OSCARS

"I would like to thank the Academy..."

"... and my mom and dad for letting me follow my dreams..."

"... although it would be nice if for once they would let me follow my dreams while wearing clothes."

SAM SAM THE BIRTHDAY MAN

This morning we went for a blustery walk in the park. A good start to Sam's birthday day.

SECRET INGREDIENT

Lula lives on

http://www.theingredientfinder.com/shop/lula-spice-blend-p-797.php

Thank you Lior!

CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK

Sam is counting the days until he can put Roan to work in his studio. Clothed, of course.

DOGS

Meet our newest extended family member: Wally.  Hi Wally!

Wally is Cecelia and Jason's new puppy (a girl).  Sadly, last year, which was collectively the worst year ever for my friends and I, they had to put down their old Dominican Cheese Hound Lupa.  RIP Lupa.  We will miss your smiling face.

Lupa only had one friend in the world and that was Gracie.  It is crucial to all of our sanity and well being that our dogs get along so we had to make sure that Wally and Gracie got to know each other STAT.  So we did what all Brooklynites do to socialize: we had brunch.  Sonya's dog Wizard came along too.

Wally, Wizard, and Gracie (peeking)

Incidentally, I couldn't resist when I took Gracie to the groomers; we got some fashion accessories.  She had been such a raggamuffin for so long I thought she deserved a little fanciness.

WORLD OF COUSINS

Note** I was having major formatting issues in this post and I tend to throw things when I get angry so rather than keep trying to fix the problems I will save my laptop the trip across the room and just leave things be. Please ignore the weirdness.

The Walker clan is nothing if not fertile. My first cousins and I, although somewhat spread out in age, have managed to have 10 second cousins in like 7 years.  My mom, Roan, and I went to visit some of them and wound up with 6 kids together in one glorious tornado of giddy chaos.  Amid momentary catastrophes the adults managed to catch up in thirty second increments.

Somethings brewing...

Oh dear, someone's not pleased with this scenario

All is forgiven!

Dressed up and ready to go

Making noise

Sunday we went to the Please Touch Museum.  I had the same reaction to it that I have when I go to a Home Depot or Trader Joe's in the suburbs; why is the Brooklyn version of all such family centered places so much smaller, dirtier, less staffed, and more crowded?  The Brooklyn Children's Museum is like playing in an abandoned Happy Meal box compared to the Please Touch Museum.  There are 2.5 million people in Brooklyn!  Where's the love??

Part of the massive Alice in Wonderland exhibit

I digress. We had a fantastic time at the Museum.  There are two massive floors of activities and nothing is off limits for the kids.  But leave it to Roan to somehow stray into forbidden territory.  He kept trying to get in to the corporate offices.

Escapee from the River Adventures area with his cape

Roan and Dylan.  They look so much alike!

Supermarket Sweep

Lunchtime madness

There was a classic old carousel in the atrium and we managed to get all the kids on at once.

This was Roan's first time on a carousel and he was super antsy while we waited for the ride to start so I was sure he would dig it once we started moving.  Unfortunately, Roan may not be quite the daredevil we anticipated.

 

The kids tapped out after about 4 hours so we headed back.  BTW, Roan and Declan held hands almost the whole way there and back.  It was so achingly sweet I could hardly stand it.  I thought about the fact that he used to sit next to Lula in the car and wondered if he remembered that somehow.

The other big task of the day was haircuts. A couple of weeks ago I posted here about my reluctance to cut Roan's hair and my cousin Lori, who happens to be a fantastic hairstylist, texted me and said she would give him a little trim if I wanted.  This was actually a perfect solution.  First of all, who better than family to give him his first cut? Second, her son Dylan has exactly the same hair and she is just as reluctant to chop off his curls so I knew she wouldn't go overboard. We set up Elmo on the iPad for maximum distraction.

Declan got his first haircut too!

 

Today we were back in our quiet, one-kid Brooklyn apartment and I realized how much harder I have to work to entertain Roan without his entourage.  Me folding laundry with NPR on in the background is hopelessly dull compared to second cousins so we will have to go back again very soon.

TRAVELLIN LIGHT

Roan, my mom, and I are going to visit our cousins in Pennsylvania tomorrow for a long weekend. A few things:

1. According to Google Maps is should take us approximately 2 hours to get there.  However, something happens when Walker women try to travel wherein time is sucked into a vortex (a vortex that resides in rest stops with bathrooms and WaWa's). Last time my mother, sister, and I drove there it took us over 4 hours.

2. Although we have had the driest winter in history, tomorrow of course it is going to snow and rain.  Oh, the irony of mother nature!

3. I have always prided myself on being a more judicious packer than my mother, who is in the running with Joan Collins as Luggage Queen.  However, the game is over now that I am packing for two.  This is the first time I have ever had to pack for Roan (Sam and I had mastered packing for Lula's many hospital stays.  NB: When packing to stay in a hospital never assume they will have anything you need. This includes toiletries, blankets, food, or medication) We are going 100 miles for 2 nights and despite my very best editing efforts we are bringing this:

This doesn't include the stroller. I am a bit horrified.

NEW COAT

Roan has an awesome new winter coat thanks to our friends at Appaman. Toasty!

Please excuse the geyser of snot running from his nose.

METHOD MAN

A few months back the grandmas jumped the gun and bought Roan a scooter.  We hid it in the basement but lately he's been nicking other kids scooters in the park so out it came.

He's really eager to give it a spin but so far all he's managed is this:

And this:

He's not quite ready, but he's certainly consistent. Videos by Sam.

TIME IS SLOW

...and still not so easy.  It's been two months and I miss my baby girl. I still take out her clothes from the top drawer where I haven't moved them from and fold and re-fold them.  I can still smell her on some of her stuffed animals but none of them are as soft as she was.  I miss the weight of her, the feel of kissing her delicious cheeks as her chubby fingers curled around my thumb.  It is and will always be an irreplaceable sensation. 

LOCKS OF LOVE

We haven't yet cut Roan's hair and it's getting a little out of control. He has these delicious curls that I fear are baby curls and won't grow back.  I am afraid that we will cross some milestone from babyhood to kidness that I am not ready for.  Given that I myself didn't cut my hair until I was 12, I am perhaps not the best at letting go of tresses.  But I am also afraid that the longer I wait the harder I am making it on myself.

A serious nest

Can you tell me what's going on here?  It's like a riptide in the ocean

Look at those little ringlets!

Then again, all this worrying may be for naught.  Check out the paterfamilias:

Sam circa age 5 or 6.  This is where we may be headed.

BURNS

Burns Night was last Saturday and it was epic.  There was poetry, a parade of the haggis, tartan up the wazoo and endless bottles of whiskey.  There was house cured smoked salmon, Cullen skink made with Lula spice, heaps of neeps and tatties and piles of Walkers crisps.  There was a Toast to the Lassies in the form of a power point presentation and the Toast to the Lads as an illustrated book. We sang Auld Lang Syne around a bonfire.  There was a toast to Lula.

The dinner started at 3pm and went, I am told, to 4am although Sam and I didn't make it that long. We aren't used to such extended revelry any more.  It wasn't even midnight when I called for a cab and it took us all of Sunday to repair ourselves.

Tartan Boys (Roan stayed with Grandma for the evening)

Cullen Skink with booklets of the readings etc beautifully made by Aggie

Sam reciting the Address to the Haggis

No dinner is complete without a Power Point presentation

Eight bottles of whiskey for 20 people isn't too bad is it? Photo Courtesy of Forest Ray

The Address to a Haggis really needs to be recited with a full Scottish brogue as it's written as such (excerpt):

But mark the Rustic, haggis fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread.
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He'll mak it whissle;
An' legs an' arms, an' heads will sned,
Like taps o' thrissle.

When read properly it's nearly impossible for any non Scots to understand.  To whit, my friend and fellow Burns Nighter Katharine sent me this :

Scottish iPhone Siri commercial

DONKEY

Among his menagerie of stuffed animals Roan definitely plays favorites.  No matter which creature - the sheep, the duck, the panda- for some reason they are all called Panda.  Except the donkey, who is called Donkey.

THREE ON THE SOFA

I was realizing as I posted this photo just how many photos on the blog are on this same green couch.  It really is the anchor of this apartment.

This is neither here nor there, however.  This is just a cute photo.

Gracie, Kia, and Roan. Photo Courtesy of Sam.

BEVERAGES

Five O'Clock cocktail