I’m home again after a whirlwind two-day trip to Atlanta. A very special great aunt passed away last week, and her memorial service was yesterday. I didn’t think there’d be any way for me to get to a service in the middle of the week. It was too expensive and horribly inconvenient to fly. And the trip was too long on distance and short on time to think it would be bearable with (or for) the kids. Enter Super Daddy! Read the rest of this entry »
I love it when I try something new and it actually works! Hallie is a devoted reader and she’s devoured oodles of books this summer. But she got in a rut (my description, not hers) with a series of books about fairies, and it was all she wanted to read. There are weather fairies and jewel fairies and pet fairies and I don’t know what else. Read the rest of this entry »
I hate to jinx it by writing about it, but Hallie and Travis have been getting along amazingly well lately. They certainly still have their snippy moments, with each other and with us. But overall, Mark and I are pretty delighted at how things are going. Read the rest of this entry »
As I wrote today’s date for the 5th time at the dentist’s the morning, it seemed important for some reason. Then I realized why: Today’s the 6th anniversary of our bringing Hallie home from the hospital. Hallie-bug, we’re so glad you’re here!
One of the books the kids got from the library is called Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys, and Their Monkey Business. Its a quirky children’s book notable for how a line in it has become a catchphrase around the house.
At one point in the book, the peddler gets his hats taken by the monkeys. This causes the peddler to get very angry.
“You … you monkeys better give me back my caps!” the frustrated peddler says, stamping his feet.
The monkeys stare back at him, waving their finger. “Tsst! Tsst! Tsst!” is their reply.
Both kids have repeated this line frequently, including the foot-stamping and finger-waving. We have fun changing it to suit the circumstances, too, changing “monkeys” to whatever obstacle is thwarting our efforts.
Seeing the kids jump gleefully into the routine cracks me up every time.
While Kelly and Hallie stayed home, Travis and I went for a quick (ha!) visit to the hardware store. On our drive I began to sing some song to which Travis immediately objected. So, I began to hum instead (the kids have a musical Daddy).
“Stop that humming!” Travis halfheartedly demanded from the back seat.
“What? What’s wrong with humming? Don’t you hum all the time?”
“No,” he replied in his matter-of-fact voice. “That’s tumming.”
So that’s what its called. When he’s momentarily bored, he’ll get very animated, shuffle his feet, find someone to touch (or pat), and do this happy, quiet humming through it all: “Hm hm hm hm hm hm hm…”
Tumming is “Travis humming.”
The kids have thought up a few new nicknames for their Daddy. Such as, Mr. Patty-Bottom, Big Toe, and Mr. Windy. Big Toe is the one I’ve heard for the past few days, though Mr. Patty-Bottom has some staying power, I think. That one got started yesterday when Travis came up behind me and repeatedly smacked me on the bottom while calling me “Mr. Patty-Bottom.”
And its just fun to say “Mr. Patty-Bottom.”
I don’t think I’ve really posted about the huge strides both kids have made in swimming this summer. After his first few visits, Travis figured out the breathing thing. His legs still sink every time he comes up for air, but he can navigate the whole pool by himself now and relishes doing so. Read the rest of this entry »
I can’t believe it’s almost August. This summer has really flown by, and it was really short to begin with. School let out June 10th and resumes August 25th. So we only had 2.5 months to work with. The combination of camp weeks, family trips, a vacation next month, and general busy-ness has caused these weeks to disappear. Read the rest of this entry »
With the change of each season, or at least twice a year, I wade through the kids clothes to see what needs to get passed on or donated or sold and what can be used from the previous year. Usually I have a pretty good stack from the year before that yields at least several things for each kid that can carry over. This year, not so much. Read the rest of this entry »
