Christmas really began on the Saturday before Christmas.....after a looooooong day at work, I braved the mall and learned a great lesson. No matter how jam packed the mall is, it's still easier to navigate than when I drag both kids and the double stroller! I was in and out in a few minutes and really had a pleasant time of it. Anya was at home getting upset that Santa on the fire truck was avoiding our street like the plague. THis happens every year, which is weird because we have a TON of kidson our street, but George was able to satisfy her with some explanation.
Sunday was spent cooking and baking for Christmas day. ANya helped me with a few batches of cutout cookies and peanut butter blossoms and then I moved on to the other projects. I was super exhausted that night, but pleased with the amount I got done.
Christmas Eve was another looooong day. Work was busy but not too crazy and then the fun began. We went to Uncle Jerry's and had a really nice time. THe kids played well together and enjoyed meeting Santa (or Sousa as Baz calls him). Anya happily jumped up on his lap and told him she loved him, but Baz wasn't too sure so he stayed with George and I. Santa gave out Reindeer food to all the kids, so a very groggy Anya insisted on spreading it out on the yard to show the way for Santa's reindeer.
Santa didn't skimp on our kids at all- they completely enjoyed opening all of their gifts and seem to enjoy every single one! We had a great time with the rest of the family when they arrived later in the day.
Christmas part II was this weekend at my parents' house. Once again, they enjoyed opening the piles of presents and playing with the treasures inside. Anya and Isabella mostly played together great, but there were a few fights that got a tad crazy!
I'm eager to get back into our "usual" routine, whatever that may be. Anya has gotten used to staying up late so that needs to be fixed ASAP. Stay tuned to our other website for pics and videos from the holidays- I have a ton, but have to sort through them all!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Wow- it's been a crazy couple of weeks. Before I recount our holiday activities, I want to share some of Baz's cute things.
He's quickly moving into 2 and 3 word phrases.. "my turn" or "I fix it" are popular ones. This evening as I was rocking him, we both heard Anya crying in her room. He put down his sippy cup and put his arms out and asked "what happened?" He also proclaims "OK" whenever he falls down or knocks something over loudly. It makes my life a bit easier!
He's quickly moving into 2 and 3 word phrases.. "my turn" or "I fix it" are popular ones. This evening as I was rocking him, we both heard Anya crying in her room. He put down his sippy cup and put his arms out and asked "what happened?" He also proclaims "OK" whenever he falls down or knocks something over loudly. It makes my life a bit easier!
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Anya's parties
THanks to this book and her birthday party, Anya has a deep interest in having parties now. TOday we had at least 3 of them! She makes up an invitation and delivers it.....once today, the doggy led me to the "mailbox" where the invite was! We then go to her room where the party is and dance or watch her show and eat some pretend food. She is also turning into quite the fish- she loves being in the tub and insisted on a "bonus" bath once Baz was in for a nap. Oh, what a nice life we'll have once we get a hot tub....we can spend all of our "free" time in it! (A girl can dream, right?)
Baz is talking!
He's been working on words here or there, most of which are missing the first consonant (ilk for milk, at for cat, etc), but now he's on to 2 or 3 word phrases. Today is was "are you?". He started the morning out looking for Sousa (ie Santa) and saying "sousa are you". It continued throughout the day....adorable! He's also begun chanting "Hi, Anya's kindergarten" as turn the corner to go past her future school.
His Star Wars fascination is also building. I don't think he has a favorite character yet, but he can clearly identify Luke, Han, Leia, Chewy, R2, 3PO, Boba Fett, Lando, Vader, Yoda, and maybe a few that I'm forgetting! He also LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (yay for me- I love it too!!!!) and Goofy (Oofy) is by far his favorite! I so hope he isn't too afraid of the characters when we go to Disney so he can enjoy his friends!
His Star Wars fascination is also building. I don't think he has a favorite character yet, but he can clearly identify Luke, Han, Leia, Chewy, R2, 3PO, Boba Fett, Lando, Vader, Yoda, and maybe a few that I'm forgetting! He also LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (yay for me- I love it too!!!!) and Goofy (Oofy) is by far his favorite! I so hope he isn't too afraid of the characters when we go to Disney so he can enjoy his friends!
It seems that my blogging is pretty pathetic lately, so I'm going to try to do better!
Last week was tough since the sickies visited our house. After having a typical mild cough/cold for a week or so, Baz starting spiking high fevers (103-104) for a few days, so I finally took him to the peds to discover that he had bilat ear infections. His lungs were also junky, so in addition to abx, he was given nebulizer treatments. The first couple of treatments were tough until I realized that he just wanted to be asked to put the mask on his nose. Then it became a game!!! I even had to intervene so that he and Anya took fair turns with the nebs.
At the same time, Anya kept insisting that her ears were "counting to me". SHe never complained of pain, so I kind of wrote it off, but since Baz's got so bad I figured it was worth getting hers checked out. Bingo- her ears were in fact telling her that they were infected- baaaad mommy.
Anyway, the sickies have left our house for the time being- yippee!!!!!
Last week was tough since the sickies visited our house. After having a typical mild cough/cold for a week or so, Baz starting spiking high fevers (103-104) for a few days, so I finally took him to the peds to discover that he had bilat ear infections. His lungs were also junky, so in addition to abx, he was given nebulizer treatments. The first couple of treatments were tough until I realized that he just wanted to be asked to put the mask on his nose. Then it became a game!!! I even had to intervene so that he and Anya took fair turns with the nebs.
At the same time, Anya kept insisting that her ears were "counting to me". SHe never complained of pain, so I kind of wrote it off, but since Baz's got so bad I figured it was worth getting hers checked out. Bingo- her ears were in fact telling her that they were infected- baaaad mommy.
Anyway, the sickies have left our house for the time being- yippee!!!!!
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Today's day
Today was NOTHING like yesterday...I got to work, so that took up a huge chunk of the day during which I had the luxury of single-tasking!!! I did have to pack up last night and prepare for today, then wake up just before 6am (as the kids slept- wahoo!). Once I was dressed and packed up, I finished up the diaper bags and the overnight stuff in case they slept at Nana and Dada's during our holiday party.
THe hardest task of today was getting both kids up and dressed. Usually one or both wake up on their own before I get them up so it's easy getting them ready, but that didn't happen today. Factor in that neither wanted to get dressed and things became complicated. THankfully, Baz is always up for a ride in the car or to see Nana and Dada and I can negotiate with Anya. After a short time of chaos, we were all packed into the van and on the way.
The day ended very well thank to the snow storm...no holiday party, and no dentist because I screwed up and scheduled us with the wrong one. Anyway, we had a nice family evening in our clean house and I'm ready for a nice family bedtime!
THe hardest task of today was getting both kids up and dressed. Usually one or both wake up on their own before I get them up so it's easy getting them ready, but that didn't happen today. Factor in that neither wanted to get dressed and things became complicated. THankfully, Baz is always up for a ride in the car or to see Nana and Dada and I can negotiate with Anya. After a short time of chaos, we were all packed into the van and on the way.
The day ended very well thank to the snow storm...no holiday party, and no dentist because I screwed up and scheduled us with the wrong one. Anyway, we had a nice family evening in our clean house and I'm ready for a nice family bedtime!
Ear Infections all around!!!!
I don't think I blogged about this, but earlier in the week, Baz's cough worsened and he started spiking fevers. When the fevers continued, I took him in to the peds and it turns out he had full-blown infections in each ear. She was a little concerned about the possible wheezy sounds in his lungs, but after a nebulizer treatment, he sounded much better, so he's getting abx for the EI and nebs for the cough. I spent a good 5-20 minutes fighting him in the office trying to keep the mist close to his face as he screamed his head off. It turns out that I just had to ASK him to put the mask on his nose- he was thrilled to do that when we got home. THe nebulizer has become the most fun toy in our house!!!
Anya had an earache last weekend, but that was treated with Motrin and some eardrops. She clearly was in pain then and then clearly got better. In the meantime, she's told me multiple times that her ear is "counting" to her. Leave it to Anya to find a creative way to describe things! Anyway, in light of Baz's apparently painless EIs, I took Anya in today to have her ears checked. Sure enough, she does have a mild infection in one ear, which I suppose explains the "counting". Now I had to convince her that the medicine does in fact taste good, which luckily wasn't too hard.
Anya had an earache last weekend, but that was treated with Motrin and some eardrops. She clearly was in pain then and then clearly got better. In the meantime, she's told me multiple times that her ear is "counting" to her. Leave it to Anya to find a creative way to describe things! Anyway, in light of Baz's apparently painless EIs, I took Anya in today to have her ears checked. Sure enough, she does have a mild infection in one ear, which I suppose explains the "counting". Now I had to convince her that the medicine does in fact taste good, which luckily wasn't too hard.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
A day in the life
As I sit here in my lovely massage chair sipping a glass of wine, I'm thinking of all the bazilion things I did today and thought 'd try to recap the day. Unfortunately, I'll guarantee that I've forgotten a good number of cute (and not so cute) things the kids did, but here goes:
5:04am- Baz wakes up....no possiblilty of settling him down- I try, but he clearly is ready to get up, so I pick him up and trudge slowly out to the family room. I'm already tired because he was up twice or so during the night. No fevers, though- his ear infections seem to be on the mend.
Thankfully, he's happy to sit with me on the couch and drink his Pediasure and watch MIckey Mouse Clubhouse. He actually asked for it by name (Icky Ouse House) so I got a mini-nap in
5:30-ish....he's had enough of sitting still and gets down from the couch. I continue to doze on the couch- luckily he doesn't do anything dangerous (that I know of)
6:00-ish....Anya and George appear...it seems that she's decided to go straight to our room to wake somebody up and since I wasn't there, Daddy got nominated (wahoo for me!!!!) I continue to doze off and on until 7, when the intermittent "Mommy, mommy" requests break through and I'm up. The kids have now pulled out a good number of their toys, which are strewn across the family room floor- round 1 begins!
7:00- I've barely made it into the kitchen to get orange juice and bagels for the kids and George has taken over the couch and is O-U-T. OK- I definitely understand being tired, so I move into the kitchen and start with the day's projects. I start by making sugar cookie dough with Anya. My initial plan was to make the dough early, put Baz down for an early nap (10am) and have time to exercise, then make the cutouts. (If you think this plan actually happened, I do NOT live in fairy tale world....this is reality, Greg). ANya was great helping add ingredients and helping the mixer turn, only snitching here and there. I figured we were on a roll and we moved on to peanut butter blossoms. Both kids helped with this one- adding ingredients, rolling the balls in sugar, and when the cookies came out, putting the kisses on top!
8:00- I'm in mommy heaven.....the kids move into the living room and begin playing in their "tent". This tent is Nan's couch with the cushions standing on end and the cushions from her chairs forming the roof. Anya is being some animal- a dog or horse, I think, with her brown boots on her feet and her princess boots on her hands. I don't care one but because the beauty is that they are playing happily together. This is my cue to start cleaning...after making George's sandwich and making coffee for both of us, I break out the Flip-It and mop the kitchen floor. That's the first bonus of the day- I didn't plan on this, but it sure needed doing. Oh yeah, somewhere in there, I put in a load of wash or two.
9:00- I start waking George up, which becomes difficult because Anya wants to have a surprise party in her room. Sebastian and I are ordered to "get the room ready" for a surprise party for me. Apparently this means gathering up and posing a bunch of her dolls and stuffed animals. After this party, ANya had a "sale" of her toys for George and I. I bought several stuffed animals- yay me!
10:00- George has gotten up, showered and dressed and left. As usual, both kids ran to stand on the back of the couch to wave goodbye to him. Baz blew a bunch of kisses and waved his heart out- it was really cute. Baz is now showing signs of getting tired (not surprising based on his sleep pattern over the preceding night and being sick), so I figured I'd give him a nebulizer treatment and put him down. The neb went fine- turns out I just had to ask him to put it on his nose and he did- silly mommy (I spend the entire time at the peds yesterday trying to get the mask close enough so he got afew breaths of it as she screamed bloody murder). THe challenge this time was that Anya wanted some too, so I had to make sure they both got equal time with it.
10:20- Baz goes down after about 10 minutes of screaming (I hate it when this happens because he usually goes down so easily). Anyway, I don't care THAT much since he is sleeping, which means that I have at least 2 (more likely 3 hours) to only monitor one child. I play with Anya for a few minutes, then ask her if I can please exercise. Not that I want to (the devil on my shoulder was becoming very persuasive and I wanted to get it over with before I gave in) but I had to get it in today. She wanted to lay in my bed, so I picked up her Knuffle bunny, her music box, and her sippy cup and moved them to my bed. She followed behind and happily snuggled in to watch Noggin.
10:30 I broke the cardinal rule of motherhood...as I was kicking and punching, I allowed the following thought to enter my brain: "this is so great....I can workout by myself as my kiddoes happily sleep and rest quietly in other part of the house" Yeah, RIGHT. WIthin seconds of having this thought, I hear "Mommy, Mommy, MOMMY!!!!" OK- pause Turbo Jam and run back to see what's so dire that ANya has to scream for me. It turns out that her music box batteries are dying so it sounds crappy. Ugh...I assure her that she can watch TV without listening to her music at the same time and I'd be happy to replace the batteries when I finished. Now that my heart rate has gone back down to normal, I start back up. The exercise gods are with me in that I get through the harder first half (once I've made it through the anaerobic part, I've done the important part), but that's the end of my "luck". Less than an hour into his nap, he starts screaming.
11:00- I go in to try to settle Baz down, but it clearly isn't going to happen, so I pick him up and take him to the family room. I'm hoping that somehow engaging him in TV will allow me to finish my workout. No such luck, but he was interested in the leftover kisses on the counter. No prob- have a kiss and be quiet- worked for a few minutes. I still have 15 minutes or so left, but he only wants to be held and now Anya has appeared and is asking for lunch. ACK! I tell her to give me 5 minutes to finish the important stuff and I'll make her pizza. She disappears to torment the cat and I get Baz into watching Einsteins so I can exercise a little more. I heat up the pizza and put it on the coffee table for them to eat. Anya shows up and munches away as I finally finish working out. I just *love* it when a 50 minute workout turns into 90.
12:00- Now I'm tired......sleepy because I got very little sleep and was woken up at an ungodly hour, and tired because I did a hard workout, which was stressful from the added interruptions. I know Baz is tired, so I plop him in his crib and see if he'll cry it out. He does fuss a bit (and play with the 15 toys he insists on taking in with him), but doesn't really cry. I seize this opportunity and jump in the shower. ANya sees what I'm up to and asks to join me. No prob- it'll keep her occupied once I get out. Since I don't hear Baz screaming, I take my time and even shave my legs- oh lucky day! As I get dressed, I still hear Baz talking and playing, but he seems happy, so I run around picking up odds and ends as Anya "cleans" the shower door using my Calgon body wash. Small price to pay... I continue the laundry (the loveseat is filling up with clean clothes to be folded), pick up toys in Anya's room, family room, and kitchen. I replace her music box batteries, chat with my parents, and periodically check on her. Eventually, she's had enough and I get her out and dressed....and now Baz has had enough "quiet time" in the crib.
12:30- I really can't remember what happened now.....at some point, Anya asks to see movies from when she was first born, so we move into the family room and I dig up the requested videos and we all watched for a bit. Somehow, things line up so that I think I can mop the hardwood floors. THere are a handful of spots that have been bothering me, so I set my mind to cleaning them up.
1:00- This was when started thanking Nintendo for coming into my life. Anya asked to play Mario 64 and I was thrilled to oblige. SHe's happy to play it and Baz stands there like he's missing a chromosome watching open-mouthed. I really don't care because it allows me to start cleaning and clean I did......Living room, dining room, hallway, Anya's room. As I was cleaning her room, I hear Baz make an "I'm really hurt sort of cry. I drop my mop and start running. Problem....the floors are wet and my rubber slippers don't have enough traction to fight that. As I turn the corner to the dining room, I feel myself taking flight and begin bracing- this is gonna hurt.....I did manage to catch myself on some furniture (not sure which) and continue on to save my baby. I soon see that he's standing in the middle of the floor and Anya isn't anywhere near him, so this was a frustration cry, not hurt- ack! I'll be feeling that one tomorrow! After I see that he's OK and get Anya settled back in with Mario, I finish mopping the bedrooms - mission accomplished!!! I even find time to grab the vacuum and sweep the area rug in the living room AND Baz's room.
4-ish.....I've now cleaned every floor but the family room (George earlier did our bathroom), kept the kitchen clean, and finished washing and drying the laundry- I see the light at the end of the tunnel! ANya asks me to hold her like she's a newborn baby and watch Wonder Pets- how can I resist? So I have a little quiet cuddle time with her- that was nice. I then realize that I haven't heard Baz in a bit, so I have to check on him. He wasn't doing anything bad, but I bring him in to the family room so I can see him. He now wants to be held, too, so the 3 of us sit on the couch and watch some animal action.
4:30- I now have to get dinner moving, so I chop up the broccoli that Baz has been asking for all day and toss it in the steamer. The turkey tenderloin has been cooking in the crock and is just about done. I set the table and move into the family room to finish the last room to be cleaned. I sweep and mop it up (Baz has finally learned his lesson and stayed on the rug lest he fall on his ass) and tackle the laundry. Once that's folded neatly in piles, I go back into the kitchen to finish dinner- this is easy since it's mostly prepackaged.....Stove Top in the microwave, gravy on the stove, cranberry sauce on a plate....
5:30 George arrives home- Yayyyyyy- reinforcements! As he greets the kids and changes his clothes, I put dinner on the table. Thanks to the promise of a cookie for dessert, Anya agrees to eat all of her dinner. Baz munches away on everything as she eats only the meat and broccoli (what kid doesn't like Stove Top????), but we let her get away with that since she ate the good stuf and she has her cookie.
5:45-6:15- George plays with the kids in the family room as I clean up from dinner and pack up for tomorrow.....I LOVE it when everything is done so that I can rest when the kids are in bed. This doesn't happen often, but it's a good day when it does.
6:15- the kids head for the tubby....Baz pleads for bubbles and opens the drawer where they are kept. I rush back to the bathroom when George lets out a cry of pain. Turns out he didn't know that Baz had opened the drawer and when he went to sit down, his arse made contact with the corner of the drawer- ouchie! After he recovered, I returned to the kitchen to finish packing up and putting away laundry.
6:30- My housework is done!!!! Now I just have to get Baz in bed and I can relax! I take him into his room and he quietly sits as I read Goodnight Moon. He rarely sits still for a book, so I know he's either really tired or really interested (my money is on tired), but it's only good for one book- he has no interest in the Bely Button book. He insists on saying goodnight to Anya and Daddy, so we go in there to kiss them, then back to his room. He makes a move for the toybox, but I grab him and take him in the rocking chair. He doesn't fight as I rock and sing to him. I only have to perform one encore before he was out COLD. (Not surprising...he was up at 5 am and only had less than one hour of his usual 3 hour nap). He did sweetly mumble "baby" followed by "potty" until I put them in bed with him.
7:10- Ahhhhhh..... I sit in my massage chair with my computer on my lap....peanut butter blossom in one hand, white zin in the other..... one interruption by ANya so far....her sleeper jammies were too hot, so she had to have her Dora nightgown instead (has to have outfit changes even in bed!).
Wow- that was long.....and I'm sure there were a bunch of other little things that happened, but that was my day.
5:04am- Baz wakes up....no possiblilty of settling him down- I try, but he clearly is ready to get up, so I pick him up and trudge slowly out to the family room. I'm already tired because he was up twice or so during the night. No fevers, though- his ear infections seem to be on the mend.
Thankfully, he's happy to sit with me on the couch and drink his Pediasure and watch MIckey Mouse Clubhouse. He actually asked for it by name (Icky Ouse House) so I got a mini-nap in
5:30-ish....he's had enough of sitting still and gets down from the couch. I continue to doze on the couch- luckily he doesn't do anything dangerous (that I know of)
6:00-ish....Anya and George appear...it seems that she's decided to go straight to our room to wake somebody up and since I wasn't there, Daddy got nominated (wahoo for me!!!!) I continue to doze off and on until 7, when the intermittent "Mommy, mommy" requests break through and I'm up. The kids have now pulled out a good number of their toys, which are strewn across the family room floor- round 1 begins!
7:00- I've barely made it into the kitchen to get orange juice and bagels for the kids and George has taken over the couch and is O-U-T. OK- I definitely understand being tired, so I move into the kitchen and start with the day's projects. I start by making sugar cookie dough with Anya. My initial plan was to make the dough early, put Baz down for an early nap (10am) and have time to exercise, then make the cutouts. (If you think this plan actually happened, I do NOT live in fairy tale world....this is reality, Greg). ANya was great helping add ingredients and helping the mixer turn, only snitching here and there. I figured we were on a roll and we moved on to peanut butter blossoms. Both kids helped with this one- adding ingredients, rolling the balls in sugar, and when the cookies came out, putting the kisses on top!
8:00- I'm in mommy heaven.....the kids move into the living room and begin playing in their "tent". This tent is Nan's couch with the cushions standing on end and the cushions from her chairs forming the roof. Anya is being some animal- a dog or horse, I think, with her brown boots on her feet and her princess boots on her hands. I don't care one but because the beauty is that they are playing happily together. This is my cue to start cleaning...after making George's sandwich and making coffee for both of us, I break out the Flip-It and mop the kitchen floor. That's the first bonus of the day- I didn't plan on this, but it sure needed doing. Oh yeah, somewhere in there, I put in a load of wash or two.
9:00- I start waking George up, which becomes difficult because Anya wants to have a surprise party in her room. Sebastian and I are ordered to "get the room ready" for a surprise party for me. Apparently this means gathering up and posing a bunch of her dolls and stuffed animals. After this party, ANya had a "sale" of her toys for George and I. I bought several stuffed animals- yay me!
10:00- George has gotten up, showered and dressed and left. As usual, both kids ran to stand on the back of the couch to wave goodbye to him. Baz blew a bunch of kisses and waved his heart out- it was really cute. Baz is now showing signs of getting tired (not surprising based on his sleep pattern over the preceding night and being sick), so I figured I'd give him a nebulizer treatment and put him down. The neb went fine- turns out I just had to ask him to put it on his nose and he did- silly mommy (I spend the entire time at the peds yesterday trying to get the mask close enough so he got afew breaths of it as she screamed bloody murder). THe challenge this time was that Anya wanted some too, so I had to make sure they both got equal time with it.
10:20- Baz goes down after about 10 minutes of screaming (I hate it when this happens because he usually goes down so easily). Anyway, I don't care THAT much since he is sleeping, which means that I have at least 2 (more likely 3 hours) to only monitor one child. I play with Anya for a few minutes, then ask her if I can please exercise. Not that I want to (the devil on my shoulder was becoming very persuasive and I wanted to get it over with before I gave in) but I had to get it in today. She wanted to lay in my bed, so I picked up her Knuffle bunny, her music box, and her sippy cup and moved them to my bed. She followed behind and happily snuggled in to watch Noggin.
10:30 I broke the cardinal rule of motherhood...as I was kicking and punching, I allowed the following thought to enter my brain: "this is so great....I can workout by myself as my kiddoes happily sleep and rest quietly in other part of the house" Yeah, RIGHT. WIthin seconds of having this thought, I hear "Mommy, Mommy, MOMMY!!!!" OK- pause Turbo Jam and run back to see what's so dire that ANya has to scream for me. It turns out that her music box batteries are dying so it sounds crappy. Ugh...I assure her that she can watch TV without listening to her music at the same time and I'd be happy to replace the batteries when I finished. Now that my heart rate has gone back down to normal, I start back up. The exercise gods are with me in that I get through the harder first half (once I've made it through the anaerobic part, I've done the important part), but that's the end of my "luck". Less than an hour into his nap, he starts screaming.
11:00- I go in to try to settle Baz down, but it clearly isn't going to happen, so I pick him up and take him to the family room. I'm hoping that somehow engaging him in TV will allow me to finish my workout. No such luck, but he was interested in the leftover kisses on the counter. No prob- have a kiss and be quiet- worked for a few minutes. I still have 15 minutes or so left, but he only wants to be held and now Anya has appeared and is asking for lunch. ACK! I tell her to give me 5 minutes to finish the important stuff and I'll make her pizza. She disappears to torment the cat and I get Baz into watching Einsteins so I can exercise a little more. I heat up the pizza and put it on the coffee table for them to eat. Anya shows up and munches away as I finally finish working out. I just *love* it when a 50 minute workout turns into 90.
12:00- Now I'm tired......sleepy because I got very little sleep and was woken up at an ungodly hour, and tired because I did a hard workout, which was stressful from the added interruptions. I know Baz is tired, so I plop him in his crib and see if he'll cry it out. He does fuss a bit (and play with the 15 toys he insists on taking in with him), but doesn't really cry. I seize this opportunity and jump in the shower. ANya sees what I'm up to and asks to join me. No prob- it'll keep her occupied once I get out. Since I don't hear Baz screaming, I take my time and even shave my legs- oh lucky day! As I get dressed, I still hear Baz talking and playing, but he seems happy, so I run around picking up odds and ends as Anya "cleans" the shower door using my Calgon body wash. Small price to pay... I continue the laundry (the loveseat is filling up with clean clothes to be folded), pick up toys in Anya's room, family room, and kitchen. I replace her music box batteries, chat with my parents, and periodically check on her. Eventually, she's had enough and I get her out and dressed....and now Baz has had enough "quiet time" in the crib.
12:30- I really can't remember what happened now.....at some point, Anya asks to see movies from when she was first born, so we move into the family room and I dig up the requested videos and we all watched for a bit. Somehow, things line up so that I think I can mop the hardwood floors. THere are a handful of spots that have been bothering me, so I set my mind to cleaning them up.
1:00- This was when started thanking Nintendo for coming into my life. Anya asked to play Mario 64 and I was thrilled to oblige. SHe's happy to play it and Baz stands there like he's missing a chromosome watching open-mouthed. I really don't care because it allows me to start cleaning and clean I did......Living room, dining room, hallway, Anya's room. As I was cleaning her room, I hear Baz make an "I'm really hurt sort of cry. I drop my mop and start running. Problem....the floors are wet and my rubber slippers don't have enough traction to fight that. As I turn the corner to the dining room, I feel myself taking flight and begin bracing- this is gonna hurt.....I did manage to catch myself on some furniture (not sure which) and continue on to save my baby. I soon see that he's standing in the middle of the floor and Anya isn't anywhere near him, so this was a frustration cry, not hurt- ack! I'll be feeling that one tomorrow! After I see that he's OK and get Anya settled back in with Mario, I finish mopping the bedrooms - mission accomplished!!! I even find time to grab the vacuum and sweep the area rug in the living room AND Baz's room.
4-ish.....I've now cleaned every floor but the family room (George earlier did our bathroom), kept the kitchen clean, and finished washing and drying the laundry- I see the light at the end of the tunnel! ANya asks me to hold her like she's a newborn baby and watch Wonder Pets- how can I resist? So I have a little quiet cuddle time with her- that was nice. I then realize that I haven't heard Baz in a bit, so I have to check on him. He wasn't doing anything bad, but I bring him in to the family room so I can see him. He now wants to be held, too, so the 3 of us sit on the couch and watch some animal action.
4:30- I now have to get dinner moving, so I chop up the broccoli that Baz has been asking for all day and toss it in the steamer. The turkey tenderloin has been cooking in the crock and is just about done. I set the table and move into the family room to finish the last room to be cleaned. I sweep and mop it up (Baz has finally learned his lesson and stayed on the rug lest he fall on his ass) and tackle the laundry. Once that's folded neatly in piles, I go back into the kitchen to finish dinner- this is easy since it's mostly prepackaged.....Stove Top in the microwave, gravy on the stove, cranberry sauce on a plate....
5:30 George arrives home- Yayyyyyy- reinforcements! As he greets the kids and changes his clothes, I put dinner on the table. Thanks to the promise of a cookie for dessert, Anya agrees to eat all of her dinner. Baz munches away on everything as she eats only the meat and broccoli (what kid doesn't like Stove Top????), but we let her get away with that since she ate the good stuf and she has her cookie.
5:45-6:15- George plays with the kids in the family room as I clean up from dinner and pack up for tomorrow.....I LOVE it when everything is done so that I can rest when the kids are in bed. This doesn't happen often, but it's a good day when it does.
6:15- the kids head for the tubby....Baz pleads for bubbles and opens the drawer where they are kept. I rush back to the bathroom when George lets out a cry of pain. Turns out he didn't know that Baz had opened the drawer and when he went to sit down, his arse made contact with the corner of the drawer- ouchie! After he recovered, I returned to the kitchen to finish packing up and putting away laundry.
6:30- My housework is done!!!! Now I just have to get Baz in bed and I can relax! I take him into his room and he quietly sits as I read Goodnight Moon. He rarely sits still for a book, so I know he's either really tired or really interested (my money is on tired), but it's only good for one book- he has no interest in the Bely Button book. He insists on saying goodnight to Anya and Daddy, so we go in there to kiss them, then back to his room. He makes a move for the toybox, but I grab him and take him in the rocking chair. He doesn't fight as I rock and sing to him. I only have to perform one encore before he was out COLD. (Not surprising...he was up at 5 am and only had less than one hour of his usual 3 hour nap). He did sweetly mumble "baby" followed by "potty" until I put them in bed with him.
7:10- Ahhhhhh..... I sit in my massage chair with my computer on my lap....peanut butter blossom in one hand, white zin in the other..... one interruption by ANya so far....her sleeper jammies were too hot, so she had to have her Dora nightgown instead (has to have outfit changes even in bed!).
Wow- that was long.....and I'm sure there were a bunch of other little things that happened, but that was my day.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Anya has been having a rough time adjusting to being 4. I don't know if it's her birthday or hearing that Baz gets away with some things "because he's a baby" or what, but she's been exhibiting some regressive (is that the right word?) behavior lately. It started with baby talk, which was tolerable, but irritating and escalated to a handful of pee accidents. She's also had a serious of MAJOR tantrums....we're talking full-on screaming, grunting, acting like an animal. Clearly, those stem from control issues, which are typical for her age, but still not fun. Thank goodness for my fellow mommies who are having similar issues and can keep me from worrying!
During the non-tantrum times, she's really developing her imagination. She loves playing dress up (or being naked like animals) and creates the most intricate storylines! This evening, she was being a doggy and had to hide under the piano with her giraffe to avoid the storm that was going on in the rest of the living room. She also plays veterinarian a lot also, even though she INSISTS that she wants to be a dentist when she grows up.
During the non-tantrum times, she's really developing her imagination. She loves playing dress up (or being naked like animals) and creates the most intricate storylines! This evening, she was being a doggy and had to hide under the piano with her giraffe to avoid the storm that was going on in the rest of the living room. She also plays veterinarian a lot also, even though she INSISTS that she wants to be a dentist when she grows up.
Sebastian has been talking up a storm lately- he's always surprising me with the words and phrases he knows. He's been playing peek-a-boo lately, covering his eyes with his hands and today when he was doing it, I hear him say "Bastian"! Sure enough- he repeated it several more times throughout the day. He's also taken to announcing Anya's kindergarten as we pass it. I've been gearing her up a bit to ease into the idea, so when we pass her school, I'll point it out. Now, as I approach the school from either direction, Baz starts saying "Hi Anya's kindergarten!!!"
He's adopted a baby doll as his new playmate for the past few days. For some reason, he decided that the tiny toilet that goes with Dora's house is the key accessory for this doll. Yesterday, he insisted on taking it into his crib at naptime so he could teach baby how to go potty! This morning he couldn't wait to show Nana his baby and he carried that doll around EVERYWHERE!
He's adopted a baby doll as his new playmate for the past few days. For some reason, he decided that the tiny toilet that goes with Dora's house is the key accessory for this doll. Yesterday, he insisted on taking it into his crib at naptime so he could teach baby how to go potty! This morning he couldn't wait to show Nana his baby and he carried that doll around EVERYWHERE!
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Christmas in NYC!!!
So I decided to meet my parents with the kids in the city to see the Christmas excitement yesterday. I was fully prepared for traffic, crowds, and keeping a toddler and a preschooler entertained and happy. The trip in was fairly easy- we had no traffic, but a couple of quick stops so Anya could pee in a diaper. I didn't want to lug around the potty chair in the van so we had to improvise, but it worked out OK. The first snag came when I packed the kids into the stroller bundled up to the max so I couldn't hear Anya when she was telling me that she had to pee again. OOPS, bad mommy! What was the result? A full-on accident completely soaking her pants- ugh. I didn't realize this until we had met my parents (as they drove across Broadway and we walked up to that intersection- couldn't have planned that!) and went into Virgil's for lunch. THis brings me to the second snag....our plan was to hit TRU first and ride the Ferris Wheel. TRU was CLOSED.....supposedly, there was a pipe explosion or something- rats! Luckily, the kids were so happy to see GramPapPap that they forgot all about TRU.
Our lunch at Virgils went great- Anya spent half of it wrapped in my coat as I ran out to the Gap to get her new pants (I sported my dad's jacket!)....what parents do for their kids, huh? Baz wouldn't be separated from PapPap. I was a distant second to my dad- even when he tried to go get my mom's coat from their car, Baz insisted on going along.
The next stop was Rockefeller center. By now, the snow was coming down fairly heavily and it really felt like Christmas!!! Baz was maxxing out on the cold and lack of sleep, so after a quick look at the tree and the ice skaters, we stopped in the Nintendo store to warm up. Yep- even on a trip without George, we hung out with Mario!!! We actually had to drag both kids out- if it weren't for the promise of seeing Mickey, I think we'd STILL be at Nintendo!!!
Disney came through with the usual magic.... as we entered the store, Baz popped for the lifesize Goofy statue. Both kids ran gleefully though the store, only getting more excited when they discovered that there was yet another level to explore. Baz went nuts over the stuffed LMQ pillows and ANya zeroed in on the Haunted Mansion Clue game that she decided to use her bday money to buy. As we hung out in this area, I heard an announcement about characters arriving shortly- woohoo!!! As I did my research the day before, I found that Wednesdays were not a usual day for meet and greets, so this was a surprise (or I would have made sure to pack Anya's autograph book- we play autograph session on a daily basis). We then had the pleasure of meeting Santa Goofy and Xmas Chip & Dale. Baz unfortunately is behaving as a toddler and wanted nothing to do with these characters unless we were separated by a pane of glass. A high five warmed him up a bit- I guess we have to practice a bit before our trip!
The ride home was tedious since we hit the peak of rush hour, but the kids handled it well, so it was OK. Anya couldn't open her game fast enough, but I think it'll be a while before she really "gets" it. She threw a massive tantrum at bedtime- this one was a real doozy, but she did eventually break out of it and go to sleep. The aftermath wasn't even bad- she got up with no problem, got ready for my office and school with no drama- yay!!!!
Our lunch at Virgils went great- Anya spent half of it wrapped in my coat as I ran out to the Gap to get her new pants (I sported my dad's jacket!)....what parents do for their kids, huh? Baz wouldn't be separated from PapPap. I was a distant second to my dad- even when he tried to go get my mom's coat from their car, Baz insisted on going along.
The next stop was Rockefeller center. By now, the snow was coming down fairly heavily and it really felt like Christmas!!! Baz was maxxing out on the cold and lack of sleep, so after a quick look at the tree and the ice skaters, we stopped in the Nintendo store to warm up. Yep- even on a trip without George, we hung out with Mario!!! We actually had to drag both kids out- if it weren't for the promise of seeing Mickey, I think we'd STILL be at Nintendo!!!
Disney came through with the usual magic.... as we entered the store, Baz popped for the lifesize Goofy statue. Both kids ran gleefully though the store, only getting more excited when they discovered that there was yet another level to explore. Baz went nuts over the stuffed LMQ pillows and ANya zeroed in on the Haunted Mansion Clue game that she decided to use her bday money to buy. As we hung out in this area, I heard an announcement about characters arriving shortly- woohoo!!! As I did my research the day before, I found that Wednesdays were not a usual day for meet and greets, so this was a surprise (or I would have made sure to pack Anya's autograph book- we play autograph session on a daily basis). We then had the pleasure of meeting Santa Goofy and Xmas Chip & Dale. Baz unfortunately is behaving as a toddler and wanted nothing to do with these characters unless we were separated by a pane of glass. A high five warmed him up a bit- I guess we have to practice a bit before our trip!
The ride home was tedious since we hit the peak of rush hour, but the kids handled it well, so it was OK. Anya couldn't open her game fast enough, but I think it'll be a while before she really "gets" it. She threw a massive tantrum at bedtime- this one was a real doozy, but she did eventually break out of it and go to sleep. The aftermath wasn't even bad- she got up with no problem, got ready for my office and school with no drama- yay!!!!
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Congrats Meredith!!!
Congratulations to Aunt Meri for getting her Apartment- woohoo!!! I'm so happy you'll finally have your own place! Can't wait to see it in person!!!
Christmas Immersion
So we decked our halls today....the kids helped me find all the xmas decorations in the basement (and organize a bit too) and bring them upstairs. I really have to thank Turbo Jam for getting me in such great shape- I clearly remember being knocked on my ass for a while last year after making so many trips up and down the stairs for the same task! As I was moving books around to make room to move the storage boxes, I came upon George's 8th grade journal- he was not very happy about this, but it made for a half hour of great entertainment!
Anya and I got a little mommy-daughter time to see Enchanted- it was great! SHe did lose interest a bit in the middle, but I think that was because of the live-action part. I was more than happy to sit and watch McDreamy play a real-life prince and get his one true love!
Anya had some issues understanding why Giselle couldn't/wouldn't be with the prince and that McDreamy was her one true love, but she got over it and I think she enjoyed the movie.
We came home and put up the tree (ziggy is what she named him:) ) and decorated it. Anya did great with Daddy,and even made up her own star to go with his on Nan's Nativity set.
Anya and I got a little mommy-daughter time to see Enchanted- it was great! SHe did lose interest a bit in the middle, but I think that was because of the live-action part. I was more than happy to sit and watch McDreamy play a real-life prince and get his one true love!
Anya had some issues understanding why Giselle couldn't/wouldn't be with the prince and that McDreamy was her one true love, but she got over it and I think she enjoyed the movie.
We came home and put up the tree (ziggy is what she named him:) ) and decorated it. Anya did great with Daddy,and even made up her own star to go with his on Nan's Nativity set.
A fun Sunday
OK- somebody remind me why Andy Rooney gets a soliloquy at the end of 60 Minutes each week... I KNOW it's CBS, which means that it caters to seniors, but come ON.... to quote a great philosopher (you know who you are) "He makes me want to throw a shoe at the TV"
In case you're wondering, CBS is on in preparation for the Amazing Race- 1 of 2 times that channel is on all week (the other is Mon nights- How I met your mother and Big Bang are really funny shows)
In case you're wondering, CBS is on in preparation for the Amazing Race- 1 of 2 times that channel is on all week (the other is Mon nights- How I met your mother and Big Bang are really funny shows)
Whew!!!!
Wow, did this week just fly by!!! I last posted on Tuesday....I can't really remember Wednesday- I think it went well. Thursday was super long....work as usual, then George and I went into the city for a concert. At this concert, I realized my "true" age..... I no longer enjoy standing for 2 hours listening to loud music and seeing lots of drunk kids act stupid- go figure. In fact, I was so tired that I spent all of that time standing 10 feet from the bar and only drank a Diet Coke!!! Well, it was a night out with my sweetie AND I missed out on Baz's pukefest (sorry Maureen!). All in all, it worked out well because the kids were easily transported home in the middle of the night. It would have been even nicer if they had slept in a bit, but we all made it through the day.
In case I somehow forget this, I want to note for the record how incredibly awesome it is to have a clean house. Yes, it is slowly accumulating dust and dirt in the cracks and crevices, but overall, it's pretty clean so I just have little cleanups each day. I take a few minutes each day to straighten up and clean up the big messes and work on maintaining it- it's fabulous! I just hope Eva and crew can come back to us once in a while- so very worth the money!
In case I somehow forget this, I want to note for the record how incredibly awesome it is to have a clean house. Yes, it is slowly accumulating dust and dirt in the cracks and crevices, but overall, it's pretty clean so I just have little cleanups each day. I take a few minutes each day to straighten up and clean up the big messes and work on maintaining it- it's fabulous! I just hope Eva and crew can come back to us once in a while- so very worth the money!
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