Happy Birthday, Hannah!

It's hard to believe that, one year ago, one smallerish red-head made her debut. Now, at one year, she has gone from a snuggly, practically bald, eight-pound blob to an eighteen and a half pound troublesome little minx.At 12 months, Nibbles has two teeth (plus a third that has started bursting through this weekend). She probably could walk, if she would try. But, as of yet, she only walks along furniture, or behind things (like the furniture or her new shopping cart). We think she has radar, or a cat-like sense of hearing. Thirty seconds after you put down the remote in a place she could reach, it is in her mouth. Fortunately, everyone knows to keep the gate closed. Otherwise, you can hear her giggling as she climbs up the stairs. I wish I could get everyone to remember to close the bathroom door. If it is too quiet, I know someone left the door open. You can find her inside, trying to unroll all the toilet paper or worse, if, God forbid, someone left the lid up on the toilet bowl. . .

In addition to my red-hair, she has inherited my "strong will" (aka, stubbornness). If she wants something, she will fight to the death for it. If she and Mikie are in the bath together, frequent shrieks of "mine" can be heard if she wants a certain toy. Other words she know "Bye-bye", "baby", "Ma-ma", "Da-da", and her favorite "Ba" or "Buh-Ba" which translates to brother. While she may fight him for toys, Hannah worships Mikie. If she can hear him, she looks all around. If she can't see him, she starts yelling "Ba?" repeatedly, until she finds him.

She thinks she is big. She wants to eat whatever we are eating, even if she shouldn't. She grabbed the pizza box off the table this week, screaming and flailing until I gave her a piece of crust. She refuses to use a sippy cup, instead preferring to drink out of a cup like her brother. We bought her plastic shot glasses, hoping to make it easier for her to master on her own. Her favorite food right now is whatever you are eating. She flails and whines if she sees Mikie with ice cream, unless you give her some too. Her face lights up and she does a happy dance when she sees that big box of colored Goldfish come out of the closet, because she knows it's one of the few foods I'll voluntarily give to her without a battle. You can see some of her meal time antics on film by clicking here.

Yes, at one year old, Hannah has a happy dance. It's very cute: she waves her arms in the air, bopping up and down with a silly grin on her face. And, occasionally she sings when she does it: "Ah, ah, ah, Ah!". Sadly, we have yet to capture her dance on film.

And so, I dedicate this blog to our brown-eyed girl, "Nibbles". To your stubbornness, the two red curls reminiscent of devil horns, the grin that says "I'm cute. . . and you love me". Love, The Trahans

60+1 = A Lot of Reasons to Celebrate

We've always had a lot to celebrate in February. But, this February was extra special. Grand Da turned 60 on the 16th, and Hannah turned one on the 19th. Both momentous birthdays.

We started by throwing a 60th Birthday Party for my dad down in Pennsylvania. Given how complicated it was to get 30 candles lit, we decided to let him pretend to be 30 again. Our resident candle extinguishers, Matthew, Michael, Patrick, and Mikie, were clambering to get as close as possible in case something caught fire, so I don't have any pictures with Dad and the cake. And, of course, lingering so close to something enrobed in chocolate frosting, Mikie may have demonstrated his skills as Quality Control Analyst prior to cutting the cake.Outside of the singing and cake cutting, Mikie was scarcely seen during the party. He was so excited to hang out with his cousins, he peed his pants (okay, not immediately, but we did have an instance of not stopping to use the bathroom because he was afraid he was going to miss something).

Hannah unfortunately didn't enjoy herself as much as Mikie. She had a low grade fever the day before because she was cutting another tooth. And, what we didn't realize until Sunday, was that she had caught a stomach bug. The combination made her fussy, clingy, and unwilling to eat much.

For a birthday present, we decided to take Dad into New York for dinner and a play, similar to what we used to do when we were younger. We drove up to Weehawken and took the ferry across to Manhattan. After a late lunch, we saw David Mamet's "Race" with James Spader and David Alan Grier. I have to say, the topic sounded (and was) very serious. But, it was also incredibly funny. Okay, maybe funny isn't the right word, since it would imply I find racism funny. But, imagine the sarcastic whit of James Spader in "Boston Legal" coupled with the unedited comments of David Alan Grier and you can understand what I mean.Anyway, the play was excellent: funny, thought provoking. But, as we exited the theater at 5 pm, we realized we had an hour and a half to kill before our dinner reservation. And, being that it was Valentine's Day, none of us had high expectations of being seated early. So, we stood outside the theater to see the cast as they exited. Actually, Katie, Marta, Mike and I stood outside the theater. Dad sat in the bar across the street watching the Olympics and enjoying a beer. However, our wait paid off when we got autographs and pictures with the cast. And, it left us with ample time to join dad in the bar for drinks before dinner.The weather was clear, so we had a beautiful view of the skyline as we sailed back to New Jersey. And, thankfully, Hannah had flushed the majority of the stomach bug out of her system just in time for our trek back to New England.

Hannah was feeling much better in time for her party the following weekend. We kept it small (small = 16 immediate family members), dining on pizza and cake. Mikie came up with an innovative game: Pin the Crown on the Princess. Hannah was tickled by her life-sized duplicate. She tried to share her pizza crust, although she was less willing to share when it came to dessert. After a few nibbles of cake, she showed her innovative side, demonstrating that gel icing can perform double duty as a hair gel and even adds a bit of color and sparkle to your 'do (if you aspire to look like Jem and the Holograms). You can check out the video by clicking here.

Happy Birthday, Hannah and Da!Love, The Trahans

Only Mikie

Only Mikie manages to get pee on his shirt. And not in any way you would guess (really bad aim, shirt tucked into underwear, etc.). . .

Mom: "Mikie, how come you are wearing a different shirt?"

Teacher: "He had an accident."

Mom: "How do you get pee on your shirt?"

Mikie: "I was playing Simon Says."

Mom: "You know you have to stop playing when you need to use the bathroom."

Mikie: "But Chris said 'Simon says act like a baby.'"

Yes, only Mikie takes a game serious enough to pee his pants and then roll around on the floor in the puddle. . .

Only Mikie yells "Mom, stop torturing her!" in a public place, loud enough to draw everyone's gaze, when you are trying desperately to comfort his baby sister. Granted, I should have known this would happen, because, at two, only Mikie would yell "You're not my mother" when he didn't want to leave daycare with you. . .

Only Mikie thinks that it is amusing to run around naked. Okay, I exaggerate. I am sure other kids like to run around naked as well. Especially when they are toddlers. But, only Mikie rips off his shirt in the middle of school like he is a Chippendale. And, only Mikie thinks it is socially acceptable to push the envelope (or push me over the edge) by taking off his pants as well. Yes, as much as I wish I were exaggerating, this is true. Again, I probably should have seen this coming, because, while many preschool boys have peed on the playground, only Mikie called the teacher over first to "show her something really cool". . .

Only Mikie. He is smart enough to know how to write, but too smart to be bothered writing the same thing over and over again for homework. He acts out, and when threatened with going to the principal, asks the teacher how long would he have to go, as if weighing "What would be more fun: sitting in class, or hanging out with the principal?". . .For all of his idiosyncrasies, only Mikie gives bear hugs that will knock you over, willingly disposes of his sister's smelliest diapers, searches high and low for her missing pacifier, offers to share his candy (most of the time), and has to be told (frequently) that you can't "just hug people" because he is so affectionate. He drives me crazy, but at least he gives me many things to laugh about.

Love, The Trahans

Maestro

Because we have a long commute to work/school/daycare, I let Mikie watch "movies" en route. When he was younger, I pushed the "educational" DVDs: Between the Lions, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Little Einsteins. When he got sick of those, I started pushing classic cartoons: Scooby Doo, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Tom & Jerry. As I drive, I would hear everything from the occasional giggle or squeal, lines of dialogue, to bits of the refrain of theme songs. The random bits of theme songs makes me laugh, since Mikie loves to chastise me for singing in the car, and yet, he does the same thing.

As he has gotten older, he has gotten more opinionated (and whiney), I tend to give in and let him watch Star Wars. Mostly Episodes IV, V, and VI, since they are PG circa 1980, which translates to less gore and no real romantic plot (the Leia/Han relationship is really danced around). And, like the cartoons, I still hear Mikie chattering away in the back. Every once in a while, he'll yell "Mom, R2 said. . ." or "Mom, Luke and Darth are battling with their lightsavers."

But, the most amusing sound I heard during a recent Star Wars viewing was Mikie "singing" along to the music that plays during the closing credits. At the top of his lungs.

It makes you wonder if John Williams' parents woke up every morning to the young composer singing as he got dressed "Duh Duh, duh duh, Duh Duh, duh duh, Du DA du, Du DA du, Du DAAAA da da duh duh."

I blame myself. I think "Rock A Bye Baby" is a frightening lullabye, so I used to sing Dave Matthews "Ants Marching", complete with instrumental parts. At least I can play this back for him next time he ridicules me for singing in the car. . .

Love, The Trahans

Spotted

The Saber Tooth Nibbles. Rarely seen in public, she was sighted at a local Friendly's. Witnesses suspect she was hungry. While initially upset, she calmed down when given a spoonful of chocolate ice cream.Spotted later that same day, the infamous Torita Nibbles, or Nibbles the Little Bull. Easily recognizable for her flash of red fur, her shining eyes, and her ever salivating mouth, stuffed with anything that comes in her path.While both animals act ferocious, they are considered harmless, less the occasional hair pull.

Love, The Trahans