Twiddling My Thumbs

For those of you wondering where I have been, wonder no more. I have been living la vida loca.

• We are moving out of Norwalk tomorrow! Ack! We feel really fortunate to have sold our home in this crazy real estate market and truly believe that the new owners see our house as a special place.

But wait, there is more!

• We are moving in with the Hoos' parents! It is only temporary - for the month of July until we close on our new home. Meaning:

• We are packing to put our stuff in storage! Ack! Way more stressful than just packing to move. Everything must be in a box or thrown out. No just carrying a box of perishables and driving over hanging clothes.
  

But wait, there is more!

• We are going on vacation! Leaving Monday for parts north where we hope to relax, enjoy the beautiful beaches, and eat lots of ice cream. Plus, it will help break up the 4 weeks living without my own home.

Lest you think I am done:

• My company just announced a merger. Ack! I am the only marketing/communications person, meaning I was really in the thick of things for planning and now find myself in integration-land.

But back to the move:

• We bought a new house! The new house is awesome. There are a whole lot of things about it that make it perfect for our family (e.g., you know those canoes and kayaks taking up space in my basement? They will now be located on the built in kayak rack in the backyard - which is 15 feet from a body of water!).
• AK is switching day care! Well, after I spend the summer driving the girls to their existing day care on my way to work (I really am dreading this change to our routine - the girls are used to leaving the house at 8:30am, now we have to try to leave before 8).
• LP is graduating preschool and going to KINDERGARTEN! Ack! When did I get so old?
  

At a Loss For Words

In our house it is very rare that anyone is at a loss for words.

AK: "I have a new friend in my class."
LP: "What does he look like?"
AK: "He is black..."
LP: "You mean he has brown skin?"
AK: "He is black, he has brown skin, and teeth, and ears, and arms, and hair..."

Not that I am really sure how else AK could have described her friend, but this makes it clears that she doesn't have nearly as many adjectives in her vocabulary as she has body parts.

I was pretty much rendered speechless from the whole conversation.

Togetherness

Yesterday AK started in the preschool room at day care. She looks like such a little peanut next to her classmates - especially since she just turned 3 and most of them are bordering on 4 and preparing to move to the next classroom at the end of the summer.

When they asked if I was okay with transitioning her early, I was thrilled:

1. I love the teachers
2. The classroom is much bigger and nicer
3. Positive reinforcement and peer pressure on potty training
4. Lower day care bill!

Added bonus - in the mornings and afternoons they typically combine the 3 year old class and the 4 year old class, meaning LP and AK are together for some extra time. Even though they sometimes beat each other up and a lot of the time they make each other crazy, at the end of the day, they love and take good care of each other. The picture is one the Hoos snapped this morning of LP reading AK a book in the classroom. Could you melt?

I would be more apt to melt if I had not woken up suddenly at 6 am for no reason. Apparently it impacted the whole family, because AK showed up at 6:05 and LP at 6:15. At 6:20 the Hoos went to sleep in LP's twin bed - with her. At 6:40 I got up and showered and AK enjoyed having our queen bed all to herself.

A Letter of Warning

Dear Preschool Assistant Teacher:

Just a reminder to never think that my child is not listening. Because not only is she always listening? She is actually recording everything you say.

For example, last night she told me to make sure to shake off before going into "Cottage on the Beach" or else you will get sand flea bites. She also told me that "our" beach is not a "real beach" because it does not have a Cottage. "By the way, Mommy, what is 'Cottage on the Beach'?"

Previously she has told me that "black is slimming" and "fashionable" and "it goes with everything."

My daughter is FIVE. She does not need to know about the intimate details of your personal life. She does not need your fashion advice. She does not need to know about colors that are slimming.

Thank you,
AmyBow

PS - It is bad enough that she knows all of the lyrics to Taylor Swift and Katy Perry songs (and is teaching her 3 year old sister the same)> Actually, I don't mind that so much. Today she asked me to download a new song, "Waka Waka". I just had to google to figure out she was talking about a Shakira song and not Fozzy Bear.

When I'm A Dolt

This morning I woke up LP by asking her if she knew what today was.

"Doctor's appointment day!!!" she responded gleefully.

I confirmed she was right and added, "And your cousin Emily's birthday! Maybe if you guys move quickly we can try to call her to wish her a happy birthday if she is home from school."

LP was pensive, "Does she sleep at her school?"

"No, but she lives in Hungary and that is a different time zone. So it is already after lunch for her."

"Mommy, when I'm a dolt, I want to live in Hungary."

"Well, when you are an adult you can visit Hungary. And lots of other places. Where else do you think you would want to visit?"

"Hungary, and California, and China, and Disneyland, and Oliverti."

"LP, what is Oliverti?"

"You know, mom, Oliverti."

I was still confused. "What do they have there?"

"You know! Oliverti!" and then she posed holding one arm over her head.

"Oh! you mean the Statue of Liberty!! That is in New York, LP. We can visit there while you are still a kid."

Three with a Vengeance

Last night as I was trying to get AK to sleep, I asked her what she wanted for her birthday dinner.

"My fav-or-ite!"

I thought hard, came up blank (she eats everything), and asked for some clarification.

"Chicken!"

Not too helpful. More details required.

"Chicken with polka dots!"

While I have no idea what she was originally speaking of, I can make this happen, "How about dinosaur chicken nuggets with corn and peas to give them spots?"

"YES!!! And Sunny Daes for dessert."

Ice cream for dessert I can do. Especially if it means I get a night off from baking.

I then attempted to slip out with the excuse of needing to wrap her presents. This was around 9.

At 9:30 the Hoos and I heard running and drawers opening. We looked at each other knowingly, "AK..." Sigh."Wonder what she will be wearing when we go up."

At 10:15 there was still noise coming from AK's room. Sigh.

I found her on the floor behind her door - wearing long-sleeved cotton footie pajamas. Sigh.

Lest you think that going to bed after 10 would make for a rough morning...

At 6:20, there was the pitter-patter of little footsteps. Sigh.

"Mommy! I not two anymore! I'm threeee!"

"Happy birthday, AK!"

"Mommy? Daddy not say happy birthday to me."

The Hoos, [sigh], "Happy birthday, AK!"

Happy birthday, indeed.

Spitfire

Three years ago tomorrow, a beautiful little girl beat the doctor (and the anesthesiologist) to the delivery room. And when the nurse held up the umbilical cord to show the Hoos and me the "true knot" in it, we knew instantly that this little girl was not going to let anything or anyone hold her back.

I would say that she is like the Energizer bunny, except even Energizers eventually run out of steam. Not my AK.

This weekend she ran from bounce house to sprinkler to snack table in a circuitous route at a party. It made my head spin (and my stomach turn) just to watch her. And any thought of her conking out on the ride home would only lead to disappointment. And then after dinner, when we went on a family walk, the Hoos and I each pushing a stroller, LP enjoyed the ride and AK walked the entire 1.5 miles.

A petite powerhouse, AK actually thinks she is turning 5 like her big sister instead of 3. She idolizes LP and wants everything the same as big sister. Tonight we will be making a two-tiered, pink iced cake that looks just like the one LP brought to school last week. And tomorrow AK will get similar if not identical presents. And in a couple of weeks they will have a joint birthday party. Good think LP relishes the role of big sister and care-giver. Not to say they don't find ways to get under each other's skin, but at the end of the day they always give each other a kiss and a hug.

To say our family was not complete until AK arrived would be an understatement. Now if only she had come with some spare batteries for sharing...

The Nurturer

This is LP.

LP is FIVE.

LP is also loving, and smart, and beautiful, and going to be the most amazing woman.

She is nosy inquisitive.

She is observant.

She hears everything, understands most things, and teaches everyone around her.

She is the center of AK's world and a huge bright spot in mine (and the Hoos').

When I went to register LP for kindergarten and the principal asked me to describe her, I was momentarily speechless. How do you capture the spirit that is LP in words?

She may no longer have the chubby cheeks and deliciously pudgy thighs that were her trademark as a baby, but she instantly captured our hearts and that certainly has not let up.

What a Crack Up

Last night as I was putting AK to bed, I noticed she had a quilt laid out on the floor, "I sleep here," she told me.

"Fine, as long as you sleep," I said, closing the door.

A few minutes later I heard some banging and went in to check on her. I found her arranging herself and her stuff on the quilt. She had grabbed a mini-pillow and a cuddly friend from her bed and the banging was a result of her grabbing a blanket from her dresser.

She looked at me, didn't say a word and returned to assembling her bed.

When I went back downstairs, I told the Hoos not to be surprised if AK was sleeping on the floor.

"I bet she isn't sleeping," he responded.

Around 9:45 our suspicions were confirmed by some additional banging.

When I went upstairs, I found AK trying to stuff the blankets back into her dresser. Apparently she was ready to return to bed.

I also noticed that she seemed to have more and different clothes on then when I had last left her.

"AK, it is too hot for a sweatshirt." Again, she didn't say a word, just stuck her arms in the air so I could remove it. She then curled up on her pillow and closed her eyes.

When I went in at 10:15 she was sound asleep and I was able to remove the leggings she had also put on.

That kid cracks me up. Simultaneously hard to believe she is only three and almost three.

Dealing With It

Last week I took LP for her kindergarten visit.

Everything looked so small.

Except my daughter; she looked so big! How is it even possible that my round-cheeked, chubby-legged little baby is turning five in a few short days?

Another eye-opening thing at the orientation was how many stay-at-home moms there are. I know they exist, and while I don't envy them (to me, being a SAHM is way harder than a "work in the office" mom), I don't necessarily feel like I have a lot in common with them.

For example, there as one woman that was jumping out of her seat to be a Brownie troop leader.

There is also the challenge of after-school care.

The district we are moving into offers full day and extended day kindergarten. Despite the names, full day is school until 3:30 four days a week and extended day is school until 3:30 twice a week and until 1:10 three days a week.

The extended day option boggles my mind. If your kid comes home early do you play with them for an extra two hours? Take them to a music class or something? Are two extra hours of stimulation with other children too much?

LP (and AK) have been going to day care from 8:30 until 5 since they were 3 months old. The idea of having them home at 3:30 seems early.

I have already starting setting the stage at the office for a work schedule where I will be able to meet her at home from the bus. However, there is the sticky wicket of Wednesday. Every single kindergarten class ends at 1:10 on Wednesdays. I think this is a relic of the half day kindergarten days (thank goodness we don't have to worry about THAT) but I am really not sure of the purpose. Other than to make working parents run around like crazy people to get a strategy together.

Of course, my first option, after care at the school for two hours, is full. We are on a waiting list. My second option of having her bussed to the same center AK will be at for day care is cancelling its program for lack of interest. I am starting to think about hiring a babysitter to meet LP at the bus and hand out with her for a few hours. Of course, this is complicated by actually finding a babysitter. Further complicated by the fact that we will not actually live in the community for another 10 weeks.

ACK! It is enough to make my head hurt. A lot.

What sort of crazy machinations do they have in your town? What solutions have you come up with?