Fierce

Roarrrrrr

Liam finished his Dinosaur camp, and brought home on the last day a "hat" that is supposed to look like dinosaur spikes going down his back. He also had a dinosaur tooth necklace, with the tooth made out of clay. He put on his hat and asked "Do I look scary?"

I thought: Ummm...I see...a sweet, adorable 5 yr old with some paper plates stapled together and tied under his chin with a cute green ribbon, making a face that he thinks is scary, but is actually like a fuzzy puppy practicing a snarl.

I said: Wow! Now THAT is scary!!

In other news, Natalie enjoyed watching the Olympic trials of diving the other day so much that she has been "couch diving" all week. Now she wants Jim to announce her before she dives, using her first, middle, and last name, after which she will give a "royal wave" to her adoring fans (me and Liam), and fling herself from the ottoman to the couch.

She also likes her goggles, although she won't actually use them in a real pool. Her gymnastics leotard or her Ariel swimsuit are the permanent uniform when we are at home (and sometimes under her clothes when we are out). She still enjoys wearing her winter hat and gloves along with her swimsuit. Other times, she will accessorize with her Barbie high heels, Dora backpack, and pink sunglasses. She's quite the fashionista.

Bread Pudding...yummmmmm

OK, this is probably a little strange, posting a recipe for banana pudding. BUT...let me just say...Liam ate it. The boy who won't eat a piece of meat that possibly has the teeny tiniest bit of brown on the crust of his chicken tenders, or one that has crust that is slightly mushier than the rest of the crust...you see what I'm saying. And a casserole, or anything that is mushed up together so that every particle is not clearly discernible at a glance...NEVER. But this bread pudding (looking mushy and weird and gooey) he actually ate without flinching (much). It could be because he saw me put all the chocolate chips in it, and he really wanted those chocolate chips. Or because it is so incredibly sweet it might give you a headache. Whatever. I just couldn't believe he ate it.

And the reason I made bread pudding in the first place? Well, it started with the fact that I found my old Pampered Chef device for making round, sealed sandwiches. I bought this when I was probably...oh...about 25. Because every 20-something, single woman needs to make small, round sandwiches, right??? I can only say that I am easily suckered in by the Pampered Chef marketing. So, 14.5 yrs later, I run across this device...and I DO have small children now, and I'm thinking "See, I knew this would come in handy". And, as it turns out, my kids love to eat small, round, sealed sandwiches much more than regular, square, unsealed sandwiches. Something to note before starting this fad: it is a colossal waste of bread. My guilt over the 40%-per-slice bread wastage made me try to think of a good use of old bread pieces. And then it hit me- bread pudding! Not to mention bread pudding totally reminds me of my mother, and my childhood. Not that we had it all the time....but we had it occasionally enough, and it was always in the "special pan", and it was wonderful, sickly sweet, with a congealed texture that I almost didn't like, but couldn't help but like, at least in small doses. It has good memories. This recipe is NOT my mother's recipe. But it has bananas and chocolate chips, and Liam ate it. :-) So enjoy...I don't know if bread pudding is a universal thing, or something regional...but it is good.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chocolate-Banana-Bread-Pudding/Detail.aspx

I will admit that while Liam ate several bites, I was the one who really finished the pan. I'm not sure that circle sandwiches are worth the extra weight from all the bread pudding I will have to make...

The Longest 2nd Trimester

In this "paper pregnancy" I am guessing we are well into the 2nd trimester. This is the hard part- the uncertainty of knowing when we might get a referral. From our agency's updates, it seems like maybe end of July or August...but it is always prefaced with "but it is really, really hard to tell". So we are in a strange kind of uncertain limbo. Not sure whether to plan a vacation trip. Not sure whether to worry about travel possibly coinciding with the start of Kindergarten for Liam (OK, this worry is mine alone - Jim doesn't think about these kinds of things). Right at this very moment, we also seem to be headed to one of two regions. One is probably a "nicer" locale from a strictly travel perspective, but the other one would have a shorter Trip Two...so I don't even know which one to hope for.

In other news, we may have had a break through on the potty training with Natalie. I started trying the "just put her in underwear" approach. That worked so well with Liam - quickly. Not so much with Natalie. She would take notice of her accidents - but only AFTER they happened. One morning last week she went through 4 outfits in less than 2 hours and I finally decided it was not time for underwear. So I put her back in pull ups. And she was dry for the next 2 days. So now we're 50/50 on wearing underwear, and she is staying dry about 90% of the time. It seems to be good progress.

Liam is doing a morning camp at his preschool this week, focused on Dinosaurs. He came home yesterday and asked me if I realized that dinosaurs are Ah-Stinked. That means dead. :-) He seems to be enjoying it, and is starting to ask me how long it will be until Kindergarten starts. I really, really hope his big school debut isn't affected by our travel to Russia. I will feel so guilty.

Happy Father's Day!!

Happy Father's Day to fathers and grandfathers everywhere!

I love Father's Day - it is the only celebration where you can reasonably ask the honoree to cook his own dinner and you don't look like a total cad. Jim had wanted a hamburger press (that makes perfectly round, even burgers), so I took the opportunity to get him a hamburger press and burger seasonings, meaning of COURSE that he grilled dinner. Way to go Jim!

We did buy him a Father's Day cake with his favorite icing (buttercream). Although...in hindsight...neon blue and green icing might not have been the best call....

Looking Down From Heaven

Liam is trying to wrap his head around death. That's what I think, anyway. Last night before bed he burst into tears saying that he misses Rita. Rita, our beloved first cat (as opposed to the only occasionally-loved current cat), has been gone now...gosh...two years or so, I think. I doubt if he has any strong memory of her. So I think maybe he is just now sorting through the idea of death. He had a million questions for me about the how and the why, and I got myself in a little too deep trying to explain how her body could have been buried (kind of...) and yet her spirit could still be in heaven. whew... not easy questions.

This morning the first thing he said when he opened his eyes was that he wanted to draw a picture of Rita. As he drew, the shape of the cat reminded me so much of another drawing of Rita done by a little boy. It was my nephew, Tyler, when he was probably a little younger than Liam. He also drew her little box body, but he included a big pink heart in the middle. Rita did have a good heart. I have saved that drawing all these years, too, and Tyler just turned 16 yesterday. I dug it out so I could show the pictures together. Rita did inspire great art.

Happy 16th birthday Tyler. Rita is sending her gentle love to you and Liam both, I'm sure.

Now Where Did I Put That...

This may not come as a surprise to anyone, but it really bugs me when I lose things. Even though things are generally just misplaced and not permanently lost. I cannot stand to lose...misplace...ANYthing. The smallest thing missing will drive me insane. The same cannot be said for Jim. If anything, he is the polar opposite in this regard. He is quite content to be missing or misplacing even very important things (passport, credit cards, wallet, car keys). Doesn't bug him in the least.

Lucky for me, my children seem to have taken after me. Well...I don't actually know if it bugs them if they lose things, because they always seem to know where things are. They are

amazing that way.

Tonight during my nightly round of straightening, sorting, and picking up after the kids were tucked in, I realized that I could not find Natalie's tiny Disney princess dolls. For those without small female children, the term for these dolls are Polly Pockets. They are only about 4 inches tall and they come with tiny rubbery dresses that are excruciatingly hard to get on and off, and even tinier shoes that are approximately 3 millimeters long. Oh yes, and necklaces that are also about 3 mm around. I know, just the right size for a 2.5 yr old. But she does really well with them (other than wanting ME to dress and undress them 10 times in a row every day - Grandma will learn this when she visits next). I really don't worry about her swallowing anything - she loves them too much to eat them. I do worry about losing the tiny accessories, but Liam keeps pretty good track of their wardrobes. :-)

Tonight, however, I could not find the dolls themselves! Horror! I wouldn't have been quite so disturbed by this (really) except I had just taken out the trash, and Natalie does occasionally play in the kitchen pantry where the trash can is kept (yes, another good play thing for a 2.5 yr old). After 20 minutes of searching the entire house, obsessing over whether they were in the trash can (and should I start digging through it on the driveway), or even in the sand box outside...I finally went into Natalie's room to look there. I even turned on the closet light and woke her up. Yes, I am horrible. I was so worked up over having lost something that I would wake a sleeping 2.5 yr old. She sat up and asked "Mommy, what are you looking for? It's over here." She pointed me to a pacifier wedged on the side of her bed. Then, feeling guilty about being there in the first place, I finally just had to ask. "Do you know where your princesses are?" (Running the risk here of making her upset when she realizes I don't know where they are.) "My tiny princesses?" she whispered. "Yes, are they outside in the sand box?" I asked. "No, they are hiding under the couch." I swear to you, she told me this without a moment's hesitation after being awakened in the night. And she was RIGHT! I came down and pulled up the couch cushion and there they were! Hiding! I love my children. The tiny princesses...not so much.