I’m taking a short blog break–I’ll be back on Tuesday!
22 Apr
Sleepy sisters
After five years of doing everything by the book (or by all the books I can get my hands on), I don’t think we’ve made much headway in the sleep department when it comes to Ava. And, now that Olivia is out of her crib and into a toddler bed, she’s (literally) harder to contain.
I have decided that super rigid routines don’t seem to make much of a difference, and so I’m done fighting battles about bedtime. I don’t care where you sleep; I don’t care who you sleep with. Just GO. TO. BED. Someone’s bed…anyone’s bed. If you’re in mine, though, I’m going to move you back to yours at some point in the evening.
And, when I came upstairs last night, this is what I found in my bed. The girls like sleeping together, though they often have a bit of a hard time settling down at night when they are side by side.
Do you think they fell asleep mid-snuggle or mid-struggle?
21 Apr
Notes from Ava
Now that Ava is learning how to assemble letters into words, we’re reaping the benefits at home. Just yesterday, after overhearing a conversation I had with Bryan, she left me this on a Post-It:
Rember to turn of yur flat iron
And, then last night, on a much larger piece of paper:
To Mom and Dad – Becaus is not a resin – From Ava
Think I will submit future notes here.
19 Apr
Laugh at Jessie
Or is it with Jessie? Either way, check out Jess’ new blog—it’s pretty funny.
Case in point:
I know I need to get a new car, but the thought of retiring Greenie makes me so sad. How many people have a car that people make songs up about? How many people have a car that when it starts causes your friends to clap? How many people have a car where the windows sometimes work and sometimes don’t? The back doesn’t stay open, the doors sometimes won’t close. This car simply won’t do what it’s supposed to do, it doesn’t behave how it should behave. In other words, this car is me.
Join in the fun at laughatjessie.wordpress.com.
18 Apr
Overheard: Peer Pressure Edition
After she confessed to being less-than-kind to a friend at a birthday party yesterday, I chastised Ava and insisted she be nice to everyone. Here’s the ensuing exchange.
Ava: “Well Ginger did it too!”
Mom: “Well if Ginger jumped off a bridge, would you jump, too?
Ava, after a long pause and with much conviction: “Yes.”
It was my first time throwing out an old-school retort like that, and it failed miserably. Too early?
14 Apr
Livie Lou’s new ‘do
There’s far too much crying at our house every morning.
Ava, who stayed up until 10:45 the night before just to remind us that we can’t actually control when and how much she sleeps, is pitching a fit about having to wake up “before it’s even morning time.”
And Olivia, who is still suffering from pacifier withdrawal, screams and fights when you approach her with a hair brush.
I might not be able to do much about the lack of sleep—and really, I don’t want to undo that plan that will prevent Liv from packing a spare paci in her kindergarten knapsack, but I can solve the screaming that comes from having to drag a brush through a nest of curly hair that seems to be inexplicably matted (even after bath night—I don’t understand it!).
The downside is that I’m the one who’s now teary-eyed.
I don’t know why I had such a hard time taking the girls for their first real haircuts, but with Olivia, I knew it was time when even Gramma Great’s ultra-gentle approach was rebuffed.
That said, it wasn’t an easy decision. Olivia’s hair spilled over her shoulders and burst into little ringlets along her back. It was gorgeous—when it was clean and brushed. The rest of the time, it was piled on the top of her head in an effort to keep it that way. She had taken to calling the little rubber bands we used for her hair, and then the pigtails themselves, “cutes,” because I’d say, “Look how cute!” every time I finished her hair.
Olivia was very excited about getting her hair cut, but when it came time to sit in the stylist’s chair, she panicked. Bryan commented that her hair wasn’t exactly even on both sides. The stylist did the best she could.
Hopefully, it will be the last time Olivia sheds tears over her hair.
11 Apr
Appreciation fail
It’s the little things that make a big difference in a marriage. Often, they go unnoticed, but I am trying to do a better job of showing my appreciation.
Bryan hand-washes (two!) to-go cups of coffee everyday without complaint. He upgraded my cell phone plan to include unlimited texting. And, most recently, he plugged the holes on the valve boxes throughout our yard. Of all of the things he does for me, this means the most.
I have an unnatural and totally overblown fear of snakes. I KNOW it is unreasonable, the mere thought of a garter snake keeps me on the concrete for weeks. Thanks to the waterway in our backyard, we seem to have an overabundance of unwanted visitors.
After listening to me grouse pretty constantly last year, Bryan put down snake repellent. However, he put it on the perimeter of the yard, which, if you think about it, really only keeps the snakes we have IN the yard. And, do you know where the snakes in our yard love to hang out? Sprinkler system valve boxes.
So, I was thrilled to see Bryan’s creative solution. I was completely relieved . . . but only for a few moments. Now, I have no idea where those beasts are hiding.
So, while I contemplate what’s rustling the bushes over there, I’ll make good use of my new texting package. Thanks, Bry!
9 Apr
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique
When we started to plan our trip to Disneyland, I asked our friends what we shouldn’t miss. Alisa and Melissa insisted the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique—a “beauty salon where little girls are magically transformed into little princesses”—had to be at the top of our list. The boutique is owned by Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother and operated by Fairy Godmothers-in-training.
I was a bit disappointed Olivia missed the cutoff age of three, but as my fellow first-born friend Alisa noted, “That’s what she gets for being born second.”
So, early that Thursday morning, we pulled out the Cinderella costume and Ava and I headed into the park. A godmother-in-training whisked her over to a salon chair and began task of piling her short blond bob into a neat little bun on the very top of her head. (Ava had the choice of three hairstyles, and I held my breath until she passed up the “Miley Cyrus,” opting instead for the “Classical Princess.”)
While one godmother worked on her hair, another painted her nails a sparkly pink.
They used–and this is a conservative estimate–a half cup of gel in Ava’s hair. See that glob on the godmother’s hand? That was for ONE SECTION.
Ava picked out a blue and silver ring, telling the godmother that her “favorite finger” was actually her thumb. News to me!
A can and half of hairspray provided the foundation for a good sprinkling of fairy dust.
As Ava made a wish, the godmother said the magic words. A twinkling mirror appeared to reveal the newly-minted princess.
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo!
As we walked through the park that day, staff members stopped to greet Ava with, “Thank you so much for visiting the kingdom today, Your Highness.”
Life back in Kansas as a commoner has been a bit of an adjustment!
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