Review: The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris

If you were to ask me five months ago (just prior to starting The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt) I could have summed it up about like this:

• He was definitely a president.
• Teddy bears are named for him.
• He was instrumental in getting the Panama Canal finished.
• Tread lightly and carry a big stick.
• Something about Rough Riders.
• Something about the Natural History Museum in NYC (thanks, Night at the Museum!)
• Dutch ancestry

Really. That's it. Once I started reading the book I checked a few things on Wikipedia and other really important aspects of his life came to my recollection. But generally I knew very little about him. I may have liked the book for the sole fact that I had a lot to learn by reading it, but the fact that the book is really well-written sealed the deal for me.

This book is the first in a series of three (all of which are completed, so you don't need to wait on pins and needles for the next installment to come out). The second one, Theodore Rex won the Pulitzer Prize, and based on the excellent writing of the first, I'm not surprised.

It is, hands down, the best biography I've ever read. The writing is so clear - descriptive when it's necessary, but not overly so. Many details are so specific that it's clear the author researched and scoured an unfathomable amount of material, only to whittle it down to the most important things for the reader. 

This book is dense, but it's still easy to read. I spent about five months reading it, and it's 780 pages before the end notes and index, which are just over 100 pages.

Just Different

Before I had more than one child, I frequently asked parents of more than one child (especially moms) how their kids were different. Usually the parents could give one or two details, but inevitably the answer came, "They're just different." It's something that I can totally understand now.

Here are some differences in my two boys:

Ike was usually big for his age, and Felix is barely on the charts.

Ike loved everyone, and Felix is more discriminating.

Ike liked to get in the mix and play with big kids; Felix is more likely to stand on the sidelines and watch before jumping in.

Ike never cuddled as a baby (he does now); Felix cuddles daily. (It's so nice!)

Ike was really independent in practically every way; Felix is just not. He loves to be held and generally requires more attention than Ike did as a baby.

Ike was somewhat oblivious to other people's emotions. (He's more aware now that he's older, but as a baby/toddler emotions were not on his radar.) Felix notices when people are sad and takes it very personally if he's chastised.

Ike wasn't especially picky as a toddler (though he is somewhat picky now); Felix is incredibly picky. This probably accounts, in part, for his small size.

Ike didn't want to stop nursing; Felix didn't seem to notice or care when I weaned him.

It took a lot of effort to make Ike laugh as a baby. (Again, his behavior as a little boy is different. He laughs readily now.) Felix has always laughed readily. He seems to be constantly on the lookout for something to laugh about.

All in all, though, they're just different.

Ike Speaks

The last time I wrote about funny things that Ike has said I failed to mention that a lot of the funny things that come out of his mouth are funny because of his mispronunciation or because of his intonation. Some words that he mispronounces:

• boffice (office)
• bopen (open)
• heytopper (helicopter)
• Gwamma Caffeine (Grandma Kathleen) (He doesn't actually call her that, but we've been teaching him important things like his parents' first names and grandparents' first names. So now when we say something about Grandma, he always clarifies "Gwamma Caffeine." Which is possibly better than "Other Gwamma," which is what he used to say to distinguish between Grandma Great and Eric's mom.)

Sometimes when he repeats the same thing over and over again he gets confused about what he's trying to say.

"You have headache, Mom?" (Repeated in various forms many, many, many times.) Finally morphed into, "You have bad haircut in your hair, Mom?"

"I want my butterfwy bwanket." (Repeated many times.) Eventually it morphed into, "I want my butterfwy book."

When asked "Why?" he will usually respond with, "Because, right now."

He doesn't really understand the word "because." (As seen above.) But also in such gems as:

• I'm sick because I need medicine.
• You going work mom? Because I'm going Drake's house!

He's pretty good at prepositions, but "for" is his default if he doesn't know the right one. 

• You take picture for me, mom?
• I gived it for Felix.

His possessive pronouns need a little work:

• I going to eat mine toast on floor.
• This ours green car!
• That yours cookie, Felix!

As much as I love listening to him get things right (like after we practice saying a word properly), I also really adore how cute his speech is right now, and I don't want to forget it.

A Typical Day

Janssen has written a couple of blog posts where she chronicles her day with a photo an hour. After the first one I thought it would be a great idea to copy her (It's the highest form of flattery, right?). I started taking pictures one day and soon forgot to continue taking them. I called it a loss until she posted her second one, and I realized if I set an alarm to go off every hour, then I would actually be able to manage this not-so-monumental feat. (Also, she took some flak on Facebook from people who said her day was unrealistic. I wanted to see how good or bad my day would look if I stopped what I was doing and took a picture at the same time every hour.)

So, here's what was going on in my most recent Thursday on the 10's.

By 8:10 we've eaten breakfast, and it's time to get dressed for the day. But somebody doesn't want to comply.

At 9:10 I tackle these dishes, most of which were from the day before.

At 10:10 I'm vacuuming and find this gem embedded in my carpet. I believe it was formerly a Mike and Ike. Thanks, children.

11:10 finds me throwing airplanes for my little boy. He fetches them, and we do this for quite a while.

By 12:10 everyone is lunched and happy, so we play in the living room for a while before naps.

At 1:10 I'm working in bed while the boys nap. (I bet you love the edits I did so you can't read the details on my screen. I'm a Paint all-star.)

2:10. Still working.

At 3:10 this guy has just woken up from his nap and is ready for a diaper change.

4:10. The kids are playing, and I'm stitching up the trim of this rather old and very beloved blanket of Eric's.

At 5:10 Eric is about to walk in the door, and I'm rounding up the children so we can walk Ike's friend home before dinner. She does not wish to leave.

6:10. After dinner (slow cooker stroganoff from Mel's Kitchen Cafe) we play in the living room. Tonight's activities include pushing Felix on his car, helping Felix practice walking, and taking turns rolling each other up in the beloved blanket mentioned above. Also tickling. Always tickling.

7:10. Felix is down for bed, and I putz around on the Internet while Eric puts Ike down.

8:10. Watching a couple of episodes of The West Wing with Eric .

At 9:10 we're winding down for the night and reading scriptures.

By 10:10 I'm pajamized and reading The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt while I wait for Eric to finish getting ready for bed.

Christmas 2013

I know I'm a few weeks late on this. I have no excuse.

We went to visit my brother and his family in Jackson Hole for Christmas.

Ike was pretty excited to meet Santa Claus:

Felix was not:

We took pictures by the elk antlers in the freezing cold:

We opened some presents on Christmas Eve. The boys got matching jammies. It's their first time to have matching anything since most of their clothes are hand-me-downs from a friend. My brother also got Ike this giant sock monkey. Ike was adorably excited when he opened it. (And, no, we did not buy our son a toy gun for Christmas. He found that rubber band gun among his cousins' toys, and I let him keep it for the picture.)

He was even more excited to open a present that contained a bottle of Hershey's chocolate syrup, which we inadvertently left at my brother's house. (Note that Ike is also wearing his brand new "cougar shirt" which he had been asking for for months.)

It was a really fun few days. My boys had a blast. Felix had been thinking about walking before, but he made great strides (pun!) with such a great audience.

2013 Book Stats

Just a few stats on my 2013 books, as posted yesterday. I read a total of 38, which means my top 10% would be 3.8 books. I planned on rounding up, but when I actually tried to make my list, I couldn't decide on a fourth book. Nothing really stood out to me as up to the caliber as the first three. My top 10%:

1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
2. Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
3. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Won't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

A few other stats:

• 13 of 38 were non-fiction.That's about one third.(Last year almost two thirds were non-fiction.)
• 21 were audiobooks. Hooray for a smart phone.
• 3 of the books were for a book group I joined this year.
• My total number of books increased by 11 this year.