Bugs and Teeth

Our littlest member has been a fussbudget recently. Don't dare put him down to play or you will receive his wrath, usually just crying and crawling as fast as his arm will drag him to get to you, making you feel just guilty enough to pick him back up.

After another unsuccessful day of trying to get him to nap, a light bulb went on in my head. Hmmm, maybe he's getting teeth. Maybe is an understatement. I can say that literally overnight -- OK, could have been a few nights -- Keaton has 3 new teeth. Three! He's growing them like beans in there.



Meanwhile Quinn has a new found love for all things relating to bugs. Mostly he likes to try and find them and then stomp on them for all he's worth. Last Saturday we all spent the morning outside doing yard work, dad doing the heaving lifting of mossy brick, mom digging up weeds and tulips and Quinn digging for worms which he would study for about 5 seconds before bringing down his foot several times on it making it fertilizer. Today he was hanging out behind the blinds, Handy Manny flashlight in hand looking at a "mysterious bug" he told me later. Well he is definitely a boy!

Keaton, other than sprouting teeth, is "talking" more these days, although he is pretty quiet about it. He's formed an attachment to a bear that has been in his crib since he was newborn and hangs onto it when he's trying to get comfortable. Mom wants to replace it with a bear that will stand the test of time. But I'm getting opposition from Dad and probably would from Keaton too. So we'll see.

As a sports-loving dad, it's hard not to push your kids into being athletes.

Sure, Quinn's got a great throwing arm (righty, though I'm encouraging lefty), can hit a baseball (to all fields, no less), and is a natural soccer player (uses both feet, with power and control).

But there's more to life than athletic prowess, right?

That's why we're encouraging the boys' artistic side. As you can see above, Quinn is becoming an accomplished painter. He even describes himself as an artist. Just the other day, his smattering of paint on paper was deemed good enough to hang in a gallery (and by gallery, I mean my cubicle at the office), where it received rave reviews.

Keaton may be too young for sports (built like a linebacker; early signs of a killer pitching arm), he has his own artistic talent: stand-up comedy. He loves to sit on the floor, stare up at you with a goofy grin and make a stacatto-like sound: "ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ahhhhh."

He'll be here all week, folks. Try the veal.

A pair of lions

Keaton can't talk and barely moves. Quinn never stops talking and can't sit still.

Yet somehow, the Cap'n and Skipper have developed a mutual form of communication. Call it guttural. Call it primal. Call it a growl, because that's what it is.

These brothers are enjoying playing the role of dinosaurs, roaming treacherous landscape within Keaton's 6-foot-wide radius of movement. Or they're pirates, traversing the ocean in search of burying treasure at the bottom of the toy box.

Decide for yourself. Here's some photographic evidence.

Natural evolution

Keaton is leaving his turtle stage, where he lays on his back and occasionally rolls over. He sits up now, although with Mommy and Daddy or his baby chair as a prop. But it's still sitting up, which is more than we could claim last week.

This is where it starts to get fun, not that it wasn't fun before.

He's still a baby, and will be for a long time, but he's advancing to a stage where he feels more like a little boy. Keaton will sit in his little Bumbo chair, fully supported, and dig into a box full of baby toys. Across the house, his big brother is doing the same thing, though rooting through a bucket of Hot Wheels cars.

They're really not all that different anymore. I'm discounting, of course, Quinn's stage of evolution, which involves him saying things like, "Get out of my face, Dad!" and "I'm so, so, so, so, sorry, Dad!" and "Let me tell you a story ... "

But today, the day before Valentine's Day, Quinn really warmed Daddy's heart.

We were at Costco and Daddy was stuffing a case of beer into the bottom of the shopping cart. Quinn, looking at the case, said, "When I get big, I'm going to drink beer just like my Dad."

I know I shouldn't be proud, but let a Dad have his moments, even if they're mildly inappropriate.

My boys are getting bigger.

Hey, watch this!

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Any other holidays we missed?

Pardon us if we seem forgetful. It's been a long time since we updated this blog. So, in the spirit of giving, we've given the blog a new look and present you with a handful of holiday videos of the good Cap'n Quinn and the Skipper Keaton.

Happy Christ-Giving-Day-Mas

You know that song about the kid who only wants his two front teeth for Christmas? First of all, that's a ridiculous Christmas gift. Unless you're a beaver, what's the advantage of just the two front teeth? Why not a whole mouthful? At least then you could enjoy a steak, or at least a chicken wing.

Anyway, Keaton got his Christmas present in late November, while celebrating Thanksgiving at Grandma and Grandpa Siemers' house in Minnesota.

And believe us, it was FAR from a gift.

It's hard enough to get acclimated to unfamiliar surroundings, then these two little tusks poke through, causing enough pain to make three people lose sleep. And those three people were: Keaton, Mommy and Daddy.

On the upside, the early arrival of these chompers is yet another sign that Keaton is developing rapidly. He's already rolling over and trying to sit up. He's also writing this blog post. (He's not, really, but he probably could if he applied himself. The kid just sits around all the time.)

Despite the teeth, we had a nice time visiting family in Minnesota. Other than Turkey Day, the visit included Keaton's baptism (with Uncle Ken, Uncle Hal G. and Auntie Toni as godparents). We also took in the self-proclaimed "world famous" fish house parade in Daddy's home town of Aitkin.

Quinn spent good part of his trip learning about Paul Bunyan, he of wood-chopping fame. So it was only appropriate that we flew back to Oregon and the very next day chopped down a tree.

It should be of no surprise that Daddy would have never been able to chop that tree down were it not for Quinn and his plastic handsaw. We toppled that great fir tree, then celebrated with beer and cider. (Daddy had the beer, in case you're taking notes.)

The tree is now decorated, much of it by Quinn. Of course, that means the majority of the ornaments occupy the lower quarter of the tree, no higher than three-feet high, but he did a mighty fine job for a first-timer.

That's how the holidays started, and so far they are commencing with enough adventure to fuel these stories, so enjoy. That's your Christmas present.

Beats a pair of teeth. That song must have been about an orthodontist's kid.

The big 3, a night of ghouls, and a week of the icks

We've been remiss in updating you about all the activity aboard the U.S.S. Fussy Britches.

And there's been a lot to report.

First, there was Halloween. For his first year of trick-or-treating, Cap'n Quinn did what comes natural -- gave a hearty "aaarrgghh" and donned his pirate garb. With Mommy at work, the Skipper Keaton came along for the ride, dressed as a more-cute-than-scary skeleton.

Quinn knew the drill: Knock on the door, stand back a few steps, and when the door opens holler "trick or treat!" He had so much fun, Daddy thought he'd have to take him out every Saturday night.

Halloween was followed by something far scarier -- a week of the yucks.

First Mommy got it -- the fever, aches sinus headaches. Then it hit Quinn and then Keaton and, finally, Daddy. Luckily, Keaton's powerful young immune system dispatched the yucks in just a day. For Daddy, it lasted just two days. Unfortunately, it lasted a bit longer for Mommy and Quinn. But they're on the mend, and just in time to head to Minnesota next week for Thanksgiving.

But before we get to that, there was Quinn's big day.

A third birthday may not be as momentous the first two, but you'd have a hard time convincing Quinn.

First, he and Daddy made a special trip to the theater to watch "Astroboy" and eat popcorn. Then on Saturday, after we dropped Dexie off for a haircut, he picked out some purple balloons for his birthday party. Just after we got home, our party guests arrived, and Quinn had lots of fun playing with his friends Evelyn, Jonah and Lenore.

Mommy made some great food. And while most everybody left before we cut the dessert, the rest of us enjoyed some pretty tasty ice cream cake.

It was a fun day and Quinn was wore out when bed time came.

Let's hope he and his brother are just as tired when we step on a plane next week. Minnesota, here we come!

Quinn and his first round of birthday presents:



Quinn and Keaton show off their Halloween costumes:



Keaton cooing to his Mommy:


Dancing with the Star: