The 18 month checkup

The boys had their 18 month checkup.  Zev came in at 24 lb 3 oz and Ben at 24 lb 7 oz.  Both measured 34 1/4 " in height.  In other words, 50th percentile in weight, 90th percentile in height for both of them.

In other news: Zev has his first introduction to the timeout corner for repeatedly pulling on mom's hair.

The boys (and their parents) wish Grandpa Misha speedy recovery.

the boys turn a year and a half

Yes, they did.  Yesterday.  Now, you may wonder, my gentle reader, why is it that I did not address the occasion in the more timely fashion.  Well, I'll tell you.  That is because yesterday Alla passed out at 8:45 pm and I did at 9:30.  Simply because, every morning, if Benjamin slept - Zev woke.  If Zev slept - Bnejamin woke.  On the 6th, true to form, pretty much no one slept since 5 am.  Which is why ... see above.

I suppose a year and a half is a milestone of sorts.  Thinking back I am trying hard to avoid words like "miserable", "angry", and "resentful" - yet here they are.  At least I have been for the previous few mornings.  Today, on the other hand, Alla's mom spent the night and, true to form - for her the boys slept till well past 6.  It is only for the mom and dad do they reserve the misery of the 5 am wake-up call.  There is that word again.

In other news, the following incident was reported earlier today.  Zev was playing with a light-up ball (thank you, physics; go electromagnetic induction).  Ben wanted the ball badly.  His was reaching for Zev's hair... yet Ben remembered that just this very morning I put him in the corner time-out for yanking on Zev's hair.  So, Benjamin restrained himself.  Several times he was tempted to violence, and thought the better of it.  Finally, he decided to win his brother over with love.  He came over and kissed him, over and over, hoping Zev would share.  To no avail.  Zev may not be as cunning, but he Zev knows very well what Zev wants.  Zev wanted the ball, Benjamin wanted to avoid another time-out.  The ball remained with Zev.

Well, it is just after midnight as I write this.  Ben has just woken up crying and I was unable to get him to sleep.  Alla has been deployed.  I suppose I should try to sleep while I can.

Brief update: Ben wet his bed, which is not a frequent event, but happens.  That woke up Zev who yelled briefly in my ear, quieted down, then yelled again when I put him in his bed.  And quieted down again in a minute and a half.  Ben, on the other hand, threw a absolute fit about being changed.  Now, 12 minutes later, Zev is asleep, the bed is changed, and Alla is working on getting Ben back to bed.  From what I can hear downstairs, without much success so far.  I think I can safely take a shower before things settle down.

sleep, violence, sharing of the peace bottle

The interesting thing lately has been sleep.  Or rather lack there of.  Again.  Ever since the extra-miserable couple of weeks complements of Zev's virus-bacteria-allergy combo (apply plurals liberally), he got used to sleeping with (preferably on top of) mom every night.  Once Zev got better and it was time to migrate him back to his bed, the nights have been according to the following formula, without fail:

The boys go to bed just fine.  Between 11 pm and 3 am Zevi wakes up screaming bloody murder, one to four times.  The break is that as soon he hears me walk into the room, he quiets down.  By the time I come over to his bed, there is rarely a need to pick him up (daddy has the 'mute' button).  I inform Zevi that it is still night, he should sleep some more, and I exit the room.  Then, 5 am strikes and no more 'mute' button.  Like clockwork, Zev wakes up and screams.  If I rush in - he is OK in my arms, but the moment I move to put him down he screams again, this time inconsolably.  Ben wakes up, lights, camera, action, day begins by 5:10 am for everyone.  The boys are sleepy and cranky,  ready for their nap by 8; I am ready to kill everyone by about 7.  Alternative option: Alla rushes in at 5, snatches Zev and takes him elsewhere, where I am not.  Zev sleeps on Alla (he wins!) some more, everyone wakes up at 6-something, with full realization that tomorrow will be precisely the same.

Somewhere along the way the lack of sleep began to reflect badly on Benjamin.  One way it showed was in an elevated frequency of unprovoked hair pulling.  On a particular day Ben went for a two-fer, at Gymboree, first getting Zev and then a nice girl.  Both acts resulted at two minutes of indignant crying at a timeout.

After two weeks straight of this both Alla and I were cooked.  And we did the smartest thing all month: we called aunt Shawna, our lifesaver.  Shawna heroically arrived at 5 this morning.  At 5:02, on cue, Zev cried.  In walked Shawna.  Zev looked up, realized he is not dealing with mom or dad, and went back to sleep without a sound.  Shawna walked out.  A minute later I handed Shawna the monitor and Alla and I fell asleep for three more hours, muttering something uncomplimentary about a manipulative baby.  Ah, the inside of my eyelids at 6:45 - that's what you look like!  I've missed you so.  Later we were told that both boys slept until after 7 am (!) and then took a three hour nap during the day.  Something uncomplimentary about not sleeping babies!

In other news: the boys have entered a sharing phase.  While they are having milk they will often swap bottles.  Or toys.  Or blankets.  As long as there is something to barter - the exchanges are easy.  If both are thirsty and only one bottle is in site, things get a little tricky, but not always.  At a recent breakfast Ben gulped his milk down first, while Zev tarried - an unusual event in itself.  Then, Ben reached over and said "дать" ('to give').  Zev handed over the bottle.  Ben took a few gulps and return the bottle at Zev's request.  This passing of the peace bottle went on for good three ounces.

Finally, of numbers.  Our friends from Boston (thank you Gayatri and Victor!) sent us a lovely puzzle - foam pictures with push-through numbers.  The boys are not great at pushing the numbers in, but love to push them out, plus they enjoy the bright colors.  Zev, for some reason, took a liking to the number three.  So, Alla started repeating "tri!  tri!".  Finally, while holding the toy Zevi started saying "tchi!".  Close enough.

a few pictures, finally

By my reckoning it has been roughly four and a half months since the latest posted pictures.  Guess I am due...

Side by side at Gymboree, 9/8/2012

Later that day my unsuspecting company picnic was subjected to Ben and Zev.  The upper management survived.  So did the ponies.

Ben was not too thrilled but he dealt with it.

Zev was even less enthusiastic

Packed away.  10/17/12

With grandma Rita

On dad's birthday.  A rare moment Zev was smiling that day.  11/5/2012

Zev getting ready for a walk with grandpa Tolya.  Mom and dad get an hour's rest.  yay!  11/10/12

Ben getting ready too.  Yes, obsessive grandmothers, the ear was tucked away before departure. 

Zev trying on a new jacket.  Thank you, Boston grandparents!  11/17/12

Ben putting the newly acquired teeth to good...errr, some use.

Benjamin showing off new threads while swigging milk.

A Very Special Post

In the past year and a half you have read me whine about hard life of a parent, sometimes trying to be funny, sometimes just being angry and bitter.

Well, here is some perspective for you.  Below is a link to a blog by Tony and Leslie Allen, new parents of fraternal twins, Kadri Claire and John Alexander "Sander".  Kadri and Sander were born on October 23rd, only 25 weeks into the pregnancy, weighing  1 lb 9. 9oz and 1 lb 11 oz, respectively.
Leslie's blog

All of us at the Kaplan house wish Kadri, Sander, Leslie, and Tony all the best.

Zev's turn at ear infection

Some days ago was my birthday, and a week before that one was Alla's.  How we celebrated those deserves a telling.  For starters, Ben gave his mom a gift of a one day stomach flu that he had (and later shared with his aunt and grandma, generous boy that Benya is).  As a result, Alla met her birthday hugging the porcelain all night. Rita, then not yet affected, took care of her and I spent the night in another room with a monitor.  This being shortly after the switch to daylight savings time, Benya went to bed like a champ according to the new time and woke up according to the old, also known as 4:50-5:20 am range.  

All this time Zevi had a progressively harder time falling asleep with what we thought was a teething-induced runny nose.  No such luck.  A virus left Zevi with a raw, sore through, a cough that hurt him, and an ear infection to boot.  Towards the middle of the week the only way Zevi could sleep, in short bursts, was on top of his mom.  Some minutes at a time, until a cough hurt him and woke him screaming.  The first night things got ... colorful, found us at 4 am in the following configuration: Ben had a hard time falling asleep for some reason, so he was in his room with Alla.  Zevi, in the mean time was snoring away in our bed.  By 4:15 or so I realized that Zevi got major snoring genes (not judging anybody here), gave up, and went to the stairs to read.  Where I was joined a few minutes later by Alla who informed me that Ben was sleeping on the couch, with no room for two, and Alla was afraid to move him to his bed and also afraid to leave him alone.  So, we switched.  Alla got a bed with a snoring Zev, I got the floor next to Ben quietly sleeping on the couch.  That, my friends, was the best night we had that week.  Two more days of not eating and another night of not sleeping landed us at the doctor's.  The first time.  

Let me spare you the details.  Zev (not) slept with Alla by night and did not eat by day.  I slept separately, as long as Ben would let me, which was usually not too late.  Following the visit to the docs we went with antibiotic one, which did not work.  Antibiotic two worked hardly at all, and antibiotic three was administered via a shot.  That one worked and also gave Zev an allergy.  Onto antibiotic four.  

Current status: things seem better.  Days Zev did not eat solid food - 4.  Nights he pretty much did not sleep - 3.  Antibiotics tried - 4, and hope to stay there.  Days left on this one - 3, and here is hoping that Benadryl can keep allergy at bay.  Zev's color and texture: somewhat red and rather bumpy, but not increasing and does not seem to bother him, so we will take it.  Number of nights Ben got me up before 6, and subsequently yelled at me because he was still sleepy and already hungry - 4.  Cracks in kitchen cabinets - 1, and it is not too obvious.  Number of days since I announced I am not dealing with Ben in the morning any more - 4, and I am enjoying every one.

Yet there are other, more fun things to report.  Both of the boys understand more.  When Zev is read to a particular poem where every stanza ends with a name of a body part, he points to the right one before Alla reads it.  Ben, when shown a picture, can identify an airplane, a tractor, a truck, a motorcycle.  That they can both identify a rocket and make the sound of one taking off - goes without saying.

Ben still periodically yanks of Zev's hair, but now he knows for sure that is not allowed.  We have identified a naughty corner.  Let the discipline begin.  

The other day we took the boys to a cafe after Gymboree, for a bite for us and a snack for them.  We got some sandwiches and decided that Zev and Ben can be introduced to 'kids' mac'n'cheese'.  Imagine our shock when the boys spat out the lowly carbs and opted for the delicate roast beef.  However, hunger took over and after some bread and meat and juice the boys went after their own food.  Zev, busily regaining his weight, grabbed at the food and just could not stuff his face fast enough.  Ben got hold of a spoon and went digging at the mac'n'cheese.  He got the movement from plate to mouth down cold; the loading of the spoon, however, eluded him.  Yet the determined baby refused the help.  Food offered by us was ignored, food placed on the spoon for him was dumped out.  After about five minutes of non-stop effort Ben got roughly two portions in his mouth, but fully unassisted.

A much delayed update

Been a while, my dear reader.  It has been... interesting.  A few things changed.

Mobility:
Benjamin now walks rather confidently now, attempts to run.  Indeed he does, until his upper body gets ahead of the legs, at which point gravity takes over.  So far he has not been discouraged.  The stairs, on the other hand, puzzle Benjamin, which is a good thing.  The two small steps in his room Ben can negotiate rather well, with only a 40% chance of falling.  The main stairs he cannot navigate yet, but fortunately they give him pause.  I've watched him try to reach for the handrail, look down, then walk away.
Zev went from not walking to walking rather well within about a week.  He does not run, but walks nearly as well as Benjamin.  On one occasion I tried to teach him to go down the stairs backwards.  He got down two steps successfully, decided it was not fun and crawled back up.

Play:
Alla has been teaching the boys how to build things out of blocks.  After the first two weeks (when they delighted in knocking down whatever mom built), the boys now can build towers two, maybe three blocks tall.  Recently, Zev put a bottle with a square bottom on top of a block for a taller tower.  Initiative.  They boys also like to reproduce the sound a rocket makes (original sound effects by yours truly) and recognize a shape of a rocket easily.

Language and comprehension:
They do not say much more, but added a duck to their animal repertoire.  Also, when recently Alla asked Ben to bring her his socks, to her shock he walked over to the sock box and brought her a pair.  Go figure.  Being chased and getting away when pursued continues to be one of the favorite games.

Competition and, dare I say, combat:
Competitions for control of the books get more serious.  While Ben is usually more aggressive  Zev has discovered a new tactic: sitting on a book that his brother is reading.  Turns out, Benjamin's arsenal of responses is somewhat limited.  On one occasion he went for a solid body tackle from a seated position and got his brother's back.  With baited breath I watched to see if he would capitalize on this classic MMA opportunity.  The result was that both fighters fell back, were puzzled by lack of tactical advantage, rolled into a crouch and disengaged.
Some days later Ben has discovered biting.  One time he went for Zev's arm and got the sleeve.  Later the same night he deliberately got Zev's fingers in his mouth and chomped down. I was expecting Zev to retaliate with a hair pull, but I guess he was not ready.  For the deliberate and unprovoked infliction of pain Ben was punished by being ignored for the remainder of the night (about ten minutes), which he hated, and has not been seen biting since.
Somewhat interestingly, watching me practice a few Tae Kwon Do kicks causes the boys endless joy - they laugh their head off.  One one hand, I am glad I can entertain them.  On the other...  I fully expect they will eventually find my attempts at martial prowess laughable; just did not expect they would develop such a discerning eye that early.  Well, it was bound to happen sooner of later...

A night to remember

Two nights ago was truly a night worth mentioning.  What makes it special is that, for the first time in roughly a month, the boys slept through.  Alla and I were treated to something we practically forgot - namely two children who went to sleep at 7:30 pm and woke up at 6:36 am.  Last night was still better than most - Zev woke up around five.  I came over, told him it was still night and exited.  After a minute or two, he went back to sleep.  The general quarters wake up call was sounded 5 minutes after 6 am.  Not bad.

Improvements in walking continue.  Zev prefers to walk upright while holding onto things - walls, furniture, someone's hand.  Benjamin, on the other hand, hates walking while holding hands.  Instead, he gets up and walks a few meters before plunking down on all four.  In fact, he is now starting to try to go over small obstacles upright (up or down small single steps).  If he looses his balance, he lands on his hands and thinks this a terrific joke.  In his near future I see a few falls and rapid progress.  Yes, grandparents, we will endeavor to curtail the former without hindering the latter.

Recently the boys were exposed to some of my colleagues at the company picnic.  Or, I should rather say, the personnel of the company were exposed to the boys.  Zev and Benjamin, arriving in a separate plastic car each, were a hit.  One chagrined colleague informed me that Ben gave her a terrific smile right after she took the picture.  The boys also enjoyed interacting with the live ponies.  Zev rode a few laps while holding onto mom who was walking beside the horse.  Benjamin, on the other hand, was not his adventurous self and settled for petting the ponies's face, but refused the ride.

Lastly, last weekend the boys had their first swimming lesson.  They had a great time.  Today is lesson two and I will report on that later.

another facet of normal

This too, I shall share.  Last night started rather late for us, as Zev was up from 11:30 to roughly 1 am - presumably, teething.  He spent the time either physically in Mom's arms, or sitting in his bed, screaming full bore, not even trying to sleep.  When he finally quieted down, I was to wound up to sleep, so took the opportunity to answer a few e-mails I could not get to during my very restful long weekend.  I am figuring it was around 1:30 or so when I fell asleep.  And then it was 5:48, Benjamin was screaming, and my day started with cleaning up liquid shit.

I changed both kids and stayed in their room for roughly 40 minutes, listening to the whining from one or the other, cleaning up also two fully runny noses (daily trips to the playground in the mall are certainly paying off).  After that I decided it was important for Alla to participate while I share these few words with you.

The reason I try to volunteer for the morning duty is because I firmly believe we did this to ourselves and deserve nothing better.  This underlying belief shapes my daily parenthood experience.  Add in the knowledge that there are multiple years of this in store, and you have an idea of my basic outlook on life.  Please, save your sympathy.

I also need to go to work a little earlier, so that I can leave early enough to get some childproofing equipment, and possible new doorknobs, on the way home from work.  You see, today I observed Benjamin finally succeeding in opening the door to his room.  He was not entirely able to get out, but that should no more than a dozen attempts away.

Therefore, my gentle reader, I am now off to my 8 am conference call where I shall have to exercise a great deal of diplomacy and tact.  To be followed, undoubtedly, by what will be a very productive workday.  Needless to say, should I fall asleep on the drive home and rap my car around a concrete embankment, that will be just fine with me, thank you very much.  Now, should I forget to use my seat belt today for best effect? Hmmm...

treachery 101

Another recent change in the boys is first indication of deviousness and scheming.  Allow me to explain.  Recently the boys decided that sneaking past me out of the room in the morning is fun.  And it is fun, because I go after them and drag them back - for outside the room lie, among other things, the office (interesting, but full of danger), the bathroom (of many hard surfaces), the bedroom where mom sleeps, and, of course, the long, steep stairs.  All great fun and allowed, but not unsupervised.  Thus, the escaping, the grabbing, and the returning.  Of course, there is a price to pay for the fun sometimes.  For instance, on a recent occasion I had to grab both escapees at once.  Ben squirmed, and got loose just as I was bringing them in for a landing.  A predictable result - Ben cluncked his jaw on my leg and bit his tong.  Evidently, he has enough teeth to draw blood with.  He was genuinely puzzled when he went to explore his mouth (while crying, of course) and his fingers came out with red on them.  Within two minutes, he was back to escaping.

What is important is that the boys understand that escaping is a game - while I am changing one of them, the other would take a step toward the door, then look back to see if I was going to come after him.  If I am busy, the boys are usually content to play in the room.

Alla reported a very similar incident.  While playing downstairs one of the boys initiated an unauthorized ascent of the stairs (the gate as left open).  Alla grabbed him after he got a few steps up.  A short climb followed by a ride on mom, you say?  Awesome!  As soon as crawler 1 was taken off the stairs and deposited some distance away, crawler 2 was already a couple of steps up and crawler 1 was getting ready.  Grab, put down, repeat indefinitely.  After peeling both of the boys off the stairs a few times Alla finally closed the gate.  It should be mentioned here that the only time the boys ever show reluctance to climb, naturally, is at night when we want them to self-propel up to their room for bed.

But this is not the deviousness yet, you say!  Well, hang on!  A few days ago Zev and I engaged in what looked like a competitive game.  I blocked the way out of their bedroom, Zev tried to get by, by going around me.  Well, I am larger and can block the way.  Zev would find his way blocked, laugh, and try to go around.  Find me moved, turn around, repeat.  The game went on to mutual delight for a few minutes and then Zev employed what was an excellent fake.  No idea if it was intentional or a random event - but he went right for one step, changed direction and went left.  Here my size played against me and I really had to scramble to get him.  He earned it - he snuck by, was allowed to get nearly to the door and was grabbed there.

Another time Zev got hold of Ben's blanked, took it away and had a great laugh as his brother tried to get his blanky back.  The laugh, I was told, was not evil, but the act sure was.

Benjamin recently has had nice displays of cunning of his own.  The two "off-limits" items in the boys room are the diaper pail and the trash bin - for obvious reasons.  Ah, but they are big, white, and the diaper pail has a blue handle that moves (thank you, Sergey and Rekha - your gift is in year two of use and not slowing down).  Now that the boys can reach the handle - the pail beckons.  Clearly, the boys know that they are not allowed to play with the two items - we pull them off routinely and, in fact, they look to check our reaction as they grab for the pail's handle.  This morning Ben crawled over, heard me say "don't even think about it", and went to play with the clothing boxes - those are shaped like a frog and a monkey, are "playable", and conveniently situated right next to the forbidden items.  Ben got up, started playing, looked at me to confirm it was OK... and after a few seconds lunged for the diaper pail.  Well played, sir, well played.

... and another early morning post

You have to excuse my lack of creativity with post names, my gentle reader.  That's it, no clever explanation, just deal with it.

You may have also noticed that the previous post ends somewhat abruptly.  Very observant of you.  Indeed, that was dictated by the boys who informed me loudly that they want their morning cartoons.  In fact, even as I type Zev demands my attention.  Let's see if he can help me type.  Being the more patient of the two, there is hope.

Back to recent events.  A couple of nights ago Zev woke up and cried.  I was dispatched to pick him up.  Which I did, to Zev's continued crying.  And cry he did, inconsolably, for another two or three minutes.  Alla finally walked in.  Zev extended his arms towards mom and was picked up.  At roughly 0.7 seconds of physical contact with mom, not quite in Alla's arms, Zev was quiet.  The little brat.  I went to sleep.

In another event, one I have not witnessed, Ben took hold of a toy they both wanted (lately it has been a toy cell phone that talks and plays music).  Zev went after the toy, of course.  Ben held onto the toy, then went (OK, crawled) to the box, got another toy and gave it to Zev.  No idea if it worked, but the thought was nice.

A habit recently acquired by Zev is pulling hair of whoever happens to be in vicinity.  As you can imagine, Alla and aunt Olga are the primary sufferers.  At yesterday's Costco trip the target was Ben, while the boys shared a ride in a cart.  As you can imagine, the indignant crying that resulted (from both, you betcha), was epic.  This prompts a question of a) means of immediately altering behavior that do not involve physical punishment and b) means of long-term behavior correction, such as teaching not to pull hair via a stern "нельзя!" (not allowed!) and instantaneous punishment by withholding attention for a minute per year of age.  To be pondered later.

This morning Zevi woke up at 5:30 on the nose.  While Alla and I were debating the merits of getting him vs. letting him ride it out in order to teach him that 5:30 is still 'night', the crying continued.  In a true example of family consensus, Alla finally said "I am getting him" and went to grab Zev.  By that point, of course, Ben was awake and cried at the unfairness of being left in the room as Zev was picked up.  It was a great time for all of us to be awake anyway, right?  I, certainly, was too angry (at no one in particular) to sleep at that point.

On this cheerful note, I will wish everyone a more restful and less exhaustingly anger-filled Sunday morning than I have had so far.

early morning post

The life has somewhat returned to normal.  I say this with a grain of salt, as "normal" sometimes includes waking up before 6am.  But them, as they say, is the breaks.

The boys have recently learned to say "дать" (to give).  As in "дать тебе печеньку?" - "shall I give you a cookie"?  So now when they want something, they point and say "give", using the infinitive form.  Better than nothing.

The incidents of walking, while still limited to 3-5 steps, become somewhat more frequent.  At a recent Gymboree trip Alla and I noticed that the boys can now negotiate any and all obstacles there, entirely at will and without assistance.  They do, also, continue to show a strong independent streak -- with little regard for the teacher's plans, Benjamin and Zev play when they want and where they want.

less red, more itchy

The day after the redness showed up my parents provided caution as to what was to come and offered advice on combating itchiness of the receding hives.  Naturally, since the doctor did not recommend any sort of ointment to us, we assumed the itchy hives did not apply to modern US babies.  Later same night we were, once again, reminded that the basic design of a baby is the same, regardless of country of manufacture.  In other words, we were wrong, my parents were right.  And boy, were they...

All of Ben was itching.  Badly.  The night was basically a blur, with Benjamin sleeping in his bed (hardly), not sleeping in his bed, sleeping on top of Alla, not sleeping in bed with us (mostly).  Around 5 am Alla gave up and went downstairs with him.  Zev slept late and had to be woken up around 7 am.  Left to his own devices he would have slept more, making up for the crummy night his brother treated him to.

The next night Ben slept, but Zev woke up a quarter to 6.  My turn.  Another slightly zombified day, followed by another short-ish night.  Honestly, it blurs a bit at this point.  I do recall that Alla has taken the morning shift on at least two occasions, for which I am dramatically grateful.  Interestingly, once both boys are awake, things are better and even Ben is everyday slightly less red and slightly less itchy.  The itch returns  in the evening, promising adventures each night.  We continue to give Benjamin the aptly name Benya-dryl.  Ben, on the other hand, has just about had enough of pink substances administered via a plastic syringe.  This morning he, as usual, shook his had vigorously at the sight of the thing and cried when I got hold of his head. Alla took over and in one fluid motion squirted the entire dose (all of 3.75 ml) into Ben's mouth, resulting in a Benadryl geyser.  I refilled and went back to the "one drop at a time" approach.  I could have sword Ben saw me, stopped fighting, calmly let me drop some in his mouth and blew a raspberry.  Then again.  I gave up and went to work.

In the evening I knew we had no choice, so down the gullet the meds went.  At this point the kids are asleep, so is Alla (no idea how she lasted today - I know I struggled to 6 pm) and shall follow suite.

one... red... baby!

Benjamin is red.  There are no two ways about it.  He is red.  End I don't mean political views.  I mean color.  More intense and spotty yesterday, more subdued and even color today.  All that - compliments of an allergy to an antibiotic Benjamin was taking for his ear infection.

Now, you have to admire Benjamin's sense of timing.  For five days he was taking the meds just fine.  he waited until mom and dad were about 9 hours into their two-night getaway to the coast.  Then he developed the coloration an oophaga pumilio would envy (posting of a picture is currently vetoed by mom and is being negotiated).  Naturally, we got back by 10:45 the next morning and took Benjamin to see his doctor.  She immediately recognize the allergy for what it was and sent us home with Benadryl.  

This morning Benjamin continues to exhibit a red color, though it is not quite as intense.  He is still a touvh warm, but slept well and woke and good spirits and is eating well.  

In other news...  Zev is now up to three consecutive steps.  Zev also has the distinction of being the first of the brothers to draw some else's blood.  My own, in fact.  This morning, while playing with me, Zev decided to give me a hug, which resulted in a full-body headbutt to the lower lip.  Said lip was slightly busted, giving Zev the honor of first blood!

Antibiotics, day 6

We are currently in day six of the antibiotic course with Benjamin.  The meds seem to be working - Ben is consistently in a better mood and has been sleeping well (t'fu-t'fu).  He is pretty used to the routine by now, and takes his 5ml is five or 6 sips, with milk to wash them down in between.  Sometimes he obligingly lowers the bottle and opens his mouth to get the meds.

The interaction continues to improve.  In the mornings the boys are usually glad to see me and want to spend time in my lap.  This often leads to jockeying for the best position.  While reading, there is usually room enough for both, but when they decide to explore my head (beard and teeth are of interest presently), someone sooner or later ends up slapping me or his brother.  They get one warning and on second offense are summarily expelled from the lap.  For the most part, things work.

Today also I observed a brief instance of genuine play between Zev and Ben.  Zev was in my lap, Ben was just serving out his sentence behind my back for slapping his brother.  Ben crawled around me and peeked at Zev.  Zev moved is head and peeked back.  For the next 20-30 seconds the boys played peek-a-boo with each other, using me as an obstacle.

The other change is at night time.  The boys now consistently prefer to be in their beds while we sing to them.  As I have written above, being further away from our singing is motivation enough.  I imagine they will be applying to live-in day care by phone and mail any week now.  In the mean time, they may stand or sit while we sing.  When we finally go to give them a good night kiss, however, the boys immediately lie down flat.  We brush our teeth, I swear.  I personally brush mine at least once a week, whether I need to or not.  We think they may be afraid we will pick them up.  In the end, we sing, the boys are in their beds and lying down, we exit.  Good deal.

Lower fever, first step

An utterly miserable night was followed by a pretty decent one.  This morning Ben woke up reasonably early (6:05) but in a pretty good mood.  He is running a nominal fever (37.1 C), but other than that - he seems well; played very nicely with me and his brother.  Even offered a toy to Zev.  And then offered one to me.

What is clear is that Benjamin is not a fan of taking meds.  He will (sort of) tolerate taking Tylenol when he is not feeling well, but 5ml of antibiotic twice a day is not a hit.  Same bubble gum flavor and pink look fools Benjamin none at all - he rather hates it.  No negotiating on this one, however.  Down it goes.

In other news: yesterday Zev too his first, single, independent step, from support to support.  As befits a Jewish man of learning, his first step was taken towards a shelf of books.

one day at a time...

After two days and two nights of moderate fevers we took Ben to see the doctor, who promptly proclaimed "ear infection".  At present Ben is a little better, though still not comfortable.  Antibiotics, probiotics, Tylenol for the fever occasionally.  Sleep is somewhat better - for all of us.  Settling in for a hot day tomorrow.

July rolls on

Today Ben woke up at 5, clearly uncomfortable.  He half-cried in his sleep, yet did not wake up fully.  At around 6 am Zev finally gave up trying to sleep, and so did we.  I grabbed ever-happy Zev and headed downstairs, while Alla got Ben in her lap to get him to sleep a little more.  And possibly to sleep herself a bit. Some time later, while changing Ben, it became obvious what was bothering him.  Ben had a serious-looking rash on both of his legs.  Red, hot to the touch, with a few bumps.  We immediately called the answering service at out pediatrician's and the nice lady assured me that while she cannot schedule appointments, the staff will have my info the moment they get in at 8.

At 7:15 reinforcement arrived.  Alla had a important meeting and, with the rash actually subsiding with a change of clothing and some Tylenol, she headed to work.  I remained home to see how soon I can present Ben to the docs.  At 8:35 I decided that a half hour is more than generous to allow the staff to get in, get their coffee, and check their morning e-mail.  I called, left a message, and was called back in 10 minutes.  So much for the 24 hr answering service.  Our doctor was not available until 12.  Scheduling double-fail.  By 8:45 both of the boys were tired and more than ready for their milk and nap.

While changing Benjamin aunt Olga noticed that no rash remained whatsoever. Under aunt Olga's the expert guidance boys were put in their cribs and given bottles, which they held themselves.  They drank, and fell asleep without a peep.  Realizing I literally had nothing to show our pediatrician, I canceled the appointment. The going theory is an allergic reaction to a detergent brand (or the amount used this weekend by yours truly).  Armed with new detergent, a bit of wine, and a large supply of cool (ahem), we head into another night.

In other news...  Both boys are getting more chatty, even if we do not speak the language.  Sometimes they bring over a book they want us to read, and push away the ones they are bored with.  Unfortunately, they apply the same philosophy to food, which leads to a Sisyphean cleanup after each meal.
Zev is definitely getting ready to walk.  Even though Benjamin stands more confidently, Zev walks well holding on to a single finger. Ben is becoming rather adept at throwing the ball to a person, while Zev prefers to roll the ball, chase it down, repeat.  Just a bit more effort and they will roll the ball to each other and officially play together, right?  Yea, right.

7/23/12 Ben, finally behind the real wheel

July pics 1

7/1/12 Ben with Grandpa Michael at Sunriver, OR 

7/2/12 Zev and dad reading

7/3/12 Back in Portland, Zev enjoys a swim at the local fountain with mom

Ben's turn at the water

Zev being his chill self

7/6/12 Zev figuring out trains at the Children's Museum with Grandpa Michael

Got it now.

more June pics

6/9/12 Birthday bash.  Ben with mom and some goofball in the background

6/11/12 Zev looking rather serious

6/15/12 At Play Boutique, Ben on the car

Same day, Zev rides the orange one

6/18/12 At Gymboree

6/19/12 Awesome, yet slightly freaky picture of Benya

Zev enjoys sliding

6/24/12 Zev with Grandpa Tolya

same day, Ben with dad

Pictures from the actual birthday -- 100th post!

Ben reading 6/6/12

Zev looking good in stripes

Intense Ben

Zev' grinning

Boys with their two wonderful aunts, Olga and Shawna

Some of the birthday did not go exactly as planned...

At Gymboree things started looking up.

Some doubts lingered...

... but the wheels are a sure bet.

And we are off exploring

At the wheel together

Ben with his buddy Gymbo

Past one year

Been a long time since an update.  One year mark came and went.  The party was a smashing success.  Thank you all who helped plan and prepare, who came over to celebrate with us and brought so many wonderful gifts!

The boys continue to grow and develop, thank G-D.  Most recent nights (but not last night) they slept through.  Much more talkative now.  They have also learned to point at things they want.  For example, a few times Zev pointed to his bed during the nightly singing.  Either he was real tired or just wanted to get away from our singing - showing good musical taste already.  They point to body parts a little too.  In no small part due to Grandma Rita's efforts, Zev and Ben now sometimes point out ears and forehead.  In general, the boys are better at showing what they want and don't want, especially with books.
They also understand when we don't want them to do something.  The difference is: Zev actually listens sometimes and Ben just wants to do what he wants to do.  And if he does not get to impose his will - he gets noisily unhappy.  I foresee a lot of interesting interactions with parents in his future...
Other then that - still no walking, but standing, moving along furniture and rapid crawling.  Both of the boys can be a pain to get changed and dressed when they feel like resisting - which is quite often.

July also saw a first attempt at travel.  Along with the rest of the clan, including my parents, we migrated to Sunriver OR - a lovely resort city in the middle of a pine forest.  Bike paths, pines, tame deer, many playgrounds, huge water park - great place.  Let me tell you: the best part was driving in and driving out.  We drove after 7pm, while the kids slept.  Three to four hours each way, peace, quiet - now, that was awesome.  At Sunriver itself, actually, things were somewhat less peaceful.  Simply put, Alla and I did not plan well.  The kids had portable beds, much smaller then their cribs.  We had a great room in the house with the rest of the family (18 Jews under one roof, people).  Between the excitement, the attention, the noise, and the new place the boys had trouble falling asleep, woke up frequently and met each morning in the middle of our bed.  Between 5 and 7 I would hand them off, one at a time, to my parents who took care of them while Alla and I got actual sleep.  At 11 and change we would emerge and attempt to be decent.  Around 1pm we would take the boys so my parents would get a break.  After 3:30 it was time to eat, play a little, and start getting ready for putting the boys to sleep again.  Here comes another night.
After three nights, I simply threw our things in the van, shoved humans in after the things, and drove back.  I can't speak for others, but I won't be ready to try travel with the boys again for at least another year.

Back in Portland things were better. For instance, Zev and Ben went back to sleeping normally, in their beds, and not on top of mom (Ben) and under dad's armpit (Zev).  As a reward, they had their first trip to the zoo and children's museum.  Both were a bit too early, but did serve as proof of concept.  Large animals such as elephants, giraffes, and a nine foot polar bear left much less of an impression than I expected.  A penguin that swam inches in front of Zev's face, however, was noticed for sure.  The Children's Museum went over better, with lots of toys for boys to play with.


With that, back to the scheduled programming.

Some more...

Ben flirting 5/8/12

Happy after flirting

I am too cool.

Joint study in hydrodynamics

Ben at the instrument, 5/17/12

April pics 2

Later the same day, still 4/23/12

Hmmm.  I must investigate!

I think he got the right idea...

Zev on the swing.  Not sure who is having more fun.

Ben is having a good day

April pictures 1

4/3/12

Jumping three weeks ahead to April 22nd.

On the shirt: "There is no crying in Physics"

You couldn't wait with the Physics thing until we are at least one?
Nope.  We couldn't.

Sunny afternoon with Grandma Rita

What an awesome toy our cousin Rafi has!  Let's steal it!

You think they could be onto us?
Fat chance!

We do it like this...

I am not sure I approve of this whole "grass" thing.

Ben's first ride on the swing.  I think he likes it.