The Games We Play

We are a game playing family. And by that I do not mean electronic, video games, I mean board games. Before the kids came along, Matt and I would often spend a Friday or Saturday night playing games, just the two of us. We don't do that so much anymore, but we have recently started to pick it up again a bit. But the neat thing is now that the kids are a little older, there are a lot of board games we can play with them. Even Kara is getting into the gaming action. We've got a few that are just her speed, a few more that John can play on his own and we have to help Kara with, and a few that are just beyond Kara for now but that John loves.

The last few nights after dinner there has been enough time before bed to squeeze in a game or two. Monday night it was all of us playing a game called Bendominos. Then last night Matt and I were still finishing dinner and chatting, while the kids started to play checkers. I keep a careful ear out when the kids are playing a game by themselves to make sure all parties are being involved and no one is taking over or getting upset. Last night I heard John saying that Kara was winning and he was clearly going to lose this game. But it said it in sort of an awestruck kind of way, not like he was upset about it at all. Then on her next turn, he was still helping her out and suggesting moves for her to make. It was so great to listen to him willing to try to help her win the game, knowing that would result in his loss. I know that won't last much longer before his "help" becomes sabotage instead, so I really enjoyed hearing him being very sincere and trying to teach her the skills of checkers. By the way, he ended up winning the game anyway, but it was all amicable in the end. :-)

Zucchini Parmigiana

We love this easy summertime recipe and I thought it was worth sharing with everyone. Hope you can try it and enjoy it the way we do!

Zucchini Parmigiana
6 medium zucchini, sliced thin
2 red or green peppers, diced
1 onion, sliced
1/4 c. tamari (soy sauce)
1/2 t. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
14 oz. tomato sauce
4 c. grated cheese (mozzarella, swiss or muenster)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine all ingredients, except tomato sauce and cheese, in a large bowl. Stir well. Transfer half of the mixture to a large, lightly greased casserole. Pour one-third of the tomato sauce over the mixture. Top with one-half of the cheese. Pour the remaining mixture into the pan and then another one-third sauce, the remaining cheese and then the rest of the sauce.

Bake covered for about 1 hour or until the zucchini is tender. Serves 6-8.

TV Challenges

Shortly after our beach trip, Matt was able to work out a deal with our cable provider to bundle our phone, cable and internet services for a lower rate than what we had been paying previously. In a tough financial year, with no raise for Matt (we’re thankful he still has a job), we’re looking at ways to save some money instead. There was a chance this was going to mean a change of phone numbers for us too, which I think we’re going to manage to avoid…thank goodness! The installation was on Tuesday of this week, and it means that we now have a cable box. Somehow we have navigated the world of cable without having to get a box for many years now. Not sure how we did that, but boy did it make things easier. Not only do we have a box, all the channels are different, and I can’t seem to find the shows I like to watch (not that summertime tv is much to watch anyway). This afternoon John asked to watch a dvd we have from the library…should be simple, right? NO. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to get the darn thing to work. I had the cable box on and off, the tv on and off, and all combinations of the above. Nothing worked. Then when I was ready to quit trying it (and wait for Daddy to come home), I couldn’t get it back to having the box on and tv on and actually working normally again. It took me another 5 minutes to get it back to showing regular tv and I’m still not sure what on earth I did. Now I consider myself a reasonably intelligent person, but when it comes to these ridiculous electronic set-ups that no one ever seems to actually understand I am baffled. It really should not be that hard to watch a tv show or to get a dvd to play for my kids. No wonder so many parents just do not let their kids watch any tv at all. After another experience or two like this, I’ll be done too! Bah!

Jelly Beans?

Yesterday, after writing the post about the potty training, I was all focused and ready to move forward a bit on the process. So after Kara's nap I changed her diaper and asked if she wanted to use the potty. She was a bit skeptical at first, but then I suggested that if she went tinkle there would be a jelly bean for her (which I always swore to myself I would NEVER do - ha!). At that her enthusiasm soared and she immediately went in and did the deed. Feeding off her energy, I pulled out a pull-up and asked if she wanted to give that a try for the afternoon. She considered it carefully and decided she'd prefer a diaper instead. I tried to convince her to try it, but she just wasn't buying it. So we came downstairs and got the jelly bean. I started to unload the dishwasher and then she announced she needed to use the potty again...so she could get another jelly bean. After reminding myself that this is what potty training is like, we marched back upstairs and she dripped a few more drops out, we cleaned up and got another jelly bean for her effort. She tried to do it one more time about 3 minutes later. I convinced her it would be better to wait until she felt the need to go, and later I felt guilty about putting her off mainly because I didn't want to truck back up the stairs, but oh well. Two things were made clear to me: 1) CLEARLY I need to get a second potty for her for the main floor bathroom and 2) I still need more energy to get through this.

Of course, today we haven't done anything in the potty at all the whole day. Whatever energy I had about this yesterday must have left the premises. Wonder when I'll get it back.....Hmmm....

Pending Potty Training

So, like I mentioned yesterday, potty training is looming on the horizon for us. Kara is supposed to be potty trained before starting preschool in September. But she has not shown quite enough interest in it yet for me to be ready to make the big effort that it takes. This summer so far has been too busy for us really to take the time to stop and focus on this "project." In a few more weeks, John will be done with camps and then things will (in theory at least) slow down for us. I'm trying now to gear myself up mentally for the process of potty training once that time comes. Part of my challenge is that Kara is fiercely independent and will not take kindly to any situation in which she feels like she doesn't have control. If she's truly not ready to do this, it just will turn into a battle and no one will win. I'm so not looking forward to it! But it is an effort I feel like we have to start soon so that we might have a chance of getting through it before preschool starts. So today I'm vowing to pick a time on the calendar in August when we do the whole spend up to a week (some say it only takes 3 days) and go nowhere and focus on the potty training. Sounds like a fun week to me...NOT. But it must be done and my attitude about it needs be strong and positive. Here we go, on the potty training express! Who hooo!! (Wish me luck...I think I might need it.)

To Do List

Upon returning from the beach my to-do list grew by leaps and bounds. Our grand plan was to enjoy our beach trip, come home, and put a moratorium on our spending. Great idea, right? Well, unfortunately, it's just not going to work.

To Do List:
1. Clean House - well, the vacuum is only half working, need to replace it before things will get truly clean the way I like to keep the house, which is by no means a spotless house, but I still definitely need a working vacuum.
2. Get new phones - just got updated phone service and new digital/high-def cable service today, so now the phones can get upgraded too (ones that are not a big pain in the butt to dial the numbers will be a big improvement).
3. Get school supplies for John - he needs a new backpack and a TON of school supplies from a list the school gave us.
4. Get new tennis shoes for the kids - both kids have worn out their current shoes, hoping to hold them through the rest of the summer, but will need new ones for school...not to mention that mine are getting older too.
5. Get new shutters, gutters, railings, and molding around the front door - $$$$$$$$$
6. More work to be done on the inside of the house too - $$$$$$$
7. Find and apply labels to John's jackets, hats, etc. for school.
8. Get Kara potty trained - fun...NOT.
9. Figure out new decorations/arrangements for Kara's room once she's out of her crib - $$$$$
10. Purge, purge, purge, purge, and purge - truly, we could not possibly need this much stuff!!

And that's only the big stuff on the to-do list. As you can see, most of these items involve spending more money, many of them are non-negotiable items, some are more expensive than others (thank goodness), but all need to get done sooner rather than later. I was hoping the pace of the rest of the summer would be a little more relaxed, but I'm guessing that's just not my fate this year. Add in a lot of time at the pool, garden, and other outdoor activities, and the summer is almost done. I'm not even caught up to where I should be now, there's no way I'll be ready by the end of the summer! Oh well, I guess I'd better just have a mojito and enjoy the day instead.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Sorry there hasn't been any posts in a bit, but we've been busy bees here. We just got back from our week at the beach. Today John started his third week of summer camp - nature camp this time. Our master bathroom renovation that has been ongoing for approaching three years has finally been completed as of today. It's just been an all around crazy time lately.

Our beach trip was great. The kids and I hit the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond and spent a few hours in their AWESOME children's garden. Totally worth a visit if you're ever in the area. Matt took the train down and met us in Richmond to start the trip. We drove the rest of the way to Topsail Island, NC the next day. The kids watched Little Mermaid and Cinderella for the first time and loved it. They were thrilled to get to the beach the next day and play in the sand and waves. They spent the next 6 days playing like crazy and exhausting themselves (and us). It was so much fun. The group of family and friends that we stay with is totally great and the kids adore them all. One day we even rented inflatable ocean kayaks and took them out. John wished he was big enough to go out in them, but was content with filling them with water and sitting in them on the beach with Kara. We had a really fun trip and we are all ready to go back.

Now to get through the rest of the summer!

A Couple of Noteworthy Items Today

1. Yesterday while we were at the pool celebrating a good friend's birthday with super yummy cupcakes (thanks Heather!), John actually swam the entire length of the pool on his own. We've been practicing the swimming in shorter lengths, but this time I kept moving back and he kept going. Pretty soon we were almost the entire way across and so we kept going and he made it - no swim vest, no help from me - all on his own. I was so proud of him. I think he surprised himself even! Now if he can just start swimming with his face in the water he will be all set! Each time we go to the pool lately he's been trying new things and doing great, so I have every confidence that by the end of the summer he'll be more comfortable with the underwater aspect too. For now I'm perfectly happy to celebrate his big doggie paddling successes!! Yay John!!!

2. Today we pick up our first bag of summer vegetables from our CSA. We split our share with a neighbor again this year, so they actually picked up the first bag last week and now it's our turn. I'm very excited to see what yummy veggies will be in our bag. The kids always get excited too, even if it's not always stuff they're going to eat. But they are often willing to try things that come in the bags, more so than if it's something I just pick out at the store. Ohhh goody!

3. The last notable item for today is that Kara will be having her first haircut. That's right, her first EVER haircut. Yes, I do realize that the poor girl is approaching three, and she's got a seriously crazy mane of hair. But it is beautiful hair and until now I haven't been able to bring myself to have any bit of it cut off. Finally now though, it is time. She's got a ton of dead ends that are only continuing to get worse and tangle more and more. And with our beach trip next week, the wind will not add good things to her hair situation. So I made her an appointment with my hairdresser for her very first haircut. I have been going to my hairdresser for over twenty years now and she also cut John's hair for his first haircut (of course, he was 5 months old, and had a full head of hair). We talked a little bit at dinner last night about what the haircut experience would be like for her. Kara asked if it would hurt. :-) I told her no, that other than a little bit of combing her hair out, the cutting part would not hurt at all. I'm excited to watch her go through this rite of passage, but the reality is this truly will only be a trim. I'm not quite ready to cut it short or anything so dramatic, but hopefully it will make the brushing process easier for us and maybe we'll even get some more of her lovely curls as a result. My baby is really growing up.

Bedtime Stories

Tonight at bedtime John asked Matt to tell them a bedtime story about Scooby Doo and some new zany adventure for Scooby and the gang. After getting in their pajamas and brushing teeth, the three of them snuggled into our bed and listened to the crazy tale that Matt created for them. I was reminded of a long ago phase in our parenting life when John was having trouble sleeping through the night. It was quite a LONG phase in our life...like the almost year and a half following his exit from the crib. At some point toward the end, Matt started telling John bedtime tales centering around none other than Thomas the Tank Engine. John requested Thomas stories pretty much every night and we almost ceased reading any bedtime books during this time. But the stories were pretty creative and lengthy and John had strict expectations for them. There could be no repeat stories, they had to be a certain time length, and there had to be a lot of crashes and "confusion and delays" involved. It became increasingly difficult to appease his growing need for these stories. But he had miraculously at about the same time started to sleep through the night and we were going to do anything we could to encourage that behavior. So Thomas stories lived on, for quite a long time, around here. Tonight's Scooby Doo story reminded me of that long ago time, and hopefully Kara's imminent exit from her crib won't result in so many sleepless nights for us all. Or Scooby Doo may become a more regular bedtime character for us.

Sleep well my children.