Weehawken P.S.

My grandma and my dad's Aunt Yani also spent many hours during his infancy and toddlerhood walking him to the cliffs overlooking Manhattan and New York Harbor. For some reason, he just happens to remember his Aunt Dorothy more vividly in that role, so it is she whom he has most often mentioned when he recalls those early and profoundly influential memories. But lest I offend, since it has been brought to my attention I should point out that the other estimable women taking care of my baby Dad also nurtured his love of trains and faithfully strolled those cliff-tops with him! It really is a gorgeous place to walk.

Hair Cut #2

Under gentle pressure from other family members, today I finally trimmed Joshua's hair above his ears and in the back, somewhat reluctantly surrendering those cute fly-aways that get so curly when he sleeps. Afterwards, he touched his head with concern. "Where'd my shaggy part go?" Then he spotted the trimmings, picked up a few locks, and attempted to repair the damage. "Put it back on," he advised me. Wish I could, little bud! It's a subtle change, but actually, I have to admit he does look better now - and older. My baby is just growing up so fast!

Play-Doh

Beholding - and holding - play dough for the first time.

Spaghetti.

Joshua received play dough for Christmas. Since he stopped taking his morning nap, a few days a week we have started having Arts & Crafts time while David is asleep. He likes the play dough a lot but hasn't really let himself go yet. He's very careful about putting each color away and not mixing them up. So far he likes making spaghetti the best, along with me making him blueberry pancakes. He'll say, "But it's not for eating! Just pretend."

Dominoes

Uncle Luke got us dominoes for Christmas, and Chris introduced them to Joshua recently. First they played the matching game where you place dominoes end to end with the same number of dots. Then it was rally time.

Setting them up.

Still setting them up.


Oops! What happened?!

More "Hiking" Pix

David in his carrier - evidence that we really hiked and didn't just hang out at the playground!

There was some beautiful scenery. I tried my hand at capturing some autumn images:

Quirky Kids

How many of you knew that David has a bizarre penchant for eating paper? Since he could pull himself up he's been plotting ways to sneak into the bathroom and unroll the toilet paper or pluck used tissues out of the trash can. Or he might deftly pull the mail off your lap and munch away, nevermind the soggy shredded corner on that important document. And Joshua has a wonderful memory for all of these amusing episodes in his lil bro's life. He has repeatedly recalled with hilarity the time that David ate a cake crumb off the floor. And this morning at breakfast, he treated us to this recollection:

Joshua, giggling: "David went in the bathroom and got toilet paper out of the garbage, and he eat it."

David: "Mmm."

I kid you not! Well, at least David found it appetizing, if I didn't. So, if you come to our house, don't be surprised if all the bathroom doors are shut. Now if I can teach him to stay away from the kitchen trash. He's been lifting up the lid and peering in with a disconcerting degree of interest!

New York

Here are the boys romping around in Hamilton Park. This park marks the location of the famous duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. It is located in Weehawken, NJ atop a cliff, running along Boulevard East. It boasts one of the greatest views of New York City, a stellar overlook into midtown Manhattan, even on a gray day such as it was that afternoon.

My dad grew up about 4 blocks from here in Union City, and when he was 1, my great aunt Dorothy would push him in his stroller to the top of this cliff and hold him up to see over the wall. He would watch all the activity in the harbor and along the shore, mesmerized for hours by all the boats, trains, cranes, etc. It was a privilege to be able to bring our boys to this spot and hear Joshua excitedly say to his Grandpa Al, eyes anxiously peering downward into Edgewater, "Here comes another trolley!" Those two train buffs definitely enjoyed seeing the new light rail system in action! I can only imagine how many hours I would probably spend here if we lived nearby.

Boulevard East

Here we are.

One of several war memorials along the Boulevard.

Watching the light rail. Can you see it?

David and the Empire State Building.

Does it beep?

Brothers...

and best buds.

Joshua and David really are deepening their friendship. This morning they shared a sweet moment that I will remember in the future, to build my faith when David is trashing something Joshua constructed and Joshua is shrieking at him furiously. Today as I was getting ready in our bedroom, the boys were playing in their bedroom down the hall. I heard only sounds of contentment as they quietly hung out with their toys. Then I heard Joshua say happily to David, "Thank you for sharing with me, David!" What a joy to see such evidence of grace in the lives of our sons. It is so encouraging to see good fruit growing out of seeds that we've been trying to sow the past several months! God is faithful!

Announcing the "Cooking Corner"

I've been getting so many great ideas about cooking and baking from friends that I decided it would be fun to add a cooking section to our blog. This way I can pass on discoveries that I make just as others have passed on helpful tidbits and recipes to me. And if you stumble across any great recipes or helpful hints in the kitchen, please let me know! The inspiration for the "Cooking Corner" came last night as I blankly contemplated a container of blase` leftover fish, and somehow it turned into a fabulous meal. Those kind of meals, I decided, need to be recorded and not forgotten, so that the next time we are looking sadly at our leftovers, we may be freshly inspired to concoct something incredible from them. Happy Cooking!

Hmm

I just noticed the little wrenches and screwdrivers at the bottom of each sidebar element. I wonder if they automatically popped up when I was picking the color scheme? I guess the template figured out that we have lots of posts about boys. Oh well...I use tools, too!

I also just noticed that we nearly doubled our blogging output in 2007 compared to 2006. Wow!

Mormorsmor Kajsa

This is Kajsa, my Swedish grandmother. "Mor" is Swedish for "mother." Hence, "Mormorsmor" is Swedish for "mother's mother's mother." Mormorsmor Kajsa (which Joshua can actually make a creditable attempt to enunciate clearly) came to the United States to see her great-grandsons this Christmas. She is aging quite gracefully and keeps her mind and body sharp and active. I think this photo aptly conveys Kajsa's quality of carrying herself with distinction, just like the distinguished yet comfortable homes in the background. As long as I can remember Mormor, she has always been well-dressed, well-groomed, and sitting or standing up straight, yet these qualities never seemed affected but part of her nature. I've never asked her why she places high importance on appearance, so I could be wrong, but I think that in part, this image communicates something of her pride and endurance to the outside world, and in part, it is a reflection of an inner strength. She lost her father while still a child and has now been widowed for these past 22 years. I am touched and amazed by the efforts she has recently put forth, despite the expense and exhausting work of traveling overseas, to show her love for me by being at our wedding in 2003, coming to meet baby Joshua in the spring of 2006, and now coming again to meet David in 2007. Mormor, we are grateful to you for the time, money, and effort you have lavished on us. We hope for even more time together in the future!

Big Boy Swing!

This picture is out of order chronologically but I'm posting it now because I really like it! I love how it conveys the motion while keeping Joshua's face in focus. This was on New Year's Eve. We took our usual walk around the lake to show our friend Jessica one of our favorite family activities, and Joshua went in the big swing for the very first time!

Some Christmas Pix

The Kinsingers, Christmas 2007

We definitely had the full 12 days of Christmas this year, maybe more! Chris' parents and brothers came to visit for the week before Christmas, then we went to NY on Christmas Eve and stayed through the week after Christmas. We came back here to be with a Minnesota friend for New Year's Eve and she brought a little more Christmas with her!

The celebration with the Kinsingers was a little spread out. Traditionally Chris' family really enjoys giving gifts and Christmas, far from being an exception, is rather the pinnacle of expression of their generous hearts. There were so many presents under BOTH trees (Renee set up hers in the basement) that we decided to let the boys start opening a day early. (Which was actually about 4 days before Christmas.) Here are some pictures of that experience:

Trying on his new PJ's

Thanks for the wrapping paper!

Proudly seated at his and David's new table.

Thanks Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Nate, Uncle Luke, and Aunt Renee for the wonderful gifts!

We also had a great time riding the train at White Flint Mall, seeing the trains (and the lights, too) at Brookside Gardens, hearing a choral Christmas concert at NIH, attending Renee's voice students' Christmas recital, seeing our church's Christmas Eve service adaptation of Messiah, eating lots of Christmas cookies, singing Christmas carols together, taking turns reading by candlelight each person's "What I am Thankful For" entry in the family album, and sharing life stories with each other. This last activity was a new one, introduced by Chris, who participated in a similar activity at his much talked about West Virginia leadership training retreat. We really did gain a surprising amount of insight into each others' lives and perspectives. We discovered that siblings really do grow up in very different families!

We plan to continue to catch up on recent happenings, including Christmas with Maria's side of the family in NY and even going back to ancient history to post about the boys' bday party. Stay tuned... the previous post of Joshua in his Grandpa's arms below is a little sneak preview.

Sky High

Joshua and Grandpa Al
Hamilton Park, Weehawken, NJ
December 28, 2007