Happy 6th Birthday!

Natalie turned 6 today. It doesn't seem possible! Had a nice day... Picked my mom up this morning (still can't drive after her recent surgery), and she sat in the house while Oliver slept, so I could take birthday treats to Natalie's class. Came home, Natalie opened her presents, then we went out to dinner. Mom couldn't make it - some issues with her surgical site (but was checked out and is fine!) had to run her home so Jim (was supposed to be heading into work - graveyards) could take her to her doctor, so Natalie's best friend's mom let Trinity come with us. Went to a local pizza place called Organ Stop Pizza - good pizza and an incredible organ that comes up out of the stage, light show, puppets, can't really describe it well enough to do it justice. All three kids had a blast - the only time Oliver was unhappy was during The Phantom of the Opera - that scared him. But, the organist played O Holy Night (my favorite carol), and it was the most beautiful version I'd ever heard. Got a Happy Birthday played for Natalie as well!

Overall, a good day. We missed Mitz, Natalie was quite distraught, but at least she got to spend several hours with her this afternoon.

Had her friends birthday party this past Saturday - at Build A Bear. 16 kids from class came! Had a big group, but they all had a blast!

And Happy Birthday to Aunt Annie as well! Missed her call, and got home late, but will hopefully catch up tomorrow.... Which happens to be Grandma's birthday!

"Is Natalie there?"

First phone call from a boy. Ooof. Not sure I'm ready for this!

It was too funny though... Natalie got all girly and giggly when I gave her the phone. Wasn't much of a conversation, apparently Josh just wanted to know her birthday, then "gotta go". She was a little confused at how abruptly the call ended, and the look on her face was hilarious!

Looked him up in last year's yearbook, remarked that he's cute (has a great smile). Natalie said "YEAH. He's CUUUUTE".

Road Raging

Oliver and I were waiting to exit the freeway yesterday, stopped at a redlight behind a line of cars. All of a sudden I heard "MOVE IDIOT BUTT" from the back. I asked him "Did you just say 'move your butt, idiot?'". He grinned, said "Uh HUH! Like Mommy do!".

Bring a gas mask

Natalie told me the following just now (triggered by me having Oliver pulling my finger, mass hilarity for both kids!):

"I farted a lot in school today. Some were quiet, some were loud. Chloe thought it was funny. Elise said she never farts, she holds it in. We need to let Elise borrow Oliver's 'The Gas We Pass' book, because she doesn't know you have to pass that gas".

She kills me! I should add... She wasn't farting in class to be disruptive - both kids have been pretty gassy this week!

Dinner tonight...

Oliver went on a steak strike. Natalie said she was going to eat his, and forked a piece from his plate - trying to reverse psychology him. Instead of him flipping out, as he would most of the time, he said "eat it all", scooped up all of his pieces, and put them on her plate..

Halloween

A little late... The kids had a blast on Halloween! Natalie was Dr. Frankenstein, Oliver was Frankenstein, I was the Bride of Frankenstein, and Jon was Igor. They got lots of candy! We went to see Mitz and Pops first, then came back here to hand out our treats, and trick or treat.

The week before Halloween, we were teaching Oliver how to ToT. It was really cute! I'd go in the powder room, and shut the door. Oliver would grab his pumpkin, knock on the door, and when I opened it, said "Trick or Treat", wait for me to put something in his pumpkin, and then "thank you". The night of Halloween, he said "Trick or Treat" at every house, without being prompted, and somewhere along the way, started saying "Haaaaaap.......py Haw-weeeeeen", very slowly and very seriously - it was the cutest thing ever. Then the next day, he told us "get dark and get candy". :-P

Jon carved a bunch of pumpkins for the kids - did a great job. We had a Buzz Lightyear, Batman symbol, Batman face, and Spiderman face.

Quote of the evening went to Natalie though... On the way back home, she said "I can't WAIT to get to the sugar rush".

First quarter report card!

Natalie received her first quarter report card this past week, and I had our first parent-teacher conference of the school year. She is doing really, really well! Her teacher says she loves having Natalie in class, she's respectful, organized and a good friend to her classmates. She is one of her teacher's three go-to kids for other classmates who struggle a bit socially - that makes me really proud. She's very sensitive and kind, and I'm so glad she's a friend to everyone. Academically, she's also doing very well. Grading scale is 1-4, with 4 being the highest. Her teacher said that she gives out very few 4s this early in the year, as that indicates mastery. Natalie's report card was all 3s and quite a few 4s! This Tuesday is her Student of the Month assembly, which Oliver and I are looking forward to attending!

Little Monkey

While in Chicago, Oliver taught himself to climb in and out of the crib at Grandma's house. It was hilarious, and I foolishly thought that since his crib at home is lower to the ground (it just seems deeper because of how low it is), that it wouldn't be an issue at home. Yeah, not so much. Not 24 hours after we got home, he was climbing in and out of our crib, so off came the front, and now he's in a big boy toddler daybed. I took him out to pick out new bedding - he chose Toy Story/Buzz Lightyear, and loves it. I'm not going into a lot of detail, most of the people who would be reading this know the hell we went through when Natalie switched to a bed, but so far, he's doing really, really well!

I just wasn't ready for this - not only the fear of having him less contained, but it's just one more baby thing left behind. He's getting to be such a big boy!

Chicago!

Two weeks ago, we went to Chicago to visit Jon's side of the family. Natalie was on Fall Break, so we had the whole week! Had a great time - the kids had so much fun with their cousins, Will, Maggie and Owen - Oliver is still asking to go to Owen's house. And of course, they loved all of the time they got to spend with Grandma!

The flight out was a little rough - Oliver had a hell of a time, and made his displeasure known. Mama Bear (me, duh) tangled with a couple of fellow passengers, but we arrived safe and sound, and I managed to avoid getting arrested. :-P Natalie was her usual excellent traveler self - she just travels so well. Settles herself down on the plane and sits back and enjoys the ride.

Aunt Lois and Uncle Don drove in from Michigan - which was such a nice surprise! And they came bearing pumpkins, gourds, and some awesome candy. Got the whole group together - I think there was 16 of us (?), and we went to Aurelio's - a great local pizza place in Jon's hometown, where Grandma still lives and works.

Checked out a pumpkin patch too, which was a lot of fun. They had a Moo Choo ride, corn maze, kid's area with animals, you name it, they had it. Great place in Indiana. Go figure though... We left AZ in 90+ degree weather, and that weekend in IL/IN, it was 90 degrees! Mercifully, it cooled down in the early part of the week - we really enjoyed the crisp fall weather. The leaves were even turning, and it was so gorgeous.

Got to take the kids to the Shedd Aquarium, and also the Children's Museum at Navy Pier. Went to the parks around Grandma's house a bunch of times. Visited Grandma at work, at got a full tour of the school, and met a lot of Grandma's colleagues. We also had a chance to see Aunt Elizabeth's and Uncle Matt's new house (gorgeous!) and neighborhood - where Aunt Annie and I nearly got into a brawl at a bakery. Don't ask!

We also took the kids to see Great-Great Auntie Annie, and took her out to dinner. Oliver was fascinated with her wedding picture.

Oliver cracked us up one day... I had gone out to get doughnuts, and I guess Little Man fancied a snack one afternoon, and thought he'd be sneaky. All of a sudden, he came out of the kitchen with a shit-eating grin on his face, rubbing his belly with one hand, holding a doughnut with the other - saying "Mmmmm mmmmm mmmm" over and over. He busted himself!

Natalie was great with her cousins - she and Will really hit it off, and she was so good with Owen and Maggie. Sometime that first weekend, she looked at me and said "It's really great being here with the cousins, isn't it Mommy?".

It was such a great time, and we're looking forward to seeing Grandma out here in December - just a couple more months!

Working on pics. Backlog - sorry!

Soccer girl!

Natalie started soccer two weeks ago - same group with whom she takes karate. Just once a week, on Saturdays, so no weeknight practices to interfere with school, which is good! She's doing really well so far! The first week the coach just had the kids in the field, kicking the ball around and getting comfortable. She was right in there, going after the ball - really cool to see. Especially since I hated all sports. I kind of dig having a daughter who is a budding athlete! My favorite story from that session is, the coach put the kids in their positions. Got Natalie to her spot and told her to stand there. Whistle blew, and all the kids started running and playing, but Natalie stayed put. LOL! I wish she followed directions that well at home! :-P

I missed this week - upper respiratory infection that won't quit. Jon said this week was regular practice, skills building, and Natalie continues to do well. Apparently several parents asked him if she's played before, because she is very natural out there!

She wants to play football too. Oof. Not sure if I'm ready for that, seems so much heavier on contact. I didn't think girls were allowed to play football anyway, but found out that the Pop Warner program out here (and I'm not sure if that is the correct spelling, I haven't looked it up) does, and in fact, on one of the teams, the quarterback is a girl! But for now, I think Daisy/Girl Scouts, soccer and karate are enough activities!

It's a good thing he's cute

Oliver is sleeping with Jon and me this trip. We found out he sleeps very well with us when we were in Baltimore in June, so we decided not to haul along the crib my mom has this time around.

5:30 this morning, Little Man was prying my eyes open. When that didn't work, he resorted to saying "Eat eat Mommy" and proceeded to gnaw on my head.

So I did what any good mom would do. I sent him into the girls' room to torment them. They were already up, but being nice and quiet. I guess they heard him coming, and quickly locked their door. So he started growling outside the door, and when he didn't get a reaction, proceeded to beat on it. Totally wouldn't be funny at home, but I was cracking up this morning!

Tropical Horse

We're in our favorite spot in the mountains for Labor Day weekend - Overgaard, AZ. Having a blast, and Natalie's best friend Trinity joined us this trip! This morning, we took the kids to a town about 30 miles from here, called Taylor, to check out their Sweet Corn Festival. There was a nice kids' area with pony rides and a number of different inflatable bouncers. Natalie kept telling me she wanted to go on the "tropical horse". I reminded her that she and Trinity would be having a pony ride tomorrow at the barn on the property where we stay. She said "No Mommy, THAT", and pointed to the OBSTACLE COURSE.

Happy 40th, Jon!

Jon turned 40 yesterday (tee hee! :-P)! Managed to remember to post on FB, but kept forgetting to post it here. Yesterday was a mad dash to finish pulling his party together - did a 70s/disco themed party. Had lots of fun! Jon found a vintage disco shirt and I found a vintage disco dress on Ebay. I happened to have a hair appointment scheduled for yesterday morning, as as it also happened, the client after me canceled, so Matthew had time to play! I had the best 70's middle-parted, feathered and backcombed 'do - so much fun! Oliver had a powder blue disco suit costume, and Natalie had a tee-shirt with a disco ball and "Party" on it - she didn't want to dress up. Which was just as well, I couldn't find anything vintage in her size, and the girls' costumes that are available are trampy.

Party details if you're so inclined -

Had about 50 songs on a playlist - love it - was listening to it again today. Oliver's favorite is Macho Man (Village People) - he can listen to it over and over and over. That was all last-minute. A couple of nights ago, I downloaded an album of 100 top songs of the 70s - it was a great mix of music - then I played it and realized the whole album was a cover version. UGH. What a waste of $20!

Food -
Swedish meatballs
cheese fondue
veggie/fruit platters
bacon-wrapped water chestnuts
deviled eggs
Lay's onion dip
chips
salsa/guac/tortilla chips
And for our vegan friends: tabouli, roasted red pepper hummus, vegan pita chips and flatbread, 3 bean salad
Beer/wine/Pepsi Throwback/Tequila Sunrises

Had a rotating disco ball thing.

The cake was fabulous! Used our usual baker - delicious beyond belief and SO cool! I'll get pictures up sometime this week.

Favors were little bags with disco ball keychains, pet rocks (Natalie, her best friend and I made them one afternoon last week), and those soft peppermints - the wrappers were bright yellow with the smiley face. Found someone on Etsy who turned around really cool favor tags that I could print at home - in less than 24 hours!

The kids had so much fun! Natalie told me she wants a 70s party for her birthday this year. :-) And she was so cute yesterday morning - she came charging into the bathroom while I was showering - "Is today the day that Daddy is 40"? - cackling like a little loon.

So, all in all, it turned out well! Especially considering this all came together in two weeks!

Oliver needs a post too

Little man has had quite the language explosion lately. He's stringing more and more words together, and is using adjectives often as well. "Mitz funny! Pops funny!".

He likes to pretend play a lot - likes to pretend to be a baby, or various animals.

He seems to be starting to recognize shapes pretty well too. Pointed out a rectangle, heart, and star in a book today and named them all without being prompted.

He still gets pissy when you try to get him to repeat the alphabet. lol

And he sings "na na na na na na na na na na na na na BATMAN" and "Spiderman Spiderman" - in tune for both. He's obsessed with Spiderman - which is so funny because I don't think he's ever watched the show. Natalie has some Spiderman toys, so perhaps that's what sparked his interest. Oliver appears to have radar for Spiderman toys/shirts/pjs/slippers - he can spot that stuff from a mile away. He spied Spiderman slippers today, and I bought them for him. He was so cute - kept saying "Spiderman! Thank you, Mommy", over and over again. And couldn't wait to show them to Natalie when she got home from school.

My current favorite phrase is "fart bubble". Yeah, you read that right. The way he says it is hilarious! Never fails to crack me up!

First spelling test and progress report

Natalie had her first spelling test last week - 100!

Also had her first weekly progress report, which was excellent.

Great start to the year!

Wait until she's in 6th grade!

Natalie came up to me yesterday and said:

"Mommy, the kindergartners look so SMALL this year! Aren't they so cute though? I think they are just SO CUTE! Oliver is almost as big as they are".

I told her wait until she is in 6th grade - then kindergartners will really look small and cute!

Classes

Tonight Natalie was asking me about what comes after high school - I told her (as I always do) "college". She asked what I learned in college, and I told her I didn't go, but that I hope she and Oliver both decide to go when it is time.

"So how did you learn how to take care of a baby?"
"Well, I used to babysit a lot as a teenager, and then I took a baby care class when I was pregnant with you"
"How did Daddy learn?"
"Daddy took that class too"
"OH, so did you look at him and think 'WOW, that man looks NICE. I should meet him"?

LOL. I was dying, just the way she said it was hilarious. I told her that Daddy and I took the class together - we were already married. "OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH".

She kills me. Such a funny little thing.

First day of first grade!

I've fallen behind these last couple weeks of summer - lots going on - I'm on the PTO board this year (fundraising coordinator, and we're knee deep in planning the school's 3rd annual carnival for October), and some things with church, but I wanted to make sure I posted about Natalie's first day of school!

She was so excited to get out to the bus stop this morning - did not want me to drive her on her first day like last year. Got off the bus all smiles, had so much to tell me. We met her teacher Monday - Jon and I both really like her and think it's going to be a great year! Some of her close friends are in her class too, which is nice. Today was the first time I had a hard time seeing her leave. Preschool and Kindergarten didn't faze me too much, but I had a knot in my stomach and a lump in my throat for the better part of the morning.

Oliver missed her terribly as well. He kept saying "Where Na-nee? No school. Na-nee play Ahvrar" (the last is my attempt of phonetically spelling how Oliver pronounces his name).

She starts karate again in a couple of weeks, and soccer as well. And Girl Scouts (Daisy) in less than two weeks luckily the soccer is not too competitive - Saturday lessons, but no practice during the week, and GS is every other Sunday. We don't want to overload her, but we want to encourage her interests at the same time. Have to figure out how to fit piano lessons in there somewhere.

Here she is -

Happy Birthday, Uncle Kyle!!

Can't believe you are 41! Damn! Time flies! (let's see if he's still reading this. :-p)

Many, many happy returns!

Yellow belt!

Natalie's karate class had Awards Night on Monday! She passed her test and is now a yellow belt! Woohoo - way to go kid! Mitz and Pops joined Oliver and me, and we got to watch Natalie and her class demonstrate what they learned this session - very cool! She wants to continue with it, which we think is great! New season starts 01 Sep.

Name change

I noticed Oliver calling Jon "Daddy" today, or "da DEEEE". We've been "Mama" and "Dada" since he started speaking. I told Jon that if he's already saying "Daddy", then "Mommy" won't be too far off. Thought I'd have a couple of days, a week, even. Nope. Couple of hours later "Mommy". The rest of the evening was "Mama", but probably due to force of habit more than anything else.

Don't get me wrong, it's cute and sweet and all that... But it's just one more sign of him growing up! Natalie called me "Mama" until she was 3, I think. It made me a little sad when that went away.

Speaking of Little Miss - she's tried to sneak in a "Mom" here and there. I am not ready for that - she's too little! I shut that down every time. And she gives me her evil grin, so I know she's mostly messing with me. Stinker.

4th of July

A week late.

The kids and I had a wonderful weekend with Mitz and Pops - we headed to the mountains, in Payson, that Friday. Jon joined us Sunday for the day/night - stayed home so he could get a ton of yardwork done that is impossible to do with the kids underfoot.

The kids had so much fun! They were able to play outside all day - it's too hot here in the Valley for that, even with the pool (we limit pool time to a couple of hours a day, at most, because of N's eczema, and the sun is of course strong). They rode their bikes, ran around, just generally had a ball. Even got to play in Pops' boat!

Checked out an arts and crafts festival in a neighboring town. Very small, but I bought Mitz a boobie cooler (for real, it's a fabric thing you soak with water and I think refrigerate, then stick in your bra. lol). I think the official name is Boobe Toobe or something like that.

On the 3rd, I took the kids to the second annual 4th of July parade in Payson. Shortest parade ever. Over in less than 20 minutes. I wasn't too impressed, but the kids loved it, and that's what counts! Natalie and Oliver were so excited - and Oliver quickly learned to go diving for candy when it was thrown from the floats! Natalie helped pass out miniature American flags. Anyone can join in the parade - if we're there next year, I might have the kids decorate their bikes and walk in the parade. I was in a couple of parades for the American Legion as a child (Jr. Miss Poppy several years - yes there are pics, no they aren't scanned), and rode in the Memorial Day parades - it was so much fun - I think the kids would enjoy it too. Oliver cut his finger pretty badly that night - Mitz and I took him to a fire station at the end of the development to have it looked at. It wouldn't stop bleeding for a while, got all over me (just to illustrate how much it was - it was even all the way down my back), and I was worried. I didn't want to subject him to an ER on a Saturday night over the 4th if I didn't have to (hello drunks), so we stopped by the fire station first to see if they thought it would need stitches. The firefighters felt it wouldn't be stitched at the ER, gave us some tips for bandaging it, what to watch for, then gave Oliver the royal treatment. They were so nice. They had just returned from a call, but took so much time not only to look at his wound, but to try to cheer him up. They gave him a stuffed dog, a bag full of goodies (stickers, crayons, coloring pages, cup) and let him tour a fire truck! Then he gave hugs all around. His boo-boo is much better now, but he still talks about it. It oozed for a couple of days if the Band-aids came off, but that stopped by Tuesday. Now it's just the barest scrape. Scared the hell out of us though!

Took it easy on the 4th. Pops grilled some killer steaks. I made The Pioneer Woman's Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeno Thingies, which were awesome. Although I'm going to try this version next time too. Mom, Jon, the kids and I went to check out the fireworks. Couldn't have been a more perfect evening. We were a little irked at first because they wouldn't let cars near the park, so you were forced to take the shuttle buses from a local HS. I wasn't thrilled, because Jon and I had to leave early the next morning - he had a flight to catch, and I didn't want to get caught in post-4th traffic - I thought we'd be out super late. But, they had it down to a science. The weather was perfect - 60ish. We got there early enough to hear the band they had playing - the kids were rocking out - it was SO cute! Oliver was even playing air guitar - he was a dancing machine. Mitz bought the kids glow in the dark necklaces, which they loved. Then we settled back to watch the show. Awesome fireworks display - really long too - longest I've ever been to. Oliver was a little upset at first, then he loved them. Kept saying "fireworks, high, BOOM". He sat in Mitz's lap for a long time, and it was so sweet to see them snuggled up, and I could see Oliver pointing to the sky saying "BOOM" over and over. He was also so excited because the shuttle buses were school buses - he's been itching to ride on a school bus since Natalie gets to ride one too and from school.

We somehow managed to get on the first set of buses back to the HS. Got right in the van - Mitz once again had the parking gods on her side, and were back 5 minutes later. Kids in bed 20 minutes after that - unbelievable. I thought it would be midnight or later before we got out of there - we were back by 10!!

Motive and opportunity

Oliver is a little chocolate milk addict. He would drink his "choc" all day if we let him (and we don't), and even has a special dance when he's trying to cajole his way into a cup of it - chants "choc choc choc" and has some little arm motions - I think I have it on video - will have to post if I do. Then when he gets it, his whole face lights up and he says "CHOOOOOOOOOOOOC" as if greeting a longlost friend.

This morning, he wanted some "choc". And has figured out he can reach the pantry shelf on which I have an unopened bottle of Hershey's. I was upstairs getting ready for the day, when all of a sudden, he appeared at the bathroom door with his sippy under one arm, and an unopened bottle of Hershey's under the other - the little stinker dragged both of them upstairs. I had to laugh. He didn't get his choc, but it was funny as hell. He was so pleased with himself!

Happy Birthday, Will!

Our nephew Will turned 3 today! We all had a chance to speak with him on the phone - he sounds like such a big kid now! Can't wait to see him again!

A rose by any other name

Natalie was driving me crazy this afternoon with Christmas talk. Running commentary for God knows how long on exactly what she wants for Christmas.

I finally told her that Christmas was five months away, and I didn't want to hear about it right now.

Two minutes later... "I really want some Scooby Doo toys for Jesus' birthday. I didn't say the other word, Mommy".

Told her I wasn't falling for it.

Two minutes later... "I really want blah blah blah for that holiday, Mommy. I didn't mention Jesus' birthday!"

Last one was "I really want Santa to bring me XXXXXXX. I didn't say the name of that holiday, Mommy".

ARRRRRRRRRRGH! :-P

Ms. Roboto

I had the kids out running errands Friday afternoon. I could hear Natalie speaking in a robot tone in the back of the van - and Oliver laughing. So I turned down the radio and AC so I could hear her better. I caught the following -

"I AM A ROBOT"
"THE ROBOT LOVES DOGS"
"THE ROBOT IS ALLERGIC TO DOGS"
"THE ROBOT WANTS BENADRYL"

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's day to Jon, Jim and Dee-Da (and Uncle Matt and Uncle Kyle too!) - we love you! And we love and remember our fathers and grandfathers who are no longer with us.

Toothy McTootherson

We were in Baltimore for ten days, and am just getting back to our normal routine - which is why I haven't posted. We had a wonderful time! Saw my grandfather and father, my step-grandmother. Packed a lot into ten days - absolutely exhausting. Aside from the kids being way keyed up the whole time, they were little troopers! I ate like a pig. We all did. Had steamed crabs four times, crabcakes twice, crab dip, crab pizza (the dip and pizza from a local restaurant called DeSantis' Pizza and Grill in Parkville, MD - best crab dip I have ever had, hands down), pizza sub, inside-out pizza (stromboli), and an egg-custard snowball with marshmallow in the middle and on top - that satisfied a 15 year craving! Hawaiian ice and snow cones are NOT the same, and you can't find egg custard flavor OR marshmallow topping out here, as far as I know. I'm on a mission though!

And now for the post title... Natalie had two loose teeth. She lost the first one (left center, bottom) last Monday night - we were at my friends' house (Lynette and Derek) for our final night in Baltimore. She worked and worked that tooth - it was pretty loose and finally twisted and pulled it out - the new tooth is already on the way up! She was so proud of herself! She was so excited to lose her first tooth in MD - "You lost your teeth in Baltimore, Mommy! Just like me! We're lucky! We're twins".

Speaking of teeth, I was sure I broke a tooth our last weekend in MD - was spitting shards of tooth, and had a fair amount of pain, that got worse through the end of the trip. What are the odds of both of us having teeth issues? Went to the dentist Wednesday... Painful visit. I have one tooth on the upper left - last molar - that is my problem tooth. It shredded 8 years ago while I was eating pasta. My dentist at the time was able to do an onlay - basically a huge filling that is cemented in - has to be created in a lab like a crown, but isn't quite a crown. I was eating really soft bread and crab dip this last time. Apparently, the onlay was fine, but there was a gap between the gum and tooth/onlay. So I had to have the onlay cut out, the area cleaned out (my dentist found nothing broken, he thinks what I spat out was tooth from 8 years ago that got trapped up in there when the original onlay was put on), a temp on, and the new onlay will go on in about three weeks. Good times. The only good thing was, I was so tired from the trip, the nitrous put me completely out, so I got a really nice, 1 hour nitrous nap. lol Woke up to lots of pain though. The damn retraction cord they have to use to cut off blood supply to the area is so painful.


Then Thursday night, I was getting the kids to bed (Jon was OOT), and went downstairs for a minute to grab Oliver's lovey. When I got back upstairs, she handed me the other tooth (right center, bottom)! Apparently it was very loose - she was able to get it almost completely perpendicular, and used one of Oliver's hardcover books to knock it out. When asked why she used his book - "I didn't want to get germs on one of mine". The stinker!

Grammar Patrol FAIL

Conversation in the car last night -

Natalie said "I seened _____" - we couldn't figure out what she was saying she "seened".
Mitz - "Natalie, I never SAW it before"
Natalie - "Me neither!"

LOL

The Karate Kid

Natalie finally started karate tonight! She's been dying to learn for a couple of years now, but I've had a hell of a time finding a place. Her school sent home a flier for Young Champions of America - and karate was one of the offerings. She did two classes (2 hours!) back-to-back tonight, and had a blast! The classes started last week, but she was sick with a stomach bug and couldn't attend, hence the make-up. The kids get an award for perfect attendance, and perfect attendance is required for belt testing at the end of the 10 week session. Her instructor said she did really well. She even won a contest in class, and brought home a ribbon! She was so proud of herself, and loved showing me what she learned tonight. Next week we're going to get her a uniform (wanted to wait to see if she liked it before buying one - the classes are paid on a weekly basis, so we could cancel if we wanted to), and she can't wait for that! They are teaching Stranger Danger and techniques for handling those situations as well, which I really like!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there - especially Mitz, Grandma, Elizabeth and Sara!

My MD started off with a bang. I got out of the shower, to find Natalie standing there, swinging a bucket of vomit. "I threwed up Mommy". So I did what any stellar mother would do, I recoiled in horror, and directed her to take it down to Daddy. :-P Poor kid threw up most of the morning, but appears to be on the mend now. We've had a lot of fun with the whole "Natalie gave me a bucket of vomit for MD", but she doesn't find it nearly as amusing - "I did NOT get you throw-up for Mother's Day, Mommy". I tried explaining to her that it was just the timing that made the whole thing classic, and everyone knows that she didn't really get me vomit, but she's too young to understand. But some day, she'll likely have a similar experience, and we can dredge up this memory and cackle away.

Had a nice day though. Went to church, went grocery shopping. Stopped by Mitz's house to give her some flowers (she and Pops decided against coming over for dinner, given the diseased status of our house). Jon cooked an awesome dinner - bacon wrapped scallops with a maple/orange glaze, and a cream/dijon/maple sauce for dipping. And he made me Tollhouse cookies, but in a jellyroll pan (per my request) for dessert. Natalie made me a lovely card at school, and colored a picture for me at home, Jon and the kids gave me some clothes (gee, how DID they know just what to get and even the right sizes to boot?! ). Natalie insisted on putting a candle in my slice of cookie bar, and Oliver started trying to sing "Happy Birthday" - it was the funniest/cutest thing.

My kids rock.

2 year stats!

Oliver had his two year well-visit several weeks ago.

Height - 38.5 inches - off the charts
Weight - 34.6 pounds - 97th percentile
Head - 21.5 inches - off the charts

He's such a big boy now! He continues to crack us up - he is constantly goofing around, making us laugh, has the funniest expressions! He's been on a climbing kick lately, and appears determined to turn my hair completely white.

He's also Mr. Helper lately. He likes to find things around the house that each person uses, then hand it to them with a "here", but the way he says it almost rhymes with "fur". It's pretty cute!

He's also learned to say "excuse me" after he burps (and of course after I applaud for him with a "good one") - it's the cutest thing - he'll burp then chirp out a really cheerful "excuse me". Natalie actually taught him that!

Happy Birthday, Oliver!

2 already - it just doesn't seem possible... So happy, happy birthday my sweet, funny little imp of a boy!

Happy Easter!

We had a nice weekend!

Saturday, we took the kids, and Natalie's best friend and her older sister to a local farm that was having an Easter egg hunt. I took Natalie to that farm for Halloween/pumpkins and we had a wonderful time, so I thought we would all be in for a really good time. Stood in line for an hour and a half. Got up to the register to check-in, and was told that there wasn't any candy left, so they were discounting admission, and the kids could still hunt for eggs. I asked the cashier (the poor girl. I was not amused by that point, and it was obvious) what was the point of hunting for eggs if the kids weren't going to get a prize? She repeated "They can still hunt for eggs". To which I replied "That isn't going to be much fun either, considering we were in line right next to the area where the egg hunt is being held, and I see that you all just dumped the eggs in a pile in the center of the area - there is no 'hunt'". So she said something about being able to go on the hay ride, get faces painted, see the animals. So, OK, we went in. Do the math. We stood in line, an enormous line, for an hour and a half. One face-painting booth. One hayride. One bounce house. Care to guess how long the lines were for those? So no, we weren't able to do any of that. There were a few animals out to look at, and I mean a few. The girls were thirsty, so I took the kids, and Jon stood in line for water. All those people. One concession stand, two people working it. He stood in line for 20 minutes, progressed about 5 feet, maybe. At that point we said "eff it" and left. Very disappointing. But, we went back to the house, got pizza. O napped, Natalie and Trinity played together all afternoon, and her sister went with me while I ran some errands and grocery shopped.

Later that night, after dinner, we got out eggs and dye. The kids had a blast dyeing the eggs - this was Oliver's first time. Although the PAAS kit came with stickers. Oliver put some on his eggs, then noticed that some of the stickers were of balls. He stuck a basketball sticker on his egg, yelled "BALL" and launched the egg across the table, aiming for and missing the egg carton, as opposed to reaching over and placing it in the carton. We were dying. Too funny. I had him do it again, and got it on video.

Easter itself was wonderful! The kids loved their loot from the EB. They got all sugared up, then we went to church. Oliver wouldn't eat breakfast, as he filled up on candy. After mass, they hunted eggs with the kids at church. Then we went to the hall for coffee hour/cake. Oliver threw up chocolate. So gross. Poor kid. But he rallied and tried to go for more chocolate, but we put the kibosh on that. Went home to grab some comfy clothes and my Easter dinner (I hate ham, so I bring my own dinner to my mom's on Easter lol), got some lunch in the kids. Then we went to Mitz and Pops. More Easter baskets, and the kids had an egg hunt at M&P's - they had a great time! Oliver kept dumping his basket all over the floor. As soon as we'd clean it up, he'd dump it again. Had dinner, hung out for a while, both kids passed out in the car on the way home. They were asleep before we hit the freeway - and my mom lives about a mile from the freeway - that's how tired they were.

Happy Belated First Birthday, Maggie!

Our fabulous niece Maggie turned 1 last week! And I missed posting about it. So Happy Belated Birthday, Miss M! We love you!

Fly away home

If you have me on FB, you already know this... About a month ago, we sent away for caterpillar larvae for Natalie's butterfly garden (Christmas gift from Oliver). All five grew (3 are guaranteed) and formed chrysalides, and all five hatched! I let Natalie's teacher know what we were doing, and even though they covered butterflies in class months ago, she finds value in letting the kids see the actual process. So, I brought the larvae to class just before they formed their chrysalides, so all the kids could see them. Once they formed their chrysalides, they could not be moved, so I took a picture and sent it in with Natalie - her teacher hung it on their board. Naturally, they all started hatching at the start of Spring Break - which had me anxious - they are only supposed to live 7-10 days after they hatch. Somehow, even the oldest one (which was 12 days old at the time of release) made it until school resumed. So, Natalie's teacher had me come in with the butterflies. Natalie and I worked on a poster about "Painted Lady Butterfly Facts", which we presented to the class. Then Natalie got to show everyone her butterflies. After that, we headed to a little park just beyond the school to release them.

Natalie was very upset when it came time to release them - she didn't want to let go. Her classmates were just wonderful with her. Many of them hugged her, or would rub her arm and assure her that she was doing the right thing by letting them go. And her little friend Kevin grabbed a tissue and was wiping away her tears. Letting them go was really cool. Her teacher found a spot with lots of clover, which they love to eat, and one-by-one, they all flew away. What was really neat was, the butterflies got visibly excited and active once we hit the outdoors - like they knew this was where they truly belonged. The last one to go kind of hung out for a bit - I suspect that was the oldest one. It finally flew off into a patch of clover, ate for a bit, then came back, flew right into Natalie's face, and brushed her nose. I told her that was a butterfly kiss, to thank her for taking such good care of them. That really lifted her spirits! Then, I shit you not, that same butterfly came back to me and Natalie two more times, circled us each time, then finally flew off. Natalie's teacher had everyone sing "Skinamarinkadink" or whatever that song is, to send them off - she leads the class in that song at dismissal each day. It was really lovely - Mrs. A didn't rush everyone back - we got to take our time and watch the butterflies go. She was very thoughtful with Natalie too - she said if we didn't want to release, that was just fine. But, I told her it would be way worse if Natalie discovered one dead in the habitat one day, and Mrs. A agreed - but wanted to make sure we knew it was up to us. She's a wonderful teacher.

We went back in, and the kids all got to do a butterfly craft - even Oliver was included! Both the teacher and aide always go out of there way to include him, so he screws around less when he's in the classroom now. He'll go right to a desk and sit down and wait for an activity. It's really sweet! Then we all had butterfly shaped cookies (dipped in chocolate - yum - found them at Fry's)!

Student of the Month, and report card

Natalie was chosen to be one of the Students of the Month at her school for March! Tomorrow is her award ceremony - the kids get called up on stage and are presented with a chain/necklace, a certificate and they get to shake the principal's hand! We are so proud of Natalie! Can't wait to see her up on stage tomorrow! On the nomination form, her teacher wrote:

"Natalie is a good student and a good friend. She always helps others and is kind to others".

We also received her third quarter report card last week. She continues to make progress! She's evenly split between being at level, and proficient, so we're quite pleased. Her teacher writes that she is a pleasure to have in class, and continues to do well.

Spring Break

Over a week late, but who's counting? :-P

We had a great week, but busy, busy, busy! I'll just break it down by day....

Monday - took the kids to the zoo. Had a great time! We fed the giraffes, looked at some animals, then the kids played on a huge treehouse structure they have there. Rode the carousel and went home for lunch.

Tuesday - Natalie had her yearly allergy appointment. Nuts and tree nuts still an issue - it took over ten days for her skin to heal where the peanut and walnut oils were applied. She is also highly allergic to basically the entire AZ outdoors. 7 weeds, 8 trees, 2 grasses (Bermuda mix and Rye), cats and dogs. She has mild, developing asthma, which we can treat with nebulized Albuterol on an as/if needed basis, and Singulair daily (mainly for the allergy symptoms - her asthma presents as allergic response) - so far no daily asthma meds or rescue inhalers are required. She is at high risk for developing severe asthma, and sometime within the next year or so will be required to start an allergy shot regimen - a shot once or twice a week for 3 months, then a shot a month for 3-5 years - this will greatly reduce the risk of her developing severe asthma. I'm starting to talk it up now, because she is very shot phobic, but we are going to have to do this, because the risks otherwise are too great. Her friend Trinity came over and played the rest of the afternoon.

Wednesday (St. Patrick's Day) - took the kids to get Easter and Oliver's birthday pictures. That went shockingly well - especially since Jon was OOT and I had to go solo with them. Then her friend Kevin from school came over to play - very sweet boy! Later that night, we had breakfast for dinner - green eggs for the kids (blech) was on the menu. So foul, but Natalie loved them!

Thursday - headed for the mountains in the afternoon! It was close to 80 in Mesa, but in Overgaard, there was still quite a bit of snow on the ground! Just got settled in that evening.

Friday - took the kids out for a bit in the morning, but it was 40 and raining off and on, so we didn't last too long outside. Ran a couple of errands, went back to the condo, had lunch. Once Oliver went down for his nap, Natalie and I went to a local tea place in town and had afternoon tea. Tea and an English muffin for me, tea and 3 enormous pancakes for Natalie. I am not a fan of pancakes at all, but these were amazing. Big, thick, fluffy and slightly sweet. They smelled kind of like cakes. Had dinner at the condo. Then the kids and I locked ourselves in one of the bedrooms, and I colored all over them with washable marker, (including "Hi Daddy" on Oliver's butt, lol) - and of course the kids got in on the action too! Oliver was so funny - he was so serious about coloring on himself. The look on Jon's face when we came out was priceless. The bathwater was unreal. Mad props to Crayola though - their washable markers come right off, with a minimum of scrubbing!

Saturday - Jon took the kids out to play while I got ready. Another cold morning, but clear. Then we all putzed around a bit - went to a local food store in town and ugh - they had hotdogs that expired in January. Came back, had lunch. Got Oliver down, then Natalie and I went over to the hot tub for a bit. After we got changed, she and I went to the coffee shop on the property and got hot chocolate for her, a Mexican (real sugar!) Coke for me, and a huge cinnamon bun. Went back to the condo to share with Jon and Oliver, but they had taken off somewhere. I intended to just eat a bite of bun and save the rest for Oliver, but it was too good. Little man had no idea what he missed. Walked around a bit, found the guys, visited some of the shop owners on the property - we've gotten to know several of them really well! Had dinner. Drew on the kids again.

Sunday - left for home.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Had a nice day! The kids had Easter and Oliver's birthday pictures taken today. Picked up some Irish Soda Bread from Wildflower Bread Co. (sucked, BTW. That is NOT soda bread). Natalie had one of her friends from school come over to play in the afternoon. Then I made the kids dark green eggs (blech. I had mine without dye), bacon and cinnamon rolls for dinner. Healthy. lol.

Anyway... Here are the little leprechauns! Had to include a shot of the back of O's shirt - it makes me giggle every time I see it. He loved it too!

Kid sweetness

Natalie has declared one day last week "Loving Brother Day. Hugs and kisses and kissing hands for little brother day". Kissing hands are part of her good-bye and good-night rituals - you kiss the other person's palms, who then presses their palms to their face to save kisses for later. It's from The Kissing Hand book.

She made Oliver a card, all by herself, that says "I love you Oliver, love, Natalie" and dug through all of her stickers, and decorated it with stickers that she knows he likes best, as well as drawings of him and her. And we had to have brownies and ice cream for dessert to celebrate Loving Brother Day.

And that day she got out really early - end of third quarter - so Oliver was awake when she got off the bus. As soon as the bus doors opened, he started shouting "Na na Na na", and she barreled off the bus, scooped him up, big hugs, kisses, spun him around, then introduced him to the kids who ride the bus in the afternoon - some of them only ride in the PM, so they don't see Oliver in the mornings at drop-off.

And Oliver has started demanding hugs. He throws his arms wide, big grin, yells "HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUG" and waits for his hug. When Jon's gone, I give them story time together - when she leaves his room to wait for me to get her in bed (he goes first), he does the HUUUUUUUUUUUUG routine I don't know how many times in a row. Both of them laughing like loons. As soon as she gets to the door, he calls her back for a HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUG.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MITZ!!

This past Saturday, 6 weeks of planning came to a head as we threw a surprise party to celebrate the 31st anniversary of Mitz's 29th birthday. :-)

Somehow we managed to pull off a complete surprise party - she had no idea! It probably helped that I woke up with a raging sinus infection the morning of - so bad all I could do was cry - no way did she think a party was in the works with me being in that shape. As a matter of fact, once she walked in the house she asked me if I was really sick - I assured her I was, and that she was to remember that when making out her will. :-P All kidding aside, it really was a lovely party. So many people came to celebrate my wonderful mother's birthday - some people we haven't seen in a long time! My brother and SIL were even able to attend - they flew in from Baltimore the Thursday before - kept them hidden from Mom until the party. I haven't lied to mother this much since I was a teenager!

So many people helped pull this off - we couldn't have done it without them!

Pops was my partner in crime - he did everything he could to keep her off the scent and get her out of their house and over to mine. He also pretty much let me run with whatever ideas I had, and was so supportive through the whole process.

Jon did a phenomenal job decorating the house for the party - he was up past midnight the night before. And of course the usual child-wrangling to free up my time for party prep.

Jim's cousin Joan came over early the day of the party to help with last-minute details/wrangle the kids.

My SIL Christy did a lot of food prep and cleaning the day/night before. She and Rich also drove me to the Minute Clinic the day of (my doctor's office was of course closed on Saturday) and wrangled the kids in the afternoon.

Jamie came over early to help prep/occupy the kids.

Our friend Amy was involved from the start - helping me with the guestlist, as well as distributing invitations to people at Safeway (she works at Safeway too). She also took Mom to tea at the Ritz to get her out of the house, then we had an elaborate ruse to get her over to mine - which we pulled off! And of course helping with details leading up to and during the party. She even got treated to bitching from Mom and me (separately, but I guess now she knows just how far this apple didn't fall from its tree!) about tea times. Long story. Poor Amy.

Our friend Sylvia was also involved from the start. Guestlist, details, chasing down RSVPs... The night before the party she came by to drop off dishes she was lending me for the party, and to pick up some of the food that I made ahead because I didn't have enough room in my fridge. She has a hellacious commute, long day, and still was willing to stop by on her way home to help out. She was supposed to come earlyish on Saturday to help, but once she found out how out of commission I was, she came by even earlier and took on some extra tasks. I didn't find out until later that she wasn't feeling well herself. And during the party she was all over getting the food out and ready, making sure the guestbook was signed (Jamie did that too - thanks guys - that made such a nice keepsake for Mom).

Another friend of ours, Alison, came up from Tucson and spent the night so she wouldn't have to drive. Once everyone left, she got right to work helping get the house back to rights - which was completely unnecessary, but so much appreciated!

And our friend Cindy helped keep the food flowing, and with getting dinner heated up and placed on the table, as well as hanging out with Oliver - they are wrapped around each other's little fingers. :-)

Ack! Missed a thank you! Aunt Lois put together a bunch of favors when she and Uncle Don visited the weekend before!

Sounds like a good time was had by all - I know I had a great time! Couldn't have been more pleased! Oliver was in his element. At one point, he pulled up a DR chair and parked himself by the chips and pretzels. Then he decided the salsa needed some doctoring - so he threw a bunch of cherry tomatoes in it. And held court at the kitchen island and breakfast table - just cracking himself and everyone else up. Natalie had a blast playing with her cousins, running around with balloons. She asked me if she could have a rockstar soda - meaning a can of Pepsi (super sale, I still love you more, Coke). I said "why not". So she caught Jon's eye, lifted the can, and nodded at him with a shit-eating grin. LOL Jamie caught Oliver as he pulled up a chair to the kitchen counter, stuck his fingers in the cake, licked them while saying "mmmmmmmmmmmmm". Stinker!

Happy Birthday, Mitz! We love you!

Thanks to everyone who helped pull this together, and who was there to help celebrate a special birthday for a very special lady!

Aunt Lois and Uncle Don

Came to visit us last week! It was so good to see them - and the kids just adored their time with them. Lois and Don bring a lot of love and laughter with them wherever they go, and we always thoroughly enjoy their company. Oliver was immediately Uncle Don's #1 fan/mini stalker, and Natalie attached herself to Aunt Lois. They arrived last Friday, left Monday morning for Sedona, then came back Tuesday to spend one more night before they left.

Friday was pretty low-key - had dinner then watched the Olympics.

The men hung out on Saturday, while the ladies went shopping and had lunch. It was such a nice day out - Natalie had a great time shopping with us at San Tan, and playing in the children's area there. After Lois and Don went to Mass Saturday afternoon, we all went out to dinner. Came back, got the kids to bed, then Olympics again.

Sunday, Lois and Don went to church with us. Did my usual grocery shop, and Jon made an excellent dinner (almost as good as the dinner I made on Friday. :-P).

When they got back on Tuesday, Lois and Don watched the kids so I could attend a PTO meeting at Natalie's school (thank you guys! You had a long day!).

Said good-bye on Wednesday - we were sad to see them go! Natalie is anxious to see them again - I'm sure Oliver is too, but he can't quite express that yet. :-)

Way behind on pictures. Will work on them this week.

Mr. Fix-it

This happened a couple of weeks ago -it's been crazy around here and I haven't had time to sit down and blog!

I was talking to my brother on the phone one afternoon, when I heard Natalie start yelling. Oliver took one of their wooden chairs flipped it over, and had one leg removed, and the middle support pieces dismantled as well.

Not two hours later, I ran upstairs to start their bath (takes forever for the water to heat up thanks to the water heater being on the opposite end of the house, and on the lower level to boot), and I heard her yelling again. I was gone maybe two minutes? Ran downstairs to find Oliver sitting in my desk chair, which had been flipped over on its back. He was riding it like a rocket ship. And had reached under, and by HAND, completely unscrewed and removed one of the bolts that attach the wheeled legs to the seat.

Stinker! I guess he got a good dose of the engineer gene from Jon's dad and my maternal grandfather!

Computers

So I've switched to using my laptop all the time, and Natalie has been given my old pc and desk. We have the pc locked way down (and her desk is next to mine, so she's always surpervised) - she mainly uses a kid's art program, then she has three bookmarks to PBSkids, Nickjr, and Kidsplanet.org. Somehow she wound up on Norton's anti-virus site right now - and it has product information with a price.

"Look Mommy, that 'S' with a line means it costs money. It's a $1.99".
"Actually, it's $49.99"
"$49.99? I think I'm going to get some change. Do you think I'm going to get some change?".

Don't know why, but it made me laugh.

Sweet sis...

Both kids are pretty sick this week, so they were both at the doctor's office yesterday. They needed to take pulse ox on both, tried Oliver first, who was having none of it. So Natalie went first. The nurse had to wind up getting the thing that wraps around the finger (instead of the clamp thing), and even then, had to put it on his big toe. He was fussing during the whole thing, and Natalie just came over and started rubbing his shoulder, telling him "It's OK, Oliver. Na-na's here. I just did that and it didn't hurt. You'll be fine!".

Same thing during his breathing treatment both at the doctor's office, and today when he decided he was finished with breathing treatments (too bad he has about 30 more to go!).

Makes my heart all melty.

Frugality

I went to a grocery store with the kids yesterday (Natalie was out sick from school, but OK to go to the store for a quick trip). Saved 68% overall (yes, I was cherrypicking sales). The cashier exclaimed "OMG. You just saved over $40". Natalie piped up "That's because my mommy rocks the grocery store".

She's been listening when I crow about savings after my regular weekly trips!

New clean-up song

Natalie has a bright future as a songwriter! She treated us to her newest ditty this morning.

"Mommy said to clean my room
Mommy said to clean my room
Mommy said to clean my room
So I threw everything out the window
So I threw everything out the window
So I threw everything out the WINDOOOOOOOOOOOOW"

*applause*

Forgot two funnies...

From Overgaard.

Natalie loves refried beans, so I sang the "beans beans the magical fruit, they make your hiney go toot, toot, toot" song. I only sang it once, so she gave it her own twist -

"beans beans the magical fruit
they make me stink
and they make me fart
and they make me poop".

And she opened a barber shop. The day we were leaving, I was trying to get ready and then load up the car. The kids were watching a movie, and Natalie had her arts and crafts kit out. All of a sudden, I heard Jon yelling "That's it, no more scissors". Apparently she decided to give Oliver's cowlick a trim - and dude just sat there and let her do it. I walked into the living room, and they were both sitting there with shit-eating grins. I wasn't pleased, but I couldn't help but laugh (I have no poker face, and it's already biting me in the ass). I couldn't figure out where she had cut at first (which is a good thing!), so I asked her to show me. She kind of circled her hand over the top of his head, then said "Don't worry. He still has a lot more". And when asked why she did that? "I was trying to make him more handsome".

Overgaard - MLK weekend

Jon and I took the kids to the mountains over MLK weekend - hoping to run into some snow. It was definitely cold! Natalie was so cute on the way up - searching for snow on the side of the road. And the property had older snow on the ground - not 2 minutes after we arrived, Oliver let out a "woooo hoooo" and did a bellyflop in the snow - the first of many. :-)

We just got settled in that night (Friday), and had dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant in Heber/Overgaard - Casa Ramos.

Saturday, we got up earlyish and drove to Flagstaff, so we could see Jamie and play in some snow. Had a great time! Oliver learned how to say Jamie - and stalked poor Jamie the whole day. At one point we were following her car, and Oliver spent the entire time pointing to her car and moaning "Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay". Jamie took us to a field on the NAU campus (where she goes to school), and the four of us had a blast (Jon wielded the camera, since he was recovering from surgery on his deviated septum)! There was a hill that was just the right size for sledding. Just before we got into town, I pointed out the large mountain to Natalie (where the ski/snowboarding is) and told her that was the hill we'd be sledding on, and she said "COOL". Several minutes later, I heard her whimpering in the back. I asked her what was wrong - she said "I'm too scared to go down that hill". I thought she knew I was joking! I told her don't worry. It would probably take me two weeks to get up that mountain, and we had to be home in three days. :-) Got back to the condo, made dinner and had a quiet evening.

Sunday we just stayed around the property. Took the kids to a local park. While Oliver napped, Natalie and I went to the front desk/club house to make a birdhouse. Had a nice time! Once Oliver got up, we just walked around the property until we got too cold. Dinner and another quiet evening.

The kids were so good this trip, and so cute too. They really loved the snow! Natalie says she loves visiting it, but doesn't want to have to live in it. She's her mother's daughter, that's for sure!

Crisis averted.

Last night, as I was getting Natalie ready for bed, she asked "Mommy, do you know what Stinky Pinky is?". I was like "uh um, stinky pinky?" (because I'm pretty sure that's some kind of obscene term and I was trying to buy some time). I sat there and scrambled for some kind of explanation for a couple of seconds...

"NO, Mommy. SNEAKY PEEKY"

"Sneaky peeky?"

"Yeah, Sneaky Peeky. You keep your eyes on your paper, and don't let people peek on yours" (they had their first spelling quiz yesterday)

I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief.

I know these conversations are coming, but I'm just not quite ready! :-P

End of 2nd quarter

We had our parent-teacher conference earlier this week! Natalie is continuing to do very well - at level in everything, proficient in several! Her teacher says she is a good, solid student. She recently paired a new student with Natalie because apparently Natalie is a little mommy in class, and likes to take people under her wing and show them the ropes. Still needs some confidence building - she has a strong need for perfection and if she isn't sure of an answer, she won't try; she clams up. We're working on that, but I know from personal experience that's a tough trait to reverse. Mrs. A also told us that Natalie mumbles a lot during class, and she oftens stops to listen because Natalie will be mumbling really funny, little adult asides. And the kids get to take turns being teacher - they stand at the blackboard and review letters and sounds. Mrs. A told me that last week, Natalie was relishing her turn, and kept calling out students who weren't giving her their full attention. That's my girl! :-)

It's potty time!

Well, probably not for real, but this was still pretty cool! Oliver peed in the toilet tonight! Twice! Natalie was so excited, she said "He's a big boy now! Like a 5 year old! Like me!" and gave him one of her Matchbox cars.

Backing up..... Last week, for the first time in months, Oliver peed while I was taking his diaper off before his bath. Jon was gone all week, so I was distracted and didn't give it much thought. Sunday night, I was taking his diaper off before his bath, and he peed again. Like last week, it was just a few drops. I tossed a wipe over him, went back to cleaning him up (poopy diaper). Then he peed two more times - every time I took the wipe off - and I noticed that he was bearing down to force it out, and laughing like a little maniac.

I wasn't sure if this was intentional mischievous behavior, or a "hey cool! look what I can do" connection being made, or some combination of the two. I asked some friends if they had ever encountered a similar situation (Google gave me nothing) and they suggested putting him on the toilet when he does that - not so much to potty train - but at least to show him that pee belongs in the toilet.

So last night, same routine, except I put him on the toilet and told him to pee. He looked at me like I had two heads, then pointed to the tub. I backed off. Tonight, again, same routine, except this time when I put him on the toilet and told him "Go pee. Pee-pee belongs in the toilet", he looked at me for a second, then grinned (I swear I saw a lightbulb go off in his head), bore down and got some pee out! We all made a fuss over him, then after his bath, he indicated he wanted to try again, so on the toilet he went, and he peed again!

I'm under no delusion that he'll be potty trained any time soon, but it's a step in the right direction!

Stringing words

Oliver has started stringing words together!

Last week he said "'nack chips!" - meaning he wanted chips for a snack. Prior to that he would just say "nack" if he wanted a snack and then he'd point to what he wanted, or he'd just say "chips". And no, he doesn't snack on chips all day! He can see the bag in the pantry and always tries to get us to hand some over. :-)

Tonight, I took the kid to see Mitz and Pops - had them out to get new shoes and wasn't far from M&P. As soon as we turned on their street (he actually recognizes the far end of their development where we turn in, and even as we get off the freeway he knows we are going to their place), Oliver got all excited and said "Mitz (I can't phonetically recreate how he says "Mitz") door, knock"! And he did a little knocking motion - so cute! He's also been knocking on doors lately - like Natalie's - don't know why, but it cracks me up.

Grandma's visit! And Happy New Year!

Grandma arrived last Saturday! After a frustrating day at the airport, she finally arrived around 11 p.m. Natalie was so excited to wake her up Sunday morning! We had such a nice time with her this week, and glad that she was able to have a longer visit this time!

Sunday we went to church, then got Oliver down for a nap, and Natalie, Grandma and I spent the afternoon shopping. Introduced Grandma to Cuban sandwiches.

Monday, I dropped Natalie and Grandma off at As You Wish - a local pottery painting place. Natalie made Grandma a snowman ornament, and Grandma made Natalie a penguin statue. I left them there, and took Oliver to meet Mitz at Home Goods. Bought a few things, then we went back to pick up G and N - after Mitz and I chased each other around the parking lot in our cars - don't ask. We all had lunch, then got the kids back for nap/quiet time.

Tuesday - Natalie's friend Trinity came over to play for most of the day. Then we had an early dinner, and headed out to Zoo Lights - Aunt Jamie came along with us. This is the first time we went in Phoenix and it was beautiful - really well done.

Wednesday - Trinity came over again, and we all went to the "big park" - about a mile from the house. Got McDs for lunch, then I left the girls with Carol while I took Oliver to the doctor - raging case of croup again, and he was prescribed steroids for a couple of days. Then Jon got pizza for the kids and Grandma, and we headed over to Nicholas and Rex's for dinner - had a nice night out - thanks for babysitting, Grandma!

Thursday - Grandma and I took the kids to the zoo during the day. Didn't know it was snow day there - the place was packed - but they had two areas with some snow. Natalie loved it, of course. Oliver, not so much. He's definitely our Arizona native! He thought it was fun until his hands got really cold, then it was all over - big drama. But he kept going back for more, then he'd get cold and upset. The final time, I was so proud of Natalie.... Right after she dumped snow on him (and he found that funny), he played a bit, got cold, got upset, and instead of ignoring him, or calling for me, I watched her take him by the hand, and every so gently led him down the snow hill over to me. It was so sweet to see her caring for her baby brother like that. I got a little choked up. Oh, and we all got to feed giraffes! Grandma and I got slimed a little, but that was OK. The kids loved it - it's such a neat experience. Got the kids back, nap/quiet time, I started cooking. Mitz and Pops came over for dinner and the evening. We had Chicken Saltimbocca (and mine/Cook's Illustrated was better than Bucca di Beppo's, so there!), crash hot potatoes, steamed broccoli, and Tres Leche cake for dessert. That cake is divine - my first time making and trying it and it's so good it's unreal. Got the kids to bed, and the adults sat around and drank and played poker until well in to the New Year! Mitz brought several lovely appetizers, I made hot crab dip and we had chips and salsa as well. One of the best evenings we've had - lots of laughter, obnoxiousness, some vulgarities, and just a general good time!

Happy New Year! I'm adding Tday, Christmas and N's birthday pictures now. I need to get the ones from Grandma's visit uploaded and edited - will try to get that done over the weekend.

Merry Christmas!!

Obviously a little late, but whatever. :-)

We had a wonderful Christmas! Our church's Advent pageant was the Sunday before Christmas - Natalie was Mary this year - and had a beautiful costume handmade by Grandma. All the kids did a great job! Natalie brought down the house at one point - she was supposed to climb on the back of large, stuffed horse (supposed to be the donkey that Mary rode to Bethlehem) - she had been been pretty reserved up until that point... All of a sudden, she leapt up in the air, tucked her legs up, and landed square on the back of the horse/donkey - so funny - you can see the video here - just scroll down a bit until you see the video - it is embedded in our church's homepage. Full screen viewing is best.

Christmas Eve was a whirlwind of cooking/baking, church at 4, then we went to Mitz and Pops' for dinner. Mitz made a delicious salad and lasagna, and Santa called Natalie (M&P arranged for their neighbor to call and play Santa) - Natalie was wide-eyed. Then Pops took the kids out back to look for Santa's sleigh. Mitz went out front and rang the sleigh bells she hangs on her door every year - I heard Natalie shout "That's Santa! I hear his sleigh bells!". She came running in, Mitz showed her the bells and told her that they must have fallen from Santa's sleigh - Natalie was amazed. Then Mitz and Pops gave the kids a special present - a Polar Express train set - the kids love it! We're going to bring it out every Christmas, but put it away during the year so it doesn't get broken. Once that was opened, Oliver turned around and started ripping the paper off one of Natalie's other presents. Whoops!

Headed home. Had the kids hang stockings, get the final chocolates out of their Advent calendars. I put O to bed, Jon put Natalie to bed. Jon was out of her room first - usually I'm out of O's before Jon finishes with Natalie. Apparently she told him "I want The Night Before Christmas because it is short. Frosty is short too, that's OK. And I want no screwing around. No drawing on my back, no snuggling, get out so I can go to sleep". LOL We finished wrapping presents, cleaned the house, and got to bed way too late.

Christmas day was awesome as well. Natalie was up at about 6:20, but waited patiently upstairs until Oliver awoke at 7, and also for Mitz and Pops to arrive at the same time. We opened presents - the kids were so cute. Oliver was just stomping around all over the place with a lollipop. One of his gifts was a plush Dora backpack, with the Map - and he put it on and started singing the Map and Backpack songs. Mitz and Pops stayed for breakfast, then left to meet Jamie and Mike back at their house. They came back around 1:30 with Mike and Jamie. My friend Sylvia and her family joined us again this year, so we had 12 total! Dinner was prime rib, au jus, horseradish cream sauce, Caesar salad, Duchess potatoes, green bean casserole (scratch, not the Campbell's version), rolls. Dessert was Eggnog Bundt cake, and Sylvia brought a Red Velvet cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory that was to.die.for.

Some of the highlights from Christmas day -

Jon found Oliver with a fistful of candy in each hand - one had chocolate, the other candy cane. He said O was alternating cramming gobs of candy in his mouth, drooling everywhere - then he looked at Jon, reached in his mouth and pulled out an intact candy cane wrapper. And laughed.

Oliver received a toy dump truck that plays music, says a few things, and moves. He was chasing a couple of Natalie's Zhu Zhu pets around the house with it.

Mitz gave Natalie a small thing of hand sanitizer in her stocking. Natalie was running around the house telling me how she was going to have everyone use it before dinner, and "I can't believe Mitz got me hand sanitizer - it was JUST WHAT I WANTED". Who knew?! :-)

And of course, after all the present opening orgy was finished, Natalie asked "Is there more?". LOL