Labor Day Weekend

Started our weekend getting this 2003 Acura MDX

Entertained over the weekend with a little of this.

Ended the weekend picking up this table.

Was a fun and busy weekend.  Love the new additions.  With the start of school approaching, we needed to do something about adding extra seats to our vehicles.  Ethan found this one listed and it met our needs.  Love having the third row and used all 7 seats this weekend with our family visiting.  Then I used the FULL trunk capacity putting both back rows of seats down and scrunching up the front seats (ouch) to slide the NEW dining table into the back to get it home.  FINALLY have a matching dining room set.  YAY!  love it.  it is really big and can fit another leaf into it to make it giant.  Six fit around now, and I am sure 8 will comfortably fit with the leaf.  Have the protection pad on order.

Kids start school on Wednesday - well, Sophia does.  Dylan starts the following monday.  Little birdies leaving the nest...

Ya, ya, ya. Long time no write. I get it.

So, it has been since Jack passed away.  Well, school ended, summer happened, seasons changed and so must I.  Yup.  Ok, let me back up. 

After Jack's untimely death, our lives went on.  Sophia finished Kindergarten and Dylan graduated from Preschool.  I was psyched to receive a letter early in July stating he would be attending Beachwood Knoll with his big sister Sophia (they are out of district, so there were no guarantees).  That off my shoulders I was able to let loose.  Had a water party (part II) for Dylan's 5th birthday before heading to Winnipeg.  I think we pulled it off successfully.  About 30 people, blow-up pool, belly slide, squirt guns...  usual fair.  Dylan's main gift interest was Star Wars lego, and he was dully rewarded.  About 5 kits age range 9-14 on average and he had about 3 finished before we left for Canada.  Finished the others off a few days upon return. 
I had a super great visit home this year.  We were there 2.5 weeks and I wished it was longer.  My sister and her family arrived a few days after us and the kids all got along so well.  We had our fill of focaccia bread each day at 5 for "happy hour".  Ainley and I had our fill of G&T's one night to last, well, until next year, haha.  I was super excited to have my Lana spend a few days with us in their camper.  Going to have to pretend NKOTB are coming back to town to haul her butt back here...

We returned end of July and loaded up the fridge, hit the beach and unloaded the fridge to head up to Maine for 10 days to visit up there.  Ethan sold the boat while we were in Canada, so our visit on Lake Andro was different from previous years.  We had a nice visit there and kids loved there time with grandparents and with our island neighbors.  That Ally, what a dream.  She was about 16 and was such a sweet heart.  Took Sophia under her wing and played with her on our few visits with them.

We are back home and I nervously emailed my old co-worker about work in the fall.  Dun, Dun Daaaaaa!  he bit.  I guess I am in like Flynn.  wow.  Am I ready?  Hope so!  Kids start school on the 5th and 10th and then mama goes back to work.  seasons change and so do I....  Wish me luck!

Hamster tragedy

So, about three weeks ago we got a couple hamsters- fuzzy beat and jack. Today we have one :(.
Sophia had a playdate today and things ended poorly. Sophia has troubles on playdates in playing with her friends. I believe she has trouble connecting or finding a way to play with another and ends up in the kitchen asking for food the whole time. I finally got her out and was giving her space to play with her friend. They were having fun with the hamsters, however, I think I should have been supervising more. Sophia is pretty good with them, but does get a little carried away sometimes and treats it like a toy. Her friend has a dog, but maybe didn't understand how fragile hamsters can be. Well, I was called upstairs to find the poor little guy kind of convulsing and then die :(
I think her friend broke his spine getting him out of the cage. I feel so bad for the hamster, Sophia and responsible for the incident for not supervising more closely. I am nervous hamster 2 may be injured too. If he is not hurt, I feel bad his little friend is no longer with him. Sad sad day.

Kid Candids

Haven't posted pics of the kids lately.  Here are a few candids...

 Asked Dylan to smile nicely for a picture of him in the sweater grandma knit him.  This is what I got.

 Phew!  Got one that shows his sweetness.

 She looks like a TEENAGER here.  Ok, at least grade 6, not 6 years old.

 Loved this day.  Cold, rainy, windy.  This is what Sophia chose to wear and went out to enjoy the weather.

 Dylan was hot.  I came in the room and this is what he was wearing.  His face is priceless.

Enjoying the March heat wave.

Photo tip: If you click on one of the pictures, you can view them all in a larger format and can go through all pictures in a photo album style.  Just found that out myself.

Life of Leisure

I tend to get irritated when comments are made about the activities of stay at home moms.  I have recently been upping my exercise and like posting my runs on Facebook.  Kind of a log for myself through another website that automatically posts to facebook when sent from my phone.  I had one comment "I want your life".  Simple enough, yet it upset me and made me recall other comments made to "my life".  Sure I don't report to an office 8 hours a day and get a paycheck at the end of the week.  This does not mean I do not work.  As in any job, you can be good at what you do, efficient in time management, productive... or lazy and do the bare minimum.  I feel I do the former and start my day between 6 and 6.30.  I start by immediately making kids lunches and snacks for school, making their breakfasts and ensuring they EAT those breakfasts.  The lunches are made with care and I cut up fresh fruit and provide a variety of wholesome foods that are not prepackaged and place them in reusable sandwich and snack bags that I sewed myself.  I get on the kids to be dressed and sometimes have to assist in this and we are out the door by 7.45am.  I do a double drop off - one at 8.15am and the second at 8.45am.  Some mornings there is even an errand done in between.  After dropping off Dylan I have my day planned and this includes my 35minute run.  I am organized so that I don't waste gas in my errands for the morning and run is inserted in a way that I can still get everything done.  I don't think anyone thinks an office parent is living a life of leisure when they go to the gym before or after work, yet, because my job isn't really viewed as a job, I am seen as having it easy.  There are stresses and challenges in all jobs and they are what you put into them.  I redid my bathroom, scraped and painted the house, do most of the house chores - trash, laundry, yard work, snow shoveling, cooking, cleaning and these chores are 7 days a week.  Sometimes I gripe about stuff and am told it was my choice to be here.  Yes, it was my choice and I don't regret it.  I can still have gripes about the bad stuff.  I had gripes at the office too.  Both were legit, yet staying at home I am supposed to suck it up and not complain?  I like to vent - (ahem, like now).  Keeps things from building up and having a blow out.  So, for all moms - working and at home: I respect you and feel we are all doing what we want, faced with challenges that may be different, but challenges none the less.  We work hard and should be proud of that.  I intend on getting back into the office life soon and will feel frustrations not being able to accomplish all that I have been able to while at home - maybe only hit one grocery store instead of the three or four I get to in order to save money.  I DO look forward to a cleaning lady :) and interacting with adults about adult issues.  Getting away from the kids to appreciate them more while we are together...  I am scared to re-enter this work force being out of date and touch with what has been happening.  But I am also looking forward to tying a part time gig and having a life outside the house.  I am not really "real housewife" material.  Not fluttering from one social gathering to the next like a lot of moms around here I know.  I don't sit at home buying fancy things for myself and home.  I do look forward to more money in the wallet so that I CAN do some updating though :)

So, that is that.  Snip snap snout.  This tales told out.

Spring skiing and the sillies

Went for our spring ski on Saturday.  Perhaps our last one of the season.  Kids did GREAT despite a rocky start.  Dylan did his first accidental rail and was having fun hopping on his skis as he went down the hill.  This hopping led him to the mini jump run and he had fun going over those.  Sophia was a little speed racer and I could barely keep up with her as she sped down the blues squares!

Another fun weekend activity was the big hamster event.  Sophia and Dylan got their first hamsters today!  Not sure if Dylan really wanted one - he was very hesitant and will not pick his up yet.  We decided to get him one in case he wants one in a few months after getting used to Sophia's.  They are sharing a cage and you can only have them share if you get them at the same time (otherwise they don't get used to each other and will scrap).  They are dwarf hamsters and are VERY tiny - more like mice.  Maybe if they are really into them we can find them some teddy bear hamsters like I had growing up...  Ahhh, Timmy, Cynthia and Nausicaa...  Sophia named hers Fuzzy Bear and Dylan went with Jack.

Looking forward to Ainley and her crew's visit at the end of the week.  Has been  a while.  Should have good weather for them :)

Long time no blog

So, it has come to my attention that I have not made any new entries lately.  Not that I have been so busy, just not inspired?  Kids are doing well.  Dylan has been loving the play date action and requesting more and more.  He has had about 4 so far. 3 of them here.  The boys have been nice and well behaved.  Dylan is SOOO cute with his anticipation for the next one.  He will set aside his favorite shirt and pants at the beginning of the week to keep them clean so he can wear them for his playdate.  Current fav's include the batman shirt he got for Christmas and now a tiger t-shirt one of the grandma's brought back from india.  He likes to wear these with his two favorite "exercise" pants - one has three stripes and the other 1.  He has added the vest that my mom knit him at Christmas into the favorites list.  He wouldn't even try it on over Christmas, but yesterday it was not only requested, but added to his fav list.

Sophia is doing VERY well with her reading.  She is full on reading now and LOVES to practice on her own.  She spends 10 to 15 minutes after stories at bed time reading to herself.  She also enjoys writing her own books.  She staples a bunch of papers together and then writes and illustrates a story. 

The kids continue to take gymnastics lessons and we have added Swimming into the pile.  There is a little overlap right now, but gymnastics should be done soon.  I am psyched with Sophia's swim class.  We are paying for a group lesson, however, no one else has signed up which means she is actually getting a PRIVATE half hour lesson.  I think she will really do well in this class.  I accidentally signed Dylan up for the wrong level - one lower than he is supposed to be in.  I was happy to have them in at the same time so I am keeping them in it and the instructor will just treat him like he is in the upper level.  Works out well, I think (hope).  He is more timid this time around (maybe afraid his eye will get wet) so this class isn't as into head bobs and stuff that he actually finally got into at the end of his last session.  Hope he can move up.  He is not as big a fish as his sister.  She LOVES the water - as in being in it and swimming.  Dylan rather be on the shore and throw rocks in it or run through the waves and watching the splashes he creates. To each his own, right?

The bathroom is pretty much done - just need towl bars and toilet paper dispenser.  I taped the closet drywall and Ethan installed some shelves.  Nervous about the kids taking over this space as their new playroom - literally.  I am hoping Ethan paints is this weekend before they take complete possession over it and I never get my linens and bathroom/ cleaning products out of the bedroom!

Will post some pictures soon!  (kind of promise)

Sweet Baby D

I know, I know.  You are thinking "What?!  No post about the bathroom? "

I guess this blog WAS intended as a journal of the lives of the kids, not the bathroom.  So, I am returning to my roots for this post.

Dylan has been extra snuggly with me lately and tackles my legs frequently to get in a good snuggle.  Can't say I mind this.  On another note, he has been having a great time with one of the little boys in his class - Tyler.  When Dylan hurt his eye, Tyler really reached out to him, made him a special card and made sure his mom drove over and dropped off a little present for him.  At school they have been playing a lot and they were actually lined up to have a playdate just before the accident.  Well, things are healing nicely with the eye and the holidays are past, so we were able to set up his first playdate a couple weeks ago.  Dylan set his favorite outfit aside ALL week (batman shirt and "exercise pants") for his playdate on Thursday.  Tyler came here and the two were so excited that I couldn't even get them to eat their lunch.  They were supposed to have a playdate last week at Tyler's house, but Dylan had pneumonia and an ear infection.  Lovely. rescheduled again for today (thursday) and Dylan again put that favorite outfit aside for the playdate and abstained from wearing it mon-wed.  When I went to pick him up from school to take him over, I joked with him and aske, "are you SURE you don't want to just stay home and snuggle with me instead?"  There was a long pause and then he replied "AFTER my playdate"  HA!  He his so funny and loving.  wasn't going to give up on the snuggles, got to work them in there too.

I was very impressed as well when I went to pick him up from the playdate.  Tyler's mom informed me that Dylan was so sweet and picked up the toys he played with before playing with other things.  I tell him this all the time at home, however, it rarely happens unless I of course nag at it.  Well, I guess it DID sink in and he was the perfect little guest.

new record: 4 baths in one day

So, the was supposed to be done.  Looks done.  Sophia described her experience as "glorious".  The leak coming from the drain was not so glorious.  GRRRRRRR. 

The best part of the tub shower system by far is the tub faucet.  WOW!  If you ever have the opportunity to replace your tub spout - the Grohe Atrio is AMAZING.  Water comes out smooth and creamy - like butter.  And believe it or not, it actually LOOKS like diamonds flowing out - the mesh filter it flows through makes a diamond pattern in the water as it pours out.  Amazing.  It is so smooth coming out that it won't create bubbles in the bubble bath.  I had to manually swish them around with my hand.  So, I hope that this drain leak is quickly and easily resolved as I don't think I can hack anymore leak issues. 

Kids have been sick all week - fevers, pneumonia, ear infection, coughs... and I have my seasonal sinus misery - fire nose, ear aches, clogged sinus passages...  Another bath would be nice...  Last one was a tough HOT - I left looking like a lobster.  I shall promise to ease up on the heat if this leak is fixed :)

First week of January

Ok, so I have maintained a level of productivity even without my dad here.  Knitted two dresses for Sophia's new dolls and grouted all the walls at the tub.  I am now in A LOT of pain.  Right deltoid and upper back are very sore as are my fingertips at the top of the nail from scraping off little bits of grout on the surface of the tiles.  Tomorrow is a day of rest.  For sure.  Yes.  I mean it.  Really.

I sense a decrease in productivity...

Mom and dad have been here 10 days and will leave in the morning.  Dad has been a machine around the house.  I couldn't bare to look at the bathroom after the leak was discovered.  My F-I-L took care of the leak and dad went to town on patching it up.  Then he moved on to the trimming out of the bathroom. LOOKS AWESOME!  installed and painted the baseboards, painted the window trim, trimmed and painted the door and built a beautiful threshold.  So nice!  Going to be sad when mom and dad leave.  Has been nice having them.  Feel bad that dad was WORKING the entire time.  Mom was very helpful with Christmas eve's food prep.  I was able to get wall number 3 tiled and dad was amazing washing my tools for me even though he was working along side on his own stuff.  Love you guys!

Bathroom take two (hundred and five)

Got back into things again these past two weekends.  Crunch time before Christmas.  My father-in-law helped first weekend with the leak (gave him a break on patching up the holes).  I took on the tiling of the tub surround and after two weekends of labor, have almost two walls done.  Darn bathroom has no parallel or perpendicular walls.  Made work VERY slow.  Must have done 50 sets of stairs this weekend alone running down to cut tile in the garage.  Hopefully one day soon that bathroom will be up and running FULLY.  The toilet and sink are back in action thanks to the plumbing help, so it is at least a half bath.  My father-in-law also trimmed out the window.  That was a BIG help.  Much nicer to look at.  Just needs painting which I am ok with.  I will tackle all the painting at once -baseboards, door and window trim, wall touch ups...

Everyone is good here.  Dylan had a bug today - threw up a couple times, but seems to be on the mend.  Poor guy just doesn't catch a break.  He has been having trouble with that darn eye tube and were were at the doctor THREE times because of it.  Hopefully it will not cause any troubles over the holidays.  Mom and dad arrive in a couple days and I am looking forward to putting my old man to work :)

Deck the house

 

Got our tree the other weekend and Dylan was very eager to help with everything.  First there was the trimming (like with snippers, not bows and ribbons).

Dylan REALLY got into this part.

 And like a good little elf, he was quick to clean up his mess.

 Then we got to decorate out tidy, trim tree.

Birthday Party.

Sophia's birthday party was great!  The kids had a blast at Ellis Gym.  Much more organized than the one we had for her 4th party.  Both had their benefits.  The 4yr one was good to be loose and the kids ran wild for 1.5 hours.  This year they have 3 coaches guide the kids through activities and obstacle courses.  They had 20 minutes at the end for free play and I asked if parents could play too.  I had a secret desire to play myself and try out the uneven bars.  We got the go ahead and away I went, haha.  SO MUCH FUN.  I need to get into a gymnastics class for over the hill adults.  I was still able to spin around the bar - wahoo!  Flooded many fond memories of my favorite sport and my glory Junior High days of yore.

Birthday Party.

Sophia's birthday party was great!  The kids had a blast at Ellis Gym.  Much more organized than the one we had for her 4th party.  Both had their benefits.  The 4yr one was good to be loose and the kids ran wild for 1.5 hours.  This year they have 3 coaches guide the kids through activities and obstacle courses.  They had 20 minutes at the end for free play and I asked if parents could play too.  I had a secret desire to play myself and try out the uneven bars.  We got the go ahead and away I went, haha.  SO MUCH FUN.  I need to get into a gymnastics class for over the hill adults.  I was still able to spin around the bar - wahoo!  Flooded many fond memories of my favorite sport and my glory Junior High days of yore.

Tree day!

Turned the house into Christmasville today.  First started with the tree shop at Home Depot.  We have really gotten quite nice trees there over the years.  This year is no exception.  I think our first tree was from a nursery and cost over $65.  The ones at HD can run that high, but we have found nice Balsams for about $35.  This year is a blue silver balsam fur, about 8.5 feet tall and beautiful.  Nice, full....  We decorated the tree and Ethan put the lights up outside and it is beginning to feel more Christmassy.

Sophia's Birthday party is tomorrow.  A little early, would have preferred NEXT weekend, however, I am glad to have it at the gymnastics gym the kids go to, so I took what I could get.  I am putting my foot down next year, though and doing a house party.  These places are SO expensive!  In case I forget, I will say it now for me to read next year - Sophia, you will have a pajama party next year.  Guests can arrive in their jammies, you can get your nails done, do each other's hair and watch a movie with popcorn.  Fun, right?

Anyway, that's it for now.  Will update on the party later.

Da-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-Da-na-na-na-na-na-na-na BATMAN!

Tried and true mitten pattern with my Batman logo.  A little rusty on the fair isle knitting.  Has been a while.

Pretending

It's ok to pretend sometimes.  Like in the morning when Dylan pretends he has a bad dream or sore toe when he wakes up before his green light knowing I will be too tired to put him back to his own bed and let him come into ours.  And then how I pretend to believe him thus letting him in and love snuggling and holding him close.  He really is the best snuggler.  Though, I must admit I wish he would close those beautiful eyes and go back to sleep these early mornings.  But no, he fidgets, snaps his fingers (a favorite pastime of his), sings the alphabet...  Oh, my little D.

We have had great weather on the weekends lately - mid 60's, 70's.  So nice that we have been taking the kids on hikes.  The first one, Sophia was VERY reluctant to go on, but after the first ten minutes she said she wished she wasn't so negative about going.  The second hike she was uber excited to go, but then took on one too many hills and became grouchy and tired.  Today's hike was supposed to be a good one - gorgeous weather, mid day... Unfortunately, though, Sophia was NOT eager to go and her mood didn't improve during the hike.  No, the only thing that kept her going was the promise of some caramel popcorn when she returned.  Sigh.,..   I guess that closes the chapter of our book on family hikes.

So, no updates on the bathroom.  Too depressing for me at this point.  I have started a little tiling around the tub, but won't post anything until that is done.

Thanksgiving coming up this week here in the US, so that bathroom will have to wait another week...  Looking forward to next weekend and seeing Santa parachute from the sky - wahoo!

Easy come, easy go

Ok, So the easy come wasn't so easy and it hurt a lot to see it go.  I speaketh of the bathroom-eth.  But this jumps ahead to the very end of my lousy month of October.  The month started off so well - tiled bathroom, sink in and functioning, toilet in and functioning, getting psyched up to tile the tub surround...Halloween costumes were in check and satisfying, kids were happy.  Then BOOM.  It all came to an end.  I was upstairs putting the laundry away and heard a roar/ yell from Ethan.  Then one for Dylan and then Ethan and then Dylan...  They like to play monster, but usually there is only ONE monster.  I was trying to figure out why both were yelling and then came downstairs to an early Halloween horror show.  Ethan was holding Dylan with his eye all bleeding and awful looking and yelling doctor.  I screamed and then tried to compose myself to get him help.  Called the ambulance and they took FOREVER to get here (or that is how it felt).  Police arrived first, then fire and then ambulance.  So glad I called 911 instead of trying to drive to a hospital ourselves.  I wanted Dylan to be tended to on our WAY to the hospital not wait.  We would have done it all wrong too - held a cloth, not take him to the best place....  The ambulance crew wrapped his eye in sterile gauze - not a clean dish cloth, covered BOTH eyes in case the eyeball was damaged and didn't want it to move around and they called around to find the best place to take him - Mass Eye and Ear, not MGH emergency or Children's Emergency.  Though those last two are GREAT hospitals, they weren't the specialty Dylan needed.  On our way to the hospital Dylan was amazing.  He was so calm, not crying, complaining.  Just answering questions about himself, halloween, favorite movies...  Incredible really.

Once at the hospital, the horror began all over again.  I saw the eye more clearly and was so scared.  His little eye lid was ripped half off and hanging down his cheek.  It really is an image I cannot erase and am so sad about.  I rode with Dylan in the ambulance and Ethan drove with Sophia.  We didn't even think to leave her with our neighbor.  Anyway, I didn't see the accident, just had to recount what Ethan told me - he ran past the latch to our gate and snagged his eye, throwing him back.  I had to keep telling this over and over to all the different doctors.  That was the easy part.  The doctors had to see if Dylan's actual eyeball was damaged.  The only way to do this was to poke around through the ripped and bloody eye.  They did this at least FOUR different times. It was AWFUL.  I would crouch over his legs and hold his hands as he SCREAMED and cried and kicked his little legs writhing in pain.  More than FOUR SEPARATE TIMES.  I do not know why he wasn't at least given tylonol for all this.  After this torture, they decided that the eyeball was ok and that surgery could wait (he ate 1 hour prior to the accident and they don't like to sedate until 8 hours after eating).  So, they needed to get an IV in to administer antibiotics.  I was not prepared and told him he would be great and it would be easy.  WRONG! he screamed and cried and kicked each time they failed to get it it.  Finally a second doctor was called in (perhaps after my comment to one about getting a specialist to which she replied, I AM a specialist).  Anyway, the second doctor sprayed numbing spray on his arm (hello - why wasn't this done for the FIRST try?) and got it in pretty quickly, though still with tears and screams.  After all this was done, eye was nicely bandaged for the night with a patch, Dylan tried to relieve an itch before I saw his hand go to the eye.  When I found out why he was crying, I asked the nurse to add another piece of tape to cover the corner so he wouldn't accidentally try and scratch again.  I am so irate with this woman.  She decided that he should be completely be RE-DRESSED.  She pealed off all the tape as Dylan screamed as his eye was fiddled with AGAIN - way necessary, and now this time not done as well.  I finally got him some tylonol and he calmed and was almost instantly asleep.  Such a poor little angel.  he was wiped - gymnastics in the morning, no nap, trauma, crying, torture, past his bed time...  Thankfully for that, I suppose he was able to sleep through the night.  Next day his surgery was pushed all the way back until noon.  He never complained about ANYTHING.  At 10am he quietly said he was hungry (I was really sad about this - I had tried to get him into surgery earlier as I knew he would be hungry and he had suffered so much already).  He was a great sport about fighting off the hunger and was playing smell my stinky feet and laughing like crazy minutes before being wheeled to surgery. 

Two hours later he was out and then took about 3 hours to wake up.  We were sent home almost 24 hours later on the nose from when we arrived.  They didn't want him wearing a patch except to sleep.  That poor little eye didn't open for 2 or three days.  I think on the 3rd day it started opening a tiny bit and then more each day.  I was so glad to see the muscle working.  We still will not know the extent of his recovery for a long time - he can see - but are there limits?  His lid is opening, but is a little low compared to the other.  They will assess this in 6months to a year to decide if further surgery is needed.  I was so glad that his sight was there and that his muscle was working again (had been detached and sewn back together.)  Starting to sigh a little sigh of relief and then IT appeared....

I was in the kitchen, looked up and a GIANT wet mark was on the ceiling.  The new bathroom is above it.  I pulled out pictures and all the stain lines don't follow any pipes.  Ended up pulling the vanity back out - was glued and screwed into the wall and trying to figure out where it came from (there is a little hole under it where the pipes come up.  Anyway, that didn't show any leaks.  Tried testing the drain first, then the cold water o nothing.  Finally we turned the hotwater back on up there and today the water appeared again.  Still, not were the pipes lie.  I got Ethan to cut another hole in the door threshold - easy to cover up, so see if we could see a source.  I was very Sherlock Holmes in my investigating. I put my ear to the hole and heard a drip. I looked at the plans and estimated where the nearest joint was, stuck my arm into the hole, holding a metal 18" ruler.  I slid the ruler under the next joist and moved it back and forth to see if I could "catch a drop".  And I DID.  I should be happy that at least we know where the leak is coming from. I am really depressed to see the bathroom torn apart again and the thought of cutting up the ceiling kitchen to get the pipe fixed.  Sigh....

So, maybe november is better - Dylan's eye is healing and our leak is at least identified?  I need to win the lottery I think to really lift my spirits.

And that, friends, wraps things up for now.  I do need to emphasize how amazing Dylan has been through all this.  He NEVER complains about the eye.  He laughs, it is a real challenge to keep him from running and being active while he heals.  He is our Super D.

Royal Flush

That's right.  This queen will have a royal flush upstairs.  Toilet and vanity are INSTALLED!  tiled, grouted and sealed the grout last week and my father-in-law hooked up the fixtures today.  YAY!  check it out!

Whistling Dixie

It's official.  Sophia has learned to whistle. (neat-o, that rhymed).  She has been practicing A LOT lately, and finally has a little music escaping those pursed lips.  She is so proud.

Beach in OCTOBER

So, when we think October, we think apples, leaves changing colors, brisk walks....  This year, leaves are still green and we hit the BEACH and went swimming on an 82F day.  wow.  Not bad.  Want proof?  look at these pics.

Apple picking 2011

One of my favorite things about living in New England is apple picking in the fall.  Never new much about this before living here and even until the kids were born, this season just passed.  After having the kids, a whole new world was opened to me and this is one of those things.  I LOVE the taste of an apple picked fresh off the tree.  So crsip, juicy and sweet.  MUCH different from those you buy in the store.  The weather is FANTASTIC this Columbus Day/ Thanksgiving day weekend.  In the 80's, sunny...  Perfect for picking apples.  So that is what we did.  Here are some photos of the fun.

Self portrait.

Love those blue eyes :)

Wiggly tooth

First week of school, Sophia had a wiggly tooth.  Then she lost it.  Second week of school, another wiggly tooth.  Then IT was gone.  These teeth have not been missing for more than a week and she already has two little pearls popping through the gap.  She is growing up too fast!  Where is that pause button??!!

Bathroom progress

yes, progress has been slow.  Especially over the summer.  Hoping to kick it into high gear this fall and be done with it.  Finished painting and have pictures up of that.  Going to start tiling friday and hopefully get the floor done in a week or so.  Fingers crossed!

Dylan has a dream (idea)

Dylan: I had a great idea for a dream, mommy. daddy is driving one hundred ninety nine ninety nine miles (per hour) with no hands and gets dirt all over the other cars. And the guy in the car behind him says "that's so cool, man!"

Sophia

Sophia is growing fast.  Just the other day she complained of a sore tooth in the back.  First thought was Oh No!  Another cavity?!  Then while brushing her teeth, something looked odd.  Then I realized she had an extra tooth on one side!  Phew and WOW!

Then today, she popped up after dinner and went downstairs.  she reemerged after a short while and started tidying the shoes on the stair landing near the back door.  Then she cleaned the toys up in the living room.  After all this she told me she cleaned up the basement.  I was impressed to hear it, even MORE impressed when I saw her work.  The basement looked GREAT!

We recently spent part of the day taking the ferry to Boston with some friends and I was so pleased that S&D were the only two kids NOT to melt down at any point during the adventure.  They really are great kids :)

Wayne Maine summer vacation week

We spent the last week of July up in Maine at Ethan's mom's house.  She and Tommy have a house on Lake Androscoggin and we had fun with the boat on the lake and the kids enjoyed swimming and practicing their swim lesson techniques.  Here are some pics.

Boats and beaches

Here are some more recent photos of the kids.

Knitting

Just because the weather is nice, doesn't mean I have stopped knitting.  Moved on to toys as the knitted wear is a little warm.  Here is an update to the knitting album.

Summer Photos

PHOTOS

First things first

There have been a lot of firsts happening with the kids lately so I thought I should start recording them. 

Sophia:
First time doing the monkey bars (about a month ago actually)
First time able to pump on the swings all on her own (again, about a month ago)
First time diving into the water head first - today.
First time swimming with no floatation devices or people (about a month ago this was emerging, however, she is  a full on doggy paddler now)
First time able to snap
First time able to ride a bike with one hand (about a month ago on this)
First time knitting on two needles (about a month ago)

Dylan:
First time loving swim lessons (as opposed to the utter dislike of them the last time around)
First time swimming on his own with just a bubble on his back
First time snapping (about a month ago)
First time flicking (about a month ago)
First time completing large 100 piece puzzles mostly on his own (a few months now)
Graduated to a 16" wheel bike and still able to ride up and down curbs and one handed.
Skipping (a couple months now)

Pretty amazing kids :)  I will try to post some pics of them soon.

Scents

Nothing to do with the bathroom.  (shocking, eh?)  I recently posted a question on Facebook and was surprised at the speed and number of responses.  The question?  "I'm looking for a new perfume, any suggestions?"  A flood of responses has come in.  Funny how much a girl likes to smell pretty and how much we are drawn into discussions about it.  I doubt many, if anyone, would have any suggestions of "what should I cook for dinner tonight?"
OK, can't have an entire post without some bathroom update.  There always has to be SOMETHING that isn't cool to slow things down.  I was all set with the tiling and ready to go ahead with the plan.  After laying out the tiles, the numbers weren't adding up.  I have a 2+" gap of left over space.  I measured the room to be 7'-7 7/8" long.  The tiles are 12" and I have a 3" border on either side.  That brings me to 7'-6" and then I THOUGHT the grout lines would take up the rest (I could leave a 1/4" gap at the wall as the baseboard would cover that).  Well after scratching my head and anger rising in my body I measured one of those tiles.  11 3/4".  UGH!  Really?  Really, really?  Now I have to mess with the perfect pattern and figure out what to do with this.  None of the solutions are favorable.  I could add a 1" boarder around the room (now I have two boarders?) I could add a 7" tile around the room and push my inset design into the actual center of the room and decrease its size to 4x3 instead of 5x3.  If there were no fixtures in the room, this could be acceptable, however, I feel once the toilet and vanity are in and take up 21+ inches along one wall, the pattern will feel weird going under the toilet and abutting the edge of the vanity.  I tried an option of having a 7" tile and then a 6" wide tile (cutting one in half, not a 6" square tile), but that just got all weird looking int the corners and didn't look right on one side of the inset pattern that wasn't abutting a wall edge.  Sigh....

Tile Mock up

PROGRESS

For you, Ma Hoffman

Sorry for the delay on updating this site.  Little busy.  Here is an update to my album.  here with Lana, she says hi.  Progress is slow, but it is evident.  almost ready to pour out the leveling compound.  A little scared to do that.  It could have great results, but I fear could also go really bad.  anyway, here are the pics!

Laces

Sophia has been practicing tying her own shoe laces since I recently bought her a new pair of sneakers. Well, today she did them BOTH on her own. All by herself. For real life. I didn't realize kids learned this early or quickly. I am impressed.

Two steps forward, four steps back.

Seems like progress is very slow at a point I thought things would be flying. Darn house settling and sloping floors. Things should be a a point where we just build build build. Not so. Need to do so much figuring between each step. So much for a brand new bathroom for my b-day :(

So, the plumbing under the floor is done, waiting to be hooked up to tub and sink. Subfloor layers in. Working on the tub wall that will have the "trench" section. Narrowing tile selection for that. Hoping this floor level issue will work itself out with a little nudge. Here are the latest pictures.

Progress...

After ripping up the floor it was decided that the toilet has to stay put. Enlightenment: move the radiator! Called the plumber, said it could be done. This has allowed me to finalize a plan - YAY! I think I am on Plan E. I seriously have about 8 options. I was having trouble getting into the design as I didn't know what could be done. So, with this Plan E, I have to move the door. Ugh. Nothin' easy. Easier than moving a toilet, I suppose. This door thing also means moving a light switch. Easy, right? Not if the wires are too short. Luckily I have a father-in-law who knows his stuff. so, last weekend we went to town tearing down a little more wall, moved and electrical outlet. Today, Bob and I took down more plaster (never ending) and did some re- framing of a door and support for the wall (load bearing - grrr). He move the switches over to the next stud bay. Not so easy - cut through floor boards, drill holes through joists in floor and ceiling... I even used the skill saw for the first time and drilled the 1/2" hole through the ceiling joists. Baby steps. Kids deserve a lot of credit again - playing nicely all afternoon (skipping nap) so we could finish up that support of the load bearing wall. Hopefully Friday the plumber will be able to move the radiator. Fingers crossed.

Another day, more demo

Had a bit of a break since the tub left on Tuesday. A couple guys came and lugged the pink tub away. I was actually kind of sad to see it go and wished I could use it in the "new bathroom". Chiseling it out was quite a task and made me nervous of the next step to remove ALL the floor tile. On Tuesday, Bob came over and was a big help with the plumbing. He put caps on the shower and sink pipes so the water could stay on for my throne. He also did most of the chiseling to free the tub so that it could be hauled away. Thursday was a "bathroom free day" as I couldn't work with Dylan home. Friday I started tackling the floor. It went VERY slowly at first. Just using a chisel with the sledgehammer was NOT very productive. Spent about an hour and just had little bits of rubble and was exhausted. I was at a peak of frustration and my drive was shut down. I shifted gears and pealed off some of the tile left from where the sink was (the easy stuff). After getting that area down to the studs I tackled the floor again. I decided to try to crowbar again and MAN did I find a great trick! Wedged the bent end under the cement above the wire mesh. Held the far end of the crowbar (FAR away from the hammer also great for saving fingers) and pounded it in as far as it would go. I tried to lift the cement and tile as high as I could and then took the sledge hammer and pounded the tile around it to create a "break line". Then pried again and presto! A 2 foot square lifted off. Hope was renewed. If I knew about this trick I swear I would have almost all the tile removed by now. Not going to get upset, as I rather know about this trick now than not at all. Going to hopefully finish the tile today...

Spring Break

Beautiful day today. Dylan doesn't have school on Thursdays so I could tear up the floor anyway, so.... After his nap this afternoon we headed outside to all enjoy the 60F weather. I got to rake the leaves off all the flower beds (and discover there were a bunch trying to make their way through all the leaves! Having the nice weather reminds us that we have neighbors - talked to a couple even! The kids have fun outside too. While I put the leaves in a large bag, Dylan removed them from that bag and filled up his dump truck and dumped them back on the lawn. Hmmm, not quite as productive as I would have hoped for.

Shifting Gears

I know this blog is mostly about the kids, however, I am embarking on a major project, so I thought I would use this page to document the work. What is this project? PINK PALACE RENO. Yup, the pink palace, AKA main bathroom, is being gutted to the bones and completely redone. The final design plans are still in limbo, even though the walls have come down. I am waiting to get another plumber in to talk about moving the toilet. I started a week ago tearing through the hall closet (to be the new bathroom entrance). Days one and two were extremely slow. I worked in the morning while the kids were in school. I had an errand on the way home both days and then had to clean up before getting them. I also had to do my own waste removal. HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY. The closet alone took three large barrels (which Ethan helped me lug down the stairs and out the door) and 4 large 3mil contractor bags (that I loaded and removed at least to the porch. Day three I called in the big guns. Bob, Jackie, Ethan and I all got dirty while the kids looked after themselves (literally). Jackie and I went to town on the walls, removing tile, cement board and plaster. We dumped the junk into 5 gallon pails that disappeared when full and reappeared empty. (magical). Bob took out the ceiling and studs to the closet. In that one day we finished ripping out the closet and got 85% of the walls down to the studs. Used up ALL 25 forty-two gallon contractor bags and other bins Bob brought for us. I am having a hard time letting go of the toilet, so we left the tile behind the sink and toilet area (I tend to pee a lot at night). Next day was a "make up day" for me and I made 7 quarts of chicken soup, a batch of cookies, two double pie crusts, chicken pot pie, about 5 loads of laundry, and more cleaning. Today Bob returned and capped off all the plumping (and yes, I can still pee in the toilet). I posted the tub on Craig's list and though I am not getting money for it, someone IS coming to take it away tomorrow - FREE. That baby is HEAVY. Sink is gone. Next step: finish removing tile and plaster and chisel out that floor tile (ugh) Then I guess I am going to have to say good-bye to the toilet for a while. Must start training bladder now... I am starting an album, will keep you posted...

V-day weekend.

Latest knitting project...

So, the bathroom has been sending hints again. A $435 water bill spurred some interest into the toilet. Should sign the pink lady up for a marathon with all the running she has been up to. Ouch. Here are some recent photos of recents events.

Looking forward to our first Valentines Day weekend away since the kids have been in our lives. YAY! This summer Ethan (who never reads this, so I can safely talk here without ruining the surprise) lost his wedding ring. Boohoo. So, I decided to get him a temp replacement to hold him over until our 10th anniversary. Glad I waited until today, the 11th, as I already am too excited to give it to him and couldn't imagine having to sit on this longer. Actually got him too, so he could choose. I bought the first and then decided to just have a look at another place in case there was a better one out there in the tight price range. Well, I found one, but was $50 over the price I told them I didn't want to go over. So they took off the $50. Hmph. didn't realize you could negotiate. Maybe I could have gotten a better deal on the first...

Anxious for Valentines day

Sophia is already anxious for Valentines day. Earlier this week she was very busy with her coloring and cutting and taping. Then she put a little package under each of our pillows (yes, Dylan's too) and told me they were to stay there until valentines day. Then she went to bed and said she was sad because no one gave her anything. I tried to remind her it was still three weeks away and there was lots of time for others to make her something.

Dylan has become an avid photographer and grabbing our new camera whenever possible. Aside from when he drops the camera, it is pretty cute. He takes about 100 pictures a days some weeks. I love to looks at them and see what interests him. Here is album 2 of said photos.

Another day Another Snow Storm.

6-10. No, not a jail sentence, a shovelling sentence. Last shovelling effort was not so bad. Had about 6inches, however, it was the light fluffy stuff. This time is is heavy and wind packed. Yay. At least there are TWO of us to do the shovelling. Go productive exercise! Going to need some kind of conveyor belt system to get the snow over the banks that have formed. I think we should try to take a friends' idea and create a luge in the yard for the kids. Lemonade out of lemons.

Venti

No, not a Starbucks coffee, me venti about snow. Yes, I love the white stuff. I even enjoy shovelling. NOW AND THEN. everything in moderation. Two dumps in the past two weeks and I have been the sole snow removal machine. Ok, So Dylan helped. But helping for him is taking snow from my pile and dumping it back onto that nice clear surface with no snow. We had 15in of wet heavy snow last week while Ethan was in Minneapolis. Then it rained for a couple days and today it snowed at least 6 inches while Ethan was returning from the UK. Exercise is one thing, this is iron man shovelling.

And now I will vent about school closures. If you are a FB-er, you may want to skip this part as I have been venting there... a lot. The preschool that we PAY for has decided to follow the Quincy public school policy about school closings for snow. So far they have cancelled school THREE TIMES. All over a little snow. Ok, the first day was a blizzard/ nor'easter. You can have that one. The snow had stopped falling for over 12 hours and all the streets cleared and the QPS system decided to delay school openings for two hours. That meant our preschool felt they school cancel. Then today, Wimpachusetts schools all freaked out about some fluffy snow (yeah, about six inches, but still very drivable with the plows) and cancelled school again. So I have now paid for three days of school that were not attended because of school policy. Unlike the public schools, however, the preschool does not compensate us for missed days - do not extend the school year or reimburse. So irritated. Especially for that two hour delay cancellation day. Pah-lease.

And now for the cute. Dylan is always using height as an age reference. "when I am tall like you, then..." Today's was particularly cute. While talking to Ethan, he said "When I get tall like you, then I can juggle. Then I will be a dad." Then at storytime, I heard Sophia exclaim" Mom, Dylan is so adorable! He just read this entire book all by himself with my help!" I enjoyed her enthusiasm and the part where he did it all by himself with her help.

So here are some snowy pictures for ya...

2 fer 2

We went two for two these past couple days. Two days, two pee accidents. Dylan, however, takes the prize. Both accidents occurred in the bathroom on the potty and were both most likely resulting from waiting too long to get there. I sat Dylan down yesterday and was preparing myself to wait on the stool when I notice a sprinkle and looked up to a fountain spewing from the toilet. It shot a CLEAR 5 feet. I got caught in the cross fire and when he went to see what my shriek was about, Dylan bent his head down and got a sprinkling of his own. Today at tub, he informed/ reassured me "it was pointing down". Ahhh, one always appreciates a quick study.

even steven

Thanks to stupid insurance policy, Sophia's 5 year appointment was delayed by a month. ANYHOOOO, not that this irritates me at all, but we finally got it taken care of. Turns out all is good and she is 43.5lb and 43.25" tall. in the 70's all the way.

Pictures as promised

Here is a winter album taken mostly after Christmas.

Cute things snappled up by FB

Ok, I have been FB-ing my cute things in status updates and missing recording them here for posterity. Try to rattle some off here.

Dylan, how sweet are you? Grandpa handed Sophia and Dylan each a $5 dollar bill. After receiving his, Dylan ran downstairs to retrieve a $20 bill from his cash register and gave it to Grandpa as "yours to keep forever".

Girl power: Sophia and I quickly dropped into Home Depot one morning on the way to school to return a couple items. We held hands in the parking lot and Sophia announced we were having girl time. Then she said we should skip, so we skipped on into HD. How's that for oxymoron? Couple girls skipping into the man's world of construction goods?

After a mom and son morning out with Dylan sledding and building mini snowmen on the hill, we came home to make hot cocoa and SMASH-SHMELLOWS. Pictures to follow - a little lazy now to retrieve the camera and upload pictures, etc... guess I will have to post a whole album soon.

Do you see what I see...?

Life through the eyes of Dylan...

Tschaikovsky

Tis the season and there is Tschaikovsky in the air. Well, at least filling our ears in the car everyday. The kids are loving the Swan Lake/ Sleeping Beauty/ Nutcracker cd. I admit it is nice to listen to, and I am getting a little tired of Boom Boom Pow. Sophia amazed me this morning when track 5 came on. She blurted out "Sleeping Beauty, Mommy". We have the movie, but Sophia has only watched it maybe 5 times and the last time for that was months ago. When the cd has been on in the car I comment on the Swan Lake part and Nutcracker parts and was unaware that the Sleeping Beauty piece was on disc 2 (one we listen too). Track 5 turns out to be the FIRST movement from Sleeping beauty and she recognized it right away! Not only that, she recounted what is happening in the movie - dragon part, while the music is playing. Good ear, good memory!

Pumpin' skippin' and Skiin'

There were a whole pile of first over the last couple weeks. About two weeks ago, on the way to the post office Sophia spontaneously started skipping. I recall trying to teach her last summer and it seemed pretty challenging. Not sure if they were practicing at school or if one of her friends did it thus encouraging her to try again. However it it happened, she's a full fledged skipper now. Nothing holding her back from entering kindergarten!

Next, we move on to the pumping. We were at a "strange" little birthday party last weekend and all there was to do was play on the child's swing set (well, that or run around with toy guns). So, Sophia hung out on the swing set and I left her for a while and went inside. She then came inside telling me she had something to show me. And there she was - started on her own and was pumping away! Yay me - no more pushing until the cows come home!

Lastly, Ethan, an avid skier, was very anxious to get the kids up on skis this year. Even thought there was not a flake in sight around here, he found some snow an hour and a half north and took both kids skiing last weekend! Saturday was Dylan's turn and Sunday was Sophia's. They both enjoyed it and want to go again.

oops! Left the knitting machine on again...

Well, those needles have been pumping out the wares. Knitted the kids each a pair of felted elf shoes (first time felting, first footware pieces). I tried to use up some of my old stashes and made Sophia a pink swizzle top hat. Kept running out of yarn on that, hence the top color changes. Still think it is cute. Knit a pair of snowman mittens for Dylan. Transposed a pattern from another pair found off ravelry to the Canadiana mitten pattern. These mittens were a bit small for the snowman to show up very well. I think one size bigger would be much better. I made the kids' school director a pair of sock slippers - first time making that kind of footware. I like the heal instructions better than the elf boot - not liking the wrap & turn method. too loose and made it look like there were holes.

Have a LOOK!

Miscelaneous stuff...

So, what do you think? Make the cut for Christmas cards or not? At what age do kids learn to smile for the camera?

Elf boot project. First try at felting. I was pretty worried when I finished knitting these and they were GIANT, extremely loosely knitted and rather ugly. Two hot washes later and ta-da! Felted wool elf slippers! I wish I took pictures at their hideousness before the felting process. Almost abandoned the project. Now I am working my second pair.

Dylan working the elf boots.

Peppermint

Sophia has a great imagination and very elaborate stories she narrates for her princess doll play. I love to listen in (though"no looking") and hear all the little tidbits she adds from her day to day life and things I say to her or her teachers. She is very good at improv too. She picks up on things happening at the moment and incorporated them immediately into her storyline. Tonight, for instance, she was in the tub with D and I was telling D that the smell he was inquiring about was the peppermint in the castile soap. Immediately after hearing the word peppermint, it became part of Sophia's storyline and was repeated a few more times.

when I am four

Dylan: What's that, Mommy?
Me: Leek soup.
Dylan: Can I smell it? I like that.
Me: would you like to taste it?
Dylan: Only when I'm four. That's when I will like it.

little things, cont...

One of the little things I love to hear from Dylan is his "Fank You", or " No Fank you". not only is he so polite, but the little Fank part is adorable. He says thank you quite often and asks yes please, etc...

Sophia has been super cute in the mornings. First thing she does after waking is choose out an outfit and dresses herself, right down to the socks and comes down stairs. LOVE IT. She does a good job, too, finding things that go together. My little fashionista.

Halloween 2010

Here is a tease of more photos on PicasaWeb. So, I chinced on Dylan's costume and bought it. Didn't think I would be able to pull off the red and webbing part of his costume. Sophia is "Rosetta" - one of the Tinkerbell fairies. She was set on Rosetta for a while, so I went on a limb and made the costume, starting in September. Took me two months to make. No pattern, just pictures from a book. I started with the shirt and skirt. Then was discouraged that I couldn't find any tights/ leggings the right color and shoes to match. Took a break. Got courage back and made leggings, lucked out and found shoes. Then was discouraged on wing construction. The materials I bought weren't working. Bought a pair. Was going to live with the ugly purple and green material, however, the $10 worth of material I purchased for the wings was nagging me, so I attempted the re-cloaking of the wing frames. I was very pleased with how that turned out. Then I was faced with the fact that it wouldn't be 70F/ 20C on Halloween eve. I had also bought some soft white furry material with swirls that looked like roses on it. This was sitting in a bag for about 1.5 months. As Oct.31 drew nearer, I decided to give it one last blast of effort and fashion a little blazer, again, sans pattern. Ran into one snag at the end - not enough lining for both sleeves and so they ended up without (the ONE part that really needed it for warmth). I wanted the coat to still show some of the top I designed, so I made the front cut away at the bottom. I am SO glad it fit AND was comfortable for her to wear. yay!

Reading

Sophia has really seemed more interested in reading lately. I have been working on letter sounds a lot as I didn't realize she wasn't really associating their sound with their name. I assumed the two went hand in hand. Anyway, in doing the sounds, she has been interested in sounding out words. She has also been reading the letters out on words she sees and asks me what they are. S T O P for instance. Or B R I T A X (hehe, reading her car seat). I am happy about this interest. Now to find some good beginner reader books. Hint hint, would make great Christmas/ Birthday gifts for those we exchange with :)

Crazy Dreams, Part 2

So, this morning I woke up to another vivid and unsettling dream. I was in Spain. In areas I had travelled to before in 1995. I knew the area and was aware of this. I was at a train station and needed to catch a train home. Only problem, I couldn't remember the name of the city I was going to. I was getting SO frustrated to the point of tears. I then realized I couldn't even figure out the name of the city I was in. I kept trying to find a schedule as I was sure I would recognize the names once I saw them. But I couldn't find anything with names on them. The schedules I found were vague and didn't have any names I knew of and I knew they weren't the right ones. I felt embarrassed asking others to help as I was I couldn't ask them for a train to a destination I didn't know. I did talk to a couple people who kind of tried to help, but they didn't have much to go on. They didn't offer any names of nearby cities either. weird.............

I have a feeling this is about our furnace issues and bathroom remodel projects - need to get going, having trouble starting.

Tooth dream: Interpretations welcome

So, last night (this morning?) I had the weirdest dream that requires a little help interpreting. My canine (top left) started falling apart. It was also giant in this dream. The glimpses I had of it would indicate it was about 1 inch wide, yet still fit normally in my mouth. That is just an aside, though. Focus on the tooth with me, if you will. This tooth at first was a little wobbly and I thought "oh no! I am too old (young) to be losing teeth." Then the bottom chipped off all jagged on the bottom. I was getting worried. Then the house was this weird party/ college house and I was making my way through all the young adults and (calmly) freaking out about this tooth that kept on crumbling away. Every minute or so, another chunk would come off.

Key things of the dream I suppose is the jagged edge of this crumbling tooth, that it kept getting more and more broken off it and the weird house setting.

So, who wants to have a go with this one?

10-09-2010, Dylan rides his TWO wheel bike sans training wheels

Sophia graduated to her 16in wheel blue bike, thus opening up the 12in wheel green bike for Dylan... That red balance bike did it's job and allowed Dylan to skip the whole training wheel thing all together and now HE, at 3.3 is riding a peddle bike without training wheels. wahoo!