This moment would’ve never happened with our firstborn. While i still don’t encourage Tobin to lick public property (especially not the subway poles!), i am a lot more relaxed about his exposure to germs and dirt in general than i was with Mika. Playdates can happen with moderately snotty friends, and pants just look like a soap commercial challenge by the end of the day. Here he’s having fun with another second born, lil’ Suko (Diego’s kid sister).
Tobin’s penguin costume arrived today in the mail (yes, i actually bought a Halloween costume for the first time since i’ll be spending enough time on Mika’s custom ‘purple kitty’ this year).
Our casual dress rehearsal quickly turned into a costume holdup: ‘Can i wear the hat? … I NEED the hat, Mami! … PLEEEEEEASE … (thanks) … and the shoes!!! … the SHOES, Mami! …’ etc.). Eventually Mika succeeded in squeezing her 4T self into the 12-18 Months costume. Good thing Tobin didn’t have a sense of ownership yet and thought his sister looked hilarious.
Mika introduced Tobin to one of her old Manhattan stomping grounds, Madison Square Park. The playground wasn’t the only attraction: Tobin was fascinated by the extremely friendly attitude of all the park’s squirrels. One whistle would get them up close on the little fences … just imagine what a bag of nuts would do! Maybe next time?
Tobin’s second-favorite German word these days is “Baum” (tree). Most of the time, he drops the last letter but some times he gets it right.
Today, he got to experience more than the usual drive-by pointing in our neighborhood: we went to play at Central Park with lots of trees to look at (and conquer).
When Mika picked up a fork at the tender age of 13 months (and used it expertly), we were all in awe. As the second kid, Tobin doesn’t get standing ovations for showing us the same instant skill … but we’re proud anyway since he is only 11 1/2 months old. He started drinking from an open cup too (with mixed success rates), which is something Mika only recently warmed up to.
Thanks to the weather, we had a ‘mostly outdoors’ playdate with Brunotoday, trying to keep the various stages of snotty noses and mild colds physically separated. The boys had a blast, and Mika enjoyed the baby day as well – school was closed for Yom Kippur.
As of today, temperatures are back into the low 70’s and the Morning Glorys in our neighborhood go wild for their season finale. Tobin loves the hundreds of fresh flowers they spring every morning, not knowing that all of them will have wilted by the end of the day … to make room for a fresh batch the following day.
Luna has developed almost zen-like qualities around the kids, but every now and then Mika crosses the line and she has to defend herself. Today, Tobin expressed too much interest in her cat grass and had to be disciplined for the first time. She doesn’t use claws, but a hearty swat with her paw goes a long way in the world of nonverbal communications.
(Pssst … good thing Mika is not reading this blog yet!)
Tobin tagged along to pick up a mint condition, 2007 entry-level ‘Hotrock’ bike for Mika’s Birthday. He didn’t care so much for the girly color or the kitty prints, but got right down to business on all the moving parts. Once the bell and the streamers are on, it’ll be even harder to keep his hands off of it. Something tells me he might be starting to ride a bike before he turns 4…
At the beginning and the end of each school year, the Choo Choo Train children are asked to draw a self portrait with a simple black pen. Mika liked Monday’s exercise so much, that she has been crafting little books during naptime (…) every day this week. Each book portraits our whole family (including Luna) … plus Kai, who is staying in North Carolina until after Thanksgiving. In the example above, Luna appears to have stolen everybodys arms.
Unfortunately, our birthday package for you got stuck en route due to the Oct. 3 Holiday (Tag der Deutschen Einheit) and won’t arrive until Monday. Good thing we recorded a ‘Happy Birthday’ video beforehand, so you get at least a little preview of the triple-layer strawberry cake with sprinkles that Mika made for you! Also, here’s a fresh (photo) selection from today’s outrageously beautiful fall flowers at the Union Square Farmer’s Market! We wish you a happy birthday morning and call you when we’re up as well. @@@@
