Rooms!

We rearranged and painted the rooms this weekend. We just took the tape off this morning, so this is 1 days worth of arranging and decorating. I'm excited to have the main pieces in place to get the rest done!

The Star Wars Room is Logan's (was Sylvie's) and the yellow room is Sylvie and baby's room (was Logan's). Logan was very hesitant for anything to change, so aside from his walls and a new tv, we tried to keep the room similar to what it was. Sylvie was excited for new things, but I kept her duvet cover and matched that. The crib mattress is where the crib will be. And we need to build one matching dresser that will cover the end of Sylvie's bed.

My new artwork in Logan's room is scrapbook paper I ordered, had Jorge mount to foam core and Logan arranged around the room. My artwork for the girls is over Sylvie's dresser, from Etsy some prints with princesses from fairy tales.

I've been obsessing over these two rooms for a few months now, agonizing over how and when to move the kids, so I'm very excited to have it "done" and ready to move into the nitty gritty as time allows. So fun!

First Day of School!

Vignettes

I love seeing the phases kids go through. It's fun to document them because sometimes, as quickly as they begin, they end! Sylvie's in this "Vignette" phase. She will set up random small items in a location and it's funny to come across it and wonder if she was thinking artistically, arranging to make it look nice, thinking realistically (like creating a hammock for a friend), or just plain playing.

Here are a few fun examples that are sitting around the house today....

A squirmy worm in a small hammock on lego fridge magnets

Chapstick, a small animal on a rug, and a larger animal on a towel, all sitting on a washcloth

A teddy beanie baby, a box for his "food", a fallen flower petal, sitting on a piece of pretty fabric.

Making Wishes

Deep Thoughts by Logan, age 7 3/4 years old.....

Sylvie: "I'm totally making a wish when we go under that bridge." (there was a train on it).

We all make a wish as we go under.

Logan: "Mom, I made a wish but I don't care about it anymore."

Sylvie: "Why not Logan?"

Logan: "The trick to wishes is that YOU have to make them come true."

Sylvie: "How do you make a wish come true?"

Logan: "You work really hard at it and come up with a plan. If you want a lot of money, you have to not spend all your money and save it and then you can get whatever you wanted to buy with your wish."

Love this kid!

Noticing Each other

Jorge moved some of my photos around so I can find them more easily on the Mac and I love this one!

Abby- 2002 to 2011

I took this photo on a Friday after Abby's haircut. This has been the year of skin and ear infections for her and it seems we'll be good for a few month and then she'll be cranky, itchy and licky. So this last go-around was pretty nasty, scabby and gross. And her personality was kinda cranky. We talked to the doctor and of course there are a lot of potential expensive tests to see what is causing the rashes, but she figured it was the same types of things as before- rolling in other animal dander and pee in the yard, spreading bacteria by rolling and licking, just making it worse on her own.

So we came home with some strong meds and I finally got her to the petsmart grooming to get some of that scabbiness off. They did a great job and she looked so pretty and healthy!

On Sunday she was fine when she woke up and started panting by 11 am. And shaking a bit. It was very unusual for her, but hot in the house. And then the other symptoms started. I was keeping a list to call the vet and we were googling around. She went downhill fast though. By the end of the night she was panting, tummy issues, excessive thirst, peeing quite a bit, and couldn't settle at all. Jorge took the shift til 1 am and I went down after and stayed with her til 4:30 am. She was very unsettled, going out constantly but wanting to come back in. And at one point she looked very disoriented and laid on her paws on the kitchen tile. I had thought maybe it was a UTI with a fever, and at that point I was really worried she was in a lot of trouble.

I had to work, so I left her downstairs for 1 1/2 hours to sleep upstairs. She tried to be up with us, but I brought her back down as she was very unsettled and I was afraid she would wake the kids. At 6:00 I went down and couldnt' find her downstairs. After a frantic search and a quick question to Jorge if he had left her out, we found her under the computer desk unconscious. She was already almost gone, and I thought she was, she was messy and not responsive. But she was breathing. By this point Sylvie was frantic and Logan was up. So I had Jorge wrap her up and we had to share the news that Abby was gone from us. We had them say goodbye and my father in law picked the kids up to get them out of the house so we could deal with everything.

Going to the vet to put a pet down is not an experience I would every hope for again. The vet was wonderful and the process was quick. She never perked back up or opened her eyes and the vet said her belly was already full of blood and fluid, she was not panting any longer, just barely breathing. Putting her down was a messy experience as well and the graphic images of seeing my dog lose control of her body will stick around for awhile.

It has been a sad week saying goodbye and every time we walk in the door, morning routine without my buddy asking for a treat, not worrying about her as part of my "do I have the keys, do I have my purse, is the dog inside the house" walk out of the house has put a sad note in a lot of our day.

I'm not sure what caused her sickness and I don't know if I really want to know. She seemed happy and somewhat healthy to that point. In my google searches I came across a few texts that said "dogs are very good at making you believe they are not sick." And Jorge found some things that mentioned skin infections a manifestation of things going on inside.

In all, it's been a sad goodbye and we'll miss her quite a bit and I know there will be tears shed when we bring this baby home and don't get to introduce her to our first "baby" Abby.

High Expectations

As I'm sitting working my toosh off at work this month I realized something, I have high expectations. I expect myself to accomplish a LOT at work, and if someone asks for something, I usually say yes. And get a lot done. So it got me thinking of other ways I have high expectations....

-I think the kids should be good to each other. Nice friends, respect one another, and love us all as a family.

-I expect myself to keep up their school skills over the summer. I start every May/June with some scrounging to find things they can and will do over the summer. Workbooks are a given and some cool ideas are always part of the agenda.

-I expect our house to work. For example, I think equipment should last longer than a summer. My parents have a box fan from sometime around 1976 that they still use. Meanwhile we've bought new fans every few years as those darn things break down all the time. Don't even get me started on how a house should not leak or how a DVD player should work for longer than a few years.

-I expect good things from the government, a clean city, and no crime. Weather that is acceptable would be great! Can we just combine a few cities into one grabbing the best weather months from them all, throwing in some awesome views, healthier restaurants, cheap shopping and driveability. Yeah, that sounds good. I may have to invent such a place someday and have an interview process for who gets in.

-I expect happiness out of life. I'm not satisfied with a mediocre doctor, church, job, activities, movies, etc etc. I just think if there is better, why not seek it out!? Call me picky, or annoying, but it must be part of my personality to want the good things in this world around me:)

Silly Billies

In the car....

Logan: "Mom, we don't have 10 fingers, we only have 8. Thumbs are not fingers."

Sylvie: "Are pinkies fingers?"

Explanation from me about the different names of the fingers- index, pointer, etc. Then I said I wasn't sure what the one next to the pinky is called.

Sylvie: "I'm going to name mine 'Stace."

Logan:"I'm going to name mine 'Slice."

I love that they so naturally go into make-believe pretend mode!

Mother's Day Plans

Logan: "Mom, we have a plan for tomorrow. You get to sleep in and I'll get Sylvie her princess milk."

Sylvie: "And I'll do all the dishes" (aka pouring soap all over everything and running up the water bill, but ever so sweet)

Logan : "And we'll do everything in the morning, we'll even keep the floor clean. You just have to sit back and relax on the couch."

Sylvie: "You can sit in my spot on the couch. Logan, you do the broom and I'll do the dishes okay?"

I love these sweetie pies. They make my world a wonderful place to be in!

And endless palette......

Suddenly this week I'm really open to ideas on how to bring back some of the old fun into my life.......Some things I've come across that are inspiring or worth pursuing.....

Meetup

I used to be part of a meetup.com group. Nice ladies but my kids got too big too fast and suddenly school was getting in the way of play! Add in work days and I had to part ways. So on a whim I went on meetup.com and came across a few biking groups. There is one that tries to do biking and hiking with stops along with way for taking photos. Here's a photo from a member. Sounds right up my alley doesn't it? Think I can convince Jorge to stay in town on Sunday mornings for the spring and summer so I can do some sunrise bike rides?

Architecture

I came across an architect with really beautiful buildings. It won't let me copy any images, but it's this website for Clay Chapman www.periodarchitecture.com Not sure if that will work, but it With so many directions to turn in architecture, I feel like I'm constantly realizing I'm inept at some piece of it. I love that he comes across as in love with one idea, and goes that direction, and that's just the way it's going to be. I'm not quite as strong in the ego as that, but it was fun seeing a different version of the art of "techtonics" that I learned in Seattle. It was also reassuring seeing an architect's take on "period architecture" as opposed to the oversized versions that are pimped out to the maximum FAR with no regard to proportions that I come across all to often.

Mommy Mojo

I seem to be feeling more creative and enjoying the babies and their loves more. I was okay with 2 days of Polly Pocket time and I'm looking forward to a lego creation plus a battle with Logan. He made me promise to be the bad guys:) I am a bit ridiculously sad that both kids spend so much time away from us that they are their own little people now. I'm excited to recapture some of that family bond on our vacation next week. I'm also super proud of Logan getting so into baseball and Sylvie being so into ballet and gymnastics.

West Coast Wonderment

We're headed to San Francisco in a few short days. I'm excited to be rejuvinated by the air, the water and the hills. And to introduce our kids to the urban lifestyle. Complete with walking, fun things to do, and time together!

Feeling pretty good tonight. My biggest annoyance is the dog, and that's a good sign.

Sketching

I've been playing around with my handwriting, taking a bit more time to focus on the letters. And sketching. I've seen a few neat watercolors that struck my fancy that I may have to use as inspiration as well. I'm bringing my sketchbook to San Francisco, and who knows, I may actually document this place through my mind's eye rather than just my camera's.

Music

A few blogs I follow have fabulous music. And I have been listening to Pandora at work during the late afternoon and on the bike trail when I'm walking to push me through and get inspired. Music can be so invigorating and soothing, I need to find more of it in my life. I think it really moves my Sylvie, she absolutely loves music. But Logan is funny as well, it can change his mood quickly. I think as a family we need to find more music time, and less tv time.

Local Hangouts

I consider my neighborhood as the entirety of Chicago, and I'm proud that we do try to take advantage of some of what the city has to offer. But I feel bad that we have not really enjoyed some pieces of our own neighborhood, and my goal is to try a few hangouts, a few restaurants, and a few new parks and such. I also need to find some of what I had in Seattle that was so readily available, trails and hikes and such, and make my way into nature here. Mosquitos, heat, snow and all. I need to find joy in this place because I don't think I really have yet and it may be awhile before we leave.

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Obsession with Hair

Sylvie's obsession with long hair has been fed by the Rapunzel movie Tangled. I'm sure she's not the only 5 year old who has latched on to long hair. It began with the hair extension that came with the castle, which moved to HER wearing the extension in her own hair. And then there was the need to have the 18" Rapunzel doll with super-long hair.

So we move on to the visit to the American Girl Store where she selects the doll with the most hair possible. Kanani. Well, did you know if you brush Kanani's hair out instead of down, you get a ball of hair as big as a small cat? Oh yes you do. And thank goodness for Google, I was able to figure out you can wet and use detangler, then wrap each tendril around your finger and have an amazingly pretty head of doll hair. It took an hour. For 5 minutes it was pretty before she has to doctor it all up. I think I need my own American Girl doll that can stay pretty and brushed :)

And alas, this weekend we went to a party and low and behold there is Sylvie with a new best friend- a girl who has that beautiful long, black, asian hair down to her bottom. I turned to my mom friend and said "Betcha anything she started chumming around with her because she covets her hair." We got a good laugh, but I know I was right. Because this morning there was a total meltdown over "MOM, I NEED my hair to be black and long like that girl at the party!!!! I need to have it painted. " So I said "Sylvie, you are welcome to add color to your hair when you are a teenager." To which she said "Mom, that'll be perfect! When I am a teenager I am going to be Rapunzel, so I can be a Rapunzel with BLACK hair!" Aka, something like this picture. I would not put it past her, and gosh, I'll be jealous because that really would be pretty, and fun if you can swing around your tower and such dontcha think:)

Note to Self-

..... The key to juggling a lot of things and enjoying life instead of being overwhelmed is to be in the moment. At work, think about and work that piece of your brain. At school drop offs and pick ups, enjoy the mom-conversation and try not to judge everyone, but get to know them for who they are. At home, create a nice place for the kids to "land." Keep it neat, keep it organized so the library books don't go missing. Keep on top of the laundry and our health. But throw in plenty of time for creative activities, mix up the kid-focused ones and the adult ones, make it a good place to be. When you have 2 hours, do something that will set the tone for the rest of your weekend. Take a walk listening to Pandora, looking at the trees and bundled in too many layers, dream of biking the trail soon enough and work those muscles to get ready.

And don't forget to breathe, smile and enjoy this life:)

Dreams may come true....

With kids at this age (5 and 7) you start asking questions like "What do you want to be when you grow up?" and expect somewhat real answers.

So I asked....

Logan asked me today "who wins more, the Sox or the Cubs?" The totally baseball-illiterate mom in me told him "Well, the Sox win more, but the Cubs are the underdogs" and explained underdog to him.

Soon after I was googling "how many players are in the Cubs?" 38 says Answers.com. "39 with me when I start playing on the Cubs" says Logan. What a sweetie!

Sylvie went to Nordstroms twice this year and picked some item and fell in love. With us, she picked a dress, the newest dress that cost more than we would normally spend on a dress, and of course, since she had daddy around her little finger, it came home with us!!! And later she brought Abuelita, and captured herself a hat, a little adorable hat that had to come home with us!

Snow Day!

....for Snowmageddon!!!! Just putting it down for Logan and Sylvie that today, this day in Chicago history, is a storm that is classified as a blizzard! It started today (Tuesday) at around 2 pm. It was a difficult walk even between the 2 schools. I was so happy my boss let me head home to get my babies. Even Jorge came home at a decent time. Tomorrow almost every school is out for the day, even the Chicago Public Schools called a Snow Day for the first time since 1999. The last time we had a blizzard of this magnitude was 1967? Though my parents remember shoveling snow off their roof in 1979!

Hope we get some pictures to put up tomorrow, it's supposed to last all day and dump between 1 and 2 feet of snow!

We did we did! We got up to snow all around the windows, snow outside in huge drifts. The front yard wasn't too bad thank goodness because the back yard was so bad we couldn't open the door and I had to wade through 3 foot drifts to get the extra shovels! I had thought to bring one set inside overnight! We all got outside in snowpants at 7 am and spent an hour and a half shoveling. Sylvie went back inside but was fine with us continuing. It kept snowing all morning so Jorge went back out for an extra hour later.

And then there was the alley. Oh goodness! The plow came by around 5 pm and we then had a huge wall of snow at our garage and nowhere to put it! Jorge did a huge chunk and then I headed out to help him and we made 5 foot piles at either side of the garage. What a project!

Today is Snow Day #2. I guess the buses aren't able to get through the streets yet.....Crazy and fun and exciting. The windchill is supposed to hit 25 below today- ick! It's cold here in the house.

Front

Alley

Side Yard- biggest drifts!

The school project....

Logan's school project is to celebrate 100 days. He has to put 99 of one object on a board and 1 of something opposite. Of course the example was "cats and dogs" and he said he was going to do "cats and dogs." Hilarious. I was able to persuade him into doing something he likes and we decided on 99 Lego Guys and 1 Lego. He actually came up with the idea of taking photos of his guys and gluing the photos to the board. So it's a few days after we began the assignment and here's how it's gone......

Thursday morning- Grand discussion on what the plan was to get all this acccomplished.

Thursday afternoon- trying to wrangle Logan into focusing on what he wanted to photograph, and the three of us rounding up 100 guys. Me hovering over a table taking lots o' photos. Sylvie wanted in on the action and she has a pile of her own lego people to photograph as well.

Thursday night- upload photos. Try to upload photos. Safari won't allow me on Walgreens photo website so I never make it. Ugh. Okay, CVS also does photos. Upload photos.

Friday morning after school dropoff- bring Sylvie into CVS where she falls in love with some cute kissing stuffed animals that need to come home with us. And if you buy the animals, you need to buy a Valentine's Day card to go with them, so I set out to pick one for my sweetheart.

Oh and there are 3 other things I needed to get of course. Plus posterboards and glue sticks and sticky letters....

Friday afternoon- open the photos and I'm super disappointed. For $24 worth of photos, they are pretty bad quality and there are 30 extra photos that are enlargements of faces. Lego faces. What the frick? Late Friday, I call CVS to see what's up and check what I had uploaded. My 50 photos turned into 65 and then I ordered duplicates! Headquarters had no idea. And when I opened my original photos I realized my photo quality was much better than the results, so on principal, since they said they always accept returns if you're not satisfied, I returned them. WITH Sylvie in tow, who was livid that we were going yet again out to the same darn store (and to pick up Logan).

Friday evening- haul Logan and Sylvie into Walgreens where we use the machine to upload photos. Twice. And hope for the best. And what do you know, there is a whole aisle of stuffed animals that only cost $1.99 and 2 kids pleading for one. So we buy those as well. Plus some wine for me, because I am reminded that this is a darn school project, the first of millions, and whatever the photos look like, however Logan chooses to lay them out, it'll be okay. A-Okay. :)

Saturday morning- the photos will need to be picked up but I'm going to wait til Jorge is home because I am NOT dragging 2 kids into a stuffed-animal infested Walgreens one more time to collect photos! I can just hear it.... "Mom, they're webkinz and my unicorn needs a friend!"

Temper Tantrums

We have had a big streak of tantrums most days! Here are some of the situations:

-Sylvie comes in from Abuelita's babysitting hours and freaks out about missing Abuelita, cannot handle her emotions and sits crying for a good long time and then begging "don't be mad at me!" Oh gosh this is hard to deal with and by the time it's over, I'm spent!

-One morning I was dropping Sylvie off and she showed me that she had a little digital camera in her pocket. I told her she couldn't bring that into school and she went ballistic! She had a total meltdown and even bringing her out of the room into the bathroom, I wasn't sure I'd be able to drop her off. She was sad about the camera and it turned into "I'll miss you mommy, don't go."

-The other day the windchill was 19 degrees below zero. Obviously it was frigid outside, and too cold to hang out for any length of time. We knew it was going to be cold, so we talked about how we were going to wait in the car between picking her up and getting Logan instead of waiting outside. Sure enough, she went crazy when I tried to get her in the car and was totally out of control. I got her in the passenger side and she was standing on the seat acting like a fool! Her friends were in the car next to us and even that didn't pursuade her that this was okay. She wouldn't calm down until I happened to find her library book and suddenly she was a different person and settled down. Once I tried to get her to wait in the car and brought a snack and drink and she still went nuts. She waits in the car for grandparents. I don't know what the deal is, but it sure isn't fun being the mom with the screaming child dragging her into the car instead of getting a hug or a kiss.

-We have lots of tantrums over clothing- she wants to wear a fancy dress every day and if she gets a fancy dress she flips out if it can't be worn to school, even if she knows it's not for school. Getting dressed can be a very long, drawn-out ordeal somedays. And other days, not a problem.

It's been a really hard few months of tantrums on and off and I'm not really sure what spurs them, but it's getting old fast. I'm trying to not let her walk all over me, hold firm but gentle and kind, and it doesn't seem to matter, she can't control her own emotions.Someday maybe I'll understand it all. Where is my own personal child psychologist/ psychic? There are nights where instead of sleeping she's standing upstairs next to me screaming at the top of her lungs instead. And then other nights it's not a problem. She can be so LOUD and drag things out fora a LOOOOONNNNNNGGGGG time !!!!! It can be hard to handle.

Sylvie turns 5

My sweet princess is turning 5. I love the saying "The days are long, the years are short." It is so true. If I think of all the days I had a 4 year old, it seems like ages, but if I reminisce back to my 2 year old or even my newborn, it feels like just yesterday.

Sylvie is a spunky little girl and she brings light to our lives every day. She commands attention and demands her way. She wants what she wants when she wants it. Which is usually immediately.

And yet she can pick up my mom's little dog Jackson in the crook of her arm and carry him around longer than he wants, and he's a snuggler. She misses us ferociously, the minute someone leaves, school ends, we leave an adventure, she already misses it. She must have some sweet sappy nature inside her already:)

She still gives us trouble with night-time sleep and still hates waking up in the mornings. She was inducted into the American Girl club this weekend with a trip to pick out her very first doll and it was such a joy to see her coming into a big girl. While the rest of us reverted to our childhood memories of wanting and loving dolls we had seen.

There is a special bond between mother and daughter, she's my little girl and I understand what she goes through and all that is to come. It's raising a future mother, a future best friend, a future sister to her brother Logan when he needs advice or someone to pull together Thanksgiving dinner. A future career. Future talents. And yet, we still get to enjoy all that is today, all that she is, and all that we are to her.

Happy Birthday my darling Sylvie. You are the fire in my life and you make me smile and you make me laugh and you make me hug you. Thanks for being YOU!!!!!

2011

In no particular order, the things on my mind to accomplish this year are:

*Mommy- we talked about a list of places to go this year- Museum of Science and Industry, Navy Pier during some live music in the summer, plus some big trips including Disney, maybe even for a wedding!!!!

*Baby- yep, it might actually happen this year! Time will tell. But #3 would be an amazing person to add to our life. I might never stop smiling.

*Wife- with a year of heavy travel keeping us apart, we need some patch and repair work during this 14th year of marriage. Date night is on the agenda to light the spark.

*Architect- please tell me a new job is on the horizon for this year, before I go insane. Resumes are time consuming but essential. And I have some additional projects related that need working and attention. Also, exams for licensure and learning Revit are on the radar. Revit learning has been happening, and I'm really proud of what I have accomplished. Plus, going to Greenbuild Chicago was amazing.

*Biking- love that darn bike, and it's all set up in the basement as a stationary version for the winter. Hopefully biking brings with it weight loss.

Seems like the recession may be ending and these goals are already in progress. I'm hopeful to not feel so much anxiety about everyone else's problems, and when things don't go my way, and enjoy every moment.

And as always I love to be inspired, creative, loved, and in love, and really just enjoy life as it goes by. I hope to jump in with 2 feet and live this life to its fullest.

Christmas Highlights!

Sylvie has been having trouble sleeping in her own room so this week we worked very very hard to "practice" for Christmas sleeping. The night of Christmas Eve we stayed up til 11:30 partying and then I got the jammies on the kids and showed them the google Santa Tracker. It showed Santa flying around the skyscrapers downtown and that's where we had just come from, so the kids knew it was mighty close to our house, and they went running upstairs with fervor and hit the pillows in their own rooms without complaint.

We had so much fun on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. This year was the most "last minute" of any year, even running into Walgreens on our way to the party at our house on Christmas Eve. A lot had been done ahead of time, but Jorge had been on 2 trips- Tokyo and then Mexico- and then working all week, so it left final preparations to last-minute. It wasn't stressful, and it all worked out in the long run.

I think Logan's on the verge of losing sight of believing in Santa, but he very much wants to play along because of the joy in it. My guess is he'll hang on to pretending for another year or two. Sylvie was nervous about Santa's Elves watching but it did good to keep her in line this spunky child of mine. On the plus side, she was the sweetest darling little girl during the 3 days of celebrating! Yeah!

We were spoiled with presents, hosted a fun party and now have so many fun things to play with!

My Brilliant Offspring

Logan is starting to spout off 'Mom, I can spell 'love backwards'. I know how to rhyme everything.' I can read that word 'playbill' 'cast'....etc. He's also learning subtraction and has decided he already knows how to multiply (not sure on that one, but I would love to see it!)

Sylvie came home from a dead sleep, woke up, got out a pen, found a pad of post-it notes, and started some "messages." It's past bedtime and her brain is on fire writing words. All of a sudden she knows letters she didn't seem to remember before, she's stringing them into words, with appropriate vowel and consonant placement, and asking how to pronounce the words she wrote.

Brilliant children I tell you, just brilliant. Yeah, I'm bragging. And yeah, I know your kid probably did all this 3 years ahead of my kids, but it doesn't matter. The first time your kid does it, it's durn exciting!

Strawberries with "Stuff"

Logan: "Mommy, do you want to know a gift everybody will like? Strawberries with stuff on it. You mix up the stuff, and you make sure it's all around it and you wait til it dries and then you can eat it." Me:"What about the stem?" Logan "You eat all the way to the stem but don't eat the stem. I made those at the restaurant before." "Got it Mommy?"

Someday he won't say "Got it?" all the time like he does now, so I have to write it down.

Also, he's very very big on repeating everything from the tv back to me, as the commercial is happening, like I don't hear it myself. Ah, my boy.

We are headed out to some store tonight because "Mom I NEED a pencil sharpener at school. And it has to come from that store where Daddy took me." Me: "Logan, do you need new crayons as well? Are yours wearing down?" Logan: "Only the gray." I find that hard to believe as I saw his crayons at the Halloween party and they were on their last legs but I forgot to get new ones til now. He's so into recycle/reuse that he probably thinks you need to use a crayon til it literally is gone. Silly sweet boy.

Sylvie is in an eating phase, she eats all the time. Logan is in a talking phase, he never stops!

Middle of the Night

What's keeping me awake tonight?

Reliving a work situation. I hate when I do that. No one else is thinking about it at 3 am!

Wondering about Sylvie's school and if it really was a good idea. And wishing I had the means to decide on a different preschool. This one covers my work hours. At least she has made good friends.

Kinda pissy that Jorge is on his 2nd vacation trip in 2 weeks and I'm here dealing with frigid cold, a finicky furnace and ice and snow and Christmas prep all by my lonesome. Missing him as I had a cranky day and really could use a hug and smile.

Got sucked into a movie. It takes place in England and is flashing to Paris and I am reliving the memory of Paris.

Wondering if I'll ever get out of this job.

Wondering if all the other things I'm sad about will change.

Wondering if I'll wake up in a better mood if I go to bed for another 2 hours.

Greenbuild!

When I hit September and didn't get my new path laid out in gold for me, I chose to go at it alone. And maybe piece by piece. So piece #1 was Greenbuild Chicago. Just the idea of skipping responsibility for the day after so many days of playing double-parental duty made me a bit guilty. I did however at least leave a list for Jorge. And pack lunches for the finickies.

Drove in. Blech. What an ugly state. I'm sorry, but after learning that the actual scenery can actually soothe you while you drive long distances in Washington state, I always shock myself driving through factory areas where speeders fly by in the shoulder. Ignore the scenery and focus on the white knuckles and getting over to the lane where you need to be, which may or not be the one GPS tells you with all this construction in this town. If I had not looked up where I was supposed to be, I would have been overwhelmed by McCormick Place so score one for me for knowing what I was doing instead of trying to read a massive sign while driving.

Happy day, loved it. Loved the seminars, big and small. Yes they are tree-huggers. But I know that type, they live in Seattle often. Even more of them live in Portland. :) And man, those guys/gals at MIT are pretty crazy, but it looked so cool and out there, I'll take it.

Went to 4 seminars. Only thing that was weird was not having someone to share it with, but I did strike up a conversation or two along the way. And made myself go to the social event at the end, despite the potential of helping Jorge out by picking the kids up. Love the kids up, but I've had 80% of the parental duties this year, so kids, here's your dad. Jorge, here's your watch. It's 5:30, normal people leave at this time of the day and live in the same state as their wives. And he did it like a champ. At the social event I had great conversation, which I started, so it was awesome.

Happy day. Love this world of green, but even more than that, it made me miss my intellectual school days. Seven years of college and then one day the learning ends. Well, in some firms you continue. My new goal is to figure out ways to keep up the learning. Despite the company that employs me. Ideally it would be some great company though right? :)

4 Year Old Preschool

Sylvie likes to call her year of preschool "4-year old preschool." It has been a whirlwind year so far and while nothing is earth-shatteringly funny she does make me laugh, worry and cry.

Here are some highlights:

-Storytelling. Ellen had a wolf visit her house. Alex got bit by a REAL vampire. Emily saw the real monster that lives at Great America.

-Best Friends. She has been having issues keeping in the clique of girls. She spent the first few months concerned about who sat next to her, who liked, her, who talked to her, etc. My goodness she came home and threw temper tantrums left and right from the stress of it all. I've volunteered and it's insane at times. However, it does seem to be calming down. She gets out of school and obsessively wants to go over to the flagpole for her one on one time with Allison. I was really upset at her behavior until I understood that she spent the day fighting for attention and this was special friend time. Preschool can be rough! But on the plus side she's making some really long-term good friendships.

-She's good with the boys. Having a brother has taught her how to talk about Star Wars, and how to not freak if a boy talks to her.

-They call her Chivis (the kids, not the teacher) which I think is hilarious and she likes

-Every day is a fashion parade for Sylvie. She spent the first months wearing dresses and skirts, mourning days she had to wear gym shoes and having massive numbers of outfit changes. Then this week she wore jeans. Twice. With heeled shoes and a sparkle shirt. She keeps the teachers laughing. She wore two pigtails but wanted one clipped to the side to look like a side ponytail.

-Introducing the "I want for lunch exactly what my friends have for lunch." Which can be great because I know I can get her to eat a sandwich for the first time ever. And horribly disastrous when you pre-order hot lunches in September and she has a meltdown about it. And packs a lunch anyway.

-She's more patient with the process of getting to school, waiting for Logan's turn, and the walking it takes to get it all accomplished. As long as mom is right by her side. Woe to the family member who has to take her to school, her world is not okay on those days. I had to beg my office to let me change my hours just to keep the peace. Ah, kids:)

She's keeping me laughing, keeping me guessing, and throwing tantrums like a true 4-year old can pull off.

Life today....

Today I have been weepy. Probably hormonal, but it's kind of nice. I like being able to really "feel" strong emotions some days. Not being on cruise control. Or just being satisfied with something like a clean kitchen. Seeing life's big picture and really assessing it. I worry sometimes that some big crisis will come crashing into our lives, we have this beautiful life and I want it to stay good, great really. Happy, loving, and sweet. Joyful. Who would want to rock that boat? I always feel like I am asking for better and I'm always worried about how can one not feel guilty for complaining about anything in their perfect life while thereare miners stuck 2000 feet below the earth's surface for over 60 days, and friends who left the earth leaving their children behind, and babies who left the earth leaving their moms behind. All that seems so life-shattering and crazy and I hope nothing like that enters our daily bubble.

But life is life and we churn through dishes and losing weight and meal planning and parenting. And smiling in disbelief that our kids are so smart and get 100% on all their papers. And spend a long time coloring the perfect picture. And make mini-laptops out of paper and leave them all over the house. And tuck their dolls into a hand-me-down American Girl bed. I want a new job and had given myself a September deadline to accomplish this task but for all the hours spent trying, this recession is either double-dipping or just not coming up for air just yet. So knowing how firms are in this career, I'm trying to grieve the loss of this happiness I wanted for myself and make do with the new reality of our real fall schedule.

Not that I'm in this terrible place. I'm just so stubborn that I want what I want when I want it thank you very much. And I thought things were going to be one way and they are another. So I'm trying to make the best of things.This week I stood up to a head person to ask for something I knew they would not like. And when his mouth formed the word 'no' and every ounce of his body language said the same, I had to step it up, fight for what I wanted, and sell it. I got it. Phew! I also played the work game, you know the one where you run into an issue and instead of banging your head against your desk you find just the right person to get an answer from with the added bonus of sympathy for your plight? Plight. I learned that word ages ago in grade school and did a whole report on the Plight of some group or another.....always loved good words....

Seeing my kids in school is bringing back memories aplenty of life back when. When the cool song everyone wanted to listen to on Walkmen was "Toy Soldiers" by Martika. When the cool thing was to make fun of the music teacher. My son is making fun of the music teacher and I asked him why and kind of leaned over and said "well, she's not really that bad" which leads me to believe he doesn't quite know why the kids say she's mean, but he'll happily jump on that bandwagon anyway. Poor music teachers!

I'm trying to just enjoy what life is bringing my way this fall instead of making my own path, because it doesn't seem to be going that way. I do have to say some big decisions seem to be coming clearer and I'm pretty happy with that. Sometimes I think it takes being a peace with what you have before you can take on something new. And not knowing if you want something is overwhelming. But feeling at peace with a future plan is so liberating. For now, I'll share some of the little things that made me smile today....

Do we really have to get rid of all of these leaves? I am LOVING them. They make everything so pretty. My favorite is the bright pink/red trees that show up when you round a corner and take your breath away.

Logan, my sweet soul, was getting into a habit of bringing every friend he owns downstairs and now he's narrowed it down to a few "best friends."

Sylvie has rejuvinated her mothering role. She has a few American Girl knockoff type dolls she's loving on. Abuelita collected this doll bed back from a neice and Sylvie really loves it. I can't wait to introduce her to Jamie's twins this weekend and see what she thinks.

We have a house built in 1946. A brick Georgian. It has its perks, its quirks and its frustrations. But when we went looking for a house I really really wanted a staircase. And while a ranch house would be good for laundry I won't regret the stairs. The window and the paintings from Mexico make me smile each time. The wood stairs are warm, and warmer with white paint. I always think about the fact that we are creating a baseline for our kids on what they see as "home." I can see us dragging our kids to an ultra-modern urban condo someday only to see them buy their first home with their spouses that looks just like this one.

My sweet dog. Jorge and I both had cocker spaniels growing up and wanted one as our first "together" dog. She's full of spunk and can push my buttons worst than Sylvie but I do love her as a walking companion, and a sweet friend who is at my feet.

William and Pink

Logan: "William at my school is funny."

Sylvie: "I have a William at my school too. He teaches Gym. Mr. Williams."

Logan: "I have another teacher named Mrs. M."

(I was surprised because I haven't heard of this teacher before.)

Me: "Logan, what does Mrs. M teach? Spanish, speech, music, library......."

Logan: "I don't know what she teaches, but she's really fast at sharpening pencils!"

I seriously laughed out loud, then he got upset, then he got curious. So I had to explain that it was surprise that made me laugh, that I was laughing with him not at him. (don't know why the font went all funky on me).

++++++++++++++++++++

Sylvie: "Mommy, I can't wait til we learn about the letter 'pink' so I can bring this Barbie with me for Show and Tell."

Lapbooks

I have heard about this from the homeschooler-crowd and it was right up my alley as a fun and educational Sunday activity. I am eternally grateful to websites that help moms out with freebies all ready to print. It took awhile to get my printer to produce this, and I was right there with my big scissors cutting things for the kids (it would have been a LOT of cutting), but they had a blast!

I think the idea is to focus on one subject and create 3D games, activities, etc. all based on that subject. Sylvie had a book telling her Three Little Kittens Story. Logan got to act as a reporter and interview Sylvie for his Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs theme. I flashed some pictures of a summer activity we did on the computer to jog their memory, and then had him ask the questions "who, what, when, where...." that were listed on his reporter notebook to write down the answers.

Sylvie loved this. She was all about the games we made, the almighty glue stick and the sing-songy story. She loved completing the project and went back later to continue decorating it more.

Logan was a bit worried about the idea of being a "reporter" but really enjoyed writing down words all over his lapbook. I did give him the option of drawing pictures and he chose words- that was pretty exciting!

This is where I got our free lapbook printouts, by subject, by age group, etc. A lot of them are based on a book you would read, and then do a lapbook to summarize it. They also had a great list of additional activities. It was great being able to print and make the whole thing this morning, but some of the ideas would take a day or two of prep, supplies, etc. Next time i'll find the lapbook, get the book and read it, and then do the lapbook activity after. A lot of Logan's lapbook involved reiterating vocabulary words from the actual book, which is a great idea.

http://www.homeschoolshare.com/Lapbooks_at_HSS.php

Don't worry mom....

Logan: "Don't worry mom, I won't ever leave this house. I'll live here forever and take care of Abby (the dog). Sylvie can still feed her, but I'll take care of her. "

Me: "Well, if Sylvie feeds her, what will you do to take care of her?"

Logan: "I'll play with her."

Me:"What about walking her? Like around the block on a leash all by yourself?"

Logan: "Maybe I can do that when I'm 10. And an adult."

-------------@@@@@@@-------------

Sylvie on Monday :"I know what I'm going to be when I'm an adult. I'm going to be Merliah. With a Tail." (that would be a mermaid tail)

Sylvie on Tuesday: "I know what I'm going to be when I'm an adult. I'm going to be Barbie Fashion Fairytale. With a Tail."

Sylvie on Wednesday: "I know what I'm going to be when I'm an adult. I'm going to be Rapunzel. With a Tail."

Sylvie on Thursday: "I know what I'm going to be when I'm an adult. I'm going to be a Cowgirl. With a Tail."

Sylvie: "Mom, when I'm an adult I'm going to have my own house. So I can buy all the things I want to buy and you can't say there isn't room for them."

Yep, that about sums up their personalities right there.

Bonus: Sylvie gave Logan 2 princes to play with while we all played Polly Pockets.

Sylvie: "Logan. This is the Prince from Snow White and this is the Prince from Sleeping Beauty."

Logan argues.

Sylvie: "No Logan. I'm really serious here. I know what I'm talking about. That is the prince from Snow White. I'm sure (pronounced "sir"). I know all about the princes and princesses."

I show them the pictures on the computer to confirm that they are indeed both actually right.

Logan: "I knew it. I just looked next to my eyes and I thought about it and I could see the picture and it was right there from when I watched the Snow White movie."

Voices

Sylvie talking .....

Sylvie "Hey, I talk like someone at school."

Me: "Oh yeah, like who?"

Sylvie: "I don't know. Dylan."

Me: "Do you like talking like your friends?"

Sylvie: "Yeah. I do. I'm an Ac-tor."

What a ham!

Clubs

Logan:"Blah blah blah clubs. Sylvie, are you gonna.....blah blah clubs? Mommy are you gonna blah blah clubs? Sylvie, come blah blah blah blah blah blah........"

Sylvie gets annoyed, irritated and I see a temper tantrum coming on like the other 5 she's had since 2:30 (it's only 6 pm, my poor mom!!!! )

Me "Logan, we're not playing that game. Sylvie has had enough already tonight. You are asking questions that 6 year olds love and 4 year olds hate. Please wait til tomorrow to ask those questions to the other 6 year olds in your class."

Laughter from Logan, peace from Sylvie, whew!!!!!

Early Learners

Sylvie: "Mom, Jamie's babies are gonna read!"

Me: "How do you know?"

Sylvie: "I heard it on tv."

Those "Your Baby can read" commercials are getting a bit ridiculous!!!!

Trilingual

Logan: "Mommy, I'm learning 3 languages."

"China, Mexico and Sign Language."

Me: "What about English."

(he ignores me)

Sylvie: "What about spanish?"

Logan: "Yeah, I'm learning that one too!"

I will call you....

Sylvie: "Logan, stop being a doody bop!"

Logan :" "No."

Sylvie: " Logan, if you can't stop being a doddy bop I will call you a butthead!"

Me: "Sylvie, that's not nice. What is a butthead?" (I couldn't resist)

Sylvie : "It's a head, with a butt on it."

Logan: "I f you say butthead one more time, then I will cancel our parties every time."

Me: "Sylvie, do you think it's worth it to stop calling Logan mean things so you can go to his parties?"

Sylvie: "No, Logan you are a butthead."

Logan: "That's it, all the parties are cancelled."

Sylvie: "Aw, no, I'll stop saying things. Puh-leeeeease?"

Logan: "Sylvie, don't touch my penis!"

Okay this blog post has to end and I now need to go talk to these kids instead of typing what they say.......

Okay, false alarm. But they are now put to bed. Not that it means much, Sylvie has already come back down here and I now mush shoo her back upstairs. Crazy kids!

A touch of red brings.....

This house has both the formal living room and this amazing family room. It was outdated and needed some TLC when we got it, and it has changed the most often through the 6 years we've owned our Casa Barrero. It takes a bit of vision to see the whole picture,...when you can buy things one piece at a time. This room is the most heavily used and abused, tumbled on, rolled around in, and oh...my....the TOYS! They are the bain of my clean house I tell you. So this is just one more round of "arranging the family room" with some new IKEA furniture, but I am so happy to have walked through the store without too much of an idea except the sizes and functions, and found exactly what will help. I have some different chairs picked out, but they were out of stock, these are borrowed from the dining room. Don't tell the kids but there is a MOUND of toys downstairs I've been sorting through for the past month, and bags of broken pieces I've tossed. Anyway, just wanted to share my fun new family room and record THIS family room moment. Because it may never be this clean again!!!!!

Snippets from home....

Being around these kids is hilarious and some day they will be whiney unreasonable teenagers with somewhat more adult behaviors so I'd like to write down some of the sillies that they do just being at home on a Thursday and Friday without school.....

*Sylvie has covered her legs, arms, and fingers slowly with bandaids over the past 2 days. Every time she walks by she has more.....

*Logan randomly got bored, rolled the legs up on his jammies, then rolled them down and walked around like a duck with his jammies and undies around his ankles.

*They both fought over who would get to keep the yellow power ranger (with a skirt) long-term. As in their house when they are adults.

*Sylvie put makeup all over Logan. Logan tied Sylvie's dress. Sylvie got Logan's silverware. Logan got Sylvie a snack.

*Incessant fart jokes.

*Sylvie was showing me a castle she said belonged to mermaids. She flipped it around and showed me the living room, the bedroom for mermen and mermaids and the bathroom. Then she giggled and said she wondered how the mermaids pulled their tails down to pee. Then she said maybe there is a special hole on their tails for that. She's smart as a whip I tell you.

*We were watching a scene from Epcot where they have a globe and Sylvie wanted to know how we can tell what the earth looks like when we're standing on it. Logan and I said the astronauts see it. Logan said "but, that earth on tv is made of lights. The astronauts see the earth that is green and blue." So I asked him to clarify why it looks green and blue for Sylvie. He said the green is trees and grass, but "the astronauts are so far away they can't tell the difference between grass and trees." And then I explained the Ozone Layer to the kids. And then Sylvie told me she absolutely positively needs to go back to the Apricot (Epcot ball) and do the ride there. Soon.

*We're going away to a hotel with bunk beds and I showed the kids so they would be prepared. Logan helped me ease her mind about not being the kid to sleep on the top by reassuring her that all the ocean dreams happen on the bottom. Then Sylvie decided that princesses sleep on the bottom and Mermen hang out on top.

I love these kiddos!!!!! And as a side note, how the heck did they go from looking young to old in 6 months since the Disney trip!!!!

School-ish Evening

After a very physical day of running, playing, ballet and los Abuelitos, the kids played here and then easily transitioned into school-time. I found a great Kumon workbook for numbers and Sylvie flew through it. It's great practice writing and recognizing the numbers, with connect the dots up to 20. She did really well!

Logan found his Transformer Sight Words workbook and the tasks are complex but he's doing well with them. We also have some flashcards and he matched up all the upper and lower case letters. Dd, Pp, Qq and Bb gave him a bit of trouble, but to his credit, they all looked the same in this font to me as well!

Anyway, I love when they are feeling engaged in an activity, and if it's a learning one, even better. And since I took my thyroid pill later today my attention span is still here at 8 pm. Kinda crazy how much I notice the difference!

Feeling Sappy

.....and sad to see different phases of my kids' lives pass. They are growing up so quickly. Their awake hours are not 100% ours so they come home with all these things to tell us, show us, and make us laugh. Tonight both kids were showing us how they can do cartwheels, splits while in a handstand, and walk on their hands!!!!! After years of "My Gym" they are moving quickly through the ranks of Flying High Gym. Sylvie is in the kinder-stars class already, and Logan is moving up to the next level as well.

Miss Sylvie had her ballet recital that was just adorable and Logan is getting so good at golf. A huge piece of all these extracurriculars is my in-laws doing. They are doing the legwork, the signing-up, the paying and keeping the kids' spirits up about attending all of these lessons. It feels like the world is in front of them, they are being exposed to all these amazing things. In school they are just learning so much, given so many opportunities to better themselves, and push themselves. Even religion is coming into their vocabulary. And we are getting all the million "how does the world work" type questions from our free-thinkers.

They are real little people with real personalities and real goals. Things like "do I push for them to go to college or be happy with them following their dreams" and "Do I help them with their homework" are entering my mind. Today we were talking amongst the moms about when they get married and that person entering our families as "daughter- and son- inlaws." Not that these things are anytime soon, we have a virtual lifetime ahead of us. And so many experiences.

I was reading an article about the experiences of 2 French High School exchange students. They were saying in America we are pushed to think, to have ideas, to have an opinion. We have clubs, teams and so many ways to form the hours of our lives. I got Logan's yearbook and there are so many clubs to be joined as early as this upcoming year! The French students also spoke of America not having as strong of an educational base. I know it's not as important for life or all jobs, but I think having a general knowledge of life, culture, other places, other people, and current events, is important. I was at lunch with co-workers and some new interns and felt like I was discussing things others had never even considered experiencing. And they were all right here in Chicago. Maybe it's the fact that I lived elsewhere before, I appreciate what Chicago has, just as I voraciously ingested what Seattle had to offer, I want to soak it all in here as well. We got a list from the art department on what there is to do in the area and I plan to bring the kids to many of the places.

I feel our kids are lucky and blessed to have so many people, places, experiences and so much love in their lives daily.

Silly-Inquisitive-isms

Sylvie: "Mom, why don't people feel that the earth is moving?"
"Oh, you know what? I know why the clouds are moving, because the earth is moving!"

Sylvie: "When I grow up, where will we all sleep in this house?"
Logan: "When I grow up, I'm going to live here."
S:"When I am a princess, I will live in Disney World."
L:"I'm not going to live in Disney, I'm just going to visit. I'm not going to work when I'm an adult." Me: "What are you going to do for money?"
L: "I'm going to work at Legoland."

Sylvie: "Logan, how does the juice get out of the battery?"

Letters and Reading

With the school year coming to a close, I'm focused on keeping those brain cells alive with not only a love of the outdoors and all things physical, but school things as well. Logan has really made strides this year and is on the cusp of actually reading, I do not want to lose this! So I bought the "Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons." For Sylvie, the first 50 seem to make sense, going over letters and sounds. So far she has proclaimed this all "boring" but we shall see on another day. Perhaps I should skip her ahead to lesson 20?:)

Logan was all gung-ho to do this book and we did approximately 12 lessons in a very short time, just reading sounds he was interested in reading, and then reading the corresponding words right after that, and then the sentence.

When I opened the book I thought it looked a bit silly and jibberish but what it does have going for it for Logan's skill set is he is at that point where all words starting with a "th" are automatically "The", and the literature at the front of the book talks about getting past that habit. It might be perfect timing!

Each letter has a dot, and a long line if the vowel is long. This will be great for his speech as well, this is exactly the sort of activity his teacher recommended. He really took the time to sound out each word, put it together in the sentence, still sounding it out, and was quick to recognize some of his sight words from school. Also, the letters are rather large, about the size he writes them himself.

All in all, I recommend it highly for your 6 year old between words and sentences!

A day of sports

Logan and Jorge went out golfing with Bill, their "private trainer" this morning. Jorge said Logan's improving quite a bit, and Bill (friend of his mom's) has helped him correct his own swing as well.

We spent a lot of the day outside on this hot hot spring day and finally by evening, the kids were running amuck again the house. Time to go outside once again. It was still 89 or so degrees, but we went over to the park hauling some equipment.

Logan was super intense with the tennis balls and his metal bat, throwing, catching, hitting, enjoying. Sylvie joined in and using a plastic bat and tennis balls, really started getting the hang of things. Now I think I need a "personal trainer" to teach me to throw so I can pitch to my two cuties!

We headed over to the tennis courts and both kids practiced swinging a racket and Logan worked on a back and forth game with Jorge.

Logan gets so keyed up, working hard, concentrating, listening to your advice, and not giving up. If anything, it's hard to keep up with his intensity. Sylvie did pretty well for herself, kept at it even when things didn't go easily. I'm impressed! It was a lot of fun but very sweaty and humid. It's fun to have more sports in our lives.

The Parisian

I know I haven't posted on our Paris trip. It was an amazing experience for so many reasons, and I feel like I'm trying to blend my experiences into my current life and see where it all fits in.

I keep having this image come back to my head of the last full day. It was rainy, chilly and a great day to be hopping in and out of shops wearing a raincoat and an umbrella. We settled down for lunch at an indoor cafe. Dark wood interior, wall of windows closed against the weather, old tin signs for Coca-Cola. I ordered a salad I had wanted to try since reading about it in Rick Steve's- egg, tomato, proscuitto and some additional things. Goodness.

As we filled our tummies and warmed ourselves, I couldn't help but look around at our fellow cafe-goers. On either side of us were two women and I was fascinated. What was their story. They looked like locals. One looked to be about 50. She sat and drank an espresso out of an impossibly small cup, book in hand, facing the window and us coincidentally. I couldn't actually tell if she was listening to our conversation, but she looked happy. Content. I don't know if she was retired, on break from work, alone or enjoying a moment of peace in life of chaos back home.

The whole time we were in the upper end of the Latin Quarter, I tried to picture who lived here, how did they live. They stopped at the fresh corner store, picked up flowers and groceries, opened their windows to let in the social noises in the street below. These women seemed to fit that life. Enjoying the little moments.

The older woman at the window drank a mid-day glass of wine. She ate steak and frites and had walking shoes on. She probably walked the park all day, every day, she looked hearty but was not eating low-fat, low-carb, low-taste food. She even ordered a mousse, and this huge smile spread across her face as she took that first bite.

I think what struck me was the lack of reaching out. I find myself in solitude looking for everyone around me, they are happy, they are with their friends, enjoying their children, judging my own experience of the moment on what I am NOT doing that everyone else IS doing. I would like to keep that image of the other women in my mind as a reminder to enjoy my quiet moments, enjoy the solitude, the routine and the daily moments that make up our life, and not always be looking for the newer, bigger, next, better and more fulfilling. The stuff of life is what makes the happy moments. And, I would like to remind myself that sometimes, it is okay to order dessert. Or drink wine at 1:00 in the afternoon. Because, really, the endorphins it releases must at some point outweigh the damage it does to our figure, especially if we walk more and drive less.
The

Logan's conversation.....

typed as I'm listening to it....

Logan: "Mom, want to know what kind of superhero I'm going to be? I'm going to be one that flies."

Logan: "I'm going to live with you forever mom."

Me: "Logan what will you do when you're an adult?"

Logan: "Mom, when I'm an adult I'll feed Abby (the dog) her food whenever it runs out."

Logan:" I'm going to do what Abby does. Relax at home while you and daddy are at work."

Logan: "When I'm at school, can you drop me off?" (we always walk in together)

Me: "What kind of job will you have?"

Logan: "The job is to take care of Abby at home. I'm going to do all the Abby work. Clean up her toys, get her something to eat and something to drink. When I'm an adult. Hey Sylvie, you don't have to do any work when you're an adult. Sylvie, will you live with mom when you're an adult?"

Sylvie: "Yes."

Me: "Sylvie, what about when you are an adult"

Sylvie: "I'm going to be Melody (a character from a Barbie movie)."

Friday Evening Playtime

Busy day Friday filled with a backyard birthday party with the meetup moms, school, a bit of running around and plenty of outside time. Friday evening the kids were ready for mom-time so we set down with the box of barbies and had at it. I started flipping my barbie up in a twist and so Logan started getting interested, trying to copy my moves with a flick of the wrist. Then he found a red bandana in the barbie box and started doing his karate moves. My very own Ralph Machio...swoon! hehehe. Sylvie, ever the princess, wore through 2 pairs of tights today caking them with mud at parks, and still found time to glitter her face and accessorize with a necklace.

This morning has been a lego/ pancake-making/ mermaid-watching kinda morning. I made a lego ship, which Logan asked to "borrow." Sylvie, after a bit of moaning about wanting to play Barbies again instead of legos, built her first lego house.

And seriously, when did we get this many barbies? Last summer if seems we were picking up a few at a garage sale so we had enough to fill one barbie car. Now we have a plethora!

Paris Preparation

We're going to Paris in 14 days- eeek and oooh-la-la!

So I've been surfing the web to see what to wear besides the obvious advice I keep seeing "don't wear white tennis shoes." I have some of my current wardrobe set aside but I feel like my coat is just blech and my shoes that I have relied on are falling apart (including for my work days). So I checked out a few stores online and saw what the price ranges and styles were nowadays and ended up at Target for a few new key pieces.....

The image of the shoes is small, but you get the idea. The dress I got is in black and has a lining underneath and looks really nice. Logan said I should wear it tomorrow.

I Recommend.....

Today the kids were planning lunch in the car ride home from school. So I decided we would have a "Taste Test Lunch." I put bowls of the 2 soups they requested with a bit of soup in each one, their sandwiches and some rice I had on hand that I wanted to eat myself.

Sylvie was the announcer, telling us what was available, Logan dove into the taste testing immediately. I taught them that after tasting, we could "Recommend" something to others based on what we liked.

So, I officially recommend the
Tomato and Rice soup with extra rice and a dab of fat free sour cream.

Sylvie recommends the
Chicken soup with Arroz (rice) on the side. She liked the grilled cheese but her favorite was the soup.

Logan recommends
Everything. He liked it all. And ate it all!

Guardian Angels

Alongside the power of Google image, I was explaining Guardian Angels to the kids and was reassuring Sylvie (who was on my lap) about how we have all these "magical" powers of spirituality watching over them who are powerful enough to help them in ways even mom and dad can't. We were talking about prayer and such.

So Sylvie said "I've never seen my guardian angel" and Logan, who I didn't think was listening, came over and said "I see my Guardian Angel all the time. It's a 'He' and he gives me funny dreams."

Kids are hilarious, that's all I can say about that.

I've been into Angels and spirituality lately and read a book about Angels by Sylvia Brown. It was fascinating and I think it's pretty interesting to me. I personally feel like I have NOT felt the power of my guardian angel. I don't know if I shut out the idea of it or haven't really come into harm's way, but as often as I feel a "6th sense" about someone, I really do not feel like I have someone leading me on my path towards what is right. Not sure if I'm not just open to the idea or if it's something else, but it would be exciting to have a sixth sense about a few things on my mind for the future. Actually, maybe it's my Spirit Guide that I need to connect with, the Guardian Angel has kept me safe whichever way I go. So, Guardian Angel and Spiritual Advisor or Guide, if you're around, you are welcome to come drop greetings my way on the next way to turn.

On a side note, I had a really rough day with work and with Jorge out of town I probably slip a bit more to the kids today than I need to. So I was talking and joking with the kids during brushing teeth and joked with Logan "Logan, if you see your Guardian Angel tonight, ask them what I should do about my job." and Logan said "Oh, that's easy, you should have no job. You should just play with your kids all the time. "

My bank account vetoes the idea but my heart is definitely on board with my sweet Logan. It's a good thing he has so many other adults that love him in the interim. You know, while Mommy still has a job.

A 50's kinda kid

Just when I thought I'd had it with this generation and its commercials that seem to lure my children incessantly (I know because they come over and repeat them verbatim for me, just in case I missed them), the kids surprise me.

We had our first warm day. This weekend is the Easter Holiday weekend and the kids are completely and totally jazzed up for the candy and toys to come. They have spring fever, are on spring break and in general, are intense to the max.

So we got outside for two 80-degree days in a row! Logan had me laughing because he had this whole agenda of what he wanted to do. He wanted to rotate through all the toys in the garage and you could see his brain clicking a few more notches and he started asking for some random things. Like his baseball tee. Only he didn't use it as a tee, he started inventing. What could a 6 year old do with a tee? Well let me tell you, there is "Make it into a star wars blaster." And then there is "Sit on it and make it a rocket ship." oh, and then let's grab mom's sunscreen and drop it in the back of the rocket as "fuel." He had me cracking up with his intense missions so I had to snap some pics to remember this phase of my son's life. The inventor, the intensity, and the fact that this worn-out tee has been turned into new uses like they would have in the "Good old days" of past generations when children didn't own 1000 different toys all to play in their backyards.