Four

Four is happy.  Four is silly.  Four is playful.  Four is opinionated.  Four is stubborn, but she comes by it naturally.  Four likes to be independent.  Four still refuses to eat veggies.  Four like Brave, and Tiana, and Tangled.  Four declares a difference between "boy colors" and "girl colors".  Four writes her name.  Four draws pictures of herself and her family.  Four loves her dog.  Four loves you "as high as a giant" or "all the way to the moon and the stars." Four cannot be contained. Four is already planning her next birthday party.  Four likes Care Bears, My Little Pony, Strawberry Shortcake and other things from my youth. Four puts on puppet shows in the bathtub.  Four makes up songs about almost anything.  Four enjoys both Rufus Wainwright and Jeff Buckley's version of "Hallelujah". Four knows almost all the words to "Changes." Four is giggly. Four is sweet. Four is speeding by faster than I imagined.

Trick or Treat

"I'm not really Olivia, I'm just pretending..."

Making Cookies

I think it was more about the outfit than the cookies, but the cookies did taste pretty good.

Ten Years Later...

I first saw the Twin Towers from an airplane. My sister and I were returning from a trip to Italy. As we flew over New York City, several British men behind us spotted the towers, and excitedly pointed it out, "Look, there they are! There are the Twin Towers!" From my aisle seat, I leaned over to get a look, truthfully, I didn't look that closely. I figured there would be another trip to that city some day, or another flight, and I would see them again. Little did I know how wrong that assumption would be.

The date was September 9, 2001.

I returned home, and went back to my life. I had two jobs I was working, a wedding to plan. I was asleep when the events of 9/11 began to unfold, later awoken by a phone call from Luke, who asked if I was watching TV. My reply was "no, which channel?" He simply said "it doesn't matter, just turn it on."

I couldn't help but think, "I just saw them," as if somehow that meant it couldn't be real. But it was real, it was really happening.

Ten years later, rewatching that footage, it's still surreal. Even though I know what will happen, I catch my breath when the second plane hits, or first tower starts to collapse. When I hear stories about the passengers on Flight 93, I can't help but hope maybe this time they will be met with a different outcome. But, I can't change what is done, I can't rewrite history.

But, I can remember.

Busy

We have been busy...

We planted a "green, green garden..."
We mastered the drums...
We have made maps to our cousin's house (or rather, we told Mommy what to draw on the map- and yes, it does include Target)...

We try to catch balls...

We skip...

We play baseball, in a dress...

We play mommy to our "baby"...

Yes, we have been busy, but we sure do have fun.

No words, no caption...

Three

Three is goofy. Three is adventurous. Three is opinionated. Three likes to play board games, but not by the rules. Three wants to do everything herself, even though she can't quite manage it all. Three would eat cereal for every meal if allowed. Three is imaginative. Three is lovable. Three is learning to count past twelve. Three loves to sing the alphabet. Three thinks babies are "so cute." Three likes to help cook, particularly chocolate chip pancakes. Three is stubborn. Three things vegetables are "gross". Three is silly. Three will cheer for you after you do something and shout "you did it!". Three loves to play with Gomez, even when Gomez isn't in the mood. Three has an infectious giggle. Three wants to invite everyone to her birthday party. Three can't wait for baseball season to start. Three has big plans for a garden when it's warm out. Three knows her eyes are blue, like Daddy's. If what others tell me is true, three can be a handful, but so far, three is wonderful.

Someone should have been named Olivia...

"You know Olivia, sometimes you really wear me out, but I love you anyways."

"I love you anyways too."

Some days you really wear me out, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Snow Day

Well, it wasn't totally a snow day, but we did get a break from work to play a bit. Glad the sun came out.

Another project complete

Here's the latest. A Fibonacci striped blanket for baby Simon. I'm only a month behind on this one I think.

And another plus, it's not the size of a king sized bed.

A conversation

Luke: "Q, how old are you?"

Q: "Ummm... 2!"

Luke: "That's right, and how old will you be at your next birthday?"

Q: "Mmmm... 16?"

Luke: "Yeah, that's about right."

Traditions

All families have traditions, some are unique, others more run of the mill. But whatever they are, this time of year seems to uncover the bulk of them.

In my family, for example, the holidays are a time to torment my mom with the holiday decorations. The festive houses that spell "Noel" are rearranged as many ways possible to spell "Leon", "Ole", etc. The small pink, ceramic elephants my dad received as a gag gift find their way into the nativity scene, carefully watching over the original figures. Ornaments and other various items are hidden, moved, and turned this way or that, so that all her meticulous decorating is just slightly out of place when guests arrive.

While it may lose something to those outside of the family, this scene from a couple of years ago is probably the most intricate in its execution. Kudos Luke, I wonder what Coca Cola Santa will be up to this year...

Tis the Season...

As adults, we sometimes forget that feeling we had as kids when it comes to the holidays. We get cynical, bogged down with life, bills, etc.

And then we have kids in our own lives, who remind us just how fun the holidays can be. They stare in awe at the tree and decorations, they exclaim "thank you" so sincerely, they make us stop and remember to enjoy this time of year.

I'm thankful to have one of those little ones in my house to help me remember, and try to slow down and enjoy it all.

Happy holidays!

Trick or Treat

Happy Autumn!

Latest project... complete!

Finished. Finally. This took far longer than expected, particularly with a toddler who doesn't allow for as much free time as I once had. But, despite the fact that he's now seven months old, I hope baby Elliot will love it.
Next project, the Fibonacci blanket for the next baby due... hopefully that will go faster.

Dinnertime

We are now at an age where playing pretend happens fairly regularly.

This was in preperation for our "dinner" the other night.

She...

She is two. She has opinions. She is girly, with a touch of tom-boy. She thinks teal skirts match blue t-shirts. She would wear her Yo Gabba Gabba t-shirt and electric blue ballet flats every day if you let her. She plays the drums, on her head, with spoons. She will switch pacifiers four times before bed, each time insisting on a particular color. She refuses to eat vegetables. She refuses to eat some fruit. She refuses to eat, well....a lot of things. She tells trees to be quiet, and does not like saying "night night" to sheep. She wears underwear over her diapers. She likes Curious George and sitting on Gomez. She likes to dance, with flashlights, in the pantry. She will tell a bug "bye bye" and "love you" as you kill it with a tissue. She thinks everything she doesn't see is "hiding." She makes us laugh daily. She is our mighty, mighty Q.

Co-pilot

I know that I am a very lucky person. I probably don't acknowledge it enough, or reflect on it as often as I should. But, when push comes to shove, I know deep down how fortunate I am.

For starters, I have the man pictured to the right here. I have been fortunate to have him for over a decade. First as friends, then as best friends, then as so much more (well, it wasn't quite as simple as that, but the how isn't so important.) We will have been married eight years this September. Eight years. It hardly seems possible that he's been putting up with my idiosyncrasies for that long (well, longer...)

He is my best friend. He knows me better than anyone, and can read me better than I can read myself sometimes. He seems to know when something is bothering me before I know myself.

He is goofy, playful, the yin to my yang with Q at times. Daddy is crazy, wild, adventurous. Mommy will read you books and help you sweep. But together we fit well, and are raising an amazing little girl.

I am guilty though, guilty of not letting him know how much he is appreciated. Guilty of taking him for granted, of thinking that after this long he just knows that I love him, that I need him, that I can't imagine my life without him. Guilty of forgetting that like me, he needs to hear those things and be reminded of them from time to time.

For that I'm sorry Luke. I love you, with all my heart, and I appreciate all you do. From the small (like taking out the garbage) to the big (like providing us with our beautiful home). It doesn't go unnoticed. I may forget to mention it, but I am always thinking about it, about just how lucky I am.

Thank you for being my co-pilot.

The World According to Gabba

We are a Yo Gabba Gabba family. Some people hate that show, some people are terrified of it, but we have embraced it. In fact, I find myself getting excited when I see a new episode will air, perhaps more excited than I should be.

For Q's birthday (and for mine), we went to see Yo Gabba Gabba Live. She wears her YGG t-shirt any time it is clean (and sometime when it's not). And when all else fails, we can pull up an episode from the DVR and all is right with the world.

This also means that several aspects of Gabbaland have floated into our real world. It's something not everyone would understand, but fellow parents of "Gabbaheads" know.

-Clean up time is not possible without singing "clean it up, clean it up, pick up the trash now..."

-We have many dancey dance times each day- our latest favorite is the "March" and "Crazy Daisy"

-Muno, Foofa, Toodee, Brobee and Plex are normal words in our vocabulary.

-We often discuss the party in our tummy, and which foods would like to go to said party.

-Muno, a large, red, one eyed monster should be scary, but instead is probably the most loved of the characters. I don't question this for some reason.

-Q is not only not scared of Biz Markie, but beat boxes with him, and waves and says "Bye Biz, Love you!" when "Biz's Beat of the Day" ends.

-I find it normal for my toddler to say 'break it down' and point down while saying it. In fact, I adore it.

-Plex is a buzzkill, there, I said it.

-I find myself listening to, and singing the Gabba songs on my iPod (for Q) when she is nowhere around.

We are all Gabba, and I'm ok with that, In fact, I love it. But please, oh please, just keep Dora away. Far, far away.