Transitioning into toddlerhood

He's pretty cute, runny nose and all.

Now that I'm in the depths of it, I'm beginning to remember all the craziness that comes with having a toddler on the loose in your household. This is the stage where I find myself on high alert and unfortunately, saying 'No!' a lot. I don't think that it is because I'm an overly-cautious parent, it's just that there is a very real threat of danger at all times when there is a mobile and fearless 14 month in your midst. There seems to be an ever present possibility of:

 a.) falling - off of a chair, high chair, couch, bed, staircase...
 b.) jamming fingers  - into doors, dresser drawers, kitchen cupboards....
 or
c.) licking something gross -  a toy off the floor is the best you can hope for, a crumb in the corner, a tree branch, a shoe, a used spoon or a random toothbrush (yes, these have all happened) ... I don't fear him actually eating these items, but sneaking in a quick taste is pretty much a given.

Other indicators that you have a toddler include:
-  a constantly runny nose
- picky eating (he now knows what a cracker is and will settle for nothing less)
- nighttime wake ups, and
- the uncanny ability to cling onto my leg at the exact moment when I need to take something hot out of the oven.

Thankfully, they make up for these slight deficiencies by managing to grow exponentially cuter everyday.

I think it will be much like having a kitten this Christmas. Tree ornaments are going to be hard to resist!

Despite all of this, I know how short this period of dependence is in the grand scheme of life. All I need to do is just look at how grown up Caleb now is. He can now make his own breakfast, jump in the shower completely on his own, start up the computer and call someone on skype (sorry about that call during work, Adam!!) and play independently for hours. Yes, at times, these days are trying and exhausting - but they are precious all the same. I know Odin won't always want be held in my arms, or sit in my lap, or be in the same room as me, or notice the second that I'm gone. Because of this, my moments of frustration tend to be short and followed by moments of intense love and appreciation. Yes, it can be hard, but wow, it is also amazing.

Practicing piano in pyjamas

Santa selfie! At least one of us looks happy!

Bonding

Hi guys! 

My little boys are bonding and it is one of the greatest thing I have ever witnessed. At 14 months, Odin is finally able to truly participate in our family fun. Actually, he is often the centre of the fun, making us all laugh with his words, sounds, games and hilarious actions/reactions. I don't think our home has ever been so filled with laughter. It feels like we actually have 2 kids now, as opposed to one kid and one baby, and it turns out that having two kids is great!! 

One of my favourite parts of my day is bringing Odin with me to pick Caleb up at his after-school program. Odin looks around the room filled with kids, wiggles to get out of my arms and literally runs over to give his brother 'Cay' a hug. Odin will cuddle up close with his head against Caleb's chest and start 'patting' his back. Cale loves the attention and especially loves that the other kids are watching this public display of affection from his baby brother. Even the teachers' hearts melt because they are just so darn cute! 

Odie also loves to wrestle with his big brother and Caleb absolutely delights in placing Odin on top of him so they can laugh and roll around together. I love moments when I catch sounds of their laughter from another room. Knowing they are on their own and having fun together. It's so wonderful, I can only hope this camaraderie lasts for another 10 years at least...hopefully it will last for an entire lifetime.

Action shot!

I also had a chance to bond with my significant other this week. With Alan about to embark on a 5 week tour, I decided to take a day off work to spend quality 1 on 1 time with my husband. It has been well over a year since we have had more than 2 hours alone together, so it was a long overdue date day. We tried to make the most of it  - kicking things off with a Bay of Fundy beach walk, breakfast and a Christmas shopping spree in the big city of Digby, followed by some home cooking and a nice long nap.  Ahhhhh, I'm relaxed just thinking about it. The day was not overly adventurous, but it felt wonderful to reconnect, and I didn't have even a single ounce of guilt about leaving the kids in childcare while we were having fun on our own.

Exploring the Natural History Museum in Halifax last week. Alan took the kids on a day around town while I was in meetings. 

And now for some video fun! I love saving my photos and videos on this blog so that I can share them with my friends and family, but also so I know where to look for them when I want to see them. We've recently gone back through some of Caleb's old videos on here, and it is so fun to see him learning to walk and talk. It's great to capture these amazing moments because they go by so incredibly quickly. Here is Odin saying a few new words, with his brother's help (of course):

Halloween

Our first Halloween with two little ones to dress up was a huge success. I know Odin came with us last year to a few houses, but I must not have had the energy to attempt a cute infant costume for him. I made up for it this year, though! Caleb insisted we all wear costumes and go trick-or-treating as a Star Wars family. I now believe the main reason for this family costume choice was because Cale wanted a lightsaber to play with - but I was fine with that. I found one that admittedly is very cool - it lights up and even makes the 'swooshing' sounds. Pretty sweet.

We kept the costumes very simple - I attempted the Princess Leia hair, Alan donned a Darth Vader mask, Caleb dressed as Luke Skywalker thanks to a 4$ Frenchy's costume find, and Odin was the show stopper dressed as baby Yoda. I clothes-pinned green cardboard ears to a green hoodie, put a bathrobe overtop, and voila! - baby Yoda was born. The only trick is that  Odin nowwants to walk up to houses and say 'hi' whenever we are outside! He loved the 'greeting your neighbours' part of the evening, and he even had a few Cheesies at the end of the night, so overall it was a pretty special holiday for him.

The force is strong with this one