Stay Awake

Two nights ago C4 wanted to sleep with me when I went to bed. She's been quite actively demanding "I need you, mumma" (or daddy) lately, and this is just part of that theme. But she told me if I got lonely when I went to bed she'd sleep with me. I told her if she was still awake when I went to bed I'd let her sleep with me, knowing full well that she'd be long asleep by the time I got to bed. So when she woke the next day she awoke she was indignant that I hadn't gotten her.

Last night Q2 woke up in the middle of the night and came to her door and insisted something ... maybe that she hurt her eyes? I can't quite remember. Rather than trip over the gate to get her back to bed I just picked her up and brought her to bed with me. The sleep wasn't so relaxing for me, but Q2 fell right back to sleep, with a few tosses and turns, and woke at a brisk 5:56 AM.

I had to wake C4 at 7:30, because both girls had check-ups at 8:30 AM. We made it there just 10 minutes late.

Both are healthy. C4 is 40" and 36# ... tracking 50th percentile for both. Q2 is 36.5" and 27# ... tracking at 25th percentile for both. Poor Q2 ... she's going to be a shorty like me. If she stays at 25th percentile she'll end up being ... just over 5'2" at age 20. Hmmmm. That number sounds very familiar for some reason. Oh, right, that's the height I like to SAY that I am (but I'm not quite).

Then C4 got four jabs. She had asked if she'd be getting shots; I had replied yes. She asked if they would hurt, and I told her yes, they would hurt, they weren't fun, but she could do it. Well, she was fine, although not happy about the shots, until they actually happened. Then there was a bit of crying after shot #1, but shot #2 was a doozy, I guess (the MMR?), and the crying intensified to screaming and wailing of "I don't like shots! They HURT!" Yes, they do. I'm not a fan of shots, myself.

Eventually we finished and I had to carry both girls out of the office and to the car because C4 was limp with pain and anger and Q2 was crying because (and I quote) "I didn't get my shot!"

Oh, the tragedy.

After lunch we decided to do quiet time in the stroller, and one of the girls suggested they could have honey sticks if they fell asleep. Sure, fine by me! Immediately they tried to convince me that 1) they were asleep and 2) since they were asleep shouldn't they get their honey stick RIGHT NOW? The conversations went something like this:

Q2: I'm asleep, mumma.
E38: No, you aren't.
Q2: I'm asleep. Can I have my honey stick?
E38: No, you may not have your honey stick. You aren't asleep. Close your eyes and go to sleep.
Q2: But I AM asleep.
E38: I don't think you understand the concept of sleep. Close your eyes.
Q2: But I can't seeeeee.
E38:
Q2: I'm asleep, mumma.
Q2: Can I have my honey stick?

Finally, at C4's request I sang a song, despite Q2's vehement objections. "Stay Awake" from Mary Poppins is quite effective. Q2 fell asleep within 1 minute. And C4 within 5-10. I really ought to find the correct lyrics, even though my dull rendition did the trick.

C4 woke after about 45 minutes (and thus didn't fall asleep tonight until about 9:30 or 9:45. I let her keep the light on so she could read, because I knew she wasn't going to fall asleep after a nap. She only fell asleep after a visit to the bathroom.) when I got to our friend's house, and Q2 woke at about 1.5 hours, with help from B4 who kindly yelled "WAKE UP" at Q2 a few times to wake her up. Well, we'd have hated if she missed the playdate. No matter, she was still asleep around 7:45 pm.

Oh, and at I34s house C4 read Hop on Pop. Not a book of much difficulty, but we'd never read it before, and every page I asked her to read, she did. She got stuck on father, mother, sister, brother. But everything else ... she can read. At the doctor's office she read "This is not an exit. Don't open this door to leave" Or some version of that message. I'm starting to rethink my decision to not press to get her into kindegarten next year ... won't she be bored if she doesn't go to school early? She'll have been reading for 2 years by the time she gets to kindergarten if we wait until 2010.

I'm not in Amsterdam

But C39 is. Or he will be in a few hours. So, today I went to work in the morning, and spent the afternoon with the girls, which I don't usually do with them on Thursdays.

Thursdays are farmer's market day. We walked over, and first thing bought two HUGE cups of sorbet. Banana & Pineapple. The owner of that stall has a racket going on. Her "small" portions were huge! they looked about 2 cups of sorbet. And $4! The kids each needed about 1/3 of that portion, tops. So about 2/3 of the sorbet melted. But, they enjoyed it, as you can see:



Then we played a bit up at the park, when we weren't playing hide and seek, toddler style (they stand off to the side but 100% in view, I count and when I get to 10 I ask where are my girls and they run back), they were practicing and rolling their tounges:



After seeing 3 MARC trains and one empty freight train, and petting a miniature red poodle (adorable, even if it was a toy poodle), a white and black puppy, and a large dog of some sort, we walked home. Q2 had an accident on the way (oops, we had been out for a while), stripping her down and putting her back in the stroller naked. Her choice, not mine. Well, it was my choice to have her strapped down rather than running down the street nakie. But her choice to be naked. Until C4 got out of the stroller to walk. Then Q2 decided she wanted to get out. And that getting dressed would be an acceptable situation if it got her out of the stroller.

We approached a sign ... and C4 read it, just like that!



I had no idea she knew how to read 3 of those 4 words! I was impressed.

The rest of the walk was unimpressive. One minor fall. A little crying. But we got home, ate dinner, watched Mary Poppins for a few moments and then ... putting them to bed alone.

Bath was smooth. C4 got out first, dressed, and read in her bed, while I took Q2 out of bed, dressed her, and put her to bed. I stayed with Q2 for a bit, visited C4 and told her I'd be back, returned to Q4, stayed for a few minutes and told her I had to lock the door and she asked if I'd be back, I said yes, but kept going ... C4 was already asleep, and I think Q2 was asleep before I got downstairs.

Tender Thoughts

I have a new-found appreciation for greeting card companies. C3 soon to be C4 got a birthday card today, the inside of which read thus:

Hoping lots
of birthday fun
and nice surprises, too,
Will make the day
you're 4 years old
a happy one for you!

Happy Birthday.

C3 read all of the words except "Hoping" and "Will" (and she knows Will!)

They obviously know their audience.