Matthew and Christopher During Dinner

I always tell people that Christopher eats salad like its going out of style....its really a true story and here's the proof. At dinner, we had BLT's, corn on the cob, and salad.

Matthew, however, not so picky, just chilled during dinner. I suppose that's acceptable...for a few more months! Then he, too, will be expected to run around the house like a fool, break stuff, and throw balloons all over the place....AFTER he eats his salad and corn like a good boy.

Puzzles and Alphabet Song

Here are some videos I took today of Christopher doing two of his puzzles. This is mostly for my mother...hence why the videos are so long....(5 and 8 minutes plus...the last video isn't too long). He loves his alphabet and numbers puzzles and is doing pretty well on singing the Alphabet Song...if he could sit or stand still long enough to focus on the Alphabet Song...

Pictures of Matthew

O.K., call us "suckers" if you wish, but Col and I opted to purchase pictures from the hospital's Maternity Unit (...you know...those people who come around and take pictures of your baby then try to sell you a way-overpriced package of photographs...most of which aren't very good, but they have you hook, line, and sinker because you're there anyway and still in an overwhelming state of awe and joy from all the excitement?....yeah, those). We did play it smart though, upon the recommendation of our friends, The Mesterns, and purchased the cd-rom of the pictures. The cd-rom package included, obviously, a disc that contained all the pictures the photographer took as well as the rights to do with the pictures what we please (they included a pdf. file that disclosed that we purchased all rights to the pictures and, therefore, can print them or display them as we deem fit without worry of copyright infringement.....nice touch I thought). So, since we have the rights to print or post them as we deem fit, here they are...Matthew Thomas Kane photos from Day 2 of his life on this planet.

Kane Day Trip

Colleen and I have been in deliberation for the last few days regarding us taking some sort of "out-of-town" trip...nothing crazy, but a simple day trip with no expectations or responsibilities. We were trying to decide whether we wanted to take an overnight trip and leave our children with Colleen's parents for a night, or just take a day trip and take the kids with us at our own peril. We opted just to take the boys out for a day trip to Lahaska's Peddlers Village...sort of an old-town type touristy shopping area. I like it because there is a great coffee place and a place that sells a vast assortment of nuts (cashews, pecans, peanuts, et. al.). Colleen likes it because it has some stores that has things she's interested in...scrapbooking...home decor...et. al. Christopher likes it because there's a "window" [windmill] and "fisees" [fish]. (As an aside, I'd like to add that Christopher took two rides on the huge 90-year-old carousel there without screaming his fool head off! Truly a momentous occasion.) Matthew doesn't have an opinion about the place one way or another. I can say that both children and both adults were cooperative (pretty amazing if you ask me)...and all went better than expected. Of course I forgot my camera, so I used my cell phone...which was going swimmingly until the battery died. As if it isn't bad enough you're stuck taking pictures with a cell phone, which are typically shoddy at best, then it has to go and die on me. Although I did get some pictures of Matthew, Colleen, and even myself, the only usable, or even identifiable, pictures are of Christopher. So, aside from Matthew's apparent neglect, all went well.

Having a Cell-Phone with a Camera When You've Forgotten Your Regular Camera? Priceless...k

Yeah....

So...

For those who know me...and not even know me well...just know me,

I'm constantly losing stuff

or

forgetting stuff

or

leaving stuff at home...

Thankfully, I almost ALWAYS keep my cell phone in my right front hip pocket (and good luck trying to pick-pocket me for those who have the gall to try!). I've discovered that my cell phone actually has a decent camera. It is only 5 mp's, but it does the job...and without a flash. Anyways, I've been taking random photos with my cell phone and I thought I'd show them to those who follow the blog.

(Below: left to right - Oxford Valley Mall play area - riding in the airplane, playing with some tic-tac-toe game, and doing his "Training Day" impersonation, "KING KONG AIN'T GOT NOTHIN' ON ME!!!)

The day after Matthew was born, Colleen and I decided to give my mother-in-law a break from having to take care of Christopher. So I took him. Christopher is a very typical 2-year-old boy who runs and jumps (sometimes both simultaneously) constantly except when he's sleeping. Because of this, we really try to get him outside playing and frolicking as much as possible. Its good for him (most importantly) and good for us (less important, but not by much!). Because the weather has been so crummy all over the country...blistering heat and humidity, I decided to take him to the play area of the local mall before the stores opened for business.....which means no crowds. We played there for about an hour or so, then we went to visit Mommy and Matthew at the Hospital.

(Below: At St. Mary's Hospital: Colleen's face is priceless in this one....and, believe it or not, she's made that face anywhere from 5 - 50 times per day since Matthew and Christopher have been sharing a roof, then Matthew....day one)

Christopher at the Park: We try to go to a park at least 3 times per week. This park is one of Christopher's favorites...and it is pretty cool. It has a huge wooden play-apparatus thing that resembles a wooden fort....it has swings, 5 slides, a zip-line, parallel bars, bouncing bridge, and a sand pit just to name a few of the playground amenities. I did discover that my son has a lot of strength (as evidenced by the center picture here). He repeatedly grabs bars, drops, and holds himself off the ground for long periods of time. The picture below he went for over a minute before he dropped and did it again 4 times. I also discovered that although he is pretty strong, he is not very agile or fleet of foot (see below: left of center). Christopher tried repeatedly to climb up the "tire-ramp" (a set of 4 tires set up in a ramp that kids climb to get atop this Lincoln-Log-esque labyrinth of wonderfulness and fell into the bottom tire. I was there helping him...sort of (I'm big on independence)...holding my hands within inches of his hips as he trudged up the ramp...and promptly slipped down through the hole on his second step. He didn't fall again and I was much more attentive to his safety....but he didn't repeat the mistake again. Don't worry, he was fine...no tears. He fell and yelled out "I otay, Daddy! Help, peas."

Finally, I got him reading before bed. We give him time before lights out to "read" a book of his choice. His favorite book of late is the book he got from our good friends, Karen, Nick, and Zooey..."Charlie Parker played be bop". I think the book is pretty fun and he enjoys it. He also loves Shel Silverstein's poem "Boa Constrictor", but we don't do that one all the time as its more interactive and sometimes it becomes counter-productive to Christopher sleeping.

....and with Christopher now in bed, we bid you goodnight.

Sleeping Babies and Sick Big Brother

Seriously....what's cuter than a sleeping baby? NOTHING! We got some good shots of the new bug-a-boo taking some well-deserved nap-time. Its been a crazy two-weeks for the boy doing what newborns do....eating....pooping...trying to keep his head upright (somewhat successfully)...opening his eyes and checking out the scene from time to time...you know....all that stuff. Regardless, we got some pretty nice shots...didn't have to crop them out, center them, or anything....enjoy.

...and while Matthew was chilling out, scoping out, and pooping out....Christopher ended up getting sick. He got so sick, in fact, that he fell asleep by our sliding glass door. Not to worry, he has since recovered and is as good as new. What I thought was funny was that he fell asleep while playing with a puzzle piece and with his juice cup and using the curtain as a blanket. It almost looks like a scene from CSI (only the original, of course...not one of those off-brands). I told Colleen that she should have framed his body with carpet tape or masking tape...but she said that she wouldn't do it and that I have a sick sense of humor...while chuckling at the same time...we're sick and wrong.

Tonight

The Kanes were feeling kind of giddy and weird tonight...so we just took some random pictures of the boys purely for the sake of enjoyment. No stories....no whimsical rhetoric, just pictures.

(clockwise from upper left, or top to bottom (depending on the size and format of your computer screen): Christopher in his "Lance Armstrong" pj's (I call them that because they're tight like a bicycler's outfit) holding Matthew, Christopher taking a break from the Phillies' game (Phillies v. Mets...Phillies won), Matthew raising the roof, Christopher showing Matthew some love, and Matthew)