A Portrait of the Artists at 2.5 Years

Official well visit weigh-in stats:

Linus - 26 lbs. 6 oz.
Veda - 21 lbs. 13 oz.

I think the nurse messed up their height check because they were both shorter than the last time they went to the pediatrician. No matter. Our home stats:

Linus - 35.75"
Veda - 33.25"

Veda will be headed to another pediatric gastroenterologist next week to get a second opinion about some ongoing GI issues. Wish us luck.

And now... the good stuff...

This age is my favorite so far. You guys can carry on conversations. You answer questions. You have clear preferences.

Linus, it's pretty remarkable how affectionate and loving you are. You're so free with giving me hugs and kisses. It's going to be a very, very sad day when you decide that you're too big to love on your mommy. One of your favorite games right now is the go to sleep game. It entails you telling me to lie down in bed and go to sleep. (Don't mind if I do!) Then you snuggle into me and let me cuddle with you. It just doesn't get any better. Well, for the 45 seconds you're actually still.

Your vocabulary is so impressive. You're not just speaking in full sentences, you're using words like presentation and camouflage. You've been pretending to read out of grown-up books lately, as well as inspecting the text of things like receipts and junk mail. You recognize lots of letters and are pretty good at counting objects. Colors, though? Neither of you can recognize a single color, which is sort of driving me nuts. But we'll get there... we will. And surely both of you can't be colorblind.

You are currently obsessed with all things that go. You're usually carrying around at least one matchbox car, and you pretend that nearly everything in our house is a rocket ship. Every day you request to watch the Cars movie... multiple times over. It's also pretty funny to hear you randomly shouting "Ka-chow! or "Axlerod!" (as in Sir Miles Axlerod).



Veda, you have become so, so independent. Whether it's getting out of your car seat, using the potty, or getting into the bath tub, you insist on doing it on your own. ("Myself!") You've also started requesting time to yourself every now and then and sometimes say that you don't want Brother in what you believe to be your room. Sorry, kiddo, but until we move, you guys have to share. You've developed a little bit of a bossy streak, too. I love singing to you, but you've started declaring, "No song!" pretty often. Even funnier is when you tell me, "Don't say that." Just the other day I was reciting a line from Seinfeld - "Elaine and Suzy! Suzy and Elaine!" - and sounding like a teeny little exasperated teenager, you said, "Don't say that."

You've become the big arts and crafts enthusiast around here. Stickers, watercolor paints, chalk, crayons, markers, drawing, playdoh, cutting with your new scissors - you love it all, and it's not uncommon for you to wander into my bedroom in the morning requesting that I get out some paint or glue for you. You're pretty good at recognizing letters, and you are starting to enjoy counting objects (though you refuse to believe in the existence of the number four), but right now honing your fine motor skills is your big thing. It's pretty amazing to watch you so focused on learning to use scissors or trying to stay in the lines in your coloring book.

As much as you like dressing like a girly-girl, you have almost no interest whatsoever in dolls. You still request Thomas the Train books, and Cars is currently your favorite movie. Blocks, Legos, and balls are among your favorite toys right now. Helping me is one of your favorite pastimes, and you get so excited about cooking.

I've always had this feeling with you that you're something of an "old soul". Sure, you're a toddler, but everyone notices that you're very mature for your age. I'm sure this will sound kind of nuts, but I really do feel that there's a little adult in there who understands way more than the average two year old.


I love you, my little bunnies.

Things You Did Today 7/11/12

As we were pulling out of the driveway today, it was raining. Linus waved out the window and said, "Bye, flowers! Drink enough coffee!" Because, you know... coffee rains from the sky. I love my little coffee man.

Both kids marched into the living room today and declared, "We're twins!". I've told them that they're twins maybe three times ever, and today wasn't one of those times. Wonder where that revelation came from...

The Day You Turned 2 1/2

“Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?--every, every minute?”
― Thornton Wilder, Our Town

The one big thing that happened today that there won't be pictures of is potty training. Mr. Linus, you totally nailed it today. I won't get into the specifics because I don't want to embarrass you (more), but you did better on day one than any potty rookie I know of. I'm so, so, so proud of you.


First things first, watching some morning cartoons right after you woke up. Today you asked to watch Cars 2... AGAIN. So we did. Right before this picture, you ate your cereal bars. You guys love those things - Kashi Ripe Strawberry. I buy two boxes every week at the grocery store, and sometimes we still run out.

While I was making breakfast, Linus managed to find a stray crayon and created this wall art in the play room.

Secret: part of me enjoys seeing crayon marks on our walls. It's a sure sign that I'm a mom. But, I still marched you to the closet to get the magic eraser. Here you are scrubbing it off the wall. Logical consequences, folks. 

 For breakfast? Oatmeal with strawberries, your favorite. Lately you've been requesting a layer of cold milk on top.

Just in case you're thinking that looks like a lot of oatmeal for such little people, yeah, it is. But you both cleaned your bowls out. Veda needed a little motivation from Linus, who was on the prowl for her oatmeal, but she ate every bit of hers.

After breakfast was tooth brushing. I always do a more thorough brushing once you've finished, but you two really enjoy practicing first. 

Next up, some chores. While I did stuff like clean off the table from breakfast, put in a load of laundry, and put toys away, you guys ran around like little wild people, intermittently helping.

Daddy had the day off thanks to the 4th of July holiday, so you guys climbed into our bed and talked to him for a while.

Next up, it was time to do the official unofficial height check for the growth charts. (The official official height comes from the pediatrician.) Veda, you were pretty compliant. And 33" tall. Linus ran away. We'll get to him later.

A big part of every day at home is little Mimi. You chase her, you pet her - gently and... not gently, you like to drive your cars over her, and you sometimes even throw the occasional object at her before I can get to you. Poor little Mimi. She really does like the chasing, though.

Time for playing...

Arts and Crafts Time. Today was the first day that we worked in your Kumon books. You wanted to do the coloring and stickers/pasting ones.

The directions on this page were to color ketchup on the omelet (??? I think it said omelet? Who eats ketchup on an omelet???). Anyway, you did. We talked about colors and what color we should use for the ketchup. Linus also colored some ketchup on the little man's face. Makes sense, since you two usually end up wearing a little on your faces, too. Then he wanted me to get a paper towel to clean up the man's face. Sorry, dude. Crayons don't work that way.

Our finished products. Veda's work is on the left, and Linus's is on the right. We decided to be fancy and add a little glitter glue.

More playing...

Snack time! Veda chose graham crackers, and Linus went with a Kashi cookie. Normally I really do bake the cookies for you, but it's been in the 100's lately. Not turning on the oven. Nope.

And then something unusual happened - a Veda on Linus attack. I suspect that Veda may have been a little jealous of all of the attention Linus was getting for using the potty. Look at this pitiful little face. Time out for Veda.

Veda, you are super sensitive to being corrected. When I came in to talk to you post time-out, your little lip quivered as we talked about how we shouldn't hurt brother because we love brother. Then you told me you wanted to have some time by yourself. I get it, girl. You set yourself up with some books and enjoyed a little reading alone time.

Linus was ready to be measured for his growth chart. Today's measurement was a bigger deal than normal since allegedly you double a little boy's height a 2.5 to know how tall he'll ultimately be. You were almost 36" tall, so maybe you'll be about 6' tall. We'll see.

With Veda reading alone in your room, Linus and I cozied up in a chair and read a stack of books together. But not this whole stack.

Lunch time! Today's lunch was a pasta salad with peas, lactose-free cheese, and turkey along with a generous serving of applesauce. 

After changing into diapers and reading a book (Fancy Nancy), it was nap time. I took a gamble and snuck back in to take photos of you guys sleeping. 

But then Veda started stirring. Escape! Escape! Phew, nap time disaster narrowly avoided.

While you guys slept, I set out to work on laundry and clean up the living room and kitchen.

Your nap was blessedly long today, so I also had time to break some beans for dinner.

Turns out the nap wasn't quite as long as I thought, though. Here's what you two did to your room before you came out.

While I made dinner, you watched some music videos with Daddy.

Dinner was mashed potatoes, green beans, corn on the cob, and fried okra. Veda found a pair of tongs and decided to try eating her mashed potatoes with them.

Bath time! Before the bath, the two of you are responsible for putting your clothes in the hamper. Veda usually does it enthusiastically. Linus's interest level in chores is highly dependent on how tired he is.

Linus, you are so, so handsome.

Veda loves it when I wrap her up in her towel after the bath. She always admires herself in the mirror. With good reason - look at that cute little ladybug!

Lionus.

All finished up with the bath routine, it's time for bedtime stories. We usually cuddle up in the rocker in the nursery, but tonight you wanted to read in our bed. We read Fox in Socks.



Good night, my sweet, sweet little man.

And my precious little pudding pop.

Then I turned out the light and made sure the night light was projecting the planets and stars on the ceiling and signed goodnight and "I love you" as I backed out of the room.

Then it was time for me to clean up the kitchen, pick up toys, sneak in about 10 minutes of exercise, and take my own bath.

And finally it was time for this.

 

I can't wait to see you tomorrow. 

Dictionary

Mombuli - (noun) Term of address for female parent. Used exclusively by male offspring. (ex. 
                   Mombuli, hug!) Origin: unknown.

Cozy - (noun) Rectangular piece of soft fabric. Used as a bed covering or for morning cuddle time.
            (ex. I need a cozy!) Origin: Being tucked into car seats in cold weather. ("There you go. Nice
            and cozy.

Valise - (noun) Term of address for female sibling. Used exclusively by male sibling. (ex. No,
             Valise!)

Stars - (noun) Gummy Omega-3 supplements. (ex. I need stars!)

Whole Life - (noun) Strawberry freezer jam. (ex. More whole life, Mombuli!) Origin: Hearing that
                      said freezer jam would be the best jam of one's whole life.

Homeschool Preschool

I posted a couple of months ago about the preschool plan I was crafting for Linus and Veda. With a little more time to refine my thoughts about preschool and how preschool might work for us, my thoughts have evolved a bit.

Initially I sought to to recreate a Montessori experience as closely as can be done in a home environment. The more I researched it, though, the more stressed I became about it. Why? A couple of reasons:

1. When in the whoopie pie am I supposed to find the time to plan all of those activities/shop for the materials/create the materials/assemble the materials? Not practical at this stage when they require constant attention. And where am I supposed to store all of that stuff when it's out of rotation?

2. Creating a schedule that accommodates weekly activities like library story times, our signing class, and play groups on certain days and at differing times... it's a little confusing. Then there's fitting in play dates, fun excursions to places like the zoo, running errands... When I sat down to create a schedule that included all of that stuff and the things I wanted to include as part of our preschool schedule like outdoor time, Montessori tray activities, arts and crafts, music, free play, puzzles and games, circle times... it was literally impossible to fit everything in in a day.

Then for about five minutes I wondered if I should enroll the kids in one of the local Montessori schools. Tuition? We'd be paying more for preschool on a monthly basis than for our mortgage. Not an option. Not for preschool.

Then I started thinking about how kids benefit from preschool and early childhood education. A few highlights: Preschool helps kids learn skills, both academic and social, that will prepare them for kindergarten. The kids for whom preschool makes the most positive difference are children who do not have opportunities to practice those skills in their homes or daycares.

This might be a good point to interject why I've been putting so much thought into the whole preschool thing in the first place. Preschool is a very different animal than it was 20 years ago. These days preschool is being pushed for every child (not just for underprivileged children), and governments are scrambling to fund expanding public preschool programs. With more rigorous academic standards (or the perception of more rigorous academic standards) being the talk of the day, parents are eager to give their children a leg up in the school game. Most of us know that the early childhood years are a period of crucial brain development, and we want to set our children up for success.

Then there's the issue of homeschooling. With so much of the general public still critical of homeschooling, homeschooling parents feel a lot of pressure to prove that we're doing right by our children. We want it clear to everyone that our children are bright, thriving, and performing just as well or better than their conventionally-schooled peers. I find myself falling into this desire-to-please-others trap a bit, but I keep reminding myself of this...

THERE'S NO PRIZE FOR BEING THE FIRST TO COUNT TO 20. THE KID WHO RECITES THE ALPHABET FIRST ISN'T NECESSARILY THE SMARTEST.

Not that there's anything wrong with being that kid. You'd better believe that when my kids do something amazing, I'm the proudest mom on the block.

But who wins the preschool game? I think it's the kid who learns organically through practical life and play activities. It's the kid who gets to play outside every day. It's the kid who still loves learning when he starts school and pursues academic achievement out of intrinsic motivation rather than a desire to elicit praise from adults. It's the kid who gets to pursue his own interests and gets plenty of help in areas where he needs support.

I hope it's my kids. And I hope that I come out of it still enthusiastic about another thirteen years of homeschooling because I haven't burned myself out trying to adhere to a rigid schedule and forgoing what little decompression time I do have to whittle away at an impossible To Do list.

What ARE we going to do?

1. Keep doing all the great stuff we're doing now - kiddie/family concerts, yoga in the backyard, library storytimes, trips to aquariums and planetariums, reading lots and lots and lots of books, playing with toys, making friends, swinging and sliding, digging in the sandbox, coloring, sculpting with play dough...

2. Include a Montessori element, primarily following the book Teach Me to Do It Myself by Maja Pitamic. But I'm not going to worry about the low shelves, the minimalist environment, offering several choices. We'll just work on things as we're ready for them.

That's it. I think it's appropriate.

Bottom line, I have to remember that even though there's a trend toward formal preschool for everyone, staying at home with them is really, really great, and I'm not letting them down.

Not when we do stuff like this:

Drawing. We try to make some kind of art every day.

Playing with science: dropping colored vinegar into baking soda (Yup, from Pinterest!) 

... And learning that we get bigger fizzies if we drop the baking soda into the bowl of vinegar 

Practicing our balance by walking on a painter's tape course 

Making hand print crafts at one of our town's summer recreation events for children

Attending an event for our library's summer reading program that featured reptiles and exotic animals

Going on play dates

"Helping" me out in the kitchen, which involves lots of great fine motor practice 

Things You Did Today 6/22/2012

Linus, you told me you love me for the first time today. Best feeling ever. You made my day.

Veda, today we checked out a Fancy Nancy book at the library. You love it and took it to bed with you both for your nap and at bedtime. (You take books with you to bed to cuddle with.) As I put you in bed tonight, I gave you a kiss and asked you if you're fancy like Nancy. You shook your head and said, "I'm just Veda." You must be the sweetest little girl in the whole, wide world.

Snapshots of Cute Stuff 6/8/12

First up, eating homemade pudding pops.

Linus wants to be a photographer, too. Love that boy. Lesson one will be pointing the lens AWAY from his eye.)

Registering for our third summer reading program for this summer. They're so excited.

The Fairest of the Fair from last year's.... um, fair... reading a story to us. We started out this engaged...

But our attention span is short.

Still, this.

Holding onto my legs to go for a "ride".

This little girl loves being photographed and asks me to take her picture often. (Yay!)

Mimi makes a rare appearance in SOCS. See the spaghetti stains on her back?

On a play date with friend Ian, who just turned one. Precious. (See Dr. Veda wearing her souvenir stethoscope from the hospital? One of their new favorite toys.) Linus and Veda are still in their pajamas because I've known Ian's mommy since the end of the last ice age, and you can do that with those friends.

What's that that Linus has been eating? Something delicious? Only if brown crayons are delicious. Mmmm. Thanks for being non-toxic, Crayola.