Sturm Haus

Saturday

Otto and I went to Mother/Toddler Yoga today for the first time. We liked it -- we'll try it again soon to see if he pays more attention and participates more as he gets used to it. Today he alternated between clinging to me and running off to play with the yoga blocks and mats. He helped clean up and was impressively polite, so I think he enjoyed it.

After yoga we went to the yarn shop to see what was new (not a whole lot, but there's more there than I remember from my last visit).

And we dropped some old clothes off at Salvation Army.

And picked up a loaf of sourdough and a couple of muffins at the Bakehouse.

We ate our muffins on the way home, and Otto got to see all the big equipment being used to re-do Carpenter Rd. He spent the whole morning delightedly pointing out trucks, cars, fire trucks, police cars, train tracks -- the world is a new and exciting place when Otto's your guide.

All that, and it's only lunchtime! I feel positively productive. Time to crash for awhile...

deconstructing dreamland

Last night I dreamed that I was holding a football-viewing party, and in the midst of the first quarter someone knocked on the front door. I opened it to find Brian Urlacher standing there, grinning that grin he was grinning during media week at the Super Bowl. Because I'm such an excellent Bears fan, I immediately knew he was at my house because he was on the injured list, and because the Bears were going to suck so badly without him he'd been excused from the sidelines. Where else should he be but with us, the other suffering Bears fans? He joined all the other random people in my living room and I spent the rest of my dream running back and forth between the living room and the kitchen filling trays with homemade chicken wings, trying to get 5 minutes to sit down and watch the game. Also wishing for a sexy version of a Bears jersey to wear (???).

My dream wasn't in my current house, by the way. Or in our old house in Janesville. It was a house I've never seen before, but must have imagined at some point. Perhaps this part of the dream was related to my current obsession with itty bitty houses and cabins and retreats. I have a half-dozen books reserved, plus the 4 already on my nightstand. I love me a shared library system and catalog, I do.

I suppose there are worse ways to spend a night, right? Though I was pretty tired from all that running back and forth. And puzzled about the chicken wings, which I don't really know how to make.

I keep meaning to make a t-shirt that reads "I [heart] Lovie."

And the Bears playlist on my iPod (what? you don't have a team-themed playlist? why the heck not?) includes I Believe in a Thing Called Love, which I change to "I believe in a thing called Lovie" when I sing along. I should probably say "guy" called Lovie, or coach, I suppose. I also have Stand By Your Man, in honor of that quarterback who's FINALLY not starting Sunday (and seriously, I can't think of his name right now, my brain has deleted it due to related trama). And Weapon of Choice for Hester. And, of course, a little Superman.

OK, all you non-football people and Green Bay fans, you can open your eyes now. I'll say no more about the Bears. We don't have a Lambaulance (which is really, really cool by the way), but we do love them. And we're hoping they win convincingly on Sunday against the Lions.

(And suddenly my dream makes sense... the Bears are coming to town! Ah hah! I'm not crazy after all, right? Better get started on those chicken wings...)

help wanted

Haus, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Just Us Co., is now taking applications for the position of Pants Applicator.

The ideal candidate will have strong arms and a good sense of humor. Masters degrees in Psychology, Child Development, and Hostage Negotiation preferred. Ability to sing Wiggles songs and tell Thomas the Tank Engine stories from memory highly recommended.

Hours will vary, beginning as early as 7am and ending as late as noon. Duties include: application of toddler pants; help may be requested with application of diaper and shirt and bathing as well. Pay range is from 10 to 100 M&Ms/hour, depending on qualifications and experience. Benefits include choice of M&Ms (peanut, dark chocolate and regular, as well as any holiday varieties). Please apply in person at Haus Inc.'s headquarters before bedtime tonight.

general silliness

A short video about a long slide! Please ignore the weird chuckle - I hope it wasn't mine, but I'm not sure.

his secret identity

Jalen shows off the flashlights,
originally uploaded by sturm95.

Ah, those toddlers. Always thinking up ways to make life more interesting. Otto has decided to adopt a dual lifestyle already. He has an alter-ego!

I found this out this morning when I dropped him off. Miss Kim was sorting papers for curriculum night tomorrow night. We said hi, and she said, "so is Otto using the potty at home yet?"

I tried not to react as though I'd been stabbed with a hot needle. If we ask him to use the potty at home he says "no!" So I played it cool. "Nope, doesn't seem too interested. Why?"

"Well, he's the first one here who started pushing his pants down and taking off his diaper all by himself. He can climb onto the potty himself, too."

I'm shaking my head in disbelief. "He used his potty chair for me Sunday, but otherwise he's not interested. He doesn't go near the bathroom."

"Well," she said, looking wise as only a woman who's potty-trained hundreds of toddlers can, "he's not doing anything here, and I'm just waiting for him to put it all together. He's almost got it figured out."

I nodded and tried to look like that made sense. Instead I think I looked confused.

He's taking his pants off at daycare? VOLUNTARILY? He climbs on the potty by himself??? WILLINGLY? And he was the first one to do this all by himself?????

Man. When I started wondering what Otto SuperHero's powers were, I never dreamed they'd be "quickest to pull his pants down!" or "able to rip a diaper off with a single pull!"

While at home, his mild-mannered alter ego, Otto, disdains the bathroom.

I mean, I'm thrilled that he's excelling at this instead of stressing over it. I'll get the chance to talk to Miss Kim more tomorrow evening. Maybe we'll discuss training pants. If he can push his pants down and rip his diaper off and climb on the potty, he should be ready for training pants, right?

I don't know. I'm just his mom. We mortals can't fully understand superheros and their secret powers.

We just hope that they use their powers for good, not evil.

cheese!

cheese!,
originally uploaded by sturm95.

The face he makes now for the camera... sigh.

down the big slide with Daddo

down the big slide with Daddo,
originally uploaded by sturm95.

His hair flipped up, he looked terrified, and then he started grinning. He loved it.

Oh, how Otto likes Miss Kim's room.

He likes getting his lunch ready. This morning I made him a sandwich and told him what he was getting as I packed things away. He was hanging on to me this morning for warmth (it's been a wee bit chill here lately), and as I listed the contents he repeated each word with enthusiasm. "Sanwich! Apple! Carrot!" I asked if he wanted a yogurt or a cheese stick with his lunch and he said "Cheeeeese!" in that way he has of drawing a word out to indicate how much he loves the subject.

He requested a Lightening McQueen t-shirt, and thankfully I had a clean one ready and waiting.

We got to day care and he picked his way in along the railroad ties that edge the walk. We waved 'bye to Tristan's mom as she pulled out of the parking lot (Tristan is still in Miss Nancy's room). Once inside he got shy and latched onto my legs, so I had to slowly shuffle through the classroom door carrying his bag and a package of diapers, his arms locked around my knees. But that didn't last long. Everyone was playing the lollipop game (a color-learning song), and Otto was drawn in right away. I put his lunch away, made sure he had his family pictures in hand to share, and slipped out. I went to the car for my checkbook and went back in, and when I left a minute later I peeked through the window at him. He was holding the pink lollipop card, watching entranced as a classmate picked red (rojo). They got up from circle time as I watched, and he carefully picked up his baggie with family photos to move them to a table. You know his favorite photo was the one I sent of his trains, don't you?

I'm so glad he likes it there.

We had a good weekend. Yesterday we went to the orchard with our neighbors. This isn't just any orchard, this is Wiard's, home of the apple AND a dream playground for kids. We spent more time there than I thought we would and didn't see everything. Otto and Noah and Abby played on lots of attractions and helped us pick apples, and we wandered around under a clear blue sky for a good 4 hours. Beautiful. On our way out we stopped to look at the ambulance that was parked there. EMT Todd let Otto sit in the passenger seat and pointed out all the buttons. Otto was more impressed by the overhead lights (standard) than he was by the itty bitty computer hooked into the dash, but that's ok. He wouldn't tell Todd his name, though. He kept saying "Superhero" instead, which made us all laugh. He also won't tell anyone how old he is. I'm not sure he gets the concept of age yet, and he's not really into pop quizzes, either.

I hope he's enjoying his pictures at school today, and telling his buddies all about who's in them.

the house of the walking wounded

TGIF. Really. I mean it.

Tuesday I picked up some shelving for the library, wall shelves we plan to have installed in my YS librarian's office. We're a library, we do shelves, right? Right. I did my little shopping trip to Home Despot and headed to work.

Got there. Started unloading my car. 2nd trip in, caught my heel in a seam on the parking lot and did the asphalt tango. Or maybe belly flop? Not sure... it wasn't pretty. I ripped out the right knee of my khakis (which was good, actually -- I hated those khakis, Lands End sucks at pocket placement) and shredded my right knee, and bruised my left hand but good because the shelves sort of fell with me onto my hand. Impressively bloody knee and swelling hand. Ended up seeing my doc and getting xrays later that day. And a tetanus shot. So, ouch. Thanks, Tuesday.

Wednesday I got up at 4am with Otto, who was crying hysterically and incoherent. I got him to calm down enough to tell me what he wanted. Why was he crying? Because he wanted... (drumroll, please)... HIS LUNCHBOX. That's right, he was obsessing over his lunchbox. We went downstairs to the laundry room and got down his clean, empty lunchbox, which he hugged to his chest like a long-lost brother. But then he couldn't go back to sleep. At 6 I turned him over to his dad for awhile, who got him to finally crash again. Late start. Sore and sleep-deprived. Thanks, Wednesday!

Thursday night Jon got home late after a team-building event at work. He and his coworkers went to his boss's home to meet, then spent most of the day and early evening on his boat, cruising the lake and swimming. Fun, right? He had a good time. He looked tired when he got home, a little pink, but seemed fine. I had to run out the door the minute he got in to buy Jake dog food, and when I got back went to the staircase and whispered, "Jonathan?"

Otto's head popped out from the side of the staircase by his room. "Sleep," he said. "Yeah, I bet you're supposed to be asleep" I said. And went upstairs to discover Jon asleep in the chair in Otto's room, snoozing while Otto hung out. I got Jon into bed, Otto into bed, and went downstairs for awhile to watch the Colbert Report.

By the time I climbed into bed, Jon was suspiciously hot. I took his temp -- 101+ -- hmm... I Googled sunburn and didn't like what I read. I shook him awake enough to ask, "are you nauseated? Have you thrown up?" "Yeah, an hour ago," he said. 45 minutes later, after a talk with a helpful nurse, we got into the car and drove to the hospital for some ER attention. Otto didn't appreciate being wakened, but once we got to the hospital he was up for the adventure. We explored everything while they checked Jon over and set him up with a saline drip. Vending machines? Fun! Water fountain? Cool! Security guard? New friend! Waiting room furniture? Monkey bars! Ambulance? Wow! For the next 4 and a half hours, Otto and I played. Well, Otto played. I played along. The best, though, was when I gave him a ride in a wheelchair and he insisted on returning the favor. He pushed me down the hall and back in a relatively straight line, admiring his reflection from the side in the floor-to-ceiling windows. That's when the security guard finally took pity on me and told me to go ahead and use the pediatric ER's waiting area, even though the pediatric ER wasn't staffed. The relative quiet, abundant toys, and background noise of the Disney channel made the last hour or two go fairly quickly. Otto finally crashed in the car as we headed home. Thanks a lot, Thursday!

Jon's fine. He was waaaaay dehydrated and waaaay sunburned, though. He wore sunscreen, just not on his back or chest because he didn't anticipate taking his shirt off to swim. He had 2 bags of saline solution and looked 200% better. We got home and slept for a few hours before the amazing Energizer Otto got up wanting breakfast, and after an early afternoon snack I left the guys here while I went in for our staff meeting. Now I can focus on making Jon drink water and take Tylenol and spread aloe vera gel over his crispy skin. Hopefully he'll never venture outdoors again without slathering head to toe in SPF 50.

Oh, and I finally called my doc's office back this afternoon. My hand's fine -- not broken, but I did manage to bruise a bone. Knee's ugly but healing. I'm still a little ouchy, especially when I first wake up. Klutz is me.

Otto's lunchbox is back on the shelf, clean and empty, ready for Monday. I think he might have a medical career in his future, at the very least as an orderly. And he can work nights and get the shift differential!

Limpingly yours,
H

Saturday night Otto was telling me about how he likes flushing. "Flush potty!" he said with great enthusiasm.

We were standing in the kitchen, I was holding him on my hip, and I didn't want to lose out on this teachable moment. "But before you flush the potty you sit on it first, don't you."

Otto started laughing. "Don't be silly mommy," he said, giggling harder.

"I am deadly serious!"

He just laughed at me. I am a silly mommy.

So, yeah. Potty training. It's just going great.

my new most favoritest shirt:

new shoes (I discovered the Clark's store):

And the wardrobe rebuilding continues... I really don't go clothes shopping much. I shop even less since Otto came along. I'm getting to point in life where I want a work uniform of sorts and need nice things for meetings. Figuring out what to buy is more work than fun for me. Life would be much easier if I won a smallish lottery and could buy out the Eileen Fisher section at Nordstrom's.

I'm not complaining, though. My new shoes are excellent distractions from the rest of my closet!

It's Board Meeting Monday tomorrow. I'll be back later this week...

Naturally, when Jon picked Otto up yesterday, they said he had a great day.

He sits on the potty and can get down by himself, and doesn't seem to be worried by it.

I think he's just yanking my chain (well, sort of - this is my change-adverse boy, after all).

Last night we went to the bookstore and picked out a couple of potty books. He loved both of them. Could this mean we're ready to ditch the diapers? I don't know... we have to wait and see.

   

Last night we went to the park for awhile.

Otto climbed to the top of the play structure, stopped, and propped his hands at his waist.

"Otto," he said. "Super Herwo!"

OttoSuperHero had a bad morning again today. He's stressed about his new room and routine, and so am I. I left him in Miss Tanya's care, which was good. He was sobbing and clinging to his Mater truck when I left, though, which was bad. If it was just drop-off that'd be one thing -- but it starts the minute he gets up. Anything I do to circumnavigate his delay tactics is met with big tantrums and copious tears. Two hours of that and my blood pressure (and guilt level) are through the roof.

Five o'clock can't get here fast enough.

You are Robin

Robin 92% Green Lantern 90% The Flash 80% Hulk 75% Spider-Man 70% Supergirl 67% Superman 65% Wonder Woman 47% Batman 35% Iron Man 30% Catwoman 25%

Young and acrobatic. You don't mind stepping aside to give someone else glory.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

transitioning

Yesterday. Otto's first day in Miss Kim's room. I arrive during potty room time, when Miss Kim is busy with all the little people sitting on the 5 toilets in her en suite bathroom. The whole class is there -- even Jake and Evan are sitting on potties, and Evan is the one who told Miss Nancy "It's too hard!"

Otto and I peek in and he's manifestly not interested in joining the potty party. Jalen, already a pro at this, is done and ready to go back into the main classroom. He runs over to a toy box and grabs something. "Look Otto!" he says, showing Otto a flashlight in the shape of a tiger. Squeeze the tiger's tale and his mouth opens and the flashlight lights up. Otto is interested, so I put him down and tell him goodbye, I'm leaving now, I'll see him tonight. Yeah yeah yeah... he's already busy playing with Jalen, who's pulled out a second flashlight for himself after giving Otto the tiger. I take off feeling good that his first drop off in the new classroom was so stress-free. Thank you, Jalen!

This morning we get up, and from the moment of awakening my son is glued to my hip. "Carry carry!" he sobs as I try to put him down to eat breakfast. Breakfast/lunch making takes an hour. After much whining he finally consents to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while I shower.

After I'm ready to go I take him into his room to change. He has a huge fit on the changing table, sobbing about having his diaper changed, sobbing in general. After wrestling him into a diaper and shorts I take him to sit in my lap in the big chair and put on socks and shoes.

"Your new class is different, isn't it? It's kind of hard when you have to learn new things." He gets quiet and sits still while I pull on his socks. "You'll like it, though." He starts to shake his head. "No? But you get to play with your friends, like Jalen. And Jake and Evan, too." He shakes his head again. "Don't like it, Jake and Evan," he says. My suspicions about the reason for our rough morning get more specific.

"Really? Huh." I pull his t-shirt off and get him into his red Thomas t-shirt. "You know, honey, if you really don't want to use the potty yet, Miss Kim won't make you. You can still wear diapers for now."

And like magic, his whole demeanor changes. He hops out of my lap and goes to brush his teeth at the sink. He picks out a toy to take to school and walks down the stairs holding my  hand. At day care he wants me to carry him in, but once he's in the room and sees that Miss Tanya is supervising art projects, he voluntarily puts his toy away in his bag and gets down to work at the table.

I warned Miss Tanya, "Otto doesn't want anything to do with the potty right now." I know Miss Kim will work with him, and it's only day 2, after all. Even though those traitors Jake and Evan are sitting on the potty already, Otto doesn't have to. We'll let him figure it out at his own pace.

long weekend in review

We ended up having a nice weekend overall.

Jon's trip went well -- a bit melancholy, but he reports that the service was nice. He got home on time Sunday night, luggage and all. I might ask him to write about his trip later this week -- seeing his siblings and nephew and cousins and aunts, talking to his Grandma. It'll take him a few days to tell me all the little stories.

Yesterday we went to the mall. Yes, the mall! We did our best impression of your average rampant consumer and bought stuff. Jon actually got 2 pairs of shoes. I did, too, plus some nice clothes for work. Mom found shoes at REI -- she has a new, nifty brace to help support her left foot and ankle, needed after 30+ years of running up and down tile floors. Finding shoes to fit it is challenging. Our salesman was really great. He told us he's an EMT in real life ("this is my fun discount weekend job" he said), and he was perfectly happy to go hunting for the right shoes and inserts. Otto took a 2-hour nap in his stroller and missed out on the rampant consumerism, which was fine with me. We don't need any more Lightening McQueen gear. He missed the slippers at Sears, the television, and the whole Disney store.

Have I mentioned he won't wear anything but McQueen t-shirts lately? It's true. He barely submits to stripping for his bath, and insists the t-shirt be replaced the minute he gets out. Jon said that tonight he also demanded "Piston Cup shorts?" Which reminds me... must do laundry...

Otto spent the weekend alternating between being sick and being well. He would run a temperature, sleep, then act like he was fine. Last night, though, he threw up on his dad. That was the final straw. (Fever x 4 days) + vomit = doctor's office. Dr. Stone said he's ok, his ears are fine, he's just got some variation of this weird virus going around. He was better tonight and finally fever-free.

This afternoon I took mom to the airport. Her 4 days here really flew by. I'm an independent sort, but since having Otto, I really miss being close to our families. It was great to have her here -- and really, who else but a mom will hang out at JJill for an hour reading magazines while you try on 50 things and buy 4? Anyway, I felt bad that Otto was sick most of the time, but we had fun despite that. I think we only watched Cars once. sigh

Tonight we went to Zingerman's Roadhouse for dinner to celebrate my birthday. Ari himself refilled our water glasses and took our debit card to the register. I had barbecue tonight, but I'm looking forward to colder weather and their macaroni and cheese. They're very kid-friendly -- there were several other families there with little kids, which made me feel better. I'm hesitant to try new places with Otto, who can't sit still for more than 10 minutes before feeling the need to a) crawl under the table and play, b) explore the rest of the building, c) stand up in the booth and point while exclaiming "people! eating supper!", d) empty the salt shaker onto the table or e) all of the above. When we ordered dessert our waitress said "where'd Otto go?" Jon and I looked at each other, and I casually said "Oh, he's under the table." I didn't explain that he'd pulled his booster seat down there to sit on and was communing with Puppy behind the safety gate of our knees. He crawled back up into the booth to help me eat my brownie sundae, though. He says ice cream without the "ice" part -- and he says it in this reverent tone, like he's meditating on the goodness of the universe. "Cream" he'll say seriously, licking his lips, then go back for another huge spoonful while his father mutters warnings about brain freeze.

Tomorrow it's back to work, back to day care, back to the routine. I'll admit, I'm not ready. I'm just getting good and relaxed! But I have a lot to do this week, so I'd better get up early tomorrow and hop to it. Hopefully Otto's first day in Miss Kim's room will go well. I'm excited for him, though a little sad to leave behind the cheerful chaos of Miss Nancy's room.