Pictures

A quick post for vacationing grandparents who are missing their bambinos, and for a certain Daddy (aka Tickle Monster) who is away on business. The kids are keeping busy (and therefore, me too)...




Outside by 8:00 a.m., it's already 90 F! Ian loves this huge beach ball.







Of course, there's nothing more relaxing than a ride in a boat.






Monkey see, monkey do...








Silly, Ian. The scooter might work better on a different surface.






While Ian's at preschool, Laurel is pleased to get the playdough all to herself.







I give you Princess Laurel. Laurel summons her fairy godmother...






"Make a wish!"

Natural Consequences Suck

While eating at the table, Ian tends to be a bit, um, wiggly, to put it mildly. Paul and I find ourselves constantly reminding him to sit still in the middle of his chair. We reposition him, and for about a minute he will be fine. All too soon, Ian scooches toward the edge of the chair, dangles and kicks his feet, stands up, sits down, and generally keeps in a constant motion.

Unfortunately, such behavior can't go long without undesirable consequences. During lunch, Ian again is wiggly and begins pushing and pulling his chair in and out from the table. Just as I reach to reposition him, the chair slips out from under his body. With a loud smack, Ian's face hits the edge of the table and he falls to the ground. Screams of pain immediately follow.

I scoop him up and quickly inspect his injuries. There's a scrape just under his nose and swelling already showing signs of bruising stretching from his right cheek to his upper lip. It's obviously very painful, and I do my best to console him. Tons of hugs, a band-aid, and a cold paper towel finally do the trick.

Falling is a natural consequence children learn from. It's a physics lesson and behavior modification at the same time. But part of me can't help but wonder if I couldn't have done more to prevent this accident. As I type this post, it dawns on me that I could have used a logical consequence to change his behavior. Whenever he gets squirmy, I should take his chair away and let him stand while eating. Of course, he may still be in constant motion. I guess a follow up consequence would then be time out.

I don't expect him to sit perfectly still while we eat. He is, after all, an energy exuding four year old. But he does need to be safe. There's no fine line as to when the wiggles become dangerous, but I should try to help him learn appropriate "manners" while sitting at the dinner table. Obviously, when he's sliding his chair in and out of the table, it's a safety issue, and a consequence would be apropos.

There's quite a learning curve while doing this parenting gig. I try to keep my children safe, help them learn about their world, teach them manners and how to contribute in our little circle of family and friends. But sometimes the lessons come naturally and painfully. Ian marches on after this afflictive experience, and hopefully a little wiser.

Here are a few pictures of my brave wee man. No, they're not with his boo-boos, I just can't bring myself to take pictures of his wounds. But here are some from his first day of preschool a few weeks ago:





Ian gives and receives a goodbye hug from Daddy.

"Let's go!"

Ian and I arrive a few minutes early to help him get used to his new surroundings. There's a center of seashells and buried treasure to explore.

The Kermit crabs pique his curiousity.

Laurel's First Hair Cut

Laurel's two and a half. I finally decide to take her in for her first haircut.


Paul did not really want me to cut it. He says her hair is beautiful, and it is. I think he is afraid I'll have the hairstylist hack it off. Fear not dear hubby, I love to put Laurel's hair into ponytails, so most of the length will stay.

I don't dare cut Laurel's hair myself. The last time I tried, it was a disaster. I only attempted to give her some bangs to get the hair out of her eyes. The first snip was crooked. Of course I tried to even it out, but again, it was crooked in the opposite direction. It kept getting shorter and shorter, and finally I had to just stop before it looked like she had a buzz cut. Lesson learned, I cannot cut hair.













Reading the newspaper, I come across an article about kid centered salons. Bingo! So today, we head to a place called Lollilocks. Whimsical describes it perfectly. We walk through the door, and Laurel immediately runs to the different chairs you can sit in. They look like those rocking rides at parks. A tough decision, but finally Laurel chooses the dinosaur chair.






First a bit of water to get the hair wet. No tears, but Laurel is obviously not a fan of the squirt bottle.












Hair is wet, Laurel is still, we're ready for that first clip. Hold your breath...SNIP.


















Of course, sitting still is quite a challenge for a toddler. After a while, you just have to wiggle and look around.













Not to fear, a lollipop will save the day. I hold the lolly and ask Laurel to tell me its colors. She is still an entire two more minutes while the stylist quickly tries to finish cutting Laurel's hair.







But alas, the wrapped lollipop no longer holds Laurel's interest, and she loves to look in the mirror at what's going on.


Ah, finally, the reward... a lolly of course!









Did Laurel like getting her hair cut? I would say, YES!!!

Look Who's Four

Ian, you're four years old. Your father and I will need some time to get use to that fact. It still seems like yesterday you were born.

In honor of your fourth birthday, I write four things I adore about you:

• You still need to hold something soft when having a big drink of something, whether it be milk, juice, or water. Usually, you hold the bottom hem of your t-shirt, it's always there for you.
• Most of your playtime is spent redesigning your train track and making up stories as you push your engines and train cars along.
• You love an opportunity to cut things up with scissors. You spent a great deal of your birthday party time cutting out the details of your crown. You also love to cut things out of magazines, especially cars and trucks, and possible toys you may get for special events like your birthday and Christmas. Somehow, we've lucked out, and you've only cut your hair once.
• You are a collector. You are currently trying to get all available diecast characters from the movie Cars. You are also trying to get all engines, train cars, train sets, and other miscellaneous characters from the wooden Thomas railway. The mini brochures that come with the packaging of said products are wrinkled and torn from hours of you perusing what you still need.

Little man, we love you.

Childhood Fantasies Intermingled with Nasty Truths

Laurel and Ian love the Disney movie Peter Pan. This week, Paul is on vacation, so he's seeing it in greater detail. They've already watched it twice this week. The obsession with Peter Pan goes beyond viewing it on a television set. Ian loves the song that plays when the Crocodile shows up to chase Captain Hook, and I have to sing/hum it for him at least three times a day.

And whenever we are eating, the kids ask for me to tell a story that includes themselves as characters. It usually starts with a request from Laurel, "Mommy, I want a story of me and Ian sleeping and Peter Pan and Tinker Bell coming to our rooms."

With a deep breath, I begin the tale. "One night, Laurel and Ian are sleeping soundly in their beds. A breeze blows on them as Peter Pan and Tinker Bell fly over them. Peter Pan whispers, 'Wake up, Laurel, wake up, Ian.'"

The story continues almost verbatim to the Disney movie since I have not read the novel yet, although I have recently purchased a copy. One big difference I make in my story telling, is incorporating Paul and myself into the story. Heck, I want to visit Neverland too!

This last month, Paul has had to work some really long days, often getting home after the children have already gone to bed, capped by a week long business trip to Las Vegas. Obviously, his absence is on their minds and concerns them, for they do miss him when he's not around. This became especially apparent in one retelling this week of our family's version of Peter Pan.

ME: When Laurel and Ian open their eyes, they see Peter Pan and Tinker Bell flying in their rooms. Peter Pan says, "Hi, would you guys like to go to Neverland with Tink and me?"

Both Ian and Laurel say, "Oh yes, oh yes, but we need to get Mommy and Daddy first."

So they go and climb into their Mommy and Daddy's bed and ask, "Mommy, Daddy, can we all go to Neverland with Peter Pan and Tinker Bell?" So Mommy, Daddy, Ian, and Laurel all fly to Neverland with Peter and Tinker Bell.

IAN: No, Daddy can't go. He has to work late.

Gender Differences

Laurel, Ian and I are playing with some little plastic dinosaurs. First I interact with Ian. Growling, I hold a dinosaur before Ian and tease, "Roar, I'm a T-Rex and I'm going to eat you."

Ian picks up a nearby T-Rex, growls back at mine and begins to attack it. Soon there are chomping sounds, which I can only assume that his dinosaur ate mine.

I then turn and play with Laurel. I hold the same dinosaur in front of her and give a growl. "Roar, I'm a T-Rex and I'm going to eat you!!"

Laurel sweetly smiles and happily chirps at it, "I love you." She then takes the dinosaur from me and gives it a hug and a kiss.

A Happy Reunion

Hi, Daddy! (Day 4)

Dear Daddy,

We're so glad you called this morning. We love to hear your voice. Have fun in your classes today.

So far, we've played with trains...


and we've packed our bags to stay the night at Grandma Ann's.


We're so excited. Grandma says we get to ride the Molly Trolley to the park today. But there are lots of clouds and it may rain. Mommy says we won't melt if we get wet. We're also very excited because we'll get to see you tomorrow! We miss you. Remember, as soon as we see you, you have to be Tickle Monster.

We love you. Hugs. Kissy, kissy,
Ian and Laurel, and Mommy too

Hi, Daddy, Please Come Home!!!

Dear Daddy,

We talk about you all the time and wonder if you're ok in Las Sega (Las Vegas in Laurel-ese). We love talking to you on the phone. Ian yells so you can hear better since you are sooooo far away. We kiss the phone a bunch since we hear you on it.

Today we went to our weekly classes. Laurel had ABC fun in her class, and Ian played Duck, Duck, Goose in his. Mommy was going to take pictures, but she forgot to put the memory card back in the camera. Silly Mommy!

Here are some pictures of what we're doing at home:



Laurel is getting away with sucking on her fingers since you're not around to remind her, "Fingers out," and take away her blankie.






Of course, Ian is setting up his race track a different way.







He's also busy playing on his computer. *Picture courtesy of Ian.



Laurel's put together several picnics for us to munch on. *Picture courtesy of Ian.






Mommy never stops doing laundry. *Picture courtesy of Ian.







Don't worry, we're helping Mommy with the chores. Ian picked up the newspaper and rolled the black trash barrel back into the backyard. Laurel helped Mommy make sandwiches for lunch.

We also helped water the plants.

Look, Daddy, look! We pulled out some carrots. They almost look big enough to eat.

But we're not waiting, we're eating them NOW!!! YUMMY!!!

Good night, Daddy! We love you. Have sweet dreams.



Hugs and kisses,
Ian and Laurel and Mommy too!

Hi, Daddy! (Day 2)

Dear Daddy,

Oh, how we miss you. Mommy's keeping us busy so we don't think about you being gone too much. She says if we stay busy you'll be home sooner.





Today we went to the dinosaur museum.




















First we panned for gold. We did find some gold, but the fun part was getting wet! It was hot, but the water felt good. We'll show you our gold when we get home.
























The museum has lots of dinosaurs. Laurel was scared of them. Mommy kept saying they aren't real, but they were big and moving. Some have really big teeth. We didn't want to be eaten, so we stayed close to Mommy.













































We also saw stars, meteors, planets, and comets. We got to touch some meteors.
























Hey, Daddy, guess what? We're movie stars! That's right, we were on TV! The museum has a place where you go behind the TV, but you show up on it. It's fun Daddy. We danced and pretended to jump on the people.




























After the museum, we went to Grandma Edie's for lunch. We must have eaten too many snacks in the van, we weren't hungry for lunch. But Papa Chuck gave us chocolate milk, and we drank it all up. Ian got to stay the afternoon over at Grandma's, but Laurel went home with Mommy. Ian will come home after dinner. Grandma and Papa want to see our new shower.

We love you Daddy! We are sending you hugs and kisses.

Love,
Ian and Laurel, and Mommy too!

Hi, Daddy!

Dear Daddy,

We miss you. Night time is just not the same without the tickle monster around. Mommy just can't make the right noises for it to be effective. Promise you'll turn into Tickle Monster as soon as you get home.

Today we went to the mall and played indoors. Mommy says it's too hot to play outside today, but 108 doesn't sound hot to us. We did get to jump and run and make friends at the play area. We went on the carousel and got to get a book at the store. Here's a picture of us reading Ian's new Lightning McQueen book.

We are being very good. Tonight we both cleaned up all our toys and brushed our teeth without giving Mommy too much grief. Ian won the race to see who could get their jammies on the fastest. Laurel chose to read I Love You Stinky Face, and Ian of course wanted Curious George. Tonight, it was the one where George makes the pancakes. Can we have blueberry pancakes, Daddy?

Daddy, will Peter Pan and Tinkerbell visit us tonight? Can we go to Neverland? Remember when Captain Hook was scared of the crocodile, remember that Daddy?

We're sending you hugs and kisses. Sweet dreams, Daddy! We love you!

--Ian and Laurel (Mommy sends her love too.)

Sick, But Not Deterred

Ian has some stomach virus today. He woke me up at six this morning complaining that his stomach hurt. About an hour later, the vomiting began. He is all too familiar with what we call the Barf Bowl, and knows to use it when needed.

Today is garbage truck day. More than that, we get visited by two garbage trucks. One picks up our recycling, and another picks up plant material. Ian is laying on the beach towel covered couch. He is gray and still. But, upon hearing an all too familiar screech of brakes, he sits up and softly reports, "The garbage truck is here."

Ian staggers towards the front windows. I rush to grab the Barf Bowl and follow him. He opens the curtains to view the marvelous truck lifting our recycling barrel. Good thing I closely follow him with the Barf Bowl, he immediately begins retching into it. He will not stop watching his beloved garbage truck, but continues looking out the window, all the while throwing up.

The truck finally departs, and Ian pretty much collapses in my arms and I walk him back to the couch. After convincing him that chicken noodle soup would not be a great idea right now, and reading to him a book about garbage trucks, Ian is asleep and hopefully on the mend.

Moonlighting

So, I've got a secret blog. Back in September, I started trying to lose weight and was occasionally posting about it. Then, I took a break from blogging, those end of the year holidays came and went, and I gained all the weight back plus an additional four pounds. Heavy, heavy sigh.

Depressed and failure are some words that describe my feelings towards myself at the time. Fortunately, enough was enough, the clothes were getting WAY too tight, and I decided to stand up again, dust myself off and take charge over this part of my life.

Back in March, I refocused my efforts on getting healthy. I started taking note of portions and calories consumed, started incorporating exercise into a busy life, and chose to create a blog dedicated to this one aspect of my life. It's dull - just me keeping track of whatever goes into the pie hole, exercise, struggles, successes, and such. But, oh, it's so important to me. I'm posting daily, and it's helping me keep focused.

Unfortunately, this blog has suffered. Where are all the cute stories of the kids? I need to find balance between the two. So I now must offer a story, that incorporates both...

I need to exercise at home. Driving to some gym and putting the kids into a daycare while I work out is not my idea of fun. Yes, I gave it a try last summer, and I just didn't like spending 40 minutes on the road each day.

Exercising at home obviously takes away that 40 minute drive time, but there is a challenge: Laurel and Ian sometimes get in the way. I think it's so cute when they want to work out with me, but when I'm doing aerobics, I'm afraid I might jump on them, or my hand might hit them as they walk by. Actually, both kids have accidentally been whacked by me as they ran by at the wrong moment.

The solution was simple. Whenever I exercise, I divide the room with a long piece of yarn. The kids can work out or play on one side, while I sweat it out on the other. Does it work? For the most part, yes. Laurel still crosses the line to crawl between my legs while I'm stretching. To her, I'm a tunnel at that point and she just can't resist. I just hope I can keep my balance.



Ian doing the moves in the aerobics DVD with me.










Laurel tries to do lunges.













Ian holds wooden beads as his weights during strength training. He's having some fun.













*BTW: sometimes I have brain fart and forget to change my identity when leaving comments on your blogs. If you see someone by the name of Slenderella, that's me. :-)

Happy Mother's Day

Why I love being a mother...



Happy Mother's Day!

Bad Fashion, Beware

There is a Fashion Nazi residing in our household. She goes by name of Laurel, and she knows exactly what she wants to wear. Point blank she tells us if an outfit is not desired. Try to put it on her, and you face fits of fury exerting the energy of a tornado. There will be high pitched shrieks, tears, flailing arms, back arching, and the inevitable escape. We've learned to offer her choices in her apparel, giving her control. It makes for a much happier morning.

Evidently, ponytails and a sequined shirt
are appropriate apparel for a baseball game.

However, the opinions are not limited to herself. Paul likes to be shirtless when brushing his teeth, thus eliminating the possibility of getting toothpaste on it. This bothers Laurel to no end. She stands next to him, points and yells, "Daddy, put on a shirt!"

Sometimes I wear a light jacket in the house when cold. Laurel points at me and says, "Mommy, no coat!"

I usually respond, "Honey, I'm cold and I need the jacket to keep warm."

Comfort is not of importance to her, only how I look. She repeats herself, "Mommy, no coat!"

Me walking away does not deter her. She just follows, repeating her command. "Mommy, no coat! Take coat off, NOW!"

This lasts for a few minutes, but I refuse to give in to her demands. My needs are important, too. Eventually, she gives up or gets distracted, and I always get to laugh at my wonderfully opinionated daughter.

Look out, Ian. It won't be long before she notices you like to wear your shirts backwards. I'm just warning you...

Big, Scary Smoke Alarm, GO AWAY!

Lately, Laurel is obsessed with the smoke detectors in our house. Actually, fearful is more accurate. To put her at ease, I've been trying to explain how the smoke detector keeps our family safe from fires. Despite all my efforts, she is still unsure of the round object that looms on the ceiling just outside her bedroom. It scares her to the extend she quickly runs into nearby rooms, closes the door and states, "I am safe now."

So the discussions continue, trying to put her mind at ease. Even Ian is trying to help his little sister understand the role of a smoke detector and that it's just not some scary monster waiting to gobble her up.

This morning's conversation:

Laurel: The smoke alarm is my friend. It winks at me. (She's referring to when it blinks a red light.) The smoke alarm put out the fires.

Ian: No Laurel, the firetruck and firemen come and put out the fire.

Laurel: Yeah, the firemen and the firetruck put out the fire.

Ian: That's right Laurel, the firemen and the firetruck put out the fire.

Laurel: Ok. If the fire alarm goes off, we go to Grandma's house.

Ian: No, we go to Alex's house.

Laurel: Oh yes, we go to Alex's house.

Ian: Yes, Laurel, we go to Alex's house and the firetruck puts out the fire and puts the fire in the tank.

Laurel: Ok, the firetruck puts the fire in the tank.

Ian: Yeah, they put the fire in the tank and then they take it away.

Evidently, Ian knows something about the process I don't.

Finding Time for a Date

There just never seems to be enough time to accomplish all the things I want to get done. Of course, part of the problem lies within myself. I want to do it all! Gardening, exercise, play with my kids, teach my kids stuff, scrapbook, make awesome and healthy meals, bake, experiment with said cooking, hike, travel, just to name a few. Add in the daily housework, laundry, diapering, feeding and grooming of kids, grocery and clothes shopping, it's a wonder I ever get to participate in extracurricular activities.

Speaking of extracurricular activities, I would like to take my dear hubby out on a date once in a while, but when? We have little mini-dates at home. You know, when the kids are put in bed and we have our alone time. Lately, our together time has been consumed fighting off evil patrons of the dark side of the force. Aha, yes, we geeks (and proud of it) love to play Lego Star Wars on our Wii. I'm not typically a video game connoisseur, but Paul has found one that strikes my fancy. I love playing Han Solo and blasting my way through swarms of Storm Troopers on the Death Star.

Other mini-dates include being couch potatoes. Our favorite shows include Battlestar Galactica, Doctor Who, Torchwood, and Eureka (if it ever comes back). The combination of my hubby, a scifi show, and a glass of wine is downright romantic! Once in a while, none of our shows will be airing. Then we rely on our DVD stash, preferably something from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

It's been a long time, but we also like to challenge each other to a game of Scrabble. But alas, poor Paul, he is timid about playing against me, because of course I am the Scrabble Queen. It may because I taught second grade and had to teach phonics and know a phonogram or two, but the bottom line is I usually WIN! I think the one time he did win, is when we took the travel version to the hospital while I was in labor with Ian. The contractions definitely interfered with my thinking during that game.

What do you do for a mini-date?

Yes, We are Cheesy

One of the perks of parenting is torturing your kids by making them wear the same clothes.



Funny thing, neither kid minded. In fact, they were down right giggly about wearing their froggy jammies.

Bubble Busted

Last night, Laurel and I went for the three mile walk that goes around our neighborhood. Paul had just arrived home and needed to eat dinner, and Ian chose to stay behind to play with his cars and computer. I strapped Laurel into the stroller, and off we went.

Ian decided to play his Click Start computer. The game of choice involved popping bubbles that would splatter paint onto the surface. The computer gives you a certain amount of time, and then tells you how many you were able to pop. The idea is to help little ones learn to control a computer mouse.

Paul would encourage Ian stating things like, "Ian, you got four that time, that's a lot. Wow, Ian, six this time, good job," and so on.

Ian started getting excited along with Paul. "Daddy, Daddy, I got four!"

The next time around, "Daddy, Daddy, five this time, that's a lot!"

The following round, "Daddy, two! I got twooooo!"

Finally, "Daddy, Daddy, I got one!" There's a slight pause, his voice lowers an octave and he exhales, "Oh, that's not so much."

***********************************************
Unrelated topic:

I'm totally psyched about tonight's BSG! WHOO-HOO!

Finally.

If you're a true scifi geek, you'll understand.

Building Trust

Laurel is in the beginning stages of potty training. When the occasion arises, and she asks to use the potty, we oblige. We let it be her idea. So far, she'll sit a minute, nothing happens, and then she's wiggly and ready to go play.

But the little potty chair is not good enough for her. Lately, she wants to use the big toilet. Fine by us, less mess to clean up, that is if she ever produces anything.

One evening, Paul goes to help her remove her diaper and place her on the big toilet. She balances on the rim, Paul's hands nearby just in case. She worriedly looks up at him stating, "Daddy, don't flush me down the toilet!"