Thankful

Sorry for the quiet blog, my dear followers.  Keeping up with Thirty Days during my month of daily gratitude journaling is, apparently, about all I can handle.

I have, in fact, continued to be Jack and Ivy's mom this month.  And they've continued to amaze and amuse in myriad ways, too many to remember or detail for you.  So many days I wish for a constant video recording of my life, to capture and hold those little moments, the things they say and how they say them, the sound of their voice and the set of their jaw, the way they hold their heads and move and dance and giggle right now.  So many days recently I have been acutely aware that they will never be this young again.  I think it is that Jack is so grown up all of a sudden.  So complete in his boy-ness, so confident and real and solid and... grown.  I search in him for that little baby I used to have, and there is no trace.  There is just this boy, this bright and silly boy who manipulates and strives for independence even as he asks for snuggles and the lights on at night. And even Ivy.  She is the baby around here, and I can see the baby in her still.  But each day she's moving further from babyhood, talking in these amazing sentences, using sarcasm, acting like a real little person, herself.  I find myself studying her hands, trying to memorize the soft lines of them, the indents at each knuckle, the smooth, smooth skin.   They grow too fast.  The silly sayings, they're all true.  It does go so fast.  The nights are long but the years are short.  And today on Thanksgiving I am striving to be grateful for each of these quick, quick moments as they fly by.  In the face of discontent, frustration, sick kids, screaming siblings, sacrifice, stress, and dirty, cluttered rooms, I will be grateful for the tiny, unique perfection of these little humans who share my home, these little humans who are a part of me, who come from me and will carry me forward in the world.  These amazing beings who depend on me and needily call my name.  I will be grateful for their pull because it will not last forever.  Not like this.  I will be grateful for 5-point harnesses and potty training, for power struggles and endless questions, for picky eaters and poor sleepers because I am so, so lucky to be their mom.   I will not take them for granted.

Some photos from our days as of late.  Please notice how amazing the weather has been.  I will not take that for granted either.

Ice skating boy!

Forest Hills Park

The Zoo with Lillian and Naomi

Rocky River Beach

Turkey day trip to the park, time with Gram and Bec, and our lovely table.

Thankful for so much tonight...

Ivy at two and a half...

Ivy at two and a half is equal parts sunshine and drama queen, quick to smile and quick to scream when her brother gets in her way. She does not hesitate with the backhand when she wants something to stop... and she does not hesitate with hugs and kisses either.
She has eyes that light up over  the tiniest amusement.  She is thoughtful and deliberate in her speech, insistent that we understand her exact meaning, frustrated when we don't.  And she is funny!  She has a sense of humor for sure, and an imagination to beat the band.  Nearly any object in the world can be turned into a baby, and I've been handed many an invisible book/snack/hairbrush/phone in the most straightforward manner; it is so real to her, I must be able to see it too...She is loving and compassionate, taking time to hug and stroke and praise her dog throughout the day, checking in if she thinks someone is "tad".  She simply won't leave a clip in her hair.  She's a bit of a mommy's girl right now, and often starts the day with a temper tantrum as soon as she sees it's daddy who's come to get her up (poor daddy), though mommy is not immune to Ivy's temper, either. Luckily her fits of ire are quick to pass, most of the time.  Generally, she eats 2-4 bites of breakfast a day, saving herself for lunch where the possibility of one of her favorite foods-- pepperoni, turkey, mac-n-cheese, chicken nuggets-- is high.  She can put some hurt on green salads, too, and loves most fruit.  She's still nursing at night and, most likely as a direct result, still not sleeping through the night on a regular basis.  Sigh.  Despite being exhausted a lot of the time, I am strangely OK with this.  I think because there is nothing quite like a midnight snuggle with a sleepy little to let you feel like your giant, 30 pound daughter is still a little baby..

Speaking of weight, Ivy girl had her 32-month doctor's visit today. She was pronounced well on-track-- indeed, Dr. Mann was quite impressed with her ability to take deep breaths on cue.  Her official stats:

31 pounds (75%)
37.5 inches (97%)

How in the world I have not one but TWO children who are above the 95th percentile for height is a true mystery of nature.

Other milestones and accomplishments:
 
We were proud to tell the doctor that she is solidly, 100% potty trained during the day.  Its almost to the point where I take it for granted, and I haven't had a change a poopy diaper in so long I probably wouldn't remember how.  And I am quite happy with this.

Physically, she can run and jump and climb and kick and generally keep up with her brother in many ways.  Her run still dances, just a little, but she's started to concentrate a bit more on speed than on style.  She loves to imitate everything Jack does, hence the fact that one of her favorite games is to fall down dramatically to the floor, and then giggle about it.

 Interests:  Ivy has turned herself into a GIRL.  Anything pink is, by default, wonderful.  Dolls and her tea set remain constant favorites.  She is very, very into shoes. She loves to watch Max and Ruby, Little Bear, and Dora, and she is constantly interacting with the shows as she watches.    She loves reading books and almost always talks me into reading more than 3 at bedtime...

Verbally-- the girl is a motormouth.  She is talking in full sentences.  I am not even sure how long they are because one does not count the words used by a full conversation partner.  That's what she is, these days. We have real conversations about things.  The grammar is a little off, sure, and she can't pronounce initial f or tr sounds very well, but she has plenty to say and, I think, she is very easy to understand.

Here are a few of my favorite phrases in her current lexicon:

"Maybe I.... " Said in a lilting, questioning tone, this sentence starter pops up all the time. As in, "Maybe I go ousside now?"  or, "Maybe I don' like dat one" or, "Maybe I haf some pink ice cream?"

"I be a berry".... She was a fairy for Halloween, as you know.  But she can't say that f sound, so a berry it is.  I love to say back, "Oh, you're a berry?" just to hear her insist, in a sharp tone of voice, "NO, mom.  I a BERRY!"

"A night kiss, momma!"... this is a kiss blown to her as I stand at her bedroom door at night.  She reaches up to catch it, then brusquely taps her chest as she says, "in mah heart."  And in mine, little one, and in mine...

Lullabies.  She likes to sing an approximation of a few of her favorites and I wish I could capture her rather tuneless little voice proceeding through some variation of the words... "lullaby go to seep good night baby...."  " Ting mockin'bird!"  "No, you miss dog name Rover!" (did I mention that she KNOWS all the words??)

(rapturously) "Oh, I DO love MEAT."  I am not sure I really need to elaborate on this one.  She does love meat.  She also has been known to sub in other words into this one, like "peas" or "apples" or whatever else it is that she is enthusiastic about at that moment.

The girl is nothing if not enthusiastic.

And she is utterly charming in that enthusiasm, that unbridled appreciation of the world.  Her quick smile, her easy giggle-- these even out the moments when she pushes us away with her elbow, shouting "NO". Try as I may, simply cannot stay upset at her for long.  She turns on that magic light of hers and I am ready to hand her the world.

On the ice

 Jack has started ice skating lessons.  Inspired by our raffle entry at Saturday's chili cook-off (for an annual pass to the rinks, which we sadly did not win), the boy has found a sudden and intense enthusiasm for learning to skate.  Monday we met at the rink at 4:30 and spent a chilly half hour watching our boy fall.  A lot.

But we also spent a half hour watching our boy get back up.  Over and over.  With a smile.

Can you understand what a big deal this is?  For a boy who says NO to every new experience, who balks at risk, who falls apart at failure? 

I was so. very. proud.

He was bubbling over at the end of the lesson, pink cheeked and smiling, begging to stay longer, can't wait to go back...

This is so totally worth $35.

Can you see him out there in this picture?  That's him, on the ice-- just about to GET BACK UP and KEEP SKATING.   This is huge, I tell you.

In other news, Barack Obama was just (mere moments ago) elected to a second term in office.  Sherrod Brown was re-elected to the Senate.  We are drinking beer in celebration.
 It is a good night.

Here are, in no particular order, some other moments from the past week...

Pretty baby in the bath.

Hanging out at Greg and Jeffrey's house.  These two staked out the little table, helping to set it up together, and eating there side by side.  They are exceedingly cute little friends, aren't they?

The day after Sandy hit, we went to view the rushing waters of a tiny creek...

...and walked in the drizzle (little did we know we'd hav ea full week of drizzle still to come)...

... and checked out all the downed trees in the Heights....

We got a new play cash register this weekend (thank you resales!) and Jack set up this little store around the perimeter of the table, all on his own.  He also spent a lot of time carefully copying the numbers and pictures from dollar bills to make his own money...

Ivy's had a tough cold this week but that hasn't stopped her from carefully organizing objects, one of her new pastimes.  She also likes to prognosticate: "Maybe I go outside now?  Maybe I haf a nakkie? (snack)" and to paint monochromatic, spatially limited artwork.   And, she's really really cute.

The sun came out today.  The kids went to the park.  Oh how we have missed the sun....It was good to be back outside..

Rick or Reat!

That's how Ivy-girl says it-- and that's how she got so much candy in her pumpkin tonight, irresistable little fairy...

It was a magical Halloween night in our neighborhood, as usual, albeit 4 days late.  Thank goodness Cleveland heights rescheduled trick-or-treating!  What a miserable experience it would've been on Wednesday. Instead, tonight we crunched through leaves and wandered in the cold-but-dry air for over an hour, enjoying all the magic of candle flames and pumpkins, fog machines and troupes of costumed little ones..

The Perry's joined us again this year and it was so fun to watch our 5-year-olds run ahead, a fearless pair, waiting for each other, cutting across the grass, glow-stick necklaces trailing behind them.  They had so much fun.  Ive took a bit of time to warm up to the process but it all came back to her by about the 5th house and she was climbing up steps and rick-or-reating her way into the hearts of all our neighbors...  She's still recuperating from the tough cold that's working its way through our family, but sunshine girl put it aside while she enjoyed Halloween..

Other highlights of this weekend:

Taking the kids to Playhouse Square for the first of our Family Series shows-- watching their eyes light up as the show started, as they settled into those wonderful theater seats, as they took in the gilt and murals and glory of the wonderful space.    I have so many memories of going to plays as a child;  I hope it is as integral to Jack and Ivy's future as it has been to life..

The first annual Cleveland Heights chili cook-off-- a delightful, home grown little event, a community wide fundraiser and a chance to come together with neighbors after this strange, stormy week...

Here's Jack helping to pull raffle tickets.  He was SO into this.  SO into it.  He was sure we were going to win, every. single. time.  His little self just shook with the excitement of it.  We didn't win anything, incidentally.  He handled this remarkably well.  I just couldn't get over him, marching up tot he front of the room with all the other kids, ready to help...

Oh yeah, and this weird bright thing was spotted in the sky this weekend.   By other people, that is.  I have yet to see it personally.  But-- there is hope!