The Nudist

So, I've got one kid who prays. What does the other one do? Glad you asked.


It was about 7:20 this morning when I headed for Gillian's room. She had been awake since 5:45, but I refuse to acknowledge that she wakes up that early (and that was SLEEPING IN for her this week). I heard her thumping around in bed, but she never cries and never calls for Mama. So, I ignore her.

Anyway, when I cross the bedroom threshold this morning, what do I see???? Skin. Lots of it. As in, a totally and completely NUDE Gillian. Sleepsack, off. Onesie, off. Diaper, off. She is PLEASED AS PUNCH to be found this way. I had to laugh. That made her even happier.

Lucky for her, she did not MESS in the sheets.

Next escalation in Morning Wake-Up Time Warfare: Duct tape.

Blessing

We eat dinner together every night. I think that family dinner time is very important, so it's a rare occasion that all four of us don't eat dinner together. Granted our meals are not relaxing and resemble a circus more than a fine dining experience, but they are important. Kids learn things at the dinner table, and it helps them to grow up strong and healthy, mentally and physically. So, we put up with the stress of dinner with two toddlers!

What makes it worth it? Well, try this story...Michael and I join hands every night before dinner (in Catholic style) and say a short blessing (in Protestant style). We may or may not include hopes of good sleep and no asthma; I refuse to admit if I'm that petty in my prayers!

Anyway, the other day at lunch, I sat down with the kids and Colin stuck his hand out for me to hold. I laughed, took his hand, and said, "Do you want to say the blessing?" His answer, "Yes!" So, I said it. He was quite pleased with that and ate his lunch. That night when Daddy came home for dinner, Colin did the same thing again! This time he got me by one hand and Daddy by the other! Again, Colin seemed to be pretty happy to be included. It took Gillian a day or two, then she joined in too! So, now at lunch and supper they both help say the blessing. See, learning already!!!

Saint Schmofty

Our Schmofty has a first name,

It's S-C-H-M-O.

Our Schmofty has a second name,

It's F-T-Y Cat.

Oh, Schmofty Cat has a way of laying like a saaaauuuuusssssaaaage.

Oh, and look! While laying like a sausage, he managed to get Bean's #1 Baby and her pillow.


Oh, wait, Bean wants #1 Baby back.


Oh, yeah, and the pillow.


The cat is a saint. Oh, yeah, and his tenth birthday is coming up soon! He says, "Send steak."

Daddy's Day!

We had a quiet Father's Day last weekend with just the four of us. All three Grandpas were busy, or busy recovering from a week of fishing. We tried our hardest to spoil the Daddy!

We started with donuts for breakfast; a hit with everyone except Colin. We also let Daddy open our present to him. Luckily, Uncle Al had called Colin and told him that Daddy needed a WiiZapper. So, we were happy to accommodate. Daddy loved it! After breakfast we headed out to the park to check out the game preserve and the playground. I asked Michael to take along the camera so we have some great playground shots.

Pretty girl on the slide!


It made her hair a little static-y!


Showing off her sliding skills too!


G also likes to bounce on this springy thing (not sure what you would call it):


Gillian cannot resist a serious face or two though!


And, Colin is not to be outdone!


He prefers to slide on his belly though.


He really likes to go up and down the stairs and across the shaky bridge!


PEEK!


And the obligatory "Daddy and Kids" picture that turned out as well as my Mother's Day photos.


After a fun morning in the park, we went home to cook hot dogs for lunch. Then a nap for the kids and a good round of video games for Daddy. I cooked up homemade pesto and pasta, and Michael grilled some awesome steaks for supper. The kids decided they would rather eat steak than tortellini for dinner! Buggers.

So, it was a really nice day for the bestest Daddy that we could ask for. We love him so much!

A-roooo, A-rooo!

I'm not sure if I ever blogged about Colin's supernatural love of peacocks. Anyway, for the past six weeks or so, Colin has been LOVING the peacock. He first noticed it the "Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What do you Hear?" and, for some reason, it took his fancy. When we went to the zoo, we found him a stuffed peacock (that he pretty much ignores). We have also watched peacocks on You.Tube fairly often.

Best of all, though, is the real, live, up-close-and-personal peacock and peahen that live at the game preserve three minutes from our house. We visit often. I will say, the peacock is generally very accommodating and raises his tail and yelps for us. It's very impressive. Gillian has learned to yelp like a peacock too. And both kiddos blow kisses to the pea-couple when we see them.

This weekend we stopped by to see the pea fowl, as usual, but this time we had the camera. Consequently, the peacock was in a bad mood and no plumage was on display. But, here's a shot of a boy and his peacock anyway.

OUTSIDE!

Colin's new favorite word is "OUTSIDE." Said emphatically and repeatedly. ALL DAY. Well, not all day, just any time he gets a glimpse out the door. He really has turned into quite a talkative little man in the past few weeks. It's so great to hear him express himself and learn what really interests him. Like, OUTSIDE.

(Oh yeah, and Bean gets her word in at the end).

Fun with Friends

Since I've been off work for three weeks now, the kiddos and I have been having lots of fun and adventures. Last week we met my friend Beth and her little girl, Natalie, at Clever Road Park in Robinson Township. Beth and I work for the same company and she's also a speech therapist. We used to work in the same school. We saw each other 3 or 4 days a week for YEARS, then we had kids. Now we NEVER see each other. I miss her lots, so I was so happy that we could meet up. Natalie is almost exactly a year older than C&G, so she could show them some fun tricks!

Up we all go!


Winding down the fun with a break and a drink!


Despite having three busy younglings to keep an eye on, Beth and I did get to visit some. And best of all, Natalie shared with us that she is going to be a BIG SISTER in December! Yay! We hope to play together again this summer sometime!

Funny Story

I had meant to blog this when it happened over Memorial Day weekend, but we were away and then busy (umm, like always?). Anyway, it may explain Gillian's ill will towards her brother.

We were up and around one morning over the holiday weekend at my Mom's house. She has a pretty open floor plan and the kids have free reign of pretty much the entire house (NIGHTMARE for babyproofing!). So, they were wandering here and there, drinking their milk, getting into minor mischief. My mom was making breakfast and we were drinking tea, just hanging out.

Then we hear BANG. Colin had shut the front door of the house, HARD. It had been open to let the cool morning breeze in and just the screen door was shut. I said, "Colin, be careful. You'll shut your fingers in there." So, for the next 3 minutes or so, we are all doing our thing.

Then my mom says, "Where's Gillian?" Huh. No idea.

So, we all look about the house and no one can find her. Not sure who said it first, but I hear, "Did Colin shut her in the DOOR???" So, GraGra RoRo opens the door, and YEP. There's BEAN. Shut between the door and the screen door. She was nonplussed; just looked up at GraGra and held up her milk. Good thing she's skinny. And can hold a grudge, apparently.

Chomp.

The kids have entered a more, umm, let's say, physical stage in their interactions in the past few weeks. I honestly think it's because Colin isn't taking Gillian's crap any more. In the past, he wouldn't care if she stole a toy or wouldn't share; he would just walk away and find something different. Well, no more of that. Now, he hits her. On the head. I've been using the phrase "Gentle Hands" A LOT. Oy.

Well, on Wednesday afternoon we were waiting for Daddy and dinner and, I thought, the kids were playing with their pillows in the living room. I could see them out of the corner of my eye, and hear their giggles. Next thing I know, Colin is screaming bloody murder and Gillian looks pleased as punch. When I looked him over, he had a bite mark right on his left cheek. Yikes. So, Colin got hugs and Gillian got a serious time-out. I think Colin got over it before Gillian did.

Me: "Did you bite him?"
Gillian: "Yeah."
Me: "Was that nice?"
Gillian: "No." CRY, CRY, CRY. SNOT, SNOT, SNOT. TEAR, TEAR, TEAR.

She did say sorry and tried to hug him. He refused the hug. Smart boy.

At bedtime I took a quick shot of her damage. It's still bruised today.

Big Kid Swings!

Over Memorial Day weekend, Michael had Bean try the big swing on my grandparents' swing set. Mostly because there wasn't a little kid swing. Anyway, that means that Bean now has to try the big swings every time we're at the playground (which is almost daily). Fortunately, she still like to zone out in the little kid swing for 20 minutes at a time though. Colin wanted to try the big swings the other day too. I grabbed some quick video with my cell, so it's not great, but kind of cute. BIG KIDS! Woo hoo!

Finger Painting with Bean The Elder

On Sunday the Uhl and Keister clans gathered for a (pre-)Memorial Day picnic. Jessica, a.k.a Bean the Elder (BtE), had hatched a plan to have the kids do some finger painting at the picnic and so we were anxious to see what kind of hilarity would ensue. After we finished eating our picnic dinner, the kids were stripped down, BtE and Aunt Mercedes threw on lab coats, and the painting began.

They did pretty well staying clean... at first:

Gillian lost interest relatively quickly (after all, Grandpa Frank had just put up a swing!):

But the painting kept Colin's interest for quite some time though. And the more he painted the paper, the more he painted himself. Here you see him calling for more paint (it turns out that he's very demanding in pursuit of his artistic vision).


His hands ended up a lovely shade of black, but he had a heck of a good time. He did, however, also end up looking like the victim in a passion play.


All in all I would pronounce it a successful undertaking. Thanks Bean the Elder!

Splish Splash!

All four of us enjoyed a relaxing, but busy, Memorial Day weekend in The Great North with all of the grandparents. It was quite warm here in Pennsylvania last weekend, so we were very happy that Grandpa Dickiedoo has his pool up and running! The kiddos were in the pool once last summer and liked it, and they LOVE the bath, so we were pretty excited to see how they'd do this summer.

Well, it was a huge SUCCESS! We went swimming twice last weekend, and they loved it! The first swim, Colin was fearless. He would walk off the edge into our arms, put his face in the water, and kick and splash! I even had him under water once or twice! Gillian was a little reluctant the first swim, but, in her defense, she was FREEZING! Bean has NO body fat, and despite the 90 degree water, she shivered the whole time. The second swim she was much braver, although still cold. She splashed and kicked, and tried to drink the pool. I almost had her blowing bubbles in the water! We need to get them into swim lessons; they loved it so much!

Shiver, shiver!


We think she was using the whale to "sun" herself warm!


Colin doesn't have any "in the water" pictures because he was trying to get Dickiedoo to let him in the house to check out the ceiling fan. But, he did cuddle up with Noonie.


And then wanted to get back in the water!


We hope to get back in the pool our next visit!