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Journal Key:

Green = Steve | George = navy | Janet = Purple | Evelyn = Black

11/25/10 (Thursday) - Happy Thanksgiving!

We've been noticing lately that it has been harder and harder to cram Owen into his little car seat. It was past time to switch him to the toddler seat. We checked his weight using the Wii and found that he came in just a smidgen over twenty pounds, the bottom end of the recommended weight range for using our front-facing seat. So I switched out the seats--no more toting around the Bean in a carrier!

It also happened to be Thanksgiving. Since Evelyn is still a little under the weather, she made the tough decision to stay home, and the two kids and I went to Middletown for the big feast. Owen had had a nice morning nap, but he started wailing in the car and eventually fell asleep. He would probably have liked to have settled in for a nice afternoon nap, but soon enough we were at John and Theresa's house. He was a little dazed at first, being in a different place. At Ev's suggestion, George and Janet had brought a big cube-shaped plaything that Cara used to play with, and Owen enjoyed it. He could stand up against it, and there are lots of little blocks and balls that come with it that he could play with. He smiled and babbled nicely at everyone.

Cara set up the girls she had brought inside the cube. I think they were sleeping there. They were also learning math on the couch. She had brought the paper pilgrim hat she made at school, and spent some time wearing it. She didn't find a lot of food that she wanted to eat, but was happy enough for all that.

Owen got very tired as the evening went on. It took me a while to realize that giving him a second bottle would help; he wanted to fall asleep to it, but had difficulty in the strange situation. Eventually he fell asleep on Janet and lay there dozing while I ate some pie and packed up the car.

Cara is going home with her grandparents for a nice sleepover. Owen slept in my car all the way home, then became very much awake again when he was given his antibiotic and nebulizer. I was hoping he would go right to sleep afterwards but the poor guy needed a lot of convincing. Hope he finally sleeps well now that he's down at last!

11/26/10 (Friday)

Cara's been asking and asking, and finally tonight we decorated the house for Christmas. We got out everything except what's going to go on the actual tree, and we've transformed ourselves. It was a beautiful evening. Steve put on The Nutcracker and Cara made him try to copy her doing ballet. When she dances, now, she really looks like she knows something about ballet.

Cara set out our four stocking hooks. She hung the stockings on them. We have one for me, one for Steve, one for Cara, and a little one for Puma. (Owen's is on its way!) Last year, Puma got the fourth hook. This year, Puma would share with Cara. Ten minutes after we decided this, Cara decided that Puma should share with Owen. Why, I asked. She just wanted them to. He may not have any clue about what's going on, and I do plan on giving him old toys of Cara's for Christmas, but I do think Owen should have some rights, including his own hook.

We had several interesting conversations today. One project we did was to write Cara's letter to Santa. She did the writing herself, making lines under the words and using her finger to make spaces. She folded a piece of paper like a card, and on the outside it says, "To Santa Claus, From Cara." Inside, she wrote "Please bring me," and then we used her toy catalogues to continue. I showed her the names of the toys she wanted, and she copied them. She got choosier once she realized how much work it was to write the names! I confess that I did a little bit of manipulating, pointing out certain things and pointing out shortcomings of others. Many of the impractical things she had circled are now things she plans on asking for next year. She wants a Zhu Zhu Pets playset, a talking Dora doll (I'm not a fan of that idea!), and she wants some Calico Critters. Steve already got her a family of those, and his parents got her two rooms of furniture! She wants lots more baby dolls, because she only has about seven, and she also wants a crib, which Steve's Aunt Sally has bought her. She wants some Squinkies. We looked at those in the store the other day, so she really does want them. I also saw them referred to recently as "this year's hot toy." She wants some Strawberry Shortcake stuff, some Olivia stuff, some Polly Pocket stuff . . . and then she wandered off.

Later, in the evening, she wanted to write something else to Santa. We were setting out a decorative cup of candy canes. She wanted to write a sign to go with them: "Dear Santa: Take only one!" She really mostly was very nice to Santa; we were going to make cookies and the first thing she said was that some would be for Santa. (I wonder how many!) After she proposed a sign telling him he could have two candy canes, I pointed out how nice it was of Santa to (theoretically) bring her a lot of presents. She plans on writing him a thank-you note after the holidays.

We finished the evening, well, the pre-ballet evening, with some hot chocolate. Steve related something he'd been thankful for yesterday. It involved the wooden scorpion Cara had for some reason brought with her to play with. Cara told us that she was thankful for . . . getting lots of toys! She was also thankful for sleepovers and for eating lots of sweets.

Steve: People are usually thankful for the family with whom they're sharing the day.

Cara: And I'm thankful for popsicles!

Us: Oh.

Cara: I bet the people at my preschool are thankful I'm going to kindergarten!

Us: Huh.

Steve: At YBR?

Me: At DT?

Cara: Both! They're all so glad I'm learning so much!

At this point Steve was strongly reminded of Great Expectations and we had to explain that it was a reference to a book she hadn't read, and I was very distracted by imagining Cara as Pip.

Owen went down for the night a little early. He'd had a mostly good day but a long day, because he elected not to sleep. He had a half-hour nap at noon and a longer one that started well after four. What stands out for me about his day is that he did some very vigorous jumping in both of his jumpers, really launching himself into the air. He got thoroughly jostled and found it very, very funny.

11/27/10 (Saturday)

Grandmom and Grandpop came today! Of course, just as they arrived Owen went to sleep for a two-hour nap. When he did wake up, they got to see all of his new tricks. He shook his head and he scooted and he did some "walking" when I held him up. I have to say, in case any babies are reading this, looking for advice, that scooting on your butt really is not a particularly effective method of getting around. It seems like a lot of effort and not much reward. Of course, if remaining upright and avoiding a prone posture is your priority, it does have that benefit. It also keeps your hands free.

He spent a lot of time standing at his toy by the coffee table, too, and he had an Amazing Adventure. There are some Christmas things still sitting on the table, and he wants to get hold of the mugs. This, we will not allow. Instead, I let him have a candy cane. He banged it, naturally, and it broke in half. I'd given him one earlier and nothing so exciting had happened, so this was new territory. He ended up with the crooked part in his hand, with one end still wrapped and the other trailing a wrapper. He put one end into his mouth and then moved to the other end and then back. I folded the wrapper back and let him keep going. Oddly, he didn't react much to his first taste of candy or his first experience of mint. He seemed pretty indiscriminate about which end he got in there. He got his cheek all red and his hand and face very sticky from waving the candy around. Eventually he dropped it and then it was All Gone. His life does not seem to have changed.

Certain things, though, are always high priorities in Owen's life. In the early evening, we went to play with PJ and Casey. Cara spent most of her time playing with their toy McDonald's cash register. She also had a toy cell phone, so eventually she was texting and ringing things up at the same time, while sitting on a throne inside of a sort of big fabric booth, with a shawl over the booth and her head. PJ and Casey both frequently stopped to play with Owen. There was music on, and PJ took both of Owen's hands and swung them vigorously back and forth. While this was happening, Owen was looking over to his left, talking to the cat. One day, he'll catch one. That is, once he can do something besides scoot.

11/28/10 (Sunday)

We think that Owen may be starting to actually eat things. I gave him a rusk this morning, and we could only find two small pieces afterwards. Usually, we find almost the entire thing, just stickier than before. He's also working hard on his biter biscuits. He may have managed to eat some puffs, but mostly those just get stuck to his hands. I gave him some strawberries in his little mesh thing, and he seemed to like them. The lesson he needs to learn, as with yesterday's candy cane, is that some parts have taste and some don't, and you should really eat the parts that do. He does enjoy his jar food, but it's nice to see him eating other things. It's possibly that all of the paper and cardboard he's been working on have taught him something. Let's not think about that too much.

Yesterday, Cara was lamenting the fact that we hadn't put any holiday decorations in her room. Well, she did have the Christmas window clings I'd let her pick out at the supermarket, but apparently those don't count. She wanted more, and she selected the two strings of lights we hadn't put anywhere; last year they were on the tree, so we'd been saving them for that. Last night we took them up there and I sort of draped them across her window, over the rim at the top of her closet, and around her door. Steve and I agreed, to her disappointment, that it was not a good idea to keep them on all night.

This evening, we got home late. We'd gone down to Middletown, where Owen had stayed with Grandmama and Grandpapa and GiGi, eventually falling asleep on Grandmama; and Cara had stayed with Casey, eating scrambled eggs for dinner, which was pretty awesome considering that she'd essentially had pancakes for lunch as well as for breakfast. Steve and I had taken Claire out for her birthday. When we got home, we managed to transfer Owen into his crib. Cara had a snack (pancakes! and raspberries) and then I tricked her into heading off to get into her pajamas by suggesting that she surprise us and not tell us which ones she was picking.

When I came up I brought her down the hall to brush her teeth, and I noticed that it was dark in her room. I plugged the lights in for her. When she finished brushing, she came down the hall to our room.

Cara: Mommy, I turned off the Christmas lights for the night.

Me: Awwwww! (I was getting somewhat starry-eyed at how responsible she was.)

Cara: . . . and you turned them back on again!

Me: Oh. Sorry?

Steve: Yeah, I turned them on when I came up, and she turned them right back off.

11/29/10 (Monday)

Miss Sandi was asking Owen a lot of questions at YBR today, possibly trying to trick him into betraying a mature understanding of head gestures. However, the answer was always no.

Tomorrow is the big holiday gift sale at kindergarten! We got a very fancy envelope where we had to list for whom Cara wanted to buy gifts and how much she could spend on each person. It got quite complicated! All afternoon Cara had been talking about it. She wanted to get things for Daddy and Owie. She's been quite excited about it. I did try to talk her down a little on Owen, given that she already has a gift for him hidden in her closet and that he won't appreciate it anyway.

Steve was in the room when I was saying goodnight and taking the envelope downstairs to put money into it. I had to go and whisper in her ear. Steve held his ears and hummed.

Me: Cara, I know you want to get a present for Daddy--

Cara: And Owie!

Me: Yes.

Cara: Don't tell him!

Me: No, I won't. Now, I know you want to get a present for Daddy, and because I'm the one getting the envelope ready, I have to ask you: do you want to get something for me?

Cara: No! Daddy and Owie!

I asked again to clarify, and she did change her mind.

11/30/10 (Tuesday)

I picked Cara up from school today because I was taking both kids to the doctor for flu shots and to have Owen's lungs rechecked. She was very excited about the things she'd bought at the holiday sale. In the morning we'd picked out a drawer she was going to keep gifts in. She told me as we got into the car outside the school that she wasn't going to show me any of the things she'd bought. Then she changed her mind.

As we drove, she was going to show me some of the things, but not others. At the doctor's office, she was going to show me two things and not tell me who they were for, and one of them would be for me.

When we got home, while I fed poor Owen, whom we'd dragged from the doctor's office to a bakery (to pick up post-shot cupcakes) to the library, Cara got out everything she'd bought and showed it all to me. I know what she got Steve. I know what she got Owen. Heck, Owen knows what she got him! Well, sort of. My favorite thing, besides her gift for Owen, which is actually quite nice, may be what she got for her aunt Casie. She's really pretty sure Casie is Claire's sister.

After some prevarication, which actually impresses me, she confessed that a certain object was for me. Then she added another one, and then another. All for me. She wanted to give them to me right then. I told her to wait for Hanukkah on Saturday. She's labeled them and put them all away in her gift drawer.

We took what I think is a big step today. Cara read a word! I mean, she read a word on her own, and it's a word that's not on her sight word list. I didn't ask her to read it, either. She just read it and told me about it. The word, the word I'll tell people when they ask what her first word was, is: Jeep. This evening I wrote it for her, to see whether she could figure out "beep," "keep," or "deep." She could, but it took a little bit of encouragement. Still, I'm pretty excited that she sounded it out. After I'd written it, she took the pen and rewrote it, in block letters, to show us what it looked like on the back of the vehicle she'd read it on. She's right, I'd written the J with a line across the top, and the one she read didn't have that!

12/1/10 (Wednesday)

Happy first night of Hanukkah!

We had a traditional Wednesday night Nancy Circle celebration. Em and I decided, to simplify things, to exchange the kids' gifts tonight. I was excited about giving PJ a cool space station playset I'd found at Barnes and Noble, and I'd picked up a Barbie for Casey. The girls only got small gifts, because we decided to take them to a kiddie salon that's opened up nearby. I did pick up gift cards, and after they opened them Em cleverly put Casey's away while I left Cara's sitting around. First Casey found it and thought it was hers and we started looking for Cara's and had no idea where it was. Then we figured that out and I thought I put Cara's aside, but she took it into the playroom and put it down and then forgot where it was. That was fun. Now, it's up on my dresser. We just have to pick a day.

Owen got a toy hammer that makes noise and lights up, and he also got a cool toy that involves gears and lights and music. PJ and Casey loved theirs when they were babies, and Owen sure took to his! As an exciting added feature, you can take the gears off and try to put them into your mouth. It was a little late for him to be up, and he'd been fussy through dinner. As much as I've been saying that he doesn't understand about presents yet, he really does get excited about new toys. I do think he'll enjoy the holidays. Then his birthday. Then he won't understand February at all!

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