Catching Up

The last weeks have been full of fun and activity around the Peanut household.

We greatly enjoyed a visit from Grandma and Grandad. Miss was especially thrilled to continue her tradition of looking through Grandma's purse at every possible opportunity. She inspects every *single* item, down to each individual card in Grandma's wallet. She requires poor, patient Grandma to tell her (for the umpteenth time) what each individual article is. Then, she places each item back into the purse, only to start this ritual over again. The unfortunate side effect of this activity is that Miss has been chastising me, since Grandma left town, about the fact that I don't have an Auto Club card. She has recommended that I remedy this perilous situation as soon as possible.

Miss also received her first bike as a birthday present from the grandparents. She was overjoyed and now just has to learn how to peddle it. Being the neglectful parents that we are, we never purchased a tricycle or anything with peddles for the poor child. And so, she has to start at square one. Unfortunately, she isn't a very patient student at this point, and will only peddle for a very brief time before exclaiming, "Give me a break!" or "It's no use!" and storming over to sit on the front porch. She really wants to be able to ride around the lakes, though, so she has some motivation to keep trying.

In addition to the purse and bike excitement, we also enjoyed a day trip to Red Wing, land of shoes and pottery, and various other jaunts around the Twin Cities. A very good time was had by all.

Spring has definitely sprung in the Twin Cities, as was evidenced by the appearance of a lone tulip in my flower bed this evening! I am hoping that more will follow, but I know that many of my bulbs have been dug up and eaten by ravenous squirrels. Annoying little rodents!

The littles are thoroughly enjoying the warm weather, and we are trying to spend a good amount of time outdoors. The simple opportunity to sit on the grass and run around the backyard is beyond exciting to them right now. We are seeing our neighbors for the first time in months, and are enjoying catching up with them. It turns out that one neighbor is pregnant and due within two weeks of my due date. Master is loving the playgrounds at the park, and is attempting all sorts of heart-stopping, death-defying feats on the various equipment. Miss is also enjoying the park, and is loathe to leave for home when the time comes. She made another mom laugh pretty hard the other day, by responding to my instructions to head for home in her usual, dramatic way.

Me: It's time to go, now. You can go down the slide one more time.

Miss: Oh, please! Please! I just can't go!!

Me: Go down the slide, and then come climb in the stroller.

Miss: (*HUGE* sigh) Very well.

Down the slide she went, and then took a sad, sad walk over to the stroller. If only play time could last forever.

A Sweet New Stage

As I ran hither and thither around the house today, picking up toys and scattered objects of various kinds, I paused to appreciate the sounds in our home. Specifically, I was enjoying the sounds made by two children happily playing together. As Master's verbal and motor skills increase, he and his sister are spending increased amounts of time playing with each other.

Lately, they have begun to close themselves into Miss's bedroom, turn on a CD, and just play. They laugh, they squeal, they jump around. They look at books quietly, they play with puzzles, and then they laugh and jump around some more. Miss is the queen of all things imaginary, and she assigns roles to her brother in her various made-up worlds. She creates obstacle courses with books and toys, and they take turns running through them together. I will often open the door to check on them, only to be greeted by Miss running toward me saying "It's OK! We're OK. We just want to play!" The door is then unceremoniously shut in my face.

But, she is right. They are OK. They are having a great time. There is no adult in that room to interfere, to tell them how to play, or to try to direct their activities. Since becoming a parent, I have found myself feeling more and more convinced that unstructured play is really very important for our kids. I am thrilled to see them growing and developing the independence to pursue it. And I am thrilled that I can *gasp* sit down for a few minutes, drink some tea, and listen in from afar.

Some Sun and Some Rain

A day at the park

The weather made the kids giddy. Master tried on Miss's shoes. Miss tried on my flip-flops. Yes, that is Angels gear Master is wearing. No, Mr. had nothing whatever to do with it, and was not home when I dressed the little guy.

This week brought our first warm temperatures and Spring-like days. We are now caught in the midst of several days of Spring rains, but we enjoyed the warmth while it lasted. We were able to visit our local park as a family, we were able to wear shorts, and were able to meet up with friends at Minnehaha Falls to enjoy a day with temps in the 80's!! We had to break out the sunscreen. I am appreciating the change in temperature, big time.

I cannot wait for full-on summer so that we can walk out the door without outerwear, and we can wear sandals. Oh how I love my flip-flops. How I longed for them these long winter months. How lonely they have looked, languishing in the back of my closet. Their day is coming. It is almost here. I can feel it in the air. The littles were like happy puppies set free to play at the park and in our backyard. They couldn't stop smiling as they ran, jumped, and kicked the soccer ball. It will be great to be able to get out with them again.

Go away, rain! We're ready for more sun . . .

A Birthday, A Visit, and Other Fun

We are looking back on the past week with thankfulness. Miss turned 4 on March 19th. She had a great birthday, and it was sweet to see how the most exciting part of it all for her was being called "The Birthday Girl" all day. She grinned and giggled all day long. Her birthday was made all the more fun by a visit from Grandma and Papa. She played, played, played with her willing companions *constantly*, each and every day that they were here. Master also enjoyed all of the extra attention, and perfected the word "Grandma" during their visit.

Of course, this great time led to some sad little critters when Grandma and Papa had to leave on Wednesday night. Miss was especially sad this time around. She vowed, "Tonight, I will dream of Grandma and Papa. And the Children's Museum . . . because I know Cinderella's song. The dream that you wish will come true."

She said it all with such conviction. The girl *believes* that Cinderella must know what she is talking about.

They always keep us smiling. Here they are, playing on the rocking chair together -- one of their recent favorite things to do.

Oops . . . Bonk!

Weatherman Paul Douglas warned the Twin Cities:

Be a little careful this morning, the puddles will have refrozen causing a few slick spots on sidewalks and driveways.

I can verify that this warning should be heeded. Yep, I slipped on the ice and fell as I was walking the kiddos toward the car for a library outing on Saturday. No serious injuries to report. Just a little bit of soreness. Miss was alarmed, Master (who was tucked in my arms, and therefore a passenger on the atomic seat drop) thought it was pretty fun. I was wet in unfortunate places from the ice and snow, and grateful that none of the neighbors were around to see my graceful moves.

Just a little picture of life in hazardous Minnesota.

The Name Game

Seeing as the newest Peanut will arrive in only 25ish weeks, Mr. and I have begun serious negotiations over the little tike's name. We have, in the past, kept the names of our children a closely guarded secret until their days of birth. This was intended primarily to avoid the experience of excitedly telling a friend or loved one our choice of a name, only to have them respond with either a) stunned silence, or b) "Oh. That's . . . . . interesting."

Knowing that very few people are tactless enough to criticize a child's name after he/she has already been born, we have decided to reserve our name revelations until the child proceeds from the womb into the world. Additionally, we have found that keeping the name a secret has added some fun and suspense to the having-a-baby process.

This pregnancy, however, is unique in that we have a third voice chiming in with name choices this time around. Miss has become quite concerned over what we are going to name the boy, and talks about it quite a bit. Mr. and I have encouraged her to give us some of her ideas, but she seems totally stumped. Her first insistence was that we give him Master's name. I told her that we could not do this, because it would be confusing, but she felt quite strongly that two brothers should be named the same thing.

Having finally relented on this notion, her new idea is that the child should be named "Little Teeny Baby Boy." She seems quite pleased with this choice. We do not plan to tell her the name of her brother before he arrives, because she would most definitely tell every living creature on earth and therefore end our fun with the name suspense thing. I just hope that, when our little one is born, she is not horribly disappointed when we do not introduce him as "Little Teeny Baby Boy."

Thought of the Day

“…the child’s most fixed and dominant habits are those which the mother takes no pains about, but which the child picks up for himself through his close observation of all that is said and done, felt and thought, in his home.” ~Charlotte Mason

So very true.

On another note, the littles are looking cute with fresh haircuts. Miss was so excited about the whole thing, that she decided to strangle her brother.


And, our snow is melting, but there are still some formidable piles here and there. We are expecting temperatures in the 40's this week, and I may wear shorts and sandals. It will feel nice and warm compared to what we have been experiencing.

With Piles of Snow in the Yard . . .

What have we been doing?

We have been . . . .

Reading:

For the Littles:

Uncle Elephant by Arnold Lobel

Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Doggies by Sandra Boynton

Along with a *lot* of Winnie the Pooh from various books. These stories are Master's current favorite. He runs around the house repeating "Pooh! Teeeger! PoohTeeeeeeger! Pooh! Teeger!"

For Me:

A fascinating article:

How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The Inverse Power of Praise by Po Bronson

As my children's current and future teacher, this information on the effect of praising provides much food for thought.


Playing:

Cranium Hullabaloo

Miss's favorite thing to do right now is to set this up and play on the basement floor. It is beyond fun for her, and Master tries, in a very cute way, to participate with the rest of the family.

Listening:

For the Littles:

Frog and Toad Audio Collection

I loved this as a kid, and it is fun to see my little ones enjoying it, as well.

Muppet Show: Music, Mayhem and More

And, of course, the never-ending soundtrack inside Miss's brain.

For Me:

Beautiful and Treacherous Thing by The Spares

And, because of Mr.'s latest interest . . . a lot of Gram Parsons. Which I am enjoying, by the way.


And, Laughing:

Snowy Day Scenes

We've been experiencing some serious snow here in Minneapolis over the past couple of days. Here are some pictures of our day . . .

Poor Mr. had to work at 5AM, and therefore dig out his car at that time. These are his footprints as they appeared hours later.

Our neighbor's backyard swing -- not looking too inviting.

When Daddy came home, Miss got some play time in the snow.

She also helped Daddy with the shoveling.

After the shoveling was complete, Daddy demonstrated a snow angel. Miss decided that she would rather stay dry than attempt such a thing.

Master was restricted to the indoors, but enjoyed looking out and saying "Snoooooowwww" all day long.

He and I enjoyed staying warm together.

A Favorite Picture

Taken around Christmastime, this is one of my favorite pictures of Master. I thought that it was worth an entry, in and of itself.

In the midst of a stressful day, he just always makes me smile.

On Valentine's Day . . .

Some of the things and people I love:

1. Grape Nuts. Those lovely, crunchy, teeny little nuggets are my #1 craving thus far in my pregnancy. OK, and chocolate. But, I'm trying to avoid the chocolate as much as possible, so I'm glad that my love for Grape Nuts is seeing me through.

2. My Community Bible Study class. The littles and I had a great time there today. Miss made some very cute Valentine crafts, and was super-thrilled by the opportunity to eat graham crackers covered with pink frosting. It is so wonderful to be able to attend a good, in-depth Bible study in a setting where the kids have such fun each week.

3. The little *BOY* growing inside of me. Mr. and I had a wonderful time seeing the little guy wiggle and spin around via ultrasound on Monday. It is so amazing to see his development at 12 weeks. We were thrilled to see that he is growing well, and we can't wait for August 28th!

4. Competent doctors. The testing that I experienced on Monday (in order to determine the genetic condition of our little guy) was made so much easier by doctors who clearly knew what they were doing. They were efficient, helpful, caring, and thorough. I love, love, love the doctors at the University of Minnesota hospital, and I would send them all Valentines with chocolates and flowers if I could afford such a thing.

5. Our extended family. We have received support in person and from far away this week, and that has made all the difference in making a stressful situation so much easier.

6. Of course, the littles. They amaze me every day. Whether that be because of a new concept Miss is discussing with me, because of a new word or phrase used by Master, or because they are laughing on the couch while blowing raspberries on each other's tummies. Never knew it would be so much fun to watch them grow.

7. And, my husband.

Perhaps, after all, romance did not come into one's life with pomp and blare, like a gay knight riding down; perhaps it crept to one's side like an old friend through quiet ways; perhaps it revealed itself in seeming prose, until some sudden shaft of illumination flung athwart its pages betrayed the rhythm and the music; perhaps . . . perhaps . . . love unfolded naturally out of a beautiful friendship, as a golden-hearted rose slipping from it's green sheath.

-- L.M. Montgomery

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ready or Not

"Even hearty, winter-weather-loving Minnesotans may get into trouble this weekend; frostbite on unprotected skin is possible in less than 10 minutes."

These words from our favorite weatherman, Paul Douglas, in The Star-Tribune, greeted me this evening as I checked on the weather for tomorrow morning. You see, I am attending a women's book study meeting at our church tomorrow. I am excited to go, because the book is interesting, the women are interesting, and I am looking forward to a little time away from the house after many days of nursing the sick littles.

I am not, however, looking forward to wind chills of -30. Yup, you read it right. The *high* temperature tomorrow is supposed to be -2. In the face of this information, all that I can do is thank the Lord for modern heating systems in our home and in our cars. I can be thankful for my nifty Land's End parka that has been sitting in my closet unused for the last couple of months, but will now come in oh-so-handy. I am thankful for long underwear, thick socks, insulated shoes, and hot beverages. I am thankful that I do not have to leave the house very often in these frigid temperatures, unlike my husband, who must brave them everyday in order to go to work. (Thankfully, he does not mind the cold and actually volunteers to leave the house, in spite of these insane temperatures, quite frequently).

I am reading Little House on the Prairie aloud to Miss right now. I cannot imagine living without heat, and I especially cannot imagine living without heat and with an *outhouse* for bathroom accommodations. When I begin to complain about enduring the cold in order to run to my heated vehicle, I realize that I am truly blessed. And truly spoiled.

I will let you know if I survive the mad dash between the house, car, and church building. Without frostbite. Tune in tomorrow.

Sometimes, You Take What You Can Get

Today officially marked one week spent entirely in our house, other than one brief trip to SuperTarget last Friday. We haven't been able to go anywhere or do anything because of the littles' sickness. Miss is definitely on the upswing now, but Master has now entered the realm of the very bad mood, and wants to sit on my lap at all times. I am tired, and a bit stir-crazy, but the past couple of days have also brought some sweet moments that have served to lighten the load around here.

Master's use of new words continues to entertain us, and always makes me smile. He has begun to give an enthusiastic "AMEN" after the mealtime prayer. He also loves the word "taco" and says it all the time while we're eating, as if to request a substitution on his plate. He has also learned to say his own name, and loves to repeat it when we reprimand him for something. Which, of course, makes reprimanding him all the more difficult. Because we're trying not to laugh at his adamant exclamations of his own name.

Miss has also made some strides in the past days. For the first time, she wrote her own name. We haven't really practiced this task, but she was very determined to write it on a note that she was composing for Daddy. She did an amazing job, in my opinion, though the r's were upside down, and the E was a bit unrecognizable. Her insistence on doing it herself, though, was very sweet, and her Daddy was quite pleased when he found the note on his pillow at midnight after a late shift.

And so, some of the simple, sweet aspects of our everyday life sustain us through a lot of drudgery and discomfort over the past week. And now, I must end, because a little guy is crying in his crib.

Illness Update

Thank you to all for your prayers for Miss . . . she is doing better, but is still in a wretched mood because of her lingering cough. Miss does not handle being sick very well. She finds it all very frustrating, and exclaims every few hours that she is still not better, and may not ever be any better.

Master, on the other hand, is now in the midst of the worst of the sickness, with a terrible cough. He is having trouble sleeping, and sounds *so* very pathetic.

The littles were doing well enough yesterday to take part in a very short trip to the St. Paul winter carnival with Daddy. Here they are, bundled up and ready to go:


They saw ice sculptures and visited the "Hotdish Tent," and returned home before the deep freeze began to set in around here. We're hoping that a few days of rest at home will return the little ones to normal, and that Mr. and I can continue to avoid the ick.

Sick Little Girl

Please pray for little Miss Peanut. She is so very sick with a fever and a sore throat / bad cough. She looks beyond pathetic, with little swollen eyes that are constantly full of tears. We know it's serious when she:

1. Is quiet.
2. Says: "I'm just not feeling well enough to dance."
3. Won't let me out of her sight for the slightest fraction of a moment.

It looks as though we are going to miss the Presbyterian Pizza Party at our church tomorrow night. We are bummed, especially because we have so enjoyed saying "Presbyterian Pizza Party" as often as we could for the past couple of weeks.

Oh well.

Pray also that the rest of the household can avoid the ick. Especially little Master.

So, I'm Cold

I have come to realize over that past week that I am almost always feeling cold. I am cold in the house (despite the fact that we set our thermometer at a much higher temperature than most in these here parts). I am beyond cold whilst walking to the car, and I am freezing in the car as it warms up. I try to spend little to no time outside, other than when I am scurrying to the car. Since we returned from our trip to California, we have not seen 30 degrees here in the Twin Cities. I am finding myself avoiding necessary errands. I *need* to go to Walgreens. I *must* purchase some tweezers, because I lost mine on our trip. My eyebrows are beginning to make me look like near-man. Yet, I gaze out upon the snowy landscape, and choose warmth over good grooming.

The latest forecast from The Star-Tribune looks like this:

A weak clipper could brush southwestern Minnesota with a little light snow today...here in the Metro only a dusting is expected by Wednesday morning

A quick warm snap could push highs into the 30s on Friday

More arctic air heading this way...by early next week lows will drop below zero

I love that highs in the 30's constitute a warm snap.

The children, meanwhile, do not mind the cold in the slightest and would frolic in the snow all day if I were game for such activities. In many parenting tasks, I have had to learn to be bold since moving here. I brave the stores and malls with both kids in tow on a regular basis. I handle all parts of our daily routine single-handedly because of Mr.'s varying work schedule. But this, my friends, I am afraid I cannot do. Standing in the snow. Freezing. Watching Miss build snowmen, while repeatedly helping Master return to an upright position after falling face first into the snow because of his top-heavy winter clothing. Yes, I will go outside and play, but only on days when fun Daddy is home to help with these adventures. Maybe by next winter I will have become tougher and stronger.

Or, maybe not.

Quotable Quotes

On the way to church this evening:

Me: Remember, honey, that you need to listen to Mommy and Daddy at church. Especially when we tell you that it's time to go. We've been having some trouble with this, and I don't want to hear any complaining when we say that it's time to go home.

Miss: But, I don't wanna go home. I wanna play with Johaaaaaanaaaaa.

Me: You must listen when we say that it is time to leave.

Miss: (Long Pause) . . . . . (big sigh) . . . . If I must, I must.

On the way to bed this evening:

Master: Da-da. Da-da!! Buh-bye (little chubby arm waving like crazy), buh-bye!

Master is in such a cute stage right now that I can hardly describe it. Pretty much everything he says and does is adorable. New words every day. New connections being made in his little brain every five seconds. So. Darn. Cute.

Miss is enjoying this stage with Master, as well. She has taken to teaching him new things, and being really thrilled to see him imitate her. I think that she's been waiting for him to be able to do this for a long time. Now we'll just be waiting to hear his little voice say, "If I must, I must."

There and Back Again

We have returned from a 10 day trip to Sunny Southern Cal, only to be welcomed by a good bit of snow, and a morning temperature of -5. Fortunately, it did warm to -1 by lunchtime today.

The trip was a good one, with a lot of time for visiting with family, playing in the sun, and general relaxation. Miss had a wonderful time playing with the cousins and seeing the grandparents. Master enjoyed himself as well, though he again demonstrated that he is our little homebody. He just can't quite achieve a status of full comfort when he is away from home. He was so angelic on our return plane ride, that it almost seemed that he could sense our final destination. Today, he was as happy as I have ever seen him. Sitting with his books. Playing with his toys. Running in circles and laughing in the living room. If he had known to kiss the ground, he surely would have smooched the frozen pavement in front of our house when the cab dropped us there.

We are so thankful for the time with our families. And now, we are thankful to be home and to be settling back into the normal routine of life. Even if it is -5 tomorrow morning when I have to leave the house. Did I just write that? Yeesh.

Merry Christmas

Miss' Favorite Gift: A beautifully illustrated version of Rapunzel.

Master's Favorite Gift: $2.00 beach ball to kick around the house. "Baaaaaallllll!"

The Littles' Favorite Christmas Moment: Putting Baby Jesus in the manger on our Advent Calendar. When we announced, after breakfast, that it was time to do this, they both screamed with delight, and Miss ran in circles around the dining room table. Their excitement caught us a little bit off guard, but it made us realize that they really had been anticipating Christ this season (as much as a 3 year old and 18 month old can). Each day, we added a character or object to the nativity scene, and we finally reached *the* moment. The moment when the Baby Jesus came.

Mr. and Mrs.' Favorite Christmas Moment: See above. Kids are the best. They teach us new things every day, and they surprise us moment by moment.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Anticipating Christmas

We have had a great week, anticipating Christmas and enjoying the new sights and sounds of a new environment this year. On Wednesday, we went to the "Holidazzle" parade in Downtown Minneapolis. We positioned ourselves above the parade in the skyway, so that we could take it all in without freezing. Miss was entranced. Master was, uh, less than entranced. But, a good time was had by all, and we enjoyed the hustle and bustle of the city, just a few days before Christmas.

On Thursday, we experienced our first snowfall, which was beautiful and short-lived. The snow is expected to be completely melted by the end of the day tomorrow, ruining any chance of a white Christmas. But, we enjoyed it while it lasted, and know that more will be on the way soon. Here are some pictures of our recent adventures:Miss checks out the parade from the skyway.

Since Master wasn't thrilled with the parade, he took the opportunity to clown around with his hat. He's getting to the point where he knows when he's funny. And he loves it.

We stupidly failed to bring our stroller to the parade, so we had to hoist *heavy* Master all around town. Fun times.
Our bird's eye view.

Miss and her little snowman. The snowman now consists of nothing more than a teeny pile of mushy snow. Miss is sad, and doesn't understand *why* the snow has to melt. Ahh, the disappointments of life.