A Little Something?

This morning, the bambini woke up late (by which we mean 6:30am), and Birdie was not her usual up-and-at-'em-at-the-rail self. She didn't have a fever, but she was quite content to lay on top of Julie on the couch. She pushed herself up twice to say "Dog!" and pull her dog in close. Julie was thinking about how just yesterday, she had been wondering when the last time she had laid like that with Clara was, and how it was one of those things when you didn't know the last time would be the last time.

But then Birdie pushed herself up and threw up! We think maybe she was thirsty, but really, we've no idea. We think this, despite the fact that she had a very wet diaper this morning. We were outside a lot yesterday, and Birdie is wary of this whole open cup nonsense. She's getting better at it, but we still offer and sippy cup when we're out and about, or outside, and boy does she seize those moments to drink up!

Bye-Bye Morning Nap!

The other big thing that happened this weekend was Clara dropped her morning nap. They take only one nap in the Big Girl Toddler Room, at 12:30pm. Birdie has been shorting her afternoon nap, so we and her teachers all though she was ready to make this transition, but this change represents an overhaul of the weekend rhythm! On this first, transition weekend, we planned a Fun Parade each of the past two mornings to help Birdie make the long march from 6am to 12:30pm. Yesterday, we went to Home Depot, the car wash, Target, Schuler's Shoes, and Whole Foods, and then played in the backyard before lunch. (A rolling stone gathers no moss, Fans.)

Today, we went to the Children's Museum, and visited its Habitot exhibit for infant and toddlers four years and younger. This is a room that has different environments and attendant accoutrements on and through which kids can climb. For example, there is a little arctic enclave (slightly cooler than the rest of the room!) with igloo building blocks and jungle bells, chimes, and faux icicles to clink together. They loved it! They were everywhere. Clara twice found herself at the top of an area the only way down from which was a slide. She was set to just pitch down there and see what happened, but settled for coasting down on Julie's lap, which Birdie's loved. She walked up and down the rolling hills and scaled some steeper inclines, and slid down them if they weren't too tall. We could tell Clara was tired by the time we left by the way she got less steady on her feet, and started crawling instead of walking.

So we headed for the hot dog place Julie sometimes goes to for lunch in St. Paul where Joe and Clara has tater tots and split a hamburger ("Because I [Joe] don't like hot dogs, but I love hamburgers.") Then, Ted drove the bambini and Julie home; they all sat in the back seat. Julie tickled Clara; sang Down in the Meadow (in an itty bitty pool, swam three little fishies, and a mama fishy, too. . .) about 10 times at top volume (also we're floating down the river on the Oh-Hi-O, and a Sandra Boynton medley with Ted); and spelled words by letter, alternating letters with Ted, words selected by Joe following Julie's inaugural selection of Mississippi as we crossed it (two issi-s, Fans! it's not Miss-ippi!).

It was raucous and obnoxious. And still Birdie fell asleep. We had not wanted to be so far afield necessitating a long car ride back at exactly the wrong time, but it was so humid, we couldn't really be outside at any of our usual outdoors-y (and free) spots on our side of the river. So we landed at the air conditioned (and free) spot on the St. Paul side. Birdie roused upon our arrival home, but she let out just one protest wail before going back to sleep.

All things considered, it's all going down vastly better today than it did yesterday, which was pretty much a disaster, culminating in Joe's arrival, buck naked in the backyard. When Julie escorted him back to bed, it was clear he'd been up and all out and about for a while--he'd used the potty (we stopped to do some additional wiping), been down to the basement (Baby Doll had been drying on the table down there after her water table baptism and was at the top of the stairs), Berenice's leash was down on the ground. Oh Fans. You should have seen his face as he came out the back door and walked right over and put his arms around Ted. He was the very picture of "Hey HEY! Check ME OUT!!!!!" Such joy. It sort of broke our hearts to take him back in. Naturally, when we did, he was wailing, so Clara began wailing. We've not yet mentioned that since they went down at the same time, they spent a good while yukking it up. So yes, sort of a disaster so far as restorative sleep goes.

Joe's napping days are probably drawing to a close. He's up later at night after bedtime, and this is the second time he's gotten up from a nap-that-was-not-a-nap. But we'll see how things unfold before we introduce him to Nap Time's friend, Quiet Time.

Birdie Needs a New Pair of Shoes!

Birdie will begin her transition to the Big Girl Toddler Room this week which meant two big things happened this weekend. The first was she got her first pair of shoes! On the advice of Sara, we took her to Schuler's Shoes in the Miracle Mile which we have passed countless times going to and from Dairy Queen and all round and about in that area, but had never been in. Sara reported that they measure your bambino's feet, and then bring you out what they have in that size.

Here, we pause to tell you, Dear Readers, that this is in contrast to the Shoe Zoo, where you find the shoes you like for your child, they measure your child's foot, and then disappear for what feels like five years only to return and tell you that they do not have the sandal you liked for your son in navy--but! You can get in neon aqua! "And that's been very popular." Probably because parents have aged 10 years while they wait for the clerk to return and tell them there is no navy "but the aqua is so popular!" and just don't have the energy to go someplace else. All this before they give your kid a balloon which he or she will grip so tightly in the car it will squeak the whole way home, while you worry it will pop before you get there (or later), and be something of which you have to keep track until it deflates enough, and enough days have passed, that you can furtively stab it with scissors or stuff it into the garbage can. (It's true. You have deduced correctly that we do not like the Shoe Zoo.)

If you are an older reader, you may be thinking, "What the heck ever happened to Stride Rite?" You may have had shoes bought for you there, or you may have bought your children shoes there. It seems like it used to be everyone bought shoes for the little people at Stride Rite. So yes, what the heck ever happened to Stride Rite? It's still around. Fed up with the zoo-iness of the Shoe Zoo, we strode rite on in. We got Joe some sneakers and sandals there at the start of this season. The sneakers didn't even last until now. They're not in ribbons (yet), but they are falling apart. He is still wearing the sandals, but one day this week, Ted glued the inserts that go in their bottoms down with Krazy Glue since one of Joe's favorite things to do had become sitting down to take off his shoes, and remove the inserts. (It really added something to the coming-home-getting-dinner-ready milieu.) You get what you pay for? Shoes are cheaper at Stride Rite, but they don't seem up to what a toddler at least can dish out.

And so, Schuler's Shoes. What it lacks in selection, it more than makes up for in ease of shopping experience. They opened at 10am, and we arrived at 10:01am to find no less than probably 10 people near the door just waiting to help us. (And they didn't let on that our entourage of a 15-month-old, three-year-old already running, and two probably clearly tired already at 10:02am parents might not have been the way they wanted to start their Saturday.)

While Joe tore about the store and tried to behave in such a paradise of delights (shoe-fitting stools = mini-mountain slides!, shoes everywhere to try on! put them back?! what?!?!), Birdie had her feet measured. She explored a bit, too (shoe-fitting stools = mini-mountains only; no sliding) while we waited to see what would be available in a size four. She and Julie rather liked a pair of lavender Teva sandals like Graham had last year, but as KinderCare demands a closed-toe shoe, the open-toe Tevas were not to be. But, Birdie's new and first pair of kicks are purple! Ted said she looks like she's trying to walk in swim flippers, and that's true. But they are smart looking flippers.

It was all a flurry as we left. Joe was actually carried out by Julie after he had slid down one too many a shoe-fitting stool and picked up one too many a shoe, as Ted tried to hold Clara while he paid.

But, at least we weren't wrangling a balloon.

Because We Love Our Little Bo Bo

These days, Fans. They fly by. So fast that we often find a week's worth will have passed and we'll not made time each day to capture, here, all of the little, good bits that make up our days. Like we have been meaning to tell you for weeks now that Joe has taken to calling each of us Little Horsey. He is Little Bo Bo. We think this nomenclature originated at daycare, as we've heard Joe and Marco using it with great fluency. So we will have exchanges like this:

Ted: "Joe, please sit on your bottom."

Joe: "O-kay, Little Horsey."

Ted: "Thanks, Little Bo Bo."

Also of late, Joe will often cite his love for something or someone. For example, earlier this week, when Julie was getting him dressed, Joe informed her he wanted to wear Thomas the Tank underwear, adding, "Because I love Thomas."

We love our Little Bo Bo.

Backyard Thoughts

As we wrote, we played outside after we got back from visiting Dr. Harrington and dinner at Chipotle. Ted worked from home part of the day and Julie took the day off entirely so we could tend to some things around the house, including an overhaul of the gardens in the backyard. Before we'd left to collect Clara for her doctor's appointment, we'd set up the water table so the sun would warm the water and in hopes that it would provide enough entertainment to allow us to do a bit more work in the yard.

As you can see, success! In the wake of our week at the lake house, Joe is quite comfortable around water, and quite keen on being in it no matter what. (Baby Doll is back as well. She'd been tucked in the garage for a time until Clara was walking with more confidence. When we play outside, Joe spends a fair amount of time ferrying things out of the garage and into the yard, including their automobiles.) Curiously, Joe will often pitch a mini-fit if Clara splashes him. We think it is not so much that he doesn't want to be splashed, as he just isn't expecting it. He wants to play with Clara, but you can sometimes see him wrestling with the limitations of her age. (Doesn't she know that you don't knock the arctic wonderland down from the water table? Doesn't she know we are taking thing out of the bucket, not putting things in it?) Still, she is so much more fun than we are. This morning, Clara was following him around while he said "Blue!" (or shoe? or goo?) over and over again at not quite the top of his lungs, but with conviction. So they get on, and maybe one day, not so far from now, they can open up a pretend restaurant, and bring us pretend lemonade which we can pretend to sip while we sit on real chairs, and watch them having real fun together.

Clara's 15 Month Well-Bird Exam

Birdie Brigade! Our Birdie is now 15 months old! (We know! Who can believe it?) Accordingly, Friday found us visiting Dr. Harrington for Birdie's well-child check-up. We arrived at KinderCare around 3:30pm to collect her, just in time to see Joe visiting the ice cream truck which comes some Fridays in the summer. So now we know that all the kids sit in a line on the sidewalk and against the building and get their ice cream one at a time. (Joe always gets chocolate. "Because [he] loves chocolate.") We had to hang out around the corner, and keep surreptitiously peaking around it to make sure he and his classmates had cleared out before we went in to get Birdie. When we arrived at her room, we were told she'd just flapped at Joe through the door.

As always, we begin with the stats: weighing in at 23 pounds, 9 ounces (62%), and measuring 31 1/4 inches (75%), she is, as Dr. Harrington said, "growing like a weed." (By way of contrast, at Birdie's 12 month well-child check-up, she was 20 pounds, 11 ounces (44%) and 28 1/2 inches (30%).) She does seem rather tall, Brigade. But rather willowy at the same time; her shorts always hang down a bit. (We had her in the 6 to 12 month size, but even at 12 months, it was like she was wearing short shorts! Finally Julie realized that a lady doesn't show her diaper like that, and we got her a bigger size, but they fall down a bit. This is a new one on us, as Our Hero came out with a flag and tackle football ready physique.)

Birdie dazzled by zooming all about the exam room. In the past week, she has gotten very confident walking. Just two weeks ago, when she tumbled, she'd often revert to crawling instead of resuming walking, but the opposite is true now. She no longer has to pull to a stand. She has quads of steel! She just goes up and down on her own steam.

She had two shots (hepatitis A and B), and had some blood drawn so her hemoglobin levels could be checked. They were a little low at 12 months, but back to normal now. The blood was drawn from her finger, and she did not like it. She was mollified briefly by a rousing chorus of The Itsy Bitsy Spider, but then it just got worse: when she made to go to her happy place pose, there was a band-aid on her finger! She kept shaking her hand, all "Get it off me!"

But then we went an picked up Joe, and went to Chipotle for dinner, before playing in the backyard before bedtime. So it all worked out o-kay in the end.

Bedtime Antics

As we've mentioned, Joe and Clara are starting to play together more and more. By playing together, we mean that we will see, for example, Joe cart the throw pillows from the sofa in the living room into the kitchen, pitch them on the floor so that he and Clara can lie on them and cackle at each other. Clara was still awake tonight when we put Joe down, and it wasn't long before we heard Clara laughing at something Joe was saying or doing. We like to peak through the keyhole of the door, or the crack in the door if it's come slightly ajar. Clara always stands at the rail. You may want to increase all of your volumes, Fans, so that you can hear Our Hero serenading Birdie with his version of Sandra Boynton's Barnyard Dance (which we read tonight before bed for the first time; but Julie thinks he may be acquainted with it from school). Moo!

Open Cup

Birdie Brigade, you may recall that Birdie is slated to move on to the Big Girl Room (the Toddler Room) in just two weeks. Before she goes, there's lots for a Bird to get a handle on: drinking from an open cup, dining sans bib, one nap, shoes. . .Today, at school, she began tackling drinking from an open cup and without a bib. Though they forgo a bib at daycare, we'll continue to use one at home, but we are also now offering the open cup. Here's how it went down at dinner tonight.

"Hi. Yes, I have a rather darling affect, n'est-ce-pas?"

"What's in this pink bowl over here?"

"Oh. It's not a bowl? And I have to use two hands? Dude. What? I like to one hand it. I can still one hand it. I just grab the rim. Rim it! Then I have one hand free for my quesadilla. Yeah, I see Joseph Trump over there. He also peels his quesadilla apart. Have you seen that trick? Oh fine. Two hands, two hands. . .Alright, alright."

"I did it! What? I'm not supposed to spill any on the table? Hey--you ever heard this one? No sense crying over spilt milk?! So don't get your panties in a bunch."

The Lake House | An Addendum

The constraints of the caption format of the commentary that accompanied our lake house slide show didn't allow us to report everything that we wanted to report to you, Dear Readers.

Our trip to the lake house was so great in so many ways. We saw Aunt Kate, Uncle Scott, and Cousin Nick; we got to go swimming; and floating; and boating; and fishing; and save cooking and washing some beach towels, there were no chores to be done. Though one couldn't describe any vacation with a three-year-old and a 15-month-old as restful, many hands make light work, and anyway, it was lovely to have so many days with them unfettered by workaday demands.

Joe didn't demand that Ted do anything while we were there, or since we've been back. Tonight, Julie got Joe out of his car seat! Last night, the bambini had some trouble getting to sleep. Joe woke up needing to use the potty (and boy did he!). Clara woke up, too. After Joe had gone potty and was tucked back in, and Clara was tucked back in, the door was no more shut than near simultaneous wails began. Everyone was retucked in and Julie retreated upstairs. All was quiet--for about 10 minutes, when Joe began wailing again, which set Clara off again. It's been a long, long while since we've had a night like that! When Julie went back down and asked Joe why he was crying, he said, "I wanted you." It's been a long, long time since Julie's heard something like that.

Our week at the lake house also gave the bambini a lot of time to play with each other, and they are starting to do so, all on their own, which is a real kick to observe and overhear. Joe delights in telling Clara what to do. Tonight, Julie overheard him tell Clara "No! Not there!" and then "There you go!" as she removed a rectangle from a shape puzzle. In the car on the way home from the lake house, Joe got hold of one of the noodles and was dangling it in Clara's face, who tried to put it in her mouth, which gave Joe the opportunity to tell her "No!" They both thought that was hilarious. They also like to chase each other about. Already, they seem to have jokes that only they get. It's nice though, to be on the outside, looking in.

So it was a great week, that came at a good time.

Mama!

Before the birthday party and before Clara went down for her nap, the Birds were out in the gardens and yard, thinning the iris now that their season is winding down, and messing about with the bucket of sand toys. (Clara cut two teeth last week, and so also enjoyed gnawing on the bucket in which the sand toys are stored.) Little Bird is all about Big Bird, but it must be said that although Ms. Melissa had reported hearing Clara say Mama while pointing to Julie's picture on the wall of Clara's room, we had never heard her say it.

Until yesterday! Clara spent most of Darby's party on a blanket near Julie, trying to walk on the uneven grass and make off with one of the tiaras that was floating around. But near the party's end, she said, with perfect enunciation, and clear as a bell, "Mama." Julie's heart soared! She scooped Birdie up and gave her a big squeeze. Birdie laughed, and snuggled in.

Check Your Tiara At the Bounce House Door

Sunday afternoon found us off to Darby's third birthday party. Darby lives just two blocks over so we all walked, save Clara, who arrived in her sporty red roadster. Fans, those of you who have been with us from the very, very beginning may recall that Joe was once, for a long time, the absolute apple of Darby's eye. While her affection for Joe, whom she still calls Joe-Joe*, remains undiminished, its intensity has waned a bit with time. So it was that Joe's reputation very much proceeded him. Upon making our entrance to Darby's backyard, more than a few people said something like, "So this is the famous Joe!"

The Famous Joe, having not been fully roused from his nap by the walk over, was a bit shy, and flatly refused to go in the bounce house that had been rented, and which the Birthday Girl had decreed could no be jumped in until others had arrived. (Also, no tiaras in the bounce house.**) No matter. When Joe refused to go in it, she ordered it deflated and they had a ball smooshing it. Eventually, Marco and Sophie arrived and all of the kids were jumping up and down in it with abandon. This is the best picture that could be had of the Birthday Princess and her birthday entourage.

* Longtime readers may also recall that Our Hero's earliest KinderCare moniker was (regrettably) Joe-Joe.

**We are sort of tickled to report to you that another rule is "No cake in the bounce house." This rule apparently made by the purveyors of the bounce house. Apparently, it's been tried?!

The Lake House | The Slideshow

Go here to see all the good times.*

*If you clicked there before and were denied, try again. We had some technical difficulties (read: we did not change the Picassa album setting to public). The Joe and Clara Jane administrators regret the error.

The Party Rages On

Fans! We are back. Aunt Kate, Uncle Scott, and Cousin Nick were slated to leave Saturday to make the long drive back to Paoli, and with rain, thunderstorms, and the possibility of hail predicted for the whole day, we decided to head for home, too. We no sooner pulled out from the gas station, than the sky cracked open. It rained all the way to the Wisconsin-Minnesota border.

We are getting pictures from our trip to the lake house (and Clara's first trip outside of Minnesota!) together with color commentary to post soon. In the meantime, we can tell you that the party never stops at Raleigh House--literally. Here is Joe yesterday, pre-his-bath, and while Clara was bathing, hosting a party. (The underwear and diapers are presents. Duh.) The party was relocated to the living room, where we learned that Sheepie was turning five! At first, Teddy couldn't come because he kept falling over, but Julie fixed that and Teddy celebrated with cake* together with Sheepie, Neaky, the birdies, Mortimer the Moose, Pierre Le Peacock, and Octavius the Octopus. Joe informed us that there would be Skittles** all day long. He told us this several times.

*The cake was the blocks from the push-along lawn mower.

**Long-time readers will recall that Skittles was the reward of choice at KinderCare for success on the potty front.

To the Lake House!

Fans, today, we are headed across the border to Wisconsin, where we will spend a week with Aunt Kate, Uncle Scott, and Cousin Nick in a lake house we rented way, way back in September. When he woke up this morning, Joe asked if it was pajama day, and Julie said, "No, it's LAKE HOUSE DAY!" Joe, with mounting excitement in his voice, informed her that we would need to bring the Aquadoodle, and Quick Is Like a Cricket [sic]. Indeed, Fans, indeed. He refers to the small travel-sized Aquadoodle which he spied in the basement some moons ago, and has been patiently waiting to play with ever since, as well as Quick As a Cricket, which he had wanted to read before bed last night until Julie told him she'd packed it for the lake house.

A veritable flotilla of gear and sundries will be accompanying the travel-sized Aquadoodle, Quick Is Like a Cricket, and us, on this journey. (We are going to try to bring Birdie's sporty red roadster with us, but truthfully, we may have to tow it and see how the plastic tires handle the interstate.) Julie has also been cleaning so that we return home to a clean house.* Last night, she decided to quickly bang out the upstairs so as to not have to worry about it today. Joe was given a vacuum for his birthday by his Grandparents Trump so he helped out. What this thing makes up for in quality engineering (if it is banged too hard--and toddlers are not ones to bang their toys, oh no--the batteries dislodge and a parent must get a phillips head screw driver, remove the top of the battery compartment, and re-secure the batteries; it's fun for the whole family!), it makes up for in style as Joe has ceased to be quite so enamored of Mommy's vacuum. (It does actually pick up dirt. It is funneled into a compartment above that containing red and white beads that whir about when the vacuum is on.)

And so, Fans! We will see you on the flip! (As the saying goes here at Raleigh House.)

*This is perhaps important only to her.

Princess Mommy

And just when we swear we have been flat out driven up a flat out wall by our fabulous and fabulously maddening three-year-old son, Julie comes downstairs in the maxi dress she grabbed on a whim off the rack when we'd run to Target after nap, to ask Ted what he thought, and Joe turns around from his dinner and says, "You look goooood!"

And then: "Mommy, why are you a princess?"

Joe's Three-Year Well-Child Exam*

Joe paid a visit to his beloved Dr. Harrington Thursday for his three-year well-child exam. Now that he's three, he's a lot more clued into everything. So when Julie arrived to pick him up to go see Dr. Harrington, he promptly informed her he wasn't sick. After Julie had set him straight, he set Ms. Tyree and his friend Teddy straight: "I going to see Dr. Harrington. But I not sick! I be right back."

Joe's well-child exam revealed that Joe is well. He weighed in at 38 pounds (94%) and measured 38 1/2" (76%). His ear tubes have fallen out. They begin testing vision at three, and we are told Joe has 20/30 vision, and that this is within the normal range for this age. (This vision test was pretty hilarious. Instead of letters, the kid is asked to identify shapes--stars, hearts, circles, squares. Julie thinks Joe started saying "I don't know," when Nurse Amber asked him what a shape was when he got tired of this "game." He did, after all, have the lollipop and sticker that were to come at the end fixed firmly in his mind. Yes, much more clued into how this all works now.)

Joe has continued to express a preference for Ted to do certain things: climb on his bed in the morning for the morning snuggle-in, pour his two bowls of cereal, pour his juice, push in his chair to the table, and buckle and unbuckle his car seat. His objection to Julie doing them seems to be rooted in his expectation that Ted will do them, and that Julie will do other things (it is, according to Joe, Julie's job to lift Clara from her crib in the morning). If Ted is about, and Julie tries, tears are shed, wails are wailed, bodies are occasionally flung upon the ground and feet kicked. She continues on, but both Julie and Joe are heartbroken, albeit for different reasons. We have been careful to mix up who does what for whom, and to carve out one-on-one time with each of us for both Joe and Clara, so we were at a bit of a loss.

Dr. Harrington told Julie this was all normal, and that we were doing just right. When Julie managed to choke out that Joe once replied to Ted that "No, he did not love Mommy," Dr. Harrington laughed reassuringly and said, "Oh of course he did!" But confirmed that of course, he really has no idea what that means, beyond knowing it would probably get some kind of reaction.

And so we continue on, doing our best to get the snuggling done, the cereal and the juice poured, the chairs pushed in, the car seat buckled and unbuckled, poker faced, with sometimes teary eyes and exasperated spirits, but full hearts.

*We thought you, Dear Readers, might like to know that following the doctor's visit, when Julie took Joe for a cupcake at Yum!, Joe put pepper on his cupcake, and his lollipop. This one loves a pepper mill.

Yesterday

The day before yesterday, Joe used the word "yesterday" correctly for the first time. Prior to the day before yesterday, Joe cast everything in terms of last week, last summer, next week, or next summer--e.g. we would be going to the lake house last summer. But the day before yesterday, as he was sidling up to the breakfast table, he said that he would like apple cinnamon [Cheerios] and chocolate [again, Cheerios], "same as yesterday." Who knows what tomorrow will bring!

That Maple Syrup!

But there are some things that really get Birdie's goat. For example, this maple syrup here that came with the groceries for the grocery cart. The top won't come off! She's done told us and told us that really, this top needs to come off. We've done told her and told her that it just doesn't. But you know, Birdie laughs when she's frustrated, too. She laughs a special machine-gun-esque type laugh.

The catsup that came with the groceries doesn't open either. Birdie's really fit to be tied over this whole state of affairs.

Sweet Birdie

Our Birdie is getting bigger and bigger. She's getting so big that soon, she will be moving to the Toddler Room at KinderCare. There, she will nap just once a day and drink from an open cup (among other things)! This transition is slated to begin the second week of August. She will be making the transition with her friend, John.

Last night, when we were walking down the hallway at KinderCare to collect Joe and Clara, Julie overheard Ms. Melissa talking to the mother of another baby in Clara's room, this one still small enough to be tucked into a bucket. She didn't catch all of what was said, but it was something to do with Clara being so full of smiles, and the mother said she knew her baby would be sad to see Clara go. Julie was pretty puffed up and she continued on her way.

Because it must be said, our Birdie is just so full of sunshine. She laughs out loud so often, and she dances! Last night, we decided to do to Chipotle for dinner. They were playing a kind of mellow house music and Biride was just bopping right along. Julie reached out her hand to hold, and well, let's just say, that took the moves to a whole new level.

She's a lot a fun. Oh she'll make your heart smile.

Introducing Pink Dog

We have been meaning to report that Clara has begun sleeping with her own menagerie, though as of yet, it does not come close to matching Joe's in numbers. When Grandma Connie and Grandpa Charles gave Joe Neaky, they also gave, to Clara, Pink Dog. At the time, Pink Dog was as big as Clara, so we tucked Pink Dog away. Naturally, Joe found Pink Dog, and let him out from time to time. Soon enough though, Clara was at least equal to Pink Dog, and the other day, she would not have him pried from her little hands. So Pink Dog went to bed with her that night, and now does every night.

Dining Al Fresco

Wednesday evening found Ted solo with the kids for pick up and dinner. Thinking dinner would be burgers cooked on the grill, Ted thought he would try to have the kids eat outside with the hope that the novelty would keep them entertained while dinner was put on the table. Fortunately, it worked! Clara crawled right onto the picnic bench and sat there to eat her dinner. Joe ate his whole dinner, with a side trip to the salad bar (meaning the chive plant by the back door that he likes to pluck). They were just finished eating when Julie pulled into the driveway and Joe welcomed her with some jumping up and down and a big hug while pulling his legs up off the ground.

The after dinner entertainment was watching Ted knock a dead limb out of the fir tree and then watching Joe mimic the maneuver.

Birdie's Words

Birdie has also been pointing quite a bit of late to ask what "dat" is. Her technique is to pump her little arm in and out with the index finger on her hand extended. She particularly likes to point at a poster of Austin's Continental Club that Julie and Ted picked up there the summer Ted lived in Austin. It was taken in another decade and features an older car parked in front, with a motor cycle pulling away in the background. Birdie most definitely can say car, and dog. She also recognizes an airplane and will point to the sky when she hears one fly overhead. Recently, we've been teaching her where her nose is, and she has begun to point to it, instead of her belly button. Not so much when she is asked where her nose is (though she no longer points to her belly button then), but just as she's being toted along, maybe. She lifts a finger up--almost inside it!--and looks over to you like she's got a secret to tell you, on the QT!

Birdie can also say Joe. This morning, after Julie had picked her up and we were all congregated on Joe's bed, she pointed right at her brother, and said, "Doe."

The Purple Lady Bug Bandit Strikes Again!

Birdie's top, front, her-left, outer tooth has been coming in, and she has, to add insult to injury, had some awful diaper rash. So it was perhaps not surprising today that at pick-up today, we found her with her favorite, trusty purple ladybug teether (which longtime readers will no doubt remember Birdie absconded with once before*), which she could not be persuaded to abandon. Miss Steph said Birdie could take it home with her.

*http://joeandclara.blogspot.com/2011/05/purple-lady-bug-bandit-gets-tooth.html

An Underwear and Potty Update

Fans, we have been meaning to update you on the underwear and potty front. We are pleased to report that Joe has been accident free--during the day, and at night!--for some time now. We had no hopes, let alone expectations, with respect to the night, and then had two nights in a row after which Joe woke up dry. So we asked him if he'd like to wear underwear to bed, and he said yes. So underwear it was. He had accidents the first two nights. Thereafter, he went through this spurt where, in addition to stripping off his pajamas, he also stripped off his underwear. Some nights we saw some really debauched rock 'n' roller nocturnal poses! Other nights, we would find he'd made a trip to the diaper drawer to cart a few diapers back to his bed. Then, he stopped stripping off his underwear, and stopped making trips to the diaper drawer, and he's been dry in the mornings for at least a week now.

During the day, he's totally self-sufficient when it comes to this potty business. He may announce that he has to go, or he may not. Either way, off he goes when he has to go. He sits to poop and stands to pee. When he stands to pee, he pitches himself forward and grasps the flipped up seat with both hands. Then he pushes off and climbs on down.

When he's out and about, if a low urinal is available, he will avail himself of it. Ted informs this author that Joe has informed Ted that he "pees on the pink thing." Indeed. This author has not seen such sights, but has heard tell of them, and can tell you that is particularly thrilling to hear tell of such sights from her three year old because of all it represents--i.e. increased independence and advanced hygiene. These days, we are known to discuss with the parents of other little people, the relative merits of public bathrooms (Whole Foods, good; Yum!, surprisingly not child-friendly--no stool, an industrial kitchen cart that's meant to be a changing table--we think? really, Yum!?), and, in the case of our fellow parents-of-the-recently-potty-trained-that-are-boys, where the urinals for little people are to be found. We can also report that Joe knows when to hold it. When at Lake Calhoun recently, Joe reported he had to use the potty, Ted took him off to the port-a-potty. Joe took one look at the delights inside, and said no.

The only hiccups are that he sometimes puts his underwear back on backwards, and he's not always through when wiping after pooping. At home at least, he knows to call for someone to help. We have also had a clogged toilet twice as our newest potty user learns the appropriate amount of toilet paper to use. We'll take it.

THREE!

Fans. Our Hero has turned three. Another year--and another party--in the bag. The party was a rager. Here's the backyard at party's end, after some picking up had occurred.

"What in the world are those things?!" you say? Oh, Readers. Dear Readers. We must go back to when we woke up, and saw that there was a 60% chance of nothing good--rain, "severe weather," hail. . .So yes, we panicked, and headed to the general merchandise mecca, Target, where we procured two, 10' x 10' "gazebos" that were on clearance. It took Ted two hours to put up the first one; an hour for the second. Julie's dad arrived somewhere toward the end of the construction of the first and so was able to lend a hand from there on out. Good thing, since the Birthday Boy was helping build the first, at first, and as you might thinking, he brought a lot of enthusiasm to the task, but not much else.

Naturally, since we prepared for rain, not a drop fell. It was, however, plenty hot, and plenty humid. Luckily, there was a breeze from time to time, and plenty of cool drinks. All the toddlers mainlined juice boxes, which is perhaps how it came to be that they closed the party down by toting--with great glee and industriousness--ice and water from the beverage tubs from the backyard to the front yard in sand molds and buckets.

Joe's cake had a whale on it this year, in honor of the whale pool. The party's funniest moment came when all were gathered round to serenade Joe, and Ted was just about to put the candle in the cake, when Joe's friend from school, Sophie, stuck her hand right in the middle of the whale. Hilarious, Fans. Hilarious! And that's right where we put the candle.

Clara kept cool and charmed in her romper. Her (and Joe's) Great Great Aunts Shirley, Muriel, and Nyla* were in attendance, and Clara made a big splash when she pulled herself up from the blanket on which she'd been playing and walked--no hands!--over to Julie who was sitting catching up with them.

There were lots of presents. Our Hero kept this fact--and the cake--top of mind. He was set to open the presents after the last of the guests had left, but by that time, Ted had dashed across the river to collect Berenice from doggie camp, and it was very nearly bath time. We are used to the presents barely being registered and so did not allot time for Our Hero to open them!** Lips may have trembled. But how proud was Julie when, in the course of negotiations, she said we just had to wait to open them until the next day because Daddy wasn't home and he would be so sad to miss the opening of the birthday presents, Joe promptly replied, "O-kay." Still, Joe was pushing to open presents when Ted got home that night, this whole "almost bath time" line of argument holding no sway whatsoever with him. In the end, Our Hero made his way to bath and into his pajamas, and we had "Present Breakfast" this morning. (Success in this endeavor was probably due, in no small measure to the coming of Emily, from across the alley, to babysit while Julie and Ted went out for a quick dinner with Julie's parents. Emily, and her older sister Sara, are celebrities to Joe. If told one or both are arriving to read stories with him and put him to bed, and in pajamas he must be, then in pajamas he will be.)

And so. Three. Three! We can hardly believe it. . .

*These are Julie's maternal grandfather's three sisters.

**Lesson learned.

A Fourth of July (and Clara's First!) Wagon Ride

And then we were off for a wagon ride about the neighborhood, proudly flying Old Glory. Two Old Glories. Julie had picked up some flags at Target, thinking of that parade. Ted stuck them in the pots out front where they lasted about two minutes before being plucked out by Our Hero who thereafter was never long separated from his newest treasures.

This wagon ride was, actually, Clara's first! Naturally, she made like she'd been doing it all her little fourteen months. She's a huge fan of sipping a drink as you go, and she navigated the cup holders like it wasn't no thing. Up, down, yup, thanks, got it!

Hey Daddy You're So Fine!

We'd planned to go a Fourth of July parade in Hopkins, a town over from St. Louis Park, but Joe woke up late from his nap. Clara did, too, since she stayed up yammering to Pink Dog, and so fell asleep late. So by the time everyone was up and snacked, we decided we'd tool around the neighborhood in the wagon tricked out with flags and kick around the yard and the whale pool. But first, we did a little project that was in need of doing. After all, nothing says three day weekend like a little home improvement project.

For some time now, Julie has been wanting to hang some more pictures of the bambini in the bambini's room. The week before last, she finally ordered the pictures, and gathered up the frames she'd need to make the groupings she had planned. Ted is a real American hero because he hung seven pictures while everyone, except Berenice*, was crammed into the bambini's room, "helping." He really was awfully good humored about it all. The real high points were probably when Joe climbed up on to the changing table using his stool and put "sun screen" (read: lotion) on at a rate of one pump per limb, plus one pump for each foot, and also when Joe asked Julie if she could sing the Neaky song. Julie said she didn't know the Neaky song, but then busted out "Hey, Neaky, you're so fine, you're so fine, you blow my mind, hey Neaky! Hey, Neaky!" to the tune of Hey Mickey. To get the full flavor of this moment, Fans, you have to know that Julie was dancing around in her bathing suit, Clara was standing in hers flapping her arms away, Ted was banging the hammer at the clap moment in the song, and Joe was, by this point, parading around in Clara's pajama bottoms (which he donned while reciting a good portion of Pajama Time from memory!).

Yes, we do the Fourth up right, here at Raleigh House.

Longtime readers will perhaps remember that Our Hero was, for a long time, fond of kicking the wall by his bed at night. It's been a while since he's given the wall what for. But we should mention that, nevertheless, he has been sternly admonished that he cannot kick the wall now that it has pictures hung on it. Or touch the pictures. He did that once, with the picture over his bed. It moved on him and wails ensued so he didn't do that again. Kicks McGee must have been pretty tuckered out tonight though because he fell asleep pretty quickly.

*Amazing, we know. Usually, we like to cram ourselves into the same four square feet of space. (We're still waiting to find whatever she was into while this was all going down.)

Independence Day Eve

Picnic snack was, more than anything else, a ploy to stave off a meltdown wrought by very keenly felt anticipation of Marco and his handlers arrival for hamburger dinner. We decided to eat out back. Joe was so excited he spent some time at the table well in advance of Marco's arrival. Somehow, we managed to fill the minutes until he arrived. Then, more fun was had in the whale pool (naturally!), as well as the sandbox. Clara scooted right in with the boys. Marco has brought sparklers with him and so after dinner, and after Birdie had been bathed and put down, the boys were each given a lit sparkler. Joe, as you know, is a cautious creature and asked if he could blow it out after it was about half spent. He may also have briefly touched the tip that had been lit as he tried to avoid the rapidly approaching sparks. No tears though as we managed to get the right directive out in time! "Hold it up high!" The road to independence! Both sparkling and fraught. . .

Happy Fourth of July, Dear Readers!

Picnic Snack

Joe has, of late, sort of been into picnics. In fact, the night Julie was in Washington, DC for work a few weeks back, Ted poked his head into the bambini's room after they'd been put to bed, and discovered Joe on the floor, with a blanket spread before him and a number of stuffed animal friends lined up in along the dresser.* When Ted asked "Jospeh Trump" just what he was doing, Joseph Trump informed Ted that he was having a picnic. So in the post-nap-pre-dinner hours yesterday, we had our snack outside, picnic style. We had raisins (you sort of forget how tasty a raisin can be, Fans) and water (Ted had fancy pants water--La Croix). And it's true, Birdie was sporting a new bonnet in honor of the occasion.

*We've been meaning and meaning to report this hilariously charming incident to you, Fans.

THE WHALE POOL!

Fans, it's awesome. Awesome! As with the beach balls, Julie is perhaps as excited about the whale pool as Joe and Clara. We have had perfect pool weather this holiday weekend, so Saturday morning, while Julie and Joe did the Target run, Ted blew it up while Birdie napped. After Julie and Joe were back home, it wasn't long before Joe discovered it ("There's a whale in the grass!"). Naturally, he stripped right down to his underwear, and eventually, to nothing. Once Clara was up from her nap, she was taken out in her diaper. They were right back out there after they were up from their nap. We turned on the fountain (which can, if the water is turned on even half way, shoot up as high as the apple tree reaches), watering cans were hauled out, Wally the Walrus was chewed on, water was splashed.

Both Joe and Clara were briefly dipped in the water. Joe isn't much for being wet--once he realizes he's wet--especially when he's in clothes, even if they are clothes that are meant to be wet. He has, it must be said, a rather rapturous love affair going with his towel (which is really a glorified blanket to him). We think Clara would have happily stayed in the water, but when she was dipped, the water level in the whale was just a little too high for her to be really comfortable (it gets higher as the spout is going). The side of the whale is also just a little too high for her to throw her leg over, but oh yes, Birdie Brigade, Our Birdie did try (and try, and try). As we have reported, she gets right after things!

Beach Ball Fun

As we've mentioned, we've had two scorchers in a row. But after such a wet and chilly spring, it's sort of fabulous. It is July after all. The hot weather put Julie in the mood to buy a whale shaped pool she stumbled across online*, and some beach balls with sea creatures inside. They arrived, and were blown up during dinnertime yesterday. Really, is there a better time to engage in such a distracting activity? Julie was perhaps a little too excited about these beach balls. But they are also fabulous, and the bambini had a ball (if you will!) playing with them after they ate. Joe has been more adventurous in his physical exploits of late, so he was trying to stand on the ball and, failing that, sit on it. He has also, of late, begun more and more to anoint certain items as his, and to pay more attention to gender. So he has declared the blue shark ball his, and the pink seahorse ball Clara's. Luckily, Clara got the memo. At least, last night.

*Look for it in future posts. It is AWESOME! In pictures anyway, and hopefully in real life.

In the Driver's Seat

Joe's new thing is to sit "in the driver's seat." Metaphorically speaking, he's been there for a long time, so maybe he figures why not get a taste of the real thing? He usually issues his first announcement on the way to school: "I sit in the driver's seat later." It's not exactly posed as a question, Fans. His driver's seat reservation is confirmed on the way home. The past two nights it has been way too hot (in excess of 95 degrees!) to hang out in the car, even with the doors open, but earlier this week, Joe hung out in the driver's seat for a bit after we arrived home. By far his favorite thing to do is punch the hazard lights button. Our neighbor Heidi, who has identical twin girls who are a little older than Joe, was walking home from the bus and stopped by the car to say that from all the way down the block, she knew exactly what was going on (i.e. just who was in the driver's seat). Joe also discovered the delights of the visor, and Julie revealed the mirror. Yesterday morning, he asked Ted to put the visor down, but Ted isn't such a fan of driving with it down as it blocks his view and so he told Joe it was dangerous. Joe quite seriously replied, "It's Mommy only." He has quite firmly fixed in his mind that the gear shift is "Mommy-Daddy only." Julie's anxiety sometimes, admittedly, reaches ridiculous levels, and so it was that the night these pictures were taken found her trying to explain to Joe that he could not be in the car with the door closed without Mommy or Daddy because the car could get way, way too hot. When queried why he could not close the door without Mommy or Daddy with him, Joe replied, "The sun hurts my eyes." Right.