First morning of Preschool

Today is the first morning Sophia will be away from me and NOT be with a grandparent. My baby bird is SO far from the nest. About 10 minutes by foot! Our car is in the shop and Ethan took the truck, so I hoofed it to her preschool (good way to get some exercise). I brought her in and left quickly and saw a little dazed look on her face that I am sure will be replace with some tears. I met with the director yesterday for about half an hour and left Sophia with the teacher and there were tears for that. Poor little S. I hope she forgets I am gone for a while and has some fun!

We started the morning getting dressed. I thought she was so cute and all set, but apparently I forgot something... Ahhhh, yes! NOW she is ready. Silly me, forgetting the goggles!
When we got home Dylan sensed his big sis was gone and it was just the two of us. He got all giddy and started running around the dining room table laughing and screeching and coming in for a hug after each lap. Then he had a poop and went down for a nap.

He just doesn't stop

So, Dylan is incapable of sitting still for more than a millisecond. He is sick with a cold and yet right from the crack of 5.30am he has been on the go. He just doesn't stop moving. At this moment he is crawling in circles under and around the table and now moving to the living room. He sat for about a minute to eat lunch and then got out, up on a chair to turn the light on and off a hundred times, then over to a toy, then made a few laps on the ride-on-truck around the house and so on. He comes in for a pit stop and litter ally pants as he sucks back some fluids. I am getting tired just trying to think about all his movements. So glad he is in a good mood today unlike two days ago that were... trying.

Phases

So, Sophia is not unique. Well, at least with regards to her once affinity towards housework. When she was learning to walk, she was obsessed with the broom. In part as a means to help her walk and in part just to sweep. Well, Dylan has now entered that phase. For the past week or so he has been OBSESSED with the broom. Not just one broom, but all brooms (except the toy one), especially if they are being used by me. He digs them out from beside the fridge, pushes them around the house, hits a wall or other obstacle, cries/ screeches until someone (me) sets the broom free and the vicious cycle continues. He is equally fascinated with the hand vacuum.

A new part of our bed time routine now includes banana in the bath. Dylan usually doesn't eat a good dinner so I worry he will be hungry and wake up earlier than he normally does, so I have started feeding him bananas before bed and he has come to like and expect this. For a kid who hated them as an infant when "all" babies are supposed to love them, he is making up for lost time now.

A composting we will go.

So, I bought a compost "barrel" from the city of Quincy last week. I held off putting it together because I didn't have a suitable indoor food pot. I was hoping for a metal pot that was light and had a lid. It also was to be easy to clean. After going to a Marshalls, Ikea, Job Lot and the grocery store and all failing miserably I held out hope on Christmas Tree Stores. I finally made it there this morning and though this is heavier and more breakable than I would like, it is the right size and for $4, fits the bill for now. I did some yard work yesterday and got the compost started and will fill it with some kitchen waste today. Go Environment.

Running Wish list

So, near Christmas and birthdays my mind draws a blank when asked what to get the kids (or me). So, I have had some thoughts on this and decided to make a list here and keep updating it over the months. If anyone wants to get the kids something (mostly for the doting grandparents, I guess), here is the place to look! I just found a great little Toy Store in Hanover that had a bunch of these items. Called "the Toy Box" (not the same as "My Toy Box")

Both Sophia and Dylan

Dr. Seuss Books

• Classic stories (ie. Goldie Locks, Never Cry Wolf, Three Little Pigs...
• Dr.'s Kit
• Toy Vacuum
• Slippers - preferably the heal-less variety, sillier the better. They currently fight over one bunny slipper (where the other is I don't know). I would like them to have a pair that stay on well too (shoe kind) to keep their feet warm on frosty mornings.

Sophia

• Doll House furniture (living room, dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms(parent and kid) and bathroom. There are two rooms in the attic that could be playrooms or studio type furniture. Dolls for dollhouse. "Calico Critters" are the right scale for the doll house and have lots of furniture. Plan Toys also have the right scale furniture for our doll house.
• Wiggle walk clothes (dresses, skirts that are easy to play in everyday)
• leggings to match wiggle walk attire
• nightgown
• jewelry
• new pink purse w/ phone (has one, but ready for an upgrade), keys, wallet...
• lip smackers (remember those? They used to have them stuffed into candycanes and "books")
• Toy kitchen appliances - coffee maker, toaster, mixer...
• Rose petal Cottage (not megapackage, just shell)
• IKEA table and chairs
• ironing board w/ iron
• Playdough set (ie, barber shop, ones with playdough moulds, etc...)

Dylan

• Tool bench - with board that has places to screw in toy screws, different tools with it too.
• train table
• train bridges for set
• More trains
• Miele toy vacuum cleaner

Cindy

• Apron
• wood cooking utensils
• LLB packable slippers, charcoal or raspberry, XS
• vacuum bag sealer
• electirc griddle
• Express velour suit in black, small

IKEA

Ikea still holds about the most fun of all the places we go. I took the kids there yesterday and they literally were screaming as they ran through the bubble "car wash" over and over and over again. Dylan fell about a million times and after a brief cry and kiss from mom he would get back to it each time.

Hair front:
Well, I am getting more used to my hair, I guess. Not as dorky as that barrette picture I posted, still no like it, though.

Sophia Stuff

Sophia has become a little mini me. I love watching and listening to her play with Lamby. She cares for him (and reprimands him) the same way I do her. She was "play grocery shopping" with her new cart and was telling Lamby -"no treats". She also tells him no treats before dinner when making him food. She was carrying him around playing "night night" and singing lullabies as she hears me do with Dylan. Then yesterday she put him on her potty and went in and gave him a hug as I do sometimes when she is "going to business" on the potty and can use a little support. Nothing says love like giving hugs on the potty, right? It always melts my heart when I hear her repeat back things I tell her spontaneously through out the day. We have been doing the potty training a while now and she is doing quite well. I keep telling her she has to take down and pull up her pants on her own to go to school (which she is very eager at this point to do), so I heard her saying pants down pants up go to school the other day.

Sophia had a new phrase this morning that took me by surprise. I was tickling her feet and she turns with a smile and says "no bug Sophia, mama". BUG? Where did she learn that?!

Sophia is also becoming a real big sister, offering Dylan toys when he is crying and repremanding HIM - no throw food on floor, baby!

It is fun watching Dylan copying everything. He likes to sit on the step and wait for his shoes to go on. This morning he sat down while Ethan was eating his cheerios and waved and said "bye". He really likes to practice sitting down - backs up and carefully plops down on some low surface.

Pink

So, I used to think that little girls loved the color pink because "pink of for girls, and blue is for boys". Then everyone buys them pink and blue things respectively in addition to when they are older have influence of other friends in love with pink and wanting to be alike. Well, Sophia doesn't go to school yet, and her wardrobe is quite varied. She probably only has about 3 pink items. Yet... this week pink has been her favorite color. She keeps referring to her room as Sophia's pink room, asks to wear pink this and that. Today she wanted to get a new pink back pack. Funny.

Another boy/ girl attribute that I didn't realize kicked in so much is how much more daring boys are. Dylan continues to throw caution to the wind everyday. Teetering on anything and everything - back of a chair, dump truck toys, blocks of wood... He has no fear with the slide anymore either. The one beside our house is very steep and even I think it is too fast. Sophia didn't dare going down it by herself until this summer and yet, at 14 months Dylan stands at the top, sits down, and flies down it to my arms waiting to catch him before he flies off.

The kids ARE alike in their need for hugs, kisses and need to be carried around. I can be bad mommy and plunk Sophia in front of the TV now while I prepare dinner, however, Dylan is filling Sophia's old shoes and hangs around at my feet, circling around my legs, crying and complaining until I pick him up - Just as Sophia did at this age. Sighhhh, so good that he is SO cute.

Costume front

So, it seems despite being "funny looking" to me, Sophia took to the "sizing sample" quite fondly. I tried them on Dylan first and they weren't TOO bad. Then on Sophia and they actually fit. I think they will be fine especially since they will be made of stretchy fleece. Once I had the sample on Sophia, she would not let me take them off (even though they kept slipping down as there was no elastic in the waist.).

Today I modified the onsie pattern for Sophia as she is bigger than the pattern is made for (she is 37" tall and it's max height is 32"). Fingers crossed it fits. I think I will err on the side of being too big, however, hope that it isn't TOO big. Part of the reason I am making my own pattern is that I don't like the one piece patterns out there - too bulkie and I want these to be lean.

"The Experiment"

So, I finally decided to try and rid us of plastic Tupperware. I haven't made anything final - still have a bag of "5's and 2's" hanging in the laundry room, but I went to target and bought a bunch of glass food storage containers. As of right now, I foresee the biggest obstacles to be dishwasher space (don't seem to stack as well) and heavy weight. I plan to make soup soon and will try using the pickle jars to freeze it in that I have amassing in the "pantry" below the stairs.

On another note, I am yet again sticking it to myself and making the kids' costumes this year. Only problem, I haven't been able to find a good pattern. I found a hood in one pattern that may work. I was going to use a onsie and legging pattern for the rest, but was unable to find a legging one. The onsie is small, but I hope to be able to enlarge it. I sewed a trial pair of leggings from a pattern I tried to make myself. They look... funny. seem to get really narrow at the hips. hmmmm. I will try them on Sophia when she wakes and see what I can do about that...

Bad mommy hair.

As requested, here are some hair pic's. This first one is of me arriving home from the slaughter house. The funniest thing is how Dylan just stared at me for the longest time. Like, "who are you and what have you done to my mother's hair". Here I am today trying to cope with the crop on top my head. Without the barrette it is one giant POOF. Anyone know of any good "hair elixirs?

Late Summer weekend

So, we had a pretty decent weekend. Well, aside from my hair slaughtering. Saturday got a lot of chores done. It was SO hot and muggy that I cancelled the hike I was going to do with some fellow moms (also poured the night before and would have been very wet in addition to 88 and muggy). Instead, I decided to "go shorter". BIG MISTAKE. My hair is crazy and now it is short and crazy and lets not forget ugly. Will it grow faster if I let the kids yank on it?

We had a nice time at the beach (good low tide) with the kids despite my hair "issues". Both kids had fun splashing around. If only they felt this way about water at the BEGINNING of the summer. Sigh.... NEXT year...

On a separate note... Dylan has had a large bruise under his chin for about a week now. At first it was bothersome to me that I didn't know how it happened and every time I have seen it, it has made me sad and mad at myself for not being more careful watching him. (though it could have happened when I was not around, but none the less, I am bothered). Then today after bath it looked like it was healing and decided to touch it. It feels like he chipped the bone maybe? Now I feel sick about that. When he hurts himself he seems to cry hard for a few minutes and then nothing. So it is hard to see if he is really hurt. Today, for example he tripped at the playground and cried. I picked him up, cuddled and checked his hands and face for scrapes and didn't see anything. He stopped crying, so I figured he was ok. Then in the car on the way home I saw a big scrape on his elbow. Poor little man!

Fun in the tub.

What are YOU looking at? True, True, I AM pretty handsome.
Please, don't embarrass yourself. I am not a Greek God. Demi-god, maybe.
After his bath, Dylan took to parading around the bathroom in Sophia's old bath towel. Bashful, he is not.
So, kids are still sick. I think I may be getting "it". I have kissed enough "nose swept" cheeks to have absorbed plenty of germs. Sophia really seems to me to have turned a new leaf. Can't put my finger on it, but I think it is her communication skills. She is able to say things more clearly - saying yeS, instead of ya, for instance. Putting more words into her phrases. Growing up!

Sophia also took to enjoying water again today. We came back to the yard around 6.15pm and she started with her feet in the cold splash pool water. Then the skirt came off. Then the undies. Then she wanted to "swim" and insisted her shirt come off too. I allowed this until the neighborhood kids started riding their bikes on the street. I am sure they couldn't see anything, but I didn't want her to be too "exposed". She would not let me put anything back on once inside either. Made it easier to get her in the tub?