Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Nocturnal Musical Chairs

It's a quarter till 8pm. Daisy has been in bed for two hours and fifteen minutes (explanation to follow) and Perry and Calvin in bed for forty-five. Perry came out about a half hour ago and said that he needed to wipe his nose. I gave him a handkerchief and sent him back to bed. I've been checking my e-mail for a little while now and he just popped out of his room again--mind you, he's supposed to be asleep and not getting out of his bed. Handing me his handkerchief all wadded up into a ball he said, "this handkerchief doesn't work anymore."

"Why?"

"Oh, because God made it that way."

I guess he's heard that answer a lot.



Now, as for why Daisy went to bed so early this evening? That's an easy one. No nap this afternoon. You know, I used to hear people talk about their young children that refused to nap and think That's not going to be me. They'll take a nap until I'm good and ready for them to quit. I don't care if they're 18. Well, this afternoon Daisy refused.

She refused at least eight times.

She got up numerous times in her room and I was so afraid she would wake up Perry that I finally put her down in the Pack 'n Play I have set up in my room for Calvin (The last time I found her awake and out of her bed she had crawled in with Perry and was reading. All while Perry was asleep!).

In my room she got up too many times to count. Eventually it was time for Calvin to go down for a nap so I just stuck him in his crib in the kids' room. Then when Daisy got up again I tried laying down with her in my bed. Of course that didn't work either.

So, no nap for Daisy today.

David has been out most of the day today so it was just the kids and I for dinner tonight. At about 5:15 or so Daisy was a little fussy. I told her that if she kept up the complaining I would send her to her room. I was just remembering that she hadn't taken a nap this afternoon when she got down from her highchair, walked to her room and shut the door. I'm embarrassed to say I was too busy scarfing down my dinner to pay her much notice. When I had had my fill I checked on her. I found her asleep on Perry's bed. I closed the door and let her stay there, thinking I'd sort it all out later.

About an hour later she woke up crying. When I went in to check on her she didn't actually seem to be very wakeful. I asked her if she wanted to go to bed and she nodded her head (it's hard to respond verbally when you're sucking on your fingers). I picked her up, put her in her bed and I haven't heard a peep from her since.

I really hope tomorrow is an easier day than today was.



Oh, and by the way, in case you're wondering, we did discipline her each time we caught her out of bed.

Saturday, April 12, 2008

How to Pronounce the Word "Airplane"

If you can stick your tongue out of your mouth on the right side for the first syllable, move it to the left side for the second syllable, and somehow still manage to say "airplane" somewhat decipherably, then I'd have to call you Daisy.

Today was the air show here in Smyrna. Now, how on earth little Smyrna managed to score an air show is beyond me, but that's beside the point. The main topic of interest this past Thursday, Friday, most of today, and I'm afraid tomorrow too, has been the airplanes themselves. More specifically, it's been the noise they create. Each time a plane flew over, Daisy cried and clung to us. It's been a LONG couple of days.

Then this evening we drove my mother to the airport (she's been visiting). This must have just been too much exposure to airplanes for one weekend because it was all Daisy could talk about when we got home. First it was, "more airplane." When we told her that the air show was finished and the planes "all gone," and she finally understood this, she walked around saying "allgone airplane, allgone airplane".

Over, and over, and over again.

She told us. She told her brothers. She told her dinner. And when David asked her to please stop saying it, she whispered it a few more times.

There was really no stopping it, I guess, so after dinner David made up a little song about it--while Daisy wandered around talking about the airplanes. She even pointed to one of David's abstract paintings and said there was a plane in it.

It was hilarious, really, to watch her say all this with her tongue out of her mouth.

Monday, April 07, 2008

Regarding The Love of My Life

Ok, let me first tell you that I would never leave a bottle of red lamp oil just sitting on the floor of the office. So that leaves four other people in my house that might. Three, really since it's unfair to count Calvin.

I walked into the office a little while ago to check my e-mail. It's not so much an office, really. The computer is in it with all David's office equipment, but so is the dryer and all the clean, folded (and unfolded) laundry. Maybe "office" is a good name for it since it's just as much David's office as it is mine. We affectionally call it The Brown Room (the walls are brown--gosh we're creative).

Before I could sit down in front of the computer I noticed that a bottle of red lamp oil was lying on it's side on the floor. Underneath it was a small pile of computer disks from David's clients. If I am not mistaken, these disks are irreplaceable audio files for David to edit, re-burn send back to the client. Don't get me wrong, I say "irreplaceable" not only because they are important. I'm serious, the guys that record them don't actually save what they record onto anything else. These disks are the only copies. And, of course, they are now covered in red lamp oil.

Like I said, I would never leave a bottle of lamp oil on the floor. The last time I saw the bottle it was on a shelf too hight for the kids to reach. My suspicion on who left it there? Well, let me just tell you that the kitchen scissors are also on the floor--underneath David's chair, where he placed them after he used them to trim his toenails while we watched a movie last night.

Because nothing says "Date Night" like trying to watch a Jane Austen film adaptation through the snow of your husband's flying toenail clippings.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Two New Things

Daisy can now get out of her crib by herself. It's a wonderful thing to have two little children open our bedroom door, climb upon our bed and snuggle me awake. What a perfect way to start the day!

Calvin is a little creeper. He can now use his hands and toes to creep his way toward a toy that is just out of reach. I'm awestruck watching him learn to use his arms and legs in conjunction.

Parenting: it never gets old.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

A Dirty Post

Daisy finished lunch about a half and hour before nap time today so I sent her outside to play with David whom I noticed was roaming around the front yard, examining the plants. Perry, not to be outdone, soon followed. I finished my lunch and then moved on to the computer. I was in the middle of checking my e-mail when I heard noises at the front door. It was David, slowly followed by a crying Daisy. She had fallen into the mud. Her pants and half her shirt were drenched in that awful wet clay that is so likely to stain. I pulled off her clothes, carried her in at arm's length and stuck her into the tub. Perry jumped in shortly after.

They did this last Saturday and Sunday too, minus the falling and crying, and wile it is a good way to make sure they get a bath everyday, it's creating a laundry quandary. I fear my kids won't be fit to be seen in public because all their clothes will contain orange clay stains.

Anybody out there who stumbles upon this entry and has any suggestions on how to remove clay from clothing, I'm very happy for the help.