Flipping the bird

I was being all mom this afternoon, keeping Q3's and C4's hands and feet away from Big Blue's front tire, explaining they could lose a finger. I mean, that might have been going a bit far, but whatever, this was about getting them to STOP TOUCHING THE TIRE!

So, of course, I took it one step further and was trying to explain what they couldn't do if they lost fingers. Lose a thumb ... can't hold a pencil (devestation for C4). Lose your ring finger, can't wear rings. Lose your index finger, and how are you going to point.

So, this got them thinking, and they were examining their fingers and C4 asked what couldn't we do if we lost our middle fingers.

Besides the obvious?

All I could come up with was we couldn't play "Where is middleman? Where is middleman? Here I am! Here I am! How are you today, sir? Very well I thank you. Run away. Run away."

about a year ago this time

Last year about this time, when C4 was C3, we walked in Big Blue to a music class in Mt. Ranier. The music class, with Q3's favorite teacher, Miss Audrey, was scheduled for 10:30. 10:35 rolled around and the café in which the music class was to be held was not open. I, being on-time (Purposely not early!) and annoyed, left, telling C3 we'd stop at Glut Food Co-op, and we could buy some crystallized pineapple.

Seconds later Q fell asleep.

Not one to wake up a sleeping baby, I told C she could go in by herself, but I couldn't leave Q in the stroller on the street, and Big Blue would not fit into Glut.

C4 was so disappointed. She cried. She insisted she wasn't old enough to go in by herself (even if I stood in the doorway) and she could do it when she was 4 or maybe 5.

Fast forward to this week.

We stopped by Island-Style Ice Cream, where I had ginger, C40 had stout, C4 had vanilla with sprinkles, and Q3 had dairy-free vanilla. After eating, C4 and I walked to Glut ... to buy that pineapple.

I was allowed into the store just to check prices with her, then I was shoo'ed out.

C4 did a fantastic job. She waited in line patiently, she presented her money, she waited for her change, she said please and thank you.

She actually did a little too well. Behind her stood a woman who kept bumping up into her (luckily C4 has no concept of personal space), physically stepped in front of her (C4 did step up and claim her place in line) and then when they go to the counter ... she put her items over C4's head to go first.

I was blocked by patrons wandering around in the store, so I saw snippets of this. I saw her get in front of C4, and I stepped in, but C4 handled it politely and well, so I thought no problem. But then I was blocked by other people and when my view was unobstructed the woman was ringing up her stuff.

I was ripping mad. The woman stayed inside longer than C4 (packing up her stuff) so C4 came out first, so I couldn't really say anything without going in and being confrontational. And then C40 and Q3 came by. And frankly, I'm sure I couldn't be polite, so it was better that the (EXTREMELY RUDE) woman didn't come out until we were well down the street.

Sure, it isn't imaginary numbers

But C4 seems to have gotten the concept of negative numbers. When asked if I have 4 books, and she wants 6 of them ... how many will I have left ... she'll tell you -2.

Blows. My. Mind.

On a more mundane note, we did a switcheroo today ... Q3 is now in the red room (because green is Ug-guh-lee), and C4 in the green room (Bigger! Better! More room to play!)



I think C4's bed looks very nice in the green room! And Spook looks fantastic on that wall.



In the red room we hung up the sheer curtains that we'd bought for C4 to make her little bed into a little box bed ... but she didn't like it. But Q3 DOES like it (that's because given half a chance she'd be a girly-girl, I'm sure).

Watkin's Glen Park

We crashed C6's family birthday party at Watkins Regional Park. I had made lemonade cupcakes the other day, and wanted to share, so I invited myself along. The cupcakes sound amazing, but really, the cupcake part was kind of yuck, and the frosting ... well, if you like frosting like I do, you'd like it, otherwise it would just be sweet, fatty, tarty stuff. Sugar, butter, lemonade concentrate, basically.

But ... the kids enjoyed it.

C6 could not finish her frosting (too rich)


J2 really really enjoyed his. Here is is in anticipation.


And here he is enjoying (Note Q3 just looking on)


Q3, slow but steady eater took twice as long to eat half as much as the others


And C4 dropped her first cupcake frosting ... so here she is with her second (note ... this is just the frosting. The cupcakes were so Blah-Bluck even the kids didn't like them. Really)


We visited the farm and fed the animals.


We rode the train


And we rode the carousel


Then, hoping to wear them out, we went back to the playground for more play. It worked, I think, Q3 fell asleep fairly quickly (if a little distraughtedly) soon after we left for dinner. C4 didn't fall asleep until C40 and I returned from dinner (she had the babysitter up every 15 minutes or so) but was very good natured about it. And fell asleep minutes after we arrived home and saw daddy.

I think I need my beauty rest.

Aside from the obvious, I swear, just as I was drifting off an starting to dream ... I'd be woken up again. ALL NIGHT LONG.

11:30 pm: Going to bed. Wake C40 up and he falls off sofa and hits head. Makes it to bed ok.
12:03 am: Husband bolts upright in bed, rockets out of bed to dry heave in bathroom.
12:40 am: Q3's head falls out of bed. Since her bed has 3.66 out of 4 sides have railings, she managed to find the .34 bit of one side to have her head fall out of. Crying. I put her head back in and go back to bed.
2:11 am: Q3 wants Rah-Rah, can't find Rah-Rah, and must have Rah-Rah. It turns out Rah-Rah is under her arm. I stay up for 20 minutes trying to calm her down.
2:50 am: Q3 up for water.
3:20 am: Q3 is up and visits me in bed needing to cuddle. She falls asleep on my leg.
3:30 am: Q3 is asleep, but C4 has woken up moaning and crying. I bring Q3 back to bed, visit C4 in her bed to calm her down from her so-called bad dream. Fall asleep with C4
3:51 am: Q3 wakes up screaming. Meet C40 in hall. Let him take the screaming child, go back to sleep with C4
3:52 am: Go back to bed
5:00 am: C40 comes back to bed
8:14 am: Q3 wakes up, singing and talking.

Not a caterpillar

Q3 likes to be baby animals. The baby lion is a favorite. A puppy. A baby baby (human) and a baby butterfly.

Now you'll find out what baby butterflies like to do. Watch closely now. Just in case you miss it.



They like to FLAP!

She really does have a bed ...

... although the last few nights you wouldn't know it. She fell asleep on the floor, on big elephant, and tonight, back in the chair.