A day

Twizzler DNA

Today I woke up in a semi-panic. My to-do list:
1. Naomi to ballet. Do not forget; take the poor girl, who missed 3 out of 4 January classes, to ballet.
2. Kalina MUST work on her two papers. MUST.
3. The upstairs cleaning that was supposed to happen yesterday still needs to happen.
4. Make meringue cookies for the co-op's Valentine party on Wednesday, because time is even shorter tomorrow and Kalina's been begging me to let her make these.
5. Compile a total of 88 valentines spread across three girls
6. Have Kalina and Elise practice piano for the first Kansas City piano lesson tomorrow.
7. Meals + snacks
8. Clean downstairs, too, if at all possible. And vacuuming would be totally amazing.
9. At least 2 loads of laundry, maybe 3.
10. Snow play?
11. Routine cleanup, dishes, refereeing, playing baby bunny, etc.

Plus the usual amount of schoolwork.

I began by shaving my sweater. The girls were curious, as was Matt: does that thing really work? How? Can I try? Can we empty it out and can we see what the sweater fluff looks like? Do we have to throw the fluff away (okay, they didn't actually ask that, but I know they were thinking it and I was surprised it didn't come up)? Although this item wasn't on my to-do list, it proved to be as satisfying as pretty much the rest of it. Progress!! Immediate, visible progress that doesn't get immediately undone!! It's like a drug.

At the time of sweater shaving, the girls were all in various stages of the routine called "getting ready for the day." I reminded those who needed reminding (seriously, don't we do this every day?) and helped those who needed help, with reaching outfits, brushing hair, etc. When I woke the girls at 7:15 (before the sweater), I found Naomi carefully lining up small stuffies on her bed rail. Apparently, there was already drama: one animal refused to admit that it was the bunny's turn to be line leader. Fortunately, Naomi is as good at solving her animals' conflicts as she is creating them. She was dressed in good time, and soon busy lining up all her animals, this time through her doorway and into the hallway--this time there were no line leader negotiations, as they had been fully resolved earlier. The older girls had a chuckle when I mentioned the hallway needed to be cleaned as part of morning routine. "Um, Mom, I think that's going to be a challenge!" they smiled. Soon, however, the troop of stuffies had somehow made its way downstairs, possibly by being tossed individually, and the hallway was clean shortly after breakfast, thanks to good moods and the fact that I'd whisked away not-cleaned-up possessions in a laundry basket, not to be seen again for a week, in recent memory.

Over breakfast, we chatted about our upcoming presentations for Classical Conversations, and reviewed the schedule for the day. Everyone was quick and cheerful, and I was able to whip off a couple emails while they cleaned the hallway (albeit breakfast dishes still on the counter), trying to reserve a TV for the writing class I'm teaching Wednesday and signing up for a field trip to a bakery (which I knew would be full by lunchtime). I also communicated some details about a field trip to the art museum I'm planning for Classical Conversations. Then I finished most of the breakfast dishes, and brushed my teeth and braces, which just takes a while. I put all the couch pillows back on the couches, even though they never stay there long.

As the hallway was nearly clean, I headed upstairs to let the girls know I wanted to vacuum, and pushed them to also straighten their room. They amazingly put up no fuss. Soon enough, however, Elise was hiding in the playroom because, "It seems like Kalina always takes Naomi's side when we have arguments!" Not wanting to begin a she-said she-said while I was on such a roll with cleanup, I hugged her for a while and told her she could hide out for a bit. Kalina and Naomi were all smiles, but actually got the room clean, so I finished my vacuuming. Except the playroom, which might not actually get cleaned, ever, between Christmas and spring break.

I figured Elise could use some more time, so I told Kalina to grab 10 Skittles from one of two gigantic boxes of Skittles (seriously?) her Nutcracker buddy had given her during the Nutcracker and sent her down to practice "the tricky part in Fur Elise" 10 times. She joyfully trotted off, and I finished breakfast dishes, threw in some laundry and cleaned up in the schoolroom, not only to start the day but also because my hopes were up for getting to vacuum another level today.

Back in the fall, we made blood out of
kitchen ingredients! They will
remember this one forever.

Naomi made her way downstairs with some stuffies and started dragging out blankets and couch pillows to make beds for all of them. I reasoned that Elise could probably use a visit, and I found her standing in a wooden cradle and gazing out the window. We went downstairs together, no more mention of the argument. By this time Kalina was done, so we all began school with a little Bible verse study, Valentine's-Day themed. Kalina and I then dove into her writing work, outlining a report on Sacagawea, which went pretty well since the interruptions were minimal and I was actively participating. Elise worked independently through some three-digit, subtraction-with-renaming word problems, grumbling all the way but getting them all correct. I then gave Elise 10 minutes to "see how much of this math review you can do," and she breezed through most of it, needing my help with an old-concept, new-approach problem they threw in 3/4 of the way toward the end. She decided to have her "banana break," as did Naomi, and then we worked through spelling together, while Kalina kept plugging away at her outline, still making real progress.

Not sure anyone could be
terrified of this princess
monster! I think she forgot
she was wearing a crown.

Naomi, meanwhile, was knee-deep in the project of cleaning out and reorganizing her play tent, wearing her ballet slippers. Out came brownies, pancakes (with toppings!), Lego Snow White, an assortment of necklaces, blankets, and more. She kept the couch pillow she'd claimed, along with a blanket, and added a nice doll/stuffie bed with handles, a doll and a baby bottle. She then put together a similar setup for her purple stuffed bunny.

Rather unfortunately, Naomi was also listening to the piano's "demo" feature, which plays a loop of mostly horrid songs. We all get annoyed with it, but Naomi adores turning it on and letting it run. The first song is pretty and she doesn't notice the rest, so she could listen all day. The rest of us couldn't, however, and Kalina's very reasonable suggestion of turning it down completely disrupted Naomi's peace. No agreement could be reached, even after Mommy set the limit, so the piano went off and Naomi pitched a major fit more annoying, by far, than the piano. Fortunately, she ran out of steam after just a couple minutes and returned to a placid, cheerful state.

As Kalina's progress was coming to an end, and it had been nearly an hour, I moved her to cursive and spelling, while I worked on Elise's writing assignment with her (which is mostly a simple mix of listening, answering questions in complete sentences and copywork). Today we got to read a poem, which Elise liked, and Naomi readily sat through, still tired from her meltdown. After that, we  read Madeline, which Naomi had waited patiently for and which worked well alongside Elise's poetry work. Elise then headed off to copy a stanza of the poem (capital letters at the beginning of each line!), and I played Mommy and baby bunny with Naomi for a couple minutes before helping her get ready for ballet. Then she wanted a bun, so I did the best I could with a ponytail holder and 4 bobby pins--which was enough to not fall completely out during class, only partially.

On the way to ballet, we reviewed our Classical Conversations memory work, using the CD with the songs on it. Naomi happily danced into class, where she gleefully fulfilled the all-important role of Line Leader, and actually followed the teacher rather well, despite all her missed classes. Soooo cute. Kalina dug into Captain's Dog, a book about Lewis and Clark told from the dog's point of view (totally up her alley), taking a break only to work on a periodic table scavenger hunt I'd printed off for her. Elise read a chapter of her latest Sophie Mouse book, but soon preferred to discuss imaginary animals that could live in Eliseland instead. Besides, she likes to savor her books one chapter at a time, lest she finish them too soon (don't we all know that feeling?) Fortunately, she'd brought paper and pencils, so we could draw the animals we thought of, and then name them, and next discuss their characteristics, as well as the general governance of Eliseland. I'd been anticipating using the time to plan the Wednesday writing class, but, well, imaginary animals are more fun anyway.

Sometimes Naomi still naps at
downtime!

Back at home, I gave Kalina the task of de-bunning Naomi and helping her get changed while I made lunch and Elise helped/tasted. Or tasted/helped--her favorite task. During lunch we chatted a bit, and then reviewed more memory work. Afterward, Kalina was sent off to practice piano and Elise to do handwriting while I quickly cleared dishes, brushed my teeth and took Naomi up for downtime. On this particular day, the older girls were so engrossed in whatever they were doing that they didn't sit in on stories. Naomi had chosen a ballet book and was able to very sweetly try all the moves uninterrupted. She also chose Madeline again, and I was able to answer all her questions and we were able to count all the girls in the two straight lines, several different ways, again with no interruptions. Shortly after, however, Kalina breezed in with her book and planted herself on her top bunk, not wanting to come down even for her own story (Olga Meets Her Match, by the author of Paddington), I think still upset from a question she'd gotten wrong earlier. No problem--I enjoyed reading Elise's choice to her--a humorous book about becoming president (she does not want to).

After the story, I let Elise grab a box of Valentines and get started assembling them, and since Kalina was still upstairs and Elise is such a companionable little being, I let her sit beside me and work on them during downtime. She tried her best to keep conversation to a minimum (but not a complete lull--a nice amount), respecting the fact that I had more emails to answer, math workbooks to order and planning to do (for that writing class), and did a great job putting together a fraction of the 43 valentines she's responsible for.

About 20 minutes before the end of downtime, I began to hear a few too many noises from upstairs. Apparently Kalina was feeling better and she and Naomi were playing--which usually means Kalina has created some huge inventive scenario and there's going to have noise and hilarity and stuff all over. And it was true: as I found out later, Naomi's bed had become a boat, and they needed provisions, among other things, which was somehow related to the reason there were stuffies all over the floor. I let them go because this doesn't usually happen, but I literally heard them bouncing off the walls. Kalina: "Naomi, bounce off the walls!"

Seeing an opportunity, I asked the calm, obedient child if she wanted me to send her sisters outside to play with her in the snow, and she did. Kalina and Naomi, who usually only go outside if forced unless the weather is tropical-island perfect and/or there are popsicles, couldn't argue: they knew they'd been bouncing off the walls. I told them if they stayed out long enough, they could have hot chocolate, and then pushed them all out the door. We got out the sled, and they took a few passes down a very shallow hill in our yard. Soon enough, though, I heard crying and saw a snowy Naomi being walked by her solemn sisters up the super-shallow hill toward the house. She'd fallen off. I accepted the youngest inside ("Yes, Naomi, you'll still get hot chocolate!") and denied the other two--it had been all of 15 minutes and we don't usually have snow.

I'd been using the time to clean up (because there's always cleanup to do), and make progress toward my goal of vacuuming the main level. I put a now-just-fine Naomi to work with a few minor tasks (getting the markers and paper out from under the piano, for instance) and finished the job just as the oldest two were trying, again, to see if they could come in. As it had been 30 minutes, and I wanted to move on, I let them. We did have hot chocolate. I cleaned up the kitchen while they drank and dipped graham crackers, dripping all over themselves and the clean tablecloth. As Kalina was finishing, I broke the terrible news that although she'd finished her old math workbook last week, I had forgotten to order her new one until today! I didn't mind too much--she was delighted at my mistake, and the teachers' guide told me how to begin teaching decimals, which was something Kalina was motivated to learn anyway thanks to a math game she's been playing. In 25 minutes, I managed to get some lightbulbs turned on and introduce some new concepts that would probably need another lesson anyway before she dove independently into the workbook. I sent her and her sisters upstairs with valentines while I thoroughly vacuumed downstairs. Triumph!

Kalina emerged with completed valentines just as I was finishing, and I used the opportunity to rope her into a grammar lesson. We discussed object complement nouns and direct objects while Naomi made stuffie beds on the clean slate of a freshly vacuumed floor, with couch pillows. Our lesson was cut a bit short by the fact that I really, no really, needed to start dinner, but we got the main points. I tried to start Naomi coloring a seal picture she'd wanted (she was really into seals for a while), but she refused it, saying the seals both looked like boys. Although clearly it was a mommy and baby seal, right up her alley, I was in no mood to argue beyond offering to draw eyelashes (she was having none of it). I found her a puppy coloring book and she set to work on one that was "too cute," and that I had to make a copy of before she would color it, apparently the original being too sacred. She then cut it out and I eventually wrote down a story she made up about it after dinner. I began to brown meat and chop veggies for tacos, while Elise worked on her piano, trying one piece from memory.

Matt arrived home and one or more of the girls trailed after him to chat. I finished dinner and let Matt carry the conversation, which he thankfully did. After dinner, we still had meringue cookies to make! I quickly cleaned up a few things and got out the supplies. Matt read to Naomi, and Kalina and Elise switched off on separating egg whites, with only a few mishaps. Kalina then piped the cookies into the shape of hearts (roughly--it was challenging) , while Elise sprinkled them, until she got her hair into the batter one too many times and needed to be sent up with Naomi for a bath. Kalina, who had been stressed out by the pressure of piping hearts, was only too glad to step down to the role of sprinkler, while I finished piping. Into the oven!

While the younger two were bathing, Kalina and I stole 20 minutes to work on her other writing assignment: a hopes and dreams paper. (Kalina, in class: "All my dreams are disasters and all my hopes are unlikely." Pretty often true, actually....) She wanted to write about owning a farm someday and about becoming a gem cutter. We got her thoughts down--enough for a rough draft--and then looked up beautiful photographs of waterfalls and mountains for a few minutes.

Matt had the girls washed, so I simply had to unload Naomi from the tub and coax her into pajamas. I had Kalina help clean up the room, which was still a disaster from the downtime escapades, and then Elise joined us for stories because she didn't like the book Matt's reading to her and Kalina (again, about Lewis and Clark). Miraculously, Naomi didn't put up a fuss that Elise got to choose one of the stories, as it's very rare for Elise to join us. We read peacefully, braided hair, arranged stuffies and hugged goodnight. All very good-naturedly.

I said goodnight to Kalina, too, and then began the rest of my work for the day: finishing dinner dishes, and some more cleanup to the sounds of Matt's new guitar. I sat down to a pile of laundry and Matt and I chatted a bit before he headed upstairs and all was quiet for the first time today.

Quiet! Heavenly, blessed quiet! Most nights, I finish emailing, ordering, planning, etc. Tonight, as I didn't have more pressing issues, I wrote this blog.

Then I noticed that the meringue cookies were still a bit squishy in the middle, which resulted in a flurry of Google queries regarding soft meringue cookies, salmonella, and what to do. I decided it couldn't hurt to stick them back into the oven for another try in the morning, and then reevaluate.

And Matt wonders why I rarely turn out the light until 11:30.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! It was joyful, yes, but peaceful? No. But we wouldn't have it any other way. Most of the time...

The season began quietly enough, with us recovering after another jam-packed Thanksgiving weekend and generally busy November. So before the Christmas season even officially began, we breathed. A little.

But soon, we had Christmas decorations to put up, dance rehearsals to attend and traditions to cram in--like making treats, sending cards, making more treats, singing Christmas carols and selecting gifts.

The scene while we decorated.

Elise was the first to put gifts under the tree, making them herself and wrapping them carefully. They were tiny, but enough to get us excited. So excited, we became eager for more presents to join them--which they eventually did.

New this year, the girls each signed every Christmas card. When we began this process, I believed we had a cactus' chance at the North Pole's possibility of actually finishing. But we did, even Naomi! We're getting bigger, all of us. Ironically, possibly because he's less used to taking academic orders from me than the rest of the tribe is, Matt was the toughest to nail down. Once I pointed out that even the four-year-old was doing it, however, he buckled down and spent the obligatory 15 minutes. 

Yup, all of them.

We sang at a nursing home, getting genuinely into the Christmas spirit with the people there. Elise was chosen to ring jingle bells, Kalina joyfully sang out with confidence, and Naomi survived, and even occasionally vocalized. 

Everyone wrote letters to Santa, and mostly kept them short and sweet. Naomi specifically requested a baby seal and a big sister sea turtle to go along with several of her other stuffies and, as an afterthought, a puppy. That bit of information will be important later. She also asked for a princess crown, just like Sofia's. Kalina asked for geodes and books, and Elise wanted a friend for her stuffed hamster and mermaid books. 

Thank goodness Santa uses an extra-wide throne!

After several days of the promise-remind cycle with Elise ("Mommy, now can we make fudge?" "Um, we're having breakfast, maybe later..." "It's later!"), we made fudge, and also Oreo truffles and in the hiatus in the minor stomach virus, Christmas cookies. The cookies were decorated just beautifully, or at least enthusiastically.

They have a system!

Not sure an actual North Pole elf could have
decorated a cookie more beautifully.

As usual, the girls had a delightful time shopping for each other. Naomi picked out presents at Wal-Mart with me in a sweet little shopping-trip-of-convenience, Elise carefully considered her sisters' current interests before deciding, and Kalina first led me on a treasure hunt for the perfect mermaid themed set of _____ (we ended up with Legos), and then created her own Christmas-morning treasure hunt for Naomi.

A princess begins a treasure hunt.

Of course, one of the biggest events of our Christmas was the Nutcracker, in which Kalina performed with her class as a Russian dancer. We battled the mildest stomach virus we'd ever faced during performance week, but it stopped us neither from performing nor enjoying the show. Elise and I saw it twice, even! Kalina glowed every day of that week, despite long hours, and still performs both the Russian dance and the soldier dance (for which she was an understudy) daily. 

Our Russian dancer!

Our Nutcracker date! Elise is actually smiling,
sometimes when something is really big we
get a more serious smile. She takes fun very
seriously.

What's a Nutcrakcer Mommy-Elise date
without a little treat?

And the next day, everyone came!

We saw Santa and the Charlie Brown Christmas play in one magical day, and handed out candles at the Christmas Eve service (minus Elise, for whom the stomach virus was not so mild). We watched as first St. Louis got snow (and some not-so-Christmasy thoughts passed through my mind) and then we got snow (my thoughts turned Christmasy again). 

Christmas Eve snow!

Always climbing. Probably shouldn't have
been, as it turns out she was still sick! But
still: Christmas Eve snow!

Naomi loves our outdoor decorations!

Elise managed to sit for a picture!

The kids always help decorate the tree and add
more as the season goes on. This was our view
Christmas Eve night.

All too soon, Christmas Day happened. Beautiful, white Christmas Day! Matt and I were caroled awake (actually, I'm pretty sure I had been hearing whispering and giggling for a good 20 or 30 minutes before that) and we first enjoyed the gift of a mostly healthy Elise. Then we headed downstairs, of course following our Christmas Morning rules:

1. We all have to go downstairs at the same time.

2. No changing into clothes first, it takes too long.

3. Stockings first.

4. Then tree, and everybody has to watch everybody else open every gift.

5. Hot chocolate.

Thanks for the earmuffs, Santa!

The girls were delighted by the earmuffs Santa left, in addition to a few of the things they'd asked for. Naomi got the baby seal and big sister sea turtle she was hoping for (how did Santa find the exact right sizes and everything?!?), Kalina found a whole bunch of geodes, and Elise received a friend for her stuffed hamster and a wooden sleigh puzzle.

I was still concerned about Elise's stomach, but we agreed on hot chocolate made with water instead of milk, and a Christmas cookie to nibble on throughout the day. This worked, as Elise was able to eat honestly as much as she wanted (which still wasn't too much) and also didn't feel left out when the rest of us ate treats to our hearts' content (mostly).

The precious Christmas cookie it took Elise
a day to eat!

Under the tree, Kalina found the ukulele she'd been hoping for (with a brand name of Kalena--what are the chances?), Elise found the Legos she hadn't allowed herself to anticipate, in addition to a second set from Kalina she hadn't even asked for, and Naomi found a princess doll. But the most important thing under the tree was something that originally was not:

Naomi, holding a square box: "And a cute, little puppy popped out!" Nope, instead, two mommy-made doll dresses.

Naomi, holding a flat, rectangular package: "And here's the puppy!"

Now Ariel the mermaid can live in water
or on dry land!

Not a puppy, a little play tent.

Kalina plays a Kalena!

It only took one glance for Matt and I to realize that for one of our daughters, anyway, it's not Christmas without a puppy. We both had the same thought: tucked away down in the basement was a cute stuffed puppy we had bought as a gift once and then not needed. Destined to be a regift, and then forgotten, the puppy resurfaced in the move. Quick as a flash, Matt wrapped it and tossed it surreptitiously under the tree, and then handed it to Naomi in the next motion. Naomi immediately named it Buttercup, put a princess dress on it, carried it around the rest of the day and told everyone it was her favorite gift. Whew, that was close. Sometimes, kids have to learn a lesson. Sometimes, though, they don't have to learn it at age 4 on Christmas morning.

Naomi lives in her own little world, where
puppies always arrive for Christmas, and
everyone's a princess.

Princess dress, princess crown, and puppy!

Later, Grandpa arrived and we chatted with Uncle Tom and Aunt Nancy via technology. Dinner was on the late side because we were having so much fun playing, and Elise managed a few bites of pie for dessert. 

Merry Christmas dinner!

Kalina drive her Lina ladybug!

Two days later, we headed north for a visit with Matt's family, including adorable cousin Dean. The girls spent the first evening in a whirlwind, revisiting the people, places, books and old favorite toys they'd enjoyed in years past. Animals were bedded down in the triple-decker bunk beds Grandma rigs up every year, Dean was gushed over and books were perused.

Grateful that everyone could be together again!

The next day, we opened more presents, enjoyed lots of books and a few games and played in the snow--after all, the rest of our visit it was supposed to be too cold (and it was!). Which is probably why we have no pictures of the girls outside this trip!

Books...

A new blue truck!

books...

And more books!!!

And a game!

The second full day of our visit, we visited the local children's museum that we, amazingly, had never been to (at least not in the last few decades). Elise climbed and slid down the giant structure, Kalina and Naomi "ice" skated on carpet, we all tried a laser maze over and over until it got too busy, we helped Dean wash a big car, we rocketed ping-pong balls, we made clay pots, and we generally explored to our hearts' content before collapsing at a nearby Subway. We also learned a very important lesson: arrive when the museum opens! Fortunately, we learned it the easy way: by walking past the very, very, very long line as we were headed out.

The cleanest car in the entire world, and
a really neat exhibit! 

Probably could've launched these ping-pong
balls all day.

We also enjoyed seeing Matt's extended family and catching up with them (and the desserts!!!), making crafts and getting excited about Christmas 2018, when we're expecting to be joined by another little, adorable, sweet cousin--and the kind that could even where our favorite hand-me-downs!

Cousin hug!

 It was hard to leave the cold north, especially for the almost-as-cold south, but we had one or two more stops to make. We saw a friend of mine and her family, and then celebrated New Year's Eve with some old family friends that just mesh so nicely with our kiddos (the youngest two name beloved dolls and stuffies after each other, the middle two could nearly be twins and the oldest two have a great rapport). We were both on the tail end of trips, as they had arrived home only an hour before we showed up, so we were at the same level of general patience and tiredness all around.

Wit the help of a clock that was reset easily, we rang in the New Year twice: the first time with sparkling cider, and the second with party poppers. The kids were in bed by 9:15 and the grownups well before 11:00.

Sparkling cider!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!