He got me!

Finally it happened.  I've been anointed...twice!  When I first began changing ec's diapers I was very careful because I had heard stories of what little boys can do, and I did not want to be peed on.  Well, I guess the carefulness wore off as I began changing him several times a day, and yesterday he got me.  Just my hands, fortunately.  Soon after that he started making noises, so I tried to place him more on my bare knees than my shorts, but I missed.  When I picked him up his diaper had leaked out his legs onto the hem of my shorts and up his back on his jammies.  Fortunately I had followed E's suggestion last week that I might bring a spare pair of pants just in case there was a problem, so I changed my pants and she did a load of wash.

Yesterday morning was cool and cloudy, so after putting fresh pants on me and clean clothes on ec, we went to the park.  I told es she would have to come quickly when I said it was time to leave, and she agreed she would.  While I held ec so he could see the children playing, his sister climbed on the structure and went down the slides.  She smiled and interacted with some of the other children and seemed to have fun.  Several times she reminded me (and herself?) that she had to come when I called her.  And she did!

I'm teaching her some new songs, like "Let's Go Fly a Kite" and "We're Off to See the Wizard."  She is so responsive to music.  She enjoys simple nursery-rhyme tunes, but why not go for classic movie songs?

Countdown

A couple of weeks ago I cut 21 strips from blue construction paper.  es and I decorated them with markers, crayons and stickers, then we made a chain.  Each day or so we remove links, counting down till the first day of pre-school, or daycare.  One week remains till she begins this new adventure.  I expect E will take her by the facility this week, to remind her of the space and the teachers she visited several months ago.  She begins attending next Monday, July 3.  A friend whose son also attends the school told us there will be a parade and ice cream to celebrate Independence Day.  What a strong way to start!  Then es won't go back till Friday, July 7, since her regular days (at least right now) will be Monday, Tuesday and Friday, and Tuesday is a holiday that week.  So she will have a slow beginning.  I don't know if that will help, but that's the way it is.  She has a new lunch box to take each day, since the school does not provide any food.

What will I do that Monday?  Perhaps some stitching while ec naps.

Me time

The baby is asleep, es is in her room for quiet time (and maybe a nap), and E went to the grocery store for needed supplies after driving to SoCal this weekend for V's birthday party.  So I'm checking email, Words with Friends, and may knit a bit.  It does not often happen that both children are down at the same time.  Oops...I spoke too soon.  es is calling for me, saying she needs a clean diaper.

I went up to check on her, but she became distracted and didn't want a change.  Who knows if she really needed one, or if it was just a ploy to get me upstairs.

Peter Pan

Imaginative play--es is doing more and more.  The other day she took several of her bears, tied them together with a long ribbon and they "flew," having been sprinkled with pixie dust by Tinkerbell.  By the way, did you know Tink gets her dust from the crocodile?  At least that's what es said.

This wooden box has activities on five sides.  You can see the abacus, and on the right are blocks that spin, each one with an alphabet letter and picture of something that begins with that letter.  Another side has several interlocking gears that turn, and the fourth features slots and beads.  On top are beads on heavy wires, and this is what es has been playing with lately.  One column, in particular, features Captain Hook and Mr. Smee.  She will move one bead to the other end of the wire, saying Captain Hook wants to be alone, or maybe she'll move two, because Mr. Smee is helping the captain.  It's fascinating.  Who would have thought?  Recently she was standing there playing on the left as I changed ec's diaper by the blocks.  He grabbed at them, and she flew the captain across.

Another time es rescued Tinkerbell from the water.  I'm not sure why she was stranded in the lagoon or wherever, but es said she needed help.  She, es, is narrating her play.

This story is definitely a favorite right now!  I found a book telling another, slightly different version of the Disney cartoon, and es liked seeing Peter wearing Capt. Hook's red coat and fancy hat.

Breathing

Sunday afternoon we watched the two children while their parents went to see "Wonder Woman," which they enjoyed as much as we did earlier in the week.  After ec woke from a nap we put each child in a stroller and walked, slowly in the 95 degree heat, over to Dena and Alan's for dessert and to see Sean, who had an exhibition jump in Monterey.  EK came by after the film to visit an retrieve the two little ones.  Randy was feeling worse so we left.

About 2:15 AM he woke me to say he was having trouble breathing.  He called the advice nurse, and before long we were on our way to the ER, where a triage nurse named Randi took his vitals then led us back to a treatment room.  Long story short, we were there till about 7.  He was given some breathing treatments and sent home with medication.  Tuesday he saw another doctor, his own being unavailable, for follow up.  She ordered a test, which he'll do this evening.  What a whirlwind!  He does feel better, but is far from well.

Bottles OK, naps not

I suppose the biggest news after this first full week of childcare is that ec now takes his bottles with no problem.  Yesterday we even used thawed breast milk, which we had avoided at first because it can taste different apparently.  So hurray for ec!

While es goes to her room after lunch a little easier now, she only slept one day (maybe two) this week.  That day she decided to put on her nightie and actually get into her bed instead of resting on the floor.  We had a couple of rough times.  After going to the park, she did not want to get out of the stroller at home.  Part of this was my fault; we went out after lunch instead of before, so she was probably more tired and thus less amenable.  And yesterday, after no nap, she was a bit cranky and I did not respond well.  My excuse?  The heat.  Being able to open the two screened windows in the den helps a lot, providing a cross breeze.  But the past couple of days have been quite warm.

One day, while we were all three in the bathroom as I used "the facilities," es began crying.  She was sitting on a stool by the tub.  I think she must have seen the silverfish I had noticed, but she wouldn't use her words to tell me what was wrong.  Then ec joined in, perhaps thinking, " If my sister is crying maybe I should." So as soon as I finished we left the room, with es still crying.  E came down to see what was wrong.  Things calmed down, but es was clingy for quite a while.  We don't know where or why she has picked up this apparent fear of things like bugs and snails.

EASY

Yesterday es reached a milestone.  She turned 2 1/2.  Her mom cut cookies in half to illustrate the half.  E said she can't believe her firstborn is now closer to three than to two.  i wonder how she will feel when es hits 35!  On Friday ec will reach four months.

When I began watching es over two years ago, E gave me this acronym from her pediatrician.  Eat, Activity, Sleep, You.  The baby wakes up, eats, plays, then naps again, at which point you have time for yourself.  Of course, this is made slightly more complicated when there are two children present, children of different ages and needs.  Today ec was asleep, then es went to her room for quiet time, and I made a cup of tea.  I started knitting then heard es calling.  I told her the timer had not yet sounded so she needed to stay in her room.  She didn't want to, but we compromised.  I left open her door, and she stayed put.  I want her to become accustomed to longer quiet/nap times.  At her preschool, nap time is scheduled from noon to 3:00, more or less.  I'm not quite sure how that will work, but I want her to start thinking about it.

So I am writing this, then will pull out my knitting for a few rounds till the timer goes off.

Busy weekend

To celebrate E's return to work and the resumption of Grandma boot camp, we all met at Acapulco last night at 5:00 for an early supper.  What a pleasant time!  EKee attended a bitrthday party for cousin Colby, who is now six, in early afternoon.  He and his sisters don't know es and ec very well yet, but we hope to nurture a relationship.

This morning they surprised me by coming to Trinity for the worship service, sitting where es could see me at the organ. I don't know if K and E were able to participate much in the singing and such as they held and/or supervised the children, but afterwards they seemed to enjoy mingling at coffee hour.  Mary blew bubbles for es, which was a big hit.  Several people realized es was the child they had prayed for a couple of years ago; I imagine they rejoiced in her current well-being.

This coming week I hope to plan a few activities for es, rather than just letting her play.  And E will continue to get her up early in preparation for the start of day care July 1.

Back to work

Did I manage to sleep today till my alarm went off at 7:15?  I did not.  Getting up at 5:30 does give me some quiet time, but I could use some more sleep.  This morning I have the every-other-month music and worship committee meeting at 9:00.  Our goal is to complete our review, planning and hymn selection work in two hours, but the last two meetings have been much longer.  I need to spend time at the organ, too, so I will be at church all morning.

The first two days back at work passed.  Thursday es didn't nap, so by 3:30 or so she was pretty cranky, which I did not handle well.  And ec decided he didn't want to take a bottle, and didn't eat till E finished work.  For several days he has slept during the day and been up frequently at night to eat.  He is a bit young to begin solid foods, but if this continues E may give him rice or oat cereal in the evening to see if it helps him sleep longer.  When I arrived home, Randy said, "You look tired," a true statement of how I felt.

Yesterday was better in some ways.  The screen guy made bug screens for two windows in the den, which created a lovely fresh feel as we left windows open to the fresh breeze.  We allowed es to stand on the back of the couch so she could watch him at his trailer/workshop parked on the street.  Randy was present all day to help, as necessary, with that and also with the two men from the contractor who were doing measured drawings of the house.  They came about 10:15 and left at 7:45, staying much longer than expected.  So when it came time to nap, we put es in "MommyDaddy bed," because that was the first room measured; James's litter box is in there, and he needed to be kept out of the way.  Plans to attend an open-air concert with Brayden and his parents provided needed incentive for napping, I think.  While ec did take a two-ounce bottle, that was his limit apparently.  We will keep trying next week.

I think having this short work week was good.  We'll see how next week goes!

Three days

This morning I will pick up es for some Grandma and Grandpa time.  Thursday E returns to work, and I will watch both children till es begins day care next month, so I want time with just es.  And I know she will enjoy the attention.

I told Anita after church that attending the FPCB all church conference reminded me how much I miss singing and otherwise participating in the worship service.  True, I'm at church each Sunday, but I don't participate in the same way while I listen for cues to begin playing.  I'm not ready to resign; perhaps I can figure out a way to meet this need.

Yesterday afternoon I quilted half of Soul Searching, sewing (relatively) straight lines about two and a half inches apart across the quilt.  We watched the NBA finals game two as we ate salmon patties and yams for supper.  Pretty exciting game!

One thing after another

Yesterday morning I met the organ tuner/technician at the church to discuss a problem.  Naturally the organ did not make the sound it had been making, but we discussed what it might be and how to respond if it happens again.  Then I met with our director of music ministries about plans for a special program in August and the fall schedule.  We finished a little before noon, so I sat in the car for a few minutes and read the paper because next on my agenda was lunch at a cafe across the street with Carole, the former choir director.  After that I returned to the church to practice and finally got home at 3:30.  A busy day, but I wanted to get these things done before I start watching the children next week.  There's one other person I want to chat with, but she wants to see es and ec, so we can get together later.

Today I will shop at Safeway, change the sheets, vacuum and dust, maybe start quilting Soul Searching (if I can decide how to quilt it).  Tonight our dinner and game group meets.

Little by little

Another pair of socks is finished.  The yarn color is named gray brown marl.  When I bought it I did not realize just by looking at the skein that it would knit into big blocks of color.  If I had, I might not have chosen it; I like skinny stripes.  But these are OK.  The next time I buy yarn I will look at it more closely.  I have already started another pair, a repeat of the ones I made for Cynthia.  (See March 16 post.)

Monday I finished pin-basting Soul Searching but have not yet begun quilting it.  I wanted to get it up off the living room floor before E and family came over for supper.

Last Friday a sheet metal contractor came to look at the dryer exhaust duct to see how it can be fixed.  Randy emptied the cabinet under the sink in the half-bath, thinking the new duct might need to go through there on its way out.  Yesterday I put things back in the cabinet, throwing away some old candles and wreaths, and sorting out some candlesticks to donate.  These small things may not be noticeable, but gradually, bit by bit, we are removing clutter from the house.