Our Kids

I thought I would do an update on just Landis. She is doing so well. I have been going back and looking at our archives to see what the girls were doing at this same time. It is so surprising how similar she is to Piper as a baby. She is hitting all her milestones at about the same time and I think she is even getting ready for some solids, just like Piper at 7 months. Landis is such a delightful baby and has a very quick smile. I can’t say enough good things about her but I do feel truly blessed with such an angel. I mean babies like this make you want to have 8 more!

She is loving to grab her toys, she has total random arm movements (big ones that are a real crack up), she puts everything in her mouth, she smiles when I enter the room and loves to watch her daddy and her sisters. All in all I could not ask for her to be doing more, she is a real delight in every way. She seems to have the easy going spirit of Piper but she definitely has her own look and personality going on. I can’t believe that she is already 7 months though. I think I better get these last 10 lbs off or they may stay forever (I have to put something about me in all the posts, that’s how I roll:).

Barb has been teaching us a lot of life skills that we can teach to our kids and that we need to master ourselves. One of them is to not take things personally which is so hard. You don’t think it is too hard but then when something happens you realize what a challenge it is and it is definitely something that I want to start teaching our kids now.

Today at the park I was confronted by an extra snarky mom who yelled at me. I was a bit taken back and apologized for the deed that I did not commit (knocking over a box of crackers) and went on my way. Although I handled it well I had a really hard time telling myself that that was her deal and not mine and I did nothing wrong. It was so upsetting that I just had to keep saying to myself, hey that is her and her thing over and over. I called Jace and he listened and made me feel better but apparently it is still nagging at me because all I want to do is eat and my temper is short with the girls (for the usual nap time/quiet time reasons). So here I have let this snarky woman affect my kids and that really gets me. Obviously I need more practice with my golden bubble and what is in it is my deal and what is out of it is everyone elses deal.

It did give me a bit of an epiphany though. I have an incredibly artistic, creative and sensitive child who isn’t ready for all the things her more logical sister is ready to do. If nothing else I can step away from this event with a better understanding and ability to just let Lela progress as she goes and not force her. This sensitive child gets it honestly from both of her folks who hide their soft insides behind a thin veil of self confidence and humor, something she hasn’t learned to do just yet. I can’t say that the mean words of the snarky lady won’t hurt me tomorrow but at least I can tailor it into something good:) I hope that her mean comments to me in some way made her feel better about herself and maybe she won’t be like that to the next person.

Well this week has flown by and I have managed not to cook a meal! LOL! I did serve up some tasty BBQ with corn and beans but it was a total freezer meal for Jason since the girls had already eaten and I had beans on toast. It has been one of those weeks. Jason and I found ourselves somewhat in an unexplainable funk, we have since dragged ourselves out (kicking and screaming on my part) and are back among the land of the grateful where we hope to remain. We do have so much to be grateful for but sometimes the drag of the day seems to cloud out all the really good things and make you focus on just the poopy things.

The girls and I have been taking it easy this week too. We went to gymnastics and to class with Ms. Mae but other than that we have been staying home which is rare for us lately. The girls have been napping a couple days, Piper is asleep right now and Lela did not nap today (a switch). But they needed to catch up on lost sleep. Landis is doing a little growing herself. We have not started her on solids yet but might in the next month or so, she is really healthy and growing so I am not too concerned and she has shown zero interest in food. So that about sums up what we have going on. We are going to try to head out to the farmer’s market when Peeps wakes up and maybe have breakfast for dinner, yum!

Today was very exciting for me. Over the past few months Jason and I have been hashing out what we want to teach the girls and what we want them to learn in the way of music, language, morality, ethics, spirituality etc with the help of our parenting mentor. One of the things I feel strongly about is how to eat right to fuel your body (conscious eating) and exercise.

So today the girls did their first run race (Pat’s Run), they both wanted to do it there was no pressure from me I just put it out there. They ran about 100 yards but it was so great to see their faces light up. Lela was a little put off by the crowd, you could just see how torn she was between wanting to be a big girl and walk alone to being totally overwhelmed by the crowd. I think it was a great experience for her because she was able to stretch herself outside her comfort zone but still be safe with us near by. Piper of course just ate it up wanting to do it again and again.

I probably won’t have pics for a while because we did race photos but maybe their is some video footage that we can post later. I just wanted to say how proud I am of the girls for getting out there and having fun. Piper ran in her cool pink hightops that she never seems to take off and Lela was a starlet in her tie dye shirt and striped purple leggins:) Good job girls!

Piper is becoming more independent but Lela has a ways to go. This week we went to the Arizona Science Museum and there were a lot of things to do and explore. Piper is getting more comfortable in situations where she does not know anyone, she will go around and find things to do, things to touch, things to look at. She will play independently around other children, she doesn’t really interact with them but will play around them and is not bothered by them at all.

Lela is the polar opposite. She will not play around other kids, she will not self direct. It is a strange thing because she does not seem to want to find things to do, she will come to me and say what should I do, what can I do etc. I am not really sure what I should do because if I don’t suggest something then she just stands there, if I keep suggesting things will she ever learn to come up with things to do on her own. I was with a friend at the museum who commented that it must be exhausting to keep directing her like that…..hmmmmm I did not realize that I did but now I am noticing it more and more. I know she will come around in her own time but it is interesting that she does not do it at all even at home.

Both girls enjoyed the museum and we have had a busy week. Today they took their first nap of the week and it lasted 2.5 hour so bedtime tonight is going to be REALLY fun! LOL! I love this no routine thing, NOT, but I am adjusting.

Move live-blogging! (sort of)

I’m putting the girls to bed right now… around 7:45pm. I started the process around 7:35 after teeth-brushing. Read a book each for the girls (More Cat in the Hat for Lela — darn Dr. Seuss made his books long!). And now starts the fun.

Piper is notorious (in our household, at least) for dragging out bedtime. So far these are the conversations I’ve had:

7:38pm: Piper: “I want my baby reba.” (Rebe is her elephant)
Jason: “You’re holding baby reba.”
Piper: “No, my grumpy baby Reba.”

7:39pm: after locating grumpy baby Reba I return to Piper:
Jason: “Here’s your baby Reba. Now it’s time for bed. You cannot get out of your bed anymore, ok?”
Piper: “Ok!”
Jason: “Do you understand you cannot get out of bed?”
Piper: “Yes, I understand!”

7:41pm: I hear the door open. I know it’s Piper. Lela *never* comes out. She either sends Piper out for her, or she ’suggests’ to Piper (in a Jedi-like manner I’m sure) to go out. Anyhow. Door opened.
Jason: “Piper, are you supposed to get out of bed?”
Piper: “Nope. Lela wants her star sheets on her and I want the soft side of my blanket on me.”
Jason: “In bed.”
Piper: “Ok!”

I of course put Lela’s star sheets on her and take a guess on which side is the “soft” side of Piper’s blanket. This time I guessed right.

7:48pm: All is quiet. Except for the clickety clack of Otto wandering about looking for stray food, socks, or stuffed animals left below the 4-ft high OttoZone. Something must be up in the bedroom. Luckily Landis is asleep in our bedroom already so I’m not having to juggle three kids.

7:51pm: I knew it! I hear the door:
Piper: “Hi Dad!”
Jason: “In bed.”
Piper: “Is mommy there?”
Jason: “No. Now you cannot get out of bed.”
Piper: “Ok!”

I’m not quite sure she’s grasped the definition of ‘cannot’. Interesting.

7:57pm: Good news… Landis is up! I shouldn’t have said anything!

That is the sound Lela’s head made today. Lela is blossoming into this light as a feather (she is actually 33.5 lbs) constantly singing, dancing and twirling little girls who seldom watches where she is going. Lela has been like this since she was very small, she was always running looking behind her or to the left and she narrowly missed walls leaving the rest of us holding our breath. We read a book about looking where you are going and the main character is Mr. Rabbit. I am always saying “look up Mr. Rabbit” to the girls to keep them focused on what is in front of them. Well today Mr. Rabbit was rapidly skimming along in Costco and not looking where she was going when, “THWHACK!” she ran straight into the back of a stopped cart knocking herself backwards onto her butt in the store. I think she was more shocked than hurt but it was quite a scene. She has a little bump on her head but not on her front forehead more on her temple because she was looking sideways while she was walking. I am certain that she did not learn any lesson from this and that she thinks that woman ran right at her with her cart, lol. Rest assured she is a okay with a little red bump.

I have had to say goodbye to my beloved routine. She has been with me for over 3 years and I must admit I am very sad to see her go. I live by the routine, have always lived by the routine and miss her so much;) The girls now eat when they are hungry, sleep when they are tired and generally try to listen to their bodies and do what needs to be done. This independence is a real routine killer, now I am caught off guard when they say they are hungry, I have to search for signs of sleep and stave off the sleepy when we are driving by calling out their names and making them laugh. It is all good but I operate much better on a routine.

Another thing that is new and improved is the girls ability to reason, debate, connive, cajole and ask for answers. Lucky for me I am quick witted and can endlessly answer the never ending question of “why.”

Piper: Why do we need to take a bath
Me: Because you are dirty
Piper: Why are we dirty
Me: because we went to the park
Piper: why did we go to the park
Me: so you could play
Piper: why did we play
Me: to burn off your energy
Piper: why do we have energy
Me: to torment your mother
Piper: why do I torment my mother

Okay so I made those last two up but you get the jest of it all:)