anxiety and disorder

All week, Henry, my previously perfect little baby, has been letting loose with terrible bloodcurdling screams. For the first couple of days, it was mostly confined to bedtime. Whenever I lay him down, whether he's asleep or awake, his little eyes pop right open. He rolls his terrible eyes and roars his terrible roars, and nothing -- NOTHING -- will satisfy him until I stop what I'm doing and pick him up and hold him. And even then, the tears continue to roll down his face and his sobs gradually subside into sad little hiccups.

But now it's not just bedtime. It's all the time. When I set him on the floor to play, when I put him in his playpen to keep him safe while I let the dog out ... even when I pass him to Loni, who has been his steady companion his whole life. And tonight, driving to the restaurant for Liam's birthday, it hit me: He's got separation anxiety. And he's got it bad. Oh no.

So for the next few months, in addition to the normal routine of raising three very active boys and the not-so-run-of-the-mill experience of training a puppy, we'll have the added challenge of not ever being able to put Henry down to get anything else done. Wish us luck, because we're certainly going to need it.

I think I may have to end up getting some kind of baby backpack and start wearing him all the time so I can at least use my hands again. Suggestions and recommendations welcome.

liam at six

I'm not sure how we got here so quickly, but we're celebrating Liam's sixth birthday today. Because of Mike's work schedule, Liam got to have a cupcake (with candle, of course) first thing this morning. Then he opened presents and went to swimming lessons, and now he's at his summer program, where he'll take a field trip to the library and go to a flea market just for kids. All in all, a very exciting day.

Liam amazes us every day. He reads everything he can get his hands on, and has so many questions about every subject he encounters. He just soaks everything in, and he reasons through things and makes connections that I doubt I would have made at his age. He's changing so much, growing by leaps, and we're starting to catch glimpses of the preteen, teenager, man he will become.

In a lot of ways, he's a bundle of contradictions. He complains that he never gets enough sleep, but he's up at the crack of dawn every morning because he doesn't want to miss out on anything. He says he doesn't want to go to school, then comes home beaming and tells us how much fun he had and what he learned that day.

Our Liam is easily frustrated and prone to shouty outbursts, but for every one of those, there's a corresponding outburst of affection. Hugs, kisses, random declarations of love, and sometimes just pure sweetness. This morning, we went to the grocery store to order his birthday cake, just the two of us. Liam was talking with the baker and picking out his cake, and then he turned to me and said, "This is just wonderful, Mom!" and gave me a hug. And I shared a look with the baker that said, enjoy this now while it lasts. And I know it won't be long until he crosses over into mom-is-boring/embarrassing territory, so I do. I just wish that part could last!

when charlie met ollie

Oliver, the youngest of Bethany's Great Danes, is 4 months old here. Charlie is getting close to 2 months. Ollie was on his way home from the vet, so he stopped by to meet the new kid.

max will not be left out

This reminds me of a song the boys and I really like by They Might Be Giants (of course!) called "Climbing the Walls."

I was grinding my teeth, I was wasting my youth
And using up my teeth
Now I'm done chewing my nails
Hanging my head, chasing my tail
It got so bad I quit my job
Then I got a new job climbing the walls

fearful symmetry

I'm not usually one to get all literary with the references on the blog, but this phrase from William Blake seems just about right at the moment. But don't worry, I'm only speaking dentally. Saturday night, Liam lost his first tooth, and Sunday afternoon, my mom and Loni discovered that Henry's first tooth has broken through. So it's double the teething fun around here! Or, as my friend Natalie recently pointed out: It's the cirrrccclleeeee of liiiiiiiiiiife!

And now I will have that song stuck in my head for the rest of the week. Way to go, Natalie. And thanks a lot, Lion King.

henry at nine months

At Henry's checkup this month, Dr. B. kept remarking on how "full of personality" he is. And she's right. Instead of the normal "mama" and "dada" babbling most babies do, ours waits until we're talking to him, and then gives us his feelings on the matter: "blah, blah, blah." And unlike most babies his age, Henry doesn't sit up by himself. Not because he can't, but because he'd much rather be on the ground and on the move, getting into everything he can.

He continues to be the happiest baby of them all. He smiles and laughs easily, and even when he gets angry or demanding, he is easily pacified with a smile or laugh from one of us. He's partial to Liam in particular, and Liam is equally happy to sing and talk to Henry to keep him in good spirits.

Henry's growing right on schedule, as you can see. He's consistently followed the same growth curve every month, and this one was no exception. Here are his stats, and you can see a couple more pictures below.

28.75 inches
19.4 pounds

See also: one month, two months, three months, four months, five months, six months, seven months, eight months.

charlie

Because we wanted to test the theory that you can never have too much cuteness in one house, we'd like to introduce Charlie, the newest resident of the Circus Forticus Menagerie. He's a chocolate lab, and officially he is Liam's birthday gift from Bethany and Joe, though of course, he's a gift to all of us. Boys and pup are (mostly) in a mutual admiration society, though Henry doesn't care for it so much when Charlie mistakes him for a fellow puppy and wants to romp. We only picked him (or he picked us!) yesterday, and it's already a great adventure, and we're sure the fun is only just beginning.

last day of school!

To celebrate, I made the boys a surprise dinner. Thankfully, Loni was able to help me with my plan, since it involved making pancakes from scratch (with buttermilk!) while simultaneously feeding the baby and keeping the big boys out of the kitchen and distracted until it was time to eat. And it turned out to be a big success! Once I had the first batch on the table, I led the boys (with hands over their eyes) to their chairs for the big unveiling:



And here's a close-up of the Yoda one:



P.S. In case you're wondering, we owe it all to Williams-Sonoma.

small blue planet

Upon arrival at my parents' house for an impromptu holiday weekend cookout, the boys discovered that Aunt Lon got them a surprise. Much excitement ensued.