Gas, Nipples, or Nudity

Magnus has started smiling recently. I don't know why babies start smiling.  Almost everyone has said, "It's probably just gas."  A bunch of nattering nabobs of negativism.  I don't believe it.  Magnus has gas, and when he does, he for sure is not happy. 

Why can't he simply smile because he is happy?  Or, when he is sleeping, smile because he is dreaming of something that makes him happy?  I have observed Magnus when he is happy, which is typically when he is either feeding or 1/2 way through a change, when he is naked to the world and happy to be just letting it all out. 

So, that's where my money is.  The smiles that pop up in the video below are so natural, I'm betting it's nipples or nudity. 

 

Life of the Party at UB's

Last Sunday, Magnus went to his first party.  It was hosted by my long term friend, Brent.  A friend with whom, I realized upon reflection, I have shared quite a few parties with in the past, in a number of foreign destinations: Tokyo, Borneo, Australia, Bahamas, Miami Beach, Barbados...  So, definitely a great person with whom to share your first party!  It should also be noted that Magnus's first bar visit was a few weeks ago to Brent's little wing place in the Toronto Beaches.  There may be a trend starting here with Magnus and UB (as Brent's nephews and niece, and all their friends, refer to him). 

"...then after the beach we'll find a nice patio for afternoon cocktails..."

Magnus seemed to have had a pretty good time.  Another friend of ours, Frank, was more than happy to carry Magnus around for most of the afternoon (sadly didn't get any pics of Frank and his little charge), allowing Karen to get a break and allowing me to not always be on call.  Once Frank put him down, one of Brent's  young bar managers, Courtney, was willing to give it a try.  She was a little scared at first, but she did a fine job of handling the little guy.  Plus, we were all very impressed that she used very little of her sailor language while cuddling the baby.

Courtney with her boyfriend AJ and, I think, her first baby

So, although it was a relaxing afternoon with friends (and a charitable one: all women had to bring an unwrapped gift for a teen and all men had to bring a non-perishable food item), the party for some of us non-bar staff ended sooner than we might have liked.  As Brent said, "Oh, how the mighty have fallen." 

Not to fear, I am sure that Karen and I will once again rise from the ashes and, hopefully some day soon, stay out later than 7pm.  If not, we will just have to start a little earlier!

Magnus's 1st Snow

For those of you who are not in Toronto, we got our first big dump of the season on Saturday.  It is great for us displaced Ottawa Region folks who like the snow and all that it brings (still haven't figured out yet if it will be worthwhile bringing the skis to Halifax with us). 

Outside, the 15cms looked like this:

Back Patio

Front Balcony

Meanwhile, inside, Magnus was practicing his neck exercises, push ups, and planks.  We think he might be going through a little growth spurt, as he isn't giving his mom much of a break the past couple of days.  Maybe my Great Santini moment will come sooner than I had anticipated!

Family Visitors and The Campsite Rule

On Monday, we had a couple of family visitors.  One was a fly-by-drop-in while the others decided to stay for a few nights.

Grandpa Hawkins stopped in on his way to Guelph for a meeting with the Grain Farmers of Ontario. Although a quick visit, I think that I might have unwittingly volunteered to work in the fields over the Christmas break.  Ross's last words to me before he left were, "Bring your boots, there is always work."

Grandpa Hawkins, Smiling on the Inside

Nan and Grandpa Raz also showed up Monday night, crossing paths slightly with Ross.  They stayed for 2 nights this week and, like always, lived by the "Campsite Rule".  For those of you familiar with the sex-advice columnist, Dan Savage, and his Campsite Rule, you might be curious (you sickos!) how a visit from my folks and the Campsite Rule fit.  Without going into the detail of how the Campsite Rule is interpreted by Dan's readers, the high level concept is that one should always leave a campsite either the same or better than how it was found. 

So, inevitably, Peg brought a meal that, with leftovers, equated to 6 servings along with some Christmas cake and a tin of shortbread cookies shaped into snowmen, Christmas trees, and other holiday shapes.  Always fun to bite off the head and show Frosty who is boss!

They also watched over Magnus on Tuesday morning, allowing me to go into work and Karen to hit her favourite salon.  With a walk in the fresh air and a bottle to fill the hunger need, Magnus appeared quite content to allow his mom to get prettied up and his dad to try and pay for his bills.  With the wind-chill hitting -17C, Magnus really had to get bundled up. Many thanks to Sherrai for the white snowsuit, cousins Will, Bo, and Josh for not destroying the blue snowsuit when it was their's, and Steph's son, Evan, for having a "monster head" (Karen's words, not mine) such that the attached toque was too small and was perfect for a gift. 

Magnus Pre-Stroll

Magnus Post-Stroll

 

Besides the Tuesday morning walk, they also covered Tuesday night, allowing Karen to get in a 4 hour nap (Karen is quick to note: her longest sleep since October 30th) and allowing me to hit the gym for a quick workout, already prepping for my first one-on-one game of 21 with Magnus. 

After getting a couple of days with her "hands around that little baby", Nan and Grandpa Raz left Wednesday morning for Ottawa.  Again, before leaving, Peg changed the sheets on her bed.  Always living the Campsite Rule.  Definitely leaving the area better than it was when they had arrived.

Sleeping Magnus: Did Nan's stories finally knock him out?

So Many Visitors!

In the last 2 weeks we’ve had lots of visitors. Oma came to Toronto on her way to visit with her 5 sisters. It was the first time all 6 sisters had been together in 3 years. She tells me she had a wonderful time with them, but, of course, she LOVED her brief moment with ‘magnificent Magnus’ as she likes to call him. Sadly, with all the festivities planned with her sisters and the long travel, Oma only visited with us for a short while. However, she came back to see him again this past weekend with my Aunt Mary. This time, her sisters were getting together again for a party. Rare, indeed, for her to travel this direction twice in 2 weeks, but for a grandmother, any excuse to see her grandchildren is a welcome one.

 

Oma so happy with Magnus

 

Oma seemingly happier with Magnus

 

Aunt Mary with Magnus

 

Check out the confusion!

 

Uh oh!

 

My girlfriends Sherrai and Jen each came to see our little guy in the past few weeks. These are two of my best friends, and it was so nice to be able to catch up and talk about what’s going on in their lives…  a little adult conversation that I have oh so sorely already been missing! Thanks again, ladies, for the recent gifts! He is going to look so good in them at Christmas!

 

 

Sherrai and Magnus

 

 

Jen and Magnus

This past weekend my sister Tanya (or Tante {pronounce TAUNT-AH… Dutch for ‘aunt’}) and her friend Jo were going to Stratford for the weekend, so they stopped in. My mum had informed me that Tanya was really excited to meet Magnus. She brought a second awesome blanket for Magnus as well as a lasagna for Matt and I. Incredibly thoughtful and very appreciated! Thanks Tanya for the great pictures you took!

 

Tante proudly displaying Magnus

 

Jo with Magnus

 

How cute he looks!

 

My friends Alex and Charlie are expecting their first child early 2014. So they stopped by last week to meet the little man and pick up a few things we had set aside for them. Initially when we got pregnant, I didn’t know anyone who was preggers too, but now I have a few friends who are a few weeks to a few months behind me. So I’m really looking forward to lots of playdates next year! We also took a trip out to see Brent or ‘Uncle Brent’, Matt’s best friend in Toronto. It had been months since I had seen him and it was great catching up.  Sadly we did not get a picture of Brent, Alex or Charlie. Next time, friends!

 

 

Magnus hits a month

Well, on Sunday Magnus hit the 1 month birthday.  I guess after 30 days there's no returning him now.  Would be kind of tough to do, as he isn't the same kid that we brought home from the hospital.  He has gotten more physically adapt: no problem lifting his head during Tummy Time or punching away my face when not interested in Eskimo kisses.  He has gotten trickier: he has fooled me into thinking that the only way to calm him is to walk stairs (this posting was interrupted by at least 30 sets of stairs up to the Master and down with Magnus tucked into a football hold) and has tricked his mom into thinking that the only way he can fall asleep is if he is in her arms.

Also, after today's doctor's appointment, we know that he has gotten bigger.  Magnus weighed in at 10 lbs.  Nothing crazy, of course, when you consider that a friend of ours just had a 10lbs 6 oz boy at birth.  However, the business analyst in me can't help but think: he hasn't just gained 2 lbs, he has grown 25%!  The last time I gained 25% of body mass it took me a year of gym, creatine, and pizza.  He's done it by simply sucking on a tit for a couple of weeks.  If I had only known! 

Karen is thinking of taking a pic of Magnus every month in order to track his growth.  For his one month we put him on his newest gift.  A great blanket from Pat & Mel, living in Vancouver, and Steph & Rob, Mel's sister's family living 5 minutes away in High Park.  The giraffe will definitely go with the jungle theme of his nursery. 

Magnus Receiving his First Giraffe Kiss

 There is stiff competition to see if any of his great blankets become a favourite.

Meet Magnus / Little Bruce Lee

Although Magnus has recently been out and about (Steph & Rob's, Wayne the drycleaner, and, yes, Uncle Brent's bar) and has had many local visitors (friendly neighbours, Karen's school friends, former colleagues), I realized that many people only know Magnus from still photos.  These photos do not give one a true appreciation of the man-child.  Of course, whenever I have tried to video tape his cuteness, he decides to cry, and then yell, and then scream, and then wail (all very progressively different and more extreme noises). 

However, I think that I finally caught him after a successful diaper change.  All I have to do now is figure out how to post it to the blog. Youtube says it didn't download, yet I think I've linked it.  If not, I might have to wait until Mangus is 3 so that he can show me.  Let's hope it works. 
(By the way, you can ignore the mumbled commentary.  Balboa enunciated more clearly.)



 Still hoping his raccoon noises go away.  Unfortunately, they seem to be getting worse!