Twinkle toes

Captured this gem the other day. The kids were enjoying the last two pieces of Valentine's Day candy while they watched Cinderella (and I watched them). They were so focused on the wicked step-sisters they didn't even notice me and the camera. Can't help but love them from their heads to their toes!

How we sleep XXIII

I've lost count of the Roman numerals and am too lazy to look up all the previous posts, but we're in the midst of another sleep pattern altercation here at Merrilly Yours. Lincoln, who since birth has pretty much been an angel to put to bed, is suddenly getting in touch with his inner demon. Last night he was up nearly every hour, wide awake, and calling for "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" It didn't help that I had some sort of 24-hour stomach bug, unable to rise out of bed to do much more than vomit. Anyway, in the end, Carey came downstairs with him from about 130-230 in the morning. He barely touched his dinner, so he enjoyed a late night (early morning) snack of yogurt, zucchini bread and a glass of milk. Then he promptly fell asleep until 730.

Greta, meanwhile, is on a "I want to sleep in your bed" kick. We took the gate down in her doorway months ago and she's finally figured out that it offers her roaming privileges. So a couple nights a week she tip-toes into our bedroom and says something vague like, "I can't sleep." Depending on how awake we are, we either carry her back to her room and tuck her in or she snuggles in next to us.

And sometimes Greta's nocturnal wanderings coincide with Lincoln's rough nights and we end up with a party in our bed. I usually embark for the guest room at that point, but one recent morning I got up before they did and snapped a few photos.

Feeling better

Lincoln has been taking antibiotics for 24 hours to treat his ear infection, and it is so nice to have our little boy back! The drugs he took yesterday afternoon kicked in quickly; after dinner last night he devoured the chocolate bunny he picked out while waiting for the oh-so-slow pharmacy to fill his amoxicillin prescription, and offered me the first true look of happiness I'd seen in days (you can even see the smile in his eyes!).

Today he enjoyed two trips to the playgrounds, coloring with markers, and chasing a squirrel. He didn't take a good nap, but I think he was just so happy to feel better that he didn't want to settle down (he was literally running laps around his crib happily chanting "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!"). Greta seemed happy to have her little brother around, sweetly asking him to "add some blue" to her picture. I'm looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings. We'll keep you posted!

Day with Dad

With Lincoln feeling ill (diagnosed today as an ear infection, perhaps sparked by his fall into the corner of the entertainment center), I left the house with Greta at 10:30 this morning. First stop, the public library, where we danced, read books and painted with watercolors.


We then went with her friend Emma Bailey (Jack's big sis) to Eden Gourmet, the local high-end grocer that is trying to weather the recession by selling things like duck pizzas and corn chowder in a second-floor cafe. I can vouch for the penne with meatballs.

Came home after lunch and watched the first 30 minutes of Kung Fu Panda on blu-Ray, but the girls decided it was too scary and a Dora DVD was chosen instead.

Ended the afternoon at the closest playground in the day's waning sunlight. I'm told Greta just told Mommy during tuck-in that she had a "special day with Dad." Right back at ya, kid.

Home sweet home

Got back around 7 p.m. tonight, in time to tuck in the kids. After impaling himself on the entertainment center Thursday and visiting the ER, Lincoln got sick on Saturday night. He vomited today and Carey says he has clammy hands. Google the symptoms and you'll be convinced he's at death's door. We'll take him to the doctor tomorrow and see. I have the day off to recuperate, which should be nice. Will post some family reunion photos tomorrow. In the meantime, here's me in the high-tech AP editing suite at the Academy Awards (an open-air tent in a parking lot, natch).

Back-Blogging

I can't believe a week has passed since our trip to Syracuse! The kids had a great time at Grandma Vickie and Grandpa Larry's house, enjoyed lots of playtime with the Santillanes cousins, and had fun catching up with Great Grandma Manguno. Other highlights included many tea parties (Greta even convinced Grandpa that he could come as Captain Hook!), and lots of cuddle time with the dogs. The kids traveled well, slept great, and played nicely. Who could ask for anything more?

Crummy day

Rob left for LA today. We miss him a lot. We especially missed him this afternoon when Lincoln fell/tripped in the living room and crashed into the television console. I was in the kitchen getting our after-school tea party ready when I heard the smash, followed by silence (while he sucked in his breath), followed by a wail.

I rushed in and saw his eye/eyebrow immediately swelling up. I applied ice right away, but the location of the swelling worried me. Since our pediatrician's office was closed, I decided to take him to the hospital to get checked out. Rob pays for insurance, so I figured we would use it.

Linc was his usual charming self by the time we arrived. Despite the swelling, he was in good spirits and managed smiles for everyone. He tolerated the on again-off again icing while we waited (and waited). Armed with his blanket and beloved mini Cozy Coupe, he was happy playing with his trucks, coloring, and watching cartoons on PBS for the first hour of our stay. The second hour was spent eating crackers and playing with the funny glove balloon/chicken I made for him. Checked over by a nurse, a resident, and finally an attending physician, he was spared a CT scan after the attending checked the eye socket and seemed satisfied there wasn't a fracture. Hooray!

Discharged with orders for me to check him every few hours throughout the night and to see our pediatrician in the morning, he told everyone "'Bye-bye," waved, and blew kisses as we walked out the door. He was especially happy to pick up Greta at her buddy Duncan's house, where we feasted on Drew's yummy spaghetti with creamy tomato and sausage sauce. We returned home for a late dessert/bedtime snack, ending our crummy day in a messy, crummy way!

A simple post, so as not to disappoint...

Rob didn't mean to make a promise I can't keep, but blogging about the weekend won't happen until I have time to sit and write more than a paragraph. Instead, enjoy the following:

Today we finally had carpeting installed in three of the four bedrooms upstairs. Discovered beautiful hardwoods underneath, which maybe we'll reveal when Lincoln and Greta no longer romp and roll around. A lovely shade called "Horizon" was plunked down in Lincoln's room and the guest room (which Rob painted a lovely ice blue this weekend). Greta picked her color: "Rose." You can see how much she likes it!

The kids are all right

There's nothing better than coming home to squeals of "Daddy! Daddy!" followed by hugs around the knees. Greta smelled like baby lotion and Lincoln had shiny cetaphil cheeks. I was too busy being loved to take any photos, but here are a few of Carey's best from the long weekend in Syracuse. She'll blog more about the trip tomorrow.

V-Day, P-Day break

We're going dark for a few days, while Carey and the kids frolic with the cousins in Syracuse and I prep for the Oscars. I have to work Monday, so they're taking the 3-day break and heading north Saturday afternoon. Over the weekend, I get to paint the guest room and maybe catch Notorious on the big screen. We leave you with this cheerful image.

Helping Parent V

Helping Parent responsibilities coincided with the Valentine's Day party at pre-school today. Greta insisted on wearing the same outfit she wore to the party we hosted on Tuesday, a little Mary Kate and Ashley number I picked up at the consignment place around the corner for $6. When Rob called it a "grandma outfit" you should have seen the look she shot him!

We had a fun afternoon together. By now, our regular readers know the routine: free play/craft, clean up, story time, outside play, snack time, music time. Add in two rounds of table scrubbing with a bleach/water solution and seven trips to the bathroom, and you can see how the 2.5 hours flew by!

At dinner tonight Greta said her favorite part of the afternoon was ringing the bell (a helping friend duty) and declaring "Clean up time!"
I told her my favorite parts were making heart-shaped pretzels and watching her build towers with her friends.
I didn't tell her my other favorite part was when her teacher, Mrs. Hicks, gave me some unsolicited praise. She commented favorably about Greta's vocabulary. "She uses so many big words! And she uses them correctly!" She is also pretty independent, follows directions, and plays well with the other kids. "She has really warmed up," Mrs. Hicks continued. "I remember last fall..." as she trailed off, she smiled and shook her head. I remember, too. She has come a long way, my funny valentine.

Dance fever

As we've blogged about previously, for a 19-month-old white boy Lincoln's got pretty good rhythm. He was apparently complimented at the library today while performing a dance-along version of the tango. Here are a couple shots of the kids wearing their dancing boots.

A lovely day

We really like Valentine's Day here at Merrilly Yours. Perhaps it is all the lovey-dovey things that accompany it, like furry bears holding hearts, and doilies with glitter and sparkles. Maybe it's the pure pinkalicious-ness of it. At any rate, we happily hosted our third annual valentine-making party today. Greta loved that in addition to our "regular two Emmas," today we also had two Charlottes, two Nicoles, and two Carey/Carries! Throw in Greta, Lincoln, Duncan, Madison, Elin, Sarah, Geri, and Fabiana, and you can see it was a full house!
We started with crazy crafting: glitter glue, silk flowers, glitter, foamy stickers, doilies, glitter, chenille and tinsel stems (called pipe cleaners when I was young!), feathers, foil stickers...oh, and did I mentioned glitter?! It was so much fun. The kids had a great time and produced some pretty nice valentines:


After a yummy lunch featuring heart-shaped sandwiches for the kids and quiche for the grownups, we moved on to the cookie decorating part of the party. I apologized in advance for the inevitable sugar high that was bound to occur. As you can see in the slide show, everyone loved frosting and sprinkles!






A highlight of the party came at the end, when Lincoln's buddy Jack came to pick up his sister. It was so nice to see him out and about. He even had a high-five for me (I had a piece of chocolate for him). The kids look forward to more playtime with him soon.
All in all, a most lovely day! Hope your Valentine's Day is as happy as our celebration was!

Cousins

After the zoo on Sunday, we drove to Sara & Peter's house for some afternoon play. Among other things, the kids decorated sea shells that Max & Esme had picked up earlier in the day at the beach. Carey then graciously watched all four of them for 90 minutes while Sara, Peter and I visited the Rye Public Library for an appearance by author Junot Diaz, winner of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. (If you haven't read "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" and like your novels both meaty and profane, I heartily recommend it.)

When we got back, Carey had macaroni and cheese boiling and was spreading peanut butter and honey on bread for dinner. The kids enjoyed a special treat, eating while watching a Charlie & Lola DVD. Max in particular cleaned his plate, a trend Sara says is happening a lot lately. Snacks all day, eats a full plate, and almost always asks for seconds. Ahh, to have a 6-year-old's metabolism.

I didn't take very many good photos, but here's the day in pictures.

Bronx Zoo

We got an early start on our annual Wildlife Conservation Society membership this year and took advantage of temps approaching 60 today for a trip to the zoo. Many of the animals were either invisible or on loan to other zoos, because we sure didn't see 'em. But we did see the giraffe, as you can see above. And sea lions sunning themselves. And we rode the Bug Carousel.

Blessings

It's been an emotional 10 days here at Merrilly Yours. Lincoln's best buddy in South Orange, a boy his age named Jack Bailey, was diagnosed with a form of childhood leukemia on Jan. 28. Spiked a high fever for a few days and next thing you know his parents are charting a course of chemo with his doctor. Carey has been the Queen of Compassion since the bad news broke. She put together a blog for their family and friends to share Jack's Journey and another one for Friends of the Bailey Family to organize meal-making, hospital shuttles and all the rest of the logistics.

Jack's home for a couple days before another dose of chemo. We spent about an hour hanging out today on the playground, where I snapped these two pics. He's awfully tired and doesn't like to toddle much because his bones hurt. But so far the prognosis is quite positive. You can read all about it at Jack's Journey. I've added a link in Friends' Blogs.

Cozy?

Last night while I was making dinner, Lincoln started pulling pots out of the cupboard. I didn't pay too much attention, because he often entertains himself with the pots and pans, banging on them with a wooden spoon or smashing lids together like cymbals. But last night, he selected the pasta colander and carried it into the living room. He set it down on the floor next to Greta (who was curled up in a chair), and then made himself comfortable for their nightly dinner-prep viewing of Cozy's Big Day, a sneak peek DVD included with a Christmas present from Aunt Colleen. Doesn't look too cozy to me, but he was quite content.

3-D fun

I recorded the Super Bowl on Sunday so Greta and I could watch the 3-D commercial block that aired at halftime. She was pretty enthralled by the leaping lizards from SoBe and the Monsters vs. Aliens trailer. Jumped backward quite a few times, causing me to giggle every time. Lincoln even liked the 2-D experience. More about his recently discovered love of TV in a future post.

Portrait of an artist's family...

Greta came home with this masterpiece Tuesday from school. Art historians please note the media is black and white paint on construction paper. It depicts her human family as if they were a family of penguins. See if you can identify which bird is Mommy, Daddy, Greta and Lincoln.

Boogity, Boogity, Boogity

Lincoln had such success mixing baseball with ballet he decided to give the NASCAR-Nefertiti look a try. Not sure what Little E would think, but we're sure he gave The Intimidator a chuckle in the heavens.