Bad dreams

We found Q3 like this at 10pm last night. If I slept like this, I'd also have bad dreams, too.



This morning C4 was proud to announce:


I had a bad dream and I didn't need anyone


And Q3, following suit:


I had a bad dream but I didn't need anybody. But the monsters ate all the snakes AND they peeked in my door and scared them away

That was SO not worth it.

After a nice juicey bite to Q3's wrist, C4 had to bite and lick some soap. And not rinse until Q3 stopped hurting. Or, when I imagine it started to feel better.

So, we were blessed with the following monologue.

C4: Eww.
C4: EWWW.
C4: Ew.
C4: Yuck.
C4: That did not taste good.
C4: Ewww.
C4: That was really ewww. EWWWW.
C4: Ewww.
C4: Ewwww.
C4: EWWWW.
C4: That was not worth it!
C4: Ewww.
C4: Ew.
C4: That tastes yuck!
C4: Ewww.
C4: EW.

One year in the classroom ...

... and neither teacher noticed that C4 had mad reading skills. Do I expect too much??

How do you spell barrette?

They love to have multiple things in their hair.



Last night C4 was over energetic and just bad. So she lost all the books in her room (so she couldn't stay up reading) and then lost her goodnight story (really, she was BAD). It was a very sad moment for her and she was crying.

You know us, explaining, explaining, and talking about why she lost her stuff. And we asked her to talk about what she'd done,

C4: I was just showing off!
C39: How did that work out for you, then?
C4 [despondant]: Not too good ...

***

Q3 is getting very interested in reading. She likes it when I point to the words I'm reading, and she is starting to recognize her favorite word in books (NO). She called me into her room at 6:30 this morning to show me "NO!" on a page. And then when I went to go, she called me back againt to show me "Now" on the previous page, because it also had NO in it.

love the camera

This little slide that they seem to be outgrowing has lately become a focal point for Q3's play. C4 is only playing on it right now because I had the camera out. She'll do anything to get on film.

Ick a tick ... and proud mama

C39 just took a tick out of Q3's ear. Q3 wanted to know why she had a tick in her ear (er ... because they like blood?). All I have to say is it was a good thing C39 was there to dry her off, because I'm sure I would have missed it, I'm such a lackadaisical dryer. Now she is sleeping, tick ear down. The whole tick removal operation was exhausting.

And I know you are all tired of hearing what C4 can read, but she can read (almost) anything. We were reading Louie the Bouy tonight, and I had her read all the big words. Big words like ... automatically, oysters, barnacles, automobiles, and migrated. Tonight she had a tough time with turbulent, enveloped, and lieutenant. And she can count to 1,000. Add 3 numbers at a time. Count by 2s (odds or evens). Do long division.

Yeah, that last one was a lie.

Alpha Canis Majoris

eeeeeetttteeeeeewwwwwssssssfdff
www
78 84 64
jri4o30
hrs
sss
wrdsgcddssseaswasdfghjjkl;';[]\]';,./-=
=-------,.l;--=[]\'
desssssssew
4 and a half celeste
pupypdogpuppydog

Building (continued!)

I've been craving more veggie gardening space. Where to grow stuff??? And I've been thinking about building a teepee ... ahem ... tipi for the kids. Then a couple of days ago a friend showed me a tipi that she built that was designed to be covered with vines and function as a mini playhouse for the kids (from Lowes). PERFECT. We are working on ours.



C39 & I had a bit of debate as to where this thing should go

[Dialogue reenacted for drama]

E38: I think we can fit it on apple hill [a small lump in the landscape where there used to be an apple tree before drought and I killed it]
C39: There is a precipitous drop off to the East! The thing will be lopsided!
E38: It'll be fine!
C39: Harumph. Fine. Do what you want. [Implied: Don't blame me when it fails miserabley you silly silly person who never thinks ahead and just jumps in and ends up with a lopsided tipi -- if it stands at all]

And yes, it was fine. Mostly. C39 admitted that it worked better than he thought it would, and I admitted the site needed a little work.

So, C39 and I are prepping the site, trying to flatten out the hill built up by the last owners, and shore up the East side of apple hill so that we won't have much erosion.



But when we are done, we'll have this great bamboo structure that will be covered with vines. Maybe scarlett runner (edible) and purple hyacinth (decorative). Maybe morning glory? Or whatever seeds I find left over at this time of year!!

***Afternoon update***

While C39 prepped the site, Q3, C4, and I had lunch:



C39 built the retaining wall & tamped things down, and laid the weed barrier:



And once it was done Q3 got right down to work:



Here is the long shot:



And C39 is off right now getting our seeds and a bit of chunkier mulch for the girls to sit in.

Another Sunday morning

Episcopal service this week. Unfortunately, we were in a side room, not the sanctuary. So it wasn't as exciting for the girls. And no kneeling. But they still professed to enjoy it.

Q3 was a little bit wiggly and antsy. As was C4. Both sat on laps a lot. Q3 and I had to take a spin outside for a while.

And then at the end of the service (see, I can say service not mass) everybody had to come up and welcome us and invite us back and tell us what a pleasure it was to see us there.

We'll see what happens next week.

Bugger

It has been hot. The mosquitos are out. The girls have been running through the sprinklers and ... getting naked in the back yard.

The mosquitos are the asian tiger type and bite at all times of the day. Aside from things like West Nile Virus, I just hate mosquitoes. And we had no more OFF power-pad things (The little hurricane lamps that have a candle and chemicals in them to repel insects. They work really well), so I had the bright idea of pulling out the bug spray the other day. Actually, this was a good idea. The all natural kind. Citronella, peppermint, lemongrass, and the like. I really enjoyed the smell of it.

And Q3, who was 100% naked, got sprayed and then asked if she could spray herself more. But before she could do so, she started to scream. SCREAM. High pitched, clearly in pain screaming.

Whatever it was in the all-natural bug spray ... irritated her skin and we had to rush up to the tub and soap up, shower, and re-bathe to get it all off and cool and calm her down.

Back to the DEET, I suppose.

Last week at school

Here is a nice anecdote about C4 ... I asked her teacher about it, and she said this type of thing may last her whole life (ie, being not fond of people dressing up ... although I assume that her reaction will be a bit more mature after a few years, eh?)

Last Wednesday the kids were told that firefighters would be coming with their trucks and an ambulance the next day. C4, of course, overthought it a bit, but didn't tell us about it (nor did Q2).

When, on Thursday, C4 heard that the firefighters were there, she asked to go to the lavatory to wash her hands ... and she locked the door and spent an inexordinate amount of time in there. I guess so she wouldn't have to see the firefighters. And she wouldn't come out.

When they got her out, finally, she had a tantrum to end tantrums ... yelling, screaming, crying. Kind of a surprise for everybody. I didn't know the firefighters were coming, but I don't think it would have made a difference ... I would not have suspected that things were going to go this way!

Anyway, her regular teacher was out, the sub and the assistant teacher were not up to the task, and so her last year's teacher calmed her down finally (whew) so when I got there she was just hanging out in the hall with her stuff ready to go home.

C4 & I went outside and chatted, and then I went in with her to see the firefighters. And she was fine. She would not shake hands with the firefighters with all their gear on (Q2 did), she wouldn't crawl around the room pretending to leave a burning building (Q2 did), but she did contribute to the conversation (dog-related, but whatever).

And then we went outside to see the trucks ... and she got into their fire engine without me, but then she came back out instead of going through to the other side, so I went in with her and went through. And all was fine.

Phew.

No more of those, please.

Dang it

I keep thinking about things I want to blog for you, but I keep promptly forgetting them. Got to write them down, right?

One thing that came up yesterday, though, was C4, and her intellect. C39 & I, of course, think she is a brilliant amazing girl. But I've gotten no feedback to THAT end from school this year. It is like ... the parents whose children who make no trouble don't get any feedback from school. Kind of frustrating.

But a friend of mine suggested that C4 was reading at a 2nd grade level (I agree with that assessment, actually) and that perhaps she should be tested for the talented and gifted program and possibly have her IQ tested. This friend (who worked with children before having her own child) suggested that her IQ was in the 130-140 range.

I know it means nothing in terms of future success, but it still means pretty damn smart.

But, of course, I knew that. It isn't every 3-4 year old who has taught herself to read.

**

To be fair, the 2s teachers are in love with Q3 and think she is the brightest sweetest thing. But we all know she's a tiny bit more conventional than C4.

New things to do

Q3 has been pretending to be a baby lately. Fun for all.



And a friend brought over tadpoles. We thin they'll be either tiny frogs or tiny toads. Tiny, anyway.

Sunday morning stuff

C4 & Q2 were snip snapping and it was irritating C39, so I took C4 out ... just to get her out of the house. We got gas. We checked to see if any hair cut places were open (Hair Cuttery opens at 9 AM on Sundays. No wait for us).

Here's the new haircut:


And then C4 said she wanted to go church. So we found St. Marks on Adelphi, we arrived 10 minutes before service started.

C4 headed straight up to the front row. So, there we sat. I answered 1,000 questions (how does the wine become blood? Is it blood now? Is it blood now? Is it blood now? Are you going to have some? Why not? Etc.) and at the end of service she had a question for the priest. About if God was made or never made. Of course, the priest answered that God was never made, God always was there, God made everything.

She wants to go next week.

Graduation yesterday

I worked graduation yesterday, and it was boring in some bits, busy in others, and pretty darn fun in just a few.

My highlights??

1) Student singer reaches a high point during the national anthem and ... the police dog chimes in!
2) The sign language interpreter signs the canine harmony to the deaf community.
3) I got to ride a police officer's battery-powered transportation devices (a Segway). That was awfully fun!!

Bikes and Trikes

I heard from school that Q3 can ride a trike. Good news! But, we gave away our trike and I don't want it back.

So instead, at home, Q3 is learning to ride her Skuut and getting a very little bit of gliding in.

Anc C4 is working on her learning to ride her new scooter, the Kent Super Scooter, and I can see her progressing everytime we go out. And she's proud of herself, too.

No pictures yet (I'm still spotting the girls) but soon.

Robot Parade!

We had a playdate with our wonderful friends B5 & F3 & L10mo. Here is what transpired:



CUTE! C4 took part, but only for a minute or so ... then she ran up to be a puppy under the table. What, did she realize this was dressing up??

Mother's Day, and more bad parenting.

Trying to get everybody ready to head up to bed.

C4 walks by not putting her chair away after being told to put it away.
C39, trying to get C4 to put the chair away says "You need to do what I say"
C4 runs and puts her chair away saying "Mr. Poopy"
C39 (regrettfully): Ohhh, man, I do say that, that's where she gets it from.
E38 (thinking, he says Mr. Poopy???): You say Mr. Poopy???
Q4 (Dancing on landing): Mr. Poopy, Mr. Poopy, Mr. Poop poop pooopy! (song and dance continue for 2 minutes as C39 and E38 laugh and laugh)

Of course, C39 meant the "You need to do what I say" which is what C4 has been saying these days.

Parade day.

Waiting for the candy


Last car in the parade (before DPW) ... the BUBBLE CAR!!


On the miniature "train" at the festival


At the festival arts table

Bump. Bump. Bump.

Wednesday C4 fell off the bed. She cried a bit, but I distracted her and she stopped complaining that her head hurt, and went to school as usual.

Wednesday afternoon C4 complained again that her head hurt from the fall, but I distracted her, asking her about her school day (it didn't hurt so much at school) and she stopped complaining about it.

Thursday afternoon C4 took a nap. She never naps. Even in the car.

C39 went up to check on her ... and she woke and said she had to go potty ... but didn't make it. This was not a pee-pee accident. This type of accident hasn't happened since ... potty training.

And she complained her head hurt.

C39 called me at work and I first said, let's just watch her, but the poo thing got to me and I said take her to the doctor. Somethings wrong if she took a nap and pooped in her pants.

The doctor checked her out, said she was fine, and sent C4 home, telling C39 to take her to hospital if anything unusual happened.

Nighttime. C4 falls asleep at an appropriate time, and wakes, yelling that she feels like she has to throw up. Incredibly, we reach her in time and she vomits in the toilet.

I take her to the hospital. The vomiting has made her feel much better. We spend 3 hours there to be told she's fine (I know, I know!). And to get a pops-lickle.

11:30 we are discharged (amazing the discharge lady, as C4 was reading everything in sight) and incredibly, C4 did NOT fall asleep on the ride home. She's awake for a midnight snack. Which I give her.

New game

Q3 pretends to be a baby. Mostly this involves her scooting and crawling around, going Goo-goo, gaa-gaa! and doing whatever we say babies do. But here is her quiet time rendition. Except that she couldn't get out by herself.

It's raining it's pouring

So we're stuck inside and it's boring.

Well, not really. Not at all. But I am ready for some outside time. And I think so are the girls.

Vampires

Thank you, my good friend, for bringing over the cake that made C4 look like she just sucked down a squirrel raw ...



... and made Q3 look ... well like she drinks alien blood (please ignore huge boogie in this vampire's nose)

Some time ago

While shopping in January the girls found fabric they really liked. So, although I had no idea what to do with it, we bought it anyway.

About a month ago I found a pattern for an itty-bitty baby dress ... and enlargement for 3T size. This was something I could make! OK, so these aren't so itty bitty ... they are the enlargement (to the right) and an enlargement of the enlargement (the left). Original Pattern on Made By Rae."

Here it is. The fabric still isn't MY favorite, but I'm not wearing these!!



And of course, they'll do anything to be in a video: