Keeping Track of Lauren & Jack » July 2007 Journal Entries » AboutMyBaby - online baby scrapbooks, photo albums, videos, birth and pregnancy announcements

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Mon, Jul 30, 2007 10:30 PM
Some cute things I've been meaning to mention:

Lauren's favorite phrase of the moment is "When I get bigger ". . .fill in the rest with just about anything. "When I get bigger I can do that"(whatever it is I happen to be doing). When I get bigger I can eat that, drink that, wear that. When I get bigger I can live in an apartment, (as if that is the ULTIMATE living arrangement) I keep trying to tell her to enjoy her youth, but it falls on deaf ears!

She's also started to say yesterday for anything in the past. It could be last week or last year, but I'm encouraged that she has a sense of time about things, and she surprises me with how much she remembers about people, trips we took, parties we went to, who gave her which gifts etc.

She's also been in a cleaning phase. The other day she decided she needs to clean the bugs off the front of Mommy's car and was distraught when we couldn't go outside and wash the car because it was stormy out. I really need to think of some chores that she can do to put all this energy to some good use!

Jack has been saying some cute phrases like "It kickles!" for anything remotely ticklish. And "I get it!", when he drops something. The cutest is "OK Mama?" every time I sneeze. He's in a parrot stage where he repeats back in some version almost everything we say. I'm excited that he's starting to differentiate between truck, car, van, and train. And he now knows the difference between airplane and helicopter (aipwane & hetitohtuh).

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Sun, Jul 29, 2007 4:44 PM
So just when things were getting back to normal we went to Lewiston to visit my Aunt Reinhild and Uncle Joe. It's very poignant for me because we got married in their back yard five years ago, and now we've got these two little ones running around that same back yard.

The flight out was easy, just over 2 hours and non-stop. We were also lucky with the car rental and got a free upgrade to an SUV which really was great because we had so much stuff with us! We had lots of fun, we went to Niagara Falls and to the Carousel Museum, but the activity the kids seemed to enjoy the most was running around outside the house. I also discovered some playgrounds nearby which was great to keep them busy as well. We ate like kings due to all the great cooking and my uncle famous bread and rolls. We even went out to dinner and caught a few minutes of an outdoor concert where Lauren was dancing up a storm and Jack ran around like a nut job!

The flight back was an absolute disaster. We left Lewiston at 12 noon for a 3:35PM flight which gave us plenty of time to check in, return the car, have lunch etc. Then our flight kept geting delayed until we finally took off about 6PM. That wasn't too painful becuase there was a great play area right next to our gate and the kids had plenty of stuff to keep them busy. I was worried that we missed our connecting flight, but that was also delayed because the plane was stuck in Hartford. It was supposed to leave at 5:25PM and they kept saying it was delayed an hour, then another hour, until we fianlly took off around MIDNIGHT! That's right. The kids were doing OK considering they had't had naps until about 9pm when it all started catching up to them. Finally they both fell asleep sometime between 10 and 11PM and they stayed asleep for the most part throught he flight. We got into Tampa about 2:30AM and by the time we got our bags it was after 3AM. The kids woke up when we got off the plane and stayed awake all the way home. I guess a few hours are enough to recharge their batteries a little bit. By the time they were in bed it was almost 4AM!

So we've been really off schedule all week-end, but we were getting a little more normal today. Yesterday we went to pick up Sadie where she was staying with Mike's colleague Sharon at her ranch with all the other dogs and horses and birds etc. The kids were very excited and they both fed the horses carrots which was scary and thrilling for them at the same time. Today we had plans to go into the pool which was hampered by yet another big storm that seemded to last all day.

Oh, I forgot to mention that the biggest development that happened on our trip was realizing that Jack has outgrown the pack-n-play. He is too long for it, and can only lay comfortably either diagonally or curled up. But the most alarming thing is that he's learned how to climb out. During naptime he wandered into the family room downstairs which means he went down the steep stairway all by himself! So I wound up puting him down to sleep on our bed for nap time surrounded by pillows. Lauren was in there on a mattress on the floor, and the biggest surprise was her willingness to keep quiet. All except for the last day when I went up to find them both standing together holding the curtains back and peering out the window.

I am now wondering what the heck we're going to do with Jack when we travel. I guess I'll get another kids Aero-bed and hope that he learns to stay on it. So far he hasn't climbed out of the crib at home, but I know that's coming soon. I'm debating getting another crib tent or getting a toddler bed, or just moving him to a big boy bed with rails. Lauren is getting ready for a big girl bed I think, so maybe we should do it for both of them at the same time.

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Thu, Jul 19, 2007 10:04 PM
Trying to get back to normal around here. Getting things lined up for Lauren's new preschool next month. Had reams of paperwork to fill out. I figured out a short cut which avoids a big traffic light and then a difficult turn without a light, but it involves going through a gated community which requires a barcode... so I arranged to get barcodes for both our cars through a friend who lives in that community. Now we have access to their park as well! It's too hot out though. I took the kids there the other morning and they lasted about half an hour.

I'm wracking my brain trying to think of things to do that are cool and indoors. There's not a lot of choice around here. The kids are keeping busy in the house finger painting which makes a collosal mess!

Jack fell and hit his browbone so he's got a little black eye, and he also has a mysterious rash on one side of his face and on one arm. I'm puzzled becuase I haven't used any new detergent or anything. He has such sensitive skin, I wish I could pinpoint what is causing it. It seems to be from his bedding becuase it seems worse when he wakes up and after naps. I changed everything but that didn't seem to help.

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Tue, Jul 10, 2007 11:31 PM
So Lauren and I survived New York and are back to tell the tale! We arrived July 3rd and got settled with my college friend Elli and her family who are visiting NYC from Berlin for 6 months. They are renting a huge 4 bedroom penthouse apartment very central at 34th St and 3rd Ave, which just happens to be right around the corner from my old grad school apartment! I kept telling Lauren "This is where Mommy and Daddy first met and fell in love!"

It is considerably easier to travel with just one, and especially since she's getting old enough to actually listen to me when I tell her to do something. I was glad I brought the single umbrella stroller though, there were plenty of times when it was very useful. Our portable dvd player was on the fritz, so I was grateful that Jetblue has TV channels available throughout the flight. I also had a portable car seat thing which just took me a few mintes to install, but the darn cab driver was rushing me like you wouldn't beleive. Once inside the car,I aksed him not to move until she was strapped into it and he just rushed off anyway. I was furious! There went HIS tip.

I have to admit that I did not lug that thing around, even though it's not very big becuase it just would have been impracticle. But It felt OK because on the streets of manhattan you're never getting up to very high speeds anyway. I was grateful to have it for the trip to and from the airport though, becuase then you're actually on freeways.

I was surprised at how I took cabs everywhere. When I used to live there I would take the subway everywhere, but with Lauren and the stroller I just couldn't face the stairs and the crowds. But we also walked a lot. On July fourth we went to the ToysRUs in Times square which has a full size Ferris Wheel INSIDE the building! Other highlights included a full size T-rex like that looked like it was right out of Jurrassic Park with lots of animatronic movement and every once in a while would roar really loudly. I'm surprised Lauren wasn't more frightened of that, but she seemed to get that it was just pretend. She kept squealing with delight and running right underneath him. She also really like the full sized two story Barbie house. I couldn't get out of there without buying her one thing, and luckily she picked some Polly Pocket dolls, which are tiny, though I had the great excuse that we couldn't fit anything big in our suitcase!

Then we walked down to a great playground and the girls ran off some steam. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Elli has a daughter Selina exactly the same age as Jack which of course made me miss him terribly! Elli's sons Sebastian and Tobias are off camping in the Sierras with Elli's dad and her brother.

Later that evening we had a small BBQ at Elli's apartemnt where she grilled right on her gas stove. Her sister in law Stephanie and my friend Brian came, and then Tatiana joined us later for the fireworks, which were absolutely amazing. They had this great roof deck for the entire building, and even the rain could not dampen the splendor of that display! It did stop halfway through. But somehow being caught in the rain on a roof deck when you are mere steps from your apartment as opposed to being out of the street fighting the crowds made it really no hassle. An ideal way to see them with two toddlers.

The next day we did some shopping and hit the playground again. I had planned to see my friend Carrie's play which she was doing outdoors in the early evening in Riverside Park, but it got rained out, so we had dinner in a diner and then went back to the apartment to put Lauren down to bed while my friends waited downstairs. I then joined them for a few Margaritas while we discussed the meaning of life etc. Tatiana had it in her head that she wanted to be with me on the stoke of twelve to wish me a happy birthday, which we did even though we were both exhausted. Did I mention that Lauren woke up every day at 5:45AM? I can only guess it was the light and the noise. But she would nap in the afternoon but I would not so I was always very tired!

Friday was a fabulous day. Tatiana had given me a massage at an aptly named spa called BLISS. She took Lauren off to Central Park where they enjoyed the Carousel and the water park there. Then we went up-town to see her sister Joana, brother-in-law Jeffrey, and to finally meet Daniel her nephew. We had lunch there and then headed to the American Girl Cafe. We got thee really early so we walked around Rockefeller Center for a bit. That was when I realized my camera was really on the fritz too, so I didn't get as many pics as I would have liked. The we had our high tea which was a blast and Elli and Selina jined us. It's a beautiful room, very chic, all black and white and fusia pink. They even serve tea to the dolls! So that was Mommy's birthday party as far as Lauren was concerned. Since we blew through nap time, she went to bed about 7:30PM and I was able to change and make it to my dinner party at the restaurant just in time. The dinner was fabulous and we closed the place down!

Saturday we headed uptown to see Carrie's new apartment and to see Nathan, her little 10 month old. For that we took the subway which turned out to be very easy since there were elevators at both ends. I wound up having nice conversations with people both ways which helped pass the time on the train. Lauren did really well and stayed pretty quiet for most of the ride. There were so many people and things to look at, she was just taking it all in. We had lunch up there and then headed back for naptime. Then Elli very nicely babysat while I did some shopping. Then we finally made it to the show in the park which Lauren did very well at. She seemed a bit scared at some of the stage combat, but I kept remimding her that they're just playing. Her favorite part was when the show was over and the lighting bugs came out! She just thought those were magical!

So I have more to tell about the trip but I must get to bed now. More soon. . .

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Sun, Jul 1, 2007 11:23 PM
Today Mike needed to go into the office at school to work, so I was trying to figure out something to do with the kids that did NOT involve the pool or playing out in the heat. I was going to go to the science museum which has a great kids exhibit, but we were already heading into lunchtime by the time everyone was ready, so I decided to just go to the nearest McDonalds which has a very cool playspace. I saw someone I know from Lauren's school there, and Lauren immediately befriended her daughter 4 year old Sarah. Jack quickly figured out how to get all the way up to the top, he just needed a bit of help with the first platform.

I had an uncomfortable encounter with another one of the Moms there at Mickey D's though. Her child had his shoes on, big heavy sneakers, and he was coming down the tunnel slide behind Jack and kicking him in the head! When I asked her if that was her child, and informed her of the rule they have there about no shoes, and that her son had just kicked mine in the head, she got very indignant and said "He WILL be wearing his shoes in there, so you just keep your son away from mine." I said OK, and just completely ignored her from that moment on, because I could see that trying to talk to her was an absolute waste of time. I considered going to the management and complaining, but they probably would have asked her to leave and I didn't want for it to escalate. It felt like something that could have become very Jerry Springer-esque! The worst of it was, I could hear her complaining to her friend "Can you believe the nerve of that woman!" Oh well, it takes all kinds to make this world . . .

Then after naps I took the kids to get some gifts for our upcoming trip. I couldn't look at the kids stuff in the store without both kids wailing about wanting something, so I got them each one thing. Jack got a truck that looks sort of like a Hummer that he can take apart and put back together with this little power screwdriver. Lauren got this little Minie Mouse make-up kit, complete with Minnie Mouse ears! It only had lip balm and two tiny bottles of nail polish. I finally relented tonight and put some pink sparkly polish on her toenails. She's been begging me for months and months. She also wanted it on her fingernails, but I told her that we can't as long as she is sucking her thumb. It suddenly occured to me that THAT might be the way she finally kicks the habit. It may actualy be motivation enough.

I forgot to mention that I caught another frog the other morning! That's the 4th one we've seen! Of course the one I flushed may have come back, but that still means we've caught 3! It really gives me the creeps. The kids get very excited, and of course they wanted to touch it and play with it, but I just had to concentrate on getting it out of the house! I like frogs well enough, but not in my toilet! I refuse to use that toilet at the moment.

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