Birthday

So finally a week later I'm getting around to talking about my great birthday last weekend! On Saturday Shay's wonderful daycare provider Diane had a "free day" in which she offered to watch both Logan and Shay (as well as her other charges) for free for most of the afternoon and into the evening -- strictly out of the goodness of her heart and to give parents a chance to go off and do something on their own.

So Will and I very happily dropped both kids off at about 2pm and promptly headed off to the movies (which we haven't been to since Diane's last free day almost a year ago). We were a little bummed out that the movie pickings were kind of slim, but we settled on Public Enemies, a two-hour-plus flick starring Johnny Depp as John Dillinger. Good movie, not great, could have been better but we enjoyed it nonetheless. Then we went to an Italian grill restaurant, where we both ordered prime rib (which I normally would never order, but had a weird urge for that particular night) - again, it was good not great but we enjoyed it all around. Best part was the wine and then the chocolate truffle cake for dessert!

It was really nice to get out to the movies and dinner since Will and I so rarely go out alone together (not a complaint, just a fact). Logan and Shay had a great time at Diane's, of course, and he's already asking when he can go again.

Then on Sunday, my actual birthday, we had Uncle Bill and Aunt Connie and our friend Heidi over for a lunch of quiche and fruit salad, and birthday cake made from scratch by Logan and Will. The previous day I suggested we stop at a local bakery and order a cake, to which Will responded, "Oh, I thought Logan and I would make you one."

To which I responded (rather than "Oh, what a nice, thoughtful idea") -- "Well, I don't want one made out of a box." There's gratitude for you!

Needless to say, the cake was not from a box - both it and the chocolate icing were from scratch and both were scrumptious. Logan had an utterly fabulous time with both the cake and Aunt Connie, whom he could not adore with more zeal, and after lunch we headed off to the park for a little while before our guests left.

All in all, a really nice weekend and a great birthday considering it was the big 40. Aside from having a lucrative publishing contract, there is nothing I would change about my life, and my birthday wish is for everyone to stay happy and healthy. And to look forward to many more birthdays together.

Watch, what you say?

My most recent breakfast conversation with Logan (occassioned, no doubt, by the fact that one of the other preschool boys just got a new watch).

LOGAN: Daddy, can I have your watch?

ME: Sure, you can wear it sometimes.

LOGAN: No, all the time.

ME: I have to know what time it is, too, you know. How can I do that without a watch?

LOGAN: You can look at the clock on the wall. Can I have your watch?

ME: Logan, didn't we get you a watch of your own? What happened to it?

LOGAN: I think I gave it to somebody as a present.

ME: Who did you give it to?

LOGAN: Shay. Can I have your watch now?

ME: I don't think so. Who did you give it to?

LOGAN: I think I gave it to you. Can I have your watch?

ME: First we need to figure out what happened to your watch.

LOGAN: Maybe we threw it in the trash by accident. Maybe it was you.

And thus he tries to get my watch by making me feel guilty for having done something I really hadn't done at all. Not the first time that's

Perspective

Yesterday morning at breakfast after several fussing and whining episodes:

ME: Logan, did you sleep well?

LOGAN: Yeah, I did.

ME: I was just wondering because you're kind of cranky this morning.

LOGAN: I slept well. I just didn't wake up well.

Scary Noises

Last night was the crescendo of a movement in Shay's life that has been going for the past couple weeks. Noises. Scary noises. Not from Shay herself, but the world about her. Not long ago she delighted in most all sounds. Airplanes. Birds. Even sirens. But now, to note a sound is to need to follow it with "Scared!" That's what she does. "Air-pane. Scay-yewd!" "Si-yen. Scay-yewd!" "Boo-wids. Scay-yewd!" That's been building the past couple weeks, and as I said, it all came to a raucous conclusion last night. In the midst of the going-to-bed routine (which at our place, as Nina will tell you, is like the precision movements of a Swiss watch) there was a tiny sound. A toy slipped from its perch and settled harmlessly to the floor. It wasn't even that loud. But Shay's reaction sure was! Normally she would have been asleep within minutes, but instead it took more than an hour of both Nina and I (and Logan) trying our best to calm her down and reassure here that there was nothing to be scared of. None of that worked, of course. Instead it took some of what Shay called "nuh-wiss" and then, blessedly, she went to sleep. For a little while....

Croissants and Strawberries

GREAT weekend at the Roy-Lewis homestead and beyond. We (or I, to be more precise) started out kind of groggy Saturday morning due to lack of sleep (big surprise), but Will suggested an early morning walk, which I agreed to after much internal grousing and grumbling. At 6am it wasn't too hot yet, so we walked for about 45 minutes until the Farmer's Market across the street opened at 7 - whereupon we procured two quarts of ripe, juicy organic strawberries, three plain croissants and a chocolate croissant.

Then we headed home for much-needed coffee and breakfast - and as much as I love a good croissant (and Madison Sourdough bakery makes the best flaky, buttery croissants in town), I stuck with my egg-white omelet and slice of wheat toast because I am doing so fabulously on my Weight Watchers plan (20 pounds gone, 7 more to do) that even croissants can't tempt me from my health and nutrition zone these days. Not even a chocolate croissant. So you know I must be feeling stellar.

So then we headed out to the mall because I wanted to look for some new summer capris to fit my svelte new figure (not being a clothes hound, I have lived in jeans for the past two years until this sweltering heat wave made me realize I need something cooler. Not being a shorts-wearing person at all, I thought I'd try capris and cargo-pants. First half-dozen I tried on -- all too big. Frankly, a great feeling. Found some at JCPenneys that fit. Think I might have a new love affair with capris. Am liking them. A lot).

Anyway, Will and Logan went off to the sporting goods store to get fishing stuff for their new excursions to various ponds, while Shay and I went to look for capris. I looked and tried on different styles and sizes, she stuffed herself with puffs, goldfish crackers and raisins and looked supremely bored whenever I asked her opinion.

So we left behind a trail of crumbs, but ended up with some new capris for me, one pair of which I wore to a cookout Saturday evening given by a couple of Will's colleagues who are moving out of Madison. Nice people, good food, beanbag tosses and a ball-game in the backyard, a park right across the street for the kids. Logan and Will had made brownies to bring (Shay, "Brown! BROWN!"), and a good time was had by all.

Then on Sunday morning, we headed off to JenEhr farms in Sun Prairie for some local, organic strawberry picking. Longer drive than we expected, but definitely worth it. Each family or group is assigned a row, designated by flags, so you're not getting a row that's been overpicked or anything. We stayed about 45 minutes only, but got a large flat of strawberries to bring home.

Will qualfies as the main picker - Shay was too busy eating the berries, Logan was too busy yelping and squaking about them, and I was too busy taking pictures. So we ran a few more errands after that, then after lunch and the designated post-lunch 'quiet time' Shay and I went to the store, and then Logan and I made a loaf of strawberry bread.

Logan really seems to love helping in the kitchen - lately he has been wanting to help make and pack his lunch for preschool, or make his own sandwich or help put out the breakfast things. And he LOVED making the strawberry bread (he could eat strawberries with every meal if I'd let him) - he thoroughly enjoys getting stuff organized, measuring flour and nuts, stirring things, etc. He was anxious the whole hour the bread was baking and kept wanting to check on it.

So I told him he could have a piece after dinner for dessert, which he eagerly awaited, and he proceeded to eat his piece with rather fatigued enthusiasm (it has been a busy and long weekend) -- but then he requested another piece "without strawberries."

Huh?

I think I'm going to try and do a baking project once a week (okay, realisitically, every other week) because I'm not entirely sure he gets the whole concept of what making bread and muffins is all about - i.e., that you mix the ingrediants and bake them and actually get a whole new thing. He likes the process now, but I think the result is still a little weird to him (strawberries IN the bread? what's that about?). So maybe if we make blueberry muffins or zucchini bread every so often, it'll start to click a little better and he'll enjoy the product as much as the process.

Anyway, both kids hit the sack right at seven, which is the singular benefit of their 5:00am routine of "I am AWAKE. I am AWAKE and ready for the day! Would you read me this book? Can you? Huh? Did I tell you I am AWAKE? That means you too must be AWAKE. Not lollygagging about in blissful slumber. AWAKE. Like ME."

Ah, yes. I shall one day look upon this routine and chuckle. Maybe.

Anyway, it was a wonderful weekend hanging out together and with other people, getting some sun and wind and brownies and exercise and fresh strawberries...not to mention those fabulous new capris for me.

We're tired, happy and ready for the new week. Life is so good.

Negotiation

This morning while I was standing on a chair cleaning the ceiling fan:

LOGAN: I want to do that!

ME: No, this is something only mommies can do.

LOGAN: No, it isn't.

ME: Yes, it is.

LOGAN: (snotty tone) No, it ISN'T!

WILL: Logan, you need to stop that. That's called back-talk.

LOGAN: No, it isn't.

WILL: Yes, it is. We don't like back-talk. And when you do things Mommy and Daddy don't like, they're less inclined to give you what you want.

LOGAN: ......

ME: Did you hear that, Logan? When you do things we don't like, then you don't get what you want. Do you understand?

LOGAN: Can I have a piece of chocolate?

Long and Sass

May 3, 2009

May 11, 2009

Definition

On the car trip home from East Towne Mall this afternoon:

Logan: Hey, Mom. Do you know what a lung is?

Me: What's a lung, Logan?

Logan: A lung is a kind of crab.

News to me.

The Roy-Lewis Fire Brigade

Photos from May 31, 2009
A new firetruck and fire-fighter raincoat = fun!

Disco Fever

Shay is a disco ball. She is bright and shiny with thousands of little mirrors that reflect everything around her. She swirls and twirls around, sparkling her myriad lights onto everyone she encounters, mesmerizing and glowing. Her blue eyes rival the ocean with their multiple shades and hues, her lashes are long, thick and spiky, her skin is pink cream, and her grin displays two large, perfectly white and square front teeth.

Her hair is a bit of a debacle. It is straggly, sparse and flyaway, with a tendency to frizz in the back. I cut it myself a few months ago in the back because some of the strands had actually gotten matted together. But it curls in random directions, flips up here and there, fuzzy and wavy, doing its own thing without much care for conformity. Rather like its owner.

Shay chortles. She doesn't giggle. Never has. When she is amused or happy, she emits a series of low, long chortles - heh, heh, heh - that inevitably prompt others to do whatever necessary (tickling, nuzzling, teasing) to keep the chortles coming. Her chortles are frequent and loud, evidence of both a sunny disposition and an extroverted, curious and affectionate personality that makes her approach babies with a loud "Hi!" while waving her pudgy little hand in their faces.

While cautious around strangers, once you have passed her inner acceptance test, she bestows upon you an unlimited amount of warmth and enthusiasm, which sometimes translates to squeezing your face between her hands and issuing a squeaking, "Ohhhh," much as one would do with a newborn. She craves being held by people she trusts the way a fish craves water. She is relentless with her dispersal of hugs and kisses to her friends and family. She loves to hold your hand - or grip your finger tightly, as the case may be, as she holds up her hand and demands, "Walk!"

She's a talker. At her age, Logan was quieter with a less extensive vocabulary, but he had a far longer attention span than she does. (I know, they say not to compare your children, but frankly I can't compare them to anyone else). Any comparison I make is always followed by an implied, "Interesting, huh?" - with no intention of purporting that one trait is somehow better than the other. It's just...interesting. Like comparing clouds.

Shay has a lot of very intelligible words. Book, bed, nap, nurse, hi, bye, park, car, shoes, diaper, walk, man, dog, truck, bus, etc. She also has several Shay-words that are starting to disappear slowly into "proper" pronunciation, which, as with Logan, is a very bittersweet thing.

It took Shay awhile to make an effort at saying Logan's name, and when she finally did it came out as "Long" (as in, "Hi, Long!")

Sass = Shay. When she falls down, she emits a yelp and a "Sass!", though whether she's saying her name to comfort herself or chastise herself for being clumsy, I have no idea.

pink oak = pink yogurt. Usually strawberry. This morning she asked for "Gurt." I was a little sad. I will miss pink oak.

fuff = flower. Yesterday when I was putting on her clothes, she pointed to a flower on her pants and said, "Fower."

onch = lunch. I love this one. "Onch, onch!"

sim = swing. When going to the park, she points at the swing and yells, "Sim! Sim!"

yak = jacket. Or "pink yak" when she wants to be specific.

stoom = spoon

wish = fish ("Hi, wish! Bye, wish!")

When in agreement with something she used to nod and give a long, drawn-out, "Yyyyyyyeah!" which within the last week has become a still drawn-out, "Yeeessssss."

She appears to be somewhat girly. She likes the color pink. She loves to look at herself in the full-length mirror in the bedroom, putting her hands on it and pressing her button nose up to her reflection as she squeals, "Hi. Hi! Sass!"

She's kind of prissy. If she gets yogurt on her hands, she whines and extends her hand while saying, "Yuck, yuck!" and expects you to wipe it off before she continues with her meal. If there's a leaf or piece of dirt on the slide before she goes down, she announces, "Yuck!" and points at it accusingly with her little forefinger until you sweep it away. Only then does she proceed to go down the slide.

Once she saw a thin piece of bark that had somehow made its way on to our kitchen floor. She pointed at it and started saying, "Bug! Bug!" while stamping her feet and shrieking until I threw it away.

Will's nickname for her is "baby." Mine has been "Shay May," and "Shay Shay," and currently is "Shaylie," which Logan used to call her. Sometimes I mix it up with "Shaylie Ukulele." To Logan, she is "little baby" or "little cutie." She doesn't seem to mind what we call her.

Like her big brother, she is developing a love for books. She occasionally sits through a whole story, especially if it's short, like Where the Wild Things Are, but more often she wants to just look at the pictures and point out various things - and point she does, tapping her forefinger repeatedly on a picture while either asking, "Whazzat?" or stating what it is -- dog, cow, cat, baby.

She is attempting to start singing. One of her favorite songs is "Rum Sum Sum," and she loves doing the accompanying hand-motions. The first line of our standard lullaby "Hush, little Shay..." comes out sweet and melodic in her little voice. She sometimes dances with her whole body and sometimes prefers to stand and sway, cocking her head in time to the music and pumping her arms up and down.

She's our disco ball. And we love living amidst her swirling, multi-colored lights.