Thoughts and Words Ill-Sorted

Last night Katherine sang me to sleep.  It was 11:15pm and I had just decided that Nathaniel might be inclined to take a longish nap, and thus it might be worth retiring for the night.  He’s still very much in nap mode, sticking to cycles of about 1.5 hours.  In the last couple of days Katherine’s thrown out her normal schedule and has shown an amazing ability to entertain herself in her crib for long stretches of time.  Which is why, late at night, she was singing nonsense songs to herself in the room below mine, giving absolutely no indication of sleepiness.  I, meanwhile, was out in five minutes.

Erin

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Sydney

Laundry, and the reason for the laundry.  He’s starting to enjoy counter time when he’s awake, too, since he likes being near the action . . . and we like him away from Katherine’s energy.

In case I forgot that I was in a kid-filled household, Sophie the teething toy was a great reminder of that, as well as a good paperweight.

Miss Independent isn’t shy about letting us know when she wants to go out for a walk.

Sarah, your blanket is proving quite effective at keeping his hands occupied.  You have very effectively swaddled two Baby Penners!

And then there are the games.  Katherine beats me to the stairs, races to the top and into her room, and disappears.  The following ensues:

“Katherine?  Where’s my Katherine?  Katherine?”

Silence.

“Oh, Katherine, are you up here?”

Silence . . . and then, “No?”

One more minute of quiet and then she comes racing out from behind the curtain, like so:

Erin

In the modern quest for new ways to stay awake and boost energy we’ve tapped food, exercise, caffeine, and pharmaceuticals.  I’m wondering, though, when researchers will get around to trying to bottle whatever it is that little kids run on.  I’ve cared for small kids who could run all day on two carrot sticks and a glass of milk.  And then there are those times when kids seem to just stop sleeping.  Katherine has been awake, talking to herself, for hours each of the last several nights (from, say, 8-10pm and then again for a couple of hours in the morning), and today she talked all the way through her normal nap time.  She’s currently running on about the same sleep as her parents (who, thanks in part to Nathaniel, aren’t doing so hot on that front) and manifesting a lot more energy than the two of them combined.  Where does she get it?  And where can I get some?

Erin

Nathaniel turns one month old today.  He’s definitely cuter than he was a month ago, with round limbs and cheeks and big blue eyes that stay open a lot more often.  I wonder what he sees.

Erin

P.S. His clothes aren’t roomy because he’s small; I got tired of struggling with newborn clothes, so he’s currently wearing a onesie for 3-6 months.  We now have a lot less screaming when he gets dressed in the morning.

– Katherine is showing a bit more of a temper in the past week or two, and she’s learning that “No” from us gets pretty serious when it concerns the baby.  A loving older sister, yes, but a bit too vigorous.

– I’ve taken the kids on a few walks on my own, knowing that juggling them both is going to be a big part of my future life.  So far so good, though it does sort of feel like walking on eggshells: there I am, desperately hoping that Katherine will eventually return to my side instead of tripping up and down the scary bridge, I’m keeping a hand on the (pricey) stroller I’ve brought along to cart her home when she gets tired, and Nathaniel suddenly starts making unhappy sounds from deep within the backpack.  I may need to take a few more walks on my own, just to remember why other people associate walks with peace and quiet.  But hey, it’s exercise!

– I’ve heard from a classmate who landed a job this year, so I know it’s possible.  It also makes me itch to get back to work, so I was glad to have some quiet time to myself today while Sydney took Katherine out to burn off energy.  Getting ready to dive into the writing for another chapter.

– I’ve already started wishing for more time: more time to simply sit with Katherine in her room and roll the balls down the slanted floor, more time to plop on the couch and stay there as long as Nathaniel would like, more time for whole-family outings, more time for work, and definitely more time for sleep.  I would like very much to get more quality time with each kid, but they keep cutting in on each other so that, for now, I’ll have to take the slivers of bonding time that I get.

Erin

We had a beautiful sunny, warm spring day yesterday (though it might have felt more like it if we’d gotten sleep the night before …); here are some crocuses in University Parks:

Imperious in pink.

I’ve been ravenous recently, and have been really craving nuts to keep me full.  I know almonds are among the healthiest of the lot, but, frankly, they don’t taste nearly as good raw as pecans and cashews do.  But today I bought a bunch of almonds, coated them in thin, hot syrup of maple syrup, cinnamon, salt, and cayenne, and roasted them for awhile in the oven.  After they cooled I tossed them in carob powder.  They were delicious!  I’ll have to work on reducing the sugar and upping the spice content, but they were a definite hit.  Now, if I could just make nuts cheaper . . .

Erin