Preschool: A Prologue

Dear Max,

You began like this.... So isn't it just a little understandable that tonight, on the eve of your first day of preschool, I would feel a wave of mixed emotions about sending you off into a community that will be all your own?

The thoughts started coming one by one as your Dad and I sat holding hands at our first "Preschool Parent's Open House". The Director warned us that there would be lots of tears on the first day. She meant yours, but I could feel my eyes start to betray me in a room full of parents, and I had to fight back my own tears. And then she talked about Pajama Day, and having a Teddy Bear Picnic. And music time, and gymnastics time, and water play. Suddenly, your Daddy and I realized that you really are growing up. How lucky you are to have this new adventure!

Last Friday we went to check out your classroom together, and you were IN HEAVEN. You darted from the box of legos to the play kitchen, to the rice table, and back to the airplanes again. You were shocked when you were actually allowed to take the caps off of every single marker, and draw on the huge piece of paper at the art table. You had a cubby with your name on it, and a little fish cut out of construction paper that said your name too. You are one of the many fish that make up this new class. This is your place. I stood a few paces back to watch how you interacted on your own, and it only took a minute before you confidently walked up to your new teacher and asked HER for help....not me. You decided to put the toy airplane in the rice table (where it didn't belong), and pretty soon your new friends were helping you to fill it to the top with rice. You were amazed at the baskets and baskets of sand toys outside, and climbed all through the new play structure and didn't want to leave. My hope is that tomorrow, when you get to stay at preschool by yourself, that you will be so busy having fun that you forget to be sad that I'm not there.

I want you to have this success, Max. You are my smart, social, sweet little boy. You are curious. You are a kind friend. You are everything that I wanted you to be. You have everything that you need to have a wonderful time at your new "school".

When we left your classroom together on Friday I told you how very proud I am of you. "We did it!" I said, and you gave me a "pow". "You're my big boy" I whispered. And I hugged you tight.

You will do so well my love. Congratulations on your new adventure....Mommy and Daddy are stepping on to the sidelines for this one, cheering you on.

Love,

Mommy

Evil Kneivel's Forgotten Son

What's trending now?

Well, for starters, I've decided that parenting a boy means that for the next 18 years I am going to be SCARED TO DEATH. Because Max was apparently born with the instinct to ATTEMPT TO INJURE HIMSELF on a regular basis, and then LAUGH ABOUT IT. Example?

I walk into Max's room and he instructs me to "sit". He points to the beanbag chair that's about 3 feet away from the foot of his bed. 2.5 seconds after I sit down he is on the bed, running towards the end where I'm sitting, and then he throws his arms out and attempts to FLY OFF.

I know, I know...THIS face could cause so much trouble?

The best part? It's the look that he gets on his face a split second before he attempts something INSANE. It's half grin, half are-you-ready-for-this, and a whole lotta impish glee mixed in.

After I caught him (thank god), he decided to try it again. But this time he leaped in the OTHER direction at the last minute. Towards the m-f'ing WINDOW??!!! Of course this Jewish mother has a rule that the window closest to Max's bed must always remain closed. Warm summer nights be damned, the window is way too low and Max is way too curious. So I figured if it stays closed, Max can't fall out. Apparently CRASHING THROUGH the glass is now an option. I caught him by the arm as he flew by, and spent the next 5 minutes explaining "That is NOT funny. We do not do that. We do not laugh when we scare Mommy."

Are you fucking kidding me???? Our two year old GIRL friends are having tea parties right now! They're peacefully feeding their sweet little stuffed animals, while Max is learning to throw things down the stairs to watch them fall and break.

Stupid me, I let Max witness me throwing my hands over my eyes and yelling "Yikes!", and now he likes to cover his own eyes after he does something dangerous, and yell "YI!!". Like after he plays his new game, called "Sit". Max was standing on the edge of his bed holding on to the rail (the one that's supposed to keep him safe), and Daddy told him to "sit". Then Daddy said "No". So now Max stands there, holds the rail, yells "Sit! No!" while LAUGHING AT US, and flings himself backward on the bed. This kid catches some serious air. Does he look behind him to see if there are pillows there? Of course not. Does he check how much room he has so that his head does not rebound into the wall? Really? No. Not once. He just smacks his head against the wall, covers his eyes with his hand, and yells "YI!!!".

Yep, this sweet boy....

Little boys? I guess the best thing about them is that their sweetness is tempered with fearlessness. One minute he's watching you closely,

tucked into a new lookout spot .....

and the next minute he's running full force toward the street.

All of that energy is enough to wear our future X-games superstar out. Being dangerous is EXHAUSTING.

YOU THINK?

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Dear Daddy,

You make me happy.


I'm glad that you're 40.

Wanna know why?

Because it means that you've seen enough of life to know how to be a good Daddy.

We're buddies, me and you. I look for you around every corner. I want to wear my hat like you. I want to work on the computer like you. I want to cook like you.

You make me laugh, and you are the only one who makes me squeal in that high-pitched, losing control way that makes Mommy's heart feel good when she hears us from the other room. Oh yeah, she listens to us through the baby monitor sometimes. Because she loves the way you talk to me, and the secret things that we discuss.

You have faith in me. You know that even though I'm only 2, I'm capable of doing some really big boy things.

We go cool places....like the zoo. And even though I was mostly interested in picking up sticks and climbing fences, you still held me up to see the sights....

I think there's a bear over there on the left.....

I know that as I get older you'll be there to teach me some very important things. Like how to hold a glove and catch a ball...

I'm here to learn Daddy. Anything you want to teach me. As long as I'm by your side,

I can do anything at all.

You and me, Daddy? We're going places.....

Happy Birthday to the guy who takes me for bike rides and goes really fast. The guy who shares my love for blueberries. The guy who calls me "Dude" and "Maximum". The guy who lets me sit in his lap and pretend I'm driving his car. The guy who snuggles with me when I'm trying to fall asleep, and reads me stories like he really cares that "the old lady is whispering hush" for the 22nd time. My Daddy. He's 40 today peeps! And we couldn't be any luckier....because we think he's AMAZING.

We love you Daddy!!!!

Max

Ride On

For Mother's Day, Max and Daddy got me a pink beach cruiser. Yeah, I feel pretty swanky riding it. And the best part? Max got this super cool "bike trailer thingy" so that he can ride in style behind our bikes..... Let's just say he LOVES it. As in, tolerates wearing a helmet loves it. Lets Daddy buckle him in loves it. Yells "Go, Go!" and then when you stop your bike to ask him if he's ok he yells "Kay! Go, Go!!" loves it.
I had high expectations for our first "family bike ride". I made Sean take pictures of me in my new silver helmet, sitting pretty on the pink cruiser. We took off down the driveway and headed out to the trail that runs behind our house and along the beach. I'm cruisin, Max is smiling and yelling "Hi" from his little nest in the trailer. It's a gorgeous 60 degrees. And I'm pretty impressed with myself because I can actually ride a bike. It's easier to be impressed with yourself when you have low expectations. So there we are, the picture of perfect family togetherness, and suddenly the wind picks up. And Sean points out to me that "It might be a little harder for you to pedal into the wind since you don't have any gears on your bike". Gears? Different speeds? This thing doesn't even have hand brakes, you just pedal backwards to stop like you did on your tricycle when you were five. But hey folks, it looks cool, and fuck....it's pink! Guess how much that matters when you're being hit by gale force winds while you're pedaling like MAD to keep up with your husband and baby son who are now dissapearing into the distance? Um, it doesn't. And those of you who know me know that I do not exercise. No, really. Not ever. But I'll be damned if I am going to get off of this bike and WALK. IT. Not me. I did a 17 mile bike ride when I was 4 days pregnant people. Had no idea that the little guy was with me then, and honestly, had no idea that our bike ride was going to be 17 fucking miles up and down hills, but I couldn't stop then and I wasn't going to stop now. So after finally catching up with Sean, and yelling into the wind "Really?! You bought me a bike with ONE SPEED???" to which he replied "But it's PINK!!", we headed home. "You want to do a few laps around the neighborhood?" he asked. "Ummmm....I think Max's helmet is falling over his eyes" I said.....probably time to go home. And catch my breath.
Stay off the road folks, the Simon family is headed to a bike trail near you!

Sweet Miss Molly Ann is Here!

On June 1st, our dear friends Susie, Matt, and big brother Jack welcomed the darling Molly Ann Weiss into the world!!! Since Jack and Max were born a mere 5 days apart, I wasn't exactly able to make it to the hospital in time when he was born. You know, recovering from a c-section and parenting a newborn and all. But THIS time, I was determined to be there to welcome Molly and give her brave mama a huge hug.

My roomie is a birthing MACHINE. This woman is strong, beautiful, and way tougher than I could ever imagine myself to be. I was so blessed to be there to celebrate with them, and I have to laugh at this picture because here Sus just birthed this gorgeous little girl, and she's letting ME hold her :) Had to get my baby snuggles in....Miss Molly is just SO cute!

And big brother Jack? He was so kind and sweet to his new little sister, and gave her the nicest kisses and hugs...

Proud Papa Matt gets a lot of credit too....not just for driving the back road to a random hospital at 3 am (apparently a full moon means that every hospital within 50 miles was completely full with women in labor), but for being such a warm, doting, PRESENT dad. All. The. Time.

And for being kinda funny too....

This little girl is going to change some lives, I'm sure of it....

So Weiss family, from our hearts to yours, we wish you endless adventures as you begin this new journey as a family of FOUR. We wish you laughter, warm summer nights in the backyard, the joys of experiencing all of those "baby firsts", and yes Sus, some frilly flower hairclips, pink tutus, and shiny black maryjanes. Matt, you are SO SCREWED.

But most of all, we wish you endless love, abounding joy, and well.....some sleep......

CONGRATULATIONS DEAR FRIENDS! We are so thrilled for you!!!

Why Not?

In our house, we are easily entertained. Max is using tongs to pluck magnets off the fridge. Why? Why not?

He's also rearranging the pantry. And if you haven't noticed, he does some of his best "lining up the raisin boxes" in his jammies. Please don't think I never dress him. These pictures just happen to be taken early in the morning. And five minutes later I let him dump all the raisins out on the floor. I told Sean that it was because I was teaching Max how to count them. But really, it was because I was trying to get something done in the kitchen and it bought me 5 minutes of peace.

Where does he come up with this stuff?

And last but not least....it was finally time to say goodbye to 6DAD. When we first got this car, it was before I was pregnant. But the license plate showed up in the mail....and it said 6DAD. "What could that mean?" we wondered....would we have 6 kids? Then I got pregnant, and was due in June.....ahh hah! June! It meant our baby would arrive in June! Except he came early. In May. Oh well...it was just funny that Sean has been driving around a "Dad" car for the past 3+ years. And now it's gone :(

But now Sean's REALLY a Dad. And that's even better.

The View From Two....

There was something different about Max's birthday this year..... He was old enough to take it ALL in....
And I found that we didn't get too many pictures, because we were so busy LIVING every minute of Max's celebration. (Ahem, Tori....did you get some great shots that we can poach from you??)

The day was punctuated with dear family, good friends, sweet treats, and a nautical theme that honored our new little community by the sea.....

Max enjoyed every second of playing with his little friends, and the beach breeze didn't seem to bother them as they dumped water and splashed till they were all completely soaked! Thank you for the great pirate ship water table Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop!
There were presents to explore,

and cupcakes to eat....

Did I mention how this little birthday boy bonded with these cupcakes? We're trialing baked egg and baked milk now, which means that Max got to eat the real dang thing....and eat he did.

So what does it feel like to be 2? Well, kind of like this.....

This self-portrait wasn't exactly centered, but I think it's a good example of how Max is feeling, now that he's a big boy and all....

The view from two? It's EXCELLENT.