Mama Likes to Jitterbug

Way Back Wednesday: Trevor

Ok, so today's not Wednesday, but by the time this blog gets around to being printed, who's ever going to remember that 2/26/09 was really a Thursday?  I happened to be looking for something on my external hard drive and came across this ADORABLE picture of our cat Trevor.  It was taken in 2002, just after we moved into our house.  Isn't he cute?  He's the best cat/pet EVER!  However, the other day Sean informed me that he wants to trade Trevor in and get a dog.  I knew this was coming.  Sean loves dogs and realllllllly wants one of his own.  Not sure what kind, but I know he plans to name him "Hammer".  LOL!  Sean doesn't ask for a lot, and I know the whole thing about a boy and his dog, so it breaks my heart not to be able to get him one.  But if I'm not a music person, I'm DEFINITELY not a dog person.  And neither is Grace.  She nearly breaks out in hives every time Sean asks for a dog and recommends trading in Trevor.  If it were up to her, we'd get another cat.  She's a cat person, and still not over losing the one that ran away last year.  Fortunately the rest of us are.  Do you know that after that one sighting in the garden late last spring, we never saw her again.  Weird. 

   

Playlists

I've never been a big music person.  I listen to the radio in the car, but iPods, racks and racks of CDs, online music stations - just not my thing.  The complete opposite is true of my daughter.  She looooooooves music.  And at 4, knows how to work an iPod better than I do.  Her current favorite song is "Juliet" by Taylor Swift.  (It's really called "Love Story", although not if you ask Gracie.)  The other songs we're hearing over and over these days:  "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" by Beyonce and "Poker Face" by Lady Gaga.

 

Sean has a playlist of a different kind.  Board games.  Current favorites are Don't Wake Daddy, Count Your Peanuts, and Zingo.  We play them ALL.THE.TIME.  Which reminds me, if you want to read something hilarious, check out MetroDads latest blog post on playing board games with 3 year olds.  Funny, funny stuff!!!  I especially love his take of the people who think Candy Land is a game of chance that teaches children that they are powerless, that destiny is determined by pure luck, that the only chance you have of winning lies in following the rules, and accepting the cards as they come".  Seriously?  When did our society become so freakin' weird?  Candy Land is awesome (well, at least until you play it 10,000 times in row).

 

Hair Bow Model

Look who's modeling hair bows!!!!   If you're as obsessed with bows as I am, check out this website.  I found it by chance, but her selection and quality is awesome!  She also sells on Etsy, which is my favorite place to find all things crafty.  I just ordered 12 of Gracie's gigantic red bow for her to give to her cheermates before their first comp next weekend.  NEXT WEEKEND!!!  Finally!!!

 

Siiiiiiiiiiiick!!

I left work on Friday with a cold (or maybe the flu?) and spent most of Saturday in bed.  I did manage, however, to drag myself out for a planned evening at the movies with some girlfriends.  We went to Chunky's Cinema Pub to see the movie Fired Up!  I can't believe I'd never heard of this place.  It's a restaurant inside of a movie theatre, and would be the perfect place to take the kids on a rainy afternoon.  You can just barely see the tables in this picture, and the comfy Lincoln Towncar chairs on wheels, but trust me it's all pretty cool!

 

Here's one of my only pictures from the weekend.  I thought it was funny that even though I tried to escape to the guest bedroom on Friday night to sleep off the sick, the kids managed to find me.  I woke up with Gracie snuggled on one side and Sean lying under the bed like this. 

Sean's Family Photo

Here are (most of) Sean's babies.  I love that, with the exception of the character dolls and his pug Sophie, they all have very literal names:  Red Frog, Big Duck, Little Duck, Dog1, Dog2, Spotted Dog, Black Dog.  Just to name a few.  They're usually scattered on his bed, but today was cleaning day and our maid decided to display them on his train table, which Sean thought was hilarious.  And I thought made a great photo opportunity.  He definitely has his favorites:  Toodee, Sophie, Cow, and Frog (not pictured and not to be confused with Red Frog), but for the most part he loves them equally and has a rather impressive inventory of who's accounted for and who's missing.  I'm sure that over the years many of these little guys will be lost or replaced, so I wanted to remember Sean's family exactly as it is now. 

Preschool Update

We found out on Saturday that Sean got into our town's integrated preschool program.  I'm extremely proud and excited for him.  Everyone keeps asking whether it was really a surprise.  Didn't we know he was going to get in?  Sure, I had a pretty good idea.  Sean's a smart little kid and more ready than anyone to start preschool.  And of course there's the fact that Gracie is already in the program and siblings are generally given first preference for acceptance.  But you never know.  It's all a little bit of luck.  Only 5-6 children are chosen per school (there are two in our town of 60,000), and the teachers look for an even mix of fall/spring/summer birthdays and boys/girls.  All of whom must exhibit strong social and interpersonal skills.  I'm pretty sure that parental commitment also plays a role in the acceptance process, and we've done a mighty fine job of sucking up with gift cards this past year if I do say so myself. 

This is my favorite new picture of Sean.  It shows his sweet side and how much he loves stuffed animals.  We're up to about 20 favorites now.  And he always insists on taking at least one of them with him wherever he goes.  Love him!!!!

   

My Grown-up Car

Steve and I hired a sitter on Saturday to watch the kids while we went car shopping.  The plan was to be gone for a couple of hours.  We were gone for over six.  The plan was also to trade in my old Explorer for a new one, but instead we came home with this.  A Volvo XC90. 

I loved my Explorer - the color, the size, the reliability, everything - and was definitely leaning toward getting another.  Unfortunately, because of the inflated gas prices last year and the depressed U.S. economy, Ford drastically reduced the number of SUVs it produced for 2009.  The dealership we went to only had three on the entire lot.  One black, two white.  (I had four requirements for my new car.  Must be an SUV.  Leather seats.  Not white.  Not Black.)  We were also presented with the most unenthusiastic car salesman I've ever met.  Not to mention, financing options that were anything but options.

So after much belly-aching on our way out of the parking lot, my wonderful husband asked me what I really wanted.  With which I replied, "You mean reallllllly want?"  Um, that would either be a Range Rover - my dream car.  (Yeah, right!)  Or a Volvo XC90 - my grown-up car.  You know, that car you always imagined yourself having when you were all grown-up?  (As if two kids and a mortgage Isn't enough to make someone feel grown-up.)  It even came in a color that was nearly an exact match to my old Explorer.  So we are now solely a Volvo family.  And I guess I'm officially a grown-up.  Even though I felt like a teenager driving my parent's car home from the dealership.

Hawk Obama Day

Today is Presidents Day - or "Hawk Obama Day" as Gracie calls it.  I was really surprised to find out that Grace and Sean both know who Barak Obama is.  We don't really talk politics in our house, but I suppose you'd have to be living under a rock not to have noticed all of the buzz surrounding the presidential inauguration a few weeks ago.  It just amazes me how much children observe and pick up, even without being taught or told. 

Anyway, today was a holiday for all of us.  No work/daycare/school/cheer practice, so we decided to get out of the house after a weekend of chores and errand running.  (More about that tomorrow.)  We took the kids to CoCo Key Water Resort (an indoor waterpark), along with every other parent in the greater Boston area.  When we got there, we found out that the waterpark was sold out for the entire week.  Luckily, the waterpark happens to be attached to the hotel where we host our dance event, so we were able to call in a favor and snag four free passes.  I will never say anything bad about our hotel again.  

Today was soooo much fun. The kids swam for almost FOUR hours.  And for the first time ever, Steve and I were able to lounge poolside and just watch the kids play.  We didn't have to chase after them or even get in the pool.  Well, except once.  There was an 8-9 year old girl who talked Gracie into letting her borrow her goggles, and then ignored Gracie when she tried to play with her.  I tried my best to sit on the sidelines and let Gracie resolve her own conflict, but after she politely asked for her goggles back three times, I pulled off my cover-up, stomped across the pool, and gave the girl a piece of my mind.  I really surprised myself because I didn't care if her mother, or anyone else for that matter, saw.  No one takes advantage of my kid and gets away with it. 

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day.  It was hard to get close enough to the kids to get any really great shots, because every time you turned around someone was splashing water.  But I love these pictures of Grace and Sean holding hands and going down the slide together.  One of the best things about having kids so close in age is that they really are best friends.

 

  

Needless to say, the kids were completely exhausted by the time we left.  We barely made it out of the parking lot when I turned around and found Sean like this.  I know this picture looks awful, please don't tell our pediatrician or dentist, but it just sums up what a fabulously fun day it was.

 

Night Out With Dad

If you ask Gracie or Sean what they want to be when they grow up, both will tell you "a robot".  How cool it must be then for them to have a dad that works for a robot company.  Tonight Steve let me catch up on some MUCH needed rest by taking the kids out on a date, while I took a nap on the couch.  Their first stop was Steve's office where the kids got to meet some real robots.  They also picked up our very first robot - whom they named "Bob".  Bob wakes up in the morning, takes a spin around the house, picks up any dust or debris he finds along the way, and then goes back to his room until it's time for his next shift.  I can't wait to see what our cat Trevor thinks of Bob.  I have a feeling he won't be quite as enamored by robots as Gracie and Sean.  Or who knows, he might find it's a pretty cool way to get around the house, like the cat in this video.  He even looks like Trevor.  (Click the image to view the video.)

   

After the visit to his office, Steve took the kids to Chuckie Cheese's for pizza and arcade games.  Skeeball and the water squirting games are still their favorites, but today Gracie discovered a passport-style photo booth and came home with a whole stack of plastic cards with her picture on them.  She may be quiet, but she's definitely not modest.

"Keep Doing What You're Doing"

"Keep Doing What You're Doing" was the theme of last Friday's visit to the dentist and Gracie's parent/teacher conference.  Twice a direct quote, which felt really great to hear since we don't always do exactly what we're suppose to do.  Or at least what the nazi-parenting books say we're suppose to do. We let our kids eat candy, drink juice, go to McDonalds, watch TV, play computer games, sit in shopping carts without fabric covers, and even sleep in our bed on occasion.  (Gasp!)  But apparently we haven't completely ruined them. 

Both kids received A+ reports from the dentist.  Nicely spaced teeth, no cavities, no plaque.  And Gracie's teacher said she was a model student.  She loves school, is exceptionally polite (albeit very quiet - which really surprised me), shows strength in the areas of math concepts and spacial reasoning, and her favorite "subjects" are story time and singing.  Deep down I know Steve and I are great parents, and we have really awesome kids, but it's still nice to receive reassurance/confirmation from the experts every now and again.

Sean's preschool interview was also on Friday.  (Busy day.)  I didn't get to watch him while he was being observed, but the teacher said he did great.  Certainly better than the little girl I saw running sprinting-at-warp-speed down the hall, with her mom and the teacher chasing behind.  Funny stuff.  We won't find out if Sean was accepted into the program for a few more weeks, but I was glad to see that he enjoyed school and it lived up to his expectations in every way.