Baby to Toddler, Toddler to Kid

Diana was making fun of me today because of something I said on the playground yesterday. This lady's kid kept referring to Olivia as a baby. "No, honey, she's a toddler," the mom corrected her two-year-old. Somewhere deep inside of me a small voice made its way out of my mouth. "No, she's only 15 months old. She's still a baby!" Because she is. The little girl was absolutely correct in calling her a baby. I know she's walking around all toddler-like, and she wears some 24-month clothes, and she tried painting today, and she uses a stool to wash her hands. But when I look at that face, I see my baby girl, the one who, who, who...damnit, I can't even remember what she did when she was a baby, and that makes me a little sad. Letting go of the baby days is harder this time around; on the other hand, the emerging toddler stage is proving to be pretty exciting and fun!

And then there's Collin. No matter how much I want to keep him a toddler, it's time to face the music that those days are SO two years ago. He was watching Rescue Heroes: The Movie this afternoon (think firefighters elevated to superhero status) and commented, "I like this movie because it's a kid show, not a baby show." Wait, what constitutes a baby show? Is he over his old shows? When did this happen? (He's not done with Sesame Street and the like, btw...far from it...but I guess he is noticing a difference in target audiences.) Anyway, as you can see in the picture at the sink above, at 40+ inches he can reach the water without a stool (even more so in the upstairs bathroom where the vanity is shorter). He also took a crack at scissors for the first time today and did a great job! I showed him how to hold the scissors and gave him some brown construction paper to snip away (because who really uses brown construction paper?). Here's a video of him going to town. Note the Jennings tongue working overtime. :)

 The boy even cut out a heart by himself. All I did was guide his hand through a few for practice, giving him a line to follow. The orange one was all him (see pictures below). He is going to cut out more hearts tomorrow, paint them, add stickers, print his name on the back, and call them "valemstimes." His pronunciation couldn't be more appropriate. They won't be fancy, but they will be homemade relics of this moment in time.

After Nap

We have a little after nap ritual that began as soon as the kids' naps started to overlap a few months ago. Whoever wakes up first goes into the bed/crib of the other one when he or she wakes up to say hello, cuddle, roughhouse, etc. Today it was Olivia in Collin's bed (usually it is the other way around). It was also the first time she got down off his bed by herself successfully! She's really a toddler now. :)

Tomorrow is supposed to get cold, like real winter temps in the 30s and maybe a dusting of snow, so we took advantage of getting outside again in the nice weather. Collin and Johanna were all fun and games until he threw dirt into his own eye and made himself cry and then a stick that hit Jo in the face and made her cry. [God, I hope he learned his lesson about throwing crap...we've been over it a thousand and one times and just as many naughty corners, but sometimes it takes a little dirt in your own eye to realize that, yeah, it really hurts when things hit you in the face, which means it will hurt someone else, which means don't throw stuff! Geez.] Yup, two wailing children was the cue to go home! At least Olivia was able to stay out of it all. Btw, she is sounding much better today. A couple more days, and she'll be back to normal, I bet.

Lunch Talk

Meal time is quality time in our house, as it probably is with many families. It's an awesome opportunity to talk, laugh, and bond over food. Olivia and Collin have their cutest brother-sister moments while eating together at the table. It's also a great time to share what you know and learn new things. The kids ate their lunches separately today because Olivia needed an early nap (still fighting that nasty cold she has), so I decided to video Collin telling me about his favorite subjects: astronomy and math. Collin turned three in November, and since he is my first child, I'm not really sure what 3-year-olds are supposed to know academically at this point, but I'm pretty impressed with his interest in learning as well as his memory.

 

Collin has been intrigued with the solar system lately because of the Wall-E game he has on his Leapster.

He also enjoys doing simple addition and subtraction with objects and food.

Another Ordinary Day...sort of

The Ordinary:

 Collin playing Thomas the Tank Engine and Conductor

 Olivia playing Just Like Mommy

The Extraordinary:

 I think today's Facebook status says it all:

"I don't know whether or be grossed out or alarmed or both, but I definitely just extracted two 3-inch, intact pieces of spaghetti from Olivia's nose...from last night's dinner. Um, ew?"

Well, first of all, every parent should have a NoseFrida Snotsucker or equivalent in the house. There is no way I would have been able to pull out what I did with a bulb syringe. Second, I called the pediatrician just in case there might be a blockage issue that could lead to infection. He wasn't fazed and said not to worry, that I most likely got all the food out and things are fine. But what if I didn't? What if there's a stray piece of pasta still up there? Or some couscous or broccoli that she ate for dinner tonight? Come to think of it, she did sound extra wheezy at dinner, didn't she? The whole thing is just unsettling. And gross. Really gross. Like something you'd see in sci-fi.

Super Bowl and Sick O

The biggest day in football has arrived: Super Bowl XLVI - New England Patriots vs. New York Giants. For at least the fourth Super Bowl in a row, we have no plans for watching the game. Even if we did, we wouldn't be going because of the sick-O. Poor baby sounds like a octogenarian with a serious case of emphysema (see video below). Aside from two or three cases of runny nose, this is Olivia's first real illness since she entered our world 15 months ago. She's making all of Collin's usual TEF noises (seal bark, stridor, wheezing, etc.) without the TEF, so Mommy's unofficial diagnosis is croup. Yeah, it sucks. But I have to hand it to our Livi for taking it all in stride, sleeping even, and keeping a smile on her sick little face.

 Happy 15 Months, Olivia! Sorry you're sick. :( 2/4/12

 Playing dress-up...this was taken right before she puked on the costume. :(

 Boot and rally! All clean and ready for some puzzles.

 Cuddle time with brother before bed. Feel better tomorrow, Oliv!

In other news, we met the Spartan Center preschool teacher on Friday, which solidified my decision to send Collin to Broad Run for school in the fall. The classroom and playground area are super cute, the curriculum is a gateway directly into the LCPS kindergarten curriculum, the little guys get one-on-one attention the entire time (because of all the student teachers), they go to the library regularly and have at least one field trip, and there is a bathroom in the classroom just for the kids rather than using the public ones in the main part of the school. What really did it for me, aside from having Nurse Wells available just   in case there's a medical emergency, is the fact that the teacher's own middle child is allergic to dairy, egg, peanuts, and tree nuts (just like Collin), so she is very familiar with reading labels and treating allergic reactions. She even chooses snacks for all the children that are allergy-free so I don't have to worry about it. Most other preschools in the area, if not all, take a 'you're-on-your-own-then' policy if the kid has allergies. I like that Collin wouldn't be singled out because his mom had to pack a different snack. :) 

[Totally unrelated to our preschool visit but speaking of snack, at least Collin doesn't let his leftovers don't go to waste...haha]

All this and the price is $350 for the YEAR!!! I can't even get two months of Mom's Morning Out for that! The cost is just for supplies, field trips, and snacks. I'm not paying anyone's salary since that is covered by the county. Thank God because we just don't have the money to send two kids to preschool at the same time for two years (gotta love that November birthday!). The schedule is on an alternating basis (M/W one week and T/Th the next), which will actually work well since I'll have "me" time (what's that?!?) while both kids are in school one week and then one-on-one time with each child the following week (O's school is T/Th every week). I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that Collin gets in  at registration time! She said to be there by 8:30 sharp with papers and money in hand on April 27. I'm not the best at being on time for things, but for this, I will make sure I am early. I suppose if it doesn't work out, there are always programs at the local community centers. 

 Sampson is still lethargic, thirsty, hungry, and peeing a lot, despite the new insulin regimen we have been doing for a month. I tried to take him to the vet on Friday for a blood test, and it was a no-go...again. They said they would try a home visit, something they don't usually do, but it's just not going to happen at the office. He's too feisty, even for a trained professional. Ugh. 


Happy Super Bowl! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO PATS!!

70 and February?? I'll take it!

If the weather this month is going to be like it was today, then BRING. IT. ON! I even changed my blog background because Winter Wonderland is nowhere in sight. To take full advantage of Mother Nature's generous gift, we hit up two playgrounds. But before we took on the slides, swings, and jungle gyms, the kids spent some quality time at home together eating their breakfast and being best friends. :)

 High five!!!!

 I think she was sneezing in this one...

Then we hit up Dinosaur Park (some of the equipment is dino-themed) to soak in the sun and fresh, warm air. Collin and I were comfortable wearing t-shirts! Again, it's February, folks. Two years ago we had one hell of a snow dump (40+ inches in two storms back-to-back), and now it's practically summer. Love it!

 This is my girl, navigating the course on two legs rather than all fours. She walked the whole time! (Notice big brother on the see-saw in the background. *smile*)

 Collin actually requested that his sister ride with him on the back of this dino. Aw, he loves her!

 How many kids can fit in a pseudo firetruck?? Apparently seven with room to spare. Collin is the driver with Oliv about to hop off the rear. Maybe there's a fire to put out??

 All that playing tuckered the kiddos out...well sort of. You'd think they'd take a nap that lasted "through a day and in and out of weeks and over a year" (to quote from Where the Wild Things Are), but the sleep time was kinda disappointing for this tired mom: just shy of two hours from Olivia (instead of her usual 2.5+) and about 45 minutes from Collin (wish I could say his usual is much longer, but it's not these days..ah, the joy of having a 3-year-old). Just as well because each kid had a friend over at 4:30, which meant Mommy got two friends all to herself, for more play time outside. Julie, Kim, and I took Liam, Emma, Collin, and Olivia on a little walk to the purple playground until the sun's bedtime. Olivia even walked some of the way herself.

All in all, it was a fabulous way to kick off February! Family, Friends, and Fun! And Warmth. :)

Olivia as Art