The weekend

Friday, I had a parent-teacher conference with Bode's preschool teacher. It was my first parent-teacher conference ever (of course) and I was so nervous.  It didn't start out so great. I immediately felt attacked, and felt like my son was not being viewed in his best, natural light. I took a deep breath, and tried to be open to what his teacher had to say. As I relaxed into the discussion and actually listened, I heard that the teacher was actually echoing some concerns already owned by me and RWF. In the end, I left with some ideas about Bode, and a plan. 

Saturday we went to Bode's preschool for an open house.  We are trying to decide what to do about next Fall.  Bode clearly enjoys his school, but we still have to decide what is best for him going forward.  While we were talking to a teacher outside, I was watching Bode play with some little girls by a tree swing.  I looked away from Bode for a second, then as I looked back at him, I thought I saw one little girl push Bode down. It was clear that he had been pushed, but I didn't see it for myself.  I had to steel myself and will my feet to not run over to Bode.  "Wait and see what he does," an inner voice told me.  I watched Bode and could see a look of confusion and surprise cross over his face.  He looked at the "pusher" for a long time, but did not cry, and did not strike back.  A few minutes later, the "pusher" struck out at another little girl.  This little girl immediately started crying and running toward her mother.  

Observing this kind of behavior, I was ready to pull Bode from school immediately and never look back. I don't want Bode exposed to any unnecessary roughness or cruel words.  I know that I can't control what happens around or to my children while they are in school. It is a sad fact that "bullying" is alive and well today, causing children and teens to become depressed and take their own lives.  I know that this is not the first, or last, time that one of my children is going to be the direct target or an observer to bad behavior. But it was very hard to watch this happen to my 3 year old, and not do something about it.  I felt bad all day and all night, wondering if I should have stepped in.  Later that night, I confessed my confusion to RWF, and we talked about it.   RWF had seen the pushing, too. RWF felt like I had done the right thing, because I wasn't right there when it happened, it wasn't right for me to rush over and jump all over this "pusher."  He said that it also took all of his will power not to go over there and say something himself.  I still have mixed feelings about whether I should have done something.  (In the end, the "pusher" was "outed" by the other little girl that she had pushed after Bode. The selfish, mean part of me wanted to run over to the "pusher's" mom and say, "Yeah, and she pushed my son, too!" hoping to double up the "pusher's" reprimand/punishment. BTW, the "pusher" is 5 years old, and she looked mean, if you know what I'm saying.)

Not mean-looking, or mean-spirited, at all.

Sunday we went to Saratoga Spa State Park.  It was a lovely sunny day (though chilly), and it was so nice to walk around the park. We had the space practically all to ourselves. It was very peaceful and relaxing. The children enjoyed the creek the most. Gianna was more than ready to jump in and see what the creek was all about. Eeek!  

Bode enjoyed throwing rocks into the creek, and the loud "kur-plunk" that followed.  Even Priscilla couldn't resist the cool, flowing creek water. 

Wind, wind, go away. Come again some other day.

Enjoying a sundress - inside!

The weather has been crazy, and really trying my patience.  The sun fools us into thinking it is really Spring-going-on-Summer, and I dress my children in light layers. But then we head outside, and the temps and the wind warn us, "Don't even think about it." So we put on our down and wool over it all, hoping to stave off another chill while we enjoy the sun outside. In the evenings, we are down to freezing temps, with the heat pumping on and off throughout the night.  I have to admit that I do enjoy sleeping with the heat keeping the house cozy.

Happy Monday!
xo

Morning ritual, Thursday ritual

Every morning (or, nearly every morning) when Gianna is eating her breakfast, she will hear RWF get into/out of the shower, or pull clothes or shoes from his closet. Gianna will shout, "Dada. Dada! DADA!" She gets louder and louder until RWF acknowledges her by shouting back, "Gianna!" or "Where's my baby girl?" She beams. She shouts, "Dada!" Invariably, he stops what he is doing, and comes out of his room partially dressed (unbuttoned, sockless, and shoeless) to give her a good morning kiss. Because she is irresistible to her daddy that way.

I am enjoying Thursday mornings.  After dropping Bode off at school, Gianna and I head to the bookstore. First, we stop at the cafe for a mocha and a muffin.  After our snack, we head back to the children's section to play at the train table or browse books.  I think I could get used to this little routine of ours. 

On stage at the bookstore

See ya

Is anyone else happy that we are approaching the weekend? After RWF's extensive travel these past weeks, I feel like I haven't seen him at all (even though he was home for a bit this past weekend). I am ready for a low-key family weekend.
Happy Thursday.
xo

Why we absolutely positively do not need anything for the new baby

I have a new iPhone. Thanks to my sweet husband who took time out of his busy work day to run to the always crazy Apple store in Albany (or, really, Anywhere USA, for that matter), who swapped my wonky phone for a new one.  My new iPhone was indeed not working (and not due to any fault of mine, or Gianna's - thank goodness!) which is why I now have in my hot little hands another new, newer (?) iPhone. Thank God! Because now, I can document exactly why we do not need to purchase anything for this sweet little baby.

Behold:

This pretty much covers the first six months of life.  And then, I have two more huge Rubbermaid totes to dig into for months 6 and beyond.   Actually, if I am honest, I will tell you that this baby is covered, clothes-wise, for the rest of his life.  See, I am a hoarder. And I saved every little thing from Bode's babyhood* up to present day (and I do mean, every little thing...so don't be confused if you see the new little guy sporting a beanie claiming him to be a newborn from Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, CA).   

So this baby is in hand-me-down city for his life. Thank goodness his big brother  has such great clothes!  I absolutely adore the idea that another little boy baby is going to be wearing Bode Wm's sweet newborn clothes. Love it.  I have such happy, happy memories looking at all of Bode's newborn onesies, socks, and receiving blankets.

The one thing I do have to figure out is how to get the clothes off the guest bedroom bed and into a dresser. A dresser that does not exist just yet.

I love having to make these decisions.

xo

*And, I might as well add, Gianna's baby stuff, too.  But now that we know that we are having a sweet baby boy, it might be time to purge Gianna's clothes.  Some day. I'm not ready yet.

Photo dump

My iPhone is at the Apple store today. Sigh.  I don't know what is wrong with it, if I did something, if Gianna did something, or if it's just an Apple glitch.  I feel so lonely without my phone. Sad, but true. I use my phone for everything - checking the weather, checking in with friends and family, checking the time, reading, etc.  (Notice that I didn't say CALLING anyone!)

We went to the bookstore today. It hailed while we were driving over! The weekend and through this week, it is rainy and cold. Dullsville. Anyway. When we got to the bookstore, we got a muffin and a mocha (for me). Then we went back to the train table  and hung out with some friends.  Since I couldn't take any pictures today, here are some photos from this weekend:

On Friday, while Bode was at school, Mia Gianna and I had some coffee talk.  It was nice to just sit with her.  RWF and I talked this weekend about how we really need to start implementing one-on-one time with each child. RWF is good about it, but I am usually with both kids at the same time, all the time. We both feel that Bode and Gianna would benefit from alone time with each of us (and, we would, too).

Here is Bode before school.  Notice he's already got a book in his hand (at 8 a.m.).  He loves to read!

Alex P. Keaton?

In the afternoon, Louise woke up from her nap, teething.  It is rare that she cries from teething (never?). So I knew it had to be serious. Luckily, I was quick thinking and remembered I had popsicles in the freezer. I plan to buy a popsicle maker soon. I want to make our own popsicles! I think it will be fun for Bode and Gianna (and I love that I can control the sugar, making them naturally sweet with fruit). These are "all natural" fruit pops but you know that there's other stuff in those popsicles that we don't need to eat. 

I love that I call Gianna "Louise," and she answers without hesitation.  I call her "Louise" after her Aunt Mary Lou.

Not surprisingly, Bode was not a fan of  the popsicle. He is also not a fan of the camera, which is why you don't see too many photos of him these days. I'm trying to respect his wishes (while secretly filming him when I can...wink).

I love these photos of MGF. It was after breakfast and she had made a song, singing "Up, up, UP!!!" while bouncing and dancing in her seat. Bode and I were both laughing.  She spiced up our typical morning of eggs and coffee with her J-Lo style moves. 

Hope those last three photos make you want to get up and dance!
Happy Tuesday.
xo

PS Those are all my baby shopping purchases from the weekend that you see behind MGF.  We don't need anything.  I keep reminding myself that: we don't need anything. We. don't. need. anything. Rinse and repeat.

Two little announcements

We are happy to announce that we're expecting a baby.

And, we are elated to announce that we are expecting a baby boy!

\

(I went shopping this weekend)

We are so very blessed.  Thank you everyone for your love and prayers.

xo

Kelley Park

We went to Kelley Park again. This time we ventured over to the other side, the big kids' side.  It wasn't so bad (i.e., not too dangerous to my preshus).  It was actually a lot more fun and had a lot of interesting things (a wobbly balance beam, a tire tunnel that ended in a tire swing,  three crazy slides, etc.).

Of course Miss Mia chose to play it safe in the baby swing for most of the visit. That's okay by me.  She did climb up and sit on the baby slide.  But she did not slide down.

Bode played in the sandbox with some other little guys.  I love how social he is, and how he makes himself a part of any group that he finds.  I hope that lasts through childhood and beyond!  He did slide down the big purple twisty slide, which surprised me. He was either trying to hang with the big kids, or has gotten incredibly brave, overnight!

It was nice to get out and enjoy the fresh air and sun. I think, until we find something closer and better, Kelley Park is going to become a regular hang-out for us.

xo

Spring, Summer

Surprise!

Today it was 85 degrees.  Yowza!  If anyone had told me in January that it would be 85 degrees in April, I wouldn't have believed them.  The temps have changed so dramatically since the start of this Spring.  Saturday we were wearing our down jackets at the park.  Today, we were in short sleeves and sandals (and hot!). 

We went to the park by Bode's school today. It was 70 degrees, sunny and beautiful. Nobody was there. I pushed Bode and Gianna in their swings while catching up on the phone with one of my sisters.  Then we moved onto the play  structure with the swervy slide, and I slid down it with Gianna in my lap several times.  She wouldn't try it by herself.  At 11:20, I announced that it was time to leave.  But Bode was just getting warmed up, and 5 or 6 little kids had just arrived on the scene.  Bad timing, kids.  I let Bode play for a few minutes while I changed Gianna's diaper and got her strapped into the stroller.  Of course, Bode had no interest in leaving the park.  I had to pull the Bad Mama Jama card and follow him up a ladder and all the way down a slide to convince him that yes, I was indeed serious that we needed to leave and he had better start walking toward the car a.s.a.p.

We got home and I put Gianna down for her nap.  Then I pulled out the long hook and the ladder and got to work pulling the shades on our skylights down.  It was going to be a hot day, and I wanted our house to stay cool, without air conditioning!

I felt bad for kicking Bode out of the park just as a crew of kids had arrived. But I had no choice. It was Gianna's nap time. And I do not mess with Gianna's nap time unless I absolutely have to. Because I felt bad, I agreed to let him watch the Cars movie.  Of course we didn't nap either.  By the time the movie ended, Gianna was waking up.  

After a quick snack, we went outside.  It was 85 degrees and I thought we would last  20 minutes.  But it was nice and breezy outside, so the heat wasn't so bad.   Lots of water and standing under a shade tree didn't hurt, either. 

Note the sunglasses on top of his head.

See ya.

Happy Tuesday.

xo

Road rash

So I'm very disappointed to report that Gianna had a big crash on Friday.  The right side of her face is all scratched up from falling out of the little red car and onto the driveway.  I had some gnarly photos I was going to post, but iPhoto thought differently, I guess, and ate them.  I guess it is just as well. Who wants to see that precious face all banged up?  Certainly not me.  I wince every time I look at her.  It looks much, much better today than it did on Friday. Thank goodness. 

Friday we went to a new park, Kelley Park, in Ballston Spa.  It was a 15 minute drive, but it was worth it.  The park had great play structures, swings, and a sandbox.   Bode asked me what park we were going to, and I replied, "Kelley Park."  He smiled and said, "Kelly is in California with Jade.  They are chasing each other. They rike each other a rot!"  It makes me sad that Bode remembers Kelly and Jade. But I guess he has them in a happy place so that is good. 

We left the park late, and Bode said that he was hungry, so I knew that he must be starving. He never complains about anything. For him to say something about a 'need' is saying a lot.  I took them to Chipotle. On a Friday night. At 5:30 PM.  Yes, I'm crazy that way.  There was a line, and as we waited, I kept scanning the restaurant for a booth or table to open up.  I knew that both babies had to be super hungry and really wanted them to be able to sit down and eat.  After we got through the line, I bolted lurched toward an open table, carrying my food tray and my 28 lb baby, barking at Bode lagging behind me, "C'mon! Let's grab that table!"   They had a good time eating.  Bode can eat a taco all by himself. I find that pretty impressive, as I still can not eat a taco without it breaking into an unmanageable mess.

Today we went to Congress Park. First we stopped at Starbuck's.  I've been off of my beloved mocha for about 4 months.  But I tried one on Friday, and now I'm hooked again. It tastes better than ever.  (Mocha, mocha...how I love you.  Sorry for  not returning your calls for so long. So happy that we are reunited!)

We went to the duck pond and hung out for 1 1/2 hours, because Gianna loved chasing the ducks, I loved sitting on a nearby bench enjoying my mocha, and Bode loved hanging out with a new friend that he met while there.  We all enjoyed the sunshine and warmth!

They were dancing together, then fell down.

The Band-Aid, for looks only. The scone, for eating.

Run, little ducky!

The barefoot artist

Look at her dirty bottom!

After story time tonight, I asked Bode what  he would like to do tomorrow.  He said that he would like to dance.  So I suggested we have a dance party with Gianna. He said, "That would be good."  Then he said that he wanted to go outside and ride his bike. I said, "That sounds easy enough. What else?"  He paused for a minute and then announced that he wanted to ride a motorcycle!  A shiny, black motorcycle.  I told him that we would have to talk about that one with his daddy first.  

Hope that your Sunday is full of sunshine, bike rides, dancing, or anything else that makes you complete!

xo