The Curious Georges

Tossed Salad & Scrambled Eggs

Nicole and I just returned from visiting Grandpa Joe and Grandma O. in Seattle, the land of Frasier & Niles.  Apparently Frasier's theme song refers to the wacky folks in Seattle who call in to his radio help line.  Coming from San Francisco, I wouldn't say that  Seattleites are any more strange than your average urban dweller, but you do get your usual city crazies.  (By the way, you have to click on that Seattleite link.  Pretty funny definitions of what constitutes a true Seattleite.  I loved this one:

1: inhabitants of Seattle
2: one who rarely sees natural sunlights, esp. from September thru July.
3: <old Eng.> often refers to someone, who is computer savvy and possesses valuable stock options.
4: <new Eng.> often refers to someone, who is computer savvy and possesses worthless stock options.

"Bill Gates is a Seattleite.")


our happy girl


Nicole with Grandma & Grandpa


The Space Needle/not a cloud in the sky




apple tree in Kirkland -- Nicole found a couple of these on our walks and befriended them



veggies in Pike Place Market


Nicole samples the peaches


This guy probably qualifies as wacky


Snoqualmie Falls

Barbie Fest

It's all about Barbie in the George household recently.  It started innocently enough.  I had heard that Barbie Nutcracker was a cute movie so I bought a copy at Target.  (I'm a Target addict, but that's a topic for a whole different post.)  Turns out that Barbie Nutcracker is Nicole's current fave and I have to concur.  Now, the way I judge a kids movie has two components.  Number one, does the movie hold their attention?  This is important especially for the boys because they generally do not like watching tv or movies much.  I must be a terrible parent because I lament their lack of interest in a source of entertainment that will keep them glued to one area for a half hour or so.  As we know, they much prefer to make mischief.  My second criteria for movie selection is purely selfish.  How does it sound in the background?  I'm usually in the kitchen while the kids watch tv, frantically trying to either cook or clean without little hands and bodies getting in the way and mucking stuff up.  Because of this, I'm experiencing their media second-hand.  Second-hand Barney, I Spy or Dora ... super annoying.  Second-hand Barbie Nutcracker ... ahh, the tinkling music of Tchaikovsky.  Now that's more like it!

So back to Barbie.  Barbie Nutcracker was the "gateway drug" to the real McCoy.  The Barbie featured in the DVD is not as, how shall I put it, "voluptuous" as her 38-18-34 counterpart.  She's almost more like Barbie's wholesome cousin.  Now, the Barbie dolls that Nicole received for her birthday are the traditional busty version.  Apparently in 1997, Mattel decided to make Barbie a bit more realistic by decreasing her bust and increasing her waist, but I wouldn't say even this revised figure is that of the typical woman.  This apparently is bad for girls' body image, but I'm not really sure if I agree.  I think it's up to the parents to instill a sense of confidence and self-acceptance in a child and playing with a Barbie doll shouldn't interfere with that.

Nicole is still opening her birthday gifts.  As her Uncle Chris says, birthdays aren't just one day; it's more like "the birthday spread" -- days and days of birthday merriment and celebration and in Nicole's case, opening presents.  Today she opened Barbie and her pet dog, Tanner.  Dane & Logan loved this one right away.  The dog eats these little pellets and actually poops them out the other end.  Barbie is equipped with a pooper-scooper and a mini trashcan with a paw for a pedal.  My hat is off to Mattel for thinking of these details.  Gotta run ... Nicole and Dane are squabbling over the mini dog bowl.

 

Logie brushes Barbie's hair (scratches on face courtesy of Brother Dane)

 

The pellet-pooping pooch

 

Barbie Bliss!

Hands

We took a picture of Nicole's and Barton's hands together when she was in the NICU.   Here's the original and Hands Part Two:

 

Four!

As of today, Sister is officially four years old.  To commemorate the occasion, she got a Big Girl Bike!

Running Amok

To 'run amok', which is sometimes spelled 'run amuck', is to behave in a wild or unruly manner.

Post-bath frenzy.  Not sure if that "calming bath wash" is working!

The Toddler Whisperer

I just checked on the boys and they're asleep ... drumroll please ... in their beds!  Are the planets aligned or are they just in a compliant mood?  I have a one-word answer:  Dora.  Dora is our wonderful nanny and she has a way with my wild things.  They actually nap for her.  They usually sit in their seats during meals when she's around.  They listen to her.  How does she do it?  I honestly don't know, even though I've tried to uncover her secrets.  Even when I follow her instructions to the letter, it just doesn't work.  One day scientists will de-mystify the phenomenon of children behaving for everyone, except their parents.  Maybe if I had the name of one of their beloved animated characters it would help.  How does Nemo George sound?

Dora & Dane

Thoughts on Loss

This week, four years ago, I was 26-weeks pregnant with identical twin girls, Nicole and Peyton.  I had bought countless coordinating outfits and decorative blocks with the letters "N" and "P" on them.  I was just about to buy a double stroller, but thankfully, I procrastinated. 

Those close to us know the tragic details of Nicole's birth and Peyton's death.  We celebrate Nicole's birthday on the 18th of August, but we also mourn the loss of her angelic twin sister, Peyton.  Every year, I throw myself into a birthday extravaganza for Nicole.  I think there are two reasons for this.  The most obvious is that I want to celebrate the miracle that is Nicole, our 2-lb 27-week preemie who defied the odds and made it.  She hasn't just "made it;"  she's is an astounding little girl -- bright, sweet and of course, very curious (hey, she's a Curious George).  The second reason for going all-out on her birthday is that it takes my mind off the loss.

So that brings us to tonight.  Yes, dear readers, behind this happy facade, lies a person who is very prone to sadness.  I've had too much loss in my life and sometimes it's just unbearable.  The Summer Olympics are bringing back unwanted memories of lying in a hospital bed with one baby gone and another fighting for her life.  I would look up at the tv screen and try to immerse myself in the athletic marvels, but I just didn't care.  How could I care about an Olympic swimmer or gymnast when my daughter may or may not live through the night? 

I didn't need Olympic heroes, I had my own.  Barton was and is my rock.  He got me through the hell that was the NICU and helped me cope with the loss of Peyton.   For the first few days, I was too scared to love Nicole.  I felt that if I loved her and then lost her, I would not survive.  Barton believed in Nicole.  He said to me, "She is going to live" with so much faith and confidence, that I believed him.  I had to believe him.  It was this faith that got me through it all. 

Barton comes from a long line of determined individuals.  His father, Peter, literally was an Olympic champion.  He competed in three Olympic weightlifting competitions and won one gold and two silver medals.  This winning ethic is all about determination and believing in yourself.  It is this quality that makes Barton a wonderful, and at times frustrating, husband.   Nicole and the boys also have the George "stick-to-it-ness" and the boys obviously have their "Dedo's" physical strength.

Since Nicole and Peyton were identical twins, I have no problem imagining what Peyton would look like.  I do wonder what her personality would have been like and how Nicole and Peyton would have interacted.  Would Peyton have been as feisty and determined as my other little monkeys?

I have mentioned to Nicole several times that she had a twin sister, but Barton thinks she's too little to process this.  I do want Nicole to grow up knowing that she had a twin and to not feel like it is a taboo subject.  The losses of Peyton and our little boy, Luka (at 20-weeks of pregnancy), are part of who we are and I don't want the sadness to ever go away completely.  Because if we lose that sadness, we may stop remembering these little beings who were so briefly in our lives, yet touched us so deeply.

 

putting flowers on Peyton's grave in San Jose

Door #2

This is how I found them tonight.  There are no words ...

A particularly raucous evening for The George Boys

Notice the torn-up book.  I'm not sure how they got a hold of that.

Yes, skeptical viewer, he's really sleeping like this! 

Huh?

Every night Barton and I play "What's behind Door #2?"  Door #2 opens into the boys' room and we never quite know what to expect.  Last night was a another whopper.  When I opened the door to their room, the room was divided by an imaginary line into "neat" and "mess."  The entire left side of the room was in perfect order; the right side looked like a bomb had gone off, including the glaringly ajar right shutter.  It's hard to believe that this segregation was accidental, but we'll never know.  Preferring chaos to tidiness, the boys made a nest amidst the clutter on the right side.  What's next?  Stonehenge, Dane & Logie style?

HOW TO BAFFLE YOUR PARENTS IN 3 EASY STEPS:

STEP ONE :  Keep left side of room perfectly neat.

STEP TWO:  Throw toys, stuffed animals & blankets on right side of room only.  Open right shutter.  Avoid crossing line into neat zone.

STEP THREE:  Fall asleep in detritus.  Congratulations, Project Bafflement successful!

You Say It's Your Birthday?

Nicole has been stretching the truth, just a little.  She's been telling people it's her birthday.  So far, this has happened on two different days (as far as I know).  Only nine more days until the real thing!

The Happy Birthday Girl To-Be