Sunday, July 20, 2014

Mobile Moments, 7/14-7/20

No intro this week, just cutesey cuties. And no more apologies. I imagine that when I finally feel ready to jump back into writing again, I'll know.

"Oh, hey! You gonna take my picture?"





Sweetness with a bowl of Rosemary.




"Did you see the big splash my rock made?"




Afternoon walk by the lake.




I have no words.




Overheard this week:

Abby

(In the middle of dinner) "According to my research, sandwiches are great!"

Between Tom and Abby

T: "That's Christopher Robin. He's a little boy like Michael."
A: "He's a little taller."

T: (Reading from a book) "Beavers build dams with sticks."
A: " No! Of sticks!"

Michael

 "Ooo-ee (Ratatouille)"

Mia

"Drops, baaa"

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Mobile Moments, 7/7-7/13

After spending over a month in Maryland, now, I suppose there were bound to be some milestones logged here. We've already had the honor of watching Mia's transition from halting stepper to bona fide toddler. We've also been privileged to see Abby advance further in her understanding of letters and numbers and how they work, and to observe Michael gain in confidence, little by little, as he makes occasional attempts to increase his verbal communication capabilities.

In the last week, however, I've seen more than just the evolution of slow change. Quite suddenly, after many weeks of hiding beneath a thick layer of gum and the faintest hit of white along the edge, a new tooth has popped out of Mia's lower jawline- her first canine. Though the other three canines and four one-year molars still cower just below the surface, this one brave addition has shot its way through as though it had been there all along.

Michael's sudden milestone is an achievement that only the reluctance of his tired parents have kept him from for this long: the move to a Big Boy Bed. Once a second twin was installed in his and Abby's room here at Mima and Granda's, however (and another has been secured back at home, waiting patiently for the installation of Abigail in her brand-new sleeping space), Tom and I could no longer deny him his great wish, one which he demonstrated every night as he curled up in his big sister's bed to await story time and the completion of the bedtime routine.

On Monday, after foam barriers were placed to prevent accidental rolling, Tom and I took the plunge. As we predicted, we had no trouble getting him to stay in bed once the lights were out. He's long been a cooperative napper/sleeper when it came time to settle down. However, mornings have been another story.

I had a faint hope that he might sleep so much better in his new digs that we'd actually get a little extra time before the chatter started up at break of day, but the opposite has actually been the case. And now, we get a little more than chatter. We hear the pitter-patter of little feet right above our heads, which sounds thunderously loud from the bedroom below.

But it had to happen sometime, right? And no going back now. My little guy just won't stay little, no matter how much I will it to be so.


Just lounging around.





No caption. Just cute.




Snug as a bug in a rug.




Mei Mei makes the best chair.





Because this is how we carry our crayons now.


Overheard this week:

Between Abby and Mima

A: (Observing a woman walking with her umbrella on a clear day) "Why is she doing that?"
M: "To protect herself. When the sun is too hot, it can burn you. That's why we don't let you play outside when the sun is too hot."
A: "Well, then I'll use an umbrella to protect myself!"

Between Granda and Abby

G: "is wonderful and brilliant."
A: "No! She's wonderful but not brilliant."

Michael

"Why?"
"No, mine!"
"Meow"

Mia

"Dora, Abre (open, in Spanish), pretty, sheep, baa"

Monday, July 7, 2014

Mobile Moments, 6/30-7/6

So, it's finally happened. I have now fallen so low as to miss the one post I've been reliable about of late: my weekly Mobile Moments.

It feels both a failure and a relief. Clearly, the world did not end because I failed to meet my own personal expectations of myself, but I must admit that my own expectations were not exactly unreasonable ones.

Still, we did a lot of living in the past week, none of which was even recorded via my smartphone. Fourth of July celebrating, birthday partying, family together-ing and good-weather-enjoying aplenty, to be specific. While a big part of me often fears that the joy I feel in these moments will seem fleeting if I don't take time to record the memory of it, I must say that it feels good to be experiencing everything with both feet in and a phone tucked safely out of reach.


Who knew that nightgowns came in "ballgown" style?





Even Big Girls need a nap sometimes.




Cool Cats love story time, too.




Because N is better than K.




We'll get that potty training started some day, I promise.




The corn was initially a little too warm to hold. But what do you want to bet he'll never eat it any other way again, now?



Overheard this week:

Abby

Standing tall and proud after tucking a kitchen towel into the back of her shirt like a cape: "Everybody: I'm wearing a towel on my back." (Ignoring me as I insert that "I think that's a dirty towel.") "And it keeps me warm!"

In response to Mima's request that Michael not kick his sister Amelia: "She's not Michael's sister, she's my sister!"

Interrupting as Tom lovingly cradled her in his lap and asked me aloud if I remembered when she was our only baby, and how we called her our little baby: "But now I talk!"

Between Abby and Granda

A: "Why is Mima so good?"
G: "Because she was made that way."
A: "No, Mima's made of skin and hair."

Between Tom and Abby

T: "What do we need to spell 'knife?'"
A: "We need an N."
T: "Actually, you need a K- it's a strange word. Let's get the K letter."
A: "No, an N is better."

Michael

"Bite, shoe, bitty (because we like to call his little sister our "Itty bitty")

Mia

"Read book (kid knows how to give commands already), car, map, sing, song, (and, though it probably merely sounded like it, I could swear that she yelled out to me one night: "Don't sing!" followed by "Sing!" a command which she directed at her father.)

Most amazingly, upon hearing us begin singing "Row, row, row your boat" one evening, she finished off the first line with "meh, meh, meh, meh (merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily...)"