A Walk to Remember

Aaaah! Spring gave us a lovely preview this weekend. It was wonderful to be outside without 20 layers weighing us down. We spent as much time outside as possible, enjoying being free from the confines of the house.

Yesterday morning, while Mark was off getting a haircut, the kids wanted to go for a walk. It all started off so well. The kids happily walking together. Lainey's arm hugging Nick's shoulder. Me, following behind, casually sipping my coffee. Lainey was pointing out the airplanes in the sky, and Nick seemed to be on a pinecone scavenger hunt. Every time he found one, he'd grab it, shout "PINECONE," and then hurl it into someone's yard.

Well, because Nick was stopping every three feet to throw a pinecone, he and I ended up lagging a bit on Lainey. When we were about half way around the block, I told her to come back and walk with us. She whirled around and started running toward us, only to trip over some uneven sidewalk and bite it hard. Nick and I ran up to her, and I picked her up and tried to calm her down. She was legitimately hurt, but, drawing on her usual flair for the dramatic, she was reacting as if she had shattered her knee caps and was screaming at the top of her lungs. It was only 8:30 AM, so I was trying to turn her volume down as quickly as possible.

During the 15 seconds that I was focused solely on Lainey, Nick busied himself finding another pinecone. Only this time it wasn't a pinecone. It was a large piece of dried dog poop. Perhaps it was the look of digust and horror on my face that told him this "pinecone" was special and he shouldn't just casually toss is away like all the others. No, he should fight to the death to keep this pinecone in his clutches. Since he wouldn't drop it on command, I sat Lainey down on the sidewalk, still bawling, and pried the poop from his fist, only to have him slap me in the face with his poop-contaminated hand and then start screaming at the top of HIS lungs--"PINECONE!!! Piiiiinecooooooone!"

So, now I had two wailing children, both refusing to continue the walk home. I abandonned my coffee thermos and hitched one kid on each hip and started the march home as quickly as possible. I'd just rounded the second corner and had the house in my sites. My arms were burning and my ears were ringing from the screaming. A lovely older couple passed us, and said, chuckling, "Oh my! Looks like you have your hands full!" I painted on my best fake smile, and shouted, "you know it!," when I really wanted to say "Kiss my @!#." I know they were just being friendly, but I wasn't feeling like a playful ribbing from a stranger. Call me crazy. Word of advice friends, if you see someone in a similar situation, the kind thing to do is avert your eyes and keep walking. Because that person is in no mood for delightful banter.

By the time we made it back to the house, both of the kids had calmed themselves and I thought we were through the drama. But, noooo. Nick had no intention of going inside the house and fell apart again as soon as we stepped through the door. First order of business was to wash his hands. Lainey may be bleeding, but cleaning Nick's hands of feces was the clear priority. Well, this didn't sit well with our little princess, so she started bawling again. Of course, once I washed Nick's hands and turned to address her wounds, she started screaming because she didn't want me to wash them. I was actually okay with this. Scrapes hurt. I don't like having to clean them up myself, so I can't expect a three-year-old to sit calmly through the ordeal (even if it is just a teeny-tiny, barely visible drop of blood). While I'm trying to hold Lainey's leg still and be as gentle as possible, Nick decides I'm now his favorite person in the world and is hanging from my neck wailing, "Mommy! Mommy!" Not to be outdone, Lainey starts screaming louder. Then she wanted a Tiana bandaid, but the only princesses left in the box were Cinderella or Aurora.

"How about Rapunzel?," she asked through sobs.

"No, baby, we only have Cinderella or Aurora."

"But, what about Ariel?" she pleaded.

"No, Lainey. Cinderella or Aurora." To which she erupted into the loudest sob of all, "Why is this happening?!!!! Why don't we have the other princesses?!!!"

And all I could do was collapse in laughter, because this situation was just too ridiculous. I'd love to say my laughter was so infectious that both the kids also started laughing, and we went merrily about our morning. In reality, it took another 15 minutes, a waffle, banana, and a pound of strawberries (no joke--they ate a POUND of strawberries) to get the munchkins cheery again. I just poured myself a strong drink (okay, so it was just strong coffee).

Maybe I'll take a few more days of winter and being cooped up in the house afterall...

It's Fun to Stay at the YMCA!

I don't know how much fun it would be to actually stay there, but, after months of debate, Mark and I finally took the plunge over the weekend and signed up for a family membership at the YMCA. The membership is really reasonable and gives us 50% off classes, so the savings on Lainey’s swim lessons gives us a free month right there. Plus, we want to sign her up for gymnastics in the fall—BOOM another free month!

As most know, I’ve never been in love with the gym (or physical activity in general). Pre-kids, Mark would have to drag me there on Saturday mornings with the promise of some sort of yummy food afterward. But, Mark definitely needs his workouts and with the added stress of his job lately, I want him to have a place to go and blow off some steam. Also, I want to set an example for the kids that exercise and taking care of ourselves is important and should be a priority. So, we’re working out a schedule to allow us both to get there at least twice a week (and I’m hoping Mark can get a third). 

I’m doing Wednesdays, Mark Thursdays, and then we’ll both go once on the weekends. They do offer childcare, but given we work all week, we really don’t like giving up time with the kids on the weekends, so we’ll probably get our gym time in during naps.

I had my first visit last night. The cardio machines are super nice! Way better than any gym I’ve belonged to before. They all have TVs and iPhone adapters for your viewing needs. I jumped on an elliptical (my machine of choice) and starting going hard. It felt pretty good! I thought, “oh yeah, I can still do this. What’s a little two-year slump?” (Yes, friends, the last time I did any cardio heavier than dance parties with the kids was before Nick was born—YIKES!). I’m moving along to my tunes, feeling like a badass, big stupid smile on my face, and then it started to feel a little tough. My thighs were feeling the burn and my breathing was definitely getting heavy. Thinking I was probably 15 minutes or so into my session, I look down and see I had only been at it for eight minutes. EIGHT MINUTES?!!! Surely, the display was incorrect? Guess those dance parties weren’t keeping me as fit as I thought. I took my pace down a bit, but kept going. My itunes seemed to know just the song to play next to keep me motivated. I started to pick up the pace again—oh yeah, back on track!—then I looked at the time again. Bad move. I’d only gone another four minutes. GROAN!!! In the end, I did do a full 30 minutes on the elliptical (so what if 10 of them were more of a cool down than actual cardio). But, really what did I expect? I’m almost 36 and haven’t been working out regularly for far too long a time. So it wasn’t a great workout, but it’s a start! 

Bowling and Books

My mind is tired these days, so I'm taking the easy route and blogging by video.  Check out Nick at his first bowling experience and Lainey "reading" Knuffle Bunny (one of about a dozen books she now has memorized). These gems are better than anything I could write anyway!

The Bagina Monologues

Mark and I made the decision to use the correct terms for teaching the kids anatomy. An arm is an arm, and a vagina is a vagina.

Lately it seems that we are getting constant information about Lainey's "bagina." But, she does tend to keep her vagina status updates around bathroom visits or bathtime. It's not like we're in the middle of lunch and she just busts out with "the other day, my bagina...," so at least she keeps it topical. The day is coming though, when she decides to wax poetic about her nether region at the most inopportune time. Well, I guess that will just make for another blog post!

Dr. Lainey says, "there's nothing funny about the word 'bagina.' Grow up people."

These Two...

Lainey and Nick are melting me to a puddle these with their love for each other. They are full of hugs, kisses, and giggles these days. Tonight, when  I got to daycare, I could see them through the window hugging each other and laughing with their foreheads mashed together. So sweet!

Lainey calls Nick her "Lil Puppy," and he follows her around like one. If Nick wakes up before Lainey, he asks for her constantly and it's all I can do to keep him from climbing the stairs and charging into her room. The first hugs of the morning go to each other and there is usually the exchange of "I love you, Buddy;" "Love you, Lay-NEE," which just sends me to the moon. Sometimes Lainey is the only one who can comfort Nick. He was pouting about something the other night and wouldn't let me touch him, but Lainey came over, put her arm around him, and said, "It's okay. I'm here now." He leaned right against her and let her stroke his cheek for awhile. Then, just like that, everything was fine again. 

I'm not saying there isn't discord, they squabble and push as much as they giggle and hug. They're still siblings, after all. But, even that stuff makes me smile. It's funny how Lainey is truly turning into a big sister and is very directive and authoritative with Nick. She is constantly telling him what to do, and he'll follow pretty blindly. But, if she messes with his fun, he'll tell her "no" and hold his ground. The below is a common interaction these days:

Lainey snatches a toy from Nick

N: "NO! Big trouble, Lay-NEE. Time out." Points to chair.

E: "You're not the boss of me, Nick!"  

Even though they're fighting, this kind of stuff still slays me, it's so freaking adorable! (Well, really just Nick, scolding Lainey. Too cute.)

Who knows how their relationship will evolve over the years. I know plenty of adult siblings who can't stand each other. But, I hope--I really, really hope--that these two keep growing together and not apart.

The Inseparable Duo

Frozen on Ice

After buying the tickets six months ago, Saturday was finally the day for Frozen on Ice. It. Was. Awesome. Not the show exactly--yes it was fun and cute, yada yada yada--but the experience with Lainey. Loved, loved, loved it!

We waited until last Wednesday to tell Lainey about the show, and I'm glad we did, because it was all she could talk about. That morning she kept telling Nick over and over how he was going to stay home with Grace (the babysitter) and she was going to go with Mommy and Daddy to see Elsa and Anna ice skate.

When we got there, just as promised, we bought her pepperoni pizza for lunch and then a bag of cotton candy to take to our seats. Truly, I don't know if she was more excited for the show or the cotton candy, which she somehow already knew existed--evidently a daycare friend recently had the sweet stuff and it was the talk of the lunch table at school. No surprise, she loved it (and I did too, I don't know when I had cotton candy last).

So, we were already having a blast, but then the show started. It kicked off with some regular joe-schmos to get the crowd excited and moving. We stood up and did the "snowman dance" and Lainey thought that was pretty fun. But, then Mickey and Minnie Mouse came out and Lainey's face froze in pure joy and she started waving to them. Then all the Disney princesses started coming out  with their princes. By the time Cinderella appeared, I though she was going to wet herself from the excitement. Then the real show started and Lainey stayed rapt from beginning to end, singing the songs and waving to the characters. I probably only saw about 20 minutes of the show, because I couldn't take my eyes off of her. I even got a little misty-eyed at one point, because I started thinking about how fast time is going by and how she is a little girl and not a baby anymore. Sniff.

So, it was a pretty great outing. The icing on the cake was Grace couldn't get Nick to take a nap, so he was still up when we got home. That meant we put both kids down at the same time and still got a little time for ourselves that afternoon. I spent most of that time looking back at the pictures and smiling...check them out for yourself!

Lounging with her Pizza

Sitting with Daddy and anxious for the show to start

Cotton candy time!

I think Rapunzel had just hit the ice!

When I Grow Up

This past week's theme in Lainey's daycare class was careers. Today she dropped her aspirations on us. She wants to:

Drive a train

Be an artist

Paint doors

Own a store

We have no idea where "paint doors" comes from, but it's definitely on the list. Looking forward to seeing how these evolve over the years. I won't lie, I wouldn't hate hearing doctor, lawyer, or investment banker in the mix. But, the important thing is she's happy, right? Dream big, Lianey!