Category Archives: Zeke

The Last Month

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It has been an entire month since I last blogged. We’ve been busy with the daily grind, fun, doc appointments, discipline, errands, chores, play dates, yard work, travel and the craziness that is life in Clan Dillingham. I’ve also been taking lots of photos and have gotten way behind on downloading and editing, but I do have some good shots to share.

No, Houston’s not peeing … he’s playing w/ his pal, Matthew!

Here’s an overview of our activities since the last blog:

  • 4/16 > Two-year-old Matthew, baby Jonathan and Mama Beth visit the zoo on an unseasonably hot day for seemingly endless fun with the garden hose and a feast of pizza and cheesy bread.
  • 4/17 > The clan heads to our oft-patronized local lawn-and-garden store for their 11th anniversary celebration, featuring tractors, other big and booming farm equipment, live bluegrass music and hot dogs.
  • 4/21 > The twins have their 18-month pediatric check-up. Zeke was 26 pounds, 4 1/2 ounces; 30 3/4″ long and his head was 19 1/2″ around; and Gabriel was 25 pounds, 15 ounces; 30 1/4″ long and his head was 18 1/2″ around — momentous since it was the first measurements since the day they were born that Zeke came in bigger than Gabe.
  • 5/1 > Houston and Daddy hit “free comic book day” at Daddy’s favorite local comic specialty shop. At the crowded event, they see Super Man, who Houston was afraid of for some odd reason; a “smoking-hot” Wonder Woman, as described by Daddy; Falcon; Green Lantern; and Storm Troopers … also known as “Star Wars guys,” according to Houston.
  • That evening, we attend a neighborhood party with our old buddy, Bill. Mommy and the twins head home after the kids follow a ball into a patch of poison ivy. Houston stays behind with Daddy and Bill, and has fun rough-housing with a boy, also named Matthew.

Gabriel loves tractors, big tires & anything that goes vroom-vroom.

  • 5/4 > The boys accompany Mommy and Daddy to our local polling place to vote in the NC primaries. In the 3 Amigos’ opinions, the voting machines were okay, but the “I voted” stickers were way cool.
  • 5/5 > Auntie Merdy hosts Mommy and the kids for a play date at her neighborhood park. The sandbox is a huge hit with the twins and Houston has a blast on the slides.
  • 5/8 > Mommy participates in a multi-family yard sale with our neighbors, Heather and Trey. We don’t make much money selling mostly outgrown baby stuff, but Mommy enjoys the kid-free morning and also scores some free toys for the kids.
  • 5/12 > We get to spend some time with our beloved Miss Heather. Although she was at the house for monthly cleaning, Heather was able to play a little, as well as give lots of hugs and kisses to the boys.
  • 5/14-5/16 > The family road trips to Virginia to celebrate Aunt Lisa and cousin Casey’s graduation from college. Congrats! It was a lot of work getting there and tending to the kids in Gramsey and Papa’s 3-level house (yeah, stairs stink!), but a blast was had by all, especially Houston, Gabriel and Zeke, who were smothered with love and attention and fed many sweet treats.
  • 5/18 > Zeke has a check-up with his gastro-intestinal doc. Considering that he has puked just one time in the last 13 days (THANK YOU, LORD!), his meds will remain as is for now and will be re-evaluated at his next appointment in August. Zeke was also an even 27 pounds, which is the 50-percentile range for his age and a whopping 7 1/2 ounces more than he weighed at the pediatrician not even one month ago. Amazing!

“Hey, let’s use this bin for lounging & climbing — anything but storing toys,” think Zeke (in bin) & Gabriel.

  • Today > Mommy and the boys visit Daddy at work. We walk to a nearby establishment, where Houston and Zeke eat gelato (strangely enough, Gabe was uninterested), and Mommy and Daddy chug sweet coffee drinks; we see adorable Canadian geese ducklings waddling through the parking lot; and then have fun riding the elevator and bugging Daddy’s co-workers.

Other notable happenings:

  • Gabriel is saying lots of words in his own quirky way and even made up a sign for one of his favorite things: “mower.”
  • Zeke is still signing up a storm and doing funny things, like saying “shhhh” while sticking his finger up his nose.
  • Gabriel is a master at climbing stairs (or climbing most anything) and made it down the front steps solo for the first time today. He’s fearless!
  • Zeke has one hell of an arm, successfully making baskets with tennis balls (or most anything small enough to fit through the hoop). He has power and precision!
  • If you ask Houston what his name is, his answer is “Sus-tuhn Can Dih-yin-ham” (read: Houston Clan Dillingham). Too funny!
  • The twins are now taking one nap a day (around 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.) It was a painful transition, but it has worked out nicely.

 

Houston & Zeke collect “nature” in milk cartons, while getting wild down our backyard path.

  • Houston skipped his 2 p.m. nap for the past couple of days, going to bed early instead, yet still waking up around the same time in the morning. If this becomes habit, Mommy might actually be able to start swimming at the Y in the afternoons, while the dudes play and make friends in the childcare facility. Keep your fingers crossed!
  • And last but certainly not least, we made our final payment to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital a few weeks ago. Considering I underwent laser surgery for TTTS in July 2008, it is certainly a wonderful thing to be free and clear of one of our major medical bills. Yee haw!

Click the top photo of Houston and Matthew to check out “Hangin’ w/ the Hydes;” click the next photo of Gabriel to see the shots of “Tractors Rock;” click the pic of the twins being nutty in the nursery to view all the April – Part 2 shots; and the above image of Houston and Zeke to see the Part 3 photos. May pics coming soon.

Growing Independence

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Although the boys are growing up way too fast on one hand — you know how sentimental mommies get about that kind of stuff — their growing independence is definitely a welcome change on the other hand.

Houston & Gabriel strut w/ their cool shades.

Houston, who will be 3 in June, is our enthusiastic little helper, assisting Mommy with chores and Daddy with yard work. He also saves Mommy grief during double-doody diaper changes, the morning-milk-and-meds routine and other stressful times by being a willing and able extra set of hands on the scene. (Now if I could just get him potty trained and to sit still in his chair during mealtime, life would be dandy!)

And Gabriel and Zeke, who will be 18 months old this Friday, are rapidly leaving their baby days behind and tackling toddlerhood and all of its big-boy developments with gusto. (Now if I could just get them to stop throwing their sippy cups and utensils during meals, life would be swell!)

All of this, of course, means a tad more time for Mommy, giving me a greater sense of control and helping to restore a smidgen of order here around the zoo. Sure, raising three wild boys will never be easy, but I am grateful for the kids’ small steps toward self-sufficiency and appreciation of teamwork.

The 3 Amigos celebrate Daddy’s 32nd birthday.

Speaking of teamwork, Stephen and I have had two consecutive Saturdays of yard work productivity. Stephen’s raised-bed veggie garden — a long-term goal of ours — is finally a reality, our compost pile is officially more user-friendly, our foundation beds have been pruned and weeded, and we’ve tended to some of the many other little outdoor improvements on our to-do list.

But the accomplishments took some major give and take on both of our parts. For instance, Stephen tended to our lawn with the riding mower, while I fed the kids, and then I got the harder-to-reach spots of the yard with the push mower, while he played with the boys. It was that first Saturday in April that I realized these seemingly small feats could never have been accomplished a year ago. Man, how times have changed.

The last weekend in March, Uncle Adam came to town to catch an Unknown Hinson show. This was about the third or fourth time I’ve attempted to see “The King of Country Western Troubadours” live, but there had always been a snag. This time around, however, Granny and Grumps were on kid duty here at the house, and come hell or high water, Mama was gonna see some music!

In fact, the last live show I had attended was when Daddy and I saw Scott Miller & the Commonwealth about a week before Houston was born. Needless to say, all of us geezers had a great time getting raucous with the downtown club dwellers, and it took me about three days to recover from all the fun.

“We should eat chocolate bunnies every day,” screams Zeke.

Our Easter was wonderful. We started our day with a yummy waffle breakfast and celebrated the resurrection of Jesus with our church family. Then the boys feasted upon chocolate bunnies at lunch, and we rounded out the joyous occasion with grilling by Daddy and an acoustic show of super hero-inspired songs by Mommy.

That afternoon was also notable for Gabriel, who got to go on a one-on-one trip to the grocery store with Mommy. Unlike Zeke, who has been on many solo medical visits, and Houston, who obviously has spent much time away from his younger brothers, Gabriel has just always been part of the posse. It was seriously the poor child’s first time in a grocery cart! The G-man had a ball and (other than the freak who approached me about my “Socialism Isn’t Cool” bumper sticker and got an earful of education from yours truly) the trip was a smashing success.

That reminds me … I ended up removing the stitches from my index finger myself. I figured with a good pair of tweezers, a magnifying glass and some grit and determination, why wait four years to try and get a leg (or finger) up on Obama-care.

“Bunny cakes & jelly beans are the absolute best,” Houston tells Granny w/ a giggle.

Other stuff:

  • April 5 was Daddy’s 32nd birthday. He took the day off from work. The boys enjoyed his time at home and Mommy made him birthday muffins, since her cake-making skills leave something to be desired.
  • That same day I broke out the sprinkler for the first time this spring. The twins hated it and screamed in horror, and Houston ignored it, choosing the simple hose as a preferable activity.
  • Everyone has since fallen in love with outdoor water activities, thank goodness. I take these opportunities to have Houston go commando (sans pull-up) and get all the boys involved in making sure Daddy’s garden and Mommy’s flowers are good and drenched.
  • Sadly, April 7 was Miss Heather’s last day for weekly childcare. She has been such a blessing to our family, and Mommy wonders if she could have survived the first year and a half of raising three kids without her … seriously. “Thank you, Miss Heather. We love you!”
  • Zeke is now adamantly shaking his head “no” and meaning it. His affirmative utterance has morphed into a full-fledge “uh huh,” and some of his signs include “flower,” “apple” and “bird.” He also enjoys doing a “bear” sound.
  • Gabriel is now articulating his boisterous versions of “hat,” “Daddy,” “kitty cat,” “hi” and “bye.”

Zeke (left) & Gabriel love trucks & Miss Heather.

  • The twins laugh hysterically whenever Houston tries to create an “echo” while everyone’s eating outside on the deck. For some reason, that makes for good toddler comedy.
  • Gabe and Zeke have been getting their legs stuck in their cribs a lot lately. With such flip-flopping sleeping styles, I’m surprised I haven’t yet had to saw their cribs to free their chubby little knees. A hardy “thanks” goes out to Miss Shawn for her speedy help on one of these occasions, and Daddy’s strong hands on all the rest.
  • Houston can handily count to 30, with a number or two missing here and there. He is also mastering the “ABC Song” (both the traditional and “Super Why” versions) and “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.”
  • Houston is attending children’s church again. Even though he’s not yet potty trained or age 3 (supposed requirements), the setting is a much better fit for him than is the church nursery. He absolutely thrived being in there with all the big kids this past Sunday.

Photo wise, there are quite a few new additions at the end of the March – Part 2 gallery. Click the top sunglasses pic see all the March – Part 3 shots; the wide-mouth shot of Zeke to view all the April – Part 1 photos; and Daddy’s birthday pic to check out all the April – Part 2 fun.

Twin Talk

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There had been a little worry around Clan Dillingham that Gabriel and Zeke don’t yet have many real words in their vocabulary. They definitely have some twin talk going on between the two of them; each of them many times points to the correct object when you say the word; they sign up a storm, with “hat,” “banana,” “grapes,” “airplane,” “light,” “fan” and “wind” recently added to their repertoire; and they make their own special utterances when trying to communicate a point, want, need or emotion.

Never a place for boredom, the kitchen is always full of mayhem & mischief.

For instance, Zeke still makes his bird-like sounds on occasion, but they’re often associated with music or when discussing animals. He also makes a unique affirmative sound, which can best be described as a boisterous “awh-yoh.” Gabriel recently said the two-syllable words “Dada” and “Gookie” (as in Cookie Monster), and Gramsey said he was trying to “slide” (as in sliding board). Many of Gabe’s words start with a “g,” reminiscent of Houston’s “gock gock” days, and that dude sure loves to shake his head “no,” most notably when eating veggies. And lots of Zeke’s words start with a “d.”

Granny says that Stephen was a late talker. But then when he decided to communicate in English, he began speaking in full sentences. To ease our worries, we’ve chatted with two speech therapists in recent weeks, both of whom said they didn’t think there was any cause for concern right now, especially considering that Gabriel and Zeke were born six weeks early and are still developmentally younger than other term 17 month olds, as well as the fact that it is extremely common for twins to have delayed speech. After all, Gabe and Zeke can easily communicate with each other, so why bother with the silly language everyone else is speaking?!

A proud Gramsey soaks in the warm sun w/ Houston Lee.

Since the dynamic is so drastically different now than when Houston was learning to talk (i.e., more kids, less time, brotherly peer pressure and influence, etc.), I am sticking more firmly to a reading regimen with the twins: at least 20 minutes a day of both picture books and story books. And then on the weekends or when we have an extra set of hands, we are doing one-on-one reading with Gabriel and Zeke. That way, each boy will have the undivided attention of the reader and won’t be so easily distracted by his brother(s).

We also plan on eventually bathing them separately (at least some times) and every now and then taking them on errands and adventures separately — just to make sure they aren’t always thought of as a twin or half of a whole. Gabe and Zeke couldn’t be more different and we want to foster their individualism. So for now, our worry has subsided and we just plan on continuing to be proactive.

Houston is rockin’ on colors and the alphabet. Yesterday, he correctly called out an “e” that he saw, although he did say it was a “number e.” Yeah, that whole number-versus-letter thing is still throwing him for a loop, but boy is he eager to master both letters and counting.

On 3/16, Gabe and Zeke made art for the first time. Even though they decided that eating crayons was more fun than drawing with them (thank goodness for non-toxic Crayolas), it was an exciting moment for everyone to witness. Note: I’m pretty sure Zeke is going to be left-handed and Gabriel right-handed. Not only did they tend to hold crayons with those hands, but the same pattern holds true for grasping utensils while eating.

Wild-child Gabriel attacks the photographer, while an engrossed Zeke attacks trucks.

That was also the same day we piled in the mini-van and went to visit Daddy at work. Houston was more thrilled to ride the “vader” (elevator) — not to be confused with Darth Vader — than he was meeting Daddy’s co-workers. He did enjoy playing with Daddy’s cubicle-dwelling super heroes, though.

Currently, all the kids laugh hysterically when watching “Tom & Jerry.” I guess the humor of a mouse hitting a cat upside the head with a frying pan never goes out of style. And Houston is enjoying watching the ’70s TV version of “The Incredible Hulk” with Daddy, although “Doctor Banner turn Hulk” doesn’t happen near enough during an episode to suit his tastes.

On the Mommy front, I’m trying to cut down on my coffee intake by supplementing with green tea. I typically load my coffee up on the half-and-half and sugar, so this move will not only save on calories, but will hopefully also save us on our grocery bill.

I got five stitches in my left index finger on Wednesday. I stupidly used a Cutco knife to cut something other than food. Being that Cutco makes some of the sharpest knives on the planet, I’m lucky I didn’t cut off the entire tip of my finger. I’m also lucky my primary doc stitched me up just a few hours after the incident occurred, so I didn’t have to suffer through the torture that is a modern-day ER.

Gramsey & Papa facilitate lots of outdoor adventure for Zeke & his bros.

I had a proud Mommy moment the other day. None of the kids wanted to eat the leftover lunch feast of mashed potatoes, jasmine rice and chicken noodle soup I had lovingly made them. Food went flying, got squished in hair and eyeballs, and then went simply ignored. Letting the crew know that their defiance wouldn’t pay off, I announced that everyone would be eating the very same thing for dinner. Not wanting to contend with such a mess, however, I slathered the dinner concoction in Ragu. Nobody was the wiser and every bit of the goulash was consumed with glee. Yay … Mommy won!

Click the top photo of the 3 Amigos to check out all the March – Part 1 pics and the above image of sliding-boy Zeke to view all the Part 2 shots.