From the playground today...

Yep. Lolo has rainboots on. No, there's not ANY sign of rain. What can I say? The girl has her own sense of style.

Terrifying moment

I went upstairs to get Norah up from a nap this afternoon. Lolo said she wanted to stay downstairs and continue playing. When Norah and I came downstairs, I couldn't find Lolo anywhere. I kept calling out for her. No reply. Checked all the doors. Locked. Where was she?!?! I had only been gone long enough to get up the stairs, pick up Norah, and come back down....I was in a panic. Finally checked the coat closet.....only to find her grinning up at me. We had a long talk about her not responding to me when I was calling out to her. She said, "But I was playing hide and seek." I said, "Yes, I know you were. But you didn't tell me you were playing!"

Tooth #4

Norah's fourth tooth popped through this afternoon. I noticed it when she woke up from her afternoon nap. She was slow to start teething, but goodness, she is catching up with a vengence.

Poor Lolo

I think this morning's accident was weighing heavily on Lolo's mind. Today at lunch Lolo asked, "Mama, you going to send diapers with me to school?" I said "No Lolo you're potty trained." Boy, you should have seen the relief spread across her sweet face and the big smile that followed. Gotta love that peer pressure sometimes ;-)

Gearing up for Jim's birthday

Lolo is wound up about Jim's birthday. She's really excited. There's a book we've been reading called "Spot Bakes a Cake" where Spot bakes a cake for his dad's birthday. Lolo decided Jim needs a carrot cake. So that's what we're going to do. She's also decided he needs numbers on his cake, balloons for his birthday, and a birthday hat. We picked out numbers and candles for his cake today and some misc decorations. Jim's in for a treat.....I can safely say that this is going to be the first pink and purple birthday cake he has ever had! (That's what happens when you have little girls with strong opinions). I'll try to post pictures on friday when we bake and decorate his cake.

Rough Start

It's been a rough start today. Last night I was exhausted and didn't do my usual clean up after the girls went down. Ick. Norah ran a fever all day and was congested and crabby. Thankfully, the fever is gone this morning. Last night, Norah had a blow-out diaper. Big cleanup this morning. On top of that, Lolo had an accident in bed....but as she said "Mama, only my sheets got wet. Not my toys!" There's a bright side to everything. Even though that required another clean up. On top of that, I forgot to take out the trash last night and I missed trash day....we're over run with trash as it is. Ick.
But the bright side - Lolo's toys are clean. And the sun is shining. We'll go outside today and try to forget about this morning.

Swimming in the lake

Yesterday we went out on Lake Minnetonka. Probably the last day of swimming in the local lakes this year for us. Lolo was outstanding. The dock we were on was quite high. Probably a good 6 feet drop in. Jim jumped in first. Lolo leaped in right after him. No hesitation. Everyone there was quite amazed at our little girl.

Quote of the day

It's early. Both girls are awake. Jim and I bring them into our bed. They're bouncing and crawling all over. Finally, I give up and say "OK I'm up. I'm going to make breakfast." Lolo sighs, collapses into the bed, and says "I still a little schweepy...but I can eat."

She's got it!

Lolo has got it! I think our girl is potty-trained. We still expect the inevitable accidents (especially as we venture farther from home), but things have gone remarkably well. She's been waking up dry and stayed dry all day yesterday. I'm not sure we took the best approach to potty training but it worked.
In other news, Norah's third tooth came through last night. It's been rough. I can't tell if she's fussy because of the teeth coming in or if it's because she's congested or if it's a combination. The fourth tooth shouldn't be too far behind. I imagine it will be through in the next couple of days.
It's a gorgeous day today in MN. I think we're going to go exploring once Norah gets up from her nap.

Taking it "easy"

Both girls are rather congested today. Ick. But they are still plugging right along. Neither seems to really notice much - except I'm wiping their noses (and inconveniencing their day).
Norah and I walked around the block while Lolo rode her big wheel....that girl can really get going on the downhill portions of our walk! And of course, because of our recent storms, Lolo had to splash in puddles and mud outside too. Lovely.
Lolo is back in panties again today. Knock on wood. So far so good. I think there's a good chance she'll be trained by the time she starts preschool.

A clean and dressed midget

Since photos of this midget fully clothed and clean are few-and-far between, I thought I'd go ahead and upload this one.

9 month check up and more

Norah went in for her 9 month check up today. She's growing at her own pace. Still in the 20ish percentile. 17 lbs for weight. 26.5" for height. Everything seems normal. She's just my size instead of Jim's. And it looks like her front two top teeth are about to bust through any day now.

Lolo started the day in big girl panties. We've been doing a potty check about every hour, before and after meals....and she still had an accident today. I know accidents are going to happen when we're potty training. But gosh, I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around it....how can it be possible when we spend about half the day in the bathroom and a good part of the day talking about it?!?!

Creativity

How is it that kids can make a one-seater toy into a comfy two-seater? Norah and Lolo have a great time riding the "car" together. You should see the car when it really gets rocking and the girls are just screaming with laughter.

Lolo's big day

A momentous day for Lolo. She stayed dry all day. This afternoon she switched to big girl panties. Woo hoo! The funny thing is....last night Jim and I were talking about how Lolo wasn't really motivated about potty training and we were wondering how to "bribe" her so as to incentivize her. It seems finally getting to wear big girl panties (and the threat of going back to baby diapers) may be enough. We shall see. Tomorrow is another day.

Swim class

Last day of summer swim class...Lolo floated by herself on her back for 10 seconds! Hooray!!

Slow going

This morning the Star Tribune has a huge article about potty training your kid in one day. It goes something like this....get the kid a baby doll that pees, "potty train" the doll, have a party for the doll at lunch time, your kid will follow suit and be trained by dinner time....at which time you can throw a big party for them at dinner. Geez. (BIG EYE ROLLS from me).
Potty training Lolo is slow going. She's just not motivated and I'm a big softie.
She wet her pullups this afternoon.
I say "Lolo I think we need to go back to diapers today. You haven't done very well today."
Lolo looks at me with those big brown earnest eyes and says "Can I try again Mommy? I probably do better after I have a good quiet time and nap."
Ugh.

Dad of the Year

I forgot to mention in yesterday's post....Jim's gunning to be dad of the year.....Lolo had to potty. The restrooms were closed for cleaning at the campground. Jim ended up spending 20 minutes in a state park outhouse with Lolo. (There is no way I could have even imagined doing that. I would have passed out.) If that act of self-sacrifice doesn't qualify someone as a SuperDad, I don't know what does.

Back from Wild River State Park

We're back from a quick weekend getaway to Wild River State Park (a little over an hour north of us). Jim and the girls are down for some quiet time right now. This was Norah's first tent camping experience. For a 9 month old camper, she did amazingly well. With the exception of when she got too tired, Norah was all grins and giggles....excitedly looking around and joining in on the fun.

We were exceptionally fortunate this weekend. The campsites at this park were fantastic. Wide, spacious, quiet, and private. We'll definitely be going back. We got to the campsite late friday night and had to set up in the dark (bummer). After we got set up and zipped up in the tent, a storm blew in and it rained like crazy. Luckily, we stayed nice and dry. Once they got settled in, the girls slept through everything. Saturday was a gorgeous day. Perfect temperatures and amazingly enough - not many mosquitos. That evening, we went to the outdoor ampitheater and heard a talk about bats. We got to see a bat eat bugs. Lolo was excited to touch one (not alive) and most importantly - she got a bat stamped on the back of her hands.

Our good friends, the Harrisons and Kings (Norah's godparents), joined us out there. Lolo and their boys, Nick and Ben, played and played. She was digging in the dirt, running around barefoot, and having the best time ever. I don't recall the last time she got so dirty. It's nice to get out and catch up with good friends....but it's also really nice to come home, take a long hot shower, and feel clean again. Procrastinator-queen that I am, I think I'm going to put off cleaning up our mountain of gear until tomorrow.

Camping

We're heading out tonight for a weekend camping trip to Wild River State Park. Will be back sunday. Gotta start packing....

A stellar day for Lolo

Lolo is having a stellar day...this morning her daddy challenged her to keep her pullups dry...and guess what....as of 3:00 pm (just prior to her "quiet time"...which, by the way, has not been very quiet) she has remained clean and dry! HOORAY. I know, it's just one day, but it's one day more than we've ever had. I'm hopeful that the training is going to "take" this time. I can't wait to be back down to changing only one child and emptying out the diaper genie a lot less.

Comments

I've reset the comment section on the blog. For a while we were getting comments from people we didn't know and it was creeping me out. Now, I think I've got the blog to where it's not listed anywhere and, for the most part, only family and friends are checking in. So, feel free to leave comments again.

From Lolo's summer camp scrapbook

The baker and her assistant

Scenes from our tea party this afternoon.

Grinner

Here's our two-tooth-grinner. Yep, she's dressed (we had to drop Lolo off at summer camp this morning)....unfortunately, I didn't manage to wash off all of the oatmeal from breakfast. It appears that her bottom teeth are coming in a little crooked (score one for mom's bad genes).
But, our two-tooth-wonder is making big strides in this world....last night she slept from about 8:30pm until almost 4 am before she woke up hungry and then went right back to sleep after I fed her. When Jim went get her this morning at 7am, she was playing happily (and most importantly, quietly) in her bed. I can't wait until she really starts sleeping through the night and we can move her from the guest room into Lolo's room. Lolo can't wait to have a roomie. She keeps asking when Norah can sleep in her room.
In other news, Norah has decided it's not enough to just crawl and sit up on the lego table....yesterday I watched her climb up, stand on the table, and then start digging through the toy box downstairs. How did we end up with two little monkeys?!

Lots of accomplishments

Big day for Lolo today. This morning, we're outside picking up storm debris, cleaning out the garage, etc. When we (actually, I) are done I ask Lolo to bring her tricycle inside. She pedals the tricycle into the garage, makes a nice right turn into the laundry room, and parks it perfectly! Wow. How's THAT for steering?!?!
Then we go upstairs and Lolo pees in the potty. Woo hoo! She's started to wear pull-ups now. I think it's the result of moving to her new preschool class....Lolo insists she does not want to wear diapers. Unfortunately, she can't consistently remember to use the potty....but I'm optomistic that in the next couple of months (with a little more peer pressure) she'll be potty-trained. This is one instance where Jim and I are really thankful for peer pressure.
Later, we head to swim school. Lolo is amazing. She jumps in. Swims underwater. Kicks like crazy. There's a swim assessment today. Lolo has graduated from tadfin class and will be starting jellyfin class right after Labor Day.
Oh. And another brag moment....the teacher has Lolo and the other little girl (there's only 2 kids in the class) see who can hold their breath the longest underwater. The teacher starts to count. The other little girl pops up after the teacher counts to about 10. Lolo keeps going....and going...and going....popping up once the teacher counts to 47! Let's just say, that's her daddy's genes at work.

Working all the angles

The other night I'm putting Norah down and Jim is putting Lolo down for bedtime. Both girls are fairly straighforward for me. Norah gets milk, a little bit of hugging, and then down with a pacifier. Lolo gets a "once upon a time" story or a couple of books and then a couple of songs....the whole routine takes about 15 minutes (20 minutes tops if the books are long and I'm in a pushover mood). Well, Jim comes out of Lolo's room about 45 minutes later. I'm wondering what happened. He just shakes his head saying "That little girls works every angle." Apparently, she was asking for "just one more story" and then she had a wet diaper and then she needed to find her woobie and then finally "Dad! Dad! Can we have a tea party?" Hmmmm. Can you guess who Lolo has wrapped around her little finger?

Lightening bolt

Here's something eerie that happened this morning...Jim and Lolo are in the living room. I'm cleaning up the kitchen. Earlier, it had been thunderstorming but just gray skies at the time...when all of a sudden....BOOM! I see a flash of light. Jim sees a streak of orange and blue fireball of light out of the corner of his eye. We were all startled by the exceptionally loud crack (except Norah who incredibly enough slept through the whole thing). Jim and Lolo run to the window....a huge tree across the street got zapped by lightening and was laying across the street. Amazing. Kind of scary if you think about it.

Smileybug

Here's our Norah....hard to believe this smiley little girl was crabby for the first 4 and 1/2 months of her life. (Hard to believe except at about 2 am).

Lolibug

Here's a little Lolibug. She outgrew her first pair of rainboots and we got her the exact same pair in a larger size since she loves them so much. In addition, I couldn't resist completing the look with a matching raincoat and umbrella. Of course, the day we get the package in the mail....no rain. But Lolo has to go outside to try everything on anyway. In hindsight I probably should have turned on the sprinklers for her.

Meg and her shadow

Two Harbors Trip Report

Hooray! The card reader has been found. So, I'll be uploading pictures today since Jim and the girls are ALL down for some quiet time.

So, this past week, Meg and Sam were here for a visit and on friday afternoon we headed up to Two Harbors. Meg, Sam, the girls, and I crammed into Lolo's "big city car" (we left early - and Jim joined us after he got off of work) and headed up to the north shore for some relaxation and good food. I don't know why, but just about every place we have eaten up past Duluth has had very good food. Meg basically had a shadow the entire time she was here. Lolo followed her around admiringly.

We were fortunate that the place we stayed at had an indoor pool. Lolo showed off her swimming skills and Norah enjoyed "swimming" as well. (The first night we actually had the pool to ourselves). On saturday, we took a train ride from our condo into Two Harbors for the kayak festival. Meg, Sam, Jim and Lolo kayaked. Norah and I played in the sand. On sunday we visited Gooseberry State Park and went on a guided walk with a park ranger who introduced us to thimbleberries and other edible fruits in the area. For us, it was well worth the tour....we love searching for berries as we "hike".

All in all it was a very relaxing trip. Rock hunting for Lolo. A bit of time in kayaks. Lots of swimming. A campfire and roasted hot dogs. Sauna time and a jump into Lake Superior for Meg, Sam, and Jim.

Nine months today

OK No pics until I find my card reader. Sorry.
Until then....Norah is 9 months today. To celebrate, her second tooth has come through. And, she's starting to bite. If biting doesn't resolve really soon, I don't know that she will be nursing much longer. We also changed out her car seat today. Norah is now in a "big girl" seat that looks just like Lolo's (only still rear facing).
It's funny to think that a few short months ago, we had worried that Norah would be timid. I'm pretty sure we're wrong about that. Norah goes full-steam ahead and is fairly aggressive. You'd think she was a little boy. Lolo loves to play with her blocks and we've had to sit down and explain that some people (like Lolo) are builders....other people (like Norah) are wreckers (because Norah's too little to be a builder just yet). Norah loves to wreck Lolo's block buildings, swimming pools, sand castles, etc. You name it, she loves to wreck it in a most happy and enthusiastic way.

Wouldn't you know it?!

Here I sit ready to post belated pics from our recent trip with Meg, Sam, and the girls.....you'll never believe it....I CAN'T FIND MY CARD READER! That crazy thing.

Yee haw!

The other day Lolo was sitting on the potty...she does her business, enthusiastically hops off, and shouts "Yee haw!"
Where does she get this stuff?!?!

Monkey business

I forgot to mention...we found toys stashed on the TOP BUNK! Hmmm. A monkey has been at play where she should not be.

Back in action

The girls' Aunt Meg and Uncle Sam have been up here visiting. We went up to Two Harbors for a few days. We got back yesterday afternoon and they left early this morning. Photos will go up once I get the house back in order and caught up on laundry.
Norah is climbing! Yesterday it was the stairs. This afternoon she climbed up on Lolo's lego table and sat on top. This girl is going to cause me endless worry. Norah has also discovered an affinity for baba ganoush and hommos. I think both of our girls are going to have rather sophisticated palates.
Lolo started her transition into her preschool class this morning. She ended up sitting on the benches outside of the classrooms for after school pick-up....just like the big kids. I didn't know about the pick up situation and went to the toddler area to pick her up. She saw my car drive by and started to cry when I didn't pick her up right away. Ugh. Crocodile tears. "Mama got all mixed up." More crocodile tears.
The paint crew is gone. Just final bits of touch up work left. Our home is starting to look a lot better....now if I can just get that pesky screened porch project completed correctly this year....

Transitions

It's a time of transition here in MN.
The weather has gone from 101 monday afternoon to 65 this morning.
Norah slept from 8:30pm until 4am this morning. (Although the night before she was up every 2 hours....bad enough so that I closed the door to Lolo's room while she was playing and took a nap on her floor while Norah napped.)
Lolo is going to be transitioning from her current toddler summer camp class into her fall preschool class this next week.
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