March pictures 3

Ridin' high.  3/5/12

Watch this: poof!

Photoshop?  I don't think so.  Grandma got mad ninja skills.

"You really think we're gonna just play with this stuff together and pose for you?"

"Working solo - that's a little better"

"Are we done now?"

Some more March pictures

On the 4th of March (yes, that's a month ago) the boys had their first trip to Gymboree, along with parents and Boston grandparents.

"Not sure I trust this place..."

"This is just plain weird..."

"Hey!  What are you looking at?"

"You lookin' at somethin', friend?"

"This standing thing ain't all bad.  Especially when dad's got my back(side)."

Yep, Ben is looking at a girl here.  Grandma approves.  I think.

"Seriously?  I am not even 1 and I am on a cargo net, in basic training?"

"You think this is funny, Grandpa?"

Experiments in sleeping, dining, and standing up.

Everything breaks eventually.  For example, the rule about babies not sleeping in our bed.  Recently Zev woke up right around 6 am.  Clearly, he was not falling back asleep.  The only result of a futile attempt to put him back in his bed would have been a woken Benya.  Just as I was becoming resigned to another day starting early, Alla said "I will put him with us."  I was too sleepy to enforce rules.  Zev, pleased as peach, realized he was somewhere warm, soft, and with both parents around.  He took some time getting comfortable, periodically checking to make sure we were both there, but he did fall asleep eventually.  And gave us (and Ben) another hour of dozing.

Some two days later, Ben woke up at 5 minutes to six, wet and complaining.  He was promptly changed and comforted.  With all 6 am - promptness, it was still a few minutes after six and, like his brother, he would not fall back asleep.  Naturally, we decided to pull the same stunt.  Ben had different plans.  He set up, looked around with some mistrust, and complained loudly that he saw right through the ruse.  He was done sleeping, and he meant it.  About ten minutes of trying to convince Ben to lie down later, I took him downstairs.

This weekend also saw the boys' first official downtown stroll.  We went to meet our friends there.  Drove in in the van, parked, rapidly deployed the stroller, strapped in the "cargo" and were off.  Our friends, in the mean time, set down at a Japanese restaurant.  As in, take-off-your-shoes-and-sit-in-a-private-room-on-a-tatami restaurant.  We had our doubts.  The stroller, as promised, drove right through the standard door, gave up its cargo and folded neatly out of the way to the amazement of the staff.  The boys, pretty much to the amazement of the parents, took to the restaurant like they were born to it.  Surely, the did try to grab everything on the table and ended up with a "denial zone" around them.  And yet - there was no dreaded, ear-splitting, dining-experience-ruining shrieking that haunts the nightmares of every restaurateur.  Instead, the boys ate some rice and tempura.  They also let us sip our tea and snatch an occasional piece of sushi.

Yet another first was delivered by Ben - with me enabling him, naturally.  Alla was feeding the boys some solid food and asked me to mash up a banana.  Which I happily did and placed the plate on the table in Alla's easy reach.  Evidently, in Ben's as well.  Two seconds later there a squishy crash, as the plate landed on the floor, banana-first.  Ben looked surprised, but not particularly scared.  Alla reminded me (thank you, parents) that yours truly broke plates even at much greater age, with much greater malice.  There was nothing left for me to do but to clean up.

The final experiment of the week was on one of the quieter mornings.  The boys woke up and were taken downstairs to play.  As I was preparing their breakfast in the kitchen, I heard music coming from their area.  Which was strange, given that there were no toys on the floor capable of playing that particular tune (yes, I know some of those by heart and by toy, naturally).  Thinking to myself a quite "wtf?" in I walked, to find Zev standing over a toy (about his mid-level), leaning on it with one hand and pounding at the keys with the other. I did get him to sit down and a few minutes later he repeated the exercise.  Naturally, neither Alla nor I actually ever saw him get up - if we are around, why get up yourself if a parent can get you up?

Back to reality.  It is now Monday morning.  Ben woke up rather cranky (teeth again, I guess) and it is time for me to escape to work.

Houston, we have a tooth. But little sleep.

Well, the one night of peaceful sleep is what it was - one night.  At present Ben has a runny nose which prevents the poor guy from sleeping comfortably.  At the same time Ben has gotten better control of his arms, so now he can effectively defend the approaches to his nose.  Which, in turn, makes booger removal an even more exciting endeavor.

Zev has slept well so far, but appears to have early signs of a runny nose to match his brother's.  We had better get ready, I suppose.

In other news, there is evidence of a tooth.  Said biting implement has been reported in Zev's mouth, report confirmed repeatedly by tapping a spoon against a lower jaw.  For the record, I refuse to take part in tooth-tapping for sport.  Others in the household, however, find great joy in it and Zev does not seem to mind (much).

hmm, it worked - at least for one night

Last night, remarkably, we (and I do mean all four of us) slept through the night.  Perhaps, the boys were tired and were making up sleeping time.  Perhaps something else - I will take it any way I can, thank you very much.  Point is - the boys went to sleep at 7:30 pm and Ben was up at 7 the next morning.  With no sound in between.  When Alla went to pick him up, he greeted her with a surprised "Ta?" and smiled.  When Alla went to wake up Zev 20 minutes later he was ready to go on sleeping.  Yours truly snoozed until half past 7. And went to work more refreshed than I have been in weeks.

The day went well and the night has been, so far, peaceful.  Here's hopin'.

bye-bye, sleep. come again soon!

The recent few weeks have been marked by the (absent) teeth, on Ben mostly.  Pretty much, Zev now sleeps through the night and Ben (we think due to coming teeth) wakes up.  A lot.  Now, I know that "a lot" is a relative term.  My father, for instance, never tires of reminding me of his own personal record of getting up over 30(!) times in one night.  Well, I can't top 30 (yet?), I suppose.  In interest of not sparking the next round of one-upmanship I will spare you, my gentle reader, the details of how long Alla was up last night and how many times Ben would wake, cry at the monitor for a couple of minutes, fall asleep - only to wake again in a few minutes more.  And that after the Tylenol.  Zev, on the other hand, with remarkable cool just lay there with his eyes open, no doubt thinking "OK, fair is fair.  I cried when he slept, so no he cries while I want to sleep.  I will just wait it out..."

Anyhow.  In other news...
Mobility: on one occasion, in the mood, Ben practiced backwards crawling, lobster style, and covered about a foot and a half.  Push with hands, butt in the air, slide the legs, repeat.  Funny.  Zev, on the other hand, is getting quite adept at scooting on his butt.  I believe he also has recently covered a couple of feet in one...scoot.

Communication.  Ahem.  Ben continues to occasionally say syllables like "Ma" and "Ta".  Whenever he says "Ma" an even number of times, some biased persons claim he says "mama".  Your humble narrator is inclined not to oversell and leave it at "Ma".

Well, it is 7:10.  Zev is asleep, Alla has been trying to catch up for the time she spent trying to persuade Ben to sleep.  Ben is fed.

Oh, wait, Zev just woke.  Off I go...

Some March pictures

Zev, for some reason in Greek flag colors and a Christmas colored hat.  Go figure.  3/2/12

Happy Ben and happy aunt Olya

Yes, we have a gnome...

Gimme that thing!

mama's the word...

...uttered earlier today by Ben, twice, while looking at Alla and reaching for her.  There are two witnesses to this, although I will leave this to you, my reader, to judge the reliability of Alla and grandpa Misha.

The boys had a great day with mom and Boston grandparents, mostly outside, hanging out at Bridgeport Village (a very nice outdoor mall area).  They played, watched, flirted with a girl.  Ben got to high-five with her.

In other news, Zev was definitively confirmed to scoot on his butt distances in access of a foot. Towards toys, I imagine.

At a birthday party, Ben (again rather skeptical of the whole endeavor) with Harold.  2/27/12

On the slide.  Ben is less than impressed.  At least one of us had fun...

Zev saying "Wazzzuuup, people?" 2/29/12

February pics 3

Going on a weekend morning walk with Grandpa Tolya.  Nope, I don't think he likes them at all.  2/19/12

Going for a walk with aunt Olya.  2/20/12

Why aren't we moving yet?!

OK, if it helps to get us moving I'll smile for you.

Zev with aunt Olya.  For the record: they are *different* outfits!

Happy Zev

Yep, the boy can pose.

Mom, can we just play with the new toy, please?  2/25/12

Check this out, bro: here she is with that flashy thingy again...

Do I really have to hide my mail in my crutch to get some privacy around here?

Are you serious, bro?  You had to hide it where?

Oh, come on!  Just let us play for a minute, will ya?

Boston grandparents are here!

Just in time for the 9th month birthday (yep, another bogus one, people) the Boston grandparents have arrived.  The boys have met them with a few achievements - both can high-five (though Ben is decidedly more interested in the activity) and both now enjoy standing around while supported by an object (and a bit by a person).  The boys continue to grow nicely.  No teeth are visible yet, though the arriving chompers bother them plenty.  Both Ben and Zev try to munch on everything, from toys to people.  Occasionally, even food.  Ironically, pieces of raspberries have not been grabbed and eaten as eagerly as, say, plastic spoons.  Pieces of apples and mango, however, prove to be great gum-scratchers and are consumed readily.

Both of the boys sleep well for the most part.  For a couple of nights Zev had a recurrence of ... well, not sleeping.  Whatever was bothering him past mercifully quickly and we are not back to the 7 pm to 6:30 am - if we are lucky - routine.  Ben still needs a pacifier once or thrice a night, but that can be managed.

Aside from that - the boys are delighted to see the Boston grandparents who spoil them with attention.  I shudder to think of how much attention they will deserve in a week.  For now, however, we all enjoy having them here.  That G-D for spring break.

Last Sunday the boys had their first trip to Gymboree (cute pictures to follow in chronological order).  An hour of socializing and trying not to fall from various devices went reasonably well.  I won't share my opinion of paying for (as much as we'd have to) for access to an area with a mat, a few wooded pieces and a few other kids for an hour a week.  Suffice to say that upon hearing the price I exclaimed to Alla "But I can buy *two* handguns a year for this!"  I am afraid there are no guns in my future, only mats and wooden toys.

With that, here are a few pictures before I fall behind by over a month again.

A couple of weeks back the boys had a brief visit from uncle Mike from Boston.

With Misha, a.k.a. uncle Mike  2/11/12

The next day the boys went for a walk... You'd think at the North Pole - and you'd be wrong.  Still in Tigard, OR.

Ben in Arctic survival gear, 2/12/12

Ben smiles, unaware of the terrible dangers of the Oregon weather

Later that day the boys went to a birthday party!

Zev with Anya ...

...and now with Lenya

Ben was skeptical when he woke up ...

... but got into the spirit of things quickly.

On Valentine's day mom was out of town and the Kaplan boys had a house to themselves.  What to do?  Throw a party, of course!

serious Ben with uncle Shane

sleepy Zev being snuggle by aunt Shawna

You know that there was only one way this could have ended, right?

They are starting a bit young, but with the good stuff!*

*For a member of child protective services who may chance upon this blog or an over-protective relative: no alcohol was actually consumed by a baby, nor was there any consumed by adults around a baby.  Dad and uncle Shane shared a very civilized drink after the boys went off to sleep.