First steps

Ciara took her first steps today! She's been standing for a couple of weeks now and last week started to put one foot forward but would promptly fall down. This afternoon, my sister put her down and I called to her with my arms open and she took about 4 steps over to me! She had the funniest look on her face almost like she had no idea what she was doing or how to stop. We tried to get her to do it again while I had the camcorder out but of course she wouldn't. Think she'll be walking by Wednesday?

Daddy's on bacation

This week Daddy is on bacation as the boys call it. They are so thrilled to have him home and every day when we wake up Gavin says "You think you're staying home today?". He is becoming a Daddy's boy.

On Monday, we visited a zoo about an hour west of Boston. They boys really had a good time and it was set up nicely where you could see some animals, then maybe do a little rest stop, see more animals and then play on the playground, see some more animals...you get the idea. We spent about 3 hours there and all three kids did great until the very end when Gavin started to melt down because he wanted to be carried and not ride inthe cart we spent $8 to tote them around in. All in all, a good day.

Tuesday we took a ride up to Maine and went to the beach. I hate going to the beach unless we are staying there (which we will be doing for a week in August). I just hate feeling all gritty and sticky and having to drive home that way. The first beach we stopped at was packed because it was high tide and everyone was crammed on the small strip of dry sand as far as we could see in either direction. So after changing everyone, packing up the carriage, slathering with sunscreen we spent about 10 minutes there and decided to drive a little further to another beach. The boys freaked because they thought we were leaving, Ciara was a little cranky because she was hungry and I was a little cranky because all the kids were. So we decided to have lunch first and then hit the beach. We went to a little take-out place that also has tables. We all had seafood of some sort and Aidan snagged some of my shrimp again. Then he gets up, squats down and says "The pee is on my leg!" He had a swim diaper on and peed and evidently they do not hold a lot of moisture (which defeats the purpose of "swim" diapers, no?). Thank goodness no one else heard. So we finally got to the beach about 2:15 (after leaving the house at 10:30) and we left at 3:05. It was more me than the kids who wanted to leave, really. Ciara wanted to be held and she was all sandy and gross and getting me all sandy and gross so we announced the beach was closing and that was that. The boys had a blast in the water, though, and I can't wait to spend a whole week up there!

Which brings us to today. We went to the New England Aqaurium which was a total waste of time and money. Again, it was packed and Aidan was really bored. Gavin loved looking at the fish in the humongous tank which is the center of the aquarium but Aidan was freaked out. It was kind of funny, actually. I think the highlight of the outing was the giftshop. We then decided to go to lunch and take the boys to a "real" restaurant. They were excited to go but when we were almost there, Gavin started complaining his belly hurt and kind of crying. Next thing we knew, he threw up. First time ever in his little life, poor kid. I think it was a combination of the heat, not eating, sucking down a juice box and then getting in the car. After he did it, he was fine but we didn't risk the restaurant. We just came home.

And tomorrow is Thursday...I think we need a rest-at-home day to recover from this bacation so far.

Champagne taste on a beer budget

Yesterday, my mom and I took a ride with the kids up to Essex to get fried clams. Yummm. We do this a few times during the summer and everyone enjoys it. Aidan and Gavin eat fish and chips just like on one of their shows, Balamory. And, Ciara had her first taste of fish yesterday but she didn't seem as thrilled with it as her brothers.

So, we get the boys their fish and my mother and I get a fried clam plate and a shrimp plate which comes with french fries and onion rings. Aidan loves onion rings and so he reached over and grabbed one. Or so he thought...it was actually a fried clam. Before I could say anything, he popped it into his mouth at which point I expected him to spit it right back out. But he ate it. And then said "Mmmmm." and reached out and grabbed another. This from the boy who basically lives on hot dogs, tater tots and fish sticks. Then he reaches over and takes a shrimp off the plate and eats that, too! I just cannot believe my eyes. My mother and I were just staring at each other as he continued to pop fried clams and shrimp in his mouth as if he were eating popcorn. Even Gavin, the boy who eats everything, wouldn't try it.

So now that he eats them, is he going to ask for them when we go to the fish store? I don't even think I knew what a fried clam was until I was a teenager and even then, my parents wouldn't let me order it in a restaurant in case I wasted them. I mean, right now a fried clam plate in New England is about $18 (!) while a clam roll is about $12. Um, I don't think so. Aidan can stick to fish or hot dogs and can skim the occasional clam off his mom's plate.

Oh, the heat

It is so freaking hot here. There are all sorts of heat advisories right now to just stay inside and not venture out as the air quality is so poor. But guess where I was today in the height of the heat? Yup. Target. Yes, yes, I know....my mother already called and left a message on my machine: "Where can you possibly be in this heat? I hope you don't have those kids outside..." But I had to go to Target because guess who was found at the top of the kitchen stairs (aka The Stairs of Death because they are kind of unfinished) eating a nugget of cat food? Little Miss Ciara. Yes, that's right. She is now fully mobile AND climbing up stairs. All my other baby gates are in use so I had to go out to get one more for those awful stairs in the kitchen. And the kicker? They didn't have the kind of gate I wanted after schlepping the kids in the car in 95 degree heat. Stupid Target.

Oh, and we are supposed to get horrible thunderstorms when the cool front moves in later today. Gavin is going to be petrified. Poor guy.

Look at those legs!

I must now admit that, yes indeed, Ciara is a chubby baby. I have been denying it for some time now. Why, I don't know. I guess I envisioned myself with a petite little girl. Not that being a chubby baby is a bad thing. In fact, I think that is a pre-requisite to being a baby. lol

Intelligence

I have all three kids signed up with Harvard University's Lab for Developmental Studies. From time to time, they call when they are doing studies that fit my kids' ages and I bring them in for a "game" and then they get a prize. No big deal, but I just thought it would be interesting. So we all went yesterday and they were doing a study with Aidan and Gavin's age about counting objects. It is difficult to explain so I won't, lol. But they told me that the whole thing would last about 20 minutes or "until the child got bored". So, Aidan was up first and he lasted about 8 minutes. He was not answering their questions, he was crawling under the table looking for more animals (they were using small animal finger puppets in the study), he was looking at the Winnie the Pooh figures on the wall. It was actually kind of funny and I was chuckling to myself the whole time but also a little embarrassed. Now Gavin on the other hand, was a whole different story. He sat, listened to what the woman was asking him and pretty much stayed on task for about 20 minutes. At one point he was touching each animal and counting which is a skill that even some of my previous kindergarten students could not do. (I believe one-to-one correspondence comes around age 4 or 5). At another point during the task, he was humming Mozart while placing the finger puppets in a box. (Thank you Little Einsteins!) When we were walking out of the room, the woman running the study told me she thought he was advanced. I agreed that I thought what I saw in there was advanced too, but that I was his mother so of course I would think that.

I was thinking more about it on the way home. More specifically I was thinking about Aidan and how he had the attention span of a flea for that particular task. I was also thinking about how other people may view him based solely on a performance one specific time (such as the woman and this task). With Aidan, if it does not interest him then he will not even try to perform any sort of task. But, if the task does interest him then he will sit and be engaged for up to 30 or 40 minutes. And so now I am worried that when he gets to school, his teachers are not going to view him as "smart" in the traditional sense. I am not saying that Aidan is not smart. Not at all. He is very smart in certain areas. He has a great vocabulary and is into art and music (he also hums classical music like his brother). But ask him his letters and numbers and sometimes he won't even answer me. It is almost like he couldn't be bothered, he has other things to do.

There is a great book called 7 Kinds of Smart by Thomas Armstrong which talks about multiple intelligences. The book is divided into chapters such as "Music Smart", "Word Smart" and "Picture Smart" and as the names imply, discuss the many facets of intelligence within these categories. I had to read it in college while student teaching and I hope it is still on the course booklists.

And I hope Aidan and Gavin's future teachers have read it.

A scene from Sixth Sense

Gavin scared the crap out of me (again) today. Some background: About a year ago, Gavin had come out of his bedroom, looked up to the third floor, raised his hand and said "Hi". I looked and no one was there. Also, the psychic I visited recently strongly feels there are spirits here.
Back to today:

We are playing up in the playroom on the third floor. All of us plus the dog. Ciara is playing with her toys, Aidan is playing with a car and Gavin is building with blocks. Gavin happens to be stationed right across from the doorway. He looks at me and says "Something is coming." I asked him what and he answered "Bugs." which is his newest fascination. No, there's no bugs up here, I tell him. He goes back to playing and then says again "Something is coming. I want to shut the door." Now, I am ashamed to admit that I am very easily spooked especially when I am home alone with three small children. But I try to play it cool and just say "No, we can't shut the door or else Finn won't be able to get out and he'll bark." To which Gavin replies "But I don't like the ghosts". Aaaaaaah! Then he says it again and I am practically peeing myself but trying to remain calm and announce that it is snack time and we are all going downstairs right now.

Now that I think of it, I feel silly but I wonder what goes through his head. We don't talk about "ghosts" and they really only watch PBS or Noggin so I am not sure they would pick it up there. Actually now that I think of it, there was a Backyardigans episode the had a haunted house in it but they haven't watched them in ages.

Let's hope it was just a very vivid imagination.

Make it stop...

I just cannot stop singing the Little Einstein theme song all. day. long.

I hum it while I am making dinner. I sing it out loud as I change diapers to make the squirming stop. I hum it again as I fold clothes. It runs through my head over and over as I try to fall asleep at night. And, perhaps most disturbing, I belt it out in my best American Idol-esque performance during car rides.

It is a catchy little tune, though....

CHEESE!

Sometimes they surprise you

Normally Aidan and Gavin are completely at odds in everything we do--what show to watch, what to have for lunch, what to play with. I often here them scuffling with each other in the living room as I feed Ciara in the kitchen. "Get offa me!" "No. No. Noooooo. Muuummmy!!!" "Hey! I was usin' dat!" (usually followed by a small thud and a loud cry) and so on.

Yesterday they got along so well that I had to hold back a tear or two. It was lovely. They wanted to watch the same show in the morning. They ate breakfast quietly together without picking the food off of each other's plate and feeding it to the dog. They played (somewhat) cooperatively. During our playtime while Ciara napped, Aidan wanted a snack but Gavin didn't want to leave his blocks. So the two of us went to the kitchen and Aidan opened the fridge (a newfound skill) and found a cup of blueberries from the night before. He took the cup and I went back to the playroom with Gavin, thinking Aidan was right behind me. I realized he wasn't and called him but I could hear him coming up the steps already. He had two cups in his hand and handed one to his brother and said "Here. I got you some blueberries." Gavin said "Oh, thank you." and then they both went about their building. I was so in awe that Aidan took it upon himself to get another cup from the cabinet and pour some of his blueberries in there for his brother.

Then at lunch, Aidan kept hounding me for pickles and olives--the one thing he will eat if he doesn't like what is being offered at lunch. I was trying to get lunch for them, for me and feed the baby who was fussy in her high chair. I kept saying "One second", "Hang on", "Just a minute" and finally Gavin said "I'll get it for you!" and went over to the fridge, opened it and got both containers. Of course he then proceeded to try and open the pickle jar while I was frantically running across the kitchen saying "No, no! It's going to...." Spill. Well, at least he was trying to be helpful.

As we went on our after dinner walk, Aidan recounted the day to my husband. I overheard him "....and Gavin spilled pickle juice but it was OK. 'Cause why? It was an accident."

I just had to write about their great day yesterday because, of course, today they are at each other's throats again. ...it was nice while it lasted.

11 months

My baby girl is 11 months old today!! I just cannot believe how fast this year is going by. It is making me sort of sad as she is our last child. Why can't I just be happy and enjoy the days with her? No, I have to get all melancholy and think how she is growing up so fast and I'll never have another little newborn again, etc. etc. etc. There I go again. Somebody slap me.