Very Sticky Thank Yous

This morning, both kids took turns sitting on our new potty seat.  Neither of them did anything while on there, but it was very exciting!

In the car on the way to Open Gym at Gymboree, Abby counted, “Uno, dos, tres!”  Diego would be very impressed, I’ll be sure to let him know tomorrow!

At Open gym, Abby rode a teeter-totter/rocking horse and exclaimed, “Neigh! Neigh! Neigh!...”  One of the other moms jokingly asked, “So, she likes horses, eh?”  On the other side of the room, Shawn climbed up an A-frame.  It had skinny round rungs instead of slots for the steps on each side, so it was a little more tricky than what he normally climbs.  Still, he managed to climb up and down “all by my-self!”  I think I held my breath a little while he did it, but boy was he proud of himself afterwards!  There was a parachute flung over the monkey bars by the A-frame.  It generated some major static electricity and Shawn fell victim to it while he played under it.

Shawn and Abby also had fun going down the slides.  Shawn made sure to give another friend a chance by saying, “Sundus’s turn!”  Later, when she and her mother were getting ready to leave, he said, “Bye-bye, Sundus!” though he was rather quiet, so I don’t think they could hear him.

After Open Gym, we stopped by Dominicks for some groceries.  The check-out clerk thought Abby and Shawn were “absolutely adorable!” and gave them “Thank you!” stickers used to mark over-sized purchases.  Abby and Shawn were thrilled with their sticky accolades.

      

Shawn, Baron, and I took a two hour walk after Abby went home.  It was just to the park by the train station and back, but stopping to look at every pine cone, branch, and fallen leaf along the route took a very long time.  Shawn has gotten very confident climbing the playground equipment to get to the slides.  He has no interest in the short slides at all – only the big, bumpy, and spiraling ones for this big boy!  It was getting pretty chilly on our walk home and definitely time for dinner.  It’s just so hard to leave the park behind, so we walked home via the path by the dog park to help distract Shawn from having to say bye to his slides.  The dog park was busy, so there were lots of dogs to see as they ran over each other to greet us at the fence.  I felt bad for Baron since we weren’t actually going into the dog park – such a tease, I know.  Sorry, buddy.  Shawn’s still at eye-level with most of the dogs there and can barely hold his own against Baron (or his tail!) when he gets excited.  When he gets a little older, I’ll reinstate our dog park membership and we’ll all go play in there.  In the meantime, it's time for dinner!

Maple Sugaring at Kline Creek Farm

Waa-Hoo!  Shawn slept through the night last night!

This morning, we went to Kline Creek Farm (part of the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County) for a Maple Sugaring event.  The blurb I read about it said, “See how 1890s farm families tapped trees and boiled the collected sap into maple syrup and sugar.”

We learned that making maple syrup was a very common practice for farmers.  This time of year is too early to get into the fields to do any farming, since the ground is either too hard from being frozen or too mushy from the thaw.  All they needed was a day above freezing so the sap would move from the roots to the trunk and lower branches of the trees.  The docent explained that the best days to tap the trees are those when it’s below freezing at night, but above freezing in the day.  There isn’t a wide window of opportunity because once it gets warm enough for the sap to reach the ends of the branches, the trees use the sugar in the sap to produce leaves.  The sap buckets were emptied into a copper cauldron hanging over a small fire.  Volunteer/docent explained that the sap was mostly water, which had to be boiled out to make the syrup.  Many trees were tapped and had metal buckets hanging from them, but volunteer said it would take 45-50 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup! (I think I remembered the numbers right.)  He also explained that although it wasn’t a labor intensive process, it was very time consuming.  Over boiling the syrup at the end of the day’s work would crystallize the sugars and ruin the batch – a very frustrating mistake.  There were also hands-on demos for tapping a “sleeping” log (a log that was chopped down and laying on a stand for easy access to visitors), but it was pretty crowded when we walked by.  We opted to visit some animals while the crowd was occupied there.

We first stopped by the chicken coop and held a “bock-bock” dialogue with some of the hens.  (When we didn’t see a rooster, I wondered if he was sent to freezer camp like some of his cousins from Oma and Opa’s house!)  We walked through a barn and saw draft horses being brushed.  The size of these creatures was incredible - their hide quarters were taller than our heads! 

Then, we walked down a path to the sheep.  Shawn liked them the best.  He felt their wool, pointed out their eyes and noses, called to the babies, and watched some sparrows darting in and out of the rafters. We admired the thick wool on the adults and enjoyed watching the lambs run to their ewes and play with each other.  There were more than a dozen lambs, a few were only 3-4 days old!  A couple still had tails, which looked pretty funny, but that just made us wonder why their tails were cropped to begin with.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t a docent nearby to ask.  (I found out later that cropping the tails makes it easier to sheer the wool and it helps keep the sheep a little cleaner.) 

The last animals we saw were a couple of cattle.  They also had thick furry coats, but Raj and I wondered how much they could weather the Chicago winters, especially in blizzards like the one we had a month ago.  When we got back to the center of the farm, the draft horses were ready to be hitched up to a wagon.  Then visitors helped load alfalfa hay (animal food) and straw (animal toilet paper) onto the wagon to be delivered to the sheep and cattle we just saw. 

We didn’t have time to tour the farm house, but on our way back to the parking lot, we chatted with a honey bee “expert” while Raj and I sampled honey.  We passed on the honey for Shawn, but he enjoyed the plain crackers.  (Though I have no doubt it would have been fine, our pediatrician said there’s a risk of botulism for young children.  When we got home, I looked it up online and saw it’s more of a risk before the first birthday… hmmmm… bummer!  I’ll have to find out more about that!)

Afterwards, Raj and Shawn headed off to a birthday party and I came home to a relaxing afternoon by myself.  Ahhhhh….

Mothers & More Resale

Swimming lessons started the morning, but nothing very ground-breaking to report.  Gradually, Shawn’s getting acclimated to the class.  I was getting worried that swimming lessons were going to be more stressful than they were worth to him, but I think we’ll hang in there and see how he does over the next few weeks.

In the afternoon, Shelley joined Shawn and me at the Mothers & More resale at the DuPage County Fairgrounds.  Shawn napped on the way there and I carried him in a hip sling to give him a chance to rest a little longer once we arrived.  There were rows upon rows of tables overflowing with children’s clothes, toys, and other “gear”.  Luckily, I had a couple of large, sturdy bags my mom made from old bird seed sacks because we never would have been able to carry all that we bought otherwise!  I had the extra weight of Shawn in the sling, but it was much easier than carrying him by hand or trying to keep an eye on him in the crowd of people and tables.  (Holding him probably helped limit how much I ended up buying, too!)  In addition to clothes, I found a pair of hardly worn dress shoes (which kids this age really only wear once or maybe twice before they outgrow them, so it was nice to find a pair super cheap!), a potty seat to put on the toilet, and a travel potty to help the potty training process when we’re out and unsure about the nearest bathroom. (Though we’re not ready to start training quite yet, I think Shawn’s ready to at least become familiar with it all.)  Afterwards, we tried to stop by two other groups’ resales that were going on at the same time, but by the time we left Mothers & More, everything was shutting down – it was probably a good thing that we couldn’t shop any more, but still, we were a little disappointed to miss more great deals.  We’ll have to plan to come earlier for the Fall Resale in September.  We grabbed fliers for it so we can put it on our calendars now!

Calling All... Calculators??

Abby was back with us today.  She was much more “herself” today, compared with what I saw on Wednesday.  I can’t say it’s been a great day for sharing between Abby and Shawn, but both have struggled with it, so at least the blame is shared equally! 

After playing for a while in Shawn’s room, both of the kids started bringing me books from the bookshelves.  I took that as a sign that they wanted story time.  So, we all climbed onto the rocking chair (good thing it’s the extra-wide seat model!) and I put my feet up on the ottoman to help keep anyone from sliding off my lap.  We read a rhyming and very rhythmic story about a concert in the park, I Like the Music by Leah Komaiko.  Abby especially liked the line, “I like the beat – Of my feet – When my shoes hit the street – And I rapa-tapa-tapa – On the hot concrete.”  But, she got a little carried away when her feet started going “rapa-tapa-tapa” on my shins!  Ouch!  We also read some nursery rhymes and the kids helped me finish some of the lines. 

Then, Abby looked like she was begin to fade, so Shawn excused us while I put her down for a nap.  When I came back, Shawn made a special request for his, what else??, “dump truh book” (Tonka Big Book of Trucks by Patricia Relf)! We flipped through the pages and I let Shawn do most of the “reading” this time.  Luckily, it’s not a story that needs to be read from beginning to end, each page features different types of trucks working together to do a job, i.e. build a house.  After a few pages in random order, we said “Night-night dump truh!” and turned out the lights. 

Since Abby was still fighting her way back to health and Shawn didn’t actually fall asleep for about half an hour after she did, we were not likely to have everyone up and ready to go in time for Family Gym at Gymboree this afternoon.  I’d rather they get a good nap than wake them before they’re ready. 

When they did wake up, it was time to play.  They found a couple of calculators in our computer room.  Rather than playing with the buttons, which is what Shawn usually likes to do with them, they pretended they were telephones and proceeded to “call” each other over and over again!

If phones have calculators on them these days, shouldn't calculators have phones on them, too?

A Visit from Uncle Dave

My brother-in-law, Dave, came into town on a business trip last night.  It was really nice - We actually got a little more face time with him than we expected!  He took a cab here last night. (Raj was going to pick him up after a meeting, but it turned out that they were practically racing each other home.)  We hung out for just a little while last night before bed. 

This morning, Shawn woke up around 6:30 and didn't go back to sleep.  So, while I was getting him dressed, Dave peaked his head into Shawn's room - I think it put Shawn into shock!  He didn't know what to do, so he went completely mute (even though Dave heard him gabbing away seconds before).  We all had a quick breakfast before Raj took Dave to his meeting on his way to his office.  It turns out that the building where Dave was working in was only a few miles away from our house!

Then, I got a phone call saying that, sure enough, Abby was sick and staying home today. So, I texted Dave offering lunch.  I picked him up around noon.  We went to TGIFridays.  (Lunch took a little longer that it probably should have, but he didn't seem too concerned about getting back right away.)  During lunch, Shawn finally opened up and actually played with Dave over his tomatoes and noodles... and a very special choo-choo train toy.  We drove Dave back to work and offered him a ride to the airport when he was done, but didn't hear from him, so I'm assuming he took a cab instead.  (He mentioned at lunch that he didn't want me to worry about rush hour traffic on the way back from the airport.) 

Glad Dave's company sent him out to "Fly Over Country!"  We're happy to provide non-hotel accommodations any time!

Who is This Little Girl?

Abby didn’t seem herself today.  Her congestion was a little better yesterday, but she just wasn’t as energetic and upbeat as she normally is.  In music class, she was very quiet, clingy, and only participated a little bit; though she did show her stuff during the “Ba-Ba” activity again!  She didn’t have much of an appetite during breakfast or lunch and spent most of her mealtimes just playing with her food.  In fact, during lunch, after pushing her food around for a little while, she looked up and asked, “Night-Night?”  (If that’s not a sure sign that something’s up, I don’t know what is!)  She slept from about 12:45 until around 4:00!  I’m thinking something still not quite right for that little girl…

Happy Fasching / Mardi Gras / Fat Tuesday!

Happy Fasching / Mardi Gras / Fat Tuesday!

I completely forgot today was a holiday until my sister, Jennifer, emailed me pictures from Jonathan’s German school party.  We’ll have to whip something up for dinner to celebrate the occasion… not sure I’ll manage to do (or find) any other traditions for the day.  Maybe I can find some jelly donuts at the grocery store…

I actually heard birds singing outside this morning as Abby, Shawn, and I were on the way to Spanish class.  I’m not convinced that winter is over yet and that the snow is done for the season, but it was a nice change of pace from the howling wind, tip-tap of snow flakes, and grinding scrape of the snow plows that we’ve become so accustomed to this year!

Shawn mentioned Diego’s name a few times this morning while he was getting dressed.  It’s a good thing we had Spanish class today so he could see him!  Today’s Spanish class was about transportation.  (One of Shawn’s favorites.)  We focused on car / el carro, truck / el camión, airplane / el avión, train / el tren, boat / el barco, and bicycle / el bicicleta.  Diego came prepared with a bag of toy cars and little foam airplanes that the kids could play with.  We practiced identifying the colors of the toys and talking about if they went fast or slow.  Diego led us through an adapted version of “The Wheels on the Bus” (one of Shawn's absolutel favorite songs) that covered each of the different modes of transportation:

The Wheels Of The Car / Las ruedas del carro

The wheels of the car go / Las ruedas del carro dan

Round and round. (3x) / vueltas y vueltas. (3x)

The wheels of the car go / Las ruedas del carro dan

Round and round / vueltas y vueltas

All through the city. / por toda la ciudad.

Diego even brought out a large plastic sheet with a town drawn on it, so the kids could drive their cars… “all through the city / por toda la ciudad.”  I think Shawn and Abby recognized the tune, but they weren’t so sure about the words to this version.  Just before snack time, Shawn was right on cue when we played hands up (manos arriba), down (manos abajo), in front (manos al frente), and in back (manos atrás).  They got pretty excited about playing the game today.  Both Abby and Shawn were funny, as usual, when Diego was checking their hands to see if they were clean (limpio) or not (sucios) before snack time.  Each student in turn would stretch out her hands for Diego to “smell” them, to which he’d respond, “[Snif, snif, snif] Ewwwww… yucky, yucky!  Las manos están sucias!”  That always gets a round of giggles from the kids.  Then, he helps the parents ask the kids if they’d like a wet-wipe napkin to clean their hands.  We sing a song to clean our hands and then to clean the table because “la mesa está sucia!” To the tune of Hurrry, Hurry, Drive the Firetruck, it’s something along the lines of:

Clean, clean, clean the hands (table) / Limpie, Limpie, Limpie las manos (la mesa)

Clean, clean, clean the hands (table) / Limpie, Limpie, Limpie las manos (la mesa)

Clean, clean, clean the hands (table) / Limpie, Limpie, Limpie las manos (la mesa)

Then eat! / Entonces comer!

Once the table was clean, Diego handed each student a picture of a bicycle.  Then we helped them attach construction paper circles with brads, so the wheels could “go round and round / vueltas y vueltas” as we sang the song a few more times about a bicycle / bicicleta this time.  (I felt like it was a bit of a tongue twister, though that could’ve just been me!)

Diego forgot to end class with the nursery rhyme song, See You Tomorrow / Hasta Mañana.  Though we always want class to go a little longer than it actually does, I wasn’t about to bring up the song that I stumble over each week!  It was a nice break.  I’m looking forward to when a new nursery rhyme is introduced.  It feels like we’ve been working on this one for months!

Dr. Booth called today from Aurora University to ask if I'd teach a course this summer - Reading in the Content Areas. The problem is it's 8 am - 4 pm for a week about 45 minutes away, so it completely conflicts with watching Abby and I’d need someone to watch Shawn the whole time, too.  She knows that I'm babysitting/nannying, so I mentioned that if they could give me 6 classes in order to get benefits, I'd have more to consider. She's working on schedules and placements now, so she said she'll see what she could come up with, but wasn't sure she had the availability right now. We'll see if that gets me anywhere - I won’t hold my breath!