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.