Babyproofing

Recently, we spent some quality (and quantity) time with family. Several of those days were spent at 'Andpa and Grandma's house. During that time, Jellybean:

1) Cut 4 inches off of her hair;
2) Spilt permanent ink on the dress she was supposed to wear to a family wedding; and
3) During her 'nap' found a sewing kit and methodically inserted about 50 straight pins and needles into a mattress, with another 20+ straight pins strewn about the floor and embedded in the carpet....by her bare feet. (is her tetanus shot up to date?)

If you go to stay at my parents' house anytime soon? You MAY want to sleep in the foldout couch, not the guest twin beds. Unless you don't mind sleeping on pins and needles, of course.

Post vacation blahs....

We were fortunate enough to spend time (on vacation in DC) with one set of grandparents over the recent holidays. Monkey and Jellybean LOVED it. 

Unfortunately, they are now profoundly disappointed to realize that:

1. they must now walk again like a commoner (versus a princess), as granddad isn't here to carry them around;  and
2. my pockets are NOT full of candy, like Nana’s are!

Bummer. Real life is soooo boring (to quote Monkey).

Flowers

When Monkey was born, and I started to walk the city streets (rather than run, or at the very least stride along QUICKly....), one of the things I always pointed out to her were the beautiful flowers and plants we would pass. It is part of our routine on our commute. And now part of Jellybean's commute, too.

Yes, I know, I live in an urban jungle. I'm surrounded by asphalt and cement, and my kid (so far only Monkey) knows how to hail a cab as well as she can breath. (seriously, she just knows: it's the same way she knows how to carry a purse or match up her pink clothing - she just does.)

But this urban jungle is covered with beauty. There is a wild, overgrown rose garden by a building that used to be part of the Croton Resevoir Aqueduct just a few blocks away. The roses reach out through the wrought iron fence, inticing us to stop and smell their fragrance.

There are thousands of small plots of land, little well-tended (or not) gardens around the trees planted in every sidewalk we follow. Some have fences. Some have flowers. Some are elevated. Some are blank slates, waiting to be filled.

And even though I have repeated my mantra that flowers and plants are for everyone to enjoy by looking, smelling, or gently! touching - sometimes she just can't help herself and she plucks a flower. Usually claiming it is "for daddy" which is so endearing it almost breaks my heart. And then she sways with happiness as she carries this fragile blossom, this treasure, down the street.

Yesterday she plucked a flower out of flower box we walk past every day on the way home from school. When I admonished her that flowers are not for picking, she told me that she wants to visit Grandma and garden in her backyard. I think that's a brilliant plan.

Body Count

So, yeah. Not sure how to start this one. But let's just say the body count is piling up at Jellybean's school.

This past weekend, M and I went to Paris to celebrate our 30th birthdays (snort, chuckle). We left both girls at home with Granddad and Nana Carter, and really enjoyed ourselves. It was wonderful.

We had never left Jellybean before. M had traveled for work, but I'd never been away from her longer than a working day. And we'd certainly never both left at the same time - at least not for longer than an evening out. So she wasn't too pleased about it.

(Sidebar: Monkey was thrilled to have Granddad and Nana watching her for the weekend, and keeps asking me when they are coming back. And could Granddad bring some more mints? And they can have pizza again? And isn't the dress that Nana gave her pretty?And do I like the swim goggles Nana gave her? And can you see why she's FINE when we leave?)

In addition to wandering around the apartment looking for us (oh, so sad!), Jellybean also went on a food strike, popped a fever, broke out in a viral rash, and generally was off her game this past weekend. Which meant that she used her pacifier (the "na na") a lot.

And, since her Montessori school stopped using her na na a while back, when Jellybean got to school on Tuesday she had a rough time.

Yesterday? Well it got worse.

She bit three classmates.

The na na has to go.

Family Tree

Over the Easter/Passover/Spring Break/We’re just closed indefinitely break at Jellybean and Monkey’s school, Grandma Larson came out to help watch the girls. And, while she was here, the girls had a GREAT time. (Grandma, on the other hand, worked. She’s STILL tired out, I think!).

And, because school was closed for sooooo f’ing long (seriously, 8 days. EIGHT DAYS! That is SERIOUSLY f’ing with my girls’ schedule! And they LIKE their schedule. Messing with it MAKES THEM CRANKY) , well, things got a little out of whack. Naps were missed, bedtimes slid around, and sometimes, just sometimes, people got cranky.

Monkey threw some whopping tantrums while Grandma Larson was here. Seriously, messing with their schedule really messes with their heads. That – that or she’s just three. You decide.

One day, she declined quiet time. It had gotten late, she didn’t want to stop doing what she was doing (probably building a fort or otherwise demolishing the apartment), it had been raining all day so she’d been cooped up inside, and she was defiant. She was NOT going to take a nap. I assured her that I wasn’t laboring under the delusion that she would sleep, but she still needed to be in her room, by herself, for quiet time. This did not go over well. It involved yelling. It involved some screaming. It involved some whining (piteously, with a swelling chorus of violins in the background) “no, don’t leave meeeeee, I don’t want to be aloooooone….”, and finally, it involved me being disinherited.

Yes, she officially told me that YOU ARE NOT MY MOTHER ANY MORE. Note the abuse of caps? Well, it’s nicer that the abuse of my eardrums – this message was screamed! (my neighbors were very unhappy at this point in time, I’m sure).

So I asked if I could reapply tomorrow. You know, to be her mother again.

Monkey paused (which is funny – ever seen a tantrum just halt?), stretched her index finger up to the sky, shook it at me and said YES……….BUT ONLY TOMORROW!

Sisters

Grandma Larson and M took the girls to the Bronx Zoo today.

I think they're having a good time:

Dance Party with Grandma!!!!!!!! WHOOHOOO

Grandma brought some serious bling when she came to visit us. Specifically, jelly rings that blink!

Perfect jewelry for a dance party! (that funny shiny thingy on my finger is a blinking ring....)



(can you tell there is a recent theme in our life? I think we may need to sign Monkey up for some dance classes soon.....else all she ever learns is the white man's overbite, and the lawn mower! ha)

Party!

Last week I was out of town. Went to "school" (aka a national conference on planned giving - wheee!).

Grandma L came to town to help wrangle, and - lucky! - got to go to a party at Monkey's school.

Here's Monkey sitting with Junebug, listening to Junebug's daddy J read. Monkey is a big fan of J - maybe because he's usually the dad rolling around on the floor being silly!


Here is Monkey with her buddy C, always one of the best dressed girls in class.......hmmmm, I think her mommy must still pick out her clothing! ha

Vacation recap in 170 words or less (I'm counting.....)

Vini vidi vici.

We came, we saw, we conquered: what’s the children’s version of that one? Because Monkey and Jellybean had one hell of a good vacation! They had both sets of grandparents’ wrapped around their pinkies. And that is as it should be.

Some highlights:

Jellybean rapturous with joy and wonder, watching ‘Andpa play the guitar

Monkey screeching for joy when Granddad or Nana turned the sprinkler on for the bounce slide & pool combination

Monkey begging for one more Grandma-made muffin “for the road”

Jellybean leaning out of the arms of whoever was holding her, anytime Nana or Grandma walked by…just begging to be cuddled one more time

Jellybean mastering the stairs (up only) and climbing them again and again at ‘Andpa and Grandma’s house

Monkey climbing up on the piano bench and pounding away at both grandparent households

Me taking so many photos I (first time ever) ran out of space on the CF card!

Photos to follow, I promise. As soon as I catch my breath.

Twinkle Toes

Monkey has been bugging me to paint her toes for a while.

So, last Monday night I painted her toes. A bright iridescent reddish pink. Just like mommy! (You Rock-apulco Red! by Opi, if you must know...)

She was grinning, ear to ear, like I've never seen her grin before. You'd have thought I just handed her the keys to heaven....or daddy's heart. Daddy, by the way, groaned and claimed he'd gotten older, just watching his baby girl morph into a teenager before his eyes......

Turns out that Tuesday at school, when they went to the playground to frolic in the sprinklers, she wouldn't get in. This, from the girl who usually LEADS the charge into the sprinklers! Plus that day it got into the 90s and was super hot and muggy.

But no. She told Jenna, her beloved teacher, that she "didn't want to get her toes dirty." Apparently it took over 30 minutes to break down her resolve!

Grandma Larson is going to bond with Monkey on our coming vacation. She, too, LOVES to have pretty toes.

A Norwegian Holiday

My mom was visiting this past week. M had to travel for work so she came out to help with the two girls. We had to beg, a lot, to get her to come out and visit, as you can imagine! She loved every minute of it.

Well, maybe not EVERY moment.

See, I took this opportunity to get a lot of work done around the apartment - basically, my mom went on a Norwegian holiday.

This, for those of you who haven't heard this expression before, is where you go visit a friend or family member....and they put you to work!

We:
* bleached the walls and ceiling in the bathroom
* primed the walls and ceiling in the bathroom
* rearranged the junk drawer
* wrapped and mailed presents for cousins HP and E
* did several loads of laundry
* had multiple doctors appointments (for me and also Jellybean, who has pinkeye - just like her big sister. ugh)
* did tons of other stuff

I am SO happy! We puttered around and really accomplished a lot! I know, I know, only someone as anal as me would be thrilled to do chores - but the ugly black mildew on the walls and ceiling of my bathroom is gone! My bathroom is pretty again! Wheee!! Thanks Grandma.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?

The second child always gets treated differently. It is just the way of the world. Now, this isn't to say that they are loved any less....they just aren't as coddled.

And their baby albums are a lot lighter! (this is known as "2nd child syndrome" and afflicts grandparents across the world as they impatiently await baby photos of grandchild number two....only to realize they have no photos of their OWN second child! whoops)

When Monkey was born we treated her like she was made of spun glass. Fragile beyond comprehension.

When Jellybean was born we treated her like the precious, but tough, infant she is.

When I trimmed Monkey's teensy weensy fingernails and cut her finger, that single drop of blood was a dire emergency - sure to scar her for life and demanding round the clock vigilance and medical attention.

When I accidentally cut Jellybean's finger I smiled and wiped off the blood.

When Monkey was accidentally knocked in the face by a toy, I broke into a sweat and started to check pupil size...you know, to make sure she hadn't sustained an injury to her brain.

When Jellybean was accidentally knocked in the face by a garbage can tipped over onto her by her big sister.....well, we dusted both kids off and went on our way.

MMM, tasty

What is it about Christmas that brings out the child in us? I think that yesterday I ate my bodyweight in homemade cookies (thanks Nana!), hard candy, frango mints, etc. etc. etc. Heck of a way to lose the baby fat but....oh...it was soooooo good!

We had a wonderful Christmas. It was just - the best.

Monkey was hilarious. She had so many presents that by the end of the day we were actually imploring her to open the rest of them. Since she had helped open everyone else's presents she was had present-fatigue. Who knew that could even exist! We all resolved to be more judicious in giving her presents next year. (ten bucks the grandparents can't do it! grandparents are awesome....)

Meanwhile Jellybean continued to pig out, too. She's doing a good job of her job of eating, sleeping and pooping. Way to go kid! We still don't know what color her eyes will be....yes, it takes a few weeks, but I can't resist holding her face to the light and peering into her beautiful eyes to try and figure it out! They started out with that newborn blue haze, but now are grey. She has a chance of blue eyes since M's mom (Nana) has blue eyes, as do I, but we shall see....

My little brother and his wife G continue with the awesome (OH YOU ARE SUCH SHITS YOU TWO!) presents to Monkey. This time? BONGOS! My neighbors are sooo going to hate me.

A slight revision

Ok, so yesterday I wrote about how next Friday is all about the grandparents. And it is, most of the time, at least according to Monkey.

But this morning? When I dropped her off for school? And I reminded her that today is PIZZA FRIDAY? And asked her what was happening next Friday?

She yelled out..........MY BABY SISTER!!!!!!!!!!!

My jaw hit the floor. And the skies opened up and angels sang. And I'll tell you this......the first, second, third and 50th times that Monkey acts out because she's unhappy to share mommy and daddy's attention with Jellybean - I'll remember that moment. Because it was sheer unadulturated bliss for me. Seeing the joy on her face as she mentioned her baby sister.

I'm going to hold on to that memory, carrying it around with me until it's tattered and worn, and use it as a crutch to get through the cranky times ahead.

Countdown to Big Sister Day

Every Friday is special at Monkey's Montessori - because it is PIZZA FRIDAY. And while it is ridiculous to write that out in caps, I'm pretty sure that's how Monkey thinks of it. Funny how a little tradition makes her happy. Plus, she just likes pizza. And after months of being denied (while she outgrew her milk allergy) it is nice to be able to join in the fun with her classmates.

Recently M and I have been talking to Monkey about how next Friday is Big Sister Day. So that she's got ownership of the day, and it isn't just about her little sister, Jellybean. It will be rough to learn to share the spotlight, so we want to get her an enthused as possible.

But really, we should just stop talking about being a big sister and the baby and what babies do blah blah blah. Because really, the only thing that gets her revved up is knowing that Grandma and Andpa and Nana and Grandad are coming to see her. Now THAT gets her excited.

It makes me so happy - Monkey loves her grandparents. A lot.

Well, that, or she remembers that every time they come to visit she gets presents or candy. Ok, it's a toss up there, folks......

Made mama whoop for joy!

Eons ago we thought the potty training might have started, but that was...um....March, and now it is October. You know, seven months ago.

Since then we've been offering Monkey the potty, talking about using the potty, and reading a book about potty training a lot. Not every single day, but often. We never forced the issue because, well, she's a pig-headed stubborn child (like both her parents) and forcing the issue would only guarantee tantrums and a flat-out refusal to cooperate. And I'd like her to be potty trained before she goes to college.

Every single time I asked Monkey if she wanted to use the potty she'd say no. Not interested, thank you.

But last night? For the first time that I recall, she actually ASKED to use the potty. So, naked (since she was about to get into the bath), she sat on the potty. And by potty, I mean the actual toilet with a little insert to make sure she doesn't fall in. She refuses to sit on the (shudder) Elmo potty chair I bought for her...and that's fine with me. We use the insert and the rest of it is now a step stool, so it works.

Well, she didn't pee. But she did ask for toilet paper and to flush the toilet. Which is something she only gets to do if she USES the potty (i.e., pees or poops). So after a few minutes of nothing happening, I took her off the potty. And she asked to sit on the potty. So, naked she sat on the potty. And asked for toilet paper and to flush the toilet. Which....oh, you get the point. We repeated this behavior for another 25 minutes or so.

And then, just when I was thinking this might be a pointless exercise and she was yanking my chain for the fun of it.....she peed in the potty! I literally whooped for joy. Man, a few years back if you would have told me that watching my daughter pee all over everything (because she kind of peed ON the insert, instead of INTO the toilet) would make me this happy I would have told you to pound sand. Seriously - like who would actually think this is a big deal? Well, fast forward to our life and honestly - it really was awesome. And I really did whoop for joy.

And then? Because we strive to fulfill all stereotypes of first-time parents who think their child walks on water? We called BOTH sets of grandparents and had Monkey tell her story. Yup. Good times, good times.

Here's hoping she does it again before another 7 months go by...........

The Adventures of Monkey and Mommy

Well, the staycation is going swimmingly.

This past weekend we: went to Coney Island and got sandy, Monkey fell/got dunked in the surf, we ate cheese fries at the original Nathan's hotdog stand, saw a baby walrus at the Aquarium, and our car didn't start on fire...it only smoked a bit. Um, yeah. So after a full day in the scorching sun (since even the Aquarium is outside), we stood in the parking lot with an insanely tired little girl and turned the motor on to try and figure out why the engine was smoking. And then drove home because no one (and by that I mean M and Grand Dad, Nana and I stood there impatiently shifting from foot to foot) could quite figure it out. We got home safe. And Monkey LOVES the ocean.

And that was only on Sunday!

On Tuesday I called in an emergency sitter to watch Monkey and drove the car out to Flatbush, Brooklyn to our mechanic. The highlight of that experience was the two guys (family members, I'd guess uncle/nephew) there who bantered exactly like the brothers in the Ocean's 11 (12 & 13) movies. As M put it, at first he thought they were in on the joke, but then he realized that they actually DID act that way towards each other! Odd, but funny.

Today we went to the zoo with Monkey's friends Daniel and Caleb. At one point the three of them were walking hand in hand. I about died from the cuteness of it all!

Tomorrow we go meet Monkey's teachers at her Montessori daycare (she's in the Purple room!) and then will play until it is time to have lunch with godmom Heather.

I need to keep a calendar open to make sure we do everything we said we'd do! This staycation is busy work, I tell you!

On the bus

Monkey is definitely over this virus, as she is back to her normal high jinks.

Last night we went to one of our favorite sushi restaurants on the UWS. There are other, fancier places that get higher Zagats and Chowhound ratings, but this one is always in the #2 spot so the sushi rocks - but really, we go there because the waitstaff is just so cool with Monkey. Even the sushi chefs took time to tell her what they were doing.

To get home, we take the M11 bus up Amsterdam, which works well - when it shows up. Maybe 4 or 5 M7 buses passed by our stop before the first M11 showed. Annoying.

So the bus arrives, and it is already well past Monkey's bedtime. She squirmed and chattered the whole way home - and was generally in a pretty good mood despite the late hour.

We sat in the handicapped/elderly seats because of Monkey and the stroller. Oh and me being 5 months pregnant. But about two stops before our stop, an elderly gentleman got on the bus. M immediately got up and offered him the seat. The gentleman smiled graciously, nodded his head and when he sat down, said thanks to Monkey.

I told Monkey in a sotto voice that we always give up our seat to grandpas and grandmas, since they needed the seat more than us.

When we got up to leave the bus, Monkey blurted out "BYE GRANDPA!" to this elderly gentleman. Earning not only the biggest smile I've ever seen on a stranger's face, but also - the entire bus started to laugh! (and that is a tough, tough crowd).

I'm guessing she made that guy's night.

Vogue, look out!

Nana arranged for Monkey and her cousin Emma D to have a professional photograph taken while we were visiting. She bought matching (beautiful!) dresses, which Monkey will wear again at Christmas, for both of the girls. And we were told to procure cream ribbons for the hair....

and lo and behold, these kids are damn cute!

Robots in the back yard

Monkey is obsessed with robots. Some kids like dinosaurs, others like construction equipments, and mine? Well, she loves robots.

Let's just say that she loves robots so much we're actually considering taking her to an afternoon screening of Wall*E. And yes, we are officially insane. No one in their right mind should take a 23 month old to a movie that isn't shown in their (or grandma and grandpa's) living room.

This past weekend was spent in lovely Wayzata, MN. The occasion that prompted our trip to Mpls was my 20th High School reunion (yes, stinker, go ahead and do the math - but I warn you, I look pretty good for a knocked-up 38 year old!).

Monkey spent quality time with Grandma and 'Andpa, Nana and Grandad, her beloved cousin Emma, Uncle Jason and Aunt Lauri, and my mother's little fluffmoppet otherwise known as the dog Tre. She was in HEAVEN.

'Andpa happens to keep bees in his backyard (don't ask, he just does, yes the honey tastes wonderful and no, they don't live on a farm) and he and his bee-keeping partner-in-crime Tom suited up and monitored the hives. Apparently they were adding trays for honey and checking the hives general health.

Monkey saw them from the kitchen window and asked what they were. And M, being the ever so creative dad, told her they were robots. Man, was she excited! REAL LIVE FREAKIN' ROBOTS MOM! ROBOTS! (toddlers really can speak in all caps - you didn't know that?)

She was disappointed when the left and kept asking "where did they go?"

Like Santa and the Easter Bunny, I don't think I'm ever going to set her straight on this one. I'ts more fun this way.