teacher feedback

Dylan,

You've started attending Math Club after school one day a week. The facilitator sent this feedback to Mom this week:


"Good Morning Gxxxxx Family,
Yesterday we continued to work on multiplication. During the first half, the boys and I used the connecting cubes to help us with 'groups of' (ex. 8 groups of 2). After a few problems, we went to the whiteboard to work on equations (ex. 5x9). I had the boys draw out objects to help them solve for the answer. After break, we worked on figuring out the problem and answer (ex. I drew six rows of five lollipops; the problem is 6x5=30). Homework for next week is written on the inside of the front cover.
Dylan is such a joy to work with. He brings fun and laughter to the group. They other boys are more serious while Dylan tries to bring out the fun in them. He works hard and never gives up. Dylan is comfortable with multiplication. He takes his time and uses whatever he needs to solve the problem (counting, drawing, and using his fingers). Dylan is a big part of this group!
Janet"


I was noticing the other day that you've started memorizing various single-digit multiplication problems (like 4 times 5) and you seem to be having no trouble doing the work in the math book designed for the second semester of 1st grade.

I hope you continue to enjoy learning.


Dad

Zapatos

Ruby,

You have a deep-seated fascination with shoes.

From the time you first started crawling and would take any opportunity to assault footwear within your sphere of ambulation you have displayed an unusually over-developed affinity for shoes.

Now that you have shoes of your own (and having just started walking this week) you not only want to take them out of their boxes, taste, and play with them you very much want to put them on and wear them around. Yesterday you sat on my lap and I offered you a shoe to play with as a distraction. Instead of taking what I had practically shoved into your lap you raised a dainty foot, toe extended so I could put it on for you. Fitting, I suppose for the daughter of a couple who met in a shoe store.

Dad

Stepping stones

Ruby,you took your first genuine steps today. You've been threatening for months now, free standing like a pro, making it very clear what side of the family you get your balance skills from. Then suddenly this evening as I placed you in a free stand position a few feet from where Dad had just entered the house after a long day of grape-picking you decided to become bipedal. As I turned around to clean the floor under your highchair you apparently took a few steps, squatted down as if to return to hands and knees, then thought better of it, and returned to stand to take a few more steps.
You proceeded to demonstrate your new found skill periodically throughout the evening, unsure of what the big cheers were all about each time you did so, but joining in on the smiling and clapping just the same.
Your signing, language and motor skills are exploding all at once...very cool!

Love,
Mom

Precious Stones

Dylan,

When you asked me for permission to use a hammer to break apart some landscaping rocks to expose their precious innards and sell them to people I tried to throw a little cold water on your earnings expectations.

When you borrowed a hammer and eye protection then disappeared into the driveway I was just glad to have you occupied.

When I agreed to let you sell your wares in front of the house I didn't imagine you'd even engage anyone with a proposition, much less close any business.

When you asked me how to spell "piece" I didn't even consider the bigger picture.

And then I went to call you in for dinner. I saw you across the street having just finished a cash transaction with a rare (and very pleased) pedestrian. I saw you had a five dollar bill in your hand and couldn't believe it. As you explained how you had gone door to door with your box of rocks and slick sales pitch you pulled out another thirteen(!) dollars from your pocket. You explained that we could give this money to a company. The kind that helps bring food to countries that are too hot and dry to grow their own so those people won't die.

I was very impressed with your success, and hearing that you'd sold people on the charity fund-raising line helped make at least some sense of the $10 bill you were holding as well.

You were so pleased you kept singing "this is the best day of my life", experimenting with different tunes.

Now we will research some charities and send someone the $18 you raised.

You are creative, fearless, and unstoppable. My challenge is to keep you safe in the meantime.

Dad

Math

10+12=22 8+8=16 I Am very very good at math! Are you? 5+5=10 1000+1000=2000 wow that's awesome.Ruby is MY baby sister she is 10 months old!

Post-op, A-OK!

Tired ears

Ruby,

You have established a very consistent habit of pulling on your ears whenever you drink a bottle, which is usually just before sleeping. Tonight I let you pull on my ear while you gorged yourself on formula. You seemed even to prefer it, though you were not very gentle.


Dad

Dylan's miles

Dylan,

You went to your first session of your new school's weekly afternoon running club. You ran a full mile and came home very proud of your accomplishment. Mom and I were pleased.


Dad

Surgery tomorrow

Dylan,

You're going to have minor surgery at 7:00am tomorrow. You'll be under complete anesthesia and it's supposed to be done in an hour. I wish you a speedy recovery.


Dad

Ahead of the curve

Ruby,

We were quite surprised to learn you are taller than Dylan was at ten months. You're also taller than cousin Noah.


Dad

Morning note, 09/24/2011

Ruby and me

Me and ruby like each other a lot and a lot we usually play together or lay together after school at 12:pm or before school at 8:15.

Pancakes

Tomorrow we make pancakes.yummy!
I can't wait.

The other night we were stargazing and A bear came walking down the dock and dady scared it
And it Scared me. But we had popcorn hehehe

Swing time

2011-08-25

Self-portrait

Daily note on first day of Kindergarten

Popcorn and stargazing

Dylan,

We had gone most of the week of our Tahoe vacation without taking an opportunity to check out the stars. After your shower tonight we headed down to the dock near our rented unit at the Northshore condos, a bag of fresh popcorn in hand for munching on. You were excited to do some stargazing and it was great for me to hear many of the things you learned about stars and planets at your week of NASA camp this summer.

When you and I reached the platform at the end of the dock we met a young local couple hanging out. In classic Dylan fashion you made friends with them right away. The young lady shared with you her iPhone app that helps identify constellations. You alternated between eating popcorn, finding stars, and discussing the finer points of such things as star temperatures/colors and the qualifying criteria for planet-hood. Mom eventually joined us and was admiring the visibility of the Milky Way when you excitedly sought my attention.

"Daddy, there's a bear" you said all of a sudden, pointing back towards the beach. Knowing you were just seeing the mysterious outline of a stack of beach chairs or some such thing from 150 feet or so away but wanting to assuage your genuine feeling of concern I took a look for myself. Not seeing any hint of scary wild animal I told you there was no bear. You insisted. "Where?" I asked, still scanning the beach. "There. It's on the dock!"

I shifted my focus from the beach to the dock and did indeed see a lumbering figure moving in our direction. It was now more easily discernible through the darkness thanks to the few small lights along the pier's edge.

The only thought I recall having was the presumption for some reason that it was probably not an especially large specimen. I moved from the platform to the main pier, stomping my foot several times and making large gestures with my arms as I advanced toward the animal. I felt menacing and I tried to convey it. With every stomp I imagined the vibrations were being felt all the way up the dock.

I could see this thing even better now and it seemed bigger than I had optimistically hoped but it had also stopped it's forward progress. I yelled at the bear and stomped again. I felt relief tinged with a sense of victory or maybe even conquest as our bear reversed course and walked back off the dock. The sight of it turning right and disappearing down the beach is the most distinct visual memory I retain. Seeing it in profile I realized it was a really big bear. Certainly a full-grown adult, and presumably a Black Bear.

We decided stargazing time was over. You were understandably reluctant to head back towards the dark beach and were becoming animated. I knelt down in front of you, put the side of my bent index finger under your chin and looked into your eyes to tell you: "It's just like what I said about bees: It's better to be aware of them than to be afraid of them". I had to pause mid-sentence slightly, or risk exposing fear in my own voice. As we made our way I fielded scared questions from you with over-confident lies about how frightened the bear had been and how far down the beach it had hurried. You hustled across the sand and up the stairs toward our cabin.

Once inside, we shared tales of the adventure with Marc, Lisa, and Yaya who were still up. It was a chance to reflect on an experience we will remember for a lifetime and to process some of the events. I realized that I had reacted the way I might have hoped to if I were pondering this scenario as an academic exercise, and that I had done so without engaging any decision-making process at all. I also recognized that bringing a fresh bag of popcorn to the distal end of a lake dock in Bear Country at night is inadvisable, to put it mildly.

It was past time for you to go to bed. I waited with you while you brushed your teeth, after which you told me "I don't think I want to come back to Tahoe anymore". I climbed up to the loft with you and after you crawled into bed sang you your choice of "Children of the Universe" by John Denver. You were still feeling anxious about bears. I did my best to drive home the fact that there was no way I would let a bear get to you. "What if it's a Grizzly Bear?" you asked. "Not even if it's two Grizzly Bears", I replied. "What about a thousand Grizzly Bears? I don't think you'd be able to attack a thousand of them. They could press down really hard on you".

I tried a different tack. "Do you know what is the most powerful force in the Universe? It's not a Grizzly Bear". This got your attention. "The most powerful force in the Universe is a parent's love for their child". The covers pulled up to your chin, you showed a little smile then asked "Did you just make that up?". I told you to ask any parent and they'll tell you the same.

I kissed you goodnight a few times and thanked you, both for spotting the bear and for your controlled behavior as we left the dock. You thanked me for scaring the bear, then asked several more questions about the possibility of bears getting in to our cabin. Concerned that you might have a hard time falling asleep I asked Mom to pay you a visit a while later. She climbed into the loft, kissed you and rubbed your head unnoticed as you were fast asleep.

Lake Tahoe

Tomorrow we are going to lake tahoe in the summer we need to pack for the trip.
I am, excited.
Dylan

And camouflage shoes. Nice!

Tie-dye, Plaid and Argyle

Hearts

Ruby,

A year ago today a doctor said there was a hole in your heart and you would likely not survive. Mom delivered the news to me while I was in Orlando, Florida enjoying a work conference. The unconfirmed possibility that my Baby Girl might die and there was nothing I could do shook me at my core.

This afternoon my father was diagnosed with Progressive Supraneural Palsy, a form of Parkinson's disease. It will -- as it has apparently been doing for years -- continually lay him low, and lower toward total immobility, much as ALS did to his own father, although with increasing dementia adding to the burden.

Apathy. Moodiness. Depression. Weakness. Dizziness. Falling. The diagnosis makes sense of it all in a way and I now have something I can blame for this other than my father himself.

Last year we learned that your heart was good. Papa Russ has a good heart too, and I will always remember that.


Dad

When Ruby learned to crawl

Now. Ruby knows how to crawl, how about that, and she's teething also.

Dylan

Brother Dylan blogs

Ruby,

The other day Noah and Lisa came over to visit and Ruby and Noah played together and Noah was smart because when Ruby started to crawl to Noah he turned around and then Mommy and Lisa said "wise move".

We had pasta for dinner and Ruby and Noah both ate in similar high chairs and Ruby ate plum and blueberry.

Dylan

Explosion of milestones

Ruby,

It's been pretty amazing last few days. You started crawling on hands and knees all of a sudden. Days later Mom finds you standing up in your crib, then again standing up at the foot stool in the kitchen. You're pulling yourself up all over the place and even taking a few cautious steps.

You're still a smiley, happy, beautiful little girl. Eight months old with a new sense of freedom to travel around the house on your own. With a little guidance from Dylan you've even learned to climb the step up into the kitchen from the family room.

Love,


Dad

Ruby and Me

WWII planes

Ruby's First Bites

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUIakMQmaT4

Sent from mobile device.

Balloons and laughter

http://youtu.be/NqMT82YQIfY

Caboe Ocean

D,

You drew this picture as a replica of a painting Yaya did of some rocks down in Cabo. It's pretty great.

Dad

Scientists Only

Dylan,

You made this sign for your bedroom door and clarified that it
pertained to the "researching and inventing" kind of scientist.

French Horn

Dylan,

You made yourself a French horn out of foam pipe insulation and a
giant bendable flower. Awesome!

Dad

Inch

Dylan,

You've grown a full inch since your "5 yr" checkup, which was January 28 -- just 39 days ago.

No wonder so much of your clothing suddenly no longer fits right.


Dad

Fly Dylan fly

Event horizon

Dylan,

There's been a lot of angst recently about where to continue your education when you're done with this third year at SJM. We've gotten you enrolled (through no small effort) in a public elementary that's about as highly regarded as they come, but at this point we are still considering other options. What matters to us is that your intense love of learning and appetite for absorbing information are fostered, not squelched.

I commented to you at lunch today when you made a reference to attending said public school next year that if Mom and I found a school that was even better for you we would send you there instead. I asked you if you'd rather go to the public school (which I'm deliberately not naming here) or to the best school for Dylan, you replied: "I want to go to the school that will help me win a Nobel Prize".

...

The quickness and casual resoluteness of your response was jaw-dropping. Especially since neither Mom nor I had any awareness that you even knew about Nobel prizes.

I promise I'll do my best to find you that school.


Dad

Chess with Papa Russ