First Bath Together and Other Fun Things...

Claudia and Wilson shared their first bath together this week. As you can see, Wilson did not particularly enjoy this "first."

This, I have to admit, saddened me because I was reminded the other day during a conversation with my sister how much fun we used to have in the bath together. We would lure an unsuspecting pet, normally one our much too tolerant cats, into the bathroom and then, oh so "accidently," the cat would inadvertently "fall" into the tub! Or, we would drain the water out of the tub and soap it up and slip and slide around the tub. Although, now that I think about it, I do seem to remember that I normally ended up being in the back and taking the brunt of the forceful push-offs that sent us flying across that porcelin mini-autoban. Ah, memories....

Back to the present. Claudia and Scott have found a new special place to play in--the "Super Tent." I don't know who came up with the name, but I do know that they normally spend a little time in it each night when Scott comes home from work. It is located in the basement and constructed of couch cushions and blankets.

Playing in a tent must be something that only dads can enjoy with their kids. It must bring back the long last boy scout days or something. I don't know, but to me, sitting on the floor and crouching down in a small space leaves a lot to be desired. What a good dad and husband to spare me this!

Breaking News!

A milestone has been reached at the Walker household! Wilson has rolled over from his tummy to his back! Yeah, Baby Wilson!

A Post From Scott:

This is daddy's first post, so it may not be as witty as mommy's, but I'll do my best.

My - how times have changed since we grew up. We didn't have VCR's or Microwaves, let alone a camera. In these modern times, Claudia has found a new hobby - digital photography. Once in a while we let Cluadia snap a few pictures with our old camera, and surprisingly she gets some pretty cute shots (probably about one in ten, which is about what Rachael and I average when taking pictures). Anyhow - this is a picture of Claudia taking a picture of her favorite new subject - Baby Wilson!

Daddy Duties

I don't know how it happened, but Scott has become the bathgiver at our house. Claudia and Scott will spend what seems like hours in the bathroom. Claudia will get all wrinkled and cold from sitting in the bath so long, but they just love it.

I normally stay out of the bathroom during baths, first and foremost, because our bathroom doesn't accommodate much more than one and a half people (it is what my grandpa would call a 'one butt' bathroom) and I think that it is nice for Scott to have something that only he does with the kids.

I have always had the inkling that Claudia likes this time alone with her dad, but an exchange that Claudia and I had last night confirmed this.

Scene: Me standing in the bathroom running the bath water, in walks Claudia.
Claudia: "Oh, you're in here."
Me: "Yes, I am running your bath water."
Claudia: "You should go, I just want daddy."
End of scene: Me trying not to feel hurt walking out of the bathroom.


So, that got me a little curious about what is so fantastic about daddy's bath-giving skills. I waited a little while and then went in to check it out.

Here is what I found.

Yep, that is Scott getting his hair shampooed and rinsed. No wonder Claudia likes when she has bath time with daddy.

(Oh, and if you look just over Scott's right shoulder, you will see floating face down in the water another of Claudia's dolls, "Rubber Baby." This unfortunate, little doll got its name because Scott and I would say to each other, "Oh, will you get that rubber baby so Claudia can give it a bath?")

Some News

This seems to be the best way to inform you of a very major decision at the Walker household. I have decided not to return to my position at the museum and instead join the ranks of the full-time moms!

I have agonized over this decision--I love the museum and have always felt very honored to work there. However, I know how quickly kids grow up--I can't believe that Claudia is turning 3 on her next birthday(!)-- and I feel like I would regret not staying at home with Claudia and Wilson if I had the opportunity to.

So, we are off on a new adventure! I am thrilled (and I must admit a little scared)!

More time to blog--lucky you!

I Suffer from Some Guilt

As a second child, I have often given my parents a hard time about the lack of photos of me as a child. There are ample professional photos of my sister, Sarah, at age appropriate intervals. I think that the first professional photo of me was taken at around age 5 (of course with my sister in it). (You can stop the violin playing now.)

I vowed to myself that I would treat my second child differently. In looking at the posts that I have submitted so far, I realize that I have failed thus far. So, please enjoy a photo of Wilson--a very sweet and blog-neglected little boy.

Please meet Two-Seven and Two-Eight!

Here they are!

Two-Seven is on the left and Two-Eight is on the right.

Many of you have asked about these little dollies and wondered why Claudia named her dolls numbers. We really don't have a good explanation except that she is learning to count at school and we get quite excited every time she counts.

Some more about Claudia...

Claudia seems to pick up new words and phrases daily. She has recently adopted a new phrase that she thinks works to excuse her doing all manner of things-- "I can't, I have full hands." "Full hands" have stopped her from eating, putting on boots, hats, mittens, picking up toys (the list goes on and on).

I have tried to use the phrase on her to no avail.

Scott and I have also noticed that Claudia is sort of freakishly strong. Last night, Claudia wanted to play with her Dora doll house in the living room, I should be more precise, she wanted to play right in the center of the living room where the coffee table is located. Scott told her that he could move the table a bit to accommodate her dollhouse. Claudia agreed and promptly picked up the end of the 20+ pound coffee table and dragged it across the living room about 4 feet. Please keep in mind that Claudia is a bit of a string bean and probably only outweighs that coffee table by about 8 pounds.

I know that I would certainly have trouble picking up something that was 2/3 of my bodyweight, which would equal ah, 60 pounds :)

The Best Thing About Winter in Minnesota...

THE HATS!!

What else?

My second post, oh, this is fun! Are you having fun yet?

Claudia has picked up a new phrase, "What else?" I think that this may be a more mature version of her previous stage of asking "why?" I never thought that I would yearn for the days of "why" but, that might be the case.

Here's why:

In my experience, I have found that the "why" questions lead me down a path--at times circuitous--but, at least, a foreseeable path. Why is normally always answered with a "because" so, all you have to do is come up with the answer. Generally the questions are fairly common with well-known, predictable answers. With the "what else" there is the pressure of coming up with new material.

To illustrate my point:

A typical "why" exchange:

Me: Claudia, you need to eat something, anything!

Claudia: Why?

Me: Because if you don't you will wilt away.

Claudia: Why?

Me: Because all people need to eat food.

So on and so forth.

A true life "What else?" example:

While driving in the car on the way home from Grandpa's 60th birthday party:

Claudia: Sing abc's.

Scott & I: Ok. (We proceed to sing the song.)

After the end of the song

Claudia: What else?

Scott and I sang "Happy Birthday," "Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," "You Are My Sunshine," etc., etc., etc. Every time after we finished, she followed it with "What else?" Scott and I started to run out of songs to sing. Claudia then started to yell, "What else, What else, What else!!!!" I literally became panicked! Thank God by that time we pulled up to the house or I was prepared to break into "Paul Revere" by the Beastie Boys (sing along with me now: "Looking for a girl, I ran into a guy. His name is M.C.A., I said 'Howdy,' he said 'Hi....'")

Of course, the "whys" will sometimes make you wonder if you child is mature enough for particular answers.

Again while driving in the car

Claudia: Yook mama! A boy!

Me: Yes, that is a boy.

Claudia: Why?

Me: (internal dialogue: Do I answer with God? Biology? What?!?)

My Tutti Frutti Cuties!

Okay, okay! So, we haven't been the best at sending photos of our children or sharing special stories. We know this and feel guilty about it more often than you can imagine. Scott and I decided that we would try this to see if this would help keep all our friends and family in far off places (France, Philly, Maryland, Brooklyn) and not so far off places up-to-date on the goings on at the Walker household.

There are just a couple of caveats: one: I don't make any promises on the frequency of posts and two: I make no promises that my grammar or spelling will always be correct.

So, if you are okay with those two things, join us for this little adventure!

Here they are! Claudia and Wilson Walker. Currently, Claudia is two and a half (going on 16) and Wilson is 10 weeks.

I keep hearing from other mothers that each age in childhood is better than the last. I don't know if that is true, but I sure do love toddlerhood. Of course Claudia has her moments, but even in those moments you have to step back and think, "what if we all showed and felt our emotions as openly and freely as a toddler?" Sometimes I would love to just throw myself on the floor and scream, cry and kick my legs when I don't get my way. Or I love when Claudia gets so excited about something that she actually screams and shakes all over!

Here are a couple of my favorite Claudiaisms:

One: I love the way that she pronounces all words that start with "L" as if they start with "Y." So, "look" turns into "yook" and "Lilly" is "Yilly."

Two: When she asks you a question, she follows it with, "yes or no?" So, she will say, "Can I have a cookie? Yes or no?"

Three: I love that she names all her baby dolls with a number. Her favorite dolly is "two-seven." For Christmas she got a Cabbage Patch Kid and she proceeded to name it "two-eight."

Wilson has only been with us for just two and a half months, but I now can't imagine life without him. What an absolute sweetheart of a little baby!

Warning: if you are a new mom and sleep deprived, don't read the next sentence!

Wilson slept last night from 10:00 to 8:30! Now, that is a little boy who takes after his father.