Rocking Around the Christmas Tree

Christmas sure is fun with kids. Jack really got into the holiday spirit and whooped it up -- Christmas carols, present wrapping, reindeer watching... you name it. Or, he slept and eyeballed his way through most of it while Molly did the whooping and ooohing and aahing. She's still not done unwrapping presents because the excitement of it all has been too much to get through in two days. It is so funny to see what presents kids latch on to, as well (versus the parents, especially). I was particularly excited by her new shoes that I thoughtfully wrapped up so that I could pass them off as a Christmas present when really, I just wanted to buy them. She didn't really care one iota about them but loved the little plane that John got her in the Montreal airport during his hellish trip here.

Santa was definitely good to us all around here, though, and we hope that everyone enjoyed the madcap adventures and (sometimes) controlled chaos of their Christmases.

Best present of the year? John arriving in the nick of time to read The Night Before Christmas to the little ones on Christmas eve. If you're wondering what the inside of Montreal-Trudeau airport looks like during the holidays, I know one (slightly fired up) person that you can ask. Let's just say that it sounds like they like their clubby clubs up there...

Q: What are aunts and uncles for?

A: Indulging little people is what they are for. Ever since Meg had to leave dinner for an orchestra rehearsal last week, Molly has been very interested in her instrument and has asked about her playing. She thoughtfully brought over her violin (yes, I know they're different. Meg, very intelligently, didn't trust the bull in the china shop with the good instrument) to show Molly the wonders of strings. When she broke out Wheels on the Bus, someone was quite pleased.

Greg is like a human trampoline. Molly now likes to be tall tall tall (everywhere -- on stools, chairs, shoulders)

Big smiles? Priceless

A dancing Christmas tree hat on John's head? Also priceless.

You didn't really think we'd get through living in Canada with no hockey sticks did you? Her stick is actually for the "hockeys". Lots of things are pluralized these days for some unknown reason.

Nana sent up one of John's old outfits for Jack to inherit. I won't post the picture of John trying to get in the little suit -- not pretty. We'll see if the little man has better luck.

We didn't get pictures of the whole clan together because with five kids, 8 adults (and four more arriving today), and lots of ribbons, wrapping, and bows, things got a little hectic but we sure had fun. Thanks to Grammy and Grampy for hosting and enduring the madness. We hope everyone else had as much fun and are as tuckered as we are!

Merry Merry

Merry Christmas!

May your holiday be filled with:

mischief...

yummy treats...

contentment...

love and friendship.

Reunited And It Feels So Good

The party keeps on rocking around here... we were able to spend yesterday celebrating Sadie's second birthday, and Molly was happy as a clam to be back in her old stomping grounds (perhaps that explains why Miss Molly no nap came along for the ride. Ouch). She was able to catch up with lots of her old pals without missing a beat and I was able to see a whole bunch of my friends, too. It was so nice to be back in the old 'hood and Molly shared lots of mischief and chuckles with her compadre, partner in crime, and wing woman, Sadie. Now that Sadie also has a new baby in her family, the Reardons are extra special in Molly's eyes. This kid loves (waking up) babies.

My giant children next to the fine boned Reardon children. Please note Molly's not-so-surreptitious hand trying to sneak in a pat on poor Ruby. I swear, this girl is going to be a klepto and is rather obsessed with mini children.

The newer members of the buddy club, Jack and Ruby. Thanks to Sean for pointing out that our kids probably shouldn't get married unless they want to live next door to the Lee and Harvey Oswald.

Oh, these girls.

Molly assumed her traditional music class position -- right on Jessie's lap. This is where 99% of our music class was spent. I was not invited to this party.

I'm pretty sure the last two pictures that I pilfered from Facebook were taken by Mrs. Trieff -- I hope that you don't mind the copyright infringement!

Oh What Fun It Is To Ride

As seems to be the case when we venture back east these days, we manage to stay busy as bees (I just learned that bumblebees can stay more comfortable than other bees in colder weather because they have fur. Huh, who woulda thunk? I love me some children's books). We have been fraternizing with our friends, checking out the children's museum, cavorting with cousins, munching meals with our menage, and generally wearing our our welcome at Grammy and Grampy's house (although they keep nicely denying it). I've been pretty bad at remembering to bring my camera with me but here are a few shots of the past couple days.

Older cousins are SO much fun. These girls ran Molly up and down the driveway in the sled so many times that I lost count. The big lug loved every second of it, including her tumbles out of her chariot. Jack really didn't give two shakes about the adventures -- he's not really into the lady stuff right now.

Meeting up with Sadie at the Children's Museum in Portland made for some good times. These two monkeys had an even better time at lunch after. Molly stole Sadie's pickle and they just generally amused each other to no end in their double trouble high chairs.

Driving Miss Molly? I don't think so... I think Molly wants to be the chauffeur. She was so happy in this car. Or the fire truck. Or at the ATM. Really random but she loves ATMs.

We have one more trip down to Newburyport planned for Monday but then we're sitting tight in Maine until Christmas. John comes in on Wednesday, barring any freakish snow storms. After Wednesday, I wouldn't mind getting 18 or 20 inches of snow -- white Christmas, please.

Two Much Fun

I'm sorry, but is there anything more fun than turning two and having people sing to you, laugh at pretty much everything you say, and give you presents? You're too young to have to take any responsibility for the lack of peace on earth, too old to get only crumb sized bites of cake (from your mother who still thinks that a lack of refined sugar in this particular child's diet isn't such a bad thing because good lord, her energy level already makes it seem like she's hooked up to a sugar feed bag throughout the day anyway), and too strong-willed to hear that you actually have to finish your eggplant and chickpeas when you realize that a little slice of chocolate heaven is on the other side of the fork and spoon. Molly has had the good fortune of having several birthday celebrations (thanks to everyone for helping to spread the cheer) and I think she's in the groove now. If you haven't been recently graced with her majesty's presence, here's what you're (maybe, maybe not) missing:

- she will tell you that she's two (this is after having to convince her to give up saying that she's twenty months). We unfortunately forgot to add the "years old" part so she's just two.

- she will probably put you in the next verse of "Bus"... I heard about her friend Jonah on the bus lots over the past twenty four hours after his visit here.

- if you sleep over, she'll look for you in the morning for the next 39 mornings in a row.

- you must be prepared to hear what you're doing every second of every day. Girlfriend likes to state the obvious.

- you may inherit a stalker. She followed Auntie Holly around like a shadow for her past few visits and she may move in with one of my midwives. Let's just say we had to make a special stop on the way out of town to say goodbye to her last week. Obsessed. We'll see who's next.

- she likes to "joke" except her only joke at this point is to say "noooo...silly" to various things. As in "is that your hand?" "nooooooooooooo ... silly".

She's a spunky little munchkin. Even on my worst days, I wouldn't trade an ounce of her wacky, headline-grabbing, dancing queen-ish, book devouring, running around, fist-bumping, occasionally snuggly behavior. She's so, so much fun and I love my little whippersnapper like it's nobody's business. Two years has flown by and while I can't believe that little baby who came between two big snowstorms is two years old, I also can't imagine my life without her in it. Becoming a parent awakens parts of your soul that you never knew existed. It's hard work sometimes but your brain forgets those challenging times every time you see those little eyes close when you're rocking your baby, when you get the biggest grin for doing something silly and (formerly) meaningless, when you can wipe away tears and replace them with giggles and hugs, when someone asks you to sing a song again (no one ever asks me to do that except Molly. She continues not to care that I can't carry a tune), when you feel a head dropping onto your shoulder, when you notice that someone has reached up to hold your hand, when you see that look of triumph when locating the right puzzle piece. I'm so far from perfect (I don't think they had released the perfection app when I was born) it's laughable, but I do know that I love being an imperfect mom and, as of now, my kiddos seem not to mind too much.

Happy Two Molly!

TGIF

Have a roaringly good weekend!

And I Say Hey, What's Goin' On?

Many, many (manymanymanymanymany) times a day, I turn around think "What in the world is she doing?". I'm often baffled by Molly's activities, but she isn't -- she's completely on board with her actions and it clearly makes perfect sense in her mind. Often, she's cracking herself up and, lately, she's preferred to be doing it alone ("no Mama, don't read" or "I do it self"). She drives her babies around in their stroller like a bat out of hell (sometimes the babies "fall over" rather forcefully and then I hear "Wha happened?" -- yeah, like you don't know), twirls until she falls down (or throws up -- that happened once), and gets in and out and in and out and in and out of her Cozy Coupe. Today, in fact, she informed me that she drove to California (with the wind in her hair and her car full of frogs. Yep, that's right, frogs). This is coming from a kid who likes to announce that we're going downtown, to Vancouver, to grab an iced mocha, or to Ikea an awful lot. Now, apparently, we need to go to California more often.

hmmm... this is suspect -- what's with the shower rod?

accessories, a plastic bin, and a phone. Is this heaven?

Brain-scrambling stroller rides

Giddy-up cool girl

Birthday bash part one went so well that someone wanted to try again the next night.

Thankfully, I've got the little guy who is pretty easy to read. He's smiling and laughing these days (when he's not unhappy because he's not Mr. Nappy Pants. Someone has too much fun watching his sister when he's home. Thankfully, he's a good car seat napper and sleeps through most of our outings).

Boys may be made of snips and snails and puppy dog tails (I'm waiting to see) but I have a girl who knows how to pour the sugar on, has lots of spice, and does some-but-not-every things that are nice.

Molly, Jack, and I are heading east this weekend, so I don't know how much I'll be posting in the next several weeks. Before it becomes too outdated, I wanted to post this comparison of the little and not-so-little munchkins in the same Colby onesie. Molly was no shrinking violet but Jack seems hell bent on outgrowing clothes super duper fast. Molly keeps trying to "help" Jack roll over (truthfully, she can roll him over. It's every mother's dream to see her two year old rolling her 6 week old over -- I do watch these children but sometimes I have to make dinner) but she had better watch out because pretty soon he might try to roll back and push her over himself.

Jack, 6 weeks

Molly, about 14 weeks

Birthday Bash: Part One

We celebrated Molly's birthday a few days early since she and I will be on the east coast without John for her actual big day. Although she has persisted in saying that she's 20 months when you ask her how old she is, she started saying that she is two years old (sometimes) last night. Couldn't get the fingers working with the statement but she's trying.

She had to feel her way around her birthday hat before it ended up on her noggin.

When she realized that the hat meant people sang to her, though, she was a little mad hatter.

Mmmmhhh... special treat.

Some candle blowing tutelage.

oooooohhh... presents!

When the ladybug piggy bank is empty, it doubles as a viewfinder.

Oh boy, money. This puppy is now about half full after scrounging around for all the change in the house. John told her to fill fast if she wants to go to college.

She also got a water table -- not the best idea to give it to her right before bedtime. She would have happily stuffed change or splashed in water until the wee hours.

Gal Pal

Poor Jack. Sometimes, it's not really practical to grab something made for boys and the poor kid gets stuck in something made for a girl. This little guy is a spitter, a burper, and a tooter so we very often need to make a quick run for something to catch all the, ahem, products of his digestive system. I put all of Molly's pink bibs in her dress up basket for her dolls and I was sitting near it the other day when the little man's stomach's decided to make its move. Sorry little guy -- you do look pretty in pink, though.

Here's another shot... please note the sneaking hand. "Probably, that's my bib")

I Fought The Law And The Law Won

I got this from one of Molly's teachers at school:

Toddler's Property Law

1. If I like it, it's mine
2. If it's in my hand, it's mine
3. If I can take it from you, it's mine
4. If I had it a little while ago, it's mine
5. If it's actually mine, it must never, ever, appear in any way to be yours
6. If I'm doing or building with something, all the pieces are mine
7. If it looks like mine, it's mine
8. If I saw it first, it's mine
9. If you are playing with it and put it down, it's mine
10. If it's broken, it's yours

Jack expresses shock and awe at toddler property rights. He is more used to...

being the property of a certain big sister...

and breathes a sigh of relief when he can safely relax in his dad's arms.

I Can Always Get What I Want

Molly's penchant for negotiation continues to grow. I'm really considering sending her in to barter for our next major purchase (whatever that may be). She'd have that cuteness thing going for her and then she'd unleash her shark-like strategies and wham-o, the competition would be left in the dust. I'm beginning to think that the desire and ability to negotiate is genetic; John could and would and has bargained for almost everything -- we've gotten out of more fees, surcharges, and full prices than I can count. And now, I'm really beginning to see Molly look at her world with a more appraising eye and attempt to cut the best deal for herself.

Example 1 -- Negotiation by fear: she L-O-V-E-S Cozy Coupes. Not any car will do -- it has to be a Cozy Coupe (in Molly-world, it's a Crazy Coupe). They have these at school and the kids can use them at gym time. Her strategy to maximize her time in the Cozy Coupe? Use it until I see another kid who is looking longingly at the car but has caught a few too many hairy eyeballs from the little chauffeur and won't even try to get him/herself a turn dealing with her alone. So, I intervene, talk to Molly about sharing, and she (surprisingly) willingly gives up the car... and then engages in a stare down and a little stalking until the new driver is intimidated enough to return the car to her. No tears, just a little bit of fear and the cycle repeats itself. I can often distract her with a ball for some period of time but I always catch her sneaking back to the other side of the gym and then bee-lining for the car as soon as the other kid has vacated "her" vehicle. She got her own Cozy Coupe from Nana and Grandpa for her birthday so I thought maybe this would make her love affair with the cars at school a little less heated. But, nope, and the other kids continue to run from the mulleted car-jacker and she continues to enjoy the sweet taste of success.

Example 2 -- Negotiation by trying to slip a little extra in the deal: Molly loves the playground (who doesn't??) and is having a harder time leaving than she used to. Today, she really wanted to keep climbing on this one structure (one that I hate because while she climbs up really well, she doesn't climb down and gets stuck and I have to use some major monkey moves to get her down) and poor Jack was hungry and cold so I told her one more time and then we had to go, okay? She sort of cocked her head and nonchalantly said "how about two one-more-times" -- this was a statement, not a question. I was onto her scheme despite her attempt to slip one past this mom who was focused on the fact that I hate this climbing thing.

Example 3 -- Negotiation by cajoling: I am wearing a necklace that is made up of colorful beads that were mine when I was little and I have since restrung. As you can imagine, it's one of John's favorites (are you wearing your kid beads again?). Maybe I should rethink wearing them because they do appeal to the two year old set for whom they were originally intended. Molly looked at my necklace and said "probably that's my necklace." Oh it is, is it? This isn't the first time, either, that she has said that. I hear "probably, that's my binky" or "probably, that's my napkin" when she would like something that someone else has. It's all said very sweetly from this flippant little point of view and you sort of want to say "oh, right, it is, I'm sorry that I took this from my dresser this morning. Of course it's yours... heyyyyyyyyyyyy, wait a minute."

Example 4 -- Negotiation by self-deprecation: Molly, as you may know, loves when people sing to her. She especially loves when people sing wheels on the bus with her own wacky lyrics. The game goes that she'll give you a word (trees, for example) and then you have to come up with correlating response to what trees on the bus do (sway in the wind, for example). Sometimes, you can make up with the trees do, sometimes she has to make it up, and sometimes you have to remember what they did two weeks ago when you sang about the trees. When we sing about smoothies, for instance, sometimes the smoothies go slurp slurp slurp and other times they go yum yum yum. Get it? If you sing the wrong verse on any given day, you'll hear "oh, I'm sorry, actually it's XXX". You really feel like YOU inconvenienced HER even though it's a little hard to intuit what a two year old really wants to hear.

Hey, we all try to get our needs met, right? She just happens to be really good at negotiating her way to success.

Snow Bunnies

After almost six weeks of sharing Penticton with visitors, we are (sadly) on our own again. We decided to get back on the adventuring horse and head out of town with all our babies, toddlers, accompanying gear, and fervent desire to play in the snow. Out to Big White, a ski resort a couple of hours from here, we went. We were close enough to taste the freshies in the pow pow but (very sadly) opted for more stable winter activities. Molly may have died and gone to heaven. I'm not sure she had her mittens on for more than 30 seconds the whole time and ate almost all the snow out of the joint.

Gearing up to go outside.

We pretty much had the woods to ourselves for our snowshoeing outing today. My little heater kept me nice and toasty -- big boy has been bulking up in preparation for being out in the cold. The little peanut got tired of the little stage and has opted for bodybuilding instead.

A little snow never shopped the SS Molly from jumping around. We did some sledding too -- holy smokes, she has a need for speed.

One of our many gondola rides. Wowee.

Being inside the condo was almost as much fun as outside. Apparently, there was a place to "swim"????

This picture really doesn't do this morning's view justice. It was a gorgeous morning of a cloud bank with peaks sticking up about the clouds. Ahhhh, I love winter.

Winter driving, though? Notsomuch. Other family members are bigger fans of driving the path less beaten.