The alert child

Matching, more of less!

I've heard it more times than I sat down today: "Wow, your baby is so alert!" or "Look at those wide eyes!" And I've heard it for each of my babies, often, and enthusiastically. Sometimes with a sense of wonder. And the other day, even, "That's horrible!" From a dad who knows. Alertness seems to be a hallmark of the Odegaard-Hanks lineup.

It's not horrible, really, but I can totally see why he said that. I'm thrilled that my kids are so tuned in. I do wish they would choose daylight hours to be engaged with the world as opposed to the bleary-eyed hours, but I suppose we can't be picky.

3:00 a.m. (Okay, maybe I exaggerate: I
think this was closer to 9:30 a.m.)

Yes, I do think this inherent alertness must be the reason my babies sleep horribly at night: I've tweaked and tried absolutely everything else. It's also why at five and three they would often rather converse with the grownups than play. It's a wonderful thing, but it can be a trying thing, too. When the kids are 100% alert, Mommy has to be, too. And we'd never change it for the world! Except sometimes.

And so, in our most desperate moments of exhaustion, Matt and I try to convince ourselves that all their alertness must be due to sheer genius, or at least brilliance.

I have no idea if that's true. But we must believe it if we are to keep going. Sometimes I think they really should just watch more TV.

Elise's best "baby penguin"
face, playing with the "igloo."

The first 10 months aside, alert children really will fit in well with Matt and I. We're all learning, all the time. And since it's January and nothing else interesting is happening, here's a rundown of what we're all working on.

Daddy spends his day learning about agriculture, business, and how the two relate. On his way to and from work, he keeps up with current events. In the evenings, he reads about anything from politics to the economy to farming methods to carpentry to bunny keeping. He has also recently learned how to apply conditioner to girls' hair, since he's had to step into the role, temporarily, of hair washer while Naomi refuses to learn how to fall asleep and stay asleep at night, even though she's perfectly happy to for naps (IT'S NOT THAT HARD, FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!!).

I am learning, too. Even more about infant sleep (it can be really bad even if you pretty much do everything right), and how to use a Kindle (yay!). Also, how to make those little paper woven heart basket thingies, how many animals you can make out of a kid's handprint and some imagination, Spanish, all about the Entitlement Epidemic that's plaguing our children, and several ways to use kale.

But really, it's the kids who are doing the really good learning.

Elise's favorite part of snow:
snow cream! Yum!

Elise is working on all things "big girl." When it's convenient, that is. Not so much, however, when I remind her that big girls don't suck their thumbs, big girls hold a writing utensil properly, big girls can clear their dishes from the table (even if they're temporarily baby kittens) and big girls can hang up their coat, or at least drape it over the pile on the shoe rack in the entryway. 

But she really is, in fact, making "big girl" progress all the time. Thumb sucking, for instance, is almost a thing of the past. In fact, I thought it was when I bought her a reward Care Bear (and one for Kalina!) a week ago, but she has since relapsed a bit. While I've been putting a bug in her ear about quitting ever since her dentist appointment last August, it was actually her resolve (and a bloody, swollen, dried-out winter-weather thumb) that made her want to quit virtually cold turkey, using Band-Aids to help remind her (she can, by the way, do a big-girl job of putting the Band-Aids on by herself). It's painfully hard for the poor girl, as it would be for anyone quitting an addiction like that. Heck, I can't stay out of the chocolate, personally. She occasionally consoles herself with a water bottle. As long as it isn't anything stronger. Like juice.

And Elise can get herself dressed! Except her purple sparkle tights, which probably rules out about 1/4 of her outfits (we have two pairs, because they are so fantastically Elise).

She's also learned, recently, to skid-steer her training wheels while riding her new bike in her living room, and how to crack an egg. She knows most of her ABCs, and some of the letter sounds, and can spell her name and Kalina's name. The girl has also recently learned to count to the thirties or so, skipping only a few of the teens and most of the twenties, and Kalina's teaching her numbers and colors in Spanish.

Elise will also tell you that she can read! At least one book! She uses the "memorization" method.

And of course, Elise is learning plenty of things that we would prefer she didn't. For instance, to be afraid of any tiny noise she hears in the basement (which sends both of the happily playing girls charging up the stairs), and that even snow Mommy has said is "dirty" tastes good. Blech. On a sadder note, Elise has recently learned that even if she shares a bite of her cookie, that does not mean she will be shared with and in the meantime, her cookie is now smaller (Mommy and Daddy always share!). It's a cold, hard world out there sometimes.

Three seems to be the perfect age for learning, in fact. While Matt and I (and Kalina) have worked on various topics with her, Elise also seems to learn best by  listening in on conversations. 

Kalina's favorite part of
snow: the "playground" she
made!

While Elise is learning major skills every day, by dint of being three, Kalina is honing and gaining confidence in the skills she already has. She learns best through one-to-one contact. So if I (or Matt) sit beside her, she will learn. If I don't, being beside me (or Matt) is her top priority, and learning will happen only when that equilibrium is reached.

Academically, I've been printing off 1st-grade phonics worksheets and activities for her. They are a bit of a challenge, but only a bit. Nevertheless, learning to read is actually a very low priority for her. I've tried to convince her that I will still read to her every bit as much as I do now, but either she doesn't believe me or she just doesn't want to learn to read. She can read, she just chooses not to unless forced. I try not to push it too much and back off for months at a time if she needs a break.

Kalina is learning piano and Spanish, too. And how to use my new Kindle, and ride Elise's new bike. But one of her favorite things to learn about is babies! Mostly, to hear stories of when she was a baby.

Some of what Kalina learns nowadays is rather abstract, such as, how to "sell" an idea without being bossy (I told her about my advertising days, and she could totally relate), that it's okay not to be perfect, and strategies for surviving a party in which you only know the birthday girl and are shy (Strategy #1: Find someone who's not shy, and will do most of the talking for you--for instance, your sister. Strategy #2: Realize that anyone else who's shy is probably more scared of you than you are of them.).

Kalina is also learning that mommies often smell like chocolate, especially during stressful times. "Mommy, what's that wonderful smell?" "Mommy, you smell great!" I always play dumb. She needn't know the secrets of the maternal chocolate stash until she's at least a teenager.

Naomi's favorite part of snow: making
a baby snow angel!

And Naomi? She is learning her big sisters' faces (and that they're friendly faces, and occasionally funny faces), how to breathe even when it's windy (our little seedling has been grown mostly indoors) and that Mommy is kind of a pushover. Naomi learns best, it seems, when lying on her playmat and just watching, and often batting, and sometimes mouthing things, but mostly just watching. She can watch her big sisters bounce around for quite some time without getting bored.

Poor Naomi has also learned that once we start shoving her into her carseat, there's no return: a carseat is inevitable. She has taught us, however, to do this as rarely as possible. We have been good learners. We have also all learned that the swing is more optional than the carseat if the protests are strong enough.

A different perspective on Naomi.

She also learned how to roll over from back to front on Friday (she was motivated by trying to touch Kalina's bright orange hoppy ball), and from front to back on Saturday. Naomi knows and loves her stuffed puppy, and that if she cries pointedly and looks at me, I will come over. 100% of the time. She also recognizes that when I carry her in her birthday suit into the bathroom, it's bath time, and braces expectantly for the water accordingly. She likes baths, she just has to mentally prepare for them, and you can see it happen.

Triple story time!

Maybe all this is why she hasn't been sleeping? Or maybe she just doesn't want to miss a thing. I suppose I can't blame her.