First Dilemma

My monkeys were washing their hands in the bathroom before dinner.  Apparently Jack felt they needed some privacy, and he locked the door.  Unfortunately, the monkeys were unable to get the door open.

  John suggested the boys take the key out of the lock, and pass it under the door.

Owen was successful in taking the key out, but it did not fit under the door.  John, to the rescue again, came up with a brilliant idea.  He put some masking tape on the end of some string…

…and Chloe lowered the string down to Owen from through an open outside window.

  

the key was retrieved,

and the boys rescued. 

A relieved Owen ran out and thanked and hugged Chloe.

Jack was happy to be out too (but hadn’t been too worried with his big brother Owen to keep him company!)

The Beginning

Watching other planes take off

Playing with toys (and Peanut Butter)

The monkeys in front of the “actual plane” that we flew on. 

Blog Status

Even though this is our family’s last night in Washington before our vacation, it is (hopefully) not the last night of the blog.  I still plan to blog as many nights as possible while on our trip.  I will be able to write the blog on my computer, but don’t know how often I will have access to the internet  to upload it.   It may be a few days each time, but keep with it…something will appear.

Wish us well for a 9 hour flight with our feisty 3-year-old!

Almost Ready…

My bag…mostly packed (I just need to wait for Eric to fall asleep so I can hide a few things in his bag…)

Jack and Owen’s fun backpacks- ready to go! (We are going to let them see what is inside on Friday.)

my boys’ piles of clothes to wear on Friday (plus pjs for O & J on the plane)

Census

When our census document came, I may have tossed it in a pile like the other boring mail, and forgotten about it.

It is not that I have anything against the census.  I think it is probably a good idea, but I didn’t exactly look forward to filling it out, and I am terrible at mailing anything.

When the second copy of the census document came, I got the sneaking feeling that the government was going to keep sending the darned things until I returned one of them or a census worker came to my door (which is something way more annoying than filling out the form myself and walking to the mailbox.)   Besides that fact, I felt like I was doing my part for the community by filling out the form so our tax money didn’t have to be used to waste paper and postage to send out any more to me.  Or worse, to be used to pay a person to come and knock on my door for several days in a row until they found me at home!

So I filled out the original paperwork, and mailed it out the same day, then recycled the second copy that they had sent to me.

A week or so later, another copy of the document arrived with the mail.  {There went my effort to save paper…}

A week or so after that, Eric was about to hop in a friend’s car, who was picking him up, when a man approached saying that he was a census worker.  Eric assured him that we had sent our form in.  Apparently the man had heard that one before, and Eric had to insist that he did not have time to fill out the form with the census worker before Eric had to leave with his friends.  

A few days later, I answered a knock at the door to see my very own census worker.  Like Eric, I also tried to tell him that I have indeed mailed my paperwork back.  He then informed me that the documents are time sensitive, and not filling out the first one triggers the mailing of the 2nd one.  (which makes perfect sense to me).  But he then explained that once the new form goes out, the first form (which is identical to the newly mailed form) is then no longer valid! Thus a third form was triggered (since I didn’t send back the second form) and the worker call was triggered (since I didn’t fill out the third form.)

All of this makes me a little irritated.  I get that a huge country that takes on a huge project, could easily have a few flaws.  But this one seems like a massive waste of resources!

I have no intention of complaining about politics or the government on this blog.   Just, for some reason, this particular visit sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

(oh my, I am boring myself so much with this story that I fell asleep with my hand on the ‘s’  key! So, I guess I am probably boring most of my readers too…It was really the end of the story anyway.)

Taking Things Personally

Earlier this year, there was a storm outside when I put the boys to bed.  I knew it was unlikely that Jack would stay put in bed with stormy sounds outside the window.  Sure enough, I had only been downstairs for a few minutes when Jack appeared on the landing.

Jack: Mom, do you hear that noise?! I hear it and it is scary, so I came downstairs because I don’t know what that sound is, but you do. Do you hear that noise?

(I am impressed with his unique way of buttering me up with flattery, and he did sound truly scared. I agree to come and listen to the noises.)

Jack: Do you hear that noise, Mama?

Me: That is the sound of the wind and the rain on the roof.

Jack: Well, I don’t like that noise, and it is very mean to make me rush downstairs so fast and ask you what is that noise. It is too mean!

“I’m Luke”

The monkeys were both Luke Skywalker today. They were serious about finding and attacking the enemy. And since they have finally come to terms with Darth Vader being a “bad guy” they decided it would be ok to seek him out.

Owen: Hey Luke, they went that way!

Jack: Ok Luke, I’ll follow you!

The monkeys wanted me to be Darth Vader, but when I agreed, I was apparently a little too good at play acting, and they suggested I not participate anymore.

Jack: Can you not do that?

Owen:  That is too scary, Mama…

So I went back to being Mama.  And (after a few more battles against the Dark Side), I got my sweet Owen and Jack back.

Timing

My first few years as a teacher, I was sick all the time. It took me awhile to acquire all of the different colds known to man, but I made significant progress over those years. 

The good news was that I managed to miss very few days of school  during that time period. The bad new was that I was often sick the minute there was any kind of holiday.  Quick sicknesses even squeezed themselves in on the weekends.  It was like the second my body relaxed a little, the germ attack won the battle.

It seems like I am having something of the opposite experience right now.   It is as though my body is anticipating that I am going to relax on vacation (in less than a week now!) and it is squeezing in all of the illnesses before my flight. 

This morning, I had my list of things to get done today, and had accomplished only a few.  I was getting ready to go help my mom at a bake sale for her cancer three-day-walk, when I suddenly started vomiting.  (sorry if that grosses you out).  I am not sure what it was all about, but I went straight to bed, feeling shaky and tired all morning and afternoon.  I was finally able to accomplish a few things this evening, but am definitely behind schedule.

I am getting a little concerned about accomplishing all of the the things I need to do before we leave…but I suppose that is not my biggest concern.  I DO NOT want to be sick on my vacation!  So really, I should be thankful that my body has the consideration to have the illness arrive before my trip. 

Aren’t I nice to myself?!

Our Grady

Today was a sad day.  It was our last official day with Grady.  It has been so fun to watch him grow from a tiny barely-four-month old, to such a big boy of seven months.  He has learned to sit up by himself, get from laying to sitting by himself, and do is funny little hop forward to move around.  The boys have delighted in each accomplishment.  “Mama, did you see what Grady just did?!”  Owen always shakes his head in wonder and adds, “Wow, I didn’t know he could do that!”  Our smiley Grady has also learned to clap for himself and say “da-da” (Which Jack interprets as “Jack.”) 

I just realized that I have yet to tell the parents at Owen’s school that they can no longer take their turns cooing at him when we drop off and pick up Owen…I might be in trouble for not giving them proper closure!

We have all loved having Grady and it was sad to say goodbye today.  Jack was asleep when Grady left today and later, when Jack realized that the last day was over, he cried.  “I miss my Grady baby!”  Really, who will laugh and clap at our little moves?

We kind-of do have a little Grady around still as Jack renamed his doll from Henry to Grady Henry Baby.  (He was really missing Grady last week when I was sick and didn’t watch him.)  I don’t think he is going to quite cut it.

We plan to still have play-dates with our little friend, so I guess we will have to be happy with that…

Good Dental Hygiene

My dentist commented a while ago that my teeth were especially clean.  When he asked me about my teeth-brushing habits, he wrote down my answer and asked if I minded if he shared the idea with other patients.

I was happy to be of service.

Would you like to know my secret of very clean teeth? 

Sonicare and People Magazine.

No, I do not brush my teeth with the magazine, but it does play an important role. 

Mary got me a subscription to People magazine for my birthday.  I started to read it in during the times when I brushed my teeth. Often, I would be interested in an article, and restart the toothbrush.  Sometimes I start it three or four times.  This is what happened tonight which reminded me of my dentist’s interest in my method.

So, if you need a little help with your dental-hygiene, just ask your mother-in-law for a subscription to people magazine.   It works!

Five

This morning, I woke up and was excited for Owen.  Today is his birthday and I remember the innocent anticipation of presents and choices and kind words from birthdays.  A day of pure pleasure. 

Eric and I, Jack and Grady sang to Owen and I watched Owen’s shy smile appear, and anticipated the joy that he would feel today being the center of attention.

Eric said to Owen, “You are five now!” And my heart crumpled. 

My little boy is five.  Five is just wrong!

Five is the beginning of the end. 

Five is the start of school.  It is an increasing variety of influences on my little boy that is so separate from my relationship with him.  I love that Owen will experience all of these new relationships and adventures.  I just wish that it didn’t have to be at the expense of my time with him.

I know my mom will smile in understanding at my anguish, but will probably think, “try adding 30 years to your child’s 5. That is true separation.”

And my grandma will also smile, and think, “Try adding 50 years to your child’s 5.”

And I know that they are both right, and my loss is coupled with the likelihood of many wonderful years of living with Owen under the same roof. 

But right now this is the pain that I am feeling.  And it is true and strong and heartbreaking.

Happy Birthday my big five-year-old Owen!  Thank you for making these last five years be something I am terribly sad to let go of.

Elevator

When Owen was two or three he wandered off a little, as most kids do.  He never went too far, but often got interested in something and simply walked toward it in a store (or wherever we were.)  As he became confident that I would always follow him,  he began to get bolder, and it became much harder to keep track of him despite explanations that he would be scared if we got separated.   I mentioned being worried about this to my friend Becca.  She suggested that I let Owen think he had lost me for a minute or two the next time that he wandered so that he understood how scary being alone was.  This advice had been told to Becca by another mom, and the experience had worked well for this mom and for Becca and her daughter who was the same age as Owen at the time.

So the next time Owen wandered off, I ducked behind a column in the store, and watched him for a few minutes.  As expected, when he didn’t' see me right away after looking up, he became instantly worried.  His eyes got big and wet, and he looked around back and forth quickly from one side to another.  After 5-10 long seconds, I stepped out calling, “Owen.”  He ran over to me, and grabbed me into a big hug.  From that point on, he wanted to stay with me and would let me know if he wanted to look at something and we would go together.  I was a great learning experience for Owen to feel that fear at a time when he was actually quite safe.

When Jack reached the same age, he too started to become independent, and felt confident to wander away from me when we were out and about.  Just like Owen, Jack seemed unconcerned when I explained that it would be scary if we became separated. 

So I thought it was an appropriate time to “hide” from him one day when he had wandered away from me in a store.  Just as I had done with Owen, I slid behind something and watched his response.  As he looked up and didn’t see me, his eyes opened, and he frantically looked around just like Owen had.  As I was about to step out and call Jack’s name, his face suddenly changed.  A slow smile came onto his lips, and his eyebrows raised in surprise and pleasure.  He still looked around, but he was no longer frantic, he was slowly surveying his new realm!

Jack’s head stopped turning, his eyes narrowed, and he took off running.  Straight onto a nearby elevator whose doors were open.  My feet began moving before my brain could even register what was happening.  I jumped onto the elevator right behind him, and scooped him up.  “Oh no you don’t!” I said and he burst out with a surprised and gleeful laugh.

Lesson NOT learned.  (Well, at least for Jack.  Now I was even more worried.  If Jack truly did get separated from me, I could see that he was unlikely to be very concerned about it, and might end up in a very different location than the original place where he became lost.)  Needless to say, I kept quite an eye on him from then on.

I think that it has been about a year from that experience.

Last week, I was at Bellevue Square mall with my friend Lisa and her girls, and my boys.  After we finished eating dinner, and had left the restaurant, Lisa couldn’t find her car keys.  She ran back inside to see if she had left them there.  I stayed outside with the four kids and they ran back and forth in the breezeway of the mall.  I was looking through Lisa’s purse to see if I could find her keys there(I know, stellar parenting…), when I heard Jack crying.  Not his Owen-is-driving-me-nuts-cry but his middle-of-the-night-nightmare-cry. 

Jack and Owen had stepped onto the open elevator that was in the breezeway and the doors had closed.  Owen explained that he, “knew just what to do!  I pressed the ‘Door Open’ button, and the doors opened, and we saw our Mama.”  The elevator had not moved up or down.  The doors had simply closed and opened not really fazing Owen, but Jack was absolutely traumatized.  After several minutes of hugs from me, he climbed right into the stroller and strapped himself in!  He would calm himself down so that his cries were just sharp intakes of air, then burst into tears again when he thought of the incident.  “I need a hug from Sarah!”  he would cry.  And as she hugged him, he would tell her through sobs, “I went on the elevator with not my Mama.”  And again he would calm himself down to nose crying until the incident would creep back into his thoughts.  He hugged and told his story to Sarah, Katie, and Owen in turn – maybe they each had two turns, I can’t remember.

I must admit, I may have been pleased with how the whole event turned out.  It was definitely a learning experience that I wanted Jack to have. (Though I would have liked a little more control in it and hate that my lack of attention – even for those few seconds- was what allowed the experience to occur.)  I am glad he was able to learn it.

 

When I suggested my mom ask Jack about the experience, Jack said, “When I am on an elevator without my Mama, it makes an ‘Oh My Gosh!’ come right into my mouth!”

Inheritance

I found out yesterday that Owen has inherited one of my worst genes. 

I have a very difficult time recognizing people.  Something in my brain cannot seem to remember their distinct facial features, and I tend to use other factors to remember people such as their clothing and the places that I encounter them.  I joke with people that I don’t recognize someone if they change their shirt, and sadly, this is often true.  It takes many encounters with the same person for me to be able to recognize that person after they cut their hair or I see them in a new environment.

My friend Kris (Grady’s mama) can look at a photo of a child, and recognize that person as an adult.  That has always amazed me.  It is unfathomable for me to understand how her brain can do that!

Yesterday Doc, Nana, and our family watched the original Star Wars for Owen’s  fifth birthday.  He asked 5 zillion questions throughout the movie, revealing the inherited trait! 

Owen recognized the name Luke Skywalker from the video game that Uncle Marc bought for him, and was happy to see the real thing in the movie.  But when Luke changed out of his ‘farm boy’ outfit and put on one of the storm trooper’s uniforms, Owen wondered where Luke went.  Mind you, Luke did not have a helmet on, so Owen could see his face clearly.   Even after he knew that Luke was wearing the new uniform, each scene change needed a clarification as to who was who.  Luke changing into the orange pilot outfit, and changing clothes again at the end, caused the same issues for Owen.

I know Owen has inherited some great traits from me, but this is definitely a trait that I would have loved for him to bypass!  I wonder if there is some miracle cure?  it would same the poor kid some embarrassment as he ages…

Only In Seattle…

…would mothers think it was a good idea to play in the water fountain

when it was raining (note other child with her hood on – not a true Seattleite.)

A Seattle mother justifies this decision with the fact that it had been sunny and beautiful earlier in the day.

Because in Seattle, that counts as a nice day!

But only Jack would take it as far as putting his whole body in the fountain and getting soaking wet.

Do You Want To Hear the Good News or the Bad News First?

Let’s start with the bad news…

My camera is having technical issues so I cannot post photos of Owen at his birthday party today. 

The good news is that I can post them tomorrow when the battery is recharged.

In other bad news this week…the following is the latest from the company that we are flying with to Europe.

Sadly, the good news is that we only have to wait until next Wednesday to find out if our flight is canceled or not.

Or maybe the good news is that some other Seattle to London flights on British Airways have not been canceled during the first week of the strike.

Rocket Cake

I am not sure how or why, but I have just spent something like three hours decorating a birthday cake for Owen.  That doesn’t include the time it took to actually make and bake the cake.  Twice. (The first time, two weeks ago, as a test to see if you could actually bake a cake in a tin can – you can.)  Nor the time to hunt down the silver “rivets” which I could find in no stores or online.  I was lucky to be able to get them, as I happened to mention it to my grandma, who dug through her baking stuff and found one jar which looked 40 years old.  It also doesn’t include the time it took to find the right candy for the fins – something that would hold its shape.  (I can tell you what doesn’t work, if you are interested.)

Owen really wanted  a rocket cake and party, and I wanted his cake to be nice since there really isn’t going to be much else in the way of decoration.  With his birthday so close to our trip, we decided to do a small gymnastics event at the gym that he and Jack go to each week. 

I think I probably care more about the cake than Owen.  I wonder how long it will take the kids to eat it…

I Think I’m Back

I know my monkeys are ready for me to be back with them too.  While the novelty of watching as much TV as they wanted kept them happy for awhile, (Curious George shows and Word World shows!) it really is boring to do nothing else.  “Are you going to play with us at ALL today?” Owen asked me yesterday.  I am glad he missed me.

I missed playing with my monkeys.  All my extra energy went to making meals and driving Owen to school and back.  I am not sure where five days went!?! 

Of course, my house looks like it has five days of chaos though, so I believe those days did exist…

Sick Days

Can I call in some sick days here?

I figure that when you take  sick days, noone really does your work, it just waits for you at your job until you return.

I have had all of these ideas for this blog, but none of the energy the last few days.  Have gone to bed just after the kids, but can’t seem to fight this off. 

So, I will return in a day or two (and finish all of my “back-work” then.)

I have no plans to quit blogging.

Please don’t fire me.

Mini Mothers Day

Today was a host of Mothers Day activities.

This morning, Owen’s class invited in all the mamas and served cookies, lemonade, and strawberries.  Owen was bursting with pride to show me all of his creations: a pot-holder printed with his hands, a flower pot, a keychain with little hearts, and a heart pendant.  He showed me each detail and described how he had been thinking of me when he made each item.  Mostly because he chose green paint, or green sparkles, or green beads.

He wrote that I am 20 years old, I like the color green, my favorite TV show is the news, and my favorite food is parsnips.  My favorite thing to do is to read to him, and he loves me because I draw nice pictures for him.

My favorite part of Owen’s event was the singing at the end.  He takes singing and learning all of the words so seriously.  He sang with a shy embarrassed smile, but knew all of the words and actions, and was obviously proud.  Most of the songs I had not heard at home because he wanted them to be a surprise. ( I wish I had that kind of control over songs that jump into my head - and I find myself singing them without even noticing – for instance “It’s a Small World” and the like…)

Later in the day Kris treated me and the boys to a Recess Monkey concert in West Seattle.  The music had super cute kid lyrics with catchy tunes.  Most of the kids danced through the whole thing, but my monkeys just held hands and took everything in. 

Our finale was to share dessert at the Luna Park Cafe in West Seattle.  We picked a yummy chocolate-mint milkshake.  Below is us eating ONE that has been split into three cups!

I could get used to this whole Mother’s Day thing…

Let the Mother’s Day weekend begin!!

Photos

My grandparents recently took about 1200 slides and made them into digital photos for the computer.  Today I  spent most of the day helping them put “tags” on the photographs so they could retrieved the photos more quickly.

In their slide collection, my grandparents had photos from about 10 years ago to about 50 years ago.  They hadn’t seem many  of the photos since they were developed into slides!  It was so much fun to see my grandma and grandpa discover these photos again, and to hear stories of my mom and my uncles.

I especially love that my grandfather bought an expensive and sophisticated camera for the time, and many of his photographs are amazing.  (The story is that while living in Alaska, my grandma had the opportunity to take a ship to Japan to shop.  My grandpa agreed that she could go as long as she would bring him back a camera.)

These are a few of my favorites from their collection.

My Grandma and Grandpa (about 50 years ago)

Grandpa stuck in the mud.

Uncle Paul “killing” Uncle Steve. 

Mom, Uncles -  John, Steve, Paul

Uncle John with a kitty (this makes me think of Jack)

Our Vacation Spot

Hmm…

This is Greece right now. 

Greeks are protesting conditions placed on them in exchange for bailout loans from the IMF.

6 weeks suddenly doesn’t seem that far away…

AAh, I See…

So, I figured out where all of the extra time came from that I had yesterday.  It came from today.

Let’s just say that one of the first things I do in the morning is empty the dishwasher.  Even that didn’t get done today. 

Owen made it to preschool and then gymnastics on time, but that was about it.  After a day in which I did almost nothing but play with Jack, we went out for dinner because I was too tired to think of cooking.

Now I am exhausted and going to bed.

But today was a good day anyway.  How could it not be when you have Jack as a playmate? (someone please remind me I said this when I am not feeling this way on some other day…)

Grady thinks it is really fun to watch me clean, and smiles and laughs when I wipe counters.  So, tomorrow I should be able to get a few things done.

Slow Day

Some days seem to fly by so quickly.  I wake up, do a few things (but not usually the things that need to get done) and then fall into bed exhausted, wondering what happened.

Each day I try to spend time on the house, some with the boys, some with Eric, and have some time alone for myself.

In trying to fit all of those in, I often combine cleaning the house while listening to a book on cd or some type of podcast.  I love that I can have my mind on something else and still get things done around the house.  “Reading” this was was a big revelation to me, at the time I discovered it, that I didn’t have to choose between taking care of the house and having some time to myself.

But today I have rediscovered books.  I have had a novel sitting on my bedside table for months now and picked it up this afternoon, reading a few pages.  I have read it off and on all day today, and have almost finished it. 

There is something about progressing through a book.  Where the few pages you hold in you left hand increase until they hold the entire book.  It is tangible proof of progress.

The thing is, I also did so much else today.  Eric and I sat and talked and drank coffee this morning.  We all played Lego for ages.  I roughhoused with the boys, made dinner, did a few loads of laundry, talked on the phone for an hour with my friend, and spent over an hour this evening reading with Jack and teaching him letters.

Every time I noticed the time, it seemed like hardly any time had passed.  I even had the beginnings of a migraine today and I slept for a few hours to let it pass(not sure what that was about as I haven’t had one in probably 5 years!)  Still the day stretched on, and made room for more time to relax.

I have no doubt that tomorrow will fly by, but it was great to have such a slow day, and to enjoy it.

Jack is Packed

Eric wanted to pack his bag for the trip to see how everything fits.  He will be carrying Jack or Owen’s stuff too, so I packed for Jack to test things out.  

• 4 pair shorts
• 6 t-shirts
• long-sleeved shirt
• pj’s
• 2 swimsuits and a rashguard
• zip off pants
• wind/waterproof pants
• 1 pr. smartwool socks
• (oops, need undies!)

Jack’s clothes weigh about 4 1/2 pounds.  Add another for his toiletries  (shampoo, sunscreen, toothpaste, hand sanitizer, toothbrush, vitamins) and other things (sunglasses, earphones, small pool toys).

He’ll have his backpack of toys, books, snacks, and “nai-nai guy” which he can carry (hopefully).

I figure we can go for a week before we need to wash clothes. 

Am I missing something?