monkey

Leah's watched the big kids do the monkey bars at school with envy for a few months now.  I remember when she came home and said that her friend told her she was too little to do it.  The next day she started hanging on the first bar and dangling.  Other kids would soar past her and she'd smile and dangle until her fingers turned pink and she'd be forced to let go.  A week later, I watched her get to the second bar.  Other kids figured out how to hang upside down but she was still so proud of herself at that second bar.  I'd hear her yelling, "You see me, Mama?"  She stayed at that second bar for a week or two.  I didn't have any warning today when she jumped on and swung from one bar to the other-the whole way down, her little high bun bouncing on top of her cute, round head.  And I certainly didn't know I was going to start to tear up in the middle of the playground.  But I'm sure that's not surprising.  I didn't know that watching her do the monkey bars would make me fill with pride, but I'm grateful that I had that moment today.

I have a Dee-ah.

Leah says to us all the time now, "I have A Dee-ah".  We ask her what is her idea and she usually tells us it has to do with taking her to get ice cream or something.  I just heard her say to Julian.  "Dada, I have a dea.  You catch a fish."  I never want to forget that he does this every night:

Leah runs around and tries to not have to go to bed until eventually she lays down in the hallway or my bed, etc and he grabs her by the feet and carries her upside down saying "I caught a fish.  I caught a fish"  in a sing song tone.  Sometimes they mix it up and he catches a mermaid....sometimes it's a wriggly fish.  I don't ever want to forget how cute it is when he dangles her and she's giggling.

Hey Leah....I have a Dee-ah.  Stop growing up.  And snuggle with me until you are 80.  You too, Bri.

growing up

The other day I sobbed watching the TV show Parenthood when the daughter went off to college.  The mom kept crying and said that she just didn't have enough time and wasn't ready for the daughter to leave.  I did the ugly cry.  And Leah watched me.  She came over to me and climbed up on my lap and put her arms around me.  She asked me, "Why you cryin mama?" I told her I just didn't want her to grow up.  She said innocently, "But I gonna grow up mama."  I asked her why?  "Because I gotta get big."  It was so sweet and sad at the same time.

Leah is loving school.  Today she pedaled on her tricycle by herself (says Emma's Dad) on the flat surface but still needs help with the hills.  She's come a long way from the days where she'd wait for kids to slow down enough to hop on the back of the bike.  I co-op on Wednesdays and I love being a part of watching her learn at school.  She paints and counts and builds and plays with magnets, sings songs and acts out stories.  She estimates how much fills up containers, plays on monkeybars and swings, and chases boys.  Unfortunately, the boy she is drawn to is the biggest trouble maker.  He;s behind her starting to tell everyone she's going to poop on their head- I just know it.  We have an agreement that we can discuss peeing and pooing in the bathroom and her bedroom and that's helped with the potty talk.  She asks me often, "Can I say pee pee?" and I'll tell her yes because we are in her room and she just continues "pee pee pee pee pee".  Oh, thank you, Jack for your contribution to my irritability.  I think she's moved on to a boy named GG.  Let's hope he comes with less poop talk.

Bri started walking and talking up a storm.  Today she said her first sentence.  She said "I'm mama's baby."  I swear to you.  My friend Bri was with me and she heard her more than once tell her "mama's baby"  But there was one time she said "I'm mama's baby"  It's possible she was referring to her bunny and saying mine mama baby but still....I will believe the first one.  Earlier today when I was about to pick Leah up I asked Bri if she wanted to get sissy from school.  Bri said, "no".  It made me laugh pretty hard.  She's cutting 3 molars as we speak and has been sick off and on since Leah started preschool but all in all she's in happy spirits.  Things Bri loves these days- pink bunny is still on the top of the list.  We have one off ebay (thanks, Sarah) and then the original one.  She sucks on bunnies nose at night and it ends up stinking like a dog toy.  I wash them a lot but there's a music box in them so I worry that it will die soon.  I suppose I need to check ebay for another one.  Maybe for Christmas.  Bri's also locing the play car, putting her pink bunny in the pretend high chair, and reading stories.  She likes singing and will sing "Part of that world" when she sees Ariel...Today i found her figuring out how to connect the charger into the computer.  We're addressing safety and all, but I was still impressed.

The girls' bday party was a big hit back in September.  We decorated it for under the sea and thanks to everyone who came and made it super special for them (us).  Julian put up balloons along the walls and we did streamers all over and huge blown up pictures.  Each girl got a tied tutu to take home.  I think I needed something to focus on since I didn't go back to teaching and every other teacher was setting up a classroom.  A little redirection of focus.

Halloween was fun.  We did an Up/Merida/skunk mix up.  I made bri a skunk costume but it looked jenky so we didn't take her out in that.  We made Julian a full on Russell costume and Julian built a mini house....so we took pics of each girl in it and then dressed Leah as Merida (which she rocked the red wig) and put Bri in our Mickey Mouse garage sale find.  Bri, I love you so much.  Again, I owe you $20 for a costume I didn't buy you.  But, you were the most adorable mickey mouse.  And in all fairness, I had a new Cinderella costume for you from Grandpa Jim and Grandma Cheri but you've been Cinderella at Disneyland and I wanted to have pics of you in a new costume.  Auntie Erica and her boyfriend Adrian, Yaya, and Luke's family all went trik or treating with us....We used- err had you (Bri) get candy so we could eat it.  I did make you and your sister super cute trick or treat bags.

Life with these two girls is certainly fun.  Leah wants Bri to start sleeping in her room (which would be great in theory) but she keeps trying to grab your hair between the slats....and then you scream and she screams and it just isn't going to work at the moment.  One of the favorite things to do lately are walking the block to see the blown up witch, spider, and cat.  This sounds lame and all....I get that, but when you hand deliver a note to the doorstep written from a 3 year old, it's pretty cute.  "Dear Witch, Spider, and Cat:  Thank you for being on the lawn.  I am three.  Do you have hand polish? Or no polish.  Ya.  I have a princess suitcase.  Can I hold you hand?  I lub you.  Your friend, Leah"  She was very sad they had to leave and asked where they went.
Julian- "They went back to Halloween-land"
Leah- "Um But why?"
J- bc they have to go home to rest for next year.
L- where do they go?
J-To hogwarts.
L- what's hogwatts?

This whole conversation is now replayed daily and today I found myself trying to explain what a wizard is and who is Harry Potter and "Your dad will teach you all of this as the years go on"

Other ways that Leah makes Julian proud- She asks to hear the song that goes (she does the riding horse dance move for Ghangdam style). and she will tell us she has to go to the store to get Daddy a Dark Vader toy.  She wins me over often too bc she snuggles with me a lot these days and is like a shadow which can be tiring at times but overall is so sweet to always have her trying to sit with me, on me, etc.  Today at nap she didn't want me to go so she tried to fall asleep on my back and legs so I wouldn't be able to move.

Bri started playing with the train set so that makes Julian's heart happy.  That and she waves at his picture every single day when he's at work and says, "Hi Dada."  One time we face timed when he was on lunch and Bri got hysterical because she missed him so much.  She runs to him as soon as he comes home.  Bri didn't used to be a snuggler but one good thing that happened from when she had the flu several weeks back is that she loves being held and snuggled now.  You know how we are all about that.



I'd like to give a shout out to my girl, Jen and her grandma.  Mama's got a drink ready for your grandma up in heaven.

summer

We went to Bri's 9 month dr. appt and one of the milestones was waving bye-bye.  I don't think (for whatever reason) that she had waved bye bye.  I didn't really care but figured we could try while we were waiting for Dr. Browne to come in...so I say, "Bri, can you wave Bye- Bye?" and she looks at me and waves and says "Bah Bah".  So I laugh...I didn't think that could really be her first phrase but I asked her to say bye- bye again and she kept waving and saying "Bah Bah".  So much for that milestone. She totally blew that one out of the water.

Right now she has a fever and it makes me sad.  She hasn't been a very sick baby.  Leah was a pretty sick baby (probably from me bringing germs home from teaching) but Bri's lucked out thus far.  She is still so happy and sweet even though she's feeling icky.

Today Auntie Erica came over and took Leah swimming in the afternoon.  She had a ton of fun.  Leah's one of the silliest kids I've seen.  She loves playing around and laughing.  My sister Jess started this thing where she makes her belly talk to her and it's so annoying but funny when Leah makes her voice really low and starts talking to people's bellies.  I told Jess that she's going to make Leah that weird kid in school, but who cares haha.  When she has us as parents, though, she's bound to be a quirky girl.

Leah's been potty training really well lately. She still says "Don't poo in this!" every time we put on a pull up or underwear.  I appreciate when she doesn't poo in it!  I hope she gets fully potty trained soon.

Over the last weekend, I had time with two of my girlfriends, Shannon and Jess, looking at shops in San Francisco.  I felt just like a girl and not a mom.  I love being a mom, but it felt really great to have the time to chat and look through stores and relax.  I definitely needed some girl time and am really grateful that Julian was so helpful in urging me to go and dropping me off/getting me from bart, etc.  I am lucky to have such a caring partner.

Bri typically only wakes once a night again...Per the Doctor telling me that my 18.5 pound 9 month old doesn't need to feed every 2 hours, I feed her at 7 when she goes to bed andthen when she wakes up about midnight....after that though, she just gets water until about 6 am.  She was pretty pissed the first night but I think she's getting the hang of it.  I just love her so much, I hate the thought of her being hungry, but it's turning out that she was just waking up out of habit and not because she was hungry.

Leah went a few weeks/months sleeping on her own but she's back to waking up and crying for Julian in the middle of the night.  Usually at bedtime she wants us both, in the middle of the night she wants Julian (I think that stems from when I couldn't sleep near her when Bri was born and only Daddy could help her bc I would be nursing Bri) and then in the morning she wants me.  So when I went in last night to lay down with her she says, "No, no no no.  Only Daddy"  I just say "Ok, baby.  I will get Daddy but can Mommy snuggle for a minute."  She let me stay withher for about an hour and then Bri needed milk and Leah wanted Daddy, so it worked out.  After we get back from our Hawaii trip, we'll work on sleep training leah again to sleep without us but it's not worth it now.  We sleep with her at my parents house (this weekend) and she'll sleep with us in Hawaii....She's a snorer though and a wild little sleeper.....throwin 'bows and kickin' faces.

Well, I need to finish the bachelorette and get to bed.  Over and out.

good times with my girls

Today a few things that happened that I would never have guessed would make me smile and laugh.  The first was when I found a pullup (Yes, I know I/she shouldn't be using them and that she should just be in underwear but um, sh*t happens.  Literally.  And I am tired of cleaning it out with my hands.) in Leah's pile that had Minnie Mouse amoungst the package of Cinderella.  I actually searched the entire box and there wasn't another Minnie one and I got bummed.

We headed off to Dance class with Bri in her big girl car seat.  We watched as Leah twirled and tried to show her teacher her painted toe nails and explain later that her daddy likes baseball.  She also explained to the class that drum sticks are not for hitting baby bri with.  At least she is learning :).    The girls in dance are already starting to form friends...Leah still loves to play and hold hands with everyone but some of the girls who are a few months older are already deciding who they want to sit next to and who they don't.  I wonder when Leah will change too...One little girl wouldn't let Leah sit by her (although Leah didn't seem to care), and I found myself unsympathetic when that girl couldn't hop hop hop over the pool noodles.  Then I had to remind myself that she's not even three yet and we will have a decade or two filled with the girls being friends and then not being friends and then including some and some being left out and I guess, at some point, I will get used to it. Or maybe I won't.  I will have to do my best to help teach her that it's good to be friends with everyone and to be nice to everyone.  After class was over, she invited a little girl out to lunch with us (I did not even know her mom's name) and to our surprise, her mom decided to meet us at Noah's bagels for a quick bite.

Once we were home, Leah refused to get out of the car. I had Bri in my arms and Leah would go from her car seat to Bri's.  I would go to Bri's side and she'd run and sit in her own seat again.  It was so frustrating running back and forth that I started laughing hysterically which just made Leah want to do it more.  I laughed so hard that I almost peed my pants.  This led to a conversation I have had to have too many times that starts with, "Leah, I am laughing because this is funny BUT, it's still not ok."  For whatever reason, she gets that...and it was enough for her to get out of the car and come in.  Go figure.

I brought a very tired Bri upstairs to nap and Leah took herself to her small potty.  "I went poo poo, Mommy!  You want to see?"  Bri was almost done eating and I didn't want to walk and nurse her to the poop and then walk and nurse her with the poop to flush in the toilet, so I thought I'd wait a minute before going over.  "Mommy, see?  I did a big poop.  It is ba-nah-nah."  Poop to her is always either a banana or jelly beans.  I can see that.  I looked up and she was walking in with the white basin from her toddler potty and she put it in my hands...well, my one hand free while the other as holding Bri nursing.  We ooohed and awed over the poop and I tried not to study it closely as I lifted bri and the potty towards the bathroom.  Leah took it upon herself to grab it and flush it her self.  Thank God she dumped it without missing.

Potty training is hit or miss....If we are at home and she can have no bottoms on (or find any bottoms to put on) then we are great.  If she has underwear on, she'll go in it.  If she has a pull up- she'll go in it.  But we celebrate our successes as we go.

Before nap, Leah asked to see my armpits.  "This ahm-pit", she lifts up and inspects.  "No hair!"  I don't know why she is so excited.  I tend to keep my pits shaved, I mean usually....  "Let me see other ahm-pit....nope. no hairs der either."  That's good because I am wearing a short sleeve shirt.

Trains

Leah likes trains a lot these days and kept asking and asking us to go on a cable car...(or Table Car as she says). Once a few months ago we rode a bus that looked like a train and she was so excited that we told her that maybe soon we could go on a Cable Car. (When we were waiting for that bus, a regular looking bus came up and she waved at it fast saying No No No Bye!) So after that we knew she'd love to go back for a Cable car ride. "Go in there? In the train? Table Car? Maybe tomorrow. next Time"....We didn't want her to have to keep saying next time so we took her this weekend. She was SO excited. We sat on the benches while Julian stood on the side. Bri was her happy self as well.

We ate at Hard Rock Cafe and I got sick from their awful salmon. My stomach is still nauseated from it today....so the cable car ride back from dinner was not enjoyable for me, but Little Leah still loved it. She didn't want to get off of the Cable Car and asked for one more minute.

Today we went to Palo Alto and I picked up a train set for her at Ikea. Julian has been wanting to build a train with her for quite some time now but it didn't quite go as planned. Instead of pushing the trains along the looped tracks, she tried instead to pick up the loop and use it as a hoola hoop. He would rebuild it and then she'd try again asking for a hoola hoop. Then, dressed up in her dress from her Auntie Erica from Thailand, holding a new doll, she stood amongst the broken train tracks and smiled and said , "Oooh, I love my dollie!" Poor Julian. He says Bri will play the train tracks with him when she's older...

We started really sleep training Bri and we've had a good go of things. Bri has been only waking up once or twice at most a night now (once a night for 2 of the days but 2 times last night). I hope it stays like this!

Leah's recent favorite thing to tell people is "Daddy has nipples!" Thank you, Leah, for sharing!!!

growing so fast

Leah turned 2 and a half this week and bri is getting close to 6 months. I can't believe how big they are getting. Bri is starting to sit up and laughs and has started sticking her tongue out and spitting which is pretty funny. She tends to scream LOUDLY when she's tired. I guess she's learned how to get attention! Other than that, she is still REALLY chill and just hangs out and is easy going. Thank God for that! She went through a patch where her sleep got really bad but it's better now.....she sleeps about 4 hours straight but up to 8. Her teeth look like they are coming in and that's bothering her.

Leah is getting to be such a good talker. Yesterday she yelled at nap time, "Mommy, can you open the door?" That has been her longest sentence. This morning she brought me glue and paper and wanted to make her Daddy a tree. She said "Make this for Daddy? Leah love daddy!"

We took the girls to Disneyland and they both had fun. Bri's face lit up and she loved watching the people and the lights. Leah loved it so much too. She enjoyed meeting the princesses (especially Rapunzel from Tangled) although now she's into the Little Mermaid a bit more. Leah's favorite ride was the Dumbo ride and it's a small world. She has been asking to go on those a lot since we've been back. Yesterday she was trying to tell me that she wanted to show Peter Pan her outfit. She got a balloon in Disneyland but was terrified of losing it that she started crying and told us to put it away. "Throw it in the gaw-bage". She even had a nightmare that she lost it and woke up crying hysterically. We showed her that it was still there and she was okay.