The Tortoise and the...Monkey?

Jack came to lunch this week with a laundry basket on his back, told me he was a turtle and said he needed to eat in his shell. Fine with me.

Then of course, despite the fact that my daugher knows and signs "all-done," she insists on taking matters into her own hands when she's finished eating...

Let's just say it's never a dull moment with these two animals!

Her Favorite Place

Chloe Says...

A series of pictures, capturing typical Chloe thoughts.

1. Oooooh, that's just terrible.

2. A little disappointing, dad.

3. Derp.

4. Uh, I forget what I was thinking.

5. Hey, that's not bad!

6. I WILL EAT THIS!

7. Yay!

8. I WILL HIT THIS!

Sweet & Spunky

If you are wondering which one is sweet and which one is spunky...don't be fooled! Chloe and Jack are mix of both! 

Yesterday Jack was squirrelly from a long morning of preschool and such and was in desperate need of a good park to let out energy. We were in an elevator and all he wanted to do was push every button. I said, "Jack-o-lack!" and secretly rolled my eyes, to which he responded, "I'm just trying to be a little rascal." No need to try my friend. :) We both had a good laugh.

Chloe, for her part, likes to "request" her special treat of "o's" that I hid on top of the refrigerator. If she's not a fan of the menu, she will point up to the refrigerator and fuss. Oy. If I do bring them down, she's suddenly happy as a peach. Chloe cries and waves when Dada and Jack leave to go anywhere and she gives the best hugs. And Jack brings her toys to play with and always asks, "Can Chloe come too?" Sweet kiddos. 

Just In Case You Forgot What She Looks Like...

Our little beauty.

Valentine's Day Eve

Lesson learned: don't go to the grocery store the night before Valentine's Day without your wedding rings.

Yup. After bathing the kiddos and tucking them into bed, I headed out to Kroger, sans jewelry.

I know, I know, in my last post I claimed there would be no more late-night grocery runs. But I needed something to finish my son's Valentines for preschool tomorrow. I digress...

So I'm actually IN THE VALENTINES display aisle (a place I typically pride myself on avoiding) and a guy who had casually talked to me in the vitamin aisle pauses nearby. I'm starting to get suspicious, grab what I need and move on. The guy follows me, trying to be subtle but really not being subtle at all. And so it goes, culminating in an awkward conversation by the peanut butter on the other side of the store.

Guy (wearing a Cornell baseball hat): Hey, do you work for IUSB?
Me: No.
Guy: Did you used to go there?
Me: (Cringing inside) Nope.
Guy: Oh, well, what do you do?
Me: (Hoping this not-so-subtle hint clues him in) I'm a stay-at-home mom.
Guy: Oh, wow! My sister does that. So, do you home-school your kids? How many kids do you have? I'm so-and-so by the way... Etc., etc.

Me: (Why is he continuing the conversation?! How do I get out of this?) Then I realize I'm not wearing a wedding ring. Sigh. Proceed to end conversation as quickly and painlessly as possible. Finish shopping.

Unfortunately, the only open check-out lane was, you guessed it—right behind Mr. Cornell himself.

In other news, my son colored a very nice picture at preschool yesterday. I found it tucked away today (somehow separated from his other crafts he brought home).

Me: Jack! Great job coloring, bug! Do you know what this is?
Jack: It's a...it's a...ground-father-bear!

Yup.

He also peed on the potty for the very first time tonight. Happy, proud mommy.

And we're waking up to strawberry-lemon pancakes with strawberry syrup tomorrow.

Happy Valentine's Day y'all!

Grocery Badge

I was a Brownie in elementary school. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's the younger form of Girl Scouts. In Jamaica (where I lived at the time), under the British system of Girl Scouts, girls were Brownies until high school (7th grade in the US).

If I were still a Brownie, today I would have earned my grocery badge. Why you ask? Well, I took both kiddos to the grocery store for the first time! Major milestone here. I do realize two things. First, most of you take 15 kids (ok, maybe three or four!) to the grocery store successfully every week. Second, some of you (Hollie!!) fly around the world solo with your toddlers (and believe me, THAT deserves whatever the highest honor the Brownies doles out!). But for me, this marked a new era in our lives—no more late-night grocery runs!! {Except for coconut milk ice-cream cravings that is...}

I will admit I did pack a few snacks for the Jack monster and Little Creature (Chloe) was a perfect angel. Jack helped load and unload the groceries. And we sang and talked and counted all sorts of things. And suddenly, two kids at a grocery store didn't seem so bad.

We might even do it again next week.

A Poem

Most of you come to this blog to see pictures of our kids, and maybe read the words that often accompany said pictures. This is not that blog post. If you feel betrayed, let me at least point out that the following poem is written by Jack's namesake: Clive Staples Lewis. It is untitled, and comes from a letter he wrote to Bede Griffiths, published on p. 44 of Yours, Jack.

They tell me, Lord, that when I seem
To be in speech with You,
Since You make no replies, it's all a dream
—One talker aping two.

And so it is, but not as they
Falsely believe. For I
Seek in myself the things I meant to say,
And lo!, the wells are dry.

Then, seeing me empty, You forsake
The listener's part, and through
Me dumb lips* breathe and into utterance wake
The thoughts I never knew.

Therefore You neither need reply
Nor can: for while we seem
Two talking, Thou art one forever; and I
No dreamer, but Thy dream.

* In the book it is 'limps', but this is probably a typo, as 'lips' makes a lot more sense.

Someday, They'll Be the Best of Friends

Tiny Hands

Bubblelicious

Baby Girl's new full time job is to make bubbles. She's experimenting with the 'ah' sound a bit and laughs the cutest laugh, but most of the time, well, you'll see...

Snow Day

Three Months

Despite a trip to the ER & a nasty cold, month three was fairly normal. (How's that for an attention-getter?!) Shortly into month three, I was nursing Chloe one afternoon after her nap and realized that she was moving her feet oddly. So I pulled off her socks and to make a long story short, she had somehow woven two of my long hairs (gross!!) around four of her toes and had cut off circulation to them and the hairs had actually cut into the skin! Poor girl! Thankfully, Matt's mom was up for a visit that day and I called her over to help. Once we realized we were not going to be able to get the hairs off ourselves, I packed up Chloe and off headed to the ER while Matt's mom stayed behind to care for Jack (who was napping at the time).

Matt met me at the hospital shortly after we arrived and we didn't even have to sign in (our pediatrician called ahead). A nurse got right down to business and took care of the problem with some tiny surgical instruments and bright lights. A doctor checked Chloe over and gave her antibiotic ointment and sent us home. Whew. Actually, by the next day her toes were almost healed.

I had NEVER heard of this happening before, but according to the ER docs/nurses it is actually fairly common. In fact, our nurse had had the same thing happen to her own son. Crazy.

Baby Girl is quite content, delightful, and a bit sassy. She is starting to roll from tummy to back. Today she did it four times! She grabs at toys and hair (loves to pull our hair) and our faces. She giggles when we tickle her or play little games with her. She chews on a pacifier or her fingers and is fascinated by her own hands. She loves to be read to and watches the pictures and pages intently.

Now that Chloe's reflux is a non-issue, this past weekend we moved Chloe to her own room. Mommy had the hardest time; now Chloe is 10 steps away rather than barely arm's length, but we are all sleeping better and longer. Chloe loves her bedtime routine and anticipates each step; bath, massage, nurse, book (sometimes), swaddle, lights out, singing and rocking, sleep. Often when she is fussy, Chloe will calm right down when she realizes she is going to be taking a bath. Currently, she is sleeping in 3-4 hour stretches and starting to develop a nap routine (although this is still quite flexible).

Chloe and Jack are going to be great friends. Jack enjoys having her around, hates to hear her cry, and shows his love by kissing her, holding her, reading to her, singing to her, wanting to play with her, wanting to hold her in the bathtub, wants to "talk to her," and includes her in all of our family together time. For her part, Chloe watches him and follows his voice and certainly tolerates his "loving."

I'm not positive on how much Baby Girl weighs, but it is over 12 lbs and she continues to grow out of her 0-3 month clothes and wears 3-6 month clothes mostly. She's still a tiny package and in this mama's eyes, radiantly beautiful.

Two Months (Belatedly)

Month two flew by in a sleepless blissful blur. Chloe spent most of her sleeping hours in our arms, on our chests, or snuggled in her bouncy seat (i.e. we did not sleep much). We started medicine for reflux and it helped almost instantaneously. Chloe positively adores her daddy and loves snuggling with mommy.

This little girl craves social interaction and loves to be in the mix of the action (unless she's tired). She smiles, coos and gurgles, makes the cutest little razz sound back and forth with us and produces more bubbles than a bubble wand. Chloe began playing with Sophie the giraffe and already lifts her head 90 degrees during tummy time.

Chloe loves little games we play with her, such as, "I'm going to get your cheek/tummy/fingers..." and often smiles and waves her arms and legs in pure delighted anticipation.

Chloe loves the Boba wrap, bathtime, and expressive cries. I can pretty much read her like an open book most days...she lets you know what she needs! She is getting chubbier and chubbier (especially those cheeks!) and clocks in at 10 lbs. 11 oz. and 22 inches this month.

Enjoy the barrage of photos!