Seasons

Madeline and Jaime

Artwork I created on my work dry-erase board

With a cool breeze in the air, the earthy smell of freshly cut grass and a small pit of excitement in my stomach we enter football season. I can hear the techno twang of the tunnel song right before the Huskers break out onto the field. Goosebumps rise on my arms and tiny tears swell up in the corners of my eyes. College days gone by I can still remember what it's like to sit in the student section of Husker stadium. Pretty soon we're going to have to take the girls. They won't have the enjoyment of a hot Fairbury hotdog wrapped in foil and doused with ketchup or foil-wrapped Runza, but they will be able to experience the electricity in the air and will probably as strongly associate Valentino's cheese pizza with football as we did with Fairbury hotdogs.

Husker season ushers in the fall season and the school activities begin in earnest. Madeline attended her first roller skating party last night. The mildew-y odor, dim lights, psychodelic decorations, carpeted benches, sticky snack bar counter, all girl skates, concrete block walls and relentless 70's and 80's music harken back to my own youth. They are, in fact, still playing the same songs they played when we were at the roller skating rink. Needless to say, Madeline had a fabulous time with her buddies Lissa, Andi and Jaime and will probably pester me in perpetuity to take her to the roller skating rink.

Photos

Pensive

Sweet

Sisterly love

Hanging out on a paddle boat

Nearly 11 months

Annie is almost 11 months old. She loves to pull up and cruise a little bit. She loves to scrunch up her face to smile (and looks a little like Popeye). She is extremely fast on all fours, is a daredevil and active. She can go up and down the stairs, babbles a lot and is still very smiley. She easily occupies herself in the playroom with musical instruments and markers. She loves to chew on an emery board in the playroom. She doesn't like to sit and listen to books, but enjoys lifting flaps on books and occassionally feeling a "touch and feel" book. She eats like a horse and loves broccoli. Raspberries and broccoli are her favorites. She is still cloth diapered and nursed. She eats two meals daily and a couple of snacks too. She loves to poke her index finger into her mouth while she's nursing, which is of course counterprodictive to the whole idea of nursing. I guess she's just trying different things to see what happens.

She lost a little weight since she became a speed-demon crawler. I think she's alomost 19 pounds. She was closer to 20 before.

Maddie made some new friends at school; Jamie and Lissa. Maddie had a play date with Lissa last week. The two girls drug us to each other after school one day so we could "meet" and plan the playdate. We'll probably see Lissa this weekend after our houseguests leave. Maddie wants to have her over for dinner. I am not sure what is the significance of dinner but for some reason it has high importance for Madeline.

Ryan just got back from Virginia. He had some trouble in Chicago due to the tornadoes yesterday. He finally made it back at 830 this morning (he was due back at 6:50 last night). I came down with a fever and have chills. I guess I caught a bug. We have friends from Peoria coming this evening and staying through Sunday. We hope to have some fun with them while they're here. That's all for us. Nanu nanu.

Everyday fun

One of Annalise's favorite things to do: pull books off the shelf!

Look how cute I am...

So proud of herself!

Madeline and I played Balloon Lagoon last night.

The bathroom: post-grout.

Stuff

At lunch with Maddie (goofball)

Bathroom slate

A few random things. Anna now likes to wave goodbye. She does the side to side wave like most people do. If she wants more ice cream, she likes to give a short high pitched screetch. A third tooth on the top looks like it might be poking through.

Maddie starts Spanish tutoring tomorrow with her former Montessori teacher Miss Trina. She's looking forward to that. We're having "Mexican night" this Friday where we are going to try and speak as little English as possible.

We went to the Zoo on Sat. and met up with Maddie's bestest friends; Ashley and Audrey. We enjoyed speding time with them and their parents; Teresa and Jim. Our neighbor offered to sell them their house behind us. That would be great if they did! Maddie would be in heaven. We decided we'd have to put a gate up in the fence so we could go freely back and forth.

I had lunch with Maddie on Friday at her school. It was fun. It's amazing how in all her years at Montessori she could never eat within the time frame, but she was able to eat much faster at her school. Today she's having hot lunch (cheese pizza) for the first time! We'll see how that goes.

As Ryan professes "the floors are now substantially complete". He needs to do some finishing touches, including the trim/quarter round, and grout the bathroom. The bathroom looks great. We're ordering new bathroom hardware from Ikea. It will look pretty cool.

And today is my parents wedding anniversary. They're celebrating together in heaven for the first time in 9 years.

Kindergarten!

Getting ready to leave. Wearing her backpack full of "supplies"

Feeling kind of shy

In she goes. A little too fast for me. All the parents were wiping tears.

Mrs. Wittmuss' classroom (she's right inside the door there)

Still feeling a little shy as I sleuth a picture from outside in the hall.

Madeline Sue started kindergarten today! She said she was feeling a little shy but when it came time, she grabbed her teacher's hand and went straight in. I went by right after they went in and she looked like she was still feeling shy, but about thirty minutes later she looked pretty content.

Goodbye

From the moment of birth, the ensuing cries
come the inevitable start of goodbyes.

Goodbye umbilical cord stump, fuzzy fur,
goodbye lanugo, winkles and cradle cap.

Goodbye teeny cries, scooting, crawling,
babbling, and grunting. Goodbye rice cereal,
pureed foods.

No more rocking and nuzzling. Goodbye tiny
bites and breastmilk. No more biting, hitting
and crying. Goodbye sleeping on back.

Goodbye diapers and afternoon nap. So long
daycare, stroller, carseat and training wheels.

No need for band-aid patrol, close supervision.
Goodbye "mommy" and "daddy", dress-up and
princesses.

Goodbye Barbies, dolls and finger paints. Cherish
them while they are young, because goodbyes come
too quickly.

Hello daughters; my loves, my life, my girls.

Madeline The Great & Annalise The Supreme

As I prepare to plan Annie's birthday, I ask myself "who is Anna?". It must be a second-child of the same gender phenomenon because I have a hard time answering that question. Is it really that difficult to distinguish between the two girls? No and yes. It's hard for me to identify Annalise's identity. I hate admitting that but it's 100% true. Not only do they look the same, but they act very similarly too. That's not to say they aren't different because they are almost as different as they are similar. I don't compare them(in a competative way), but Anna is existing in a world with Madeline whereas Madeline grew up in a solitary environment. Anna was a much more content infant and baby, but a far more active near-toddler than Madeline. Annie is more vocal, more attached to her mama, doesn't like to listen to books, not as methodical, and more impatient. Annalise is unafraid and loves to explore. Madeline enjoyed staying inside the confines of a blanket laid on the floor and loved to sit and watch things. Madeline grew up fast, Annie seems to be taking her time. Anna crawled first but probably only out of her desire to explore versus a need to grow up. I can tell you all of these things about my babies, but I can't really tell you who Anna is, quite yet. I think she's holding that in to surprise me. Right now I would just describe her as a part of me.

As Madeline ventures off to kindergarten she is becoming more independent and less attached to me. She is very excited about getting milk for her morning snack at school. Recently she's been coming home with a myriad of interesting creations. I really need to take more pictuers of them because they're all so very unique. She makes tiara's, bracelets, capes, necklaces (and you name it) from paper. She loves to tape together paper stories she's created, cups and other objects. She loves to create things. It seems like she gets an idea of what she wants and then figures out a way to make it work. Everything is very unique and serves a specific purpose. She's our little inventor.

So, here's to you: Maddie the Great and Anna the Supreme; each your own person forever attached and eternally separate.

(btw: Maddie went to Fire Camp this week where she, once again, declared her undying desire to become a firefighter. She's going to be busy trying to manage all of these professions LOL)

New floors

Ryan installed the new cork floors in the living room. He still has the kitchen, bathroom and dining room to go. But he's feeling pretty good about his work so far! It looks great. They're very quiet and soft. I love them.

New teeth and a new trick

What? This old trick? Aww shucks!

I think I can do this

Oooh, look at me! I am really getting somewhere.

Woa, the view from up here is better.

I forgot to add that Anna is cutting her two top teeth simultaneously. Her two bottom teeth are coming in further. At least she is getting them at the same time so the experience is quicker.

A week or so ago she started climbing up the stairs. Ryan turned the corner and up she went.

Water

When I was about three years old I fell off the dock of a lake. I am told, because I have no real recollection of the event, that my dad swooshed me out. As I got older my older brothers would torment me by fishing me out to the deep end and proceed to dunk me under the water. Therefore, I have a real fear of the water. It doesn't stop me from swimming, going off the diving board or waterslides but I do feel nervous in the water. Because of that I wanted to make sure Madeline learned to swim. She started swimming lessons last summer and has excelled. This year she flew through level one and is able to pass out of level two. Last night was the last day of swimming class. They spend the class going off the diving boards and waterslides. Since Madeline knows how to front and back crawl for several feet she can now go off the slides and board by herself (without a lifejacket) and swim to the side. She prefers the security of dad in the water off to the side *just in case she needs him*. So last night she's enjoying the diving boards when the teacher said "do you want to go off the high dive?". Maddie replies "sure", shrugging her shoulders. She toddles up to the ladder, waits in line. I quiety walked up to the side of the board to watch the events unfold. Up up up she climbs. I was thinking she might get a little nervous once she saw the height. Nope, Maddie walked to the end of the board, leaned over and splash jumped right into the water. I didn't notice at the time but I think nearly the entire place had their eyes on her because everyone started clapping. Maddie never heard them because she was under the water. Did I mention that I've never been off the high dive? I am too chicken to go off. Now Maddie has done something, of probably many things, I've never done.

She went twice and, by the way, didn't know it was anything to be afraid of.