Music and Parks

So, I've updated the look of the blog a bit. It was time.

Yesterday when Boy2, the Girl and I were on our way to preschool, Katy Perry's song "I Kissed a Girl" came on. Now, it's a pretty catchy ditty, and before I know it, my little boy in the back sang a bit of the chorus along with her. "Maybe I should change the station to Shine," I think, so I do. There was a commercial for women who want to have the dark circles under their eyes removed. Then they played "There Can Never be a More Beautiful You" (which you can find here). The irony was not lost on me. The message (targeted at girls) that you are perfect the way you are and don't have to look the way others want you to look, but when you are 40-something and want to look younger it's great to be able to get rid of all those unsightly blemishes that you earned throughout your adult life. I had to really think about it. Which message is the more acceptable one?

When I was downstairs changing laundry I heard this loud shout "Mom! Mom!" So I rush upstairs expecting to see blood or at the very least hear wailing. What do I get at the top of the stairs? "Mom, we're listening to Nickleback!" Jeepers! He does like his Rock and Roll!

And earlier, "Dude Looks Like a Lady" by Aerosmith came on and the Boy asked what he was saying. So I told him. "Nope. He's singing Who is the Leader, Yeah! Yeah!" (we had the radio on for quite a bit today).

Today we went to the park. The boys had been bugging me a bit, so today we finally did. The Girl sat on a blanket testing out this new thing called "grass". It's always fun watching a baby's first interaction with the green stuff that we have laying around. Anyway, the Boy layed down and made a sand angel, then picked up a stick and drew a skull and cross bones in the sand. "Mommy, I made a Jolly Roger!"

When it was time to leave though, I heard (as was anticipated) "But I don't want to go home!" (this of course from Boy2) and the fight was on. We got home, though, with minimal fuss.

Dessert tonight was an ice cream cone. As the Boy was eating his, he complained about being cold, so he put a fleecy on. Monkey see- monkey do, Boy2 wanted to as well. "No, you don't need yours. You have long sleeves, your brother doesn't." "Oh, yeah" and he kept eating.

Sock Wars!

We've had a fun afternoon. Daddy came home at nap time and was able to spend the afternoon with us, so there was alot of noise coming from Chez Macintyre today!

Between being told that they NEEDED the computer on so they could watch music was the beginning, and it ended with us all watching video on demand previews before bed. In between there was chasing, hiding, finding, screaming, and a sock war. That's right. Sock War.

Hubby was taking a break upstairs on the bed with the Boy on the floor beside it. I was called up, so I sat there with the Girl (of course Boy2 came up as well. He has to be in on everything). The Boy stood up and touched Daddy's foot, then pushed it away, saying it was a stinky foot. Then he had the idea to take the sock off. So between the two boys Daddy's socks came off in spite of the giggle-fest.

Then the Boy started talking about stinky feet, so Daddy took the socks off of Boy2 (since he was conveniently there) and threw them at the Boy. Off socks came and they flew across the bedroom in a flurry! So fun to watch!

Than Daddy took off downstairs and the chase ensued (what better way to get children to follow you than to run away from them?). When he came back upstairs, he hid in the closet to be found by my clever boys! Then raced back downstairs and then up again. Daddy fwomped on the bed. Then we heard a giggle followed by the sound of three-year-old feet and the sound of the closet door closing.

"Daddy, I'm hiding! Come find me in the closet!" I don't think he quite grasps the concept yet:)

So we play at that for a few minutes then we come downstairs to find the Boy in the mini-eggs! What he said? "I found it with my good sniffer!" And then when Hubby and I laughed at that, he said "Yep! I'm so smart!" He's by far too clever for his own good.

Catching up on the news

Boy2 tried to hatch an egg. On Saturday we dyed eggs for Easter (as is the custom in many homes with small children) and as they were drying, I asked the boys to leave and play so they could dry faster (everything goes faster if you aren't watching). Instead, they asked me to turn the fan on and they opened the patio door so the wind could dry them (smart boys!). I went into the living room to vacuum, and when I came back, Boy2 was holding an egg in his hand, picking at the bits of cracked egg shell.

"What happened?" I ask (maybe not in the calmest of tones, but trying to...)

"Boy2 was hatching it," replies my little "helper" the Boy. So, it got peeled, cut in half so they each got to eat it. Their response when I handed it to them? "I don't like yolk!" Both of them!

The Boy sat very patiently for then ext half hour decorating the eggs with stickers. I cut the sticker sheet in half so both boys could use them, but Boy2's attention span is not equal to his brother's so he opted to play with the Girl for most of that time. The Boy used up all of his stickers on a single egg, so I told him to take Boy2's sheet since he was in the living room. Nothing wrong with Boy2's hearing! As soon as I said it he came running in and threw a fit because his brother was taking his stickers! Oh, boy!

Then, when they were all done and every hour or so since, the Boy has been wanting to go on an egg hunt. They were all in the basket, but he wanted to hide them and then find them himself.

It was definitely an odd kind of evening on Saturday. Hubby went to the Easter Vigil and my parents, my three brothers, sister-in-law, and my little nephew came for supper (Hubby put a 1/4 turkey in the oven before he left. Oh, WOW! So tasty!). After, Hubby was bathing the boys while I sat and visited. What was odd was sitting there, hearing the one-liners and song snippets and seeing that I really do come by it honestly. Kinda strange.

The irony is not lost on me that the one day of the year that I'll let the kids eat chocolate before breakfast is the day that the Boy seems just belligerent and that later he gets sick. Teach him to sneak extra candy and hide behind the couch to eat it.... At least he napped. Fell asleep within seconds of his head hitting the pillow and was out for an hour and a half.

We went for a bike ride the other day. The Boy was on his bike, Boy2 was on his trike, the Girl was in the stroller, Hubby and I were walking. Boy2 will not peddle. He wants to be pushed instead. So we thought "hey! we have an extra bike. Maybe we should just put training wheels on it for him." So we did that yesterday. The bike is too tall for the bike, so we're going to have to practice the trike. But, we got air in all of the bike tires, and dug out Hubby's helmet. Hubby's bike has a bell that doubles as a compass. It wasn't pointing North, so he tapped it and it shifted. I tapped it again and I broke it :) I think it just affirmed for him that I shouldn't touch anything of his...

But he and the Boy went out for a bike ride, and I raked the back yard while they were out. Then Hubby started loosening the dirt and filling in the holes in the yard. We also picked up grass seed, so hopefully we'll have a nicer yard in a month or two. The boys had lots of fun with the yard work too. I really enjoy putting the work and effort into the yard. I can hardly wait to see the fruits of our labour.... Unfortunately it may be a year or two of cultivating the yard before we get a garden in, but there's a planter box that's going to have herbs panted in it soon.

Oh! And I forgot.... I voted for the first time on Monday evening at the early polls. Civic responsibility feels good :)

coffee tables

Oh boy! Where to start?

Hubby removed the coffee table from our living room this morning. The boys were being pirates and making each other "walk the plank" and you can probably guess what was being used for the plank....

They really do love having that table in the living room.... it makes a fantastic stage, it's great for being a penguin (sliding across it on their bellies like a penguin slides on ice), it can make a pretty neat tunnel too. But when they don't listen to the rules we have for safety (especially their sister's safety) it gets taken away.

I'll get used to not having it again. We've put it in storage a few times over the years..... when the Boy insisted on climbing onto it when he was a year old, when Boy2 would run into it or fall and bump his head on a corner, when living spaces were too narrow (or plain too small). I'll miss you, dear coffee table, but I'll likely see you again at Christmas when I need something to put decorations on again.

My little Girl does not like to be left (if she notices). I had her on the floor this afternoon and she was doing her bum-scoot thing (sitting on the floor, leaning forward and sitting back, slowly inching her way to where she wants to be) and the boys were in the living room with her. They came into the kitchen for a snack and she was still there, fine and chewing on a toy, until she saw me and realized that I was in the kitchen and not by her side. Oh, the noise!

But she can roll from her back to her front when she's motivated. That too get a bit loud, but it does her good.

The boys have been "going camping" alot too. Dragging around pillows and blankets, pretending to roast marshmellows, closing the curtains to pretend it's night time. I'm getting a little tired of stepping and tripping on blankets and pillows, but it's really nice to see their imaginations growing.

They've started playing horsey again too. This is a theme introduced to them by a girl I looked after last year. This is the first time since the move in July that I've seen them do this. I wonder what they remember, or if it's their way of displaying their memories.

rockin' boys

dinosaur morgan!

Morning musings

The boys must have a touch of spring fever (even though there is snow on the ground). The last couple of days all they've been playing is "camping". They've never even been camping yet, but they've watched Curious George and a few other favourite cartoons do it, so they drag pillows and blankets around saying they are going to roast marshmellows (at least they've got the most important aspect of camping down :)

Yesterday was pretty fantastic. Palm Sunday, the beginning of an awfully long week for pastors and their families. We gathered in the narthex, and the palms were given out to everyone. A prayer, a reading (Jesus' entry into Jerusalem) and then we entered the sanctuary singing. As people entered, they fanned out to their pews, still singing. It was the first time this congregation had done it this way, and I could tell that it moved them. There was also special music from one of the schools' handbell choir. Always a pleasure to hear! (It completely enthralled all of my kids! They absolutely LOVE music!)

Speaking of music, Boy2 certainly has a one track mind. Every time he wakes up, he asks for his ukulele and then he asks for the stereo to be turned on. Then he starts jamming away. Then he puts it down, big brother picks it up, then the chase is on. Oh, the Noise!

My little Girl (I think) has pretty much perfected the bum skootch. She's liking her exersaucer less and less in favour of just sitting on the floor. She reaches, pulls herself an inch forward, sits up, then repeats. She goes places and finds lots of "yummy" things to put into he mouth. I'm going to have to be a bit more diligent in keeping the floor clean now, until she's out of this phase!

The Boy is doing something unexpected. He keeps bringing me his stuffies that have ribbons around their necks (some that he's had since he was a baby and has always loved) and he's asking me to take the ribbons off. I know the ribbon is just for cutesy, but it's kinda sad that he's "outgrowing" it.

cupcake?

We have a little tiny, monthly calendar on the desk next to the keyboard. Every month, I take a card away and look at the little picture for the month ahead. Only the last little bit, the months seem to have disappeared (literally). I sat down this morning and I saw the month of July looking back at me.

I looked high and low for the missing months, but I only found March. My Boy sat on my lap, pointed to the calendar and said "That's when it's summer?" I said it was. Then he asked if that was his birthday. "No, it's in August." So I showed him. Then he lifted up the keyboard and, lo and behold, there were the missing months!

I put the months back in order. What I heard was "But I don't want it to be spring. I want summer!"

"It doesn't quite work that way, Sweetie."

So I let him be, and he put all of the month cards back, but guess which one is at the top? That's right. August.

It's been a bit of an interesting day. Everyone seemed to wake up pretty happy, but oh, the noise! The arguing! This is how it went at breakfast (changed for the names, but you'll get the idea)

"Girl, you a cupcake!" (this was Boy2)

"No, she's not a cupcake. She's a baby!" (of course this was Boy)

"NO! She's a cupcake!"

"NO! She's NOT a cupcake!"

"Yes, she's CUPCAKE!"

"Mom! Boy2 says the Girl is a cupcake!"

Naturally, they couldn't have this exchange in normal, inside voices.

I've taken a couple of really fun videos of the kids in the last bit. I'm just waiting on Hubby to youtube them so I can post them here and on Facebook. Our little rock 'n' rollers have been having loads of fun!

Going to be posting lots of pictures in the next little bit, too. Pictures from our trip, of the kids playing, and of baking. I didn't do perogs, but I did make bunnies. So tasty!

Spring snow

(I wrote this yesterday)

Well, I'm glad that I didn't box up the snow stuff last week when I was cleaning! We got back from our trip and we could see most of our yard, but now it is hiding under snow again. (Boo-Hoo!) It isn't supposed to stay, though, and by next weekend (Easter) it is supposed to be 12 degrees out (Yay!)

The Boy hasn't been wanting to go to preschool the last little bit. Last week I didn't force it, but when he said last night that he didn't want to go today, I started probing. A few classes back he accidentally poked another little boy in the eye. The teacher didn't mention it, we know because the Boy told us later. But when Hubby asked him again this morning why he didn't want to go, he ran through what happened again. Poor guy felt so bad, he didn't want to face his friend.

The snow started this morning and all I've heard since it started was "I want to go to the backyard." Both boys wanted to make footprints in the new snow. And since Hubby left with the Boy, Boy2 has been bugging me to go the church for coffee. "Yes, it's time NOW!" "Do we need to stay home and have a nap? Am I yelling at you?" Oof!

Yesterday I had Boy2 in underwear all day (pull-up at nap time) and we did an extra load of laundry because of it. But when he pooped in the under pants this morning, Hubby looked at me and said "I don't think he's quite ready for this." Maybe we'll try again next month....

My beautiful Girl has been talking alot, too. And inching her way across the floor. She wants to be mobile so badly!

very brief recap

Well, we just got back from our much needed, greatly anticipated trip to sunny Calgary. As we were driving through the city on our way to the little hotel we'd booked, I heard this little voice from the back: "Mommy? I really wish we lived in Calgary." The Boy I think kinda remembers the time we did call it home.

There are so many cute things I want to write, but as I sit down alot of them leave my sieve-like brain. Friends got the boys both a pair of "noculators" (binoculars) from the Zoo, the kids were (amazingly enough) pretty well behaved, and we got a chance to catch up with some pretty amazing and wonderful people.

We raced from one end of the Zoo to the other and then back again. The kids got to ride the carousel and play on the playgrounds. We went to church where Hubby interned two years ago and it was really nice to see and visit with so many good friends. After church we started down to Vulcan to visit Amma, and we had dinner there with Uncle K and Auntie C. The boys just love Uncle K (he gives air rides while they sit on a foam chair!) and it's always interesting to see Hubby and his brother interact and then look at my two boys!

We did our best to stick to our schedule but you can't really do that all that well when you travel. So we have tired kids now who fell asleep so quickly tonight. This morning, though, Boy2 said he didn't want to go home, he wanted to stay there. My poor social butterfly! As soon as the coat was on, though, he was good to go.

That reminds me: we had put the Boy's socks on this morning. They were still on his feet two minutes before I asked him to put his shoes on. (Stay with me now) I asked him to go to the bathroom (standard procedure, right?) and I notice that only one foot is covered and the other is bare. SO it starts. "Where is your sock? Where did you throw your sock? Where is it?" all the while Hubby and I are searching frantically for the missing sock.

SO he goes to the bathroom, comes back, says "I don't know." and starts looking to. Finally we say "Okay, we are leaving and you will be wearing only one shoe. So he sits down on the couch and says "I was sitting here, then I took off my sock, and put it on my other one." The three of us just stood there. He was wearing both socks the whole time, just they were both on the same foot! At least everything was alright and we ultimately understood what he said.

The Boy's speech has been amazing lately too! Maybe it's that I've been seeing him in a more socialized setting, but he is growing in leaps and bounds with his speech and his understanding. The questions he asks are pretty good ones too, and show how he's trying to make sense of the world and what he learns and where it fits in his understanding.

Boy2 is a real character. Supper on Sunday was really fun. Hubby told him to do something to his uncle, so he would. Then Uncle would tell him to do something to Daddy, so he would. Then they got him to do something to Amma and Daddy and Uncle got into trouble :) He is so funny, though. He was singing and dancing while Amma played the piano last night, then he kept going until bedtime. Tonight he was crying because he wanted to sing a bedtime song on his guitar (no clue what he'd want to be singing). And the last couple of nights (tonight included) he's wanted to snuggle to fall asleep. No lullabies, just snuggles. I find it very difficult to say no to my kids when all they want is a snuggle....

My little Girl has become both more clingy and more outgoing (if that's possible). She's stared smiling more readily and "acting" cute, but she seems to (overall) be worse for the whole "I just want MOMMY!" thing. To be expected in a baby seven and a half months old. She's also back to being very chatty. Pretty sure she said "teddy bear" after I said it, and she's kinda saying her brothers' manes too. (Really, she's making noises, but it's still fun to watch her explore sounds!)

why? why? why? why?

The Boy woke up this morning asking if it was a home day. No, it's Thursday, there's preschool. No. He was not going to school today, he just wanted to snuggle and stay home. He had had a bad dream about bad guys at the old big mall (I have no clue what he was talking about unless he dreamed about villains at the mall in S'toon where we would walk when it was too cold).

So he stayed home, we went to coffee at the church where there were bunches of both people and little boys to play with. We brought home lots of goodies (since the kids are loved and beloved by all and there were extras) and then we had a nice lunch and nap time.

Hubby came home for a bit in the afternoon since he had to go back to the office after supper, so we went (you guessed it) to WEM and watched the sea lions and bought shoes for Daddy and the Girl.

My little Girl has started playing strange a bit (especially if she's tired) and she's alright as long as she can see/hear/smell me (or Daddy at the very least), but if she feels abandoned or neglected you really hear about it! I had put her down in the middle of the bed surrounded by pillows so she couldn't roll, and left to look in on the boys in their bath and I wasn't gone two seconds and she was crying with real, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. She was convinced that she was alone in the world and I was gone. Never to return. Hello separation anxiety!

There has been a few meltdowns lately because we are planning this trip for the weekend, but Boy2 thinks that the weekend hasn't been coming fast enough. I've been hearing alot of "But I wanna go on the trip NOW!" "Just a few more sleeps, Sweetie." "But why?" Ugh! That "why" stage is very tiring!

But there is less and less snow covering the yard, and more and more puddles for jumping in. That means more mud for "painting" and splashing in. The boys were playing outside yesterday before we left for the church bible study, and we had to emergency change the Boy's pants before getting in the van, they were so wet! They were only out for maybe ten minutes and he was soaked! Oh, well. It's spring!

Creativity

My boys have been super creative lately. There has been more than one time in the last few days that I've come into the living room to discover that there had been a small, very concentrated cyclone in there that targeted the craft box.

The boy has been doing portraits of everyone (except he drew Ironhide the Transformer instead of the Girl) and "writing" stories and then "reading" them. Then Boy2 comes up with a drawing and when I ask him to tell me about it, he just shrugs. He doesn't know what he made, but he's dang proud of it :)

Their creativity doesn't end with the paper, though. Yesterday afternoon and first thing this morning they got out their instruments. Boy2 stands on the coffee table with his guitar, the Boy has his coffee tin drum he made, and they let 'er rip! Yesterday we were serenaded the "Mac song" (Life is a Highway) and then the archaeopteryx song. Now they are starting to make them up. I took a video and should be able to post it. Really noisy, but so fun!

My Boy has started getting up with the sun. When it was darker, I could tell him that he needed to wait until the first number on his clock was a 7. Now, he sees the sun rising and says "But it's morning time! The sun is waking up." I know I was an early riser when I was younger. I remember getting up while everyone was sleeping and turning on the TV as far back as being 6 years old. But I let my parents sleep! I didn't give them a press release of when I was waking up!

But I'm glad that the days are (mostly) happy and that the sunny weather seems to have a more positive effect on everyone. As many fights and meltdowns as there were a week or two ago, it's hard to be worse!

The Boy told me last night when I told him to go up for jammies that he loved bedtime. That was news to me! He has stopped fighting it, true, but he fights those naps with such vehemence. He claims it's boring. So when he said that he loved bedtime, I thought "well, at least he knows that sleeping helps the body". He's started to know and recognize when he is tired and be able to take the steps to fix it.

We have a trip coming up. We are going to Calgary on Friday evening for a bit of a break. Hubby has a campus ministry meeting at the U of C on Saturday and (occupational hazard) we won't be getting away for Easter, so we're staying in a hotel for a couple of nights in Calgary, then we're going further south to visit Amma for a day or so. Then back up for Hubby to be back in the office on Wednesday.

I am SOOOO excited for this little trip! The kids and I get to go to the Zoo with friends while Daddy is in his meetings, we'll be going to church were Hubby interned, have supper with Hubby's best friend, have a meal or two with Amma, Uncle K and Auntie C...... And the weather is supposed to be absolutely BEAUTIFUL on Monday! Yay, yay, yay, yay, YAY!

wet!

I can see grass and dirt in my backyard! The "paths" that the kids have worn down in the back have spots of dirt (well, mud) and brown grass. I am so excited! Signs of spring!

We've been going on a few walks lately. Never fails, socks always get wet, pants too, and toes get cold. At least yesterday they didn't complain. They chose to wear running shoes instead of boots, and they insisted on walking through the deepest part of every puddle. After a while we just gave up and let them do it because the feet were already wet. Dripping wet pants and socks. But they had fun!

My little Girl is rolling over pretty regularly now. And talking up a storm. She's so funny! When she starts to laugh (really laugh) her nose scrunches up and it is so cute! She lays on her tummy and gets those legs moving. Or she sits on her bum, leans forward trying to reach out and grab something out of reach. Crawling isn't too far away, methinks!

spring has sprung!

I may not be the best house keeper, but boy can I ever bake! I need huge resolve to keep up the laundry, put things away, or do dishes or ironing. But when I pull off a new recipe, or turn out something that just melts on your mouth, I just get so pleased with myself.

Yesterday, hubby threw a few things into the slow cooker and magic happened! I stand in awe and amazement at what he accomplishes so effortlessly. A friend mentioned this the other day and I joked by saying that, between the two of us, there was a very good reason why we both can't seem to win the battle with the scale.

Joking aside, I am trying to make some dietary changes that will lead to a healthier lifestyle. We've already started using mostly whole wheat flour for alot of our baking (it makes muffins taste so good!) and with we very rarely get chips or pop. Now I just have to carve time out of the day to exercise and stick to it.

They boys have been spending more and more time outside, (Hooray for SPRING!) and when I went to check on them this morning, they had a toboggan out and were sledding from on pile of snow to another. They were thrilled! Then they found some wet chalk and started "painting" the fence like they used to do alot last spring when I was watching the other kids. As hubby said when I told him about it "old habits die hard!"

My beautiful Girl said "Mama!" this morning. She was in the high chair with toys, dropped them, and I was busy and didn't retrieve them as quickly as she wanted so she just blurted it out. I am my Girl's first word!

Plus she rolled over for the first time on Wednesday. Yay!! And she is currently telling stories while sitting on the floor eating wooden blocks. I love my kids!