1st Pig Tails

Carley, one of Sophia's teachers at Josephine House, puts all the kid's hair in pig tails. There are a few boys in her class too so I assume the picture of all the kids with their pig tails are stink'n adorable. When I took Sophia's pigtails out for bedtime I saw the little rubber bands matched her shirt. I love the little things they do for her in her class. I get just about no feedback from Padon's classroom and it totally bumms me out. Sophia is beyond adorble in her little whispy pigtails. It made me have to go out and buy her, her own little rubberbands so we could do it more often. But because we don't do it very often and because I'm afraid of hurting her, we're not pros at doing putting them in. But when I do get them in, it makes me giggle. She is so cute!

Easter 2010

Weather had been so wet and cold all winter and into the spring that when I caught wind that the Saturday before Easter was supposed to be sunny I asked Padon if he would be interested in getting in his Easter clothes and taking pictures outside. He surprised me when he enthusiastically said yes. I didn't waist any time in getting him in his slacks, dress shirt, vest, tie, and new dress shoes and quickly put Sophia in the super adorable pink and ribbon adorned dress that my mother had bought for her, her white tights, and fantastic pink sparkle shoes. We ran outside and I started posing the kids and snapping pictures in as timely a manner as I could. I was dangerously close to Sophia's nap time and she was fading fast. Padon was eager to help and between eating Dandelions and telling me they tasted like ear wax, and Sophia crying because Padon hugged her, I got some beautiful pictures of a couple wonderful and cute kids!

It was such a great opportunity too because the next day the clouds had rolled back in and the rain was upon us again. Instead of pictures by the lake at my parents house I posed the kids inside, in front of my Mom's fireplace with her Easter decor. Jane caught the most adorable picture of Padon and Sophia and that ended up being the picture that I framed and hung on our hallway wall.

Easter morning, for the first time, we opened Easter baskets at our house, before having a delicious pancake breakfast. I had gone to the dollar store and for $5 each filled Padon and Sophia's baskets with three toys each and three pieces of candy; perfect for two little kids. They were both so excited to wake up to the baskets and really liked what they found inside (transformers and a sketch pad for Padon and a squishy jelly bean, rattle, and tiny tambourines for Sophia), and Sophia ate all of her candy in giant mouthfuls as her chubby fists just kept shoveling it in. I did discover that both Sophia and Padon weren't too keen on the marshmallow candy which I had accidentally bought as two of their three pieces of candy: chocolate covered marshmallow eggs, peep bunnies stuffed in plastic eggs, and peanut butter filled chocolate rabbits. It was still a hit and I felt such warm gushies sharing this day with my little and wonderful family.

On the way down to my Parent's house it came up in the car, via Padon, that we were going down to Grandma and Grandpa's because of a birthday party in which Padon was sure he was going to have cake. Walter and I looked at each other, wondering how one who doesn't attend church with their family discusses Easter. I thought for a moment and then launched into my explanation. I said to Padon "Well, once a very long time ago there was a man and his name was Jesus. People liked him a LOT because he told the most wonderful stories and helped a lot of people feel better about themselves and get better because they were sick. One day Jesus died and a lot of people were really sad. His Dad was really sad too and came to get him and take him home. Everyone was really happy that Jesus's Dad was able to come and get him and it made them feel so much better to know he would be taken care of. It was such a special and memorable day that the people said let's never forget of this day, let's call it Easter! And so we celebrate Easter every year!" Walter whispered under his breath, "Well done!" and Padon said "Jesus?!" Like, who names their kid Jesus?! and then "Oooohhhhhhh!" I impressed myself too, ha!

At my parent's house, Padon and Greg were now pros at Easter egg hunting and it was so fun to walk Sophia in her little dress with her basket; even if in the rain. It made looking back at her 2010 Easter pictures so surprising because the size comparison is so big and she was so little. Next year she will be over two and searching on her own for Easter Eggs and talking about them!

My Mom was so kind as to make a special meal for the kids so we could eat our traditional meal without fighting the small mouths over onions and rice, and lamb, and other foods that tiny taste buds rebel against. She also had them all sit down at her end of the table where she could feed them and we parents could eat at peace and leisure. It was such a special treat and much appreciated. It was such a memorable day.

A Fantastic Day in the Sun And at the Park

It has been the wettest winter and spring this year and FINALLY we got a whole weekend of sun and temperatures above 60 degrees. Leo came to visit with us and we decided that a trip to Forest Park, in Everett, would be really nice. Padon had a fantastic time running around independently, which is so nice for Walter and I to see, showing Padon has learned good social skills from "Josephine House". Sophia was pleased as punch to find she could walk around on the bark and not loose her balance and was very keen on sliding down the slides again

and again.
Padon also was all over trying new things and I rounded a jungle gym to see him swinging from the ring/ monkey bars. The rings were my favorite thing to do in elementary school and it made me smile to see him. But the minute he saw me he lost all courage and suddenly needed my help down.

Padon really wanted to go down a very big hill into the field below to "go play games and fight". Walter and I were laughing with each other on how this meant there was probably football going on down there as Padon shoulder checked Walter in the inner thigh. We were also making up excuses about why we didn't need to go all the way down so we didn't have to go all the way back up the hill. Leo, wasn't with us, while we were having this exchange, however, and as soon as Padon had a chance he excitedly lead Leo over to the grass and told him how he wanted to go to the bottom of the hill. Like a really nice Grandpa, Leo, said "okay..." and walked down the hill with Padon and then very tiredly all the way back up. I did go down too to help them come back up and marveled at the highschoolers sliding down the hill on blocks of ice. I had never heard of such a thing and felt like I had missed out.

Sophia was a walking machine. She walked and walked and walked the whole time. She spent a good portion of the time pushing her stroller from behind, which with her little waddle butt and mini skirt, she was beyond cute. Best of all she had put her blanket in her seat and like many of her most favorite items she would call it "Baby". She would push the stroller quite a ways and then stop, saying very purposefully, "Baby!", walk around to the front, pat her blanket firmly in place, confirming it was still secure, and then walk back around to the back of the stroller and continue walking. Walter and Leo seemed to think that this behavior was amazing and advanced and looked to me for a confirming opinion. I don't know if it is advanced, I just thought it was stink'n awesome and cute.

I did have to squat down with Padon, right before it was time to leave, to talk to him about burqas; another situation that makes me really wish he had a full size world map. He had seen a lady at the play ground dressed in a full burqa. And I mean full. Had she not been wearing her sunglasses all that you would have seen of her were her eyes. Padon looked at her with a grin on his face that mixed with awe and mischief. This ended with him running at her, pushing her hard on her thighs and yelling excited and happy, "you're a robot!" Seeing as how she was completely covered I have no idea if she was humored by him, disgusted by him, or further saddened at how removed she was from her own culture. I pulled Padon aside with Walter to say, "You know how we live in the country called America?", he nodded his head yes, "I said there is a country called Saudi Arabia and in Saudi Arabia the women dress in black from head to toe. They believe they are most beautiful when they are completely covered (I didn't really think this was the case because I know there are movements to stop the oppression and the religous expression of the burqa but I honestly, at that moment, couldn't remember the true cultural significance) and so she is showing you how beautiful she is by covering herself in all that beautiful fabric. She's not a robot at all! "(smiling). Padon looked at her again with awe and a smile on his face and then said "yes, she's a robot!" laughed to be contrary, and ran away. Oh, well I tried. I considered going up to her to apologize but then thought, bygones. I mean when you come to a country who doesn't share that same thinking and then go to a play ground full of little "christian" kids what can you expect. I wasn't mad at the little kid who told me I was a monster when I had teal hair.

I wish I could get Padon a full size map of the world that he couldn't tear to shreds. Hummmm...maybe I could paint a mural on his wall! Oooo!

Passed Out

I got the pleasure to hang out with Sophia all by myself, Saturday morning, and we had a good time playing on myside of the bedroom while I put away my shoes and clothes. Sophia is really cute about handing you things but then putting them back when you say "Nope, put the diaper back in the box." She purposefully turns around to put the diaper back in the box but then pauses to pull it or a new one back out of the box to play the whole game again. Eventually it became time for lunch and so I put her in her highchair and made her a mini cheese and ham quesadilla and gave her a sippy cup of milk. She doesn't need me staring at her while she eats and so I went back into my bedroom to finish up cleaning, since I was making really good progress. She had been jabbering happily away but then I realized that it had gotten really quiet. I came walking out of the bedroom saying "Hey, Pia, are you doing ok?" and rounded the chair to see this:

So freak'n cute she had fallen asleep with a hand on her milk and a piece of tortilla on her bib. I snapped a quick picture and then tried to gently pull the cup away. She jumped, like "Where's my milk! I wasn't sleeping!" I laughed and picked her up, giving her kisses, and put her down for a nap. The morning made me realize that we really needed to spend more one-on-one time together.

Sophia's 1st Dental Appointment

On March 19th Sophia went in for her 1st Dental appointment. I had hopes that it would be as positive an experience as it had been for Padon. I thought I might also get to take some pictures but Walter had a scheduling conflict and I had to go by myself., which made pictures impossible.

We (Padon, Sophia, and I) were called into the dental room pretty quickly after arriving and the process was smooth but not so much fun. Because Sophia was so little they had me sit her on my lap, facing me, and then had her recline back into the lap of the dental hygienist that was sitting in front of me in another chair, our knees touching. Sophia was like, "What?! No!" and started to cry. The hygienist used a stack of tongue depressors all taped together to keep her from closing her mouth and said it was okay if she cried because it allowed them to look in her mouth easily. They actually polished her teeth and wiped on the fluoride, which also made her cry (it didn't taste good) and counted her teeth. They were pleased to see that she had 10 teeth and said that everything looked good and that her teeth were coming in correctly. I had been concerned because Padon's teeth came in like text book whereas Sophia got her 8 front teeth and started to get her molars before her canines.

Everything was over in a flash, they said to give Sophia the fluoride toothpaste, albeit just a tiny bit, because we don't have fluoride in our water, and emphasised that I chew a Dentyne type gum to keep down any dental bacteria that I may have and that I may pass to Sophia in kissing her.

Padon for the most part was really good, although he was excited to be back in the dental office and would have liked to have water sprayed in his mouth again to kiss the sucking tube. It was the experience I was afraid we would have with Padon and I felt a little sick inside. I hope when we go back in 6 months that Sophia isn't still as bothered by the process. I would rather both Padon and Sophia looked forward to it.

Just Some Plain Cute Pictures of Pia at the Park in March

Best Sick Kids Ever?

Two weeks ago Padon woke up and his eyes were gummy. The kind of gummy I got A LOT as a little kid. I told Walter that I used to get it a lot when I was little and I thought it was just another symptom of a cold. But then gradually as the day went on his eyes got puffier and grosser until we were starting to suspect Pink Eye. Walter scheduled a doctor's appointment and the next morning we learned that Padon didn't have Pink Eye but an ear infection; what! Who knew your ear infection could back up into your eyes?! Gross! At the question to whether Padon's ear hurt he replied "eh...", like not really... Dr. Go gave Walter two things of antibiotics and eye drops and said to watch Pia to see if her eyes didn't start to get gunky too.

Two days later Pia also had the gunky eyes with no complaints and no crying. Both kids were troopers and never complained of pain or achy ears. - As the following week went by Sophia's eyes continued to be gunky if the eye drops weren't given to her (again no crying), and a generic cough, that both Padon and Sophia had, started to get worse. We wondered if something was up but was the brush of the ear an ear ache for Sophia or just irritating wisps of hair tickling? Walter and I were riding the I-hate-this-winter-and-lagging-colds band wagon until last night when both Padon and Sophia went to bed coughing and the cough quickly got so bad they were whooping and gagging themselves awake. We inclined their beds, dosed them with Get Better Bear, and decided that maybe another trip to the doctor was in order.

I went to bed wondering if I sounded like Padon did in his bedroom if it would have been enough for my Mom to take me to the doctor when I was his age. - Walter scheduled another doctor's appointment and later called to say, "Yep! Sophia's got an ear infection in her left ear and both kids have strep throat." Cussing Strep Throat?! What kid doesn't comment on their throat hurting over Strep Throat?! And what kid eats, let alone oranges (Sophia!), with a sore throat! Thank goodness we had the awesomeness to have inclined their beds, since that was what the doctor had recommended. So Padon and Sophia have been sent home, each with their own bottle of strong antibiotics, they can't go to school tomorrow, Walter gets to call the school to say, "yeah, my kids caught that strep throat you posted that announcement about 3 weeks ago", and my kids rock for barely crying but over the discomfort of being woken up when they were tired.

Dandelion Dinner

Walter sent me this coversation exchange via email today and I totally count it as his first blog post - teehee!
Padon: Daddy I got flowers.
Daddy: You got flowers?
Padon: Yah I got flowers daddeee.
Daddy: They are very (Interrupting)
Padon: Yah. Mommy cook dem for dinner.
Daddy: Ugh, well I don't (Interrupting)
Padon: Yah. Mommy cook dem for dinner an nen, an nen nighttime comes, an nen have a green lollipop.
Awesome! I wonder if Padon will still want them for dinner when I get home. For you baby; anything!!

Want To Hear The Most Annoying Sound In The World?

"Want to hear the most annoying sound in the world?" said Jim Carrey (Lloyd Christmas) to Mike Starr (Joe "Mental" Mentalino) while riding in a furry, dog shaped, van with Jeff Daniels (Harry Dunnes, Lloyd's roommate) in the movie Dumb and Dumber.

Truly one of the funniest movies, I would never have thought that, that line may have been founded in some toddler vocal research. Did the writer have a 15 month old Pia sitting next to him/her when they wrote that funny dialogue into the script? Because even though she has never seen the movie she can make the sound to a "T". And yes, Lloyd Christmas of Providence, Rhode Is., it is the most irritating sound in the world.

Walter and I have been working and working with Sophia to sign her desires, as we did with Padon who adopted signs like they were noth'n. But our pleads of "more please, drink?, food?" and "all done?" has still resulted in a louder decibel of a grating "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa" (see movie for exact sound byte). It wasn't until we dropped Sophia off at "school" that I over heard another little girl in her room making the exact same sound in request to be picked up off the floor and carried over to the snack table instead of using her perfectly capable crawling skills to get her there. This was echoed by a little boy, already at the table, at his displeasure in finding he had eaten all of his goldfish crackers. Well, I suppose it's nice to know she's learning something. It was nice to see the teacher followed the little boy's sound with "more please" and said to the little girl "come on Kaitlyn, come sit down for snack." I don't remember this with Padon, although I do remember Walter saying loudly to Padon in the car "Padon! Don't scream in the car, it's too loud!" Maybe he did....maybe I repressed it. In any case I hope it is short lived, sheesh!

And So It Begins

And so it begins...At 33 1/2 years old I have had my first undeniable gray hair. Sigh! I told Walter this wasn't supposed to happen until I was at least 43. Darn right I plucked that baby ignoring superstitions it was now going to grow back thicker and more gnarly. Will I dye my hair as it grays more and more? Yeah, probably. I know it's a gradual process but I just can't imagine myself with gray hair. That being said, Walter started graying at 27 and I can't imagine him without his graying beard, graying temples, and graying browline. Funny....