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I have uploaded a bunch of photo's from our Christmas here. Click HERE to have a look!

And so this is Christmas...

And what have we done? Another year over, and a new one just begun... Ok, so that is kind of how the Beatles song goes, right?

Christmas at the Clark abode has been another good one. Lots of cheer and the typical tear. Kids are both full throttle with their colds which has given their moods wide swings and naps off kilter. We started the week with a major dump of snow and ended it with very warm weather, wind and rain. We were lucky to have Bob, Jackie, Jenny and Erik join us for Christmas Eve and over night to wake up with Santa's treasures. We started the afternoon with cleaning and cooking and opened a few gifts once our guests arrived. Had our salmon dinner (I was pleased with the results, yay!) and topped it off with a traditional Christmas pudding made with care by my mother. I think I flubbed the sauce, but I was happy about the salmon, so I was ok with that.

After dinner, we opened a few more gifts and Dylan found his "it" gift. The red Dirtdevil vacuum. YAY! I was so close to not getting it. Bought it Monday morning after the snow storm had cleared. I asked one of the employees where the were and after a quick look said they were out. I was irritated with myself for not getting it last time I was there. Then after a minute or two he came back with one in hand YAY TARGET! This is the second time I had a floor worker come find me after looking further into a request I had. Anyway, Dylan spent the rest of the night vacuuming. It actually sucks up a little dirt!

He also enjoyed the mini dust buster. Here he is showing Erik basic operation technique.

Sophia's "it" gift still remains to be the sleeveless princess dress she got for her birthday. She got LOTS of clothes, mostly dresses, which I know she will enjoy wearing. Both kids have had fun with the toy airplane - screwing in and out all the screws to take it apart and put it back together with the toy drill it comes with.

Christmas eve ended with the normal bath, however, there were THREE babies, not two in it. Little Erik had a lot of fun with his cousins. I was all psyched to read Sophia her snowman jubilee book as I had built her that snowman earlier in the week and this book is about the night before Christmas. The snowmen come alive, have a big jubilee and help guide Santa's sleigh. then at the end of the book it says something like: you many find it hard to believe that the snowmen come alive on Christmas Eve, but look at your Snowman on Christmas day and see if he looks the same way. Well, I took Sophia to the window to have a look at her snowman the night before Christmas and what she saw was OUR Frosty laying on the ground as if he were assassinated.

I, of course, burst out laughing and felt terrible that she saw her snowman all, well, dead. She told me "Frosty all melted, mama". And I had to hide my laughter yet again. After putting her to bed, I went outside to resurrect our Frosty and was assisted by jenny in getting him all put back together.

Christmas morning had a staggered start. Dylan got things rolling at 5 and he was collected by Ethan who brought him down and had to wake Pepe. Jackie, Jenny and Erik were next shortly after 6 and I soon after that. Sophia took her time and greeted the day at 7.30 and we were off and running to get to our stockings. That dirtdevil took second chair for Dylan only to the chocolate and candy in his stocking. Sophia was accessorized with hers.

We had an early Christmas dinner at noon complete with a juicy roast beast and Bob's famous pumpkin pie. All compliments of our dear house guests. The house was cleared by 1 and I think the kids were still buzzed from the activity because they sure wouldn't go down for a nap. Was a quiet Christmas dinner here. The quietest for me that I have had. Feels a little strange to do three loads of laundry and vacuum on Christmas day. hmmmm.
So here I am, with one last gift thanks to my kiddios - a cold to bring me into the new year. Ahhhh. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve

Twas the night before the night before Christmas and no one was stirring, just Sophia hacking away in her sleep. Just in time for Christmas, Sophia has finally caught Dylan's cold. She has done so well until now avoiding the darn thing.

Things seem to be under control at the moment for us. I THINK I am all set with gifts. I did think this yesterday too, though, and then remembered another one I needed to get. I have been LOVING the 4wheel drive in the truck since the snow turned to ice on our street. I feel so empowered. "What's that noise, mommy?" "Oh that't just the neighbor's snow bank [crunching under our truck]" "Vrrrm Vrrrm Vrrrrm!" (Cindy) "rmmmm rmmmm rmmm" (Dylan).

Miss Independent

Sophia has been kicking me out of the bathroom after her bath lately so that she can use the potty, choose her underwear and get dressed all by herself. The clothes aren't always facing the front, but she doesn't mind. I guess that's what happens when you turn 3 :)

Sophia celebrated her 3rd b-day on the 12th and I have finally uploaded some pictures on at the shutterfly site. Have a look!

Never ending bug

Dylan's never ending bug has morphed yet again. Over the past couple days his little cough has gotten wetter and his nose is now oozing non-stop and his crying/ fussing at peak levels. He wouldn't touch his dinner today. Luckily I was able to get him to eat a bit of banana at his bath. Poor little guy.

I think I am all set with Christmas shopping. YAY! Still have a couple things I would like to pick up, but won't stress over them if I can't find them. Wrapping now looms over me.

Bracing for our winter storm tomorrow - 12inches coming fast and furious. I will hit the store for provisions, let the storm hit and then make snowmen,

A little ironic

So, I spent the first 5 years of living in Boston dying my hair. Since having Sophia I have been letting it go natural. After my hair was hacked off, the color grew much darker and it is NOW that everyone thinks I am coloring my hair. All I have to say, is if I was going to color my hair, why would I choose THIS one?! HA! My own mother asked me when I started going grey. I looked at her in panic and wondered where she spotted it. She said she didn't see any, just assumed it was there as my hair was so dark it had to be colored. Sigh, I want my wedding hair back. I have my wedding figure, why not make it a package deal?

Dylan has been waking earlier and earlier since my parents arrived. Started with 4.45 and has crept all the way back to 4am. Not cool. Going to try and skip his morning naps. Not that he doesn't need them, but his naps have been a struggle too and I am thinking perhaps there is something not in sync. Sigh... And the early bedtimes continue for us.

Princess Party

Pre-party primping. Mom and princess snuggle.

Setting the stage... Princess Sophia ruling from her thrown.

Sophia getting her enthusiasm on.

Princess castle cake decorated by mom.

Princess ice cream cones that held greater inner beauty than outer "superficial" beauty.

Sophia's party went well, despite yesterday's request for "no kids" yesterday. She started off shy with the family, then broke out, waving her magic wand, putting Zadie and Grandpa to sleep and then waking them with another wave. She got shy again when the guests arrived, however, not too shy to take their gifts and put them on the gift bench in the dining room. I had four crafts lined up - making crowns and tiara's, making bracelets and decorating shields and decorating my cardboard castle for Sophia. The kids kind of decorated their crowns, the bracelets didn't work (stretchy string supposedly made for kids to use wouldn't hold a knot and the shields were not really that exciting I think. I didn't even bring down the castle as there wasn't enough room with 11 kids and their parents in the living room. I think Sophia may not have wanted everyone coloring on it anyway, in hind sight, and therefore a good thing. Despite all that, I think everyone had fun. Little Madison really got into things and had fun with the tiaras, and the rest of the party. The little babies did very well playing on the carpet in the living room too. At the end, when the living room was clearing out, Ethan put on the music and Sophia and Clara had a blast dancing. Me-mere had a pretty good time too...

Party is done and I am glad to have those stresses over. House looks good too - not a disaster one would expect post kids' party.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Sophia!

Sophia celebrated her 3rd birthday today. Party tomorrow! Yippy! Just before we were to sit down to blueberry pancakes thanks to Grandma, Sophia spotted her cottage. She asked me "what's that box, mamma?", all eager -like. I told her it was her new house and she was SUPER excited and played in it until it was time for school. After Dylan's nap, he took over and played in it having tons of fun. We had a pizza dinner and cupcakes with icing and sprinkles for dessert. Her favorite gift (next to the cottage) was her new princess dress-up dresses. Looking forward to seeing her wear it tomorrow. Until then...

A little gentleman

Dylan has become quite a gentleman already. He likes to help me off with my coat - insist, rather. At mealtime he pulls out my chair for me and pats it for me to sit down. He then likes to feed me his food. No wonder we both can shake our bug. We keep swapping it back and forth.

He is very much into the phase of monkey see monkey do. When I start wiping a counter he yanks down ALL the tea towels from the stove door and starts wiping the floor. He must sweep when I sweep, keeps insisting that he use the mop/ broom I have (we switch back and forth a hundred times)...

Lemonade

So, they say when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade. So I did. I ordered a couple gifts online and instead of having them shipped to LA to the recipients, I had them shipped here (clicked the wrong box). They shipped the first item in a giant box about 3 or 4 times the size of the actual gift. I re-wrapped it to be mailed AGAIN and decided to make lemonade out of the box. Last night I cut and taped my way into a toddler sized castle for Sophia's upcoming Princess Party. I am pretty pleased considering the box wasn't even in great shape. Added an extra window where the kids punched a hole... I just hope now that this "lemonade stand" makes it to the party. Dylan already tripped over the draw bridge ropes and took the whole thing down on top of himself.

Today, Dylan became a man...

I have not been pleased with the only kids hair salon near us (only two cities away). The drive was longer than I liked, the price much higher than I liked and the "stylists" not up to par. Dylan has had his hair cut there twice and was fussy and squirmed while the hairdresser hacked away. The cut lasted about 5 minutes and set me back $18. The hairdresser was also kind of grouchy. I decided to try out a real BARBAR this time. A fellow mom posted the place she has taken her son IN Quincy, so I went on a whim today as Dylan's hair could almost handle a braid. Dylan was SO good in this grown up shop. He sat on my lap and was perfectly still the ENTIRE time! We were seated right away (I have always waited at the other place) and a young guy started with the razor as Dylan just hung out. He took about 10-15 minutes and then, a man who appeared to be the owner came over and took over. I think the young guy was still in training. The older guy then evened out Dylan's hair and cut and cut and cut... All the while Dylan just sitting there, not making a fuss. Personally I think he cut too much off the top, but I guess I didn't state clearly enough that I wanted it longer. At least it is a quality cut and cost $13, in addition to a bunch of gas I saved getting there. Yay!

Peek-a-boo

Dylan's new game is peek-a boo. He has recently been covering his eyes as if to pretend to hid. I find it hilarious, though as he usually is peeking through the fingers like this. SO CUTE. It has taken a while to catch on film, though, because as soon as the camera comes out, his hands go down and he cries and whines until I give it to him. Not so cute.

Dylan's "Blue Steel" look. I know you think you are tough, Dylan, but those ARE girl's sunglasses...

On the 6th day she baked

And baked, and baked... I pulled out the big gun yesterday - the mighty mixer from our wedding. FINALLY. Oh, my. What have I been waiting for??? I have been using a measly little hand mixer for the past 4+ years thinking that this was just too big for our kitchen and didn't want to bother with the clean up and set up. Woah, nelly. That baby can MIX. I decided on a double batch of holiday cookies as I remembered liking that recipe last year and was going to make some extra cookies for Sophia's b-day party. That mixer sure did the job well and quick (once I realized I had the wrong attachment on at first and then read the box and put the RIGHT one on). In hind sight, maybe that was a bit large of a batch as I was up until 9.30 icing all the cookies. I have left "big yeller" (mixer is yellow) on the counter for the season and will be using her again soon.

And on the 4th night, they slept...

And slept. And slept. We got home from the hospital at 4.30pm and were glad to have a nice turkey dinner waiting for us. Poor little D was SOOO tired looking we ate early and our helpers slipped out the door and I had Dylan in bed by 6pm. His temp was finally normal and he slept a full TWELVE HOURS. He never sleeps that long. I guess two days/ nights of no sleep and fighting 104.7 fevers can wipe a little guy out. He looked MUCH better this morning. Just traces of his rash, fever still gone... He is still quite swollen, however, even that is starting to subside - skin isn't so tight and hard. I tried his am nap before his follow up check up but I think the itchiness is still there and he couldn't settle. I took the SUPER long and slow way to the doctors so that he could get a little bit of a nap in. I am so glad he is better and hope that is the last night I have to spend in the hospital with EITHER child. I will acknowledge the silver lining of our stay was laying down with Dylan while he napped. I laid down with him in his crib/ bed to help him sleep and he would reach over and wrap his arms around my neck and bring his face right into mine so my lips were on his lips or cheek and knees curled into my tummy. Any time I would try to move a bit he would hold me tighter. Ahhhhhhhh, priceless.

I should be sleeping

So, I am hoping that last night was Dylan's allergy symptoms going out with a bang. He went down fine at 7, but after 8.30, no rest for the weary. His legs really seemed to be bothering him. Kept kicking and trying to scratch them with his feet. He couldn't be still long enough to sleep. Nothing seemed to work - rocking him, bringing him to bed with us... At midnight he couldn't stand it anymore and just started crying and writhing around. I THOUGHT he was getting better as by then his fever finally went down below 100. He little legs are SO swollen they must have hurt and been very uncomfortable. He is in a nap now and I hope he gets a real good rest. Those little legs...

Poor little D

So, I thought yesterday was rough. Ugh. Dylan's blotches now cover more skin area than non-blotched skin. His cheeks are all red and puffy and I can see his scalp is red through the hair. I could go on, but it is just as well to say his is extremely red and sore. I was at a loss this afternoon and in despair as to what to do. We had spent the morning at the pediatrician's office to take care of his fever. Then I was hoping he would have a nice nap in the afternoon to fight this penicillin in him. No such luck. He was so itchy and skin so hot that he couldn't sleep. I spent the afternoon walking around with him and rocking him in his chair. He would have bouts of itchy discomfort that nothing I could do would help. I cringe to touch him as his skin is so bad I can only imagine how it feels to him. I really hope he can sleep tonight, though I won't hold my breath. I have a bad feeling I will be in the rocker a lot. Not that I don't love holding Dylan and like our snuggles, just wish it was under better circumstances.

Bright note - Sophia had fun at school!

Some "days in this life" are more difficult than others...

It seems we have gone from Happy Feet to Itchy Feet. Or rather itchy all over. Dylan woke up this morning with a rash all over his body. It looked like he was attached by a swarm of mosquitoes with large welts on his legs and chest. He had no fever or other symptoms other than extreme crankiness (and lets face it, if YOU were itchy all over I think a smile would be hard to come by too). So, I did NOT take him to emergency and instead nervously waited 4 hours until the doctor office opened at 9am. After speaking with a nurse we made an appointment and I was worried Dylan would have some food allergy we would have to worry about the rest of his life. I was relieved to find out that he does not have a food allergy, however, the antibiotics he is on has penicillin (as do mine) in them. And that is what he is allergic to. So while I am relieved that it isn't a food allergy, I am sad to see how uncomfortable he is and have to come to terms that after 17.5 mo, I will have to stop nursing. I can't nurse for 48 hours after my last dose and by then I think my milk and his interest will be gone. Not that I will be stopping this early, just rather it be on my own terms.

A nice Oatmeal bath before nap to calm his itchy skin...

Even an itchy body can't keep the goof out of Dylan ALL the time.

Happy Feet

Happy Feet:


Little Dylan is showing his emerging flare for dance. Clearly my singing was of no inspiration to him. I should just save my vocals for American Idol, "mom's singing toddler tunes" edition.


Ok, Sophia, could you try smiling next time? "CHEEEEEEESE!"

Mr. GQ strikes his pose.

Dylan like to do a quick warm up before tackling his toys.

Dylan has shown he has a flare for... well, flare. Nice shoe, D.

D's Vocabulary to date

I thought I would record (for posterity?) Dylan list of words he know at this point:
Mama
Bye-bye
Hi (credit to Sophia for teaching him this one as she is the store greeter whenever we are out on errands, saying hi to everyone and of course, Dylan has to copy all she does and says)
Yay! (at the end of all songs)
Uh-oh!
Night-night
All done (not spoken so clearly as it is written, however, the intonation makes it crystal clear)

He is of course much more clever than his vocabulary suggests. He understands my requests and even conversations that aren't directed at him. I was asking Sophia to get her own water from the kitchen once and while we were "discussing" this, Dylan disappeared and returned with her water. That's our right hand man, for you!

Right Hand Man

Dylan has become my right hand man these days. Right from the moment I step out of the shower, he is right there to hand me my towel and clothes (not necessarily in that order) and close the door behind (or on) me. He helped me sort the laundry this morning, picking up clothes and then putting them on the pile I have pointed to. He still enjoys handing me cutlery out of the dishwasher so I can put them in the drawer. Still acts like Mr. Excitement when I pull out the vacuum, happy dance and then tries to take over. He is good at putting things in the garbage (whether they belong there or not). Uber cute little guy.

Sophia has been liking School this week and ASKING to GO. She especially fond of Miss Lauren who is there on Fridays. Unfortunately not so fond of the other one who is there Tues and Wed's. "Yucky Miss Sue" - sigh...

Close Encounters with Coyote-kind

So, this morning started off... differently. Early in the morning before taking Sophia to school I looked out the kitchen and saw a "wolf" in the playground. I went to get the camera and was bummed it had disappeared, then I saw ANOTHER. Ok, not as cool. Then after taking Sophia to school I was waiting for Dylan to finish his nap and heard this yelping, whining and howling noise from "the hills". Even less cool. After Dylan woke from his nap I decided to try hit the gym with him for the first time, despite these viruses we are fighting. I get us out the door, shut the locked door and start heading for the car. I look up and RIGHT THERE is that "wolf" again. AHHHH! Super NOT cool. He was at the edge of the drive way and I had to turn my back on it, fumble with my keys and try not to panic (my heart failed that last part - major panic). At this point I decide to contact the police knowing I would have to leave the house eventually to get Sophia. They had already been contacted and a few minutes later I saw them in the park (probably alerted to the car alarm Dylan had set off with my keys which I had trouble turning off with that dying battery in the key chain). This gave me my chance to safely leave the house, so I decided to go ahead with that gym adventure. I did some errands to kill time so I wouldn't have to go home and then went to get Sophia. I took the park road back to scope out the situation and was glad to see a police car on the road. He was there as that road has been detoured for the past week and a half and was most likely keeping non-resident cars away (yay!). Anyway, I asked him about the "wolves" and he said they were actually coyotes and that he didn't know anything about what is up with them. Great. I will be staying SUPER local today. Like at home. inside. Safe. Secure.

The "weigh-in"

Dylan had his follow-up appointment today and though his weight just crept up keeping him at 9th percentile, his height JUMPED TWO INCHES! He is now 33" and sitting pretty back in the upper 80's percentile in height. Here I thought he was eating better and may have added a little more weight. Guess I will have to go back to trying to sneaking in some healthy fats (Halloween candy is NOT considered one of the healthy fats, boohoo). He is also back on antibiotics to kick his bug once and for all. I decided to go ahead and "cash in" on the prescription given to me on Friday and see if they can get rid of my bug too for the holidays.

Sophia had another good day at school, yay!

One step closer

Dylan has gotten one step closer to being potty trained (haha). Now when he joins me for my tinkle he insists on me opening the lid of Sophia's training potty and sits himself down. Then today he went even further and after getting up he pulled up on his pants as though he were pulling them up.

Dylan's Soccer skills are being honed by Ethan too. He has just spent the last ten or so minutes kicking the ball (with great control) around the room.

Today is also a significant day as it is the first time Sophia has ASKED to go to school. I was kicking myself that it wasn't a school day - grrrr. She asked repeatedly all day to go. I hope she doesn't lose this enthusiasm tomorrow for the real deal.

Poncho update: 32" at approx 6 rows per inch and 106 stitches per row, means I have knit roughly 20, 352 stitches over the past week and a half. Only 10, 176 to go...

Roller coasters

So, today was kind of like a roller coaster. There were extreme ups and downs. Dylan FOUR new molars all cutting through at once have thrown him into fits of pain. Sophia had her own mysterious meltdown too at 4pm when I wouldn't take her to the mall (I had offered at 3.3o, but she declined). Anyway, I was glad to end the day with an extreme mommy moment with Dylan. He is SOOOO cuddly. A few nights ago I leaned in and gave him a hug while toweling him off from his bath. He responded with grabbing me back and giving me a super hug. The past couple nights he looks forward to this during towel-off and starts reaching for me. These hugs are getting longer and tighter. LOVE IT. Then as I sang to him (with my horrible horse and crackling voice) tonight he crawled up and buried his head in my neck and we sang like that for about 5 minutes. Ahhhhhh.

This picture if for you, Emily. Dylan likes to get in on the wiggle walk outfit action too. Maybe I should pass this on out west for the boys out there... Get all the grand kids in on the action.

Sophia

A couple new developments with Sophia. First one I have been meaning to record is our post-bath pantie cart. You know when you are at a restaurant and they bring around the dessert cart for you to choose your dessert? Well, I feel a lot like that waiter with Sophia's pantie box. I bring her the box and she peruses the panties she wants to wear. Kind of fun.

Monsters. Sophia has also become obsessed with monsters lately and we do a monster check under her bed, in her closet and under the sheets before naps and bedtime. Not sure where she picked up on these monsters, but it has become a ritual.

Lamby play. I love listening to Sophia's babblings to Lamby as she plays with him. She usually recounts things that happen in her life and role play with Lamby. Take school, for instance. She holds Lamby with care and asks him "what's wrong? why are you crying" "I will be back after lunch" This is what happens on most school days when I drop Sophia off at school. She also teaches Lamby other little"lessons" that she has been taught. Talks to him about having a time out, haha.

Dylan has sprouted molars 3 and 4 on the bottom. Just felt them this morning. Crazy!

I'm a loser, baby...

Ok, so I am a complete idiot. I remind myself of one of those stories passed around on email. You know, the one where the woman forgets her keys and gets "locked" in her car and calls AAA or NSTAR to get her out. They end up directing her to manually unlock the door... Well, I called AAA after getting home and realizing Dylan would not go down for his am nap and couldn't bear to be around the house all day. After waiting for half an hour, a truck arrives. The guy gets in the car and starts it. I was shocked, and said "it just started?" And he replied "yes, it was in reverse". IDIOT. I looked around for a small hole to crawl into, but none could be found so I scurried inside with my tail between my legs.

"Happy" Friday

It is only 8.30 and already today has been terrible. I got the kids in the car to take Sophia to school and when I went to start the car, NOTHING. Tried a few more times, nothing. Went to take the keys out of the ignition, STUCK. Left keys, got kids unbuckled and into "Evil" B.O.B. I was about to head out when Sophia reminded me how daddy fixed the tire (for litteraly the 10th time). I decided to just give it a check and YUP, went flat AGAIN. Luckily we have the old double and I packed the kids in there and ran off to get Sophia to school. At least I'm not sick. Oh, wait. That's right. My head hurts.

Ray of sunshine: Sophia was NOT unhappy when I left her at school. She didn't cry, and sweetly said good-bye and that she would see me after lunch! A rare send of for me. Second ray is that I will have some exercise with the stroller today, though, admittedly unnecessarily painful due to the bug I am nurturing.

Funny D

Dylan has some pretty cute Dylan-isms. The obsession with vacuums, for one. He will spit his food out on the floor and then run to the kitchen and make noises under the hand vacuum to clean it up. Another food related ism is how he plops himself on the floor at the suggestion off food. I guess I have offered him too many "picnics" on the floor while trying to get stuff done. Now adays when I pat the floor motioning to get him to come for a diaper change, he instead comes over and copies me patting the floor.

Smart as a whip this boy. Yesterday I was trying to get Sophia off the couch to get her own water from the kitchen. She kept saying "Wadder" and Dylan cued into this and next thing I know it he is coming back from the kitchen and handing Sophia her sippy cup. Sophia has also taught Dylan how to say "hi" during one of her store greeter stints. For someone is very she, she really likes to greet people when we are out and about.

So we just spent 15 minutes out in the rain while Sophia played in the sandbox and Dylan raked leaves. Oh, and yes, pick a few more RASPBERRIES still ripening on the bushes. I also notice some of the BULBS I planted this fall are coming out of the ground???!!!

Life is Grand

I have now been dealing with this bug over two weeks. The first week and a half were bearable - mild headache, nausea, yuck cough and nose. Then it stepped up a notch on the weekend just in time for Ethan's trip to Florida. I had taken Dylan to the Dr. Friday as he was having the same goo oozing from him and his started sooner. I was trying to hold off on myself - ride this one out. Well, yesterday things kicked in high gear shutting down my right sinuses - eye, ear and nose. Throat now sore too, SO, I decided I would have to bite the bullet and make an appointment and drag the kids to it. I got a 3.30 appointment and thought that would work out well. Wrong. I arrived 15 minutes early only to learn the doctor was running about half an hour late. Great. Two toddlers stuck in a waiting room for 45minutes. Sophia was very social to all the other patients (all of whom were seen before us, even the ones who arrived much later). So, the last patient there, I got seen and was told I have a couple things, but with two kids who have already been patient for an hour and were now ready to burst, who can remember what was said. I have some kind of infection in my eye and another virus. The eye is apparently VERY contagious. I was told to throw out all my make up (lucky I don't wear any), my contacts, their case, the solution, wash the pillowcases, etc... I am thinking it was just the eye that is contagious, but I don't know and will have to wait until tomorrow when they have the swab results. Hopefully the kids will be sleeping so I can concentrate.

I am not sure what is worse - the wait at the doctor office with the kids or the pharmacy. I get so grouchy going there. The doctor faxed the prescription in at 4.30 and I arrived at 5.10. I had to wait another 30 minutes to get it. Again there were a ton of people there, most came AFTER me and they were all taken care of first. I began to let Dylan just cry and scream a little to light a fire. Then I get the prescription only to find they didn't fill BOTH. So I had to wait again.

Not my favorite day. I want my mommy. I was so glad to get the kids down - songs and stories on a sore throat isn't my favorite either.

Happy dance

Dylan really loves the vacuum. He gets so excited when I pull it out that he does his little happy dance around the room (moving his feet really fast and walking on his tip toes). I have been saving vacuuming for when the kids are getting fussy. Sophia will zone out in front of the TV and Dylan follows me around the house, touching and staring at the vacuum. He makes me give him a try even though the vacuum is far to heavy for him to lift. Still very amusing.

Why?

Yup, that questioned has finally surfaced. Sophia has been asking "why mamma" lately. She has also taken up "How you doing" and I can't help but think of the slang-y "how YOU doin'?"
Another busy weekend has past, only this weekend we didn't really go anywhere. Chores, into Boston this morning, Houghton's pond where BOB got yet ANOTHER flat tire. What is it now - 8? Hope the kids adjust to the new wake up time (forgot about it this morning...)

365.25

So, there are now 365.25 (approx) days until next Halloween. WHEW! We got a lot of mileage out of this year's Hallows Eve. Started the weekend before at Boo at the Zoo. Then, on Thursday, the kids were suited up again to go to a Halloween party. Friday Sophia got suited up at school for a little parade up the street and back. That afternoon we took advantage of the plethora of leaves on the east side of our house and raked up a big pile to jump in. The kids then napped and when they woke started to get excited for the trick or treating. Well, Sophia was. Pe-pere was here and played with the monkeys in the leaves while I madly carved up our pumpkins which I had COMPLETELY forgot about all afternoon AND made dinner. Dinner was nothing to write home about, but was a factor in my time management. I carved a mini monkey-kin to tie into the kids monkey costumes and a "scary" big pumpkin with horns to tie in with Ethan's horns that he wore for the festivities. I had done bunny-kins for Sophia's bunny costume year and cat-kins last year for her kitty costume. I guess I have started a tradition?

Well, Sophia's mind was fixated on treats all through dinner and couldn't wait to get out there on the streets begging for candy. We tried to wait until it was dark. By 6 it was close enough and we hit our first house across the street. Sophia was SO cute. She would go up to the door, say ding dong, then press the bell. When the door was answered she tooted "trick or treat, please!" I was so proud of her adding that please in there. I never even prompted that! Then as she would leave she would wish the candy giver a happy Halloween and then command us "next house". Dylan caught on pretty quick and would scramble to the next house and dig into the candy bowls. They really were the cutest kids in the neighborhood :) SEVEN pounds (literally) of candy and an hour later we returned to the house and put our sugar junkies to bed. Now I am trying to figure out what to do with 7lbs of candy. I can't stand to hear Sophia asking for it everyday. In addition to the loot we hauled in we have about 7lbs of candy that is left over from our own bowl UGH. Did I mention I joined a gym? HA! yup, el cheapo gym up the street. I wonder why joining gyms after Halloween isn't as big a thing as after Christmas... There is a lot of candy to be had. Visit our shutterfly photo page to see our little monkeys in action.

Anyway, there are a bunch of cute kids things happening each day that I keep forgetting to record. I will do my best now to jot some down...

Dylan and dishes. He is actually becoming helpful when I unload the dishes from the washer (well, when he is not trying to climb in it or close the door on me). Yes, he likes to take out the utensils one by one and hand them to me to put away.

Competitive loving. I love it when one of the kids is in my arms getting snuggles and hugs, etc... and the other will take note and barrel on over and try to get in on the action. Usually this is Dylan coming in from behind and slobbering all over my back, or as of lately, leaving a smear of nose goo.

Spontaneous friendships. We were at Houghton's pond today and in the little visitor's hut. A little girl about Sophia's age came in with her dad and they instantly started laughing and chasing, and oh yes, screaming with each other as though they were best friends. They would run to one bench then the next, laughing and having so much fun. Sophia looked like she was kind of hitting the little girl as she does when she gets excited with Dylan, so I intervened and said not hit, high five! Then they ran around high fiving each other (though their aim left something to be desired).

I know there are more of these fun little things, but my memory is a blank. Could be the sugar, could be this virus - who knows. I will try to record as I remember.

My head hurts

This could be from a number of reasons. I do have a cold and a cough and each cough sends a little burst of pain up there. And oh, yes, there is that lack of sleep thing. Last night was SOOOOO irritating. I had a full and stressful day yesterday and was probably a little worked up from that. Not a good day to decided to try skipping the allergy (sleep) medicine I have been hooked on. I went to bed around 9.30, tossed and turned until about midnight, got up to tend to Dylan, went back to bed only to decided to try getting UP and doing the crossword downstairs a bit. Went back to bed around 12.30 and tossed and turned until Dylan needed me again around 1am (poor little guy is STILL sick, hello, over two weeks later now!). Fell asleep at some point only to have my "alarm" go off at 5am. Oh, D... Of course HE is making up for last nights' lack of sleep now, and here I am... Typing... Afraid to close my eyes for I know the second I do, he will wake up.

molars

Ok, so Dylan now has two new molars and is letting us know how he feels about it. Constantly. Let me paint the picture. He cries and fusses so I go to pick him up. Then he squirms in my arms, cries and fusses. I put him down as my tolerance for the crying in my ear wanes as does my ability to keep a grasp of his writhing body. I put him down. Repeat...

Longest day

So, I started the day at the crack of dawn. Oh wait, the sun doesn't rise at 5am anymore, does it. Dylan AND Sophia got me out of bed and I was none too pleased. This cold this I have received from the kids is getting worse everyday - nice headache to wake up to each day. Kids were fussing, so by 7am I had the vacuum out and started cleaning the house. Dylan is mesmerized by the vacuum and it usually is good for capturing his attention. The house WAS filthy, so off I went. Started in the living room and he followed me around the house. I was only interrupted a few times when he strayed, tried to climb on something and fell, bursting into tears. Got him down for his nap at 8.15am and then started to think of "what to do next". We decided on the Science Museum and hit that when Dylan woke up. Had a fine time there, aside from Sophia's fussy outbursts. Made it home by 12.30 and as I made lunch Sophia requested a nap. D, Ethan and I all ate our ham sandies outside enjoying the warm sunny weather. After the kids woke from their afternoon naps we hooked up the boat and went down to Scituate. Got the boat in the water (even though Ethan just winterized it that morning) and hit the "Spit". We had a fun time running on the rippled sand and got home around 5.30pm. I got the burgers and beans cooking while Ethan re-winterized the boat. Ethan finished up his stuff while I bathed and tucked in the kids and then cleaned up from dinner. I think I have redefined "pooped". This cold I have, for lack of a better word, sucks.

Pictures to follow...later.

Boo at the Zoo

Tried the kids' costumes out today. I have been nervous that Sophia would reject it and I would have to bribe her with candy to wear it. Not So! Well, almost not. I DID say there would be candy at the zoo and she needed her costume. Well, she sure wanted it on fast. We got the kids dressed after D's morning nap and headed to Franklin Park Zoo. We got there just in time for the festivities. Started with the walk down the main path, getting treats at tables on the way, went through the gorilla exhibit and then hitched a train ride back to the start. Entered the 12 o'clock costume contest and the kids WON for the 0-6yrs Animal category. YAY!

Next stop was the carousel and after the sugar was coursing well through the kids veins, we headed home. A pretty good morning, I'd say! See our pictures on Shutterfly!

Itching to knit

So, now that my neck cozy is complete, I would like to get onto the next thing. Thinking mittens and hats for the kids and a nice cozy "shoulder shrug thing-y" for me. Winter is coming and as I sit here on the couch next to the windows - even with the shades down - I feel a chill and would love a little warmth without having to put on a sweater. Like a wearable afghan. I think I will start on this first. Fat yarn, fat needles, should go fast, right?

I finally uploaded Thanksgiving pictures to Shutterfly. I get so frustrated these day with uploading. I started on Shutterfly, now I have a blog and then there is facebook. I want each site to have the pictures embedded in their own site but do not want to upload and write captions three times. I suppose I will stick with my current method, even though I don't like it.

Night out

We had our first night out with a sitter for both kids yesterday. We had a neighbor look after Sophia once over a year ago and she basically came and watched tv while we went out to dinner. Our neighbor was having a party, so we needed to put off the task we have been able to avoid until now - sitter hunt. Thanks to my mom's group, I was recommended a GREAT sitter. Such a nice girl! I spent my spare moments during the day cleaning the house ... for the sitter. We don't do this often, so I dug deep into my childhood memories of being a sitter myself and tried to think what was provided for me. I do recall the houses to be VERY clean, drinks available...? I also remember standing on my head to get the blood flowing to keep myself awake, but I digress. Not the point here. What are you supposed to offer your sitter? We had a netflix DVD in the house and I bought some chips, dug up some Halloween candy and set out some fruit. (She didn't have any of it, by the way).

Anyway, I gave the kids their bath and put Dylan to bed, leaving Sophia in the tub. Ethan left to get the sitter and I read to Sophia, telling her daddy had to go to the store. We chose not to tell her we were leaving as we thought she would have a hard time going to bed. I was nervous, though, as the last few nights she has been lingering at bedtime, calling to me after I put her down AND having to go poop. I asked her over and over during bath if she had to go and she said no. So, down I went. I felt better knowing we were going to be across the street should an incident occur. I met the sitter and felt great about her, and extremely awkward about myself and the situation. Tried to give her the lo' down for the night (most likely saying too much - water is in the fridge??) We then left for our party and were having a good time. I kept checking my phone, yet no calls. We also noticed what a great view they have into our living room. We had the shades half drawn and I could practically see which show she was selecting off the guide channel (I literally DID see the guide channel come up). When we got home, she said that Sophia did call out for me a bunch of times and then even started coming down the stairs! She also said that she told her that I had stepped out for a minute and asked if she wanted to go back to bed. Sophia was COOL with this, said ok and asked if she wanted to see her pink room. She introduced her to Lamby and then went to bed. HA!

Today I rewarded myself for going out last night by giving in to my year long desire to own a leisure suit. Express has them, but they are very expensive for "leisure wear" in my opinion. It IS very comfy and I kind of feel a little "hollywood-ish" in it. You know - the stars stepping out in their "sweats", yet still manage to look good? I am feeling it. I think Ethan is as taken with it as I am and I can expect to see one in black under the tree this year, haha.

Knitting re-birth

I learned to knit when I was about 10 or so and managed to knit a sweater, booties for my cabbage patch kid, scarves... under the direction and apprenticeship of my mother. 25 or so years have past and this experience has become all but a distant memory. I have been getting the itch for the past year to pick up some needles and knit the kids some simple, yet, sentimental (at least for my part) sweaters or hats. Only problem is that my mentor is now in another time zone than me. I therefore signed up for the "Mom night out Knitting" event. I was armed with a bottle of sparkling water and hit the town. Went pretty well and I am up to speed on the basic knit project. I made a "neck cozy" last night (finished up during pm nap today) and am raring to go on a hat. Only problem is, I don't know how to read a pattern, and if I were to make a mistake mid way through - drop a stitch or something, I would be S.O.L. hmmmm.
Here is the lovely Sophia all excited about what mommy produced at school last night. Dylan was a little more apathetic.
Here is Dylan doing his finest "blue steel" pose.

Sick

So Dylan is officially sick. And he isn't limp baby about it. Nope, after waking up about 4 times last night he has been a real "gem" this morning. Crying for everything and then swatting it away. Wanting to be held and then struggling to get away. It is one of those difficult mom days where you know your little one is suffering, yet his fussing makes the sympathy a little forced to give and patience is wafer thin. Ooops, there it went, just snapped again - duct tape anyone?

Shorter days?

So, I thought in the fall the days were supposed to be getting shorter. Apparently our house has been caught in some kind of worm hole and we are still on summer time. Dylan woke at a cheery 4am. I went to him and rocked and sang and put him back down. I then both tried to fall asleep while staying awake to listen for him to see if he would fall asleep. This makes sense only to a mother, or at least a mother with early risers. So, by 5am I thought I was out of the woods and then was roused by Sophia at 5.20 calling to me. I tried to go to her and cover her up and get her to sleep, but noooooo, she said she had to go poo poo. Great. At least she woke for it. I was still determined to put her back to bed after mission was accomplished. The effort was not a speedy affair. She finally was done and then I heard Dylan making noise again. SIGHHH. No more sleep for me. I think my kids have systematically dispelled all the old wives tales about kids. "oh, they are waking early because it is brighter in the morning during the summer. They will sleep later when the sun gets up later" WRONG.

So, Dylan has been super cute with his clapping lately. You just have to start singing a few bars to a song and he will start clapping to the beat. Then when you get to the end, he lifts his hands over his head and shouts "hurray!"

Sophia is back into extreme mommy mode again too. I believe this is a reaction to her going to school now. She cries "miss mommy" while I am sitting in the room. She is wanting to be with me all the time and has been crying when I leave her at the daycare/ school. So frustrating.

Pun'kins, pun'kins, everywhere - PUN'KINS!

We spent the first day of Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend at a pumpkin patch in Sharon. We took a hayride out to the patch, chose a pumpkin while Sophia cried all done, no pumpkin, got back on the wagon and hit the playground, capping out visit off feeding some sheep and then feeding ourselves some yummy Spanish cheese and Iggy bread. It sounds more Normal Rockwell than it actually was. There was a lot of crankiness on the part of a little someone we know. But a beautiful day, none the less and I would be happy to try again next fall.

School days, rotten poopy school days.

Sophia didn't do well today. She cried when I left and was "cranky" and crying the whole time after I left. When I got her I felt so bad for her. She was alone at the lunch table (other kids already laying down for a nap) and she was upset. I tried to get there at least at noon (not before as I had other days) as I wanted to give her a chance to eat her lunch. Every other time she was still finishing lunch and the other kids were too. I didn't double check my watch, but I couldn't have been more than 12.02. So, I was pretty surprised to see everyone laying down. I was also put off by the girl in charge (not even the normal teacher) who seemed pretty indifferent to Sophia's disposition. Kind of got the impression her attitude was "she is upset, whatever.". There is a chance Sophia could be coming down with something as she was pretty "cranky" (as the child care person put it) this afternoon. There was also a little girl that I noticed had red blotchy parts on her face that is common when kids have colds - runny nose, watery eyes... So, it is highly possible Sophia is getting this cold. The good news if she IS sick tomorrow is that I have a reason for her being upset today. The bad news is that she will be sick and then Dylan will get sick. Boo hoo.

Potty trained at 15 months

So, Dylan is now potty trained. Ok, pick your jaw up off the floor. He doesn't actually pee on the toilet, however, he now gets his own diaper whenever he wants a change, lays on the rug "in the position", waits for the change and then takes the balled up diaper and puts it in the trash all on his own. SO CUTE! I much prefer this to the major struggles we were having not long ago trying to get him to lay still for the change. At one point I was even holding his legs down with my leg so I could have both hands to manage the rest of the change.

15 mo plus a day

So, looks like three months doesn't get you much these days. Dylan had his 15 month appointment today and has not grown a hair (in height) dropping him from 84th percentile to 47th, gained a scant 1/2 pound, again dropping from 18th percentile to 9th, and no more teeth. His head, however, did manage to expand another 1.5cm to 48.25cm. Grandparents beware - if you are knitting hats, make them a little bigger.

My poor little guy just doesn't eat enough. GRRRR.

A weekend in Maine

We were up in Maine this past weekend for a baby shower and enjoyed some brisk Maine air.
So, who says little boys need to wear blue? This pink jacket of his sister's works just fine. Mid morning popcorn picnic on black sand island.
As promised: the lip.
Mandy's shower.
And who can resist a picture of Buck on his Truck. Yes, I think we will save this one for his first date...