My Sweet, Little Guy

This morning Matthew came in to wake me up. I asked him if he was ready for breakfast. He replied, "Yes, I just love breakfast."

Matthew's newest thing is to burst into tears when he feels he's been wronged. He does this as he brings both hands to his mouth and sobs like it's the worst thing ever. For example, Natalie won't let him play. Matthew will come walking out very dramatically with his hands to his mouth crying, "Natalie won't let me play." He'll then run into your arms while you hold him while he sobs. Another favorite is saying that someone hurt his feelings like, "Daddy, hurt my feelings." It's funny and cute all at the same time, but he takes it pretty seriously and is quite upset. This morning he went in to wake up Daddy and Daddy wasn't ready to get up. Natalie and I were happily playing Legos when Matthew slowly comes out of the bedroom bawling and clutching his mouth. He then runs into my arms crying, "Daddy won't wake up." Being the good sister that Natalie can be, she immediately came over to rub his back to make him feel better. My sweet, little sensitive guy.

Natalie

I like this photo of Natalie that was taken last weekend. We were at a local park after a mini Easter egg hunt with friends.

Happy Easter

Time to do Laundry

What do you do when you run out of socks? Buy sandals! At least that's what I did when I came home (after hitting three different stores) to pick up the kids this morning. Matthew came down the stairs without any shoes on and Daddy was going to stuff his little feet into too small shoes. So, I cancelled the initial plan which was groceries at Albertson's. Instead, we took a side trip to Kohl's and bought a very wiggly Matthew a pair of sandals. Then that side trip led to lunch at Chick-Fil-A, which led to several times down the slide in their play place. Finally, we made it to Albertson's, got what we needed, and headed home. There we had some Easter gifts to open from Nana and I had cleaning to do. And no one wanted to take a nap but me! As for the no socks, good thing it's sandals weather because I can't see that happening any time soon.

No More Shots!

Natalie had her four year old, I am going to kindergarten physical last Tuesday and boy was that rough. What a terrible thing to do to a little girl and I am now honestly considering signing the waiver on the back of the shot record when Matthew starts school. I am not even sure which vaccinations Natalie got because the whole afternoon was a blur.


She had a vision screening, hearing screening, three shots, a TB test, urine sample (couldn't do it), and blood work (three vials). It was the pits. I had prepped her for it for awhile, telling her that the shots would be quick - just like claps. "Four quick claps like this," I told her as I clapped my hands. "And when we are done, you can pick out any toy at Target for your bravery." Although she was resigned to getting the shots, she liked the idea of getting a new toy. She already had one on her mind, the little mermaids from Barbie's Mermaidia movie. Well, after the actual experience, I would have bought her the whole darn store because that was the worst shot experience I have ever witnessed. The shots were over quickly but the TB test was not as quick as a clap. She was still okay after that and contentedly sucked on her pink lollipop as we headed to the lab.

Poor thing. She had no idea what she was in for since she didn't remember the last blood draw at age one. (They now do that one at 18 months. Matthew didn't enjoy it.) First, we had to get the urine sample. She just couldn't do it. The restroom was dirty and nothing wanted to come out. We were given a small plastic cup, bag, and cleaning wipes to take with us for a home sample. Then came the blood work. First of all, the tech who performed the stabbing was big and about as friendly as pail. (Sorry, I am very tired and analogies are not flowing easily.) Second, he couldn't find her teeny, tiny vein! So, there I am holding my baby while she is sobbing and watching him twist and turn the needle to find the vein. Poor, sweet Natalie was crying hysterically, "Mommy, Mommy! It hurts." All I could do was cry with her. My poor baby. The assistant tried to distract her with a rainbow of lollipops with which Natalie gladly accepted all six.

But it was quite painful and I don't blame Natalie one bit for "milking it" over the next few days. Afterwards we did go to Target and Natalie got to pick out two mermaid sets. She had a Spring Performance at school that she was sure she wouldn't be able to wiggle to (but she did) and after that she got ice cream. She then got to sleep in Mommy's bed because her arms hurt too much. And tonight, two days later, her arms still hurts and when her arms hurt she "has to sleep in Mommy's bed." And I don't blame her one bit because I just want to hold my little punkin and make everything better.

When it comes time for Matthew's turn at the mother lode of all shots and things that poke, I seriously might just sign the waiver.

A Conversation With Matthew

Matthew, "I don't like spiders. I like snails."
Me, "Yeah, snails are nice. They don't bite."
Matthew, "Spiders get in my face and . . . " lots of movement and babble. Spider babble?
Me, "We stay away from spiders. They are not nice."
Matthew, "Yes, I like snails. They love me. They are happy."
Me, "Yes, they do love you and they are happy. I love snails too."
Matthew, "You like pink snails."

Yes, I do teach my children to stay away from spiders. I hate to incite fear in them, but with our climate and the prevalence of black widows, I've no other choice.

Natalie's First Haircut!

Yes, the Nat-ster finally agreed to have her haircut. This has been a battle since the talk of it came up. She was never one to like to have her hair done anyway so for her to want to go and get a cut, well, it wasn't going to happen. We've been toying with the idea for a while to let her hear it and get used to the idea. While I was off on vacation (sniff, sniff . . . those were good days), she agreed to go to Monkey Dooz, a children's salon, for her first cut. So, on February 28th Natalie had her first haircut. It was just a trim. Not much of the length is gone, but her hair seems so much lighter because the stylist evened it out and cut off all the straggles. I also learned some hair tips. I learned that curly hair is often drier than not-so-curly hair and I learned that mousse really helps define the curls. Who knew? Not me with my straight hair with a slight wave. Anyway, she was so excited about her special hair. She even got to have sparkle hair spray and we bought her some mango mousse. After the haircut, we continued on to do our errands. lunch, and purchase the fish (see previous entry).

The photos are before, during, and after.

New Fishy Moves In

I was all about having Natalie share her fish, Goldie (changed to Rose Red Goldie). We were out doing some errands after NATALIE'S FIRST HAIR CUT, when we decided to do lunch at Chili's. As we drove over to Chili's, we had to pass the pet store (Pet Co) and Natalie mentioned getting Matthew another fish. I kind of fluffed it off when, from the backseat, Matthew said in his saddest voice, "I am so sad about my fish." Well, that did it. After lunch we headed over to Pet Co and another fifty dollars later we had another fish, because it had to have the same set up as the other one of course. Matthew's is a pretty red which he first named Ruby. This incited Natalie to insist that she was changing Goldie's name to Ruby too. She decided on something different anyway, but it wouldn't have mattered because Matthew changed his fish's name again to Max. Now we have two little fishy condos in our kitchen. They get to stare at each other and fluff up their fins in agitation. It's all good . . . until someone has to change the water. Natalie says I am not very good at it (because I didn't put the rocks in right) and maybe I shouldn't get to do it any more. Heh, heh. I like the sound of that.