Lainey recently learned "Do, Re, Mi" from The Sound of Music, but she has really improved the lyrics.
Lainey's Version:
Do, a deer, a family deer
Re, a drop of golden sun
Mi, a name I call myself
Fa, I'm on my way to run
So, I need a pully thread
La, a note to follow So
Ti, I drink a lot of bread (alternate version...I drink banana bread)
That will bring us back to Do, oh, oh, oh
Much better version, if you ask me.
Of course I have a video to share...and you get to see some of her best bed head to boot!
We enjoyed a quick visit from Lonnie this weekend. The kids
were very excited to see Grandma and jostled her around vying for
her undivided attention. It will be interesting to see how it all goes down at
Thanksgiving when they have to share her with each other AND their cousins!
Sunday we hit up our much-loved m. henry for brunch. It was
a slightly disappointing visit—Mark’s food came out cold and they forgot my
order altogether. But, they comped my blisscakes and fixed Mark’s benedict
fairly quickly, so we’ll let it slide. Nick stole ALL of my blackberries from
my blisscakes. The plate was barely on the table and his little hand shot over
and started grabbing. Stinker. Stealing food from my plate is his new trick.
Even if he has the exact same thing on his plate, he’ll reach over and take mine. But, both kids were really well behaved, so if I have to lose my
blackberries to avoid a public tantrum, so be it.
After brunch, it was time for outdoor play to work off our indulgence and soak up that fresh fall air. Lainey showed Grandma how she can ride
all the way around the block on her tricycle, before hitting the leaf piles--still a favorite activity of both kids. We played outside until the runny noses were flowing a little too freely.
And then just like that…it was
time for Lonnie to drive back to Moline and for us to start preparing for the
week ahead. Oh weekends, why are the best of you so fleeting?
Crossing the "bridge" she built between the two piles
A pile of leaves works better than a playpen at keeping Nick contained...
It was a blustery, cold day (first snow of the season), but our little Elsa and Olaf still hit the trick or treating trail. The Olaf costume came with a hat, so he was all good, and as for Elsa, "the cold never bothered (her) anyway" (sorry, I couldn't resist!). Being the smart parents we are, we actually dressed the kids up last weekend on that beautiful 70-degree day and took some pictures in the backyard. True to form, they weren't super cooperative in posing, but they were even worse tonight (and things started to get tense as we tried to get ONE decent shot), so I'm glad we took the time last weekend. See results below...
The kids had a party at daycare this morning, complete with a pinata and magician, and Mark and I were able to take off early to start what we hoped would be some trick or treating fun. But, the snow flurries started on the way home and by the time we were hitting houses it was sleeting and Nick was saying, "Owie! Owie!" So, we only made it to our immediate neighbors and then headed back inside. Even Elaine said she wanted to go home (so, maybe the cold bothered her a little bit).
I think Lainey was a little disappointed, but no problem for Nick. We had plenty of surplus candy, so he just helped himself our bowl and filled up his pumpkin pail. If we would have given him free reign, he would have eaten it all, too. Instead, we had to endure several tantrums when we denied him more of the sweet stuff. We eased Lainey's pain with pepperoni pizza (her new favorite food) and some extra TV time. It worked...right before bed, she smiled and said, "Mommy, I had a fun Halloween!" I'm so glad, my little love!
Queen Elsa and Me
Dad and Olaf
I guess the snow is fitting, given the costumes...
After three years of battling bedtime, sleeping on the couch, sleeping on her floor, not sleeping at all, Lainey may FINALLY allow us the full night's sleep we've so desperately craved. We've had a solid six weeks of her letting us leave her room after story time and fall asleep on her own (so, nice getting those 30 - 60 minutes back each night) and other than a few nights where she's had a nightmare or has been sick, she sleeps through the night. We got to that point using the trusty "Lainey's Rewards" sticker method. This was amazing progress and we were really happy, but she was still getting up at 4:30 AM every day, which we weren't really happy about. Enter the OK to Wake alarm clock--the best $30 we've ever spent!
You set the clock for a certain time in the morning, but instead of an alarm, the clock glows green. This is the signal that is "OK to wake" and your little one can get out of bed. The clock glows instead of making noise, so if your munchkin is blissfully snoozing PAST the set time, she will sleep right through it. You can also rig a light with a timer for those DIYs out there, but we wanted a clock for her room anyway, so we went this route. We started it with Lainey almost two weeks ago and she's waited every single morning to call for me until it goes off. I can't believe it was this easy!!! She gets her sticker rewards for staying in her room (she doesn't have to stay in bed--she can play) and earned a cupcake last Friday. She's so proud every morning I go in her room, "Mommy, I did it again!"
So sleep training took the long route with Lainey, but I think we're finally there...just in time for Nick to start getting up at 4:30 AM every day...wah wah.
I'm about a week overdue for this post, but better late than never. Last weekend, Dad and Sharon visited and we took the
opportunity to hit up the Pumpkinfest at Didier Farms. We lucked out with
gorgeous weather, and it was surprisingly uncrowded and easy to hop from ride
to ride and move about selecting our pumpkins.
Lainey had a blast and Nick got his first turn at a few
carnival rides…even going on one with just his big sister to watch over him. I
was pretty reluctant to try that, but Mark persuaded me. The super slide
was Lainey’s favorite, although I’m not sure how Nick felt about that one. He
didn’t cry, but he didn’t smile either. He just kind of let his tongue hang out the side of his mouth like a dog.
The one ride that was a little questionable was the army
tank with machine guns. Lainey wanted to go on it and there was no line,
so I said, “Sure!” It wasn’t until I was standing there poised to take her
picture that I realized my 3-year-old was sitting in an army tank with machine guns! What?! The ride couldn’t have been
just as fun with some sort of other carriage? Watching Lainey work those guns
back and forth just didn’t sit right with me. But, I guess I should have been a
little more observant before I sent her on her way.
We had fun picking out our pumpkins. Lainey and Nick kept
loading them into the wagon (and Mark and I kept taking them back out). Lainey
pulled the wagon all the way to the car. I gotta say I was pretty impressed. She
did a great job maneuvering the crowds and it wasn’t exactly a short walk.
I wish I had better pictures or had taken at least ONE
family photo, but I didn’t. The kids are not cooperative about posing and most
of the time trying to get a picture turns into a stressful event. So, I settle for
whatever quick shots I can get and when they start protesting I stop. I’d
prefer spend the time actually building a memory than trying to perfectly
preserve it to look back on later. (But, it’s taken me a while to get there…Mark’s
still working on it, hence why I don’t push for family pictures. He just ends
up disappointed.) Here's what I did manage to get of the little rascals...now we just need to find time to carve those pumpkins!
Last week, we were sitting with the kids while they colored
and I commented, “you know, Lainey knew her colors by this age.” So, Mark holds
up a green crayon and asks Nick what color it is…”Reen!,” he shouts. Holds up a
yellow one…”Ello!” Holds up a red one, “Red!” Holds up a blue one…”Reen!” Close,
little buddy. So, he’s not perfect at it, but clearly he’s on track. We just
didn’t know it! (We kind of discovered that he knows his body parts in the same
fashion.)
I wish I could say we spend as much time fostering the
basics with Nick as we did Lainey, but I would be lying. She benefitted from
undivided attention in those first two years, and he has to share. On top of
that he has a sister, who knows how to demand MORE than her fair share.
But, while I let a lot of parenting shortcomings (or at the
very least perceived shortcomings) get to me, this isn’t going to be one of
them. I have no doubt that somehow he will manage to overcome his standing as
second child and still master his alphabet, numbers, and colors well within the
normal range of things. Two things I know he gets his fair share of are hugs
and kisses! Who could resist those cheeks?
Maybe it's those soft, soft hands of his, but evidently something about Mark just says "mama" to our kids. If you'll recall, Lainey went through a "daddy is mommy" phase, and Nick is following right in her footsteps. For some unexplicable reason, Nick started calling Mark "Mama" a few weeks ago. The difference with Nick is he mainly calls Mark "mama" when he's upset or wants Mark's attention--maybe it's Nick's form of punishment. If Mark leaves the room, Nick will let loose with a forlorn call of "Mama" and go chasing after him. Today, even though the real Mama was holding him, Nick wailed "Maaaaaaa-maaaaaa" arms outstreched and tears rolling down his face, because Mark dared go to the bathroom.
I personally don't want to hear any complaints. Mark is Nick's best friend. I'd let Nick call me "Dada" all day, if he adored me a fraction of the way he adores Mark. At least I get to hear my name...
